(Warnings for MCD, unhappy ending. Pairing: Silec.)
(Read on AO3)
Alec always scoffed at the idea of soulmates. He doesn’t see what the big deal is - as the eldest Lightwood child he’s never been in control of a single part of his future... at least, not in any real, meaningful way. He’s used to things being predetermined for him, and this is just another one of those things. In fact, even if he does find his soulmate, he’s pretty certain that he won’t actually be allowed to be with them, not if it doesn’t suit the family name.
Which is fine. Really. He’s used to it and that’s… fine.
Or so Alec convinces himself until the day he meets him.
Alec’s always known he’s gay but it was just one of those things he never expected to have for himself. So when Alec meets Simon Lewis he knows, instinctively, that he and Simon are meant for each other. He doesn’t question the realization based on gender, not that it matters, because Simon definitely doesn’t fit the plan his family has for his future. Alec meets Simon, looks into his eyes, and knows they’re connected, but he isn’t going to do anything about it.
At least, he doesn’t plan on doing anything about it.
“Do Shadowhunters have soulmates?” Simon asks him after they meet. Alec knows why, and he knows that he should at least be honest with Simon about it, but he finds himself lying instead.
“Nope,” Alec answers. He doesn’t know why he lies, whether it’s more to spare himself or to spare Simon. All he knows is that it’s easier to pretend he feels nothing than to admit he’s blatantly ignoring a literal soul bond.
“Oh,” Simon says and looks disappointed. It doesn’t deter him, though. He’s still nice to Alec, still flirts as if determined to win Alec over whether Alec believes they’re meant to be together or not.
Simon takes all of Alec’s snarky remarks and eye-rolls in stride, and whenever Alec pushes him away Simon doesn’t push back, but he doesn’t leave, either.
Alec can’t help but fall for him.
He doesn’t mean to. He doesn’t want to. It won’t do either of them any good because Alec can’t just run off and attach himself to some mundane musician… but here he is, falling for every corny joke and tensing up with every clumsy misstep Simon makes, ready to jump to his aid. Here he is, a Shadowhunter born and raised, doing his best to take care of a mundane boy who never should’ve been allowed into their world in the first place. The problem is that Alec can’t bring himself to send Simon away, because Alec wants to be around him, even when he shouldn’t.
It’s a risk, and not just for Simon - Alec knows how soulmates work. Once you find yours, once that connection is made, your lifelines are tied together. Would they both be safer with Simon back in the mundane world, or would they be better off with Alec watching over him here and keeping him safe? Either way poses risks, and Alec selfishly chooses the ones he can directly control.
At least, he thinks he can control them. When he can’t - when he fails - he fears it’s going to cost him his life.
Alec is frantic when Simon gets kidnapped by the vampires. He’s worried for Simon’s sake, but he’s worried for his own, too. He never should’ve let Simon out of his sight.
“We have to find him, Iz. I can’t lose him like this,” Alec says.
“I’m surprised you’re so worried about him,” Izzy replies. “If I didn’t know any better…”
The immediate flush of red high on Alec’s cheeks is all the answer Izzy needs before she even asks.
“You like him!”
“It’s more than that,” Alec admits. “I mean, I do. But… never mind.” Izzy doesn’t need to know because she’s just going to push him into pursuing something they both know isn’t in the cards for him. It’s definitely better if he keeps this to himself. “Just help me get him back in one piece, alright?”
They get Simon back, and Alec can’t pretend to be entirely unaffected by it.
“Sorry you had to come to rescue me,” Simon sighs. “But thanks for doing it even though you hate me.”
“I don’t…” Alec starts, then trails off with a frustrated sigh. “I don’t hate you, Simon.” To both of their surprise, Alec places a hand on each of Simon’s shoulders as he speaks. It’s instinctive in his relief, coming off the fear that he’d never get to see Simon again. “Just do me a favor and be a little more careful, okay?”
Simon smiles so wide he’s practically beaming, then his face scrunches up adorably. “I don’t know… if it means you coming to my rescue all the time…”
Alec’s face shifts into a narrowed glare and Simon laughs. “I’m kidding! I’m kidding! Yeah, I’ll be more careful. Promise.”
