Disclaimer: I will say this only once this story. I don't own Gossip Girl TV show or otherwise, BUT my mama has a Netflix account that I get to use to stream the series so I can watch it over and over again to give you my stories!
Chapter 1
Unlike the rest of us, sex, lies, and scandal never take a vacation. Instead, they take the Long Island Expressway and head east to the Hamptons. Some would say summer is their busiest season. Think Park Avenue, but with tennis whites and Bain de Soleil. The players change, but the game remains the same.
Hands burying into the back of his hair as lips press and suck on him as he pulls her body against his as he takes the kiss deeper. Letting his hands roam up and down her thighs, giving her round hips a healthy squeeze of encouragement as she swivels them onto his lap to get just the right reaction out of him as he releases a groan in pleasure and in return she releases a soft giggle of enjoyment at what she's doing to him.
"This has to be up there with one of the best summers of my life," Nate thought silently to himself as he let himself get swept away in the moment with the woman currently straddling his lap in his front seat. When the Captain fled the country Nate didn't even want to be around the rest of his family and decided to devote his summer to just forgetting his problems and have some fun. It was after this decision that he met Catherine. Sure she was married, but as the way of the rich, it didn't necessarily mean that she was unavailable. And if the current heavy make-out session was anything to go by, she was definitely available.
"Mmm. I've been waiting for this all day," Nate whispered as the two broke for air, grinning as he pulled her even closer as he kissed down her neck.
Catherine closed her eyes as she exposed more of her neck for him to peruse as she whispered back, "Mmm. Are you sure Serena's still okay with covering for you? She was a little cold."
Nate shook his head lightly as he responded, "Oh, she's totally fine."
The two continued getting hot and heavy when Catherine pulled away to ask, "But you haven't told her anything?"
Nate again shook his head as he ran his hands over her exposed skin as he licked his bottom lip, "Al she knows is that I'm seeing someone I'm not ready to introduce to anyone just yet."
Just before Nate could continue with their previous activities, Catherine pushed him up against the back of the seat with force and a look of warning, to which he quickly fixed his mistake, "Or ever. Look, she needed time to decompress from her breakup anyway." Nate slowly made his way back to her lips, kissing her lightly as he continued to calm her down from being discovered, "Covering for me works for her, too."
Catherine finally let herself be in the moment as Nate buried his hand into her hair and began to suck on her neck hungrily. She turned her head to take his lips with hers, only to pause at the sound of a car driving by. Nate sighed as he waited for her to relax once again so they could continue and was surprised when she offered, "Let's go to my place before somebody spots us."
"Your house?" He asked, not bothering to hide his surprise. Catherine smirked and nodded playfully as she leaned towards him, "I thought we couldn't."
"There's always the guesthouse," she explained with a smile after one kiss. The two laughed before continuing on, not in a big rush to get to safety.
Yes this was possibly the best summer of Nate's life. The hiding and mystery definitely made the affair much more exciting. He was only bummed that with the end of the summer came with the end of the affair. But Nate didn't want to stop and think about what would happen at the end of the summer when the reality of his situation comes crashing down around him. Right now, he just wanted to focus on his other need about to be fulfilled.
xoxo
Chuck sighed as he leaned back into his lounge chair on the beach. There was something about the Hamptons that just relaxed him. It wasn't the same relaxation that a certain brunette instilled in him, but it was a close second. The thought of the brunette in question brought a smirk to his face. They'd been apart for a few weeks now, but they remained in constant contact despite the distance. Chuck never thought that leaving her to come back to New York early for this guys' trip that his father had set up for them and Eric would be one of the hardest things he had ever done, right up there with telling her his true feelings the first time.
"I shudder to think what that smirk is all about," Eric commented as he glanced over at his step brother beside him.
"It's called love, my dear brother," Chuck responded, his smirk growing, as he continued to speak, "One day you'll meet someone who'll illicit this kind of response from you without even actually being around and then you'll understand."
Eric smiled, "I have to admit that I didn't expect you, with your reputation, to be reveling in the life of being in a committed relationship, but being happy definitely suits you."
Chuck nodded in agreement, "To be honest I never considered happiness to be an option in our world until recently."
"With the way the Upper East Side couples work out? It's not too surprising to come to that conclusion. I'm just glad that you've become the exception. Gives me hope that maybe I can be happy too," Eric spoke softly as he looked out to the ocean.
"If I can find someone to be happy with, I can say without a shadow of a doubt, that you will find someone. My advice to you is that once you find someone who makes you happy, don't let anything stand in the way of that," Chuck shook his head at his surprisingly thoughtful advice as he heard their phones go off in synchronization. Him giving actual good advice to the younger Van Der Woodsen had become the norm ever since his father and Lily came out of the proverbial closet about their relationship.
