Okay, so my friend is taking too long with my hard drive so I'm retyping it. Hope you like it and sorry for the long wait.

Dan watched Nate come out and retrieved the ball.

"You done talking to her?"

Nate nodded, a bitter smile on his face. "I'm sorry man."

Dan nodded his thanks and passed the ball to Nate. "C'mon let's play."

"To fifteen?"

"Yup. Now check the ball."

Nate laughed and handed the ball to Dan. "You're gonna lose."

Dan merely dribbled the ball and pretended to charge Nate, causing him to stumble back. He charged to the basket and made an easy layup.

"What the hell was that?!"

"My first point."

Nate rolled his eyes. "You're still gonna lose."

"Will you just shut up and check the ball?!"

Nate handed Dan the ball again and crouched low, ready to defend.

Dan sped towards the basket, only to have the ball stolen by Nate who made a fadeaway shot. (A/N: I don't want to bore you with the basketball talk, so moving on!!)

Fifteen minutes later, both guys were dripping with sweat and it was tied 14-14, Dan's ball.

"You still gonna win, Nate?"

"Yup, just watch."

Dan rolled his eyes and took the ball. For the past fifteen minutes, his mind had been in the game and off of Serena. It was somewhat relaxing.

Dan faked right and charged left, with Nate all over him. He took a few steps back, ready with the jump shot. The ball just about to leave his hands...when he heard a familiar voice say, "Dan?"

He released the ball, only to have it stop three feet away from the hoop. Nate quickly scooped up the ball and drove it to the basket, slamming it in for the win.

"I told you I would win man." Nate said laughing, walking over to pat Dan on the back.

Dan however was stationary, staring at the directon of the voice. "Serena." He breathed.

Nate looked in the direction Dan was staring and saw that it was indeed Serena. But what had surprised Dan the most was that she was holding Caden's hand.

"Dude, I thought you said she didn't remember Caden." Nate said, picking up the ball.

"She doesn't."

Caden let go of Serena's hand and ran over to Dan. "Daddy!"

He launched himself into Dan's arms. "Daddy, Uncle Chuck curses a lot."

Dan chuckled and held his son tighter. "Yeah, I bet he does. Did he pay you?"

"Yup! I got fifty dollars!"

Dan and Serena had made a deal with all of their friends. Anytime they cursed in front of the little boy, they had to pay him five dollars.

"Didya get any from Auntie Blair?"

"Yeah, only five. She cursed at Uncle Chuck when he cursed the first time yesterday! Hi Uncle Nate!"

Caden had spotted Nate and waved. Dan passed Caden to Nate and watched as he carried his son piggy back style into the house.

Dan smiled at the sight and looked up to see that Serena was still there. She was biting her lip and looked nervous. Something that didn't happen very often.

"Dan," She called out softly. "Can we talk?"

Forcing a smile, he picked up the basketball and walked towards her. "Sure."

He followed her into the kitchen and dropped the ball into a nearby chair. "What's up?"

"Look, I wanted to apologize. What I said was out of line and that was wron-"

Dan stood up and cut her off. "Hey, its fine. You don't remember me and I freaked you out. It's fine."

"No its not! And if you're saying its fine, you're lying to me and yourself!"

"Then what the hell do you want me to say?" Dan sank into a chair and sighed wearily.

"I want the truth. I know that I don't remember you or our s-s-son, but you seem like a good guy."

Dan raised an eyebrow. "I seem like a good guy?"

Serena rolled her eyes. "Well you haven't attempted to do anything to make me uncomfortable and I feel really bad that I can't remember you."

"Its not your fault."

"It feels like it is."

"Maybe we can change that."

"That'd be nice."

Dan smiled and held out his right hand. "So lets start over. Let's say we just met and we're gonna go on a date tonight."

"I'd like that." She took his hand. "Hi, I'm Serena."

"I'm Dan."

The two smiled at each other, their hands still locked in a handshake. There was a resounding crash from the living room and they turned to see that Nate, Blair and Chuck had tumbled into the kitchen, obviously eavesdropping.

Blair hastily picked herself up and walked away, nose in the air. Nate and Chuck did the same, except less gracefully. As soon as they walked away, Dan and Serena burst out laughing.

Then, Caden burst into the kitchen. "Momma, Daddy! Uncle Chuck cursed again!"

Dan picked Caden up. "Oh did he? Well then he's going to take you, Auntie Blair and Uncle Nate to dinner. Mommy and daddy are going out tonight. You be a good boy while you're staying at Blair's okay?"

"Okay daddy. We have to go now. Uncle Chuck told me he would buy me a present. Bye mommy, daddy. I love you!"

Serena watched as Caden hopped down from his fathers arms. He was so...adorable. And watching this guy Dan and Caden interact was so...cute.

Dan smiled fondly at his son and turned to Serena.

"So where do you want to go tonight?"

"Surprise me."

"Alright. Let's say goodbye to Blair and Chuck."

"And Nate."

"Right, I so would have beaten him at basketball. You just sort of took my breath away."

Serena blushed and opened her mouth to stammer a reply when Blair burst into the kitchen again.

