In The Deep

Chapter 14

"I'm too unpatient and frustrated for this right now." Jace said, turning back to Clary who was sitting next to him. She laughed and shook her head.

"You're doing great, don't give up." She said and Jace rolled his eyes. For a while he had just been laying on the bed and watched as she drew everything that came into her mind to her sketchbook. Now she had been trying to teach him different techniques and told him where to add more shadows and what perspective was the easiest. So far he had drawn a tree and some sky and complained the whole time.

"Don't lie to me, Fray. I can't draw. Art and paintings and drawings and stuff like that are beautiful, especially with a meaning, but doing it yourself is truly frustrating." Jace said and Clary laughed, rolling her eyes.

"I'm guessing you're not too into drawing." She said and Jace nodded in agreement.

"Correct, but hey, at least I tried." He said grinning.

"Yes, I'm very proud of you." Clary said said with a sarcastic tone.

"Thank you, how sweet. And you should feel special since you were the first and the last one to ever see me try drawing." Jace said and Clary rolled her eyes at him.

"I'm feeling very special now." She said with a smile and took her sketchbook.

"Wait!" Jace said and took it from her. She raised her brows and he took a pencil, adding something on it and then handed it back to her. Clary glanced at the page where the drawing was and noticed that he had added a short message to it: "For you only, remember to feel special :)" Clary laughed and turned to him.

"Even a little smiley face, how adorable." She said and he nodded. "This would be really sweet if it wasn't only because you're so unpatient." She added as she closed the sketchbook and Jace laughed.

"I'm not able to help the way I am." He said and shrugged briefly.

"Apparently not..." Clary said with a sarcastic tone and Jace let out a fake hurt sound.

"You're mean. A horrible human being." He said, holding back fake cry and Clary shrugged.

"I'm not able to help the way I am." She said, mocking his earlier tone. Jace narrowed his eyes at her and then shoved her shoulder and she almost fell down from the bed. Then Isabelle came in and groaned.

"I hate school, I hate it!" She said, dropping her bag on the floor with a loud thump.

"Someone's in a good mood..." Clary mumbled and Isabelle scowled at her.

"Where's Alec?" Jace asked and Isabelle sat down on the floor next to her bag.

"In his room, probably doing homework." She said, nodding towards the hall.

"Ah, of course. Because he doesn't have the habit of storming into my room." Jace said smiling and Isabelle rolled her eyes.

"Shut up." She just said and started going through her bag. "Anyone wanna do my math homework?" She asked, looking up.

"I have my own to do." Clary pointed out. "So, no thanks."

"Yeah, me too. But if I didn't, I would totally do your math homework. That sounds like a lot of fun." Jace said with a sarcastic tone.

"Fine, I got it. Can't blame a person for trying..." Isabelle mumbled as she opened her math book. Clary and Jace also took their school books and after a while they were all studying and complaining.

"Life is hard enough without math, gosh." Isabelle said, the frustration very clear in her voice as she rolled her eyes.

"Agreed..." Clary mumbled as she tried to understand the numbers in front of her.

"Are you still doing your math homework?" Jace asked, raising his look from his biology book. Isabelle seemed more frustrated and returned her gaze back on her math book, mumbling something about Jace being an asshole. Clary just took Jace's math book and looked how he had done it while he rolled his eyes, but didn't really stop her. Then Alec came through the door and almost hit his sister who was still laying on the floor in front of it.

"Dinner's ready." He said and Isabelle got up immediately.

"Yes!" She said, obviously hungry and tired of math. Alec and Isabelle walked back to the hall and Jace got up too.

"I'll just pack my stuff since I probably have to leave after dinner." Clary said as she closed her books and shoved them in her bag. "Done." She said then and stood up.

"Great, let's go." Jace said and Clary walked after the others as they went downstairs.

They walked into the kitchen and Maryse was already there with the man that Clary recognized from the picture in the hall. He must be her husband and Alec's, Jace's, Isabelle's and Max's father. Also Max was there already, sitting on one of the chairs.

"Oh, good you came. Just sit down. This is Robert." Maryse said as she was putting some plates on the table and the man turned to look at them too.

"Who's this?" He asked, smiling at Clary who smiled back quickly.

"I'm Clary, nice to meet you."

"Who would've known Jace would bring a guest one day?" Maryse said, sounding amused and Robert raised his brows. Clary glanced at the others who didn't seem to have heard anything as they were taking seats around the table. Clary took a seat between Isabelle and Jace quickly and then Maryse and Robert sat down too.

"So, Clary. You got to the same school as Jace, Alec and Izzy?" Maryse asked and Clary nodded.

"Yeah, I do." She just said with a slight smile.

"Where do you live? Close to the school?" Maryse asked then.

"Actually right next door." Clary said and she seemed surprised and smiled.

"Well, isn't that funny." She said and Clary let out a short laugh that was more like an exhale. She took her glass and drank some water, hoping she would be saved from the conversation for a while. "I'm sorry about all the questions. I'm just interested since Jace has never brought a girl home before." Maryse said and Clary felt like choking on her water and put it down quickly. Isabelle burst out in laughter next to her and turned to Jace who was on the other side of Clary, staring horrified and completely frozen, he had probably been raising his glass to his lips, but it froze and then he put it down. Alec looked awkward and amused, probably holding back laughter while her sister was still laughing like she had never heard anything funnier. Maryse and Robert seemed like they realized the mistake too.

"Is Clary your girlfriend?" Max asked with a huge smile on his face, sounding incredibly excited.

"No, she is not." Jace said simply and Max looked disappointed.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Maryse said and Isabelle started laughing again after she had stopped for a while.

"No worries." Jace said with an amused smile and turned to Clary who felt her cheeks burning as she looked at him. Well, that went well.