Hey, guys! Thank you guys so much for all your love and support! You guys are literally the best! This chapter is where things actually start to happen, so I think you guys will like it! I don't have much else to say other than that...but...I will answer the question I asked last time. So, if we're talking pets, I have one super adorable Australian Shepherd named Shammy, but if we're talking about animals I have Shammy, two barn cats (Tig and Storm) and 10 cows, some named and some not. All of your guys' pets sound adorable! :)

Disclaimer: All rights belong to Cassandra Clare.

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Chapter 8:

Something was making this God awful beeping noise, and Clary wasn't waking up to shut it off. I groaned and nudged her with my hip, hoping that would wake her up enough to shut the damn thing off. No such luck. I peeked one eye open to see that she was laying there with her mouth ever so slightly open, a tiny snore breaking through every now and again. I had to admit that she looked peaceful when she slept. It made her look more innocent. I couldn't let myself disturb that.

I slammed my hand down on top of her alarm clock, having to practically lay on top of her to reach it, then glanced at the time displayed in neon green. It was six in the morning! Why in God's name would she have set an alarm for-oh, shit. She set it so that I could move to the floor and her mom didn't catch us sleeping in the same bed.

She started squirming beneath me, so I took that as my cue to get off her before she died from lack of oxygen. I scrambled off her and slipped off her bed. She had a pillow and a blanket laid out on the floor, like always-though, it was never used.

I thought about laying down on the makeshift bed and trying to go back to sleep, but I knew I never would. For starters, I was wide awake now, thanks to Clary and her alarm. And second, I knew that just being in the same room wasn't enough. I had to be in the same bed as her, touching her. We'd tried to sleep separate for a while when we were kids, but it made little difference. The nightmares came anyway.

The first few times I slept here and got nightmares, I didn't wake Clary up. I just sat up, alone in the dark, and waited for morning to come. But then after a while, they got worse. I started to scream, or cry out or something one night. Clary woke right up and practically leaped on top of me to wake me up. She held me all night long as we sat on her floor.

That was our routine for a while; we'd both try to get some sleep until my nightmares woke us both up. Then, when we were about twelve, the guilt got to me. I was racked with it, knowing I was ruining her sleep. I told her this, said maybe I should stop sleeping over. Tears filled her eyes. She yelled at me that I couldn't do that, that I couldn't ruin the tradition. She gave me some bullshit that it was bad luck to ruin a tradition. I pretended to believe her.

One night-I think we were about thirteen or fourteen at this point-Clary was super tired, because she had had a sleep over with Izzy the night before and gotten no sleep. She woke up when I had a nightmare, but we both knew she couldn't stay up with me all night. So she got off her bed, grabbed my hand, and dragged me up into her bed. It was a full, so it fit us both fine. She wrapped her little arms around me and fell asleep. Before I knew it, I was asleep too.

When I woke up in the morning, I damn near cried. Clary asked what was wrong. I didn't really want to tell her, incase she'd think I was a loser. Or, knowing her, she'd find a way feel guilty for something. But that stubborn girl pried it out of me. I told her that that was the first night in four years I had gotten any peaceful sleep. Clary's eyes filled with tears and she hugged me tight. From that point forward, I slept in her bed every Saturday night, and Saturday nights were the only nights of peaceful sleep I got.

So, no, I couldn't just sleep in the same room as her. But at the same time, I didn't want to just sit in the dark. Quietly, I eased her door open and slipped out, down the hallway and into her living room.

I plopped down on the couch, grabbed the blanket Clary usually used and flipped the TV on really low. I was in luck-a Fresh Prince marathon was playing.

I was barely through the first episode when I felt a tiny hand grip my shoulder. "Jesus!" My limbs flailed and I almost fell off the couch. Then I heard her laugh. "You scared the crap out of me!"

Clary lifted my head up, sat down and laid my head back down on her lap. "Serves you right."

I looked up at her with wide eyes. I could just make out her profile in the little light streaming in. She brushed hair off my forehead. "What did I do?"

Clary scowled. "I woke up and you weren't anywhere to be found. I wasn't used to it,…it scared me."

I reached a hand up and tucked the lock of hair that had fallen in her eyes back behind her ear. "Sorry. Your alarm went off and I didn't want to wake you."

"You could've stayed in my room and slept."

I swallowed and turned my attention back to the television. "You know that I couldn't have."

We watched a full episode in silence, Clary's fingers playing with my gold curls. Finally, she spoke up, though her attention was still focused on the credits playing. "I'm so sorry, Jace."

I half shrugged. "It's been eight years, Clary. I'm used to it."

Another few minutes of silence. Then: "Jace?"

"Yeah?"

"What are you going to do when we go to college?"

I didn't really have a response for that. "I don't know, Clary. I deal with it six nights a week, Sunday through Friday, I don't think one more day a week of not sleeping will kill me."

Clary sighed. "I wish I could be there for you every night."

