A/N - For those of you that tend to be a bit more sensitive, grab a tissue...
Clary's POV
I woke up to the sound of Simon's gentle voice.
"Clary? Oh Clary?" Simon said in an overly high-pitched singsong voice. I blinked my eyes a couple of times and looked up to Simon sitting on the edge of my bed looking down at me with gentle eyes. I was lying on my side and Simon's hand gently rubbed my arm.
"Sorry…I fell asleep." I said softly. I had almost completely forgotten I had made plans with Simon to help move my stuff into my mom's storage unit. I heard the door shut, but when I glanced over nobody was there. Simon followed my gaze.
"Your guard dog was trying to make me to leave…" Simon said as he looked back down at me.
"…Clary I-" I abruptly cut him off.
"If you're going to say I told you so…" I started in a distant monotone voice.
"…I already know." I said as I looked down toward the bed. I felt a couple tears slowly trickle down my nose; I reached up and quickly swatted them away.
"I was going to say I'm sorry. I was going to say you can't let them get to you like this." He said softly as he rubbed my arm again. I pulled away from him as I sat up. I wiped my eyes and forced a smile.
"I'm not!..." I snapped defensively in a semi-crazy sounding voice. I glanced at him briefly and he just looked back at me uneasily. I climbed out of bed and headed over to the boxes and crossed my arms over my chest. I could feel my body trembling and my eyes still burned, but I was doing a decent job holding back the tears.
"…Thanks for coming over, I know this isn't your idea of a fun time…" I said lightheartedly with a semi-hysterical sounding laugh.
"…So there are these boxes here, I said with a flourish of my hand, and then Aline's packing the rest right now, so hopefully she finishes before we're done." I could hear the weaver to my voice, but I just kept talking like it wasn't there. Simon walked over to me silently with a sympathetic look on his face and tried to put his arms around me, but I stepped away from him and shook my head.
"I have to walk past them, and I refuse to cry right now." I said firmly without looking at him.
"Where do you want me to start?" He said softly.
Almost two hours later we had already made one trip to the storage unit and we were just finishing loading the truck for a second trip. Simon had said Jace was home when he got to the apartment, but he must have left shortly there after, because he was nowhere to be seen when Simon and I loaded the truck or when we came back. Aline finished packing the kitchen and she helped us bring boxes out to the truck. We nearly filled the truck a second time; I couldn't believe I had so much stuff.
The fact I was so overtired right now wasn't helping matters. I was too tired to even rant to Simon about what was going on. I robotically brought box after box down to the truck and spoke at a bare minimum to complete the task. Even though I wasn't feeling very talkative, I could tell Simon was just biting his tongue to keep quiet. He really just needed to look around the apartment to figure out why I was upset. He made a number of side comments about me needing to move out and even suggested I crash at his mom's for a while. I thanked him and told him I'd think about it, but I wasn't ready to move. This was my home, and it was the perfect location for work and school, and besides, I just wasn't ready to admit defeat. I knew if I moved out, I'd really be admitting that Aline won, that Jace was hers. As long as I kept one foot in the door I felt like I still had a chance.
With the last of my stuff loaded onto the truck bed I was just watching Simon close the hatchback when I felt a hand on my shoulder spin me around.
"What are you doing? I thought you were sick..." Jace asked in a near panic voice. He looked so worried.
"…Is this about all the boxes? We're going to put everything away. Don't move out yet. It's not going to be that bad, you'll see. Please-" I gave him a small sad smile as I gently rested my hand on his chest and cut off his pleading.
"I'm not moving out. I was sick. I'm feeling better now…I'm just making some space. Just moving some stuff into storage." I said trying not to sound as dismal as I felt. I felt too drained to even blush right now at my blatant lie about being sick, so I was pretty sure he bought it. A look of relief washed over his face as he pulled me in for a tight hug.
"That's a lot of stuff Clary." Jace said gently. I swallowed hard.
"It's not that much." I tried to sound convincing, but this time it didn't come out as believable. He had no idea how much stuff I packed; this was the second load.
"Promise me you'd never leave me like that…You'd never just sneak off without telling me." I took a deep breath.
"Jace." I protested as I tried to make it seem like what he was saying was crazy, but that's exactly how I'd leave, no confrontation, no more begging me to stay. He pulled back and looked deep into my eyes, but he kept his arms loosely around me. I could see pain and torment reflecting back at me and it was unsettling.
"Please…Just promise me you'd tell me. Promise me you'd let me know before you left for good." He looked so worried. I gave him a little sad smile and shook my head.
"Come on, do you really think I'd leave without telling you? That'd be pretty shitty of me." I said obscurely with a chuckle. He gazed into my eyes silently a moment longer.
"I just need a little more time…Just a little more time to fix this. Don't give up on me yet." He said solemnly. I couldn't help but get lost in his tender anxious eyes.
"Didn't you say that storage facility closed at nine?" Simon questioned.
"Yeah…What time is it?" I asked as I tried to pull my gaze from Jace's, but I just couldn't bring myself back to reality yet.
"Just after eight." I gave a little nod.
"Jace, can you help Simon take my mom's painting down?" Jace's eyebrows furrowed.
"No…" He said as he shook his head. I just furrowed my eyebrows at him.
"…I'll take it down if and when you ever move out, not a day before…" I couldn't help but smile at the fact he said if and when, but I knew it was a matter of when and not if. Jace reached up and gently cupped my cheek.
"…I love that painting…Besides, it's not taking up any space." My lips curved up further. I was so captivated by Jace's eyes I couldn't look away from him.
"You don't want to put it in storage anyway Clary, it will ruin it." Simon said softly. I just gave a little nod, my eyes glued to Jace's. I made a mental note to bring the painting to my mom's and Luke's to store there.
"I'm sorry…" Jace said softly as he gently pushed a stray curl behind my ear.
"…I know this can't be easy for you." I tried to keep my smile, but I'm sure Jace could tell I was forcing it at this point.
"Jace, I think it's time for me to move out-" I started, but he quickly cut me off.
"No, absolutely not…" He said definitively. I took a deep breath as the smile completely fell from my face. Jace cupped my cheek again and gazed deeply into my eyes.
"…I don't like it when you stop smiling Clary…" He said softly. The corner of my lips pulled up into a small sad smirk. He dipped down and pressed his lips gently to my cheek. He let his lips linger longer than he usually did and I couldn't help it when my face just lit up. He pulled back and gazed down at me.
"…That's better…" He said gently with a smile. He wrapped his arms tightly around me again.
