I think it's in everybody's best interest to be informed that I listened to various Backstreet Boys songs as I wrote this chapter.

That is all.

Also, this chapter has a lot of mature things happening in it. If you are not of legal age or are easily offended by language or actions, please take caution in reading this chapter.

It was the Friday afternoon, and to say that I was nervous was literally the biggest understatement of the entire century. Every time I was reminded of my looming date, my palms began to sweat and my head filled with air, causing a severe case of light headedness.

I was just walking in the door when my cell phone buzzed in my pocket, making me jump and rummage through the loose denim. Jace's name was illuminated on the screen.

"Text me tonight or call when you get home"

No punctuation or anything, just one simple demand.

He hadn't really spoken to me since my little tirade a few days before, so I was a little surprised to see him texting me.

"Will do?" I sent back.

There was no following reply from his end, so I walked upstairs and opened the door to my bedroom to find a random girl lying on my bed.

I was about to yell at her for being in my house when I realized who it was:

Maia.

I hadn't seen her for quite a while it felt like. Her hair was exceptionally long, pulled back in braids against her scalp. Her skin was still the same beautiful darker color and she had a slight flush to her cheeks. "I was demanded to come over and help you primp," she announced, rising from her position on the bed.

I smiled, feeling a little confused.

SIMON.

"Simon, right?"

She nodded sheepishly, walking over to me and examining my outfit.

I was wearing loose fitting jeans, black converse that were so dirty you couldn't tell what color they were, a dark purple shirt with the words "gamers do it better" on it, and a cold chain around my neck.

"Really, Clary? Is the shirt necessary?"

I pursed my lips and dropped my backpack to the floor, hearing it crash. "It is completely necessary."

She rolled her eyes and walked behind me to the door. "I brought this."

I looked behind her to the garment bag hanging on the hook connected to the door. It was short, that was for sure. She pulled it over the dress, revealing the fabric.

It had no sleeves or straps and it came up in a heart shaped cut. It was black with shiny parts that looked like diamonds were interlaced into the fabric.

It was perfect for Alain Ducasse, but nowhere near my style. "It's beautiful, Maia. How much do I owe you?"

"Mmm," she murmured. "Nothin' sweetheart."

I shrugged my shoulders, not about to argue. "Okay, so, what's first?"

Maia looked me over and pursed her lips in thought. "Shower first, then we'll do hair and makeup. What time is everything goin' down?"

I looked at the clock that sat beside my bed on the table. It read 4:35, just a little after school got out. "He's picking me up at 7, he said. So I wanna be ready by at least 6:50 so I have time to hyperventilate properly."

Maia laughed loudly, making me shake my head in amusement. "All right, get your skinny ass in the shower and get all clean and what not. I'll be in here, getting your makeup ready and all that. Now hurry, go," she said, shooing me away.

I walked into the bathroom and shut myself in, locking the door. It wasn't like I was afraid that Maia would walk in, it was just a habit since Luke came to live with us. One time, he walked in on me in the shower and neither of us were the same again. Talk about awkward.

A little over half an hour later, I was emerging from the bathroom wrapped in a towel with a towel on my head drying my hair. I was getting increasingly nervous for the date tonight so I could not get my heart to stop beating furiously no matter how many deep breaths I took.

Maia sat at the desk in my room, tapping impatiently with a giant pile of makeup sitting in front of her. She looked at me and tsked, demanding that I sit down with a flick of her wrist pointing towards the chair she vacated.

I sat down, pulling the towel tighter around my torso. The bruise on my upper arm had faded to a disgusting looking yellow and Maia paused to glance at it. "What?"

She stared at my arm for a moment and gave me a questioning look. "It's just a bruise."

She made a noise similar to a snort. "I know what it is, Clary, I'm not that stupid."

I held in all further comments.

"Now, I'm gonna' make you look so hot, girl. Don't even worry about anything for the next half hour, got it?"

"Mhm," I mumbled, closing my eyes.

After Maia was finished with my makeup, she turned me around in the chair to face the mirror that was strategically mounted on the wall in front of the desk. "Open your eyes."

I opened them and was incredibly surprised to see myself. She had done something amazing with my charcoal eyeliner that mom had bought me the week before and made my eyes looks deep set and almond shaped. The darkness of the kohl brought out the intense emerald green in my eyes. There was a dark purple shadow on my lids and a pale shimmery color right underneath my eyebrows, making the purple pop against my eyes. My lashes were full and long, touching the top of my cheeks every time I blinked.

My cheeks held a faint glow, a very little pink on the apples of my cheeks.

