A/N: I'm super pissed at myself for not being able to update anything in like2 or 3 days. Ridiculous. And the sad part is I'm not even joking. *shakes head* Well, anyways, episode's tonight. Yay. I'm really going to try and get this fic done by Thanksgiving, though it probably won't happen, but I'm definitely going to make it happen before all our clocks strike 2010. Please review.


Ch.11—Two-Sided Coin

He supposed he should have expected it sooner or later. Over a month and the two of them hadn't had a single conversation. There had been glares and stares challenging the impossible, but not conversation—especially not any civil conversation.

But now here they were. The middle of the courtyard. Serena – mob of mean girls behind her – Blair, with nothing to aid her in the battle of wits, except for her boyfriend, Chuck, leaning up against the brick wall just a few feet away. If at any moment Blair appeared to be crumbling, he would come to her aid. Nobody messed with Blair Waldorf on his account, and vice versa.

"Well, well, well, look who it is girls. It's Blair, the exiled forgotten Queen Bee of Constance." Serena's smile was thick and smug and her eyes glinted a taste of evil. It didn't fit her, Chuck knew.

Blair held her stance though, leaving only her lips to purse and her eyes to narrow. "I'm not forgotten," she took a step towards the bitchy blonde trying to make her way in the world. "If you'll notice, I'm still on Gossip Girl." A hint of a smile quirked its way to the corner of her lips.

"Yeah, with Chuck Bass, your boyfriend," she rolled her eyes. "Face it Blair, he's a player, and one of these days he's gonna play you." Now she took a step towards her opponent.

"At least I have a boyfriend. You lost Brooklyn, and you can't sink much lower than that."

"I—I—"

"Y-you, what?" she tormented, "You have a boyfriend and he just broke into a million pieces and switched genders around you?" The mean girls glared at her, trying to hold back their gaping mouths and their desired scoffs. They were most certainly not Serena's boyfriend.

The blonde actually seemed to be losing touch with her mean self, but when she spotted Chuck behind them, looking to see what would happen between both her and her ex-best friend. A smirk slid onto her lips and she took one final step towards Blair. "I'm on Gossip Girl too, and you wanna know why?" Blair blinked, tempted to turn back to Chuck in search of a way out.

Serena's smirk widened, when finally Blair tuned in.

"Yeah, because you were drunk off your ass every night of the week, and even my minions wouldn't stay around to aid you," she gestured at them. Serena scoffed.

"Your minions? Really? Last time I checked, they were mine."

Blair was about to speak again, when Serena cut her off.

"And I may have been 'drunk off my ass' as you put it, but you know who rescued me? Chuck Bass. Your Chuck Bass. And if you put the number together of how many nights I was out wasted and this happen, well," she shrugged, dismissing the fact that she had inadvertently insulted herself, "it seems he's spending more time with me than with you." She smiled brightly.

A frown fell onto Blair Waldorf's lips. "H-he was just feeling sorry for you," she stuttered, hardly believing she had crumbled so early in the game, and by some mystery Serena's smile widened.

"Looking at our positions, B," she mocked, "it's quite obvious that your pathetic, low self-esteem, poor excuse for a human being…self, was his charity case. Not mine."

Blair's mouth slowly came to a close, and her feet slid back by an inch or two. Serena's eyes were twinkling and she hardly realized when the blurred body moved to stand between both her and her most recent defeated victim. The brunette would have nearly crumbled right then and there, but the boy who had just moved past her had placed a brief strong gentle hand on her arm to keep her from falling, and it gave her just enough energy to finish this stance with her enemy.

"Really, Serena?" Chuck asked, disgusted. "You would sink that low?"

"Chuck," she cooed, stroking a couple fingertips along the edges of his jacket. He backed off immediately.

"If I hadn't gotten you—"

"I'd call it a rescue, really—"

"—and brought you back, you'd be in a hospital right now. You really think these minions actually care about you? Think again. You have no friends right now—"

"I have Nate!" she declared, and he almost grinned for the sudden vulnerability he heard in her voice—as small as it was. He scoffed.

"And where is Knight in Shining Armor, hmm?"

Her lips pursed and her teeth ground against each other. Her eyes narrowed.

"No answer?" he taunted, waiting a few more seconds.

"He saved me last week, Chuck. Not you."

He shook his head at her, and pulled the strap for his bag farther up his shoulder. Then he turned to Blair and reached for her hand, which she grabbed onto instantly, clutching to it like a lifeline. She took some steps towards him, hiding herself in his shadow and finding warmth in the nearness of him. She had regained her strength, but that didn't mean she was ready to face the heartless monster that had replaced her best friend.

Just before Chuck walked off with Blair, he turned back to Serena who was starting to believe she had won the battle all together.

"Maybe that's because I gave up on you, Serena. You're the low-life here, not Blair."

