*All the characters from The Mortal Instruments belong to Cassandra Clare and her incredible mind. Nothing will ever be owned by the author of this story. ;)*

Musical Preference:

Fireworks- You Me At Six

Perfect- Smashing Pumpkins

Stolen- Dashboard Confessional

Please, please, please enjoy. :D

Chapter Eleven

"What?" Aline screeched from the living room as Jace walked away from her and onto their bedroom. He took a suitcase out and put it on top of the bed, unzipped it, and moved towards his closet. Fuming, Aline got in his way and didn't let him through.

"Aline. You have to move," he said through his teeth, his patience wearing thin.

She glared at him. "No! What is this all about a business trip? During Spring Break! I thought we would finally have some time alone!" Jace refrained from rolling his eyes and sidestepped her.

"I thought so, too," he lied as he stepped into his closet and started getting clothes. "Sometimes life doesn't go the way you plan it."

Jace heard a shriek from behind him as he put in some boxers and t-shirts inside the suitcase. Just as he was about to turn around to go back into his closet, Aline grabbed the clothes and threw them on the floor.

"No. You are not going." Aline stood there, face flushed with her arms crossed over her chest. Jace's gaze traveled at the mound of clothes next to her shoes. For some reason, looking at the pile just sitting there, getting wrinkled by the second, made him crack.

"Aline!" he yelled.

She jumped slightly at his raised voice. Aline never thought she had ever heard Jace raise his voice at her. He was usually just curt and short, but this was a completely different Jace.

"Cut your fucking shit, okay?" he continued yelling. Jace took a deep breath and lowered his voice. "This is my job. I'm going and you have no say in this situation. Am I fucking clear?" Aline grimaced as if she was about to disagree. Jace narrowed his eyes and, with a shaky breath, she nodded her head. "Good," he said, annoyed. "Now will you put those clothes back inside the bag?"

Jace turned around once he saw Aline crouching down to get his clothes. He rolled his eyes behind her back and picked more clothes to stuff into his bag. When he looked back to the bed, he found Aline sitting next to the suitcase with her head down fiddling with the hem of a blue shirt. He frowned as he walked over.

"Aline?" he asked as he put clothes into the suitcase. She looked up briefly before dropping her gaze to the t-shirt once again. That was enough, though, for Jace to see her watery eyes. He sighed and crouched down in front of her after dumping his clothes unceremoniously on the suitcase. "Hey, look at me," he told her softly. Jace felt like such a hypocrite because the last thing on his to-do list was to comfort Aline.

She lifted her face gently and Jace saw the tear marks on her cheeks. Lifting his hands to her face, he wiped them away with his thumbs. She tried to move her face away but Jace held her fast. When she realized she wouldn't get away from him, she finally sighed and dropped her head down.

"Jace, what are we doing?" she asked softly. Jace opened his mouth to answer, but nothing came out. He didn't completely understand her question or where it was coming from. "I mean," she began after looking at Jace's troubled expression, "we don't talk. We barely see each other. You just come to sleep and by the morning you're gone. Sometimes, you don't even come to sleep." Aline took a deep breath and looked up to his eyes. Hers were puffy and red already from holding back tears that were spilling over nonetheless.

"Is there . . . Jace, is there someone else?" she asked. Jace was shocked into silence. The earnest way she was looking at him was too much for him. It was hopeful, naïve. She really wanted to believe that maybe her assumptions were wrong.

Jace, for some reason, felt responsible to keep her happy.

"Honey . . . no," he lied. He stroked her cheek softly, feeling repulsed with himself. "There isn't anyone but you. Don't ever think otherwise."

Yeah, he thought sourly to himself, you'll just see her in a few right after you finish packing your bags. A fucking hypocrite, that's what you are.

"Really, Jace? Don't lie to me, please. I can't take any more lies and I need to know. It's the only thing I ask for. There has to be someone else by the way you are ignoring me. This is how it started when you got rid of Kaelie and—"

The mention of Kaelie was enough to set Jace off. How dare she look like the fucking victim when it had been partly her fault things with Kaelie didn't work out? It made Jace's blood boil.

"Oh, really?" he interrupted snidely while standing up. "And because you were the other woman, now you think there is someone else, huh?" From the corner of his eye, Jace saw Aline flinch slightly at that.

