in which jace wayland gets what he deserves (happiness) {eventual clace}
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"Hey, Iz." The blonde boy (more so, man) stalked into his bedroom at the Institute, Aldertree had finally let him move back in to (under the influence of Alec, of course), with a light smile on his face, which only grew bigger once seeing his adoptive sister, sprawled on his bed, phone in hand.
She mumbled a response, watching him look through dresser drawers and the closet. "Let me guess, you're looking for your new leather jacket?" She sent him a smirk as he turned around, rolling his eyes.
"Yes, have you seen it by any chance?" He plays along, chuckling slightly at the little game the two play.
"I washed it, it's hanging on the bathroom door." Isabelle smiled, dropping the act, hoping to get serious as soon as possible. "Hey, can we talk for a sec? Like, really talk?"
Jace retrieves his jacket from the door hanger and then plops down on the sofia that Izzy had moved to. "What's up?"
"I just… I wanted to talk because… I've been thinking. About you, and I wanted to ask how you're doing." She says hesitantly, knowing he'd been through a lot recently.
"I'm good, Izzy. Really. If anything, I should be asking you that question." He nudges her lightly, and raises his eyebrows.
"I'm better, a lot better. And before you say anything, yes, I will come to you if something like this ever happens again. The only reason I didn't was because you had all of this other stuff going on."
"You know I always have time for you, Iz. I promise." Jace smiles sweetly, and she really, really believes it. Truth be told, if she were to tell anyone about anything really, it would be Jace. He's close enough to care about her and want her safe, but he wouldn't be blinded by his emotions enough to do something irrational like Alec would.
"So," she starts, changing the subject from her. "This Hailee girl…"
"Oh by the angel, Izzy." Jace's head rolls back and the two laugh like 9 year olds. "Okay, what do you want to know?"
The grin on Jace's face is prominent. Ever since he'd met Hailee, his 1000 kilowatt smile had returned, and Izzy was more than thrilled, but she still didn't know much about the girl, or where Jace's feelings stood for her or for Clary.
"I just want to know where she comes in with the whole…. Clary situation."
"I haven't told Clary that Valentine lied yet, but really, it doesn't matter. No matter how she feels about me she loves Simon and she's not just going to drop him two seconds after I tell her the truth." He did have a point there. Dropping Simon in the snap of Jace's figures is not like Clary at all. She wouldn't do that to him, but at the same time, no one really knows how Clary feels about either of the two men, maybe not even herself. Isabelle did have snippets of conversations with Clary about her feelings for Jace. All Izzy knows is Clary's feelings hadn't gone away (it'd be inhumane if they had) and she loves Simon. That's about it.
"Do you still love Clary?" Izzy smiles, knowing the answer all ready.
"Of course I do. I don't think I'll ever stop loving her. But, whether we end up together or not, right now, Hailee makes me really, really happy." His faded smile turns back into the wide grin when mentioning Hailee's name. Isabelle mentally awes at the sight, and can't stop her own smile from mirroring his.
"What?" He chuckles, looking at her grin.
"I'm just so glad to hear you say that you're happy, that's all." Her eyes are filled with so much love, Jace can only think of one thing to do. He spreads his arms out wide, and mumbles a "C'mere.". There comes his little sister, right into his arms. When his phone beeps, he only pulls away a little and holds the phone up, so both of them can see the text from Hailee.
"Speak of the devil." With one swift kiss on her head, he's out the door making his way to his girlfriend, who said she was waiting outside. Izzy waits a few seconds before making her way to Jace's window, peering down at the brunette, holding her sister's hand.
She swears her heart grows three sizes when she watches the little girl run straight into Jace's arms, and he plants millions of kisses all over her face. She watches her brother take the girl's hand and make his way over to Hailee, planting a sweet kiss on her lips. Taking his hand in hers, Hailee leads the three down the street, and Izzy watches until they're all out of sight.
Maybe keeping the truth from Clary is a mistake, but Jace's happiness is well-deserved, and she wouldn't trade that for anything.