{Chapter Five}
~Clary~
"And your excuse for this whole half naked cuddling thing is, and tell me if I get anything wrong, you were just too tired to make it to your own rooms after you have an impromptu water fight in the middle of the night?" Clary and Jace glanced at one another before looking back at Isabelle and nodding as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Okay, guys, sounds fake, but okay."
"You're seeing things that aren't there, Izzy." Clary sat next to Jace's legs and caught his smile when she placed her hand on top of the blanket where his feet were. He liked having her touch him. Even in a nonsexual way which was a little new and frightening for him.
Isabelle's eyes locked on Clary's hand and the redhead stilled the lazy finger movements. "Or maybe you're the ones who aren't seeing what's right in front of you."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jace said between his grit teeth. He liked Clary, sure, she was a cool girl but it wasn't like he was about to pop a baby in her and move to the suburbs. Although the baby making process wasn't out of the question.
He stared Iz down, daring her to continue questioning them. They already told her what happened after they left Pandemonium.
They had been tired of the club in the early morning hours and decided to walk home, Clary couldn't feel her feet anymore because of the devil horns on her heels so he gave her his converse, and when they got home she hadn't wanted to give them back. Jace had been holding a glass of water and one thing led to another. The next thing they knew they were soaking wet and panting on the ground. The couch had looked like a good idea and stripping down seemed like the best idea. Which it had been, until Jace realized he wouldn't be able to fall asleep if she was that naked and pressed up next to him. Thus, tee shirt solution.
"Nothing! Get dress or you'll both be late to class. Have a great day," Alec pushed Isabelle down the hall before a fight broke out between his siblings. "With clothes on. All day long." Alec amended quickly, his face still a bright shade of red.
When the door shut behind Alec, Jace didn't know what to expect. Would she recoil back to her room like yesterday? Clary Fray was an enigma and Jace waited anxiously for her to decide if he was worth her time. She didn't say anything for a long time. Just sat there, drawing patterns with her fingers. Her hands were gentle but there was an edge to her.
"Are you okay?" His voice was low and smooth. Clary finally turned to look at him. The sun God, Apollo came to mind when she looked at him. His unimaginable golden eyes frame with thick lashes and sunkissed skin; his messy bronze locks stuck up in odd angles but Jace Herondale was still the most heartbreakingly beautiful man Clary had ever seen.
"Deciding if it's worth putting clothes on to go to class." Clary muttered softly, deciding Alec's accidental reminder before he left was the safest conversation topic.
Jace didn't know what was happening between them but he felt warm and safe when she was around and that was a feeling Jace desperately wanted to hold onto for as long as possible. Jace pretended to think about her problem but the truth was, he already knew his answer. "Not worth it, come here."
Without giving herself a chance to run away Clary crawled to her previous place against his chest. Sighing when he wrapped his strong arms around her, Clary felt him throw the blanket over them but she was already drifting back to sleep before his head fell back on their pillow.
Jace watched her chest rise and fall with each breath she took. Tucking an errant strand of hair behind her ear he buried himself in the scent of Clary Fray and fell asleep beside her.
~o.O.o~
"Are you always like this in bed?" Jace squeezed her waist closer and buried his nose into her hair. She smelled divine, the same strawberry scent lingered and the sweet fragrance of Clary. Her body fit into his under the blanket and Jace willed himself not to think about how well she fit against him because if he did then Clary would feel just how much he enjoyed it.
"First, this is a couch. Second, like what?" Clary twisted her head towards him, his nose now on the column of her neck. He felt her swallow, throat bobbing and the slightest taste of her skin touched his lips.
Groaning Jace rubbed her hip and sighed at the contact. "Shifting, turning, twitching. It's like you think you're risking the safety of the free world if you sit still for a few minutes."
Clary rolled her eyes at his dramatics and tried to breathe calmly with his calloused skin gently touching her. "How would you know I'm not?"
"One way to test it." He smirked.
Clary was a little apprehensive by the look in his eyes. "What do you mean test?"
Clary felt something growing in her chest the longer she stayed in his arms. He could be kind when he wanted to be and recently Jace had been nothing but sweet. Not counting his regular jackassery. His smiles grew more genuine and the weight of his fingers between her's was natural. She liked when he picked her up from class and she liked spending time with him. Clary listened to him breathe to calm herself.
