-"Well, I'm not kissing the mundane," said Jace "I'd rather stay down here and rot."

"Forever?" said Simon. "Forever's an awfully long time."

Jace, Simon, Isabelle and Clary all looked at the Queen anxiously. The Queen merely smiled a knowing smile and said nothing, leaving Jace to wonder what the hell she meant by that. There was absolutely no way he would kiss Simon. Nothing could make him do that.

"You're serious?" Isabelle asked with pure disbelief. "You want Jace and Simon to kiss? To free Clary?"

The Queen remained expressionless, except for the slight curve of her mouth which gave away her twisted amusement.

Jace held up his hands and subconsciously stepped away from Simon who looked as confused as Clary did. "I just told you, I'm not kissing the mundane. Take me instead of Clary, if you must."

The Queen laughed and the sound was like sweet music filling the air – so seductive that it almost threw Jace's thoughts off balance, but he quickly came back from it and glared at the Queen.

"No replacements, young Shadowhunter."

Jace scowled and risked a look at Simon whose skin looked a little green. Clary murmured something to Simon and his skin went from that strange pale green to having almost no colour at all, his face ashen and disgusted.

"Jace," Clary said softly, her voice sending shivers right through him. "It's just a kiss. I mean, how bad could it be?"

Jace gulped and looked at Simon to find that he was looking back at him through his glasses, his deep brown eyes narrowed. Jace looked away, avoiding the amused gaze of the Queen as much as he possibly could. If only Clary hadn't stupidly eaten faerie food.

"Very bad," Jace said through gritted teeth.

Isabelle sighed loudly and rolled her dark eyes. "Jace, just kiss Simon so that we can get out of here already. He's not that bad at kissing."

"Funnily enough, that's not what I was thinking about," Jace muttered angrily.

This time it was Simon who sighed as he stepped towards Jace and caught his unwilling gaze. Jace resisted the urge to move away from the gangly dark haired boy and instead settled for wrinkling his nose with distaste.

"Fine, I'll be the bigger man here. I just want to leave and get Clary out of here. It's one kiss, just...get it over with," Simon said.

"You want to kiss me?" Jace demanded.

Simon gave Jace an exasperated look and glanced at the others. "Will someone please talk sense into him?"

"Jace, put it this way, if it was me then I would totally kiss Clary if it meant she would be free. It's not such a big deal. Just kiss Simon," said Isabelle, tucking some strands of black hair behind her ear. Clary's eyes widened at this but she said nothing. Jace took her silence as agreement to Izzy's blunt statement.

He glanced at Simon with a look of disgust mixed with acceptance. "Fine. But one...kiss and then we leave?" Jace asked.

All three nodded their approval and Isabelle pretended to look at her nails with boredom. Jace looked at Clary, trying desperately to figure out what she was thinking. Her mind was too far away from him, she had locked him out to make this easier. He wondered if it would kill her to watch him kiss Simon, but quickly realised that she probably just wanted it to be over with.

And besides, why was he so nervous about kissing the mundane? It was Simon. The imbecile who once upon a time Jace had been mildly jealous of because of how close he had been to Clary when all Jace had ever wanted was to know Clary or talk to her just one more time after seeing her at the Pandemonium club. Just Simon.

Jace came back to the present and tried to block Clary out of his mind and his line of vision, then he focused on Simon. They were roughly the same height but Jace stood a little taller and, of course, was much stockier. Simon looked like a kid playing dress up with older people's clothes to Jace. But there was certainly something about him – something behind the slouching, terrible eyesight and obvious lack of co ordination. Something Jace hadn't yet figured out about him.

Both boys cringed as they slowly edged towards each other, wanting nothing more than to be as far apart as possible. Jace tried not to feel nauseous at the thought of kissing Simon and found that actually, he was a nervous sort of...excited? That must've been it because it wasn't anything else. When they stood close enough that Jace could feel Simon's breath on his face, he slapped Simon's hand away as it reached out for him.

