FOUR
Short on time, Dan and Blair had literally gone from the bed to the town car so they could beat Serena back to the city.
And they did. Barely.
Serena texted him minutes after he arrived back at the apartment to let him know that she and Lily were on their way from the airport.
Dan hopped out of the shower, having reluctantly washed any remaining traces of Blair off of his body. He quickly dried off and made his way into the bedroom. He slipped on a pair of boxers, then grabbed a button down and a pair of jeans from the overnight bag he'd taken on his trip. He did a quick glance around the room.
Noticing the bed was still made, he pulled back the sheets and the comforter from one side and began to dishevel it. Just enough to make it look slept in.
He then got to work on unpacking the rest of his overnight bag, throwing his shoes in the closet and shoving the rest of his unworn clothing back into the drawers.
When he was done, he walked into the kitchen and turned on the coffee pot; then ventured into the living room.
Dan sank into the couch and stared at his open laptop, still sitting on the coffee table; it was in the same place Dan had left it the day before.
He lightly skimmed his fingers over the mouse pad, and a blank page revealed itself.
Dan sighed.
He wanted to recount every moment of the time he'd spent with Blair, but somehow words weren't adequate. Being with her again was indescribable. The smoothness of her skin. The sounds she made when consumed by orgasm. The soulful eyes which held him hostage for the last twelve hours. There were simply no words.
The car had come to pick Dan and Blair up at four AM. It wasn't hard to wake up because they had never even slept.
The food that had been delivered to their room the night before had gone uneaten. They had simply been too busy. They did make good use of the wine, however.
As rushed as it all seemed, Dan couldn't complain. He would have done just about anything in order to fuck Blair Waldorf again. It was selfish and terrible, but he needed her. He would leave Serena in a heartbeat if Blair asked him to. No questions asked.
But Blair was in a precarious position. She had Henry to think about and a company to run. Her mother had tightened the reins on her with the recent fluctuating sales of Waldorf Designs.
And then there was Chuck. Chuck could make life hell for both of them if he were to ever find out. If they were to ever move beyond the point of no return with this relationship, it would have to be Blair initiating it. Dan couldn't push her. Until then, he was just happy to be in her life again. Even if it meant playing the happy spouse to Serena.
And seeing Blair on the sly.
Dan sat upright on the couch. His eyes darted to the door, on alert for any sign of his wife. Dan's body was tensed up, reacting to every sound, no matter how slight. His foot was tapping uncontrollably. He literally had to place his hand on his knee to hold his leg steady.
No, Dan Humphrey wasn't feeling especially sharp today. How would he ever be able to hide this from Serena? The lack of sleep coupled with the excitement of finally being with Blair combined with the sneaking around and betrayal of his marriage was starting to manifest itself.
He was now an adulterer.
The word itself repulsed him. He recalled how his mother had left the family to be with a man in Hudson when he was in high school. He, his sister, and his father were devastated. To this day, he still hadn't made peace with it.
And he was no different, though he now understood that these things weren't always so black and white. How could it be wrong when it was something his body was pushing him to do?
At this moment, there were a number of things swirling in Dan's head.
How to act normal after committing adultery was certainly nothing he'd ever had to consider. Would Serena be able to see it in his eyes? Would she sense it when they kissed? Would his voice give him away? Could she smell it on him?
Dan leaned over his keyboard, still reflecting on the events of the past few hours. The sex had been incredible-better than he ever remembered it. And he seemed to recall some amazing encounters. He wasn't sure if it was childbirth, or simply maturity, but Blair's body was even more supple than he remembered. He smiled at the image of Blair writhing underneath him, her eyes locked on his; her fingertips lightly skimming his abdomen as he thrust into her again and again.
He couldn't wait to relive it.
Exhausted, they had said very little on the ride back. Now that their affair was a full blown reality, there was nothing that needed to be said.
Dan recalled how the moonlight shone through the window of the town car, reflecting off Blair's liquid brown eyes. This was the same girl he had fallen in love with at "W." The girl he had been lying to himself about for years, telling himself he was over.
He watched her, memorizing every detail of her face, wanting to say something but not wanting to disturb her. She didn't seem unhappy, just deep in contemplation. He had no idea what she would be returning to when they got back to the city, but it physically pained him to think of Blair lying in bed, lonely and sad, her son and husband nowhere to be found.
Writing about her was a way to keep her close even when he couldn't physically be with her.
As he began to situate his fingers on the keys, the sound of the elevator jolted him from his reverie. Dan leapt from the couch.
