Chapter 7
So here is the next real chapter! With it being spring break I'm hoping I will be able to write several chapters over the week. After that I don't know how often I will be able to update because we are writing a paper in English and it is half of our grade and my teacher means business. So please don't hate me. I will try my best to find time to update after spring break is over.
The rest of Clary's Monday was quiet. When she got to art Magnus didn't bring up his hoody and when her father got home from work he merely ate his dinner and sat down in front of the television without a word to Clary. Clary didn't know if the fact that her father was so calm was a good thing or not, but she didn't spend too much time worrying about it as she cleaned the kitchen and went up to her room for the rest of the night. Tuesday morning, true to his word, Simon picked Clary up and took her to school.
Clary was currently cleaning up the lab that had been their assignment that day in Chemistry. She could feel Jace's eyes on her.
"What." Clary demanded more than asked. She was frustrated. Jace had been looking at her off and on throughout the entire class time and there were a few times when he looked like he was going to say something just to close his mouth and say nothing at all.
Jace looked at for a second before, looking almost as if he was trying to muster up all his strength to verbalize whatever it was that had been plaguing his mind the entire hour.
"Clary," Jace finally said but then paused. He looked like he was changing his mind.
"Go on." Clary demanded. He wasn't about to weasel his way out of this now, not when he was testing her patience.
"It's just that… I was just wondering…"
"Spit it out."
"Why are Simon and Magnus so protective of you?" Jace finally rushed out. His voice was almost cautious and Clary could tell by the look on his face that he wasn't trying to goad her, he truly was just curious.
Clary sighed and some of her irritation dissipated. "They just are. For some reason they have decided, mostly Magnus, to assign themselves the roles of protective brothers." This time is wasn't a lie. Magnus and Simon truly had decided to fill in as her brothers three years ago. It was also true that Magnus had taken his role of older brother a lot more serious. Sometimes a little too serious in Clary's opinion, Magnus was always quick to pick up on subtle clues that something was wrong with Clary. She was just glad that he hadn't learned to see past her lies yet, though she wasn't sure how much longer she would have that luxury. Then there was Simon, it wasn't that he didn't take his new 'job' seriously, he just wasn't as adamant about it as Magnus was. But Simon was more laid back than Magnus and, sadly, easier to full. Which kind of surprised Clary since Simon had known her longer than Magnus.
"Oh." Jace said, furrowing his brows a little. He almost seemed disappointed, though Clary couldn't imagine why. Silence spread among them for a few seconds before Jace spoke again. "I really am sorry about what I said last Friday."
Clary frowned a little at him. She didn't know rather or not to be wary of where this was going or not. "I already told you I forgave you." She voiced carefully.
"I know. But I just wanted to say it again. I don't really know anything about you or your family and I didn't have the right to act like I did." Jace said. Clary was about to say something but then he continued before she could even open her mouth. "That's why I want to get to know you better."
"What?" Clary said, taken aback.
"Well, Alec and Magnus seem to be hitting it off and you are already good friends with both of my siblings. It only seems natural that we should get to know each other better as well."
Clary didn't know what to say for a while. Jace could be a jerk and somewhat of a narcissist at times, but he was still nice. That and Clary couldn't help but think there was more to him that met the eye.
"Okay," she said a bit hesitantly. Jace smiled and then his eyes turned thoughtful again and Clary felt like she was going to regret telling Jace she was okay with them being friends.
"What about your dad?"
"What do you mean?" Clary's heart skipped a beat but she her voice stayed steady.
"I mean. I know he's a cop and he's apparently kind of strict. But what is he like?"
Clary fiddled with her sleeve a little. "He's hardworking and well respected."
"Seems like it." Jace says, almost sarcastically. Clary gave him a hard look. "It's just that your friends seem to almost be afraid of him."
Clary felt a cold chill run through her. She knew her friends weren't scared of her dad, but they did know he was a force to be reckoned with. "I don't know what you mean."
"I mean, whenever your friends talk about him or ask you about him they seem almost cautious. It's weird."
