Chapter Nineteen: How Would You Feel?

There was only one place I could think of going. And that was my secret hideout. I found it when I was five, it was an old tree house at the football oval; well what used to be a football oval, before they bulldozed it. They left the trees thought, I don't know why. I found the tree house, climbed to my favorite seat and cried. It felt like hours had past before I heard branches getting pulled back, I looked up to see Jace standing there. Usually I would of wiped my tears away; trying to hide that I was crying, but this time I just left them drying on my cheek. 'Alec, Magnus told me what happened. How are you?'

'How do you think I am!' He looked hurt, I didn't mean to yell, it was a habit I did when I was really upset about something. Jace climbed up to where I was sitting and put an arm around me, 'It's going to be ok.' I could hear how upset he was, since Dad was his adoptive since he was ten.

'How did you find me?' I finally asked once I knew my voice would be stable.

'I use to follow you here whenever you had gotten upset about something.' He laughed a little, 'I remember a time you ran here because Izzy ate the last fruit roll-up.' We laughed, I felt bad for laughing when my farther had died, but sometimes you need to laugh to get over the pain.

'How do you remember that?'

'I remember because I was the one who told Izzy to eat it, so I could see where you ran off when you got upset.'

'You bastard!' I punched his arm, 'I wanted that fruit roll-up.'

'Oh, I'm so sorry,' Jace joked, 'well, you might was to stay here because Max ate the late one.' I pictured Max's face before I left and started crying again, even more than before.

'H-how am I g-going-' my words mashed together.

'What was that?' Jace asked.

'How am I going t-to tell M-max about Dad?'

'You're going to have to tell him the truth. If you want I'll tell him with you, Izzy and Magnus will help too.'

'Tha-thank-you.' I knew if I spoke anymore I would cry, so I stayed quiet. Jace wouldn't cry, because of how he was brought up, before he lived with my family

'Jace?' I asked.

'Yeah?'

'How did you feel when you found out your father died?' He stayed silent for what felt like an eternity. 'You don't have to answer.'

'I will,' he finally said, 'I felt like my only family was taken away from me. Which it was. I didn't know how to deal with it, because he always told me, never get upset about losing someone, just be grateful you knew them.