A/N: I am so happy and surprise to see that this story got really positive feedback. :D And yes, I decided to make this multi-chaptered. If of course it would be supported ;) Anyways, here is the second chapter in the story. I hope you would all enjoy and support it!
Reviews would be greatly appreciated ;)
DICLAIMER ALERT: I do not own Gossip Girl
BLAIR
3 years later
I sat at one of the chairs on our small, quaint bookstore. I smiled as I took in my surroundings. It was a relatively small place, but it was cozy. There were rows of shelves filled with books, ranging from different subjects to another. At the other side of the room were three small tables with chairs, provided for customers who would just like to browse through books or just stay in the cozy ambiance of the bookstore. The bookstore's name is 'Jacobson's Bookstore'.
I can't help but release a soft chuckle at the name.
Nate Archibald and Blair Waldorf flew over to London from New York, but Audrey and Paul Jacobson headed to Missouri. Yes, we headed to Jefferson City, Missouri. We were not stupid enough to stay permanently in London. It was in Europe, and near Paris. And obviously, Paris would be one of the first places they would search us in.
I obviously took the name Aubrey because of Aubrey Hepburn, and I demanded Nate to take the name Paul because of 'Breakfast at Tiffany's'. Hey, it doesn't mean that I left Upper East Side that I should also lose my love for all things Aubrey. Nate and I agreed to tell people that we are married, hence the same last name. We figured that it would be all too troublesome to explain to others why we are moving together when we are not even married. Besides, I have grown up with Nate for my whole life. Let's also not forget the fact that we have been together for a decade. We just took the last name 'Jacobson' because it was the first name that I saw in one of the other passenger's luggage.
It had been a pretty rough road, but it was all worth it for what Nate and I feel right now… content.
While on board the plane to London, I have already started to formulate a plan in my head.
In just two weeks time of disappearance, I know they would already start looking for us. The Waldorf's and Archibald's-Van der Bilt's joining forces together to find their own respective heirs? I know it would be a tough job to hide. And let's not forget Chuck. He's Chuck Bass. That alone is enough to take more precautions in hiding. So I decided that we should immediately transfer to another place. Somewhere unexpected, one of the places they would never think we would go.
I glanced at Nate who was sitting comfortably in his first class seat, and the place just immediately popped into my head.
'Missouri!'
I don't know a lot about the place, but it seemed like a good place to escape.
Once we landed at London, I immediately informed Nate about my plan. He said he was thinking about the same thing, and I was glad that we were on the same page. We only stayed at London for three days. Once we were in London, Nate and I withdraw money as much as we can from our bank accounts without arising too much suspicions. We merged it together and it equaled into a pretty hefty sum.
After ensuring that we have everything we need, we immediately headed to Jefferson City, Missouri. We rented a small, 2 bedroom flat there. We knew we should start to get used to the middle-class lifestyle, we have to start to be thriftier from now on.
A week after moving in on our new flat, 'Paul' and I decided to start looking for jobs to support ourselves before the money we have all disappear. The old woman who owns the flat we rent, Elizabeth, graciously suggested opening a business of our own. She even offered the entire first floor of the building that we can rent. It seemed like a good idea, and Paul and I decided it was the best thing to do. We agreed on opening our very own bookstore.
Our life in Jefferson City was a quiet one, so unlike the life we have back in the Upper East Side. It was drama-free. We have to admit that we sometimes miss the luxurious lifestyle back in UES, but we wouldn't want to trade our lives here in Missouri either. Yes, we also miss Serena and even…Chuck, but we also met pretty cool people here.
Paul and I have grown pretty close to Diane and Max Alexander, a newlywed couple who lives just the floor above us.
As time passed on, Paul and I grew more accustomed and adapted to our lifestyle in Missouri.
This was our home now.
The soft chiming of bells that indicates someone entered the bookstore woke me up from my reverie.
"Hey Audrey," Nate-ugh, Paul said.
I smile and walked up to him, welcoming him with a hug. "Hey. Where have you been?" I asked him, noticing that it was already 2 o'clock in the afternoon.
"I noticed that our stock of food has been decreasing, so I thought I should save you the trouble of grocery shopping when you have lots to take care in here" he answered thoughtfully.
"Thanks," I answered him, giving him a kiss on the cheeks. I grabbed the shopping bags out of his grasp and carried them to the counter. "I'll bring them back upstairs later," I said.
"Sure" Paul answered back. After putting the bags in the counter, I resumed sitting in one of the chairs, and Paul sat across from me.
Nate and I have a complicated relationship. I know that we still love each other, why would we be in this mess together if not? But the problem was we also love another person. After everything Chuck did to me, I still love him. I don't know what was wrong with me, but I still love him. Sure, I still haven't wholeheartedly forgiven him for the things he has done, but I still love him. And as for Nate, we both knew he still wasn't over Serena. He had been chasing Serena for so long, that I would be worried if he just suddenly stopped pinning for her because of time and distance. But Nate and I have a mutual understanding. We love each other. We love each other as best friends, but we also love each other as lovers. It was a complicated relationship. But weirdly enough, I am already accustomed to complicated relationships. I smirked at the thought.
"What are you thinking about?" Paul asked, noticing the smirk in my face.
"Our relationship" I answered nonchalantly.
Paul smiled. "What about it?" he asked.
