Alec's POV

Both Magnus and I showered after working out, together like he said we would, then headed out to pick up Madzie from Jace and Clary's place. By the time we left it was already after 3 in the afternoon but it felt much later in the day. Maybe it was just the exhaustion I was feeling and all the emotions were finally catching up with me.

"Alec!" Madzie cried out when she saw me. "Alec, you're here!"

I bent down and and scooped her up into my arms. "Hey, button. You okay?" She nodded. "Good. I'm glad. I heard you had a lot of fun playing with Clary today. There's horses in your backpack."

"Clary gave them to me!" Madzie exclaimed. "And then we painted each other's nails. See?"

She raised her hand up into the air to really emphasize that her nails were indeed painted. I chuckled, blowing a raspberry on her neck and making her giggle with delight. "Sounds like you had a good day then!"

She nodded. "Is Kit going to be okay?"

I glanced quickly at Magnus. He closed his eyes and nodded in a silent response. "Yeah. He's just fine. The doctors are going to help him get better so you don't have anything to worry about."

Content with my answer, Madzie hugged me tight and went right back to playing with her new toys again.

"So how is he doing really?" Jace asked once Madzie was out of earshot.

I sighed. "The doctor said the bullet pierced his lung but they managed to remove it and stabilize him before it did any more damage."

A broad smile appeared on my brother's face. "That's great! He'll be back on his feet in no time. I knew the kid was a fighter-"

"Slow down there, cowboy," Magnus interrupted, "because he's not out of the woods yet-pardon the joke. Anything can go wrong at this point."

Jace looked at him with an expression that could be described as disgust. "Aren't you a glass half full today. Why would you say that about a fourteen year old kid?"

Before they could get into it, I stepped in to calm the impending storm. "Can we not do this right now? Madzie is right there."

We all turned to look at Madzie. She was pretending like she never heard us but it was obvious that she heard every word.

"Sorry," Jace grumbled. "I am glad that Kit's okay for now though. When can we visit him?"

"Well the doctor said he needs rest right now. They'll call us back to the hospital when he's awake and feeling better," I told him, scratching my neck with a finger. "How long that will be, I have no idea. Could be a day. Could be longer."

Clary rubbed my arm and smiled. "At least you were there for him, Alec. You saved his life."

"He really did. You should've seen him!" Jace waved his arms about in the air. "He just lift the kid in his arms like it was nothing and ran through the forest. I watched him. He was like a superhero."

Magnus grinned at me. "Like a superhero, huh?"

A heat rose up my neck and face. "N-no. I'm not a superhero. I just did what was right otherwise Kit would've died."

Jace was about to open his mouth to speak when someone cleared their throat a few feet away from us. When we turned, I recognized the newcomer as the man who accidentally shot Kit back in the forest. He looked terrified as he shifted from foot to foot, avoiding eye contact while holding a hand over his left eye.

"I just came by to apologize again," he spoke in a low voice. "I overheard you saying that the kid was alright and wanted to drop this off."

He set down a pair of antlers on the ground. They were beautiful, but Madzie looked absolutely horrified at the sight of them.

"Tell the boy I'm sorry when he's awake," the man said, turning and leaving the same way he came.

I clicked my tongue once he was gone. "Jace....did you happen to give him a black eye by any chance?"

My brother shrugged. "Maybe? Or maybe he punched himself? We may never know."

"I doubt the guy punched himself, Jace." Magnus went over to where Madzie was seated on the ground and scooped her up into his arms. "Come on, princess. What do you say we go to one of those cute little shops and find you some clothes?"

She gasped in excitement. "Can I get a dress just like Barbie?"

Magnus laughed when she showed him her doll. "We'll see. Okay? Now let's give Alec some time alone with his brother." He turned and gave me a kiss. "I'll see you back at the shed."

As he left, Clary cupped her face with her hands and sighed. "You two are so cute together. It's obvious you guys grew closer together over the last year and a half."

"We really did. Plus I got to see what he's like around kids. He's actually amazing," I said, my chest swelling with pride. "Speaking of, thanks for watching Madzie while we were away. It's much appreciated."

Jace clapped me on the shoulder. "No problem, big bro. Anytime you need us, we're here for you. Especially now since Kit is in the hospital."

"Jace is right," Clary nodded in agreement. "I'm more than happy to watch Madzie for you while you and Magnus are away. All you have to do is ask."

I thanked her by giving her a quick hug and then shaking my brother's hand before heading back to my little shed. On the way there, I noticed Doctor Rouse speaking to someone just outside of the shed where that old man was picked up last night. Why she was there, I had no idea, but something urged me to go over and confront her about what she said to Magnus....whatever that was.

"Doctor Rouse?" I called out while jogging over to her. "Can I speak to you for a minute?"

She looked at me for a moment. "Do I know you?"

This annoyed me somewhat. "I'm Alec. Magnus Bane's boyfriend? You called him up to your office very early this morning."

She finally made a face of recognition. "Ah yes! You have the two kids with you. What can I do for you?"

Even though I was much taller than her, she still had an air of intimidation and authority about her. "My boyfriend. You called him to your office but he won't tell me what you spoke about."

If I hadn't been watching her carefully, I would've missed the small sigh of relief. Even when she answered she seemed relieved. "I just wanted to welcome you both to the community-"

"Then why not call us both up?"

"I-" She seemed to be getting irritated with me. "What I spoke about to your boyfriend isn't any of your concern, Alexander. It's between me and Magnus. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to check on several patients before returning to my office."