Clary didn't know why but she was getting mad. But beneath the anger was fear, fear that Jace was too clever and curious for his own good. "That's ridiculous."
"Really? Because I don't think so. No one ever talks about your family and the only person they do talk about is you father and even then that's rare. What's up with that?"
"There's nothing up with it." Clary didn't bother keeping the defensiveness out of her voice.
"I think you are hiding something." Jace said. Clary's heart sank a little and her stomach did a sick flip. "I know it, your friends know it. There is something you aren't telling people."
Thankfully the bell rang and Clary didn't have to respond, because in all honesty she didn't even know how to respond to that. So she grabbed her stuff and bolted out of the class room. She could hear Jace calling her name behind her but she ignored him and kept walking.
…
…
…
Jace hadn't talked to Clary since she stormed out of Chemistry. He felt like an idiot. Right when he was making progress with Clary and she had agreed to try to be friends with him he goes and ruins it. Jace knew he was pushing her and he knew she was starting to get angry, he just didn't know why.
Jace was making his way to the bleachers when he looked up and stopped. Sebastian was sitting beside Clary. They were smiling and laughing and this caused Jace's blood to boil a little. He made his way a little closer and stopped when he saw that Isabelle was walking towards them.
"Hey, Clary, who's the cutie?" Isabelle asked as she stopped in front of them.
"This is Sebastian. He is my br-" Clary suddenly stopped.
"We grew up together. We were childhood friends." Sebastian jumped in. Clary smiled at him gratefully. Jace felt his rage build even more. But along with it came curiosity. What had Clary been about to say? Jace put his attention back to his sister, who didn't seem to notice Clary's reaction at all.
"So, Sebastian, how long have you known Clary?" Isabelle asked as she sat down on the other side of him.
Sebastian smiled. Jace had the sudden urge to punch him. "I think I've known her since I was six, thought we haven't talked much the last few years."
"Why's that?"
Clary stiffened a little but Sebastian didn't hesitate. "We drifted in different directions is all, which is a little too easy to do when you are a year older than someone."
Isabelle started to ask another question but Sebastian was called down to play a match of pickle ball. Jace was about to join the two girls when he was also called to play another game. He sighed in frustration and quickly gained another victory. Sebastian was still playing his opponent, so Jace went up the bleachers and sat by Clary. Isabelle was missing.
"Hey." He said a bit hesitantly.
Clary turned her head to look at him a little and then look back in front of her. "What do you want?"
"I'm sorry if I said something to upset you earlier. Again." Jace said. He really was getting tired of apologizing; he really wasn't use to it. That made him seem like a real jerk, but it was true.
Clary sighed. "It's fine."
Jace nodded and then took a plunge, even though a voice in the back of his head said that this conversation was going to end badly as well. "So, how do you know Sebastian?"
"What?" Clary asked, a little confused.
"Well, you said he was a friend, but until recently I haven't noticed you talking to him and he's never ate lunch with us."
"Oh. He has he own set of friends. Besides, we haven't really talked since he started high school." Clary said.
"Why's that?"
Clary just shrugged. "Just kinda happened."
Jace didn't like the answer. It was too simple, too vague. "Tell me what really happened."
Clary's body stiffened. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, I want the truth, not some half wit lie."
Clary's eyes hardened for a split second and then went back to the neutral look the usually were. "I'm not lying."
This time Jace believed her. "Then tell me the rest and not a half truth."
"I don't see why you care so much."
"You really are impossible sometimes." Jace replied frustrated. There was silence for a little while before Jace continued. "Why do you even bother to talk to that loser?"
"What?" Clary looked at him again.
Jace started digging another hole. "I mean, the guy seems like a major jerk. That and if you guys grew apart, why even bother trying to be friends with him again?"
"Like you should be talking, you don't exactly come across jerk free all the time. Plus you don't even know Sebastian or what he has been through." Clary's voice was defensive. Jace didn't like it.
"Really, what was so bad that happened to him? Did he get dumped by his girlfriend? Not get the starting varsity spot he wanted as a freshman? Fail a couple classes because he couldn't get some nerd to do his homework? Ooh, I know, his parents got a divorce and now he takes it out on everyone else."
