A/N - I wrote this ages ago after I saw the season finale and before all the spoilers fully came out so I know it is perhaps irrelevant and not what happened. But it is what I imagined happening and I thought I'd share it anyway (with the encouragement of Mel :P)

I know the dialogue is quite disjointed, rambly and at times annoying but I just think that's how they would talk the first time they see each other after such a strange break up - I don't know I thought their reuniting on the show was perhaps not awkward enough.

The italics are thoughts. Originally it was just going to be a one shot but if I get lots of reviews I'll tell you what happens when they meet again that night! ;)

There was a knock on the grand door of the Van der Woodsen – Bass Hampton home. Serena, just having gotten out of bed, trampled down the stairs with her powder pink silk bathrobe on, tying her hair up into a bun at the same time. She stepped close to the door, imagining it was just someone to see her mother or Bart, not bothering to look through the glass panels on either side of the entrance.

She was completely taken aback to see him standing there, and felt a strange shiver run through her body. Her voice whimpered as she struggled to say his name.

"Dan" she managed to pronounce.

"Hey. I – "

"Hey" she interrupted him from explaining himself, her mind spinning and immediately remembering that her tendency to interrupt Dan when he spoke was one of the things he loved most about her.

"Hey, Dan. What… what are you doing here?"

Dan had never been more nervous in his life, and he spoke almost as awkwardly as he had that night at the wedding.

"I… I…"

He was lost for words. Dan couldn't comprehend the beauty of her bare face. Freshly washed, he could see little bits of her golden hair were wet above her ears and around her forehead. He wondered then if she had ever looked more beautiful to him as she did now. No make-up, no hair product, no million-dollar dress and heels. Just…Serena, in her purest form.

Dan suddenly realized he had become distracted and not finished his sentence. He was overwhelmed by her beauty and so afraid she didn't want him there. What did she think of him, showing up like this? Had she ever forgiven him? She snapped him back from his thoughts.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him quietly, in almost a whisper, her head shaking slightly as she spoke. She clearly isn't even the slightest bit happy to see me.

"I'm sorry" he mumbled, his face turning to the ground.

"I shouldn't have come her. That was… I'm sorry." He turned to leave, completely ashamed of himself, until he heard her soft, shaky voice asking him to stay.

"Wait… Dan… wait"

A few moments of silence passed. What now? She had no idea what to say to him. She was barely conscious she had just told him to wait – it was more instinct than anything else; a subconscious reaction to him walking away from her again.

"It's good to see you" she managed.

"You look…" she wanted to say 'perfect.' "Well."

"Yeah, thanks, I am" he lied, adjusting his hands in his pockets as he relaxed just a little bit.

"I mean it's good to see you too… you look great."

"Yeah, I've been taking care of myself" she nodded.

You have or Nate has? He asked himself, remembering what he had seen yesterday.

"That's good." He said, meaning it"

"Look I'm sorry I rocked up like this… I shouldn't have. It's just, I saw you yesterday, in town with Nate." He watched for a change of expression in her flawless face. He expected her to react, and look guilty, or awkward at the very least. But she didn't, so he continued.

"And then I found out you were staying here, and yeah, I wanted to see you so I came, here, today, and now I realize that was rude, it was…"

"A nice surprise" she interrupted again.

Dan felt a small smile form across his clean shaven face.

"Look, why don't we, I dunno, take a walk or something?" she suggested, "and catch up. Are you free now?"

"Yeah, yeah, a walk would be great", his smile grew.

"OK. I just have to get dressed" She glanced down at the robe she was wearing, which hugged her body in all the right places.

No, he thought, stay like that.

"Come in, I'll just go up and get dressed, just wait in the sitting room if you like"

"Okay" he answered in disbelief. She actually wants to see me. To go for a walk. And catch up.

Dan made his way across the impressive hall to the room he thought looked like a sitting room. As he sat down he noticed that the kitchen and dining area were adjoined. And sitting at the table in their matching night gowns? None other than Lily and Bartholomew Bass.