She tried to sidestep me but I blocked her path. "Is there something I should know about? Is he sick? Did something serious happen when he was injured?"

Doctor Rouse gave me a look of annoyance. "No. Nothing happened. He's fine. His wound will heal and he's the perfect bill of health. I was just being friendly and welcoming you to our fine community. Now may I please go tend to my patients?"

Her answer didn't satisfy me but the thought of keeping her from checking on the sick patients didn't sit well with me. So I nodded, stepped aside, and let her pass. There was nothing more I could say that wouldn't annoy her even more so I had no other choice than to just head back to the hospital to see if Kit was awake or not.

The hospital seemed even more busy than it was not long ago so getting a nurse or doctor to help me out looked like it was going to be a task all in itself.

"Excuse me? Are you able to tell me if Kit Rook is awake?" I asked a nurse that walked by.

"I'm sorry. I'm busy at the moment. Talk to reception and the should be able to help you," she told me without another word.

Hoping the reception desk was better, I strode over to it and dinged the bell with a finger. The woman sitting there typing something on a typewriter glared up at me which was acknowledgement enough. "Hi. Could you tell me if Kit Rook is awake? I'd like to see him."

She looked me up and down. "Are you related to Mr. Rook?"

".....no. But I'm looking after him and his little sister. My boyfriend and I are the only people he's got right now and I'd like to know if he's awake or not."

She shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm afraid I can't-"

"It's fine, Pam. He's allowed to see the boy."

I turned at the voice. Doctor Iris Rouse stood a few feet away in her usual white lab coat with a clipboard in her hand. When our eyes finally met, she nodded her head in indication to follow her.

"Kit has been doing remarkably well since the surgery. He's responding to the medication and is sleeping like a baby," she explained as we walked. "How long have you known him?"

"Uh, a couple of weeks. He and his sister showed up in the woods near our farm one day. Kit collapsed so Magnus and I took him in and helped him regain his strength again."

"Hmm." She glanced down at her clipboard as if it would reveal whether or not I was really telling the truth. "Interesting how people are more united than ever these days. You didn't really see that before the virus got out."

"Not really," I grumbled. I really wished she'd just stop talking already. Small talk made me very uncomfortable.

Kit's face lit up like a Christmas tree when I stepped into the recovery room. It wasn't hard to tell he was loopy on medication; he could barely lift his head to look at me.

"Heeeeeey Alec! You're here!" He snickered. "How's it goin? Is my sister playing and stuff?"

"Yeah she's good. She was over at Clary and Jace's place while you were in surgery. Why are you awake so soon?"

He giggled. "Someone was tickling my feet. So I woke up to see no one there!"

I slid a chair over to his bed and sat down in it. "Well that's just rude. Tickling a man while he's sleeping."

Kit's eyes widened. "I know! I was having such a good dream too. Madzie and I lived in a big house filled with butlers and maids and everything was perfect...."

He winced before letting out a low moan of pain. In his hand I could see something with a button on it which he squeezed, relaxing almost immediately.

"Doc says morphine kills the pain," his voice was low and slow. "Too bad we can't have it all the time..."

He was about to press it again when I had to step in and take it away from him. "How about I just put this on the table for now? I don't want you accidentally giving yourself an overdose."

Kit just nodded but didn't say anything. He was starting doze off because of the morphine flowing through his veins, and I wouldn't hold it against him if he did.

"Do you need anything? Change of clothes, more blankets, some books to read?" I asked before he could fall asleep on me.

"Um...." He mumbled, half asleep. "Some clothes would be niiiiiice. They took mine away. Covered with....with...."

Finally he fell asleep. Not wanting to wake him, I just pulled the blankets up to his shoulders ad quietly left the room. Doctor Rouse stopped me on the way out.

"Would you like me to keep you updated on his condition?" she asked.

"Doctor Rouse. Uh yeah. Yeah, that would be great. I'll be dropping in again soon once I find some fresh clothes for him. Is that okay?"

The doctor chuckled. "Please. Call me Iris. And yes that's perfectly fine. We had to toss his old clothes away because of the blood obviously. If you don't know where to go in search of clothes, I recommend the shop Sweater Weather. They specialize in kids and young teen's clothes."

I thanked her then left the room. It was only then did I realize that I forgot to put back the chair I was sitting on (because I was such a gentleman) so I turned around to go back into then room when voices stopped me in my tracks.

"He said he was coming back later so we'll prep the kid another time. What a damn nuisance...." Iris' voice said from inside the recovery room.

"What's he even coming for anyway? You told him we would keep him updated on the boy-"

"I know what I said. He's bringing back clothes, of all things. As if the boy is going to need them where he's going."

What was she even talking about? Where were they taking Kit? I strained my ears to hear more but it was hard due to the increasing noise around me.

"Well when the Lightwood man does come back, we'll tell him we moved the kid to another room. He doesn't need to know where. All he needs to know is that the horizon looks bright and Kit will be up on his feet in no time."

I was so confused by this conversation. What exactly was she saying? She keeps mentioning moving Kit to another room but why did my stomach lurch every time she said it? Something wasn't right. Nothing about this felt right.

Nobody even knew I was standing outside the doorway listening. I dashed away before they could leave the room. This was something worth telling Magnus, even if he wasn't telling me the whole truth himself. If this was just going to be a repeat of what happened at the Institute then we had to get the hell out of here as fast as we could, Jace and crew included.

A/N: ok so this chapter was a little short and weird (at least it is to me) but I've been having writer's block lately and I'm really struggling with coming up with content that I think you'll like to read so I apologize for a crappy update