Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters; they all belong to the wonderful Cassandra Clare.

"Remember to remind your parents of Back to School Night tomorrow. I will be looking forward to meeting them," said my math teacher. I swallowed the urge to tell him that he will never meet my parents. He began to hand out the fillers and put the piece of paper in front of me without a second glance. I felt anger boil in me and I didn't know why. After he passed them out, he dismissed us with the flick of his hand. I took the sheet and crumpled it up into a ball once I was outside of his class and threw to the ground.

Breathe. I took a deep breath.

"That was rude of him." I jumped when I heard the voice next to me. It was a girl with caramel skin with beautifully braided hair. Her face didn't look familiar. She must be new, I reasoned. But then how does she know about my parents?

"Yeah," I replied. I realized I was still walking.

"Maia," she said.

"Clary," I said.

"Don't let him get to you," said Maia and left. I went to my locker and got my lunch. I wasn't in the mood to be in a cafeteria; I wanted alone time. I was sure Simon would understand. I sneaked out of the front door and ate my ham and cheese sandwich in the silence of my car.

I looked around as I ate. I knew that the school had a strict rule against going outside the building during school hours. The only exceptions were the courtyard garden, a small section outside the cafeteria where people chose to sit when the weather was nice, or if people had physical education outside. But I always had the notion that there were many people sneaking in and out of the building, especially at lunch.

Maybe it's just me.

The lonesome feeling came with the thought. I knew I wasn't alone, but the feeling kept nagging me. Maybe I'm letting my math teacher get to me. I thought back to my math class, and wondered exactly why I was so angry. I didn't like it when people made me a special case, so why did it bother me so much? Was it because he ignored me, or was it because he was able to quickly forget about my parents, while I knew I never would? Maybe that's why. I checked the time and quickly got out of the car. But just as I got to near the front door, it began to open. I dashed to a wall to hide. It was Mr. Gunter.

I knew I had to find a detour. He would never let me get away, even though I was one of the tolerable people in his class. I discreetly moved from the wall and quietly ran in the opposite direction of him. The door by the cafeteria had to be open since it was a nice day to eat outside. I ran around the school to the outdoor lunch area and sat on a bench next to the large oak tree. I sighed. I did it!

"So let me in about it," said the smug voice of Sebastian Verlac. He was on the other side of the tree.

"About what." The voice belonged to Jace. I felt my eyes widen in surprise.

"Don't tell me you haven't had Fray, yet. It's been longer than a week," said Sebastian. They are talking about me. I suddenly got nervous and angry at the same time.

"So what if I haven't," said Jace, passively.

"It means you're turning into a pussy," said Sebastian. I rolled my eyes. Jace sighed.

"Look Sebastian, there are some girls who are good for hanging out and some who are good for hanging out. Fray is one of them." Sebastian burst out laughing.

"Man, you sound like a girl," he said, chuckling. Jace didn't say anything. I wondered what his facial expression was. Once Sebastian stopped laughing, he said, "So since you're not going to fuck her, you wouldn't mind if I do, right?" He said it as if it wasn't a question.

"Whatever, man. Just don't come running to me if she reports you for rape." I heard Jace get up.

"Where are you going?" yelled Sebastian.

"To my next class, you dummy," Jace yelled a reply. Sebastian shuffled behind the tree. I was still running the conversation in my head, until I realized that Sebastian might see me if I stayed where I was. And if he did, he would start his episode of pursuing me. I looked around for my escape. In the center of the lunch area there was crowd of students still sitting in the tables, waiting for the unwanted bell to ring. I quietly walked between the tables, in hope of illusion. Just as I got near the door, I heard my name. I sighed, annoyed.

"Clary," yelled Sebastian. I ignored him and quickly got inside the building. I ran fast to my locker just as the warning bell rang for our next class. I knew I had to think of something soon, because I couldn't run from Sebastian forever. He always was the determined kind, but thankfully, I always was smarter.

