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goldenalec · 7 years

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malec + christmas in switzerland

ok so i must have watched ed sheeran’s music video for “perfect” 384098 times and this is what came of it, so pls enjoy some malec + christmas/snow/skiing/there’s-a-cat-involved fluff just in time for the holidays!

It’s official: they are definitely getting kicked out of this place.

Simon and Jace had gone head to head in a cinnamon schnapps shot contest, even though the two of them have about as much tolerance for alcohol as a couple of fourteen-year-olds. They are now in the midst of delivering the most horrendous, ear-splitting rendition of “All I Want for Christmas Is You” that Alec has ever heard, arms swung over each other’s shoulders and completely oblivious to the fact that their sober selves barely tolerate each other.

The two of them make their bows amid thundering applause (for what, exactly, Alec fails to understand) and practically fall off the stage, before lurching towards their table.

“THAT – that was the best thing I’ve ever done in my life.” Jace says loudly, his face bright red. He claps Simon hard on the back. “Dude, you’re the best singing partner. So good. Are you in a band or something?”

“BRO.” Simon slurs, holding Jace’s face between his hands, “I love you, man. I really do. Like so much. You’re the best Jace I know.”

Jace frowns, looking way too offended. “I’m the only Jace you know.”

They are in a tiny bar in a tiny town in Switzerland. The place is drowning in Christmas decorations, and the air is thick with smoke from cigars and the heady scent of alcohol. Alec runs his finger along the rim of the glass he’s been nursing for the past hour.

He’s all for snow and fun, but if he hears Jace slam down his glass on the table and scream “ANOTHER!” one more time, he thinks he’ll lose it. Izzy keeps trying to get him to drink more, or maybe partake in a stupid card game when really, all Alec wants to do is hide away with the man pressed up against his side, the man who is the reason Alec had even agreed to be dragged along on a ski trip.

Magnus grins at him. “Well, aren’t you having fun.”

Alec groans, leaning back until his head hits the wall behind him. “I think I’m going deaf. Am I deaf?”

Magnus laughs, leaning in to press a kiss to Alec’s cheek.

“What do you say we get out of here?” he murmurs, low and soft in his ear, and then he flashes Alec a smile that sears itself into his memory, so much so that he completely ignores Jace pretending to stick his finger down his throat, and Izzy groaning at them to “get a room.”

Sounds pretty reasonable, Alec thinks, as Magnus slips his hand into his and drags him out of the bar.

Alec picks up the last slice of pizza from the box they had picked up on their way to the cabin. He’s surprised they even made it home, what with Magnus deciding it was the right time to pelt Alec with snowballs while he was carrying a box of pizza. They had found themselves on the snow-covered ground, laughing and throwing snow at each other, and ignoring the confused looks from strangers at seeing two grown men rolling around in the snow. In a moment of silence, Alec had looked at Magnus and wondered if it was possible for one person to be everything he could have ever hoped for.

He had wondered if it was possible for his heart to double in size.

Now, concealed in the soft warmth of the cabin, and watching Magnus curl up on the sofa, dressed in one of Alec’s hoodies and fluffy pants that have “My BiFi Signal is Strong” emblazoned all over them, a mug of hot chocolate in his hands and staring out at the snow through the window, Alec thinks it just might be.

Magnus turns to look at him. “You’re staring, Alexander.” He says, a soft smile spreading over his face.

Alec spreads his hands, grinning. “I like the view.”

Magnus rolls his eyes affectionately, “Who would’ve thought you would turn out to be the cheesy, romantic one?”

He laughs lightly, swinging his legs off the sofa and walking slowly towards Alec. His eyes twinkle, and Alec is pretty sure he has the most dopey, love-sick expression plastered across his face, but somehow he can’t bring himself to care.

Magnus stops when there’s barely any space separating them. “Not that I’m complaining.” He says softly, before leaning in.

Alec closes his eyes, welcoming the familiar feeling of Magnus’ breath tickling his lips, and just as their lips brush together slowly, he feels slender fingers slip into his own and snatch the slice of pizza out of his hand.

“Hey!” His eyes fly open, and Magnus is cackling so hard his face turns red. Alec chases after him, jumping over corner tables and chairs, and very quickly, their laughter fills every inch of the cabin, warming it better than any fire ever could. Soon, they find themselves on the floor, lying side by side and breathing hard, and Alec’s sides ache from laughing in a way he only ever seems to do when he’s with Magnus.

He turns to face the man in question. “You’re a terrible person.” He says, curving an eyebrow.

“I know, it keeps me up at night.” Magnus smirks at him, leaning in to press a quick kiss to his lips before lifting the pizza to his mouth.

~*~

The snow has started to fall. Magnus can make out the fluffy whiteness falling steadily through the window. Alec stands up and pulls Magnus to his feet.

“Come on! Let’s go outside.” He says excitedly, grabbing a lantern from next to the fireplace and walking over to where his boots are.

Magnus looks at him incredulously. “Are you crazy? We’ll freeze to death! I’m too young to die.”

“Don’t be such a drama queen, babe.” Alec rolls his eyes, “Come on!”

He tugs at Magnus’ hand, a cheeky smile playing across his lips. “Come on, I’ll keep you warm.” He says quietly, and really, how can Magnus say no when he’s smiling at him like that?

