Okay first of all: SORRY! I know it has been a while since I updated, but I was on a holiday and couldn't bring me pc with me. But I made this chapter longer that normal to make up for it ;) hope you like it!
Izzy POV
As Isabelle stepped into the restaurant and gave her coat to one of the waiters, she didn't even notice his stuttering or his blushing cheeks. Partly because she had gotten used to a continuous stream of male attention, but mostly because she was worried about her best friend, Clary. She had called her this morning, asking if she had time for dinner tonight. But even though she tried to sound light and nonchalant, Isabelle knew her good enough to know that there was something wrong. But she also knew her well enough to not keep pushing on the phone. Clary wasn't a phone-kind-of-girl, she only used it when necessarily, and kept the calling as short as possible. She was rather the one to talk face to face, as if she couldn't bring herself to talk about something serious if she couldn't see the face of the recipient. She scanned the public and quickly spotted Clary, who was looking into the menu as if she was gonna find the answers to all her questions in it. Only when she greeted her for the second time, Clary seemed to hear her, and Izzy knew that her thoughts had been miles away at that moment. She was kind of used to it, as Clary could be completely drawn into her thoughts for minutes before realising she was missing out on the real world, but today it was different. It only made her worry more. She gave her a kiss on the cheek before sitting down, and immediately a waiter popped up to give her a menu. They looked at the menu a while in silence, but it was more a ritual that actually looking, because they always ordered the same. 2 spaghettis of the house and a bottle of white wine.
Clary POV
"So, are you going to tell me what is going on? Or are we gonna keep talking about things you aren't really interested in?" Izzy asked after I had been questioning her about her work for five minutes. I had been friends with Izzy for ages, but her directness never ceased to surprise me. I blushed a little. "Is it that obvious?" I asked, and she laughed that amazing laugh of her that always filled me with joy and comfort. "I already knew it when you called me." she said, keeping silent as the waiter came with the bottle of wine. They both toasted before Izzy started to speak again. "I have been making up the weirdest scenarios in my head for the past 8 hours, so please, tell me what is going on before I completely lose my mind. You know I don't like secrets." I rolled my eyes. "Izzy, you love secrets." "Yeah, when I know them, and nobody else. I don't like them when I'm the one who is kept in the dark!".
Izzy looked at me expectantly. "Okay fine!" I brought out, at the same time regretting I had asked her to dinner to talk but on the other hand relieved to have someone who could help me order my thoughts. "Okay, here it goes…"
Izzy POV
She told me everything, from the first time she had met him in the hospital all up until this morning, leaving out the more… intimate details. But this wasn't all a surprise for me. I mean, a big part was… but not all of it. And even though there were soooooo many questions and things to get sorted out, I couldn't help but ask one very important thing first. "First things first: how was he?" I asked, unable to keep my face serious and I immediately saw her eyes widening and her cheeks turn red. "God Izzy! What do you want me to say?" I laughed at her almost teenager-like reaction. "Well your face says it all!" I laughed, "That good huh?". She turned as red as her hair. "I've never experienced it like that." she almost whispered shyly, and secretly I felt … relieved. I had always been a bit worried about her sex life… After her first boyfriends had hurt her that much, she had only had one-night-stands for a few years now and most of the times she didn't even really enjoy them. This was the first time in years she had slept more than once with a guy, and it seemed she had finally found someone who made her feel like any guy should make his girlfriend feel. "Good." I said, even though I knew that would irritate her. "Good? That is all you got?" she said, irritated as I knew she would be. "What do you want me to say Clary?" I said, seeing how I really got on her nerves now. "I want you to tell me that you-" she stopped mid-sentence, and I finished her sentence. "approve?" I said, and I could see how she realised I had done this on purpose. "Why do you know me so well?" she sighed. I teased: "Because I am a good friend.". "But do you really wanna know my opinion?" She nodded vigorously. "I already approved him before you even told me about him… Because I was kind of the person who put all of this in motion." She looked at me in confusion. "What did you just say?"
Clary POV
Izzy sighed. "It all started when my legal counsellor retired… Jace took over his job and… that's how I met him. I thought he was a real pain in the ass, but he was really good at his job. So, when he decided to quit his job a few months later and transferred to Pearson-Specter, I came with him. Remember those unlawful charges of that former employee? Jace was the one who saved my company back then. We worked together for so many hours that we started to really get to know each other. One night he started to talk about this girl who worked at another company that he represented. He was… frustrated, playing it off as a stupid game, but still asked me how he could win her over. At first we talked about it more jokingly, but the more she ignored him, the more he got obsessed. We were not just business partners anymore by this time, we had become really good friends and I could see how month by month, he got more invested in her. He paid attention to her, to what she said and did. To what she said to other people and what they said about her. He was going to the company even when he didn't really needed to, just to catch a glimpse of her. This wasn't just a game anymore, I could see it in how he talked about her. The way he described her… I have never seen a guy who was so in love with someone he didn't really know. She was like this goddess, and I even started to wonder if she was real, as he never wanted to say who she was. And then, a few hours before the charity-event, he stood at my house. He was… I don't know how to describe it… panicking, honestly. He told me he screwed up with her. He had used this moment where she was so vulnerable to finally get what he wanted. At least that was what he thought as he drove her to her house and convinced her to have sex. But he wasn't prepared for what he would feel afterwards. He told me that normally he felt satisfied but uninterested, as soon as he had gotten what he want from a girl. But with this girl it was different. He had never felt such a connection with anyone and he couldn't stop thinking about her. But he thought she would hate him even more now that he had used her like that, and he didn't dare to call, afraid that for her nothing would have changed. For the first time in years he was afraid to be rejected. I think he hated the way she controlled him. He was a mess, so I forced him to come to my party to prevent him from doing stupid things. But then at the party, he came to me overjoyed. He told me she was there, at the party. I was so curious to know who she was, startled that it could be someone I invited. And then he pointed at a girl who was donating a big check at that moment. Black dress, red hair, killer body… I couldn't have been more surprised, and for a second I was… angry. Or maybe it was jealousy. You were my friend. And he had probably hurt you. And you hadn't talked about it with me. But then I realized how selfish that was. I mean, sure he has his flaws, but the way he talks about you… I hope someone ever thinks about me that way Clary… So I introduced him to you to give him a way to talk with you. I just didn't think it worked since I saw you leave the party without him… But apparently he did find a way to get through to you."
I was speechless. I was probably just staring at Izzy open-mouthed, but I just couldn't wrap my head around everything she had just said. "If you want to ask my blessing, you got it. You got it even before you asked." . "What do I do, Iz?" I asked desperate. "You know that Clary. You can't stay afraid for the rest of your life."
"I need to talk to Jace." I brought out as I stood up, feeling my legs shake and my stomach clench as I realised what I was about to do. Only then I realised we hadn't even eaten yet, and I stopped for a second. But it seemed as Izzy had realised the same thing . "It's fine. Go. I'm sure I'll find someone to accompany." she smiled, and if I heard it right as I raced out of the restaurant, she added: "Go get him, girl. You deserve it."
So, I know this was more of a filler chapter, but I wanted some more background for the story:) I hope you guys are a bit excited for next chapter, as that one will be about the confrontation between Clary and Jace! xoxo N.
