Chapter Thirteen
"Mom, can you please just listen to what we have to say?" Clary asked as her and Jace stood in the kitchen of her house trying to convince her mom to let Clary and Jace live together when they went to school.
"Clarissa, you're 18 years old. That's too young to move into an apartment with your boyfriend." Jocelyn said.
"But mom, it just makes sense." Clary said.
"What makes sense is for you to move into the dorms and get a roommate. You know, like most college freshman." Jocelyn said.
"First off, you know how I handle strangers. Second, you know how crazy my mood gets. One minute I'm fine, the next I'm the hulk. I'm still trying to deal with everything that happened with Jonathan and the trail. Skipping the whole roommate thing and trying to get along with a bunch of girls that probably won't even like me would be so much better for me." Clary explained and her mom took a breath.
"Living with a boy can cause so many temptations Clary." Jocelyn said and before Clary could speak Jace started talking.
"Jocelyn, I promise you I would never do this just so Clary and I could do whatever we wanted too." Jace said and Clary could tell he got her moms attention. "I can't picture spending four years apart while attending college. I know they are close, but being with Clary is the first thing that's ever felt right in my life." Clary smiled as Jace pulled her into his side. "I mean, if we did end up staying at our own colleges I guarantee we would actually just make a schedule and spend every night together regardless."
"This relationship is still so new." Jocelyn said.
"Mom, I get you're worried, but Jace and I haven't had sex." Clary said flat out and Jocelyn's eyes widened. "We aren't going to have sex until I'm ready. So you really don't have to worry about that."
"That's only one reason why I'm worried." Jocelyn said.
"What are the other reasons?" Clary asked.
"For one, you both are 18. That's so young. I get that you two don't want to be apart but living together is totally different. I also don't want this to distract you. Living together will be new and fun and you aren't going to want to do anything but cuddle on the couch, and watch movies together. Your work will suffer." Jocelyn said.
"Mom, I think you're completely forgetting how incredibly hard school is going to be for the both of us. Jace is going to Juilliard, he can't slack off there, and I want to be an artist, I'm going to have to work my ass off to make in that industry." Clary said and her mother took a seat at the kitchen table. Jace and Clary joined her and Clary reached over and took Jocelyn's hands in hers. "Mom, you know me, and you know how dedicated I am to my art, and trust me, if you ever get the chance to hear Jace play, you will see how dedicated he is to the piano. We both want to enter really cut throat careers and we'll have to be completely focused in school to get there."
"I'm just worried Clary." Jocelyn said.
"I know you are, but I promise, we'll talk all the time, I'll send you my grades to show you that I'm dedicated. You can have dinner with us once a week, Maryse and Robert can come too. I want this mom, and I have never asked you for anything before. Hell, I'm begging mom. Please let us do this." Clary said and Jocelyn took a deep breath.
"Promise you'll take care of her Jace?" She finally said.
"You have my word Jocelyn. Trust me, my number one priority is always Clary, and how safe she feels, and how loved she feels. Getting a place together isn't some rebellious thing we want to do to piss our parents off. We want it because we love each other and we want to be able to come home to each other and being apart would honestly kill me."
"Mom, we're ready for this. We aren't some high school couple that's going to break up after we graduate. We want to be together, and we want to be there for each other no matter what and living together just makes sense for us." Clary said and Jocelyn hung her head. After a few minutes she looked up and locked eyes with Jace and Clary.
"And Maryse and Robert are okay with this?" She asked.
"Yea. Maryse is really excited to go apartment shopping. They are actually going up to Connecticut this weekend to find an apartment for my sister and her boyfriend." Jace said and Jocelyn looked at him.
"Izzy and Simon mom." Clary clarified but it seemed to only confuse her more.
"Where are they going to school?" Jocelyn asked.
"Yale." Jace said.
"And Simon's mom is okay with that?" Jocelyn asked Clary.
"Yea. She's glad that Simon won't be alone up there, and she loves Izzy. She thinks she's like the best thing that's ever happened to Simon." Clary laughed and Jocelyn smiled.
"Okay, you two can do it, but I want to come search for places with you, and I am holding you two to that dinner once a week thing." Jocelyn said and Clary got up and hugged her mom.
"Thank you mom, and we'll let you know when we go out and look." Clary said and Jocelyn smiled.
"You're growing up so fast." Jocelyn said as she tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear.
"But I will always be your little girl mom. No matter what stage of life I am in." Clary said and he mom hugged her again. When they pulled apart Jocelyn looked at her and Jace and smiled.
"I have to get to work, but I'll see you two later. Jace, you staying for dinner?" Jocelyn asked.
