.
Chapter 2: The Birthday Party
July 2006
The van der Woodsen penthouse was lavishly decorated in shades of pale gold and ivory, with every available railing, column and archway adorned with tasteful streamers and balloons. Uniformed caterers circulated through the crowd, carrying hors d'oevres and champagne flutes perched atop their trays. An elaborate swan-shaped ice sculpture towered over the center table, which also held a three-tiered cake, the smooth fondant coating embellished with a gold filigree pattern. And the whole scene was lit by the colorful rays of a sunset streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
The decorations were really more suited to a wedding than a 15-year-old's birthday party- but anything hosted by Lily van der Woodsen would be an elegant event, no matter the occasion.
Chuck handed his gift off to the attendant, briefly considering whether he should've bothered to ask what it was. He'd sent Arthur to the perfume counter at Bergdorf's to pick up something appropriate, as was his standard gift-giving routine- and his actual present for Serena was in his inside jacket pocket anyway, safely ensconced in a little plastic baggie.
"Charles, welcome!" Lily greeted him with a warm clasp of her hand. "Lovely to see you. How is your father?"
"Fine, as far as I know," Chuck replied, shrugging his shoulders. Between his month in the Hamptons, and Bart's frequent business trips, he hadn't seen his father in almost five weeks.
"Well, do tell him I said hello," she continued, perfect society smile in place. "Serena should be down in just a moment, she had some sort of... shoe-related emergency." She laughed and gave her head a little shake before moving on to greet the next guest.
Strolling through the crowd, Chuck retrieved a glass of champagne and a canapé from a passing waiter. He took a moment to survey the other partygoers, his gaze settling on a shapely blonde in a low-cut dress who appeared to be a good prospect for late-night entertainment.
After identifying a few secondary options, he felt satisfied with his odds, and headed in Nate's direction.
"Nathaniel," he greeted his friend. "Missed you at the club today."
He'd played squash with Serena's brother instead, but the 13-year-old hadn't posed much of a challenge.
"Yeah, sorry about that, I had some... last minute shopping to do," Nate explained, gesturing at the party around them.
Chuck nodded, taking a sip of his champagne. "Get anything good?"
"Oh, just this, uh... bracelet, I thought it was pretty." Nate shrugged sheepishly. "I just hope she likes it."
"Well, it's Serena." Chuck smirked. "As long as it's shiny and has a bow on it, I'm sure she'll love it."
A noticeable murmur ran through the crowd, a ripple of heads turning to see Serena descending the staircase. The shoe crisis in question appeared to have been resolved, as her long legs were highlighted by a pair of strappy blue sandals and a flirty little mini-dress, the blue and white floral pattern emphasizing the golden tan of her skin. Her blonde waves bounced around her shoulders and she smiled brightly, knowing every eye in the room was on her.
Blair soon followed down the steps, her prim, composed exterior contrasting sharply with Serena's effortless radiance. She wore a lacy Valentino cocktail dress in layered shades of mauve and taupe, the ruffles at the neckline and hem giving a certain old-fashioned elegance to her appearance. Pearls accented her ears and throat, and she'd styled her hair into a loose updo, only a few stray tendrils curling around to frame her face.
She should wear her hair like that more often, Chuck decided, eying the ivory curve of her neck.
For a brief moment, his thoughts wandered off into dangerous territory- before they were suddenly interrupted by the clinking of silver against a champagne flute.
Lily cleared her throat, looking over the room with a smile.
"Welcome everyone!" she said. "I just wanted to thank you all for coming to celebrate my beautiful daughter on her special day." She raised her glass in the direction of Serena, who was visibly glowing as the center of everyone's attention. "Now I'm going to give you all a chance to enjoy yourselves without all of this... adult supervision."
The crowd of teenagers chuckled in appreciation.
"So please, have some cake." She gestured towards the center table, where caterers were plating the elaborate dessert.
"And behave yourselves, of course," she added with an indulgent smile.
Waiters began circulating, offering slices of the chocolate and vanilla-buttercream confection. Blair gave a little shake of her head when a plate was held out towards her, and watched disapprovingly as Nate demolished his piece in about two bites.