I looked awesome and I knew it, so it took a little bit of the nervousness out of my body.

"You look hot, girl," Maia said from behind me. "I wish I had your eyes. They totally just pop out of your face with that makeup on."

I laughed, shaking my head and making the towel fall off the top of my head. I looked at my rumpled hair in the mirror and frowned. "I looked so good until my hair came out for a surprise."

Maia harrumphed and began to work on my hair, not letting me see what she was doing until the end. It was a little over forty five minutes later when she spun me back around and showed me her handy work. My hair was still curly, but the curls had definition to them instead of being unruly.

They sat on the back of my neck and down my back in an elegant side ponytail that tickled my shoulder blade.

"Wow," was all I could muster.

Maia shrugged and patted herself on the back. "No need to thank me, it's on the house."

I laughed at her and looked at the dress hanging on the back of the door. "Now for the dress."

Maia clapped, clearly excited for the final product. "Yes, yes, now for the dress!"

She had to help me get it on, on account of the fact that she would barely let me move my arms in fear that I'd ruin the hair she just did.

When it was on and secured, it was a little past 6:30 and I was beginning to get very nervous. I think Maia could tell, because she looked irritated as hell when I wouldn't stop tapping my foot on the floor looking in the closet for some shoes to go with the dress. "Oh my god, Clary, I'll find them. Just sit down and quit tapping that damn foot!"

I was shoved onto the bed lightly and started to bounce slightly, picking at my cuticles.

"Here," a shoe landed on my lap. "These are perfect." The other hit my shoulder.

"Ow!" I yelped, letting it fall on my lap.

They were about four inch purple pumps my mother randomly found on sale one year at DSW, and they were a death trap to walk in. I gaped at them and then at Maia, not really knowing what I wanted to say. "I hope you know that I will trip in even the IDEA of these shoes."

Maia shrugged and plopped herself down on the bed beside me, her flannel shirt rising to show her midriff. She let herself fall back against the pillows; much like Simon did, and huffed. "I don't care! You need to wear some sexy shoes to match that damn dress. I did not spend fifty dollars on a dress that you're going to wear flats with!"

I gaped at her again, shocked. "Fifty dollars? That is WAY too much! Please let me pay you for it!"

She shushed me, shaking her head and waving her hand in a dismissing way, much like I'd seen Izzy do in the hallways to her "friends". "No, no, I will not let you 'repay' me. It was a gift from Simon and I, kay?"

I nodded slowly, feeling my face scrunch up with anxiety. I slipped the heels onto my feet and stood, feeling so much taller than I had before. The heels coupled with the shortness of the dress made my legs look like they would go on forever, giving me a sort of Amazonian appearance. Aside from the fact that I was pale and not bronzed like most models, I could fit the description rather accurately.

Before I knew it, the doorbell rang and I felt my knees collapse from under me. I fell back onto the bed and let out a small shriek, feeling every nerve in my body tense and want to snap. "Jeez, chill out girl. I'll go get it. You try to make a nice and sophisticated movie-like entrance, okay? Okay."

I couldn't form a coherent sentence, so I just nodded and shooed her away with my hand. I needed to breathe for a moment, in and out in and out. I stared at the wall for a minute before getting up and grabbing the cardigan that sat folded on the dresser beside the door. There was a small leather purse that was in the chair right beside the door filled with small things that Maia thought I would need: my keys, some money(just in case), lip gloss, and a small but effective pocketknife.

I walked out of the door and slowly down the stairs before my feet could go cold and make me run away.

Sebastian stood at the bottom of the stairs in a finely pressed black suit, a stunning emerald green tie looped gracefully around his neck. His eyes lit up as I walked down the stairs and I grinned, feeling my nervousness dissipate. I managed to get to the bottom of the stairs without tripping, so I mentally checked off a point for myself.

"Wow," Sebastian's deep voice said. "You look stunning, as always."

"Mm," I mumbled, forcing a smile as I remembered WHO this was and WHY I said yes, instead of smiling like an idiot and feeling like jelly. "Always the charmer."

"Yes, I am. Shall we go?" He held out his arm for me and I wrapped my small palm around it, leaning in slightly to his side.

It felt like prom or some shit like that.

Maia had two thumbs up behind Seb's back and I stuck my tongue out at her, hearing a small chuckle come from Sebastian.

He led me towards his car and we drove away towards Alain Ducasse for our reservation.

"So," Sebastian began as we sat down at our table inside of the restaurant. "Have I mentioned yet that I am incredibly happy that you said yes to my invitation?"

I sighed, taking a sip of water that the waiter poured into my glass. "A few times, yes."

