Summary

A story of how Blair loses everything, and how Dan helps her put herself back together.

Set after 5x10, following Blair and Chuck's car accident. Includes various excerpts from Dan Humphrey's Inside.


The first time he meets Sabrina Von Sloneker is in their freshman year of high school. Katrina Faulkner throws a party in her brother's new apartment and invites the whole of Florence and St Joe's freshman classes hoping that it'll get her famous in the first week of school. It does in the end, but that's mostly because the neighbours call the police and Katrina's brother loses his apartment in his third week of owning it. In the end, it's a success, and it earns Katrina a spot as one of Clair's top minions.

Dylan doesn't know exactly why he was invited, but he has to say that Upper East Side parties are everything he imagined and more. There are girls dancing on tables and guys taking shots from girls' belly buttons. In the next room, he spots Charlie Trout snorting a line of white powder off Genevieve Snare's thigh.

It's surreal really, and Dylan imprints the myriad of images to memory. He writes 'the dichotomies of real and fantasy intertwine' and 'discourse of elitism' into his small black Moleskine notebook, binding his various ideas into a coherent story. Not one person has acknowledged him the whole night, but he wasn't going to let this invite go to waste. There's inspiration all around him and he smiles as he watches a drunk girl fall off a table into the arms of a very pleased looking boy; 'juxtaposition of fairytale and the carnivalesque,' he scribbles messily.

He's busy jotting down more ideas when someone bumps into him from behind. He can feel moisture on the back of his shirt with what he hopes is some sort of alcoholic beverage and not toilet water he saw the lacrosse team put into water balloons.

'Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!' Dylan hears as he turns see a drunken Sabrina Von Sloneker looking apologetic. It's a scene of a movie really; popular girl bumps (literally) into unpopular boy from school at a party, witty banter, sexual chemistry and then happily ever after. It's what Dylan Hunter can only dream of, and how he wakes with ruined sheets in the morning.

If only he could actually put an articulate sentence together in front of the blonde in front of him.

'I'm Sabrina,' she announces with a beaming smile, which he can't help but fall for.

'Dylan,' he is able to respond and he mentally pats himself on the back for the courage he took to say one word to her.

The thing about Sabrina Von Sloneker is that she is striking and stunning and scenic and splendid and sexy. She's perfection on two long legs that go for days. Everyone is hypnotised by her, and Dylan is not immune to this. She grabs the attention of everyone in the room, simply through her contagious laugh. Sabrina Von Sloneker is a fantasy.

'Listen Dennis,' she says sloppily, 'I'm hiding from my friend.' She takes her index finger to her mouth and giggles out a 'Shhh,' and Dylan forgets to correct her about his name because he's staring at her red lipstick which make her lips look oh so inviting.

'She's being a total buzz kill.' Sabrina continues, 'So will you help me hide?'

He's about to agree to do anything she says when they're interrupted by a stern voice, 'S, I did three laps of this party looking for you and you owe me for all the horrors I've had to witness.' Dylan turns to see a very annoyed Clair Carlyle coming up to them.

'Clair! Meet my friend Dennis!' Sabrina exclaims while hugging him.

Clair pulls Sabrina away and stares daggers at Dylan while muttering something about plaid and Urban Outfitters that he doesn't quite understand.

'Bye Dennis!' Sabrina calls out to him.

Sabrina ends up being the only person in the party to talk to him all night. He considers this a great success.

He writes a story about the party later. He writes of blonde hair and long legs, of infectious giggles and sunny smiles. He fails to mention a hostile best friend.

It's at Katrina Faulker's freshman party that Dylan Hunter meets Sabrina Von Sloneker. But perhaps more importantly, it is at this party that Clair Carlyle discovers that Dylan Hunter exists.


When Serena finally walks out of Blair's room, Dan is quick to his feet.

'How is she?'

'She's...' Serena starts, trying to find the right word to describe her best friend at the moment. 'She's being Blair. She doesn't want to talk about losing the baby. She's worried about Chuck. She's not opening up.' Tears start to well up in Serena's eyes as she stands there holding her arms close. She seems to be waiting for him to do or say something. And yet he's not sure as to what.

'You should go home Dan.' Serena finally tells him but it's the last thing he wants to do. There's a tone in her voice that he can't quite catch.

'I can't Serena. Not while I know she's in that bed.'

Dan can never reject the role of being the knight in shining armour. It's the reason why Serena and him have always had their ups and downs. When Serena needs him, he's not far away. It's easy to be the knight in shining armour when your damsel in distress comes looking for you.

But it's different with Blair. It's not about being her knight or her prince. It's about being her equal. He's there for Blair because he wants to be. He doesn't want to fix her; he wants to help her pick up the pieces so she can finish the puzzle herself.

'Look Dan, she doesn't want any visitors at the moment. She barely wants me in there with her. I've called Louis and he should be here any second. It's not your place to worry.' Serena tells him with pity in her eyes.

He knows Serena is right. It isn't his place to worry. Blair has never wanted him; such glories are reserved for the Louis Grimaldis and Chuck Basses of the world.

He reluctantly agrees to go home, telling Serena to call him if there are any updates.


Louis comes into her room in the middle of the night. She hears him pull up a chair and feels him take her hand. He whispers three little words into the darkness and she's surprised when she finds little solace in them. She feigns sleep and pulls her hand away when she hears his light even snores.

She dreams of fairytales that night. She's up in the highest room of a tall tower that is quickly burning to the ground. She can feel the heat of the fire scorching her skin as the smoke starts to suffocate her. She looks out the window to see her prince yelling for her to jump into his arms. She looks behind her to find any other way out but the fire roars louder. Her prince yells again and she climbs onto the window edge, holding onto the burning wall that threatens to collapse any second. She looks down to her prince below her, his face unrecognisable as just a blur and takes a deep breath, ready to jump. She feels herself falling as she takes the leap, hair flying across her face. She never lands.

She wakes up with a jolt and finds her actual prince beside her. He's still asleep, undisturbed by her nightmares.

He stirs a few minutes later and she watches as his eyes adjust to the light. He turns and notices that she is awake, 'Blair,' he says quietly like even her name is a delicate detail.

She remains quiet, not sure what to say. A couple of days ago, she was ready to run away to become a family with Chuck. She had given up Louis and her princess fairytale. And yet here she sits, a fiancé beside her and a lover who may not wake up in the next room.

'I'm sorry,' she manages to say. Louis deserves much more than her. He deserves someone who will be loyal and faithful; someone who truly loves him.

'There is nothing to be sorry for Blair,' he tells her in his heavy accent. 'We have all the time in the world to start a family.'

It breaks her heart when he reassures her, because she was willing to take that family away from him not long ago.

'I slept with Chuck,' she says and she's surprised at how void of emotion her voice is.

Louis' shoulders become rigid and he pulls his hand away from hers like it burns. She's the one setting fire to the tower she's already trapped in, sealing her own fate.

'And I was ready to run away with him. I was going to raise your baby with him.'

Louis has forgiven her for many things in the past. But she knows this is not one of them. She isn't surprised when he leaves the room quickly; isn't surprised when Serena tells her that he has left the country soon after. She receives a call from an employee of the royal family that afternoon to tell her that she and Louis are officially over.

She doesn't shed a tear. In fact, she has barely shed a tear since the accident, even after losing her baby.

Blair had always been a cold bitch. She doesn't blame the world for wanting to watch her burn.