A/N: Another chapter up so soon :). I'm making up for the original hiatus. Please let me know what you think! The reviews are so appreciated!

Warning: Some violence; sensitive topic (description of a hate crime); foul language; homophobia; mild sexual content (I'll increase the rating if I have to courage to drop the "midl")

Disclaimer: Cassandra Clare owns the characters.

Stronger

Chapter 3

Alec sat cross-legged on his bed, his organic chemistry textbook propped open on his lap and his laptop open to lecture slides.

The flyer Magnus had given him was tucked in-between pages of his textbook, some of it peeking out from the top edge of the book. He had found himself unable to focus on functional groups, his mind constantly wandering to the flyer. So he had finally pulled it out of his discarded jeans and ended up staring at it for what seemed like forever before shoving it into his book.

He didn't know why he still had the damn thing. It wasn't like he was going to go to a party that started at midnight. And besides, he wouldn't know anyone there, except Magnus. And the older man definitely didn't care to see him again. He had spent the better part of their acquaintance mocking him. And he couldn't even hold it against him, given what he had experienced. He bit his lip absently. Maybe not knowing anyone would be a good thing. Maybe he could go there and be more open. He shook his head. That's what he thought when he moved out of his parent's home and into the dorms. And yet, here he was, buried in his books and pretending to be something he was not.

He was absently biting on the end of his highlighter when someone knocked on the door.

He looked up from the book. "Who is it?"

"It's me," came a female voice that belonged to his childhood friend, Aline, who also went to NYU.

"It's unlocked," he said as the petite girl came into the dorm room.

She quickly made herself comfortable on his bed and crinkled her nose at his book. "Remind me again why you're taking this during the summer?"

Alec rolled his eyes. Organic chemistry was the notorious pre-med "weed out" course and Alec would rather take it during the summer when he didn't have a full course load.

"So, how was dinner with the family? Has Izzy honestly improved her culinary skills?" she asked, doubt written all over her face.

Alec looked at her bewildered before remembering that he was on his way uptown to have dinner with his family last night.

"Oh, I didn't make it to dinner after all."

"What? How the hell did you get out of Izzy's big reveal?"

"Um, I broke up a fight on the way to the train..." He started. He shifted uncomfortably. Calling the hate crime a fight seemed to cheapen the gravity of what had happened but he didn't want to go into details.

Concern instantly washed over his friend as she swept her eyes over him, as if trying to make sure he was unharmed. "Are you okay? What happened?"

Alec brushed away the concern. "I'm fine, Aline. All that sparring with Jace came in handy."

"Oh my God," she started but she stopped when something else seemed to catch her attention. She quickly reached out for his book and pulled the flyer poking out from it. She read it carefully before looking at Alec, her left eyebrow raised. "Are you going to this party?"

Alec grabbed the invitation out of her hand and shoved it under his pillow. "Of course not! I'm studying."

"For a midterm that's not for two weeks?" she said, rolling her eyes. "Where did you get the invitation?"

Alec didn't like lying to Aline...well more than he already was, with him hiding his sexuality and all. "Someone I met last night when I was breaking up the fight."

Aline watched Alec carefully as he bit his bottom lip and looked away.

"You want to go to this party," she finally said, surprise in her voice.

"No I don't," Alec said too quickly.

His friend jumped off the bed grinning. "You totally want to go to this party. You want to see this 'someone' again, don't you?"

Alec hated the flush that was no doubt spreading over his cheeks. "Just leave it, Aline."

Aline strode over to his closet and swung the doors open. "You're going Alec. Come on, it's almost midnight now. You can get ready and by the time you get to Brooklyn you'll be fashionably late. It's never good to be on time for these things."

"Like you have so much experiences with these," Alec muttered. Aline was almost as reserved as Alec was.

"Well, I'd come with you but unlike you, I do have a paper due tomorrow and you know me, I like to procrastinate."

"Convenient," Alec said, though secretly, he was glad that she couldn't come. How was he going to hide the fact that the someone he wanted to see was a man and not a woman? He shook his head again. Why was he even humoring the thought? He wasn't going anywhere.

"I'm not going," the teenager said, protesting as Aline rummaged through his clothes.

"You've got nothing but tattered sweaters and faded t-shirts," Aline complained. "Do you ever throw anything out?"

"Why would I throw perfectly good clothes out?"

Aline drew out a sweater that at one point must have been black but was now a shade of brown with holes in the elbows. "This is perfectly good?"

"I don't see anything wrong with it," Alec grumbled.

"Oh, what about this?" Aline said, pulling out a fitted black v-neck t-shirt. "This doesn't look like you'll be swimming in it and the color is still sharp."

Alec got up. "Izzy got me that. I never wore it."

"What else did Izzy get you? She may not know how to cook but she can probably dress you better than either of us," she said with a soft chuckle.

"I'm not going."

Aline ignored him and started rummaging through his drawers next. He wanted to continue to protest but he had known Aline for so long that he couldn't even be bothered by the fact that she was going through his stuff.

"Okay, put these one."

"Aline," he whined.

"Shut up and do what I say," she said.

"At least turn around," he muttered, finally giving into the demanding girl.

Once he finally got into the clothes, Aline turned back to face him and hummed approvingly.

Alec stood there uncomfortably as she assessed him. He was wearing fitted dark wash jeans, the fitted black v-neck t-shirt that stopped at a brown designer belt (another Izzy purchase) and converse shoes.

"Okay, let me see," Aline said. She grabbed his leather watch and handed it to him as she pulled a silver chain from around her neck. She ran the pendent off the chain. "Put this on too."

"What? No! That's a girl's necklace," he said.

"Without the pendant, you wouldn't know. It's just the right length for the v-neck."

Reluctantly, he put it around his neck and stepped in front of the mirror. Aline was now fiddling with his hair. "Just needs to be a little bit tamer."

