Roommates & Soulmates

Ch119: Magnus's Altar

Flowers covered every surface. Live music was playing from somewhere out of sight. As he listened, Magnus remembered all the energy that had gone into choosing that band, including the long conversations with his future-in-laws. Speaking of his in-laws, they were sitting just feet from him in the audience. Maryse was crying, her eyes red, while Robert looked so proud he didn't have the words to speak. Izzy was, of course, in the wedding party along with Clary, Jace, and Tessa; so they weren't among the audience. The rest of Magnus's new family was there though, Aline and Max sitting in the crowd. Even so, many more chairs sat empty. As the room filled with people, Magnus became more and more gleeful with anticipation. In moments he'd stand in front of all these people and vow to love Alexander for the rest of his life. It was terrifying and amazing all at once, and Magnus wanted nothing more than to be here in this moment, marrying the man of his dreams.

The music shifted, and all eyes turned to the end of the hall created by the chairs. There was a collective pause as everyone waited. As best women, and best man, Clary and Jace entered first, closely followed by Izzy and Tessa. Then came Lucie in the most adorable little dress Magnus had ever seen. In her hand, she held a basket of rose petals, though she seemed rather reluctant to start throwing them on the ground. As all the members of the wedding party came to stand on either side of Magnus, his eyes remained fixed at the end of the hall. Alexander would be walking through those doors any second now.

As the seconds ticked by, Magnus's glee faltered. Had there been some mistake with the time? Was he being held up by some major crisis? What if there'd been an accident or something? It wasn't until a stranger appeared where Alec should have been, walking down the hall to speak to him, that Magnus knew the truth. His heart broke. There hadn't been an accident or crisis. Alec just wasn't coming.

The grief hit him like a punch to the gut, and all at once Magnus was buried in some combination of shock and horror. Not again. Not Alexander, for with Alec it was so much worse. He'd rather experience every one of his previous heartbreaks at once then what he felt right now. For none of them were as painful as losing his soulmate. The powerful feelings of anguish engulfed and overwhelmed him, as Magnus sunk to the ground, tears streaming down his face. He couldn't breath; he was drowning in despair. Rather than feeling like his heart had been ripped out, it was as if someone had cut Magnus completely in half, leaving just pieces behind.

The sorrow overwhelmed his reality, and Magnus woke from the dream breathing hard. The emotional impact of the dream still fresh in his memory, Magnus reached out franticly feeling for Alec beside him, but the bed was empty. Worse than that, the bed was cold.

Unable to truly move on from the grief of his dream until he saw Alexander, Magnus jumped out of bed at once, and left the room calling out his fiance's name.

"I'm over here," Alec's voice lightened Magnus's heart. Following the sound, Magnus found Alec in the kitchen putting coffee on. Without a second thought, Magnus pulled the other man into a fierce hug, basking in Alexander's mere presence. The sheer shock of relief was enough to make him giddy.

"Good morning to you too," Alec said dubiously.

"Overly emotional dream," Magnus grumbled. "Requires hugs."

"Oh?" Alec chuckled, his arms already returning the hug.

"You know those dreams where even when you wake up, the feeling of the dream lingers for longer than the events of the dream?" Magnus asked. "I don't get them very often, but they totally suck."

"I'll have to take your word for it," Alec smiled. "Coffee?"

"Yes please," Magnus answered.

"So, are you going to tell me more about this dream?" Alec said as he poured the coffee. Magnus shook his head vigorously. "Oh come on!" Alec whined.