Work Text:
Simon whistled as he unlocked the door to his apartment. Well, his and Jace’s apartment. They had moved in together after dating for two and a half years. It wasn’t that big a change. He had more or less spent all his time here in Jace’s apartment for two years.
The light in their bedroom was on. Jace must have gotten home early. Simon grinned and dropped his bag on the counter that separated the kitchen from the rest of the room and walked towards the bedroom.
He pushed open the door with a large grin. “Honey, I’m…” his words tapered off and his jaw dropped at the sight before him.
Jace must not have heard him come home because…because…
The girl that had been riding his boyfriend shrieked and jumped off; grabbing the quilt, the quilt his Bubbie had made for him when he was in high school, and covering herself. Jace swore and grabbed for the sheets to cover himself.
“B-Babe, you’re home.” Jace said, smiling shakily.
Simon shook his head slowly and backed away from the room. This wasn’t happening. He didn’t just catch his boyfriend cheating. With a girl. “I, uh, I have to go.”
“Simon, wait.” Jace called out. Simon turned around and fled.
His hands shook as he grabbed his keys off the counter and left the apartment. He ran down the stairs and out into the street. He took a deep shaky breath and his vison blurred.
No! He wasn’t going to cry. Not on the street.
He took another deep breath and walked quickly to his car. Sitting behind the wheel, he sucked in another shaky breath before shoving his glasses off and pressing the heels of his palm into his eyes so hard for a few minutes that he saw stars. He looked up to see Jace come out of the apartment building and look towards his car.
He started the car and peeled off. He couldn’t face Jace. He couldn’t talk to him. He couldn’t…
Where was he going?
He had no idea where he was going until he found himself in front of Magnus’ and Alec’s loft.
Did they know?
Did all their friends know that Jace was cheating and they never said anything?
Only one way to find out.
****
“Did you know Jace was cheating on me?” Simon asked as Alec opened the door in lieu of greeting.
“Excuse me?” Alec asked. “What are you talking about?”
Simon pushed his way inside. “Jace is cheating on me.” He said impatiently. “Did. You. Know?”
“Jace is cheating?” Alec repeated.
“That’s what I fucking said.” Simon snapped, his breathing choppy, his chest tight. “I walked in on him and-and…did you know?” he asked, his voice breaking.
Alec looked worried. “No. I didn’t know…I mean, I…” he stopped.
Simon looked at him sharply. “You knew? And you didn’t tell me?”
“Simon, calm down.” Alec said, his hands up in supplication. “You are…”
“Don’t fucking tell me to calm down.” Simon shouted. “You knew my boyfriend was cheating and you kept it from me.” A thought occurred to him. “Oh, I see how it is…”
“Simon…”
“What is going on?” Magnus said, walking out of the bedroom. “What’s with all the yelling?”
Simon pointed a finger at him. “You knew Jace was cheating, didn’t you?”
Magnus paused and sighed, looking away. “I told him he needed to cut that shit.”
“Oh my God!” Simon said, his hands gripping his hair. His heart was racing and there was a roaring in his head.
They were supposed to be his friends. They knew and they hadn’t said anything. They had to have been laughing behind his back. Or…they pitied him. Poor Simon, what did he expect? Jace was way out of his league. Jace wasn’t even gay…
“Simon, calm down.” Simon heard Alec say. But his voice sounded like he was far away. “I swear I didn’t know. I saw him with this chic and he was acting weird. I didn’t…”
He jumped as he felt someone touch him. “Don’t fucking touch me.” He said, his voice strained. “I-I…we’re supposed to be f-friends. All of us…”
“Simon…” Magnus sounded regretful. “How was I supposed to tell you? He promised it was nothing.”
Simon sucked in a breath. “I saw them. In our-our…oh fuck!” he struggled to get control of himself. Why was he acting like this?
He took a deep calming breath. When that didn’t silence the roaring in his ears, he tried again.
He looked up to see Alec and Magnus staring at him in concern. Simon looked at both their faces and started to chuckle.
They looked at each other in confusion, before looking at him warily. “Simon…?”
Simon shook his head. “You should see your faces. I can’t even believe I came here. What was I thinking? He was your friend before he was ever mine. Of course, you guys don’t owe me anything.”
He could hear the note of hysteria in his voice. He had to leave. “Sorry to bother you this evening. I’ve got to go. We’re still on for dinner Friday?”
As he spoke, he backed away from Alec and Magnus. “Don’t tell Jace I was here. Or do, I don’t care.”
