This Can't Be Happening

[JACE TAYLOR]

Pandemonium. The greatest club in all of New York, especially if you were underage and looking for some cheap drinks. However, it wasn't what you would call an upscale club, what with all the multicolor hair dyes and tight fitting black clothes it could be considered a trash hole to the rich. The floors were covered in a thick haze as more fog was pumped from the machine and red and green lights flickered across the room. 

Leaning against the bar, a young blonde headed boy was busy drinking the night away. His slim figure was arched as he watched the girls dance on the floor. Against his lower back he could feel the cold blade pressed against his skin. Being a nephilim had taught him to always be prepared under any circumstance, even if he was at a party. And after a long day like he had, he was more than ready to drink all night. 

It all began with a meeting with the head of the institute that morning. It had been an early meeting, so Jace hadn't been to keen on going anyways. However, it was about to get much worse. In the library he was introduced to a boy about his age, of oriental background, and Jace could tell by the way the young man held himself that they were not going to get along. They boy was cocky and egotistical, not unlike himself, and immediately there similar personalities began to clash. At least Jace knew he would soon be able to escape Phlox when he returned to his room, but he would soon learn he was sorely mistaken. 

The head of the institute informed them that they would be paired as training partners for the next couple of weeks, until one of their injured shadowhunter recovered. Jace could not believe what he was hearing, and had thrown a fit.  He couldn't believe that he wasn't even going to get a say in this. Cussing and wild hand gestures got him nowhere though, he was still stuck with the boy.

Things only got worse when they entered the training room. Both boys had tried their hardest to either knock the other one out, or humiliate them. Jace at one point, being the hot head that he was, had dropped his training sword and charged the other boy. The altercation ended with a broken nose for the blonde boy, and a black eye for the other. It had been the first of many fights that day, and Jace was angry to admit that Phlox was good. Of course, this had only fueled his anger more.

So here he was getting dizzier by the minute, having a good time. It felt nice to get away from the institute, and that bloody Phlox for awhile. Glancing across the dance floor, Jace caught site of a group of girls dancing together. Smirking a little, he was about to head over when his worst fears came true. Heading his direction was Phlox. "This cant be happening." 

[PHLOX REAVER]

It had been a rough week, there was no doubt about that. Phlox had always heard good things about the Institute in New York, it was why he had decided to go there in the first place. The Nephilim there were good and though he had the cocky attitude of being even better than them, he had hoped coming here to live and train for a while would present him with the opportunity to improve. Instead, he got stuck with someone just as hard headed and hot tempered as he was and instead of worrying about improving for the big picture, he was focused on being better than Jace.

So, it was after their most recent confrontation that Phlox had decided he needed to return to Pandemonium and hit on some girls (despite his black eye) and look for some trouble to get into that didn't involve physical injury and exhaustion. Instead, only a few moments after he got there, he had spotted Jace. For the most part he had avoided being around Jace, and it seemed that the other Shadowhunter hadn't really noticed him, either. That was good. But it was severely throwing off what he would consider to be his 'mojo'. Every time a girl came up to him, Phlox couldn't help but wonder if maybe Jace had noticed him and was trying to mess with him. Needless to say, the Asian boy decided he needed to approach him and find out for sure.

Half way there, however; Phlox encountered a small group of girls who were all dancing incredibly close together and therefore got in his way of approaching Jace. It wasn't too bad, though, considering they were all rather scantily clad and seemed excited to see him approaching them. Even though they hadn't been his intended target. For a moment, Phlox paused and chatted with a small and very pretty blonde girl. At least, that's what she would have looked like to a Mundane. In reality her hair, and her skin, were green and her eyes as black as coal. Small, gossamer wings fluttered excitedly on her back as Phlox spoke to her but soon he was pushing past her and the other Faerie girls to make his way toward Jace.

"Well, well, well... if it isn't the magnificent Jace Taylor himself. Aren't you a bit too young to be drinking?" Phlox immediately began to antagonize the slightly younger Nephilim. He couldn't help it. Even when he was in a good mood, the moment he came within five feet of Jace he felt like he had to fight the other for some kind of dominance. "Come to admire all the pretty Downworlders, tonight? There's quite a few of them here. I didn't think you were into Faeries but they seem to think you are," he inclined his head back toward the group of girls who had since been joined by what appeared to be a pair of Mundane boys around their age. "I saw a few Vampire girls around too, maybe they're more your thing?"

Phlox smirked faintly but he also knew better than to piss the other boy off too much, he really didn't want to fight with him (at least physically). Not right now anyway. Though he had originally come over to figure out if Jace had been messing with him that night, he decided to stall on arguing with him about that and instead simply talk to him. If one could call this talking. "By the way, how's the nose? Doesn't seem like the girls are digging it as much as they like the black eye." Phlox grinned then, finally moving out of his line of sight to stand beside him at the bar, though he didn't order anything and simply leaned against it beside the other Shadowhunter.

[JACE TAYLOR]

Rolling his eyes at the boy’s opening remarks, Jace flashed him a sneer, “Well thank you for recognizing me as marvelous. I dare say you’re the only one left who doesn’t believe so.” The British accent only intensified the sarcasm dripping from his lips. The boy had always been one to be cocky even when the situation was against him, and he was no different with Phlox. There was something about the boy that made his attitude worse however; perhaps it had something to do with their similarities.

Picking up the large glass goblet, Jace swirled around the amber liquid inside before tossing it back. Letting out a low sigh, he raised his eyebrows at the boy, “Oh really. Well mate if you haven’t noticed nobody else here is either. If you’re looking…” Pausing for a minute, Jace ordered another glass from the bartender while he was making his rounds. Satisfied with his new drink, the boy turned his eyes back to his fellow shadowhunter. “Now where was I,” he said in mock agitation. “Oh yes. If you’re looking for a place that fallows that damned drinking age, you’ve come to the wrong place.” It wasn’t a secret that Jace thought the American drinking age was ridiculously high. He ranted and raved about it anytime he got a chance. If I were back in London I would be bloody legal by now. was his normal excuse.

However, with the mention of downworlders, Jace snarled his nose. Glancing over the boy’s shoulder he caught site of a few good looking fairies. “While they are good looking,” he began before returning to his former position, “I don’t date downworlders. Not my style. However, if that what turns you on, by all means don’t let me stop you.” Sticking a toothpick in his mouth, Jace twirled it around while raising his eyebrows as if welcoming a fight. He wasn’t looking for one particularly, but he wouldn’t mind showing Phlox the way out.

The mention of his nose however, brought his anger down a notch. Rubbing the bridge of it he could feel a long scar where the skin had busted open. He had applied a healing rune earlier, but it could only help it heal faster. At least the swelling had subsided. “Actually these mundies like a boy who gets in fights. They think its dangerous.” The familiar smirk appeared on his face as he flipped the toothpick around. Shrugging his shoulder though he looked at the boys black eye, “From here it look like you just applied your one eyed make up to dark. Not to uncommon around these parts.” He murmured nodding his head to a group of kids with pale white faces and dark eye makeup. “They may even nickname you patches.”


(Sorry its so short. I didn't have a lot of time.)