Conditional Love

Chapter 28

"Alexander, it's your mother. Can we speak?"

What could Maryse Lightwood possibly want to say to him? It's been six years since they've spoken. What's changed? Is she trying to mend their relationship just so Jace and Izzy will come back into their lives? It wouldn't surprise Alec if that were the case. Did they have a change of heart about disowning him? If so, why now? Why not years ago when a relationship could have been salvageable? Can they even go back to having any semblance of a relationship at this point? Or did they see the newspaper article, and decide that they want to try again? What is going on here? Alec just stands in the middle of the foyer frozen in shock.

"Alec, son... are you there." That snaps Alec out of his thoughts quickly.

"Son? Son? Are you kidding me right now?" Alec says harshly, "After six years of no contact whatsoever, you decide to suddenly call. What do you want Maryse?"

Alec hears sniffling on the other end of the phone, "I miss you so much, Alec."

"How did you even get my number?" Alec asks, his tone more tired than angry as he paces in the living room.

"Alec, I've been keeping tabs on you for the last six years. Your father and I are attorneys, we have several private investigators on our payroll. I've had one of them following you almost exclusively since you've been gone." Maryse states in an exasperated tone.

"Following me? As in, stalking me? But why? You were the ones who disowned me, why do you care what I'm doing? And why now, why are you contacting me now?"

"I've told you Alec, I've missed you. I want to be a part of your life." Maryse sniffles again, "I don't expect you to forgive me right away, but I would like to earn your trust back."

"What about Robert? Does he want the same thing?" Alec is having a hard time believing that his father would want anything to do with him.

"When we heard that you were shot, Robert was beside himself. I think he felt responsible because your life would be vastly different if we had allowed you to stay."

"Really?" Alec asks skeptically. When his parents kicked him out, his father had never said anything about disinheriting him, Maryse was the vocal one when he came out. She's the person who kicked him out and told him he was a disgrace. Robert just sat there, silently scowling the entire time. Alec hadn't thought about that day in a long time, he all but forgot about that until now. But how would his life have been any different? They knew he wanted to become a paramedic. Alec decides to voice his thoughts.

"Alec, if we had never kicked you out, you could have been working in Manhattan instead of Brooklyn." She said the word 'Brooklyn' like it was some third world country, and not one borough over from Manhattan.

"Well it still doesn't change the fact that it happened, Maryse." Alec is getting angry again, "You made it clear that I was a disgrace to the Lightwood name, not him. So I'll ask you again, why are you contacting me now?"

"I've already told you Alec." Maryse's is losing her patience by the sound of her voice, "I miss you. I want you back in our lives."

Alec sighs in resignation. He's still sceptical, he knows that things won't just magically go back to the way they were before he was kicked out, but for the sake of himself, as well as his siblings, he's willing to try, "Fine. If you want to make an effort, my boyfriend's father is opening a new restaurant in Manhattan. It's just on the other side of the Brooklyn bridge, almost directly across from one of his current ones. Jace is his head chef, so you may see him there, although he'll be busy. I know Izzy and Simon will be at the party, please don't make a scene. I don't want -" Alec is cut off my Maryse.