Author's Note: Okay, I lied- again. This isn't going to be a one-shot. This story is going to give us (as in Dair fans) 'something to believe in' - hardy har. It's going to be recollections of the episodes of this season, with possible (and sometimes completely AU) Blair/Dan moments. Not everything is going to go exactly according to the episodes, but I'll try my best. Enjoy!
Summer, Kind of Wonderful
So, Chuck had screwed her over- as, really, was to be expected. Not only had he left her to board the helicopter alone, but he never showed up in Tuscany at all. She had latched onto Ben, the chatty Bass employee who had all but wrestled her for the jump seat, only because it was better than being alone. The duration of the ten hour flight was spent listening to him talk on and on about his time at Northeastern, about his doctor parents, about how he worshipped the ground Bart Bass walked on, about how he was terrified to be going to Italy was such an intimidating man. Blair listened and nodded, smiled and commented when necessary. She endured the time by guzzling champagne and munching on the jet's fine snacks. In the back of her mind, she was reminding herself that she might need to utilize Ben later, if Chuck did show up in Tuscany, so she had to endure.
And she did endure, but Chuck never showed up in Tuscany.
She waited for days, but he never arrived. And yes, it was a nice distraction- to focus on Chuck standing her up and being a general jackass- but not the kind she would have preferred. A cold fury seeped under her skin. Blair Waldorf did not get stood up. Blair Waldorf did not waste her time on chatty guys with bad hair for nothing. So she waited around for less than a week, and then she ran out of things to do.
The suite in Tuscany that had been booked for them was nice- but once she had spent a sufficient amount of time in it, watching Italian TV while eating spaghetti and drinking wine, she needed to get out. And so, she roped Ben into taking her to an international dinner that Bart had asked him to attend. Flattered, the young man agreed. She dressed herself up and took extra care with her make-up and hair, and then beamed when she entered the elegant banquet hall. Though everyone around her was either speaking a language other than English, or with heavy accents, she felt like she could breathe for the first time- she felt as if her thoughts were finally her own.
Because, really, she hadn't been hurt by Chuck not showing. Sure, it pissed her off because you just didn't do that sort of thing to Blair Waldorf- but really, she wasn't in love with him, so it didn't matter. It was just easier to redirect all of her attention to being angry at him, snaring Ben, plotting revenge, and wallowing over being ditched, than it was to think about what had happened, prior to her leaving.
I kissed Dan Humphrey.
It made her wince and cringe every time she thought about it. Granted, it had been a good kiss, but it was Dan Humphrey! It hadn't been something she had planned on, and he was from Brooklyn.
She tried to push it from her mind all she could, and, really, it was easy as first. Though, when she had been trapped in her suite, with Ben off at meetings and such, there had been some difficulty in keeping her thoughts from trailing to the dark-haired boy. She didn't feel guilt for what she had done to Serena- or really guilty at all- she just felt a yearning for him that she wanted to obliterate. She chose to ignore it all together. I don't like Dan Humphrey, she repeated to herself like a mantra. I'm just upset because Chuck's not here.
So, when she got the chance to leave the suite, and be distracted by an international banquet, she jumped at the opportunity.
She mingled for an hour. She charmed ambassadors from France, laughed with CEOs from South Africa, listened to the ranting of a Japanese sales associate, and endured the half-English sob-story of a Spanish countessa whose boyfriend had dumped her earlier that day. Ben was more than amazed by her charm and her ease, and she knew that easily. Her confidence swelled and bubbled over, and she flitted around the room like Audrey Hepburn circa the party scene in Breakfast at Tiffany's. For an hour or so more, she compared herself to Audrey, priding herself in the fact that Miss Hepburn would be proud of such a lovely young lady.
That was when Ben gently took her elbow, telling her he wanted her to meet someone.
His name was James. He had light brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. Something about him was regal and sophisticated. Just from looking at him she knew he had money- tons of old money. From the way he talked and dressed, to the way he ate and looked at her- she could tell he was steeped in gobs of ancient wealth. If anyone was everything Dan Humphrey wasn't- classic, wealthy, upper crust, regal- it was, without a doubt, James. So, Blair turned her charm on without restraint. What would be better than returning to New York with James on her arm, to get back at Chuck and to illustrate how much she didn't care for Dan?
And just like that, she had James in her claws.