"…When you come home…I want to talk to you…I want you to tell me the truth…I want you to tell me everything that's bothering you. I want you to tell me exactly what's wrong." Jace pulled away, but kept his arms loosely around me. He looked down at me with a gentle yet firm look. I rolled my eyes.
"There's nothing wrong, I'm fine." Jace's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Stop telling me you're fine when I know you're not." He said softly as he continued to look silently into my eyes. After a brief moment his phone started to ring.
"It's Aline." He said without breaking his gaze.
"You should get that." He gave a little nod, but his eyes didn't look away just yet.
"I'm going to fix this Clary. I am." He said softly. His phone stopped ringing, but he just continued to gaze into my eyes. I didn't know how he thought he could fix this. I prayed that he could, but I was really beginning to feel like it was too late. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to my forehead. He looked down at me one more time before his arms finally fell from around me and he turned and walked away.
I watched as Jace walked away and it felt like I lost a little bit of my optimism with each step he took. I could feel myself sinking deeper and deeper into darkness until he finally disappeared onto the elevator and I felt so empty. I finally turned back to the truck and climbed into the passenger seat. It was quiet for a minute, but I didn't turn to ask Simon why he hadn't started the truck, I just stared blankly out the side passenger window. I felt Simon's warm hands scoop up mine, but I still didn't look at him.
"Clary, look at me…" He said softly as he squeezed my hand tightly, and I finally glanced over at him. He was looking back at me very seriously.
"…You're worrying me. I've never seen you so depressed…" He hesitated and just looked at me with worried eyes.
"…You call me if you need me to come over and take away all your shoe laces and belts or anything." He still sounded sincere, but I couldn't take what he was saying serious. I couldn't help it when my eyes narrowed in agitation at him.
"You're such an ass." He had such a concerned look on his face.
"I'm kind of serious Clary…They say girls are more likely to do stupid shit like take pills to get attention and then it's too late, they took too many…" I could see his eyes shine and I just rolled my eyes and shook my head as I put my arms around him to pull him in for a hug. His arms came tightly around me. Did he really think I would do something like that?
"Simon, I'd never do anything like that. Don't worry about me. I'm fine." He squeezed a little tighter.
"You're not fine Clary. I know you're not…You know I love you…I've loved you since the day I met you…Your mom loves you, she loves you so much, and Luke loves you…" I could feel the tears start to trickle down my cheeks.
"…Even if Aline takes Jace and the Lightwoods away from you, she's not taking everyone, she'll never take me, she'll never take your family…Don't do anything stupid. There's not a guy in this world that's worth it." I just held on to Simon for a little longer. I couldn't believe he was so worried about me. I was down, yes, but I wasn't out. After what felt like a number of minutes Simon kissed the side of my head and pulled back. He looked into my eyes, which were as watery as his own.
"Come back to my mother's with me, who by the way loves you too." He pleaded softly with a small smile. I just let out with a tiny chuckle as I shook my head.
"Not tonight." He leaned forward and placed a kiss on my forehead before he pulled back and looked in my eyes again.
"You're strong Clary, so strong; don't let her break you down. You're tough as nails, never forget that." I took a deep breath and gave a little nod.
"Thank you…I love you too." I leaned forward and placed a kiss on Simon's cheek as he tightened his arms around me.
Jace's POV
I woke up feeling like I barely slept. I really wanted to talk to Clary the night before, but I didn't get the chance. I just couldn't sleep; I couldn't stop thinking about her, worrying about her. I needed to talk to her, find out why she decided to move so much stuff into storage. I needed to know why she wanted to move out so badly all of a sudden. I wanted to know if something happened between her and Aline. Aline said her and Clary were getting along fine, but I wasn't sure how much I believed that. I just felt like something happened that upset Clary, something new.
"I'm excited to spend some time with ya sister and all, but I'll be sorry to miss a whole day of gettin' this place in order." Aline said as she turned toward me and laid her head against my shoulder. I scooped her up and dipped down and placed a kiss on her head.
"Did Izzy get back to you? I thought she made it sound like she wouldn't be able to get you any appointments at the spa on such short notice."
It was Wednesday night and we were all playing cards over my parent's house after dinner...
"Izzy honey, can you come with me Saturday morning to drop off my car at the auto repair shop? I know you have plans with Clary, but it won't be out of your way at all. I just need you to follow me to the shop and then bring me to my office afterwards. The shop is just a couple miles down the street from the house and you know where my office is, just down the street from where Clary and Jace live…And Alec, would you be able to me pick me up at the office around 4:00 and drop me back at the repair shop?" My mom asked as she sat down across from Max at the dining room table.
"Mom, can't Alec just bring you? We're already cutting it close on timing. Clary didn't want me to pick her up too early." Izzy complained as she shuffled the deck of cards.
"I can bring you mom, that's not a problem." Alec chimed in as he looked up from the sheet of paper he was tallying the score on.
"No, I'd like Izzy to bring me. The repair shop is right on your way Sweetie, besides, I wanted to talk to Clary about the wedding. I'm not going to let this go if she's the least bit uncomfortable with the seating arrangements. Unfortunately, it's not helping matters that your father has been in an exceptionally foul mood lately." My mother's eyes fleeted to me. I knew he was still pissed about the other day; he still wasn't talking to me.
"Is she talking about your uncle's weddin'…?" Aline questioned quietly. I just nodded.
"…Oh, what's wrong?..." Aline asked curiously as she looked to my mother. It was an awkward silence as my mother glanced to me and then to Izzy. I knew she was still hoping she could convince my father to ask Benedict to move our grandmother to another table, but my father seemed to think that was absurd and completely out of the question.
"…I don't need to know, it's fine." Aline said as she picked up her cards and shook her head.
"No…It's alright…You'll find out at the wedding anyway…" My mom started hesitantly and Aline looked at her expectantly.
"…There was a mix up with the response cards and…well…it doesn't appear Clary will be seated with us." My mother said gently.
"Oh goodness…That's awful." Aline said as she threw her hand over her mouth.
"Yes…It's really too bad…It won't be the same without her at the table…Like tonight…It's too bad she had other plans already…Jace, don't forget to tell her how much we missed her and that she has to come next week. I'm planning a big dinner for my birthday next Wednesday, and if she has plans with Sebastian already, just tell her she'll have to bring him along, I won't take any excuses. I don't want any gifts; I just want all my babies here." I gave her a smile and a chuckle. I always thought it was sweet how much my mother adored Clary.
"I'll tell her."
"And Aline…" My mom started.
"…We haven't told Clary yet about the seating arrangements, I'm still hoping I might be able to finagle something, so if you could refrain from saying anything…" My mother trialed off. Aline just nodded her head.