They don’t quite manage it. Alec doesn’t protect Simon, and Simon isn’t more careful. Simon goes back to the Dumort and it’s too late by the time Alec realizes what’s happening.
Alec knows the exact moment Simon dies, and as his own body begins to fail he feels a swell of mixed emotions, the biggest one of all being regret.
Alec hates that he never gave Simon a real chance. He hates that he lied to him - that he lied to everyone - and now it’s too late to say he’s sorry. But he isn’t mad at Simon. He lost Simon. He failed to keep Simon safe, he let Simon get kidnapped and killed, and it’s only fitting that his punishment for that failure would be to share Simon’s fate.
Alec always imagined he would die young, but in battle or out on patrol, the way so many Shadowhunters go. Instead, Alec takes his final breath behind the closed door of his room at the Institute.
Alec is alone in his room when it happens; he feels the breath leave his lungs and his heartbeat slow, and slow, then stop completely.
---
Simon likes Alec, and not just because he feels obligated to. He got that easy out when Alec told him that the Shadowhunters didn’t have soulmates; Simon knows he could just walk away from Alec and never look back if he wants to.
Except he doesn’t want to.
He stays around, not just for Clary, but for Alec. He tries, again and again and again, just to get those little flashes of a smile before Alec rolls his eyes and shakes his head. Simon knows there’s something there, and he doesn’t know why Alec refuses to just let it happen, but he’s willing to wait.
When he gets himself kidnapped by Raphael, all Simon can think about is the fact that if he gets himself killed he might get Alec killed, too. He doesn’t know how it works, being soulmates with someone who doesn’t have a soulmate of their own. Simon wonders briefly if Alec would even care if he died.
Alec said it himself - whatever that spark, that connection Simon felt when they first met was, it wasn’t that. At least, Simon hopes not, especially the closer it looks like he’s getting to being murdered by vampires in this creepy hotel.
When he’s rescued - when Alec rescues him - Simon thinks that they might have a chance. In a rare show of emotion, Alec makes Simon promise to take better care of himself, and Simon knows that despite the way Alec’s been acting he cares, at least a little.
“You’re a good person, Alec,” Simon tells him one day. It’s just the two of them, but Alec looks around as if anyone overhearing Simon say that would be a bad thing.
“I’m just doing my job,” Alec deflects.
Simon shakes his head. “No. You’re doing more than that - you’re helping your family, your friends. I see how out of the way you’re willing to go for them. The little looks when you don’t think anyone’s watching-”
“You’re not my friend, Simon. You’re just another mundane I have to protect.”
The words sound forced, like Alec’s trying to get himself to believe them as much as Simon. Simon wishes for the hundredth time that Shadowhunters had soulmates because that would make all of this so much easier.
“You don’t have to push away everyone who cares about you, you know,” is all Simon says in return. That’s it. He doesn’t say it in so many words, but he knows Alec understands by the way Alec looks away, looks down, looks anywhere but Simon before walking away.
Simon wants to bring up the soulmate thing again, but there’s no good way to do it without feeling like he’s trying to guilt Alec into liking him, and he doesn’t want to do that. Maybe whatever Simon’s feeling is just normal, run-of-the-mill attraction. After all, you can’t have one-sided soulmates, can you? It’d sort of defeat the purpose.
Unfortunately, any thought of a rational conversation about the whole thing is lost the second Simon starts to feel weird. The sensitivity to sunlight, the desire to drink blood, the surprising strength he suddenly has? Simon’s more than a little distracted every time he might have an opportunity to bring up the potential soulmates issue, so he keeps putting it off.
It’s fine, he tells himself. They have time… until they don’t have time.
And it’s entirely Simon’s fault.
Every second leading up to the moment Camille kills him, Simon knows that this is his fault. He never should’ve come back here, or at least not come back here alone. He should’ve called someone, should’ve called Alec, but he didn’t. Now he’s going to die.
The first and only time Simon finds himself thankful that Nephilim don’t have soulmates, it’s the last thought he has before everything goes dark.