"Mmm," Serena made a satisfied noise as she licked some frosting off of her finger, drawing the attention of most males in the vicinity.
"Wow, your mom's giving us the penthouse to ourselves for the night?" Nate asked, sounding impressed. "That's pretty sweet."
Serena rolled her eyes.
"She has a date," she explained. "Some Danish... investment banker, or something, I think they're going to the opera."
"So I guess her 'single empowered woman' phase didn't last long then," Blair commented dryly. "How long has it been now?"
"About... two months," Serena replied with a laugh. "I just wish she'd date someone American, at least, I'm getting really sick of spending holidays in Europe."
She looked a little gloomy for a moment, before her gaze caught on the centerpiece and her expression suddenly brightened.
"Oh my God, I just had the best idea!" She jumped to her feet and headed towards the dining room.
"This rarely ends well," Blair muttered, taking a sip of her champagne.
"I disagree, I think it usually ends... fabulously." Chuck grinned, raising his eyebrows at Nate, who paused halfway through his second piece of cake to nod enthusiastically.
Blair responded with an exaggerated sigh, turning to survey the other occupants of the room. They were mostly students from Constance/St. Judes, Horace Mann, or Spence, with the occasional boarding school refugee- and almost all of them were children of their parent's friends, kids they'd been socializing with for the better part of a decade.
There was, however, one notable exception.
"Who is that?" Blair's eyes narrowed on an awkward dark-haired boy, hanging around uncomfortably on the outskirts of the crowd. He did look vaguely familiar, but he certainly wasn't a regular member of their social circle.
Chuck shrugged.
"Ask Serena, it's her party," he replied.
"Is he wearing... Dockers?" Blair asked in disbelief.
Chuck cast a disparaging look over the khakis in question. The brand name was the least of that kid's problems, he concluded, eying the double front pleats and inch of sock visible below the too-short inseam.
Poor or not, there was never an excuse for pleated pants. He smoothed down the front of his linen trousers with a shudder.
"The more important question is-" he said smoothly, reaching across the breakfast bar to grab a spare bottle of champagne. "Isn't it about time we kicked this party up a notch?"
Blair rolled her eyes, but didn't protest when he filled her flute to the brim.
He observed her over the rim of his own glass, watching her glossy pink lips purse and the bubbly liquid flow over them. As long as he kept it covert, he figured there was no harm in a few stealthy glances. After all, he checked out every other female in the vicinity- not doing the same to Blair would be out of character, implying that there was something... special about her. And there was certainly nothing special about her.
"Alright, who wants a shot?" Serena's cheerful voice rang out as she reemerged from the dining room, brandishing a bottle of vodka.
A cheer rose from the crowd of teenagers. Most of the male guests practically tripped over themselves in their eagerness to participate, and Kati, Iz and Penelope soon followed.
"Let's put this thing to good use!" she announced, patting the giant frozen swan on its icy neck. "Who's up first?"
Serena tipped the bottle along the top of the sculpture, motioning for Kati to take position at the beak.
And with that, the giant winged sculpture became a vodka ice luge. Chuck watched in amusement as his classmates lined up to take turns, quickly transforming the party from a classy, sedate affair into a one that would be more appropriate at a college frat house. The other partygoers gathered to watch, flashing cell phone cameras indicating that pictures were already on their way to Gossip Girl.
Cheering on his lacrosse teammates and slurping down more than a few shots himself, Nate was clearly in his element. Blair, however, remained exactly where she was, watching the festivities with a disdainful expression.
"Not gonna take a turn, Waldorf?" Chuck asked, knowing perfectly well that she wouldn't.
"I'm sure I can find a more efficient way to get alcohol into my mouth," Blair replied dryly, taking another sip of her drink.
After a beat of silence, she turned to look at him, rolling her eyes at his lecherous grin.
"Ugh, just say it."
"I can find a more efficient way to get a lot of things into your mouth-" he began, laughing when she smacked him on the arm.
"You're so heinous." She sighed. "Some of us are actually trying to not get herpes, Bass. That poor swan has been licked by half the sophomore class by now."
