Jace had survived Christmas rather more intact than he'd expected. Clary's family had been wonderfully welcoming, which might ironically have been why Jace was so nervous the whole time. Where were the threats? Where were the ultimatums? Jace hadn't been prepared for 'happy family' acceptance. Seriously, how lucky was he supposed to get? Not only was Clary his girlfriend, but her family liked him? Really, with his past?

Shooting hoops with Jon had been what had finally calmed Jace's nerves. It was the causal way Jon had interacted with him that had done it, though Jace suspected it had always just been the physical activity itself. Jace always felt less anxious after a workout, though not so much when there was a coach screaming at you the whole time. That had quite the opposite effect. Jace was good at wrestling. He was strong, and had been doing it long enough to know exactly how to get ahead, but he'd decided ages ago that once school was done, and he didn't have to wrestle to keep his scholarship, Jace was so done with this sport. He enjoyed the physical exercise, but it was rather ruined by all the pressure to win. He was sick of spending hours in the gym with a bunch of sweaty guys being hollered at by their coach.

"Jace!" his coach called as practice ended. With a sigh, Jace turned away from the door and back to his coach.

"Hey," Jace replied.

"Good job today," coach said.

"Thanks," Jace replied wondering why he was still here. Surely, the coach hadn't held him back just to praise him; that really wasn't his style. Coach Rivera much preferred the 'telling the team how much they suck' method of instruction.

"I am willing to bet it hasn't escaped your notice that Mason isn't keeping up with everyone else," the coach said. Indeed, it hadn't escaped Jace's notice, but he hardly cared. He didn't say anything however, and Coach Rivera continued. "We are only as strong as our weakness link. Since you are the strongest member of the team, I was wondering if you'd mind helping him."

"Helping him how?" Jace asked, trying to hold back another sigh. His scholarship wasn't dependent on if they won or lost the end of year tournament. This sounded like a one sided favour to him. Jace couldn't benefit from helping Mason, and yet he was expected to put in all that work for something. He didn't know Mason, or really anyone else on the team very well. They all knew him only because he won the most matches.

"Some one on one practice maybe," Coach Rivera said. "Unless you have any better ideas. I just know if we put the effort in, we can do better than last time." Last year Jace had won almost all his individual matches, but the team overall had been third nonetheless. Jace understood why Coach Rivera was invested in improving their weakest members, but he also knew he didn't care. He'd been happy with third place.

"Can I think about it?" Jace asked. He really didn't want the extra work, though he felt guilty for not caring about the team as much as he knew he should. All he could think about was how much time he'd lose training Mason, time he would rather spend with Clary.

"Sure," the coach smiled at him. "Let me know at our next practice, alright?"

"Okay," Jace replied, then he turned and left the gym.

His day was finally over. There was something draining about coming back to classes after the holidays, and trying to get back into a routine. After only one day back at school, and Jace was ready to collapse on his bed and sleep till morning. Entering his apartment, Jace intended to do just that, but his roommate had other ideas. Jace hadn't seen Alec since before the holidays, Alec having arriving back while Jace had been out.

"You will never guess what I learned over the holidays," Alec said by way of greeting the second he saw Jace.

"Perfect," Jace sighed. "No need to try then." And he continued walking straight for his bedroom. He was too tired to make a joke about Alec's lack of a hello.

"Izzy hooked up with Simon," Alec exclaimed, clearly too impatient to bother making Jace guess.

"Huh?" Jace asked, forcing into a semi-functional state by the surprising news. "How is that possible?"

"Not sure how it happened," Alec continued. "But Izzy confirmed it." Something clicked into place in Jace's head, and suddenly he remembered who the 'elevator girl' had been.

"Crap," Jace whined. "Right so Simon and Izzy had a thing last year. Unless he's suddenly Mr. Super-Stud, and there is more than one strange woman making passes at him."

"You knew something about this?" Alec asked.

"Yeah," Jace said. "When Izzy was here for spring break, now that I think about it, Simon got stuck in an elevator with a girl and they made out, but he didn't get her name at the time, but it was Izzy."

"That is just so weird," Alec said shaking his head. "I know Izzy is a little… well you know, but with Simon? I thought Izzy liked well… not Simon's."

"It seems university has ruined her palette," Jace sighed.

"Or fixed it?" Alec counted, looking oddly hopeful. "I mean Simon is a more wholesome guy than she usually goes for."

"Maybe," Jace shrugged. "Can I sleep now?"

"Fine," Alec sighed. "But I am determined to think the best of them. If you can change, surely Izzy can too."

"I don't know," Jace said cautiously. "I think your anniversary is making you see hearts where no hearts exist."

"One whole year!" Alec said, suddenly giddy about his relationship, rather than gossiping about his sister's. It was quite a remarkable and instant transformation actually. "As of tomorrow. And this means you and Clary's anniversary is coming up too right? Didn't you guys finally figure yourselfs out only a few weeks after us?"

"Yeah," Jace said, for a moment not quite so tired as he remembered. "Wow, I can't believe it's been that long."

