Driving alone in a car with Magnus Bane was a nightmare. Turns out, as Alec discovered the hard way, Magnus liked to fidget. He tapped the same button five times. He rolled the window up and down. He changed the station over ten times.
"Can you not pick at everything in sight? You're like a damn kid on a road trip. Sit still like a normal person," Alec spat as Magnus rolled down the window for the millionth time.
"Geez. Sorry. What's wrong with you, Grumpy Cat?" Magnus rolled up the window. "Are you mad because Jace dumped all the responsibility of looking after me on you?"
Alec took a quick glance at him. "What? No. Of course not. I'm mad because you won't sit the fuck still. It's making me anxious just looking at you squirm around like that."
Magnus frowned. "Sorry. Didn't realize it was bothering you that much."
They went quiet as the light turned red. From his peripheral vision, Alec could see Magnus bopping his head to an unknown song. His fingers drummed on his knee as he went to the beat of the music inside his head.
"I've never been to a Broadway show before," Magnus said.
Alec looked at him. "Huh?"
"Broadway? The famous stage where musicals and plays are held? There's a sign for a musical right there," Magnus pointed to a giant ad that flashed across a screen. "I've always liked Annie. My mom used to sing her songs when I was a kid. Never did see the play though. Couldn't afford it."
"Sorry to hear that. You can always rent the movie."
Magnus snorted. "Movie? Oh, Alexander. The movie is nothing compared to the real thing. Not that I would know. I was told it's an incredible experience. Hopefully I get to see a Broadway musical one day." He pat Alec on the arm. "That's my building there."
Alec peered up at the skyscraper. "For real? This is where you live?"
"Yeah. What's wrong with it?"
"N-nothing. I'm just surprised. It's smack dab right in the middle of the city. Why would anyone want to live here? It's madness."
Alec pulled into the back of the building where the parking lot was. It was an underground lot, which could only mean that there were a lot of people in the building. Finding a free space was a pain, but he managed to find one eventually.
"I like the madness. Reminds me I'm still alive," Magnus said after ten minutes of silence. "The noise is soothing. If I tried to sleep with complete silence, I think I'd go insane."
"I can't sleep with noise. It bothers me. Even having the tv on with the lowest volume annoys the hell out of me." Alec looked up to see Magnus smirking at him. "Why are you smiling at me like that for? It's creepy."
Magnus shrugged. "I just think you're cute. The little imagery of you waking up in the morning with bed head made me smile. Like what you have now."
Alec's hand automatically went to his hair. "This is my natural hair. Not bed head."
".......oh. Then it looks lovely. Let's go to my apartment, shall we? The quicker we do this, the better."
"What's the rush?" Alec asked as he climbed out of his car. The door alarm chirped as he pressed the lock button on his keys.
"No rush. I'm just so eager to work on the Morgenstern case with you," Magnus cleared his throat. "I just want to pick up a few things. If they're still there...."
Alec caught his mumbling. "What's that supposed to mean? Why wouldn't your stuff not be there?"
Magnus said nothing. The elevator ride to the 37th floor felt like it took forever, but when the familiar ding meant they were on their floor, Magnus was only too eager to get out and into the hallway.
"So how many people live in this building exactly?" Alec asked. A woman wearing a maid's outfit walked by. She smiled up at him. He smiled back.
"I'm not really sure. A lot. That's all I can tell you, really. I don't care much for getting to know my neighbors. Never did. This one's mine. Number 112," Magnus knocked on the door, which was unlocked much to Alec's surprise.
"Why is it unlocked?" Instinct took over and Alec reached for his gun at his waist. He stopped Magnus from opening the door, taking the lead like he was taught in police school. Leaning up against the wall beside the door, he pushed it open with a hand and then raised his gun. "NYPD! Is anyone in here?"
He signalled for Magnus to stay out in the hall before making a quick sweep of the apartment. Once he was done, he let Magnus inside.
"Apartment's all clear. No one's here," he whispered.
Magnus rolled his eyes. "Of course there's no one here, dummy. I live alone. Unless you count Chairman Meow."
"Chairman Meow? Is that your cat?" Alec froze when he stepped in a piece of broken glass. Looking down at the floor, he noticed a broken picture frame under his boots.
Along with everything else in the apartment.
"Home sweet home. Welcome to casa de Magnus. Me casa et su casa. It's not exactly at its prime but trust me. It's not always this messy."