He took out his phone and read the Gossip Girl blast and smiled a bit at the intel that he already knew about:
Spotted: Blair Waldorf at Charles de Gaulle, homeward bound. What could possibly make Queen B. abandon her two dads before Labor Day? We bet Chuck Bass knows…
"What do you say about us going out tonight? See what we can do about finding you someone that makes you happy?" Chuck smirked over at his brother playfully.
Eric sat up eagerly, "Sure, sounds great. I guess with Blair no longer being an ocean away, I have to enjoy this time while I can."
The brothers chuckle a bit just as a certain blonde passed by, rolling her eyes in disdain as Chuck answered, "I promise you this little brother: I'm always here for you to talk to, no judgment."
Eric nodded softly, "I know. It's been a good summer, at least better than last year's."
Chuck smirked a bit to himself as he stood up from his lounger, "The summer isn't over yet though."
Eric nodded again as he stood up too and walked with Chuck back to the house to change for dinner. Silently reflecting on all that has happened over the course of the past year; remembering how alone he felt to the point that he hurt himself in order to be able to feel something. Now he was in the Hamptons with his new brother after spending some quality guy time with his new step-father. Having the new step-father wasn't new for Eric, but it was the quality guy time that was a whole new experience. It felt good to be able to have someone there who has been through it all and had no regrets about it while encouraging Eric to do the same if it was what he wanted. Despite what a certain blonde said from time to time, Chuck Bass was a great sibling when it counted.
Also spotted: Serena Van Der Woodsen on Cooper beach, alone again. We've heard talk that things are heating up with Nate Archibald. And where there's smoke, there's usually fire. But if that's the case, why has Nate fallen right off our radar and Serena, as always, sighted solo? Wonder what she would do if she knew Lonely boy wasn't so lonely anymore.
Serena sighed as she watched Chuck and her brother walk off toward the house as she got settled on her beach towel by the water. She was glad that Eric had someone to talk to and hang out with. Although she would have preferred it if it was anyone other than Chuck, but with the way her mood had been going over the summer, she knew she couldn't be picky. Though she'd never admit it out loud, Chuck was great with her brother. Sure he encouraged Eric to get into a bit of trouble, but it was really nothing compared to what Serena had gotten up to when she was around Eric's age.
Serena began feeling the familiar pang of grief as she recalled this time last year. She remembered how she begged her mother to let her come home after hearing about Eric's episode. She remembered feeling guilty for running away from the city in the first place and how if she had just stayed and told the truth she would have been there for her brother when he needed her, and her she was once again not being the sister that Eric deserved.
She didn't know why but, Serena just couldn't stop thinking about Dan. He broke her heart when he broke up with her at her mother's wedding. She understood that she wasn't perfect, and it was because of that lack of perfection that she was so scared to tell Dan the truth. She already almost lost him in the beginning with her past truths and she lost him again because of other truths. Serena couldn't help but think that maybe she should have fought harder to change his mind, but then she would find herself shaking her head. She couldn't force him to be with her if he realized that she simply wasn't as good as he once thought.
Serena pushed her hair back as she leaned on her other hand, letting her head fall back towards the sun. This was the main source of her sour disposition this summer and she wasn't able to really talk to anyone about it. And with the way that people in her circle talked she was even grateful when Nate approached her about the idea of faking a summer fling with him while he pursued someone new and Serena was able to wallow a little bit in self-pity without judgment.
Before she could think too much on the subject, a shadow was cast over her, blocking the sun. Serena opened her eyes and took in the sight of a cute lifeguard. "Hey, I'm Matt," He introduced himself with a smile.
Serena forced herself to smile and be friendly even though she was far from interested, "Hey Matt, I'm Serena."
Matt nodded as he lowered himself to her level, not fully sitting as he mentally worked up the courage to ask his next question, "I've seen you around and I was wondering, if you were available, that maybe we could hang out later?"
"That sounds really nice...," and it did, to be able to have fun and just forget about her problems for a little while, but Serena just couldn't find it in her to get motivated to get back out there so soon, "but I'm just going through some things and I'm not sure if I'd be much company."
Serena looked down at the sand at the sight of the lifeguard's obvious disappointment at being rejected, "Oh, okay. That's cool. But if you happen to change your mind, I'm here around this time for the rest of the summer."