The blonde was taken aback by his words, but the hurt expression vanished from her face less than a moment later with a 'Come on, girls' and a stalk towards the Met steps. The two brunettes left shortly before Serena could have even blinked, and once inside and to an unused classroom, Blair broke down. She cried into Chuck's jacket and he held her close. He locked the door, and pulled the shade over the window at the top of the door. Amongst the desks, they wandered to near the center of the room.

"That's not Serena. That's not, that's not."

He understood the muffled cries and nodded his head in agreement and understanding. "You're right. It's not."

She backed away suddenly, rubbing at her puffy face and tired eyes. I'm not weak. I'm not anything she said I am. I'm Blair Waldorf. I'm queen, not her. Not ever her.

His eyebrows fused in her actions, but he knew the thoughts running through her head and the soon denial at the positivity she was trying to build up for herself.

"I'm weak," she said.

"No, you're not." He took a step towards her, desperate for their closeness. She had felt empty and cold without it. He had felt…not whole.

"I'm everything she said I am," she whimpered.

"Never. Nothing," he insisted, taking her hands in his own. And for all the trust they had built up in the last week, she snapped her hands free from his grasp and turned away. He said nothing, and just waited. She swallowed hard, and then turned back around to face him. He wiped away a stray tear dripping down the side of her face.

"I'm not weak," she shook her head softly.

"You're not," he confirmed, and she was hesitant, but took that final step towards him and he enveloped her in his arms. She tucked herself in the crevice and warmth of his body and he held her there. He felt her relax and relished in the relieved exhale that came from inside her.

"There's something else isn't there?"

She tensed, and he almost regretted the question, but it had to be asked. It'd been on his mind for over a week now.

She gave a small nod.

"Those words…that Serena said to you…just now in the courtyard…"

She gulped.

"You've heard them before."

Her eyes closed and he could feel the drops of wetness staining his shirt.

"Where?" he asked. Everywhere she had been, he had been. Serena and Blair hadn't spoken until now.

"On my phone. Through text, through calls, through voice messages…"

His eyes closed in agony for her. "Why didn't you just delete them all? Before opening them I mean," he whispered against her, and he felt the quiet sigh.

"I thought it'd be different," she mumbled.

"It will. Soon."

She shook her head. "Yes," he whispered, and her head slowed as he drew small circles on her back. "They're not true, Blair."

She was silent. No movement. No sigh.

"They're not."

Still, she said nothing.

After a minute or so, she raised her head to look into his eyes, those eyes that were searching the depths of her own, just aching for the sign that would show him she was alright. That she understood his soothing words. Her gaze lowered to his lips. He was so close.

She leaned forward and kissed him.


The young, petite blonde strolled out of Constance after class let out and moved across the courtyard. Nate caught up with her and pulled her subtly towards the direction of his limo.

"Jenny, we have to talk."

"Yeah, I'm getting that feeling," she said, stopping as they reached the sidewalk. He turned to her. She waited for a moment then raised her eyebrows. "Well, Nate, what is it?" she prompted. He sighed.

"I think Dan knows."

She rolled her eyes, walking a bit farther down the sidewalk so no one would hear her. He walked quickly after her, thinking she was trying to escape the conversation. "Jenny! Wait!"

"Calm down, Nate," she said, coming to a halt. "I just didn't want the rest of the school getting suspicious." His face appeared relieved. "But honestly, I don't think it's really a big deal anymore."

"What?" he asked, a restrained anger beginning to build. "It's huge! Jenny…"

She shook her head, finding his demeanor ridiculous. "Look, I thought it was a huge deal too, but…it's not like either of you were cheating on anybody. And besides, it's been a year, Nate. Don't you think—?"

"But Dan knows," he pressed, feeling this would cause some sort of jolt within her.

She pursed her lips. "I know he knows, Nate. He told me that he told you about it."

His eyebrows fused. "Well, it was clearly just to threaten you. He didn't tell me anything about that letter."

"He found the letter in my room and…" she sighed, "read it." It was becoming overwhelming knowing that both Serena and Dan were turning against their natural selves.

"Wait, he read it?" Nate asked, fighting hard against the bubbling anger inside him. "Why would you let hi—?"

"I didn't let him do anything!" her eyes widened at the accusation. "He's been suspicious of me lately," she shook her head, looking away, "and I don't blame him. I've done an awful lot of work on this letter, but I've decided to stop and just not get involved anymore."

He scoffed. "You can't just cut yourself off like that. Blair and Serena are—"

"They'll work it out, Nate," she insisted, though her tone was weak at best. He looked at her skeptically. "Okay, I know it doesn't appear hopeful in the least, but…"

"But?"

"Well, haven't they always worked everything out? Even after you slept with Serena?"

He nodded, cringing at the memory.

"Then, they'll work things out," she tried for a smile but could only push a sympathetic almost hope onto her face. He looked at her doubtfully.