Sebastian grinned, looking slightly like a feral tiger ready to pounce…and I was his prey.

"Well, I'll say it again. I am VERY glad that you have accepted my invitation. You won't regret it."

Something about that statement made me instantly regret it, but another part of it made my stomach tingle with anticipation and anxiety.

"What shall we talk about, love?" Sebastian whispered, drinking water. "We have a few hours of conversation ahead of us."

I coughed, feeling my eyes bulge. Hours?

"Whatever you like, I guess," I mumbled, looking at my palms sitting in my lap.

We were seated as far back from people as humanly possible and I couldn't help but take stock of the fact that we were literally all alone in a back booth of the restaurant where no one could see us. "This is fancy…and secluded."

I instantly wanted to just off myself for saying that.

"Yes," Seb said. "And it's purposely done."

I couldn't help but smile sardonically. "Noted."

We sat in an awkward silence before a maître d' came and took our order. Sebastian ordered something in French, which I couldn't make out, and I ordered what I thought was chicken, but couldn't be sure of.

And it was chicken, thank god. When the food arrived at our table, I was so famished that I dug in, not entirely caring that we were on a date in a very nice restaurant. Sebastian chuckled at my ferocity and dug into his food as well.

I almost forgot why I disliked hi so intensely during the evening.

We had pleasant conversations that didn't leave me huffing in anger and he didn't seem as unintelligent as I gave him props for. All in all, I was pleasantly surprised that he wasn't a dud.

Sadly, I knew that I would be able to be with him, because the idea and thought of it sent shivers up and down my spine and made me want to vomit.

"So, Clare, how are you enjoying your evening?"

"Could you not call me Clare?" Only people I knew well called me Clare, and Seb did NOT.

He ignored me. "Are you?"

I shrugged, nodding a little. "I'm not anymore close to wanting to die than I was at the beginning of the night, but I'm not as nervous."

Seb grinned again, making me instantly nervous once again. "I see."

I looked down at the ground and popped my neck.

"Ever the lady," Seb murmured, reaching for my fingers that sat on the table. He began to stroke his thumb over my knuckles, making me want to pull my hand out if his with a burning passion.

"Heh, yeah, that's me."

He grinned again. "Let's get outta here."

I looked at the small watch that I had wrapped around my wrist before leaving, seeing that it was almost 10-o-clock at night.

I didn't have a curfew, but I knew that I didn't want to be out late at night with Sebastian. "Yeah, okay."

He led me out of the doors and into the parking lot where his car sat underneath a small garage overhang. He opened the door for me and ushered me inside.

I wouldn't have noticed him click the lock on the door if I hadn't been staring at it.

I didn't think it was possible to go from pleasant to terrified in less than three seconds, but I really did.

Seb slid into the seat smoothly and started the car, a new look shining in his black eyes. He started to move the car out of the parking lot into maneuvered it into the road, gliding down the street silently.

It wasn't until five minutes into the drive that I noticed we were going the opposite direction of our homes. "Sebastian, where are you taking me?" I asked, fear in my voice.

He chuckled, shaking his head. "Where the stars are really bright. You'll love it, I promise."

The hairs on the back of my neck rose on end and I peered out into the black night that passed by in a blur out of the window.

A few minutes later, I was gripping my purse tightly between my clenched fingers and my thighs were shaking with fear and my clenched muscles.

Sebastian parked the car on a tall cliff that admittedly had a beautiful view of the stars. I began to feel bad for doubting him when an audible click of the locks clicking into place again reverberated throughout the small interior. "Why did you do that?"

"Because you never know who could be up here at this time of night."

"But you're up here this time of night…" I let my voice trail off.

"Yes," he turned completely in his seat and sat back, eyes slumberous. "But I'm with you."

I didn't have time to process what he said before he lunged at me, causing me to jump back and smack my head hard on the cold window. I saw stars and shook my head, feeling the back of my noggin pound.

Sebastian had his hands all over me, pulling my dress towards him to plant his lips on my jaw. He worked his way down to my collarbone before I got the sense to smack him over the head with my bag.

It held my cell phone and few other heavy things, but it really made no impact on his actions.

I heard Seb growl against my throat and I tensed in fear. It had just hit me what was actually happening.

Seb was trying to rape me.

I started to shriek, hitting him and smacking his shoulders.

He placed his palm over my mouth and started to skim the rest of my body with his hands. They started to go past the end of the dress and tears blurred my eyes. I kicked out as hard as I could and heard a loud groan.

I had made an impact, apparently.