Serena waltzed in with Vanya following close behind her, pushing a luggage cart.
"Thanks, Vanya, you can just leave that stuff here. My sweet hubby can get the rest." Vanya looked up and gave Dan an odd look. It caught an already paranoid Dan off guard, and it suddenly occurred to him that perhaps he'd been spotted coming back this morning-even though he'd used the service entrance.
Dan swallowed hard. His heart started to palpitate.
Paranoia and Dan Humphrey were not a good combination.
Dan walked over to Serena and leaned in to give her a quick peck on the cheek.
"Anything else, Mrs. Humphrey?" Vanya asked as he pulled the last of the bags off the cart.
"Nope! I think I'm all good. Thanks, Vanya." Vanya gave Dan a perfunctory nod before pulling the cart behind him back towards the elevator.
After Vanya was gone, Serena turned to Dan.
"So is that all I get?" She gave him a pouty look, cocking her head to one side and sticking out her bottom lip as she wrapped her arms around Dan's neck. She pulled him in close and crashed her mouth into his. Dan tried to reciprocate, but knew he wasn't matching her enthusiasm.
She pulled back and gave him a curious look.
"You're acting weird," she declared. "What have you been up to?" She glanced over his shoulder, at the open laptop sitting on the table.
"Oh you know. Trying to write. I just suddenly have this massive case of writer's block."
That sounded good, he thought to himself. He was a writer after all. He had imagination. He could come up with something that sounded halfway truthful and Serena would probably buy it in a heartbeat. There was no need to be nervous.
"I'm starting to feel the pressure of this deadline, you know? I didn't sleep well at all last night. I just don't know how I'm going to get it all done." There was actually some truth to this.
Serena leaned in, caressing his hair. "Oh my poor baby. I know it must be hard for you to sleep when I'm not around."
"Not for the reasons you're thinking..." Dan thought to himself.
"What can I do to make it better?" He was sure there was some sexual connotation to that question, but that was the absolute last thing he wanted. Dan felt himself start to fidget. And then the words, with no thought behind them whatsoever, began to spew.
The hyper-verbal Dan train was leaving the station.
"You know? I'm alright I think. I just have to...I think I might just go...you know maybe I'll run out and get us some coffee." He paused for a moment. "Oh wait, but I already made coffee... Maybe I'll just go grab us some pastries? You want a pastry?" He exhaled. "Or maybe I just need to go and lie down."
Serena gave him a concerned look. "Dan, are you okay?" She placed her hand on his forehead, checking for signs of fever. He forced a smile, pulling her hand away from his head. "I'm fine," he assured her. "Like I said, this deadline is just getting to me..."
Serena nodded.
"I should just try and sleep for a while. And then, you said you have some sort of surprise...?"
Serena's eyes grew wide with excitement.
"Yes, I do! And you're going to love it!" She gave Dan another hug. Dan brought his arms up slightly to reciprocate but...nope. He just wasn't feeling it.
"Okay, well if you're just going to sleep, I'm going to get out of here for a while. I've got way too much energy to just sit here," she announced as she checked the time on her phone. "So you take your nap. I'm going to go shop for a bit. And then I might stop by and see Blair. Haven't seen her in a while. Should probably make sure she's okay. You haven't seen her, have you?"
Dan gulped at the question. "Uh, no. Where would I have seen Blair? I've been too busy trying to finish this chapter," Dan snapped.
Serena furrowed her brow. "Hmm, okay..." Serena chalked the crankiness up to sleep deprivation.
"Well, then get some rest. I'll see you later?" Serena grabbed her purse, then leaned into Dan's lips for another kiss. "I missed you so much."
And with that, Serena was off again. He waited until he heard the sound of the elevator doors close before heaving a huge sigh of relief. Dan had handled that with as little aplomb as possible, yet she didn't seem to suspect anything.
Still, he wanted to bang his head against the door.
This cheating thing was going to be harder than he thought.
Dan grabbed his phone, immediately wanting to text Blair and warn her about the surprise visitor she would be getting later. He thought for a moment, then set the phone back down. He didn't want her to think he was smothering her. After all, they had only just parted an hour earlier. He knew they would have to trust that the other one could properly handle the occasional odd encounter with the other's spouse.
And Blair was far more versed in the art of pretense than he was. She would be able to handle an impromptu visit from Serena with no problem whatsoever. He was the one who needed some coaching.
Dan grabbed his laptop and headed for the bedroom. Perhaps with a few z's under his belt he would be better equipped to deal with the nuances of adultery.