---
Simon wakes up. He doesn’t expect to wake up, and when he claws his way out of the dirt to find Jace, Izzy, Raphael, and Clary standing over him he notices Alec’s absence immediately.
It takes four blood bags before he’s thinking coherently enough to ask the question that has dread pooling in his stomach.
“Where’s Alec?”
Izzy shrugs. “He wasn’t answering his phone, and we didn’t have time to wait for him.”
She isn’t concerned, but Simon is. Alec should be here. Alec would be here, no matter how standoffish he pretends to be.
“How are you-” Clary starts to ask, but he ignores her.
“Izzy… do Shadowhunters have soulmates?” Simon asks, unable to believe he never thought to ask one of the others before.
“Yeah,” Izzy says, now sounding thoroughly confused. “Everyone does. Why-”
Simon ignores her and starts to run full-speed toward the Institute. He doesn’t have time to process what happened to him, the way he’s running faster than a human ever could, or the strength with which he flings open the heavy front doors of the building. He doesn’t stop to think about what he must look like, covered in the blood he just drank and the dirt he crawled out of, but he doesn’t care.
Alec’s door is locked when Simon gets to it, pounding against the wood and screaming his name so loud the entire Institute must hear. It takes Simon a full minute to remember his newfound strength and he uses it to tear the door open.
Simon stops short in the doorway at the sight of Alec’s body lying on the floor, motionless.
Izzy and the others are right behind him now, but they all stop short when they look past him into Alec’s room.
“What did you do?” Jace demands immediately.
“I killed him,” Simon whispers the words.
“You didn’t touch him!” Clary points out, confused but eager to jump to her best friend’s defense.
“You were soulmates,” Izzy says softly, piecing it all together. She takes one careful step past Simon into the room, and then another, looking down at Alec’s lifeless body.
“I thought I felt it, but when I tried to talk to him about it he told me Shadowhunters didn’t have Soulmates. I thought… I didn’t know…” Simon’s words falter and he drops to his knees on the ground beside Alec. “But I came back! Why isn’t he… can’t he just…”
“That isn’t how it works,” Jace says, his words choked with emotion. “You died with vampire blood in your veins. Alec just…”
Died. Jace can’t say the word but it isn’t like he has to. Alec died, Alec died because of Simon, and now Simon gets to come back and live again and Alec doesn’t.
“Come back, you stupid, stubborn idiot,” Simon shouts at Alec’s body. “You don’t get to leave me like this!”
“Simon, please,” Clary places a hand on Simon’s shoulder. “He’s gone. It isn’t your fault.”
“Yes, it is. I should’ve known. I could’ve done something differently. He asked me to take care of myself and I…” but the words trail off into a sob.
He can’t look at Alec’s lifeless body any longer, and he can’t look at the siblings Alec left behind, or the face of his best friend who saved him from the same permanent death he just condemned his own soulmate to.
Things could’ve been different. If Alec hadn’t lied, if they could’ve tried to make it work…
But Alec hadn’t wanted to make it work. Alec felt what Simon felt, and he ignored it. He didn’t want Simon, he made that very clear. Maybe if Simon had just taken that hint then Alec would still be alive today.
“You never should’ve brought me back,” Simon says suddenly, turning and running from the room. He doesn’t look back - he isn’t sure he ever will again.
If you are interested in Rare Pairs, think about joining Shadowhunters Rare Pair Gift Exchange. I’ve already sent in my form! Sign-ups End on December 19th so don’t miss your chance and don’t be afraid to be as specific as you want on the forms!
Rating: G
Wordcount: 783
No Major Archive Warnings
SFW, Holiday, Hanukkah, Fluff.
Summary:
Alec tries to cheer up his boyfriend.
Click Here to Read on Ao3
Story:
Simon watched as Alec entered the common room while struggling to hold all the items he was carrying.
“I told you only to bring five with you,” Simon teased and helped his boyfriend placed down his items. He saw two laundry tokens in the pile of things and was shocked. In college dorms, laundry tokens were sacred.
“Are you sure you want to play with these?” Simon questioned as he held up one of the tokens. “If someone lands gimel or hay, you could lose them.”