"Of course, of course…May I ask what was the mix up with the response cards? I want to make sure we don't make the same mistake at our weddin'." Aline said as she glanced over at me with a warm smile. There was another awkward silence. Aline looked back at my mother and waited patiently.
"It was an error on our part, there was nothing Benedict and Lilith could have done differently." My mother said gracefully. Aline nodded.
"Oh." She said gently.
"Jace screwed up his RSVP." Max blurted out with a chuckle. I gave him a kick under the table.
"What?" Aline asked as she glanced over at Max.
"Mom, Jace kicked me." Max tattled. I glared at him.
"Jace, don't kick your brother." My mom scolded.
"Did you kick ya brother?" Aline asked skeptically. I shook my head.
"Nooo." I said in my playful voice, but she just continued to furrow her eyebrows at me.
"I think you're lying to me." Max laughed.
"Ya think?" Max said sarcastically.
"So how did ya mess up the response card?" Aline asked heavily. I didn't really want to lie to her, but I wasn't eager to admit the truth to her either. I took a deep breath.
"I put down that I was only bringing one guest…" I looked at her apologetically as I trailed off.
"That's horrible Jace." I nodded.
"I know. I feel terrible."
"That's sweet of ya though to make sure she can still come even though ya forgot to put her on the invitation." I went to talk, to correct her, I felt horrible enough as it was, but I didn't want to lie to her, but instead I just closed my mouth and sort of smiled and nodded.
"Isn't he such a sweetheart?" Izzy said with a smile. I knew she was being sarcastic, but Aline just kept smiling like Izzy was being sincere.
"So where did ya say y'all were going Saturday?" Aline asked as she looked over at Izzy.
"We're going to the spa." Izzy said hesitantly.
"Oh that sounds like so much fun…I'm so jealous. I love goin' to the spa. We should go sometime." Aline said enthusiastically.
"Yeah, sure." Izzy said halfheartedly as she looked down at her cards.
"Have ya ever had a massage Jace?" Aline asked as her face lit up. I just shook my head.
"Nope, not a professional one." I was trying to suppress a smirk as I looked down at my cards. Of course I've had massages, just not any I paid for; I prefer a massage with a happy ending.
"Oh, now I want to go to the spa. I'm so sore from all this movin'. We should go get massages together. They have couples massages ya know. It will be so much fun." I had no interest in that at all.
"If you want to go to the spa so bad, why don't you just go on Saturday with them?" I said carelessly as I threw a card down. I felt a good kick under the table, which I'm pretty sure came from Izzy, except for the fact she was acting like she hadn't heard us.
"If ya don't mind I'd be tickled pink if I could tag along." Aline said excitedly as she looked over at Izzy.
"You know I'd love to have you come, except, I really don't think I can get you any appointments on such short notice. Tomorrow is already Thursday; I think they'll be booked for Saturday. I was really lucky to get the appointments I got. They fill up so fast. Next time." Izzy said as she tossed a card. Aline seemed to slump in her seat some. I think she tries to get along with Izzy, but Izzy doesn't seem as interested in being her friend.
"No, I called the spa myself Thursday and they were booked up like your sister said, but they went and put me on a waitin' list. They called me a few times yesterday as they had some cancellations. I sent your sister a text last night lettin' her know the good news. She was just thrilled that it all worked out…I let her know Clary was feeling poorly and I wasn't sure she'd be comin'." I glanced at Aline skeptically.
"I don't think she's that sick. I think she'll want to go."
"Well if she's not feelin' up to it, I think it'd be nice if it were just Isabelle and I-"
"Aline, don't start. It was supposed to be Izzy and Clary-" I knew I sounded a little harsher than I meant too, but I get a little defensive when it comes to Clary. Aline rested her hand on my arm as she cut me off.
"Darlin' I didn't mean anything by it…I'd just really like to get to know your sister better. I think we probably have a lot in common. I think we're gonna be the best of friends. When I think about it, I find it funny that Isabelle and Clary are so close. They seem so different to me."
"What's that mean? They have a lot in common." She chuckled.
"Darlin' I just think we're gonna find that your sister and I have a lot more in common is all. I'm really excited to get to know her. I know ya want me to get along with Clary, but it's a little difficult when we're so different." I nearly wanted to point out that her and Clary couldn't be that different, they both seemed to have the same taste in guys, and I couldn't live without either one of them, but I bit my tongue.
"I know you don't like her." I sputtered as I climbed out of bed.
"It's not that I don't like her Jonathan…She's adorable, she's a sweetheart, I just can't get past the fact that she's in love with you…" I just shook my head as I started going through my bureau drawers to find something to wear to the gym.
"…Ya know, I never asked ya last night if ya talk to her." Aline said heavily. I knew what she was asking. She wanted to know if Clary was moving out for good. Of course, when I talked to Aline the evening before, when Clary said she was sick, Aline said that she felt Clary might be a bit strained by everything going on. She said that Clary had confided in her that she truly just wanted to move out, but she didn't want to upset me. I couldn't believe Clary wanted to move out as badly as Aline made it sound like she did.
"I did, but I didn't get the feeling Clary was as eager to move out as you made it sound like she was." I said without looking back at her.
"Well Darlin', she doesn't want to hurt your feelings is all, she knows how much you want her to stay, but she's ready. I don't think she wanted me tellin' ya she talked to me, but she wants to go, she told me she does." I glanced over my shoulder at her.
"Well she's not going anywhere right now." She cleared her throat in obvious agitation.
"I thought we talked about this? You're bein' stubborn, but you need to just let her go. You need to respect this is what she wants." I shrugged as I refocused on pulling out my clothes from the bureau.
"No matter what she says, she's not ready to move out, I know she's not."
"She's ready Darlin', you're the one that's not." She snapped tightly.
"Maybe you're right. She said something about moving out and I said I wanted her to stay. I asked her to stay." I knew Aline had walked up behind me, but I wasn't turning around to face her.
"Now why would ya go and do a thing like that?" She snapped. I dropped my clothes to my bureau and spun around. I crossed my arms over my chest and took an exasperated breath.
"Because she's my best friend Aline and this is her home. I'm not throwing her out because you're moving in-"
"Jonathan, I thought we talked about this. If she wants to leave, she should go." She said tightly.
"No, she doesn't want to leave, I know she doesn't. She just feels like she doesn't belong here anymore. Clary was here first and she's staying as long as she wants. If you don't want to be around her, you can stay at your own apartment until she moves." She scoffed.
"Jonathan, I just moved all my stuff here!" She snapped.