Magnus relents, groaning light-heartedly as Alec pulls him out the door, and almost immediately, the cold hits him like a slap to the face. He shivers as Alec places the lantern down on the ground.

Alec turns to face him, and his unguarded, angelic smile warms every inch of Magnus. He takes a deep, theatrical bow and then holds his hand out to Magnus.

“May I have this dance?” he asks, his smile bleeding into his voice.

God, Magnus loves him so much it hurts.

“You’re ridiculous.” Magnus laughs, his cheeks hurting from how much he’s smiling. Alec simply shrugs, still looking at him as though he’s hung the sun in the sky.

He places his palm in Alec’s, marvelling at how they seem to fit perfectly, and he keeps his eyes locked on the man in front of him as he pulls him in, wrapping his other arm around his waist, and Magnus rests his own on Alec’s chest, feeling the steady, sure beat of his heart under his fingers. A heart that beats strong and true.

“I learned from the best.” Alec says softly, smirking, leaning forward and resting his forehead against Magnus’, and Magnus doesn’t even have a response to that.

Their breaths mingle, white with cold, but Magnus doesn’t feel any of the chill that surrounds them. He doesn’t feel the sting of biting wind that sweeps over them with great whooshes anymore, because Alec ignites the kind of fire in him that burns bright, fervent. They move together slowly, and it doesn’t matter that there’s no music to accompany their movements.

When their lips meet, Magnus’ mouth parts as though in prayer, and his blood sings in his ears as Alec kisses him thoroughly breathless, tasting of fresh snow and hot chocolate. Of countless more nights spent just like this one, wrapped in each other’s arms, shielding each other from the world, and Magnus thinks he could drown in this feeling. In more heady kisses, in the outline of Alec’s smile, warm and familiar, pressed against his own.

But the moment is broken when Alec suddenly lets out a yelp of surprise, jumping away from Magnus and knocking his head against his.

Magnus throws him a sour look, rubbing his forehead. “What happened?”

He doesn’t get a response, because Alec is too preoccupied with something at his feet.

It’s a tiny cat. Really, it’s so small and so white that Magnus almost can’t make it out nestled against the snow. It’s curled up tight against Alec’s leg, as though it’s afraid to let go of him for even one second.

Magnus sympathises entirely.

Alec crouches down and holds a hand out to the cat, and it immediately nuzzles against his palm, arching its back into his touch.

“Hey little guy.” He says softly, and then Magnus joins him, crouching and reaching out to pet the cat, and it’s such an adorable little thing that Magnus feels his heart twist in his chest.

Alec scoops the cat up, holding it tightly to his chest, and it cuddles further into his hold. It’s definitely a sight to behold, Alexander Lightwood with a cat literally as big as his hand.

“Oh my God, you precious thing.” Magnus whispers, reaching out a finger and feeling his heart melt as the cat rubs its face against it.

“We can’t just leave it out here.” He says, “It’s so cold outside.”

Alec nods, a small, besotted smile on his face. “I’ll be right back.”

~*~

Alec heads inside the cabin, cradling the kitten close to him, and grabs a blanket from the sofa. He places it next to the fireplace, setting the kitten down on the blanket. He watches, heart melting, as it snuggles into the folds of the cloth, stretching and finally closing its eyes, falling asleep in a matter of seconds.

He rubs behind its ears one last time before heading out to join Magnus again.

“I put it next to the fireplace.” He says, rubbing his hands together, “Poor thing was so tired, fell asleep almost immediately.”

“I love this soft side of you Alexander,” Magnus hums, and he curls his fingers around the lapels of Alec’s jacket and pulls him closer, “You should let it out more.”

Alec grins, wrapping his arms around Magnus’ waist and pulling him into his chest. “Only with you. I have to keep up my heart-of-stone reputation, remember? Can’t give Simon any ideas.”

Magnus laughs, a sound that Alec feels to the very tips of his being. The look in his eyes as he gazes into Alec’s is one of complete adoration, pure as the driven snow, and Alec loves him so damn much that sometimes it feels like it’s all he’s capable of. He presses his lips to Magnus’ forehead, relishing in the way Magnus lets out a breath that blooms across his collarbones. He wants to bottle up this moment where it’s just the two of them, where nothing else matters.

And it’s pure, unaltered magic. It’s magic in the way the snow falls around them, carpeting the ground, nestling in between the soft strands of Magnus’ hair. In the way all they can see for miles on end is glistening white, occasionally dotted with points of light. In the way there seems to be nothing but silence enveloping them, broken periodically by the sound of a warm breath, of the rustle of fingers against clothing, of the press of a kiss against cold skin.

“I love you.” Magnus says, and his eyes burn into Alec as though they want to commit him to memory.

“I love you.” Alec whispers, the words falling from his lips as easily as they always have, as they always will. It feels like it’s the easiest thing Alec will ever say.

And it is, because loving Magnus is like breathing. A natural action, something that comes to him like it’s meant to be. Something beautiful. Loving Magnus is like waking up to the sun dancing over his skin, like feeling the gentle summer breeze card its way through his hair. It’s like counting the stars in an endless expanse of obsidian black. Loving Magnus is this feeling, curling warm and bright within him.

And when they end up adopting the kitten, and when Magnus insists on naming him “Chairman Meow,” and when Alec laughs so much that he almost doesn’t know what to do with the inexplicable joy rushing through him, he knows that he never, ever wants this to end.

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