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“Raphael?” Simon poked his head around the corner, spotting the well-dressed vampire standing by one of the extravagant paintings on the wall.
And boy was he well-dressed today. He was always well-dressed but his outfit today made Simon’s throat dry up. He frowned and mentally smacked himself. What the hell was he thinking? Shut up Inner Simon and focus!
“What is it Simon?” Raphael murmured, turning a bored look in his direction.
“Is it okay if I leave the Hotel for a bit? Just for like a night,” Simon said.
Raphael raised an eyebrow. He gestured for Simon to come closer, and he shuffled around the corner and awkwardly into Raphael’s presence. Raphael always made him slightly on edge however he tried to hide it. He made him nervous.
“Why?” Raphael asked.
“I’m sort of going to a wedding.” Simon replied.
“A wedding?” Raphael stalked in a circle around Simon, making him swallow thickly as the vampire’s eyes roamed his body from top to bottom as he walked around him. “You are not going to a wedding in that wardrobe, that’s for sure.”
Simon blinked and spun on his heel. “You mean it’s okay to go?” he all but squeaked.
“You know you’re not a prisoner yes? You can come and go as you please, as long as I don’t need you for anything.” Raphael said.
His eyes flickered up and down Simon’s form again. He clicked his tongue and shook his head.
“Come with me, we’ll find you something more suitable to wear.”
Obediently, Simon followed Raphael, just happy to be allowed to go to the wedding as Clary’s date. A chance to get out of the Hotel and spend an evening with Clary was a win-win for Simon. Though he had to admit, being in the Hotel wasn’t so bad, it was just a tad boring. Raphael certainly kept him busy with his new advisorship or whatever, but it was nothing too fun. Honestly Simon was sure being appointed ambassador to the werewolves was just Raphael wanting to get rid of him for a while, and this promotion to being advisor was just a punishment for blackmailing him, but the more he spent helping Raphael the more he realised how much politics the leader of the coven was involved with. Suddenly the supernatural world was less exciting and more terrifying, with how little alliances and peace treaties were tied together with. Raphael handled himself well, he was a good leader there was no denying that, and he cared for his people whatever he said. Simon had seen that, not that Raphael would ever admit he did anything special for Simon.
“Simon!”
Simon blinked, snapped out of his thoughts by Raphael calling his name. Raphael had one eyebrow raised at him as he walked, his lips twitching into a smirk as Simon struggled to get his bearings again.
“S-Sorry, were you saying something?” he stammered.
Raphael shook his head slightly, muttering something in Spanish under his breath.
“I asked you what kind of wedding you’re going to,”
“What kind? Uh…haven’t been to enough to know there were different kinds,” Simon said.
Raphael rolled his eyes as he opened the door to his room and let Simon in. “I mean, idiota, what species? Is it a mundane wedding? Or something else?”
“Oh! Oh it’s a Shadowhunter wedding,” Simon said, understanding the situation.
Raphael paused from opening his closet, and glanced back at Simon. “You’re invited to a Shadowhunter wedding? Is the red-head getting married?”
“What? Oh no! No it’s not Clary’s wedding, it’s Alec’s, Clary just invited me, you know as her date I guess,” Simon shrugged, not liking the expression on Raphael’s face when he mentioned being Clary’s date.
“I see. Well, traditionally the colours of a wedded union among the Shadowunters are black and gold. But since you’re a guest, and a vampire, we don’t have to abide by that rule.” Raphael said, walking into his closet and beckoning Simon to follow.
Simon had never seen a walk-in closet until then, and what a walk-in closet it was. It was practically another room! No wonder Raphael looked good all the time, he had like a million pieces of clothing. Ignoring the draws of jackets and jeans and casual clothes, Raphael headed to his racks of suits, of which there were several. He pulled out two racks and wheeled them into the centre of the room to look at them.
“Have enough clothes Raphael? I can see what you spend your immortality doing,” Simon muttered.
Raphael snorted at him. “You might be okay with wearing the same t-shirt for eternity, I am not. I mean have you ever seen me not looking good?”
“No you always look amazing,” Simon murmured aloud, still staring at the various shelves and racks in the room.
He spoke without even thinking, and once he’d realised what he’d said, he froze. From the corner of his eye he could see Raphael looked slightly startled. But he took the compliment with a smirk as he turned back to his suits. Simon thanked the Lord he didn’t comment on it, that would have been mortifying.
It was true though, now that he thought about it. Raphael always looked amazing. He wasn’t especially pale like most vampires, but he was pale enough to make him look quite startling in the dark clothes that he wore. It helped that he was especially good-looking too, unlike Simon, who was perhaps average at best. Simon shook his head again. Why was he thinking about Raphael’s good looks so much today?! No, not his good looks, just his looks, Raphael did not look good dammit! Get your head together Simon! Clary, Clary was good-looking, Clary was beautiful and that was all Simon should be thinking about was impressing Clary.
“Alright what do you think of this one?”
Simon moved his eyes to look at a suit Raphael was holding up. He’d seen Raphael wearing it before. It looked good on him, like everything else. This suit in particular though, looked even better on Raphael than he usually looked. It probably wouldn’t do Simon any favours though. Simon tilted his head to one side.
