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„Stop drooling.”

Alec jumped and raised a hand to his mouth to see if there was actually any saliva. When he was sure that his mouth was indeed saliva-free he muttered "I'm not drooling". He had said it more under his breath than out loud but his sister had heard him nonetheless.

“Yes, you are. You’re drooling all over the floor because of your little crush,” Isabelle teased with a smirk on her lips. She didn’t look at him, though. Instead she watched the boy a few lockers down the aisle, who was chatting with some of his friends. A boy with magenta streaks in his spiky, black hair.

“I do not have a crush,” Alec insisted and closed his locker with a little more force than necessary. The guy next to him shot him a huffish look but quickly fled when Alec answered with a glare.

“There is no use in denying your feelings, big brother. I can read you like an open book.”

Alec rolled his eyes and shouldered his bag.

“You should ask him out, you know?” she said, but her voice lacked the usual playfulness, giving out how serious she was.

“Yeah, like that’s ever going to happen.” Alec tried to walk past his sister down the aisle, but she simply clung to his arm and walked with him.

“Why shouldn’t it?” she asked.

“Because…” Alec seemed to struggle for the right words. “Because look at me! I’m nothing! I’m neither fashionable nor sociable. I always wear the same sweaters and all of them are black. The only friends I have are my siblings and I’m fine with that! It’s not like I’m good around people anyway. Hell, I don’t even like people! The point is: He’s way out of my lea – OW!”

Isabelle hat punched him hard in the ribs. She’d stopped walking and, because still holding onto Alec’s arm, was forcing him to stand as well.

“Don’t you dare saying that he’s out of your league!” she threatened.

“Are you crazy? You hit me!” Alec sounded genuinely offended.

“Tell me you don’t actually believe that,” she commanded, completely ignoring his complaint.

“Yeah, well, but it’s true.”

The second punch followed.

“OW! God, Izzy, you really should see someone because of those anger management issues of yours.” Alec, sulking, rubbed his ribcage where Isabelle’s fist had surely left a bruise.

Again, his sister ignored him. “Alec, you’re one of the brightest heads of your age, the top of your literature class, you’re ripped, won the junior archery championship two times in a row and, even though sometimes it’s annoying how protective you are, you’re also the best big brother that Jace, Max and I could ever ask for.”

Alec, flustered by the overwhelming compliment, didn’t know what to answer.

Isabelle saved him the response by putting her smirk back on and adding: “Neither does it harm that you’re over six feet tall with amazing sex hair and an ass that’s practically begging to be tapped.”

“Izzy…” he groaned, rolling his eyes yet again. He could feel his cheeks heating up from embarrassment.

“What? It’s true!”

Right on cue the school bell rung, causing the students to hurry to their classes, Alec and Izzy included.

“This is not over yet!” his sister warned him before making her way to her Biology class.

-

It was, indeed, not over yet. Alec had only just taken his chemistry text book out of his bag, ready to do his homework, when Isabelle had come bursting into his room.

“Alright, so Operation Magnus is on. Now all we need is a plan on how you can ask him out without you ending up as a stuttering mess, because I know you and that is most likely what is going to happen.”

With a determined movement she placed her bag right on top of his text book. Alec didn’t even have time to complain, because she had already taken out a notebook that was over and over decorated with cut-outs out of fashion magazines and stickers from her favorite band.

“What’s that?” Alec asked, suspicion wavering in his voice.

“My organizer for Operation Magnus,” Izzy replied with the entire world’s implicitness.

“You’ve got a whole organizer just so you can plan how I can ask Magnus Bane out?” Alec raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

“Of course not, dummy. This is for all my operations of that kind. Though, don’t get me wrong, if you don’t get your head out of your ass I might as well dedicate a whole new notebook just to this operation.” Isabelle already paged through the book to see where she had left off.

“’Of that kind’? How many of those things do you do?”

Isabelle shrugged. “A few.”

“I appreciate your enthusiasm, Izzy, I really do, but before we can plan anything I need to do my homework.”

His sister sighed exasperated. “Why are you always so sensible? You’re no fun! But very well, as you wish. You will do your homework and I will make some pancakes that we can eat while planning Operation Magnus. You know, maybe we should rename it Operation Malec. Since the final goal is to get the two of you together.”

“Name it however you like, but please let me do my homework,” Alec pleaded.

Isabelle grimaced but obeyed, took her bag off his desk and made her way out of his door.

“And ask Jace to help you with the pancakes!” Alec called after her, knowing that her cooking skills would most certainly lead to a disaster.

She closed the door without replying so Alec wasn’t sure if she had actually heard him. He decided to just hope for the best and turned his attention towards his chemistry text book.

-

It was the smell of something burnt that finally made him look up from his school work. For a second or two he wondered what could possibly be the cause of that particular smell; that was until he remembered that Izzy had wanted to make pancakes.

In a heartbeat he was up and out of his room, sprinting into the kitchen. He could only see black smoke arising from the pan and immediately went to take it off the cooker and turn off the heat, but it was too late. The fire alarm kicked in and so did the sprinkler system, soaking both Alec and Isabelle, who was standing at the counter with hunched up shoulders and an apologetic smile.

“Izzy,” Alec began, eerily calm, while the fire alarm still screamed at full volume and the water kept pouring down, “didn’t I tell you to ask Jace to help you with the pancakes?”

Ashamed Izzy bit her bottom lip and shrugged helplessly. “He said he’s busy.”

Alec sighed, went to the dining room and came back with a chair on which he stood in order to reach the fire alarm. With a well-placed hit the alarm died.

“Help me clean up this mess before our parents come home,” he said while climbing off the chair again. But as soon as he had finished the sentence he could hear a key being turned in the lock of the front door.

Alec felt like a bunny, trapped by a car light. His mind seemed to race a hundred miles per hour, desperately looking for an excuse or a way out but he knew there was none.
He knew they both would be in trouble, not only Isabelle. She was his responsibility. It was his duty to watch out for her but instead he had let her ruin a perfectly good pan and flood the perfectly good kitchen floor.

Still, Izzy would get the greater punishment. She had been the one to cause all this mess and there was a part of Alec that thought that she deserved to get in trouble for it. But Maryse’ punishments rarely ever fit the crime and Alec already knew what the sentence would be.

Isabelle had been talking about it for weeks now. Non-stop she had been bubbling about it, planning her outfit, her make-up, her hair. There had been flyers all over the school for months, announcing what was supposed to be the event of the year for every high-schooler.

