Taki's

There's the awkward meeting after a one night stand, then there's the awkward meeting after admitting you'll never leave said one night stand alone. The latter was the encounter I had with Jonathan Thursday morning. My stomach was in my throat strangling me making eating impossible. He didn't say anything about the night before. He was completely normal. I don't know why I was flustered, maybe I expected something to change, for him to at least acknowledge that I was being serious, but this was Jonathan. He took nothing seriously, not even himself. Except well his ego.

School dragged on and on, and I saw Jonathan everywhere. Passing between classes, the library, the cafeteria, at the end of the day as he went to hockey practice. I couldn't escape him! I tried to get him out of my head, but where ever I turned he would be there to just remind me I was needlessly caring about a guy who wished I would just vanish. But he doesn't hate me. I learned that much, but that didn't mean he likes me either.

I sighed as I got on the bus. Without even thinking I found myself heading towards Pandemonium. I couldn't stop myself. If I had to be honest, I missed Raphael and his muttering in Spanish and his constant butting into my life. I needed a distraction from Jonathan, the dinner tonight, and whatever Valentine had planned doing that. Pandemonium was always a good distraction.

"¿Qué demonios? You're not suppose to be here." Complained Raphael as I entered the bar.

"No wonder you have so few costumers. You're so rude to them all." I smirked as I perched on a stool. Madame Dorothea was there and so was Bat. They all seemed utterly surprised to see me. What gossip had they been trading?

Raphael leaned his forearms on the bar and looked right at me. His dark eyes narrowing as they ran over my face and down my neck and shoulders to my hands that were folded on the bar. "She's up to something." He concluded looking at Bat from the corner of his eye.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not up to anything, morons. I got bored, and needed a place to kill time."

"So you came to work?" Bat raised a brow.

"No the girl just doesn't have many friends." Dorothea stated after a sip of her gin and tonic.

I sighed and banged my head on the bar. "Thanks Dorothea. You're always helpful, and right to the point."

"You're welcome, darling." The old woman hummed.

I groaned.

"Does this mean you're already to move?" Bat asked patting me on the back. I lifted my head and rested my chin in the palm of my right hand.

"Yeah. Just the last of packing needs to be done, and I can do that tomorrow." I answered

Raphael suddenly snapped straight up, no longer leaning on the bar. His dark eyes wide with surprise. That's really weird of him.

"Mira, your hickey's showing." He muttered under his breath.

I stared at him for a moment not understanding what the hell he was talking about. Then he tapped the side of his neck subtly and I gasped gripping the side he indicated. No way I had a hickey. I didn't see anything this morning when I was getting dressed, but I was also distracted with Jonathan's attitude. Holy crap it couldn't be real.

"What?" Bat asked narrowing his eyes at me. I jumped down from the stool and hurried to the kitchen.

"No way." I muttered to myself as I used a metal tray as a mirror. I pulled the collar of my hoodie aside to see a big black bruise where my neck met my shoulder. "Jonathan." I hissed under my breath. At least I got even with my nails down his back. I thought as I readjusted my hoodie and sat the tray aside. Just in case I pulled my crimson hair out of the bun it was in and let it fall over my shoulders to make sure no one could see the hickey. I was not admitting to anything, or telling them anything. Only god knows what they would think if I did.

"What just happened?" Bat asked looking between Raphael and I.

Neither of us said anything.

Madame Dorothea looked up and with her old color faded eyes took in my new appearance and a smirk pulled at her aged lips. "A lover's bite." She chortled. I glared as my stomach dropped. Why did old people have to be so observant?

"A what?" Bat gasped.

"Thanks for the conversation. I'm leaving." I said turning for the door instead of my vacated stool.

"Woah, wait Mira." Bat called jumping up from his stool. "Does this mean you're dating that Mark guy?" He asked and I knew Lily and Raphael had been telling him everything.

Why did I like these people again? "Nope. He dumped me." I replied still moving for the door.

"Really?" Raphael asked.

"Yup. I'll see you Saturday." I waved over my shoulder without looking at them. My face felt hot, and it was probably a bright shade of red. I didn't have much of a sex life but it was still mine and they didn't need to know about it, when it was probably over before it really ever started.

When I got back to the loft I killed the rest of the time before the dinner with doing homework. It did a fairly good job at distracting me from Jonathan and the hickey he left on my neck. When the front door opened around six I wasn't surprised it was Jonathan, Taki's was a fancy place and he wasn't dressed for the restaurant anymore than I was. We didn't say anything as he made his way to his room, and me to mine. I don't own dresses, only slacks and blouses. So I settled for a pair of black slacks and a dark green blouse that I've been told "fits your body just right." Which I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a subtle way to say I look cheap.

I stepped out of my room with my hair pulled out of my face. I made my way to the bathroom to see if the collar of the shirt covered the hickey, and it just barely did. With a groan I began to take my hair down.