Clary glared at Jace, her face was red and her emerald eyes looked more like an eerie inferno. "Really, Sebastian is the jerk. Why don't you just mind your own business for once and stop trying to act like you know someone that you obviously don't."
Even though the words weren't that hard, they were full of venom and Jace couldn't help but flinch a little. And want to smack himself. "Look-"
"Just shut up and leave me alone." Clary said as she got up and started to walk away. Coach blew his whistle and signaled that it was time to get changed and everyone started to make their way to the locker rooms.
Jace had just walked through the door and was pulling off his shirt when someone stepped in front of him with their arms crossed.
"What did you say to her?" The person asked. Jace finished taking his shirt off and frowned.
"Sebastian." Jace said as he started to walk past him, not answering his question.
Sebastian grabbed his should and spun Jace around to look at him. "I asked, what did you say to her?"
"Who? Clary?" Jace said, his fists clenched at his sides. He really didn't like this scum touching him. Sebastian gave Jace a hard look as an answer. "You know, Clary already has enough guard dogs, I don't think she needs another one."
"And I don't think it is any of your business or that you should be bothering her. So leave her alone."
"Funny, I was thinking the exact same thing." Jace said with a fake smile.
Sebastian's dark eyes narrowed to slits as he glared at Jace. "Look, Clary's been through enough so I don't think some player like you should be bothering her."
"Like what? What is it that every keeps hinting at that makes her seemed like damaged goods." Jace wanted to kick himself, again, but this was Sebastian and he really didn't care what Sebastian thought.
"That is none of your business. Like I said: Leave. Her. Alone." Sebastian had his hands balled into fists as well.
Jace smirked a little. "Want her all to yourself, do you? Well too bad because I think she has outgrown you."
That did it, because no longer had the words left Jace's mouth was Sebastian's fist hitting his face. Jace was quick to react and dodged the next punch and went to tackle the boy. He only got a few more punches in before the other boys in the locker room were pulling them apart before Coach came in to see what was going on. The boys glared at each other and went to opposite ends of the locker room to get changed.
As soon as he was done changing, Jace left and made his ways to the doors of the gym. He wanted to have a chance to talk to Clary without Sebastian around. When Jace got to the doors he saw that Clary was the only one at the doors and she was pulling down the sleeve of her shirt. Before it was down Jace saw a glimpse of white that look like a bandage.
"Clary." Jace said softly.
Clary jumped and spun around to face him, her left hand tugging down her sleeve even more. "Jace." She said almost cautiously. Her eyes were wide and she almost seemed to be looking at him with a wary expression.
"Look, I'm s-" He didn't get to finish.
"What happened to your cheek?"
"What? Oh, that." Jace said as he brought his hand up to his cheek, sure enough the skin was tender with the beginning of a bruise. "Someone punched me in the locker room."
Clary looked at him with what appeared to be curiosity and he wondered why he just didn't tell her it was Sebastian who had punched him. But he quickly eliminated that option; it would just upset her again.
"Figures." She said. Her voice was a mixture of sarcasm and a lightness that almost made it seem like she was trying not to laugh. Jace just couldn't keep up with her and her moods.
"What does that mean?" Jace wasn't accusing her of anything, he was merely curious.
"Because I'm surprised it took this long for you to make someone irritated enough to punch you. In case you haven't noticed you have this uncanny knack of getting under peoples skin." Clary shrugged. It also looked like she was trying to keep a smile off her face.
"Maybe people just can't handle all of this sex appeal and awesomeness in one package." Jace said with a smirk.
Clary shook her head. "Aw, there he is."
"Who?"
"The arrogant Jace that you just assume everyone has to love."
"Hey now, people do love me. I mean, look at this face." Jace said as he motioned to himself, with a practice look of innocence on his face.
"Yes, you're like a baby alligator. Cute, until you decide to bite someone's finger or hand off." Clary made it seem like she was joking, but Jace couldn't help but pick up the little bit of hardness that seeped into her voice.
