Fading Scars: A Series of Malec One Shots

Summer Romance

I laughed. "Oh okay then. I'd hate to know what they think of us then. You're gay. I'm bi. We have two sons. One of them is a Shadowhunter. We must be the talk of the office!"

"They let us keep Rafael, Magnus! Do you know how hard I had to fight to make that happen?! I'm trying to do the same for other families as well!"

The veins in his neck bulged as he yelled at me. Alec never yelled. He barely even rose his voice when the boys were doing something they shouldn't. He spoke to them in a calm, stern voice and they both knew he meant business. Every time.

I remember hearing a sniffle that day and turned to see Max and Rafael peeking around the corner of the doorway, Max wiping his tears and Rafael gripping his brother's shoulders with protective hands. They must've heard the fight and came out to see what was going on. The look on their faces nearly broke my heart that day. Like it was the worst thing that could have ever happened to them.

"Daddy? Why are you and papa fighting?" Max whispered.

Alec glanced at me before gathering the little blueberry into his arms. "It's okay, Max. Papa and I were just a little upset with each other. We weren't fighting."

"Sounded like fighting to me," Rafael grumbled. He delevoped a sassy personality over the past four years. He really did come out of his shy shell.

"Well, we weren't. Okay? Now go back to bed. It's a school night. You don't want to be tired during your studies tomorrow, do you?" I ruffled Rafe's hair and he smiled. "I know how much you love learning new runes. And Max loves trying new spells."

Max smiled as he cuddled into Alec's neck. "I set my socks on fire today, daddy."

I frowned. "And you didn't say anything to anybody about this?"

"It's okay, papa. I put it out before it spread," Rafael seemed pretty proud of himself so I pat him on the shoulder, which seemed to please him. "Max isn't supposed to practice spells without you. I told him this already."

Alec smirked over Max's head at me. His dimples smile made me smile, regardless of the events that just occurred ten minutes ago. "We're very proud of you, Rafael. You took responsibility and action. That's very grown up of you."

That was the last time Max ever set his clothes on fire. But that's not to say he didn't set anything else on fire. Three years later (during summer, coincidentally) while Rafael was away at the institute for his training, Max made the microwave explode. No magic was involved. He just made it explode by putting something he shouldn't have inside. He was devilish like that. He was always getting into trouble.

"I'm sorry, papa. I was experimenting with some key ingredients for a recipe." Max had discovered cooking channels recently. His new obsession was cooking. Or trying to, anyway.

"What were you trying to make? It stinks in here," I plugged my nose as I opened the door to the microwave. The inside was a complete disaster. Burnt to a crisp, smoke coming out of it. I remember at the time thinking why did this child get into so much trouble?

"The box said 30-35 minutes in 450 degrees Fahrenheit. I couldn't find the temperature so I set the microwave to 35 minutes. These were the results, unfortunately...." Max was old enough now to conduct experiments, whether it be with magic or my beloved kitchen. Most of his tests turned out to be a disaster, but that never did stop him from trying again.