Soooo when know we first started this we updated every Monday and Thursday. We missed this whole week. So we thought we're make it up to you by uploading two chapters in one day. And just so everyone's in the all-clear, there are two chapters left in this mini fic.

Free Trip to the Hospital

Clary knocked on Jace's office door, trying not to drop the platter she had balanced in her left hand.

"Come in," Jace called.

Clary opened the door, sliding into the room and setting the tray down on Jace's desk.

"I finished my dessert for the Baker's Choice platter. It's mini strawberry shortcake with a chocolate drizzle." She smiled, twiddling her fingers as Jace reached over and took one of the small cakes from the tray, popping it into his mouth.

His eyes lit up and he smiled. "This is great. How many more can you make?"

"Oh, I already made fifty more than can fit on the platter."

"Damn, you work fast."

Clary smiled, letting out a small teetered laugh. "I think it's the coffee," she said, almost faster than Jace could understand.

"Don't usually drink coffee, huh?"

"Nooo," Clary squeaked with a big smile. "Well I gotta go finish my baking have a good day let me know if you need anything ok byyyeeeeeee." She waved dramatically and skipped out of the room, pausing to close the door gently behind her.

The door opened again and Clary skipped back inside. "Oops I forgot my platter byyyyyeeeeee," her high pitched, airy voice carried her out as she grabbed her platter and skipped out once again.

Jace smiled to himself, then turned back to his work. Clary had been a lot more upbeat since her little trip to the carnival with Magnus and John last week. The only problem was her whole mouth had been stained cotton candy blue for about three days.

After Jace had finally finished his paperwork for the morning, he stood and left his office for a bit of a break. The shop was full of people; this was their busiest time of day. Everyone was on their way to work, just stopping in for a cup of coffee and a quick snack.

Jace slid behind the counter to take a quick peak in the back and check on Clary.

He cracked the door and glanced in, where Clary was just lifting a baking sheet from one of the ovens and gliding across the room screaming "WWWWWWHHHEEEEEEEEEEE" like a little girl on a fun slide.

Jace shut the door, not wanting to deal with Clary and however many cups of coffee she had consumed since she had left his office a couple hours earlier.

As Jace was walking back from behind the counter, he felt a tap on his shoulder.

He turned to see Clary's brother John, standing behind him with two cups of coffee.

"Do you have a minute to talk?" he asked, offering Jace one of the cups.

Jace smiled. "You sure you don't want to give that to your sister?"

"Oh no." John shook his head almost a little too violently. "Clary can't drink coffee. It makes her crazy hyper and crazy happy."

"Oh, so what's the problem?" Jace asked.

"The aftermath is just a mess. She gets horrible anxiety attacks and she can barely pick herself up off the ground."

Jace nodded, feeling awful but being too afraid to say anything at the moment.

He took the cup from John and nodded towards his office, walking over and closing the door behind them.

"So what is it you wanted to talk about?" Jace asked, leaning against his desk and motioning for John to sit at one of the two visitor chairs.

"I wanted to talk about Clary, actually," he said, sitting down. "Usually I wouldn't say anything about this since she's very self-conscious about it, but since you're her new boss and you two seem to be getting kind of close, I thought you should know."

"If it's so important then why doesn't she just tell me?"

John sighed, setting his cup down on Jace's desk. "It's not really something she's comfortable with. She's never been able to talk about it. Whenever she tries it just leads to horrible anxiety attacks. It's just better if I tell you."

Jace nodded, sitting down next to John.

