When lunch was concluded, Jem and Tessa were both whisked away upstairs to change for the party. This, Jem realised, was the party that he had been expecting; the modern one that had been set up in the Institute's main hall.
Jace followed him into his room and selected an outfit for him. It was a nice set of clothes – tight-fitting dark jeans, a blue t-shirt with a faded print of the angelic rune on the front, and a loose fitting brown checkered shirt over that. Jace showed him how to fold up the sleeves so that it looked more casual, and messed up his hair.
"You look great," Jace approved, stepping back to admire his handiwork. Looking in the mirror, Jem was shocked. He looked and felt dishevelled with his shirt untucked and his hair all rumpled. But he could also pass for anyone on the street. "I'm gonna go change too," Jace said. "You can go down anytime you want." He pointed a warning finger at Jem. "Do not change anything."
As Jace strode off, Jem crossed the hallway and stood before Tessa's door. He could hear muffled voices inside, though he could not recognise who they belonged to. He knocked lightly on the door.
Emma opened it. "Wow, Jem," she said, giving him the once over. "You look… normal."
"I beg your pardon?" Jem asked, raising an eyebrow. Emma shrugged. The girl had changed back into her usual jeans and a t-shirt, though Jem noted that none of these garments were stained or torn.
Further in the room, he saw Isabelle standing over Tessa and helping her to apply make-up. Tessa was already dressed in a tube dress with a flared skirt. It resembled her wedding dress except that it was royal blue in colour, with a little bit of shimmer, and the hemline lay above the knee. Jem could not help staring at her legs.
"Hey, Romeo! Her eyes are up here," Isabelle teased, snapping her fingers at Jem. "What do you think?" she asked.
Jem was used to Tessa wearing modern clothes but the sight of it when she dressed up still managed to make him speechless – though in a good way. Isabelle had applied thick layers of eyeliner, mascara and eye shadow to highlight Tessa's eyes. Her lips were painted a deep rich red. Her thick long hair was also loose around her shoulders.
As he stood staring, Isabelle finished with Tessa's make-up and left the room with Emma. "Let's give the two newlyweds some space, shall we?" she announced as she did so. Jem was never more glad. He went over to Tessa and knelt before her, taking her hands, still unable to speak.
"Jem? What is it? Is it too much?" Tessa asked. She looked at herself in the mirror and touched her eyes. "I told Isabelle not to turn me into a panda."
That made Jem laugh. "And what would be wrong with that?" he remarked. "Pandas are adorable." He reached up and took her hand. "You're adorable. And so beautiful. You take my breath away."
Tessa smiled. She drew Jem up so she could kiss him. Jem was feeling more and more overwhelmed with desire. He wanted nothing more than to hold her and keep on touching and kissing her. He buried his hands in her hair and ran them through the luxuriant tresses. He breathed her in as she wrapped her arms around him, breathing the scene of perfume and of his Tessa underneath.
A loud knock on the door made both of them jump. "Oi! You two better not be at it in there!" Isabelle's loud voice called. "We're all waiting for you downstairs."
Jem reluctantly released Tessa. "We probably should go down," he admitted.
Tessa agreed and stood, smoothing out her dress. She picked up a slim jewelled belt from her dresser and handed it to him. "Put it on for me," she instructed. Jem was only too happy to oblige. Taking the belt, he wrapped his arms around her, drawing the shiny strip around her waist and fastening the clasp in front. His fingers stroked her side and he smiled with the realisation that he could now touch her any time he wanted and there was nothing improper about it.
She ran her fingers through her hair and looked into the mirror once more. All his groping had not done anything to mess up her hair. On the contrary, it looked better than before. She took his hand. "Come on. Time to join the party," she said.
They made their way down and found Isabelle dressed in a very tight and very short black dress waiting outside the main hall. Alec was there too, in a black turtleneck shirt that looked expensive, and a pair of artfully torn jeans. The doors were closed. "Oh good, they're here!" Isabelle exclaimed when she saw Jem and Tessa. "Go and tell Magnus." Alec gave her an exasperated look and vanished inside.
"What's going on?" Jem asked.
"Nothing," Isabelle said quickly. Tessa gave her a warning look. "Okay, we're preparing an entrance for you."
"Should we be worried?" Tessa asked.
Isabelle's mobile phone buzzed. "Too late now," she said. She pushed the doors open. "Go on!"