He went with her to France to visit her father, leaving Ben in Italy. Of course, Roman and Harold were falling over themselves in adoration for this sophisticated gentlemen and his dimpled smile. And James got along with them as well. They all joked and ate and talked together, going on excursions into town and visiting little cafes together. If Blair had any actual feelings for James, she would have been elated. Sure, she was pleased that she had this kind of ammunition under her belt, but still- he wasn't Dan Humphrey. They kissed and cuddled and held hands and made out, but really- she just tried to keep herself from comparing it to Dan.
The end of August was looming closer and closer, and Blair was both relishing her chance to bring James to the Hamptons and contemplating leaving him in Europe forever. But the former won out. No way would she return alone- not after what Chuck had done to her. And the fact that the kiss she had shared with Dan had meant nothing to her, and that she could get a guy so easily wasn't so bad either.
She only had to convince herself that she actually had feelings for someone other than Dan.
The internship with Jeremiah Harris was something Dan had not exactly anticipated. He spent the majority of his time keeping the writer sober before noon, picking up after him when he did manage to get drunk and fall asleep before four in the afternoon, decoding chicken scratch notes, locating nondescript papers filled with writing of any kind, or fetching Jeremiah drinks when he was busy at signings and readings. Dan had been hoping the internship would involve more literary aspects, but he couldn't exactly complain. This was Jeremiah Harris, after all, his favorite author and literary role model. And, to be fair, he was required to write a short story and hand it in, as part of the internship- and that was literary. However, that was also the only part that he was having immense difficulty with.
For some reason, he had been unable to write since he broke up with Serena- since kissing Blair before the wedding. Sometimes he would hammer out these pitiful rhymes or a paragraph of incoherent rambling, but he couldn't produce anything that was any good. It was frustrating and physically suffocating. All he wanted to do was unleash all of his pent-up emotions and confusions through words, but he was left simmering in his own feelings.
So, he had distracted himself with girls whose names he couldn't remember. He spent every literary event meeting one girl, spending a good few minutes making out with her, trying to not think about Blair or Serena, and then promising that they would meet up later. Rarely did he follow through with the plans he made. One or two girls actually got a second encounter, and if they did, it was spent mostly making out, or talking all of two sentences. More than once, he had considered what he was doing, asking himself what the point was? What was he proving? That he didn't care about Blair- that he could kiss anyone (Blair included) and it didn't have to mean anything. But really, when he thought about it he realized that he was just proving that he had something in common with Chuck Bass. They could be sleazy, and use girls like kleenex. In that respect, Dan was slightly disgusted with himself, but, really, he didn't know what else to do.
And Harris was all but threatening him to write his short story, so he finally made an attempt to do it.
5.19.08. He had a title.
But so far, that was all he had.
There was some satisfaction in getting off the jitney with James, and kissing him in front of Chuck. But not nearly enough for Blair to be satisfied. Something in her deflated because of this, although she didn't let anyone notice. A small part of her had been relying on everything (include the thoughts she couldn't escape from and the way her world was spinning) going back to normal- or shifting wonderfully- as soon as she stepped off the jitney and gave Chuck his what-for. She waited for the contentment to set in, imagining the Bass boy's fallen expression as she gave him a sweet smile, but, nothing changed.
She sat with Serena in the sun, sipping daiquiris and talking about France and Tuscany. By some miracle, this distracted her- but only for a short time. The second they began talking about Serena's summer, Blair felt her stomach flutter nervously. She tried to seem aloof and amused, as she always did when talking about girl-stuff with Serena- but really, she felt the guilt and nausea slowly setting in.
"Please, don't tell me you sat around moping all summer stuffing your face and watching Sex and the City reruns," Blair sipped at her daiquiri, but it churned her stomach even more.
Serena looked amused, but sheepish, as she replied, "I'm not that vapid- I caught up on The Office and did crunches every night."
Blair gave her a pointed look.
"And you and Nate?"
Serena waved her hand in disagreement, "Total rumors. We just played at it so everyone would get off my back about being sad, and Nate could do what he wanted."
"You didn't have any fun with anyone?" she pressed, with a sadistic hope Serena would start talking about Dan.
Serena sipped her daiquiri on her lounge chair and then said, "There was this one lifeguard but- I mean, he was such a townie," she made a face. "I turned him down."
"Why?!" Blair all but shrieked. "That would have been a perfect little rebound- nothing more!"
Shrugging, the blonde said, "I don't think I'm ready." She became slightly shy, "I still miss Dan."