"Dan?"

"Hello, Lil-, Mrs Van de-, Mrs Bass" he stumbled. Somehow he no longer felt comfortable calling her Lily since the wedding.

"Mr Bass, good morning"

"Good morning, Daniel"

"So Dan, we didn't expect to see you here today"

"No, no, very unexpected, I know… Sorry, for turning up unannounced."

"That's perfectly okay, as long as it's okay with Serena?" she raised her perfectly manicured eyebrows.

"Yeah, yeah, she just let me in. She's gone upstairs, to get dressed. We're going for a walk, actually"

Lily smiled a faux smile and nodded as he rambled, turning her head back to the magazine she had been reading. Not knowing what to do, Dan went to sit down on a nearby sofa but felt awkward imposing on the newly-wed couple's silent breakfast.

"Why don't you go on upstairs, Dan? Serena's room is to the right of the stairs on the next floor."

"Yeah, thank you, Mr Bass"

As he made his way up the marble staircase Dan could not help imagining Serena getting dressed. Throwing her robe off and on to the floor, fumbling bare naked through her drawer for a bra and some panties, hardly thinking twice about what she threw on – Serena's effortlessness was what made her always look so perfect. Dan sat on a grand arm chair outside a set of cream double doors he assumed led to Serena's room. He felt butterflies in his stomach and heard his heart beat faster as he waited for her to emerge.

The door opened quickly.

"Dan, hey"

He turned to see her,standing there in the doorway, exactly as she had that night of their second date – the night they first kissed.

"Hey, um, sorry. Bart just told me to come up, so – "

"It's fine, really" she reassured him, flashing her first genuine smile all morning.

"You ready?"

"Yeah, sure, let's go."

"So, it's a great place you have here," he spoke for the first time as soon as they got outside. Small talk seemed like the only option to Dan right now.

"Yeah, it's new. Bart's. I much preferred our old place, but you know, you can't complain"

"Sure"

"The Waldorfs' is not too far, which is nice. And Nate's just around the corner"

I'll bet! Dan thought. But why would she bring him up like that if she knew Dan knew about them? She knew he saw them. Or was she just trying to make him jealous? Dangling it in front of him like that. Or worse, was she trying to ease into a conversation where she'd explain to him that she's sorry about everything that happened and she really did love him but her heart had always belonged to Nate, and Nate…

"So you're just down for the weekend?"

"Yeah, Vanessa's aunt has a place here. And she's looking for inspiration for a new film, so we came up here for the night… a friendly night… I mean, a night as friends. With Jenny"

"Oh, how is Jenny? I meant to congratulate her on her internship at Eleanor's company – it's such great news!"

"Yeah, she's good. I think it's done her good – having a break from those girls, that lifestyle, you know? Just taking some time out."

"Yeah, definitely. Sometimes a little time away from it all – looking at your life from an outsider's perspective – it can make you think, you know. And see what's important to you."

Like Nate, he thought.

"That's true" he nodded.

They had reached the beach now, her long feet floating on the sand, as she carried her sandals carelessly in her left hand. He walked on her right, remaining just a half-a-pace behind her so he could stare at her perfect face without her knowing. Occasionally the ends of her long blonde hair would wisp near to his face, and if her were lucky, they would touch him.

"I mean for me," she continued slowly, "this summer so far has been so important. I've spent hours just sitting here on this beach looking into the ocean and thinking about everything."

The words slipped out beyond her control. Why was she sharing all this with him? Did she really want him to know how miserable and alone she'd been? What she'd been doing, what she'd been thinking, how she felt? But she couldn't control herself.