"You were in a rush to get all your stuff here, but you knew Clary still lived here. Why can't you just try? She's trying, she's trying so hard to get along with you. She's been nothing but nice to you and I know this is hard for her-"
"Hard for her?" She snapped incredulously.
"I'm not saying this is easy for you, but you're not making the situation any better. You can be all pissed off and jealous that she has feelings for me, but I'm here with you, I want to marry you, and if that's not enough, if you can't accept that she's always going to be an important part of my life, than that's going to be a problem, a big problem, because I'm not cutting her out of my life for you, I'm sorry, but I'm not. If you want to marry me, you have to understand that she's part of the package. I love you Aline, I do, but you have to trust me, and you have to understand that Clary's more than just a friend to me. She might not be related to me by blood, but neither are my parents or my siblings and Clary's just as much a part of my family as any one of them." My words were firm and confident, and a bit louder and harsher than needed.
"You're right." She said softly as her eyes filled up with tears. I dropped my arms as the anger left me in a gust.
"What?" She gave me a small smile and a shrug as she sniffled and a couple tears trickled down her cheeks. Whereas arguments with Clary grew into blazing infernos, arguments with Aline always ended quickly with her in tears. My stubborn temper seemed to always escalate quickly, but she wasn't a fighter, and I always felt so horrible for making her cry.
"You're right Darlin'. I'm sorry. I know she's important to ya and I should be makin' more of an effort." She whimpered out as she wrapped her arms around her body and started to cry. I sighed as I covered the short distance between us and wrapped my arms around her.
"Babe don't cry. I'm sorry. I know this is hard for you." I said softly. She looked up at me with a trembling lower lip as she wiped away at her tears.
"I love ya so much Darlin' I don't want to fight with you." She closed her eyes as more tears spilled over. I dipped down and pressed my lips to hers.
"Shh…I'm sorry I raised my voice. Don't cry Babe." I brought my lips to hers for a few more kisses. When I pulled back she just gazed into my eyes as a few more tears fell.
"I know I'm bein' overly jealous Darlin', but it's just hard to see ya with her. I trust ya. I do. I'm sure ya get jealous at times that I'm such good friends with Sebastian, but you've never tried to dissuade me from spending time with him. I just see ya with her so much it makes it hard, but I'll try to be as sympathetic as you are to me." I just searched her face for a moment.
"I didn't realize you spent that much time with Sebastian." She shrugged nonchalantly.
"Not so much lately, with the move and all, but he's already been on my case that we'll have to have dinner soon, maybe take in a show. I could arrange for the four of us to go out again if you'd like, but you didn't seem to enjoy the other night." I just nodded. I really hadn't thought of her spending time with Sebastian, and I knew it was completely hypocritical of me, but I didn't like the fact she hung out with him. Now I just had another reason not to like Sebastian.
"When you say not so much lately, what exactly does that mean? I don't remember you ever mentioning hanging out with him." She chuckled.
"I saw him the other weekend, when you were at your uncle's bachelor party. We had lunch." She said with a slightly amused smirk. I didn't remember her mentioning she had seen him. I was preoccupied with my father and Clary, come to think of it; I never asked her how she spent her day. I would have remembered if she said she was having lunch with Sebastian though, I couldn't believe she just didn't tell me something like that.
"So it was just like the two of you?" I let the question hang and her smile looked more amused.
"You're startin' to sound jealous Jace. Don't you trust me?" I just furrowed my eyebrows further.
"It's not like Sebastian has feelings for you though, right? I mean, I thought he was into Clary. Right?" I asked quizzically. She chuckled.
"I honestly don't know what's going on between Sebastian and Clary, but Sebastian is my dearest friend Jace, of course he has feelings for me, and I him. I love Sebastian, but there are many types of feelings and many types of love. One doesn't love their parent as their sibling or their sibling as their significant other of their significant other as their child, it's all love, but it's all different. I love Sebastian, but not the way I love you. Ya might not use the words to describe your feelings, but I can tell ya love Clary, hopefully not the same way she loves you, but it's love all the same ya see…" I just looked at her with my eyebrows furrowed. I usually think of the word love as a black and white type of thing, there's no gray area. You either love somebody or you don't, but Aline was confusing me even more right now about my feelings. I cared a great deal about Clary, but did that mean I loved her, and was it possible I loved her, but I wasn't in love with her? Aline reached up and rested her hand on my cheek.
"…Gettin' married is all about comprisin' and it was very big of ya to agree to start attendin' church, so it's my turn to comprise right now. I will try my hardest to make Clary feel comfortable in our home for as long as she wishes to stay." She said with a smile. I furrowed my eyebrows further. I didn't remember agreeing to start attending church, but I guess this was a pretty fair trade, for the time being anyway.
"Thank you." I said softly. Things seemed pretty smoothed over for the time being, except for my feelings, which now I was even more confused about then before. My mind was just spinning. I wondered how much time Aline spent with Sebastian, what they did, how he felt about her, how she felt about him, what Clary and Sebastian did when they were together, how he felt about her, how she felt about him, and most importantly, how did I feel about Clary, and how did that compare to how I felt about Aline.
Clary's POV
I set my alarm early and kicked my ass out of bed. I was still sore, but I wanted to get a workout in. I was not going to stay in this miserable funk; I was going to triumph over it. I headed down to the gym and was about thirty minutes into my elliptical routine when I caught a glimpse of golden blond in my peripheral vision. I glanced over to see Jace climbing on the elliptical machine next to me. He was smiling over at me. I pulled out my headphones and smiled as I looked back at him.
"I'm glad to see you're feeling better. I was worried." Jace commented as he adjusted all the buttons on the machine.
"I'm feeling alright…Thanks." He smiled as he looked back over at me.
"I heard you're spending the day at the spa with Izzy and Aline. That sounds fun." I just sort of nodded.
"Yeah." I said halfheartedly. His smile fell slightly.
"I hope it's okay she's going…It was kind of my idea she tag along." He said hesitantly. I furrowed my eyebrows as I shook my head at him.
"No it's fine." I tried to sound sincere. I didn't want him to feel bad if it was his idea she come, although, I couldn't quite understand why he thought her coming would be alright in the first place. He furrowed his eyebrows at me.
"Are you sure?" I forced a little smile and nodded.
"Yeah. It's really fine. It's not a big deal at all." A look of relief washed over him.
"Oh good…You guys seem to get along alright, but I got the feeling Izzy didn't really want her to go, and I really wish they'd spend some time together. I think Izzy would like Aline if she gave her a chance." I swallowed hard.