"I'd love to." Jace said and Jocelyn smiled. When she left Jace and Clary took a seat on the couch and Jace turned on the TV. After a few minutes Jace smiled to himself. "Can you believe this is happening? In a couple months we're graduating and we will be living together."
"I know, but I can't wait." Clary said and Jace smiled. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. They both couldn't believe this was actually happening but they didn't want to dwell on what could have happened. They couldn't wait to search for a place to live and start that new chapter of their lives together.
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Simon and Izzy had a tour at Yale today while Maryse and Robert scoped out places to live close to campus but also acceptable to Maryse and Robert's standards. Simon and Izzy walked into the admissions office and talked to the receptionist. A couple minutes later a guy walked out and started eyeing Izzy up and Simon didn't like it at all. When they started the tour Simon grabbed Izzy's hand and she smiled and gave him a kiss on the cheek.
They started with the Fashion department and Simon could see how incredibly awestruck Izzy was with the department. She had the biggest smile on her face and it made Simon happy to see her so happy. Simon doubted that Izzy was even listening to the tour guide. She was looking at everything and admiring all the artwork and it made Simon smile more than anything.
When they got to the engineering department Izzy could see how excited Simon was. She knew this was what he wanted to do and seeing where he was going to be spending the next four years made Izzy really happy. She knew they would both be extremely busy but being able to see what he could be doing one day was really cool. When the tour was finally over both Izzy and Simon were really happy that they were able to attend this university and the fact that they were going to be living together made it even better.
"So, I hope you both are eager to start here in the fall. I wouldn't want to be at any other school." He said and Izzy and Simon both smiled. "Maybe when you start we can get together." He looked directly at Izzy and she was shocked.
"You do realize that I'm with my boyfriend right now." Izzy said. "You literally have seen us hold hands, and I can't even tell you how many times I've kissed him today."
"So?" He said and Izzy laughed but Simon knew that it wasn't a good sign.
"You think because you go here that you have the right to speak to girls anyway you want? You think going to Yale gives you extra brownie points with the ladies?"
"I mean, most girls find it impressive." He said and Izzy started getting angrier.
"I guess it doesn't work on the ladies here at Yale. Being a Yale student doesn't really impress other Yale students." Izzy said and he laughed.
"You're the first hot girl to come around here in a while. Plus, everyone knows you're only with this nerd because he'll probably make a lot of money one day." He said and Simon knew that pissed Izzy off. He grabbed her hand a little tighter so she wouldn't lunge at him.
"You know nothing about our relationship." Izzy nearly yelled at him. "He is the best guy I've ever known and the first guy that has ever truly cared about me. I don't care how incredibly hot guys can be, if you are a total douche who doesn't care about women, you are automatically one of the most unattractive guys I've ever seen." Izzy said and she pulled Simon towards the door. She just wanted to get out of there. But before she left she turned around. "Plus, I don't know about you, but my nerd is one of the sexiest guys I've ever seen." She said and they left. When they got far enough away from the building they stopped walking.
"Are you okay Iz?" Simon asked.
"Yea, he just pissed me off." Izzy said and Simon pulled her into him.
"I could tell, but you never have to see him again, so you're good." Simon said and Izzy smiled.
"You know I'm not with you because you could potentially be rich one day right?" Izzy asked. "I love you, and I want to be with you because you make me happy and you make me feel loved and worthy."
"I know Izzy. I love you too, and no rich douche can try and convince me that our relationship is that shallow. Plus you don't need me for the money I could potentially get. You're already rich." Simon said and Izzy laughed. Simon pulled her into a kiss and Izzy felt all that butterfly feeling like she did every time. A car pulled up next to them and Maryse rolled the window down.
"We found an amazing place. It's like 5 minutes away and it's a cute two-bedroom place. We figured the second bedroom could be turned into your fashion studio or something. Get in, we'll go see it again. We already told them we were interested. Apparently it was going fast, and they loved our offer." Maryse said and Simon and Izzy laughed and got in the car.
When they got to the apartment building Simon was in awe at how impressive it was. He could tell this place was expensive to live in, but he should have know that the Lightwoods would want the very best. They got to the apartment and opened the door and he was even more impressed. The place was beautiful and looked like it had never been lived in.
"They just built this place, so the apartments are brand new. It's not very pricey but if you need anything fixed don't be afraid to do whatever you need too to get it done Isabelle." Maryse said and Izzy nodded. Simon started to walk around and look at the place, and he was so lost in his own head that Izzy had to grab his arm to break him out of his mind.
"Are you okay Simon?" Izzy asked.
"This place is insane." Simon said and Izzy laughed.
"Well, Yale is in a pretty prestigious part of Connecticut." Izzy said and Simon smiled.
"I don't think I can afford this place Izzy." Simon said and she smiled at him.
