It was a week after Alec's fight with Jace, and today he was officially moving into his new place. Magnus had told Alec about how Max, Clary and Simon came to visit him, as well as what they said and Alec felt horrible for not calling Max as soon as he changed his phone number. Alec tried to made it up to his little brother by calling him later on that night and inviting Max to spend the first night in his new apartment with him, which just so happened to be last night.

Alec had taken half the day off yesterday because his new furniture was being delivered. Then Max came over after school to spend the rest of the night with Alec. The moment he arrived, Alec put Max to work helping move the furniture around to where Alec wanted everything, and then he helped Alec paint.

Alec climbed out of bed, then quietly headed into the kitchen past sleeping Max on the sofa. Alec started the coffee maker, then using what few pans he'd brought with him, got out all of the ingredients to make his homemade blueberry waffles. Growing up, they were always Max's favorite. Alec had just finished making the last waffle when Max padded into the kitchen.

"Morning," Alec greeted his brother by handing him a plate.

"Need coffee," Max ignored the plate and shuffled right over to the coffee maker. "Why did you wake me so early?"

It was seven-thirty in the morning, which Alec supposed was early for Max.

"Technically, I didn't wake you," Alec countered. "You woke up on your own before I had the chance." Max just shrugged and drank his coffee.

"So what exactly is the plan for today?" Max questioned, as they carried their plates full of waffles to the table.

"We're picking up the van in about an hour," Alec said. "Then Magnus and some of his friends are meeting us at the unit."

"Don't you find it a bit weird that your boss volunteered himself and all of his friends - people you don't even know - to help you move?" Max inquired, as he ate his breakfast.

"It's so fucking weird!" Alec exclaimed. "I even tried to convince him that you and I could handle everything on our own, but he just kept insisting and wouldn't take 'no' for an answer!"

"I think your boss likes you," Max said.

"Well, I like him too. I try to do my job well, and I think I accomplish that. He's a good boss," Alec said, taking another sip of his coffee.

"No Alec," Max said, shaking his head. "I think he likes you, likes you."

Choking on his coffee, Alec sputtered, "What! Don't be ridiculous Max! There's no way Magnus is interested in me!"

Max burst into a fit of laughter, "Alec, there's no other reason for Magnus to go out of his way for you if he didn't like you at least to some extent."

"No Max, you don't understand. Magnus is just the type of person who actually cares about his employees. I'm sure he would do the same for anyone else that needed help," Alec said, trying to defuse Max's train of thought.

Alec couldn't help but feel like Magnus - being as amazing and gorgeous as he was - would have a long line of people waiting to date him. There was no way someone like that would be interested in someone like him. Not that Alec particularly wanted to voice such insecurities to his little brother.

"Well, I still think he's into you," Max said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Alec just shook his head, dismissing his brothers comment.

After that, Alec managed to get off the topic of his boss's non-existent crush on him, and they got ready to leave.

~oOo~

Alec and Max arrived at the storage unit at the same time Magnus and his friends did. Alec recognized Ragnor and Raphael immediately since they really hadn't changed much since high school. Ragnor looked just as handsome as he had then, and Raphael looked as surly as he always did in high school. With a smile, Alec got out of the van to greet everyone.

"Morning, guys," Alec waved shyly as he greeted the trio.

"Alexander, this is Raphael Santiago and Ragnor Fell," Magnus said, starting introductions. "Ragnor and Raph, this is Alexander and his brother, Max Lightwood."

Stepping up, Alec shook their hand blushing and said, "Nice meeting you both though I do mostly remember you from high school. I'm sorry to drag you out on a Saturday morning."

"No worries, amigo. It's nice to put a face to an apartment number," Raphael said.

"Wait, what?" Max asked, echoing Alec's thoughts.

"You mean Magnus didn't tell you?" Raphael said, glaring at Magnus. "Alec, I live next door to you. Our schedules just haven't allowed me to introduce myself to you yet."

"I had no idea," Alec said smiling, but still feeling a bit awkward. "What a small world it is."

"Indeed," Raph replied.

"Anyway," Max said enthusiastically, clapping his hands together. "Let's get this show on the road, shall we."

With that, everyone started moving boxes into the van. Ragnor designated himself to organizing and stacking the boxes as the others packed them into the van, which didn't take too much effort since the boxes were already mostly organized by what room they went in. The only things that were scattered around were the items Alec picked up at various stores the day he signed the lease.

"Alec, you have a lot of boxes of books!" Ragnor said as Alec handed him the sixth box of books he owned.

"Yeah, I love to read," Alec said shyly. "But it's not as much as it seems. I didn't fill the boxes completely full because they would've been too heavy to lift."

