A/N: Hello all! Thank you so much for all the reviews! I loved every one of them and I'm so glad you like this story. Okay, here is the next chapter. For some reason, I'm a little nervous about this one. I hope after all the drama in last chapter that this one isn't disappointing. We'll see.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl or any of the characters.

Dan rushed over to Blair, who was barely standing against the railing. Her body shook with sobs, and Dan was unsure what to do. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Hey- you okay?" He inwardly scolded himself for asking that. Of course she's not okay, Daniel. She's crying.

He pulled Blair into his chest and wrapped his arms around her. Her body continued to shake against him. She pulled away a little a mumbled something about ruining his suit with her tears. He chuckled and instead of answering, embraced her more tightly. She cried for a few more minutes and then looked up at him. Her eye makeup was all over, her cheeks were rosy pink, and tears were still streaming down her face. He brushed her hair off her face and pressed his lips to her forehead. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Arms still wrapped around Dan, Blair turned to her friends who had still been standing nearby in silence. She walked over to them, Dan still close behind her. When her eyes met Serena's, fresh tears sprung to the rims.

"Blair, what's wrong," Serena asked, voice soft.

Blair wiped her eyes. "S, Nate, I'm so sorry I ruined your party."

Nate stepped closer to her. "Blair, you didn't ruin anything. None of the guests have any idea what's going on. In fact, most of the guests don't even know whose party they're at."

Blair gave a small smile. "I had no idea how he was going to react, but it certainly wasn't that." She pointed to where she had been standing before. Her friends gave empathetic smiles.

They all stood in silence before Serena spoke up. "Listen, B, if you don't want to stay, that's totally fine with us."

Blair thought for a moment. Then said, "You know I hate laving a party early, but I'm this night has taken its toll on me. I think I'm going to head out."

Serena nodded and hugged Blair. "I'll call you tomorrow, okay?"

Blair smiled, "Okay."

As Dan started to say goodbye to the others, Blair stopped him. "Wait- Dan. You should stay...catch up with your dad more."

He guided her off to the side, away from their friends. "Are you sure? You don't want me to come with you?"

She shook her head. "No, no, it's not that. I just need to be alone for a little while."

He stared at her, but then hesitantly agreed.

He pressed his lips against hers and then brought them up to her forehead, lips lingering there for a moment. "I'll call you later, okay?" She said softly.

"Okay," he answered, as she pulled away. Blair waved to her friends before heading back inside. When she turned one last time, she felt a wave of guilt wash over her when she saw Dan's face. He was explaining to their friends why she left alone. It's okay to have time alone, Blair. Clear your head, she told herself.

After she retrieved her coat and got her camera bag, she walked outside and hailed a cab. She didn't even care how filthy it was.

"Where to?" The driver asked in a thick accent.

Blair thought for a moment. "The closest grocery store, please."

Thirty minutes later, Blair found herself on a bench in front of the duck pond. At this time of night, there were hardly any ducks out, but she continually threw pieces of bread into the water. Silent tears continued to fall down her cheeks. She felt both warranted and guilty for her tears. Why do I make love so complicated? After a few more moments, she felt silly sitting there. The looks on the faces strolling by said it all: a crying woman in an evening gown, feeding (few) ducks at this hour was more than a little odd. Blair sighed and got up. Where to now?

While Dan was still present at the party, his mind was elsewhere. To get his mind off of Blair, Vanessa thankfully introduced him to James. He immediately liked the guy, and their conversation distracted him for a little bit. However, once Dan went to refill his drink, his thoughts went right back to Blair.

He didn't know how to feel about what happened. Blair was obviously incredibly upset. But by what? Seeing Chuck? Missing Chuck? Regretting Chuck? Regretting me?

After suffering through another two hours of the party, Dan couldn't take it anymore. After saying goodbye to his parents, and promising brunch in the morning, he searched for the rest of his friends. Serena and Nate were, thankfully, talking to Vanessa and James.

"Hey, Dan. How are you holding up?" Vanessa asked, resting a hand on his shoulder.

Dan shrugged his shoulders. He turned to Serena, "Have you heard from her?"

Serena sighed, "No, I'm sorry."

"Should I be worried?"

Nate answered, "No, man. I'm sure she's fine. She just needs some space."

Dan nodded. "Alright, I'm gonna head out. Vanessa, can I stay at the loft again?"

She smiled, "Of course. I'm staying at James' place."

Dan tried not to smirk, but he couldn't help it. "Okay. Well, are any of you going to brunch tomorrow?"

They all nodded. "You bet! It's Sunday!" Vanessa said, laughing. "Even, I'm still invited to those."

Dan smiled. "Alright, see you all in the morning."

In the coatroom, he quickly grabbed his jacket and tried to not think about the moment they had just three short hours ago.

Thanks to no traffic, he got to the loft fairly quickly. The more time that went by without hearing from Blair, the more worried he got. When he opened the door to the loft, he was met with darkness. He looked around for any source of light, and saw his bedroom light was still on. He carefully made his way over to the room, trying not to trip on anything in the pitch black. When he opened the door, he heard a gasp.

