Work goes by as normal and by the end of the day I'm ready to curl up and have a nap. Magnus meets me in the lobby and immediately winds his fingers with mine, giving my hand a slight squeeze as we walk outside.
"I was thinking we could walk?" He says, glancing over at me. I smile, and despite being tired, nod.
"Yeah, sure." He smiles back and swings our hands between us a bit as we walk. I chuckle softly at the childish gesture. He grins brightly before speaking.
"When did you want to move in?" He's so blunt about everything, it's one of the things I love most.
"Whenever works for you, though I should call my landlord..." I shudder at the thought and sigh deeply. Magnus looks over at me with concern but I just shake my head and smile. "He's just a bit of an odd guy." He nods and we continue walking in silence for a moment.
"Today? How about today?" I raise a brow and look over at him.
"Today," I state, knowing, like with most things he says, that Magnus isn't kidding.
"Yeah, why not? We'll take one of my cars and go pick up your things." I smile and nod, just as eager as he is. When we arrive back at his place he walks into his room, gesturing for me to follow. Humming something random, he grabs a pair of jeans out of his closet and tosses them to me. "Should fit!" He calls and I chuckle as I change into them, noting the glitter they're dusted with and rolling my eyes. Magnus comes out and tosses me my own gray v-neck from the other night. It seems like my laundry just slowly became intertwined with his, not that either of us minded. The small domestic things like that came naturally to our relationship. We both change, more than comfortable in front of each other even after such a short time. I fold up my suit and set it on the chair near the bed before following Magnus back into the living room. He goes over to a key hanger on the wall and taps his bottom lip with his fingertip before picking up a set of keys.
"Come on, let's go move you out." I smile and follow him outside and around the side of his house to where there's a garage door I never seemed to notice. He presses a button on the key fob and it opens up revealing several different vehicles. He presses another button and a shiny, fast looking silver car blinks it's lights. I raise my brows, impressed as he slides behind the wheel. Slowly, I get in and look at him as he fiddles with the radio. The soft purr of the car is so quiet it's barely noticeable.
"What kind of car is this?" I ask him, running my fingertips across the smooth leather interior.
"I think a Mercedes-Benz? I don't know, I liked how fast it went." I chuckle and lean over to press a soft kiss to his cheek. He's just so...Magnus. We arrive at my apartment and I slip out.
"Wait here, okay? It'll literally take me like 15 minutes to pack up." He raises a brow and slips out.
"No freaking way, Alexander, are you leaving me out here alone." I roll my eyes but know it's no use arguing. Instead, I let him follow me up the old staircase to my apartment. Full of embarrassment, I unlock the door and walk in. I'm greeted by the usual silence, the white walls suffocating and horribly plain now with Magnus here. He doesn't say a word and not a trace of judgment is in his eyes. He claps his hands together and smiles at me, not looking around us at all.
"Well? Let's get started!" I relax and mentally thank him for this. He's really too good to me. I grab some boxes from the closet and hand one to him.
"Uhm, bookshelf?" I question and he nods, getting to work. I pack up my bedroom, noticing just how little I own. We're done with everything in barely an hour, car all loaded up and ready to move me in with Magnus. I don't feel nervous like I should, just relieved, which tells me again how I've made the right choice in saying yes. On the way back I call my landlord. With a bit of grumbling, he tells me to just drop the keys off. I smile a bit when I hang up, feeling like it's all real now. I'll be living with Magnus Bane.
By 7:00, we're finished unpacking my things, the necessities at least. Some boxes were deemed unnecessary at this point, like dishes, so we tucked them in a closet. Without even having to say it, we decided that Magnus and I would share a room, but that the gorgeous purple room I'd fallen in love with could also be mine to do whatever I'd like with.
"I'll order us some take out. Chinese okay?" He asks as he hangs his coat up. I nod, exhausted and flop down on the couch. He chuckles and sits down on top of my legs as he calls. I listen vaguely to the one-sided conversation, dozing off a bit as he orders. When he hangs up, he taps my hip with his hand until I open my eyes.
"We're taking a day off work tomorrow." He informs me, a playful glint in his eyes. I cock a brow and look at him sleepily, yet curious.
"We are?" He nods and grins.
"We're going shopping." He says excitedly. I groan.
Shopping with Magnus is worse than shopping with Izzy or Jace. Mainly because with those two, all I'm forced to do is follow along, comment on outfits they try on and carry bags. But with Magnus, he focuses everything on me.
"Try these jeans on, they'll make your butt look good." Or: "Oh. My. God. You need some colour in your wardrobe, Alexander. Here, try this obnoxiously bright green shirt on even though it's the colour of vomit." Okay, so maybe I tweaked his words a bit. But it's sort of like that.