The Halloween party.

Izzy would be devastated if she were forbidden to go. Alec couldn’t let that happen. He never could see his little sister be sad for too long.

Maryse Lightwood’s low heel-shoes clapped determined onto the wooden floor and announced her confident steps coming down the hall, closer to the kitchen. With every clap Alec could feel his heart sink a little more.

And then she was there.

Dressed in a grey pencil skirt and a white blouse with a fitting blazer, Maryse Lightwood looked as professional as always. When she saw the mess that her kitchen was her eyes widened for a second almost comically but soon she had herself back under control and her face returned to the same cool mask as always. When she spoke her voice was calm but cold and carried a threat with it that was so subtle that it could have easily gone unnoticed. But not to the Lightwood children; to them it was so very obvious that is almost tasted bitter.

“Alec, Isabelle. What happened in here?”

“It was me, mother.” Alec’s answer had come so quick that Izzy hadn’t even had time to react.

Maryse raised an eyebrow questioningly. “You?”

“Yes. I was trying to make pancakes and thought I could leave the pan unattended for a second while I went to get my chemistry textbook. I wanted to do some reading while keeping an eye on the food because I have a test tomorrow. But then I got distracted and the pancakes burnt and the fire alarm went off. Izzy was just trying to help me but it was already too late. I apologize; I should have been more attentive.”

“Is that true?” Maryse’ look probably could have cut steel but Alec stayed strong.

“No, it was my fault!” Isabelle chimed in but her brother cut her off immediately:

“No, it wasn’t. I appreciate that you want to cover up for me, Iz, but don’t. I did this and now I need to live with the consequences.”

His eyes never left their mother, whose expression was wary but finally she seemed to believe him.

“I am very disappointed in you, Alec. You will clean this mess up this instant. Furthermore you are grounded for the next three months. I wish to never see this happening again.” And with those words she disappeared again, making her way to her room. Probably to do some work.

Alec let out a relieved sigh. That could have gone worse, he thought. Isabelle didn’t seem to think so. A deep frown had appeared on her forehead.

“You shouldn’t have done that,” she stated.

“And what? Let her ground you? Next week is the Halloween party; I know you’ve been planning this night for months. I won’t let our mother ruin it just because you cannot cook for the love of God.”

“And what about you? Now you can’t go to the party!” Izzy seemed genuinely upset. How serious she was about the matter Alec noticed amongst other especially because she didn’t even try to object to the critic of her cooking skills.

“I know, but I don’t like events like that anyway. Too many people,” he tried to make her feel better.

“But-“

“And now you won’t have to put up with me the whole night. You can go with a proper date. I know you’ve been thinking about asking Meliorn.”

“No, Alec, stop saying things like that! You know I love spending time with you!” A small furrow had appeared between her eyebrows. It always did when she thought he spoke too lowly about himself. It made her look simultaneously angry and worried.

“Yeah, at home. But I’m not exactly fun at parties. You’ll be better off without me there.”

“And what about Operation Malec?” she started another try.

“What about it?”

“It’s ruined! The whole plan demolished!”

“What are you talking about? What plan?”

“The plan about you asking Magnus if he wants to be your date for that night?” Isabelle looked like she couldn’t believe that he had already forgotten about it.

Alec was taken aback. “What?! Izzy, you didn’t tell me anything about that!”

His sister shrugged. “I thought it was obvious.”

“It wasn’t. Not to me, at least.”

“Well, now you know. But it’s of no use because now you won’t be able to go because you’re grounded!”

“A simple ‘thank you’ would be enough. You were the one to flood the kitchen.”

At first Izzy looked like she was about to argue again but then she settled for a defeated sigh. “Yeah, I’m sorry. This is all entirely my fault.”

Alec’s expression softened. “It’s okay. C’mon, help me clean this up, and then I can make you some new pancakes.”

“Nah, I don’t think I can ever eat those delicious golden pieces of wickedness again. The fact that they prevented you from a romantic night with your glittery future husband kind
of damaged me forever.”

Eventually Alec ended up making some anyway and after struggling some time due to her inner conflict, Isabelle ate five.

-

To be honest, Alec should have known better. After having grown up with Izzy under the same roof he should have known that a simple order from Maryse was not enough to stop the unruly force that his sister was.

Still, he was startled when he came home, two days after the incident, and found his room in complete darkness.

He tried to turn on the light but it didn’t work.

“Please close the door.”

With a bit of effort Alec could make out a silhouette sitting on his chair. “Izzy? What the hell?”

“Do as you are told.”

Alec frowned but obeyed and he could see the weak glim of her white teeth as she smiled.

“Take a seat.”

Awkwardly he started walking, his hand in front of him, searching for possible obstacles he could run into. “I can’t see a thing, Iz, how am I supposed to find-“ Alec hissed when his foot hit something wooden. It was a chair.

He sat down.

“I think you know why I ordered you in here?”

“You didn’t order me anywhere. This is my room, remember?”

“Not important. Important is only the mission. Are you ready?”

The tone of her voice made Alec wary. “For what?”

Izzy dramatically switched on the lamp on his desk and Alec squinted, trying to shield his eyes from the sudden light.

“Operation Malec.”

Now he could see that his sister had laid out on his desk what looked like a detailed construction of a plan, like the ones that usually only existed in bad crime movies.

A suspicion sprouted in him. “Did you take out my light bulbs to make this moment more dramatic?”

“Please focus on the task at hand, Alec. What you can see here is the result of a two days’ work. Please appreciate it.”

“Appreciated,” he said in a deadpan voice.

“Thank you. Now that that’s settled, I would like to demonstrate you how we are going to let you meet your glittery future husband on the Halloween party.”

“Would you please stop calling him that?”

“No.”

Alec sighed. “Okay, what do we do?”

Izzy beamed and immediately hurried to explain her plan to him. “Okay, so the biggest problem will be our parents. You can’t leave the house because you’re grounded and you
can’t sneak out while they’re still here because they will catch you. Believe me, I’ve tried. There is no way. So what we are going to do is we’re sending our parents away for the night.”

“And how do you want to accomplish that?”

“We, Alec, how do we want to accomplish that,” Izzy insisted.

Alec could barely keep himself from rolling his eyes. “Alright, how do we want to accomplish that?”

“We will set up a business meeting with them,” she stated simply.

“Care to elaborate on that?” Alec asked trying to sound annoyed that he had to pry for every tiny piece of information but failing because he was starting to get actually interested
in his sister’s schemes.