"Of course you can't. We never expected you to chip in. My parents bought this place. Once we graduate we can sell it if we want to move or we can stay."
"Your parents bought this place?" Simon asked.
"Of course. Renting is a waste of money in my parents opinion. They would rather buy and deal with selling it when need be." Izzy explained and Simon nodded. "Come on, let's go check out our room." Izzy said and Simon smiled as she dragged him into the biggest room. Simon was shocked that her parents bought this place for them, but I guess he really shouldn't be. They had the money to do it, and Simon wasn't complaining. He got to live here with his girlfriend and go to his dream school. Life for Simon and Izzy could only go up from here, and they were both excited to start living it.
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Magnus was sitting in his fashion class working on his latest sketch when the professor dropped a letter in front of him. Magnus grabbed the letter and looked up at his professor confused. She smiled and took a seat next to him.
"Your last mini collection got me incredibly inspired and my friend told me about a portion of New York Fashion Week that is going to be dedicated to up and coming designers. I sent the pictures of your mini collection and she absolutely loved them." She said and Magnus's heart started racing. "This letter is filled with al the details and your tickets."
"I'm going to be showcasing my work at New York Fashion Week?" Magnus finally said and his professor laughed.
"Yes. Of course it wouldn't be that collection, a different one that goes along wit the theme of Fashion Week." She said and Magnus looked at the envelope that was in his hands scared to open it.
"I don't even know what to say. Thank you so much for this opportunity." Magnus said and his professor stood up.
"It was my pleasure Magnus. You're extremely talented, and you deserve this shot." She said and walked away. Magnus was still stunned. He didn't know what to do, but he knew that he wanted to tell Alec right away.
When class was over Magnus made a beeline for his apartment knowing that Alec would be there. It felt like it took forever to get back to his apartment and when he finally got there and he opened the door Alec was nowhere to be found. He looked in the bedroom, the bathroom, the kitchen but with no luck he couldn't find Alec anywhere. Magnus sat down on the couch frustrated that the only person he wanted to tell was nowhere to be found. Magnus was just about to call him when the front door opened and in walked Alec.
"Where were you?" Magnus asked and surprised Alec.
"I wanted to make dinner, but we were out of some ingredients so I went to the store." He said and Magnus nodded. He couldn't be mad at him after that. He stood up and walked over and helped him put the groceries in the kitchen before he handed him the letter. "What's this?"
"My professor gave that to me. She said that this years New York Fashion Week is having a portion dedicated to up and coming designers, and I'm one of them." Magnus said and Alec nearly dropped the paper he was holding.
"Magnus, that's amazing." Alec said as he walked over and kissed him. "This is a great opportunity."
"I know, I was stunned. She said that I need to work on a whole new mini collection, which that letter specifies, but I get to show my work at New York Fashion Week."
"Magnus, I am so proud of you." Alec said and Magnus smiled. "What is the theme of New York Fashion Week?" Alec asked.
"I don't know. I haven't even opened that letter." Magnus confessed.
"Well, why not?" Alec asked and Magnus shrugged.
"It didn't cross my mind. All I wanted to do was tell you." He said and Alec grabbed his hand and led him to the couch. They sat down and he handed the letter to Magnus and smiled.
"Open it." Alec said and Magnus smiled and started opening the letter. He read through it and looked up at Alec.
"The theme is Winter, I guess they weren't going to be make it specific, and I can work with Winter. I'm one of 4 people who got this opportunity and the fashion show takes place in the end of summer. Weird that winter would be the theme but I'm not complaining."
"Magnus, this is amazing." Alec said and Magnus smiled.
"I need to start working on my sketches. I have so much work to do." Magnus said and Alec laughed.
"How many outfits do you need to make?" Alec asked.
"Well, it's a mini collection, so 5 outfits. But depending on how I want my collection to look, these outfits might get wild." Magnus said and Alec just smiled at how excited he was.
"I am so proud of you." Alec said again and Magnus walked over to him and gave him a kiss.
"I get three tickets. Would you like to be my date?" Magnus asked and Alec smiled.
"I would love too." Alec answered and that made Magnus even happier. "What are you going to do with the other three tickets?"
"I figured I'd offer them to your sister and her boyfriend. I know she's going for fashion and this would be an excellent opportunity for her. Not many fashion students get to see a fashion show."
"That's really nice of you." Alec said and Magnus smiled. They were quiet for a minute before Magnus remembered something.
"What were you going to make for dinner?" He asked and Alec laughed.
"I was going to make lasagna." Alec said and this coughed Magnus to smile even more.
"You are truly the best Alexander." Magnus said as Alec smiled at walked into the kitchen. And invitation to New York Fashion Week, and his favorite dinner all in one day? Yup, today was a good day indeed for Magnus.