"Well, time is irrelephant," Alec sniggered.

"Really Alec?" Jace sighed. "A pun. You have been spending way too much time with Magnus." Alec just laughed.

"No such thing," he said merrily.

"Let me sleep," Jace whined, and Alec finally moved away allowing Jace to crash fully clothed onto his bed and pass out.

Jace woke up over nine hours later feeling much better. He got dressed, sorta, had breakfast, and then went to class. Today Clary had class over his lunch break, and Alec was busy, so Jace ate alone in the cafeteria. He went to another class that was as boring as the last one had been, then finally went home again. A standard day in the life of a University student. Jace knew he needed to declare a major. He'd been trying to decide on one for a while. He liked his marketing classes most, and was leaning toward that, though he found many of the other ones interesting as well. It all depended on what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. The problem was that when Jace thought about the rest of his life, all he thought about was Clary, which didn't at all help him with career options. He'd called his mother a few times to bounce ideas off her, but was still torn about what to major in.

Jace texted his girlfriend intending to spend time with her rather than inside his own head, but to his surprise, Clary was busy. She texted back that she'd tell him all about it tomorrow over lunch. Before the school year had started, Jace and Clary had sat down and compared their schedules. They'd both had Wednesday and Friday evenings clear, as well as Thursday and Tuesday around lunch time. Jace had marked his calender by these days, and with today being Wednesday evening, he had no clue what Clary was talking about. She couldn't possibly have class, so what was going on?

Jace knew that Alec and Magnus's big anniversary was this weekend, so his friend's mind was elsewhere at the moment. Was there anyone else Jace could hang out with? He could text Simon he supposed, but he still wasn't sure if Simon would like that. Usually Simon came to him when he wanted to, and Jace gave him space the rest of the time. But if Simon was getting busy with Izzy, did that mean he was finally over Clary? Did that mean he'd be more open to being friends?

"Urg!" Jace cried as he fell face first onto his bed. Strangely, this made him feel a bit better, as if the act had expelled some of his frustration. It was too early in the year for real homework, so Jace settling for some crappy tv, then went to bed early again.

The next day consisted of more undefined classes, skipping breakfast, and finally meeting up with Clary for lunch. Jace smiled when he saw her sitting at their usual table waiting for him. She had a salad with a side of bread in front of her. Jace had order a burger with fries, and was carrying it when he reached the table. Placing the plate down, he leaned down and gave her a soft kiss before sitting in the chair opposite.

"So," Jace began. "You were going to tell me why you ditched me last night?"

"Ditch?" she asked skeptically.

"Oh alright fine," Jace sighed. "I won't be so needy. Why did you have plans that weren't class or me?"

"From needy to controlling," Clary laughed affectionately.

"I-" Jace started, but hung his head. He still sucked at this.

"It's a good thing I love you," Clary laughed. "Or I'd find this annoying." Jace mumbled under his breath, but said nothing.

"So anyway, I was talking to dad over the holidays," Clary began. "And I think he had a point, so I signed up for a self defense class. It's Wednesday nights so that's where I was."

"That's great," Jace replied, trying and failing not to be upset that this meant he wouldn't get to see her on Wednesday nights anymore. He knew boyfriends were suppose to be supportive about this kind of thing, rather than super clingy.

"I think this will be good for me," Clary continued. "Help me feel more confident after everything." Jace couldn't disagree with her on that. She deserved to be confident and strong, even if it was making him feel weak and useless. What if she got so strong and independent that she didn't need him anymore? He shook his head, trying to dispel the loathsome thought.

"If it's important to you," Jace said. "Then I'm glad you are doing it."

"Thanks," Clary replied smiling at him.

"So onto better topics," Jace said clapping his hands together. "What do you want to do for our anniversary?"

"Aren't those supposed to be a surprise?" Clary asked.

"I don't know," Jace answered. "But either way, I am sure if I try for surprise I will mess it up, so I thought I'd ask instead."

"You're cute," Clary laughed, reaching across the table to gently touch his cheek.

"I know," Jace replied easily. "Now answer the question."

"We could go out to eat somewhere fancy," Clary suggested. "That might be fun."

"Alright," Jace said, nodding as he tried to think of ways he could accomplish this. "I can work with that."

"Or we could stay in, watch a movie, and order take out," Clary added.

"Okay, now you are just confusing me," Jace sighed. Clary laughed, but Jace kept a straight face as he added, 'Which would you prefer?"

"Hmm," Clary began, thoughtfully. In fact, it was almost too thoughtfully. She had her hand under her chin in that theatrical way the smart guy on the tv show always does when he was about to discover who killed whom and why.

"Clary," Jace said warningly. "Are you teasing me?" His girlfriend chuckled as she reached across the table to steal his fries.

"Why didn't you order fries?" Jace asked.

"Because yours taste better," Clary explained.

"They are the same fries!" Jace exclaimed, again confused by her logic.

