"I don't think anyone here likes me," Blair said, propping herself against the counter, pouting her lips.

Dan laughed, his teeth chattering against the glass he was holding to his mouth. "And what makes you think that?"

"No one has even approached me to introduce themselves."

"It's our third week here, they know who you are."

"Okay, but," she said, her eyes scanning the room, "I maybe have talked to three of them."

Dan turned towards her, "And who's fault is that?"

"I'm shy," she said, crossing her arms.

Dan chuckled, "Sure, Blair. They don't have to come introduce themselves to you. Just mingle. Go talk to someone over there… or something."

"I bet they don't like me because that girl Amanda doesn't like me," Blair continued on, pretending as though he didn't say anything. "People always like a leader to follow. I just need to figure out how to dethrone her. When you were hanging out with her, did you spot any… weakness? Anything I can exploit? Did she tell you any deep, dark secrets?"

Dan's eyebrows raised. "Seriously?"

"I mean there is no way she is perfect," Blair said, finding the girl in the crowd and narrowing her eyes. "She pulls off the facade quite well though."

"That's not what I meant by seriously," Dan said, putting his thumb and index finger on his temples and shaking his head. "People will like you even if you aren't queen of studying abroad, Blair."

"Hmm," she said, looking up as though she was giving it some thought. "No, no. I think my plan will work. I just need to find Dakota, I'm sure she has something."

"Or," Dan said, reaching over and holding on to Blair's shoulders. "You can go and talk to some people at the party," he moved her in the direction of a group of girls in the room and gave her a gentle shove forward. "You can do it," he said encouragingly. "Just play nice."

Blair started walking to the group hesitantly. She glanced back at Dan, who gave her a thumbs up sign, and made her way slowly over to the group he had pointed out.

Dan, given the break from low key babysitting Blair, marveled at the turn of events in their friendship. Always confident Blair seemed to be out of step in the environment that she had no control over. It made the great Blair Waldorf almost seem human. Although he would never tell her that because he was afraid that she might take his head off.

He counted to ten, watching her interact with the group of girls, before leaving the spot against the wall to socialize.

"Okay, so… I'm the Queen," Blair said loudly. "No president. Pff, who wants that. I want to be born in to my right to rule. And you, Amanda, are the asshole, right?"

Dan's head spun as he tried to find the source of Blair's voice only to be relieved when he saw her sitting at the table in the middle of the room playing cards. Unsurprisingly, she had climbed her way to the top of the game Asshole and was now making as many rules as she could think of.

He pushed his way through the small crowd, many of the people that had been gathered before had already left to go to a club, over to the table to watch the game.

"Okay," Blair said, nodding her head to no one in particular. "New rule. In addition to not saying drink, you can't swear. And if you swear," she said, putting her finger up, "you have to… tell a secret about your self."

Dan could see Amanda on the other side of the table, and shook his head at Blair, who was smiling up at him. "No," he mouthed.

"Never mind," she said, rolling her eyes. "That was a good rule, but also super easy. We wouldn't know if you were lying. You have to…"

"Put your elbows on the table?" Amanda offered.

"Lame," Blair said, rolling her eyes. She put her cards down, showing her hand. "I'm over this, actually. Who wants to go out?" Pushing her chair from the table, she stood, wobbling a little before steadying herself. "Humphrey, you're coming." Dan reached out, grabbing her arm to steady her as she took a couple of stumbling steps towards him. She playfully flicked his nose, "Look at you, Prince Charming. Prince Charming of Brooklyn."

"Maybe you should stay here?" he offered. "Early night?"

"Pff," she laughed. "I am fine. I'm fine. Let's go." Blair turned to the group at the table, gesturing towards the door. "To the bus."

"I'm cold," Blair complained, as they waited in line for the club that Dakota had texted Dan the rest of the group was already in. "And hungry. I don't think I ate dinner. Did I eat dinner?" Blair asked Dan.

He shrugged in response, leaning on his toes to try to get a better look at the line. They had been standing outside for five minutes already and it was an unusually chilly night for the end of September. "Did you?"

Blair shook her head, "I don't think so. Can we get food?"

"So you don't want to go in the club?"

"No," Blair said, closing one eye to focus on him. "I do. Can we get food after?"

"Sure, Blair," he said, nodding.

"It is super cold out," Amanda said from behind them. She moved to stand next to Dan, wrapping her arm around his back. "Body heat is supposed to be the best heat."

Blair's face hardened and Dan quickly squirmed out of Amanda's reach. "Yeah, well, I'm actually quite warm," he lied, fanning himself with his shirt for emphasis. "And I'm sure it's going to be really hot in there."

Blair linked her arm with Dan's, staring at Amanda. "If you wanted to not hit on my ex boyfriend in front of me," she said, suddenly sounding sober, "that would be great."

Amanda took a step back, putting her hands up. "Sorry, it was just a little cold."

Dan looked down at Blair, "I thought you were worried about people not liking you."

"I found people tonight who did. I don't need everyone to like you. If everyone likes you," she said, her words slightly slurring together again, "you're doing something wrong." Blair leaned out of the line, looking at how far away the door was, and then back to Dan. "Take me home, Humphrey? I'm tired."

"What about hungry?"

"Mm, breakfast is just a couple hours away," she replied, yawning into her hand. "I just want my bed. Water and my bed and a blanket."

Dan turned around to the group behind them, "We're going to head out, I think. The line doesn't seem to be moving. Blair's tired."

"Blair," Dan shook Blair gently. Her head was buried into his side, and she was sleeping peacefully in the back of the cab he had gotten for them. "We're here."

"What?" she said, rubbing her eyes. "Where?"

"The dorm." he said, opening the door and trying to slide out of the car without having her fall out of the cab. Dan leaned down, putting an arm around her and pulled her out after him. Having paid the taxi driver, he prayed that the minimal hours he spent working out would enable him to get her upstairs and into bed. He bent down, putting his other arm behind her knees and lifted her off the ground.

"Don't drop me, Humphrey," she mumbled into his chest. "You are carrying precious cargo."

"I'll do my best," he said, taking careful steps into the dorm and up the stairs. "What's your room number?" Blair mumbled something incoherent. "You need to repeat that," he said, patiently as he avoided slamming her head into the door frame of the staircase.

Once he found her room, after he made her repeat the room number many times, Dan fumbled with Blair's key and let himself into her immaculately neat room. "Do you even live in here?" he asked rhetorically. He placed the sleeping Blair in the bed, covering her with the comforter that she must have purchased herself because it bore no resemblance to the one that the school sold. "Good night, Blair," he said, walking back to the door.

"Wait," she said, reaching out and lightly holding his wrist. "Thank you," she muttered, burying her head into the pillow. "Thank you," she repeated, her voice trailing off as she fell back into a drunken slumber.

Dan stood there for a moment, looking down at Blair before leaving the room, smiling to himself.