Hello everyone :) It is approaching evening where I am, so I shall say good evening. I am very excited and happy by the reviews Idris Academy has been receiving, thank you so much for all your continued support and comments. Here is the next instalment of Idris Academy.
Chapter Fifteen: The Rise And Fall Of The Double Date
Magnus waggled his eyebrows at Clary as she ran up, red-faced to where he and Will were both standing. Jace followed behind, having adopted a lazy, loping gait whilst Will just looked bored, shoving his hands into his pockets. He yawned and said
"We aren't actually going to the zoo, are we? It's so lame".
"It was just the meeting spot" said Magnus, though Clary thought she detected hurt in his smooth tone. Will raised his eyebrows and said
"Thank the effing lord' before he surveyed Jace carefully, 'you don't want to stay, do you? I mean, when you done it once, you don't need to go back".
Jace surveyed Will with equal carefulness and said
"I've never been to the zoo before".
Will's eyes opened up marginally and a flicker of interest ran through them. Clary quickly said
"Hey Magnus, we went to the zoo in junior high, remember? It was before the..."
"Anyway' said Jace, 'if I actually wanted to see animals, I'd fly to the African savannah".
Clary closed her eyes momentarily but instead of taking offence, Will grinned and said
"Oh, you're one of those super rich kids, aren't you? Come on, Bane, let's show this guy what a real zoo looks like".
He took off towards the ticket booth and after a couple of seconds, Magnus followed. Clary saw Jace's fist shake slightly before clenching but then he said, smiling at her.
"Let's see this famous zoo then".
He reached down and entwined his hand with hers and Clary felt her finger tips tingle with excitement. She warned herself to stay calm in case she accidentally was mistaken for a pile of feels. However Will's voice drifted over to them and before she could do some goofy smile at Jace, she turned and they headed over to the counter. When Will saw them approach, he said
"Hey, you can pay. Can't you, Wayland, since you are rich or something".
The firs thing Clary thought was this guy had no idea that most of the places he bought his things from were owned by Jace somewhere along the line. The next thing she thought was who the hell was this guy? He was completely different to the way Magnus had portrayed and by the looks of Jace's face, he thought Will was a piece of crap as well. Magnus was staring at Will with some curiosity, perhaps wondering where his boyfriend had disappeared too. Clary found herself saying hurriedly
"I'll pay. How much?"
"I'll pay as well' said Magnus hurriedly thanking Clary with his eyes, 'which experience do you want?"
There was a long silence as both Jace and Will stared each other down and Clary tightened her grip on Jace's hand, ready to prevent him from leaping at Will. The grip however seemed to bring Jace out of his staring competition with Will and he said tightly
"Don't be ridiculous, Clary. I'm paying. Perhaps in another few years, you might be able to pay as well" he said, aiming his words at Will. Magnus dragged Will away before he could retort and Jace paid for the tickets in silence before the four of them headed off around the park.
Magnus must have said something because Will didn't say anything to Jace for the first half. It didn't stop him making inane observations about everything else but he left Jace alone. After a while, Clary started to enjoy herself and she could tell Jace was too, seeing all the different animals. It was a beautiful day and Clary watched as one of the polar bears did a lazy dive into the water, gliding along in the water. She even could manage a smile as Will said something to make Magnus laugh and his face lit up with happiness. Everything was going great. Until they came to the monkey section.
They watched some orang-utans swing from the branches of some trees before suddenly Will said
"I could have sworn I'd seen that one before. Oh yeah, I think it looks like you, Jace".
Jace turned so suddenly and said coldly
"You should watch who you are talking too. I only have limited patience for idiots".
Will laughed and said
"I doubt you'd talk that big if you didn't have cash".
He headed out of the enclosure and Magnus swore underneath his breath. He said
"Sorry guys. I think Will is a little tense. Do you wanna meet at the cafe in an hour? Cool off a bit?"
"That would be great" said Clary and pulled Jace in the opposite direction. Jace was fuming and he barked.
"Who the hell was that jerk?"
Clary nodded sympathetically and he said
"What's your friend doing with a moron like that? I don't believe it. Is this really what happens on commoner's dates?"
"Oh yes' said Clary snippily, 'we all stand around insulting each other and then if we are really lucky, if we are standing next to a road, there will be a fist fight and then someone gets thrown in front of a passing tractor. No of course NOT, Jace".