“As you may know, our parents are currently trying to get Valentine Morgenstern to sign some boring contract that’s somehow very important. And as it happens that very Valentine Morgenstern is the father of Simon’s best friend.” Izzy looked more than pleased with her discovery.

Alec frowned. “Who’s Simon?”

His sister’s smile faltered. “Seriously, Alec? Simon Lewis? You’ve met him. He’s been at our house multiple times. Brown curls, glasses? Used to have a crush on me?”

He shrugged helplessly, still not knowing of whom she was talking about.

She sighed. “He talks a lot.”

Somewhere in Alec’s brain it made click and an image appeared in front of his eyes. “Ah, now I remember!” He frowned again. “He is annoying.”

“No, he’s not, he’s adorable. It doesn’t matter, back to the plan. I’ve already looked into Mom’s calendar and they have a meeting with Valentine Morgenstern next week. Sadly two days before the party but – and this is the genius part – I will persuade Simon to hack into Morgenstern’s mail account and send a mail to our mother, asking her to postpone the meeting to the night of the party.”

“How does he want to accomplish that?”

“His best friend happens to be Valentine’s daughter, which is how he got all the data he needs about him. And in case you don’t remember: Simon is the ultimate computer genius.”

Alec still wasn’t convinced. “And you don’t think they’ll notice when Valentine doesn’t show up because he still thinks that their meeting is set for two days later?”

“Of course not, silly.” Isabelle gently shook her head. “He too will receive a mail from our parents, well, actually from Simon, asking him to reschedule. Mom’s calendar says they’re free that night. And from what Clary says, so is Valentine.”

“Who’s Clary?” Alec asked confused.

“His daughter,” Izzy explained.

“Wait, isn’t she that tiny redhead?”

Izzy was startled. “You know her?”

“No, only ever saw her in school from afar.”

His sister shot him a glare. “Her you remember even though you’ve never even talked to her and Simon who’s been visiting us for years now you don’t?”

Alec shrugged. “Jace has been talking about her non-stop ever since they’re in the same math class. It’s annoying as hell.”

“Wait, she’s the one he’s been crushing on so hard?” Izzy asked, an amused smirk blossoming on her lips.

“I think so, yeah.”

“I can’t blame him. She’s hot.” Alec could practically see how an idea formed itself in her head. She opened a new page in her notebook and hectically scribbled something down.

“Seriously? Jace and Clary as well? Isn’t one operation at a time enough?”

“I can handle it. Besides, what kind of sister would I be if I’d put my one brother’s need for love over my other brother’s need for love? Although, don’t get me wrong: You
definitely need it more than Jace. Doesn’t matter, we’re getting distracted again.” With a snap she closed her notebook again. “Simon will not only hack into Valentine’s account but also into Mom’s and delete the other one’s answer before they can read it.”

“Yeah, but that is only if everything goes according to plan. If not, we are both doomed and you will be grounded as well,” Alec reminded her. As he continued speaking his voice got soft. “We can’t risk that, Izzy. If you can’t go to the party because of this then everything will have been for nothing.”

“It will work. I trust Simon with this.” She said those words with so much determination that her brother didn’t argue about it any longer. Instead he focused on another one of his worries:

“And what if they mention the rescheduling at the meeting? Then our parents will know what’s up.”

“But they won’t come to get us. You know them, the meeting is too important; they can’t cancel it while being right in the middle of it. Maybe all hell will break lose as soon as they get home but at least you’d be at the party.”

Alec ran a hand through his hair in frustration about Izzy’s stubbornness. “Why is that so important to you?”

“Because you’re always so lonely, Alec. And I don’t want that, I want you to be happy.” Her expression showed sincere worry as she leaned forward to take his hand and squeeze it a little.

Alec squeezed back. “I’m not lonely, I’ve got you, and Jace and Max.”

“Of course you have us and that won’t ever change. But it’s not the same. I know that your crush on Magnus probably goes back to your Freshman year and I also know that you never, not once, made a move on him. So this night will clear the table. Either he’s interested and you will be happily in love forever and ever and play the suburban dads with three wonderful children and throw a barbecue every other week or he’s not and you can finally stop pining. Don’t you want to know?”

Actually Alec didn’t want to know. He was very much content with living in this fantasy world and imagining what it would be like to kiss Magnus Bane. It was safe. In his dreams Magnus Bane always liked kissing him as much as Alec liked it. But reality never mirrored his dreams.

Alec had been imagining for such a long time now that he had the feeling that whatever would happen only could disappoint him. The most likely response he would get was a refusal. What could Magnus Bane possibly find attractive about him? Alec was so different from everything the other boy liked. He was not glittery or shiny. He was neither bold nor beautiful. Not in the way his siblings were.

Alec didn’t know if he could handle being dumped.

But Izzy had a point. He’d been pining for so long now. There was a part of him that finally wanted clarity. A part that was at least a tiny bit hopeful.

“Let me do this for you,” his sister pledged.

And before he had even realized what decision he had made, he found himself nodding in defeat. “Okay.”

Izzy smiled. “Good, I’ll call Simon.”

-

Alec had known that Simon Lewis talked a lot. He had just forgotten how much.

“Really, Izzy, it’s no problem. We’re friends. Friends do each other favors. That’s how it works,” he babbled when Izzy had thanked him again for helping them. “Although I must say that I am a little curious as to why you want your parents and Clary’s Dad to meet that night. Because I thought you’d be at that party that the school gives, that Halloween-thing, and then it wouldn’t really matter if they’d be at home or not because you wouldn’t be there. Except of course you will but I thought you were really looking forward to it?”

Izzy grinned fondly and sat down on the bed. They were in Simon’s room. Simon was sitting at his desk, his chair turned into the opposite direction so that he could look at her while talking. Alec was leaning against his wardrobe, his arms crossed.

“Actually, it’s not for me. Alec got grounded, so he can’t go to the party. We want our parents away so he can sneak out and have some fun,” Izzy explained.

Simon raised his eyebrows in surprise. “You got grounded? I thought you were the perfect son! What did you do to manage that?”

Alec gave him a deadpan look. “I didn’t bury the last body properly.”

Simon gulped but Izzy just rolled her eyes. “He covered up for me when I accidentally set the kitchen on fire.”

Simon’s shoulders sacked down in relief, almost unnoticeable. He gently shook his head. “Isabelle, Isabelle, won’t you ever learn not to set foot into a kitchen?”

