Authors Note:
Not surprising at all, Jace plays the piano again in this chapter, and I was inspired by "The Journey" by Greg Maroney, I think it's a beautiful piece, and I suggest you listen to it when reading their part! Let me know what you think, and leave a review! It worked our perfectly that I got to this chapter right before the holiday season! :) Merry Christmas, and happy holiday's to everyone of you fabulous readers!
Also, I do realize I kind of make Jace really closed off when it comes to when things aren't going his way with his music, and I know you probably think he could share that type of stuff with Clary. I mean, they do live together, but Jace is also very private, and so is Clary. They are both used to building walls, and I promise that those walls will break in later chapters, but for right now, when it comes to Jace's music, and Clary's art, they really like to keep them to themselves, and they both totally understand that, and are working towards opening up to each other when it comes to that! Alright, here's chapter 17! I hope you all enjoy it! :)
Chapter Seventeen
Clary couldn't contain her excitement when Christmas break rolled around. She was going all out decorating their place. Celebrating Christmas in their new apartment meant everything to Clary. Things had been stressed the couple weeks of school, but with the holiday break she was hoping that things got back to normal between the two of them. Clary had finished her finals yesterday, but Jace had his last one today, so Clary took the opportunity to blast Christmas music, bake some cookies, and decorate the house. She wanted to save the tree so her and Jace could decorate it together. Clary was singing along with whatever Christmas song was on the radio when she heard the front door slam. When Clary turned around she saw Jace storm past her. He said nothing, and a moment later she heard another door slam, and she assumed it was their bedroom door.
Clary knew that Jace needed some time to cool off from whatever was bothering him, so she continued to bake. Seeing Jace this stressed concerned Clary, he had always had a lightness to him, and for the past couple weeks his attitude has changed, and he's nothing but dark, and it scared her. All Clary could do was be there for him as much as she could and hope that he opened up to her about what was stressing him out so much.
Jace didn't want to talk to anyone. He was pissed, and upset and not in the mood to be around cheer. When he got home and heard the Christmas music he wanted to break the radio. He didn't know why he had been so irritated lately, but everything just seemed to push his buttons, and his classes were kicking his ass. He didn't want to flip shit on Clary again so he simply just ignored her and went straight to their room. He immediately got in the shower hoping that it would rinse away some of the stress.
It worked a little, but Jace still felt incredibly stressed. When he got out of the shower he noticed that the music was not playing anymore. After he got dressed he emerged from their room and made his way out to the living room where he saw Clary sitting on the couch sketching. He sighed and smiled to himself. He looked around their place and realized that Clary had been decorating their place for their first Christmas here as a couple, and he couldn't help but feel happiness for the first time in weeks. She was doing everything in her power to make this holiday special, and he'd been nothing but a Grinch.
Jace walked over and sat on the coffee table in front of Clary. He looked into her eyes and she smiled at him, and Jace couldn't help but smile back at her. Her happiness was infectious and he'd been so preoccupied with school that he forgot how bright her smile truly was.
"How was your final?" She asked and Jace hung his head.
"I messed up." He said and Clary swung her legs over the couch and took his hands in hers.
"How badly?" She asked.
"The first chorus was completely wrong, and I knew I should have changed it, but I wanted to challenge myself." He said and Clary smiled at him.
"Maybe your professor will admire that you took a risk, and tried to challenge yourself." She said and Jace shrugged. "I'm really proud of you Jace. I bet that piece was incredible."
"Would you like to hear it?" He asked and Clary smiled and nodded. Jace took her hand and led her to his piano room. When they sat down Jace took a deep breath and started playing.
Clary was mesmerized by his finger like she was every single time he played for her. They glided over the keys like they were a part of him, and the music that was flowing out of the piano was beautiful. She couldn't believe how truly talented he was. One of Clary's favorite things in the world was listening to him play. She looked up from the keys to look at Jace and she caught him so completely caught up in the music he was playing. She could see how truly swept away he was when he played the piano.
When he was finished he took a breath before opening his eyes. He looked at Clary and she had the biggest smile on her face. He had just played it perfectly, and as much as he wished that he played it like that for his final, he was happy that he was able to play it perfectly for the love of his life.
