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The next day Clary woke up with a terrible headache–and not from the shot she had last night. Izzy, on the other hand, was in an even worse mood due to her alcohol consumption, but Clary knew that she would be fine once she had some breakfast.

"Ugh," Izzy groaned as she stumbled into the Graymark kitchen. "Thanks for letting me sleep over, Mrs. G. Alec got in so much trouble when he got home last night."

"Don't you think you won't get into any trouble as well," Jocelyn called over the loud vent that she had turned on so that the kitchen didn't reek of fried eggs. She wiped her hands on her apron and pulled Izzy into a bear hug. "Thank you so much for bringing Clary home to me, even though I'd prefer you do so without being under any influence. But thank you nonetheless."

"Anytime, second mom," Izzy grinned, even though Clary could tell it was strained. The bright sun pouring through the open windows plus the nauseating smell of eggs must be taking a toll on Izzy. She took a seat next to Clary and began to work on her plate without saying one word to her.

After the whole Jace fiasco, Clary had kept a tight lip and Izzy knew that there was no point in forcing her to tell her what happened. Clary would tell her on her own terms, but she felt bad that Izzy had to play it by ear until then. Clary nudged her best friend and gave her a look that said 'We'll-talk-later'. Izzy nodded once and Clary could see the ghost of a smile cross her face.

* * *

Jace woke up to the sound of his phone vibrating and threw his arm to retrieve it. It slipped out of his grasp and he exerted his arm to hyperextend to fetch it. Once his fingers brushed over it, he picked it up, wiped the sleep out of his eyes and read the text message that glared at him. Then he read it again. Once more before he closed his phone and forced himself to get up.

* * *

"Oh wow," Izzy gasped, partially covering her mouth with her hand. "I'm so sorry, Clary. I didn't know, honestly! If I did I would've killed Jace where he stood. I swear by the Angel."

Clary tried to smile, but she couldn't bring herself to even try. "It's alright, Izzy. It's just…I barely got any sleep last night. I feel awful and I don't know what to do. On one hand, I wish I could apologize. But on another, I know I had all the right reasons to hit him. I just knew he was going to hurt me one way or another, so I wanted to hurt him before I got hurt. You know what I mean?"

"Totally," Izzy sympathized. "Guys can be such butts sometimes. I just wish that there were more guys like Alec; he has a sister, so he knows how to treat a woman."

"Yeah," Clary fantasized. "Why can't there be a cute guy who's understanding and loyal? It is really asking too much nowadays?"

"Not really," Alec answered as he entered the living room. "There are plenty of guys out there who have both qualities. You're just looking in the wrong places."

"So point us in the right direction, Man Guru," Isabelle bowed down to him. "What are the ways of the Man Guru?" Clary laughed, which made Isabelle smile. "Well, if you insist," Alec sighed dramatically. "You must kiss my right hand five times and then my left twice, then you must make me a sandwich."

"Immediately, your Highness," Isabelle said with a curtsy before she walked over to the kitchen and began making the sandwich. "So how are you?" Alec asked under his breath. Clary shrugged and Alec frowned. "Whatever happened happened. Here, I have an idea. Let's go to that new club that opened up downtown to take Jace off your mind, okay?"

"You mean Pandemonium?" Isabelle interrupted as she put a plate in front of Alec. He thanked her and took a bite as she took over. "By the Angel, I totally forgot about that! Doesn't Magnus have connections there? We can totally go there for free! Oh c'mon Clary, please?" When Clary didn't respond, Isabelle softened her tone. "I really want to make up for a terrible first time out. Please, give me this one time to redeem myself. Please."

Clary looked from Isabelle's desperate expression to Alec's poker face. I really don't want to see Jace again, she kept repeating to herself, unsure if that was how she actually felt. But I do. Finally, Clary nodded and tried to remember how to breathe when Isabelle jumped out of her seat and threw herself at her.