“I’m not that bad!” Izzy defended herself.

“You set a kitchen on fire,” Simon reminded her.

“Yeah, but it wasn’t really my fault! The pan was defect.”

“The pan was defect,” the boy with the glasses repeated in disbelief.

Isabelle shrugged helplessly and they decided to drop the topic.

Instead Simon turned to Alec. “Why are you so eager to go to the party? There are people there. I thought you hate people.”

Because Alec didn’t really feel the need to answer that question, Isabelle did.

“Alec has a date.”

At the same time as Simon’s face lit up in both surprise and delight, Alec shot his sister a glare that would have made anyone less confident crumble in regret.

“Are you serious?! With whom?”

“No one,” Alec said at the same time as Izzy said: “Magnus Bane.”

“Magnus Bane?! I know him; he’s good friends with Clary. He’s a funny guy, always acts like he doesn’t know my name. Hadn’t thought he’d be your type, though; with all the
glitter and drama and socializing and stuff. It doesn’t really fit your dark and brooding aura.” He probably would have kept talking but Alec interrupted him.

“Are you sure he only pretends not to know your name?”

Simon chuckled but it was a nervous chuckle. A sound deeply satisfying for Alec.

“Don’t be mean, Alec,” Izzy chastised him. “Actually, he doesn’t have a real date with him. Well, none Magnus knows of. But that’s what I want to change, so I thought it would be fun to get them together at the party.”

“And Isabelle Lightwood always gets what she wants.” Simon shot her a bright grin that she returned.

“Alright, guys, let’s do this.” And with those words Simon pulled his chair around again and started typing on his laptop.

-

The rest of the day Alec spent being nervous. If he would have had the habit of biting his nails, they would have been chewed to the very bottom by now. Fortunately that was not the case. Instead it was not his nails but his sweater that had to suffer, because Alec kept playing with the hems of it until the fabric frayed even though Izzy permanently told him to stop.

“It will work, Alec. Trust me.”

And of course he trusted her. He always did. But he also trusted his parent’s ability to prevent all of their children’s shenanigans from happening.

They were sitting at the kitchen table. Izzy was balancing some pudding on her spoon before it quickly disappeared into her mouth.

Alec couldn’t eat anything. His stomach seemed to be twisted and turned. Maybe he was getting sick…?

That moment Jace came swaggering in.

“What are you doing?” he asked and immediately grinned when he saw what Izzy was eating.

He walked into the kitchen and returned with another spoon in his hand. Ignoring Izzy’s protest he dug it into her pudding and took out a big load which he swallowed with an
almost mischievous amount of satisfaction on his face.

“Why so serious?” he frowned when he saw Alec’s anxious face.

Before either of them could answer, another voice interrupted. Maryse Lightwood stood in the doorway. As always she looked all business.

“Alec, Isabelle, Jace, the night of your school event your father and I will be away; an important meeting. We expect you to behave properly and to hold the Lightwood name in
honor. Isabelle, Jace, for you that means that I do not want to receive any phone calls telling me you’re drunk somewhere. Alec, for you that means you will not leave the house, understood? We will only be away till one am.”

The children all nodded respectfully and their mother left as suddenly as she had come.

“Told you it would work,” Isabelle sung with a smug smile on her face.

Alec rolled his eyes but couldn’t keep his lips from twitching suspiciously as he let out a relieved breath.

“What the fuck is going on?” Jace asked confused.

He had asked Alec but the dark-haired boy just waved the question away, not in the mood to explain everything really, and actually letting out a small laugh.

When Jace looked at Isabelle she just gently shook her head, a sign that she would tell him later.

-

Now that the plan was settled Alec found himself in the uncomfortable position of not being able to do anything. Back when he had lived believing that he wouldn’t attend the party he had been living on his life like he always had. When Izzy then had given him hope he had filled every minute working on or worrying about their plan. But now that the worst was over Alec was left with nothing.

Although the knowledge of having the worst behind gave him a feeling of security, the nothingness filled him with anxious thoughts about what could still happen.

Izzy wasn’t much help either. She was always out or locked away in her room, saying she was working on something for the party. Alec didn’t have the slightest clue what that
could be but he didn’t want to annoy her by prying. Not after everything she’d done for him.

However, that meant that two days before the party Alec found himself sitting alone in the cafeteria because Izzy was yet again away to do whatever the hell she was doing all this
time and Jace had football training.

Usually Alec didn’t mind sitting alone. He either ate in silence or listened to some music but most times he read while slowly chewing his sandwich or what else the cafeteria offered that didn’t promise immediate food poisoning.

Today was no exception.

He was already well into the book when he finished eating and, as always, he picked up the tray and balanced it on one hand. Not bothering to stop reading he just held the novel in his other on his way to the exit. He had done this many times by now and his insane height and dark and brooding aura had always made people sidestepping him and prevented any collusion.

Which is why he didn’t worry all too much about his way, his eyes glued to the lines of his book.

That was until he whole bodily crashed into something.

There was a loud clash, Alec cursed; his tray went flying to the floor while he just so managed to keep his balance, clinging onto his book, so it wouldn’t hit the ground and make the pages crumble.

Frowning, Alec looked around to see what had caused the crash when he saw someone lying on the floor and realized that it was rather someone than something.

Murmuring another curse he immediately knelt down to help up whoever he had sent down and saw that the food that the person had been carrying on a tray hadn’t survived the crash either. Fries and lettuce leaves were all over the place, just like some vegetables.

Repressing a third curse he went to throw all the food back on the tray. Now it was unenjoyable anyway.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to push you, I’m sorry, I really am. I’ll pay for the food, I promise. I was so busy reading I didn’t even see you coming,” Alec rambled while sweeping the last lettuce leaf from the floor and stacking the trays.

“Don’t worry about it, darling. It’s not like anyone got hurt.”

Alec froze. He knew that voice. Not from any actual conversation he had had but rather from the aisle in their school where it had laughed loudly and shamelessly with its friends.
Or from when it had bewitched the teachers with witty and kind comments.

Oh yes, he knew that voice.

Timidly Alec looked up and into a set of warm brown eyes.

“Uh,” he announced eloquently, his brain apparently having gone into some kind of shock.

The perfectly plucked eyebrows above the two beautiful brown eyes furrowed in worry.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes! I– I’m good, thanks.” Alec could feel his face heat up from embarrassment. Quickly he got up, set the trays aside and lent Magnus Bane his hand.