Serena smiled brightly as she watched him go back to his post. He really did seem nice. Maybe she'll call Blair later to see if she could come to the Hamptons to maybe help her out of her funk before school started and she'd be forced to see Dan on a regular basis.
xoxo
Chuck sighed to himself as he came back from the bathroom, dressed for his surprise pick up of his girlfriend. He glanced at the peonies lying on his bed with a smirk, knowing that Blair would love them as she always did and stood in front of his mirror to fix his hair. It would be the first time he had seen her in about a month and for some reason he was feeling nervous about the big reunion. He ran his hand through his hair a few times, satisfied with what he saw when he heard a light knock on his door.
"Wow, look at someone making an effort. You must be pretty nervous about something to go through all of this," Serena teased as she walked further into Chuck's room.
Chuck just rolled his eyes and rested his hands on the top of his dresser with a sigh, not amused as he lied, "Ha ha, sis. I'm on my way out to Lily Pond."
He didn't see the point in telling Serena his plans for the night, the blonde couldn't be trusted to keep a secret and Chuck had worked meticulously ever since he overheard Serena talking on the phone with Blair about her coming to East Hampton tonight on the Jitney. The fact that Serena knew about Blair's plans and he didn't resulted in Chuck realizing that the brunette was planning something. He glanced over at Serena as she glanced around the room, mentally scolding himself for leaving the flowers out by all to see.
"Then what are the flowers for?" she asked lightly as she leaned against the dresser, crossing her arms in front of her chest as she continued with her "investigation", "You wouldn't perhaps have overheard a recent phone call with a certain best friend of mine who mentioned she's on her way out here on the Jitney?"
Chuck kept his face blank as he glanced at Serena and asked ignorantly, "What's a Jitney?"
"If that's your way of saying no, then I'm glad to hear it. I still can't believe that you left Blair in France for a month and stayed here instead. If I were Blair I wouldn't forgive you," Serena scolded.
Chuck slowly turned towards the blonde as she went on her usual rant ever since he returned to New York early. You would think that since Chuck had confessed his feelings and spent the bulk of his summer with Blair in Europe before returning only to spend time with his own father and new brother that he would be given a little slack. God knew Blair understood and even encouraged him to stay in New York after the trip was over. In response, Chuck made it up to Blair by texting and calling on a regular basis throughout the month.
He didn't know if Blair was putting these passive aggressive thoughts in Serena's head or if the blonde was showing her natural hair color again so Chuck just usually ignored her, "Who told you that little piece of advice, you "boyfriend" Nate?"
"Nate didn't say anything," Serena rebuked with a shake of her head upon her high horse. A horse, Chuck was more than happy to knock her down off of.
"Good, 'cause I don't think it's wise taking relationship advice from somebody in a fake relationship," Chuck smirked at the sight of Serena freezing at the truth, "Call me crazy."
Chuck turned and gathered his jacket and the flowers as gave his final send off as he left Serena standing alone in his room, "Enjoy another night alone with your thoughts."
xoxo
Blair sighed contently as she looked out the bus window, smiling softly. It was great to be back in the states. Don't get her wrong, she loved Paris, but there was just something about New York that made it feel like home to her. Maybe it was the sights and sounds, or maybe it was just her friends and family, but Blair Waldorf knew that she couldn't stay in Paris for much longer knowing that something, or in this case someone, was waiting for her here on the other side of the ocean.
"I don't think I've ever seen that look on your face outside of your fathers' chateau, Blair," James said softly in his English accent beside her.
Blair turned her head towards him with a look of confusion, "What look?"
"The look of contentment that you have on your face; ever since we've come to New York it has been a permanent fixture. I admit that it suits you," James responded with a soft smile.
Blair sighed softly as she let a smile grace her lips as she rested her head against the back of the seat, "It's just good to be home. I love Paris, but New York…New York holds my heart. I've traveled extensively, but I have yet to find a place that made me feel the way New York did."
James chuckled a bit, "Sounds as if you never gave any other city a chance to win you over."
Blair shrugged lightly, "What can I say? There's just no place like New York." Blair smirked at her traveling companion, "Obviously it has hooked its claws into you since you traveled so far from home for business and family."
James nodded, "Yes, I can definitely see the appeal of it. Not to mention I look forward to see all of the places and meet the people you've told me so much about while we were in France. Especially this Chuck Bass you've told me about. I feel like I know him already, and I hope that he and I could be great friends."
Blair nodded in agreement, her smile growing brighter at the mention of her boyfriend. She found her thoughts taking her back to the beginning of the summer when the couple spent a few weeks alone in Tuscany. They took up the sights and sounds of the beautiful Italian countryside after spending a significant amount of time in their hotel room. It was absolutely perfect. They continued their trip to Lyons where they spent some time with Roman and daddy, allowing them to get to know Chuck a lot better than they were able to during Christmas. The only damper to the vacation was that Chuck had to leave for New York early so he could take part in the guy's trip that Bart had set up with Chuck and Eric towards the end of the summer. Blair would admit that it was a great opportunity for the three of them to form a bond as a family, but she didn't enjoy having her time with Chuck cut short. But she smiled and gave him a goodbye to remember before seeing him off at the airport with promises to see each other soon after the guy's trip ended a couple of weeks before school started.