"And I want you to know, Dan, I've realized what went wrong between us, and now I'm ready – "

"To move on, I know, with Nate. I get it." He blurted out. "I got the blasts from Gossip Girl, but didn't know if I believed it, and then I saw you two hanging out yesterday. And Serena even though I'd do basically anything to have you back – I have missed you so much this summer – but I saw you with him and you looked happy. And that's great. If he makes you happy then that's great and it's fine. Not that you need my approval, cause you don't, but-"

She couldn't help herself. She leaned in and pulled his head from behind and allowed their lips to meet with such passion and force, using her tongue to part his luscious lips. She had to have their lips touch, to taste what they had been longing for all this time.

And it was just as satisfying as she remembered. She pulled away slightly, her face still within inches of his, their noses almost touching. Then it was him. He used his hand to pull her back into him as far as he could, breathing in with his nose to smell her sweet, familiar scent. He felt her hand move around his hip to his lower back, first gently, but then more. She gripped his shirt, pulling her stomach and pelvis into her's just as she had done so many times before – and the sensation was incredible. He pulled his head back just to look at her – to make sure it wasn't all a dream – but quickly leaned back in, catching her upper lip between his, felling the moisture of her lower one just under his. He sucked her lip into his over and over, her heading moving with his. She brought both hands around from his back and held his hips, before allowing them to brush over his stomach so they tickled his navel. This drove him wild. His tongue was massaging her's. She breathed so heavily he pulled away and kissed her all on her jaw, her neck, and under her ear.

"Dan" she whispered, stuttered breaths emerging from her mouth, as he continued to kiss her.

"There are people watching." She closed her eyes, because as much as she wanted to compose herself and make him stop so they could go somewhere else, she couldn't. Serena had never felt so loved, so wanted, so safe, nor so aroused as she did right now.

"Okay" he said, pulling away from her neck and staring deep into her emerald eyes, "but do we really have to stop?"

"Nooo, I have a plan" she cooed with a suggestive smile, biting her inflamed lip.

He leaned in and kissed her again.

"So what – and where – does this plan involve?"

Without answering, she linked her hand in his and walked him down to the water. They walked together along the wet sand, her leading him but most of the time pulling him in both hands with her face to him – not looking where she was walking, kissing him at irregular intervals. Dan's insides were going crazy. He couldn't wait to have her on top of him, to touch her all over and be inside of her.

"Where exactly are you taking me?"

"You'll see. It's just a bit further up the beach, you're going to love it"

"I'll bet I'll love it" he smiled, kissing her again.

"Dan, my phone, hang on" she said drawing away. He kept his hand on her back, fiddling with the bottom of the shirt she was wearing, his hands tickling her soft, bare skin.

"Mom, hey, what's up?... Yeah I'm fine, we just… Now?... Mom I really can't I'm bu… okay… yeah, ten minutes, sure."

She slid her phone closed and returned it to the back pocket of her jean shorts.

"I have to go" she admitted quietly, pouting and furrowing her eyebrows.

"I'm so sorry,"

"No, it's fine" Dan replied, obviously distraught.

"It's just my mom, and – "

"Don't worry, Serena, I understand" he assured her, placing both hands on her soft flawless cheeks, then pulling her in to kiss her.

"But this," she held his waist, "this was amazing"

"Yeah," he nodded, "I mean, we should probably talk about it, make sure it's what you really want. I mean if you need some time to think,"

"Dan!" she interrupted him once again, "I've had three weeks to think".

Her smile was reflected on his face.

"And trust me I've never been more sure of anything in my life. I don't think I've ever wanted, or needed something more than I want and need you, right now, in my life. As mine. Forever"

Dan breathed out a short breath of relief. He kissed her slowly, holding her lips still for seconds on end.

"You should get to your mom."

"Yeah. But can I see you later?"

"Of course. I'm meant to go home tomorrow, around –"

"Stay here! With me! At my house."

At that, the grin on his lips took over his face. Dan was happier in that moment than he had been in a very long time.

"Okay," he accepted easily. "But go! Tonight?"

"So you'll pick me up at 8?" she joked, tossing her head, mimicking the first time she had asked him to take her to the concert.

"I'll see you then" he leant in and gave her one last kiss. One kiss he was sure he would remember for the rest of his life.