"Why is my husband taking Caden, Nate and I to dinner?" She narrowed her eyes in Dan's direction.

"Uh...about that, um.." Stammered Dan.

"Blair, Dan and I are going on a date." Serena cut in.

Blair raised her eyebrows in Dan's direction. "Okay then. We're going to Butter. Don't follow us. Go somewhere else and leave us the hell alone."

Dan rolled his eyes and he and Serena followed her out of the kitchen.

Dan watched as Serena bounded down the stairs, looking every bit the angel he knew she was.

"Uh..you...look.." Dan trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.

"Too casual?" Serena said, looking down at her tights and shirt dress. "Too dressy?"

"No, you look...perfect."

Serena blushed and looked at her feet. "So where are we going?"

"We are going to be eating here then going out to do some stuff."

"What kind of stuff?"

"You'll see."

"Okay."

"Right, so I'm gonna go change. And yea." He ran up the stairs and into their bedroom.

Throwing off his t-shirt, he quickly changed into a black button down and a pair of black jeans. He rushed back downstairs and saw that Serena was on the couch, reading a fashion magazine.

"Hey."

She looked up and set the magazine aside. "Hey. So are we eating in the dining room? Kitchen?"

"Nah, we're eating right here. Unless you want to go to the dining room or kitchen."

"Right here's fine."

Dan walked into the kitchen to get the food. He brought it out and set it out on the table along with utensils and plates.

"What do you want to drink?"

"Um, a diet coke?"

"One diet coke, coming right up!" Dan mock-saluted her, causing her to burst into giggles.

He quickly got her drink and brought it back for her.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Ready to see your dinner?"

"I can't wait."

Dan took off the silver domes covering the food and heard a gasp from Serena.

"These are all my favorite foods!" She squealed.

"Yeah, I know."

"Thank you. For doing this, even though I don't remember yo-sorry shouldn't have brought that up."

Dan waved a hand as if to say, 'It's alright' and spooned some spaghetti onto his plate and Serena's.

"Mmm, this is delicious."

"Thank you. This is like Caden's favorite food."

"Tell me about him."

"Caden?"

"Yeah."

"Well, he's just about the cutest four year old ever. He's turning five next week. There are times when I can definitely tell he's your son. And apparently he wants to be just like his grandpa when he grows up. Playing in a band, going on tour. He's good at Guitar Hero, I'll give him that. He probably got that from you."

Serena watched as Dan talked, mesmerized. "I really wish I remember him and you."

"You're not the only one."

Dan looked at Serena, love showing in his eyes. Serena blushed and quickly ate some bites to avoid awkward conversation.

Fifteen minutes later, both had finished their meals and Serena was lounging on the couch as Dan washed the dishes. He stepped out of the kitchen, rolling his sleeves down.

"Ready for the second part of our date?"

"More than ever."

He handed her one of her many coats and donned his own army jacket. It was mid-November and it was slightly chilly outside.

"So where are we going?"

"For a walk." Dan replied vaguely.

They linked arms and stepped into the night. A town car was waiting for them outside. Dan opened the door for Serena and followed her in.

"I thought you said we were going for a walk." Serena said, her tone playful.

"We are. We're going to the park."

They arrived at the park. It was still light out and the sun was beginning to set.

Serena and Dan began to walk along the path, her hand tucked in the crook of his arm.

"This is nice." She said, staring at the sunset. "It's really beautiful. It's amazing."

"Yeah, but I wouldn't use beautiful. Not with you here."

Serena blushed for what seemed like the twentith time that night. "Thank you."

Dan inclined his head slightly and stared off into the distance. Then turning to look at her, he asked, "So you're probably wondering why we're walking here, right?"

"Yeah, sort of."

"Well since you don't know me, I'm giving you the oppurtunity to ask me any question at all. Even embarassing ones." He shot her a smile.

"Alright. Um, when did I first meet you?"

"Ninth grade birthday party. You were the only one that talked to me there, but you might've been a little more than tipsy and didn't remember it."

"What are you most ashamed of?"

Dan turned sort of a purple/red color and mumbled, "I cheated on you once, with Georgina."

"Oh." Serena felt a tight burning feeling in the pit of her stomach, but forced a small smile and continued to ask questions.

"What's your favorite color?"

"Green."

"What's my favorite food?"

"Grilled Cheese with Truffle Oil."

"What's my favorite book?"

"The Catcher in the Rye." (A/N: Awesome book!)

"You're good at this."

"Years of practice."

"What attracted you to me the most?"

"At first...your looks." Dan looked at his feet and smiled sheepishly. "Then when I got to know you, it was your laugh, your ability to be with me, and just you being you."

Serena felt a memory pass through her head and heard the words, 'You laugh like a four year old.'

"I see. So I wasn't just good in bed?" She joked.

"Oh you were, but I didn't want just that. I wanted everything."

So this is where the chapter ends, hope you like it. And I just realized that I need a beta-reader. Someone to talk me through my insanity filled life, someone to edit for me, someone to talk to me when I have too much sugar. You get the point. Anyway, if you want to assist me(wow that sounds weird) just PM me, email me, whatever.

See you soon,

-Stephanie
(xoxoDanSerena)