Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews, I really appreciate them! Please keep it up! Now to respond to some of your questions.
Regarding Clary's family: Clary's father was Valentine, but he died when she was rather young. Because this story is Jace focused, Clary's backstory will only be told when she decides to tell him. Luke is her step-father, as mentioned in chapter 1. He and Jocelyn got married when Clary was eight and they are very close. Also, Clary is an only child in this story for the simple reason that I feel no need to include Jonathan in the story. However, if it makes you feel better, you can pretend that he is already in college on the other side of the country.
Regarding Jace: If you haven't noticed, Jace is out of character in this story. In this story, he is a biological Lightwood, so he's not so emotionally messed up. He IS a player, but Clary makes the sappy, emotional him come out. Basically, we are going to see the inner workings of his brain. But, as you'll see, what he thinks doesn't always correspond to what he does.
Regarding Sebastian: He and Clary dated throughout the summer before senior year of high school and during the first half of senior year. They broke up over winter break of senior year, but they remained really good friends. He, Izzy, and Clary were best friends before and after the relationship. Some of the back story will be in this chapter. There's an interesting twist! Jace and Sebastian were friends. Seb knew how Jace felt about Clary and dated her anyway, so Jace sort of cut him out after that. He felt betrayed.
Finally, it was time to get ready for dinner. My room was finally together. I channeled all my nervous Clary centered energy into a compulsive need to organize my room. Alec and Magnus' stuff was all over the place, but at least my room was clean. Satisfied with my surroundings, I decided to take a shower to get all the grime and sweat off of me that accumulated throughout the day of moving and unpacking. Ten minutes later, I stepped out and wrapped a towel around my waist. I opened my bathroom door and stepped into my bedroom, preoccupied with thoughts of Clary and what I was going to wear. I stood in front of my closet, thinking, when I heard a knock on my door. Expecting it to be my brother telling me to hurry up, I swung the door open. And I was shocked. Clary stood in front of me, looking breathtaking. She was wearing a black dress that hugged her curves in all the right places and ended about half way down her thighs. Her hair was down and flowing and she was wearing her signature black Chucks. And she was staring at me. I watched as her mouth hung open as she looked up and down my body, unashamed.
"I… um… sorry. I didn't mean to… interrupt you. I uhh… you left your phone at my apartment. I thought you'd want it back," she mumbled. Her cheeks were as red as her hair. But she was still looking at my exposed chest.
"Clary, I know I'm distractingly attractive, but if you're gonna give me my phone back, you actually have to give it to me," I teased and gave her a wink. Thank goodness I am really good at putting on my cold, unaffected face. This seemed to snap her out of it. She handed me the phone.
"Hurry and get dressed. We're leaving in ten minutes. I'm gonna go say hi to Magnus, since he can't come tonight," she said, regaining her confidence. She turned around and left my room, closing the door behind her. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. Turning back to my closet, I chose dark wash jeans and a white button up shirt. I rolled the sleeves on the shirt up, showing off the tattoo on my arm. I ran a comb through my golden, wavy hair and slipped on my Sperry's. And I was ready – I was ready to give up my playboy ways. Ready to take the next step with Clary. I was going to tell her tonight, after dinner. I opened the door and found Clary and Alec sitting on the couch laughing. Clary's eyes met mine. We stared at each other for a minute before she spoke.
"Magnus just left for work, so lets go. Izzy texted me to let me know she was riding with your parents and they'll meet us there. My parents are meeting us there too," Clary said, clearly a bit nervous. She stood up, I grabbed my keys and we left. Alec kept looking at me with an odd look on his face. The tension was suffocating. The whole ride there was awkward. Alec was driving and I kept sneaking peeks at Clary from the rearview mirror. She was staring out the window; she looked peaceful. After what felt like hours, we arrived at the restaurant. Clary's parents were already there. She walked up to them and hugged them both.
"Hey guys! You're on time. Naturally Maryse is running late," Jocelyn joked. She was grinning as Luke wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Clary glowed as she sat down next to Luke. Ten minutes later, Maryse, Robert, and Izzy walked through the door.
"Thank god! Iz, I was seriously starving to death!" I exclaimed dramatically as I grabbed her by the shoulders. I led the way as we were sat at our large table. I sat next to Clary and Izzy and Alec sat across from us. Our parents were at the other end of the table. It was nice. Comfortable. We were joking and enjoying dinner when a familiar face walked up to us.
"Seb, you came!" Clary exclaimed, jumping out of her chair and wrapping her arms around his neck. Suddenly, I felt like I was going to throw up. Alec pulled a chair over and Seb sat next to Clary. Greetings were exchanged, but I wasn't paying any attention. I thought they broke up after New Years. What the hell? Just when I thought I had a chance, her high school sweetheart shows up! I silently ate my dinner, counting the moments until I could leave. Seb was whispering in Clary's ear, making her laugh. He was entertaining Izzy and Alec, too. They all loved him. My insecure self came out. I told the group that I felt sick and that I was taking a cab home and left, without waiting for further goodbyes.
I was standing on the corner, waiting for a cab, when a small hand grabbed mine. "Jace," my red headed angel whispered. On the busy New York City street corner, she was the only one that existed. "What's wrong?"
I turned to face her. "Nothing, I'm fine. Just feeling a little sick."
"That's bullshit Jace. What the hell is going on? Do you have a problem with Sebastian? Izzy, Seb, and I were best friends in high school. We knew he was in the city before he leaves again next week. We wanted to say goodbye. What I don't get is why it bothers you so much. You guys were friends for so long, then suddenly you weren't! I just don't understand." She looked sincerely confused. She wanted answers and I knew Clary. There was no escaping it until I gave her answers.
"We were friends. Then he asked you out when we were juniors. I was shocked! I mean, it came out of nowhere. To be honest, I thought he was into Izzy, but then he asked you out. And you started dating him! I mean, he knew how I felt about you and did it anyway! God, my heart broke!" She gasped and I froze, shocked by what just came out of my mouth.
"I… I didn't know," she mumbled, staring at the ground.
"Whatever, Clary. I really can't do this right now. I'm leaving, I'll see you later," I said. I flagged down a cab and climbed in. I glanced at the sidewalk, where Clary was just standing, staring. Then I drove away.
When I got home, I shrugged out of my clothes and threw on some old sweatpants. I couldn't even think straight. I grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge and plopped down on the couch, trying to forget. I flicked the TV on to some horror movie and zoned out.
"Jace fucking Lightwood! What the hell!? Clary is in tears in my apartment. What happened?" Izzy was here. Oh no. I tried to ignore her, but she slapped my cheek.
"Go away Iz. I don't want to talk about it."
"That's not a fucking answer, Jace. I'm serious right now. I am so close to murdering you. Clary is my BEST FRIEND. So, again, I ask WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED?"
I stood up and walked towards my room. "I don't know Iz. Go away. I just want to be alone." With that, I slammed my door and locked it. I didn't want to be around anyone. I heard her yelling in the living, probably at Alec, who was most likely not listening, about how she knew I would break Clary's heart. I couldn't listen anymore, so I sunk into bed and fell into a restless sleep.