Chapter Text
“And then the space king climbed the tree and threw the magical lizards at them! Just like this!” Ben turned around to walk backwards and wiggled his little arms in the air, imitating throwing deadly animals at the space king’s enemies. “Pow! Pow! Pow! Raaaa!” Now, the lizards were biting the aliens, decimating the evil army. Alec shook his head with fondness and gently turned Ben around so he could see where he was going.
“I thought the space king could freeze his enemies with his eyes?” The older man grabbed the strap of the Star Wars backpack he was carrying to make sure it wouldn’t slide down his arm. It held the drawing Ben made for him at school to celebrate the first day of spring and Alec didn’t want to wrinkle it. It would be hanged on their fridge later. “So why did he summon his lizards?”
“Because lizards are cool, Alec.” Ben rolled his eyes and sighed loudly to show how stupid he thought his legal guardian was. “I would never use my eye powers if I had lizards. Everyone knows that. They teach this at school.”
“Yeah?” Lightwood smiled and picked up the little boy who squeaked in delight. “My school was really boring, then. They only told us how to do math and name the presidents. No amazing lizards.”
Ben squirmed in his grasp until Alec put him back on the ground and the boy took off running. Prospect Park was fairly quiet and empty during this time of the week so keeping an eye on the boy’s mop of curly brown hair wasn’t that hard. Besides, Ben glanced back every now and then to see if ‘Alec hadn’t gotten lost’. The boy jumped over a few puddles of water, managing not to land in any of them and get water all over his clothes, going on a search for a space rock for his collection. The snow that had fallen in the last few days had mostly melted by now which made his quest easier but also meant that once he came back to Alec the sleeves of his yellow jacket and his boots were covered in mud. ‘I should have bought him the dark ones, just like I thought, and not let Izzy talk me into this.’ the man thought while staring at the stark contrast between light blue boots and brown splashes of mud, knowing he would have to clean everything later.
“Have you found anything interesting, bud?” Alec’s hand landed on the warm beanie that was covering Ben’s head. It was still cold in NYC and the man didn’t want for the boy to catch a cold. Ben shook his head sadly and kicked a pile of leftover dirty snow, some of it landing on Alec’s pants by accident. Crap. He would have to wipe it clean before going back to work.
Every Wednesday and Friday, Alec would spend his lunch break picking Ben up from elementary school and walking him home through Prospect Park. Miss Josie would be already waiting for her neighbors with something warm for Ben to eat. Alexander was eternally grateful to not only have found a decent apartment for a decent price in this part of the city but also to have an amazing elderly neighbor who loved to look after Ben since she didn’t have her own children or grandchildren. Without her, the man would have to find a nanny for his boy and probably spend more money than Miss Josie allowed him to pay her. He wasn’t sure it even covered the food expenses but the woman was stubborn and claimed she took great joy in watching over such a talented young mind.
Suddenly Alec felt a pull on his hand and looked down. “What is it?”
“Look.” Ben pointed towards the small building.
For the last few months, every time they took that route, they watched a one store building being built. Probably another restaurant or a cafe. Even from this far, Alec had to admit that the place looked neat and nice, fitting into the atmosphere of the park. The light gray building had green and white touches to it. It stood out slightly against the old grass and remaining snow but once the trees bloomed, it would meld effortlessly with its surroundings.
“There are balloons.” Ben whispered conspiratiously. Indeed, bright pink and white balloons were attached to the front. Moreover, people seemed to be walking in and out of the building and this time they didn’t look like construction workers. Somewhere between Sunday and today, they had to have opened their business to customers. “Alec.” Even before looking down, the Lightwood knew what was coming. When he did, big brown eyes were staring up at him, pleadingly, in a way Alec was sure the boy had learned from Izzy. “Can we go?”
The man took out his phone from the pocket of his coat and glanced down at the screen. He still had 35 minutes of his lunch break. Enough time to go and check out the place quickly.
“Maybe we will get a balloon.” Ben added as if this could be the dealbreaker for his guardian, tugging on his hand again.