At least I'm not the only hypocrite in the room, he thought sarcastically. Jace closed his eyes for a moment and thought for a moment, while he heard soft sniffles coming from Aline.

He was tired. He was fucking tired of the same thing over and over again. Aline was beautiful—gorgeous, even—but that really wasn't enough to keep this farce of a marriage they were living. Yes, as dick as it sounded, he had lost total interest in Aline. If he was completely honest with himself, he didn't know what had made Aline so different from any other woman. Right now, she was exactly like any other.

Clary, on the other hand . . .

Jace shook his head and focused his eyes once more on Aline. She was still sitting there, her pin-straight hair covering her face as she looked down at the shirt that was still on her hands. He had to do this now, he knew. There was no future for this. None at all. He didn't even want to try salvaging any scraps left because, to be honest, there were none.

"Aline, you deserve to be happy," he began tenderly, "and we both know that's not gonna be happening anytime soon if you stay with me."

Aline lifted her head slowly. Her eyes were closed once her face came into view and Jace was expecting the waterworks to begin once her eyes opened, but was rather surprised when he was met with a blue, icy glare. He wanted to laugh at the unexpected change of events, but that would've been inappropriate.

"So, that's it?" she asked quietly while standing up. "You're just giving up?"

Jace almost rolled his eyes. "No. This was over a long time ago. The spark is gone. There is nothing left. Even if I wanted to fix this, I wouldn't be able to because we just don't fit in together anymore. It's better if you take this in an understanding manner, Aline. There is nothing we can actually d—"

"Oh, shut up!" she interrupted him, throwing the shirt on her hand to the floor. "That is such bullshit! You just want to go back to fucking bitches like you used to when you were with Kaelie!"

Jace narrowed his eyes at her, meeting her glare equally. He refrained from pointing out she had just called herself a bitch.

"I'm pretty sure you'd be perfectly fine by finding a new secretary job and fucking your boss. I'm sure working with me wasn't the first time you ever downgraded yourself. So, please, let us finish this in a civilized ma—"

"Civilized manner, my ass!" she yelled while stomping her feet on the floor. Jace couldn't fight the little smirk that slipped his mouth. It was just too goddamned funny! "Ugh, you bastard!" she began screaming again and advanced towards him. "Why the fuck are you laughing at me? You asshole! You are asking for the fucking divorce and you think you can just laugh this off when you can't, dickhead!

"And you," she jabbed her finger on Jace's chest, "just called me," she continued softly, "a fucking slut!" she finished with a yell and made as if to punch Jace on the chest, but before it made contact, Jace grabbed her wrist and leveled a glare at her. Aline took in a shaky breath before yanking her hand away. She took a few steps back and grabbed her purse from the vanity table.

Jace stared at her with a raised eyebrow. "Where do you think you're going?" She was by the door as she turned around, breathing heavy out of rage.

"Away from your fucking face!" she yelled. Jace shook her head at how childish she was acting.

Smiling at her, he waved and called out, "I still want the divorce."

Aline took in a deep breath as her cheeks turned red. "Like hell you're getting it!"

She was walking down the corridor when Jace remembered something. "Oh, Aline, wait!" He jogged towards the door, where Aline was having problems opening it. Jace grabbed it and opened it. She huffed and turned around, her cheeks still red. He leaned down and, ever so softly, whispered, "I never stopped fucking bitches."

If it was possible, her cheeks got even redder, almost purple, as she shrieked of rage and ran out the door before she did something stupid. Jace closed the door behind her softly and felt a new kind of relief, like a huge weight was lifted from his shoulders.

His marriage was on its way to over, so there was nothing could hold him back through his holidays.

He was, figuratively, free.

w.^.w

"What's taking him so long?" Simon asked after looking at his watch for what felt like the fourth time. Clary had given up on counting. She rolled her eyes and lowered her sunglasses to see him on the couch across from her.

"He said he'd be here in ten minutes five minutes ago. Please cut it out. It was your suggestion to invite him to this in the first place." Putting her feet up in the leather of the couch, she regarded Simon with an annoyed glance.

He jerked his thumb at Isabelle who was sitting next to him playing with his hair. "It was hers, though! Not mine! He's the one taking forever." Simon, Isabelle, and Clary had been sitting on the couches on Simon's backyard waiting for the rest of the invited to come.