Chuck raised his eyebrows suggestively.
"Not unlike-"
"Yes, I get it, you're a pig," she interrupted him, shaking her head briskly- although he glimpsed the hint of a smile lingering on her lips.
Glancing back towards the raucous crowd, he spotted a scantily-dressed redhead by Serena's side, beckoning him over with an unmistakable come-hither expression.
"Looks like someone wants you to join in the fun," Blair said with feigned innocence, concealing a smirk behind the rim of her glass.
Chuck groaned under his breath.
"Three years and that girl still can't take a hint," he muttered, averting his gaze.
"What, you don't want to relive the magical moment of your deflowering?" Blair asked in a mocking tone.
"Only because I don't want to wake up in a bathtub of ice missing both of my kidneys," he replied sardonically, swirling the bubbly liquid in his glass.
"Well, you have only yourself to blame," Blair countered. "It's not like Georgina's psychosis was some well-guarded secret even back then."
He studied her derisive smile for a moment, deciding that she was taking far too much enjoyment in his discomfort.
"Well, I can't say I blame her," he mused, assuming a thoughtful expression. "Clearly she wants the kind of satisfaction that can only be provided by a good deep-"
"Okay, okay," Blair interrupted, rolling her eyes. "If we were having some kind of perv-off that I didn't know about... you win."
He smirked after her, watching lace and chiffon move across the rounded curves of her ass as she stalked away.
"Well, well, looks like we've got ourselves an empty bottle here," Serena declared. Swinging the bottle above her head, she regarded the guests with a suggestive grin. "So... who wants to give it a spin?"
Appreciative hoots and whistles echoed through the small crowd, and Serena turned to lead them towards the dining room- almost running into the quiet, dark-haired boy who'd been standing a few feet behind her.
Tilting her head, she studied his face for a moment, as if trying to place him.
"Hi, I don't think we've met. I'm Serena," she introduced herself. He stared back wide-eyed, like a deer caught in the headlights of her beaming smile.
"I know- I mean... I'm... Dan," he stuttered, looking as though he may have actually forgotten his own name for a moment.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Dan," She smiled brightly at him, twirling the bottle around in her hand. "So are you gonna come play with us?"
His mouth dropped open for a moment before he swallowed and cleared his throat. "Umm... sure, yeah... definitely."
"Alright, circle up everyone!" she announced, walking to the center of the dining room and leaning down to place the bottle on its side.
A small contingent eagerly took up positions around her, while other partygoers hung back, chatting amongst themselves and watching the proceedings.
Chuck noticed two of his three potentials had joined in the game. Figuring this might prove useful in finalizing his decision, he sat down next to Nate. The kid in the unfortunate pants, he observed, had taken a seat at Serena's right elbow. He seemed to be trying his best to not openly stare at her- and failing miserably.
At that moment, Serena spotted Blair trying to sneak out the back of the room undetected.
"Uh-uh, not so fast, B!" She jumped up and chased down her friend, grabbing her by the arm.
"Serena, I was just going to the bathroom... and I'm not really... in the mood to play... "
But her protests were in vain as Serena dragged her back, depositing her unceremoniously along the side of the circle. Blair sighed and tucked her skirt carefully around her legs, looking resigned.
"Don't worry, B, I'll exempt you from kissing any girls, if that's what you're all uptight about," Serena reassured her, before crawling to the center to give the bottle a twirl.
"Way to ruin half the fun of the game, van der Woodsen," Chuck drawled, eliciting grins from most of the male players.
The bottle continued spinning, making slower and slower revolutions on the polished wood floor until it finally came to a stop... pointing directly at Nate.
He shrugged sheepishly before crawling out towards the center of the circle. Serena giggled, placing her hands on his shoulders and kissing him soundly on the mouth, egged on by whistles and clapping from the peanut gallery.
Chuck glanced over at Blair, who appeared totally nonchalant- only a slight tensing of her mouth and the aversion of her eyes indicated otherwise.
"Alright, your turn!" Serena said merrily, crawling back to her position next to Blair and watching the proceedings with enthusiasm.
Nate's spin landed on Penelope, who seemed more than eager to comply.
