Rock Bottom

Driving

Alec had texted Magnus a few times since his birthday, but the only reply he'd gotten back had been to confirm the time of his first driving lesson. Alec figured Magnus was very busy, and was therefore doubly grateful that he'd be willing to take time out of his day to help Alec learn to drive.

The whole concept of being in control of a vehicle going fast enough to kill a person was a rather daunting one, and Alec had to admit, the idea of getting his driver's license felt more like a fantasy than a goal. Like winning the lottery or something. Rationally he knew this was wrong, but emotionally it felt impossible.

Focusing on the gargantuan feet was at least helping Alec not to think about how long it would be till he got to hang out with his best friend again. Even his other friends were MIA as Jace had started spending his every waking moment with that girl he'd met at Alec's birthday dinner.

Alec wasn't really talking to his parents, though they'd sent him back a very needy 'wonderful to hear from you text' after his birthday courtesy message. Alec really had no idea what was going on with them, and he didn't want to know. He suspected that Izzy knew more, and probably spoke to them fairly regularly, but he hadn't asked her about their parents and she'd never brought bring it up.

Alec didn't want to think about his parents and their being the reason his life was the way it was. He preferred to think about the future. It was starting to feel like a tangible thing once more instead of the empty void it had once been, and Alec wanted to enjoy that feeling instead of dealing with his parents. They felt like going backwards somehow, and that didn't sit well with him.

Forward was better. Forward was driving. Forward was making sure you used the right pettle when trying to actually more forward.

"So that's the brake," Magnus said, far more patiently than Alec deserved.

"Right," Alec muttered, fumbling with his hands when he should have been moving his feet.

"Nothing to be nervous about," Magnus replied. Then he laughed and added, "At least you got the brake confused for the gas, instead of the gas confused for the brake."

Now Alec was picturing totaling Magnus's car, and Tessa's house at the same time by doing just that and sending them soaring through the garage wall.

"Sorry," Magnus's voice continued.

"You aren't the problem," Alec whined. "I suck."

"No you don't," Magnus stated as if he knew such things, which of course he didn't because he had probably picked up driving like a fish to water.

"We are thirty seconds into our first lesson, and already you'd made a joke about me driving through walls," Alec stated. "I'm sticking to my original statement. I suck."

"Oh boy," Magnus sighed. "You are gonna be one of those students aren't you?"

"Sorry," Alec said, leaning his head down and resting it on the steering wheel in defeat.

"Okay, how about this," Magnus began. "Let's switch spots and you can watch me drive for a bit."

"How will that help?" Alec asked.

"Well, usually as a passenger you're looking out the window, or thinking about your day, or generally not focusing on the driver actually driving, right?" Alec nodded. "So this time look at everything I do really carefully, and try and remember it, okay?"

"Okay," Alec said, relieved that for the moment he wouldn't be in charge of directing any fast moving objects.

After switching seats, and watching Magnus adjust the seat as he was a little taller than Alec, they were off. Alec tried his best to do as he was bid, and stared determinedly at Magnus's hands as he controlled the car with confidence. Turn look, shoulder check, signal, go, over and over again. But that wasn't quite right. Magnus did those things in a certain order every time. Alec watched, trying to memorize the movements.