Work Text:
Strewn papers littered the floor of his bedroom, coffee cups taking up residence on every available surface. In the middle of it all, Kit sat at his desk, frantically scribbling down notes. Head pounding and tired, he rubbed at his eyes with one hand, keeping up the flow of writing with his right, and accidentally smudging his nose with ink as he did so.
His hair was un-washed and he wore the same sweatpants and hoodie that he'd been wearing for three days straight; living on nothing but caffeine and food prepared by his parents that he ate as quickly as possible so that he could get back to work.
Kit was studying for his final Shadowhunter exams. They coincided with his seventeenth birthday and because he was being home schooled by Jem, and ex-Shadowhunter, he was required to complete several examinations to prove that he was ready to become part of the Nephilim. Afterwards, he would move to New York for his travel year, assisting Jace and Clary with the running of the Institute and helping to protect the city.
Feeling more pressure than he ever had, as not only did this fall on him, but on Jem's reputation as a teacher, and he finally had parents that would be proud of him if he succeeded.
There was a knock on his door and it opened. He turned, seeing Tessa and faced his work again.
"Hi," he mumbled.
"Hey, darling." He heard her come in, closing the door behind her and she sat on the bed. "We need to talk; can you stop for a minute?"
Finishing his sentence, Kit spun the chair around. "What's up?"
"We're worried about you... You've done nothing but study for the last week; you need to take some time for yourself," she said, creases of worry lining her face. Kit had never had someone care for him like Tessa and Jem did, and little moments like this always caught him off guard.
"I know, but I need to do well; everything is riding on this." He explained.
"We understand that, darling. We'll be proud of you despite what's written on the paper; we just want you to look after yourself. If you being healthy means you have to resit the test, so what? You'll have a home with us whenever you want it, and delaying your trip to New York won't ruin anything." Tessa reached over and squeezed his hand, "we can only ask that you do your best, but you can't be on your best form if you're collapsing from exhaustion."
"Mum, it's tomorrow. There's still so much to do." He said, blinking away tears.
"And that, darling, is why this is stopping. I want all these mugs downstairs in the sink, for you to take a shower and then join us in the living room to watch a movie." Kit had lived with Tessa long enough to know when not to argue.
"Okay." He agreed, sighing. She kissed him on the head.
"We'll see you in half an hour; if you're still working, we'll know." She joked, making a motioning gesture between her eyes and Kit. The door closed on her way out, and Kit took a deep breath, doing as she said.
Once the mugs were downstairs and washed, he showered and changed into clean pyjamas before heading into the living room. Tessa motioned to the middle of the sofa. There was a bowl of popcorn and several varieties of chocolate on the table and a moment later, Jem walked in with three mugs of hot chocolate with whipped cream and marshmallows.
They huddled on the sofa, a blanket over them all and snacks perched on legs. Tessa pressed play and one of Kit's favourite comfort movies began to unfold. He rested his head on Jem's shoulder and Tessa smiled over at them, placing a piece of popcorn in her mouth.
After a short while, Kit drifted into sleep, and Tessa glanced at Jem, relief written on her face, thankful that he would have a restful night after days of exhaustion. Tessa had never loved peace as much as she did in that perfect, quiet moment.