"Oh, its just you. I thought it was a stranger."

Dan felt relief when he heard Blair's voice. He looked her over. She was sitting on his bed, dressed in yoga pants and his old NYU sweatshirt. He smiled to himself. She had brought it all the way from Paris. She had obviously been crying more, as her face was still rosy and puffy.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, sitting down on the corner of the bed.

She shrugged and played with his sheets, feeling the soft fabric between her fingers. She sniffled and he noticed that she started to cry again. His heart broke a little.

"Can you tell me what your thinking?" He asked, hesitantly.

She sighed, but stayed silent. Finally, in a congested, shaky voice, "I will...I'm just trying to figure out how to say it."

Dan relaxed a little. At least she's talking. "Okay, well, while you figure that out, I'm going to change out of this suit." He left the room to get his suitcase and then changed in the bathroom, not wanting to make her feel any more pressure with him watching her.

When he entered the room again, she finally made eye contact with him. Her eyes looked like balls of glass, shining with tears. But, somehow the tears made her eyes more beautiful.

She cut through the silence, finally. "I originally went to feed the ducks. But then people started looking at me like I was a threat, or suspicious or something..." She left the sentence unfinished.

Dan still stayed silent, but couldn't help but give a small smile to her whereabouts.

She continued, "Then, I went to my mothers apartment, but I remembered she's in London for the weekend."

He stood, still listening patiently.

"Then I went and bought myself a chocolate croissant. Which made me feel only a little better. And then I just walked. And walked. And somehow I made it to the Brooklyn Bridge. And I just knew where I was headed. But my feet started to hurt, so I called a cab, and they brought me the rest of the way. I ended up here."

He still didn't know if he should say anything. She was silent for a minute. When she started again, her voice was full of tears.

"I want you to know that I'm not upset or mad at you. Or us."

Dan relaxed some.

"Firstly, I hated how he found out. I wanted it to be more...I don't know...less shocking? Less in-your-face? I feel like I need to explain this"-she gestured between them- "to him. I almost feel like he deserves more of an explanation."

She stilled, thinking about what to say next. "I just-" She paused. "When I saw Chuck, I felt so many emotions." She paused again. "It wasn't regret about you. It wasn't regret about leaving him. I guess it was just this feeling of loss."

Dan's chest felt tight.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, as more tears started to fall. "It wasn't loss for what I missed out on, or what I could have been with him. It was this loss of that dream I had for so long is gone forever. That part of me is over. And I know it's been seven years, and for the most part I've gotten over it. But seeing him tonight just brought all that back."

She stopped again, wondering if that made sense. She felt like she was rambling. She tried to clarify, "It's like...if all my life I grew up wanting to be a ballerina. But then one day, I broke my foot so bad that I couldn't ever dance again. I could never be a ballerina. But then, one day I fall in love with singing. And it's even better than ballet. And I love it even more. But then one night, after years of singing, I go to see the Nutcracker. And all those years of dreaming to be a ballerina come rushing back to me. And I feel that sense of loss again with what never was. Even if singing is still better, that feeling of loss will always be there. It will damper and it will fade. But it will always be there."

She was almost sobbing. She crawled to the end of the bed, so she could be closer to him. "But, Dan, when I looked at Chuck...I felt nothing. It wasn't necessarily him. It was the idea of it all with him." She placed a hand on his cheek. "I don't love Chuck anymore. He broke my heart and when he did, he also broke that idea I had of me with him."

Dan let out a sigh of relief. He smirked, "So I'm not ballet?"

Blair laughed through her tears. "No, you're not ballet."

He leaned down to kiss her lips softly, and then kissed away the tears on her cheek. When she pulled away, she met his eyes. "Are you mad? Does all of that make me a horrible person?" She sniffled.

Dan chsuckled softly and pulled her close. "No, it doesn't. And I'm not mad...I'm relieved." He stepped back from her and softly brushed her curls away from her face. "But mostly...I understand. I understand everything you just told me. Serena was my first love. She always will be. But...we weren't meant to be. That doesn't mean it didn't crush me or make breaking up with her any easier. It took me a while to get over her." He paused briefly. Then, "It wasn't until I found you did I think it was possible to love again. Not only that, but love even more." He watched as a few more tears drifted down her cheek.

"Blair Waldorf, I love you, and I'm never going to let you go."

She smiled through her (happy) tears. "Good. Cause I love you too."

He took her hand and guided them to the bed. Blair curled her body into his and relaxed for the first time that night. She was emotionally, mentally, and physically exhausted. She would deal with the rest of it tomorrow. But for now, she was perfectly content with where she was. And who she was with.

A/N: Soo...how was it? This isn't the last chapter, don't worry. Maybe 2 more chapters? Or one more with an epilogue? Anyway, coming up: more Chuck. And more Dair lovin. Review, please!