Sebastian reared and glared at me, his lips wet and an evil look in his black eyes. His hand raised back and he laid a hard smack against my cheek, making my head fly to the side and smack against the dash board.

His hands gripped mine tightly in a crushing embrace, throwing in against the door in anger.

"Don't you ever fucking do that again."

I cowered in fear and pushed as hard as I could against the door, praying that it would pop open magically.

No such luck.

Seb attacked me again, reaching up under my dress and ripping my panties from my legs. They flew into the back seat and I let out a sob as he began to touch me savagely.

I bit bag a cry and kicked out again, making him smack his head hard into the glass window, much like I did myself.

While he was momentarily distracted by the pain, I reached into my small bag and withdrew the knife. I flicked it open and held it helplessly in front of me. Seb grinned like an animal, a small trickle of blood leaking from his lip that I apparently had hit. "Bitch, you won't have any way to use that against me."

I reared back just as he lunged forward again and struck out with the knife, feeling it catch on his flesh. He let out a loud cry and smacked me again, making my jaw feel like it became unhinged. I cried out and felt rivulets of blood leak from various spots on my body.

I opened my eyes to see that Seb was bent over in his seat, his head resting on the steering wheel with his inky black hair falling around his eyes and face.

I managed to reach behind me and click the lock open on my door, pulling open the handle and falling out backwards onto the cold gravel.

Sebastian didn't have enough time to react before I was up and running to hide from him.

I heard him get out of the car, screaming my name over and over, becoming hoarse.

It took him well over ten minutes to realize he wasn't going to find me.

He sped away, kicking up gravel that hit me in the legs from my spot behind the bushes.

I fell back onto my behind, feeling the adrenaline race from my body just as a sob worked its way out of my throat. I reached blindly for my purse that I recalled yanking through the door with me as I fell.

I found it, grasping the phone that was half falling out of the bag. I clicked it open, seeing five missed calls from Jace.

I clicked redial, knowing tears fell down my cheeks. "Clary?" Jace's urgent voice filled the phone and I couldn't help the sob that wrenched out of my throat.

"Clary? Clary what happened? Clary where are you?" Jace asked too many question.

"Jace," another sob broke through much as Jace's name broke on my lips. "I need help, Jace."

"Where are you, Clare bear?" Jace demanded soothingly into the phone, making me breathe slower.

"I'm on the cliff. Ya know? Where you can see the stars?"

"Yes, I know which cliff." Jace's voice was tight with emotion and I could hear a door slam come from the other end of the phone. "I'm on my way."

I sat behind the bush, well off from the road, for ten minutes before Jace appeared in his car. His headlights washed over my body, making me raise my battered arms to shield my eyes from the light.

His car door opened and slammed shut and I heard crunching gravel as he ran towards me. "Oh god," he moaned, leaning down to inspect me.

I didn't know how bad the damage was, but I could tell it was really bad. I couldn't feel my face, arms, or legs and I was shivering from the chill in the air and lack of adrenaline. "Clary, I need to pick you up. Raise your arms for me, honey, come on."

Jace's arm slid around my torso and underneath my knees as he lifted me into the ground. The new height made pain reverberate throughout my body and I let out another sob as I buried my face in Jace's neck.

He smelled like sunshine.

"I'm taking you back, Clary. I have you, don't worry."

He placed me gently in the car and shut the door after buckling me in. He ran around to his side and slid in, cranking up the heat and reaching into the back of his small car to grab a blanket. "Here, baby," he gently draped the blanket over my body, cupping my bruised cheek in his palm and running his thumb over it. "I'm taking you to my house, okay? I don't think your mom wants to see you like this."

I nodded, feeling slumber wash over my body as the heat from the heater and blanket began to thaw my chilled bones. "Just take me away, Jace."

I closed my eyes and Jace leaned forward and placed a small kiss on my forward, sniffling. Was he crying? Hell, was I crying?

"I'll kill him, Clare. I'll promise."

I nodded, feeling his lips rub soothingly against my skin. "I'm holding you to that, Jace."

He revved the car engine and sped away towards his home, taking me away from this awful place.

Taking me to where I was going to be safe.

To where no one was going to hurt me or try to rape me.

He was taking me to where I needed to be.

With him.

A few things to say:

this was the longest chapter EVER. My heart hurts from writing it =[ I REALLY hope you guys liked it =] It was incredibly difficult to write, knowing what was going to happen.

I really hope that you guys liked this chapter. It took a lot out of me to write it, and I'm not gonna lie, I had to stop to take a breather about twenty times throughout it.

But here it is and here it will stay!

Love you all more than anything =]