Title: Falling Into Place
Summary: AU. Blair Waldorf has it all. Great job, amazing best friend and the perfect boyfriend. But every changes when she meets Dan Humphrey, who shows her that the best things in life are free.
Type: Multichapter
Fandom: Gossip Girl
Main couple: Dan/Blair
Other couples: Vanessa/Rufus, Chuck/Blair, Nate/Jenny, Eleanor/Cyrus, Lily/Bart, Serena/Nate and Serena/Carter
A/N: WHO PROCRASTINATES ON OTHER STORIES? I DO!
But seriously, I have had this idea in my head for a while now. Also, it includes some of my old ships, and my new ones that I love. Everybody wins!
Also, last but not least, I obviously know nothing about their jobs and such, so if needed, constructive criticism would be welcome in that area.
But please enjoy.
Blair Waldorf opened the door to the coffee shop, and shifted the phone that was held between her ear and her shoulder.
"Yes, yes, Hazel, I know" she snapped irritably in the phone "You've told me a thousand times."
Frowning as she joined the queue, Blair had to resist the urge to tell her colleague to shut up all together. She had been going on about a case for about a week now, and Blair couldn't deal with that kind of thing. She was a high powered lawyer at one of the biggest law firms in New York, for God's sake. She couldn't worry about her coworker's dilemmas too.
"Hazel!" Blair said abruptly "I have to hang up on you now. I'm busy."
"Wait!" Hazel cried "I need-"
"Sorry." Blair said quickly, before snapping her phone shut.
She arrived at the front of the queue, and shot the barista worker a quick glance "One large coffee to go, please.""
The barista waiter smirked.
"What?" Blair snapped.
"You're just, so, predictable" he sighed "Someone like you, ordering a large coffee to go, while talking onto the phone, obviously annoyed."
She glared at him "People like me? What about people like you? People who have no choice but to work here."
She looked at his name tag. Dan.
Daniel would be more sophisticated Blair noted to herself.
Dan chuckled "Oh, but I chose to work here. You see, I'm actually a writer. This is just my on the side job."
Blair raised a perfectly waxed eyebrow "Writer, huh? I suppose you have nothing published yet."
"Not exactly. I had a piece printed in The New York Times" he shrugged.
"Oh. Well, congratulations."
Dan laughed "One second you're insulting me, the next you're congratulating me?"
"Well, I won't congratulate you in future then" Blair replied defensively "Where's my coffee?"
"Right here" Dan smirked and handed it to her.
"Thanks" Blair said, handing over the correct change, which she had memorized long ago.
"Oh, and by the way" she paused "There actually won't be a next time. Because I highly doubt we'll ever meet again."
Dan laughed.
Blair shot him a dark look, before turning on her heel and making her way out the door.
...
"Blair Waldorf!" Carter Baizen barked, the second Blair entered the office "You're 2 minutes late!"
"I'm sorry" Blair said quickly, offering her boss the coffee she had planned on enjoying "There was just a hold up at the coffee shop."
"Just sure it doesn't happen again" Carter spat, before snatching the coffee out of Blair's hand and storming away.
"What was that all about?" Nelly Yuki, her secretary asked, coming up from behind Blair.
"My lunch break went for 17 minutes instead of 15" Blair whispered back, before heading over to her desk.
She had sat down and was pulling out a folder, when Nelly appeared at her desk.
"Mr. Bass called for you" Nelly told her with a smile "As did your mother, and one of your clients, Damien Dalgaard."
"Thank you Nelly" Blair replied, before reaching for the phone.
She decided on calling her mother first, just to get it over and done with.
Blair dialed in the familiar number and pressed call, before switching on her computer.
"Blair!" came her mother's voice on the other end "Where have you been?"
Blair sighed. Eleanor Waldorf-Rose was a woman in her late fifties, was everything Blair didn't want to be. Throughout her childhood, Eleanor had been distant, and that carried on through Blair's teen years. It was only now, when Blair was successful lawyer, and dating a millionaire, did she want to be a part of her life more.
