Roommates & Soulmates

Simon's Light

The lights were focused on him. They filled his vision, blocking out everything else from his view. The brightness was reflecting off something shiny and black, making things more distorted and harder to see. There was a glowing white orb high above him. It wasn't as bright as the two symmetrical lights, but it was definitely there mixed into the other chaos before him. Something fast moved around, but he couldn't figure out what exactly the quick movement meant. His own body was flailing, falling, slipping against everything. He couldn't get a grip on his surroundings. He could sense his limbs, though he knew not where they were. The dull pain in his hands and knees stung, the world coming up to greet him.

He had to get out, get away from the false reality of what he wanted. He'd gotten away, ran into the bright lights to escape, and now he was drowning in brightness, his world a haze. Then the pain in his knees and hands was nothing compared to the sudden agony in his arm. Suffering coursed through his body, consuming his every thought before the world went dark.

Darkness. Blackness. Nothing. There was nothing.

Then there was something, a slow steady noise. It came and went with a rhythm, and he kept pace with it, using the noise to pull himself back through the darkness. Other sounds were making themselves known. He could hear voices, whispered and worried voices that spoke his name.

"Simon."

He knew that voice. Knew it better than he knew his own. There was only one person who could have said his name in that voice.

"Clary," he whispered.

"Oh, thank the Angels!" Clary gasped. Simon heard her move, and then felt her sudden touch on his arm. He opened his eyes and saw the familiar red hair and concerned eyebrow crease of his best friend.

"Where am I, Clary?" Simon mumbled. Everyone except her face seemed to be fuzzy. He was fairly certain he wasn't wearing glasses.

"In the hospital," Clary told him. Simon processed the information for a second. He'd left the Izzy lookalike at the bar, then what had happened? His memory was foggy.

Confused, but feeling a need to move, Simon tried to sit up. He was stopped by the IV in his arm, as well as by Clary holding him down.

"No moving," Clary ordered, firmly placing a hand on his shoulder to stop him from moving.

"Ow," Simon said as he felt the pain in his limbs. "Okay, no moving."

"Good," Clary said sternly. Simon lay back down in bed just breathing. It was a little more work than usual, this breathing business.

Simon turned to see who else was in the room with her. He thought the blurry blonde haired guy standing a few feet behind Clary was probably Jace, but there was someone else in the room he couldn't make out.

"Clary," Simon said. "Where are my glasses?"

"Oh!" she exclaimed, before scrambling around in his side table, and then handed him the metal frame with lenses. Simon put them on one handed, and instantly recognized Jace. Turning, he saw that the other person present was Jordan. He wasn't surprised he hadn't been able to recognize Jordan without his glasses, as Jordan was standing very farther back, almost hiding in the shadows.

"How long have I been here?" Simon asked.

"Since about 1am this morning," Clary explained. "Before that, you were in the emergency room."

"Have you been here this whole time?" Simon asked her. He felt bad for ruining her day, but it was wonderful to see how much she still cared.

"Of course," Clary said. "As your emergency contact they let me. But Jordan and Jace were only allowed in once the visiting hours started. There's another person here for you too, but I don't recognize them. I think she was the one who called 911."