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Ever since his handsome neighbour had burst into his apartment with a cat in his hands, Magnus had been smitten.
He had been admiring the man for months, wondering if they would ever cross paths or if he would have to give fate a nudge, when his neighbour had acted first and easily wormed his way into Magnus’ life.
Alec and he had been texting almost non-stop for a little over two weeks, trying and failing to plan their first date. They were both eager to meet up and see if the spark they had felt could transform into something more, but their schedules kept getting in the way.
Magnus had known that Alec’s work hours were hectic and unpredictable, but he hadn’t realised just how true that was until the man kept having to reschedule. If it were anyone else, Magnus would have assumed Alec was making excuses and trying to get out of their date. However, the two men were neighbours, so Magnus knew Alec truly was that busy all the time. It was infuriating and Magnus was starting to get impatient.
Or at least he had been until they finally managed to organise their date. Alec had wanted to do dinner, but that had quickly proven to be an impossible task, so they had settled for breakfast instead. Mornings were the only time when Alec wasn’t dealing with hundreds of work demands and calls and other problems. It wasn’t ideal, but it was better than nothing.
Although it meant that Magnus probably looked sleep-deprived and a lot messier than usual when Alec and he met up in front of their favourite coffee shop, only a block away from their apartments. They could have walked there together, but Alec had insisted on meeting with Magnus there directly, and it had been hard to refuse after planning this date for almost a month.
But whatever Magnus had expected from Alec, it wasn’t this. He had thought the man would show up looking casual, tired, or at least somewhat dishevelled. Instead, he was wearing a clean and well-ironed blue suit that made his eyes pop, and his hair was wonderfully mussed in a way that made Magnus want to run his fingers through it over and over again. Overall, he looked cool and collected, and Magnus felt ridiculously underdressed.
He felt underdressed; that was something to write down in the books. His friends wouldn’t believe him when he told them about it.
“Alexander!”
The man looked up, and Magnus was lost again. Seeing him from a distance had been a pleasant shock, but this was something else entirely. As soon as he spotted Magnus, Alec’s face lit up and a small smile curled at his lips. Despite his formal attire, he looked relaxed and happy to be there, and Magnus wondered – not for the first time – if it was possible for him to already be in love.
“Magnus,” the man greeted him, taking a step forward as though he had been about to hug Magnus, before pausing and smiling sheepishly. “Sorry, I forgot that…”
“That we’ve only known each other for a few weeks?” Magnus finished for him. “Yeah, I get the feeling. It’s strange, isn’t it? I feel like I know you better than I know most of my colleagues, and they love gossip, so that’s saying something. Honestly, I can’t believe this is only our first date.”
“Yeah,” Alec breathed out, a delightful blush rising on his cheeks. “It feels like this should already be our fourth, at the very least.”
“Fourth? Why Alexander, how forward of you, skipping straight past the third date,” Magnus winked, relishing in Alec’s ensuing spluttering.
If there was one thing he had learned about Alexander since they had started talking, it was that the man was a walking oxymoron. He was obviously a serious businessman who cared about his company and did his best to provide his people with all the help and advice they needed. He was calm, sometimes stubborn, and obviously very confident in his own body.
However, he also got flustered very easily, rarely answered Magnus’ innuendos with some of his own, and only flirted occasionally, when he was too tired or slightly tipsy. He was both the most adorable and the most grounded human being Magnus had ever met, and Magnus had no idea how he did it.
“Let’s just go in, shall we?” Alec muttered, his cheeks darkening even as he slapped Magnus’ arm lightly. “And stop with all the insinuations, you’re going to make me explode. And no, don’t you dare make a joke about exploding, Magnus.”
“You’re no fun,” Magnus sighed, following Alec into the coffee shop anyways. “And how did you know I was going to make a joke about that? I’m not that predictable, thank you very much. I can make jokes that aren’t sex-related, I just… happen to like making you blush.”
“I’m sure you do,” Alec snorted. “However, how about you focus on coffee-related puns whilst we’re inside this shop, huh? I wouldn’t want any angry mothers getting offended about the beautiful, sparkly man making some inappropriate comments around their children. Never underestimate the power and rage of middle-aged women, Magnus, they’re truly terrifying.”
