She scowled at her reflection.
Her costume looked ridiculous.
She hadn't planned on dressing up; she hadn't even wanted to go, but Simon had nearly begged her, which was so out of character for him, that she had shrugged, agreeing a moment later with a what the hell? response.
If Simon was willing to go out of his comfort zone, then she could be too.
There was only one problem.
As a Ward of the State, she had no money to her name, and thus, she could not afford to purchase a costume.
Simon, always to the rescue, had dragged her up to his attic, and there she had sat for over two hours, bored out of her mind as he dug through box after box, trying to find one of his older sister's, Rebecca's, costumes.
The only one that fit was an angel, so she wore a shorter-than-she-would-have-liked white dress, a pair of glittery wings, and uncomfortable gladiator sandals.
A headband rested on top of her curls, a golden halo attached to it.
Simon was on his way to get her, along with Kirk, Matt, Eric, and Maureen, who seemed to be hanging around more and more lately.
It was pretty obvious that she had a thing for Simon. He was the only one who hadn't noticed.
With one last glance in the mirror, she flipped her hair, and stepped out of the tiny bedroom she could not call her own.
Her foster father lay passed out on the couch.
Clary stared at the man in utter disgust.
After their initial meeting, him slapping her across the face when she had tried to remove herself from the situation, he had gone out of his way to avoid her. Her swollen eye, and the cut on her cheek had not even begun to heal.
She hadn't bothered to cover them. Instead, she lied, easily, telling anyone who had asked that she had run into a door. Only Simon knew the truth, and like the amazing best friend he was, he backed her up, even adding himself to the lie, saying that he was the one who threw the door open, that he was unable to catch it before it could strike Clary.
Her phone buzzed, a text from Simon, telling her that he had arrived. She practically flew outside, eager to escape her hellish life, to have an unforgettable night with her friends.
She had no way of knowing just how unforgettable the night would be.