The first couple of days after Chuck left, Blair was a shell of her usual self and spent a lot of time at the Chateau with Roman and Cat to help with the decorating of the house. But on the days that it became too much, she would go to the city to take part in some retail therapy or go to a local art museum. It was on one of these little trips that Blair had met James. He approached her about one of the featured works and they began to have a conversation that led to them meeting for coffee and eventually becoming friends. When he told her that he was coming to New York towards the end of the summer, Blair couldn't believe how perfect it was. She would definitely take it upon herself to show him around and meet the right people in her circle. Blair did pride herself on always having god foreign relations; you never know when you'll need an ally from the most unlikely of places.
As the bus came to their stop, Blair was brought of her thoughts. They had arrived and she couldn't wait to see the look on Chuck's face when she made her appearance. As she stood up and followed after James as he took her carry on into his hands, she considered texting Chuck and reflected how romantic it would be if Chuck met her at the Jitney stop as a surprise. But Blair knew that she gave up on the romantic notion when she didn't even mention it to him that she was coming this evening. She sighed as she slowly stepped down the stairs and off of the bus, smiling appreciatively as James set her things down and turned towards her. He lifted up one of her hands and placed a gentle kiss on the back of it with an accompanied smile. Blair's smiled turned forced at the display of affection as she watched James turn away from her to gather the rest of their bags.
As Blair took a look around to see if the car service that she ordered had arrived yet, she saw something else entirely that made her pause in disbelief. There he stood, just as she had envisioned not five minutes previously, waiting for her with a bouquet of peonies and his signature smirk. The sight of that smirk caused Blair to beam as she slowly made her way over to her boyfriend.
"Chuck Bass, what are you doing here? I'm supposed to be surprising you at the house," Blair spoke, not at all as annoyed as her sentence led people to believe.
"I wanted to surprise you first," Chuck replied simply before offering up the beautiful bouquet to her, "For you."
Blair smiled at the flowers as she accepted them, not wasting any more time as he leaned towards her and kissed her as if they had been apart for far too long. To Blair, that was how exactly it felt as she returned his kiss passionately, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her body against his.
Chuck reluctantly broke the kiss, resting his forehead against hers, panting as he whispered, "I missed you."
Blair laughed lightly as she just enjoyed being in his arms as she whispered back, "I missed you too."
"This must be the Chuck Bass I've heard so much about," James spoke up, making his presence known. Chuck frowned at the intrusion as Blair did her best to refrain from rolling her eyes as she turned towards her traveling companion.
"Yes, this is Chuck Bass, my boyfriend," Blair smiled as she made the introductions, "And Chuck this is James, the friend I made in France."
"It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, Chuck," James spoke politely as he offered his hand for a shake.
Chuck purposely ignored the offered hand and forced a smile, "Of course, I remember your mentioning of him. I'm just surprised that he's here in the states."
Blair immediately sensed the tension as James dropped his hand, "I had some familial obligations that I needed to take care of here in the states, and I offered to accompany Blair to the Hamptons since I was already heading this way. She was kind enough to offer to show me around the social scene here."
Chuck looked at his girlfriend and raised a brow that screamed that the two of them would talk about her bringing home strays at a later time. Blair simply smiled and gave a light shrug as she caught Arthur out of the corner of her eye gathering up her luggage and putting it in the back of Chuck's waiting limo as Chuck responded with the manners that had been instilled in him, but he never bothered to show, "Of course. The more the merrier."
xoxo
Blair stretched out on the lounger by the Van Der Woodsen pool and looked over at where she found her best friend in her designated spot in shock. Blair made it a point to not spend the day in bed with Chuck, as much as she wanted to after being apart for so long. There was a lot she needed to do before the Vitamin water White party later on in the week, not to mention catching up with Serena and the rest of the social scene in New York. Besides, last night her and Chuck more than made up for lost time.
Blair smiled as she reminisced. After quickly reconnecting the best way they knew how, in the back of his limo; Chuck had continued on with his romantic surprise with dinner ready up in her room. The two ate and drank and made love in ways that Blair didn't think possible outside of romance novels. It wasn't even until dawn broke on the horizon that the couple finally drifted off to sleep in each other's arms. It wasn't much too long after, before Blair forced herself to leave him in bed alone as she went off to find Serena.