"So, what's with you wearing long sleeves to gym?" Jace asked as he noticed Clary was tugging on her right sleeve again.
"It's cold in the gym and it's just easier to wear long sleeves than to bother with a jacket." Clary spouted off quickly. "Why?"
"It's just that you keep tugging at your sleeve, but only your right one." Jace said as he motioned to Clary, who was once again messing with her sleeve. The moment he said it her hand froze and then dropped to her side.
"Oh." Clary said as she crossed her arms. Her opened and easy going attitude disappeared immediately and she became closed off. Jace could practically see the walls that Clary was putting up around her.
"Is the bruise really that bad?" Jace asked, hoping the change of subject would make Clary feel more at ease again. "It wasn't that bad when I looked in the mirror."
"It's really not that noticeable. I doubt anyone else besides Alec will even notice it unless it gets worse." Clary said in an almost bored tone.
"Why do you say that?" Jace was surprised.
"Alec seems to keep his eye on you. Like if he doesn't you may go off and do something stupid and he doesn't want to have to worry about you getting into trouble."
Jace was taken back a little. He was a little surprised that Clary had noticed how protective Alec was of Jace. But at the same time he wasn't as surprised as he would have been if it had been someone else, like if Jordan had made the discovery. Clary was observant.
"Then how did you notice the bruise if it's not that bad?" Jace asked curiosity getting the better of him. It was the wrong question because Clary's back immediately stiffened a little and her face had that blank expression it got when she was hiding something and didn't want anyone else to see what her true emotions were.
"Just did." She said cryptically. Her voice didn't give away anything.
Jace eyed her carefully. She was hiding something, it was obvious. He wondered if the others had figured that out yet. Jace didn't doubt Magnus was suspicious of something, it would explain why he seemed to keep such a close eyes on Clary. But what of the others? Simon seemed too oblivious, though he seemed to always be able to make Clary smile when needed. Maia and Jordan also didn't seem to act like they had noticed anything off with Clary. That or they just figured it wasn't anything to concern themselves with, they kind of had that kind of an attitude of if someone wanted to talk about something then said person would and if not the two of them weren't going to pry.
"You're hiding something." Jace said before he could stop himself. Not good, he shouldn't let her know that he was on to her, at least not yet. He wanted Clary to trust him, and he wasn't doing too good of a job at gaining her trust without ticking her off every time they talked to each other.
Clary seemed to almost hold her breath for a second before she let it out and glared at him. "I don't know what you are talking about." Her voice came out neutral but there was a frosty edge to it that could cut steel. Jace really didn't understand her mood swings.
"Yes you do." He pressed, but before he could say anything else or see what her reaction was Clary shoved the gym doors opened and stormed out. Jace was quick to follow her.
"Clary, wait. Please." He called after her as he jogged to catch up. She just kept walking. "Clary." Jace said again as he grabbed her right wrist tightly to keep her from pulling away.
Clary stopped the instant he grabbed her and gasped a little. She looked over her shoulder with wide eyes and Jace could see her clenching her jaw. Jace tightened his grip a little and he could feel the padding of a bandage under her sleeve. Clary yanked her arm away and grimaced a little as she did and walked away, hugging her arm to her chest. Jace was about to go after her but the bell rang and with it a swarm of students entered the hall way and Clary disappeared into the crowd.
The weird uneasy feeling that Jace had been getting a lot lately when it came to the little red head came back and his stomach tightened a little. Jace knew there was something up with Clary and now he thought he knew what. He just hoped he was wrong for once.
…
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…
Clary hugged her arm to her the entire time as she ran into the bathroom. She was breathing heavy and her heart was pounding in her chest. This wasn't good. Clary went to the last stall, locked the door, and slid down against the wall. She ignored the fact that the bathroom floor was probably a fest pool of germs. Clary closed her eyes and tried to get her breathing back to normal as she thought back to a few minutes ago. She should have known no conversation with Jace was ever going to end well.
She shouldn't have said anything about the bruise. She also should have realized that the random change of subject was a trap, even if it wasn't meant to be a trap. But with Jace she suspected it really was a trap.