Blair couldn't stop smiling as the almost unbearably hot water from the shower rained down over her, reviving her from her bleary state. She watched as beads of water trickled down her stomach, right where Dan's fingers and tongue had been only hours earlier.
Dan had most definitely picked up a few new tricks since they'd last been together, though she didn't care to know from whom. Still, Blair was already thrumming with anticipation at the thought of possible locations and positions she wanted to experiment with him. The inherent danger of sneaking around was a definite turn on.
As were other things. Her mouth watered as she recalled how absolutely delicious Dan's shoulders looked. And other things...
As she ran her fingers through her wet hair, feeling for any remnants of conditioner, she contemplated what this would all mean going forward. She wanted Dan. She even told him that she loved him, which was something she could never admit to him before. And though he'd made it clear there would be no pressure on her from his end to leave Chuck, she couldn't help but feel a little bad that the state of their relationship hinged completely on her. But these things had to be handled delicately. Divorcing Chuck would bring her two divorces in a relatively short time span. She'd already endured an onslaught of whispers and smirks following her record breaking marriage to Louis. She followed that up with a less traditional wedding ceremony in Central Park. A ceremony from which she and Chuck were subsequently led away by police.
She wasn't quite ready to look like a fool again.
Blair sighed as she rinsed the rest of the soap from her body. Today, all she wanted to do was retire to her bed and perhaps relive the highlights from the previous evening-and early morning. She cut off the water and exited the shower. She then grabbed a towel and quickly dried herself off before slipping on a robe.
She looked in the mirror, noting how the color had returned to her cheeks. It was obviously from the heat of the water, but Blair told herself that a certain Humphrey had played a part in it as well.
On her recent trip to Paris, Jenny commented that she looked a little peaked. Blair had been working relentlessly around the clock, trying to shore up orders for her Spring collection and putting out last minute fires. She'd left Jenny in charge at the atelier in Paris upon the conclusion of Fashion Week, giving her carte blanche to make any major decisions she deemed necessary.
This didn't sit well with Eleanor whatsoever, and Blair had been avoiding her mother's calls ever since. She knew she'd eventually have to endure a tongue lashing from her. But she also knew Jenny could handle the business. At least that's what she was telling herself.
Besides, she was actually doing some work in New York. She'd set up meetings with buyers that would carry her through the New Year. It wasn't like she'd completely abandoned the company.
Blair exhaled, laying her head on the pillow.
She immediately popped back up.
It suddenly occurred to her that it was early evening in Dubai and she hadn't spoken to Henry or Chuck in over a week.
Blair grabbed her phone and dialed Chuck's number. She was completely unsurprised when it went to voicemail. Chuck's greeting was the standard "Leave a message."
"Chuck, it's me. I figured I would have heard from you two by now. I'd like to talk to my son." Her voice was calm but there was an inkling of a threat in her words. "Call me."
She placed the phone on the nightstand. The truth was she felt like somewhat of a failure as a mother. When she gave birth to Henry, she told herself she would be able to juggle it all while being a better mother than Eleanor had ever been to her. But somehow, life had gotten away from her. The next thing she knew, Waldorf Designs was demanding nearly all of her time. She initially took Henry everywhere she went, but Chuck put the brakes on that fairly quickly, complaining that he never got to see his son.
That's when he insisted on hiring a nanny.
He insisted it was perfectly normal for a couple with demanding lives such as theirs to have one, and that it was nothing to be ashamed of. Dorota would take care of the apartment and the running of the household, and the nanny would watch Henry so he didn't have to be uprooted from his life here in New York while his parents traveled the globe for work.
It didn't take Chuck long before he was changing the rules on her.
Or for Blair to realize that the nanny and Henry were accompanying him on nearly all of his trips...
Blair lay there, trying to pinpoint exactly when her marriage started to derail.
She felt herself drifting off, but was quickly awakened by the sound of her phone ringing. She shot up, not wanting to miss the opportunity to talk to her son.
"Hello?" she answered enthusiastically.
"B? That sure was a friendly greeting!" Blair was caught off guard. She hadn't spoken to Serena in weeks.
"Serena?" Why was she calling? Was Dan with her? She racked her brain over what Serena could possibly want.
"S, I'm kind of expecting a phone call," Blair explained, hoping to put a nix on the conversation.
Serena didn't take the hint.
"Well, I was actually seeing if I could stop by in about an hour? I have something I want to discuss with you."
Blair's eyes narrowed. What did she want to discuss? Surely this couldn't be about Dan.