Standing up away from her Clary blinked, confused. She squealed when his arms lifted her up from the couch. "What are you doing? Put me down!"
"Fixing your first point." Clary covered her face with her hands as he carried her towards the bedroom. She hadn't imagined being in his bed for an experiment. Not that she imagined herself in his bed for any reason!
When Jace dropped her onto the cool covers she felt his shirt slide up her thighs and quickly covered her underwear. She waited for him to join her but he didn't Rising on her elbows she stared at him as he scurried out of the room. "Where are you going?"
"Just sit tight! I'll be right back!" He called back from the other room.
Clary didn't want to be the type of girl who asked the age old question, what are we? But she couldn't help but think about it. They had danced glued to one another all night, had a tipsy water fight and take each other's clothes off before falling asleep cuddled up on the couch. Clary had to believe that he didn't do that with all of his other friends. What startled her was that Jace hadn't gone home with the leggy girl from the bar. That meant something, right?
She shook her head, Clary had to remind herself that Jace Herondale hadn't had a girlfriend in years. He probably thought this was just a normal thing that girlfriends did when they hung out or maybe he just liked having a half naked girl next to him.
Clary needed to stop pretending like Jace saw her as anything other than his roommate and morning after repellant. Maybe he just liked to be physical. She wasn't in a romance movie and Clary Fray was not the girl boys fell in love with. Her ex was the best example for why she needed to steer clear of the skid. Resting her head on her knees, her back digging into the wooden headboard rather uncomfortably, she didn't notice when her blonde companion stumbled into his room, a handful of cases in his hands. When he spotted her, Jace dropped the dvd's on the corner of the bed.
"Hey," His hands brushed away her hair from her face. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah! Just lost myself in my head. What did you get?" She forced her muscles to relax and tried to look over his shoulder. Half a dozen movies were scattered on the covers.
"I figured since we are going to be bad kids and skip school we should do it the right way." He said reaching behind him and pulling Harry Potter in front of his face. "Let's emotionally torture ourselves."
Clary kicked her legs under the blanket and watched him put in the first movie. When he crawled in next to her she didn't know what to do. Cuddle his side again or sit three feet away from him? The decision was taken out of her hands when Jace gently tugged her with an arm around her waist. He breathed out a sigh.
They made it through the first three movies before they had a falling out.
"No, no, no." Jace turned off the dvd player. "We aren't watching anymore unless you admit you're only saying that because you don't like Ron."
"That is a lie! Ron is a great friend but Hermione and him don't work. Draco has gone through a lot- speaking from the movies and books- and he deserves to be happy. Hermione would challenge him and make him want to be a better person."
"You only think that because Tom Felton is dreamy." Jace rolled his eyes while turning on the Xbox and grabbing the controllers.
"I resent that accusation." She crossed her legs and held out her hand. They had set up her Xbox in the living room and Jace squirreled away his into his bedroom. Thankfully he left all the games with hers.
"Can you deny it?" Jace withheld the controller until she answered.
"He is dreamy," She used his word mockingly. "But he's also fucking amazing as a human being so bite me."
"Is that an invitation?" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and grinned.
Jace sat next to her as the game screen popped up. "Do you want it to be?"
She watched his eyes flicker to her lips for a moment before he leaned forward. For a second Clary was scared that he was messing with her, that he would pull away at the last moment and laugh at her for thinking he could ever kiss her. Then she felt his breath on her lips and she closed the space between them. She expected sizzling heat and an overwhelming feeling to fuck his brains out then and there, which granted she felt the majority of the time around him now. Instead it was soft and sweet. His lips tasted like sugar and coffee. It was a chaste kiss, her eyes had barely fluttered closed before he was pulling away.
Looking at him with her lips tingling and hand limply holding the controller felt normal. Jace looked at her and smiled. A genuine smile with all his perfectly white teeth out on display. Shyly, Clary smiled back, her hand scratching the nape of her neck.
"You ready for me to kick your ass in Battlefront, pretty girl?"
"I think you have that backwards, pretty boy." She snickered at his offended expression.
Jace was certain he had actually swallowed his tongue this time around, imagine his surprise when he heard himself joke with her about a video game. A part of his brain couldn't even remember what a video game was, let alone how to kick someone's ass in it, because he had just kissed Clary fucking Fray.
