A Leap in Time ~ An Infernal Devices Fic

Jem Falls Hard

"When Will truly wants something," said Jem, quietly, "when he feels something — he can break your heart."

Tatiana looked up at him, her eyes still red rimmed from tears. Trying not to let his utter annoyance and frustration at this show on his face he brushed away what must be the 10,000th from her cheek.

"What's wrong, Tatiana?" he asked, hoping his voice erred more on the side of low romantic than incredibly done parent.

"I just. . . can't believe you got arrested," she said, biting her trembling lower lip and clutching herself closer to his chest. "What would I have done if they'd taken you away? I would've died!"

He looked up at the ceiling and tried to mentally prepare himself to answer the same outburst for the 100th time. "I didn't get arrested so there isn't really a point in reliving it over and over again."

She shot him a watery glare, sitting up so she was no longer on him. "Oh, William! You have no respect for how much I suffer because of you!"

He stared up at the ceiling once more in silence. He didn't quite know how to respond to that.

She seemed to take his silence as deep emotion for she pressed herself to his chest once more, leaning closer and ran her fingers across his shoulder. He shivered involuntarily. "I know I shouldn't pretend to understand. Because I don't. But, William, you know how much I love you, how could you not thought of how much this would hurt me?"

Will thought of several angry retorts before mentally reminding himself of the promise he'd made to himself in the car that day. Normal day. Normal life. And annoyingly Tatiana was a part of that.

"I wasn't thinking of anyone else but myself," he lied, looking down at his tear stained shirt. Not stained with his tears, thank God.

They had been in Tatiana's room for what must have been more than an hour. She'd burst into sobs the moment she'd seen him at school (he'd been suspended for the past week for the misconduct he'd caused) right in the middle of the hallway. To avoid a scene he'd dragged her into the nearest empty classroom and, to avoid further attention from her wailing, had really had to promise her anything just to get her to clam up. It had been a long day.

Now he was in her bedroom, huge, with several sofas, a queen sized bed, and almost entirely pink. It wouldn't have been half as disconcerting if she hadn't had dozens of posters of Theresa Gray all over her walls. But no. She had to have those, he thought wryly.

She seemed to have noticed his mind had wandered, because, suddenly gaining the immense willpower to finally stop her tears, she leaned up into his face. He let out a noise of surprise and looked down at her.

She stroked his chin with long thin, ring covered fingers. She stared into his eyes with her own narrow green ones, and he couldn't help noting how incredibly weird it was to have someone so close that they could quite literally breathe into your nose. He knew he ought to feel something, he'd been trying to make himself feel something all day. She was a pretty girl, there was no doubt about that. She had nice features, if not rather sharp and pointy, with green eyes, long lashes, and a nose stud she wore that vaguely appealed to him. It was just the way she looked at him that made her eyes. . . weird. She looked at him as though she were not only awed but possessive. Last week several girls had made attempts to have laughing conversations with him in classes. This week no one had approached him but Jem, brave soul he was, who was apparently willing to face the terror that was Tatiana.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked in a crooning tone, rubbing along his cheek with her long fake fingernails.

He bristled, resisting the urge to lean out of the way of her hands. "Just- er - school," he replied honestly.