"I thought Izzy and Aline got along." I said quizzically. He furrowed his eyebrows at me.
"Really?…Did Izzy say something…" He stopped mid-sentence.
"…Never mind…I shouldn't be asking you what Izzy said." I chuckled.
"It's ok, she didn't say anything, I just assumed I guess, I mean, I thought they were spending tomorrow together too." I commented curiously. Jace chuckled.
"Kind of…She's spending the day with Aline to get out of doing physical labor…" I just furrowed my eyebrows at him.
"…Mom's birthday is coming up and it was actually Alec's idea, but seeing she's been on this massive cleaning kick lately, we're going to paint the house for her, the inside anyway. She's been saying she wanted it done for the last couple years now, but she thinks it's a waste of money to hire somebody to do it. As you can imagine, Izzy didn't want to help with the painting, but she offered to make sure mom's out of the house for the day. When I told Aline what we were doing, she wanted to help. Aline's not really into getting her hands dirty though, and I was afraid she'd be more harm than good if she tried to help us paint, so I figured if she spent the day with Izzy and mom, she'd feel like she was helping, but she wouldn't be in the way. So Izzy and Aline are supposed to keep mom occupied while Max, Alec, and I paint." I just looked at him quizzically. That wasn't exactly how Aline made it sound when I talked to her.
"So they're not spending the day doing…wedding stuff." I felt the word stick in my throat, but I managed to force it out. Jace shrugged.
"I don't know…Maybe…I just know they'll be gone all day. I don't think Izzy is too thrilled to tell you the truth. She's commented that she might opt to help us paint and just send mom off with Aline, but I'm not confident Aline will really be able to keep mom out of the house for the entire day. Besides, I think Izzy will be too afraid to chip a nail to be helpful. We're starting at 8:00 sharp and Alec doesn't want them to bring mom back until we finish. Alec thinks we can get the whole house painted in ten hours, but I think he's underestimating how much time this will take." I just furrowed my eyebrows at him.
"Oh." He gave me a huge smile and reached his hand out and placed it over mine.
"Help us?…Spend the day with me tomorrow?…" I would love to spend the day with him, even just to help him paint, just to spend time with him without Aline, but I wasn't sure that was a good idea. I scrunched up my face slightly and prepared to protest, but he quickly cut me off.
"…Let me put it this way, I'm kidnapping you. You're practically an expert; you can make sure we don't screw up…" I hesitated a moment longer.
"…Besides, don't you have a car sitting at my house?" I opened my mouth and closed it.
"Shit."
"I don't even know why you have to think about it…It's painting Clary, you love painting…Besides, I haven't spent hardly any time with you since Aline moved in…And I'll bring you to Cold Stone afterwards." I chuckled; I couldn't turn down that invitation.
"Ok." He smiled his perfect infectious smile and I couldn't help smiling back. I glanced down at the screen on my elliptical. I had lost track of time while I was talking to Jace and I hadn't realized I was on this machine for over an hour. I said a quick goodbye and jetted back up stairs. My workout endorphins were pumping through my blood and I was feeling a lot better. Actually, I'm sure a lot of my good mood was because I got to spend a little time with Jace and I was really looking forward to spending a lot more time with him tomorrow. It was also encouraging that Aline wasn't as close to stealing Izzy and Maryse away from me as I thought.
I had missed a couple text messages and two calls from Izzy while I was getting ready. Her last text said she was only fifteen minutes out. I had also missed a couple calls from her the night before, and now I was wondering if she was trying to warn me about Aline coming. I couldn't dwell on that right now. I quickly got dressed and headed into the kitchen to have a cup of coffee. I hadn't run into Aline all morning, but I assumed she was up and getting ready. I was just a few sips into my coffee when Izzy got there.
"Good morning-" I started, but Izzy wrapped her arms around my neck and held on for dear life as she cut me off.
"Simon had me so worried and then you weren't answering your phone." She started.
"You talked to Simon?" I questioned with my eyebrows furrowed as I pulled back.
"Just briefly, he called last night. He was so worried about you. I tried to call you, and then I tried to call you again this morning-" Izzy rambled, but I cut her off.
"It's ok. I'm fine" I said as I took a step back and Izzy walked in.
"Is this about Aline? Did she tell you?" She hesitated and I filled in the silence.
"Yes..." I started to nod and then quickly started to shake my head.
"…I mean no…She told me, but it wasn't about Aline…I mean I know she's going to the spa if that's were you were asking, but that's not why I was upset."
"So you are upset…Aline said you were sick-"
"You talked to Aline too?" I questioned hesitantly. She shook her head.
"No…She just text me last night to say you were sick and that it might just be the two of us…" I was taken aback.
"…I didn't know until last night that she was even coming. I didn't invite her Clary-" I just shook my head and waved her off.
"It's fine, really. Jace told me what happened."
"I just want you to understand…I know I said we would be hanging out and then when she heard we were going to the spa she got all excited. I tried to politely tell her she couldn't come, but she didn't take the hint…She called the spa herself and got put on a waiting list to get appointments…" I smirked just a little.
"It's really fine." I said again, but she just kept talking.
"…All of our appointments are together or at the same time. I bet we'll hardly see her. I fell horrible though." I reached down and scooped up Izzy's hand and squeezed it.
"It's really alright…" I said sincerely, and I believed that, I believed it would be alright. She squeezed my hand back as she exhaled a breath of relief.
"…Want some coffee?" I asked as I dropped her hand and walked toward the kitchen.
"No. Actually, we've got to run. My mom is waiting in the car."
"Ok, you want me to go tell Aline to hurry up? I haven't seen her this morning." I said as I took a gulp of my coffee. Izzy just looked at me thoughtfully for a moment.
"Did she say something to upset you? Simon said he's never seen you so miserable. If she said something…" She let the inquiry hang. I rolled my eyes and shook my head.
"No…Aline's a sweetheart, she's never mean to me. It's just the whole situation." Izzy nodded.
"Ok. Just tell me if she does anything or says anything. I don't think she's the angel she makes herself out to be…" I gave her a little nod. I was happy she was still on my side.
"…Now, about today…Do you trust me?" She asked me heavily. I furrowed my eyebrows at her.
"What do you mean?" She just continued looking at me with a serious expression.
"Just trust me today. I have a couple of appointments that you're going to try to get out of, but by the time we leave you're going to be drop dead gorgeous and feel as sexy as you look. I think it's about time you looked a little less like the girl next door and a little more like a girl that just walked out of a Play Boy magazine." I glared at her.
"So I'm getting a boob job?" I snapped sarcastically. She chuckled.
