A/N: I tried, I truly did. But band camp happened, then the start of school—and I'm sure you guys recognize that things get busy with three AP/Honors classes in addition to Color Guard, newspaper, clubs, and the like.
Then I said to my friend terafonne (formerly funbunny99) that if our [notoriously bad] varsity football team won their game last Friday, I would update all of my stories. I don't take bets or promises lightly, so here we are :/ A kind-of-rushed, honestly-not-very-good chapter that will hopefully go over okay in the grand scheme of things. (If you're reading one of my other stories, worry not—"City of Dreams" is next, with
Of course, it's not that I didn't want to update—I got a little busy, as I said earlier. But I promise that I will do my utmost to be better for you guys. (448 followers, 275 favorites, and 223 reviews for a simple eight [now nine] chapter story? I truly don't deserve all the attention you guys are giving my little fic!)
I do usually reply to reviews, I'm so sorry I didn't get a chance to do so for the last chapter—and there were definitely some super awesome ones that I really wanted to acknowledge.
While I'm on the topic, I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all my recent reviewers: iLoveMeSomeCaptainAmerica, I am Hylla daughter of Bellona, Princess of Idris, aftertales, Candy Apple [Guest], maraudergirl68448, SayuriEvernight, ntlpurpolia (especial thanks to you for pointing out the typo in the last chapter! I did go back and fix that), bookaddict223, the YAfangirl17, Gillian73, tmi family2014, KyKat, Su. Shadowhunter from Ravenclaw, imcrazyanditscontagious, soccerlover21, Lollyz, ishika07 [Guest], sailorraven34, my 2 guys, Greekgoddess54, nerdbookworm, C.B. Weasley, and all the anonymous guests. You guys are awesome, especially you repeat reviewers who have been with me for quite a while now. Thanks for putting up with my infrequent, sporadic updates and unworthily not-so-great writing :D
So, here we go. (With any luck, you guys won't completely hate it.)
Second Day of Summer Vacation
"It's my turn to pick today," Jace announced as soon as he walked in the front door, car keys in hand.
Clary groaned. "Let's get this over with, then."
Sebastian emerged from the twins' room, pulling one of his many concert T-shirts over his head. He raised an eyebrow at his sister. "Weren't you the one who said he has decent taste in activities?"
"I said that last year. Things change." Turning away from the boys, Clary gathered her hair into a ponytail—nonchalantly messy, the way she wore it for Color Guard (and for sports, when the boys dragged her out to join them). "Besides, I'm sure that after I made you guys pick up trash yesterday, Goldie wants revenge. I'm definitely not looking forward to that."
Yawning, Jonathan leaned against the doorframe of the room he shared with Sebastian. He shot a questioning glance at Jace, who nodded slightly, smirking.
Half an hour later
"I hate you, Jace Wayland." Interestingly, Clary had yet to stand still and stop scanning the room furtively. She'd even loosed her hair, and it fell around and partly over her face, almost like a veil.
The young man in question just grinned cheekily. "Look me in the eye and tell me you don't deserve it. Without smiling, like you really mean it."
She stopped her furious pacing and looked him in the eye, just as he had asked. However, the menacing glare in them was not at all what he had asked for. "I swear I'm going to kill you."
His smile dropped abruptly and he cleared his throat dramatically. "Threat! Verbal threat! I feel threatened!"
His attempt at humor only made the situation worse.
She glared. "Don't you dare quote Tony Stark at me! I don't want to hear his words from your unworthy mouth!"
After casting a surreptitious glance at the twins—who were busy selecting the perfect pairs of bowling shoes—Jace couldn't help leaning down to whisper, "Then what would you like to hear from this 'unworthy' mouth?"
Just barely blushing, Clary mercilessly elbowed him in the side. "Must you be so crude?"
"But of course I must." He gripped the wounded spot dramatically, relieved and perhaps a touch proud to see the amusement that had replaced the threat in her green eyes. They were really quite pretty, Clary's eyes, he noted. Just the right shade of green to make you think of spring, and—What the crap was he thinking about his best friend's younger sister?
"Of course you must what?" Sebastian asked as he walked up to them, dangling a pair of bowling shoes by their joined laces.
"Nothing," Jace and Clary answered simultaneously and immediately. A rare happenstance that the pair usually actively tried to avoid.
Before a skeptical-looking Sebastian could call them out on it, Jonathan returned with two pairs of shoes, the smaller of which he handed to Clary.
"What about me?" Jace mock-whined. "You're so eager to do things for your sister, but what about your twin brother's best friend?"
"Get your own," replied the older Morgenstern twin succinctly.
"I'm starting to sense that you don't like me very much."
"Yeah? What was your first clue? And, FYI, 'very much' is—"
"Can we just get started?" Clary interrupted, looking around the room. "I'd rather not be here much longer than necessary."
