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It wasn’t unusual that Jace came home from patrol like this, exhausted, drained, and in a foul mood. Simon had gotten used to it over time, but it still wasn’t easy to watch, not because Jace could be so abrasive and annoying, but because Simon wanted to make him feel better and couldn’t.
It was a little comforting though that mostly, Jace chose Simon’s apartment after days like these to crash instead of the Institute. And now Simon looked at the Shadowhunter on his couch who was wearing lose sweatpants and an oversized hoodie, staring broodingly at nothing, and wondered how he could make it better.
He flopped down next to Jace and offered him a can of Pepsi. “We don’t have to go out with the others if you don’t want to.”
“You just go without me.” Jace crossed his arms. “You’re always so looking forward to those evenings in the Hunter’s Moon.”
“So are you, usually,” Simon replied. “It’s okay. We can just watch Netflix and chill.”
“You, Simon, are never chill.” The corners of Jace’s mouth twitched, and Simon counted that as a win.
“No, but I’m the good kind of not-chill. Like, the happy, excited kind of not-chill. You’re the brooding, dark and mysterious brooding stranger kind of not-chill.”
“You just used brooding twice in the same sentence.”
“Because it’s an apt description,” Simon replied. “Come on, what are you in the mood for?”
“Nothing, Si. Just… watch whatever you want.”
Simon stared at the screen for a moment before he got up, and started puttering about in the kitchen. The microwave dinged, and he came back with a bowl of popcorn a moment later.
“You can’t eat that,” Jace said with a frown.
“I know. But I can smell it.” Simon fell back into the sofa. “And you can eat it.”
“I don’t even like popcorn.”
“Your loss.” Simon took the remote. “There’s a new season of that supernatural goth-fantasy show of those teens hunting demons,” he said.
“Gosh, Simon!” Jace stared at him. “I do that as a day-time job, I don’t want to watch that after work!”
“Right,” Simon said and switched back to his list. “Queer Eye?”
“Whatever, Simon.”
Simon started an episode of season 1, grabbed a handful of popcorn, inhaled deeply with his mouth open, and dropped the popcorn back.
“You really miss popcorn, huh?” Jace asked after a moment.
“Man, I miss so many things,” Simon gave back wistfully.
“Yeah, must be tough.” It sounded a little callous, but by now Simon knew the difference between Jace being callous and Jace not knowing what to say to offer comfort.
“Sometimes.” Simon took a single piece of popcorn and glanced at Jace from the corner of his eyes.
Two seconds later Jace flinched and shot upright, slapping a hand down his face. “The fuck?”
Simon snorted and erupted into a fit of giggles.
“Did you just throw popcorn at me?”
“Come on, I need to tear you out of your brooding somehow!” Simon flung another piece of popcorn at Jace. It got stuck in his hair and Jace rolled his eyes, breathing deeply through his nose. Another one hit him between the eyes. “Stop!” Another one. “Brooding!” And another one, this time against his cheek.
“Stop throwing popcorn at me!”
“Make me,” Simon said and aimed again.
Jace’s Shadowhunter speed and reflexes made short work of the last attempt, and he tackled Simon in one fluid move, and pinned him to the sofa. Unfortunately he also knocked the bowl with the popcorn over, and because Simon was known for fighting unfairly, extremely so, he poked Jace in the ribs and they both landed arse over teakettle on the carpet, in a mess of limbs and popcorn and giggles.
“Man, that’s a waste of popcorn,” Simon said, picking a piece of Jace’s hair.
“I don’t like it, you can’t eat it, what’s the point?” Jace asked.
He was still on top of Simon, though, and was still more or less pinning him down.
“Nostalgia, I suppose,” Simon said, but before he could make another joke, Jace had picked the piece of popcorn from Simon’s finger with his lips.
“I thought…” Simon swallowed. “I thought you hate popcorn?”
“Yeah, but you love it.” Jace reached out and grabbed a handful of popcorn that he shoved into his mouth. He chewed industriously, swallowed, and gave Simon a slow, low-lidded smirk.
Simon had just time to close his eyes before Jace brought their lips together, in a kiss that was open-mouthed and hungry and made both of them gasp.
Jace broke the kiss and leaned back a little, the smirk on his face even wider.
“You taste of popcorn,” Simon whispered, not taking his eyes off Jace’s lips.
“Yeah, that was kind of the point,” Jace replied.
Their eyes met, but before things could escalate Simon’s phone went off. Jace let him go but took a second longer to roll off him than strictly necessary, and Simon grabbed his phone being slightly out of breath.
“Hey Izz!” A pause. “Yeah I know… I mean, Jace is…”
“We’re on our way!” Jace yelled from the background.
“We are?” Simon looked at him. “Well, I guess we are,” he then said to Izzy. “See you in a bit.”
He ended the call and looked at Jace again. “What happened to ‘I am too broody to go out and have fun’, huh?”
“Don’t know. Something cheered me up,” Jace said and got up. Deliberately slow, he stuffed another handful of popcorn into his mouth, eyes on Simon in a heated gaze.
Simon licked his lips, and dropped his phone before walking back to Jace with determined steps.
“Hey guys, you’re late!” Clary gave first Jace, then Simon a hug. “What happened?”
“Nothing,” Simon replied brightly.
Then Clary tilted her head and reached out. “Si, is that popcorn in your hair?”
“We were watching Netflix,” Simon said, his grin only slightly nervous now.
“But… why is it in your hair?” Clary looked at the piece of popcorn between her fingers.
“We got distracted,” Jace replied. “O-neg, Simon?”
Simon nodded, and Clary flung the piece of popcorn into the nearest ashtray.
“Distracted, huh?”
Unable to stop grinning, Simon could only shrug.