OoOoOoOoO

"Two fifty nine is your change. Have a nice day." I plastered a smiled on my face. Jace was in the same shift as me. I was still try figure out if I was mad at him or not from the conversation he had with Sebastian. He didn't exactly insult me, but he didn't defend my either with his passive answers. I tried avoiding him through our shift, hoping he wouldn't comment on my strange behavior.

I got a disinfectant spray and a towel, and began to spray the empty tables. Max sat by the window, busy looking at sheet of paper. I looked over him and glanced at the sheet. On the top of the page it said, "Soccer Tryouts." I scolded at myself for forgetting how Max always tried out for the soccer team each year since kindergarten. I glanced at the sheet again; the tryouts were this Sunday. Max was hiding it from me to not make our schedule even more complex. Oh, Max.

"What you got there?" I asked as if I didn't just read the sheet. Max jumped in his seat and turned the piece of paper to the blank side.

"Nothing," he said, not looking in my eyes.

"Alright," I said. If he's not going to tell me, I guess I'll just surprise him.

Once I wiped the last table clean, I went back behind the counter. The wave of customers was low, so I slipped in the backroom to restock. Though really, I knew I was just trying to get away from Jace. After a few minutes, I heard the door open and close behind me. I stood still waiting for him to say something, but he didn't move or say anything, as if he were challenging me.

"So are you going to tell me?" asked Jace.

"Tell you what?" My voice went up an octave, giving my lie away.

"Why are you avoiding me like plague," he said in a serious voice. Then in a lighter tone, "I'm perfectly healthy if that's what you're wondering." I turned and glared at him, even though I knew he was just trying to lighten up the mood.

"Aren't you supposed to be behind the counter?" I asked him, changing the subject.

"The store hasn't had any customers for the past twenty minutes, if anyone comes by I'm sure a little waiting wouldn't hurt them." I sighed in defeat. Jace continued, "So are you going to answer my question?" I took a few seconds to think about whether to tell Jace the truth or not.

"I heard you and Verlac talking today," I said, as I watched him carefully. His gold eyes gleamed in surprise.

"How much?" he asked.

"Enough," I replied.

"So you know about Verlac's intentions."

"I do." Then paused. "But I don't understand yours." His eyebrows furrowed with confusion.

"My intentions?" he asked unsure. I took a step toward him.

"Yes, your intentions. First you act like an asshole, then you act nice. It's like you have a multiple personality disorder," I said, raising my voice a little.

"So you're mad that I'm being nice to you," said Jace with a smirk.

"No, I'm mad because I don't like being toyed around," I said. Jace frowned.

"I'm not toying you," he said. I raised my eyebrow at him. "Okay, so maybe I was at the beginning. But I'm not now." I looked at his eyes to see if he was being sincere, when I realized how close we were. I had to tilt my face up to look at his face, making me feel small.

"Then if you aren't toying me anymore, what are you doing?" I asked him, still looking at his eyes. He stared back into mine.

"I don't know, yet," he whispered. I felt my eyes betray me as they looked at his lips. I quickly looked back up at his eyes, hoping it went unnoticed. The room around me suddenly felt hotter and I felt my cheeks burn red.

"Hello, is anyone back there?" yelled a customer. I took a step back, breaking the moment.

"I should-" Jace stopped mid-sentence, gesturing to the door.

"Yeah," I said, agreeing. He quickly got out of the room. I immediately felt dizzy, my hand reached out for something to steady myself.

What just happened?

A/N: I'm sorry I haven't updated in weeks. I've been tackling exactly how I want this story to continue. I have a general plan, but I have to think about the stuff in between, too. And also I just simple haven't been in the "writing mood," which is not cooperative.

To The Basket readers: I will update it soon; sometime in the next week perhaps?

Jace is a little enigma in this fic, so be prepared.

If you see any mistakes, don't be afraid to tell me.

Review! :)