She was sitting outside, at the round table on the balcony, looking over the garden. Although she was almost 33 years old, she still looked stunning as she always used to. Her chocolate-brown curls have gotten lighter over the years, and her skin darker. She had been sitting there for over 2 hours, waiting for her 15 year old daughter to come home from work.
With her 2 bulldogs, named Tiffany's and Yale, and a glass of wine at her side, Blair Cornelia Waldorf was far from alone. But still she felt there is missing something. Someone. A man, probably, with dark hair and the hazel eyes. Rich, handsome and at that time probably famous in the business and hotel world. Blair sighed. It had been 14 years since she left her beloved New York and, more importantly, her beloved Chuck. Her thoughts wandered off to the questions she had been asking herself every day since she moved to Paris. Where would he be? What would he do? Was he married, dating? Or still alone, like she was, with only the memories of someone she loved to keep her company late at night. Blair had considered returning to the place she still called home, but decided not to. The fear of losing herself in the city and her past was just too big. She had left to take care of her little girl, with only her mother and father knowing about it. Blair leaned back and closed her eyes, wandering off again to a simpler place.
"Hey mom, I'm back! Did you fell asleep again? And yuk, you smell terrible." Rosalyn Charlotte Waldorf grinned at her mother. Blair opened her eyes and looked at her daughter with a tired smile.
"Thank you, dearest. I love you too," she said it sarcasticly, but playful, "and I have every reason to fall asleep, I was up late last night, checking your essay!"
"And thank you again for doing that, mother." Rose put down her bag and sat down next to her mother. "But we both now that's not why you fell asleep. You didn't even got tired after our trip to Beijing last year! And you were awake for probably 36 hours!"
"And why did I fell asleep then? Since you know me so good?" Blair looked at her daughter. Rose looked back. They stared at each other for a while, but then Rose was the one to look away.
"You have been thinking again."
"And I am supposed not to?'
"Not if it's about the wrong subjects, mom."
"Tell me, what are those subjects? How to murder Pierre for ruining the administration?"
"Well, yes, but not only that. You should stop it, though. You know you…" Rose didn't finish her sentence, but they both knew what she ment. The girl glared at the glass of wine, which was still untouched. In one move, like she had done it many times before, she snatched away the glass and poured the wine onto the ground. Most people would have said it was a waste of the wine, but they didn't know Blair and they certainly didn't know anything of Blair's old "condition". As Rose sat down again, they both ignored what had happened.
"But did you?" Rose asked after they have been silent for a while. Blair turned her head to her daughter and they watched each other closely. Rose had no idea how much she was like her father. Or at least, like the man Blair thinks was her father.
"Did I do what?" Blair answered.
"Think about the wrong subjects again?"
"Yes. I can't help it, honey."
"If it's that bad, you should go. For a day or 2, maybe." Rose stared at her mother.
"I can't go, Rosie. I couldn't leave you or the hotel alone."
"Grandpa Harold will watch over the both of us. He offered to do that 3 times!"
"But still." Blair closed her eyes and leaned back. Another silence appeared, until Rose broke it.
"If you miss him so much, why can't you go? Do you miss him that much?" Rose pushed her seat closer to her mother's. Blair nodded. "Do you love him more than me?" Rose folded her arms around Blair and rested her head on her mother's shoulder. Blair kissed her daughters hair.
"There is no one I love more than you, Rosie," she muttered, "And you're fully aware of that." Rose looked up and pecked her mother's cheek before she spoke again:
"Well, you don't need him anyway, because you have me. And I won't leave even if you're begging me to."
~o~o~o~o~o
"Nathaniël, tell me again why I'm doing this?" Charles Bartholomew Bass took off his expensive sunglasses and looked down on his best friend, who was still packing his suitcase.
"Because it will be good for you. Come on, a few weeks to Paris! It won't be that bad. And think about all the French women! We'll have fun, you and me." Nathaniël Archibald still was the same handsome-but-boyish-looking lacrosse player he used to be almost 15 years ago, only now he had grown himself a beard. Chuck shook his head.
"Do I really have to be the one to tell you you're married? With 4 children? Who are all coming to Paris with us?" He sighed. "And I don't even want to go to Paris. It'll only remind me of her."
"It has been 14 years, Chuck, you should get over it. Over her."
"I can't! I don't know why, but I just… can't." He placed his sunglasses over his eyes again, although they were still inside.
"I think we both know why," Nate said softly. With the last things finally packed, they were ready to go.
