Chapter 3

42 1 0
                                    

Clary returned to the cafe after retrieving the book from her room. She ordered a chai latte and settled into a large chair in a partly secluded corner of the cafe. She had enough privacy to feel comfortable, but in a public enough place to be safe from the book demons. Clary continued to read through the gore of the chapters, one ritual of demon killing after another. She thought it was going to make her sick, so she decided to stop and go up to the cafe counter to get something to eat.

A new girl that Clary had never seen before was at the counter. She has long, sleek black hair and her stilettos along with her already tall figure made her tower over Clary. Clary thought she was the most beautiful girl she had ever seen. The girl greeted Clary with a smile and said, "How can I help you?"

"Can I have a blueberry muffin, please?" Clary responded. "I've never seen you here before, did you just start working here?"

"Yea, it's my first day," the tall goddess replied as she placed the muffin on a plate.

"I'm Clary," she said as she took the muffin, "It's nice to meet you."

"I'm Izzy," the girl replied.

Clary decided to make small talk with the new barista instead of returning to her scary book. Izzy was much nicer than she expected. She seemed intimidating at first because of the way she walked and talked with more confidence than Clary had ever seen. Izzy was aware of her beauty and the effect she had on the people around her, but she was always kind to others. Clary couldn't help but think about Simon while she talked with Izzy. Clary thought that Izzy and Simon would be perfect for each other. Simon needed a girl who could keep him on his toes.

To Clary's surprise, Izzy went to the same art school as her. They almost squealed with excitement when they realized this. After only knowing each other for a whole 45 minutes, the girls decided that they had to sit next to each other in the classes they shared. Clary thought that it would be nice to have someone to walk to class with every morning, so they arranged to meet each other every day at the cafe to walk together.

After a long conversation, Izzy's work duties interrupted their blooming friendship. Clary sat back down in her corner with her blueberry muffin, her book, and her new friends phone number.

Clary told herself to continue to read her new book, but she got distracted by watching tik toks on her phone, leaving her book forgotten in her bag. It was almost 5 when she realized she should get home to Simon, so they could figure out what to do for dinner. She picked up her bag and her discarded muffin wrapper, and smiled goodbye to Izzy as she walked out the cafe door into the cool autumn afternoon.

Clary always loved the fall. She loves the feeling of the crisp air on her skin and the way the leaves match her hair. The only fault to fall is the sun setting so early. With her nightmares and new knowledge of demons in the back of her brain, her walk home wasn't as soothing as they were in the daylight. She felt eyes on her back her entire walk home. She decided that doing a brisk speed walk was the best way to get home fast, so she wouldn't catch suspicion by running.

At one moment on her anxiety filled walk home, Clary looked back to realize her worst fear of being followed. She looked to see a boy about her age closely following her movements as she walked. She didn't catch his face, only the gold streaks of his hair peeking out from under his hoodie. She turned quickly into her apartment building and dashed up the stairs into the safety of Simon laying on the couch once again watching criminal minds.

"Why so flustered?" Simon asked as he looked over at the out of breath Clary.

"Oh, ya know. Just my neverending fear of accidentally being followed, kidnapped, or murdered on my walk home in the dark." Clary said as she tried to catch her breath.

"Well, you're home safe now. Come and watch tv with me. I have a pizza being delivered that should be here in 20 minutes." Simon said as he turned his eyes back to his beloved show.

"I swear that's all you eat." Clary laughed as she walked back to her room to put on her sweatpants.

Clary reached her room only to fling her back onto the floor and watch everything in it fly onto the floor. That was, everything but her creepy book. Fear shot through Clary's veins. She snatched up her back and shoved her hand in every crevice of her bag to find nothing. She dropped on to the floor and checked under her bed and her desk to find nothing. The book was gone. Clary swore she had put it back in her bag when she got up to get her muffin. Clary never forgot things and she never lost things. She knew she put that book back in her bag. Things don't just disappear out of thin air. The book is gone. 

The Book of DemonsWhere stories live. Discover now