“It’s the end of the year Si. What am I even going to use them for?” Alec rolled his eyes and dropped himself right next to Simon on the couch. “I’m not Jace; my clothes are already packed and set except for the clothes for tomorrow.”
“Are you nervous?” Simon asked as he intertwined his and Alec’s hands. “You could still back out, and I wouldn’t be hurt. Meeting your boyfriend’s parents is a big deal. I know I am super scared to meet your parents. Not that you make them sound sca-”
Alec stopped his boyfriend’s rambling with a small kiss and smile.
“If I didn’t want to go spend Hanukkah with you and your family, I wouldn’t have said yes,” Alec explained with a smile. “I’m excited to celebrate your religion as well, babe. We will celebrate with yours and then fly off on the 22nd to mine. I promise to keep my parents away from you.”
Simon batted his hand against Alec’s shoulder and frowned.
“You better!” Simon laughed and looked at the seven items Alec had brought with him for the game.
They had decided to spend their last night in the co-ed dorm, learning how to play Dreidel from Simon. Simon had explained the basics and that they would need small tokens or items to play the game. So all of them had gone off to collect them.
Simon looked at the two laundry tokens, a small bag of chips, a soda, a water bottle, a highlighter, and a candy bar Alec had placed on the table. Simon himself had brought back a comic book, a pack of two cookies, a ginger ale, a small batman toy, and a pencil sharpener. He had only told them to bring five since they weren’t playing for long; Simon and Alec’s plane left early in the morning, and they needed to sleep.
“I only did bring five,” Alec said as he reached for the bag of chips and soda before offering them to Simon. “I saw you didn’t eat much at dinner, thought you could use a snack.”
Simon lit up at the mention of food and pushed himself a bit onto Alec’s lap.
“You brought me food?” Simon made grabby hands at the snacks his boyfriend had. “Have I told you today how amazing you are?”
“Just eat your food, Si,” Alec grumbled but kissed him on the forehead.
Simon had to admit he wasn’t entirely there at dinner. Tonight was the first night of Hanukah, and the first time he wouldn’t be there with his family to start it. It felt weird to Simon. At the same time, though, he didn’t regret his decision to stay an extra day so that he and Alec would fly in together instead of flying in one day apart.
“Hello?” Alec answered his phone, startling Simon, from his thoughts and mindless munching. “Hold on, Becky. I don’t have you all on video chat.”
Simon perked up at the mention of his sister’s name and attempted to look over to Alec’s phone.
“What about now, sweety?” came Simon’s mother’s voice from Alec’s phone.
Alec moved them, so Simon was on his lap, and his arms were in front of them so Simon could see his mom and sister, and they could see Alec and him.
“Mom?” Simon asked, confused. He still didn’t know why they were calling his boyfriend or when they had the time to exchange numbers. “What’s going on?”
“Oh sweety, you know you shouldn’t be eating junk food this late at night,” she reprimanded him. “Alec had the fantastic idea that since you both won’t be here tonight to light the first candle with us, we could use video chat instead, so even if you weren’t here, you could still be a part of it.”
Simon felt his smile start to stretch on his face. He hadn’t thought of that. It had never occurred to Simon that he could still be a part of this all, be it slightly different from the past, but Simon wouldn’t miss the first night. He turned slightly to Alec and kissed his boyfriend’s chin softly.