Her spin then landed on a very uncomfortable Eric, who'd been dragged into the game by his sister's insistence.
"Aww, he's growing up so fast," Serena cooed, and pretended to shield her eyes from Eric and Penelope's awkward lip-lock.
Eric's spin landed on Serena, who gave him a warm hug and a kiss on the cheek that elicited a chorus of "awws" from the circle. Serena's turn ended in a lengthy kiss with Quinn- a significantly raunchier version of the one she'd given Nate- and his spin subsequently landed on Georgina.
Chuck snapped to attention when he realized that the redhead was now in the center of the circle, eying him with the kind of bunny-boiling intensity that made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He watched the bottle rotate with almost sick fascination, half-afraid she might be able to aim it at him with the power of her mind. He had no doubt that the girl would eat his face off, given the opportunity.
Fortunately it landed on some other unlucky soul, and he allowed himself a quiet sigh of relief. His eyes met Blair's and she gave him a little smirk, clearly reading his thoughts.
Well, hopefully not all of them, he thought, his gaze drifting downwards to the ruffled fabric that had ridden partway up her thighs. He wondered if her legs had always looked that tempting, or if he'd only started noticing them after their little nightswimming adventure.
Either way, they'd somehow become a regular fixture in his sexual fantasy rotation. Just the thought of those slim thighs wrapped around his waist was enough to get him hard in a matter of seconds.
Shifting uncomfortably, Chuck decided that this might be a good time to excuse himself and partake in a little... herbal relaxation.
But before he could do so, he suddenly noticed that the bottle was now pointing at Blair. She dutifully leaned forward, bestowing a demure peck on the waiting lips of one of Nate's lacrosse teammates. Serena cheered and clapped enthusiastically, while Blair rolled her eyes, her cheeks tinting slightly pink.
Heaving a sigh, as if this whole game were beneath her, she moved into the center of the circle and gave the bottle a hard spin.
Well, he could stay for another minute, he figured. Just because he liked seeing her get all flustered and embarrassed. Definitely not because he was hoping it would land on him.
Which it did.
Blair raised her eyes from the neck of the bottle, blinking in surprise when she recognized the target. She looked perturbed for only a moment before she narrowed her eyes at him, ignoring the crowd whooping in appreciation around them.
"No funny business, Bass," she said suspiciously. "Keep your hands where I can see them."
"I wouldn't dream of it," he responded with mock indignation, holding his palms up as if she were arresting him.
She crawled the several feet towards him, and he found himself staring directly into her eyes- mostly to prevent himself from staring at her breasts, which were increasingly visible under the low neckline of her dress as she approached.
Eyes up, hands down, he reminded himself, pressing his palms firmly into the floor.
"Don't get any ideas, man," Nate commented in a mock-threatening tone, chuckling as he took another long swallow of his drink.
The look in her eyes was wary, nervous almost, and he felt oddly compelled to reassure her.
"Don't worry Waldorf, I won't bite," he murmured.
He saw the corner of her mouth quirk upwards, right before it brushed against his.
Warm, and smooth, and petal-soft, her lips moved over his. It was the most innocent, and yet somehow the most arousing kiss he'd ever experienced. Her dainty mouth felt so delicate, so perfect, pressed against his own, that he wanted to capture this moment and hold on to it as long as possible.
Unable to resist the temptation, he traced along her upper lip with his tongue. He felt the breath catch in her throat at the unexpected contact, but she didn't pull away- instead, her lips parted, allowing his tongue to slip through and stroke lightly against her own.
For one long, stolen moment, their mouths remained fused together, their tongues just barely touching as they covertly explored each other. When she finally pulled back, releasing a trembling breath against his mouth, her cheeks were flushed with color, her deep brown eyes regarding him with surprise and confusion.
The entire exchange had lasted no more than a few seconds, but it left Chuck with a decidedly peculiar feeling in the pit of his stomach... as well as a strong desire to grab her and do it again, despite the circle of classmates applauding and cheering around them.
Breaking eye contact, Blair made an exaggerated show of wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, prompting laughter from their audience. Nate, whom he belatedly remembered had been only five feet away the entire time, playfully reached over and poked him in the ribs, a broad grin on his face.
