Brothers by Blood (Alec Lightwood twin)

Chapter 37

*Two Days Later*

ISABELLE'S POV

Something weird has been going on with Jace and the twins. It's like they're keeping something from me and I wasn't sure what, but I was going to find out. It had gotten to the stage where I had dragged them all to my room and locked the door so that they had no choice but to tell me if they wanted to get out.
"What is going on with you three?" I demanded, crossing my arms. "It's like you're keeping a secret from me and-" I stopped mid-sentence when I saw their faces. They were. "Tell me. Now." I ordered.
"We can't. We promised Mum we wouldn't." Jace said. I scoffed.
"Since when did you start following the rules and doing what Mum says?" I asked sceptically. Jace and I had always been the rule breakers of the four of us.
"Since I care about you." He retorted. I frowned at his reply to my question.
"Please Izzy, just leave it. It's better if you don't know." Alec all but pleaded, not wanting to have this conversation. I could tell that he wasn't the only one.
"No! No secrets Alec. We promised each other we wouldn't keep secrets from one another years ago. Now, I understand you keeping your sexuality a secret, that's different, but you have to tell me what is going on. It's driving me nuts trying to figure it out." I said accusingly. My brothers looked at each other with sad looks, almost like they were going to regret telling me this. But they had no choice. It was almost as if they were deciding who should tell me. They all sighed in unison.
"Dad's cheating on Mum." Ben admitted. So that's what this is about. Dad had told Mum, or she had somehow found out, and then she had told the boys.
"You don't look shocked." Jace observed.
"I'm not shocked because I already knew." I told them.
"What?!" All three of them exclaimed.
"I overheard Dad on the phone one day. I wanted to tell Mum so badly, but I figured that it wasn't my secret to tell. I'm sorry for keeping it from you all. I just didn't know what to do." I replied. All of them looked stunned at what I was saying. I then felt three pairs of arms embrace me all at once. We stayed silent for a while just hugging each other and taking comfort in the embrace.
"It's ok." One of the twins whispered.
"I'm just glad you all know now and that I can talk to someone about it." I told them.

JACE'S POV

Izzy, the twins, and I were all in a silent group hug, taking comfort in each other's embrace. I wish I had known, and that Izzy didn't have to bear the knowledge all by herself.
"Come on Izzy dizzy. You should get some rest." Alec said, using her childhood nickname. Before she could protest, Alec picked her up and carried her to her room, Ben and I following after them.
Once we got there, I stood at the door as Ben and Alec put Izzy in bed and tucked her in like they would do when she was little. They were about to walk to the door when Izzy said something that I've only heard her say a handful of times.
"Stay? Please?" She asked, her voice small. This must have affected her more than we thought. Alec looked over at me, and the three of us then lay down with her and stayed with her until she fell asleep.

*Skip to when Izzy is fast asleep*

When all three of us knew that Izzy was fast asleep, Alec and I began to get up, but Ben stayed where he was.
"You go. I'll stay with her." Ben whispered so we could hear him but he wouldn't wake Izzy. Both Alec and I nodded, getting up silently and trying not to wake Izzy in the process. As Alec and I silently left the room, I noticed Ben pull Izzy closer to him in order to keep her warm and comfortable, and also to make sure she subconsciously knew that someone was there for her.
Alec closed the door behind us quietly. As we began walking down the hallway, Alec sighed.
"What's up?" I asked, knowing that something was wrong. I could both feel it and see it on his face.
"It's just, there's been so much going on lately and Izzy knowing about Dad just makes everything worse." Alec told me. I sighed in defeat.
"I know. I don't think she's really gonna get over it. Like Mum said, she worshipped Robert, she shouldn't have found out like this, if at all." I said.
"I noticed you call Mum 'Mum', but you call Dad 'Robert'. Why?" Alec observed. My face turned cold.
"I'll explain when we get to my room." I said. I noticed that we actually had gotten to my room, so we both entered, and I closed the door behind us and locked it, drawing a Soundless rune on the door. This was a private conversation; I didn't want anyone listening in. I then walked over and sat down next to Alec on my bed. He looked at me with an expectant look. "Well, I count Maryse as my true mother, no matter who my birth mother is. If Robert treats the woman who has done more for me than I can even express like he has, I no longer consider him a father figure." I said. "Did you know that he and Michael Wayland were parabatai? Did you know that Robert abandoned Michael because Michael came out as gay and expressed his feelings for Robert to him? I would never do that to you. You are my brother, my best friend, my parabatai, and the most important person in my life. I knew you loved me, I could feel it through the bond, but I didn't know exactly how you loved me. I suspected that you had feelings for me, and when the demon showed your memory at Magnus' place when we first met him, it confirmed my suspicions. I knew why you didn't tell me, but I wanted to wait for you to on your own. I knew you would eventually, I just didn't want to push you or make you feel uncomfortable. Anyway, back to why I won't call Robert 'Dad'. He cheated on Mum, and he shamed his parabatai for who he was, for something he couldn't change. Even though Mum can be harsh and authoritative, she still loves us all." I explained, my face hard at the end of my speech.
"I know about Michael Wayland. Ben told me. Ben told me that Dad said that their bond got so weak that he didn't even feel it when Michael died. Dad regrets it, he really does. It still doesn't change it though. I knew you would never do that to me though, and I am grateful, I truly am." Alec said. I smiled softly at him. Just then, something came to mind.
"I'm curious, why didn't you come to me and tell me about your feelings earlier?" I asked curiously.
"I don't know. Fear maybe?" Alec replied. "I know now it was an irrational fear, but I was terrified that I would lose you if I told you. I hoped that you might figure it out." He added.
"Like I said, I could tell that you had feelings for me, but I didn't know how strong those feelings were, whether they were platonic or romantic. Honestly, I am so happy that you found Magnus. You two are so good together and I can both feel and see how happy he makes you." I told him honestly. Alec smiled when I mentioned Magnus.
"Thanks Jace, that means a lot." He said. He chuckled. "You're getting all sappy on me." He added. I gasped in fake realization.
"By the Angel, I am! What is wrong with me?" I asked in an exaggerated tone. I heard Alec laugh at this. I smiled. I loved Alec's laugh, he doesn't laugh often, but when he does, it is wonderful.