Alec put his gun back in his holster. "Christ, Magnus. Were you robbed?" He looked around the room. There were no bedrooms, aside from a large door off to the far end which led to the bathroom, and Magnus' bed was (or should've been) leaning up against the far wall on the left, overlooking the city. His kitchen was also a mess but looked to be quite spacious. The large flat screen that looked like it used to be on the wall was now on the floor, screen cracked in half.
"I guess you could say that. Yeah, I was definitely robbed. But nothing was taken. Nothing important, anyway.."
Alec picked up a lamp off the floor. "So someone came in here, wrecked the place for a good time, then left again? Why not take something? Like the tv? That expensive microwave over there?"
Magnus was quiet for a moment. "They were looking for something."
Alec raised an eyebrow. "Such as?"
"Something they obviously couldn't find, so they trashed the place. I pay sixteen hundred a month for this space. Given to me cheap by a friend of mine. Now it's completely wrecked....."
Magnus slumped down onto his mattress, which was in a heap on the floor near the window. Frowning, Alec grabbed a toppled over stool and sat down on top of it. "Who do you think could've done this? Do you have any enemies?"
Magnus barked a laugh at this. "Where do I start? When you con people for a living, the list of enemies you make is never ending. Everyone wants revenge on the man who conned them of their money and were too stupid to fall for his words."
Alec shrugged, considering this to be true. "But who's at the top of the list? I can search the criminal database back at the precinct to see if there's a match. We could scope him out. Question him."
"Not him. Her."
"Huh?"
Magnus sighed. "It wasn't a him who trashed my home. It was a her. I know who did it. I just don't want her getting into more trouble than she's already in."
Alec edged his seat closer, resting his elbows on his knees. "Magnus. You have to tell me who robbed your apartment. This is my job-"
"And I understand that it's your job. But it's also my job to keep my mouth shut when it comes to her. You don't know what she's capable of. She's scary as hell."
"I'm not afraid."
Magnus looked up at Alec, his brown eyes soft and caring. "I know, Alec. I know."
A soft meow broke out from under the bedsheets. Surprised, Alec went over to the bundle of blankets on the floor and lift them. A small tabby lay curled underneath them, purring as it licked it's paws.
"Let me guess. Chairman Meow?" Alec asked. With the tabby now in his arms, he scratched under the cat's chin with a finger. Chairman purred even louder and closed his eyes.
"Chairman! There you are! I thought for sure she took you with her!" Magnus clapped his hands like an excited child on Christmas morning. "Thank god he's okay. If I'd lost Chairman....."
Alec nodded. "I get it. I had a dog once when I was a kid. It got hit by a car."
"That's terrible."
"Yeah. Never had another pet since. My little brother Max is trying to convince our parents to get a dog but I told him no. He's not going to suffer the same way I did."
Chairman looked up at Alec and rubbed his tiny head against his chin, eventually licking him with his tiny pink tongue.
Alec smiled. "I think he likes me."
"He likes your stubble. Anything rough, Chairman will rub up against it...." Wish I could feel your stubble Magnus thought. "Just let me grab a few things before we head on again."
Alec took a look around the messy room. "What about the mess? Shouldn't we clean that up first?"
Magnus waved a dismissive hand. "Leave it. I'll call my cleaning lady later. She knows the place better than I do. I'm hardly ever home anyway."
Once Magnus picked up a few things (toothbrush, clothes, the essentials) they were on the road again. This time, much to Alec's surprise, Magnus didn't fidget. He sat as still as a statue and watched the cars and people pass by the passenger window. Chairman sat in the backseat, curled up into a ball sound asleep.
"Your cat is pretty good with car rides," Alec said.
"Yeah, that's his talent. The ability to go on car rides and not puke," Magnus chuckled. "Speaking of talents, what are you good at?"
Alec looked at him a moment before returning his concentration to the road. "Um.....I don't really have one. I'm a good cop-"
"That's not a talent. Talents are like art, music, dancing. Those kinds of things."
Alec was stumped. He never really went and tried to find his talent when he was a kid. He was much too busy trying to please his parents and make them proud of him. He didn't want to do anything else except please them.
"It's okay if you don't know. Lots of people don't find their talent until later in life. It's perfectly normal." Magnus reached out to pat Alec's leg, but thought better of it. "I'm good at tarot card readings."
