Author's notes: For whatever reason, this chapter was really hard to get out. I couldn't decide where to end it, and was indecisive in general. Plus, canon threw me for a loop in there, making it harder to get my mind back to their S4 place. Thanks to anyone still reading, especially those who have been taking the time to review. I really appreciate it. I'll try not to delay so long for the next (probably the last) chapter. I have a much better idea of what I want to do moving forward.
The entire time she was at MoMa with Dan, she had intended to tell him about receiving the shoe and note. More importantly, she needed to tell him that she was spending the rest of the day with Louis before the tabloids or Gossip Girl beat her to it. She had already made these plans with Dan before she got the note, and she couldn't bring herself to cancel on him at this juncture, knowing the message it would send. However, she found that there was never a good opening to tell him about Louis either. From the moment she "accidentally" ran into his outside the restrooms, he started excitedly talking to her about the exhibit, rattling off the items they definitely had to see. Inwardly, she couldn't help but get swept up in his enthusiasm. Outwardly, she repeatedly rolled her eyes and reminded him that this exhibit was far too masculine for her. Alarmingly, her lack of enthusiasm just seemed to spur him on. She was beginning to think he might be on to her.
When he had exhaustively talked her through nearly every item in the museum, they stood awkwardly at the exit, unsure of what to do next. It was still early in the day, and normally on a second date that had gone this well Blair would probably suggest getting coffee. However, Blair feared coffee would lead to hours of conversation, which would inevitably lead her back to the loft, a place where she desperately did not want to be alone with Dan just now. Being alone with Dan would only lead to more confusion, not to mention making her late for her date with Louis later that day.
Blair wasn't sure how she had managed to double book herself. On one hand, it made her feel slightly guilty the whole time she was with Dan. On the other hand, she got a small thrill out of the situation. It was like she was living out two romantic comedies at the same time.
Dan slowly cleared his throat. "So..." he started, before Blair cut him off.
"Thank you. It's been a lovely second date," Blair said hurriedly.
"Uh, thanks," Dan said and chuckled mildly. "I guess the finality of your statement answers my next question."
"Sorry," she said sheepishly. "I just have plans with Serena later."
"Have fun," Dan said. "I would say to say hi for me, but..."
"Yeah," Blair said, not sure what she was affirming. "Call me later?"
"If you want me to," Dan said hesitantly. "You look like you're ready to bolt right now. Was my enthusiasm too much?"
"No," she told him honestly. "I liked it."
"Okay," he said. He looked thoughtful for a moment before speaking again. "So, can you explain to me how what we just did today is different than what we've been doing since Christmas, yet we're calling this our second date?"
She felt herself tense up, not liking where this was going. "Well, if you like we don't have to consider today a date," she said tersely.
"You know that's not what I meant," he sighed.
"I know what you meant," she snapped, not sure why she was getting so angry. "You're implying that you tricked me into accidentally dating you for months."
"Yes, that is exactly what I'm implying," he said sarcastically, sighing again. Any trace of his earlier amusement with her had been wiped away, and he just seemed frustrated.
She took a breath, calming herself down. With that shoe taunting her at her house, she didn't want the extra guilt of being reminded of the relationship she and Dan had built over these last few months, regardless of whether it was romantic or not. She wasn't even sure what Louis really wanted, but given that her prince was on his way, it was probably best if she wasn't actually dating Dan Humphrey when he arrived. The problem was, she wasn't entirely sure she wanted to eliminate the possibility of dating Dan either, which led to awkward moments such as this one.
"I'm sorry," she said sincerely, and she saw the tension leave his shoulders almost instantly. "With Chuck...and Serena, I just don't want to rush into anything. Can we just keep things casual until we know what we have here?"
He smiled at her, and she couldn't help but smile back. His smile was disturbingly disarming.
"I think I can do that," he said easily. "I'll call you."
"Good, because it's rude not to call a girl after a second date,."
"Point taken," he chuckled. "Have fun with Serena."
They stood there awkwardly for another moment, but considering they were completely out in public, even so much as a handshake could be misinterpreted. It wouldn't even be completely out of the realm of possibilities for someone to suspect them of something nefarious just by standing there together.
"Goodbye," she finally said, turning abruptly and walking out. She forced herself not to look back, knowing that Dan was probably confused.
Five minutes later, her phone rang. She smiled and rolled her eyes affectionately, answering without even looking, knowing who it had to be.
"When I said it was rude not to call, I didn't mean you had to call today," she teased him.
"I'm sorry...Blair?" Blair almost dropped her phone, stunned to hear a distinct French accent.
"Oh, God. I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else," she stuttered, not believing that she had picked up her phone without looking, thinking she was that in tune with Dan Humphrey of all people.
"This is Louis," the voice said, as though Blair didn't know from his accent. "I presume you received my package?"
"Yes, it was a lovely surprise," Blair said formally, still not quite believing that this was happening. "I thought you'd never want to speak with me again."
"Of course not," Louis said warmly, and she smiled at how kind he sounded after the disaster in Paris. "I presume you took care of your previous situation."