Blair exhaled. "I guess that would be okay," she replied reluctantly. "I was trying to get some rest, though. Didn't sleep well last night."
Serena laughed. "Must be something in the water here in New York. Dan didn't sleep well either." Blair smiled, refraining from saying anything that might get her into trouble.
"I, on the other hand, slept like a dream at thirty-thousand feet," Serena added. "Nothing like sleeping in the clouds."
"I guess," Blair replied succinctly.
"So, listen. I'm picking up a couple of dry caps and I'll be over soon. Can't wait to see you!" With that, Serena hung up, leaving Blair slightly irritated. This was the absolute last thing she wanted to deal with right now.
Blair rolled herself out of bed, debating whether or not to put on real clothes. She ultimately decided against it. If Serena was going to insist on interrupting her morning, then she was determined to stay comfortable. It occurred to her to send Dan a text to ask what this was about, but realized it might be too soon. She didn't want to seem needy.
She made her way downstairs, and for the next hour sat in front of the television, finding out that with hundreds of channels there was still nothing worth watching, not that she ever had time to anyway. Blair briefly paused on the Turner Classic Movies channel.
"An Affair To Remember" was on. Ah yes, she thought to herself, remembering the time Chuck had given her an ultimatum to meet him on the top of the Empire State Building or lose him forever.
"Asshole couldn't even wait five fucking minutes..." she thought to herself.
That was the night he'd gone on to take Jenny Humphrey's virginity. Blair shook her head at the thought, then clicked off the television upon hearing a knock at the door. She took her time getting up. Before opening the door, she plastered on a faux smile and...
"Serena!" she exclaimed.
Serena stood before her looking as beautiful as ever in simple jeans, a sweater and a scarf, holding two dry caps and one white paper bag.
"I brought croissants!" she announced, as if it were the most exciting breakfast pastry in the world. She leaned in to give Blair a quick kiss on the cheek before sidling past her and making herself at home.
She took a seat on the couch. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!"
"Well, it has been a few weeks. I'm busy with WD, and you're..."
Blair didn't really know exactly what Serena did with her days. And from her conversations with Dan, he didn't seem to know either. Luckily, Serena interrupted her before she found herself making a nasty comment.
"B, you do look tired. Have you been working too hard?" Of course Serena would tell her she looked tired.
Blair took a seat beside her on the couch, helping herself to a cappuccino.
"Yeah, well I'm a little stressed. You know, the holidays are coming up, and I have all these meetings. Everything's a little crazy." She took a sip of her coffee drink. "So what did you want to talk about?" Blair asked disinterestedly.
"Did you want to discuss the fact that I rode your husband's cock all night long?" She hid a smirk as Serena popped a bit of croissant into her mouth. She turned to Blair and took a deep breath. "Well, tonight, I want to tell Dan that I'm ready."
Blair gave her a confused look. "Ready?"
Serena nodded eagerly.
Blair threw her hands in the air. "Okay. I give. Ready for what?" The gleam in Serena's eye was starting to irritate her.
"Well, we've been married a year, and that's about how long you and Chuck waited before conceiving..."
Blair's eyes narrowed. She felt a migraine coming on fast and hard and wanted nothing more than to run up the stairs and crawl back under the covers.
Serena came here to tell her that she wanted to have a baby. Dan's baby. This was not a topic she wanted to discuss. Ever.
Blair massaged her temples, squeezing her eyes shut.
"B?"
"Yeah? Still here."
"Well?
"Well what?" Blair snipped.
"Well, what's the best way to broach the subject?" Serena asked sincerely.
At that moment, Blair was praying for some sort of relief. An earthquake. A tornado. Couldn't Serena see that she wasn't feeling well? She needed someone or something...anything that could save her from this utterly torturous conversation.
And like a flash of light from the heavens, Dorota walked through the door.
"Oh hello, Miss Serena," Dorota greeted. "Miss Blair, I don't think you be here today. You say you have very important work thingy all weekend! So I don't go to grocery yet. Because no Miss Blair, no Mister Chuck, no Mister Henry..."
Of course she would bring up the fact that Blair hadn't planned on being here this weekend. And that her husband and child weren't around.
"It's fine, Dorota. I'll make do," Blair insisted, smiling as she fiddled with the ties on her robe.
"When Mister Chuck and Mister Henry coming home?" Dorota pressed.
Blair sighed. "I'm not really sure, Dorota. But as soon as I hear something I will let you know. Now, feel free to take the rest of the day off. I think I hear your children calling you from Queens."