Looking at it now all day was a weird experience. A good day but a weird one nonetheless. He didn't cuddle with girls and he didn't watch movies in his bed with them wondering if they could hear how loud his heart was beating. He definitely didn't play video games half naked on his bed, he did other things naked on his bed. And Jace Herondale never, ever kissed girls sweetly. But today he had and he didn't feel pressured to do more than what he was giving her. No fancy dates or extravagant gifts.
She had cleaned off her smeared makeup between movies and her hair was in it's signature bun with her glasses perched on her nose. Clary wasn't trying to impress him or push him into anything he didn't want, she was just there being Clary. Sitting on his bed, wearing his shirt, and kicking his ass in Battlefront.
"You aren't even trying! What happened to kicking my ass?" She laughed when the game declared the Galactic Empire victorious again. For whatever reason she had decided that being in the Empire was better than the rebellion.
"Why did you pick the Empire anyways, they're the bad guys?" Jace leaned back to his pillow, watching her shrug and drop the controller.
"In middle school, Simon and I built a 3D model of the Death Star and let me tell you, that shit was hard. I hate the rebellion because okay, I get it, it's a giant Death Star that kills planets and people but could you imagine how long it took the Empire to build it? I would want revenge against Luke too."
"Oh my god," He whispered horrified. Clary looked at him in question, resting her head next to his. "You're a total geek. I kissed a total geek."
Clary looked in thought for a moment before kissing him briefly. The light touch of her soft mouth over his made his breath stop. She grinned evilly. "Twice."
"Twice! I'm ruined. What have you condemned me to?" He sounded upset but the grin pulling at his mouth told her he wasn't actually mad.
"Says the guy who owns all of the Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and Star Wars original box sets. I would hardly say I've ruined you. You were a geek before kissing me." Jace played absentmindedly with a tendril of her hair.
"Maybe you're just a rubbish kisser and it's taking longer for my uber geek status to kick in, ever thought of that?" Pulling her glasses off her face he blindly placed them on the nightstand and moved in closer, his nose touching hers.
"Rubbish, really?" Clary scrunched up her nose and Jace thought it made her look rather cute. "If your kisses lasted more than three seconds I could really get my geeky claws into you. Maybe I'll even get you to watch Stargate."
"Don't threaten me." Whatever her reply was about to leave her pretty lips was swallowed by his hungry mouth. Their first two kisses were like Jace was dipping his toe into the water to check the temperature but now that Jace knew the steaming hot water, he was jumping headfirst and not looking back.
He rolled on top of Clary, falling in the crevice between her thighs. His hand traveled down to wrap around her silky smooth leg and hitch it higher on his hip, groaning into her mouth when she used said leg to push him closer. Jace kissed the corner of her lip and nibbled down her jaw and continued to her neck. Clary's fingers dug and grasped onto the short strands of his hair trying to pull his head back up to her lips. Jace gave a dark and throaty chuckle when he left her lips again, "How is that for three seconds?"
"Not nearly long enough for me to judge properly." They both moved for each other, lips crashing together. As much as Jace would love nothing more than to lay there kissing her and touching her, he couldn't sleep with her.
Not yet at least.
He had just decided to accept that he liked her as more than a friend and the girl he'd been living with for months. He had just broken his rules about not cuddling and not spending time with a girl outside of sex. He couldn't treat her like the girls from before. Clary Fray wasn't a ditzy girl in a bar. She was nice and funny and smart. He knew her nervous ticks and strange habits. He liked how she smelled and he loved the breathy little sighs that left her when he bit her lip. Those weren't things he knew or liked with other girls.
He wasn't the relationship type, never had been, but when he gazed down at Clary's glazed green eyes he was smitten. Maybe he hadn't been the relationship type before because he hadn't had the chance to mistake Clary Fray for a boy yet.
There was a loud knock at the front door and Jace held onto Clary tighter, "If we keep really quiet they'll go away." Clary giggled and Jace decided that if the airy feeling in his chest was anything to go by he loved the sound.
His phone began to ring from the living room and Jace buried his face in her neck. There went the idea of pretending not to be home. Clary wiggled out from underneath him and Jace missed the warmth immediately.