Hi link the ship post Mandy sent an ask for bc I can't find it and want to rb it also silec for it bc you were talking about it a few days ago uwu
DECIPHERING THESE WORDS TOOK ME A HOT SECOND ASDLKFJS here’s mandy’s malec one i just answered https://peachygos.tumblr.com/post/637506982501302272/malec-for-the-ship-thing
and now i shall answer the questions for silec! (im not even a huge silec shipper but like the chemistry,,, i would like to see 👀)
who’s the werewolf and who’s the hunter
hunter simon lmao because do u rlly think this nerd could pull off being a werewolf?? absolutely not, simon ily and im so sorry for slandering u like this but i am absolutely right. he probably mistakes alec’s wolf form for an actual wolf and talks to him like he’s a dog and trips over tree roots or smth and alec, wolf shaped, is watching this happen like. wow. cant believe im going to kiss him. no im gonna
who’s the mermaid and who’s the fisherman
fisherman simon hehe hes collecting shells or smth and alec is floating around nearby watching him and simon picks up a rock like “woah this one looks like boba fett!” and alec is like what the fuck what the fuck what the f- and then they interact. bonus points if alec saves simon from drowning at some point lmao
who’s the witch and who’s the familiar
chaotic disorganized trying his best witch simon and tired dead inside exasperated familiar alec. simon accidentally spills smth into his potion and it explodes and alec is just sitting there like please god help us all
who’s the barista and who’s the coffee addict
barista simon, he sees this tired as hell hot tall guy with a briefcase or smth -- idk maybe alec is a lawyer? workaholic smh -- walk into the shop and he’s like 😳 guess i’m just going to talk. so much. and accidentally spill hot coffee on myself. and embarrass myself so completely and utterly and raphael is laughing at me and mr cute guy is looking at me from over the counter and oh my god he’s smiling... im dead. and alec is just kind of endeared bc wow this is one clumsy man i think i will come to this coffee shop over and over and over again for my daily 69 shots (/j) of caffeine. yk what i just realized? silec and geraskier give off the same superficial vibes. pog /ironic
who’s the professor and who’s the TA
do i keep having to include this question? i still dont know. im never going to know. slkdfjhs professor alec TA simon no thought still head keeps getting progressively more empty
who’s the knight and who’s the prince(ss)
if its a rescue situation then simon is the prince and alecs the night, if its just a castle romance then simon is the endearingly awkward very kind knight and alec is the grumpy but not-so-secretly sweet prince whose work load is beating his ass and he is beating its ass right back. but also tho gardener/prince is underrated so um gardener alec prince simon
who’s the teacher and who’s the single parent
would not trust simon to be a single parent in my life (said with love) so single parent alec and teacher simon. simon is good with kids just not like,,, 24/7 on his own fhsjkdds
who’s the writer and who’s the editor
fantasy writer simon grumpy pretends he hates fantasy but secretly in love with simons writing editor alec (editors who see this post dont bully me please i know i dont know how the book industry works sdkfjwdfsh)
When Jace had told Alec that Clary and Simon were kidnapped, his first reaction was to sigh. He asked himself why they kept the barely-a-shadowhunter and useless mundane around until Izzy reminded him that it was kind of their job. Just because he was tasked to protect them didn’t mean he had to like it, though. And he didn’t like it; having to go out of his way to find the abandoned warehouse the circle members were keeping them in and trying to stop his reckless siblings from storming the place without a solid plan.
He saw Clary first and didn’t observe a single scratch on her. She was crying, her cheeks red and stained with mascara, but Alec chalked it up to her first real kidnapping. That was until his eyes washed over Simon, crumpled on the floor with his broken glasses beside him. Alec couldn’t ignore the catch in his throat or the skip in his heart. He thought he would have to think about it later, because his mind was a steady stream of ‘get to Simon now’ and he couldn’t stop it.
“Jace, you enter from the front. Make as much noise as you can. Izzy, you back him up.” Alec instructed. “I’ll shoot from here and try to catch them off guard. We’ve got to get to Simon,” Alec said, his voice not nearly as steady as he wanted it to be. His siblings made their way to the front and the minute Alec heard the sounds of seraph blades, he let his arrows fly, taking out the circle members one by one. He jumped in through the window where he was shooting and his feet landed solidly on the ground. One glance at Jace and Izzy fighting the last circle member and he was at Simon’s side.
“Alec, Alec! Is he okay? Tell me he’s okay!” He heard Clary cry. Alec kneeled next to Simon, resting a soft hand on his cheek. Simon was staring up at him from his spot on the concrete floor, one eye almost swollen shut and blood dripping from his head. The wounds looked painful, but not life threatening and Alec was annoyingly relieved.
“You’re like actually Hawkeye, huh?” Simon muttered, his voice hoarse and strained. Alec rolled his eyes and pulled Simon so he was sitting, but he couldn’t ignore the relief he felt to hear Simon joking. The movement was apparently too fast for Simon’s injured body as he grunted and leaned into Alec’s side. Alec’s arm slid around his waist as he pulled him a little closer, his face relaxing as he watched Simon gain a little color.
