Nodding absentmindedly, he began flipping through the pages. He was used to glossy paper and bright images, but it felt different when they were from the outside world. It seemed to have more weight when it was something that Adam gave him. "It is. I think." He paused to look at one of the photos. "Do people really wear things like that? How do women walk in those shoes?" Alec knew that they did. He saw pictures and moments from the mortal world but he assumed that the strange clothing he'd seen was for special occasions.

"Why are you sorry?" Alec didn't understand why the subject of the magazine mattered, but it seemed to be important to Adam. Slowly he reached out, brushing his fingers along Adam's hand. "You gave me something from the mortal world. Something I've never seen before. Things appear at the temple, but I haven't had a gift in centuries. I asked about the articles because I want to understand the things I've only read about." Maybe Adam didn't like his questions. Maybe they made him uncomfortable or he didn't like being reminded that Alec wasn't quite human. "I'll stop asking, if you want."