"Jace, that was absolutely brilliant." She said and Jace smiled. "I'm serious, you amaze me every single time you play."
"I didn't mess up this time." He said and Clary laughed.
"Even if you did I would have thought it was beautiful. I'm amazed at how much you've grown since attending Juilliard." She said as she pressed her lips to his.
"It's a pain in the ass most days, but after playing that, knowing that I created that, and how much time and energy went into it makes me incredibly happy. I know I wouldn't have been able to do it without the professors at that school." He explained and Clary smiled at him.
"You are far more talented than you give yourself credit for Jace. And your professors know that. I see what they write on your sheet music Jace. You are constantly surprising them and amazing them with how talented you are."
"You know I'm a perfectionist. Especially when it comes to my music. If I'm not doing it perfectly, I might as well be doing it wrong." He said and Clary laughed.
"That piece of music Jace, was a masterpiece, and I am so incredibly proud that you created it." Clary said and Jace smiled. He leaned over and pressed his lips to hers.
"I'm sorry I've been so moody lately." He said and she smiled.
"I understand. Trust me, you aren't the only one who is picky when it comes to your craft. I started my final over three times before I was satisfied with the outcome." She said and he smiled.
"That sucks. How did it turn out?" He asked.
"You wanna see it?" She asked and Jace nodded enthusiastically. Clary took his hand and led him to their room. She walked him to the closet and when she opened it, she walked in and grabbed the canvas that she had stored in there. When she walked back out she took a deep breath before turning it around.
The moment Jace laid eyes on that piece of artwork he was in awe. He knew Clary was talented, but he didn't know how talented until he saw this piece of work. It was one of the most beautiful pieces of landscape that he had ever scene. Without the ability to create physical water, she still managed to capture a rainy day in New York absolutely perfectly. When Jace finally looked back up at Clary he could see that she was scared of his response.
"That is absolutely beautiful Clary." He said and she smiled.
"We had to pick any random day and paint it. I personally don't really like landscape portraits, but that's what this class focused on so I had to do it." She said and Jace laughed. "I don't know if you remember this day or not. But we had decided to take a walk and it started down pouring out of nowhere."
"I remember." Jace said and she smiled.
"We started running back here until somewhere along the way we started dancing in the rain. We were laughing until I could barely breath, and I don't think I've ever had that much fun in a storm." She said and Jace smiled. "I picked it because that was the first time that I could truly see you so carefree since we started school. Obviously I couldn't add people, otherwise the focus of the painting would have shifted, but when I look at it all I see is us dancing and laughing together." She said and Jace instantly felt horrible. He knew that he had been a total nightmare the past couple months, and Clary had been incredibly sweet about it, and he didn't even thank her.
"I'm sorry I've been such a nightmare. I've just been so stressed, and I let it get to me." Jace said and Clary smiled. She put the canvas down and made her way over to Jace.
"It's okay Jace. I haven't complained have I?" She asked and Jace shook his head. "I do wish you'd open up to me more, but I get that opening up about your music is hard for you. It's just a personal part of you, and sharing that is tough, but I'll always be here to listen when you're finished a piece, or whenever you're ready for me to listen." She said and Jace smiled.
"What did I do to deserve such a patient girl like you?" Jace said and Clary laughed.
"I don't know." Clary said and Jace laughed.
"Since we're both done with our finals, why don't we have a long overdue movie night." Jace said and Clary smiled.
"I'd love that." They made their way into the living room and got everything ready. Jace and Clary both knew that living together wasn't going to be easy, and these last couple months have proved that, but that didn't mean Clary or Jace regretted it. They loved living together, despite the disagreements.
~/~/~/~/~/~/~
"We aren't making it home for the holidays are we?" Izzy asked as she looked out the window of their apartment.
"I don't think so Iz. We wouldn't even make it out of the development at this rate." Simon said and Izzy sighed. "I know you were looking forward to going home, so was I, but that doesn't mean Christmas and Hanukah are ruined." Simon said and Izzy turned to look at him.
