A/N: I own nothing. Enjoy!
Loud clacking sounds of shoes filled the loft, breaking the silence that Dan Humphrey had grown accustomed to ever since he decided that staying in Brooklyn for a while might to do him - do them - some good.
He looked up from his laptop to look at the person now standing in front of him, the person who destroyed his quiet afternoon. And there stood Serena, her overcoat clung tightly to her, handing him a brown envelope that could - and would - change both of their lives.
"Serena, I - -"
She held a hand up that stopped Dan from saying what he had intended to say. She closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head before pressing the envelope into Dan's hands, forcing him to accept it no matter how much he doesn't want to.
"Since it looks like you won't be doing this anytime soon, I had the liberty to ask my lawyer to write up our divorce papers."
Dan slowly and shakily pried open the envelope and pulled out the pieces of paper that was indeed divorce papers. He stared at it for quite a while, not wanting to believe that this was all real. He had already asked his lawyer to do this several times but in the end, he'll burn it anyway, on hopes that he and Serena could still fix their problems and that they won't have to get divorced.
"Don't worry about the sharing of properties and money. What's yours is yours to keep. Just read it if you don't believe me."
He gawks at her because he can't believe that she thought that the reason he was reluctant to sign the damn papers was because of their properties when he really doesn't really care about any of that right now. All he could think about was that when he signed it, after a few weeks he'd be a bachelor once more. And he didn't want that.
"Serena, we can fix this. Please don't do this."
He pleads but it seemed like every word he said don't even reach her. She already shut him out. He tries to reach for her hand but she moves quickly, determined not to have physical contact with him. Following her gaze, he realizes that she'd been staring at a pen situated on top of his table, just an arm length from him. He stares at it for a while before turning back to the woman standing in front of him.
"I already signed it; all I need is yours to get it all over with."
Her voice breaks as she finishes her sentence and Dan noticed that she'd been avoiding eye contact with him. He asked her if she was sure that this was what she wanted and the second she nodded her head, he grabbed the pen and forced himself to sign the papers that he wanted to throw away or burn the moment he settled his eyes on it.
Once he was finished signing the papers, he glanced at it to see the reason Serena had put in the divorce papers.
Irreconcilable Differences.
With a sigh, he finally dropped his pen down and shoved the papers back into the envelope before handing them to Serena. Serena quickly grabbed it from his hands before shoving them into her bag. She quickly bid a goodbye to him and scrambled out of the loft. But before she even got to the front door, Dan called her back.
"Serena, wait!"
She turned around and saw that Dan was already halfway towards her. Dan tightly wrapped his arms around Serena's waist as he buried his face into her hair, breathing her in for probably one last time. Serena hugged him back for a little bit before reluctantly letting go and pushing him away from her.
He didn't let go of her though, his hands remained on her waist, holding her tightly, afraid of letting her go and letting her leave the loft (afraid of letting her leave him).
"Serena, I - -"
"Dan, don't."
Serena pushed herself away from Dan, with tears forming that she quickly blinked away. She refuses to cry, she already cried countless days and night over this.
She looks at Dan once more and they held each others gazes for a moment. And when Serena shut her eyes closed before looking back at him, Dan knew she was really letting go, that she wasn't going to fight anymore.
"Ever since I was five, I always told Blair, Nate, Chuck and Eric that I'd only marry once. That I would never end up like my mom."
(You are not your mom, Serena. And you will never end up like her.)
"And when we got married, I thought I got it right."
(You still could. You still do.)
"Because I said you and I are forever, right? I guess I was - -"
Wrong. She never got to finish her sentence because Dan was suddenly kissing her, cupping her face and wiping the tears that were running down her face. And she's got her arms wrapped around his neck and he's pulling her closer to him, gripping at her waist as he continued kissing her, just thinking about that fact that he's kissing her and that she's kissing him back.
She pulled away when his lips leave hers and made its way on her neck. She took a few steps away from him, already missing his touch, his grip on her, his lips on hers. She grabbed his hand tightly and pecked his cheek quickly heading out of the loft, the air in the loft suddenly became suffocating and she feels as if she'll faint if she were to stay there a little longer.
Dan stared at the closed door for a few minutes before he snapped out of his reverie. He looked at his hand and stared at the wedding ring, her wedding ring, the diamond still giving off its glow.
...
One month later, it was all over the news.
'Dan Humphrey and Serena van der Woodsen are officially divorced.'
Blair and Chuck went to Serena's apartment and they dragged the blonde to Victrola - despite the blonde's protests - and they allowed her to get drunk and let loose. But both of them know that Serena's smile was fake. It had been, ever since the divorce papers were written.
Nate went to Brooklyn, visited Dan with a bottles of scotch and tequila in hand. But when he got there, he saw bottles and bottles of beer scattered all over the loft. When Dan saw Nate standing there, he wordlessly let him in, pushing the bottles aside before grabbing two glasses from the kitchen. He handed one to Nate as he poured himself a glass of scotch. Nate notices, as he poured himself a glass, that Dan is frowning. He didn't smile. He never did, ever since the divorce papers were signed.
...
Two months later Serena left New York.
Dan ignores the calls he's been receiving from his dad, Jenny, Nate, Blair and even Chuck. He only listened to the first message he received that day. The one from Blair, telling him that Serena left. He just sits in front of his desk, staring. Staring at the ring Serena gave back two months ago. The ring that promised them forever, only for that promise to be broken by several pieces of paper.
'When I told my mom not to go away with Rufus, it's because I said you and I are forever. I know I was right.'
'Because I said you and I are forever, right? I guess I was - -"
Wrong. Yet they could've made it right. Right?
.to be continued.