Then he left, ignoring his friends calling his name.
No, not his friends.
****
It was past midnight when Simon had gathered the courage to go back home. He had made up his mind and he needed to do what he needed to do now, before he broke finally.
Jace was still up when Simon walked into the apartment again. He stopped in mid pace when Simon walked in. He looked wrecked; his blond hair was messy, like he had been running his fingers through it. He wore a pair of black basketball shorts and a black tank top.
“Simon…” his voice was a mix of relief and guilt. “You…are you OK?”
Simon huffed out a mirthless laugh. “Am I OK?” he murmured. He looked up at Jace and his boyfriend flinched.
“Simon, I…” Jace started.
“How long?” Simon asked.
“What?” Jace frowned.
“How long have you been cheating on me?” he asked, his voice empty.
“Simon, I’m…”
“How long, Jace?”
Jace sighed and looked down. “Since Maia and Bat’s wedding.”
Three whole months. Simon ignored the way his chest hurt.
“It meant nothing, Simon, I swear.” Jace said quickly, moving to stand in front of Simon. He reached for Simon’s hands but Simon took a step backwards. Jace let his hand drop. “It was a mistake I couldn’t stop making. I’m so sorry…you have to know I never meant to hurt you. Babe, please…”
“Stop.” Simon said, raising a hand. “I’m going to talk now. Don’t interrupt. Just-Just listen.”
“First of all, we are done, Jace.” Simon raised a hand when Jace started to say something. “I said, no fucking interruptions.” He took a deep breath. “I have done everything for you, Jace but apparently that isn’t enough. So, I am done. I’m done with you and this sham of a relationship. You are free to go back to fucking girls. I am going to go in there and pack some stuff. Then I’m going to leave. Don’t call me, don’t try to contact me in any way. I wish I could say it was all bad but it wasn’t because you fooled me. You pretended to love me but you didn’t.
“You can’t know the kind of pain you have caused me and I hope you never know because…fuck that. I’ll come for the rest of my stuff during the week and then you and I will never see each other again.”
He sighed shakily and rubbed at his eyes. Then he walked past Jace to pack a few things to last him the week. Jace grabbed his arm and Simon stiffened.
“Simon, don’t do this.” Jace begged. “I fucked up. I know but please…we-we can fix this. I’ll do anything. Don’t leave me.”
“Let go of me, Jace.” Simon said, feeling tears fall down his cheeks. “I can’t…just leave me alone.” He pulled his arm away and walked into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him.
Then he sank to the floor and sobbed.
****
He ignored calls from Alec, Magnus, Izzy, Clary, Maia, Bat…and Jace. He went back to his mother’s home and spent the weekend holed up in his childhood bedroom.
“Monkey?” His mother called as she opened the door. She shut the door and sighed. Simon lay on his bed, his back to her.
“Oh, baby…” she said and sat next to him. “You need to stop this. Talk to your friends. Talk to Jace.”
“No.” Simon said vehemently, not looking at her. “He cheated on me. And they knew. Everybody knew and they didn’t tell me. I found out by myself. I can’t…”
She sighed. “OK. I know all about it. Jace was here last night and we talked. He’s sorry. He know he made a mistake.”
“For three fucking months.” Simon muttered.
“I’ll let that go because you are upset.” His mother said. “But you are punishing yourself but hiding out here. You need to face the world.”
Simon was silent. He wanted to stay here until he died but he knew his mother was right. “OK.” He muttered.
“I’m not saying take him back.” She said. “But your friends are worried. Give them a call. At least to let them know you are alright.” She got up and walked to the door.
Just before she left, she paused at the door. “He messed up but that boy loves you.”
He had a strange way of showing it. Simon thought darkly as his mother left his bedroom.
****
Two weeks later, Simon was on a plane to LA. As he was boarding he picked up his phone and opened the friend group chat.
SimonL : Hey guys, sorry for the radio silence but it couldn’t be helped. This is my last message here on this group chat. No, I am not planning to off myself (Clary) but I got a job in LA and I’m leaving. Take care and I’ll miss you guys.
He hit send and then tapped a few buttons on the screen.
SimonL has left the group chat.
___________________________________________________________________________
Three Years Later
Jace stubbed out the fourth cigarette in the last thirty minutes and scrubbed his face with his hands. He looked at his hands and grimaced when he saw they were shaking.
He was nervous and scared.