"I'll get it, you put clothes on." Jace was going to tell her that she still wasn't wearing anything decent either. Just his tee shirt, not even a bra, for fucksake. Then again maybe if she opened the door like that whoever it was would go away. When he heard the voice from the other room Jace knew their day was over.
Clary rushed down the hallway and poked her head in, "We forgot about tonight and Alec is here and I'm practically naked." She uncontrollably whispered before disappearing into her own room with a slam of the door.
Jace groaned and jumped into a pair of jeans he pulled off a hanger. Normally he would have strolled through the apartment shirtless and not given a care but their friends were coming over for dinner and it was important to Clary. She had only given him two jobs for tonight.
One, to wear appropriate clothes. Which he was doing by putting the cotton shirt over his head. Two, to make his Italian pasta sauce for the lasagna. It was one of the only things he knew how to cook and he was close to perfecting the recipe.
"I thought we talked about keeping clothes on." Alec said, leaning against the doorframe.
"No, you talked and we listened." Jace turned to the bed that Alec was eyeing. The covers were messy and the evidence of their movie and videogame day was all over the floor. "And then ignored you."
"Jace, what are you doing with Clary? You aren't acting like yourself."
"Is that such a bad thing?" Alec looked surprised at his best friend. Jace was always the first one to defend his lifestyle- being adamant that it was the best way to live fully. From woman to woman. "She's nice." He said in a way of explanation.
Clary appeared behind them, blissfully unaware of their conversation. She had changed into a loose white tee shirt and tights. Clary grinned at them and waved her hand towards the kitchen. "Come and keep me company while I cook."
Jace felt an answering smile tug at the corner of his lip, "Lead the way, pretty girl."
Clary rolled her eyes at the endearment but walked away anyways. Alec looked at him intently and asked, "Pretty girl?"
Instead of answering Jace shouldered his way past Alec and to the kitchen. Clary was pulling bowls from cupboards and ingredients from the fridge. She was making good timing, cutting romaine lettuce into fine strips for the salad, and turning the stove on to preheat.
"Jace, start on the sauce," She pointed at the tomatoes sitting on the counter.
"I distinctly remember you asking me to keep you company, not cook." Clary glared and threw a crouton that hit him in the nose. "Why are you so violent? Jesus."
They moved elegantly around one another in the kitchen. Alec watched their dance of chopping knives and alternating movements without bumping into each other. They were collected and focused on the cooking but they occasionally joked and smiled.
When Clary finished the salad and the preparations for the pasta, she hopped up onto the counter with a carefully balanced wine glass on her thigh. "Why are you here so early?"
"Sorry. Magnus got called into his office for an emergency and I didn't want to hang out by myself. Did I interrupt anything?" Alec asked in sham innocence.
"Oh, no," Jace smirked into the pot of boiling sauce. Her voice had cracked. "We were playing video games." She said more convincingly.
Jace thought he would be gentlemanly and let her off the hook she strung herself on. "What was the emergency at Magnus' office?"
"Bride accidentally lose five pounds and her wedding is in two weeks. Magnus had to to an immediate waist trim and then he started talking about lace and I just tuned out." Alec poured himself a glass of wine and sipped as he sat at the dining table.
"Magnus owns a wedding planning business, why is he doing the tailoring himself?"
"He used to be a designer, but then expanded." Clary nodded. "This woman is Bridezilla 2.0. She's paying a fortune for Magnus to work on everything personally. She calls in the middle of the night because she had a dream that plain vanilla would make her wedding boring, she changed the venue twice, and last night she decided that lilies aren't what she wants for her bridesmaids. Magnus was up all night making a dozen gardenia bouquets."
"Alec does this monster have a name?" Jace laughed, sprinkling parsley into the mix.
"Lauren Von Arnim."
"No shit?" Clary asked. "Her wedding has been in the tabloids all month."
"She's an annoying little-" Alec was cut off by the ring of his cell phone. "It's Magnus."
Clary grinned into her glass when Alec disappeared into the hall. She poured herself another glass and swung her legs happily over the counter. Her sweet voice began to hum the same melody that had been stuck in Jace's head for weeks.
"What song are you humming?" He stirred gently, turning to look at her. Her head turned and her cheeks burned. Like she hadn't noticed she was doing it at all.
