AN: Hey everyone! Here's the next chapter! Okay, so I actually know completely how it's going to play out. Just so you know, there's two chapters and an epilogue left. Sorry in advance for the cliff hanger at the end of this chapter. Thanks to anyone who reads, follows, favorites, or reviews. I really appreciate it!

kclare21: No problem! In my opinion, since someone took the time to wrote a review, I should take the time to reply. I'm really glad you're enjoying it!

Meeeeeee: Yup, he's like the epitome of a bad boyfriend. Seriously, is there anyone worse than him? Patience, grasshopper. I promise answers will come soon! Oh, and you'll find out about the little birdy next chapter. Thanks for reviewing!

Emma: Thanks! I'm glad you like it! Sorry about the length of the chapters, they'll probably stay at about this length for the rest of the story, but the epilogue will be longer. Enjoy!

I'm not u: Sorry, didn't mean to give you high blood pressure! Apparently you're not the only one who wants to kill somebody, because Sebastian still has a trick or two up his sleeve. Enjoy the chapter!

No1fan: Thank you for the review! Thanks, that means a lot to me! Honestly, I didn't really expect anyone to like me when I first started this, and it's been a seriously interesting experience so far! The name thing would be helpful, just so I can keep track of my responses a bit better. Thanks again, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: As always, I don't own the Mortal Instruments. It'd be really cool if I opened presents on my birthday this year and one of them was ownership of this series. Never gonna happen, though. Oh well, I can dream, can't I?

Somewhere, unbeknownst me, Jace and Simon were arguing. Later, I was filled in on the conversation.

"We have to keep looking for her!" Jace yelled, running his hand through his blonde hair so roughly that a few tufts of hair were ripped out all together.

"Jace. Listen to me. It's three a.m. We won't find her tonight. If we do tomorrow, we'll be in no position to fight Sebastian. We have to be at our best." Simon responded, trying to be gentle even though his annoyance was bubbling over.

"I could take him in a fight if I hadn't slept in a week! It's like you don't even care!" he yelled back, venom lacing the words. It was not particularly aimed at Simon, just the recent events.

Jace clenched his fist and punched the seat as hard as he could. It didn't really help much, except for maybe making him more weary and frustrated.

"Just shut up for a second and actually listen to what I'm saying! Look, I know Clary and Sebastian a lot better than you do! I was the one who helped her get away in the first place! He's dangerous. I hate to say it, and I'd love for us to keep looking and find Clary tonight, but it won't end well. We have to beat him with strategy." He finally flipped at the beginning of his little monologue, but towards the end he once again got control.

"I-I know. It's just, well, this'll sound ridiculous, I won't even say it." Jace started to speak, but Simon was too curious to just let it go.

"Look, I don't like you. For some reason, my best friend does, and I respect that. Usually, Clary would probably be comforting you, but I'm all you've got right now. Fire away. And hey, what happens I'm this car stays in this car." he said, honestly doing his best to be nice considering they were all going through a tough situation.

There was a pause. Not of awkwardness, but something similar for anticipation. Simon wondered what the heck he was going to hear, and how severe it would be. Finally, after gathering his thoughts, Jace spoke once again.

"Well, I... I only got to date Clary for two months. Maybe it wasn't love yet, but it was getting there. I've had this strange feeling ever since I first saw her when they were freaking cutting her open to give me her kidney. It never really left, not even when we were fighting. Now I'm interpreting it as intuition. She's it, and that's all I've got." Jace said, cutting himself off a bit as his voice was cracking

"What do you mean she's it?" Simon questioned, not quite getting it yet.

"It. The one. I never even got to tell her how much she meant to me. And wha-what if I never do? What if I never get to have children with her or see her sleepy face in the morning? What if we never get to say I do. I never let it out, never talk about what I'm feeling. But right here, right now, I'm cracking. It's eating me from the inside, and I'll have withered away much faster if I don't talk about it." Jace admitted, hoping Simon did not notice a couple of tears slipping out of his eyes, despite extensive efforts to keep them inside.

"Wow, that's... I'm sorry. But listen, keep your head up, okay? Giving up is like condemning her to death, and I know you don't want to do that." Simon said, pretty much pulling the advice out of nowhere.

"But what if he's hurting her right now? Knowing that I'm sitting here comfortably in a car letting out my goddamn 'feelings' when she's being hurt, or w-worse right now, that makes me sick. You know what? She doesn't have that luxury right now. All she has is herself and a psycho. And that's not okay for anyone."

Gripping the arm rest, Jace watched as Simon navigated through the New York streets. They were bustling and full of light, even at what was now 3:14 a.m. Thinking to himself, Jace found that complete darkness would be more comforting. It would at least be more similar to his outlook right now.

For the rest of the car ride, they were silent, the only break of it being a quickly muttered goodby when they reached Jace's apartment. Simon finally rolled up to his own complex. That night, he didn't sleep in his room. He slept in Clary's, hoping he'd still be able to smell the comforting scent of his best friend in the woven fabric of her quilt.

Not far away from where my best friend and boyfriend were, only a bit north, I lay awake. It was rather lonely. I was comfortable, but not in the sense that I wanted. I wanted to go out with my friends. I wanted to listen to them tell funny stories. I wanted to get to tell Jace that I loved him. But maybe I never would, and that crushed me.

A feeling that was not warm and fuzzy poured into me. It was both betrayal and loneliness. Stuck in that disconcertingly warm room, I was alone. And maybe that was what really terrified me the most. Betrayal, because I knew one of my close friends had helped Sebastian, a psychopath, get to me. I went through a list, but it didn't seem that it could've been any of those people. It seemed I had taken for granted the luxury of being able to trust those that you love.

However, my mind hung onto one person. One person that I hadn't known for extremely long. In fact, I only met them right after the first ordeal with Sebastian. They were there at rather odd moments, I realized. Finally, everything clicked. Filled with dread and sorrow, I unconsciously whispered the name of the person.

The closet door shook a little bit before opening. A figure stepped out. Filled with amusement, they spoke.

"Oh no, it seems you've found me out. Whatever shall I do?" They asked, a sinister smile breaking free.