"Here, I think this suit would look nice on you." We're in the middle of an extremely fancy men's clothing store, Indochino. The walls are lined with shelves of shiny dress shoes and pairs of fancy dress socks. There's an entire section for ties and the clothing racks are full of expensive looking suits that I would've had to spend my entire old paycheck on. I pulled some money from my savings account for today, knowing damn well that the paycheck I'll get from Magnus will dwarf anything I'm used to. Besides, I figure it's time for a celebration, even if it's in the form of doing something I hate. Like shopping. But somehow, like with everything, Magnus makes it moderately enjoyable.
"It's a bit bright, no?" I ask, worrying my bottom lip between my teeth as I stare at what they refer to as an 'indigo' coloured suit. He rolls his eyes and puts it back before grinning and pulling a different one out.
"You're right. 'Deep Teal' is definitely more your colour." He gushes as he hands the sales associate the suit to put in a room for me. I can't help but smile at his passion, knowing he loves fashion more than almost anything. He hums to himself as he wanders, I follow a step behind as his fingers delicately shuffle through the pressed suit jackets and pants. "How would you feel about grape?" He asks, turning to me with a deep purple suit. To be honest, I don't mind it as much as I should. I shrug and tilt my head a bit, reaching out to smooth the fabric between my fingers.
"Does it go with my...skin tone?" I ask warily, trying to understand what we're going for here. He doesn't seem to notice my nervousness and tilts his head also as he appraises the colour against my wrist.
"Yes, I'd say so." He hands it to the associate along with a few others; one charcoal (something I'd wear all on my own), a soft beige one that I never would've picked out for myself, a burgundy one that I actually am quite fond of, and one sleek coal one that he insists I'll need for 'corporate parties'. I don't even think I want to know what he means by that, but I just press a quick kiss to his cheek and follow him to the fitting rooms.
"Well, just let me know if you need any help in there," Magnus smirks and winks at me, and this time, I only blush a little, rolling my eyes at the comment and feeling my heart stutter at his light laughter that follows me into the change room. I button up the first dress shirt and slide the jacket of the first suit on. Once I'm finished changing, I slide the polished black dress shoes on and step out. I don't look at myself in the mirror, letting my eyes find Magnus across from me. His eyes wander over me slowly, as if he doesn't want to miss a single inch and his lower lip is trapped underneath his teeth. I wait anxiously for him to speak. I'm almost too nervous to turn around and look at myself, afraid that I look absolutely horrid in the beige suit I have on. Magnus surprises me, as always and steps forward, smoothing his palms over my shoulders and down my chest, resting at the cinched part of the jacket at my waist. We stand like that, in hushed silence for a moment, the associate nowhere to be seen before he speaks.
"Oh my goodness, Alexander." He breathes out, his voice lulled and awed as he finally pulls his eyes away from my body to meet my gaze. I know I look nervous and he can see it in my eyes. With a bashful smile, he kisses me, and it's different than normal. It's reassuring, but also endearing in a way. He pulls away too soon and charts his fingertips across my cheekbone. "You look absolutely stunning, Alexander Lightwood." I feel the heat rise to my cheeks underneath his fingertips and he smiles again. Everytime he smiles, I swear he gets more beautiful, as if that were even possible. I find the corners of my lips tugging up in response and I capture his lips in my own.
"You know, Magnus, it's going to take a lot longer for me to try all of these on if you spend this much time undressing me with your eyes everytime I come out." He chuckles, but blushes nonetheless and lets me look at myself in the mirror. He's being quite honest, which shocks me. The pale beige blends well with my slightly darker skin tone, my eyes bright in contrast to the simple attire. I smile at my reflection and head back into the dressing room. Like anything, I could probably learn to enjoy shopping with Magnus.
We finally leave the store with several bags containing a couple of pairs of new dress shoes, several ties and a few new suits that Magnus says he cannot wait to see me in at the office. I blush at that, imagining his eyes roaming over me over a mug of coffee in the meeting room, in front of his friends and our colleagues instead of in the small lobby area of Indochino with no other eyes on us. We shop around a bit more, Magnus buying himself a few things here and there including some scarves and blazers. We throw a bit of colour into my own wardrobe with some jackets and coloured skinny jeans. He even convinced me to buy a 'salmon' (pink) dress shirt that he says will go well with one of the black blazers I bought. I rolled my eyes but bought it anyways. It was a lot less noticeable than the pink suit he had me try on at one point. We load up the copious amount of shopping bags into his car before opting to go out for lunch.
"I know this one place, it's not super fancy but they serve amazing sushi." I offer, glancing sideways at him. Magnus smiles, turning his head to me as we hit a red light. "I went there once with Jace and Max."
"I love sushi," I tell him to take a right up ahead and with casual conversation, we make our way to the restaurant. It's not too busy, considering it's barely lunch time, and we're seated quickly. I glance at the menu, my right hand stretched across the table, my thumb drifting aimlessly across the back of Magnus' hand that's in my own. I don't even look up when the bell chimes near the front of the store, signaling that someone else has entered the restaurant. I'm about to ask Magnus something stupid about nigiri or something when I hear my name being spoken by an all too familiar voice that isn't his.
