Hey guys!

So in this story, Blair and Chuck are the best of friends, which means, the night at Victrola never happened, and neither did anything after that. But, Bart is still dead. This is slightly AU, and the Non-Judging Breakfast club along with Dan and Vanessa are 24, while Jenny and Eric are (as usual) two years younger than them. Chuck is in love with Blair and Blair is in love with Chuck but doesn't realize it. Anyway, this is my first Gossip Girl story, so go easy on me, please.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gossip Girl.

"Best friends are the siblings that God forgot to give us." -Anonymous

Blair Waldorf walked down the streets of Manhattan with a smile on her face, nearly skipping. In just two days, she'll turn twenty-four. Excited as she was, she had only planned a small gathering at her penthouse; she had decided to take it a little simpler this year, since Serena was actually able to convince her to just "go easy" on it this year...and she was right. No matter how many grand birthday parties she threw, she realized that it was also important to make time for the friends that are closer to her heart and have fun with them, which meant herself, Chuck, Serena, Nate, her parents, Jenny, Dan (What? He's Serena and Nate's friend, and she had to admit, she had gotten a little closer to him over the years, and ugh. If he has to bring Vanessa, then so be it), Eric, Cyrus, Lily, Rufus and blood-orange martinis.

She was on her way to The Empire Hotel, owned by her best friend, the great Chuck Bass. They've been best friends since before any of them can remember, and are hardly ever seen plotting without each other. Serena van der Woodsen, her best female friend, was not quite the plotter, and whenever she did plot, which was very seldom, her plan would always flop, and Blair and Chuck would just tell her to "leave the scheming to the experts,", namely, them.

Stepping onto the elevator, she waited patiently as she felt the lift slowly sliding up until the doors opened and she was in Chuck's penthouse.

"Chuck!" she called. When she got no reply, she tried again. "Bass, are you here?"

"Bedroom, come in," came the reply. Blair smiled as she walked to the bedroom. Chuck could sometimes get a little anti-social with guests. But then again, they were best friends. He didn't really need to greet her. Going in, she noticed he was packing. His suitcase was on his bed, and it already had his clothes inside and she looked up to see Chuck standing in front of his closet, his back facing her, going through his suits, coats, and others. This made Blair panic a little. What? Is he leaving? And for how long?

"Why are you packing?" she asked, obviously hurt.

"Well, hello to you too, Waldorf," he said, smirking at her.

Without the slightest change of expression, she continued. "You didn't answer my question."

Chuck sighed. "There's a business meeting in Thailand tomorrow...and it'll last for a few more days."

"Well, you're not gonna miss my birthday," Blair said, as though she was a little girl talking to her dad. "Right?"

"Blair, the meeting ends on the fifteenth," he told her.

"That is my birthday," she said, laughing lightly. "November 15, remember? Have you forgotten? I mean, that's something I'd expect from Nate, but you?"

But Chuck still wasn't smiling. In fact, he wasn't looking at her. "Blair, the meeting ends at ten, and it takes more than two hours to get back here."

Blair's face fell. "Oh," she said quietly.

"Blair, I-" Chuck started, but was interrupted by Blair.

"No, Chuck, I understand...it's okay,"

"But I-"

"No really, it is," she said, walking over to him to hug him. Quite shocked at her reaction, Chuck hugged her back anyway, wrapping an arm on her waist and the other on her back. They stayed like that, for what seemed like hours; Chuck running his fingers through her hair and occasionally kissing her temple, Blair rubbing circles on his back and the two of them breathing in each other's familiar scents. None of this was awkward to either of them; they were used to it, completely comfortable in each other's embrace. Moments later, Chuck decided to break the silence.

"So...you're not mad?" he asked tentatively.

"No," she replied, pulling back slightly she could look at him properly. "I'm not."

The closeness of their faces was killing him, and he had to fight the urge to kiss her. "Are you sure?" he managed to say. She nodded, and kissed him gently on the cheek, and headed for the elevator to leave.

Before she could press the button, however, she still sensed doubt, she turned around. "Really, Chuck. I'll be alright without you." After giving him a small smile, she stepped onto the elevator and the doors slowly closed.

Chuck placed his hand on his cheek on the place where she had kissed him and just stared after her. "I'm sure you will be, Blair."

Okay, so...What do you think? This is my first story, so go easy on me, please. And, I'm sorry that this chapter is quite short, anyway, it is the prologue, so...yeah. Tell me what you think, please review! *Re-written on October 30, 2010.*