"Yes, that's over," Blair said hesitantly.
"Good," Louis said. "Then we're both free."
"Of course," Blair said guardedly. Technically, she and Dan weren't really anything. They certainly weren't exclusively...doing whatever it was they were doing. At least, they had no agreement to do it exclusively.
"Then I look forward to seeing you this afternoon," Louis said.
She had sudden visions of the elegant gowns and jewelry she had worn in Paris, and she finally felt as excited as she should. It had been a long time since she had dressed up with someone in mind. She made a mental note to call Dorota to start pulling things from her closet so she'd be ready to pick out the perfect outfit when she returned home.
"Unfortunately, we will have to meet somewhere no one will see us," Louis said, and Blair felt her enthusiasm wane again. It seemed there was no one she could publicly date these days. "I can't have the tabloids finding out I'm here."
"Don't worry," Blair told him. "I have recently learned of lots of places we can go where no one who knows us wouldn't be caught dead in."
Blair hung up after telling him to meet her at Veselka, and she started mentally crafting the perfect evening for her and Louis. She tried not to think about how much Dan would tease her about putting Veselka as the centerpiece of her date with a prince. At least, her friend Dan would tease her. She had a feeling that the Dan she was sort of dating might react differently.
As it turned out, she didn't have to wait long to find out how Dan would react. Somehow there he was, sitting at the counter at Veselka when she entered.
"What are you doing here?" she practically hissed, not believing that he would stoop to stalking her. They had agreed just that afternoon that they were casual.
"I'm here to eat," he told her, looking confused. There was something else in his eyes that she didn't want to think about in that moment. "And hello to you too. I guess it's good I decided to wait a day before calling."
"Sorry," she said sheepishly.
"The better question is, what are you doing here?" he asked, grinning at her. "If you're craving pierogies, I must have rubbed off on you more than I thought."
"I'm on a date, actually," she said tersely, looking away from his face so she didn't have to see his smile fade. "We said we were casual, right?"
"Of course," Dan said, his face unreadable. "Date away."
"I'd better go," she said softly, still not meeting his eyes. She turned and walked away, feeling Dan's eyes on her back as she put on her biggest smile for Louis.
It was not long after her date with Louis began that Serena interrupted. Blair wasn't sure why Serena had come, but she quickly realized just how careless she and Dan had been when they were hanging out as friends. Apparently Serena visited Dan's haunting grounds more often than Blair knew. Blair tried not to think too hard about the implications of that, or why it bothered her so much.
Lunch with Louis was pleasant, with Louis being the charming gentleman she remembered from Paris. Louis seemed to like Veselka, as well as her other suggestions for their day. Then, the day had ended as abruptly as Louis had re-entered her life.
"Dan wouldn't do that," Blair said confidently. "I'll take care of this."
Dan showed up at Paul Smith just as she had demanded. He didn't even blink when she put ties up to his neck to see which suited him best. She was alarmed to see that her vision of him in a suit with any of those ties gave her a little flutter in her stomach.
This was not about Dan. It was about Louis, and how Dan was going to fix what he had messed up.
"I'm sorry," were his first words. She looked at him appraisingly, and he seemed to be sincere. She softened almost immediately at the earnest look on his face.
"I know," she said, not nearly as sternly as she had intended. "That's why I'm giving you the opportunity to make it up to me. You did ruin the best...one of the best dates of my life."
She saw the hurt flash in his eyes briefly, but he recovered quickly, tilting his head at her and smiling softly. "At Veselka? What else did you do?"
"That's neither here nor there," she huffed, feeling uncomfortable under the scrutiny of his gaze. She didn't want to admit that every place on the itinerary was some place she had gone with Dan. It wasn't worth explaining to him that it was just because she wanted to stay off the radar, and that it had nothing to do with him. Nothing. "You're straying from the point. You ruined my date with Louis because of your need for literary validation, and I called you here to explain how you're going to make it up to me."
"You really think I need to do something to make up for ruining your date with another guy?" Dan asked, rolling his eyes.
"We're just casual, right? I wouldn't sabotage you if you were trying to explore all your options," Blair said crisply.
"What do you want me to do?" Dan asked, looking resigned.
"Louis can't be seen in public with me, and now you've tipped off his family. They're sending a royal handler to watch him. You and I are going to convince his handler that Louis and I are just casual acquaintances from this summer, and you are and I are madly in love," she said blithely. Dan just looked confused.
"I don't understand. I thought you didn't want anyone to think we're dating."
"I don't," Blair said. She assumed he was being intentionally obtuse. "We're going to stage an intimate moment for Louis' handler, but no one else will see."
"Blair..." Dan protected. Blair put up a hand to stop him from talking.
"If you're trying to date me, don't you want me to feel like I've explored my options rather than just settling for you because I don't want to lose you as a friend?" She felt a little bad for manipulating him, but she did enjoy the little involuntary smile that flitted across his face as he rolled his eyes again, accepting his fate.
"You know you don't need to jump through all these hoops just to get me to kiss you again," he said dryly.
It was now her turn to roll her eyes.