A loud popping sound came from Isabelle's gum as she grinned. "Oh, chill, Simon! We still need to wait for Alec and Magnus, anyways. Talking about them, don't you think they are just the cutest? They melt my heart," she wailed with a small smirk on her face. Simon groaned as Clary giggled at her drama.

"Not that again, please," Simon whined as he turned to look at Clary. "She can go on and on about them nonstop. She even made a ship name for them." Simon shook his head and looked at Isabelle again. "What was it, again?"

"Malec," Isabelle replied before popping another gum bubble.

Clary rolled her eyes with a smile on her face. She was about to reply to Isabelle when they heard the rev of a car coming from the other side of the house. Recognizing the engine, she jumped to her feet and skipped inside the house. "Jace's here!" she yelled over her shoulder. Crossing over the kitchen, living room, and sitting room, she came to a stop before the front door and opened it.

Jace's red BMW rounded the corner and parked right in front of Simon's house. She waited for him to get out of the car, and once he did, she noticed the almost grace-like movement of his shoulders and the carefree smile on his face. It made Clary want to take a double take since she couldn't remember ever seeing Jace so relaxed. When his head turned to see her, though, his smile turned into a grin that set Clary running towards him.

He caught her just as her arms flung themselves around his neck. Chuckling, he kissed her cheek. "Hey, Clary," he greeted in his low voice.

"Jace," she said and kissed him lightly in the mouth. He pulled back with a smirk while pulling some of her curls behind her ear.

"Sorry for making you wait so long. I had to make some phone calls before leaving," he said before kissing her again.

She smiled into the kiss and broke it, taking his hand and walking him towards Simon's house. "It's okay. We're still waiting on Malec."

". . . Malec?" he asked and Clary could imagine a small frown on his face. She looked over her shoulder at him with a grin.

"Isabelle's name for Alec and Magnus as a couple. Come on," she said dragging him to the backyard. Outside, Isabelle and Simon seemed in a very heated conversation that included a lot of hand gestures from Isabelle.

Simon glanced up at them with an annoyed expression that softened as he took in the smile of Clary's face. He stood up to greet Jace, pulling Isabelle up next to him who was beaming at the couple by the door. "Simon," he said with an extended hand. Jace grinned at him good-naturedly and shook Simon's hand.

"We finally meet properly. I'm Jace," Jace replied, sneaking a quick glance at Clary.

She watched with amusement as her best friend and Jace smiled at each other. For some reason, she had imagined the two not getting along at all. One look at Isabelle's stricken face and she knew she hadn't been the only one thinking that.

"Nice to see you again, Isabelle," Jace said directing the words to Isabelle. She smiled and nodded her head in his direction.

"Same goes, Jace," she said before they all whipped their heads towards the front door as they heard a cacophony of sounds echoing throughout the house.

"I believe Magnus has arrived," murmured Jace with a frown on his face. Simon's eyes widened as he pushed Jace out of the way and walked inside, Isabelle giggling right behind him.

"He better not damage my house. I don't care if he's your brother's boyfriend, Izzy. I'll still make him pay." Clary laughed at Simon's antics as she dropped onto the sofa she had been on previously, dragging Jace with her. He was still looking at the door with an amused expression. Clary grinned as she saw how carefree he looked.

"So," he began turning to look at her with a sly smirk, "a week with Magnus." He nodded his head with a sigh. "We'll make it." Clary laughed at his theatrics.

"What's up with you?" she asked with a smile. "I mean, you look less stressed," she continued after seeing his confused gaze. Clary traced the line of his brow softly. "It does wonders for your face."

Jace pulled back from her touch and raised an eyebrow. "I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not." Clary sat against the back of the couch with a smirk.

"Take it however you want to," she said before they were bombarded with company.

"Clary!" exclaimed Magnus as he came out of the house and into the backyard. Her grin widened as she saw his hand clasped tightly around Alec's.

"Hey, Mags," she said with a smile, standing up to give him and Alec a hug, Jace right behind her.

"Boss," Magnus grinned at Jace. "It's nice to see you. Meet Alec," he gestured to Alec. Jace smiled and shook Alec's hand.