Alec snorted. "Tarot card readings? Is that the thing where you flip cards and guess the future? That's all bullshit."
Magnus looked offended. "Yeah? Well you're.....bullshit. I'm really good at it. I have my cards here if you want me to do a reading one day. I'll take a look into your dull and boring future."
Alec rolled his eyes but said nothing as he pulled up into the parking lot of his building. "Here we are. Casa de Alec. Me casa most definitely isn't su casa so don't get too comfortable."
Magnus marvelled at the elevator that they stepped into. It was metal (like most elevators were, but the pulley system was a crank that you pushed down on and worked as the "UP" button.
"Damn, this building must be ancient...." Magnus watched as the walls around him moved and the elevator began to move up.
"It's not that old. If it can withstand one of Jace's summer bashes, it can withstand anything," Alec said as the elevator came to a stop. He opened the small metal gates before opening the large metal door. Bending down, he lift it with the slightest of ease, the muscles in his forearms flexing under his skin as he did so. Magnus quickly looked away from the pushed up sleeves of Alec's jacket.
The apartment was....cozy. Spacious, but cozy. It looked like Magnus' place, but more rustic. The kitchen looked large enough (Magnus couldn't wait to make Alec a home cooked meal) as did the living room. A flat screen was on the wall above an electric stove, which was turned on to keep the place warm.
"Want something to drink?" Alec asked. "I got milk, orange juice, I think this is cranberry juice....and water."
Magnus smirked. Alec looked a little nervous as he stood by the open fridge awaiting an answer. "Is alcohol an option?"
Alec turned red. "I-I don't really...uh....d-drink...." He opened one of the cupboard door. "Jace left this bottle of vodka the last time he was here. I never touched it. You can have it if you want."
"Fantastic. May I have a glass?" Once he was handed a glass, Magnus popped open the bottle and poured the clear liquor into it. He took a sip. "Oh. Wow. How long has this been in your cupboard?"
Alec shrugged. "Beats me. A year? I don't really know. Jace leaves stuff here all the time. I don't keep track of how long I have it."
Magnus took another sip. "It's fine. I was just wondering. It's a tad strong." He reached into his bag and took out a deck of cards. "So how about that bullshit tarot card reading?"
Alec laughed. "I'd rather not. I'm in control of my own future, thanks." He yelped as Magnus grabbed his hand and began to feel the palm of it with his fingers. "Uh, what are you doing?"
Magnus said nothing. He was much too enthralled with Alec's hand to even register what the beautiful cop just said. Alec's hand was pale, much like the rest of his body, with long, slim fingers dusted with blonde hairs. They were larger than his own hands, Magnus knew that much. Flipping it over (though in palm reading, you don't read the top part of the hand) he traced the veins along the back of Alec's hand with a gentle finger, pleased to see goosebumps rise on Alec's arms.
"This is getting weird," Alec croaked, his voice cracking.
"Shh. Your future is clear to me. You....will fall in love with an unexpected person. You open up your heart to them and it's beautiful. I also see a bright career ahead of you. And......pain. Much pain."
Alec looked down at his hand as if he too could see what Magnus was seeing. "What kind of pain?"
Magnus shook his head. "It's hard to say. It could be anything. All I know is that you're going to suffer, but you won't suffer alone. Which is a good thing, I suppose. Nobody likes to suffer alone."
"No. I suppose they don't...." Alec looked up into Magnus' eyes. They were so close to each other that he could smell the alcohol off Magnus' breath. They were so close that he could almost kiss him-
"Clearly, I'm not drunk enough for my readings. If I down the bottle of this cupboard crap, I'll be able to move mountains with my mind!" Magnus laughed and pulled away from Alec, gulping down contents from the bottle. "You wouldn't mind if I stay the night, do you? Until my place is cleaned up?"
Alec, somewhat disappointed that Magnus pulled away from their rather intimate moment, shook his head. "No. I don't mind. My couch is a futon. It should be comfy enough."
"What, we're not going to share a bed together?" Magnus teased. "Relax. I'm joking. We're not at that stage in our relationship yet. Besides. You look like you snore anyway."
"I do not-I don't snore!" Alec exclaimed. "You....snore!"
Magnus shook his head, taking another drink out of the bottle. "You really need to work on your comebacks, Alexander."