"Just trust me…Then we're going out to a club tonight. You can invite Sebastian to come if you want-" I just furrowed my eyebrows at her as I cut her off.
"I'm not trying to turn Sebastian on Izzy." I said as I shook my head.
"Fine! If he's just your friend, then maybe it's time you introduce him to me…" She said suggestively. I shook my head and rolled my eyes. I wasn't about to explain our plan to her.
"…That's what I thought. Just because you're not getting any, doesn't mean you don't want any." She said with a wink. I just shook my head and rolled my eyes again. Izzy was such a trip.
A short time later we were on our way to the spa and Maryse was explaining that there was a chance I might not sit with the family at the wedding. She was very apologetic and said she was still working on getting Robert's mother moved to another table. I told her that was very thoughtful of her, but completely unnecessary. She let me know that she was having a big family dinner on Wednesday to celebrate her birthday and was surprised Jace hadn't already told me all about it. She insisted I come and extended the invitation to Sebastian. I told her I'd be there, but I wasn't sure if I'd be bringing Sebastian.
Izzy really went overboard with spa appointments. Her mother must have spent a fortune on us. Aline really did have a completely different schedule than Izzy and I, and ironically, we really didn't see her all day. We had a yoga class to start, followed by a spin class, then an hour break where we just relaxed in the Jacuzzi. We continued our day with a 90 minute massage, followed by a facial, which were both really relaxing. We had another break, which we decided to shower and try to get some of the massage oils off of us, and then we followed up our showers with manicures and pedicures. We had another break before our bikini waxes, so we headed over to the meditation room. The spa was very fancy, and even though they carded Izzy and me for drinks, they didn't seem to bat an eye at our fake IDs.
"I'm just saying Clary…You need this…When we were back there in the Jacuzzi your jungle was escaping." I could feel my face getting red as I glanced around the meditation room to see if anybody could hear her. Of course it didn't help matters that she didn't tell me to bring a bathing suit, she had already bought me one, and that thing was tiny. I'm not one that normally cares what's going on down there, but Izzy already had the appointments booked and it looked like she wasn't going to let me get out of this.
"Izzy, people might hear you!" I scolded.
"Oh, are you embarrassed, because you should be embarrassed by that, I was…" I just kept feeling my face burning.
"…besides, this is your first step Clary, your first step of letting go of adorable little girl next door and embracing your smokin' hot new look." She said matter-of-factly. I felt like I was going to die. Two mimosas later I was a little tipsy and we were leaving the meditation room and heading over to get our bikini waxes. I was ready for this, maybe. I should have researched bikini waxes before I went, but I didn't know I was getting one.
"Hi Dorothea." Izzy said with a cheery smile as we walked into the section of the spa that does waxing.
"Hi Izzy, two Hollywood bikini waxes, Honeymoon style?" Izzy giggled and glanced over at me.
"She's not ready for that Dorothea…Why don't you go with the Hollywood on her, but just keep it Modest style and see how that goes." The women smiled and redirected her gaze to me. I might have paid closer attention to her if I wasn't trying to read the chart and figure out what The Hollywood was.
"Izzy…What's The Hollywood? I can't find it on the chart." I whispered.
"It's not on that chart. Those are just basic options, but they have so many more options at the spa I love in Paris, I brought this place a brochure once and I've been getting exactly what I want ever since. Don't worry. You'll love it." She said with a chuckle as she left with another one of the spa technicians. I would have loved to say it was painless, but it hurt. I was cursing Izzy's name during the whole ordeal.
"So?" Izzy asked as we walked down the hallway through the spa. I glared daggers at her.
"I feel prepubescent Izzy." She laughed.
"Oh no, you would have really felt prepubescent if you had the Honeymoon style bikini wax, they get rid of everything, and I mean everything." I furrowed my eyebrows at her.
"I really don't see how much more they could have waxed. There's practically nothing left down there." Izzy chuckled.
"Practically, but they didn't make you spread your legs, did they?" I gasped as I threw my hand over my mouth.
"That's wrong Izzy, that's so wrong." She just chuckled again.
Our last appointments were hair and makeup. Izzy wanted me to do something drastic with my hair, she begged me just to trust her, and I finally gave in and told her she could do anything but cut it or dye it black. I ended up getting chestnut lowlights and then the hair dresser decided to blow my hair out straight. Not only have I never changed the color of my hair, but I've never straightened it either. She parted my hair off to the side and added an angle around my face, but she said I wouldn't really notice the angle when my hair was curly. The color made my hair look a lot darker than I was use to, and even through it was just lowlights and not a complete dye job, it blended so perfectly it didn't look like stripes, which is what I was afraid of, it just darkened my whole head of hair. Near the roots looked a little striped to me, but Izzy said I was overreacting and the hair dresser said if it bothered me she could rewet my hair and make it curly. She said I wouldn't notice my roots at all with the curls. I figured I would just leave my hair straight for tonight; she already spent so much time straightening it. The dye was permanent, but my hair would be curly again the next time I got it wet.
My hair usually falls halfway down my back to just about my bra strap, but straightened, it fell to my waist. My makeup was done exceptionally well, but different than anything I've ever had done before. The beautician started with a foundation that made my face look like flawless porcelain. She plucked my eyebrows, which was painful, I've never let Izzy shape my eyebrows before, and she applied an eyebrow pencil that was a little darker auburn to make my eyebrows more prominent, and they looked closer to my new hair color. She applied the slightest touch of a purple eye shadow just close to my eyelashes before she lined my upper lashes with black liquid eyeliner. She lined my bottom eyelashes just slightly with a black pencil than smudged it to give the bottom a smoky look. She applied a liberal amount of mascara and as a finishing touch she put on bright scarlet red lipstick. I always hated the fact that Aline wore cheery red lipstick, and though the lipstick I had on wasn't that much darker than Aline's, there was something I liked about it. I could barely recognize myself. I looked like a model. I hardly ever wore lipstick, I usually just wore a slightly tinted lip gloss, but I decided to buy a tube of the lipstick I had on. As we were leaving the spa, a random guy walked up to me and gave me his number; never in my life has anything like that ever happened to me. Izzy and Aline were right there, and he gave me his number. I couldn't believe it. He was hot too.
Jace's POV
I was playing a game on my IPAD while I was lounging on the couch when Aline walked over with two glasses of red wine. I gave her a big smile as she put the glass of wine down on the coffee table in front of me and leaned down to give me a soft kiss.
"Well this is nice." I said as she sat on the edge of the couch and smiled back at me.