“Alright.” Alec said with a smile and tightly held the small hand in his, much bigger one, so the boy wouldn’t run there alone. From this distance, he couldn’t see what was inside and they didn’t have time to sit there and order lunch. If it was indeed a restaurant, he would have to convince Ben to come back another time or hope that those brown eyes would get the child his prized balloon anyway.
Alec only had time to read ‘coffee’ on the front window before he was pulled inside by the persistent munchkin. The first thing that hit him was the smell. Sugary pastries and hot loafs of bread mixed with coffee. In one word - heaven. The glass display hid so many kinds of baked goods Alec was sure he would have to eat here every day for a month to try all of them. Wicker baskets placed on the wall behind the counter held bread, bagels, buns, cinnamon rolls and even a few croissants. On the far left, someone was operating a coffee machine that hissed and on the right, in front of the counter, stood a few small tables with chairs.
Another tug on his hand reminded him that he wasn’t there to stare.
As soon as he let go of Ben’s hand, the boy glued himself to the glass display, eyeing all the delicious pastries while Alec stood in the line. It was long but people were being served really fast, for which Alec wanted to give the staff a huge star. Nothing worse than being stuck in a queue. Ben ran back to him and signaled for his guardian to pick him up, soon buzzing with energy in his arms.
“Have you picked what you want?” The boy nodded eagerly and Alec’s shoulders shook with barely contained laughter. Seriously, how did kids manage to be so lively after hours of classes and physical activities? Right now Alec wanted nothing more than to take a nap.
“And what can I get for this fine gentleman and his dad?” A warm voice greeted Alec and it was then that he took a closer look at the man behind the counter. He was wearing a simple linen apron over a dark red henley. The man’s features were very handsome and he had perfectly styled black hair - buzzed sides with longer bangs pushed back, one streak falling almost to the man’s eyes. It looked like an effortless hairstyle yet Alec knew the man had needed time to make it look like that. The man’s eyes were brown, framed by soft laugh lines and gold eyeliner and they were now watching Ben with fondness. A light goatee made the man look hipster and young, fitting well with the Brooklyn crowd. Alec had to stop himself before he could glance down at man’s lips because he thought that would be just inappropriate. There was a difference between taking in someone’s appearance and blatantly checking them out in public and he had no intention of doing the latter.
“A warlock.” Ben whispered with awe, loud enough for both Alec and the man to hear, and Lightwood became sure his boy wouldn’t get that balloon after all. Ben had a huge imagination and loved to make up stories but most adults just got annoyed at his antics. Being called a ‘dog’, an ‘ogre’ or even a ‘witch’ wasn’t what most would like to hear, after all. Instead of glaring though, the man just leaned over the counter and whispered back.
“You can’t tell anyone my secret.” He wiggled his fingers - which had many rings on, Alec noticed - in front of Ben’s face then leaned back. “So which of the pastries do you want?”
“I want you to magic a new one!” Ben wiggled in Alec’s grasp and the man could hear the customer behind them getting impatient, so Alec took over the conversation “Two of your…” he glanced at the display and picked up the name of the first thing he saw. “banana muffins, please.”
“But…” Ben turned in Alec’s grasp and glared at him. Realizing that, the man behind the counter stepped in. “I’ll be right back.”
‘Great.’ Alec thought. ‘He’s going for someone to get us out before Ben starts crying and scares off the customers.’ The lady behind them was already huffing loudly as the little boy’s lips started to tremble.
“Here I come.” The man came back quickly with a white box that held two cupcakes decorated with green frosting and yellow sugar flowers. “I hope this lives up to your standards.” He winked and Ben grinned, eyeing the treats before the man closed the box and rung them up. Alec paid him quickly then took the box. “Have a nice day.” The man said then waved at Ben before turning to the next customer.
Alec put the boy down so he could reach for the handle and open the door.
“Can we eat them now?” Ben eyed the white box, forgetting all about the balloon he had wanted to get.
