See? I didn't lie, here is the new chapter!
I don't own TMI, Cassandra Clare does. If I did I would somehow get myself a time turner or something, because right now it feels like my life is just this Hamilton lyric playing in a loop ("Why do you write like you're running out of time?")
As always, beta-ed by the fabulous Mrs. Jace Wayland-Herondale (:
This story is also now on Ao3!
Izzy brought Simon back at two in the morning, and decided to drop Simon off at the Morgenstern home (which was unlocked). Typically, most houses were; being located within a gated community where everyone had enough money to keep the entire nation, including themselves, fed for an entire year tended to provide its own sense of security.
After she made sure Simon retired to his room and didn't die, she rejoined the party, which was still in full swing. But after she still couldn't find Meliorn, she turned in early, an act very out of character for her. She found Simon the way she had left him: in one of the many guest bedrooms that had become his for the duration of his visit with his foot propped up on several pillows. She let herself into the room next door and collapsed on the bed. She knew Jon wouldn't mind her crashing; she didn't know about Clary. Clary and her had been an unbeatable duo as children. Seeing Clary again hadn't been weird. It was just as if they were continuing on from where the universe pressed pause on their story. But she knew there was no way Clary was the same Clary she was at 13. Isabelle certainly wasn't the same Isabelle she was at 13. With that sobering thought, Isabelle drifted off into sleep.
Jace woke to the sound of someone groaning really loudly. He turned over and slowly opened his eyes to the sight of Clary doubled over clutching her head.
"Never again," she muttered.
He blinked away from the light that was too bright, and rubbed his eyes.
"You okay?" he asked, and then winced because his voice seemed unusually loud.
"No," she grunted. "I have a bitching hangover."
Jace sighed. "Me too."
"Yeah but you drink more than I do so you're probably used to it," Clary groaned.
"Touché," Jace shrugged.
Before she could continue the conversation, Clary jumped up and ran to the bathroom. Jace rolled out of the bed, nearly fell over at the sudden shift in balance, and stood outside the bathroom door.
"You okay?"
In response, he heard Clary vomit.
"Guess not," he muttered.
He then began to wonder what happened last night. The last thing he remembered was him and Clary taking shots and then...nothing. He wanted to kick himself. When Clary stopped coming, it had nearly destroyed him. She had been his other half, the only one who he could truly be himself with. And the kissing hadn't been bad either, not that either of the young teenagers had been very good kissers at the time.
It had been over so fast. One night she was there, the next she wasn't. The only communication the pair had after that was through the occasional Facebook message and Snapchat update.
And when they finally reunite, he drinks so much that he forgets half of it. Stupid. He hadn't wanted to miss a minute; he didn't know if she'd leave without a trace again.
Clary exiting the bathroom brought him out of his thoughts.
"So we slept in the same bed?" Clary asked, sounding slightly amused.
Jace smirked. "Who says we only slept?"
Clary's eyes widened. "Holy shit, did we do more than that?"
Jace decided not to torment her any farther from seeing her horrified expression. "I don't know. Honestly, last night is sort of a blur."
Clary sighed in relief. "Same for me. I just didn't want to admit it and sound like a total jerk."
Jace laughed. "How's your hangover?"
"Shit. How's yours?"
Jace frowned. "The same. Wanna go to Taki's? They have the best food for hangovers."
Clary's eyes widened. "That place is still open?"
"Of course," Jace grinned.
"Hell yeah, let's go!"
Jace had to laugh at Clary's enthusiasm. She always somehow managed to get him to laugh.
"We're going to Taki's," Jace announced to Isabelle as he and Clary got upstairs. He didn't appear to find it at all odd that she was sitting at Clary and Jon's table, eating cereal. They always stayed at each other's houses during the summer, especially the morning after a party.
"No need to bother. I'm already ahead of you," Izzy stated, gesturing to a take out bag of Taki's she had just brought home.
"Awesome. Thanks Iz," Jace said with a smile.
"How's the hangovers?" Izzy asked the pair, but more aimed toward Clary.
"Awful," Clary groaned.
"You drank a lot yesterday," Izzy said. "Makes sense."
"Here, take these. I remember they were your favorite," Jace said to Clary. Izzy found herself raising her eyebrows at these words. She had always suspected that Jace and Clary had been an item when they were younger but never had received concrete proof. All she could do was speculate.
"Oh my god I never thought I would see these again," Clary groaned at the sight of coconut pancakes.
