Everyone is afraid of something. No matter how silly or how irrational the fear was, everyone had one thing that reduced them to a quivering mess. One thing that made their heart pound so hard, it felt like it was going to jump out of their chest.
For Clary, that fear was thunderstorms.
The window rattled as thunder rumbled in the night, raindrops pounding angrily against the glass. A flash of lightning darted across the night sky, illuminating every inch of the room, casting mysterious shadows across the walls and ceiling. Clary brought her hands up to cover her ears, knowing that thunder was going to follow suit any second. Although she knew it was going to happen, she still flinched when the thunder boomed, loud and forceful. She whimpered and dug herself deeper into the blankets, trying to block out the thunderstorm.
The next crash of thunder was the loudest one yet. It shook the entire Institute, including the bed that Clary was currently hiding in. She gasped as the light from the lamp on her bedside table flickered before completely turning off, bathing the room in complete darkness. She pulled the blanket up higher, almost completely covering her head.
As the next flash of lightning lit up the room, Clary's bedroom door squeaked open, accompanied with soft footsteps. She peeked out from under her blankets and saw a dark figure standing in her doorway. With another flash of lightning, Clary made out Jace's blonde hair. He quietly approached Clary's bed, jumping when he noticed that she was awake.
"You're awake," he breathed.
She nodded. "What are you doing here?"
"The power went out," he explained. "The heat turned off, so I brought you an extra blanket in case it gets cold." It wasn't until then that Clary noticed the warm wool blanket that Jace clutched in his hand.
"Thank you," she said in a low, quivering voice.
He shrugged it off and sat on the edge of her bed. "Why are you up?"
"I couldn't sleep."
His eyebrows drew together. "Why not?"
Clary opened her mouth to answer when another wave of thunder rolled through. She whimpered again and drew under the blankets again, curling into a little ball. Her body trembled and quivered, her heart racing.
"Clary?" Jace's voice broke through the layers of blankets that she was under. She peeked her eyes out of the blankets to look at him. When he saw the look on her face, his face relaxed as realization hit him. "You're afraid of storms."
Clary felt her face heat up in a deep blush. She pulled the blankets tighter around herself as if that would hide her embarrassment. Jace will probably make fun of her for being afraid of something as little and irrelevant as thunderstorms; she was never going to live this down.
She looked up at him and saw him staring at her. She avoided his gaze as she spoke. "I know it's stupid."
"Hey," he said. The tone in his voice made her look up at him. He didn't look amused or make fun of her. He just looked like Jace. "It's not stupid. Everyone's afraid of something. You can't always help what you're afraid of."
"Really?" she whispered, shocked at the unexpected softness to his voice.
"Really," he nodded. A smirk played on his lips. "Besides, I can't really judge you for being scared of storms when I'm terrified of ducks."
Despite her heart still pounding in fear at the thunder, which seemed to be getting louder by the second, she smiled. Only Jace could make her smile while she was huddled under the blankets on her bed, shaking in fear.
Jace got to his feet and attempted to pull the blankets away from her. She gripped them tightly in her hands. "What are you doing?"
He paused and leaned over her, staring directly into her eyes. "Move over. I'll protect you from the big, bad storm." He dropped a chaste kiss to her forehead and attempted to peel the blankets off once again.
Clary let him pull them off this time, feeling the cold night air bite her skin. The cold was quickly replaced by warmth as Jace slid into the bed with her and pulled the blankets back up. Thunder rumbled again and the windowpane shook violently. Jace wrapped his arm around Clary's trembling body and pulled her into his side. She immediately turned toward him, burying her face in his chest and throwing one of her legs over his.
"You're okay," Jace whispered into her hair.
She looked up at him through her glassy green eyes. She looked so vulnerable in that moment, not like the strong shadowhunter that she had grown into. Everyone was allowed their vulnerable moments, and this was Clary's.
"Will you sing to me?" she whispered.
"Sing?"
She nodded. When she was a little girl, anytime it was thunderstorming, Luke would go into her room and sing to her to keep her mind off of it. It always worked. Now, in this moment, she wanted nothing more than for Jace's angelic voice to distract her from the storm outside.
Jace thought for a moment before he started to sing softly.
The best thing about tonight's that we're not fighting
Could it be that we have been this way before
I know you don't think that I am trying
I know you're wearing thin down to the core
But hold your breath
Because tonight will be the night that I will fall for you
Over again
Don't make me change my mind
Or I won't live to see another day
I swear it's true
Because a girl like you is impossible to find
You're impossible to find
This is not what I intended
I always swore to you I'd never fall apart
You always thought that I was stronger
I may have failed
But I have loved you from the start
Oh
But hold your breath
Because tonight will be the night that I will fall for you
Over again
Don't make me change my mind
Or I won't live to see another day
I swear it's true
Because a girl like you is impossible to find
It's impossible
So breathe in so deep
Breathe me in
I'm yours to keep
And hold onto your words
'Cause talk is cheap
And remember me tonight
When you're asleep
Because tonight will be the night that I will fall for you
Over again
Don't make me change my mind
Or I won't live to see another day
I swear it's true
Because a girl like you is impossible to find
Tonight will be the night that I will fall for you
Over again
Don't make me change my mind
Or I won't live to see another day
I swear it's true
Because a girl like you is impossible to find
You're impossible to find
By the end of the song, Clary's breathing had evened out and she was sleeping soundly. He smiled softly at his angel sleeping in his arms and leaned in to drop a kiss to the top of her head.
"Goodnight, Clary," he murmured, knowing that she couldn't hear him. "I love you."
With that, Jace closed his eyes and tightened his arm around Clary. He fell asleep with a smile on his face as the lightning stopped and the thunder became faded and distant.
They both knew that Jace would come into her room next time a thunderstorm hit, and he would hold her until it passed. He would always protect her from her fears and hold her through the storms in her life.
Hey guys! Thank you for reading this little one-shot. Please review, favorite, follow, and all that fun stuff! Thank you again for reading, and please stay tuned for upcoming stories that I am working on, and I am really excited to share with you guys! 3 Until next time...
~ Ti Amo La Luna E Ritorno