Arrested (Book 1 of the Arrested Trilogy) {malec au}

Chapter Thirteen

For the first time in his life, Alec woke up to see someone beside him in bed. His fingers were curled around this stranger's hand and as he stretched them out, they were cramped and sore from being in the same position all night.

Alec froze when he saw it was Magnus. The man was sound asleep in a very uncomfortable looking position; head turned to one side and his body at an odd angle. Carefully and quietly, Alec adjusted Magnus so that his body was more comfortable, disregarding his aching and throbbing body. His face didn't feel so bad though. It probably looked worse than it felt. Even if he couldn't really see out of his left eye, the pain wasn't as bad as it was last night. Magnus did a wonderful job tending to his injuries.

Chairman was perched on the end of the bed, licking his paws and rubbing them on his head. When Alec moved to sit up, he averted his attention to the movement of Alec's legs under the blanket. He meowed and pounced on them. He was playful this morning.

"Ouch, Chair. That hurt. Quit digging your claws into me!" Alec hissed as he tried to avoid waking up Magnus. Chairman continued to paw at his legs before he picked the cat up and put it on the floor. Chairman shot him a glare before trotting off offended.

"You know if you're trying to not wake me up, you're doing a terrible job," Magnus whispered in his sleep.

Alec winced. "Sorry. Chairman was being annoying. I was going to go use the bathroom. Tried not to wake you up."

"Well you failed. Miserably, might I add." Magnus sat up and stretched his shoulders. "Looks like we slept through the entire night. You didn't make any moves on me, did you?"

Alec grumbled. "Gotta take a leak. Be right back."

In the kitchen, Magnus made oatmeal (which seemed like an appropriate meal for someone with a swollen face) and set the bowls down on the island. He heard the toilet flush and looked up to see Alec gently touching his face. "How are you feeling this morning? You look better."

"I don't feel better. My face looks like it got into a fight with a helium balloon and the balloon won," he scowled as Magnus howled with laughter. "It's not funny! It really fucking hurts!"

Magnus pulled out a chair for Alec and set a bowl of oatmeal in his spot. "Here. Eat this. I doubt you'll be able to chew solid foods with a face like that-I don't mean it in a harsh way. I meant it more in a concerned way."

Alec sat down and picked up his spoon. "We have to go to the Hotel Dumort today."

Magnus paused chewing. "And we have to go there.....because?"

Alec swallowed his mouthful before answering. "When Camille's goons dumped me in the alley, I overheard them say they had to check in with someone at the Dumort. Didn't get a name. I was unconscious by the time they dumped me."

Magnus was quiet for a moment. He stared at his bowl with a furrowed brow and it wasn't hard for Alec to tell that something was on his mind. "I am so sorry this happened to you. It should've been me. I should've went with you."

"Magnus, it's fine-"

"No, Alec. It's not fine. I pussied out on you and look what happened. You got the shit beat out of you. Like I said. It should've been me." Magnus frowned. Alec looked so in pain that it tore at his heart. "If you want to go to the Dumort, then I'll go with you. You'll need backup."

"My backup is usually Jace-"

"Then bring him along too. The more, the merrier. In fact, I'll text him right now," Magnus took out his phone and tapped away. "When's your shift?"

"Not until 10. It's 8 there now. I don't even feel like going, to be honest," Alec groaned. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I'm in too much pain to be at work today. Plus I have a lead I want to chase."