"It all started after our mother died. Our dad was never the best, but after mom was gone he just snapped. He would beat Clary because she reminded him of her. She was so little. But he didn't care. He beat her anyway. And he didn't go easy." John exhaled nervously, as though talking about this made him sick. He reached for his coffee, took a long sip, then kept talking. "I tried to take the hits for her, you know? Better me than her. But Valentine wouldn't have it. I mean the things he did to her…. She was never the same after that. She was always more fidgety and panicked and fragile. She can't even drive. Her hands shake too much." He shook his head. "She had to miss a whole year of school because she was hospitalized from the damage. As soon as I turned 18 I got her out of there. I got a job and I've been supporting us since. It's only recently that Clary could get a job that I've been able to lay off my double shifts. She said she didn't mind working and she wanted me to go back to school. When I was a kid I wasn't big enough to defend her properly, but now I'm a cop. I'm buff as hell. I can take care of anyone who tries to hurt her. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that you shouldn't be too hard on her. Don't put too much pressure on her either. She can't handle it as well as other people."

Jace nodded. "Don't worry. Clary is great. She's one of the best employees I've had here. We're lucky to have her."

John smiled, standing and shaking Jace's hand. "Thanks man, I really appreciate it."

He turned to leave, reaching for the doorknob. "Oh, and by the way," John turned back to face Jace. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell Clary about this. It would just make her more anxious. Maybe just keep it between us?"

"Of course."

John smiled, exiting Jace's office and shutting the door behind him.

OoOoOoO

Jace opened the door to the kitchen, holding two cups of hot chocolate. "Hey," he said, setting the cups down. "I figured you needed a break from the coffee."

Clary gave a tired, shaky smile. She set down her spoon covered in blue frosting and picked up the warm cup. "Thanks," she muttered as she brought the cup to her lips.

"No problem. It's been a pretty busy day today so I figured you could use a bit of a break." Jace walked over to the door and opened it for Clary, leading her out to their usual table by the window for them to sit.

"So aside from baking and painting , what else are you amazing at?"

Clary snorted, taking another sip of her hot chocolate. "Well, I really like drawing. Just art in general I guess," she spoke quietly, as though she was afraid someone would shush her.

"Really? What a coincidence," Jace smiled. "I've been told I'm a work of art."

Clary giggled, blushing slightly as she lifted her cup again to hide her red cheeks. "I'm also pretty good at some basic magic tricks."

Jace smiled. "No way, really?"

"Yeah," Clary shrugged. "John was always trying to figure out all those tricks, so if he ever met Magnus one day he could impress him and convince him to adopt him. I picked up a lot of it from him. But don't mention it to him. He really sucks."

Jace chuckled, taking another sip of hot chocolate. "Alright, I won't tell."

"What about you?" she asked.

Jace shrugged. "I guess I can play the piano."

Clary's eyes lit up. "Really? I love piano! I always wanted to learn." Her voice was less quiet now, a bit calmer too.

Jace smiled brightly. "Well maybe I could give you a few lessons sometime."

Clary giggled adorably, draining the last of her hot chocolate. Jace laughed too, just because he loved seeing her pretty smile. He reached up and tucked a stray lock of red hair behind Clary's ear. The moment was perfect. Until he looked to the side, out the window, where he saw Sebastian crossing the street toward his shop.

"I'll be right back," Jace muttered, standing from his chair.

"It's ok," Clary said lightheartedly. "I have to get back to baking anyway."

Jace nodded, making sure she made it back into the kitchen before he stepped outside to greet his lovely neighbour.

"Can I help you with something?"

"Yeah, just thought I'd pop over and ask you to stop hitting on my girlfriend." Seb gave a tense smile, one that showed he clearly wasn't happy.

"What? I have never once hit on Kaelie."

"I'm not talking about Kaelie, asshole. I'm talking about Clary."

Jace laughed. "Yeah right. If you seriously expect me to believe that Clary is your girlfr-"

"Why do you think she quit? She didn't want work to affect our relationship."

Jace shook his head.

Seb scoffed, rolling his eyes. "I don't care if you don't believe me. Just don't touch my girlfriend, alright?" He turned and walked back towards his shop across the street, leaving Jace standing alone.

Jace turned back, a bit dumbfounded, and headed back to the kitchen.