"Alexander?" My mother's voice is sharp, much like her tongue, her tone shocked with an underlying bitterness. My head snaps up as if I've been slapped and I see my mother, father, and Max standing just inside the door. She looks as she always has, her striking dark hair piled high up on her head in an elegant twist, her legs elongated by the killer heels she's strapped into. Her dress is black and silky and she wears enough jewelry to pay my old rent for several years. My father, Robert, is in a charcoal suit, obviously, they just finished up a business meeting and picked Max up from school for lunch. My dad's face is passive, but I can see almost a sense of longing behind his eyes. I missed my father. But the one who doesn't contain himself is Max as he darts away from my parents and towards me. I stand up just in time for him to slam into my torso, forcing me to take a step back as I wind my arms around his shoulders. He's taller than the last time I saw him, his hair a bit longer, but his eyes are just as bright and wild. He smiles up at me, tears welling up in his big eyes. I ruffle his hair before bending down and tugging him closer to my chest as if I could protect him from my mother's harsh glares and the clicking of her heels coming closer to take him away.
"Max, come on. We'll go get lunch somewhere else." She tells him, her voice razor-sharp and leaving no room for argument. I can feel Max tighten his grip on my blazer and I want more than anything to run away right now with him, to hide him away with me, from all of this.
"Hello Maryse, Robert. Lovely to see you again." Magnus states, standing and straightening his own jacket before reaching a hand in front of him. My dad takes it, shaking it tersely. He looks over at Max and me, his eyes laced with worry. My mother ignores his outstretched hand until Magnus drops it.
"How do you know Alexander, Mr. Bane?" She asks, eyes flickering away from Max and I towards him. I take that moment to gently push Max behind me. He does so, peeking out under my arm, his small hands gripping the back of my blazer. Magnus shoots me a look, as if asking what to say, and hopelessly, I shrug. It doesn't matter at this point, nothing he could say could make Maryse hate me any more than she already does.
"You see, Mrs. Lightwood, I met Alexander at an interview he conducted with me. Instantly, I knew I liked him, so I offered him a partnership with me." He doesn't mention the fact that we now live together, which I'm internally grateful about. I see the anger flash in my mother's eyes before she hides it away for later, turning back towards us. My dad places a hand on her elbow, which she flinches away from, her hands balled in fists at her sides.
"Max, we'll be leaving. Now." He shakes his head, burying his face in my back and I feel a lump in my throat. I wish I was enough to protect him.
"Maryse, maybe Alexander could drive Max back to school. It might be good for them to catch up." My father says slowly, cautiously. He knows my mother too well, knows the thin ice he's treading on.
"Absolutely not." She hisses, taking a step towards us. Magnus moves at the same time, placing himself bravely between my mother and I. Max whimpers into my back and I back up with him, biting the inside of my cheek so hard I taste the bitter blood begin to flow.
"Mother, please? It's been so long since I've seen Max." Her eyes are cold as ice with a burning hatred in them when she looks at me. It's as if she never loved me at all. "Besides, I don't think you want to cause such a scene here, in such a public place..." I know this is dangerous, beyond dangerous even, to casually threaten my mother. But I know I'm right. People are starting to file in, and despite the fact that we're in the far corner of the restaurant, out of view, for the most part, I know she hates public conflict. "Just let Magnus and I take Max for now. He's pretty shaken up, I don't think it's wise for him to go back to school anyways. I'll bring him home later." I can see her fists clenching and I wonder for a moment if she'll burst through Magnus and hit me. It wouldn't be a foreign feeling. But she backs up, defeated and turns back to my father, pushing past him towards the door. My dad walks over to me and places a hand on my shoulder.
"Keep Max for awhile, I'll try and calm her down. Bring him back after dinner or something." I nod at him and he gives me a small, sad smile, but it says so much more. It's full of apologies, of things he wishes he'd said and done. I just nod again at him and he turns, following my mother out. Magnus nods towards the door a moment after my parent's car disappears and I follow him, Max clutching my arm. We say nothing until we get into Magnus' car. I smooth my hand over Max's head as he climbs into the backseat. When we start driving, I can almost feel the tension deplete.
"You have a really nice car, Magnus." Max pipes up and I smile a bit.
"You have no idea, Max. Just wait till you see his house."
"Our house, Alec." Magnus corrects, flashing me a smile.
"You two live together?" Max asks and I turn around a bit to look at him.
"We do. But shh, don't tell mom, okay?" Max makes a motion with his thumb and forefinger as if he's zipping his mouth shut and throwing away the key. I laugh at the gesture and smile at him. Soon after, we pull into the garage as the door lifts. Magnus parks expertly and cuts the engine. Max slides out and looks around us at the other vehicles.
"Whoa." He breathes and I smile. Magnus walks up beside him and bumps his arm against Max's gently.
"I'll take you driving in all of these at some point, deal?" Max lights up and nods before he and Magnus grab some bags and we make our way around the house and inside.
"You weren't kidding about this house."