Authors Note:
Okay, so I got carried away, but when it comes to this story, when I get an idea, I can write like two or three chapters, and than it's like I hit a wall, but I hope you all enjoy this chapter, because I think it's just adorable! But I have a soft spot for Karina! Let me know what you think! :)
Chapter Forty Three
Clary POV:
"Hey! Play fair!" I yelled up at my kids as I saw Jacqueline completely take out Tucker. Tucker fell to the ground but I knew he was okay because he was laughing. Jacqueline went to help him up and they made their way over to me.
"We're just having a little fun mom." Jacqueline said. "It's been awhile since we got to go up against each other."
"I'm totally fine." Tucker said and I smiled and shook my head.
"Just be careful. I don't want anyone to break a limb." I said. They nodded and made their way back up the slope to get back in position to go back down. Sammi just dropped in and was killing it just like she always did.
"Way to go mom!" PJ shouted form beside me and I couldn't help but smile. You could just see how much PJ looked up to both Patrick and Sammi. When Sammi was finished her run she made her way over to PJ and he gave her a high five followed by a kiss from Patrick.
Next up was Jace and Karina. I rarely got to see them board together, so today was a really special day for me. Jace had the biggest grin on his face, and Karina was just laughing her head off at whatever Jace said to her. It truly made my heart swell when I saw them together. I knew Karina felt a little left out when it came to having that special connection to us like Jacqueline and Patrick had, but when I saw her in this setting, just enjoying the fun aspect of our sports is what really made my smile.
"Alright kids, prepare to be amazed!" Jace called out as Karina dropped in. She was truly a mini Jace. She looked like him, she had his personality, she got his OCD, and she got his athleticism when it came to boarding. She was flying on that half pipe, and she was just letting all of her best trick fly. Landing them with perfect precision, and there wasn't a doubt in my mind that if she really wanted to go to the Olympics she could totally make it. When she got down to the bottom, she unhooked her boots from the boards, and removed her helmet. I looked over at her classmates and all their jaws were practically in the snow. "And that's how it's done!" Jace yelled from the top before dropping in.
Watching Jace board was a whole different story. He was graceful, and technical, and so incredibly hot out there on the half pipe. Even after all these years, watching him do what he is truly passionate about was something I don't think I'd ever get tired of. We were all standing at the bottom watch just how incredible Jace was at snowboarding, and when he was finished, he removed his boots from his board, removed his helmet, and made his way over to me. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to mine, and I couldn't believe how lucky I was that he was mine.
"I can't believe I ever though I was better than you." Sammi said and Jace and I looked over at her and laughed. "I mean, I'm good, but you are truly in a league of your own Jace."
"Thank you. a lot of blood sweat and tears went into this." Jace said and I leaned into him.
"Don't forget all the broken bones." I said and everyone laughed.
"How could I possibly forget." Jace said and I smiled up at him. We turned to face Karina's class and they were still completely awestruck. "So, how was it?"
"Insane." One boy said and I couldn't help but laugh. "Karina, why aren't you involved in the snowboarding program here?"
"I've been begging her to join for years." Gallagher said as he slung his arm around Karina. I felt Jace stiffen beside me, but she was only 12, he didn't need to worry about Karina and boys.
"I've just never been interested in competing." Karina explained. "I love snowboarding, and I love figure skating, but I love doing it for fun."
"Exactly, which bring us to our next event!" I said. "There is pizza in the dining hall. Why don't you all go get some dinner, and when you're finished, it's on to the figure skating portion of the evening!" I said and the kids nodded and made their way to the dinning hall. "Your pizza is in the house." I said to my kids and they all started making their way to the house.
"Can I eat with my classmates? I feel weird leaving them to fend for themselves with my athletes here." Karina said. "I may not really like them all, but I don't think I want to feed them to the wolves quite yet." She said and Jace and I laughed. I leaned forward and kissed her forehead.
"Of course sweetie." I said and she smiled. Jace gave her a kiss and she went running off to meet up with Gallagher before disappearing into the dinning all. "How did we raise such a sweet girl?" I asked and Jace. He put his arm around my shoulder and we began walking towards the house.
"I'm still convinced she's some type of alien." Jace said and I laughed. "No way that sweetness came from me."
"Maybe not, but she is basically you." I said and he nodded. "We did something right."
"Are you saying we screwed up with the other two?" He asked and I laughed.
"No, but you know Jacqueline would have let those kids fend for themselves, and Patrick wouldn't have invited them over to prove he was better, he would have just punched the kid." I said and Jace laughed.
"Yea, it's a good thing those two were home schooled. I can only imagine the trouble they would have gotten themselves into." Jace said and I laughed. We walked into the house and everyone was already sitting at the table eating. Jace and I grabbed some pizza and joined them. It was about 15 minutes into eating when PJ threw his pizza across the table and it hit Patrick in the face.
"Patrick Alexander Herondale Jr." Patrick yelled and PJ just smirked.
"Like father like son." Jace said and I couldn't help but laugh. Patrick used throw food around the table like it was a game, and the fact the PJ just did it to him was like sweet revenge for Jace and I.