"Never?" Izzy asked.
Clary shrugged.
"How is Simon?" Clary asked, changing the subject.
"I dunno, I haven't checked yet this morning."
"Is his toe broken?"
"No, it's kind of odd. It was dislocated."
Clary nodded slowly. "Weird."
Almost as if the mention of his name had summoned him, Simon wobbled into the kitchen on his crutches with a pair of sunglasses on his face.
"Good morning Si," Clary greeted. "Have some Taki's, it's great for hangovers."
"Thanks," Simon grunted.
"So what's the plan for today?" Clary asked after period of silence filled with everyone consuming their Taki's.
"Cleaning up. I was considering grilling some burgers or something for dinner. I actually need to get some gas and bait for fishing later if you want to go on a boat ride," Jace recalled.
"Sounds fun," Clary grinned.
"A boat ride sounds fun, can I come with?" Simon asked.
"Well, it's a really small boat," Jace said with mock exasperation. "I don't know if you'd fit."
"I get it. I know when I'm not wanted," Simon laughed, holding his hands up in surrender.
"Oh come on, Jace. Let Si come with," Clary pleaded.
Jace sighed. "Yes, of course. The more the merrier," he muttered sarcastically.
Unfortunately, these plans did not work out the way either of them had hoped.
Jon had returned to the house by noon, having crashed on the porch the night before with the other party goers.
"Oh, you can't go with Jace. You have to be home."
"Why?"
"Because Dad is coming by later."
Clary's eyes widened. "Dad is going to be here? I thought you said that he's never here!"
"He'll only be here until about 10 tonight, then he has to catch a late night flight. He wanted to say hi to you." Jon shrugged. "Can you blame him? He hasn't seen you in five years."
I highly doubt he wanted to, Clary thought. She also doubted he wanted to simply greet her now. There was always an alternative motive with Valentine Morgenstern.
And with a great sinking feeling she felt in her chest, she felt knew what it was.
Simon had greatly enjoyed the boat ride. He sat in the back of the speed boat with the several pillows propped up onto the seat in front of his so he could elevate his toe. Jace made it his goal to go over every wake, making the ride very bumpy and thrilling. It felt too soon when the boat slowed down into the no wake zone.
"So.." He said, attempting to make conversation. Jace smirked and said nothing.
"How long you known Clary?" Simon asked, a question that had been tucked in the back of his mind since he had first seen them talking. The way Clary had looked at Jace had suggested they had a history. She had looked almost regretful, or even guilty.
"Do I detect a hint of jealousy?" Jace asked tauntingly.
"I don't like Clary like that," Simon defended, holding his hands up in surrender. "I could tell you how long I have known her. I met her when we were in kindergarten."
Jace grinned. "I met Clary at a strip club a few years back."
"Ha, ha. Very funny."
Jace shrugged. "I've known Clary as long as I can remember. I have come to this lake every single summer since I was born, and she was always there. It wasn't until she stopped coming a few years back that I had ever spent a summer without her."
Simon frowned. "You know, I had completely forgotten about this until now. But when Clary came back for 7th grade in middle school she went on and on about how she had a boyfriend. It was awful for me, because at the time I had huge crush on her. We never believed her though because she refused to show us a picture." He turned to Jace, whose face gone blank. "Was she talking about you?"
"No idea," Jace answered nonchalantly. "Clary always had a wild side here. I'm sure she had several boyfriends."
"But were you one of them?" Simon pressed.
Jace glared at his companion. "Why do you want to know so badly? I don't even know you."
"Because I've seen the way she looks at you. I have known her for a long time, I know what every expression she wears means. And I've seen the way you look at her. It makes me wonder what happened between you two."
"Why do you care?" Jace asked again, angrily steering toward a parking spot for the boat by what appeared to be a gas pump that was on top of a dock.
"Because Clary is my best friend. And she's going through a lot right now. I want to make sure I can trust you to not make this summer a burden for her."
Jace stopped the boat and jumped onto the dock. "Give me that rope," he said to Simon.
"What?" Simon asked.
"That. Rope. Right there." Jace pointed. "If you don't hurry up the boat is going to float away."
"Oh." Simon grabbed the rope and threw at Jace, watching Jace tie a knot around some metal bar thing and anchoring the boat to it.
He couldn't help but notice that Jace didn't promise not to be a burden to Clary.
