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"V, wait up."
Dan ran up to his best friend, but she strode on without a look at him. He tried to grab her arm, but she jerked it away angrily.
"Leave me alone, Dan."
He ran ahead and cornered her, making her face him.
"What's the matter, Vanessa? Why are you angry at me?"
"Dan, come on. I told you that I love you! And I knew that you would probably reject me, but did you expect that it wouldn't hurt anyway? Of course it hurt! How am I supposed to act all normal?"
Dan was stunned. Having never been rejected before and never having rejected another girl before, he didn't know what to expect and this was a rude wake-up call for him. Speechless, he merely watched as Vanessa strode past him, only turning to look at her once she had gone past.
x-x-x
"You're having an affair with my wife?"
Rufus was furious. After he had left his home, he had gone straight to Bart Bass's hotel and banged on the door. However, when those words are come out of his mouth, Lily, immaculately dressed as usual, had appeared behind the man. She looked pale.
"What?" her tone was soft, but deadly.
Bart had a rueful expression on his face, but he seemed to feel no guilt. He said nonchalantly,
"Yeah, so what?"
Rufus began to yell, but Lily adopting a quiet voice, said to him,
"So what? That's all you're going to say? I expect at least an explanation for such low and vulgar behaviour as that. If you want to be part of my world, then you're going to need something more than 'so what'. If you want me to marry you, you are going to give me an explanation."
Bart looked at her lazily, taking in the tenseness in her body and the suppressed fury in her beautiful blue eyes. He said flippantly,
"I was just having some fun with her just as you seem to be having fun with this man right here."
Lily was perplexed.
"What on earth are you talking about, Bart? Rufus and I are just…friends."
"Yeah, friends with benefits," Bart sneered. At these words Lily slapped him before being punched by Rufus. Bart yelled with pain, glaring at Lily.
"What, are you offended by that term? I wonder why since you are little better than a whore!"
Rufus brought his fist back to punch him again, but Lily stopped him, grabbing his arm and sending an electric shock down his entire body. Lily gave no sign of having felt anything, but said quietly,
"There is absolutely nothing between Rufus and me and if as I suspect, you got that information from Alison Morgan, then I would have thought that you would know better than to listen to such a jealous person as that. She is just jealous because she thinks that Rufus loves me rather than her because of the…intense relationship Rufus and I had before he married Alison. I am shocked that you would listen to a person like her. How can you expect to be thought to part of my world when you are as low as to listen to that…snake."
Bart stared at her venomous words, unable to formulate any words. Lily slowly took off her engagement ring and dropping it on the floor, said emotionlessly,
"I think that we really shouldn't get married, Bart. We both know that we don't love each other and now that I hear about this, I know I cannot tolerate your…hobbies. You, no matter how rich you are, will always be low-class and I don't think that I could handle it."
She grabbed her bag before walking out and slamming the door in his face. When she looked at Rufus, she had a worried expression on her face.
"You're hurt. Does it hurt?"
Rufus looked down, surprised as he realized that he was subconsciously nursing his hand, which now seemed to be on fire. She touched it gingerly, bending over it to get a better look. As he looked down at her golden hair he felt an overwhelming urge to kiss her. He was, however, unable to act on this impulse as at that moment she began to pull him along the corridor, saying,
"Come on, I'll get you an ice pack. My room is just down here."
Dazed, he allowed himself to be dragged into a large suite and sat down as Lily pressed an ice pack onto his hand. As she bustled around the room, he followed her with his eyes, having missed the chance to just look at her beauty for 20 years.
x-x-x
As Serena, Nate and Blair walked to school together, Serena smiled at her best friend.
"Thank you so much for taking care of me, B. I've missed you so much."
"It's not problem, though I still think that you're mad not to date Nate, when everyone knows that he's been moping around for you for ages…I've even sensed it and you know how I ignore things that I don't like."
Serena looked away, uncomfortable with the direction the conversation had taken.
"Blair, I know that you think that you would be okay with us being together and I don't deny that I love Nate, but I think that if I did agree to date Nate, then you would be upset at me and I wouldn't do anything to make you upset at me again, so please don't ask it of me."
Blair sighed.
"Fine then. I won't mention it again though I think that you're wrong and that you're being incredibly stupid. After all you only get one soul mate in this life."
Serena grinned at her, amused at her dramatic tone, but her grin faded at the wistful expression on Nate's face. She looked away quickly, unable to deal with his unhappiness. Blair chatted on obliviously, but each time Serena sneaked a glance at the boy she loved, he was watching her intently, hoping for her to relent.
x-x-x
Alison banged on Bart's door, desperate to speak to him, but when he opened the door, she was shocked at the swelling in his jaw. She gingerly touched it.
"My God, what happened to you, Bart?"
He slapped her hand away impatiently and said with sparks coming out of his eyes,
"How the hell did your husband find out about our…arrangement?"
The blonde looked down and whispered, ashamed,
"I told him. I couldn't do it anymore. He's my husband. I couldn't lie to him and I felt so guilty. But did he do this to you? Because I never would have told him if he had done this to you! It's just that…he told me that he wanted a divorce and I wanted…needed to know why."
"Lily broke off our engagement, you fool! And all because you wanted to know why your husband wanted a divorce."
"Bart, don't you see though? Now we don't have to be guilty and we don't have to sneak around…we can be a real couple and all."
He sneered at her.
"Do you really think that's what I want? You're below me, Alison Morgan. After having had the chance to marry Lily van der Woodsen, do you really believe that I would settle for a struggling artist with no talent like you? You delude yourself. I was having a bit of fun with you, for revenge for something that never even happened. You sick person! You told me a lie to get me to sleep with you. How perverted. Now get out of my hotel before I call security."
He slammed the door in her face, leaving her shocked and speechless.