Clary had just dropped her hands to her side and then crossed them in front of her after Jace had pointed out that she kept messing with her sleeve. She hadn't even realized she was constantly pulling it down until Jace had said anything.
"Is the bruise really that bad?" Jace asked. "It wasn't that bad when I looked in the mirror."
"It's really not that noticeable. I doubt anyone else besides Alec will even notice it unless it gets worse." Clary responded. Jace looked almost surprised and asked why she would say such a thing. Clary merely responded that Alec seemed like he was protective of Jace. He didn't say anything for a moment.
"Then how did you notice the bruise if it's not that bad?" Jace changed the subject again.
"Just did." Clary shrugged. It was taking every ounce of her self-control to act like she was bored and that this conversation wasn't bothering her in the least.
Jace eyes her for a very long time and Clary was feeling very anxious for the stupid bell to ring. "You're hiding something." He finally said. Clary felt like she had the air knocked out of her.
"I don't know what you are talking about." She glared at him. Hoping he would take the hint that this wasn't a subject open to conversation.
"Yes you do." Jace said. The boy really couldn't take a hint. Clary couldn't stand him looking at her with those knowing eyes any longer so she left. She should have known that Jace would follow her. It was Jace after all. So when she heard him calling after her she just kept on walking, that is until he grabbed her arm. The second he did she froze in place as pain shot up her arm. Clary couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her lips, or looking over her shoulder even though she knew she wouldn't be able to wipe the pain from her eyes by the time Jace could see her face. Jace's eyes met hers and his grip on her arm tightened, pain shot up her arm yet again and Clary could almost feel the wound opening up again. She yanked her arm out of Jace's grasp, even though that hurt even more, and walked away. She was relieved when the bell rang and kids started to fill the hallway so that Jace couldn't follow her.
So now here she was, sitting on the gross bathroom floor trying to figure out how to do damage control. Perhaps if she just avoided the subject Jace would just forget about it.
Fat chance.
With a deep breath Clary stood up and walked out of the stall and over to a sink. She pulled her sleeve up and gently removed the bandage. Clary sighed as she saw that the cut was indeed bleeding again and she rinsed off the blood in the sink. She then dabbed it dry and put on a new bandage with more antiseptic. After taking another deep breath she went to art class and took her seat beside Magnus. Thankfully Mrs. Barton didn't care that Clary was five minutes late, she merely nodded at Clary and went on expecting the other students projects.
"Where have you been?" Magnus asked as he looked away from his painting.
"Bathroom."
"Why?" Magnus asked.
Clary sighed. "Jace."
Magnus scowled a little but the answer seemed to satisfy him. The rest of class Magnus and Clary didn't talk much but whenever they did it was always safe topics, like Alec, Simon's crush on Isabelle, homework, how much the school's food sucked. Stuff like that. Clary took comfort in these pointless conversations. They were harmless and there wasn't any way for her to slip up or for people to back her into a corner without knowing it.
When school got out Simon took Clary home and then left. Clary went inside and started making tacos. It was another one of her father's favorites and she hoped it would help keep his mood mellow. It was nearly seven when she heard the police cruiser pull up into the drive way. Valentine came and slammed the door shut as he kicked off his shows and made his way into the kitchen. Clary's heart sank as she saw the half empty bottle of vodka in his hand. Valentine could handle beer just fine, but when he started to drink harder stuff it didn't take much to put him into a sourer mood.
"I made tacos." Clary said as her father took a long swig of alcohol and sat the bottle down on the counter top.
He nodded and Clary scurried out of the way as her father walked over to make his plate. She was still keyed up and cautious as her father ate his supper.
"Beer." Valentine said as he looked up at her and shoved more taco into his mouth. Clary wanted to point out that he still had a bottle of Vodka on the counter, but she wasn't about to take the chance of making him angry, so instead she went to the fridge and grabbed a beer and gave it to her father. She had just placed the can on the table when Valentine grabbed her wrist; thankfully it was her left one. He glared at her for a moment and then let her go. Clary repressed the sigh of relief that wanted to escape her lungs.