"So…" Aline started as I took a sip of my wine.
"…I was thinkin' we could go to that little Italian restaurant ya like tonight." I furrowed my eyebrows slightly as I put my wine glass down.
"I thought you didn't feel up to going out tonight…I thought that's why you didn't want to go out with Clary and Sebastian." Aline had told me that Clary invited us to come out to dinner tonight with her, Sebastian and Izzy, and then go out to a club, but Aline declined the offer before checking with me. She said she didn't feel like going. I hadn't seen Clary since this morning at the gym, and even though I knew she was in her room with Izzy right now, I didn't want to bother them. I still wanted to talk to her, more than the few minutes I talked to her at the gym, but I'd have to wait until tomorrow. Aline said she seemed much better today though, so that sounded promising. I would have still liked to spend the evening with her, even if Sebastian was there. Aline hesitated.
"I didn't feel up to goin' before, but now I do." I gave her a little smirk.
"We'll just let them know we changed our minds. It's not a big deal." She took a deep breath.
"Darlin', I don't really want to spend the evenin' with them. I don't even like goin' to clubs. I just spent all day with ya sister and Clary, and it was lovely, but why don't we just have a nice romantic evenin' just the two of us?" I sat up and brought my lips to hers for a few gentle kisses as I gently grazed my hand from her shoulder down the full length of her arm.
"How romantic?" I asked suggestively between butterfly kisses. She pulled back and gave me a hard look.
"Jace." She said in a warning tone. I took a deep breath and smirked at her.
"I'm kidding…" Kind of.
"…Everybody goes out on Saturday night. It will be fun…" I reached my hand up and cradled her cheek. I brought my lips to hers for another soft kiss.
"…Wouldn't you much rather go out then sit home?" I asked softly as I gazed into her eyes, but before she could answer the doorbell range. I would have ignored it and let Izzy or Clary get it, but Aline was already popping up off the couch.
"I've got it." She called out loudly, probably so Clary and Izzy heard her. I shadowed slightly behind her as she answered the door. She gave Sebastian a hug and a peck on the cheek. I exchanged a social handshake and offered him a drink as I invited him in.
We were all standing in the kitchen and I was pouring Sebastian a glass of wine, but as I went to hand it to him, his hand stopped advancing, and his eyes flicked past me. There was something about the way he just stopped reaching for the glass, the way he froze, maybe it was they way his eyebrows slightly rose, or the way his mouth fell slightly agape, but I found myself following his gave. Oh course, it wasn't all that surprising to see Izzy walking down the hallway. She was done up as always with a short tight black dress on and ridiculously high heels. Based on the look on Sebastian's face, I wondered if he had ever seen Izzy before. I turned back towards him. I made an intentional throat clearing and he blinked before he redirected his gaze to me.
"That's my sister, Izzy." I said as I handed him the glass of wine. He closed his mouth and nodded as he took the glass.
"I…Yeah…I figured…She's just…Not really what I was expecting…Clary said she was kind of like a female version of you, and I was assuming she was blonde I guess." He sort of mumbled out. I glanced over my shoulder again, but Izzy was walking back down the hallway, I didn't see any sign of Clary. When I looked back at Sebastian, he was just sort of craning his neck around me, I can only assume he was staring at Izzy's ass.
"My sister." I said again more firmly. He blinked and looked back at me.
"I heard ya." His eyes flicked past me again and this time his eyes really bugged out.
"What the hell man I thought you and Clary were a thing?" I said in a reprimanding voice. He had this stupid smirk on his face as he just sort of jerked his chin without looking at me. I glanced over my shoulder again and took a double take; I wasn't sure who I was looking at the first time. I expected to see my sister again, but this goddess was strutting down the hallway like a model on the catwalk. This time my jaw nearly hit the floor. The first thing I noticed was her hair, it looked so much darker, still red, but a darker auburn, and most drastically, it was pin straight with just the ends perfectly curled. She shook her head and ran her hand through her flowing hair as she walked; it was something I'd never seen her do before, and I could only absentmindedly think Izzy had taught her that move. I'd never seen Clary with straight hair and it looked so different on her, so spellbinding.
Once I could get past her hair my eyes were captivated by her red lips and I couldn't help the urge to wet my lips as I looked at hers. I got lost in her eyes all the time, but I'd never seen them this mesmerizing. The only thing that could pull my gaze away from her beautiful complexion was her body. The dress she was wearing was so short and tight that it looked painted on; I don't even know if that's technically a dress. I wanted her to turn around to make sure it completely covered her ass, or maybe I just wanted to check out her ass. Her dress was navy blue and had a simple halter spaghetti strap. I couldn't help thinking Clary's arms looked kind of toned, and the dress was so fitted, her stomach was completely flat. I swear I remember her having just a little tummy. I'd seen her this morning at the gym, but I wasn't really looking at her that closely, not at her body anyway. Even the other night, I was trying to remember what her stomach felt like when I was rubbing it, but I wasn't thinking about it like that at the time, I was just thinking of the fact she didn't feel well. She had on these high heels and the way she was walking, one foot in front of the other, like a runway model, and combined with how short the dress was, her legs looked longer, and toned, and hot, really hot. Then she was swinging her hips with each step, I didn't even ever notice she had hips, I mean they weren't that pronounced, but the way she was walking right now, I just couldn't tear my eyes away from her.
Now she always looked beautiful, but she looked so goddamn sexy right now. I wanted to tear that dress right off of her and grab onto those sexy hips as I crushed my lips to hers and threw her up against the wall. I wanted to run my hands through her hair and find out if it was as silky soft as it looked. I wanted to run my hands over her body and memorize every single one of her curves. I've wanted her before, but I've never wanted her with this amount of urgency. If she walked too close to me right now, there was a very very real possibility I would act on these impulses. There was no blood left in my brain, none at all. I was pretty sure I was pitching a tent right now, but I couldn't even focus enough to make myself move, to turn away from Clary, to discreetly reposition my junk, to do anything. I felt a hand firmly pat my back as Sebastian walked by me. The thought of Sebastian touching me when I was so turned on was enough to break my focus and pull me from my hypnotic trance. Sebastian walked over to Clary, wrapped his arms around her waist, and lifted her clear up off the ground.
"You look like every guy's dirty fantasy…" She just giggled and shook her head. I really didn't like hearing him say that, and I couldn't control the glower on my face. Though she did look like a fantasy, like my fantasy. God I wanted her, I really really wanted her right now.
"…I'm going to have to keep an extra close eye on you tonight…You look like you're asking for trouble…" She giggled again. I hated that he was making her giggle like that.