"I look ridiculous," he muttered.

Aline just beamed at him. "You look hot!"

"Save it for Jace, Penhallow."

"How is that dear brother of yours? Still single?"

"Who knows," Alec said absently as he pushed a strand of hair out of his eyes. Was he really going to do this?

Now Aline was biting her bottom lip and looking away.

"You okay, Aline," Alec said.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said, her voice wavering slightly. "Now get your sexy ass out there and have fun."

Alec watched the girl with concern as she pocketed the pendant from the chain that was now around his neck. She was ushering him outside the dorm just as Jordan and Maia came stumbling down the hall, Jordan holding onto his girlfriend like he needed her to stay upright, which was probably the case.

They stopped in front of Alec and Aline, giggling loudly.

"Woah baby," Maia said, staring at Alec. "Jordan, when did your roommate become hot?"

"Whatcha doing tonight Aleeec?" he slurred.

Alec ignored the question. "When I get back, I would like to sleep in my room," Alec said.

"Oh come on, when you two finally decide to fuck, I'll be understanding," he said, giggling louder.

Alec quickly pushed aside the pain the comment brought and rolled his eyes. "Goodnight Jordan. Maia."

"Good night roommie," Jordan sang as they stumbled into the room and shut the door.

"You can sleep in my room if they're still at it when you get back," Aline offered. She had lucked out with a single room.

"Thanks."

Aline shoved him lovingly. "Now go and have fun."

Alec walked away, his heart pounding so rapidly, he felt it was going to burst out of his chest.

Was he really going to do this?

xxxxxx

Alec stood on the stoop, his mouth dry and his hands shaking. What the hell was he thinking? Coming here to a party hosted by an almost-stranger by himself. The man probably didn't even want him here. Why would he want to be reminded of the horrible experience from the night before?

He would just be a nasty reminder of something the man wanted to forget. And Alec really thought that he would be able to go in there all alone and survive what was sure to be a much wilder party than he was used to? Sure he had gone to parties in high school but only because his siblings had dragged him along. He had just sat in the corner, trying to blend in with the furniture and wait it out until they were bored. Why did he think this would be any different?

He gripped the railing tightly and decided that he needed to go back to the dorms. What the hell was he thinking?

xxxxxx

Magnus floated between groups, a colorful drink in his hand and music blaring in his ears. In the matter of hours, he had cleared the main room of furniture, pushing everything into his spare room. A makeshift bar stood on one end and a friend of his stood behind it making drinks at lightening speed. Another friend was behind the DJ booth, which happened to be a laptop hooked up to a sweet speaker system.

He had been glad for the distraction, his mind never having a moment to dwell on anything but getting set up for the party and getting plastered into the night.

He noticed his ex-girlfriend, Camille staring out the window, away from the crowd of people gyrating to the music.

He approached the beautiful woman. "What are you staring at?" he whispered into her ear.

She tilted her head and gave him a smile. One of those typical Camille smiles that you could never trust. "I was just watching the boy down there on your stoop. He's been standing there for a while now deciding on whether to buzz. I'm assuming he's here for your little shindig. Quite the little beauty from what I can tell. I can see his baby blues from here. Reminds me of Will. You remember him from high school, right Magnus?" she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm at the last comment.

Magnus rolled his eyes at the dig and peeked through the window. There on the stoop stood the young man who had followed him from the park to the hospital to his home the night before. He felt a twinge of discomfort as the memories flitted through his mind. He took a large swig of his drink, draining the glass. He had to admit, the man looked stunning. He placed the glass on the windowsill and excused himself from the devious woman.

Instead of buzzing the man in, he left his apartment and walked down the rickety stairs. He opened the door to the building and leaned against the doorframe, his long lean body stretched elegantly in front of the boy.

"You plan on staying out here all night, blue-eyes?" he purred, his eyes shining with amusement as the man squeaked adorably and jumped back in surprise.

"I-huh-I..."

"We really need to work on your communication skills, my dear."

Alec stood there, his face turning bright red under the harsh glow of the streetlights and the nearly full moon. Magnus allowed his eyes to roam over the younger man's body, his lips twitching at the sight of the tight clothes hugging the boy's lean muscles.

He could almost forget how he met the boy, his eyes lost in the man's blue irises.

Alec bit his lips, innocence and inexperience radiating off the man in waves. And suddenly the memories were back. Magnus felt a pang of jealously at the younger man's purity and innocence, seemingly untouched by pain.

His mind dithered between wanting to embrace the innocence and wanting to destroy it. And he knew he could do it easily. Seduce him, get him in his bed and discard him in the morning.

Alec looked back at the man, his nerves on his sleeve. "I should go."

Magnus had had many one-night stands in his life but always with people who were equally into the casual nature of the intimacy. He shook his head, he couldn't do that to the innocent teen, no matter how angry he was at the world.

Magnus placed his hands on his shoulders, almost shuddering at the electricity that seemed to run through his body at the touch, and ushered the boy over the threshold.

So, he wouldn't sleep with him but there was no harm in throwing back some drinks and dancing with the gorgeous man.

"Come on. The party's just getting started."

A/N: Oh Aline and Alec...both keeping such a similar secret from each other! I really enjoyed writing Aline and Alec. I think I will have fun with their friendship. I'm keeping as many things as possible true from the books, although in this universe, Alec never had a crush on Jace. Alec is always good at healing, so I decided to make him pre-med. Jace, Izzy, Clary and Simon make their first appearance in the next chapter. And Helen will pop up at some point too.

And Magnus isn't going to be cruel! He's just dealing with a lot and sometimes, it's easier to imagine displacing that pain by causing someone else pain but he would never actually use Alec like that, promise! I love Magnus and Malec!

Please let me know what you think!