It had been two weeks since Milo was born. He wasn't sleeping through the night, waking Dan up every hour with a bloodcurdling scream that sent the birds on the wires flying for shelter. Georgina was too lazy to help out, claiming she needed her beauty sleep, so it was always Dan's responsibility to change him, feed him, or burp him throughout the night. Half the time Dan could barely keep his eyes open. He ran on an hour of sleep everyday and was receiving no help from Georgina, so he had to put Milo in a daycare facility while he was in class or at work during the day. Any hope he'd harbored for getting into the writing seminar was shot down when he missed the deadline for his short story. He'd only been angry over the loss of the class for a few minutes before Milo started crying and he had to become a dad again.
Georgina was sleeping in his bedroom, her obnoxious snores were audible, despite the closed door. Milo was finally napping in his bassinet in the living room. Dan decided to fold the two weeks worth of clean clothes that were stacked high on the kitchen counter. There was a knock on the door. Dan groaned, threw Georgina's zebra print, purple thong onto her pile of clothes, and slipped off the barstool to open the door.
"Hi," Serena said soberly when Dan opened the door.
Dan stared dumbfounded at the familiar blonde. He'd completely lost touch with reality and forgot that Serena was coming home today. He hadn't even picked up his phone in weeks. His father was probably planning on coming by soon. "Hi," Dan said stunned, widening his brown eyes. He closed the door a little more, to block her view of the apartment.
"You gonna invite me inside?" She asked with a slight chuckle.
Dan looked at her for a moment then threw his thumb over his shoulder. "I'm actually working on a story for a new writing seminar," He lied, scratching his head nervously.
Serena's expression drooped and her shoulders slumped forward. "But, hey, maybe we could catch up some other time," He countered after taking in her disappointment.
She nodded and curiously struggled to look around him. She spotted the purple underwear laying on top of a pile of woman's clothes on the counter. Her blonde brows pulled together and she cracked a suspecting smirk. "You're living with someone?" She managed, not bothering to hide her surprise.
"No, no," Dan shook his head. "Wait why would that be such a surprise?" He asked offended.
Serena let out a disbelieving scoff. "Yes, you are," She pointed to the clothes.
Dan looked over his shoulder then shrugged. "Oh those? They're nothing..."
As he tried to think of an excuse as to why there would be a pile of women's clothes in the loft, Georgina's breathy voice floated from his bedroom. "Dan? Who's at the door?"
Dan squeezed his eyes shut and sighed. When he looked at Serena again her arms were cross over her chest and she was tapping her foot impatiently. He gave up and swung the door open, revealing Georgina, who had come out of the room and was standing bare legged in one of Dan's button down shirts next to Milo's bassinet.
"A lot happened while you were away," Dan explained, taking in Serena's shocked expression.
Serena and Dan were sitting on the far opposite ends of the couch in the loft's living room. Milo slept soundly for the first time in days and Dan had sent Georgina out, which she had gladly agreed to do. He had just finished replaying the events of the past summer. Serena stared back at him, seemingly taking it all in. Her eyes were wide with shock, but disbelief played across her features. He finished off his beer and gently placed the bottle on the wooden floor under his feet, then leaned back against the couch and let out a long sigh. It felt good to finally share his life with someone other than Georgina.
She shook her head, her blonde hair coming loose from behind it's place behind her ears. She looked up at Dan, her blue eyes begging for answers. She peered over the bassinet's edge at little Milo. "He's beautiful," Serena whispered, more to herself then to Dan. Her heart melted looking at the newborn's sleeping form. "I don't know what to say, Dan." She finally looked up, staring into his dark eyes.
Dan shrugged and leaned over to look at the his sleeping son. He was swaddled in a thin blue blanket and his perfect, round mouth which he had inherited from his mother was hanging open slightly. Dan replayed the conversation the two of them had just had. He almost gave up, hoping that Serena would fill in the silence because he had run out of things to say. Then his eyebrows shot up and he reached over and grabbed Serena's hands in his.
"This whole summer..." His voice trailed off and he shook his head searching for the right words. "You were the only person I thought about," He nodded toward the loft's front door behind them. "When Georgina knocked on that door saying she was pregnant, whenever I went out at midnight for chocolate pudding or tacos to feed her cravings, or when she was giving birth...I wished that it could have been you..."
Serena's eyes widened at the admission. Self consciously, she pulled her hands away and cradled her flat stomach. Thousands of scenes danced through her head. A pregnancy test that read positive, her legs elevated in the metal stirrups as she gave birth to a baby, and finally the long, sleepless nights she would endure afterward. "Dan," She started, then dropped her gaze toward the wooden floor. "What does this mean?" She gestured to the baby, then to the space between the two of them.
He shook his head, trying to conjure up a response. His relationship with Georgina had not even been defined. How was he supposed to define the nonexistent one he had with Serena...? "I don't know. I want to give you an answer, but the truth is I have none."
Serena looked at him. Anger and pain boiled in her facial expressions. "You don't know?" She sighed with an air of annoyance. "You told me that you wished I had been the one to have your baby. Then you tell me you don't know where we stand?"
Dan decided to admit the truth. "I am all over the place right now." He peered at the door, hoping that Georgina wasn't going to burst through and interrupt them. Then he looked down at the still sleeping baby in front of them. "I don't even know what is going on with Georgina and I."
Serena laughed. It wasn't the laugh that Dan loved. The one that sounded as though she was a pre-school student. It was humorless and full of accusation. "Are you and Georgina together?"
There was a long silence. Dan wanted to say no. Other then sharing a bed and Milo of course they had no connection to each other. They didn't have sex or even kiss each other. Most of the time Georgina barked orders and Dan followed them. It was more of a slave and master relationship. Still, he could not look Serena in the eye and say 'no' because Georgina was the mother of his child. Right now, the only thing that mattered to him was forming a happy, healthy life for his son.
"Why'd you even tell me I was the only thing you thought about?" She stood up, hiking her bag higher on her shoulder and pushed herself away from the couch. "Bye, Milo," She whispered before turning toward the direction of the door.
"Serena!" Dan called, hoping off the couch. He grabbed onto her arm, stopping her before she could leave. "Georgina and I...it's complicated."
Serena shook her head and swung the door open. Her heart ached at the thought of walking away from Dan. In her head this meeting was supposed to end completely differently. The two of them were supposed to ride off into the sunset wrapped in each others arms. "I did complicated. With us," She looked at Dan one last time. "I can't do complicated anymore."
Dan stood in the foyer of his Brooklyn loft, staring at the door Serena had just slammed in his face. He recoiled, like he'd been slapped. Then he sighed and walked over to stand over Milo. He had royally messed up any chance he had with Serena... But their short meeting drug up new questions. Like his relationship with Georgina...
I know it has been a while since I updated this fic, so I hope you enjoy this chapter! Leave reviews and let me know what you think! =)