The klast time he had seen Simon had been three years, three weeks and two days ago. The day Simon had caught him in bed with…he shook his head. He didn’t want to think about that.
That had been the night his life had changed.
The stricken look of shock and pain on Simon’s face when his boyfriend; ex-boyfriend had caught him red handed had stayed with Jace for three years. He knew he had taken Simon for granted and he had royally fucked up.
Alec had iced him out for about two months and it had taken Magnus almost six months to forgive him for what he did. The girls had reamed him out but they still talked to him. For two years, he had been the butt of all the bad boyfriend jokes.
Bat had looked at him with pity but had been his only friend for a while.
He deserved it. And more.
He had a good thing with Simon and he had thrown it away because he couldn’t keep it in his pants.
Three years on, Simon was coming back. And he had been asked to pick him up from the airport. Maia had offered to go with him but the twins were teething and she had to stay home.
Jace smiled slightly, his god kids Jojo and Jonathan were the light of his life, Almost one, they had him wrapped around their fingers. They were all he lived for because it wasn’t like he had anything else to do.
He hadn’t dated in years; male or female. The last guy he tried to hook up with ended up sitting with him and listening while he went on and on about Simon.
Aiden had told him to go to LA and see Simon but he had been too much of a coward to do that. He and Aiden still hung out once in a while and they had gotten to be very good friends. He was even the best man at Aiden’s wedding.
He straightened when he heard the announcement that Simon’s flight had landed. He took a deep breath and shook out his hands.
Showtime.
He saw Simon before Simon saw him and he had about ten seconds to take him in before Simon’s brown eyes looked up at saw him. There was a flash of recognition and Jace felt his stomach twist violently.
Then Simon grinned.
Jace blinked in confusion. Was Simon smiling at him? Jace looked behind him to see if there was someone else behind him.
When he turned back, he was wrapped in a hug. His heart skipped and he hugged Simon back warily, awkwardly patting his back.
“You still look the same!” Simon said. His voice was the same but Simon had changed. He had filled out more and he had a pretty tan going. “Did you lose weight?”
Jace swallowed. “Uh, yeah..just a little.”
It had been a lot. He had stopped going to work and alienated himself from everyone after Simon left. It had been Magnus who had pulled him out of his self-imposed isolation.
“Whatever you’re doing, I like it.” Simon said. “How you been?”
Jace shrugged. “It’s been OK, I guess.”
Simon chattered as they made their way to pick up Simon’s bags. “The rest of my stuff is being shipped next week. LA is great and all but I miss New York. I missed you guys.” Simon squeezed his hand. “It’s great to be back.”
It didn’t make sense. Simon had hated him when he left. What was going on?
As they drove back to Simon’s mother’s house, Simon talked about everything; LA, Maia’s babies, Alec proposing…
“I wish I was here to see that.” Simon said. “Did Magnus really cry?”
“It, well, he said he didn’t but everyone knows he totally did.” Jace said. “He didn’t even know.”
Simon shrugged. “Too bad I missed that. Clary sent a video, but it wasn’t the same.” Simon sighed. Then he turned to look at Jace. “What about you? What’s new with you? Seeing anyone? Are we expecting to hear wedding bells too?”
“God, no.” Jace said. “Not seeing anyone. Been good. Working on opening another branch of the bakery.”
“Oh, wow.” Simon grinned. “I especially missed your cupcakes. Tell me you still make those beer cupcakes. Those were my favorites.”
Jace chuckled. “I remember. You once got wasted over a batch.”
“Well, we were testing those.” Simon said, a smile on his face. “And they were delicious. It wasn’t my fault you put too much beer in it.”
Jace laughed. This was an old argument with them. Simon blamed Jace for over indulging with the beer in the cupcake batter and Jace had told him he was supposed to taste them not finch an entire batch.
“Again Simon. You were supposed to taste it.”
Simon stuck out his tongue at him. And Jace relaxed a little. It was like old times but this time, Jace was wondering when the other shoe would drop.
****
The other shoe dropped that night.
Everyone was at Magnus’ and Alec’s loft having dinner. The twins were asleep in the guest room and everyone was having a great time.
Magnus and Alec watched Simon like he was a ticking bomb and Jace was nervous again.
“So, how was the ride from the airport?” Izzy asked. “Was there any tension?”
Simon frowned as he swallowed a gulp from his beer. “No. Why would there be?”
The table went silent. “Uh, hello?” Clary said. “You ran away because Jace pulled a Jace.”
Jace sighed and covered his face.
