Chapter 12

'There's a new guy here and he's been looking for you.'

The text from Simon had been exactly what she'd been expecting up until that point. It's not to say the latter part of the text scared her beyond words or something drastic such as that, but the surprise and the slight warning that buzzed in the back of her head certainly registered within her mind.

Mostly, Clary was surprised a boy was looking for her. Though Clary had male friends, that's all they were and she generally wasn't sought after by people of the male persuasion, or anyone for that matter. Although, there had been that one time when a small boy, resembling a teddy bear of sorts, with his plump face and round nose, had thought she was his true love. That, however, was right before he found out there was a ten year age difference.

Clary had never had a boyfriend, or even anything close, so to hear that an unknown boy was searching specifically for her was, needless to say, a bit of a shock. But, once the initial bewilderment wore off, a more disturbing thought came to mind. How did this boy even know who she was?


Clary had then quickly read the rest of her texts, as well as listened to her voice mail, and had come across similar words. From Isabelle, Alec, and Magnus, she was told that the boy was highly attractive and 'honestly one of the most charming people'. This, as expected, came as quite a shock to Clary; not only was a boy looking for her, but he was good-looking and charming.

Coming from Alec, Isabelle's older brother, and Magnus, Alec's boyfriend, she knew Isabelle wasn't just exaggerating for her own sake. The boy was everything Isabelle had said. Apparently, according to her friends, his name was Sebastian.

At the mention of attractive boys, Clary couldn't help but let her mind flutter over to Jace. She wondered, briefly, where he was, but figured she wouldn't be able to find him anyway, as she had never been able to before. Sometimes Jace seemed like a bit of a recluse. She suddenly had a picture in her mind of Jace huddled in a dark corner, wrapped in a blanket, sucking his thumb, and singing too himself. The image caused a short burst of laughter to erupt from Clary's chest. Surely, in that moment, she had looked like the crazy one, laughing at what was seemingly nothing.

However, she was soon surprised by the appearance of Jace. She had been laughing at the time he walked in, but she was sure she wouldn't have been able to hear him anyway, and wonder quite how that was possible.
Jace looked over to her, gave her a questioning look, and said, "Something funny?"

The question brought a whole new round of laughter racking through Clary's body. The words hadn't even been that funny, but Clary laughed the kind of laugh that leaves only the glorious sound of happy tears streaming down cheeks in its wake.

"I don't remember them giving you laughing gas," Jace said, half-joking, half-serious.

It took Clary a few seconds to calm down and recall her breath back to herself, but when she did she said, " Why do I need laughing gas to have a good laugh?"

Jace leaned up against the wall and looked down upon her spot on the sofa, "I never said you did. It's just not very common for someone to laugh for no reason at all, when they're completely alone. Usually, it's just the crazy ones, which, I suppose, in your case, would be quite logical. Especially considering that last little episode."

It was clear to Clary that Jace was simply going, considering he had had no previous evidence. The gentle, yet confused smile on his face was also a big give-away. So, Clary merely stuck her tongue out at him and sat up. She then proceeded to re-pick up her phone and reply to all her friends.

Jace, of course, noticed and came over to sit next to her before asking, "Who're you texting?"

She replied with "Isabelle", as that was someone he knew and, as far as Clary was aware of, had nothing against.

He nodded slowly, lazily, and wondered aloud, "What about?"

At first, Clary wasn't sure she wanted to tell him, but thought back to her many previous moments spent pondering how to gain his trust. Surely, trusting him would be a sure-fire way to gain just that.

"Apparently there's some new guy asking around for me at school."

At that Jace sat up a little bit straighter, and Clary thought that maybe, just maybe, she could see a sheen of protectiveness shade his eyes.

"Why was he looking for you?"

And now Clary could clearly see his defensive stature, as he clenched his jaw and spoke.

"I'm actually not sure. Izzy doesn't know exactly why either."

His eyes flashed for a second before he calmed down, nodded his head, and said, "Tell me if you find out. Do you need anything?"

Clary shook her head. Then, upon the realization that she was actually quite thirsty, in fact so much that her mouth tasted bitter with the taste of a parched tongue, she was about to open up her mouth to say, 'Well, actually maybe some water,'when Jace got up and walked into the kitchen. Perhaps to make himself some. Though Clary was disappointed he had walked away, she couldn't help but feel pleased with his reaction. That was two times in one day Jace had shown he cared for Clary. At this realization, Clary's mind, heart, and stomach started tumbling.

Then, Clary got up to try and make herself some water. She tried not to put too much pressure on her burned foot, but even the lightest touch sent sparks up her foot, an unfortunate reminder of the real cause of her pain. By the time she got to the kitchen, Jace was already gone.


Hey guys! Sorry it took me so long to update. I was busy with Christmas, New Years and family visiting and just didn't have any time. Thanks to everyone who's reading my story :) I'll try to update soon. Until next time! xx

Actually, the only reason I updated today was because my sister wouldn't stop bugging me about it. She's pretty awesome, possibly the coolest, hottest person I know. So you should all really thank her. No really you should. She would love it.

That second part was my sister... if you couldn't tell... haha :D She edits my stories so she managed to squeeze that bit in... I guess I'll let her have her satisfaction... ;D Review! xx