"We don't have anything for the holiday's Simon. We were both expecting to be home." She said and Simon nodded.
"We'll improvise. I'm not going to let our first holiday season as a couple go to waste just because we're in the middle of the worst winter Connecticut has ever seen." He said and Izzy laughed.
"Telling our moms is going to suck." Izzy said and Simon nodded in agreement. "They were looking forward to us coming home."
"We can't control the weather Iz." Simon said and Izzy nodded. "Why don't we call one at a time and deal with them together." Simon suggested and Izzy nodded. Simon grabbed his phone and they both took a seat on the couch. Simon dialed his moms number and put it on speaker.
"Hi Simon." She beamed from the other end of the phone.
"Hey mom. You're on speaker and Izzy is with me." He said.
"Hi Izzy." She said and Izzy smiled.
"Hi Mrs. Lewis." Izzy said.
"What's up you two?" She asked.
"I have some bad news. Izzy and I won't be able to make it in for the holidays." Simon said and they could hear her sigh.
"Why not?" She asked.
"We are currently experiencing the worst winter Connecticut has ever experienced. The roads are a disaster, and we were in a state of emergency a couple days ago. I think it would be safer if we just stayed here." Simon said.
"Okay honey." She said and Simon could tell she was upset. "Stay safe."
"I'm really sorry Mrs. Lewis. We were looking forward to coming home so badly." Izzy said.
"I know you did sweetie, and it sucks that there had to be a snow storm." Mrs. Lewis said.
"Thank you for understanding mom." Simon said and he heard his mom let our a little laugh.
"It's not like you can control the weather." She said and Simon and Izzy looked at each other and laughed. "What's so funny?"
"Simon said the same exact thing." Izzy said which caused Mrs. Lewis to laugh as well.
"That's my boy. Alright kids, we'll talk soon. Like I said, stay safe." Mrs. Lewis said.
"Of course mom. I love you." Simon said.
"I love you too Simon." She said and they hung up. Izzy than took her phone out and dialed her mom and out it on speaker.
"Hello?" She answered after a few moments.
"Hey mom, you're on speaker and Simon is with me." Izzy said.
"To what do I owe the pleasure of your phone call?" Maryse asked.
"We won't be able to make it in for the holidays." Izzy said.
"Why is that?" Maryse asked.
"We're in the middle of a blizzard, and the roads are terrible." Simon explained.
"That sucks." She said which caused Izzy and Simon to laugh.
"We just wanted to let you know. We thought it would be safer to stay off the streets until they told us it was safe." Izzy said.
"I understand sweetie. Christmas isn't going to be the same without you." Maryse said.
"I know mom. And it sucks we can't come home. Simon and I are both really bummed." Izzy said.
"I understand. Well, stay safe, and warm, and have as great of a holiday season as you two can." Maryse said and Izzy smiled.
"We will mom. We'll talk soon. I love you." Izzy said.
"I love you too Isabelle." Maryse said and they hung up. Izzy looked at Simon and smiled.
"Well, I guess we're going to have a strange Merry Hanukah this year." Izzy said and Simon laughed.
"We'll make this a great holiday Iz." Simon said as he pressed his lips to hers. Izzy nodded and than the power went out.
"Great. We're going to freeze now." Izzy said and Simon laughed.
"The best form of heat is body heat." Simon said and Izzy laughed. Izzy grabbed all the blankets they had while Simon started a fire. They both curled up on the couch and sat in the silence. They looked out the window and watched the snowfall. Maybe this wouldn't be such a bad holiday season after all.
~/~/~/~/~/~/~
Alec and Magnus were making their way to the Lightwood house for the holidays and Magnus was pretty excited. He hasn't celebrated a holiday with a family in years, and to finally have that back was really awesome. Alec on the other hand was a little nervous. This was the first Christmas without Max, and it was really weighing on Alec's heart this season. Magnus could tell that something was bothering Alec but he wasn't going to push Alec into telling him, when he as ready he would tell Magnus but for right now, Magnus was just going to be there silently for Alec as much as he could.