Blair had an idea that Serena wasn't nearly as well of as she claimed to be during their phone calls throughout the summer and Blair was on a mission to get the truth and do her best to fix it. She knew that the blonde took the hit pretty hard when that Brooklyn rat dumped her at her mother's wedding despite how good of a front Serena put on, but she had no idea how bad it was since she wasn't here to witness it firsthand. Sure Chuck kept her posted as best he could but for three weeks he was traveling with Eric and Bart and then for the last week he was continuing the bonding time with Eric since it was about time for his anniversary since his accident. In the end Chuck wasn't able to keep as close tabs as Blair would have liked on her blonde counterpart.
"So how has your summer been? The truth this time," Blair demanded with a light smile as she took a sip from her smoothie beside her.
Serena sighed a bit before responding, "It's been fine, I haven't really done much other than just…relax."
Blair frowned in shock as she placed her glass down, "You didn't do anything all summer? Please don't tell me you just sat around watching "The Closer" and eating takeout from Nick and Toni's."
Blair pushed her bangs off her face and found that she actually paused at Serena's soft response, "No, Della Femina," before giving a smirk that rivaled one Chuck Bass as she took another sip from her glass. Blair decided to clear the air on all the rumors circulating her best friend over the course of the summer while she was away, "What about all those rumors I heard about you and Nate?"
"Mnh-mnh-mnh," Serena shook her head forcefully, "Completely untrue. They just got people off my back about being sad, and then Nate could do whatever he wanted, so it worked out for both of us."
Blair genuinely couldn't believe what she was hearing. This was Serena Van Der Woodsen she was talking to! "You're telling me you didn't have any fun with anyone all summer?"
Serena had the grace to realize how bad of a position she was looking and looked away from her best friend before coming back with something to redeem herself a bit, "Oh, there was this hot lifeguard that asked me out," at the look of excitement on Blair's face, Serena quickly wrapped up with, "But I, you know, I-I turned him down."
"What? Are you crazy?" Blair asked, seriously questioning her best friend's sanity as Serena just looked at her, "A hot lifeguard is like Kleenex: use one and throw away. You couldn't ask for a better rebound."
Serena shrugged helplessly, "I don't think I'm ready. I-I still miss Dan sometimes…more than sometimes…," Blair rolled her eyes and nodded as she looked away. This was worse than she originally thought as Serena finished her sentence with, "All the time."
"The only thing lamer than dating Dan Humphrey is mourning Dan Humphrey," Blair said firmly, deciding that some tough love is in order to get her friend out of her funk, "And the only reason you're still sitting shivah is because you haven't gotten back out there and had your summer fling."
Before Serena could respond, Chuck appeared from inside with, "I woke up alone, you know how much I hate that, Waldorf."
Blair looked over her shoulder and smiled at her boyfriend, fully dressed and ready for the day as he walked up behind her lounger and kissed the top of her head as he had done so many times in the past before circling around to sit at the foot of her lounger as she responded, "I know, I'm sorry, but you looked so peaceful. So I came out to catch up with Serena."
Chuck reached over and took Blair's hand in his, lacing them as he asked, already having forgiven her when he found her outside with Serena, as he grinned, "And what were you two talking about?"
"The summer," Serena quickly answered, "and this amazing necklace that Blair's dad gave her."
"Which one?" Chuck asked curiously to his girlfriend.
Blair smiled as she let Serena steer the conversation away from her love life, "The Bulgari pearl choker with a B on it."
Chuck nodded in recognition as he smirked at the memory the jewelry brought forth, "I remember that one. I particularly loved it when you modeled it for me."
Blair shook her head as she smirked back, knowing exactly what he was referring to as she picked up her glass and took a drink, "It was definitely a great summer."
"I have to admit that I'm surprised that you weren't talking about James though," Chuck brought up the subject he really wanted to talk about.
"James? Who's James?" Serena asked confused.
"A stowaway that Blair brought home from Europe," Chuck quipped as he glanced at Serena briefly before going back to watching his girlfriend.
Blair rolled her eyes and sighed, "He's not a stowaway," she smirked before continuing, "He's a friend that I met not too long after a certain boyfriend of mine left for a boys' trip with Bart and Eric. He was already coming to New York and he had some family matters in the Hamptons so he joined me on the Jitney."
"Sounds like a gentleman," Serena responded as she watched the couple carefully.
"Why doesn't he join us for dinner tonight so we can all get to know him?" Chuck offered, still not convinced that this James could be trusted to be in their circle, let alone worthy.
"Sounds great!" Blair beamed in excitement, she wasn't naïve enough to believe that Chuck was fully on board but grateful that he was at least willing to be social as he gathered his information, "I'm sure you'll like him just as much as I do."
