Dan Humphrey sighed as he settled into his pristine white armchair. He was exhausted and he wondered how he would get through tomorrow. Cracking open a bottle of water, he let his mind float to the 1 and a half year sleeping in the next room. Claire Ann Humphrey was Dan's daughter, an accident from one of his past relationships.

It wasn't easy taking care of her since he had no idea how to care for a baby. He was from one of the richest families in New York and he had been raised by nannies. It didn't help that her mother had taken off once Dan had paid for her post pregnancy tummy tuck.

Extracting his cell phone from his pocket, he called the 24 hour nanny service. He had contemplated calling them before, but his pride wouldn't allow him to. But then it hit him. He was a 25 year old man who had no idea how to take care of a child properly and he couldn't forever get by on his friends' help.

He quickly gave them his name and information, and was relieved to hear that they would be sending over possible candidates the following morning and was faxing a list right now. He closed the phone, slumping in his chair. Abandoning his water, he strolled to the study, ripping the paper once it was done printing. Running a hand through his hair, he looked through the list of names and pictures, not sure exactly what he was looking for.

The next morning, at exactly 5 AM, Claire started bawling, her hunger outweighing her need for sleep. Dan yawned, shuffling into her room. He picked her up gently and started rocking her as he made his way downstairs. During the walk downstairs, she had quieted, playing with her father's fingers with some strange fascination.

Setting her down in a bassinet, he moved quickly, knowing that she would erupt in tears if he was gone for too long. Pouring water into the bottle, he peeled back the lid of the powdered formula. He hated using the formula, but from day 1, Natalie hadn't allowed Claire to breast feed. It was little things like that that made Dan pissed off when he thought of his ex girlfriend.

Shaking the bottle furiously, he allowed some of the milk to drip onto his finger. Satisfied with the temperature, he wiped his finger, hurrying back to Claire. He picked her up, cradling her. He held the bottle to her mouth, letting her suckle on it.

Two hours later, Claire was asleep again and Dan, who was puked on twice, was dressed casually, ready for his nanny interviewing. At 7:30, people started arriving, gathering in the living room. Dan sighed, looking at the throng of applicants and called out the first name on the list. "Hannah Lindstrom."

Five minutes into the interview, he sent her out, rubbing his neck. "If you cannot speak English, you can leave."

He watched as more than half the crowd left, mumbling in some foreign language. Five nannies remained, looking at each other and him. "Alright, who's up next?"

"I'll go." A brunette offered, standing up and following Dan into the study. She sat down in the oak chair across from his desk. "I'm Dana Faro."

"Dana Faro?" Dan asked, raising an eyebrow. "Your surname is Lighthouse."

She nodded, blushing slightly. "Yes, I'm Italian."

"Okay, tell me about your past experiences with children."

She fidgeted in the chair, playing with the ends of her hair. "This is my first time.."

"Then I'm very sorry, but please send in the next girl on your way out."

He knew he was being unfair, but he wanted Claire to have the best. All the nannies he had had were either foreign or had very nice...assets. Girl after girl walked in, each running out in less than five minutes. Finally the last girl walked in, a folder in hand. She sat down, crossing her legs.

Dan took the folder from her, trying not to stare at her legs as he did so. "Hi, I'm Dan Humphrey. You must be.."

"Serena. Serena van der Woodsen." She extended a hand across the table, smiling. "Those are my references."

He examined the folder, flipping through it quickly. "Wow, that's quite a lot. Are you good at your job?"

"I wish I could say. With this sort of job, you're not really sure because you don't really know what the child needs until you live with them and you become accustomed to them. Its challenging most of the time, but its fun."

Dan nodded, reading one of her papers. "Why did you quit your last job?"

"The father of the child I was taking care of was very..inappropriate. I decided to remove myself from the situation."

"That sounds very wise of you."

"Thank you."

He cleared his throat, closing the folder. "Well, it seems as though you're probably the best out of everyone who was here. Don't prove me wrong, Ms. Van der Woodsen."

She smiled, knowing that it was his way of saying that she got the job. She stood up, shaking his hand again. "Thank you, Mr. Humphrey. When would you like me to move in?"

"Its Dan and as soon as possible would be great." He smiled bashfully. "I'm having trouble with my daughter, its nice to get some extra help. Oh and you will get paid every month, if thats okay with you. For a sum of.." He scribbled several large numbers onto a notepad, sliding it over to her.

"That sounds great, Mr. Hum- Dan. But is it necessary to pay me that much?"

"How about you tell me how much you want to get paid and in turn you'll take the best possible care of my daughter?"

"That sounds wonderful."

Okay so this is a beginning to my new story and I know I shouldn't be starting new ones, but I get inspired lol. Hope you like it!