"What do you have against bowling alleys?" Jace asked, sounding almost as affronted as if she had insulted him personally.
She shook her head, red curls bouncing against her shoulders. "Let's just do this."
A few hours later
Jace was still shaking his head, long after their last game had concluded so decisively. "I still don't understand how you can be so determined to thoroughly hate something you're so good at."
"I don't hate bowling," Clary insisted unconvincingly.
"So why do you object every time one of us suggests we go bowling?" Jace wanted to know—not unreasonably, he thought. "I mean, you win every time. And I mean every time."
"I don't object to bowling. I object to the thought of being in a bowling alley."
"Right. Because that makes a lot of sense."
She bit her lip and said nothing, looking harried.
Seeing his sister's discomfort, Jonathan stepped in. "Lay off, Jace. If she doesn't want to say, she doesn't have to say."
After a few moments' hesitation, Jace looked Clary in the eye to say, "Well, whatever the case, you are an amazing bowler, kid."
"Thanks." And, through his use she understood that it was his way of apologizing.
Boys were so hopeless when it came to anything touchy-feely.
Sometime During the Third or Fourth Week of Summer Vacation
Clary was checking Facebook when it happened.
A friend request popped up at the same time that her email tab registered a new message. She started with the email.
Hopefully your elf eyes see a FB friend request. (I really hope you'll accept it.)
She looked at the sender—then looked again to make sure she hadn't read it wrong. (Well, if she was perfectly truthful, the LoTR reference was kind of a dead giveaway.)
Simon Lewis.
Their friendship—which had, at one point, been of the variety that even the cynical adults around them had begun to think might just be the forever kind—had never really (or even partially) recovered from the vicious fight that had begun with Simon's declaration of love, back in sixth grade. They'd spent the greater part of middle school avoiding each other, especially as he dated and dumped other girls in quick, un-Simon-like succession—likely as a way of proving he was "over" Clary. Freshman year—during which they'd had three classes together—had clearly been not just awkward but extremely painful for both of them.
So why was he contacting her now? And, more importantly, his friend request: to accept or not to accept?
She chose to accept it.
Seconds later, he sent her a message: How's your summer been?
Small talk? That wasn't much like the Simon she remembered, although it had admittedly been years since Clary could claim to know him very well at all. She replied cautiously, Not bad. Yours?
The reply came almost instantaneously. (Clearly someone wasn't afraid of looking too eager.) Decent. Hey, I've been thinking about you lately.
Now how was she supposed to reply to that?
Evidently Simon had hit "Enter" too rapidly, because it was quickly followed by a flurry of follow-ups.
I mean
not in a creepy way
although maybe it is kinda weird
I mean
I know we haven't talked in forever
but I really miss you
did i seriously just type that
and send
?
um
im sorry
...
say something clary
.
.
.
please
.
.
pretty please?
...
well this is awkward
im just gonna go rewatch all the marvel movies to bury my inner pain
or well
might not work
prob just remind me of how ill never be as awesome as loki
or thor
or stark
or the captain or hawkeye or widow
or even fury or coulson
or anyone whos epically badass
Clary couldn't help smiling. This was the Simon she remembered—socially clumsy and sorta-funny ("witty and ironic," he used to describe himself ironically) and sweet and dorky and absolutely adorable. How could she have been mad at him for so long?
She bit her lip as she typed deliberately.
It's okay. I forgive you. For everything.
A few minutes passed, and she began to worry that he wasn't going to reply. Then:
So, can we just talk about how Legolas would totally kick Hawkeye's butt? I mean, seriously.
She had to laugh.
Things might never be quite the same between them, but it was a pretty darn good start.
A/N: It is really awesome to finally be back; I've missed this universe as much as any of you. But as much as I prefer looking forward, I've gotten a few complaints/suggestions for certain parts of previous chapters, which I am planning to take another look at. Plotwise, there shouldn't be any major changes; style/wording/dialogue wise, though... most likely there will modifications, hopefully for the better.
Thoughts on the latest developments? Your reactions may or may shape the rest of this story ;)
**PLEASE READ** You may or may not have noticed that I don't have any author's notes in this chapter. (And seriously, it about killed me to leave out all the mostly-irrelevant-but-not-necessarily-insignificant remarks and explanations.) So, here's my question to those of you who said the numbers were distracting: would asterisks be any better? Or should I just refrain from any author's remarks, note all references/parodies at the end (since I'm ethically obligated to give credit where it is due), and wait to give specific explanations in reply to questions? It's really completely up to you guys, so I hope to get your input.
Yeah, I'm aware that this is kind of short, especially compared to my previous updates. But I'm about to post another chapter, one that's kind of been in the works for a while. It should (hopefully) be a bit more polished than this one, and maybe redeem me as a writer(?).