"Well, you and I seem to have that in common," Ragnor said with a smile, then added, "I'm looking forward to seeing your collection then."

"When we get back to my place, feel free to take a look at what I've got," Alec said with a shrug, then continued loading the van until they were finished.

~oOo~

Getting back to the apartment, Alec and Max got out of the van while Magnus, Raphael, and Ragnor exited Magnus' car. Boxes in hand, everyone headed into the building and up the elevator.

"Just put the boxes down anywhere," Raphael instructed taking charge, everyone nodded or vocalized their agreement before heading back down to to get the rest of Alec's stuff.

Alec was so engrossed in pulling boxes out that he didn't even see the newcomer approach. A sound finally alerted him and Alec turned to find Cat standing just feet from him.

"I didn't know you were coming," Alec started, smiling at her. "You really didn't have to waste your Saturday helping me, Cat."

"Nonsense! I'm happy to help, besides, what would I have done all day while my husband and best friends were all occupied with you," she said with a wink.

"Hello love," Ragnor said as he approached Cat, giving her a chaste kiss in greeting. Alec had no idea that Cat was even married! Then he looked down and noticed rings on both Ragnor and Catarina's left hands.

Alec, feeling rather awkward, decided to give the couple their space and started grabbing boxes to take upstairs with everyone else following suit. Between the six of them, the task took no time at all.

"Okay," Raphael began once everything was in the apartment. "What else is there left to do Alec?"

"Well Max can unpack and organize the bathroom. I can work on my bedroom later; Ragnor, you can unpack and organize my books. I'll unpack and organize my kitchen, but I will need some help with that. Then the rest of you guys can work on my living room and dining room," Alec said, letting out a breath. Looking around, he didn't realize he had so many boxes to unpack.

"I'll help you in the kitchen Alexander," Magnus volunteered.

Max walked over to Alec snickering and whispered, "See, I told you he had a thing for you."

"Shut up, Max!" Alec whispered back to his brother, then turned back to the group.

"Thanks," Alec turned to look at the bags that were sitting near the door. "Cat, those are some pieces that I bought the other day. Go to town on decorating."

"Sure thing!" Cat said as she started pulling everything out of the bags. Ragnor began opening boxes to look through the books, and Raph started unpacking some of Alec's electronics.

Magnus followed Alec into the kitchen and started taking things out of boxes and onto shelves.

"Woah, woah, woah," Alec ran over to Magnus and stopped him. "These need to be washed, along with my glasses and silverware. They can all go in the dishwasher, but the pots and pans have to be hand washed. Let's get the rest of these boxes opened before we start putting things away."

"Sorry," Magnus murmured and looked away, Alec thought he noticed a faint blush on Magnus' cheeks, but was sure he was mistaken. Magnus Bane doesn't have a shy bone in his body.

"It's okay. I should tell you that I've already labeled my cabinets as to where everything goes," Alec explained. "I'm really OCD when it comes to my kitchen, so when people come over and try to help, I label everything so they already know where things are kept."

"Is that so?" Magnus asked, trying to hide his chuckle. Then he started opening cabinets to find that they were in fact labelled. "Jesus Alexander, did you do the same thing to my kitchen?"

Alec couldn't help the blush rising on his face as Magnus' laughter grew. He did in fact do the same thing in Magnus' kitchen when he first started working there.

"It's not my fault that your kitchen was so disorganized!" Alec exclaimed, causing Magnus to laugh even harder.

"It's fine," Magnus said, waving his hand. "At least I'll know where to find my stuff."

"Yeah," Alec started, then cleared his throat. "I also made up a diagram. It's on the wall above your coffee maker."

Magnus' laugh billowed out, causing everyone else in the apartment to stop what they were doing and run into the kitchen. Hiding his face behind his hands, Alec didn't know if his blush could get any darker than it was at that moment.

"What's going on in here?" Max asked.

"Oh nothing Max," Magnus said in between giggles. "I'm just learning how much of an OCD nerd your brother is."

"I guess you saw the labels and the diagram, then?" Max asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Wait!" Magnus exclaimed. "There's a diagram here too?"

Hanging his head, Alec pointed over to the wall beside the window. "It's right there."

"I don't see the big deal?" Raph said, coming to Alec's rescue. Alec flashed him a grateful look. "So Alec has his own system, he's a chef. I'd be more surprised if he didn't."

The laughter died down and soon everyone returned to their tasks, leaving Magnus and Alec once again alone in the kitchen, apart from Max that is.

"I'm sorry Alexander," Magnus said sobering up. "Raph is right, it's just that I've never heard of that before."