~o~o~o~o~o
"WHERE THE HELL IS PIERRE? He is supposed to be a waiter right now!" Rose yelled at a hotel employee. It was a day after her talk with her mother and she was in charge of her mother's hotel. The employee shook his head and tried to sooth Rose into calming down. "My mother isn't here, so you all work for me now!"
A small group of cleaners tried to sneak out of Rose's sight, but she immediately stopped them from leaving. "WHERE THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?! ONE MORE STEP AND I SWEAR IT'LL BE YOUR LAST AS AN EMPLOYEE IN THIS HOTEL OR IN ANY HOTEL FOR THAT MATTER!" The only reason that prevened Rose from choking one of the cleaners was her phone. Still breathing heavy, she picked up and smiled in a way her mother always does when she was bossing around.
"Hello mother, what can I do for you?"
On the other side Rose heard her mother adjusting her signature headband, and Rose immediately copied that action. Both of them were known for always wearing a headband matching their outfits.
"François told me you scared out almost every single one of my employees. You better not makes them quite their jobs, it's hard to find replacement." Blair mentioned amused. Silently Rose cursed her mother's assistant for being so observant. Although a blind could have noticed what she had been doing to the staff.
"Like you are any different, mother." She let out a small laugh and brushed a string of blond-dyed hair out her face. She turned around and headed for the reception, where the receptionist freezes in fear. "But I bet that's not what you called for." Proudly she realised how professional she sounded. Of course her mother ruined the moment by being a sentimental mother.
"Aw, my little girl has become an actual business woman!"
Rose sighed. "Mother, please."
"Yes, fine. Let me be proud of you, dear. In 2 or 3 years you will leave for college and I am never going to see you again. Anyway, I was wondering if you could get yourself a list of reservations and tell me how booked we are."
Rose nodded and smacked on the counter with a flat hand. When the man behind it didn't respond, she snapped her fingers at him with an angry look on her face.
"Give me the list of reservations," she snapped, "NOW!" On the other side of her phone conversation, Blair chuckled.
"Apparently there is no need for me to step by. Do you have the list?"
The receptionist handed over the file and Rose browsed through it quickly, looking for the right page.
"Found it, mother, no need to worry at all. And we're are… fully booked for the coming months or 3." Rose sighed with relief. If they were not, her mother might have thought she wasn't good enough for taking over the hotel one day.
"Merci, dear. You're doing great and the fact that we still are the best hotel in Paris is just another reason why I should let you be in charge more often."
Rose smiled filled with pride. "Are we going to celebrate tonight? Dinner at the Eiffeltower?"
"Mais oui, obviously." Blair answered with a laugh. It was one of their favourite traditions. Every month, if they were fully booked once again, they would have picked up some cheese and bread, and head to the Eiffeltower, where they would have stayed until even their best attempts to seducement didn't do the trick anymore. Blair adjusted and checked her outfit and hair one more time before she left their mansion. "I love you, Rosalyn."
"I love you too, mom."
~o~o~o~o~o
"So, how do you like Paris, sweetie?" Nate asked his 6-year-old daughter Brooklyn. The little girl had the dark-blonde hair of her father, but her mother's green eyes. Overall she would have become a very pretty woman when she grew up. But still never as beautiful as a certain brunette, in Chucks opinion. Brooke shrugged and focused again on her father laptop, which was showing her favourite movie.
"Well so much for the conversation with you 6-year-old," Nate's wife Serena said with her charming smile.
"She's yours too, remember?" Nate retorted, and he got closer to his wife. Before he could kiss her, another voice interrupted.
"Ew, dad! No! do it somewhere else, not in our limo!" Nate's other daughter, Luna, looked up from her book. She was an exact copy of her father, only the colour of her hair was slightly darker. Of all 4 children of his best friend –Colin, Kate, Luna and Brooke- Luna was Chucks favourite. She was the only one with some sparks inside her, even though she was just 8 years old. Serena rolled her eyes and kissed her husband anyway, both ignored their daughter. The entire trip in the limo Chuck didn't say a single word. He had no problems with being ignored, and when they finally would have reached the hotel, he'd explore every single one of Paris' options, especially the hot female ones.
~o~o~o~o~o
"You still got it, mom." Rose said with a small smile. They were leaning against the barriers of the Eiffeltower, each with their biggest, most expensive sunglasses on. Not only did they look ravishing, every man they had passed had noticed too, including the so-called guards. A flirty smile from Blair was enough to let them through.