The boy gladly accepted it and, once on his feet, lazily wiped any possible traces of dust off the bottoms of his pants.

“Oh my, that was quite a crash, wasn’t it? What were you reading?”

Alec didn’t really know how to react. He didn’t understand why Magnus Bane was still talking to him after Alec had run him over. He didn’t understand why the boy was talking to him in the first place!

Instead of giving an answer he just handed him the novel.

“Frankenstein,” he read the title out loud. “Must be pretty good considering how enthralled you were.”

The words could have been reproachful but they didn’t sound like it. It almost seemed like the boy wanted to tease Alec. Why was beyond the Lightwood. In his conception the other one should have left Alec standing alone at least twenty words ago.

So he did what made sense to him. He reached into his pocket, took a twenty dollar bill out, almost shoved it into Magnus Bane’s hand and murmured one last “Sorry about your lunch” before making a hasty exit.

It wasn’t until his literature class that he noticed that he had left his book behind.

-

“I fucked up, Iz. We need to cancel everything. I can’t go to the party.”

“Wait, what?”

Isabelle and Jace were sitting in the living room and had been watching TV when Alec had entered. Now Izzy grabbed the remote and turned the TV off.

“You can’t cancel!” she protested. “I spent the last few days perfecting our outfits for that night! I put my whole heart into it and you will wear it, Alec. No dodging out now.”

“So that’s what you’ve been doing all that time,” he huffed. He should have thought of that.

“Of course, what did you think?”

Alec shrugged helplessly and Izzy sighed.

That moment Jace intervened. “What did you fuck up so badly anyway?”

The eldest groaned in memory of what had happened that day and sat down next to his siblings.

“I ran into Magnus Bane today,” he confessed.

“What?!” This times Jace and Isabelle had spoken simultaneously.

“I was returning my tray in the cafeteria today and I literally ran into him. I wasn’t paying attention and we crashed into each other and he fell and his food was all over the floor. It was a disaster.” Alec buried his face in his hands. “Please just kill me.”

His sister soothingly stroked his back in an attempt to calm him down a bit. “What happened then?”

“I thought he would snap at me or something but he was being all nice which made it somehow worse because I didn’t know what to say! I just kind of picked everything off the
floor and helped him up. Then I gave him my book and twenty dollars for his lunch and left; without saying anything.”

“You gave him your book?” Izzy tried her best to keep the laughter out of her voice but failed miserably.

“I was reading when I returned my tray. That’s why I crashed into him. He wanted to know the name of the novel so I kind of just gave it to him and forgot to ask back for it.”

Jace broke out in full laughter while Isabelle still tried to stop herself from grinning, for her brother’s sake.

“And you gave him, what? Twenty dollars for his lunch?” Jace asked, still laughing.

Alec nodded, his face burning up from shame. Jace’s laugh increased and now even Izzy couldn’t hold back any longer.

“Man, I wish you had a crush on me then I’d never be broke again!” the blonde wheezed.

Alec rolled his eyes. Two years ago that comment would have stung badly but now it did nothing to him. Back then he had had the worst crush on his adoptive brother. It had come when he had just been about to figure out his sexuality and the pining had been agonizing; especially because he knew that Jace would never have anything else than brotherly feelings towards him. But then he had met Magnus Bane and the glittery boy had slowly crept up to him and made himself a home in Alec’s heart without even knowing it. Alec hadn’t noticed until it was too late and by now his crush on Jace had neglected itself completely.

It almost appeared like Alec had the habit of always picking people that were unreachable to him and pining after them with every fiber of his being.
Alec had never known how to love little. How not to yearn with everything he had. Sometimes he thought that this was one of his worst flaws.

-

The struggles didn’t end there. Alec knew that Isabelle hoped he would somehow find the courage to ask Magnus properly to be his date for the party but after the incident in the cafeteria that was unthinkable. Not that it hadn’t been before. However, Izzy had told him that Magnus Bane would attend the party without company. How she knew that was beyond Alec, but he guessed she had her sources.

All he had to do now was to walk up to the boy at the party and start a conversation. Easier said than done, if you asked Alec. But no one ever did that.

Isabelle predicted that it would be less difficult when he was wearing a costume because it would give him a little anonymity, like an armor.

Alec had his doubts, yet he usually did.

But now another problem occurred and to no one’s surprise it was presented to them by Maryse Lightwood.

“Since you will be at home at the night of the meeting you will be able to take care of Max, which is why I didn’t call the babysitter. That’s not a problem, is it?”

Well, that was most certainly not a question.

“No, of course not, mother.”

Maryse seemed pleased with that answer but Izzy apparently wasn’t.

“Mom, Max is almost thirteen by now. Do you really think he’s still in need of a babysitter?”

“I am his mother and I will decide what is best for him, Isabelle. And it doesn’t matter now anyway because I already said that I did not call the babysitter. Alec will be home that
night so he can keep an eye on his brother. Now eat your dinner before it gets cold.”

Alec felt bad. Not because he did not think Max capable of spending a night on his own but because he hadn’t even thought of him at all. How could he have forgotten his own little brother?

And could he really leave him alone for that night? He knew that it wasn’t for the whole night and Max was old enough to handle himself for a few hours by now but
still… if anything would happen to him it would be Alec’s fault. Alec didn’t know if he could live with the knowledge that his brother had gotten hurt because of him.

Maybe it was better to just not go to the party. It was a silly idea anyway. He would never find the courage to actually talk to Magnus Bane and even if he did the other boy
wouldn’t be interested. No, he should just stay and take care of Max like a responsible older brother.

As if Izzy had read his mind she caught him after dinner before he could disappear into his room.

“You’re not thinking about bailing out now, are you? Our brother is almost thirteen and he’s been on his own before. Mom just wants to put pressure on you to make sure that you
stay home.”

Alec played with the hems of his shirt. “Iz, this is Max. I can’t leave him. If something happens to him…”

“Alright, alright, I get it.” She bit her bottom lip. “I’ll think of something.”

Alec didn’t have high hopes.

Isabelle was a genius but she only had one day left. And maybe he was starting to get a little cynical. After all, what were the odds that Izzy’s little plan would actually work out?

-

When Alec woke up the next day his throat felt sore. He coughed a few times but the feeling didn’t go away.

“Shit,” he cursed and moaned in desperation when he heard his own voice. He sounded like a Sam Elliot knock-off. Now really wasn’t the time to get a cold.

