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Magnus couldn’t help but stare at the view laid out in front of him. It was early morning and the sun had just begun to shine through the windows of Magnus’ bedroom. Despite it being the cause of his early start, he was grateful for the sun because it allowed him to see the man before him more clearly. Alec was resting on his side, motionless apart from his soft and peaceful breathing. Magnus loved watching his favorite shadowhunter sleep. Though this sight had become familiar to him, he couldn’t imagine ever growing tired of it. What did I ever do to be this lucky? He smiled to himself.
“You’re doing it again.” Alec said, sensing his admirer’s stair.
“Doing what?” Magnus asked playfully.
“Watching me sleep.” He replied opening his eyes and pulling his boyfriend closer to him.
Magnus hid his face in the crook of Alec’s neck while Alec wrapped his arms around him, intensifying the happiness he was feeling earlier. It was funny how such a simple gesture could make his heart beat so fast.
They laid in each other arms, feeling the warmth of their bodies against each other for a few minutes before Alec said, “Don’t think I’m complaining, but you’re unusually quiet Magnus.”
“Oh yes. Just… enjoying the moment.” Magnus hesitated. “I’m thinking about the first time we met actually.”
Alec raised his eyebrows. “Really? At the Downworld rave?”
“No, no, that doesn’t count as meeting.”
Alec looked confused. “I saved your life, and you don’t count that as meeting?”
“Don’t get me wrong. You made quite the impression at Hardtail.”, he said remembering the first time he saw the young shadowhunter. “But I’m talking about the first time we talked, the first time I got to look into your breathtaking hazel eyes.”
“Oh.” Alec gulped, a flush of red coming to his cheeks. “So, when did we meet for the first time?”
“At my loft. When Valentine’s men found us.”, Magnus said with a smile forming in the corner of his mouth as the memories came flooding back.
“Oh yeah, I remember. You made that awful cooking joke after I saved your life, for the second time.” Alec gloated.
Magnus detached himself from Alec to get a good look at him.
“Hey! It wasn’t that bad. Plus, I had just been attacked, it was a stressful situation.” He explained pretending to be hurt. “As I was saying, I was at my loft, fighting a circle member. I was about to attack, when I saw an arrow fly to his leg. You knocked him down to his knees.”
“And then you finished him with your magic.” Alec continued. “See? We were meant to fight side by side from the moment we met.” Alec said with loving eyes.
Magnus stopped his story and took a moment to appreciate the look his boyfriend was giving him.
“It’s that smile.”, Magnus said.
“What smile?”
“Right after that was when you smiled at me for the first time.”
Blood rushed to Alec’s cheeks. He could only look down to hide his uncontrollable smile.
And right then, I was hooked. It’s that smile that I want to go to sleep to and wake up to everyday. It’s that smile that makes me melt. It’s the way you smile not only with your lips but primarily with your eyes. And when I first saw it, I knew I would do anything to see it again, Magnus thought, but restrained himself in fear of overwhelming Alec. Aching for the feel of his boyfriend’s body, Magnus placed himself against his chest once again.
“And then what?” Alec Asked.
“You were there, I don’t need to tell you what happened.”
“Yeah, but I want to hear you tell me.”
To Magnus’ surprise, Alec was truly interested and Magnus couldn’t say no to him. “Ok well, after we defeated the circle member. I introduced myself and you were babbling all over the place.”
“I was not.” Alec playfully tugged at Magnus’ arm.
“Oh, yes you were. You could barely finish a sentence. You were such a mess you couldn’t wait to leave.”
“Well how do you know that it wasn’t because I just wasn’t into you?”, Alec teased.
Magnus paused to consider the possibility but the thought quickly left his mind as he recalled the scene. “Because of that smile. No one’s eyes glimmer that much unless they see something they want. Or at least that’s what I thought until we were with others and you changed completely.”
Alec glanced down at Magnus with furrowed brows.
“One minute, you were a smiling mess. The next, you were a shadowhunter, a soldier.”, Magnus explained. “It’s like you forgot I existed. And believe me I tried to get your attention, to make you smile again. But you mostly just shrugged at me and looked at me like I was crazy.”
“I just wasn’t used to your flamboyant personality back then.” Alec said, gently drawing shapes with his fingers on his boyfriend’s back.
“Well that definitely sent me some mixed signals.”
“I can’t imagine you really cared that much about what I thought back then.”
“I did care. From the moment I saw you, I knew there was something special.”, he recalled as his eyes wandered off to the ceiling.
Magnus shook his head to snap out of his reverie. “Anyway, your mixed signals didn’t last very long because I understood once we summoned that demon.”
Alec stopped moving. “Understood what?”
“That your attitude had nothing to do with me. You just have to expect a closeted Shadowhunter who’s in love with his parabatai to have some trouble expressing his feelings and showing interest!”
“Yeah, these weren’t my finest moments.” Alec said looking away. “If you thought I wasn’t interested, why did you keep pursuing me?”
“To be truthful, I was frustrated at first, but then I just felt a bad for you… So, I tried to be reassuring, to help you, but you just got colder.”
Alec pulled Magnus closer, as if the warmth of his body could balance the cold of his past behavior.
Magnus went on. “But I didn’t give up, because I felt something that night, something undeniable when we formed a bond to summon the demon. If I had any doubts before, they quickly went away when I touched your hand and looked in your eyes. After that, I thought you were worth the risk of a rejection.”
“Well, I would say that you definitely succeeded.” Alec said before laying a kiss on Magnus’ head.
Enchanted by his boyfriend, Magnus raised his head to kiss Alec. “I love you Alec.”
“I love you too Magnus.”
As Magnus pulled back, Alec grabbed him by the chin to seal their lips back together. Magnus caressed Alec’s face, showing his appreciation for Alec’s eagerness. Just as Magnus climbed on Alec, the phone pinged, as if it knew things were getting heated.
Alec raised his phone and read a message from Izzy:
We have a lead on the warlock who’s been experimenting on mundanes. Here’s the address. Can Magnus portal you there? We need to move fast and I don’t think Jace and I will be there in time.
“What do you say we recreate our first encounter and go kick some ass?”