“I don’t understand that reference,” Alec said seriously. Simon looked up at him with a wide eye and when he tried to laugh, he clutched at his side and coughed dryly. Alec pressed his lips gently to Simon’s forehead and grabbed at his stele on instinct. He cursed to himself when he realized the stele would do nothing for Simon’s pain.
“Captain America, then?” Simon asked lamely, his eyes blinking slowly with every word. Alec chuckled against Simon’s forehead and brushed his thumb across the cut on his cheek.
“I can’t believe you’re still this much of a nerd even when you’re injured.” Alec tried to joke, but his words fell on deaf ears as Simon let his eyes shut and his body went lax in Alec’s arms. Alec scooped him up with an arm under his knees and shuffled toward his siblings and Clary.
“Is he going to be okay?” Clary asked, rubbing her wrists from where she had been restrained. Alec resisted the urge to glare at her, knowing that Simon wouldn’t be in that position if it wasn’t for her, but nodded anyway.
“He’ll be fine. I’m going to bring him to the Institute,” Alec said sternly. There weren’t any arguments, just as he expected. Alec held Simon close on the trek back to the Institute and even as he walked through the ops center, weird looks be damned. He took the time to clean the dried blood off of Simon’s face and laid him gently on his bed. Alec couldn’t resist pressing one more kiss to Simon’s forehead before leaving him to rest. When the door shut, Alec felt his heart start beating at its usual rhythm and he inhaled deeply to restart his lungs. He would think about that later, though. His only job from that moment was to figure out who hurt Simon, why, and how he could pay them back.
(Advent Prompt: Naughty/Nice List | Silec | Teen )
(Read on AO3)
“Someone’s on the Naughty List this year,” Simon says, crossing his arms. “And not in the sexy way.”
Alec rolls his eyes as he looks up from the paperwork on his desk he’s filling out from today’s patrols. “Neither of us celebrate Christmas, Simon,” he points out.
“We also don’t celebrate dinner time, apparently,” Simon counters.
Alec glances at the clock and curses. “Shit. Sorry, Si. I meant to text you but I lost track of time.”
“That’s not why I’m upset. You’re the only one of us who actually needs to eat, and you’re overworking yourself again,” Simon says, closing the door to Alec’s office before crossing the room to pull Alec’s chair back, away from his desk.
It’s Simon’s tried-and-true work distraction technique, moving with practiced ease (and trying not to think of the first few failed attempts at this particular maneuver) to nudge both of Alec’s thighs together into the middle of the comfortably large chair, facing his boyfriend as he places his knees on either side of Alec’s legs and sits himself down onto Alec’s lap.
Alec’s arms instinctively wrap around Simon’s back as Simon says, unnecessarily at this point, “I think you need a break.”
Simon expects Alec to indulge him in a few leisurely kisses before shooing Simon away to finish whatever work is keeping him late, because that’s what Alec always does.
Except not always, apparently. Alec must be way more stressed than Simon thinks because Alec immediately leans into the kiss, arching up against Simon, pulling him closer. When Simon’s lips move from Alec’s - tugging away with a gentle nip of his bottom lip - down his neck, Alec only tilts his head to the side to give Simon easier access to kiss along his deflect rune.
Well then.
“We should really stop...” Simon points out reluctantly, remembering the whole point of this visit is to make sure his boyfriend doesn’t starve himself. “Dinner...”
“What if I want to work up an appetite first?” Alec asks, with an enticing roll of his hips that leaves Simon sucking in an instinctive breath, despite the fact that he doesn’t need to breathe at all.
“Looks like someone’s trying to move right past the Nice List to the other Naughty List,” Simon mutters against the side of Alec’s neck.
“Not if we’re both fully clothed in this chair,” Alec points out. “I’d move us, but I’ve been advised I’m already overworked. Wouldn’t want to put any more unnecessary strain on myself,” Alec adds, and Simon has to wonder when he got so goddamn sassy.
Then Simon realizes that’s probably a tiny bit his fault for always caving when Alec gets like this, knowing full well he’s only encouraging the sass.
