For my 9th reviewer (SMILEY): Um- I think people can connect and grow closer to one another even without touching :) They interact. That's what matters most, right? And besides, Jace and Clary here have known each other for almost six years, so they've become quite close :) Just thought to let you know so you won't get disappointed with this chapter ^^

Thanks to all those who reviewed and told me this story is great. I honestly though this was crappy the first time I wrote it XD So thank you for changing my mind. I hope you like this one. I did :)

Disclaimer: I own Jace's smiling cat mask!

Three

The next summer, and the summer after that, I visited the forest. I showed Jace my new uniform. I was studying at a private school, so uniforms were required.

"Ta-da!" I gestured towards my uniform. "I've become a sixth-grader."

He cocked his head to the side. "Somehow, you're starting to look like a woman."

I grumbled. "I am a woman!"

He stood up and began to walk. "Shall we go?"

"Yeah." I followed him. Like always.

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"Oh." I said, staring at Jace.

"Huh?"

I shook my head. "Nothing."

"Even though I'm in middle school now, a lot of my elementary school friends are in the same classes, so it doesn't really feel like anything changed." I explained.

Our ages were gradually getting closer. Somehow, Jace ages much more slowly than humans.

As the years go by, my appearance changes, but Jace is almost the same since the day we met.

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We had just finished flying a kite and we were walking towards our place for I have to go home when Jace stopped walking. I glanced back at him and saw that his head was raised up and a butterfly was perched on the tip of his mask's nose.

He gently reached up and lifted off his mask and the butterfly fluttered away. I saw his face again, and that brought out the butterflies in my stomach. I didn't know when I had begun feeling this. I didn't know when he started having this effect on me.

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The weather was hot and I was sweaty. I was on my back, fanning myself, thinking about Jace. Someday, I'll be older than him, won't I? I asked to myself.

I placed the paper fan over my face, trying to sleep.

Somehow, the thought of being older than Jace nagged me…

"Clary," Uncle Luke called out. "I cut some watermelons, let's eat."

I removed the fan on my face and stood up. "Okay."

We sat down on his porch and I reached for a slice of watermelon. "Where's mom?"

"Out shopping. Think she's going to buy gifts for her friends." He answered, biting on his slice. "What time are you going to take the train tomorrow?"

I bit onto my slice. It was really good. Fresh and fruity. "I dunno, but they said I'll still be here until afternoon."

"Is that so?" He mused. "This summer's weather was good, so the watermelons are sweet. If it continues like this, then the winter will be freezing."

I looked up at my uncle. "Is it like that?"

"It's like that." He answered, biting on his slice again. "Since this area's located between mountains and the ocean's far away, the temperature difference of summer and winter is huge. The cold of a winter that follows an extremely hot summer could probably freeze the mountain God himself."

Jace… I thought. An idea suddenly popped into my head and I looked at my uncle. " Um- uncle..."

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"A scarf?" Jace looked down at the clothing article I brought him.

I nodded. "Yep! Please use it in the winter, okay?"

He looked down at the scarf again and I softly retreated. "Bye!"

"Okay."

I waved at him, smiling. "See you next year!"

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At school, I was always dazed. My mind was nowhere. I kept thinking about Jace, and how he's doing. It was winter time, and everywhere was freezing. Was he wearing the scarf I brought him? Was he cold?

"Hey, Fray." Simon Lewis, my classmate, said. "Shouldn't you be heading towards your next class soon?"

That brought me out of my reverie. Shoot! "Ah- you're right! Everyone left already."

"I'll see you later." He said and left.

"Okay, thanks!" I called out.

I hope he's doing okay…

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The next day came, and still, my mind was out of the gutter. I didn't know when I started acting like this. It's completely foreign to me.

"Hey, Fray. Cla-ry Fray." Simon said, breaking me out of reverie again.

"Good morning, Simon." I greeted him.

"Good morning." He said. Then he gestured something at me. "There, near your feet. It's frozen."

I stopped walking and looked down. Sure enough, there it was. The pavement was covered in a thin layer of ice.

"You'll slip. It's dangerous."