"Maybe, but I don't think it was me all the boys were staring at," Blair answered. Rose rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Don't you think it's time you should get a boyfriend? All your girlfriends have one and you're certainly the most beautiful of all of them."
"You only say that because I'm your daughter and you're supposed to."
Blair raised her left eyebrow and looked at her daughter sceptically. Rose noticed and mirrored her mother's expression.
"You know I'm right. Every mother has to."
"Well, I'm not 'every' mother, am I? And I have never said anything I was supposed to say because I am your mother. You are one beautiful girl. Grandfather Harold, Roman, Eleanor and Cyrus all have noticed to."
"They're family."
"Well, they're right. And so am I, actually. But I won't push you, as the amazing mother that I am."
Rose rolled her eyes again, but didn't disagree. Blair actually was a very good mother. She was reasonable, sweet, understanding… she was also fine with most things Rose did or implied to do. A lot of her friends were jealous at having a mother like hers. A very hot one, too, if you'd ask Luca - her best friend. Not that that wasn't true, Blair looked very pretty considering all the things she had been through.
"I'm not ready for a boyfriend," Rose said, "I mean, considering school and the work at the hotel…"
"You don't have to work at the hotel, sweetie, if you don't want to…" Blair replied. It was true that she had been more than fine with Rose working at the hotel, but it wasn't really necessary.
"No!" Rose quickly replied, as if she was afraid her mother would take her job away, "I love that job! I love yelling at people, I love being a waitress at the restaurant, I love picking up phone calls and pretending to be you!"
Blair smiled at the desperate look on her daughter's face. "I never have heard you complain more about anything but your job…"
"Yes," Rose agreed, "sometimes. But sometimes you really can give me the worst jobs ever, which is unfair."
"what should I do then? Give you all the fun assignments because you're my daughter? Now that's not unfair!"
Rose shrugged. She turned around, only to notice a group of young French men glaring at her. She smiled at them and tucked a string of hair behind her ear. One of the guys turned red and looked away. Blair turned around too and chuckled softly noticing her daughters charm.
~o~o~o~o~o
The sun was already setting when they arrived at the hotel. The building was impressive, like the Palace, but had a very… French feeling to it. It was the most expensive and best known hotel in Paris, and maybe even in France. The lobby was stylish decorated and gave entrance to the bar, the club and the hallway to the elevator. With at least 3 young men to carry their luggage, Chuck, Nate, Serena and the children walked inside.
"Holy shit, this is huge!" the oldest of the children, Collin Eric Archibald said, "I mean, even bigger than your hotel, Uncle Chuck!" Collin looked around with the same expression as his 3 sisters, an expression of awe. Chuck grinned and followed Nate, who had already walked over to the reception.
"Bonjour monsieur," Nate tried. The receptionist looked up and saw how Nate was struggling with his French. He tapped on a sign saying 'we speak English too', and focused on the computer in front of him again. Nate sighed relieved and finished in English. "We had reservations for 2 weeks. 7 persons, 4 rooms, not paid yet."
"Which name, monsieur?" the receptionist asked without looking up.
"Archibald," Nate said, this time with confidence.
"Oui. You have rooms 1812, 1813, 1814 et 1815. You know you should pay in 2 days or you're not allowed back here?" This time he looked up, to scan their reaction. Nate nodded. It wasn't really necessary, but Nate had planned on paying the rooms just a few hours before they were kicked out. The receptionist stood up and collected the key-cards, handing them over to Nate after. Without a word he sat down again and ignored them until they walked away.
"Well, what a lovely employees," Nate muttered. Chuck laughed a little.
"That's just how French people are, Nathaniel. Also, male receptionist doesn't have to be nice to tourists." He replied. Nate rolled his eyes and kissed his wife on her cheek. Serena giggled and connected her lips with the ones of her husband. With his hand still wrapped around her waist, Nate turned to his children.
"So, how should we place every one in their rooms? We have 4, remember?"
Luna shrugged, followed by the others. Chuck took out his phone, checking his messages. It's not that he expects anything, but if he looks occupied, Nate wouldn't even think of asking him anything. Nate sighed, something that he had been doing a lot lately.
"Fine… your mother and I will take 1814, Brooke and Collin 1815, Kate and Luna 1813 and Chuck will stay in 1812."
Without waiting for everyone to agree, Nate turns around, heading for the elevators.