Simon’s off the chair a moment later, using his vampire strength to lift Alec easily despite their height difference. Moving swiftly with Alec’s legs wrapped around him Simon swiftly deposits his boyfriend onto the very convenient sofa across the room.
Stepping back with a quiet, considering hum, Simon surveys his boyfriend with a very thorough up-and-down glance.
“Yes, definitely overworked. Let’s see what we can do about releasing that tension...”
Alec waits several feet away from where Clary and Simon have a whispered discussion, arms crossed. He’s tempted to eavesdrop, it’d be easy enough with a rune or two, but he doesn’t. He tells himself it’s simple courtesy, though if he hated the mundane half as much as he claims to he wouldn’t think twice about prying.
He tells himself the only reason he’s here waiting for Clary to take back to the Institute, is because Jace had a long patrol and he didn’t want to wake him early just for babysitting duty. It’s definitely not because of the strange desire to protect Simon that’s come over him recently. Simon’s just so… helpless, sometimes, so full of naivete and innocence. Alec should think it’s pathetic but he only manages to find it endearing, especially when Simon keeps insisting on showing up and putting himself in danger to be by Clary’s side. Alec can admire that sort of loyalty.
Alec also finds himself admiring certain other aspects of Simon he’s trying very hard not to think about, especially because it doesn’t matter. The way he follows Clary around, while loyal, screams ‘puppy love’ so loudly Alec’s already written off the chance of anything happening. Noting the hint of muscles under those band t-shirts isn’t doing Alec any favors.
“Are you two done yet?” Alec snaps. Simon flushes, says a few final words to Clary, then turns to leave. Alec subtly lowers his gaze to catch the view on his way out.
Or maybe he isn’t as subtle as he thinks.
“I told him those jeans make his butt look good,” Clary says, suddenly at his side. Alec tears his gaze away from Simon’s retreating form so fast he pulls a muscle in his neck and winces.
Clary misinterprets the wince as one over getting caught and grins up at him. “I thought I saw you looking on the fire escape the other day,” she says victoriously.
“I wasn’t!” Alec denies, perhaps a little too quickly. “Then or now. I’m not-- just mind your own business, Fray.”
Alec turns to head back to the Institute without bothering to see if Clary’s following. He’s not having this conversation, not here, not now, and certainly not with Clarissa Fray of all people.
He doesn’t slow his long strides, not even when he hears her hurried footsteps trying to catch up to him.
“Do you still want me to mind my own business if I happen to know Simon’s been looking, too?”
At that, Alec pauses.
“In fact,” Clary continues. “He wanted me to do some fishing and see if I thought you’d say yes to a date if he asked.”
Alec hates the way his traitorous heartbeat quickens.
“Still not your business,” Alec points out. “If he wants that answer he’ll have to ask me himself.”
Alec turns and starts walking away, adding without looking back, “But if it was, you could tell him his chances are pretty good, and that I like Chinese.”
The time away from the city is Simon’s idea - he and Alec both need a break, and getting to know someone in the constant chaos of their lives is nearly impossible. Their relationship is new and Alec has to admit that a little time away from the city to get to know each other better sounds like heaven.
It’s early December with a chance of snow, and the remote cabin located by a beautiful lake in the woods a few hours outside of the city seems perfect.
And it is perfect - right up until Alce misjudges how thick the ice on the lake is and falls through, struggling in the icy water until Simon comes to his rescue.
“Are you alright?” Simon asks, his eyes wide with panic as he looks Alec up and down quickly. They’re both soaked, but Simon, being a vampire, doesn’t seem bothered at all by the cold.
Alec nods - or does the best he can to try and nod, not that he’s certain Simon will be able to tell because his entire body is shaking along with his head. He’s so cold, the chill going straight down to his bones, and the next thing Alec knows he’s in Simon’s arms being carried back to the cabin.
When they get back Alec feels in his pocket for his stele, but it isn’t there. He must’ve lost it in the lake.
“Shit,” he curses, speaking through chattering teeth. “I could really use a heat rune right now.” He’s about to suggest they cut their losses and go back to the city when Simon turns to him with a concerned, but fond, expression.