Jem took Tessa's hand and led her in. As they walked through the door, they were greeted by what looked like the entire Clave cheering and applauding, with many releasing party poppers and some holding sparklers. A rousing song played in the background – Diamond by Rihanna. The hall was darkened and lit with pulsing electronic lights. A disco ball hung from the chandelier, throwing sparkles of light everywhere.
Magnus stood in the middle of the dance floor. The warlock was dressed in his best. Everything was tight, revealing and covered in glitter. He had on even more mascara than Tessa and his hair was gelled into precipitous spikes. Next to him was a bottle of champagne and a large white wedding cake – three tiers of lemon sponge cake decorated with white vanilla frosting and purple orchids. It was all strangely elegant.
He handed Jem and Tessa a large knife. They held it together and carefully sliced it through the cake. He then took the bottle and shook it vigorously. "Alright! Let's get this party started!" he exclaimed. Tessa took the bottle, held it out and Jem pushed at the cork with his thumb. There was a loud pop and the cork flew out of the bottle together with a spray of champagne to loud and enthusiastic applause.
Magnus filled a few flutes with the champagne and handed two to Jem and Tessa. "Let us all raise our glasses to the happy couple, Tessa and Jem," he shouted. The crowd cheered and a few more people let off party poppers. Jem was covered in confetti and champagne but he had never felt more exhilarated in his life. Never had he thought there would be a time when everyone – everyone – was happy and celebrating with him. There was so much rejoicing and festivity in the room that he felt he might explode with elation.
"Now it's time for the bride and groom to start off the dancing," Magnus announced, giving them a wink. The cake was taken away to be cut and served to the guests, and Magnus cleared the dance floor, leaving Jem and Tessa alone in the middle.
Jem was expecting this. Tessa had warned him about this tradition of the bride and groom taking part in a spotlight dance. They had practised, waltzing away in their living room to the song A Thousand Years by Christina Perri and learning the choreography they had found on the Internet. He took his place across the dance floor from Tessa, ready to begin.
But the music that began playing was completely different from the song they had prepared. He glanced at Tessa in a momentary panic and saw that she too was wrong-footed. They both turned to glare at Magnus, who shrugged. Tessa looked over to Jem apologetically, silently communicating with him, asking him if he wanted to go through with it. He understood that she wanted to spare him embarrassment, because although she was used to modern music and modern dancing styles, she knew he wasn't.
However, Jem was in one of those moods when he felt like he could do anything. He signalled the DJ to restart the song and held out his hand to Tessa as the introduction played. Tessa's look of uncertainty transformed into one of delight. She stepped over to him, swaying in time with the music. She circled him, flirting with him with her expression and body, and he turned round and round, following her movement. As the lyrics sounded, she took his hand and they began to dance.
"Every part in my heart I'm giving out. Every song on my lips I'm singing out. Any fear in my soul I'm letting go. And anyone who asks I'll let them know: She's the one, she's the one – I say it loud. She's the one, she's the one – I say it proud. Ring a bell, ring a bell for the whole crowd…" the voice of Taio Cruz rang out through the hall.
Jem placed his hands on Tessa's body as though in a waltz and gently led her in the dance. He looked deep into her eyes as he moved them around the dance floor, the rest of the crowd who came to join them falling away into the darkness. To Jem, he and Tessa were the only ones who existed at that moment.
"I'm telling the world, that I've found a girl. The one I can live for, the one who deserves to give all the light, a reason to fly; the one I can live for, a reason for life!"
He swung Tessa round into a twirl, her dress flaring out beautifully, and then pulled her back into his arms and continuing to glide along together. Their movements grew more passionate as they spun around together, the two of them spinning round in their own pocket universe.
Song after song went by – David Archuleta, Clay Aiken, Black Eyed Peas, Sara Bareilles, Coldplay and so on – and they danced every dance together. She guided him as she went through the modern dance moves. He gamely swayed and shook his hips along to the lively beat. And in the slower songs, they held on to each other and danced, their bodies fitting perfectly and moving in sync with each other.
Lights, music, balloons and glitter all passed in a blur to Jem. The only thing that stood out and the only thing that mattered was Tessa. She was, to him, a steady beacon shining brightly in the midst of all the press of bodies on the dance floor. She had always been the constant presence in his life and the bedrock on which he had built his world.
Dancing with her that day, Jem was sure of one thing – no matter what was to come in their future, he was going to hold her and never ever let her go.