"No touching," Jace said gruffly.

"I was going to take my glasses off," Simon mumbled nervously.

"Don't bother - this is going to be quick. Don't get any ideas."

He could tell that Simon was trying desperately not to get too angry at him. They needed Clary out of the Court as soon as possible and talking was only delaying it. Isabelle and Clary looked on in horror as Jace and Simon leaned in towards each other, both tilting their heads to the sides. Jace squeezed his eyes shut and braced himself for the most terrible feeling to wash over him...but it never did.

Instead he could just feel a pair of soft, slightly damp, lips pressed against his so lightly that, perhaps, it didn't even count as a kiss. But both boys simultaneously increased the pressure and moved closer together, still keeping their hands at their sides. Jace almost lurched backwards and away from Simon when he felt him deepening the kiss, lost in the moment completely, but then Jace couldn't even think of the audience around them.

But when he brought his hand up to rest on Simon's jaw and neck, he heard Isabelle and Clary gasp and swiftly pulled away from Simon and pretended to dramatically wipe his lips with the back of his hand.

Then his mind was taken over by...Clary. Clary. Clary.

He couldn't even look at her.

"There. Now, let's go," Jace said angrily.

"Oh, no, you're not free yet, Shadowhunters," the Queen said mockingly. "You are forgetting that it is the girl who has to be kissed if she wishes to go with you freely."

Jace looked the Queen in the eyes then and groaned loudly, realising her deception. "You have to be kidding me."

When Simon knocked on Jace's bedroom door at the Institute late that night, he was sure that he was the last person Jace expected to see stood there. For a moment they simply watched each other, sizing each other up and trying to figure out what to say, but then Simon forced a fake smile.

"Can I come in?"

"No, what do you want?" Jace asked.

Simon cocked an eyebrow at his brashness and shrugged. "To talk."

"Why would you ever think I'd want to talk to you?"

Simon sighed loudly. "Just let me in, will you?" he asked with frustration.

Instead of waiting for Jace to step aside, he pushed against his muscled arm and walked right in, surprised by the lack of character his room possessed. For somebody like Jace, it was almost hard to believe that his bedroom would be so...plain. Simon wasn't sure what he had expected – posters of half naked women, bands, maybe a bit of emo poetry. Nope, no sign of any of that. Just a lot of white.

He heard Jace shut the door and pretended not to notice that the other boy had locked it. Simon sat down on the edge of Jace's bed and Jace stood with his arms folded in front of him. Simon pushed his brown hair away from his forehead and tried to think of something to say.

"You wanted to talk," Jace reminded him. "So talk."

"About what happened in the Seelie Court-"

"Don't tell me, you had a sample of the goods and now you've come back for more," Jack drawled. "Well, sorry to disappoint, mundane, but you'll have to join the queue."

"Don't," Simon said with a sudden strong edge to his tone that at least silenced Jace for a moment. Simon stood up and faced Jace. "Don't put on that act."

"Did Clary tell you that? Because if that's the case then she's mistaken," Jace said evenly. His eyes were pale gold in the brightly lit bedroom and Simon couldn't help admiring them – if only for a short second before his anger got the better of him.

"Nobody had to tell me, I figured it out for myself. You're not as hard to read as you think," said Simon.

Jace narrowed his eyes, reminding Simon of a lion on the prowl, and he resisted the urge to take a step back from the rage so clearly directed at him. But Jace didn't want to let Simon see his anger, didn't want to let him know he'd figured him out – so he merely shrugged, his muscles visible beneath his reasonably tight grey t-shirt. Simon stopped himself from staring and wondered why he was staring in the first place. He pretended to have been staring at a point just over Jace's shoulder and folded his arms across his chest defensively.

"Speaking of Clary, I'd have thought you'd be following her around like a puppy right now trying to fix everything," Jace said unkindly.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean, mundane."

Simon scowled. "Stop it, my name is Simon – not 'mundane'."

