In The Deep

Chapter 17

"Okay. When I need to study for anything, I'll study with you since I think I've never been this prepared for a test. My head is exploding." Jace said as they walked down stairs and Clary rolled her eyes at him.

"It was just couple hours." She pointed out.

"Whatever." Jace said, glancing at her. "Nerd." He added under his breath.

Clary shoved him and he just laughed. "Shut up!" She said as Jace leaned against the wall with his hand to get his balance back and almost dropped a framed photograph.

"Crap." He hissed, but caught it and put it carefully back on the wall as Clary laughed. "Who's this?" He asked then, looking at the picture and Clary glanced at it over his shoulder. She saw the familiar green eyes staring back at her and swallowed before looking down. Jace turned to her and she cleared her throat before meeting his gaze again.

"That's my brother. Sebastian." Clary just said and smiled slightly. Jace seemed to notice her reaction even though she tried to act normal, but didn't ask anything. "He died. About a year ago." She said then.

"I'm really sorry." Jace said quietly and Clary gave him a sad smile. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against him and she wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning her head against his chest. Jace stroke her back slowly and Clary closed her eyes as she rested her head against him. They just stood there for a while, holding on to each other.

"Is everything alright?"

They jumpped away from each other, completely startled. Clary turned around and saw Jocelyn standing there.

"Jesus! You gave me a heartattack. Yes, everything's fine. Thank you." She said, talking faster than usual and Jocelyn raised her brows slightly.

"Uhm, okay. Sorry." She said and walked out of the hall, glancing at them suspiciously. Clary turned back to Jace, feeling her cheeks burning.

"I should probably get going..." He said and Clary nodded slowly.

"Yeah..." She said and looked down at her feet, hoping her face wasn't completely red.

They stood there awkwardly for a while before Jace opened his mouth. "Uhm, see you tomorrow." He said and smiled as he walked past her.

"See you." Clary said, also smiling and walked with him to the door, closing it after him and leaned against it, taking a deep breath.

Then she heard footsteps and Jocelyn appeared in the hall. "Is there something going on with you and that boy that I should know about?" She asked and Clary felt herself blushing even more deeply, but just let out a short laugh.

"No." She said simply, not being able to form any other words than the one.

Jocelyn studied her expression for a while, crossing her arms over her chest. "You sure?"

Clary rolled her eyes at her mother. "Gosh. Yes, I'm completely sure. He goes to my school, he's my neighbor and my friend. Nothing more." She said, hoping Jocelyn wouldn't hear the bitter tone in her voice and just walked out of the hall before she could say anything about it.

Clary went straight back to her room and basically fell down on her bed, letting out a sigh. This can't be happening... She thought. She couldn't just keep falling for a guy she could never have that kind of a future with. Jace was the best friend she had had for a long time and she couldn't lose him. He obviously didn't feel that way about her anyway so it didn't matter. Clary just stared at her ceiling for a while in the complete silence. Why is it so hard to make yourself not love someone who you love too much?

Hey! Sorry this chapter is a little short, it's like a between chapter. I just thought it was important and Clary's feelings got more clear and obvious. I hope you like it and thank you for everything! Remember to leave comments, any kind of review helps! Also, you can leave me a comment to update and I'll try to speed it up. I'm finally home now and I can keep updating normally.