I laughed. "No you don't. You'd probably kill me if you had to deal with me every night."

Clary's body shook with laughter. "That's true. You do steal the covers a lot. And sometimes you totally crush me. It's really quite rude actually."

I laughed a little louder and turned my head so I could look at her. "You don't want to start this, Fray. I could be a way worse person to sleep with if you give me a reason."

Clary got a devilish grin on her face that made my heart pound a little harder. "So, you admit you suck to sleep with?"

"Yup. Wait-no! Oh, you tricky little-"

Her laughter cut me off. "You said it, not me!"

I rolled my eyes at her immaturity. "Are you saying that you think I am a good person to sleep with?"

Clary's face turned bright red. "Wouldn't know."

I sat up but kept her trapped between my body and the hand I had placed on the other side of her. I raised an eyebrow at her and turned my voice husky. "Would you like to find out?"

I could see Clary swallow. "Um…no?" Her voice squeaked a little.

I leaned a little closer to her. What the hell was I doing? I picked on her all the time, but I never went this far. But God, if she licked those damn pink lips one more time… "Are you sure?"

Clary opened her mouth to respond, but was saved by the sound of her parent's door opening. I jumped away from her and positioned myself so we were sitting side by side, the blanket flung across both our laps.

Just before her parents walked in, I leaned down and whispered in her ear, "You got lucky this time, Clary. We're going to have to finish our chat at some point." Clary swallowed hard and loud.

I was a sick bastard. It was fun to make her squirm, but now I was just full out making her uncomfortable. But I couldn't stop myself, really.

I needed a cold shower.

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I pulled my old Jeep up in front of Clary's house and honked twice. If that girl made me late again, she was in big trouble. She came running out of her house, hopping down the steps as she tried to get her other converse sneaker on. She had a granola bar between her teeth.

She finally got the sneaker on and she jogged over to my car and flung the door open. "You know, Jace," she said, yanking the door shut behind her, "there's this little thing called patience. Ever heard of it?"

I grinned. "Oh, I've heard of it. I just choose not to practice it." I took in her appearance as I stopped at a red light. She had on black leggings, black converse, and a gray hoodie, zipped up only about three quarters of the way. I could tell that underneath she was wearing only a black sports bra. "Is that seriously what you're wearing?" I asked, glancing back and forth between her and the road.

She looked down at herself. "Yes? Why? What's wrong with it?"

I snorted. "Nothing, if you're trying to look like a slut."

Clary's eyes turned to saucers, then narrowed to slits. "Excuse me?"

I could tell I was about five seconds from getting slapped. "It was a joke! Calm down! You look fine…sort of."

Clary was not appeased. "'Sort of'?"

I was digging a serious hole, here. "Nothing. Never mind."

"Oh, there is no way in hell you're getting away with leaving it like that. What is wrong with my outfit?"

I sighed. No going back now. "It's just that, in an outfit like that, I bet you'll be getting a lot of male attention today."

"And?"

"And nothing! I don't know! Do you seriously want pig guys staring at your chest all day?"

She snorted. "Like you're one to talk! You can't go a day without staring at a girl's butt or chest!"

That one hurt. But she was right. "But those aren't girls like you!"

Her voice was deadly calm. "And what, pray tell, are girls like me?"

I was seriously tempted to drive off the road and end it right then. "Good girls, Clary. You're a good girl." We pulled into the parking lot then. Clary jumped out the car as soon as it stopped. I jumped out after her. "Clary! Wait!"

She spun on her heel, and I stopped dead in my tracks so I didn't run into her. "Did you ever think, that maybe I don't want to be a good girl?" I was about to respond when I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. God help us all, Clary was unzipping her sweatshirt even further. She zipped it so that you could just see a hint of skin below her bra. Then she did something that made me catch my breath. She yanked her bra down and pushed up on her boobs so they were almost popping out.

I was pissed now. Fine, if she wanted to fight, I could fight. I leaned down so I was inches from her face. "Dress like that if you want, but understand that I'm not coming to your rescue if some guy tries to hit on you."

She flinched ever so slightly, but we were both too pissed to care about the other's emotions right now. She turned on her heel and stalked off to the school, grabbing Izzy-who had been walking toward us-by the arm on her way and dragging her inside.

That stubborn ass girl knew me well enough to know exactly how to get to me. I loved her for it just as much as I hated her for it.

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I didn't have class with Clary until third period, which was English. When I walked in, she was leaning up against my desk, talking animatedly with some senior. I think his name was Kyle, but I wasn't sure. What I was sure of, was that his was a total douche bag that had a reputation of breaking hearts and not taking no for an answer. I don't think he's ever raped anyone, but I've heard he isn't afraid to get pretty damn close.

But I told Clary I wasn't coming to her rescue, so I wasn't going to say a word about it. Who cared if Kyle took a step closer to her? Or if he ran his hands up her arms? Not me, that's for sure. Okay, maybe I cared a little, but I was sticking to my word.