“After you eat what Miss Josie cooked for you, you can eat yours.” Alec answered then glanced at his phone again. Shit. They needed to hurry if he wanted to make it back and have time to eat his own cupcake. Or lunch.
“Can I eat yours?” Alec glanced down with disbelief. “So it won’t feel lonely, waiting for you at home.” ‘This little munchkin.’ the man thought as he shook his head with a small smile on his face. “Me and my cupcake will be just fine, no need to worry.” Ben just shrugged in a clear ‘was worth trying’ manner and reached for Alec’s hand as they got closer to the street.
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‘Shit’ Alec thought as he closed the door to their apartment behind them. Miss Josie. He should have bought one cupcake for her as well. ‘I guess I will go on that diet sooner than planned.’ he sighed sadly and placed the box down on the shoe cabinet before hanging his keys and taking off his hat and gloves. He had learned long ago that it was easier to start wearing them to give Ben a good example instead of following an old parenting rule ‘I am a parent and I said you should do it so you do as I say even though I’m doing things differently.’ He wasn’t Ben’s blood. Just a legal guardian. But it didn’t mean his influence on the boy wasn’t important. Alec was the dad, the person that loved Ben the most in the world. He was the one responsible for his well being, the one who would put him through college and the one Ben - hopefully - looked up to. Setting a good example was important.
Speaking of Ben. “And where do you think you are going?” Alec eyed the boy as he stopped in the entryway to the living room, his muddy shoes still on. The yellow jacket was hung and the beanie and gloves were on their rightful place but the munchkin had decided that whatever he wanted to do was more important than not leaving stains on their carpet.
In response, Alec just got another eye roll so he leveled Ben with a stare. “Boots off, young man.”
Ben sat down with a sigh and started to take off his blue shoes. “You always tell me to wash my hands after I get back and before I eat and now you don’t want me to? You should make up your mind, Alec.” Kids these days. The man wondered if he had been as smart and answered his parents like that when he was Ben’s age.
“We will wash our hands after we undress.” He put down the Star Wars backpack gently then took off his coat and shoes. His boy was already running off in the direction of the bathroom and Alec wondered what got him so excited about washing hands. Usually, he had to be reminded about it before he made his way to the bathroom, murmuring under his nose or loudly groaning, accusing Alec of spoiling his fun.
The older man grabbed a cloth on his way to the bathroom and followed Ben. The boy was already wiping his hands on the towel, almost jumping in place. He turned towards Alec as soon as the man walked in. “Can we go now?”
“Did Miss Josie offered to cook you pancakes or something?” Alec asked, baffled. Ben loved their elderly neighbor but was never that excited about visiting her after school.
He placed the cloth down, washed his own hands then gently got the piece of fabric wet to clean his pants and Ben’s shoes and jacket. The little boy still hadn’t replied him so he turned around and raised one eyebrow. He could see in the brown eyes that his seven-year-old wasn’t sure if he should say anything or not. Whatever it was, it couldn’t be bad so Alec placed his foot on the bathtub and started to rub off the dried mud with the wet cloth. After he got rid of most of the stains, he could hear Ben sigh loudly, finally deciding to tell Alec what his excitement was all about.
“If I get to Miss Josie now I will eat the magical cupcake sooner and see if I get any extra abilities. Only we know the warlock’s secret and we have to protect him and for that we need powers.” Sometimes, Alec was worried about how imaginative Ben was. It was amazing but he was also afraid that the boy liked to escape reality too much because of all that had happened to him in his short life. He placed the cloth back on the edge of the sink then knelt down in front of Ben.
“Buddy…” he started, unsure of what to say. They boy was clearly impatient but could see Alec had something on his mind so he stood there and stared at him. “This man...he’s not...he doesn’t have magical abilities.” Alec’s hazel eyes were staring down at the dinosaur hoodie Ben was wearing, while the boy’s brown ones were drilling holes in Alec’s face. Only when the man felt a tiny hand on his cheek did he look up.