Twenty minutes and another two beers later Valentine was in the living room with his bottle of vodka and Clary was cleaning up the kitchen. She was so engrossed in her work that when she heard the sound of shattering glass she dropped the coffee cup in her hands and it shattered across the tile. She quickly bent down and started cleaning up the pieces.
"What was that?" Valentine's voice boomed behind her?
Clary looked over her shoulder and saw her father glaring down at her. She took a steadying breath and stood up with the broken pieces in her hands and threw them away.
"I accidently dropped a coffee cup." Clary said quietly. Hoping her father would take it as a sign of obedience and not defiance. No such luck.
"Stupid girl." Valentine said as he backhanded her. It wasn't the hardest he had ever hit her, but it still hurt.
"I'm sorry." Clary almost pleaded. She felt disgust twist her stomach as she realized she was acting weak. But the logical side of her argued that her father was drunk and there wasn't anything she could do when he was in one of his rages. Nothing but wait it out anyways. Still, the fighter in Clary couldn't help but feel a little repulsed.
Her father went to hit her again and Clary put up her arm without thinking. Valentine's eyes grew colder and his face grew red as he snarled at her in both anger and disgust.
"You ungrateful little-"Clary didn't hear the rest of what her father said because all of a sudden he had a handful of her hair and he slammed her head down against the counter top. Her visions went black around the edges and she sank to the floor, her legs suddenly not knowing how to hold up the wait of her frail body. This seemed to satisfy Valentine for the night because turned around and walked back into the living room. After what felt like hours, but was probably only a handful of minutes, Clary forced herself to get up. Once she was on her feet she had to grip the side of the counter top to keep herself from falling back down as her head spun. Finally she was able to finish cleaning up and once she was done she grabbed a couple more beers and sat them down by her father and retreated up the stairs. Clary took a couple Tylenol and jumped into the shower to wash the day off of her.
That done, she put on a pair of sweats and a t-shirt and laid down on her bed and waited for her headache to go away. She knew she didn't have a concussion; she didn't have any of the symptoms, so that was a relief. Eventually Clary could hear Valentine trudge up the stairs and to his him. Clary relaxed a little, he wouldn't be coming back out of his room until it was time for him to get up in the morning, and as much as he had drunk tonight he probably didn't have to get up and go to work in the morning. Feeling too restless to sleep or to even do homework, Clary got up, shoved her feet into an old pair of tennis shoes, and opened her window. There was a tree right by her window and without thinking twice, or even bothering to grab a jacket, Clary climbed out of her window and onto a nearby branch. She then made her way down the tree, careful to not let her right arm rub up against the bark since she hadn't bothered to put a bandage back on the cut after her shower.
Once she was safely on the ground she crept along the side of the house and made her way to the sidewalk. Then she ran. It felt good to hear her feet pounding on the concrete and to feel the wind in her hair. It was also nice to have her heart rate pick up because she was being active and not because she was nervous or scared. When she ran she wasn't weak, she wasn't cautious, she wasn't anything but a girl running. For once she was normal with no worries.
Clary was about three houses away from another turn when she heard her name called. She wasn't going to stop until the voice said her name again, and this time she recognized it.
"Clary." The voice said yet again. This time Clary did stop.
"Magnus," Clary said as she turned around to face her friend who was in sweats, a hoody, and slippers. "What are you doing out here?"
"I could ask you the same thing." Magnus laughed as he shook his head at her. Clary tried to get her breathing to slow down a little before she said anything. Without thinking she walked forward into the light of a street lamp. Magnus's eyes immediately went wide.
"Clary." Magnus said again as he walked towards her. Clary took a step back but Magnus's long legs closed the distance between them too fast for Clary to even out the distance. His eyes narrowed in on her wrist and then back up to her face. He had a stern look in his eyes.
Clary wanted to kick herself. She wanted to scream in frustration. How had she slipped up yet again today? She shouldn't have stopped, she should have kept running. How could she have been dumb enough to not take the time to grab a jacket? Why did she walk out of the shadows? She hadn't been thinking.