I looked over at him and saw his hand outstretched, reaching towards me. I gladly took his hand. "Thank you."

The sudden contact made me think of Jace again. Thought of how we weren't supposed to touch.

"It's cold today," Simon said, but I couldn't focus on it. "Haven't you been a little out of it lately? Actually, you've always been that way, but…"

I couldn't hear him anymore as my thoughts began to wander again. I looked at our holding hands.

I want to see Jace, I thought. I want to…

...touch Jace.

The train stops and I stand up, knowing it's my stop already. I take my bags and went out. Inhaling the fresh air, I began to smile.

I'm here again, Jace. I'm coming.

"Is that your new uniform?" Jace asked me as he saw my clothes.

"Yeah." I nodded and we walked together now.

"Time really flies, doesn't it?" He mused. "You're already in high school, huh."

"Yup." I agreed. I'm already sixteen. The same age as he is.

We settled on the meadow overlooking a small river. The water was clear and I could smell the freshness of it. Beautiful.

He turned to me. "You don't come running at me anymore these days."

I pouted, remembering the time my head became his personal punching bag. "I learned my lesson after all those beatings."

I looked up at the sky. "I'm looking forward to it. In two years, when I graduate, I plan on looking for a job here. So I can be with you more. In autumn, winter, spring… always. Right?"

I didn't know when I became so vocal with my thoughts concerning him. It surprised me.

"Clary, let me tell you about myself." He started.

That surprised me too. He doesn't usually talk about himself. This was a first.

"I'm not a spirit," He said. "But… I'm no longer human. It seems like I was once human, but when I was a baby, I was abandoned in this forest."

Abandoned? How cruel…

"I'd only just been abandoned, so I cried helplessly as if to call back the parents who left me. They say I didn't stop crying for a long time. Until one of the spirits place this mask on my face." He continued, touching his mask fondly. "I calmed down after that."

So that's why… I thought, looking at him. I was starting to understand him.

"I should've died then, but the mountain God appeared and cast a spell that allowed me to continue living. So that I never move on." He said. "I'm like a ghost."

He turned to me. "Clary, it's okay if you forget about me. A body that's maintained by magic is very weak. If it touches a real human body, the spell will break and the body will disappear. It's such a fragile thing."

"Something that disappears when touched… It's just like snow, isn't?" I said, making him look at me. "Jace, I thought of you during winter. Even during autumn and spring."

I looked at him, slightly smiling. "Jace, don't forget about me. Don't forget. Time might separate us some day. But, even still, until then... let's stay together."

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For the first time, Jace took me fishing. It wasn't so complicated for me since Uncle Luke taught me how back when I was a kid. The work is strangely relaxing and calming.

"Spirit festival?" I asked.

"No, a summer festival held by the spirits." He corrected me.

"There's not much of a difference."

"The nuance is completely different!"

"Nuance?"

"When you were little, I thought you might get scared, so I didn't invite you." Jace told me. His chin was propped on his hand again. "But tonight, can you sneak out of your house? I've wanted to go with you for a long time."

Hearing him say that brought me to my feet. "I- I want to go!"

"Meet me at our usual place at eight."

"But a festival filled with spirits sounds a little unnerving… On top of that, it's at night." I mused.

Jace lifted off his mask so I could see his face. He's still very handsome. He looked like an angel. "Don't worry. On the outside, it's not so different from a human festival. It's supposed to mimic it, after all. And I'll protect you, Clary."

The butterflies were back inside my stomach, I blushed at his words. To not make things awkward, I decided to joke. "When you say things like that, it makes me want to glomp you!"

"Do it."

The seriousness of his voice brought me up short.

"Seriously, do it." He said, looking away.

I stayed silent, and I thought, Maybe I wasn't the only one yearning for a touch.

YAY! Simon finally made his cameo! I like-y Simon here. So cuuuuuute ^^

One more chapter, guys- then it's done!

So, what do you think of this chapter? Good? Bad? Too fast-paced? What?

Question: (I hope you answer this. Like, really hope!) What do you think will be this story's ending?

See you soon :') REVIEWS PEOPLE. I love those :3