The anxiety building up in Clary's chest threatened to consume her as she and her brother stood on the driveway waiting to greet their father. Simon had decided to stay in his room. Her father would probably not even know Simon was there.
Valentine Morgenstern drove up in one of his (many) expensive cars. He opened the door, stretched, and smiled his fakest smile.
The smile he uses when he's in public eye, and surrounded by neighbors.
"Jonathan," he greeted first (of course.)
"And Clarissa," he grinned again, but his eyes were cold and threatening. Clary refrained herself from stepping back, and instead hugged her father.
"Let us go inside," Valentine proclaimed to his children.
Clary felt the knot in her chest tighten.
Valentine walked into the kitchen with ease and poured himself a glass of scotch on the rocks. He then turned to his children.
"How has your visit been?" he asked.
"It's been good. We only got here a few days ago, but we've already begun to make plans for some games of golf and crochet."
Rich people activities. Clary hated when Jon kissed up like this. She highly doubted their father would have cared if he knew his children were drinking underage. Hell, he probably would buy alcohol for them himself. He was that kind of father.
"And you, Clarissa?" Valentine turned the attention to his daughter, and she watched him coldly size her up. "Have you been catching up with everyone? It's been an awfully long time."
Clary nodded. "Yes, father. It's feels as if I've never left."
"Good." Her father smiled a cold smile. "I couldn't help but notice I wasn't invited to your graduation."
"I figured you were busy," Clary said through her teeth.
"I would've made time. One only graduates from high school once."
Clary nodded slowly. "I'm sorry."
Her father nodded slowly. "I accept your apology. Actually, Jonathan, would you mind if I talked to your sister alone?"
Clary's anxiety peaked. She wanted to jump off the nearest cliff.
Please say no, please say no, Clary silently pleaded with her brother.
"Sure, that's fine," Jonathan said hesitantly. He looked at Clary and then left the room. Clary heard his feet run up the stairs.
Valentine silently waited until he was certain Jon was gone. He then turned to his daughter, and no longer smiled.
"Can I trust that you will keep quiet?" He asked without specifying what to keep quiet about. But Clary knew. Oh, she knew.
"Yes," she whispered.
"Can I trust you to stay away from that boy?" he asked in threatening tone.
Clary tried not to cry. "I will not tell anyone. I have kept it a secret this long, haven't I?"
Valentine frowned. "Yes. You have." He paused, examining his daughter coldly. "But if you tell anyone, I am not afraid to take action. Family does not trump business."
Clary nodded. "I understand," she whispered.
Valentine smiled coldly. "Good." He learned forward and kissed Clary's forehead. "You have kept very quiet. Keep it that way."
And with that, he left the room.
Clary began to sob.
One thing Jace had always liked about the lake was that you could see the stars. When he attended his private school in the city during the year, he could never see the stars. But on the lake, they stretched for miles.
Another thing about living near a large mass of water was the fact that sound travelled fast. Jace could hear his other neighbors partying in the distance, but along the strip of houses he lived on everyone was quiet. They usually liked to take a break between parties to allow everyone to recover from their hangovers. He was sure there would be another party tomorrow.
Meliorn had come by to visit Izzy and apologized profusely for missing the party the night before. Izzy forgave him, and now they were off doing God knows what. Jace wondered why Izzy always forgave him. Meliorn was always screwing up, always making excuses, always upsetting her... And yet, she always forgave him.
Alec was at the hospital, working as an intern for some posh doctor. Jonathan and Clary were spending time with their father, and Simon was with them as well.
Which is why Jace found himself fishing alone. Which was fine by him. Sometimes he needed the silence.
And yet, a thing about living by a large mass of water was that sound travelled fast.
He didn't register it at first, for he was too busy concentrating on catching that enormous bass he had seen earlier. But he couldn't ignore the loud sobbing for long. He looked up, and saw a figure sitting at the edge of a dock right next to his.
"Clary?" he called.
Clary looked up and then covered her face.
"Don't look at me," she shrieked.
Jace frowned. "Want to join me? I would come to you but I'm a little preoccupied."
He heard Clary sniffle and then slowly stand up. He listened to the creak of the boards on her dock as she ventured over to his dock.
"Hi," she muttered, plopping down in one of the chairs his mother had placed as both decoration and for guests.
"Can I ask what happened?"
Clary frowned. "You know my dad and I never got along."