He got dressed and went to the kitchen. On school days it was always only him and his siblings at the breakfast table because his parents were already at work when their children
got up. And because Isabelle and Jace liked to sleep in it was usually him who set the table and prepared everything. Sometimes Max joined him, just like he did today.

“Morning, Max,” Alec greeted him, going for the coffee machine and clicking the button to get himself a mug of delicious black caffeine.

“Man, your voice sounds weird. Do you have a cold?” Max responded, not bothering with formalities such as wishing ‘Good Mornings’. Alec took a sip and grimaced when he
burned his tongue. “Seems like I’m about to get one. Would you be so good and set the table, please?” Alec went to the fridge and reached into it to retrieve some eggs and a
package of bacon while Max went to get the plates out of the cupboard.

“Sucks! Today of all days… hey, but you’re still going to the party, aren’t you?” Alec had no idea how his brother had found out about their plan but he wasn’t surprised either. Max had always had his way in finding out what was going on around the house. Alec simply shrugged, not bothering with a real answer. He’d never been a talkative person but it was worst in the mornings.

“Okay, now that I think about it you don’t really have a choice here,” Max kept talking. “Izzy won’t care that you sound like a terrible copy of Sam Elliot. She’ll still drag you to that Halloween-thing. And if you refuse she’ll just rip out your throat and feed it to the dog.”

Alec frowned. “We don’t have a dog.”

“She’d get one.” He probably was right. Max went to the dining room and distributed the plates while Alec got a pan out of the cupboard and set it on the stove, turning on the heat.

“She could also feed it to Church,” the elder one suggested, pouring a little bit of oil into the pan.

Max seemed offended. “Alec! Do you really trust our cat to have so little taste?”

Alec rolled his eyes and in this moment Isabelle entered the kitchen, still dressed in her pajamas. She yawned and stretched before mumbling: “What did the cat do again?” Still sleep-drunken she fetched herself a mug and went for the coffee-machine.

“Nothing,” Max replied. “Alec is getting a cold and I said that if he skipped the party tonight because he’s getting sick you would simply rip out his throat and feed it to a dog. So then he suggested that you could also give it to Church but Church has much too fine taste to eat someone like Alec.”

Izzy added some milk and sugar to her coffee. “Max, your cat licks soap. Don’t pretend like your pet actually cares about what it puts into its mouth.” And then, after her sleepy brain had finally caught up with her little brother’s words: “You are getting what?!” Isabelle looked at Alec, shock in her widened eyes. She had poured some coffee on her shirt but either she didn’t mind or she hadn’t noticed. In a second she was next to Alec and holding a hand against his forehead. “Feels normal to me,” she mumbled and Alec snapped her hand away.

“Of course it’s normal. It’s nothing, just a sore throat,” he tried to pacify her.

“I can hear that. Sounds kind of sexy, though. Like Benedict Cumberbatch.” She smirked.

“Who?” Alec asked.

Izzy’s smile faltered. “I swear by the angel, Alec, you need to get out more,” she sighed and went on to sip her coffee.

“Doesn’t matter anyway, because he doesn’t sound like Cumberbatch,” Max interfered. “More like Sam Elliot, if Sam Elliot were a bad chain-smoker.”

Isabelle frowned. “That’s not true; it’s not that bad.”

Alec had decided to ignore them and make eggs sunny-side up when Jace entered.

“Morning, guys,” he greeted and let out a yawn so big that one could see to the back of his throat, not caring to cover his mouth. He too went directly for the coffee machine.

“Alec has a cold,” Izzy announced immediately.

“Really? Aw, man, sucks!” Jace shot him a sympathetic smile.

“I do not have a cold, just a sore throat!” Alec insisted.

“Wow, yeah, I can hear that! You sound like you’re trying to imitate Sam Elliot but failing terribly.”

“Jace!” Izzy punched him in the arm while Max erupted into laughter and Alec put his thumb and pointer finger against the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes.

Jace seemed confused by the reaction of his siblings. “What?”

Nobody answered, only Max laughed even louder.

-

“Luke Garroway.”

“What?” Alec’s voice was still rougher and deeper than usual, no matter how many cough drops he sucked. He had been sitting at his homework when Isabelle had come bursting in. She now went straight to his bed and sat down.

“The name of the solution to our problem: Luke Garroway. He will play babysitter for Max. We just need to leave him with Luke before we drive off to the party and then pick him up on our way back again.”

“Izzy, I will not leave our little brother alone with a total stranger!” Alec looked at his sister like she was out of her mind but she just sighed like he was being exceptionally slow that moment.

“He’s not a stranger. You know him. He’s a chief. He and Hodge are good friends, remember?”

Something in Alec’s brain sparked. “Yes, I remember. But how did you manage to get a hold on him?”

“He’s Clary’s step dad,” Isabelle explained with a shrug.

“That Clary-girl seems to be known by all of my friends and family…” Alec murmured but Izzy ignored him.

“Max knows him. He’ll be delighted that he’s allowed to be with Luke that night. You better talk with him and make sure that he won’t say anything to our parents. Max will listen to you. I already had a chat with Luke and he assured me that it won’t be a problem and that he’s happy to get to spend some time with Max.”

Isabelle shot him a smirk and Alec had to admit that he was impressed. She really was good.

“Alright, I trust you,” he said in defeat.

-

Although it was the day of the party it hadn’t been any different from other days, apart from him getting a cold. Alec had gotten up and gone to school and gotten home and done his homework and then talked to Isabelle. Then he had read a little and it hadn’t felt any different. He hadn’t been nervous, not one bit.

Until half past six when his parents came into his room and said: “We will leave now and be back at one AM. Take care of your brother.”
Alec nodded and they left again. He could hear how the front door fell closed and somehow the sound brought all his worries and anxieties back. Only a second later his sister burst yet again into his room, giving him no time to panic.

“Alright, big brother, move. We only have little time to get you dressed up so you will have no right to negotiate and certainly not to veto any of my decisions.”
She herself looked stunning. She had braided her hair to the side and put on a silver laurel wreath. She was dressed in a white toga with silver embroideries that was draped artistically around her body in a way that showed off some of her leg to the side.

Alec had always found it hard to tell if someone wore makeup or not, mostly because he didn’t care, but he noticed that she put some kind of silver powder around her eyes.

“Goddess Diana?” he guessed, spotting a knife attached to her hip.

“Artemis. I prefer the Greek version.”

