Hey, everyone! So I know it's been forever since I've last updated/published anything. That's because I've been spending most of my time working on a story that I'm hoping to publish soon! I want to finish writing it completely before publishing it so that I can update on a set schedule and not worry about writer's block and stuff like that! Anyway, I started writing this a while ago when I was bored, and I kind of forgot about it and didn't finish it. However, I decided to finish it today so that I could publish it! I'm sorry if it's not very good... I didn't check it that well, and I feel like it's kind of rushed and just overall not my best writing, but I tried, and I wanted to get something out! Anyway, I won't bore you anymore with this A/N, so enjoy this one-shot!:

It's funny how one small object can have the potential to change your life forever. Now, standing in the bathroom of the Institute, Clary held a small white stick that officially confirmed that her- or Jace's- life was never going to be the same.

Two pink lines. Positive. Clary was pregnant.

"Hey Clary, can I borrow your hair straight-" Isabelle appeared in the doorway of the bathroom. She froze in her tracks when she saw the white stick in Clary's hand.

"Iz," Clary started, but she couldn't find anything to say. Instead, she only shook her head and shrugged.

"What does it say?" Isabelle asked slowly, her face unreadable.

"It's," Clary glanced down at it one more time before looking back at Isabelle. "It's positive."

It all happened so fast. One moment, Isabelle was standing on the other side of the bathroom. The next, Isabelle was throwing her arms around her best friend, squealing loudly.

"That's amazing!" Isabelle shrieked before breaking away from the hug, holding Clary out at arms length to look at her. "I'm so happy for you guys."

Clary smiled a little bit. "Thanks, Izzy."

Isabelle's eyebrows furrowed together. "What's wrong? You don't seem happy."

Clary shook her head quickly. "No, of course I'm happy," she explained. After a pause, she added, "I just don't know how Jace is going to take it."

Isabelle nodded in understanding and shrugged. "The only way to find out is to tell him."

Taking a deep breath, Clary nodded and carefully wrapped the test in a tissue, setting it on the counter. She turned on her heel and followed Isabelle into the hallway, following the familiar route to Jace's room.

Her heart was pounding so loud, she could barely hear her own thoughts. Her? A mother? It didn't seem possible. She was only nineteen, she still felt like a kid herself. And here she was, having her own child.

What was Jace going to say? He may not even want to be a father. They never talked about children, so she had no idea how he was going to feel about the matter. What if he left her? What if he wanted nothing to do with her after the baby was born?

"Good luck," Isabelle's voice broke her out of her thoughts. It wasn't until then that Clary noticed that they had arrived at Jace's room. Isabelle reached out and squeezed Clary's hand before starting down the hallway. She called over her shoulder, "Call me later!"

Taking a shuddering breath, Clary pushed the door open and scanned the room. It was empty. The sound of the shower was the only noise in the room.

"Jace?" Clary called in the direction of the bathroom.

"I'm in the shower!" he called back through the closed door. "I'll be out in a second!"

Sighing, Clary sat down on Jace's bed and reclined back against his pillows. Staring up at the pale blue ceiling, she slowly slid her hand under the hem of her shirt to rest on her stomach. She wasn't showing yet. It was too early. But there was something there. A warmth that spread through her entire abdomen.

For the first time since seeing the positive pregnancy test, she smiled. A real smile that made her cheeks hurt and her eyes scrunch up. She was pregnant. There was a baby growing inside of her. She was going to be a mother.

The door to the bathroom suddenly opened and Jace emerged, wearing a pair of baggy sweatpants and no shirt. Clary turned her head to look at him and her smile fell. It was now or never to tell him. In a few short minutes, he was going to be either incredibly happy, or walking out of her life forever.

"Hey, Clare," he murmured, leaning over her to kiss her lips.

"Hey," she whispered, forcing a smile.

"You okay?" he asked, moving to lay next to her, their shoulders brushing. "You look like there's something bothering you."

Clary closed her eyes and mentally cursed herself. She was never able to hide anything from him. He saw right through her and knew exactly when something wasn't quite right.

She quickly sat up and looked down at him. His golden eyes shone with a mix of curiosity and worry.

"I-" she started, her words catching in her throat. Taking a deep breath, she continued with a shaky voice. "I have something to tell you."

"What is it?"

Clary inhaled a quivering breath and closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them again, she saw that Jace was still staring at her, waiting for an answer.

"Jace," she whispered. "After I tell you, just... promise me that you won't be mad."

His eyebrows pulled together in confusion. "Clary, you're scaring me." He took hold of her hand and squeezed it gently. "What do you need to tell me?"

"Just," she pushed through clenched teeth. "Just promise me that you're not gonna hate me."

"Clary, I could never hate you. No matter what?"

"Please," she whispered desperately. "Please promise me. Say you promise."

He stared at her face for what seemed like years until he finally spoke softly. "I promise."

Her heart clenched almost painfully and she released a long breath. She looked up and finally met his golden eyes, burning with curiosity and worry. As soon as her eyes met his, her body felt like she was floating on water. Her head spun under the intensity of his gaze and she fought the urge to look away. Without thinking, the words tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop them. "You're gonna be a dad."

Time seemed to stop. Jace froze, his eyes still locked on her face. His jaw went slack and his eyes had doubled in size. Unable to stop herself, Clary allowed the tears threatening to overflow spill down her cheeks.

After what seemed like hours, Clary couldn't handle the heavy silence anymore. Jace had not moved, and he still seemed to be in shock. Tears still streamed down her cheeks, but she made no move to wipe them away.