"Alec organized all our families kitchens. It's been a big help," Max stood up for his big brother. "I do most of the cooking at our house since I'm usually the first one home. Simon does all of the cooking at their house, because if you let my sister in the kitchen, she'd end up killing everyone with food poisoning. And Jace is OCD about everything anyway, so he likes it... " It was then Max seemed to realize who he was in fact talking about and suddenly ducked his head as if trying to hide.

"You're allowed to talk about them Max," Alec said, trying to reassure his brother that he wasn't upset with him. "You shouldn't stop talking to them just because they don't want anything to do with me."

"Nope, they're being assholes. I'm not talking to them until they can get their heads out of their asses," Max said with conviction. "Anyway, I'm gonna go finish in the bathroom. I'm almost done, then I'll start unpacking your room."

"That brother of yours is truly loyal to you," Magnus stated once Max left the kitchen. "Come on, let's get this done."

Magnus helped Alec load the dishwasher, and then helped him wash the pots and pans. Alec couldn't help but notice how well he and Magnus worked together. Their motions were perfectly in sync. As Magnus handed over the last pot to be put in the cabinet beside the stove, music started blaring throughout the apartment causing both Alec and Magnus to jump out of their skins.

"Well it seems that Raph has finished hooking up your sound system," Magnus said, gripping his chest as he caught his breath.

"It appears so," Alec said, willing his own heart rate to go back down.

"Turn that shit down!" Ragnor yelled, causing everyone else around them to laugh. Raphael did turn it down though he took his sweet time about it.

Alec and Magnus walked into the living area and Alec was completely blown away with the transformation. Cat had put out all of the decorations Alec purchased. Ragnor was almost done getting the books on the bookshelves, and Raphael had mounted the tv and set up all of Alec's stereo equipment.

"Wow Alexander!" Magnus exclaimed, eyes roaming over the space. "You really do know how to decorate a home. If the whole Chef thing doesn't work out, you should try your hand at interior decorating."

"Well," Alec started, rubbing the back of his neck, realizing that everyone was focusing on him. "Cat technically did all of the decorating."

"Oh please! You bought everything, I just put things where I thought they would look good," Cat said, disregarding Alec's statement.

"Well, uh thanks. My mom and sister taught me quite a bit about that when I lived in Paris. Izzy also made it her life's mission to turn me into some sort of fashion guru," Alec shook his head and chuckled. He looked down at himself. He was wearing a pair of faded bootcut jeans with holes in the knees, a black fitted tank top and a flannel shirt unbuttoned. "That didn't stick quite as much as the decorating thing though."

"Well, you certainly have an eye for decorating," Ragnor stated, joining the conversation late.

"We've established that," Raphael said. "You were just too engrossed in those books to notice the conversation around you."

Everyone laughed at the sheepish look Ragnor gave.

"I can't help it!" Ragnor turned to face Alec. "You really do have an impressive book collection."

"Thanks, I can't tell you how many times I've read those books," Alec said, shaking his head with a smile. "I can't thank you enough for all your help today. I'm getting ready to start the grill if you guys want to stay for dinner. I could even start now, if you're hungry."

"Oh god! Food now!" Cat yelled out, rubbing her stomach. That caused Alec to throw his head back in laughter. Cat has always complimented Alec how much she loves his cooking.

"Okay, I'll get the grill started for the steaks. Magnus could you open up a few bottles of Merlot to breathe?" Alec asked before walking out to the balcony with everyone in tow. The only person who's seen the balcony so far had been Max.

"Alec! This looks beautiful! I love it out here!" Cat squealed. The balcony was big enough for an 'L' shaped couch and coffee table, plus a six seater table and chairs. He also had the gas grill and a small stand to place food on.

As Alec lit the grill, Max went around and lit the gas lights that were built into each corner of the balconies railings. Everyone gathered around on the couches or pulled up chairs to sit and relax. Alec went back inside to get drinks for everyone.

"So Alec, tell me about yourself," Ragnor said as he sipped his wine, startling Alec in the process. He didn't realize he was going to get interviewed by Magnus' friends.

"Uh," Alec started. "What do you want to know?"

"Whatever you're willing to tell," Ragnor replied, a friendly smile in place.

"Well," Alec started rubbing the back of his neck, all eyes on him. "I was born and raised right here in Brooklyn, went to Paris for school and work. Now I'm back?"

"What made you want to come back stateside?" Raphael asked.

"I missed my family and it was just time to come back. I really want to open my own bistro right here in Brooklyn," Alec answered the question.

"Nice! What kind of food do you want to make?" Raphael asked, perking up at the mention of the restaurant.

