Measure Of Love

Chapter 10: Visit pt2

As Clary walked back to the house to get the camera, she saw Jace sitting on the porch, leaning against the wall. She opened her mouth to say something, maybe just hey or ask him what he was doing, but then Max came out as well.

"Can I talk to you?" He asked and Jace looked up.

"What's up?" He asked and Max sat down next to him, straightening his legs and also leaning against the wall. Something made Clary stay at the side of the house and look through the railing of the porch, listening. Max was quiet so Jace turned to him. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, yeah." Max said nodding. "I just thought.. How do you make girls like you? Or.. How do you know if someone likes you?"

Jace laughed. "I thought you said that was all gross."

Max shrugged. "Clary's my sister. She talking about boys is gross." Clary rolled her eyes but smiled.

"Right." Jace said with a laugh. "So.. Do you like someone?"

"Maybe." Max said. "There's this girl in my class.. I just thought that.. I would really wanna know what she thinks of me."

"You can never know. That's how it goes." Jace said with a shrug.

"But I'm too afraid to ask her." Max mumbled. "I mean you can't just ask someone if they like you or think you're annoying?"

"Oh, come on." Jace said. "How could she think you're annoying?"

Max shrugged. "You just think some people are."

"But you're definitely not, you're brilliant. Don't doubt that." Jace said and Max smiled slightly. "Look, I know it's confusing and scary but-..."

"Do you?" Max asked. "You never seem confused or scared."

Jace laughed. "Really? Is that what you think of me? I'm probably more confused and scared than you are."

"Really?" Max asked and Jace nodded.

"Yep." He said. "Everyone gets scared, confused, sad, worried, upset, angry and that's all okay."

"But people don't understand that." Max mumbled. "If you get scared they'll just make fun of you."

"Don't care about people like that." Jace said. "If you live your life thinking what other people think of you, you'll never be happy because there's always gonna be people who don't get you. That's a fact. You don't have to go ahead and ask the girl if she likes you, you can ask if she wants to hang out with you."

"What if she doesn't?" Max asked and Jace smiled.

"Then she's into the wrong kind of people."

Max laughed. "But.. I mean I still really like her. She's really cool."

Jace shrugged. "You're 11. You haven't even met half of the people you will. If that girl doesn't like you, it doesn't mean a thing and has nothing to do with you. Besides, I'm pretty sure she has nothing against hanging out with you."

"Okay." Max said quietly. "But she might. I mean.. We haven't talked that much. Not alone at least. I'm not really one of the people she pays a lot of attention to."

"How much easier would life be if the person you liked would just like you back and it would all run smoothly and everything would be great and you had no problems?" Jace asked with a smile. "Well, we'll never know. Cause that kind of things are always complicated. You just gotta have the courage to try."

Max nodded. "Okay. I will. I could maybe tell her I think she's cool. But.. Do you think I would just annoy her?"

"No, of course not." Jace said. "You think you would be annoyed if someone told you they think you're cool?"