We still had two minutes until the bell rang, and seeing as Clary's ass was on my desk, I wasn't going to go sit down yet. I needed a distraction.

"Jace!" Oh my God, I had never been more happy to hear Aline's voice.

I plastered a cocky grin on my lips and turned around to face her. "Hey, Aline. You look good today." I let my eyes trail up and down her body, though I wasn't actually paying attention to what I saw.

Aline pouted. "Where were you Friday night? We missed you at Kaelie's party."

I frowned and took a step closer to her. "I wanted to be there, but I couldn't make it, because I was getting this." I rolled my sleeve up to reveal my tattoo. I had told Maryse and Robert about it last night, and-to my surprise-they hadn't freaked out. They said that they were against stupid tattoos, but getting a tattoo to remember your deceased parents was not stupid. I wasn't even grounded.

Aline gasped dramatically, then squealed. "Oh my gosh! It's amazing! Wait-why is Clary's name there?"

Everyone in this school knew that Clary and I were best friends. Every girl I was ever with knew that Clary and I were best friends. I made it no secret that she came first. That didn't stop girls from being jealous of her all the time. "Because she designed it."

Aline basically ignored that. She slunk closer to me and put a hand on my bicep. "You know, Jace, I think guys with tattoos are really hot."

I rose an eyebrow suggestively. "Yeah?"

She was about to say something else, but then the bell rang. She stuck out her lower lip in a pout and walked over to her seat. I was glad to see when I turned around that Clary was no longer using my desk as a seat while she flirted with random guys.

I took my seat next to Clary's. We didn't even make eye contact through the whole period.

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I didn't have lunch with Clary. She had lunch fifth period with Izzy and Simon and I had lunch sixth with Magnus and Alec.

I was already seated when the couple walked over to me. "What the hell is your girlfriend wearing today? She looks like a hooker."

I felt my fist clench. "Hello to you too, Alec."

He rolled his eyes. "I'm just saying that her boobs are practically out of her shirt."

"Look, dude, I know you don't like her, but don't talk about her like that. Got it?"

Alec flinched. "I do like her. It's just…times like these she isn't my favorite person."

I did not have the energy to deal with Alec's innuendos today. "What do you mean, 'times like these'?"

Alec fiddled with his water. "Times when she upsets you."

I rolled my eyes. "Chill. We're practically siblings, we're so close. We're bound to fight sometimes."

Magnus cleared his throat. "You should seriously apologize to her." Magnus was definitely closer to Clary than he was to me.

"I should apologize? Why? And how do you even know what happened?"

Magnus rolled his eyes. "I pried it out of her. And yes, you should apologize, because you were seriously out of line. You called her a slut!"

"I was joking!"

Magnus gave me a serious look. "That doesn't mean she finds it funny."

I ran a hand over my face. "You're right. I'll talk to her after school."

Magnus grinned. "Good." Then he slung an arm around Alec's shoulders, much to Alec's chagrin. "Aren't you glad we don't have couple's spats like that?"

I rolled my eyes. "You know good and well that we aren't a couple."

Magnus laughed. "Whatever you say."

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I practically ran out of my ninth period class so that I could be at my car before Clary. I parked myself in front of the passenger door and waited for her.

She came walking out with Izzy and Simon, but they soon parted ways to get to their respective cars.

Luckily Clary hadn't seen me yet, so she wasn't scowling. I stood up straighter and she finally saw me when she was a few yards from the car. "What?" she snapped.

I swallowed. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry that I was an ass and joked about you looking slutty. You don't. You look…," I swallowed nervously again, "…beautiful. You always look beautiful. And classy."

Clary tried to hide it, but soon she was full out grinning. "I hate you," she said with no malice.

I opened my arms for a hug and she happily obliged. "I hate you too."

"You were right," she mumbled into my chest after a minute.

"About?" I asked, rubbing her back a little. She was still upset about something, I could tell.

"Guys being pigs. Guys were saying rude stuff all day. 'Hey, baby, can I have your number?' or saying 'I'd tap that' when I walked by. One even slapped my ass."

I stiffened, pulling back to look her in the eyes. "Who?"

Clary bit her lip and looked away. "Who what?" she asked, feigning innocence.

"Clary, please."

"Meliorn."

I dropped my hands to my sides, looking over Clary's shoulder. Just my luck. The son of a bitch was just walking out of the school. "He's dead," I stated before blowing past Clary toward Meliorn.

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So...what did you guys think? Please review and let me know! Sorry this update took a little while. I got on a Reign marathon and now I'm all caught up! But I'm sad because I have no one to talk to about it, because none of my friends watch it :/ Anyway...

Question: This is mostly to my American readers who celebrate Christmas, because I don't know what traditions are like in other countries, but I'd love to learn! So, when do you guys start putting up Christmas decorations, listening to Christmas music, baking cookies, etc.?

Love always,

YesIWriteForFun