Jace was still muttering underneath his breath and Clary said
"I can't for the life of me see what Magnus finds attractive about him, unless you count looks. Which despite Magnus saying that's all he's interested in, HE'S NOT. He has been out with some total crap guys and I just want him to be happy. So yes, as long as Magnus is happy, for the moment, I am going to put up with Will. It depends on you really".
"What?" said Jace.
Clary put a hand on her hip and said
"It depends on whether you are going to be the bigger man or not".
Jace rolled his eyes and said
"If we go home now, your friend won't be happy with us. But don't expect me to lie to protect his feelings. If that bastard makes one more crack-I'll.."
"We have one Will-less hour' said Clary, 'so shut up and show me around".
"If you think that you can twist me around your little finger' said Jace, 'it's working".
"I really don't want a stuffed iguana' said Clary, 'it will give me nightmares".
"Exactly' said Jace, already paying for it, 'which means you will have to sleep on me at school. My motivations are purely selfish".
"Knew it" muttered Clary and staring with distaste at the large, green iguana.
They sat down on a bench and Clary bought them some hot chips, which they ate almost straight away despite them burning their mouths. After a while of discussing completely random things, Jace said
"Going out like this..finally makes us seem more like a real couple".
"Mmm' said Clary, non-committal, 'mmm".
Jace raised an eyebrow and said
"I assume you don't make out with all your friends-though it would explain why you spend so much time at the shop with Magnus".
"Hey' said Clary with some dignity, 'he only helped me practice once".
Jace looked at her with alarm and disgust and she laughed at his face.
"So gullible' she said, 'and no-I don't make out with my friends".
"So' said Jace, 'are we?"
Clary looked up and said
"Are we what?"
"Don't play games with me, Clarissa" he said his expression losing some warmth.
"Well' said Clary, picking at a chip, 'it would be nice to be asked. You don't seem to do that-a lot. You just-assume".
Jace looked confused and said
"Assume?"
Clary rolled her eyes and elaborated.
"You assume we are going out. You assume I want a furniture. You assume I want to fall asleep at school when really I want to study. You assume a lot of things. I get you have been allowed to assume all your life but if you want our relationship to work, then you are going to have to stop assuming. And starting asking".
Jace frowned again and said
"You mean...you want me to ask you if you want to fall asleep at school".
"No' said Clary her teeth gritted, 'just don't make decisions for me and-you are smiling".
"Sorry' said Jace, 'I just wanted to see your face. Alright. I'm sorry for ASSUMING we were going out. If I ask you-will you say yes?"
Clary smiled and opened her mouth.
"My god, is this love fest over? Can we get something to eat, these effing animals are giving me a headache?"
It was Will. He sat down on the bench across from Jace, next to Clary and said
"Hey you ate without us".
"We couldn't find you' said Clary, 'we did wait though".
"Whatever' said Will, 'hey Bane, give me some money. I'll go get us something to eat".
Magnus handed over some cash with a resigned expression on his face and Will got up immediately. Jace was silent before he said
"I'm going to the bathroom".
Clary and Magnus watched their retreating backs as they went in opposite directions before Magnus sighed.
"I'm really sorry, okay?"
"I feel like I'm on tenterhooks around them both' said Clary, 'did they piss each other off in their past lives?"
"Probably' said Magnus, 'though I'm going to bet that one of them was Catherine of Aragon and the other, Anne Bolelyn".
Clary laughed and said
"Great analogy. Do you have one for why you are staying with Will? Like you are star-crossed incarnations of Romeo and Juliet?"
Magnus looked away and said
"He's not a bad guy. Jace just makes him uncomfortable".
"So that let's him off the hook for being a complete arse".
"Just to Jace. Jace rubs everyone up the wrong way, he did to you".
"He's rude to me as well, Magnus. He hasn't said anything to me apart from hello. He spends all of his time trying to get Jace to beat him up. He may not be a bad guy but he isn't a nice one".
Magnus didn't say anything and instead they both watched everyone pass by, watching kids running around with balloons, screaming words of insanity and nonsensical meanings, parents sitting on picnic rugs or pointing out the animals to their resigned families, tour guides leading packs of tourists, their cameras clicking at a million miles a minute. Like they had done when they were kids.
After a while Magnus turned around and said
"Hey, where did they go? You don't think one of them chucked the other into the polar bear enclosure".