“What’s that?” Simon asked. Jace looked at him through his fingers and saw Simon was frowning. “What does that mean?”
“Oh, it was something the girls made up.” Alec said. “Pulling a Jace means cheating, basically.”
Jace sighed. This was going to be brutal.
The table was silent then Simon said. “That’s horrible.”
“No, it isn’t.” Clary said. “Because, Jace did cheat and then you…”
“I thought Jace was your friend.” Simon said. “Why would you…?”
“He hurt you, Simon.” Maia said bewildered. “And you left.”
“Wait, so you’ve been blaming Jace for me leaving?” Simon asked.
“Well, if he kept it in his pants and hadn’t cheated, you wouldn’t have left.” Izzy said.
Simon gaped at them. “I can’t believe this.” Simon looked at Jace. “Why are you letting them talk about you like that.”
Jace shrugged. “It is what it is.” It was his cross to bear. “I did do that.”
Simon shook his head and looked at Magnus. “And you agree with this?”
Magnus shrugged. “It was a shitty thing he did. And he doesn’t mind.”
“He made a mistake.” Simon said. “He is your friend. I can’t believe you’d do this to him.”
Everyone, including Jace stared at Simon.
“So, you mean to tell me that all the time I was away, you guys have been dumping on Jace for…this is unbelievable.” Simon shook his head.
“Well…” Maia began.
“It’s OK.” Jace said, wanting this to be over.
“It’s not OK.” Simon snapped. “Jace hurt me. And I am over it. He didn’t do anything to you guys. I left because you guys knew he did what he did…”
“Pulled a Jace…” Clary said and Simon glared at her. “Sorry.”
Magnus had a small smile on his face. Simon took a deep breath. “Well, I’m not going to call it that. Jace, you shouldn’t take that either. I don’t believe you guys.”
The table was silent until a cry from the baby monitor broke the silence. Maia groaned. “Duty calls.”
The tension seemed to dissipate after that but Jace stared at Simon as he and Alec started to talk.
****
Two weeks later, Simon had been acting weird. He came around the bakery a lot and Jace would catch him staring at him. Sometimes he waved back at Jace and winked, other times, he’d look away quickly.
Even though Simon had said he forgave Jace for what had happened, Jace was still wary.
Later that night, Jace was in bed, reading or trying to read when he got a call from…
Simon?
“Hey.” He said warily.
“I’m outside.” Simon said. “Buzz me in.”
Jace frowned and went to buzz Simon in. He put on a tshirt and waited for Simon to come inside. Simon came in about 30 seconds afterwards.
“Hi.” He said as he shut the door behind him. He stopped and looked around. “Hasn’t changed much.”
Jace cleared his throat. “Uh, yeah…I’m shit at decorating and I like it the way it is.” Simon had decorated and Jace didn’t want to change anything.
Simon nodded. OK, cool, cool…” He seemed to make a decision then he walked up to Jace and before Jace could blink, he caught a fist in his jaw. The force of it had him staggering a few steps backwards.
He held his face in his hand and stared at Simon in shock. Simon looked apologetic.
“That was what I should have done three year ago.” Simon said. “You hurt me and I thought I would die. But…” he reached up to touch Jace’s cheek. “…all the time I was in LA, I thought about you constantly. I’d see something that I know you’d like but then I’d remember you weren’t mine anymore and then I’d get pissed and sad.
“I love you, Jace. I always have and I know I always will. I should be certifiable or stupid but I don’t want to live without you. It may take a while to trust you again but I want to try. I miss you, Jace and I want to come home.”
Jace’s breathing had sped up as he listened to Simon. He was asleep. That was it. He had fallen asleep in bed and this was a dream. But the throbbing ache in his jaw told him he was very much awake. “You-You want me back?” he croaked.
“If you’ll have me.” Simon said, smiling shyly. “I hated LA without you. There were a lot of really hot guys there but…” Jace cut him off by kissing him hard.
God, he missed this. Simon talking and Jace having to kiss him to shut him up for just a few seconds and pulling away to see Simon; breathless and smiling. Just like he was looking now.
“Is that a yes?” Simon asked.
Jace snorted and for the first time in three years, he knew for certain that he was going to be OK.
“I love you.” Jace said simply. “I’m sorry, I…”
This time it was Simon who kissed him to shut him up. Jace wrapped his arms tight around Simon and held him close.
Simon pulled away and looked at him, breathing hard. “I’ve got my stuff in the car.”