The name made Blair's stomach clench and the bile rise in her throat. She swallowed hard and downed some more of her daiquiri, wishing the alcohol was more effective. It was probably the last thing she wanted to do- to talk about Dan Humphrey- but there was no way of avoiding it without Serena sensing that something was up.
So, she said, "It was pathetic enough that you dated him, S- but now you're-you're... mourning him?" with acid in her voice.
Serena rolled her eyes and shook her head a little, a hint of a smile on her lips.
Just then, strolling onto the patio in a patterned shirt and loafers, was Chuck, talking on the phone about Portuguese girls and tongue-twisters, as if she cared. But, finding his appearance something like a blessing, Blair jumped on the opportunity and changed the subject- as if she wanted to make Chuck jealous or enhance her and Serena's girl talk. Diving into an explanation about how James had swept her off her feet and how he was so handsome and rich and sophisticated and amazing- without any segway for poor Serena- Blair threw herself into the act of being so in love and so happy and giddy. Serena immediately saw through it, but she didn't see the meaning behind it, only what she thought it was about (Chuck)- she played along anyway, and Blair almost hugged her. She enjoyed the volleying of comebacks and biting insults that she shared with Chuck, if only because it made her think about what he and she were saying, as opposed to her feelings for Dan. Somehow, she agreed to bring James to dinner and bragged about how much Chuck was going to love him.
She was beginning to get extremely deep in lies.
Because it was impossible for Dan to write (even a story about the day he kissed his girlfriend's best friend and then dumped his girlfriend for 'other reasons') he had to seek Harris out at the bar while he was working. As he stood on the subway, keeping his balance and staring blankly ahead, he thought about the whole situation. How much more time was Harris willing to give him, if any? Would he get a tongue-lashing because he was incapable of writing anything?
He arrived at the bar with a guilty and embarrassed lope.
"I'm sorry for interrupting you while you're working," he said as he approached Jeremiah in the dimly lit pub.
Harris looked at him with an annoyed expression, "You wouldn't be interrupting if you weren't late."
"Look, I'm sorry sir- It's just- I've been trying to work on this story for you- All I need is one more day," he said, hardly able to look at the man as he pretty much begged.
Harris shook his head, "I've given you plenty of days, Humphrey- Don't sit," the man said, just as Dan was pulling out the adjacent stool. "You won't be staying."
Dan straightened up.
"If you can't do your homework, than I don't want you working for me," the author said with finality. "You won't remember to write your story on time, I won't remember to write your letter of recommendation at all."
Feeling his heart speed up with nervousness, Dan's mouth fell open and he said, "No, that's not fair- This is very important to me, sir- It's just- this thing that happened this spring screwed me up and-"
"I don't care about your excuses, Daniel," the man shrugged. "You can leave my spare key in my mailbox," and then he turned and went back to his drink and his work.
Feeling dejected and angry, Dan shuffled to the exit of the bar and left quickly. The sticky city air was unwelcome to him, and he yanked at his collar with agitation. With immense hesitation, he descended into the labyrinthine maze of subway tunnels and found his way home. He cringed at the contact he made with sweaty people on the subway seats, and he almost rolled his eyes at everyone who was having a conversation within hearing distance. For some reason he had no patience for anything. Though he knew Jeremiah Harris's firing him had a big part in it, he knew that the majority of it had to do with the fact that he hadn't properly seen Blair Waldorf since May, he still frequently thought about kissing her, he wondered what her summer was consisting of, and he knew she was now in the Hamptons, via GossipGirl.
"So James, where is it that you come from?" Chuck asked with his typical drawl and sneer.
Blair was hardly listening as she moved the vegetables around her plate.
James replied easily, "I'm from New Haven."
Was it a surprise that she hadn't known that?
"Oh, the Shepherds had a beautiful wedding in New Haven," Chuck sighed. "Do you remember that one, Blair?"
With a lethal look in her eye, Blair gave Chuck a sweet smile. What was the purpose in going back to the drama with Serena and Nate and what they had done at that stupid wedding?
She nodded, "It was a beautiful wedding."
"Almost as beautiful as the van der Woodsen-Bass one," he smiled. Turning to James he said, "My father got married to Blair's best friend's mother."
James smiled politely and nodded, "How nice."
"Yes, I was the best man and the whole thing was just so... romantic," he said, gazing at Blair too intensely.
