Wintertime

Chapter 1- Winter? Romantic? Are you kidding?!

Author's note: hello and welcome to this winter special that is planned for around 24/25 chapters...welcome to a new Malec story, a story that accompanies you until Christmas.

Enjoy!

Moonlightgrey.

Wintertime. Isn’t it romantic? With snow and all the Christmas lights…nothing is better than the romantic spirit of the winter, right?

Well to Alexander and Maxwell Lightwood, winter was anything but romantic. To them it meant sleeping in the cold, danger, hunger and full shelters. Since Alec had been kicked out of his family for no other reason than loving men along with his brother for defending him a few months ago, both were living on the streets of New York. In summertime it was bearable, warm nights made it possible to sleep and you could find some water to clean yourself at least a little before heading to school or work. But now it was cold and snow was everywhere, numbing your skin, tuning to water and wetting the socks in your shoes. The only advantage was that the trash bins didn’t smell as much, yet that was only a little relief.

Alec had given his only jacket to his little brother who was laying in his arms with closed eyes and a pained expression on his face, hoping to shelter him at least a little from the cold. Unfortunately, Max was sick for a few days now and didn’t feel any better. Alec had nowhere to go with him since he was banned from home and the hospitals don’t do charity, at least not in the ones he had sought help at. He had tried the whole day to draw attention to them and ask for help, but people did what they always do. Looking away, walking a little faster and ignoring the pleading of the poor people, hoping that they would disappear if you ignore them. It was dark by now and Alec was just holding desperately his little brother who was shivering with glassy, half-closed eyes fixed on Alec. Alec himself, was too cold to even shiver, the freezing weather having numbed his every muscle. He watched numbly how his brother was slipping away because of his high fever, not able to do anything for him.

“Maxie, stay awake please! You’re gonna be okay! Please be okay!” tears pooled out of his eyes as he watched his little brother helplessly.

“Can you sing for me?” Max asked his big brother weakly. Alec forced a smile trough the tears and sang their song, “Carry you home” by James Blunt. It always meant the last strand of hope for them, when things got bad.

[…] Strong as you were,

Tender you got

I’m watching you breathing

For the last time.

A song for your heart,

But when it is quiet,

I know what it means and,

I carry you home…

I’ll carry you home.

Alec’s voice broke in the end as he held a sleeping –or unconscious, he didn’t know-  Max in his arms, unable to control the tears rolling down his cheeks by now. He wanted to scream, to curse his father, to burn down the world, to make the world feel his pain. But instead he looked at the dark sky with its three stars that can be seen, crying, silently pleading the angel for help. To help his brother.