Jace did. He remembered that she used to come over to his house whenever she and her dad had a fight. Sometimes she would stay at Jace's for several nights at a time. Not that his parents had minded; Stephen and Celine had both adored Clary.
"So I'm guessing the visit did not go well?"
Clary shrugged. "He hates that he can't buy me. I'm not willing to just take his money and do as he says." She sniffled. "He always offers to buy me nicer clothes and makeup but I always say no. He made fun of my car today because it was a 2003 Chevy Malibu rather than the newest Mustang."
Jace thought a moment. "What else did he say? No offense but that really doesn't seem like something crying about."
Clary shrugged. "Other dumb shit. I don't know. He just frustrates me, and sometimes when I get frustrated I start to cry."
Before Jace could respond he felt a tug at his fishing pole and the bell he had placed at the top began to ring. He violently began to reel in and found that he caught yet another inedible small fish.
"Dammit," he muttered.
"I remember when you first started to learn how to fish," Clary sniffled, and then grinned. "You were terrible."
"You were worse," Jace retorted, but found himself smiling.
"Is there a certain fish you're trying to catch?" Clary asked.
"Yeah, I saw this big ass bass the other day. It was swimming near here. I figure if I catch it we could have fish tacos for dinner tomorrow or something."
Clary smiled serenely. "That sounds nice."
"You wanna join me?" he asked.
"Oh no, I haven't gone fishing since the last time I was here," Clary said, shaking her head.
"You can't be that bad. Come on, I'll help you."
Clary wearily gazed at him but then stood up and walked toward him.
"Okay. Grad hold of the pole." Jace held it out to Clary and she took it. Jace then proceeded to put his hands on top of hers.
"I feel like that's not going to help anything," Clary protested.
"Fine," Jace surrendered, and removed his hands from hers. "You can't blame a guy for trying."
Clary laughed. "Wow, moving so fast already. I'm pretty sure that was about as far as got in middle school."
"Oh no, I definitely got to second base," Jace argued.
Clary snorted. "You wish. There probably wouldn't have been anything to grab on to."
Jace frowned. "No, I distinctly remember checking you out a few times. There was at least something there."
Clary laughed again. "You perv."
"What can I say? I was crushing on the prettiest girl on the lake. Of course I tried to get some looks in."
Clary was silent. She stared out into the lake, her eyes sparkling. "I forgot how beautiful it is here at night."
Jace agreed, silently.
Just then, the bell rang again and Clary began to reel in with great difficulty.
"Help," she breathed, and Jace rushed forward, placing his hand on hers and helping to reel in the fish.
It was the big ass bass Jace had spent so many hours waiting to catch.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" he muttered and Clary laughed.
"Beginners luck?"
"Bullshit is what that is. Complete bullshit." But he laughed along with her.
"Clary?" A voice called.
The pair turned to find Jonathan walking down the stairs to Jace's dock.
"Dad's about to leave. Probably should say our goodbyes." He started at the fish. "Holy shit, did you catch that?"
Clary nodded. "Just give us a few moments."
The poor fish was still flopping around, hoping for a last chance at survival as Jace and Clary placed him on the chain at the edge of the dock dedicated to holding fish.
"I'll bring it inside soon. You probably should go see your dad."
Clary rolled her eyes. "I'd rather not. Can I just dawdle here with you?"
Jace grinned slightly. "Go see him. I know he may frustrate you and belittle you, but I would do anything to have one last conversation with my father."
Clary froze. Her expression went from laughter to what almost looked like terror.
"Are you okay?" Jace asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she said in a tight voice. She turned to leave, but Jace grabbed her arm.
"Hey, Clary, I had fun. I'm really glad you're here."
Still looking slightly petrified, Clary appeared to thaw a little bit with a small smile. "I am too."
With that, she turned away and walked back toward for father's second vacation home.
Since I uploaded that AN last weekend, I don't really have any new info!
I had my job interview yesterday, keep your fingers crossed! I need money lmao.
I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter! While it took me a long time to get it done, I really enjoyed writing this one.
Hopefully I'll upload before another 2 months pass, but we'll see. I have finals coming up soon soooo.
Please review, reviews are as amazing as SHADOWHUNTERS RENEWED FOR SEASON 2! (i know this is old news but aHHH)
Till next time,
-hufflepuffamity
P.S. The "big ass bass" is reference/shoutout to my grandpa, because he once caught one while we were away and we came back and we were like "Did you catch a fish?" and he was like "Yeah! I caught a big ass bass!"