"He-llo." Jonathan sang grabbing my arm. I had left the bathroom door open, how stupid of me. He moved closer holding my arm and hair away from the side of my neck. "I do good work." He smirked as I pulled away.

"Shut up." I sighed not in the mood. I began taking down my hair again as he leaned against the door jam.

"What are you doing?' He asked raising a blond brow.

"Hiding it." I answered pulling my wavy crimson hair over the shoulder with the hickey.

Jonathan scoffed as he turned back down the hall. "It looks better up though." He said nonchalantly before disappearing back into his room.

My heart clenched inside my chest, as I stared at myself in the mirror. My face was red. Ugh annoying jerk. I thought as I began fixing my hair.

"Hurry up!" Jonathan called from the front door. "The taxi's here already."

"Calm down." I grumbled as I joined him by the door. Tossing on my coat as we headed out the door.

"Your hair's up." He commented as we rode down in the elevator.

I pulled up the collar of my jacket while mumbling, "So what?"

Jonathan just shrugged and looked away from me. I expected some arrogant response because I listened to him, but there wasn't even a hint of his ego. What the hell was going on with him? Did he get smashed in the head during practice? Was he sober? I spent the whole cab ride trying to figure what was going on. Everything was changing, but at the same time not. I was leaving, Jonathan was still distant, Valentine was still creepy and secretive, but for the first time ever we were all having dinner together. I felt like I was slowly going insane. I think that's the effect the Morgenstern's have on people.

Taki's, a famous restaurant with a modernize Victorian theme. Tall windows, muted colors with gold accents. When we arrived Jonathan seemed to know what he was doing as he past the matradee and went up a set of stairs that led to a second serving area. This one was set up more for V.I.P.s with the tables spread apart and individual servers for each table. Jonathan made his way without pause to a back corner where a large table was set up. I almost turned around and made a mad dash for the exit when I saw who had joined Valentine, but the man shot me a dark look and I knew my escape would be impossible.

"You've finally arrived." Valentine commented as Jonathan and I took ours seats. Jonathan had taken the seat to his father's right and I next to Jonathan. Across from Jonathan sat his mother, Jocelyn, and across from me was Clary. Of course it was Clary, who else would I be forced to face in this bizarre situation. At the other end of the table sat a man with brown hair and glasses, my guess he was Jocelyn's fiance, Valentine's old best friend. There was a lot of hate sitting at this table, one could almost see the stress roll of one another.

"Jonathan couldn't choose a tie." I teased.

"No, Tyler here was playing dress up." Jonathan retorted.

"And see, I look better than you do." I smirked despite the knot in my stomach.

"No one ever looks better than me." Jonathan stated smoothing back his pale blonde hair.

"Alright." Valentine said ending our banter. I bite my lip to keep from giggling at Jonathan as he stuck his tongue out the side of his mouth so his father couldn't see.

Clary and Jocelyn both gave us strange wide eyed looks like they had never seen to people exchange a shared dislike in another person. What were they even doing here? I thought Valentine said this was just gonna be the three of us?

Valentine waved over a waiter and he took our orders, the adults had wine, and the rest of us has some carbonated juice. I didn't speak fancy, so for all I know it could have been plum juice that would kill me. Once the waiter was gone Valentine took over as head of the table.

"It's about time we did this." He said looking at Luke, who sat straight up in his chair. Blue eyes never looking away from Valentine like he posed some sort of threat. Luke's presence reminded me of a guard dog, if he had a tail I'm sure it would have been still as he took in his surroundings. "How's the restaurant going, Lucian?" Valentine asked leaning back in his chair.

"It's Luke. And it's fine, Valentine." There was a darkness to the way Luke said Valentine's name. It wasn't full of hate but with something else, like betrayal.

"Why have you called us here today, Valentine?" Jocelyn spoke up. The wrinkles at the corner of her mouth deepened with her stress. Clearly I wasn't the only one who didn't want to be here. "What business could you have with all of us?"

"It's not you, so much as the children." Valentine corrected calmly. The man never missed a beat, it was so unnerving. "Jonathan and Clary as siblings deserve to see each other, don't they? Also you have unfinished business with Mira, who I'm sure has a few words to share with you." Valentine looked from his ex-wife to me with an even gaze. "It's time secrets came to light."

My stomach dropped to the floor. Secrets were secrets for a reason. Looking to Jonathan he didn't seemed fazed by his father's words, while I was falling apart on the inside.

"You useless bitch."

Sorry it took me a while but my back has been hurting! Tomorrow I don't know if there will be a chapter I'm going to help my great aunt clean her yard. So be patient there will be another chapter soon. BTW we've got like eight chapters left until the end! HOLY COW RIGHT?

So leave a review and let me know what you think.