She wanted to gag.
Lightly she replied with: "Almost as romantic as the jet ride to Tuscany I had- I mean, it was romantic in the sense that I got to relax and watch Sabrina. By myself."
James looked perpetually confused between them, and Serena's grandmother had given up on even listening to them.
"Well, yes, you and Humphrey were always very exclusive," Chuck said, sarcastically- annoyed by her backlash referring to the male lead in the movie.
Blair whipped her head in his direction, "What'd you just say?" she demanded. Before he could reply, she said, "I hate Dan Humphrey."
Chuck looked at her suspiciously.
"Are you all right?" James asked, and she noticed that she was clutching the edge of the table, bunching up the tablecloth in her fist.
She let go and smiled, "Fine- Just a little- um- jet-lagged, and it's making me a little stressed."
"Do you want to lie down, maybe?" James asked.
Anything to get away from Chuck's questioning stare, and the way that he seemed to be looking right through her in the most disconcerting way. "Yes," she said, standing up delicately.
James stood and offered to walk her to the house, but she smiled and said that she could handle it. But while she walked, Chuck continued to stare, and she felt her throat constrict, and her heart race.
As Serena and Blair trolled the shops in town the next day, they ran into Chuck and Nate. Nate and Serena immediately stepped aside and began whispering strangely. Blair couldn't be concerned though, because her palms were beginning to sweat, and she was afraid she was going to drop the iced latte in her hand. She stood down under Chuck's glare though, and managed to smile as if she was unbothered.
"Where's Princeton?" asked Chuck. "Or should I ask for Humphrey?"
Blair wheeled on him slowly, "What are you talking about?"
"James?"
"James goes to Georgetown," she said, hoping her voice was steady. "And Humphrey Bogart is dead."
Chuck smirked, "You know what I was referring to. And your boy James told me yesterday about his adventures at Princeton."
"You're wrong," she replied indignantly, sipping her sweating drink. "It's all he talks about- Georgetown."
"I know he said Princeton."
She narrowed her eyes at him, "Georgetown."
"Princeton."
"Georgetown." She turned and yelled, "Serena, let's go!"
Within a minute, Serena was at her side and they were strolling down the street again. Because of her heart rate, and the slickness of her palms, Blair, however, felt as if she was escaping death.
Dan went to the Hamptons on the pretense of needing to see Serena because of his writing- because he missed her. While that wasn't the whole truth, he couldn't very well tell Jenny and his father that it was because he needed to see Blair Waldorf and discuss their pre-Georgina-throw-down-kiss. He regretted what he was doing the whole way there. He questioned his sanity multiple times and contemplated jumping off of the speeding bus. In the end, he waited it out and found his way to the van der Woodsen Hampton house- conveniently, Blair was staying there too.
Unfortunately, Serena's grandmother answered the door, and he faltered, "Hello. Uh- Is Serena here?"
"No," the woman replied with a small smile in her eyes. "She's at a party I'm late for."
Dan nodded slowly, "I see."
"Perhaps you'd like to be my date for said party," she smirked. "Unless you're against being seen with an older woman."
If Serena was at a party, and Serena's grandmother was going to the same party, odds were that Blair would be at that same party too. So Dan nodded, and allowed the older woman to dress him up in her late husband's white suit and give him some pep-talk about doing what he felt was right and not being afraid to tell Serena how he felt. He tried not to laugh- or throw up- but he was sure that if he told Serena how he felt, she'd slap him for choosing her best friend. But he put up with it, just to get into the party.
The party in question was white. The furniture and the clothes- everything was clean and pristine all around him. The only splashes of color came from Vitamin water, which was so obviously sponsoring the whole thing. The display of the whole affair made Dan's stomach turn, because it was just so completely upper crust. It made him even more nervous about seeing Blair, and Serena.
After James got the idea (the idea that was half-wrong anyway) that Blair was using him, he abandoned her at the white party. Chuck was instantly trying to touch her, but she batted him away with her elbow. She hadn't used James to hurt Chuck romantically. It had helped in getting over the fact that he had wounded her pride in general, but not because she was heartbroken. And she didn't want to be using him, she wanted to truly like him, to fall for someone who was so completely not Daniel Humphrey, but she wasn't sure if she was capable of it. And she was hardly listening as Chuck whispered hotly in her face, saying that she was just like him, that he hadn't been the reason she had used James, that there was something else she was hiding. She managed to hiss back at him in all her confusion and clouded thoughts.
