Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Mortal Instruments.

It's been two weeks since Clary has last seen her dad or seen anyone but herself in the place she calls home. Clary's dad, Valentine, was always on business trips since he is a famous lawyer. She is extremely lucky if she sees him once a week. He was the dad that didn't let his work affect his family, that was until the accident.

Clary can understand why Valentine doesn't want to be around her. She is a nerd, a loser, she has no friends, but most of all she survived and they didn't. Maybe that is why Valentine always leaves her by herself because he resents her for surviving. He gives her anything she wants but he could never give her what she wants most, a friend or someone to have a conversation with. The only way she ever talks to someone is when she is taking their order at Rachel's. Rachel's is a café that she works at so that she can talk to people. Clary does not have to work, her father is rich but that is the only way she doesn't lose her mind, that and being free to draw and paint.

She is not very difficult to get along with, she just needs someone who is willing to give her a chance. Clary just does not make herself look appealing to anyone. She can't tame her bright red curls that go down to the middle of her back so it makes her hair look frizz. She doesn't wear make up so her eyes look like a dull green. They were very bright and full of energy but things happened that made her eyes lose the sparkle in them. Clary stands at a height of 5'1 and doesn't have any curves so she doesn't get any attention from guys.

-0-

After Clary comes home from school she is happy that she avoided Kaelie all day. She didn't have anymore time to assess her day because she had to get to work. Running up the steps is not that easy for Clary considering that she was very clumsy. She tripped a few times before successfully making it to the top of the steps. Putting on her uniform which involved black khaki pants, and orange shirt, and a black apron she realized she must have left the apron in her locker at work.

Arriving at work with three minutes to spare, she used that time to put on her apron and sign in. The café was not busy at all that day so she took that as an advantage to try to finish a drawing of what she thought her older brother would look like if she were to see him. Looking at the clock she noticed she had five minutes until her break. I can finish this at home it is not like I have anything better to do there. Clary had the outline if his face done and she drew his hair short and spiky.

A benefit of working there is that she gets free coffee anytime she is working. She makes herself a cup of coffee—black like my sole—and sat down at a booth alone. She had her own little schedule she was use to: go to school, get picked on, go home to change into uniform, go to work, have a work break, continue working, go home and do homework, then go to bed or draw.

She was looking into her coffee thinking how shitty her life was when she felt someone sit down at her booth. In front of her was the most hottest guy she had ever seen. He had blond hair, a perfect tan, and gold eyes. Remembering from school that he is the guy that is always sucking faces with Kaelie she looked back down. "Are you having a bad day Red because I know someone and something that can cheer you, if you know what I mean." Looking up Clary saw this guy smiling like he did not just say something rude and disgusting to her.

"If you don't mind I would prefer not to talk to asshats like yourself so, could you just move and find a slut that will be happy to sleep with you." Clary said with a glare on her face. She wanted him to leave but then again she didn't because he wanted to have a conversation with her. Even though he was a complete ass, she still wanted it to count.

"No need to send me death glares I was just joking. You looked lonely Red and I had no one to talk to so I thought why shouldn't I cheer someone up with my perfect looks. I'm the great Jace Herondale by the way." Jace said with a smirk on his face. Clary couldn't stop looking at him because she had never met someone who was so cocky.

Clary looked at the clock and realized she still had fifteen minutes before her break was over. I might as well start a conversation because it does not seem he is going anywhere, anytime soon. "First off, why would you want your first impression to someone be that you are an arrogant ass? And second my name is not Red, it is Clarissa but I prefer Clary."

Jace still had that smirk on his face because he didn't think it was going to be that easy to get the red-head to talk to him but he had achieved it. "I've seen you around school but you are always drawing or reading some comic book. You never talk to anyone either. Let me guess you are a nerd but really you are really cool to be around but doesn't show because you are too shy. You should really stand up to Kaelie or she is just going to keep harassing you at school." She looked back down at her coffee until he finished his opinion about her.

When she looked up she looked directly in his eyes. Deep in them she could see the same thing she saw in hers: loneliness, sadness, and hurt. She could tell that he was broken inside. "You know what I think about you?" He just did—what she was now learning—his signature smirk. She continued, "I think that you are popular and is known for dating girls for about two days before dumping them because all you want from them is sex. But, I think that you are doing all of this because you are afraid of showing people the broken boy that you really are." Clary noticed his smirk faltered a little but he fixed it almost immediately. She stared right in his eyes again. "I can see that you have had a not so pleasant past and have a secret that you don't want anyone to find out." She lowered her gaze after finishing because she was starting to remember things from her past.

-0-

Jace couldn't believe what she had just said. He would have never thought she was a feisty, she looked like one of those girls that was shy because they didn't know they were pretty. He thought he hid his feelings very well. No one had ever thought of him as broken, not even at the people at the orphanage even though they knew what he had been through. How could this girl he just met read him so easily? It made Jace scared that someone could do that so easily, especially a stranger.

"So, Red shouldn't you be getting back to work?" asked Jace because he really just wanted to change the subject because he was getting nervous and that is something he never does.

"Actually I have two more minutes before my break is over and twenty more minutes until I get off of work."

"Okay, well I should get going. I'll see you around." With that said he walked out the café and on his way home. Not many children or teenagers lived in the orphanage. He walked up the steps after making sure he didn't see anyone he knew around and went inside.

"Hey Jace we just got done making dinner if you want to come and eat" said Mary. Mary is the woman who ran the orphanage. She was really nice and treated all the kids equally. No one ever complained about how she cared for them. Sometimes she got attached to the kids that were living there even though she knew that she shouldn't because they would eventually get adopted.

"No I'm not really hungry. I'm just going to go get ready for bed." Jace said and ran up to his room. He was still a little shocked about what the short red-head in the café said to him. He took a twenty-minute shower and crawled into bed.

He was not able to sleep that night thinking how someone knew so much and they barely had a conversation. Most of that night he sat in his bed and looked around his room. His room was all white and was neat. It was the opposite of what most boys rooms would look like. It finally dawned on him how someone could see hidden pain in someone. She must have not have had such a good life. Jace got to sleep when he decided to talk to her again tomorrow at the café. Talking to her in school could make people ask questions and mess with the reputation he had.

-0-

Jace's first period was art. As he walked in he noticed Clary was in the very front. She was looking down sketching something on a piece of notebook paper. He never noticed that she was in his class because he barely payed attention. Sebastian or Kaelie were always there. If Kaelie was not here then he would talk to Sebastian and if he were not there he would just make out with Kaelie.

Wondering where Sebastian was, he was going to take out his phone when the teacher startled him by coming in."Good morning class, you will be starting a project today with a partner." Jace didn't really care who his partner was as long as they helped him do the work and looking around, he knew no one in this room would leave all the work to him or get distracted. "—lastly Jace and Clarissa."

This is a different version of Jace and Clary Best Friends. Tell me which story you like better, so I know which one to continue. Please Review!