"I doubt it would be Jace who went in', Clary said, somewhat coldly but at Magnus' expression she sighed, 'they are kinda late".
"Hey Jace' said Will, as Jace left the bathroom, 'wait up".
Jace slowed down but he didn't stop completely. He wasn't that magnanimous. Will fell into step with him and said
"I just got a call from a guy I know. Let's ditch these ones and go join up with him. I am pretty sure they have some girls with smoking bods for you as well".
"What?" said Jace, thinking he had misheard. Will shrugged and said
"I told him I was with a rich, cool guy and now he's begging to see me. I think he wants to set you up".
Jace still didn't say anything and Will said
"Hey are you an idiot or something?"
Jace halted and suddenly rage went to his head. No matter how he tried, this guy just riled him up the wrong way. He had absolutely nothing good to say about him and now he was actually trying to get him to ditch Clary and Magnus. There was a strange whistling sound in his eyes. Over the noise, he heard Will say
"I'm just dating Magnus for now but honestly..I'm bored. I mean, he's such a drag".
Jace forced himself to calm down and he pushed past Will.
"I don't want to hear about your life".
Will snorted and said
"No need to act cool, let's just leave them. I mean, your date is not that hot. Surely you've got what you wanted and wanna move on now".
Jace stopped so violently that Will almost crashed into him.
"What?" said Jace and Will laughed.
"I know because I am gay, you think I can't see if a girl looks like trash or not. But seriously, if she wasn't wearing a dress, I am pretty sure she would be mistaken for a hobo".
He put his hand on Jace's shoulder and said
"So I'll introduce you to some hot chicks".
Jace turned around and punched Will in the face. He stumbled backwards, the smile wiped off his face and said
"What the hell do you think you are..."
Jace kneed him in the stomach and Will fell backwards, landing flat on his ass. Jace was already on top of him, shaking him and said
"Clary is one of the most beautiful people I know. Her eyes are out of this world. But you know what. I couldn't care less if she looked like hobo because she has a brilliant personality and is one of the most independent, caring, brave and loyal people I know. And you have the personality of a wet sock, which is probably why you don't see that".
Now Jace was punching him on every word, getting angrier and angrier until someone shouted
"Hey, what do you think you are doing?"
Jace heard Clary before he saw her but he was still so angry, at Will, at himself for reacting, at Magnus, even at Clary for just having faith in him and then seeing her angry glare as she and Magnus approached. He pulled himself off Will, who was bleeding and moaning simultaneously. He pushed past Magnus and said to Clary
"If you call this a commoner's date, then I am never doing this again. I'm going".
He stormed off and Clary watched him. She heard Magnus say
"What did you do to Jace?"
Will retorted
"Like I know. We were walking and then he just lost it. What's with him?"
"You were just walking?" said Clary, turning around and Will said angrily, getting to his feet
"That's right. Something's wrong with him".
Clary bit her lip, unsure of what to think. Will had been a jerk all day but it didn't add up that Jace had stormed off if he wasn't guilty. He would have at least taken her with him. She vaguely listened to Magnus and Will squabble, still unsure about what had happened. Will said
"I'm so pissed. I'm going home".
He stormed off as well, leaving Magnus and Clary staring awkwardly at each other. Finally Clary said
"Look, I'm sorry about Jace. He must of...he might have...he could...oh I don't know. But I'm sorry your date ended like this".
"It wasn't your fault' said Magnus quietly, 'it was mine. I should have tried to make Will act nicer. I guess I was just caught up".
Clary looked at him and he laughed.
"I guess we are through now".
He gave another small laugh and Clary put her arm around his shoulders and squeezed them.
"It's alright' she said, 'it's alright".
They stayed like this for a while, Magnus just staring ahead, Clary talking softly. Then Magnus said
"Come on. If we catch the next bus, we'll-we'll have two hours to annoy Camille".
"Magnus" said Clary and Magnus looked at her sharply.
"Don't you dare pity me, Clarissa. Actually annoying Camille is exactly what I need right now".
Sighing Clary nodded and they made their way back in silence. All Clary could think about was what she was suppose to ask Jace when she saw him next. Did you punch Will? Or would it better if she just asked him to explain what happened after they separated? As the bus rocked back and forward, Magnus reached for her hand and squeezed.
"It's gonna be alright".