Hope you like this chapter guys!

Chapter 2: Bully and Bullied

I WAS WALKING THROUGH THE HALLWAY IN SCHOOL. People said their hellos. I wouldn't really say that I was popular, just well-liked throughout the school since I'm kind to everyone.

At the corner of my eye I see two people making out. Jace Wayland and Seelie Queen. Jace was Mr. I'm-popular-I-can-get-anything-I-want. There was talk in school about him being caught kissing some girl in a party by his girlfriend, well, ex now. He was popular because of his amazingly good looks and his snarky sarcastic attitude. I rolled my eyes and went to my locker. The bell rings as I open it. I sighed and took out the books I needed for the day. Suddenly I was pushed into the lockers beside mine. I whimpered. I already knew who it was even without looking at them.

"Well, hello Freckles. Sorry, you're so small I didn't see you." It was the one and only Jace Wayland. "No snarky come backs Red?" He never called me by my actual name.

"Heard about the party." I said.

"Are you jealous, shorty?"

"Nope. Just happy that Aline finally woke up. She was a decent girl before you came along."

He just stood there, glaring.

I smiled then walked away.

Jace wasn't always a player and a bully. He was actually really nice. In fact, I was friends with him for the first three semesters. Then one day he just turned into this self-obsessed jerk that has slept with girls and bullied people.

There's something about him though… His harsh words tell you one thing but his golden eyes would tell you something completely different. You'd think that Jace would be absolutely happy that he's got the popularity, intelligence and almost all the girls chasing after him. But what I see in his eyes is sadness. No matter what he says to me or anyone else, no matter what his expression is, I see he is broken inside. And I think I'm the only one who noticed.

I want to be the one who fixes him. I want to be the girl in those books who finds the missing piece of his broken heart and fixes it. I want to rescue him from this eternal sadness that I always see in him.

At the end of the week, our geography teacher assigned us a homework project. He paired me and Jace up. I have to admit I was pretty excited about seeing Jace after school.

The thing is, Jace hasn't really talked to me since our little conversation by the lockers so I wasn't sure if he would actually cooperate and help me out with the project.

I left school at 3:20 since I got caught up with chatting with Isabelle, the sister of Jace's best friend.

Then I saw Jace with his hands shoved in his front pockets, leaning on the wall.

"You're late, you know." He said in a tired voice.

"Yeah. I know. I'm sorry." I replied, feeling a little guilty that I made him wait for fifteen minutes.

He straightened up. "Let's go."

"Where to?" I asked.

"Your house." He said, quick enough that it sounded suspicious.

I looked at him weirdly then nodded. "Okay." I said.

We worked on the project for an hour, had some snacks then worked again; we had a few laughs, which I thought was really weird since he was a jerk to me at school. In the end we decided to split the project between us.

When I got home I remembered I had to take my dog out for a walk. I got some headphones and put my phone on shuffle. I put a collar on him and walked out the door.

Luke and I went on our usual route. We walked past Jace's house but instead of just seeing all the lights off, I saw Jace and his father, Michael, arguing with expressive hand gestures. I couldn't quite make out everything they said but I did hear, "You are a worthless waste of space."

Then Michael suddenly punched Jace. I stood there, with my eyes watering. Maybe this is why he's so broken, I thought. I picked Luke up then ran home.

The only thing I was thinking of was Jace and how his father would abuse him like that…

I guess his life isn't as perfect as everyone thought it was.

The news of Jace's black eye spread like wildfire. Some said that he was being mugged. Some said he was in a fight. Others said that he was saving a girl from getting mugged. I was the only one who knew the truth.

At the end of the day I saw Jace, without his followers, walking to his car.

"Jace!" I called out.

He turned around. As I got closer he smiled. Smiled. Not smirked.

"Hey Clary,"

I froze. He called me by my name…

"Jace… I know about your dad."

He looked at me confused.

"I was walking my dog last night and I saw you and your dad arguing on your front porch I saw him punch you, Jace."

"Clary, I don't know what you're talking about. My dad loves me, no matter what you think."

"Jace, he's abusing you! That's not how a parent shows their love for their child!"

"Don't even bring up the subject of a parent's love! Your father left you when you were a kid! He didn't love you, Clarissa." He spat. "What parent could?"

I blinked the tears back, not giving him the satisfaction of making me cry. "You are pathetic. So you know that? You bully people who you think are lower than you just so you can feel all powerful. Well, newsflash. You aren't almighty, Jace Wayland. You're just like your father, tearing people down like that. You'll grow up to be just like him. You're already halfway there, Jace." Then I turned and left him staring after me.

It's been a week. We got an A+ on the project. Jace and I haven't talked.

He walked around like he was already dead. He didn't bully the people he used to bully. It was like he just wasn't in there anymore.

I was standing at my locker, emptying my bag for the end of the day, when Alec, Jace's best friend, came up to me. He looked as if he was fed up.

"Clary, you have to talk to Jace. He cares about you. Honestly. And I know you know about him and his dad. I can tell you care about him too. He thinks that he can't be with you because he doesn't want to turn into his dad. He thinks he doesn't deserve you Clary. You should talk to him. Give him hope. Again."

"Why me? Why can't Jace just tell the police?"

"Because Jace has a younger brother, Nathan. And they'll get separated if he does. He's waiting until he's 18 so he can get full custody of him."

"Doesn't Jace have a mom?" I asked.

"She died of in a car accident. Jace blames himself and so does his father. Please, Clary. Talk to him."

I considered it for a while.

"Okay. I'll talk to him."

"Thank you." Alec said, then left. "He's at my house. The door is unlocked. Now, I have to go to football practice."

I walked out of school and toward Alec's house. I'd been there a few times with Izzy.

I opened the door to the house and quietly entered. I looked around and decided to go upstairs to Alec's room.

That's when I saw Jace. He was sitting on the bed staring out the window. I sat beside him and only then did he notice me. He rested his head on my shoulder. I brought my hand up and began to stroke his hair. I felt the sleeve get slightly wet and his body shook. He was crying.

"I'm so sorry Clary. I didn't mean what I said. Please stay with me. Please don't leave me." He said, still sobbing.

"I'm not going to leave you. I promise." Then I kissed his forehead.

By the way, I will be in London all weekend so I will not be able to update. But school is breaking up next Tuesday so I will update then.Hope you enjoyed it!

Open for suggestions! Love you all ~ Liz Ashley xxx