but I still felt like she shouldn’t be alone right now. Surely, I was better than nothing? I chuckled under my breath as I imagined how Clary would reply to such a question. Yeah, she’d probably rather stay all by herself, but I wasn’t going to let that happen.
I walked to the guest room and lightly knocked. She didn’t answer, which was hardly surprising. She probably suspected I was the one standing on the other side of the door and was hoping I’d go away if she stayed silent. I couldn’t let her keep drowning in her own misery though, so I ignored her silence and let myself in.
When I opened the door, the room was dark with the curtains closed and the overhead light off. A shapeless form was huddled under the bedcovers. It didn’t look like Clary had made it out of bed at all today. I went over and jumped on the bed beside her. “So, what are we doing?”
She groaned and blinked open an eye to glare at me. It was amazing how she could show such derision with a single look. I smiled in return, knowing it only annoyed her more when her anger bounced right off my skin. I found something about her irritation highly appealing. She was like a cute kitten trying to run her claws across my skin, and instead of inflicting pain, all she did was lightly tickle me.
“Good morning, sunshine,” I added.
All I got was a scowl in return.
“Or should I say good afternoon? It’s almost past twelve now.”
Clary let out a small moan as she sat up in bed. Her hair was a mess, and her eyes were puffy. It looked like she’d been crying, and a pang of guilt twisted my stomach. I knew she was upset about her parents but I didn’t realize it was this bad.
“Why are you in here?” she asked as she gently rubbed her eyes.
“I think the more pressing concern is why are you still in here? You haven’t left your room all day.”
“I’ve been busy,” she replied.
“Yes, I can see that. Don’t you think you should get out of bed though?”
She sighed and glanced down at the bedcovers that were still wrapped around her but didn’t respond. It seemed like she didn’t have the energy to come up with a reasonable answer.
“So, what have you been doing in here?” I pressed.
She let out another sigh. “Moping, I guess.”
“Moping? That sounds like a terribly depressing activity to do on your own.”
Her eyes sparked with a little more emotion as she glanced back up at me. “It’s not exactly the kind of activity you do with others either.”
“Are you kidding? I love a good moping session, and I happen to be a great moping buddy.”
Clary didn’t respond. Instead, she looked at me like I was slightly unhinged. I was only trying to help though, and she needed someone right now, whether she liked it or not.
“And as your official moping buddy, I have to say you’re doing it all wrong,” I continued.
“You’re not my official moping buddy. And I was moping just fine on my own before you came along.”
“I beg to differ. There’s no tub of ice cream in here, and you don’t even have some good emo music playing in the background. This is like a moping catastrophe.”
“So, you’re telling me that I don’t even mope right?”
“Your words, not mine, but pretty much. It’s lucky I came in here when I did, so I can set this all straight.”
Clary let out a sigh and closed her eyes for several seconds. I got the feeling she was hoping when she opened them again I’d disappear. Now that I knew the depth of her sadness though, there was no getting rid of me.
“Can’t you just leave me alone?” She blinked her eyes open, and my chest clenched at the misery in her gaze. Clary was truly hurting. I considered caving and giving her what she wanted, but I knew firsthand how pain could be so much worse when you were left to endure it alone. I’d acted exactly like her when my dad left us after my parents’ divorce a few years ago. This was a different situation, but I understood Clary’s sadness and knew she was feeling adrift and needed support.
“I wish I could,” I replied in a soft voice. “But the cardinal moping buddy rule is you can never leave your buddy alone in dire times.”