"Clary." She was getting tired of Magnus saying her name. "Why are there bruises on your face?"
Clary wanted to kick herself again. Without makeup on Magnus could easily see the blue marks on her skin, especially the new ones. She really should have taken the time to grab a jacket with a hood.
"What bruises?" Clary asked in an innocent voice.
"These bruises." Magnus said as he pressed his fingers against one covering her jawbone. Clary had to force herself to not clench her jaw or flinch away or anything else that would give away that the bruise still hurt.
Clary didn't say anything for a moment. "I don't know what you are talking about." She knew trying to act ignorant to Magnus wasn't going to work, but she tried it anyways.
"Just tell me." Magnus said in a stern voice. His eyes were hard but still friendly; he wasn't in the mood to mess around. Not knowing what to say, Clary opted to just not say anything at all. "Dang it, Clary, tell me. Does your father know?"
Clary's eyes went wide. "No! And you aren't going to tell him either." Clary hissed out. She couldn't have Magnus saying anything to her father because then she really would be in trouble.
Magnus frowned at her. "Why not? Who's doing this to you Clary?"
Clary started to protest with a lie but was quickly interrupted.
"And don't you dare try to weasel your way out of it with some excuse or made up story." Magnus said.
Clary took a breath before saying anything. "You know my father, he would over react." Guilt filled Clary, but she couldn't have Magnus running off and telling her father.
"Alright. Then tell me what is going on." Magnus demanded.
This time Clary didn't say anything. What was she supposed to say? What was there she could possible say that would ease Magnus's mind or even keep him from running to someone and telling them? What would he even believe? Clary's heart was starting to pound heavily in her chest and she could feel the beginning of panic spread through her. This wasn't good.
"Clary, who did this?" Magnus asked with sad eyes as he gently grabbed her right arm and lifted it so that they both could see the ugly cut on her arm.
"It really isn't that bad, Mags." Clary said gently, avoiding the question.
"Not that bad?" Magnus's voice was full of disbelief. "You're lucky it didn't need stitches."
"It really isn't that bad." Clary insisted.
Magnus sighed and let go of her arm. "Tell me who, Clary." This time is was a demand, not a question.
"I can't." Clary said, looking down.
"Like hell you can't." Magnus said frustrated. "I'm not kidding around Clary. You better tell me."
Clary looked at her friend. He meant it, he wasn't going to drop it until she told him, and she suspected that he wasn't going to believe one of her lies this time around. She really didn't know what to do.
"Alright, Magnus." Clary finally said, feeling defeated. "I'll tell you, but not now."
Magnus started to protest but Clary quickly interrupted him. "No, Magnus. I promise you I will tell you, and I will tell you soon. But I'm not ready to tell you right now."
"Fine." Magnus said. "But what about the others?"
At the mention of her friends a new wave of panic spread through Clary. "No, Magnus. You can't tell the others. Promise me you won't tell the others. Jace is already giving me a hard time about me not talking about my family. Plus I don't want the others to know. Not right now anyways." Clary said frantically.
Magnus sighed. "Fine. I promise I won't tell the others. Just as long as you tell me what's going on."
"I promise I will. I just, I need to think about it first." Clary said. She felt a little better knowing that Magnus wasn't going to say anything. The others couldn't know, she didn't want their sympathy.
Magnus let go of her and took a step back. Clary nodded at him and sprinted off before he could think of anything else to say or ask her.
Back in her room Clary collapsed onto her bed and let sleep consume her. How had she messed up so much in one day? Jace was suspicious of her and now she had no other choice but to tell Magnus the truth. How had walls and network of lies started to fail?
So. Jace is really close to putting everything together, or at least he thinks he is. Magnus is about to find out the truth from Clary. And Sebastian is becoming protective of Clary once again, kind of. Well, I hope this was worth the wait. And I'm sorry for overlapping some of Clary's pov with Jace's, I just didn't know how else to write it and it still make since, I hope you didn't mind too much. Anyways, please leave a review and tell me what you think!