He nodded. “You look beautiful.” And she did. Alec didn’t know how but somehow seeing his sister looking so pretty made him feel better. Even if their plan failed and he’d get dumped, she would have a good night. He’d make sure of that.

Isabelle smiled. “Thank you. But now get up. You can’t go to the party in those clothes and I found the perfect costume for you.”

Alec frowned. “What’s wrong with my clothes?”

“Don’t make me go down that road. Let me just say: Basically everything. And it’s a Halloween party, Alec. You know what that means, right?”

He huffed. “Of course I know what that means. But it’s not like everyone will show up in a costume, anyway. Probably most people won’t.”

“No, actually most people will. And even if they don’t, you will. C’mon, time is short.”

She snapped her fingers at him, turned on her heel and rushed out of the door.

Her brother followed her with a sigh.

The fabric lying on Izzy’s bed, that Alec guessed to be his costume, was black; which was reassuring.

“Lose your clothes,” Isabelle ordered and her brother obeyed quickly until he stood in only his underwear. Somehow self-conscious about his body he awkwardly crossed his arms in front of his chest and waited for Izzy to give him his clothes.

The first item she handed him was a pair of black jeans that didn’t look much different than those he wore almost every day to school. Only when he put them on he noticed what was wrong with them.

“Izzy, I think they’re too small,” he complained, stiffly trying to get them into a more comfortable fit.

“No, they’re not. They’re supposed to fit that tight; brings out your ass.”

Alec blushed but didn’t argue.

The next item was a black and white striped shirt with short sleeves. It looked harmless enough so Alec put it on. It fit quite comfortably.

“Now sit down on that chair while I’ll do your makeup.”

“Iz, no, please. I don’t think I feel comfortable with paint in my face. I’m not like you or…” Magnus Bane, he thought but didn’t say out loud. “I can’t pull it off like you do.”

“In case you already forgot you don’t have a veto right. Just trust me on this one, mi hermano.”

Although frowning in worry he still nodded and sat down.

“Close your eyes.”

Alec did as he was told and the next thing he could feel was a sponge stroking over his eyelids.

“Thank the angel, you didn’t shave today. Of course it would be ideal if you hadn’t shaved yesterday as well but I guess that’s my fault because I forgot to tell you not to. But it’s not too bad, you grow a beard pretty fast,” Isabelle chattered and Alec knew that she was trying to distract him and keeping him from getting nervous. He appreciated her efforts.

“Alright, the makeup is done so you can stand up, but don’t open your eyes yet. I want you to look into the mirror when you’re completely done so that you can see the full genius of my work at once.”

Alec stood and would have liked to roll his eyes at her but he was told to keep them closed and he would most certainly not tempt Izzy’s anger. He wasn’t suicidal.

He could feel how his sister put a hat on his head and arranged it until it sat how she wanted it to sit. Then she commanded him to stretch his arms to the side and slid a jacket on him. Or maybe it was more like a coat? However, it was made out of a smooth material. Alec had no idea what it was called but he liked running his hand over it. It calmed him.

“Wait, I almost forgot your boots! I’ll be back in a sec!”

Alec could hear her hurrying out of the room.

“Don’t open your eyes!” she called one last time. Her voice sounded a little farther away. She probably was already in the hallway. He could hear her return and soon he could also feel his left foot being lifted and the familiar sensation of old leather as she tucked his foot into his boot.

“Izzy, I can put on my shoes myself. I’m just that old by now,” Alec protested.

“But then you’d have to open your eyes,” she argued, “and I won’t let that happen. Sit back down or else you’ll lose your balance.”

And so Alec sat on the chair in his sister’s room and got his boots put on and tied like a six-year-old.

“I think we’re done.”

“Can I open my eyes now?”

“Another second please.”

Isabelle took both of his hands and helped him getting up. When she had him right in front of her giant mirror she said: “Now you can open them.”

Now that he had the permission Alec suddenly wasn’t too eager to see what he looked like. Hesitatingly he tried to peak through his eye lashes and then blinked a few times and when he finally saw his whole reflection his mouth fell wide open in shock.

“I look like a raccoon.”

“No you don’t! You look…” she gave him a once over, “Yes, you look like a raccoon.”

He looked indeed like a raccoon.

The pants were great, although Alec still wasn’t used to the tight fit. The coat (he could now see that it was more of a coat than a jacket) underlined his broad shoulders and torso. The hat was classy, black with a wide brim and even his shoes flattered the overall look.

The problem was the striped shirt in combination with his black painted eyes.

“Why did you even paint my eyes, Iz? What happened to the good old-fashioned masks?”

“Alec, if you would watch television once in a while you would know that people no longer wear those masks. You would look like a kid looking like a raccoon. Now you look like The Winter Soldier or Commander Lexa looking like a raccoon,” Isabelle explained.

“Who is Commander Lexa?” Alec frowned.

“Someone very badass and very gay, so you already have a lot in common. Now let me think; how do I fix this raccoon problem?” A little wrinkle appeared between her brows as it always did when she was thinking. Suddenly her eyes lit up. “I think I have an idea!”

She went to the bags that were lying next to her bed and searched a little before she found what she was looking for. Instead of immediately presenting it to him with a proud smile, like Alec had expected her to do, she looked a little shy, almost worried.

“I thrifted this in that little store I found two days ago. I thought it would go great with your costume but it has a big hole and I haven’t come around to fix it yet, so I thought the striped shirt would do as well. Obviously it doesn’t, so maybe this is the lesser of two evils?”

Isabelle handed him what looked like a white shirt. He unfolded it and saw that it was of a light material with a very low cleavage and wide sleeves but small cuffs. It reminded Alec of what the pirates in the movies often wore.

When he turned it around he saw what Izzy meant. There was a hole, big enough to look through it and therefore just big enough to be easily noticeable, at the back of it.
Still, Alec thought, better than a raccoon.

So he slipped out of his coat and T-shirt and put the new shirt on. Better. And when he also put his coat back on the hole wasn’t even visible anymore. Isabelle helped him tuck the shirt into his pants and then she turned around and retrieved something from under her bed.

“I thought you might want to carry this with you.”

Alec looked wide-eyed at the thing in her hands. “My bow and arrows?”

“Well, it is your bow but the arrows are new. We’re not allowed to bring anything sharp or possibly dangerous with us but I bought some children’s arrows at a store and painted them black. They look normal but are actually harmless. You can just clip your quiver to your belt and carry the bow over your shoulder.” Again she bowed down and retrieved a black belt this time. “I know that you’re nervous and I thought having something familiar that usually calms you down might relax you.”