Chuck cleared his throat, assuming his trademark blasé expression, and moved towards the center of the circle.
He spun the bottle with a rapid flick of his wrist, watching it rotate more and more and slowly until it finally stopped- pointing directly at Dan.
Chuck smirked, giving him a slow up-and-down look. He wasn't actually unattractive, but God, those khakis were downright appalling.
"Well, I'm game," he drawled. "But only if you lose the pants first."
The look on the boy's face was so priceless, he could barely prevent himself from snickering out loud.
"He's just kidding," Serena hastily explained to Dan.
She shot Chuck a glare. "Right?"
Chuck shrugged and stood up, excusing himself to take a refreshment break.
Rummaging through the liquor cabinet until he found a bottle of scotch, he poured a generous amount into a crystal tumbler and took a long swig.
He didn't know what the hell had just happened back there, or what it was about Blair that seemed to get him so flustered – but he figured all he needed was a minute to clear his head and a good stiff drink.
Turning back around to observe the festivities, he watched as Dan finally got his chance in the middle of the circle.
He gave the bottle a very eager spin, watching intently as it rotated several dozen times. And just as it was completing its last revolution, finally slowing to a halt in Serena's direction, the loud jangle of a cell phone cut through the din of music and conversation.
"Oh, that's my phone! Keep playing, guys, I'll just be a minute." Serena jumped up, grabbing her phone off the table.
But without their fearless leader, the rest of the partygoers began chattering amongst themselves, their already limited attention spans soon disengaging from the game. Blair grabbed Nate by the hand and tugged him to his feet, whispering something into his ear. She steadfastly avoided Chuck's gaze as the pair brushed past him, which inexplicably bothered him.
Dan looked around in dismay as people began getting up and wandering off- he glanced down at the bottle, and then in the direction of Serena, the hope and anticipation still evident in his eyes.
Sauntering back over to the abandoned game, Chuck swirled the glass of scotch in his hand, eying its lone remaining player.
"Were you... waiting for me to come back?" he asked, raising an eyebrow suggestively.
Looking genuinely afraid that he might be serious, Dan scrambled quickly to his feet, mumbling an excuse under his breath as he retreated towards the other room.
Chuck smirked, shaking his head in amusement.
Taking another sip of his drink, he noticed Blair and Nate on the other side of the room, deep in conversation. His stomach jumped into his throat as he realized what she could be telling him- a chaste, close-mouthed kiss for the purposes of a game was one thing, but slipping your best friend's girlfriend the tongue was something else entirely. He knew damn well that he'd crossed the boundaries of acceptable behavior, and he certainly had no excuse if Blair ratted him out to Nate. Somehow he doubted that "sorry man, your girlfriend turned me on so much I got a little carried away" was going to fly.
Suddenly, Blair looked over and met his gaze for one long moment, her deep chocolate eyes studying his expression but revealing nothing in return. Then she glanced back at Nate, fixing a bright smile onto her face and laughing gaily at whatever he'd just said.
Chuck understood the unspoken message. As far as Blair was concerned, that little kiss had never happened.
He should have felt relieved. He supposed he was relieved.
But for some reason he couldn't begin to fathom, he was also disappointed.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed! I have a number of future chapters already planned out, but I'm definitely open to suggestions- so if there are any flashback-type scenes you have in mind, some pre-S1 CB interactions you've been dying to see, just let me know!
Thanks, as always, to my beta, smut coach, and comma-wrangler, Terrabeth. High-five for being awesome.
Thanks so much to my lovely reviewers, you guys make my day: Livelybass, GGfan73104, TerraBeth, OllieCullie, Rf, Arazadia, BCBass, smileyface2.0, Laura, Chair fan, CBfanhere, bowtie and headband, Leftwriter224, FrozenandYetNot, ggoddess, Lyla, Ladynet, Carolina, atomicseasoning, SaturnineSunshine, annablake, chaval, CBBW3Words8Letters, maryl, jsta, abelard, and Lsase.
And thank God for fanfic, because this show is desperately in need of some CB action right now, am I right?
