"Serena van der Woodsen?" She turned at the sound of her name, spotting the guy who had delivered the cases of champagne to her last year.
"Yes?" She replied cautiously, taking the clipboard from him.
"Special delivery. Sign here, please." He held out a pen before turning away to pull out whatever it was that she got.
She scribbled her name onto the paper, both excited and scared to see what it was. He handed her a bouquet of white and red long stemmed roses before taking his clipboard back and strolling away, muttering, "I don't get paid enough for this."
She inhaled the aroma of the flowers, hearing gasps from her friends. "Serena, who sent you that?"
She turned to Hazel, but not before looking for a card in the bouquet. "I don't know, oh wait!" She picked out the partially hidden card, reading it. "A little birdie told me you love red and white roses. Love, your secret admirer."
"You're so lucky Serena. I wish someone would send me flowers." Penelope cast a look at Nate who was currently very focused on kissing Blair.
Serena giggled, smelling the roses again before walking off in a happy daze. Maybe, just maybe someone liked her and wouldn't break her heart like...Dan. The mere thought of his name brought back a wave of memories, some good, some bad. Although she would never admit it, she missed him. There was something unsettling about seeing him each day and not being able to hug him, kiss him.
They had broken up a month ago, calling it quits for the last time. Neither had done anything wrong, they just couldn't be together. They hardly talked, and their parents were simply getting too unbearable, especially the awkward run ins.
She sighed, trying to focus on something else besides her ex-boyfriend. "Serena!"
She saw Nate running towards her, clutching something in his hand. "Hey Nate. Is that your present for Blair?"
He chuckled, pressing the wrapped item into her hand. "This is actually for you, but not from me and no, she's getting her presents later."
"So you two are..." She searched for the right words. "back together?"
"Yeah," Nate grinned at the thought of his brunette girlfriend. "And she's probably going to kill me, so I'm gonna go. Happy Valentine's Day, Serena."
"Bye Nate." Serena smiled as he ran off back to Blair. At least someone was happy. She set the roses down on a nearby table, realizing she never asked Nate who the present was from. She tore through the red wrapping paper, eager to find out what it was. A card fluttered out as she finally got the gift open. She gasped as she spotted the silver necklace with the letter 'S' as a chain. She bent down and picked up the card, reading it carefully.
"I hope you don't mind receiving these gifts because there's a lot more to come. Love, your secret admirer." Serena sighed contentedly, carrying both gifts over to her locker.
She opened her locker, intending on retrieving a few books and putting her newly acquired presents there when she found a collection of books she was sure hadn't been there yesterday. She picked up one of the books, running her fingers over the spine. She opened up to the first page where another note sat. "I know books are traditional as Valentine's Day presents, but I know you love these classics, so why not?" She smiled to herself, shutting her locker closed.
--
"So what are you and Nate doing tonight?" Serena nudged Blair as they got in the elevator to the van der Woodsen apartment.
"Well, apparently he has something planned to make up for all those years." Blair's cheeks turned the slightest bit pink. "What are you doing tonight?"
Serena sighed, a little bit upset that she had no plans for the night. "Nothing, I guess." They stepped out of the elevator, walking slowly into the kitchen. "I don't want to go to a bar and be one of those desperate, single peop-" She was cut off as the maid rushed into the room, carrying a garment bag.
"Miss Serena, this came for you while you were at school."
She accepted the bag, mumbling her thanks as her fingers fumbled to grab the note stuck on the hanger. "You've been getting presents all day, haven't you?" Blair muttered, taking the bag out of her hands.
Serena nodded, green eyes skimming over the note. "If you're not doing anything tonight, please join me for an evening out on the town. If you agree, please meet me at Central Park, the Romeo and Juliet Statue at 7." She looked over at Blair, who had taken a red dress out of the bag. "Wow."
"Someone must really like you." Blair murmured, admiration for the dress becoming evident in her voice.
"Should I go?"
"Definitely, but bring pepper spray just in case." Blair giggled, tossing a small canister to Serena.
"Where did you get this?"
"Nate. For when he can't protect me." Blair rolled her eyes, rifling through her bag again. "Listen S, its almost 7 and I have to go. Have fun tonight."
"You too."
--
Serena hugged her coat closer to her as she made her way over to the statue. It had been particularly cold today and now it was snowing. She cast a look around, looking for her secret admirer.
"You came."
The voice made her turn, shocked. Her secret admirer stood there in a suit, a familiar grin adorning his face. "Dan?"
He grinned as he stepped out from under the shadows. "Hey Serena."
"You're my secret admirer." She murmured, still too shocked to say anything else.
"Yeah, you're disappointed, right?" His shoulders sagged as he extended a hand. "Alright, I'll get you a cab so you can go home."
"No, its fine. I'm just..shocked. I just didn't expect..you." She tucked her hands into her coat. "Thank you for all the gifts today, you didn't have to and I didn't get anything for you."
"Spending tonight with me would be enough." He smiled at her, his hand still extended. "So what do you say?"
Giggling, she finally took his hand. "Where to?"
He pulled out a blindfold from his pocket, waving the red bandanna slightly. "Its a surprise." He let go of her, stepping closer to her to wrap the bandanna around her head, cutting off her sight.
"Okay," She giggled, feeling giddy for some reason. "You better not leave me somewhere Humphrey."
"I wasn't planning on it." He shot back, raising his hand for a cab. One screeched to a stop in front of him and Dan pulled the door open, helping Serena in.
"Brooklyn, Mikey's bar." He muttered quietly, trying not to let Serena hear.
"We're going to Brooklyn?" She murmured, surprised.
"Shh." He whispered in her ear, unconsciously causing shivers to erupt down her spine. "Just enjoy the ride. We'll be there soon."
--
Serena giggled as Dan led her out of the taxi, still blindfolded. "Where are we?"
He laughed, leading her into the bar. "You're going to find about very soon." He helped her out of her coat, letting him see how the dress he picked out looked on her. "The dress looks great."
"You know what I like."
He nodded, forgetting that she still couldn't see. "Red is a very...sexy color on you." He murmured into her ear.
She blushed, heat flooding her cheeks. "Thank you."
He walked behind her and started to undo the knot on the bandanna. "There we go." He muttered, tucking the red scrap into his pocket.
"I know this place." Serena said, taking in her surroundings. "Our first date was here."
Dan nodded, smiling as he led her to the pool table. He picked up a rose that was lying on the green felt and handed it to her. "Happy Valentine's Day, Serena."
"Dan..this is amazing." She threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.
"Serena, there's a reason I did all this today." He licked his lips as she pulled back to look at him. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you. I don't know what I was thinking, letting you go. I want you back. It may have taken me a while, but I finally realized that when we broke up, there was a part of me missing and I knew that that part would always be missing unless I'm with you." He sighed, looking straight at her. "Sorry, I know its corny and ridiculous, but-"
He was cut off as her lips met his for only a brief second. "I know I'll always love you." He finished, speaking softly.
Their gaze held before she kissed him again, making him stumble back against the pool table. "I love you too." She whispered, nuzzling her nose with his. "Always." She kissed his nose, before pulling away. "Let's get out of here."
"Gladly." He murmured, wrapping her coat around her. "Where do you-"
"Why don't we go back to my place?" She punctuated each word with a kiss.
"Okay." He chuckled, letting her pull him by his tie into another cab.
"Thank you." She whispered, careful not to let the cabbie hear as she snuggled up to him.
"For what?"
"For making this the best Valentine's Day I've ever had." She muttered, kissing him again.
"I love you Serena. I'd do anything for you."
"I love you too."
Whew, so this took about three hours and its 1:43 right now. Review? :)