Alec couldn’t help but feel an almost overwhelming rush of love for his sister at that moment. He now also realized that she probably would have dressed him in color but decided against it because she knew that he felt most comfortable in black.

“Thank you,” he said, meaning it so much and trying to show it. He didn’t know if she had understood but she smiled.

“Now you look like a proper bandit. Just don’t take your coat off. It might get pretty warm in there but if you take it off the hole will show.”

He nodded and looked one more time into the mirror. He had to admit that he really did look good now. Izzy was right, the stubble on his cheeks helped making him look rougher and darker than he already was. The dark paint around his eyes was underlined by the shadow that the hat cast on his face. The only thing that still bothered him was the low cleavage of the shirt.

Self-consciously he tried to cover his hairy breast a little more. He didn’t like that he grew hair there, had always been a little embarrassed by it; especially because he had grown body hair much earlier than the rest of his classmates as he had often noticed in the locker room.

“I can give you some necklaces to cover that up if you want me to,” Izzy suggested. But it was clear that she would only do so if he actually felt uncomfortable. He considered her offer but then decided against it. He’d probably feel even more ridiculous with jewelry around his neck. He couldn’t pull it off.

“No, it’s alright.”

“Probably better that way. Or else you’d look like a pirate. And I think you look rather hot with a bit of chest hair showing.”

Alec knew that was not true but he shot her a small smile anyway, for trying.

“Ready to go out there?” Isabelle asked with a playful smirk on her lips.

Alec sighed. “No, not really.” He clenched his fists and tried to relax. Then he grabbed the belt, looped it around his hip and attached the quiver to it. He went to throw his bow over his shoulder but then hesitated. It was pretty big and there would be a lot of people attending the party. The bow was one of his most precious possessions and he didn’t want it to break. Especially because then he’d have to come up with an excuse for his parents as to why his bow was broken.

Carefully he laid the bow back on the table. “I don’t want it to get damaged. The arrows will have to do.” Another look into the mirror. “Let’s do this.”

-

“Guys, I really don’t see why I can’t just stay at home by myself! I’m thirteen, not six!” Max complained but there wasn’t any heat in his voice and Alec knew that he was secretly glad to see Luke again, just adding his protest for good measure.

“Sorry Max,” Jace said with a grin on his face, “but you are and always will be our little baby brother. You won’t spend a single hour on your own till you’re twenty-one.”

Max made a little pout and Isabelle and Jace started laughing.

They were all sitting in the car on their way to Luke’s. Alec was in the driver’s seat, Izzy had called shotgun and Jace and Max were in the backseats.

Jace was dressed in a knight’s amour with a red cape wrapped around his shoulders that looked positively pompous. He’d had a wooden sword attached to his belt and now taken it out to poke Max with it, trying to annoy him, which resulted in the two of them arguing until Alec had to interfere. Luckily it wasn’t a long drive, maybe ten minutes, and before they knew they were all standing on the chief’s porch and Isabelle rung the bell.

Shortly after, the front door opened and a good-looking man in his late thirties or early forties appeared on the door step. As he saw the four children a welcoming smile spread on his lips.

“Well, look at you. The Lightwood-Kids, all grown up now.” He shook his head a little in disbelief. “Come in. Clary and Simon are almost ready and should come down any minute.”
Alec frowned the same second that Jace paled.

“Simon?” the dark-haired asked with a critically raised eyebrow.

“Clary?” the blonde whispered, his cheeks turning a light pink color.

Izzy turned around to her brothers. “Ah, yes, sorry I forgot to mention it. Simon and Clary are coming with us tonight. That’s not a problem, is it?”

She shot them her most innocent smile and Jace let out a tiny “no” while Alec only huffed.

They all went inside and while they were all still standing in the hallway a girl’s voice resounded through the house:

“Simon, just take those ridiculous teeth out! I can’t understand a word you’re saying!”

A few seconds later a tiny red-headed thing appeared on the stairways. She was wearing a white, sleeveless dress that went down to her knees and had a pair of white wings attached to her shoulders, like an angel.

Shortly behind her followed Simon. His costume consisted of a white dress shirt under a black waistcoat, paired with black slacks and black shoes. Just like Jace he too had a cape but his had a wide collar and was black, like most of his costume. He mumbled something but no one understood what he was saying because he was also wearing pointy plastic teeth to complete his Dracula outfit.

“Oh, hey, I didn’t know you were already there!” Clary greeted the group as she spotted them. She immediately walked up to Izzy and hugged her.

“You look beautiful, Iz!” she exclaimed.

“So do you, I love your dress!” Isabelle returned the compliment and for a moment it was only the two girls smiling at each other, until:

“I’m Jace.”

Clary turned around to him, her smile dimming but not disappearing completely. “Yeah, I know. We’re in the same math class.”

Now Jace was apparently left with nothing else to say, but of course he did not blush for a moment because Jace Wayland never blushed, no way.

Luckily Izzy took the floor again. “Clary, those are my brothers Alec and Max. Alec will be our driver tonight.”

“Nice meeting you.” Clary smiled and Alec answered with a nod. Behind her Simon waved at him happily but him the Lightwood-boy chose to ignore.

Instead he asked: “Are we ready to go?” eager to leave before any awkwardness could come up.

“Sure, yeah, we’re ready. You ready, Simon?”

Simon mumbled something utterly incomprehensible.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Let’s go.”

And with quick goodbyes and Luke telling Alec to drive carefully the five kids left.

-

As soon as Alec pulled into the parking spot he could feel his heart pounding loudly in his chest again. During the drive the others had been talking and bickering and successfully distracting him so but now Alec finally realized that there was no going back from where he was heading right now.

This was the night.

Somewhere in the next one or two hours probably, Alec would know. Know if Magnus Bane would agree to go on a date with him some time or – and that scenario seemed more likely – laugh and walk away. There would be no uncertainty left.

Alec took a deep breath, straightened his back and got out of the car, joining the others that were all standing outside by now.

Even from afar one could already hear the music coming from the gym, where the party was taking place.

“Are you ready?” Isabelle asked him.

He locked the car and nodded, although he really didn’t feel ready at all. His sister seemed to sense so and linked her arm with his, shooting him an encouraging smile.

“Don’t worry, big brother. I’ll have your back.”

And together they made their way to the gym.