"Really?" Jace inquired sarcastically. "I hadn't realised."

Simon attempted to calm himself down by walking a few paces away from Jace and looking at a drawing on his bedside table that must've been Clary's – he'd have recognised the detail anywhere. It was simple, really, just one of Church the cat in which he was sprawled out on a bed like he owned it. Simon picked it up to have a closer look and heard Jace object, but it was too late.

He'd seen it.

It was a drawing of himself. So perfectly detailed that it was a little odd to look at. He was sat with his bass on his knees, engrossed in his playing, his hair dangling over his face as he leaned forward – only his lips visible. Simon furrowed his brow with confusion and then looked back at Jace who was watching him with wide eyes.

"This is of me," Simon stated. "Why is it in your room?"

Jace's hands clenched into tight fists and he shrugged again. "Clary must've given it to me by accident along with the one of Church."

"Right..." Simon wasn't buying it - it was downright weird.

"Are you done here?" Jace asked. "I need my beauty sleep - not that I expect you to understand."

Simon, still deep in thought, began to approach Jace and stopped when they were stood far too close for it to be regarded as innocent. Jace appeared to have stopped breathing because he simply stared at Simon, looking stricken by the closeness.

"Why do I make you nervous?" Simon whispered in a voice that barely sounded like his.

Jace exhaled and narrowed his golden eyes. "What makes you think that you make me nervous?" he asked – his voice deep, strong and annoyed, as always.

Suddenly, Simon moved his hand to rest on Jace's bare wrist. Torturously slowly he began trailing his fingertips up Jace's arm – leaving goose bumps in his wake. Jace's breathing became faster and he watched Simon very carefully, his golden eyes never leaving Simon's brown ones. Their faces moved closer together but neither made an attempt to close the small distance between them.

"When I'm near, your heartbeat gets faster," Simon murmured softly. "Your body goes rigid. Then I can almost feel you restraining yourself from touching me. And I know you feel something, here." Simon's hand came to rest on Jace's chest, right above his heart, and then slid – still very slowly – down his chest, skimming over his rock hard abs, and then right down to his beltline. Jace shuddered involuntarily as Simon's fingertips only wedged themselves between Jace's bare skin and his jeans. "And here."

Jace put his hand on Simon's wrist and pushed his hand away, the touch alone too much for him to handle. In a very steady and controlled voice he said, "I don't want this. I don't want you. I'm not gay."

"Neither am I," Simon said with an unconcerned shrug. "It's not about that anyway."

"Then what is it about?" Jace challenged.

"You," Simon said. "And...me."

Before Simon could say another word, Jace had moved his face closer and his lips searched for Simon's. They kissed very gently and lightly – no further touching involved - as Jace tried to battle with himself and the fact that he was not attracted to men like Alec was, and most certainly not Simon. He loved Clary and that was what he was sure of. But right now Clary couldn't have been further from his mind. He reached up and pushed Simon back slightly by his chest.

"If you tell anyone about this, Angel help me, I will-"

Simon laughed darkly and shook his head, silencing Jace. "Nobody will ever know about this."

"Swear it."

"I swear."

And that was all that it took for Jace to lose it completely.

His hand slipped up to touch the back of Simon's neck and he pulled him closer, their lips meeting in an embrace which was far more passionate than the two previous kisses. This was desperate - like a desire you could never quite satisfy. Simon kissed him back with equal pressure and when he felt Jace's tongue against his lips, he allowed him to part them and found himself lost in the sensation which felt entirely new to him.

Holding Jace, he found, was much different to holding Clary.

Clary was so small in his arms while touching Jace was like touching a house in comparison – solid. Simon pushed Jace backwards until they tumbled down onto the double bed, a tangle of limbs and heat and heavy breaths falling on each other's lips. Jace was laid on his back and Simon was directly on top, stripping him of his shirt and touching him wherever his hands could land – his chest, his stomach, his abdomen. Jace reached up and removed Simon's shirt in turn, only to find that underneath his shirt he was much more built than Jace had expected.