"It's different this time."

"How so?" she asked, skeptically.

"Both Blair's friendship with Blair and her position as queen have been ripped away. It's not one or the other, it's both. And if it keeps up, I'm guessing Serena's going to go after Chuck next."

Jenny's eyebrows fused. "Why would she do that?"

"She's not herself," his voice lowered. "And you were going to change that, weren't you?" She didn't know how he had suddenly figured out the generalities of what she had been doing and for what reasons, though obviously those were not entirely clear in his head. Her eyes searched his and she just wanted to escape. This had gotten far too out of hand and she had gotten in way too deep. Would Nate not even let her drop the plan all together? Wasn't it better for her to stay out of things?

"Is that why you're not going after her?" she pressed.

He looked taken aback.

"She's single. You're single. Unless you still have feelings for Vanessa, this is the only thing that makes sense." He opened his mouth to talk, but she wasn't finished. "I saw what happened on Gossip Girl. Is it true that it was actually you that rescued her from her drinking woes last week instead of Chuck?" she raised an eyebrow.

He sighed, and then nodded subtly. She figured that single nod answered all of her questions, and she was right. He said nothing more. "I'll handle Dan," she said. "He's the only other one that knows, of the two of you, and unless he told someone else, I think the 'secret' is pretty safe with us three. As far as Serena goes," she shrugged, "the ball's in your court."

He watched her until she turned the corner, and he hated how right she was.

Blair was safely tucked away amongst her pillows and blankets. Her tear-stained face was all but dry and smooth now, and her woes fell away for at least that night. Serena watched as her best friend breathed evenly beside her, having only fallen into slumber moments ago. She didn't know how she was going to fix Blair Waldorf, or how she was going to fix anything or anybody in that situation, but baby steps were the key and this was definitely step one.

She would ask her softly later, in the morning, or in a day or two what had all happened. Had she really had feelings for Chuck? How did Nate react? How did Chuck react? Something must have made her snap at her the way that she did.

Blair moaned softly in her sleep and simultaneously Serena's phone went off. Her eyes widened as she fished for her room and slowly, as to avoid the brunette's abrupt waking up, she rose from the bed and shifted into the hallway.

"Hello?" she whispered. She hadn't had time to look at who was calling. She had answered as soon as possible so the ring wouldn't wake poor Blair in her sleep.

"Serena."

Her face fell. This was the last thing she needed.

"Nate? Why are you calling?"

He sighed.

"Please tell me you called to say you've forgiven Blair." Her tone was serious and almost demanding and it alarmed him, since she had practically been confessing her love to him hours earlier.

"What? No! What she did is…"

Serena scoffed, sighing afterwards.

"You're with her?"

She nodded. "Yes, Nate. Because of you and your good-for-nothing best fr—"

"Ex-best friend," he emphasized.

"Whatever. Because of the two of you, she almost left on a plane to go to France for boarding school."

He scoffed. "You sure you didn't have anything to do with that?" he raised an eyebrow.

"What?!" she asked incredulously. "How can you even say that?"

"Didn't you leave for boarding school when things got bad?"

She gulped, and then sighed, not wanting to bring up that subject again. She still felt the welts of red embarrassment heating her face from earlier in the day.

"What do you want, Nate? Why did you call?"

He was silent, and then his lips parted in way of preparing himself.

"Nate?" she asked again, and he knew he could no longer delay.

"I'm not over you," he said, "I thought I could fight it but I can't." The words were familiar to him, but Serena had not properly heard them and he felt that she needed to.

Serena bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. "It's been two hours, Nate. Maybe a little longer. You just broke up with Blair and today Dan told me he loves me…"

"Serena."

"And I feel the same way."

"Serena."

"What?"

"Stop making excuses."

Dial tone.

She couldn't respond to his request. She didn't have a good answer. She could honestly say right then that she was in love with both of them, both Dan and Nate. She had started dating Dan at first to keep from making Nate cheat on Blair again. With his restraint, she knew the idea would not have been impossible. But now she loved both of them, and she had to ignore her feelings for Nate again. Because she was in a relationship with Dan, and Blair may not have been dating Nate at the moment, but he'd come around she was sure. He always came around. It was Blair. It was always Nate and Blair.


The day had been long and she made sure to come home early, much earlier than normal even, in order to avoid her mother and possibly Bart's skeptical stare. What she hadn't anticipated was her younger brother being home. She almost was decided on talking to Chuck about what happened earlier in the day, so they could be on good terms again. It wasn't that she was super close with Chuck or anything, but he had helped her a lot over the past months, and whether she was supposed to be angry and a bitch to Blair or not, she couldn't afford to have both brunettes against her. Even if they were dating.

"Serena," he said, approaching her as she walked down the hallway to her room. "You're home surprisingly early."