"…If I get all roughed up tonight trying to keep some sleazy asshole from pawing at you, you better nurse me back to health." She just giggled again. Oh yeah, he wasn't leaving the house with her dressed like that, not without me; and if he needed somebody to nurse him back to health, I'd pay for him to have a damn Registered Nurse take care of him.
"I think Aline's ready, but I'm just going to change my shirt. Just give me a minute." I said as I finally got enough blood back in my head to speak. I walked around Clary and Sebastian. I'm sure I didn't need to slam my shoulder against his as I walked by, but he was kind of in the way. I didn't even pay attention to Aline calling after me as I stalked down the hallway, but I wasn't at all surprised that she was following me. Izzy's hand suddenly latched onto my arm and she yanked me into Clary's bedroom as I walked by.
"What the hell?" I snapped. She crossed her arms over her chest, but she didn't seem fazed at all when Aline peeked in.
"Listen…" She snapped assertively.
"…You need to back the hell off and let Clary make some bad decisions." I crossed my arms over my chest as I glared back at her.
"Oh I don't think so!" I snapped.
"No more big brother…I'm serious…She wanted to invite you and Aline tonight, but I sure as hell don't want you there..." I just glared at her.
"…Your days of scaring guys away from her are over, you hear me…You want to be her friend, be her friend, but she's all grown up Jace, she doesn't need an overprotective big brother anymore." I was glaring daggers at her. I wasn't treating Clary like my sister; I'd never treated her like that. I sure as hell didn't think of her that way. The things I wanted to do to her right now were definitely not things siblings thought of doing. I just wanted her so badly right now. If I wanted her this badly what did that mean? Was it really just because I was so sexually frustrated? I hadn't had sex in almost two months and I was going out of my mind…Maybe if I just had sex with somebody else that would clear up how I felt about Clary…Dammit…That's a dick thing to think about doing…Just forget it…God, there was absolutely no way I could be thinking clearly with absolutely no blood left in my brain. I opened my mouth to go off on Izzy, but before I could formulate a single word, Aline spoke.
"I'm going to let Clary and Sebastian know were not gonna be comin' along after all." Aline said softly. I just looked at Aline for a moment with pleading eyes. I wanted to go, no, I needed to go. Didn't she understand that? I wanted to say something, to stop Aline, but I couldn't think of the right words to explain why it was so important that I went. Aline just turned and walked away. I felt a hand on my arm and I turned to see Izzy looking at me with a much softer expression.
"You know that's not the only reason Jace. You can tell yourself whatever you want, but the reason you scare every guy away from Clary isn't just because you're protecting her, you're possessive over her; you act like she belongs to you-" She said the words gently, but they still felt like a smack in the face. I scowled at her and ripped my arm out of her hand as I cut her off.
"That's ridiculous. I'm just looking out for her. Clary doesn't know what kind of guys are out there, she's too naïve, she needs me there for her, to keep an eye on her." I snapped. She took an exasperated breath and crossed her arms over her chest.
"I saw the way you were with her at the Country Club, you had to have her right in your lap to prove to Gab that she was yours, that's not the first time you've acted like that either, not by a long shot, but she's not yours Jace, she could be, but she's not." I felt my chest tighten, I couldn't think of what to say to contradict her.
"Come on, you're talking about Gab, what was I supposed to do?" I argued lamely, but she just gave me a heavy look.
"…I know you don't just do it around Gab…She's having a really hard time with the fact you're getting married Jace…" I felt like she was kicking me while I was down. I hated thinking about how much I was hurting Clary. I was trying to make this right; I really was.
"…She'll never get over you when you're always there to be her Knight in Shining Armor…Let Sebastian protect her tonight. He's definitely capable-" She was talking so gently, but I couldn't bear to hear what she was saying.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean? Capable of what? That asshole is not good enough for her, not even close. I don't trust him, not for a second. I know his type. It's only a matter of time before he hurts her." I snapped heatedly. She rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"God Jace, you're being such a selfish asshole!" She snapped somewhat loudly. My glare just intensified.
"And you're being a royal bitch!" I snapped back as I turned on my heels. She reached out and grabbed my arm again.
"You can't keep them both Jace, you just can't…It doesn't work that way…This isn't fair to either of them…I know you care about both of them, I know you do, but you need to make a choice. You've had two weeks to come to grips with the fact that Clary is in love with you…" I couldn't help it when my breath caught slightly in my throat. It was still somewhat shocking to think of the fact that Clary had those kind of feelings for me. I just kept hoping things would go back to normal between us, but what was normal? If normal was Clary hiding the fact she had feelings for me and me being oblivious, then I didn't want that.
"…Now you can either breakup with Aline and see what happens with Clary, or you have to give Clary some space so she can get over you…You're stringing her along, whether you mean to or not, the way you are with her, it just gives her false hope…" I opened my mouth, but I just closed it again. I couldn't find the words. I couldn't explain why Izzy was wrong. I couldn't distance myself from Clary, it was impossible, I just couldn't, but I didn't want to hurt her either, and I couldn't just sit back and watch Clary get hurt by some other asshole that wouldn't treat her right. It was a delicate balance, and Izzy didn't understand, she couldn't possibly. I didn't even know if I understood, so how was I supposed to explain it to her?
"…I know she's your best friend Jace, but you can't keep holding on so tightly…You're going to break a lot more than her heart, you're going to shatter her trust in men all together...I'm not saying it's an easy choice Jace, I'm just saying it's time for you to decide." I couldn't think of a single word to say. The thought of hurting Clary was more than I could bear, but I couldn't just break up with Aline either, I loved her. Izzy just gave me a heavy look for a long moment before she walked out of Clary's bedroom without another word. I hesitated for just a minute before I turned around to go after her, although I still wasn't sure what I was going to say, but I was taken aback to see Aline standing in the doorway. I had no idea where she had come from or how long she had been standing there. She crossed her arms over her chest and entered the room timidly.
"If ya feel our engagement was a bit hasty…" She began hesitantly with a slight waver to her voice. I could already see her eyes shining. I covered the distance between us and wrapped one arm around her as I brought my hand up to rest gently on her cheek. I gazed deeply into her eyes for a long moment before I spoke. I loved Aline, I did, and the only way I could see having both her and Clary in my life was the way things were now. If I broke up with Aline, she'd be gone, I'd lose her forever. I still had Clary, even though I was marrying Aline, I wasn't losing Clary, not completely.
"I love you." I said the words softly and the corners of her lips curved up as I brought my lips to hers.
A/N - I receive the nicest reviews! Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, favoriting, and following!