"I'm nothing like you Chuck," she wrenched away from him. "And you have no idea what you're talking about."
Hardly faltering once in her stilettos, she hurried into the main house, to lock herself in a room, or in the bathroom, to get away from everyone. She passed Serena's grandmother in the living room, but just looked at her and kept walking. She spotted Nate and Serena in the kitchen, sipping alcohol and laughing, but she didn't join them. It was in the foyer, when she made eye contact with someone she had not been expecting, that she halted, unable to move any further.
Dan saw her too, and his breath caught in his lungs. She was looking devastating in a white dress, with her hair curled around her face. Without even considering it, feeling his courage reappear, he walked toward her, his eyes intense and serious. He saw the deer-in-the-headlights look she got, and he contemplated chasing her if she ran.
She wasn't sure why he was dressed in a charming tan and white suit, or why he was even at the white party- really, Blair wasn't sure of anything anymore. Unfortunately, she felt as if her feet were made of lead as he approached her quickly. Before she could even react, he was standing in front of her. She could smell him- and he smelled the same as he had in May- and he was touching her. His hand was on her elbow and she thought she was going to faint. How could all of this happen in the course of a few minutes? James pretty much dumping her, Chuck's comparison between herself and him, and now Dan was at the white party, in the Hamptons? She felt as if she was possibly going insane, like this was just one massive hallucination. Her head felt heavy, like it was clogged with too many ideas and things. All she wanted to do was scream and lash out, and if Dan wasn't careful he would be the one with the scratch-marks.
"Blair, we need to talk," Dan said close to her face, and he felt her tensing up underneath his grip.
She looked around wildly, as if expecting to be seen. Without saying anything- because she was desperate for privacy and to not be seen with him this way- she dragged him up the wide, spiral staircase and threw him into the nearest room she could get into. It was a study, with a bookcase and a desk with a computer. Thank God, she thought, a bedroom would have been too awkward. Slamming her clutch onto the desk, she wheeled on him.
With her voice slightly shrill, she shouted, "What the hell do you think you're doing here?"
"Blair-"
"Tell me you're not here to make-up with Serena," she challenged, folding her arms.
Dan shook his head, "Well, I wanted to talk to you- and to see Serena-"
"Why the fuck do you want to talk to me?" she demanded. "Do you have some kind of death wish? Or do you just want me thrown off the social radar for fraternizing with a Brooklynite?"
He gave her an angry look, "In case you forgot, you kissed the Brooklynite."
Before she could help it, she was across the room in a flash, with her hand stretched upward, pressed over his lips, silencing him. Dan wasn't exactly comfortable with the situation- with her being so close to him and smelling so good. Blair wasn't think about the proximity though, she was thinking about the fact that he had uttered the words she was terrified anyone would learn about, what she had been trying to convince herself had been a wonderful bad dream.
"Are you crazy, by any chance?!" she hissed up at him.
As he stared down at her, her hand over his mouth, she realized how close they were, and jumped away.
Wiping her hands on her dress she said, "You need to go," as if she was nervous.
"Blair, we can't pretend like it never happened-"
"Why not?" she asked, shrill and hysterical. "I think that's a great idea."
He shook his head, as if he had no patience for this, "We kissed, Blair. I have feelings for you-"
"Would you just shut up!" she said, throwing her hands up, because she couldn't take it anymore. "You don't know what you're talking about."
"I've had all summer to think about it," he challenged.
She jumped on the 'Serena' card like her life depended on it, "But you were here to see Serena- you still have feelings for her."
"Yes, but I have stronger feelings for you!"
Blair winced, as if his words were causing her pain. And they almost were. It was wonderful, but horrible, to hear that he had feelings for her, more than he did for Serena. Because her heart was pounding deliciously, and she knew she liked him in some bizarre way too, but she couldn't- She just couldn't like Dan Humphrey! She was Blair Waldorf, Queen B, things like this just weren't done, not ever.
"Why'd you kiss me then?" he asked. "If you don't have feelings for me too?"
Swallowing hard, she stared at him, not saying anything, not knowing what she could say.
He nodded slowly, "Because you do have feelings for me."
