"No, Isabelle," I groan into my phone as I lounge lazily on my bed. The ceiling fan is spinning slowly, and I am using half of my concentration to watch it spin around and only half of mine to actually listen to my friend. "I don't feel like going to the mall with anyone, much less someone that is going to make me carry around half of the store with them."

"Don't be so lazy," Isabelle chides me from the other side of the line. "I only asked you to carry five bags for me! Simon does it all the time without any complaint! Why can't you be such a nice friend?"

Because I'm not madly in love with you! Of course, I am much too nice to point this little fact out, so I simply say, "Because I'm not a nice person, Izzy. Ask Simon if he'll join you instead."

"He's coming too," she informs me, "we'll be over in about twenty minutes to get you."

"But—"

"Listen here, you stubborn redhead," Isabelle snaps good-naturedly, "I'm trying to give you a blessing called a social life, be grateful and get into something that isn't your pajamas!"

I look down at my yellow cotton pajama pants in silence, wondering how Isabelle knows that I haven't changed into something presentable to anything but my bedroom. I decide to leave that speculation for another day as I reply humorously, "I am perfectly content with my absent social life."

"Well I'm not," Izzy huffed, "so get over it and get ready. Your only excuse would be Jace, who is currently in bed, claiming to be allergic to any time before two o'clock in the afternoon on Saturdays."

I groan, frustrated. What is the point of having a fake boyfriend if I can't use him for my own personal gain on Saturdays because he is too lazy to actually wake up!?

"I'm taking the sound that sounded like a whale's mating call as a yes!" Izzy said cheerily. "See you in a few!"

Before I could complain, call her uncomplimentary nicknames, or argue my very reasonable case with her any further, she hangs up the phone and all I hear is static on the other end…though I might have more luck with an empty line than with Isabelle herself.

"Yay," I mutter to myself. "I get to play third wheel today!"

If I don't sound enthusiastic, it's because I'm really not. In fact I am as far away from enthusiastic as one can get. A day with Isabelle or a day with Simon wasn't too bad, but a day with Isabelle and Simon was a freaking nightmare! They ogled at each other so blatantly that it was painful to watch as a bystander…especially one that could not get away. I sigh quietly to myself as I walk over to my closet and look for my I don't want to be here outfit. I should have one of those around here somewhere….


Isabelle wasn't lying when she told me that she would be here in a few minutes. She is sitting in my driveway, Simon riding shotgun in her sleek black sports car, five minutes later. I swallow down the last few sips of my orange juice and run out of the house, glad that my parents work Saturday mornings.

"I'm surprised that you didn't drag my brother out of the house," I comment as I slide in the backseat 'accidentally' thwacking Simon in the back of the head as I did so.

"Jon has plans already," she explains to me as I shut the door. She puts the car in reverse and back out of the driveway illegally and we are on our way. "He and Jace are joining up with Magnus and Alec at Java Jones at two since that's when Mag's shift there ends today. They're going to catch some new movie or another."

They score a movie, and I score third wheel to a freaking date. I scowl but do not reply, having a feeling that Jace already knew that I was going to be dragged along. I look out of the window, imagining him smirking at the thought of me suffering with the trip. I pull my phone out, and text him.

Me: Hey, asshole.

It only takes a few seconds to get a reply, and when I read it I smile with sick satisfaction.

Jace: Jesus Red! My phone scared the hell out of me! Don't you know not to text me at 11 on Saturday?

The last part annoyed me.

Me: I'm sorry. Don't you know not to get me stuck as a third wheel on a trip to the mall?

Jace: That's what this is about? It really isn't that big of a deal!

Me: So you DID know!

Jace: And if I did? Isabelle's you best friend and she loves the mall! That hasn't changed, you have to suffer with it for the sake of your friendship.

Me: You're treading on thin ice Herondale! You're supposed to be some kind of boyfriend, right? That means that it is officially your job to bail me out of situations that I don't want to do!

Jace: You said yourself that we aren't really going out, Clary.

I blink as I look at his last text. I may not have been able to hear the emotion to it, but I could see from the wording that something was off about it. I could almost imagine the tone that he would have used with it, and the thought that I knew him so well might have scared me more if what tone I knew that he would have used wasn't scaring me the most already. It was one of those sad and hurt ones.

I don't bother texting back. I bite my lip as I look up at the windshield. We are pulling into the parking lot of the mall, which is already filled with almost every single other teenager in the freaking city. Isabelle doesn't bother looking for a close spot, knowing that it is an impossible feat for Saturdays.

"You guys go ahead in," I say pressing the dial button for Jace's number, "I've got to make a call."

Both of them look at me strangely for a moment, but nod and get out without asking me any questions. That is one of the many things that I love about them. I smile as I watch them walk off, seeing them walk too closely to be casual.

Jace picks up on the second ring.

"Hello?"

I frown, realizing that his tone is exactly how I imagined it. "Are you okay?" I ask.

"I'm fine," he replies shortly. "Why would anything be wrong?"

"I can tell by the way that you're talking," I say. "Now don't lie to me, Jace. Tell me what's wrong?"

"Maybe it's because you were so kind as to wake me up so early," he informs me. I frown at his tone, not liking it one bit. "You were getting angry at me for not doing something that a boyfriend does. I'm not your boyfriend, Clary! If you want one of those, you need to go and find someone that you actually care about, okay?"

I frown, not used to him being so snappy, especially with me. "Jace—" I attempt to start, but before I can, he cuts me off.

"I'm tired right now, Clary. I'm going back to sleep. I'll talk to you later when I get back with Jon." For the second time that day, I hear a click and then the buzz of static as the other side of the line goes dead.

Something is obviously bothering Jace. I want to find out what, but there had been one thing that he was right about: He isn't my boyfriend. That doesn't mean that what he said isn't causing my chest to sting slightly…well actually a lot. That is beside the point, though. I scowled as I got out of the car. If he wanted to be a jerk, that was fine by me. It wasn't any of my business if he was in a mood or why he was feeling so angry. If he wants a girlfriend, he needs to go and find someone that he actually cares about!


I try and hide my scowl at the thought of Jace as I find Simon and Isabelle in the food court, politely waiting for me. They smile unsuspectingly my way, so it is obvious that I have pulled my façade off pretty well. "Come on!" Izzy urges as I make it within hearing distance to them, "Let's go shopping!"


Hey peoples! Alright, there is a guest that keeps reviewing and asking me to write in Jace's point of view. This story is in Clary's point of view only. When the fic is done, however, I'll be taking requests for what chapters you would like to see in Jace's POV and I'll write them for you after the fic is finished. Sound fair enough?

In this chapter…what's wrong with Jace? Did someone piss him off? Does anyone have any idea what's going on with him? And he promised to talk to her when he got back from the movies with the guys…how well do you think that conversation shall go with our lovely Clary? Lemme know what you think!