Eighteen years old.

Blood. It was now such an important part in the trios lives that it was a wonder that Tessa had even ever hated it.

In becoming her friend, they had been unable to conceal it from her for long. Tessa remembered it so clearly.

The three had been at Starbucks. School was over for the winter and to celebrate the three had gone out for a day on the town.

They'd been warm in Starbucks, so to step out in the snow storm outside the wind and snow whipping against her cheeks had been a shock, but more so to Jem and Will.

"Take my coat." Will had demanded.

"Don't be ridiculous." Jem had said. "You'll catch a cold."

"A cold I can get over. You being sick I won't. Take the coat." Will had snapped.

"Will. I am not going to wear the coat."

"Well I'm not going to."

The debate had continued for another minute or so before Tessa's teeth had begun to chatter, so Jem had immediately tugged the coat from Will and helped Tessa into it, who gratefully took it.

"If we won't wear it we may as well give it to someone who will." Jem said simply.

"You'll regret this." Will sighed.

Jem shrugged. "On my head be it."

They'd been walking down the familiar street to Jem's house (for it was the closest and Tessa's house was following the same route) when Jem had made the smallest of coughs, like he was clearing his throat.

Will broke off from speaking immediately (which was a rare occasion when he was talking about Gabriel Lightwood) and looked to Jem with fear in his eyes that Tessa had seen before. It really wasn't panic, Will seemed petrified, standing still in the deserted street, the snow settling on him now he was still.

"I said you'll regret this." Will said quietly.

Jem gave a smile. "I'll have regretted staying in. It was nothing but a cough, Will. But if the worst does happen I still wouldn't trade this day for one of me being at home."

"Jem…" Will wheedled.

Jem was quick to cut him off. "I wasn't aware that anything could stop you from insulting Gabriel." He said with amusement.

"Fair point, Will. It isn't like you to deny the opportunity to insult him." Tessa added.

They began walking again, though the boys at a quicker pace than usual.

"Jem, I've just realised. We have to be careful to not lose you in this blizzard, you have nothing to stand out." Tessa said, looking at Jem's white jumper, white shoes and light hair, skin and eyes.

Jem and Will laughed. "My jeans are black." Jem pointed out, stopping outside the gates to his house.

"Imagine the neighbours." Will chuckled. "Oh my god! The mysterious mystery of the black legs! Call the police!"

They all laughed. "I doubt they would be that calm-" Jem began, but broke off, coughing quietly.

Tessa's happy mood slowly began to disappear as she felt the tension and fear radiating off the two boys.

"I'm fine." Jem told Will, who's jaw was clenched.

"Are you sure-" Will began.

Tessa was confused. Her and Will had given coughs before and had no reaction, but whenever Jem coughed, the boys had a massive debate over whether Jem was well or not.

"Quite-" Jem began, but began coughing again.

Tessa thought his coughing this time was more serious.

It was harsh and jagged, uneven and gasping. It sent shivers down her spine and made the hairs on her neck stand up. Jem had slid to his knees, still coughing, when Will grabbed a handkerchief (not a tissue, an actualhandkerchief) from his pocket and sunk down onto his heels beside Jem, offering him the handkerchief. Jem took his hand from his mouth to accept it, meaning that his hand was no longer covering his mouth. He coughed again and although Tessa saw the small red flecks, startling against the snow, her brain didn't register what it was until the sound of Jem's coughing had stopped moments later.

Will helped pull his friend to his feet, speaking in what Tessa knew to be a mixture of Mandarin and Welsh.

Jem nodded, wiping his hand with the white cloth that was quickly staining red.

Only then did Tessa's scream leave her throat, a bloodcurdling scream of loss and pain and horror, when she realised what it was.

It was blood. Jem was coughing blood. Her Jem. Her sweet, kind, lovable Jem-

"No." Tessa said, her voice barely a whisper. "NO." She suddenly said, louder than she had probably meant, because although Jem hadn't yet looked at her, him and Will jumped at her voice. "You're joking. This was a prank, from the moment we stepped out from Starbucks."

Will suddenly smirked, which changed into a grin as he nodded and then laughed. "Oh my god, your face was priceless!" He said. Jem gave the smallest of smiles and said goodbye to the two of them, though he hadn't looked at Tessa the whole time.

The two of them set of down the road in a comfortable silence, Tessa re-playing the prank over in her mind. It was well thought out. Jem and Will always pulled pranks on her. Granted, it was a bit too serious for Tessa's liking, but God, in a way, it was funny.

It'd been about three minutes, they'd long passed Jem's street by now, when Tessa looked to Will and stopped dead, before quickly resuming their pace.

Will was crying. Silently, not even a sob, but the tears running down his face made it obvious he was crying.

He was no longer walking hunched over from the cold like before, but walked straight, stiffly, his jaw tight, anger and fear in his eyes once again.

But why would Will be…? Tessa thought. "Tell me." Was all she said.

Will swallowed, and looked down at his feet. "Jem's dying, Tess." Will told her. "And he has been since you and I met him."

The sentences had shocked her, but Tessa found her voice. "No, it.. No..."

Will ignored her. "Have you never thought how odd it is? The silver?" He asked.

Tessa frowned. "When I first saw him, I was a child. I didn't really know that silver people weren't common."

"So you're used to it." Will said.

Tessa frowned again. "I never really thought about it. I mean, I sort of…presumed he was albino."

Will had stopped crying, the tears had made his already long eyelashes even longer. "He's not. He used to look how most people from China look."

Tessa gave a small smile, she always forgot that Jem and Will weren't English.

"Tanned, dark hair, black eyes, healthy. He wasn't thin and he was stronger." Will said, swallowing again. "But he's dying, Tess. And there's no cure. Believe me, I've been around all of London."

Now, she was keeping a tight hand on his shoulder, keeping his back straight like she knew to do. It was as scary as hell for her when it had happened the first few times, but now, and although she still wasn't used to them like Jem and Will were, she at least knew how to help with them, so she was at least helpful.

But when Tessa had asked Will about why he'd be petrified when Jem had an 'attack', Will had told her that Tessa had never seen one of his 'episodes'. She had asked him what happens and Will had said that when they weren't that bad, Jem would pass out. Tessa had asked him the worst that had happened and Will hadn't answered, though Jem, who had been lurking in the doorway the entire time, told her that his heart had once stopped beating.