"But they are your fries," Clary said. "Which makes them taste better." Jace pushed his plate of fries towards her and covered his face with his hands. Why had he fallen in love? Why? It had brought nothing but confusion. His stupid, meddling heart should just learn to butt out. How could he love someone so much, if they made no sense what so ever? In fact, love itself made no sense. How exactly had Jace become love's bitch? He knew it was all Clary's fault, but the whole process was quite the mystery to him.

"You have that funny look on your face," Clary observed. "What are you thinking about?"

"Oh just that you will be the death of me woman," Jace sighed.

"Pfft," Clary dismissed his remark. "Dramatic much?"

"Confusing much," Jace counted, and to his surprise, Clary grinned.

"It is just so much fun to mess with you," Clary giggled.

"It's a good thing I love you," Jace grumbled, echoing her words back at her. "Or I'd find this annoying."

"Nice," Clary praised him for the copy cat trick. "Okay, but in all seriousness, a fancy restaurant if it's in the budget, otherwise me, you, a movie, and takeout."

"Okay," Jace said taking a deep breath. "I can do that."

"Then why do you look like you are headed for the gallows?" Clary asked.

"A year," Jace whispered. "I mean a year. A whole year. 365 days of us."

"That is what a first year anniversary usually means," Clary giggled.

"It's just kinda surreal, you know."

"Yeah," Clary replied.

They finished eating, and then Jace walked her to her next class before heading to his own. After another boring hour of being lectured at, Jace made his way to wrestling practice. As Jace walked into the gym, he prepared for an evening of flipping people over, and landing flat on his ass in equal measure. This was very much the usual, though Jace only fell flat because he had to let the others learn. Since no one on the team could beat him, Jace really wasn't challenged in these practices. He wished so badly he could skip them, but they were part of his scholarship requirements. When practice finally ended, Jace breathed a sigh of relieve. He quickly went for the exit, but Coach Rivera told him to stay behind before he could reach it.

"Have you thought anymore about training Mason?" the coach asked.

"Oh yeah right," Jace said, suddenly remembering he was supposed to have mulled this over, rather than totally forget about it, which is what had happened. "Umm…"

What was he supposed to say? Jace wasn't willing to give up time with Clary to train Mason, and he had classes. Homework would start piling up soon enough, and he just didn't have time for this. Then Jace had sudden idea.

"Sure, I can do that," he told his coach. "But only on Wednesday nights."


I sucked at only updating once a week, but I could try to slow down. Honestly, I don't keep track of how often I update. I just update whenever I finish a chapter and my beta sends it back to me. And since I write between 200-6000 words a day... and each chapter averages around 2200 words sometimes I write 2-3 chapters in a day like I did on Tuesday. Then I have to be patience and wait a day between updates. Sigh. Also my beta is fast. ^_^ (July 2020 Update: my beta was fast. And I used to write this must everyday because I discovered balance. Damn XD)


To guest reviewer who said:
Of course. Non-Clace fans would feel their chapters not interesting. But thank you very much for doing the Clace chapters. This story has complex characters and several pairings but you managed to balance them all. Great work!

My reply:
You are welcome. This is my only Clace story so I try and make sure they get 'screen time' even if I get more reviews on Malec chapters. People don't seem to like Tessa either but I haven't cut her out. Thanks! Yes balance is what I was going for. I have a colour coded timeline and notes for this story a mile long. It seems I am better at balance in stories than in life. lol


Sneak Peek Chapter 74

Magnus's mind was pulled back to the present when his teacher asked him a question. Of course, having been spacing out for the last ten minutes Magnus had no idea what the question was, let alone the answer.

"Umm…" he began, knowing he looked just about as clueless as he was.

"The Mongols, Bane," his profession sighed. "And please if you aren't going to listen don't show up to class." Magnus nodded sheepishly, seriously considering skipping this guys next class. The notes were online and he knew which days the quizzes were so what did it matter anyway? All Magnus could think about was the fact that Alec had a surprise planned for their anniversary and that surprise started in an hour. Magnus wanted to celebrate their year together, but he was weary of exactly what Alec had planned. Since he'd finally broken the wall with their holiday trip Magnus suspected Alec would keep with that theme and plan something over the top. He knew Alec meant well, but if it was too extravagant Magnus was sure to feel uncomfortable.

Class finally ended and Magnus went home, fretting about how the rest of his night would play out. He was also thinking about his wardrobe. As he walked, Magnus went through his clothing options in his mind. Could he wear the smart deep green dress shirt with plain black pants or was that too underdressed. What was Alec going to show up wearing? Walking through his front door, Magnus dropped his school stuff on the floor without a second thought and went straight for his closet. He had no idea what he was in for tonight so how was he supposed to know what to wear? Deciding this was beyond silly, Magnus got out his phone and hit two on his speed dial.

"Alexander," Magnus spoke as soon as the line picked up. "You have to tell me where we are going."

"Ah let me think… no," Alec replied clearly amused.

"But I don't know what to wear," Magnus grumbled.