I know. It's been way too long. For that, I am terribly sorry, however life and lack of motivation tend to get in the way. To be honest, it got to the point where writing seemed to be a chore and I wasn't writing because I wanted to. However, I promised I would finish this story, I am just a little nervous about your reactions to me coming back after no word for almost a year. Will you all hate me? Have you forgotten about me? Or will you welcome me back with open arms?

I have really missed my little hobbie of staying up till the early morning listening to music and creating a story. Your continued support inspires me and I am so grateful for every review or follow that I get. That means that someone is enjoying this, which is exactly the point. I say this a lot, but you are all so amazing.

Thank you everyone for reading, following, favoriting, and especially reviewing! Seriously, because of your awesomeness, I am writing this chapter right now. Love all of you!

DISCLAIMER: ALL RIGHTS TO THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS BELONG TO THE WONDERFUL CASSANDRA CLARE

~~~~~~~~~~STORY TIME~~~~~~~~~~

Clary had a problem.

Well to be fair, she had many problems, like her career after college or how it is going to pay the bills of life, but that wasn't the specific one she was obsessing over currently. Oh no, this one was way worse.

Now, Clary had never been what you would call a fashionista. Normally, she wore a plain shirt with whatever jeans she plucked from her dresser. However, tonight was not a "throw-on-whatever-fits" kind of night. No, tonight was going to be her first date in years.

Simon was her first love, but after they started dating for a while, he didn't want to go on romantic dates anymore, but rather, play video games at his friend's house...which she found out happened to be Isabelle Lightwood. And the games they were playing weren't the ones on a television screen.

Clary didn't know how it was going to go.

She decided to call Maia to ask for advice and to find out more information about this "Pandemonium" club. Normally, clubs weren't really her scene as coffee shops provided a nice, cozy feel to them, but she owed it to Jace and who knows? Maybe taking a step out of her comfort zone could help her and a certain golden boy grow closer. Just thinking about that made her cheeks light on fire till they were the color of her hair.

Maia picked up on the second ring and sounded excited when she exclaimed, "Clary! I'm so glad you called! Hold on a second, let me get Magnus to join in on the call."

A minute later and Magnus's velvety voice came through the speaker of Clary's phone. "Good evening darlings. To what do I owe the pleasure of this lovely call?"

"Well..." Clary started, only to huff in frustration when she realized she didn't really know what to say. Clary didn't know if they would pity her or laugh at her-not that either option was very appealing. At that same moment, everything that had been rushing through her mind came pouring out of her mouth. "This is my first time going on an actual, formal date, and I'm super nervous, and I don't know what to wear or how I should act or how I'm going to get through this without collapsing out of nerves and I just-"

"Woah Biscuit!" Clary was grateful Magnus interrupted her before she said anything else she could regret. "This is Jace, remember? The same guy who is head over heels for you, who couldn't care less what you wore because he would think you looked beautiful in a hot dog costume."

"And you will be with us! Your super amazing and cool friends who love and support you will all of their massive, wonderful hearts," Maia decided to chime in.

All of this made Clary calm down slightly, enough to actually control what she was going to say. "Okay, I appreciate you all very much. But I still have no idea what to wear tonight."

"Turn the video on so we can see what you have," said Magnus.

About ten minutes of going through shirts, shoes, and skirts later, it was decided by the majority (Magnus and Maia), that nothing Clary had was acceptable to wear on a date.

Suddenly, Maia exclaimed, "I have the perfect dress for you!"

"I'm not sure about wearing a dress...Simon used to tell me my legs were too pale to wear something like that."

"Ah yes, however we have all agreed that Simon's idiocy cannot be helped once he left his mother's womb. You just didn't notice it until it overcame him. It grew like parasite feeding off of him. Anywho, there is no doubt you are wearing a dress tonight and will look absolutely stunning."

While Magnus was occupied making Clary smile, Maia had pulled out a dress that was tucked in the far back of her closet. "Now, I know we aren't the same size, but my mother bought this for me when I was like 14, so it should fit. No offense."