Dorota gave Blair a suspicious look.
"But I make plans to do the shopping today!" Dorota said emphatically.
"And I said don't worry about it. You can go on Monday. In the meantime I'll order in."
"But-"
"No 'but,' Dorota." Dorota stood there, confused.
Blair gave her a tiny wave.
Dorota frowned, then finally did as she was told, slinking back out the door.
"Bye," Blair called out. Now if only Serena would follow suit.
Blair turned back to face Serena, who was eyeing her. "Are you sure you're okay, B?"
Uh...did she not explain to Serena earlier that she was tired? She wasn't a brainiac, this one.
"Fine, S. Just fine."
Serena shrugged. "So anyway, I was thinking about taking Dan to Jean-Georges, you know where we had our first date? Maybe broach the subject then. And then afterwards get started…" She let out a giggle.
Blair bit her lip, jealousy rippling through her veins.
"What do you think?" Serena sat by patiently.
Blair paused as if truly considering the plan. She then cleared her throat.
"Well if that's what you want, Serena. But personally..." Blair's manipulative tendencies were starting to kick in.
"Go on..." Serena flipped her hair from one shoulder to the other, as she listened intently.
Blair shook her head. "I don't want to tell you how to run your marriage, and if you think you're ready for kids, well..."
She just couldn't help herself.
"Well what?" Serena leaned in, interested in what her best friend had to say.
"I just think, personally, if I were to do it all over again, I would want a little more time before crossing that bridge. You know what I mean? That's all."
It wasn't a lie, but her motivation for giving such advice was completely selfish. In no way did she want to think about Dan conceiving a child with Serena. Blair loved her son, but the second he was born he became direct competition for Chuck's affections. Henry's birth wasn't the only reason their marriage had gone south, but it definitely hadn't helped.
Serena was confused. "Are you saying you regret having Henry?"
"No! Absolutely not. I'm just trying to tell you that in my experience, kids change everything. They're really a lot of responsibility."
Serena placed a hand on her hip. "So you're saying you don't think I'm responsible?"
She stood up from the couch and crossed her arms. This wasn't what Blair had intended to happen, but she couldn't say she was completely dissatisfied with the turn the conversation had taken.
"Let me ask you something, Blair. When's the last time you even saw your child? Was it a few days ago? Or weeks, maybe? Months?"
Blair huffed. "So I make one comment about how difficult child rearing is and suddenly you're judging my parenting? You certainly have a lot of nerve."
"You just said I wasn't responsible!"
"That's not exactly what I said. But now that you've said it, I can't say I disagree. You aren't responsible. You go through life without a care in the world. You don't even have a job! And, you know, not that its any of your business, but Henry is currently receiving some valuable cultural lessons with his father in Dubai."
Serena smirked. "Oh? Is that what they call it these days? Well if that's the case, I don't think Henry is the only one receiving 'lessons.' I hear his father is getting a few himself."
Blair's mouth fell and she could feel herself turning red. She took a deep breath. "I don't know what you think you know, or who you've been talking to, so I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. You have precisely three seconds to get out of my home."
"You don't have to ask me twice," Serena shot back, reaching for her purse and heading for the door. She swung it open and slammed it behind her.
Blair could feel tears forming in her eyes as she collapsed back against the couch. And seconds later, the tears were coming down in a torrent.
Serena was right. She was an awful mother who never saw her child.
And her husband was cheating on her.
And everything was horrible.
After a few minutes of bawling into a throw pillow, she sprang up. Blair reached for her phone and sent off a text.
"Meet me at my office?"
She nervously waited for a response, hoping Dan wasn't asleep.
"Yeah. Why? Everything ok?"
She quickly responded.
"No. Thirty minutes?"
"Ok."
Blair quickly ran up the stairs to change. She threw on a blue Stella McCartney dress, applied some makeup to try and cover her blotchy skin and red eyes, and pulled her hair back into a ponytail.
She grabbed her coat. A minute later she was out the door and hailing a taxi.
Blair let herself into the empty atelier and dumped her coat on a nearby desk.
She looked around, seeing a variety of projects in progress. It was a complete mess, actually. She would have to yell at her assistants.
She peeked at her phone to see if Dan had called her to tell her he was running late, but there were no messages. Finally, she heard a knock at the door.
Blair exhaled with relief as Dan appeared, shutting the door softly behind him.
"What happened?" he asked, concerned. He shed his coat and threw it next to Blair's. I just got a text from Serena saying you two had a fight and that she was going for some retail therapy."
Blair felt herself start to tear up again.
