A/N: Part 2 of chapter 9!

Thanks to everybody who reviewed - especially to cazdinsdale, Alania, allyrose0209 for all the kind words!

And once again thanks to stelesandwands for beta-reading :)

Quote: Taylor Swift, characters: Cassandra Clare

LoveIs A RuthlessGame –

"What?" Sophie said in a small voice; almost a whisper. All she heard was Gideon saying he didn't like her. Surprised by her voice Gideon spanned around.

"Sophie!" he said happily. Gabriel sent her a strange look. Her mouth was partly open. Had he just said that? Despite that she was surprisingly calm.

"Do you mean that, Gideon?" she just asked in a plain tone. Gideon opened his mouth – and did not close it, realizing what his brother had said.

What? Sophie thought. Can't he even say something in his own defence? Tears rose in her eyes. That meant that everything he'd done and said since they'd met were lies, right? That meant he didn't really like her. Slowly she backed up a few steps. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw others stopping, staring at them. She hated it, hated getting attention like that. So she turned around and sped away from the big room. Her head was down, trying to hide her scar. And her eyes.

Gideon stood still. It had all happened in weird slow motion. But he still couldn't do a thing. He stared into the empty air in front of him. She'd been so close. And now she was far, far away. But he could still reach her! If he just hurried… a flaming gaze stopped him after one step. Tessa held the door out, and her eyes said it all.

It was Gabriel who woke him up from his trance.

"Nicely done, brother," Gabriel said, having watched it all on the sideline. Gideon picked up a scone from his plate and threw it at him.

Sophie leaned against the lockers. Though her eyes were wet, she couldn't cry. With a bump she slid down to the floor, her back still against the lockers. She buried her head in her arms. She was supposed to go and get ready for a test, but right now that didn't seem important. An arm wrapped around her shoulders. If it's Gideon, I'll – Her thoughts were interrupted by Tessa saying:

"I hate to say this, but… I actually believed him too." Sophie did nothing. She just wanted to lie down on the dirty floor and curl up in a ball.

"You know," Tessa said, "It's not the end of the world. Always remember that. It feels like it, but it's not."

"I know," Sophie sighed. "I just - I don't know, I just fell for all of it. No one had ever said or done anything like that before." Tessa smiled.

"But did he say he loved you?" she asked. Sophie combed through her mind.

"No." Neither of them had said that, ever. "Is that a good thing?" she asked.

"Yes," Tessa replied honestly. "To love someone is a big thing. To say it to the person is even bigger. You immediately feel more connected. And compared to a crush, if someone you love breaks your heart, it's unbearable."But is my heart broken? Sophie thought. Did I love him? Do I love him?

To Sophie's surprise, life went on. She still had to get up every morning and go to school. She still came home to an empty flat and she still had so many unanswered questions.

That day had been worse than the others. Gideon would normally try to catch her gaze once or twice a day, but today she had felt his burning look at her back all day. And with that capturing her mind, there was no room for square roots and equations.

Secretly she wanted him to get up and declare his love to her in front of the whole class. Secretly. So secretly, she didn't even know it herself.

A week. A whole week without anything good and it drove him crazy. Every time he saw her, it seemed like a competition to act like who cared less. Scrawl something down in your notebook, pulling on your clothes, trying to look busy. Actually just trying to avoid having a clash in the middle of math class.

And it nagged him. Every single time he tried to catch her gaze, she looked away. He didn't get a chance to do anything. But he never stopped. He kept trying. One day she had to talk to him. Then she would understand that he loved her and if she loved him too, it was all just a misunderstanding that had lead to fallout. Wait… yes, he thought to himself. I love her.

A/N: Please leave a review! I can't thank you enough for those who've already done it!