"That remains to be seen," Chuck responded as he stood up from his spot, kissing Blair's lips slowly, lingering before saying his goodbyes, "I'll leave you two to bond. I'll see you at 7."
Blair smiled as she watched him leave, taking another sip from her glass before turning her attention back to her best friend, "Now, how about we go find that lifeguard?"
xoxo
After leaving Blair and Serena by the pool, Chuck decided to take advantage of his free time and spend it with Eric. Knowing that the younger Van Der Woodsen did not have many friends available to him since he took so much time off last year while he was at the Ostroff center, not to mention when he finally was able to come back into the fold he spent the rest of the year interacting with Jenny Humphrey before she dropped him to climb up to better social views only to fall hard because of her ambitions, it was easy to say that Eric Van Der Woodsen was basically starting over on the social scale this year, and Chuck would do his best to insure that his now brother would have a better experience than last year.
When Chuck couldn't find Eric inside the house he found him at the next location: the beach. Chuck smirked intrigued as he saw Eric walking along the coast on the phone, wondering who he was talking to. "Maybe he's found a new love interest," Chuck thought silently as he made his way over. The theory was immediately shot to hell as he caught the end of the conversation, "…alright I'll see you then Jenny, Bye."
"Eric," Chuck greeted, making his presence known to the sophomore.
Eric quickly glanced over his shoulder to see Chuck with a weary look, obviously wondering how much Chuck had heard of the conversation, "Chuck. What a surprise, I would have thought that you would have been spending the time catching up with Blair."
Chuck smirked he motioned for the two to continue walking together, "That was the original plan, but she realized that Serena needed her more than I did at the current time and I figured that it was for the best since you and I have spent so much time together. Imagine my surprise though to overhear that you've let little Jenny Humphrey back into the fold."
Eric sighed, knowing that with that one sentence that Chuck had heard enough of his phone call and decided to come clean, "It's a new development. She just called me up out of the blue just now with an apology in hand…"
"And let me guess," Chuck attempted to fill in the blanks, "a request of a favor in the other."
Eric nodded, "Basically. Call me naïve, but before Jenny went over to the dark side, she really was a good friend to me. And it's not like I'm in the position to turn down friends. Even if they are the bitchy, backstabbing, selfish sort."
Chuck sighed softly at Eric's predicament, "You know you're going to have to tell Blair, right? If only to avoid a scene and to keep the peace."
Eric nodded again in agreement, "I'm not stupid, Chuck. I may have forgiven Jenny for what she's done to me and my family members, but I have not forgotten. I'll watch her for any signs of her reverting back and if I see it, I'll cut my losses then and there."
Chuck pursed his lips silently before responding, "It's your life, Eric. You're free to be friends with anyone you choose, but I just don't want you to be in that bad place you were in last year just because you decide to trust certain people."
Eric understood where Chuck was coming from and how important loyalty was to him and Blair. If anyone made the mistake of hurting someone these two cared about once, there wasn't any such thing as second chances for them. And Jenny was considered written out of their minds as someone not worth their time and effort. Call Eric a masochist, but he was willing to give Jenny this last chance to show that she was a worthy friend.
"I hear what you're saying, Chuck, and I admit that I didn't just welcome her back as my friend lightly. It's her last chance and if she goes back to bad habits, I'm done," Eric explained, the last thing he needed was more drama in his life.
"So what was the favor she wanted?" Chuck asked curiously as the two continued walking together after settling on the same page in regards to the Jenny Humphrey situation.
"She needed an invite to the Vitamin water white party later this week," Eric replied as he stuffed his hands in his pockets, "She wanted to show off this dress that she made during her internship with Waldorf Designs, ironically enough."
Chuck raised his brows up at the new information and stored it for later use, "In that case you definitely need to let Blair know beforehand to avoid an impromptu take down."
The two chuckled together softly, knowing that Blair was the type to kill first and ask questions later when it came to protecting those whom she loved. "Maybe you could also work on distracting her over the next few days?" Eric asked, "At the very least pull a promise from her to stand down."
Chuck smirked, "Eric, I'm afraid I have to disappoint you. The only one who could extract that kind of promise from Blair is you. You were the one that Jenny hurt the most after Blair herself. You want her to stand down; you're going to have to get her to swear to it."
Eric knew he was right, and he also knew that the sooner he set the whole thing in motion the better. The last thing Eric wanted to do was worry about a Waldorf waging war.
xoxo
A few hours later, Blair made her way out to the patio where Celia Rhodes, Serena's grandmother and Blair's host, was holding dinner. Everything seemed to be going according to plan for Blair; she had just saw Serena off with her lifeguard rebound date. Granted Serena was very reluctant to the point that she was thinking of backing out after she saw the guy's car. Blair had to work hard from rolling her eyes at her best friend's objection of the Camaro. It wasn't as if she was going to live the rest of her life with the guy. It was just one date and maybe even a fling to get Serena back to her old self and get over her Brooklynite obsession.