"Jace, say something," she pleaded, a strangled sob escaping her throat. "Please" She squeezed his hand tightly, and he seemed to snap back into reality.

"Clary," he choked out. His eyes burned into hers. "Are... are you sure?"

Clary nodded and blinked away more tears. Her voice was barely audible as she spoke. "I'm positive."

"Well," he whispered, trying to smile at her. "This is unexpected."

Clary choked out a breathless laugh and nodded in agreement. "Yes, it is."

"I'm gonna be a dad," he said, almost as if he was speaking to himself, trying out how the words sounded.

She nodded and looked down at her lap. "Yeah."

"And you're gonna be a mom," he added, looking at her.

She looked up at him and saw a ghost of a smile playing on the corners of his lips. "Yeah," she repeated.

"And we're... We're gonna be parents." After he said the words, a huge smile spread across his face. A strangled laugh escaped his throat and he jumped to his feet, bringing Clary with him. He quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her off of her feet. She threw her arms around his shoulders as he held her against his body in a bone-crushing hug.

He eventually put her back on her feet, but kept his hands on her hips. "We're gonna have a baby."

Clary laughed and lightly touched his face. "Yeah, we are. We're gonna have a little you or a little me."

Jace laughed with her and pulled her close again. "I like the sound of that."

"So... You're not mad?" she asked hesitantly, looking up at him.

"Mad?" he exclaimed. "Why would I be mad?"

"Well, I didn't know if you wanted kids right now. We never really talked about it, and I didn't know how you were gonna react. I was scared that you were gonna-" Her rambling was cut short as Jace's lips crashed into hers. She reacted automatically, leaning into the kiss and wrapping her arms around his neck. Just as Clary started to deepen the kiss, Jace slowly pulled away. Clary whimpered at the loss on contact and Jace smirked.

"You talk too much," he breathed, leaning his forehead against hers. Clary laughed and pulled him into another tight hug.

"So you're happy about this?" she mumbled into his neck, feeling his strong arms circle around her and hold her close.

"I'm happy about this," he assured her. He pulled away from her and gently brushed his hand across her stomach. "And I can't wait to meet our baby."

That night, Clary woke up to a dark room and an empty bed. Rolling over, she reached over to Jace's side of the bed, only to find it cold- an indication that he had not been there for a while. She peeled her eyes open and looked around the unlit room. A cool night breeze blew in from the open balcony doors, and she looked out to see Jace leaning over the railing. Ripping the blankets off, she slipped her feet into her slippers and shuffled onto the balcony. Jace startled at the sound of her approaching, but relaxed when he saw that it was her.

"You okay?" she asked, leaning her arms over the balcony railing next to him. Jace nodded and tried to smile at her. It didn't meet his eyes. He seemed far away, stuck in his own thoughts. "Jace, what's on your mind?"

Jace hesitated before whispering, "The baby."

"What about the baby?" Jace looked down at his clasped hands and shook his head. "Jace, you can tell me, honey."

He glanced at her before giving in. He looked out over the city as he spoke, refusing to look at her. "Do you think I'm gonna be a good dad?"

"Of course," she replied without hesitation. "Why would you ask that?"

Jace closed his eyes and when he opened them, they were watery. "I'm scared, Clary."

Clary stepped closer to him and put her hand on his back, rubbing small circles in between his shoulder blades. "What are you afraid of?"

Jace shrugged helplessly. "I don't know how to be a father. I didn't have one to act as a model. Look who I grew up with. My father figure growing up was Valentine, and he wasn't exactly 'father of the year'. I'm just scared that I'm gonna mess up. What if I turn out like Valentine and am a horrible father?"

"Jace you're not gonna be a bad father," she assured him. "You're gonna be an amazing father."

"How?" he asked, sounding like a small, vulnerable child. "Kids always grow up to be like their parents. How do you know I'm not gonna end up like him?"

"Do you wanna know how I know that, Jace?" she asked. Jace nodded and she wrapped her arms around his stomach, leaning her head against his shoulder. "I know because Valentine was a heartless, emotionless monster. You are not a monster. You have a heart. You look out for the people you love. You put others before yourself without hesitation. You care about the people around you. You are nothing like Valentine, and you never will be."

As she spoke. Clary could feel the tension in Jace's shoulders slowly releasing. He sighed and a small, genuine smile graced his lips.

"You really think so?" he asked.

"I know so."

Jace straightened to his full height and looked down at her. "Thanks, Clare. I appreciate it."

"Anytime, Jace." She reached towards his face and used her thumb to trace the dark circles under his eyes. "Let's get you to bed. You look exhausted."

Jace didn't argue. He let Clary lead him back inside and fell onto his stomach on the bed. The bed dipped as Clary got under the covers next to him and leaned over to press a kiss to the corner of his mouth.

"Goodnight, Jace," she mumbled against his skin.

"Night, Clare," he murmured, sitting up. He leaned down to press a kiss to her abdomen over her sleep shirt. "Night, little baby." Clary ran her hand through his hair and smiled down at the scene in front of her. Before laying down, Jace pressed a chaste kiss to her lips. "I love you both," he whispered, pushing her shirt up to run his hand along her stomach.

"Love you, too," Clary whispered, allowing sleep to overtake her. She fell asleep to the feeling of Jace's arm around her waist and his hand rubbing slow circles along her stomach.

So that's it! Like I said, I don't feel like it's my best writing, but I hope you guys enjoyed reading it anyway! If you guys are interested, please check out my other writings, I would really appreciate it! So, please review, favorite, follow, all that fun stuff! Thank you again for reading!

~ Ti Amo La Luna E Ritorno