“I’m big. I know wizards are only in the movies and Simon’s books.” Izzy’s fiance had introduced Ben to Harry Potter - as well as Star Wars - and the boy had taken liking to those series. “But if they were real, we would totally get magical powers from those cupcakes.” Alec smiled warmly at that and Ben clearly read it as a permission to be dismissed since he bolted out of the bathroom the next second. Sometimes, the man felt like he was navigating blindly through parenthood but he never regretted his decision to take Ben in. He only hoped that Ben would never regret it either.
The reassurance that the little boy was very much capable of telling reality and fairy tales apart calmed Alec down and he stood up, picking up the cloth again to clean up Ben’s jacket and shoes. The boy wouldn’t be going anywhere else today but if he cleaned it now, he wouldn’t have to do it after getting back from work or the next morning. Having a child at home definitely taught you not to leave anything for later as unexpected surprises could get in the way.
While Alec was finishing up with Ben’s clothes, the boy collected the toys he wanted to take to Miss Josie’s - the plushie whale, his box of crayons and the plastic dinosaur - and packed them in a denim drawstring bag that Izzy had bought him for his birthday. She insisted that it was ‘cool’ and ‘stylish’ but what Alec was thankful for was the fact that it was very resilient to everything Ben put it through. Or everything he put inside. Once done, the boy made his way back to the door, eyeing the cupcake box as Alec went to the bathroom to wash the cloth and hang it.
“Ready to go?” Ben nodded but Alec took an extra moment to kneel down next to the Star Wars backpack and take out a few of Ben’s books. “Miss Josie will help you with homework.” The boy shrugged slightly. He liked some of the assignments Mrs. Phillips gave them but it didn’t mean he always felt like doing them. He wanted to draw himself and Alec fighting alongside the warlock to beat the evil ducks, not look at fractions represented by pieces of cake.
“Did you remember about the drawing?” Ben asked.
“Wait a second.” Alec carefully took out the sheet of paper then went to the kitchen to hang it. The hallway had a corkboard with Ben’s creations and family pictures, but every inch of space was already taken, so the newest drawings had been displayed on the fridge, in a more traditional way. Alec reached for two round magnets to pin the paper to the metal surface then took a moment to just admire Ben’s work. The kids at school were supposed to draw the things that remind them of Spring. Alec’s boy had decided to go for colorful flowers, the Sun, trees, dogs and his red bicycle. Maryse and Luke had bought it for him last year and Ben was thrilled every time they went to the park with it. One time, he had fallen and scraped his knee but then had stood up right away and gotten back on the bike. Alec had needed to run after him and order him to stop so he could clean the wound.
“Aaaaaleeeecccc.” Ben was clearly getting impatient.
“Coming.”
They didn’t even have to put their shoes on as Miss Josie lived across from them. After they knocked on her door, she opened to them with a welcoming smile and ushered the Lightwoods inside.
“How are you?” Alec asked before hugging the woman briefly. She reached for Ben’s books with a smile.
“Like always. Us old people aren’t as lively as you youngsters but we could still beat you at a couple of things.” Both adults exchanged smiles.
“Here are the cupcakes for you and Ben.” Alec handed her a white box but she pushed it back into his hands with a knowing smirk. “I’ll take Ben’s but you know how my sugar levels are. I should be careful at my age.” The man had a feeling she was partially lying, knowing that he had forgotten to get her a pastry, but still wanting him to enjoy what he had bought. Maybe her eyes gave her away, almost black yet shining, or maybe it was her motherly smile. He accepted the box back with a sheepish expression and she patted his arm. “Don’t you worry. Go back to work. I will watch over Benny.” Josie walked to her kitchen and came back with a plate for Alec to put a cupcake on. “And wash off those mud stains.” she told him as he was making his way back across the hallway. One glance down told him that indeed he had forgotten to get rid of all the dirt on his pants. Crap.
“Thank you!” he told her before closing the door behind himself and running towards the bathroom. He would definitely be skipping lunch today.