"There she is." Blair smiled politely as Chuck announced her presence to everyone as he made his way over to her, kissing her lips lightly before whispering, "I was beginning to think you'd be a no show, Waldorf."
Blair smirked playfully as she laced her hand into his as she replied, "Worried that you'd have to go through an entire meal without me? And to think you've grown used to it over this past month, Bass."
Chuck returned the smirk as he led the way for the table, "I have gotten used to it, but I didn't enjoy it then and I certainly won't enjoy it now that I have you back."
Blair felt her smile grow bigger at his comment as she turned to welcome their guest, "James, I'm glad that you were able to join us."
"Thank you for the invitation, Blair. I admit that I'm excited to get to know all of your friends in person after hearing all of the stories you've told me over the past month," James replied politely as he smiled at the table that included Celia and Eric as Blair sat down on his right and Chuck took his place sitting at the head of the table on her right.
"So, how did you two meet?" Chuck asked as the help began to serve the first course.
James smiled as he reminisced aloud, "She was standing at one of my favorite paintings at the fine arts museum in Lyon, Il Veronese."
Blair smiled and nodded as she took a sip of iced tea from her glass as James continued on, "She looked so sad as she looked at it that I felt that I had to talk to this beautiful woman."
As James glanced at Blair she in turn looked down at her plate, remembering that day herself and how sad she really was that day. Chuck had just left to go on his guys' trip with Eric and Bart and Blair was still adjusting to not having him by her side and with their contact being limited to phone calls and text, it wasn't the easiest of transitions for her. "Yes, Chuck had just left earlier that week, and I'll admit that I missed him," Blair replied with a soft smile as she looked over at her boyfriend who smirked back at her.
"We went to lunch and we talked about her life in New York and we became practically inseparable ever since," James added, "I feel as if I've known Blair forever."
That sentence alone was practically an issued challenge for Chuck and he immediately began a very unsubtle quiz, "So, James, did you have a chance to meet Harold and, uh…what is his boyfriend's name again?"
Blair frowned as she gave Chuck a pointed look, knowing exactly what he was doing as James responded politely, "Uh, Roman? Only briefly at the chateau, although Cat didn't seem to like me nearly as much. "
Blair pressed her lips together in amusement as she remembered how ill received he was to the pet and it was the reason that they didn't spend too much time there. Celia chuckled as James continued on, "I have the scars to prove it."
It didn't escape her notice that Chuck didn't bother trying to hide his own amusement as he responded, "Really? I have to admit I'm surprised; I found her to be very sweet towards me while I was there for the bulk of the summer. Maybe it was your cologne…"
Blair closed her eyes and lightly shook her head as the two guys continued back and forth about who knew Blair better or was better liked. Blair admitted only to herself that James seemed to come off as more than a friend with the way he responded and was even competing with her boyfriend to the point that it was getting to be a bit embarrassing. She made a mental note to pull James aside later to make sure that they were on the same page in regards to their relationship as friends.
"Well, you certainly have crammed an awful lot into such a short time together," Chuck responded, seeming to have reached an end to his interrogation, "I wonder, has Blair had a chance to share her favorite movies with you yet? "Tiffany's," "Roman Holiday," and of course, "Charade."
Blair narrowed her eyes at Chuck with a slight smirk as James asked in confusion, "Oh, I thought your third favorite was "Funny Face."
"It is," Blair responded, not taking her eyes off of Chuck mentally screaming at him to just drop it, he had made his point loud and clear, "I hate "Charade." Chuck, stop it."
Sensing the tension rising at the table and ready to move onto another subject, Eric chimed in, "Yeah, uh, "How well do you know Blair Waldorf?" is kind of boring for those of us who actually know Blair Waldorf."
"Not to mention transparent," Celia added, locking eyes with Chuck.
"Well, thank you, Grandma," Chuck responded with a smirk as he took a sip from his scotch.
"Why is it when you say that word it sounds like an insult?" Celia asked as she tilted her head to the side.
Chuck grinned as he looked away, unable to deny anything. Despite the constant butting of heads with the elder Rhodes woman, Chuck and Celia had a mutual understanding and respect for one another and Chuck considered her to be a part of his family.
"No, no, I-I don't mind," James cut in, "I would like to learn as much as I can about Blair. Like I said, I feel as if I've known her my entire life. And there's no better way to check my memory than through a quiz."