"I specialize in French cuisine, but I know not many people have the palate for how rich French food is, so I would add a few American dishes in there as well," Alec answered honestly.

"When do you plan to open your restaurant?" Ragnor asked.

"Honestly, I'm hoping within the next year. I need to save more money before I can start anything. I also need to look at available spaces to gain a pricepoint, talk to a few contractors about the renovations, then look for investors and vendors. It's going to be a long process," Alec explained.

At that point Alec quickly excused himself to get the steaks started. When he walked back outside, everyone was staring at him, "What?"

"What would you say to starting that restaurant sooner rather than later if you had four investors already?" Ragnor asked, everyone else had Cheshire Cat smiles marring their features.

Upon hearing that, Alec nearly dropped the tray of steaks he was holding, "Wh-what? Are you all serious about this?"

Alec watched every single one of them nod their heads. Max was beaming, barely able to keep his excitement under control.

"Of course we're serious, Alexander!" Magnus exclaimed, smile still firmly in place.

"Okay, but what about you? Who's going to cook for you? And I would also have to try to get a loan from a bank. I don't even know how much I would get approved for. What if I can only afford a spot in a seedy part of town?" Alec asked in rapid succession, feeling like he was about to hyperventilate.

"Woah bro, calm down! Put the steaks on the grill and sit down for a minute," Max said, making his way over to Alec.

Alec did what his brother told him to do, then poured himself a glass of wine. He downed it in one go, and refilled the glass. His mind was reeling over all at the possibility of what could go wrong by jumping into this endeavor now as opposed to later.

"Feel better?" Magnus asked, quirking an eyebrow and had an amused smile on his face. Alec just nodded.

"Okay, one," Magnus ticked off with his index finger. "You don't have to worry about me. I can find a new chef, but I would prefer it if you taught me how to cook. I don't actually need my own chef. Two, all you need to do is secure a loan from the bank, and whatever they don't cover, I can. And three, we won't let you buy a place in the slums. I want you looking for places in the business district. I think that's where you would be the most successful."

"But I don't even have a business proposal made out yet," Alec said, his head still spinning.

"We can help you work on that. I also have connections with lenders so I can set you up with meetings with some of the people I trust," Ragnor said.

"And I can help you manage the restaurant when you get it started. I can also help interview, hire, and train staff," Raphael added.

"Raph! Are you that unhappy managing the interns that you're willing to jump ship so quickly? I am appalled!" Magnus said, putting a hand over his heart. It looked like he was joking, but Alec couldn't be sure.

"I don't want to take your employees away from you!" Alec said quickly, not wanting to cause problems for Magnus.

"Nonsense," Magnus said, waving his hand. "Raph isn't happy working with me, and if him working for you would make him happy, then that's his call."

Alec got up and flipped steaks on the grill, mulling over the conversation. He couldn't help but start a mental pro/con list. He would finally be able to start his dream. He already has a Sous Chef interested, but he has no idea what Raphael knows about managing a restaurant. I guess it's my turn to ask questions, Alec thought.

Returning to the group, Alec asked Raphael, "Do you have any experience working in a restaurant?"

"Well, unlike these guys over here, I didn't grow up with a wealthy family. I was only able to attend St. Xavier's on an academic scholarship. I grew up watching my parents run their Mexican restaurant, so I know how things work. I've done everything from bussing tables to actually being in the back helping my dad cook," Raphael explained. "I also helped my mom with the finances, training, and booking reservations."

"Do they still have their restaurant?" Alec asked, curious as to why Raphael stopped working for them, but not wanting to sound rude he added, "What made you leave and go work for Magnus?"

"I'm the youngest of six brothers and sisters. My oldest brother took over the restaurant when dad retired, fired the rest of us, and ran it into the ground," Raphael said, shaking his head in disappointment. "I went to college and majored in business management, and minored in communications. I'm in charge of the interns at Bane Records and we handle all of the media and production with the artists. We're pretty much the sounds guys in the recording booths."

"I'm sorry to hear about the restaurant," Alec replied genuinely sad to hear the news. "I've heard that about so many family owned restaurants that get sold out, or passed down to a less invested generation."

"It was heartbreaking," Raph said, a sad expression taking hold. Alec truly did feel bad for him. Raphael seemed to really love his family's restaurant.

Alec got up to take the steaks off the grill, and put the corn on. Turning he looked at everyone and said, "Would it be okay for me to think it over for a few days?"

"Of course Alexander," Magnus said. "I would be worried if your knee jerk reaction were to just take us up on the offer without any consideration."

Alec nodded. "Thanks," he smiled. There was quite a lot to think about.