Despite the fact that Jace had never been attracted to a guy before, the attraction he felt for Simon felt almost natural - as natural as waking up in the morning, really. Clary was forbidden, off limits, never would be his. Simon, as much as he had disliked him, was here and the only thing wrong about it to Jace was that it was a secret.

Suddenly Simon broke away from the kiss and began trailing very soft kisses along Jace's body. He started with just under his chin and worked his way downwards, kissing right down and along his torso before he reached the fine trail of blonde hair which disappeared into Jace's jeans and also sent shockwave-like nerves through Simon's veins. He kept going, making sure to plant lingering kissed on his lower abdomen, trying to think of where he would like to be kissed himself and working it out from that.

His fingers found Jace's belt buckle and he began to unfasten it – frustratingly slowly of course. Once it was undone he pulled on the belt until it was free and then tossed it onto the floor. Simon quickly hurried with undoing the jeans buttons and, just to torture Jace further, did not attempt to take off his trousers. Jace groaned, probably involuntarily, as Simon pretended to carelessly move his hand along his thigh as he moved back up to be level with Jace.

"Stop it," Jace warned him, his eyes wild and consumed with what could only be lust. "Just...touch me."

Simon almost laughed at the sound of Jace saying that. It sounded stupid and clumsy from his lips – and Jace had never been either of those things before. The very idea of Jace asking Simon to touch him was absurd and anybody would have laughed upon hearing it. But Simon only smiled and decided to play along.

"Where?" Simon asked, a little too innocently.

"What?" Jace asked with exasperation. Small beads of sweat were forming below his hairline. "You know what I mean, you know where."

"Do I?" Simon continued.

Jace sighed with frustration and pushed Simon aside, then he shuffled to the edge of the bed and sat there with a face like thunder. Simon watched with confusion, wondering how to get back the moment he'd ruined.

"Jace..." he said softly.

Jace didn't look back when he asked sharply, "What?"

"Come back," Simon said pleadingly.

"Just...stop talking," Jace said with annoyance as he raked a shaking hand through his now messy blonde hair. "As usual, you can't seem to tell when to keep your mouth shut."

Simon remained silent and then kicked off his jeans which he tossed to the floor, leaving him in only his underwear which thankfully was not embarrassing today – no Star Wars, at least.

He moved quietly to sit just behind Jace and then very slowly pressed his hands against Jace's tense shoulders and began to trace small circles with his fingertips. Jace gave in to his touch immediately and let out a sigh of pleasure before leaning into him. Simon leaned forward and began to kiss Jace's neck very lightly. He kissed along his broad shoulders and his hands caressed Jace's arms seductively.

"I was only teasing you," Simon whispered between his kisses on Jace's skin, his fingertips trailing down Jace's body until they brushed against his thigh. "I know exactly where to touch you."

Jace let out a moan which turned into a growl and then he spun around with his Shadowhunter grace and speed and pushed Simon down onto the bed with force, covering his body with his own. Simon seemed to have anticipated this, as he kissed Jace hungrily. Simon helped Jace to remove his jeans and Jace kicked them away carelessly, their lips still locked in an embrace.

Simon touched Jace's face and his back, feeling his strong shoulder blades as their bodies touched and their legs intertwined. Jace pulled back and looked into Simon's eyes and then he pushed his hand down Simon's body and slipped it beneath the waistband of his boxer shorts when Simon was least expecting it.

Simon moaned, so loudly that Jace had to clamp a strong hand over his mouth. Jace laughed quietly and cocked his eyebrows, wondering momentarily if anybody in the Institute had heard. Weirdly, the thought was appealing to him.

"If I didn't know you," he panted, as his hand moved in a steady rhythm and Simon's lips parted - his eyes squeezed shut. "I'd think you were enjoying this."

Hi :)

It's the first time I've written fanfiction so please don't be too harsh!