“I dunno, what do you think?” he asked.
“It’s a slim cut, it’ll make you look like you actually work out.” Raphael smirked.
What like you do? Simon wanted to say. Did Raphael work out even? Or was it just part of his vampirism? Simon wasn’t fit just because of his undead nature, but then again he was born in an age where vampiric hunting and fighting were forbidden, Raphael was not. Simon had seen Raphael fight, if only briefly, but it had been enough to notice his strength. Take Raphael right now, in this moment, he currently wasn’t wearing a suit jacket over his shirt and vest, and even though his sleeves where rolled all the way down, the thin material was doing nothing to hide the obvious strength in Raphael’s arms. Looking at those arms made Simon unconsciously shiver. He’d only been on the receiving end of those strong arms when Raphael had been angry, he couldn’t help but wonder what those muscles would feel like if they handled him gently.
Oh no Simon shut the hell up right now. Simon thought angrily to himself. Just shut up. Shut up now and answer him damn you.
“Are you sure I can’t just wear something of mine?” Simon sighed.
Raphael scoffed. “I’ve seen the extent of your wardrobe Simon and no, no you cannot.”
“Why do you care so much anyway?”
“You’re going to the Institute. Do you know how many years it’s been since one of us was invited inside the Institute? You’re going because Clary asked you but don’t forget you’re a vampire and when surrounded by Nephilim you are representing all of us. Which means you have to look good.” Raphael said, sorting through a couple more suits. “I won’t have you embarrass us by looking like you do normally,”
“What’s wrong with how I look normally?” Simon said defensively.
“Well since you started borrowing my clothes, absolutely nothing.” Raphael said casually.
Simon felt his face heat up. “That was one time! I didn’t have a jacket!” he cried.
Raphael just smirked.
“If you want it back you can just tell me you know,”
“You ruined it remember? Keep it.” Raphael said. “Take it as a gift from me. Ah here we go, what about this?”
Simon admitted he liked this suit a lot better than the last. He’d only seen Raphael wearing the jacket component of the outfit, but it had looked fantastic. It shimmered in the light like a metallic dark blue. It was amazing.
“It’s better.” Simon said, a forced tone of casualness about him. He didn’t want to sound too eager after all.
“It’s better he says,” Raphael rolled his eyes. “It’s perfect I say. Just don’t ruin it okay? It’s one of my most expensive suits so be careful in it, no messing around with it.”
“Yes sir,” Simon muttered as he was handed the suit, though he had to admit that Raphael giving him one of his most expensive suits to borrow was a little flattering.
“Go try it on, see if it fits.” Raphael instructed.
Knowing by now that just doing what the older vampire said instead of grumbling made his life a whole lot easier, Simon ducked behind one of the screens in the closet to change into the suit. The suit felt nice against his skin, made Simon a whole lot more confident then he usually was, so hopefully it looked okay on him. Though suddenly shy in front of Raphael, he shuffled out in the suit, looking at himself in the full length mirror on the wall. He had to admit he looked pretty damn good.
“How do I look?” he asked Raphael, who hadn’t blinked since he’d come out from behind the screen.
He saw his face soften behind him in the mirror. “Luces demasiado bien para ser cierto,” he murmured, so quietly that if Simon hadn’t had vampire senses he wouldn’t have heard it.
“What?” he asked turning around.
Raphael’s face became a mask of cold aloofness then as he shrugged. “It’ll do.” He said.
You little liar, Simon thought, wondering what Raphael had actually said.
“Thanks I guess,” Simon said slowly. “I promise not to ruin it.”
“Better not, now go on, you don’t want to keep your little lady waiting do you?”
Clary. Simon had completely forgot about Clary. How could that be? He tried to imagine her reaction to his outfit, but no matter how wide the Clary of his imagination smiled, for some reason it didn’t come close to Raphael’s soft expression and the small smile and the murmured response in Spanish, whatever it had meant. He also didn’t like Raphael’s slightly disgruntled face when he mentioned Clary. Was he…jealous? Simon’s eyes unconsciously widened. No, no he couldn’t be that was crazy. Sure he insisted Simon stay at Hotel Dumort instead of going with Clary the last time she’d come to him for help, but that was just punishment for undermining him. He’d seemed quite impressed at Simon’s successful blackmail attempt, but that’s just the kind of person Raphael was, he respected people who could hold their own against him. Simon was in no way able to do that, but he’d impressed Raphael that day, enough to not be killed anyway. But that couldn’t mean he liked him, right? Raphael tolerated at him best, right?
“You…wouldn’t want to come with me, would you?” Simon heard himself asking.
Raphael’s eyes widened slightly. “Me? Why would you want me to come with you?”
“You work too hard, you never get out.” Simon shrugged.
It wasn’t a complete lie, Raphael was always working, and it was rare that he left Hotel Dumort of late. Raphael crossed his arms over his chest, tilted his head to one side, and smiled.