She was staring at his lips before she could stop herself, and he noticed right away. Slowly, he walked over to where she was standing in front of the desk, and he saw the panic rise in her eyes, and her breath catch in her chest, he saw how much she wanted this, but how much she was fearing it too. Her heart was pounding all around her, and she felt so ready to burst with anxiety and lust that she couldn't handle it. Unconsciously, she shook her head. But when Dan reached her, he cupped her face in his hand and pulled her face to his. Their lips met quickly, hungrily, and she pressed herself up against him immediately, putting her hands around his neck. She had needed this- had wanted it all summer- and here it was, better than she had ever expected. Her brain memorized the feel of his skin underneath hers, the way he tasted and the way his lips felt against hers. She wanted to have it all saved, because who knew when they would kiss next. Her body all but sighed in pleasure as he pressed her up against the desk, with the edge biting into her back, but she didn't care, she enjoyed it when it involved Dan.
But then it hit her- This was Dan Humphrey. She couldn't like Dan, couldn't be enjoying this with him!
And almost as quickly as she had kissed him, she pulled herself away and jumped back, shaking her head swiftly.
"Blair," Dan said breathlessly.
She continued to shake her head, saying, as if in disgust, "I don't have feelings for you Dan, you're from Brooklyn. Just, don't talk to me anymore- Please."
He stared at her for a good minute, saw the disgust in her eyes- which was really directed at her own behavior and how everything had turned so full circle- and he felt the anger mount. He didn't need Blair. Besides, he had gone to the Hamptons to find Serena. Serena was the one he needed, the right one for him. Blair Waldorf was a bitch, and he didn't need the drama.
Shaking his head too, he exited the room quickly and pretended that he could have cared less.
Blair, however, moved across the room and sat down in a leather armchair, shaking. She waited for her heart rate to return to normal and then stared into space, considering what had just happened.
So Dan found Serena, but she was kissing Nate Archibald. They went through all the motions of being an ex-couple fighting and being jealous, but he continued to think about Blair and their second kiss in the study. Even as two girls he had been seeing threw their Vitamin water cocktails on him, he thought about how Blair would have found it amusing. He allowed Serena to take him to the kitchen so she could salvage her grandfather's suit jacket, and he rambled about his summer flings (minus Blair) and a little about how he was sorry. Then, in a lapse of silence, he thought about Blair, and he felt anger. So, he told Serena he couldn't get her out of his head all summer, which was half-true (because he was always thinking about her and feeling guilty). And then he kissed her, because she was smiling and that made him feel like he wasn't such a sleaze. But he also kissed her because he was hoping someone would see (if not Blair, then someone who would tell Blair- because he felt she deserved it).
Before he left to wait at the beach for Serena, while she said goodbye to everyone, he wondered if Blair was still in the study, but he shook his thoughts away and exited the house.
Blair actually found her way out of the study and outside into the yard again, only a half an hour after the kiss. She felt as if she was capable of functioning, now that she had had a moment to think and clear her head. And now she realized that she didn't need Dan, convinced herself that she didn't like him, and that James was the one for her. So she marched over to him as she spotted him across the grass.
"You were right," she said, and he looked amused. "I was using you."
She didn't bother to elaborate on what she had been using him for.
"I wasn't honest, and I'm sorry."
James took her hand and walked a little ways with her, "I haven't been completely honest with you either."
She tensed, waiting for whatever it was he was going to say.
"I don't go to Georgetown or Princeton- I don't go to school at all," he said, and Blair felt the horror sinking in. Was he a creep? "My name is actually Marcus Beaton, I'm British- and, a lord."
All she could manage, was: "What?"
"I didn't tell you the truth because I wanted you to like me for me, and not for my title," he shrugged lightly, his voice now distinctly accented. "I can see I'm too late."
"No," she said quickly, because 'lord' was antonymous with 'Brooklyn boy.' "I used you, but I've learned to like you. Please, Ja- Marcus, I really want to get to know you, with honesty on both ends."
He gave her a little smile and nodded.
She could most definitely learn to like a lord.
Later, she left with Marcus, completely unaware, that on the beach nearby, Dan was cuddling back up to Serena, and summer was ending in the same way it had begun.
Two people were avoiding their feelings for each other, and they were going about it in the wrong way again.
Author' Note: Oh my goodness gracious, I am sorry this chapter is humungous to the umpth degree! I know some people like that, but some people hate it, so you're welcome, and I am sorry. I wanted to get almost everything Dair with the first episode into this chapter, and then add the extra scene. Hope you liked it! Reviewing is always appreciated!