"Let It All Go by Birdy and Rhodes. You've never heard it?" Her eyes were soft and her lips were wine stained. Feet bouncing off the drawers.
"Not your version." He replied breathlessly.
She smiled at him, her eyes drifting to the apron wrapped around his waist. Clary's smile widened. "You look cute when you're cooking."
"Cute? I'm not a puppy or a girl. I'm not cute." Jace spat out the word in disgust.
"You are! You're cute!" She shouted. Neither of them noticing the smirking figure that emerged from the hallway, watching them curiously.
"Take that back," He threatened her with the sauce covered spoon. Clary shook her head, not believing he would actually wipe the spoon on her. She was proven wrong when the thick liquid slid down her cheek. Squealing Clary pushed aside her empty wine glass and reached up to clean it off her face.
Jace licked it off before she had a chance with a booming laugh when she cringed away from him. "Gross! Jace!"
Although she couldn't help but laugh with him.
~o.O.o~
At eight Simon showed up to their penthouse. The lasagna was almost done baking and the rest of the table was set. Clary welcomed Simon with a hug and kiss on the cheek, something Jace wasn't expecting to make his stomach turn unpleasantly.
He shook Simon's hand in a tighter grip than he meant to.
"Oh hey, Jace?" Clary called out to him from the dining table. "Why are there seven place settings? I thought it was going to be just the six of us tonight."
"Shit, I'm sorry, Clary. I forgot to tell you. I invited my old roommate to dinner. I haven't seen him in a while. I hope it's okay." He expected her to yell at him. It seemed like a woman who worked on a special dinner for her friends should be legitimately mad at him for, just inviting someone else and not telling her. Then again this was Clary.
"Sure, I wish you'd told me though. I would have made more desert." She simply shrugged her slim shoulders and turned back to righting the glasses.
One by one their friends arrived, all except Jace's old roommate and Magnus. Though Alec ensured them that his boyfriend would be there soon, a slight awkward blush on the apples of his cheeks. Iz just laughed at him and promised they would wait for Magnus before eating.
Magnus knocked on the door breathless from running up the stairs fifteen minutes later. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you wait too long."
Magnus kissed Alec soundly and Clary's heart melted at the sight. They were such a solid and happy couple. She could see how happy they were with each other and how they made one another better. Iz told her that Alec was becoming more social and that Magnus wasn't as eccentric as before. They balanced perfectly. Clary wished to find that someday. Her eyes unconsciously slid across the room to Jace.
Maybe someday.
There was another pair of footsteps in the hall outside of their apartment before a man walked through the door. "Miss me?"
Clary's heart seized. He was there and he looked happy, nothing was ascue on his face. Same olive skin, same broad shoulders and cocky grin. He was there and he was hugging Jace. Clary stared at him before muttering off an excuse to leave the room, "I've got to go check on the lasagna, be right back."
She gripped the edge of the sink in her trembling fingers. Clary could feel the burn in her throat and tears building in her eyes. Wordlessly Jace wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder. Clary's back against his front. Her breathing was shallow and he could feel how stiff she was. After a few seconds she relaxed and tugged his arms closer.
"Talk to me, pretty girl, are you okay?" He whispered in her ear.
Clary thought about it quite a while before answering him. "No, I'm not okay, because I hate that man. I hate him and he's in our living room and I don't- I can't-" She took a ragged breath and he felt her shake.
"Clary, you aren't making any sense. How do you know Jordan?"
"New York is huge." She continued like she hadn't heard him. "What are the chances that my cheating ex is your old roommate?" Jace froze.
To Be Continued...
Disclaimer: I don't own the Mortal Instruments or any of the characters used in this story.
Do you think I should do a poll for the December story of the month? I don't know right now but I'll let you know. Are you guys enjoying this constant updating thing that's going on right now? Should I change the rating for this story from T to M? I think I have to.
I would also like to make a PSA, this is the rom-com of my stories. Things here are sweet and funny and pretty fucking adorable, but also real on a lot of levels. I'm sorry to burst your bubble if you think every romantic gesture needs to be grand but it's not always like that. I'd like to think that this story is as realistic as I can get it in eleven chapters.
Favorite and review!
P.S. To Rose, you're welcome.