Clary was too busy staring at the gorgeous piece of fabric the other woman was holding up to the phone to be offended.

It was not a terribly fancy dress that one would wear to a ball, but it had charm that was undeniable. The dress was an emerald green lace which matched perfectly with Clary's eyes and went down to her knees, tightening in the right areas that would show off what little curves she had. Along with it, Maia pulled out a pair of flats and said, "I know you don't wear heels, and these will go great with this dress so here you go!"

"Maia...this is too nice. I can't accept this. If I wear this dress it will just make the dress look bad."

"Nonsense! It would be a horrible disgrace if you did not wear this and you will look fantastic."

Magnus squealed like a little girl and screamed "I'm on my way over, Clary!"

His phone clicked off, leaving the two girls by themselves. Maia grinned evilly at the redhead and whispered, "See you in ten."

What had Clary gotten herself into?

O.o.O.o.O

"No no no no no! This is way too fancy for a club! I look ridiculous!"

Magnus tutted at Clary's comment. Ten minutes after everyone hung up, Magnus and Maia both showed up at Clary and Jace's door, which was odd considering Magnus lived at least twenty minutes away when there was no traffic. The next thing Clary knew, she was shoved into the beautiful dress, and had the pair of flats and some mascara on. Maia played a minor part in this as she worked on putting her red curls into some sort of bun thing. All Clary knew was that it involved a lot bobby pins.

"Pish posh, you look fantastic! Jace won't be able to keep his hands off you!"

"I look like I'm going to the red carpet, not some nearby party place."

"Maia, make her stop talking, this lip gloss is not going to put itself on and she won't stop moving!"

Clary crossed her arms with a playful huff. What felt like seven years later, a knock on the door from Alec, who had apparently shown up during the makeover, and a warning that they had five minutes left impelled the orchestrator of this whole thing to put on the final touch, which was a simple charm bracelet he had found on the table next to the couch.

"Where did you get this? It's beautiful" Clary asked Magnus.

"Let's just say you will find out soon enough. Pretty boy didn't hide it very well and I had to see if it matched with the dress. Now, shoo! Go see your man."

The tiny girl blushed, but did as she was told, only glancing back to Maia once, who gave her a thumbs up. Clary took a deep breath, then stumbled nervously out to the living room. Alec and Jordan were there looking well dressed, but Clary's eyes immediately went to Jace.

His golden features stood out with his outfit. He was wearing a black T-shirt that, of course, emphasized his glorious abs, and black pants that made him somehow look even more sleek and sexy. His soft curls were slightly disheveled, only it fit right in with his style, making him impossibly more handsome. Clary realized that Jace was looking at her the same way she was to him, except his mouth was hanging open, causing her to feel embarrassed. She knew this was too much.

Behind her, Clary heard Maia and Magnus high five and Alec complimented her, but she was too entranced in Jace's gaze to notice.

Eventually, Jordan cleared his throat and broke the moment. "Wow, Jace is speechless. In all my years of knowing him, I have never seen him unable to come up with some witty comment."

"How dare you speak when there is true beauty that is before us," Jace shot back.

"Ah, there it is."

Jace took a step towards Clary so that their bodies were nearly touching and he reached a hand to touch her cheek. "You...I...You look magnificent. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid my eyes on. From the moment I saw you, that was clear to me, but this just emphasizes my point."

"It's this pretty dress. Maia let me borrow it." She stared down and fiddled with the hem of it.

Then, Jace's hand lifted her chin so she was looking directly at him, making the butterflies in her stomach to flutter quicker. "No Clary," the way he said her name made her legs turn to jelly, "it's all you. Only you could make this dress appear this grand. The dress is pretty, but you are stunning."

She nudged his chest with her elbow, "You don't look too bad yourself."

The light in his eyes grew brighter as he took her by the arm and led her to the door. "Well, I guess m'lady and I shall be off to the car. Coming?" He looked over at the other pairs.

Magnus grabbed Alec's shirt and kissed him, then dragged him towards the door, while Maia took hold of Jordan's hand, "Yeah, we're coming."