"I'm sure you do, but Blair, like many others, is a woman of layers and very few are allowed to know her heart and the way her mind works," Chuck responded as he picked up Blair's hand in his gently, "It's a blessing and a curse."
Blair turned towards her boyfriend feeling as if the constant circular motion of the conversation was finally coming to an end, "And how exactly is it a curse, Bass?"
"Knowing someone better than you know yourself?" Chuck answered with a question and a quirk of his brow at her.
The couple had a silent conversation as the stared at each other for a few moments before they began to smile at each other, calling a cease fire as Blair responded, "Point taken."
Chuck's grin grew more pronounced at her words, knowing that his point had been made that this new comer was after far more than just friendship and decided to let it lie for now as he picked up Blair's hand and kissed the back of it lovingly before returning his attention to James. Catching the look of jealousy on the guy's face before he could quickly masked it. Chuck decided to do a little digging on this "James"; he got the distinct impression that he wasn't all that he appeared to be.
Blair shook her head and let out a short laugh to herself as the conversation finally moved forward. "So, James, Blair told me that you had business in the Hamptons these next couple of weeks?"
"Yes," James responded, "I had some family business in town. I'm expected to go to the Vitamin water White party and Blair was kind enough to offer to introduce me around to the right people."
Chuck's quick glance to Eric was the only sign of warning for what was to come, "Wonderful, that means you'll have the fortune to be introduced to Eric's date, Jenny Humphrey."
Blair paused at the sound of the freshman's name mentioned and looked at Eric as she asked, "Jenny's going to be your date?"
"Who's Jenny?" James asked everyone, feeling a bit out of the loop as Eric nodded a bit uncomfortably.
"This girl that goes to our school from Brooklyn," Blair quickly explained, not taking her eyes off of Eric as she continued the conversation, "I wasn't aware that you two were still talking after all that happened last year."
Eric sighed softly, knowing that Blair was inquiring out of concern for him, "We weren't until earlier today."
"Eric…" Blair spoke softly.
"I know," Eric responded firmly, "I'm not forgetting what she did or what was said and I'm definitely not making this decision lightly, but it is my decision. You don't have to like it, but I would like for you to support me; it's not as if she didn't get her comeuppance in the end."
Blair tilted her head slightly to the right as she though on it, knowing what he said was true, "Your right. I don't like it, but I will support you. BUT, the second she steps out of line again-"
"You will have free reign," Eric said in agreement, knowing that Blair's heart was in the right place.
"Good," Blair nodded in satisfaction.
"And I'll do my best to distract her from not striking until then," Chuck offered with a smirk, resulting in Blair rolling her eyes as she shook her head and smirked to herself.
The conversation continued on about the White party and the group was able to finally get to know James a bit more. Eric was glad that everything was out on the table about Jenny and he didn't have to worry too much about Blair declaring war. Blair was content with simply keeping a close eye on Jenny Humphrey, but overall she considered the girl just above irrelevant to her. After this dinner, Blair realized she needed to make sure that a war wasn't brewing between James and Chuck. After that display at the dinner table she knew that she had to be careful in order that Chuck could see that he had nothing to worry about. Chuck was slowly growing more suspicious of James. Maybe it was because he didn't let just anyone into his inner circle or maybe it was something more. Either way Chuck was definitely going to have his PI do a bit of digging, he wanted to know everything about him as well as his secrets.
A/N: Hello my beautiful, wonderful readers, I'm back! I hope you all had a great summer, I know I did! I'm now a college graduate! :D I didn't get to write as much as I originally planned to on account of working my butt off on my last class this summer, but I have a vague picture on how I want the story to go. It's because of this that I'm giving myself more wiggle room on updates, which means that you are going to have to wait at the max 2 weeks instead of my usual 1 for a new chapter. As you can see I'm expanding to include POVs of the other half of the group because Serena and Nate actually had a lot going on in season 2 and with Chair not having to go through the whole will they or won't they about their feelings, I decided to take on Serena and Nate's problems to replace that angst. So obviously there's going to be some changes for the 2nd season, but I hope that they are changes that you'll like!
I also wish to extend my highest gratitude to all of you and your reviews for the last story I did. It just warmed my heart and it just brought a huge smile to my face to receive reviews and alerts long after I've completed the story. I honestly feel that I have the greatest readers in the world and I hope that you love this story as much as you did the first one.
So! Review and tell me your thoughts and opinions so far, I'm open to suggestions and ideas on how to tackle the NJBC's senior year because there is a lot that happens, not to mention what are beloved Chair is going to do in regards to after high school is over. Have a great Labor Day and I'll see you soon!
Love you all!
-Plei4fun