Remember | The Mortal Instruments AU

Chapter Twenty Seven: The Look Of Wonder

As I walk out of that colossal building that i'd dreaded walking into for so long that, I take a final look over my shoulder at what had made me so nervous before, and yet I felt completely at ease now. The interview had gone great. They loved my art. But I didn't think that was what had finally calmed me. Seeing those eyes in Jace... it was like finding home. Those eyes had been in my dreams for years. And i'd finally found the owner. The owner of my dreams.

And he was gorgeous. I couldn't believe that I'd drawn his eyes before I'd even met him. It seemed like something out of a fairytale. As if it was fate. That's what it felt like. Fate.

But I didn't believe in that stuff, I never had. The world worked off real things that affected people in real ways. Fate had nothing to do with the real world. And yet, how could anyone explain my dream of Jace's eyes? Maybe i'd seen him in a crowd of people once and thought his eyes were beautiful.

But surely I would have remembered that?

I look around me as I walk and it's like looking at a brand new world. Everything seems calmer, more exquisite. As if the sky was a more intense blue, the clouds a more perfect cotton. It was beautiful. Even the graffiti on the walls looked more like art than something to be looked down upon.

I only just realise that i've walked to where I met Jace. The exact spot that I bumped into his perfectly moulded body and face. I could picture every angulation of his face, every perfectly placed golden hair and his flaming gold eyes.

I scrunch my face and rub my eyes, realising that i'm thinking about this stranger as if I know him, as if I should even think about him twice. I'd probably never see him again. And yet, since I met him, i've thought of nothing else. No one else.

Breathing deeply, trying to calm my self and my imagination, I walk slowly backwards a couple steps as if I could take away my thoughts of this moment and walk towards Java Jones, needing a strong cup of coffee all of a sudden. And a brownie.

I needed to forget him. I would never see his perfect face ever again, never think about his luscious lips-

Stop.

Seriously.

Thankfully Java Jones isn't that far from where I met Jace- even his name feels like home.

Stop.

The walk to Java Jones doesn't feel that long as my mind is doing cartwheels over itself, trying to calm myself down. Trying to calm the world inside me down.

I walk into Java Jones and walk towards the till, I order and the guy serving is... nice. He's attractive, pleasant... boring. I know he's only a guy serving coffee, but he's also a stranger. Like Jace. And yet, there's nothing. There's nothing between me and this complete stranger. So why is there such a strong connection between me and Jace?

Stop! You'll never see him again-

I walk over to my favourite spot and stop dead in my tracks. There he is.

No way.

I guess I believe in fate now then.

Because there's no other explanation than fate. Not for this. How else would you even try to explain this? How is that perfect stranger sitting in my favourite spot in Java Jones? A stranger that I thought I would never see again, is sat in my spot at my coffee shop?

Fate. Truly fate.

I suddenly become ridiculously nervous, little butterflies in my stomach are now doing laps inside me. My mouth goes dry and my hands clammy. My knees feel weak and I could swear I was shaking. I wasn't this nervous for an interview that could change my entire life. But I'm this nervous over a stranger?

What is wrong with me?

He'll think you're weird if you walk over there. Right?

Maybe he believes in fate?

Of course he doesn't. He's a male. They believe in one thing. They think about one thing. They don't have thoughts about strangers they'll never see again.

He wouldn't have thought twice about me.

And yet... I haven't stopped thinking about him. Maybe this was the universes way of giving me a hint. Trying to tell me something important.

The only way to find out is to walk over there.

Do it. Don't be a coward. You are not a coward. You never have been.

My knees are so weak that I think they could probably collapse at any given moment. But somehow, they're moving, my legs are moving to this beautiful man. Taking me to him. I've never been so nervous in my life.

"Erm," I don't know what i'm going to say, I hadn't put any thought into it before i'd started to walk over to him. His head whips up at the sound of my voice and his mouth opens slightly. There's a look of wonder in his eyes. "I'm-"

"Clary," He says it with such amazement and- love. But no, it can't be love. Don't be silly. He's a stranger. He doesn't love you.

"Yeah," I shyly laugh in a breathy tone and smile embarrassingly. I really didn't think this through. What was I going to say? "I'm the girl who bumped into you like an hour ago," It takes me a second to realise i'd said that out loud. It was meant to be a sarcastic comment in my head but clearly I wasn't functioning correctly at the moment. My eyes widen and I quickly look down.

"Yeah, I remember," he laughs, which makes me look up at him. His smile is... beautiful. His teeth, his lips, everything is perfect. His smile completely changes his face. Not that he wasn't perfect already but he seems to become increasingly gorgeous the more I look at him. "I haven't bumped my head since we last spoke, don't worry. I remember you. I couldn't forget you," he starts off sarcastic but slowly moved to a more calm and wondrous tone. He's looking at me as if i'm his life. As if he's in love with me. But I must be wrong. We're strangers.

Aren't we?

My mind and my mouth don't seem to be working together at the moment as I whisper "I couldn't forget you either," and for a moment I hope he didn't hear me, maybe even believe it. But he smiles so slightly and shyly, a true, genuine smile that breaks my heart. It has an edge of sadness in it but this is swept over by the look in his eyes that are gleaming with happiness.

"Do you want to join me?" He looks at the chair next to him, as i'm still standing across the table from him. I find it very cute that he looks at the chair next to him and not the one across him. As if he wants me to be closer than that. I slowly move to the chair next to him, weirdly calm now that i've spoken to him.

As I sit down, I can't take my eyes off him. And he can't take his eyes off me. It gives me more confidence than i've ever had, as I sit slightly turned towards him.

I've never felt so relaxed in my life.

Looking into those eyes.

The eyes from my dream.

Because they were. They were definitely the exact same eyes.

I'd dreamt of this boy. This man.

Maybe fate did exist.

And maybe the universe worked in mysterious ways, because... I'd never felt happier than I did in this exact moment.

Talking to this perfect stranger.