o.O.o.O.o

Music. That was the first thing that Clary noticed as they pulled up to the building with flashing lights pouring out of it. The music playing inside sent vibrations through the ground the closer they got to the club. A sign with "Pandemonium" sloppily written on it with multiple colored spray paint made the artist in Clary cringe, but also sent a thrill of excitement through her.

Jordan drove his van with Maia in shotgun, Clary and Jace in the middle, and Alec and his fiance in the back. The whole ride there, Clary gazed out the window while she played with Jace's hand. It felt right to hold Jace's hand. He was so warm and he fits perfectly against her...She means their hands fit together. Right…

Before getting out of the car, Jace squeezed her hand and they broke apart to enter the building.

Right before the group reached the door, Jace touched Clary's shoulder and turned her toward him. "One last thing." His fingers brushed her cheek as he lifted his arm in the air, only to start gently tugging out all of the bobby pins that were carefully set in her hair. Magnus began screaming at him about how his precious work was being ruined because the hair wouldn't look as though it belonged. She felt her hair cascading down her back, tickling her neck as it fell. All Jace said, however, was, "Much better."

The bouncer of the club intimidated her as they got closer because with her height she was afraid that she wouldn't be let it. However, she got in no problem. Maybe she looked older than she thought. Or maybe Jace's protective arm around her scared the man off.

Jace had a certain way of making Clary feel special and she even felt beautiful for the first time in a long time.

Once they got inside, the couples split up, one to dance, one to go to the bar, and one to stand in awe of all of the dancing people. Well, that last one was just Clary, but still. Everyone seemed so carefree and happy she became enchanted with all of the neon lights and music.

"Want to dance?" Jace yelled into her ear so she could hear him.

The club seemed to awaken something in her and it gave her the confidence to catch Jace's hand and to pull him onto the dance floor, smirking at him. They became immersed in a sea of dancing bodies and moved in time with the music, being pushed closer together.

A smile found its way onto Jace's face as he watched Clary lose herself in the music. Her hands flew up and down, and her hips moved to the beat. She didn't care if she was making a fool of herself, she felt amazing to be with him. They danced together to the upbeat song until the short girl got the courage to pull Jace down to meet her lips. This kiss was hungry, yet it didn't last long.

She pulled away and laughed as she saw his face set into a pout.

"You can't do that to me, Clary. I have wanted to kiss you for so long. Now that I get to, I don't ever want to stop."

"But I get lost in it, what if I can't come find my way again?" She teased.

Jace laughed, "I'll take that as a compliment. I will never let you get lost. Now, come here." He cupped her cheek and drew her towards him for another, much softer and longer kiss. It was incredible the lightning that shot through the couple as they kissed, the sparks were practically visible.

Before Clary's hands could run through his soft curls, Jace fingered the charm bracelet on her left hand. "How did you get this? I bought this to give to you tonight, but I couldn't find it where I had left it."

"That's Magnus for you. He found it and made me wear it. It's so pretty, thank you so much for getting it for me. If you keep being this sweet I'm going to get a cavity."

"I'll take that as an invite to kiss you again." He bent down once again but stopped once the music changed from fast and upbeat to something softer. It was a slow dance.

It confused her because she thought that clubs only played dance music, but one look at the man in front of her let her know that he knew what had happened.

"This is Alec and Magnus's song. They must have paid the DJ to play it for them," Jace explained.

"Aw, that is so romantic. Slow dance with me."

Clary set her head onto Jace's chest as they slowly swayed to the song together. His heart was beating as rapidly as her's was, like they were in sync with each other. Her eyes had closed and remained such a way until the end of the song. She never wanted to move from this position ever again.

When she opened them with her head still upon Jace's chest, everything was a blur, except one thing:a streak of bright white hair.

That was when Clary Fray realized Jonathan Morgenstern was staring straight at her from across the club, making eye contact with her for the first time in years.

So this is a little longer of a chapter for you. Please forgive me.

Anyways, Jonathan is back? What?

Anyone have any name ideas for Jocelyn's baby?

Thank you for reading!

Keep being the amazing person you are!

~ALB