"Eric!" she exclaimed in shock. "I didn't know you'd be home."

He smirked, sensing her panic mode when he saw it. "Yeah, school was out almost an hour ago. It doesn't take that long to get home."

She smiled at him. She had forgotten.

"Well, good to see ya," she pointed in his direction in a bit of a wink-nod and it scared the heck out of him. On moving to her room, he grabbed hold of her arm and pulled her into his room.

"Here," he said, gesturing to the bed for them to sit on, "How about we talk."

She was extremely tentative but she still moved to the bed after him and sat down on it. She had always been able to tell Eric anything and everything and now should not be any different. She had just become so closed off and mean to everybody. She didn't want to be with Eric. But it almost felt like disappearing memory…the Serena she had grown up to be, the Serena that wasn't drunk and hung-over and mad at Blair.

"I don't know if this is a good idea…"

"It is."

She smiled a bit. He was way too good for her.

"I don't think…" she shook her head a little, slowly.

"I know."

She sighed. "Okay, Eric, what did you want to talk about?"

He smirked, proud to have won, though hardly expecting otherwise. He knew his sister very well. "What happened?"

She blinked. What happened? How far back were we talking?

"What do you…mean?"

"You know what I mean. You and Blair have been fighting for months. Somehow you've become the queen at school, crushing your once best friend so she's dirt in the ground? And besides that, your track record of being clean and sober has officially crashed and burned in the last month and a half! What's going on?"

Her eyes flared wide at his interrogating questions. It was almost too forceful, too loud and dramatic for her little brother, Eric. She sighed. She couldn't be Queen S at home. She just…couldn't. She needed a haven of relief and this was it. No matter when she was here, she had to take down the mask. Especially in front of Eric.

Her lips pursed, and she knew right then that if Chuck were going to come home while she was aware of it, she would talk to him about earlier. At least tonight. An eerie feeling ran through her when she realized the very realistic possibility that she would contradict any of the morals and honest spoken words she portrayed that night through actions at school the very next day.

"Well, I actually think it started with Chuck trying to mess with Blair."

Eric raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

He would hardly believe her if she told him exactly how all of this dramatic horror had taken place, what had instigated it all. Strangely enough, he believed every word that came from her mouth and even found some of it humorous.

Before he could even respond though, Serena saw a blur with brown hair passing by Eric's room and she sprang to her feet and out into the hallway.

"Chuck!" she called, following after him into his room. She was desperate, almost a little guilty in seeing him, and quite possibly expecting a pervy comment from her step-brother. It was as if in those few seconds she had forgotten about the last month of terror and it was just Serena and Chuck having an almost fun/helpful conversation.

"Serena," he said neutrally.

She gulped, and was now suddenly very aware of the current situation. "Chuck," she sighed, walking towards him. He stopped thumbing his way through the shirts in his closet and turned to her, his eyebrows dangerously narrowed. But he said nothing.

"I was hoping we could…talk…" she said, awkwardly working her way further into his room.

"Oh, talk?" he asked, surprisingly cheery, but he was mocking her she knew and so held her stance. Moving at all seemed like a bad idea. He went to sit on his bed and allowed his eyes to scan her figure, disgusted in the nice almost vulnerable blonde before him. She was the polar opposite of the bitch he had had to deal with earlier in the day. "Sure, S, what'd you want to talk about?"

She cleared her throat and shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "I didn't mean to get you involved earlier today."

His expression remained unchanged.

"I just…couldn't let….couldn't…I wasn't…"

He had raised his eyebrows when she looked at him again. Her mind was racing and her eyes had drifted all over the room. She had had no game plan on what she was going to do after catching up with him in his room. She had thought for sure he'd shut her out. From his room. From his mind. Maybe even from his life…since he had abandoned her the week before. Nate coming to rescue her had only complicated all the situations spinning around her even more. But Chuck hadn't shut her out. He was listening. And she had nothing to say.

He stood to his feet.

"It seems you're finding it hard to speak," he concluded after walking towards her. "But if it relieves you in any way, no hard feelings from me, and I'm using Blair anyways. I'm just sorry you had to hear some fake insults on my account to make her believe I was sincere."

He turned away and moved towards his dresser, appearing to be looking for something significant in the top drawer. Serena gaped, hardly comprehending what she had just heard. Of all the possibilities she had concocted in her mind of what might have gone down in Chuck's room…this was the last thing she could have expected.

She turned around towards the doorway and slowly made to pass through it, looking once more at Chuck to see if he would call everything off—everything he had just said—to threaten her instead.

Nothing.

She was about a foot or two down the hallway when she heard him call her name. Her heartbeat quickened and her face felt incredibly hot. She couldn't say anything or even turn around, but she heard every word he said.

"Remember Serena, family comes first."


A/N: Review! (…and enjoy the episode tonight. ;p)