Magnus didn’t even bother muffling his laughter. For all that he pretended to be cool and unfunny, Alec was one of the most hilarious people Magnus knew. He used sarcasm and irony to hide the fact that he was genuinely funny. His inability to admit he had plenty of strengths was one of his most endearing and frustrating quirks, and Magnus was going to love breaking him down until he admitted that he wasn’t full of flaws.
If there was one thing he loved doing more than anything else, it was reminding people that they were worthy of love and praise. He hated it when his friends – and in Alec’s case, more-than-friends – didn’t see the good in them, and he had always been determined to show them how amazing they were deep down.
He had succeeded hundreds of times in the past, and Alec wasn’t about to be his first failure. But for now, he would laugh and smile and tell Alec that he was beautiful every time he saw him until the man believed him.
Speaking of-
“Have I told you how radiant you look today, Alexander?” Magnus grinned, ordering his usual coffee before turning back towards Alec. The man was still blushing, but there was a pleased smile tugging at his lips that Magnus counted as a victory. “Truly, I have no idea how you look so composed at 8 in the morning. Getting out of bed this early was a real sacrifice, darling, I hope you know that.”
“Well, I appreciate the sacrifice,” Alec huffed amusedly. “However, I assure you that you look as beautiful as ever, Magnus. I have no idea how you roll out of bed and make yourself presentable in such a short amount of time, but I’m not about to complain. I could stare at you all day if I didn’t have work to do.”
Magnus gaped at his date, unsure how to respond to such a smooth statement. Even after two weeks of talking to Alec, the man still managed to surprise him. Magnus only hoped he would continue to do so for the rest of their lives.
Not that he was thinking about the rest of their lives, obviously. Alec and he were on their first date, not getting engaged.
(Not yet, at least.)
Unsure what to say, Magnus settled for nothing at all. Instead, he busied himself with the drink the barista had just handed him as he waited for Alec to take care of his own order. He let his fingers clench and unclench around the sleeve repeatedly, still surprised at having been caught off guard.
Alec brought out a side of Magnus that he had tried locking away years ago, and he didn’t know how to feel about it. Scared, because this was the most vulnerable part of him, the part that could be hurt with a single word. Or elated, because he had finally found the person who was breaking down his walls slowly but surely, just as Ragnor had predicted.
“Are you alright?”
Alec’s voice startled Magnus out of his thoughts, and he looked up only to come face to face with Alec’s worried eyes. The concern he saw in that intense gaze was enough to soften his heart and make his knees weak. He had no idea what Alec was doing to him, but it had to be some sort of magic.
Since when was Magnus the one who lost control? That wouldn’t do, not at all.
“More than,” he assured Alec, beaming brightly at the man and smirking internally when Alec visibly swooned. “I was just thinking about how glad I was that we had finally managed to get this date sorted out. I was beginning to wonder if you really were avoiding me. The mere thought is preposterous, I know, but you seem to like surprising me, so even the impossible is possible when you’re around.”
“As if I could ever ignore you,” Alec shook his head, his lips twitching softly. “You’re really something else, Magnus, and I would be a fool to pass up on whatever is going on between us.”
“Ah yes, all that chemistry,” Magnus hummed, sitting down at a table across from Alec and deliberately stretching his legs out so they brushed against Alec’s. The slightly awkward position was worth the way Alec straightened up suddenly and bit down hard on his bottom lip. “I have to admit I’ve never felt anything so intense before, and certainly not so fast. What is it about you, Alexander Lightwood? There has to be something bad about you, right? You can’t be as perfect as you appear to be.”
To Magnus’ surprise, Alec choked on his drink at Magnus’ words. Obviously, his statement had been slightly more spot on than he had imagined. It made sense, really. Alec disappeared at all times of the day and kept his work very secret; there had to be something there that Magnus didn’t know about.
But as curious as that was, it wasn’t what they were here to talk about. If things went well, Magnus would have months – years – to discover everything there was to know about Alec. Until then, he would settle for whatever the man was willing to give him and return the favour.
It wasn’t like he didn’t have his own demons, his own terrible past and scary secrets. None of those things were appropriate to talk about during a first date.