“I don’t mind working.” He said. “And something tells me that one vampire is enough in a room full of Shadowhunters. Too many Downworlders in one place tends to make them nervous. You go and have fun,”
So Simon had gone to the wedding alone, meeting Clary in the wedding hall. She had been so happy to see him, hugging him and looking astonished at his suit. She looked beautiful in her lovely gown, her hair tied up elegantly down her back, but all Simon could think about was Raphael. How Raphael would look, how Raphael would dress for a wedding, what Raphael’s hand would feel like on his arm instead of Clary’s. Maybe he was going crazy. He didn’t like Raphael, did he? He sat down next to Clary, still thinking hard. When Clary had complimented him, he’d proudly announced that it was Raphael’s suit, as though to remind her of his impeccable fashion taste and how good his clothes look on him. Or how good Raphael’s clothes looked on Simon. The thought made him blush.
As the wedding started he pushed all thoughts of the other vampire from his mind, concentrating on Alec and his lovely bride. That didn’t last too long however, before the ceremony was interrupted by a very determined and fabulous warlock.
Their kiss was nothing short of amazing. Simon felt giddy just looking at them. They were so happy, and if there was one thing Simon adored, it was people around him being happy. When Alec pulled back from Magnus slightly, then leaned down to kiss him again, Simon caught the expression on Magnus’ face. It was a look of utter affection, and love. Simon jolted as he realised where he recognised that look from. It was the exact same look Raphael had given him in the mirror, when he’d asked him how he looked. The same tiny smile, the same soft eyes, everything. Simon felt himself smiling so hard his cheeks hurt. Raphael looked at him like Magnus looked at Alec, and Simon looked back at him like Alec looked back at Magnus, as though he couldn’t believe what was happening. As happy as he was for the new couple, his heart was swelling for another reason as well. He liked Raphael. There was no denying it then. As he watched the two of them, he couldn’t help but imagine himself and Raphael in the same position. It was hard to breathe after that thought.
Magnus and Alec didn’t fully appreciate Simon’s babblings about their kiss however. Magnus seemed mildly amused by what he was saying, but Alec just looked confused. Simon gave up, fine if he wasn’t wanted he’d just go home to where he was appreciated, although Raphael would probably tell him to shut up too. Only one way to find out.
“Well you look happy,”
He heard Raphael’s voice before he saw him. He was reading a book on one of the large sofas in the drawing room as Simon turned around from closing the door. Raphael was smirking over the top of his book at Simon’s giddy expression.
“Oh you should have been there, the best thing ever happened! It was like magic – well technically it was because Magnus is a warlock but whatever – and everyone was so shocked and I was like ‘hell yes!’ and it was amazing you’ll never believe what happened Raphael you should have come with me!” Simon said in a rush, trying to get all the words out in one breath.
Raphael chuckled. “Sit down before you fall down Simon, and tell me what happened.”
The other vampire put away his book and leaned over the arm of the sofa as Simon plonked himself down on the armchair beside him. It was then that Simon began, his eyes wide and his arms flailing wildly as he spoke, his voice getting louder the more excited he got. Raphael leaned across to him, holding his chin in his hand, nodding along to what Simon was saying, and smiling when Simon got so excited he was shouting. He didn’t tell Simon to lower his volume, nor did he tell him to be quiet, he didn’t even interrupt as he babbled about what happened at the wedding.
“It sounds like you had a good time,” Raphael chuckled when Simon was finally finished.
“Oh Raphael, it was like, the best night ever!” Simon beamed.
Raphael just smiled at him, shaking his head fondly. “Como puedes ser tan lindo?” he murmured to himself.
Simon felt himself pout. “You know it’s not fair to talk about me in Spanish. What are you saying?”
“That’s for me to know, and for you to find out.” Raphael winked.
Simon felt his face heat up again. Raphael wasn’t usually so open and…flirtatious like this. He liked it though, there was no doubt about that. He tilted his head, and smirked at Raphael.
“What happens if I do find out?” he asked teasingly.
“You’re probably not going to like it,” Raphael said coolly, inspecting his nails as though they were the most interesting thing in the world.
“You’re not calling me ugly or anything are you?”
Raphael laughed, but shook his head no. Simon smiled.
“Well that’s good, because if you were I wouldn’t feel like doing this,” he said.
“What?” Raphael asked, one eyebrow raised.
Come on Simon, get it together man it’s okay. If Alec can do it in front of everyone, you can do it here. Simon urged himself. Before he could argue with himself, he closed the short distance between them by leaning over the arm of the chair, and kissed Raphael.
For the first moment he panicked, thinking he’d done something wrong when Raphael didn’t respond, but suddenly Raphael’s hand was against his cheek, and the other was slipping itself into his hair, his lips moving against his. The kiss seemed to last forever and yet it ended all too quickly for Simon.
“Will you tell me what you said now?” he whispered, leaning his forehead against Raphael’s.
Raphael smiled slightly. “How can you be so cute?” he translated softly.
“You think I’m cute?” Simon blinked.
“Adorable.” Raphael murmured.
Simon smiled, and closed the space between their lips again.
Thanks for the confidence Alec.