"What's wrong?" Dan took a worried step toward her.
"Did you tell Serena that Chuck's been cheating on me?" Her lip trembled as she spoke.
Dan gave her a confused look. "No. Absolutely not. Why? Did she say that?"
"It doesn't matter. Because if she knows all of Manhattan knows." Tears were streaming down her face again. "Why do I let him do this to me? Over and over." She was sobbing now.
Dan reached out, pulling her close to him. "Shh. You're going to be fine," he whispered.
Blair lifted her head from Dan's tearstained shoulder, locking eyes with him.
"Please… I just need… can you please...?" Dan's heart was pounding. He understood.
Dan took a moment to tuck a loose strand of Blair's hair behind her ear before leaning, gently pressing his lips into hers.
She desperately began to unbutton his shirt, but only got half way down before Dan suddenly lofted her up, his hands cradling her bottom. He walked her over to the nearest wall, and she gripped his shoulders as he carefully propped her up against it. He shoved her dress up, his fingers roughly massaging her thighs. She spasmed at the feel of his warm hands while she kissed him hungrily.
Dan's fingers drifted from her thighs, and his knuckles lightly skimmed over the center of her panties. She cried out, nearly coming right then.
He set her down for a moment. She rapidly unbuckled his belt and tugged his jeans down. Dan assisted her, helping her shove his boxers off before turning his attention back to her. He roughly lifted her up again and moved his hands back under her dress, ripping her panties down. "Oh..." she mewed. "Fuck me."
She moaned in ecstasy as he plunged his aching cock inside of her. She was so tight around him and they easily found a rhythm, hips thrusting furiously. Dan couldn't take his eyes off of her.
Her head fell back against the cold brick wall. "Oh..God. Mmm. Fuck. Yes. Fuck me. YES!" she screamed. "Feel so good..." she encouraged.
His panting was growing heavier and more desperate.
"So good, Blair… You're incredible."
Dan could tell she was close. Her fingernails were practically shredding through the shoulders of his shirt.
"There, Dan. Yes right..Oh God! Yes! Mmm." Dan gave her one more thrust before stilling his cock, grunting and releasing himself inside of her.
He collapsed against her, still holding her up against the wall as her dress fell back into place. Dan rested his head against Blair's chest, trying to catch his breath.
"Holy shit," Dan cracked.
"Yeah..." Blair said, still panting as she mussed his hair. "That was good," she added deliriously. She needed a cigarette.
Dan grinned, leaning in to kiss her again. An agonizingly slow kiss…
He could get used to this.
Dan gently lowered Blair to the floor, taking a moment to help her straighten herself before sliding his jeans back on.
He zipped them up, then reached out to caress her face, holding her gaze. There was a sudden, stormy change in her eyes that he didn't quite understand.
"What?"
"You should probably go," Blair said softly. "Serena will be looking for you. And I've got work to do here so..."
"Blair... What's wrong?" He wasn't ready to leave her. And he was now legitimately concerned.
"You know you don't have to feel sorry for me," she snipped.
"I don't..that's not what..."
"Just go," she pleaded. Dan knew when Blair got this way, the best thing to do was to leave her alone.
"I'll call you," Dan said softly, not wanting to end things like this. He grabbed his coat and walked to the door, turning to look at her one last time. She was staring at the floor now, lost in thought.
He felt empty as he made his way onto the street. It was going to be impossible not to think about her.
He looked at his phone to see that he had missed several texts from Serena.
"I'm at home now. Where are you?"
"I thought you were going to try and sleep?"
"Dan, WHERE ARE YOU?"
"Shit," Dan thought to himself as he hailed a taxi. "Shit, shit, shit."
Blair sat down at her desk. She grabbed a pile of papers and was beginning to sift through them when her phone rang. She reached for it furiously when she glimpsed the caller ID.
"Finally, Chuck!" she screamed into the phone. "What the hell do you think you're doing!?"
"Nice to hear your voice, too, Blair."
"I want to talk to my son," Blair insisted, trying to calm herself.
"Well, he's taking a nap. Perhaps when he wakes up."
Blair's fists clenched. He was using that condescending tone again.
"I want to talk to him now, Chuck! Put him on the phone!"
"Blair, calm down."
"I will not calm down!" Blair bolted up from her chair. "You are playing games again, and you're using my child as a pawn."
"Blair, I don't think you're understanding me."
"Well by all means please explain!" She pounded her palm on the desk.
"You can talk to your son when he wakes up, Blair. We're at home. Waiting for you."