I lifted the basket of clothes into my arms, and began the trek down to the basement to wash said clothes. I lived on the third level of an apartment building in boring old Austin, Texas. One thing this apartment did not have was a washer and dryer. As I reached the first floor, James, my doorman, held the door to the basement open for me. He was middle aged, and had three children. The oldest was fifteen.

"Good morning Miss Adriana."

"Good morning James."

"Need a hand there?" After three years, I was still getting used to the southern manners. Brooklyn was very different. I left when I was sixteen, almost seventeen, to live with my now-dead cousin Charlotte. I hadn't been back in three years.

"No, thanks." I was strong enough to handle a basket of clothes, even if my petite frame said otherwise. Nine years of hunting and constant training had ensured that I was fast and strong.

"Alright miss." As I descended the stairs, my mind shuffled through today's to-do list. Number one was laundry. Check. Number two was lunch with Noah, who had been the first to befriend me when I arrived in Austin. I was the new girl in a Karate class full of old friends, but I caught on quickly and started teaching the little kids classes within two months. Soon enough, I earned my black belt and started teaching both kids and teens. My instructor tried for a year to get me to enter competitions, but I refused. I would be noticed all too quickly by my old family...

"Don't go there girl, you can't afford to," I told myself firmly. I opened the lid of the washer, and dumped my load in with some Tide detergent. It was mostly black, but there was some dark blues and greens. Past habits had caused me to prefer the darker color tones. That, and my green eyes looked better with those colors. At least, that's what Noah says. I close the load of the washer, and stow my bright lime green laundry bin in the corner next to the dryer.

On my phone, I set an alarm to go off in an hour. Then I turned and ran upstairs to get ready for lunch. It wasn't fancy, but my ripped black jeans and purple singlet weren't something you wear to lunch with your best friend who may or may not be into you. Inside my apartment, I selected a black lace button up and my favorite dark wash skinny jeans, both from . Now what shoes should I wear? Black flats or over-the-knee boots? My legs were pretty lean, but probably not skinny enough to look good in flats. So boots it was. My watch said it was 11:15, giving me an hour to shower and get dressed. Noah would be here at 12:15.

As the clock struck twelve, I was just finishing my makeup and hair. My almost-black hair was pulled up into a high ponytail, and was long enough to reach to the middle of my back. I put in diamond earrings and wore a simple jade pendant in the shape of a butterfly, it was a gift from a very old friend back in Brooklyn.

The buzzer for my apartment sounded, and I hurried to answer it while pulling on my boots. Noah was earlier than usual. Imagine my surprise when I open the door and see him standing there. No, it wasn't Noah. It was the very person I had been trying to avoid for three long years. A man whom I had once loved more than life itself. A man I had sworn I would marry one day. Alexander Gideon Lightwood stood in my doorway, wearing his signature black tank top and leather vest, revealing strong arms and black runes. His bow was strapped to his back, along with a quiver full of arrows.

"Adriana." His blue eyes were filled with longing. My heart ached, but I squashed it.

"What are you doing here, Alec?" He sighs.

"Is it so wrong for me to want to see you again?"

"I left so that I wouldn't have to. I'm not the same girl you knew in Brooklyn."

"Your accent's different. Other than that, you're the same." I roll my eyes. "We need to talk."

"Fine. Come on in." I look out into the hallway to check for anyone else. When I close the door, I turn around to see him sitting in one of the chairs around the tiny coffee table that serves as my desk. "You have ten minutes."

"Going somewhere?" He asks, his eyes raking over me. "You sure haven't lost any muscle. Haven't gotten any taller, either." I scowl.

"If you came all the way to Austin from Brooklyn just to insult my height, then you can go right back home." He knew I was sensitive about that.

"Adriana, we all miss you. Isabelle and Jace went to try to track you, and Max was wondering where his big sister went." Max. My baby brother. He would be eleven now. Alec and I were nine years old, and almost inseparable.

"If you want me to come back, it's going to take a lot more than that. I cut off all ties with the Clave. I'm virtually a mundane now. And I like it."

"You know you don't. You see demons, and you want to kill them. I know you. I trained with you for twelve years. You still carry your blades. Cassiel and Dumah, right?"

"You know nothing about me, Alec. Stop thinking you do. Now tell me why you're here, or get out."

"You need to come back to Brooklyn. Something big is happening, and we need you."

"We?"

"Yeah. Me, Isabelle, and Jace?" Isabelle. I hadn't seen her in three years. My best friend.

"What's happening?"

"Valentine Morgenstern is alive." No way. He couldn't be!

"I thought he died in the fire at Jocelyn's parents manor."

"That's what I thought too. But the remnants of the Circle are looking for her. Blackwell in particular. She took her daughter, Clarissa, with her to New York accompanied by Lucian Graymark." I stiffened as I heard the name. Samuel Blackwell was the man responsible for Michael Wayland's death. Later on, he had killed both of my parents for association with Downworlders. Specifically the Seelie court in Central Park.

"Are you sure? How old is Clarissa?"

"She would be seventeen."

"Does she know about us? About Downworlders?"

"I would assume not. Her mother cut off ties with the Clave and changed her last name to Fray."

"So why exactly do you want me there? I'm obviously safer where Blackwell and the other bastard can't find me."

"I need you with me. It's safer."

"I'm a black belt in Karate and I practice with my blades all the time." When I was a hunter, my weapons of choice were twin twelve inch seraph blades named Dumah and Cassiel. They now resided in my boots or on my bedside table. I also had a local warlock in my contacts for emergencies.

"You do realize that if Valentine is alive, he will track all of the Shadowhunters down, even if they have cut ties with the Clave?"

"Alright. So what if I do go with you? Am I supposed to disappear? Not tell anyone where I'm going?"

"Sell the apartment and come home. Tell them you're going to NYU."

"I've already been accepted at University of Texas. I'm majoring in history."

"Adriana, please. Come home. If I'm not enough to bring you home, then think about Izzy, you were practically sisters. Even closer than parabatai."

"Don't even think about using that against me. Jace almost died because you saved my life and didn't pay any attention to your own parabatai!"

"As I recall, I didn't even get a thank you."

"Jace was dying. I was a bit preoccupied with trying to save him. In case you forgot, he was shot twice with stolen arrows." Alec flinches slightly.

"This is NOT the time to be hashing out our problems."

"You brought Isabelle up." He sighs in frustration, and runs a hand through his black hair.

"You're right." I raise an eyebrow. "Don't look at me like that."

"I'll think about it, alright? Give me a week. I'll send a fire message." He grins.

"I guess I can accept that." I glance at the clock, and my eyes widen. Noah will be here in five minutes.

"You need to go. I have a lunch date." His heart-wrenching smile fades.

"I didn't realize you'd moved on."

"We aren't together anymore. It's none of your business who I involve myself with. Now go." He stands up, and I follow him to the door. Suddenly he stops and turns around.

"It may not matter to you, but I never regretted loving you." With that said, he leans down, and presses his lips to mine in, wrapping his arm around my waist. Before it even begins, the moment is over and he walks out my door with his head held high and back straight. I'm still reeling from the kiss, leaning against the open door. I can still feel his lips on mine. Right as he disappears down the stairs, Noah steps out of the elevator, and smiles when his eyes meet mine. I force a smile and wave.

"Hey you." He walks towards me. I step forward to meet him, and take his offered elbow. "You ready?"

"Of course."

Later that afternoon, I had made my decision.

This is the revamped (sort of) first chapter. I will also replace chapters two and three because of changes I have made. This fic is also on Wattpad.