“I’m sorry for being such a mystery,” Alec finally answered, looking down at his drink instead of meeting Magnus’ gaze head on. “I’m afraid that’s at least fourth date information, unfortunately for you. If you hadn’t been so busy, we could have been there already, but alas…”
“If I hadn’t been busy?” Magnus exclaimed indignantly, appreciating the change in topic and Alec’s easy recovery from the uncomfortable silence he had descended into for a few seconds. “Please, we both know whose schedule has been stopping us from going on this date, and it isn’t mine. Rehearsals are at strange times, yes, but at least they’re consistent. You seem to leave your house every time your damn phone rings, and that’s without even mentioning the times when you don’t come home at all.”
“Yeah,” Alec shrugged sheepishly. “I sometimes fall asleep in my office, much to my sisters’ annoyance. They want me to take better care of myself, but there’s not much I can do about it. It’s not like I have anything to come home to. Well, I have Church, but he doesn’t like it when I’m at the apartment for long periods of time. Foolish cat likes his independence.”
“Then he doesn’t know what he’s missing out on,” Magnus winked. “And what do you mean, you have nothing to come home to but your cat? You have a beautiful neighbour who purposefully keeps his blinds open so you can admire the view. If that’s not a gift from the gods, I don’t know what is. Tell me, would going around naked be more of an incentive, or would it only scare you off?”
As soon as the quiet question slipped past his lips, Alec choked on his drink, his face flushing a vivid crimson. Magnus smirked smugly, glad to have regained the upper hand. There was something heady about making someone as seemingly impassive as Alec blush and stutter and act more human.
“I don’t know,” Alec said hoarsely. He cleared his throat and looked around the coffee shop nervously. Whatever he was about to say, he obviously didn’t want anyone to overhear it. “How about you try? I could always a show, and the nude figure of my handsome neighbour and date would certainly be a great reason to come home a little more frequently.”
It was Magnus’ turn to be struck speechless, and he cursed his own arrogance. He should have known Alec wouldn’t let him get away with such blatant flirting. He just hadn’t thought the man would do something so quickly. After all, his flirty texts had always been stilted, so Magnus had assumed he would be just as awkward in person.
But trust Alec to throw his expectations out the window.
“Don’t tempt me, Alexander,” he murmured lowly, his eyes darkening with desire at the same time as Alec’s pupils dilated enticingly. “You have no idea the things I’m willing to do to make pretty boys like you blush and lose their minds. You’re playing with fire, darling.”
“Good thing I like fire then, isn’t it?” Alec smirked. “There are very few things that scare me, Magnus, and you’re not one of them. If you want to tease me, go ahead, but know that I’ll be teasing you back every single time.”
“Oh please,” Magnus grinned sharply. “I doubt that you could handle me at full force. You’re cute, Alexander, but we’ve been over our past experiences already, and I’m pretty sure you’re too innocent for true teasing.”
“I’m only innocent in some ways,” Alec shrugged. Magnus wanted to ask about that, wanted to pull the answers out of this infuriating and wonderful man, but he knew it wasn’t the right time. “And just because I blush doesn’t mean I can’t tease. A man can have many talents, Magnus.”
“Oh yes, I’m well aware of that,” Magnus shot back, enjoying their banter more than he had enjoyed anything in a very long time. “I think you’ll be surprised by just how many talents I can surprise you with. I just wonder when you’ll break and admit that I’m clearly the better flirt of us two.”
“I never said anything about being the better flirt,” Alec chuckled. “In fact, I’ll let you keep that title for as long as you want to. However, teasing is a whole other affair. I’m sure you’ll understand what I mean soon enough, darling.”
Magnus’ smile turned downright dangerous at Alec’s words. Perhaps there were a lot more sides to Alexander than he had originally imagined. After all, there weren’t many people that could make Magnus feel seen, warm, and horny at the same time.
Alexander was a conundrum, and one that Magnus was eager to find out more about. He wanted to peel away Alec’s layers until the only thing left was the truth, the real man behind all the facades. He wanted Alec to trust him enough for that, and he wouldn’t stop until he reached his goal.
And then he would learn to love every piece of Alexander for the rest of his life. Or for as long as Alec wanted him.
For now, though, he would enjoy the teasing and the blushing and the compliments and accept everything that Alec was willing to give him. After all, even great relationships had to start somewhere.
And if there was one thing Magnus knew, it was that Alexander and he would stop at nothing to be the greatest of all.