“Guess I’ll just have to take care of you the mundane way,” Simon tells him.
“First, you need to get out of those wet clothes.” Alec’s fingers, too numb from the cold, struggle with removing the wet clothes that cling stubbornly to his skin.
“Can I-?” Simon asks, reaching out to Alec. Alec hesitates, then nods. Having the first time Simon sees him naked being to almost surgically remove his cold, wet clothing to prevent hypothermia was not the way Alec imagined this trip going.
“You know, there are much better excuses for getting naked than falling into the lake,” Simon jokes. Alec laughs and appreciates Simon’s use of humor to offset Alec’s embarrassment.
Simon goes to get one of the oversized, impossibly soft towels from the bathroom, but instead of handing it to Alec he begins to quickly, but gently, start from Alec’s dripping hair and work his way down. Each time he finishes drying an area Simon places a kiss there - on Alec’s neck, on each shoulder blade, just below Alec’s bellybutton, on each of his thighs. It’s an action so soft and full of care that Alec’s heart feels fit to burst over it, but he remains silent until Simon’s done, finally handing him the towel to wrap around himself.
“I’ll start a fire and grab some blankets, you change into the warmest thing you brought,” Simon suggests. Alec’s stopped shaking enough that he manages to go to the bathroom to change into the red flannel pajamas he brought and dry his hair a little more. While Alec knows putting on a few layers is the practical thing to do he can’t help but miss the feeling of Simon’s touch against his skin.
“I didn’t know you could start a fire,” Alec says upon leaving the bathroom, basking in the heat that already fills the small living area of the cabin now that flames are roaring to life in the fireplace. Alec had been using his stele for pretty much everything before, fire included.
“We did some survival stuff at summer camp,” Simon says, drawing Alec’s attention to where Simon emerges from the kitchen. Alec notices he’s also changed into dry clothes.
“Here,” Simon says, handing Alec a large mug of rich hot cocoa. He then reaches out to take Alec’s hand not holding the mug and guides Alec toward the sofa. “I moved it a bit closer to the fire, and there’s a blanket for you.”
Alec sits on the sofa expecting Simon to join him, only to find Simon tucking the blanket over him and moving to the other side of the sofa entirely. That’s when Alec realizes Simon meant just for him, not for them, and frowns.
“Why are you over there?” Alec almost doesn’t want to ask, doesn’t want to hear Simon say he’s annoyed Alec ruined their afternoon but he’s always been the sort of person who would rather know something than stew in unknowns.
Simon looks visibly upset when he replies, and Alec’s surprised to hear the bitterness in Simon’s tone isn’t aimed at him. “I’m not exactly warm and comforting, am I?”
It takes Alec a moment to realize Simons means how cold his body is, being a vampire and all. Simon is keeping his distance so Alec can properly warm up faster, which makes sense, but isn’t at all what Alec wants just then, rational or not.
“...and what if you’re exactly the comfort I want most?” Alec says hopefully.
“Are you sure?” Simon doubts.
“Quit being ridiculous and get over here,” Alec says, flipping the blanket up for Simon to get under beside him, which Simon does.
It is a bit colder with Simon pressed against him but Alec doesn’t mind at all, shifting to curl up against Simon’s side while staying just upright enough to keep drinking his cocoa without spilling it.
“Much better,” Alec observes. “So, tell me more about that summer camp?”
Simon brings a hand up to run through Alec’s hair as they talk, comparing mundane camp to some of the training Shadowhunters get in the Brocelind forest in Idris, with Alec promising to take Simon there sometime.
“Maybe we can go camping there for our next vacation,” Alec suggests.
“Only if you promise to stay far, far away from Lake Lyn,” Simon counters, smirking. Alec hits him lightly in the arm, almost spilling some of his cocoa in the process.
They go on like this for a while before they’re both starting to nod off, lulled to sleep by the warmth of the fire and the comfort of each other. One of the last thoughts Alec has, before he falls asleep, is that if this is how much he enjoys being with Simon when things go wrong he can’t even imagine how nice it’ll be when everything goes right, and he can’t wait to find out.