Jace POV:
When dinner was over, we went into the dining hall and instructed the kids to follow Sammi to the ice rinks. Karina, Clary, and Patrick all were already there getting ready to put on a show, and I couldn't wait to see Clary skate again. We were so focused on the work aspect, and keeping our facility running, that we didn't have much time for this kind of thing, and I had to admit, I was enjoying it a lot.
I grabbed PJ, and started making my way over to the rink. The kids were all sitting in the stands waiting for it to start. I stood behind them with Jack, and Tucker, while Sammi and PJ stood in the front. PJ always needed a front row seat, and I couldn't blame him.
Clary was the first to skate out, and I couldn't help but smile at the gorgeous girl on the ice. It was still amazing that she was my wife after all these years, and I was incredibly proud to show her off to the world.
"Alright everyone, tonight we decided to do something different." Clary started. "I first taught Karina how to ice skate when she was a little older than 1. She took to it like a pro, and ever since than, this has been our little outlet when we were angry, or sad, or just needed to clear our head." Clary said. "When Karina started getting older, and I couldn't always come out here with her, Patrick decided to take over for me." Clary said with a huge smile on her face. "He taught her everything he knew, and before I knew it, Patrick and Karina told me that they had been working on a couples routine for sometime. I asked to see it and they didn't want to show it to me because they were just messing around, and it was perfect." Clary said. "But I was just informed a couple minutes ago that they were prepared to show it to the world, so without further ado, I am pleased to introduce, Patrick, and Karina Herondale." Clary said and I started clapping, and everyone joined in. Patrick and Karina skated out onto the ice and took their positions, the music started and I was just completely mesmerized.
"Hole shit. When did Karina get that good?" I heard Jack ask me.
"I have no idea. I didn't even know she'd been working on this until today." I said.
"I've seen Pat and K sneak off sometimes, but I never knew where they were going." Tucker admitted.
"And you didn't tell me?" Jack scolded Tucker and I couldn't help but laugh.
"I thought that maybe Karina was going to visit a friend, and I didn't know what Pat was doing, but he's a weird dude, so I didn't really think much of it." Tucker said and Jack and I laughed.
"She's amazing." I said as I watched my daughter and son just glide across that ice like they were born to do it. When the music finally ended I whistled as loud as I could. "Way to go baby girl!" I shouted and she waved. They skated off the ice and Clary skated back on.
"I didn't think it was possible for my children to outshine me, but clearly it is." Clary said with a laugh.
"You're still the shining star in my eyes!" I called out, and even from this far away I knew she was blushing.
"Well, Karina and I used to do this routine when she was little, and I was feeling especially nostalgic today, so we're going to do it." Clary said and Karina skated back onto the ice. The music started and I already knew what we were in store for.
When Karina was about 4 or 5, she wanted Clary to give her a routine. Nothing she had to compete with, just something for her to do instead of mindless skating. Clary was super excited to be choreographing a routine for her, since she never got the chance to do it with Patrick. It wasn't filled with super complicated moves, or tricks, but it was something that always made Karina smile and laugh, and you could just see the joy on her face while her and Clary performed. When the music finished I started clapping, and everyone joined in. Patrick, Karina and Clary all skated over in our direction, and I could see how happy Karina was to show her classmates that she isn't a disappointment.
"Now, I know why my daughter invited you all here." Clary said and when I looked down they all hung their head. "Karina may come from a family of Olympic medalists, and she doesn't want to follow in our footsteps. She wants to make a path for herself, and we all support her decision not to involve herself in the snowboarding or figure skating programs at our facility, but that doesn't make her less than us because she'll never have an Olympic medal." Clary said and the kids nodded. "As you saw today, Karina could easily be better than all of us at the way she's progressing in both snowboarding and figure skating." Clary said. "She is in no way a black sheep, or a disappointment to the Herondale family, and I hope today proved that to you all." They all nodded and I was proud of Karina taking the initiative and taking the opportunity to show these kids that she's just as good as us, and not acting out in a bad way because of what they were saying.
"We're sorry Karina." Pamela said after a moment. "You just never invite us over, and we thought it was because you were embarrassed."
"I told you why I don't invite people over." Karina said. "My parents run a business, and I help out a lot with that."
"Really?" A boy asked.
"Yea. I help my on the administrative side, and if I'm needed out on the half pipe, or in the rinks I help out in any way that I can." Karina explained. "It's not that I avoid bringing people to my home, well except you Pamela, I do try to avoid that with you, but you guys aren't particularly nice to me, so why would I invite you into my home?"
"We're sorry." Pamela said. "We didn't realize that you did so much."
"I accept your apology." Karina said, and I just couldn't get over how incredibly mature my little girl was.
"Okay, the rec room is open, and you're all more than welcome to hang out in there until your parents get here, just follow Tucker and Jack, they'll show you where it is." I said and everyone got up and started following them out of the rink. I made my way down to Clary, and when I got to her I pressed my lips to her. "You were right, we did raise a good one." I said and she laughed. Today was a good day, and I hoped there would be more like it in the future.