"What are we?" I asked him softly, looking him straight into his bright, green, emerald eyes.
Paul chuckled softly. "What do you want us to be?" he answered, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
I laughed. "It doesn't suit you, Nate." I said. Sometimes, we do accidental slips with our names. But thankfully, we are all alone in the store. Nate joined me in laughing, not bothering to comment on my slip about the names. "What are we really, Paul?"I asked him again, once our laughing died down.
Paul shrugged. "Paul and Audrey are married. But Nate and Blair?" he started, holding my hand "they have always loved each other." He said, planting a kiss on my forehead. I closed my eyes at the contact.
And I knew he was right.
I love you. Always have, always will.
The first thing that greeted me the moment I woke up was Nate's bright and green eyes.
"Good morning, beautiful." He greeted me, planting a kiss on my lips. I responded back feverishly, tangling my hands in his dirty blonde and tousled hair.
Nate and I are familiar with physical activities, even sex. I told you, we have a very complicated relationship.
"I want to wake up like this every morning," he murmured in my ear.
I giggled girlishly and pushed him back playfully. We heard the doorbell 'DING!' and I wondered who could be visiting us at this time of day. I looked at Nate to see if he knows who, but he just shrugged.
I stood up from the bed and wore my robe, wrapping it around my petite frame. I exited our room and Nate followed suitably. I went to the door and opened it.
The person who was standing there shocked me.
It was Lily Van der Woodsen-Bass-Humphrey.
"Li-Lily…" I stuttered, too shocked too comprehend my words.
"Hello dear. I miss you." She said, acting as if we haven't seen or even talk to each other for 3 whole years. She hugged me.
Thankfully, I regained my composure and hugged her back. I gotta say I missed Lily. She was more of a mother to me than Eleanor ever was, and I always knew I could trust her.
"Nate, darling, how are you?" she asked, proceeding on hugging Nate. Nate hugged back, but I could see he was still shock that Lily is standing here with us.
"Won't you invite me in, dear?" she asked in a light tone.
"Of course! I'm sorry," I apologized sheepishly, leading Lily inside the small flat.
We led her straight to the living room, and Lily sat down on the couch. I sat down hesitantly beside Lily, while Nate just stood beside me while holding my hand.
Lily eyed our intertwined hands together with interest, "Are you two together?" she asked.
It took us a while before I finally spoke up, "No." I answered, still not withdrawing my hand from Nate's grasp. I could feel his hold tighten.
"Oh."
Awkward silence engulfed the room.
"What are you doing here, Lily?" Nate was the first to speak up.
Lily smiled. "Upper East Side just isn't the same with two of you" Lily started and I feel my breath stop "Serena is back to her old ways. Partying all night, going abroad without informing me, going home drunk, but this time Blair, she's worse because you are not there anymore. You won't be there to save my daughter from strangers trying to take advantage of her, you won't be there to take her home when she's so drunk, you won't be there to save Serena." Lily said.
I felt tears prickle my eyes when Lily talked about my best friend. I miss her so, so much.
"And Charles," Lily continued. I'm pretty sure my face went pale just by hearing his name "he became worse." I can't even imagine how Chuck became worse.
"But I thought Bass Industries is already one of the leading real estate companies in the world?" I asked Lily, confused.
"Bass Industries is the leading real estate company in the world." Lily explained with a tinge of pride "but I'm not talking about Charles Bass, possibly-the-youngest-billionaire-in-the-world" Lily said "I'm talking about Chuck Bass, ¼ of the Non-Judging Breakfast Club and notorious womanizer" Lily said. I immediately understood. Chuck went back to his old ways.
"He became broken when you left Blair, and you too Nate. Imagine, he lost the only girl he has ever loved and his best friend at the same time."Lily said.
"I'm surprise Chuck wasn't the first ones to find us," Nate said.
Lily chuckled "Believe me, it was hard to find the both of you. Imagine my surprise when one of the PIs I hired told me he finally located you. At Jefferson City, Missouri no less." Lily said. I smiled at that, and Nate and I shared a look.
"Have you told anybody yet?" I asked.
Lily shook her head. "I know I should have told Serena, Chuck, Eleanor or Anne that I have found you. But I figured that if you ran away, there should have been a valid reason. And I have to respect that." Lily explained. One of the greatest thing about Lily: she understands the complex teenage mind.
Lily stood up. "My job here is done. If you want to come with me, it would be my greatest pleasure, but if you choose not to, I understand." Lily said. We walked her to the door, and before she left she gave each of us a peck on the cheeks and a hug.
"I love you two like my own children, and I only want what is the best for you." She said, before going down the stairs.
Once we saw Lily's figure disappear, Nate and I looked at each other. And I am pretty sure that the same thing is on our mind
'It is time to go home.'
A/N: Chapter 2 is done! \:D/ I would like to tell everyone that I wanted this chapter to focus on the complicated relationship of Nate and Blair. I hope I did a decent job in explaining it. HAHA. Also, I wanted you to get a glimpse in their life at Missouri. ;) BTW, I chose Missouri because that was the first place I thought about. Lol. I don't even know why. Anyways, I know this is a pretty confusing chapter. So if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I hope that you enjoyed it! Also, tell me what you want to happen next :D And as always, I am asking you to REVIEW.
Reviews are greatly appreciated. ;)