He knocked before he entered this time.

"Uh… Come in?" Clary called from behind the door, sounding confused.

Jace entered, closing the door as quietly as he could behind him before walking over to Clary's side.

"I just wanted to apologize for earlier," he muttered, not meeting her eyes.

"Apologize for what?"

"I didn't realize I was making you uncomfortable before when we were talking. It's ok if you didn't want to tell me you had a boyfriend. I shouldn't have been talking to you that way without your permission."

"Boyfriend?" Clary said, her voice almost a whimper.

"Yeah, Sebastian came over to talk to me. I'm sorry. I didn't know you two were dating. I promise I won't talk to you that way anymore."

Clary shook her head. Her breathing became heavier, faster as she clutched at her neck like she was choking. "Not… He's not…"

Jace grabbed her wrists gently and pulled them away from where she was clawing at her throat. "Hey, it's ok. I'm not mad. You're not in trouble. Everything's ok."

Clary just shook her head, her hyperventilating became more frantic as her eyes darted around the room.

Jace let go of her wrists, putting his arms around her as softly as he could, trying his best not to make her feel like he was invading her space. "It's ok. You're fine. Everything is fine. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, ok? Just breathe. Everything's ok, you're safe. I promise."

Clary nodded, trying to calm her breathing as she leaned in closer to Jace's chest. He held her closely and rubbed her back, waiting for her to catch her breath.

They stayed like that for a few minutes, just listening to each other's breathing.

When Jace was sure she had calmed down, he pulled away from her, reaching up to wipe the tears from her eyes.

The door swung open violently, startling them both.

Alec stood in the doorway, his hair a mess, his tie loose around his neck. "It's Maryse," he said his eyes locking on Jace. "She was in a car accident. We need to get to the hospital now."

Jace's eyes widened. He looked helpless, glancing down at Clary.

She just shook her head, smiling lightly. "It's ok. I don't mind closing up. I used to do it all the time at my old job. And besides, the shop closes in a half hour anyway."

Jace hugged her gently, as though he was still afraid he might break her. "Thanks. I'll see you tomorrow, ok?"

"There's something I need to tell you. Can we talk tomorrow?"

Jace nodded, pulling away from Clary as he followed Alec out of the kitchen.

OoOoOoO

Maryse Lightwood clutched at her throat, coughing a raspy cough and wheezing like an old asthmatic. "I don't think I have much time left. I can feel the life leaving my body. The light is so close, Alec." She gripped her son tighter, pulling him closer. "It's so close."

The doctor that stood at the foot of her bed cleared his throat, looking down at her chart again. "Ma'am, as we've already told you, we've run all the tests that you asked us to run. There is nothing wrong with you. There isn't even anything wrong with your car. The man barely grazed you. You're free to drive home as soon as possible."

Maryse gasped, reaching up towards the heavens. "Papa? Is that you? I can hear him calling me."

The doctor sighed, dropping the clipboard on the ground and walking out the door.

Once the door clicked shut, Maryse shot up, smiling at all her kids. "I can't believe we're all together again! It's been so long since we've had the whole family in one room!"

"Max and dad aren't here," Isabelle muttered.

"SHUT UP PATRICE." Maryse howled.

"Mom," Alec sighed. "We had dinner together last night."

"Hush, Alec. I had an awful near death experience today and the only thing I could think of was that I was going to leave this world without all my kids being happily married. So Jace, is there anyone new in your life?"

"Well there's Clary," Isabelle smirked, leaning back against the wall.

Maryse gasped, much like she did before when she was pretending to die. "Clary? She sounds lovely. Tell me all about her. Does she have broad hips? Is she Catholic?"

Jace rolled his eyes, wanting nothing more than to leave. "She has a boyfriend, actually. So that's not happening."

"A boyfriend? Who?"

Jace shrugged, pretending not to care. "Sebastian."

Woooooooowwwww plot twist

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-R&A