When they got to the house it looked absolutely spectacular. Magnus was completely in awe with how festive it looked. He had the biggest smile on his face while he was taking in the whole sight. When Alec looked at Magnus smiling he couldn't help the smile that spread across his face as well.
"Was Christmas not a big thing with your growing up?" Alec asked and Magnus looked at him.
"We didn't do any holidays. My father didn't like them, and my mom just went along with it. She didn't want to piss him off." Magnus explain.
"Be prepared, because my mom loves Christmas." Alec said and Magnus smiled.
"I can't wait." Magnus said. Alec took Magnus's hand in his and led him inside. If Magnus thought the outside was spectacular, the inside was nothing short of extraordinary. Everything was decked out in red and green and white. It looked like what Magnus had always imagined Christmas was supposed to look like.
"Magnus, Alexander, I'm so glad you were able to make it!" Maryse said as she entered the hallway.
"We wouldn't miss it for the world mom." Alec said as he gave her a hug.
"Jace and Clary should be here shortly, but I'm afraid Simon and Isabelle are stuck in Connecticut." Maryse said and Alec frowned.
"What happened?" Alec asked.
"Huge snow storm. The worst Connecticut has seen in years." Maryse said and Alec nodded in understanding. "It sucks, but I want them to be safe, and if that means they have to stay in Connecticut, than that's where they have to stay." Maryse said.
"Well, you have Jace and I, plus Magnus and Clary, so it should be a good holiday." Alec said trying to cheer his mother up.
"Right you are Alexander. Can I get you anything to drink?" She asked.
"You know what I like, what about you Magnus?" Alec asked.
"I'm good with pretty much anything." Magnus said.
"I have this great bottle of red wine, would you care to try it?" Maryse offered.
"Sounds lovely." Magnus said and Maryse smiled and made her way into the kitchen.
"I'll give you the tour." Alec said.
"I've been here before Alexander." Magnus said with an amused smiled.
"Yes, but you haven't seen our Christmas tree." Alec said. He grabbed Magnus's hand and pulled him towards the living room. When they entered it was more than Magnus could take in.
"Wow." Magnus said and Alec smiled.
"Told you it was amazing." Alec said.
Magnus walked around the living room looking at the tree. It was the most amazing Christmas tree that he's ever seen. When he made his way fully around he saw Alec looking at the fire place with the stocking. There was one for every child, including Max. Magnus went over and took Alec's hand in his. Alec looked over and gave him a sad smile which Magnus returned.
"It didn't seem right leaving it in the boxes downstairs." They both heard from behind them. Maryse was standing there with a wine glass in one hand, and a small glass of whiskey in the other. "He might not be here physically, but he's always going to be present in this home." She said and Alec nodded and looked back at the stockings.
"You added a few more stockings I see." Alec said and Maryse made her way over to him.
"I would have mailed Simon and Isabelle's if I knew the weather was going to be horrible. I feel like it isn't Christmas without stockings." Maryse said and Magnus and Alec took their drinks.
"You couldn't have known mom, plus isn't Simon Jewish?" Alec said.
"That doesn't mean he can't have a stocking." Maryse said and Alec laughed. "I'm glad you're here Alexander."
"Me too mom." Alec said. Maryse smiled at him and than left the room.
Magnus walked over and put his hand on Alec's shoulder. This Christmas was definitely going to be different, and the loss of Max would be weighing heavy on all their hearts but Alec was glad that he got to spend this time with his family, and Magnus. He was sad, but he knows that Magnus was still here, and looking out for them no matter what. Alec pulled Magnus towards him and pressed his lips to his.
"I love you." Alec said when he broke apart and Magnus smiled.
"I love you too." Magnus replied. At that moment there was a knock on the door, and he immediately heard Jace's voice. He smiled to himself, lucky that he still had the rest of his family to celebrate with, and Alec was grateful for that.
Authors Note:
One more before I go, I'm going to be out of town for a couple days so I probably won't be updating anything besides this story until after Christmas! I promise though, after Christmas I will update as much as I can to make up for the lack of updates because of my time out of town! Happy Holidays to you very lovely readers! :)