Friends Like These
Dan and Nate sat at a table in lunchroom. Nate was retelling an amusing skit he'd seen on Saturday Night Live. It was strange for Dan to be having a conversation with someone from his school about something so normal. In the three he had been attending St. Jude's, he had only made one friend, a girl named Vanessa Abrams. While Dan liked Vanessa, there was nothing normal about her.
Vanessa was outspoken and frank. She did what she wanted, when she wanted to, and she didn't care what anyone thought. She shaved her head to prove a point about the value men place on physical appearances. For a few, short days, Vanessa was the most talked about girl in school, even if it was only because girls were spreading nasty rumours about her. The reason Dan found her to be someone he could relate to was because he, like her, did not belong at his school.
Dan Humphrey was the antithesis of the typical St. Jude's student. While most of his peers came from wealthy families and had known each other for years, Dan came from a lower-middle class family and he only knew two people at his school. The other boys in his grade summered in places like France and Italy. Dan had only been out of the state once. He was a Humphrey and Humphreys came from Brooklyn. They wore clothes from outlet stores, brought brown paper bags for lunch and rode the subway. The only reason Dan attended a school like St. Jude's was his mom.
Dan's mother, Allison Humphrey, had died four years ago after a long, exhausting battle with cancer. In her will, she left a decent amount of money for her children, Dan and his sister, Jenny, and their father, Rufus. She explicitly stated that she wanted Rufus to use the money to make sure Dan and Jenny went to a good school. He signed Dan up for St. Jude's the following fall and this year Jenny started at Constance, which was a school in the same building as his. So, even thought Dan didn't belong at the school, he was attending it. The only person who didn't hold this against him was Vanessa. He surveyed the room, but couldn't see her anywhere.
Dan's mother had died years ago, leaving her family a decent amount of money. It by no means made them rich, but it was enough to get Dan and his younger sister into a nice school.
"Dan, are you okay?" Nate asked.
Dan looked up at him.
"What?"
"Gee, was my story that boring?" Nate wondered.
"What? Oh, no, I just had a moment. I'm actually wondering if my friend Vanessa is going to join us. You might like her."
"Cool. I'd love to meet her."
"Which would be possible if she shows up," Dan muttered.
He looked around again and saw Jenny entering the lunch room. He smiled and waved at her. She stopped, looked at him and Nate, and quickly walked away. Dan was worried; she looked like she was going to be sick.
"That's strange," Dan commented, "My sister just walked away-"
"What the hell is this?" an irritated voice demanded.
Dan turned and saw Vanessa staring down at them bitterly.
"Oh, hey, V, this is my friend, Nate," he introduced.
Nate looked up and smiled.
"Hi-"
"Your friend?" she echoed, disdain dripping from her tongue, "That's funny. You'd think since we're friends, you might have mentioned him once or twice."
"Well, we just met today-"
"So, then, he's not really your friend?" she pressed.
Nate's smile faded.
"Um, I just remembered that I have to-"
"Be somewhere else?" Vanessa offered, "Don't let us stop you."
Nate frowned and looked at Dan. Dan gave Nate an apologetic look.
"Right. Anyway, I'll see you later, Dan."
Nate walked away sheepishly. Dan glared at Vanessa.
"What the hell was that?" he demanded.
"You tell me," she ordered, "Didn't realize you were so keen on being socially mobile."
"Socially mobile?" Dan echoed incredulously, "You are way out of line!"
"So, you were having lunch with Nate Archibald because you two have so much in common?" she shot.
"Well, we don't really - wait, how do you know who he is?"
"The paper," she reminded him, "I am the editor!"
"Why is Nate in our school paper?"
"He's captain of the lacrosse team, he was last year's junior prom king, his father donated a library to our school and he's dating the most popular girl in school. If you plan to be his new best friend, maybe you should do your research!" she shot as she got up and walked away.
Dan was at a loss. Vanessa was usually good for a dose of abnormality, but this was a bit much, even for her. What was her problem? He sighed and continued eating his lunch. Some days, he just didn't get girls.
He looked up when he heard Jenny laughing. He looked around and saw her sitting with Blair and Chuck, talking with them. What was she doing talking to them? Did she know who they were? He contemplated going over and talking to her. She must have sensed this, because she looked over at him and slightly shook her head. The look she gave told him he wasn't invited over. He let out another exasperated sigh, packed up his brown paper bag, and left the lunch room. Even though he didn't eat his whole lunch, Dan was no longer hungry.