"It's great meeting the person who makes Clary happy," said Alec with a small smile. Clary noticed how Jace's smile grew at Alec's comment.

"Thank you. I try," Jace said with a wink towards Clary. She felt herself blushing as Magnus studied both of them together, from their locked eyes to Jace's arm around Clary's waist.

He grinned and turned to Jace with a questioning gaze. "You look different, boss. Is this how you are outside the office? I would love to see this side of Jace far more often."

"I'm Jace for the week, Magnus," he said rolling his eyes. "And I took care of business, that's all." Clary saw how Magnus's eyes widened slightly and his grin widened impossibly before his eyes drifted giddily to her confused face. She thought about how Magnus looked ready to start squealing.

"Well, that's great to know, boss," Magnus winked at Jace before smiling at Clary briefly. "You must be extremely relieved."

Jace chuckled. "You have no idea, Magnus," he said while squeezing Clary closer to him. Clary decided to ignore the Jace's and Magnus's weird conversation.

"Okay, now that we're all here," began Isabelle walking back outside with a grin on her face, "I suggest we start leaving. I don't want to get there too late. I want to go swimming before bed."

w.^.w

"—and she fell face first!" Clary concluded her story with a booming laugh that made Jace laugh after her. "I felt kind of bad for her, but she had it coming, honestly."

"I don't know what took you so long to push her," said Jace with chuckle. They were interrupted by the buzzing of Jace's phone on the console. He frowned and turned to Clary. "Do you think you can check who that is?"

Clary nodded and grabbed his phone. The glowing screen was showing a call from Ignore. She smiled slightly.

"'Ignore' is calling," she said with a giggle. Jace chuckled and changed gears as they followed Simon's car out of the interstate, having arrived to their destination after a whole afternoon of driving.

"Just ignore it. Ex-girlfriend keeps calling ever since I dumped her." He shrugged and rolled his eyes at her. Clary snorted.

"Don't I know how that is," she said while pressing the real ignore button on his phone and dropping it where it had been before.

"Yeah, but that doesn't matter right now, does it?" he asked while sneaking a peak at her before looking back at the road. "You're with me and I'm with you. That's what matters." His hand found her knee and he squeezed lightly. From his peripheral vision, he could see Clary smiling.

Her hand entwined with his as she put her head on his shoulder. "Yup. That's all that really matters."

They settled into a comfortable silence with the sound of music playing softly in the background from the radio. This was what Jace liked about what Clary and he had. There was no real effort into what they did together. It just happened without neither of them having to put in too much to make it work. That's what made what they had different from all his other relationships.

He could truly be himself with her.

Clary would never judge him, and if she did, it was jokingly. She accepted him for who he really was. What scared Jace the most at the beginning of everything was the fact that he didn't even know who that was until he spent a little while with Clary. She made it that easy.

There was no point in denying it at that point. He realized as he parked in front of the small cabins where they would be staying for a whole week. Just as Clary unbuckled her seat belt and turned to Jace with a grin. Just as he leant over and stole a long, slow, sweet kiss from her lips. Just as she threw that brilliant smile at him once again before climbing out of the car.

He realized, just then, that he was in love with Clarissa Morgenstern.

And he had a whole week to show her.

And here is where I apologize for the length of this chapter plus the fact it took me almost three months to update. (THREE MONTHS AGAIN? O.O) Anyways, I'm sorry, I finally got over sophomore year. (Fuck yes.) I don't know if that means updates because I've realized I gained a life when summer began. I'm up and down all day! *sigh*
Anyways, this goes for the same four girlies. :D BlondeHairBlueEyes14 because she'll soon show me how to make my own Tumblr themes! Whoo! SportyNo1 for always brightening my day when she talks to me. :D camibandlover for successfully getting freshmen year off her shoulders! And 07XReflectional for the great two years that we'll have together now! :D
Another thing: Don't ever, ever, EVER think I will leave a story to die by itself. I would never do that but I hate putting A/N chapters because that just puts your hopes up and I hate when people do that to me. xD I prefer actually updating with a chapter. Which is why I wait. xD

:D I'm going on vacation for four days next week and that may mean writing during the ride? ;D Oh, yes. So, would you mind leaving a wonderful (or terrible, I could care less! :D) . . .

Review?