Shadowhunting IRL

Besotted

Isabelle had never been the besotted one before.

Sure, she liked the boys she dated; you couldn't fool around with a guy unless you saw something in him beyond nice teeth and a fit body. Well, she couldn't. The relationships Jace had been in before Clary were always ones that meant nothing to both him and the girl, ones where both her brother and his ex(es) admitted that they much preferred no contact to conversation. And she would have killed to be one of those girls with Simon, much as she tried to stop thinking about him--but her crush was a freaking crush regardless of what she wanted. And it wasn't even just Simon's body she liked. He wasn't like Jace, all confidence and abs and cutting humour, with a magnetic personality. He wasn't like Clary either, who knew exactly what she wanted and got it, whether she had to play it nice or use emotional ammunition if she believed she was right. No, Simon Lewis was a whole other world. A world of fandoms and music and quiet, clear opinions, with a funny bone he showed to only those he loved.  and of course, that jawline-

'Izzy?' said a voice from behind, making her jump. She swirled around—that's what the long black skirt and hair were for, anyway, flouncing—and saw Simon standing behind where she sat, holding his lunch tray. He was smiling slightly, his lips quirked to the side in a way that made her stomach twist.

'What?' it came out more aggressive than she intended, what with her mooning for the first time and all and being caught in the act by the very guy she was mooning over. Stellar, Isabelle. Stellar as hell.

'Can you move over? I need to sit next to Clary-I'm copying her English homework.'

'Wait,' chimed Magnus, as Isabelle irritably shifted, 'you're copying homework? This is a day of surprises. Wait, are you on drugs?'—then, ignoring his boyfriend--Alec--'s eye-roll—'The only way you missed homework is if you were on drugs.'

'No, but close enough,' grinned Simon, taking a large bite from his lettuce burger. Ugh, lettuce, Isabelle thought. Was she really crushing on a vegetarian? 'I was on a date. Wait, what did you mean when you said it was a day of firsts? Did Jace actually manage to skive off his assigned detention today? Because that would be a breakthrough.'

Wait. Simon Lewis. On a date? Izzy could understand what girls saw in him, and though she had forbidden herself from conscious pining over a guy she'd never ask out voluntarily, she couldn't help but feel a momentary stab of disappointment. Things had been going well with them lately, she'd thought. really well. a small part of her, a part she wanted to set on fire, had even begun to hope.

'No, but I did clean out my locker today, so the sky is definitely falling.' smirked Jace,as Clary squeezed his arm, suppressing a laugh. What Magnus was referring to, though, is that Izzy officially gained her first unrequited crush today.'

'I. Did. Not.' She spoke through gritted teeth, making the message for Jace abundantly clear: you are so dead on the drive home. 'What Jace means, is, now that he finally somehow has his first real girlfriend, he's in love with love.' She waved her hand, like the airy-fairy concept of romance was foreign shit to her. 'Besides, Merliorn and I were over ages ago. Today, in the supply closet? I was bored. '

She knew she was laying it on thick, even as she ignored Clary's worried side-eye. But her older brother Alec was the only one who knew, and it was going to stay that way. For the next millennium, at least. 'So, guys,' she said, plastering a winning smile on her face, 'are you ready for tonight?'

'What's toni-oh,' Clary said, the, her eyes smiling as she realised. 'wait, you guys actually still dress up for Halloween? And here I was, laughing at Val for wanting to dress up at ten.' Val was Clary's little sister, taking after Luke even more than Clary took after Joceyln. She worshipped Isabelle. It was nice, though not entirely new to Izzy, that adoring smile Val always gave her.

'I laughed at Max too,' grinned Alec, turning to peck Magnus on the lips before he continued, 'and Magnus. But Izzy convinced me.'

'I told him he could dress like Magnus for one subway ride, or do this Halloween the right way,' she deadpanned, enjoying the looks on their faces.

'And that worked?' Simon asked, brow quizzical. He didn't have perfect cheekbones or pretty lips like most of the guy Izzy'd dated, but something in his face made Izzy want to take it in her hands and kiss him till she couldn't anymore, till she was gasping for air. She was sure gasping for air would feel better than gasping for Simon. Because that's what she was doing now, apparently. Letting a nondescript nerd invade her fortress and burst her oxygen tanks.

Pathetic. Focus, Izzy. 'No, of course not. I just threatened to tell Mom and Dad he snuck out to meet Magnus on his birthday, and he caved.'

'Huh', Jace said. Not to her, though-he and Clary had been whispering for some time now, casting anxious glances at her. She felt a momentary rush of affection for them, followed by curiosity and then apprehension. They didn't know, did they? By the Angel, Jace was really in for it in the car.

But before they could say anything, the bell rang, and they all dispersed (Jace kissing Clary goodbye like the romantic he now was). Small mercies. Except- she and Clary both had math now. Izzy usually looked forward to this part of the day, usually enjoyed working on problems--both in math and otherwise-- with Clary, but today something was different. Simon.

She kept her voice light and casual as they walked down the hallway together. 'So, Simon went on a date?'

'Yeah. With Maia, the girl from his History class?'

'Oh, yeah, I kinda know Maia,' Izzy said, even though she didn't, not really. well, no time like the present to start . 'So, how was it? Did he say?'

Clary definitely looked at her suspiciously then, but chose to answer, 'Yeah, I think it was pretty good. Why didn't you ask him yourself, in French?'

Crap. Crap, crap, crap. 'Not enough time for details. But seriously, I didn't imagine he was interested in Maia at all. I thought he liked Jessica. I mean, wasn't he pining so hard that Eric wrote a whole song about her 'porcelain skin' just for kicks?

'That chapter's over, though. I think. Jessica is with Brad now. Also, he told me he really likes Maia so far.'

Damn Maia and her sparkling green eyes. Another song in the works, no doubt.

'Cool. That's great. He's been single like, forever. He needs some fun.' With me. I wish.

Clary smiled fondly to herself, even as Izzy let out an inaudible sigh.

Pointless. This is literally pointless. And he wasn't her type, either—geeky and skinny, with an understated sense of humor that--nope. Not the point, she reminded herself. The point was, they were both as different as different could be.

Then why had she fallen so hard?