"I've been busy with work" Blair replied, knowing perfectly well that her mother wouldn't accept any other answer.
"Of course. It must be tiring to be a Baizen lawyer. Anyhow, how are things with you and Charles?"
"Fine" replied Blair. No, we aren't engaged. No, I'm not pregnant. Same as last time you called she added silently.
"So this is your fourth year of dating?" Eleanor pressed.
"Fifth" Blair corrected "We started going out a year after I graduated from Yale."
"I see. Now, are still on for dinner tonight?"
"Yes" replied Blair, trying not to sound agitated "Mom, I have to go. Work to do."
"Okay Blair. See you tonight" Eleanor replied briskly, and Blair hung up.
She tried to phone her client, Damien Dalgaard, but wen e didn't pick up, se left a message and went to call Chuck.
"Chuck" she sighed, the second he picked "I'm at work."
"Then why did you call me back?" her boyfriend, replied, and Blair could tell he was smirking.
Blair laughed "Alright, what do you want?"
"Do we have dinner tonight?"
"With my mother, my stepfather, your father and your stepmother? Yes."
"Okay, good" Chuck replied.
Blair raised an eyebrow, although she knew he couldn't see it "Oh, you're not annoyed for once? Usually you hate having dinner with our parents."
Chuck laughed "Unfortunately Blair, I have to go. But I'll see you tonight."
"Bye Chuck. I love you" Blair smiled, before hanging up, and not giving a second thought about their conversation for the rest of the day.
...
"Chuck, are you ready to leave?" Blair called over her shoulder, slipping into her feet into a pair of stilettoes.
"Of course" he replied coolly, walking into the room.
"Good, so we can leave" Blair nodded, putting her coat on.
"Now, why are you so eager to go?" Chuck asked, kissing Blair on the neck.
"I just want to get it over and done with, so I can have six months of peace before we have to catch up with them again.
Chuck nodded slowly, and then kissed her hard on the lips.
"Chuck" Blair interrupted "Not now. We have to go."
Blair slung her bag over her shoulder, and made her way to the elevator, closely followed by Chuck.
...
"So Blair" began Chuck's stepmother, who was also the mother of Blair's best friend Serena and her little brother Eric, who sat on either side of Blair "How's work going?"
"Oh, it's fine Lily, but very busy." Blair took a drink from her Champagne flute "You know, the usual. Nothing new."
Lily nodded, and turned to Chuck "And how about you Charles? Managing the Empire well?"
"Well, I'm sure that if I was running it badly you would've heard it from my father, but yes, things are going well."
"Excuse Blair and I" Serena said suddenly, getting up. The two of them usually left to have a chat when the others began talking about business.
Eleanor nodded sharply, as did Lily, but looked as though they might object.
"We won't be long" Serena added hurriedly.
Serena left, and Blair followed her.
"So, how are thing with you and my stepbrother?" Serena asked with a smile, taking a swig of champagne.
"They're fine S. same as usual" Blair shrugged.
"Same as usual? B, you've been dating for five years!" Serena threw her hand up in the air, before she repeated "Same as usual?" with an agitated sigh.
"Well, I mean, there's nothing wrong with it" Blair argued "I'm happy with him."
"There's nothing wrong with it? There is if it's the same as usual. Usual means you're living in a rut. A relationship rut!"
Blair laughed at her best friend's overreaction, before shaking her head "What about you and Nate? You're telling me you don't live in a rut with him?"
Serena rolled her eyes "For your information, Nate and I broke up. As broken up as you can be when you were merely friends with benefits."
Blair laughed again, and Serena opened her mouth again to say something, but then Chuck appeared.
"If you two would like to return to the conversation, we're done talking about business.
Serena laughed "Thank you Chuck."
Chuck smirked and left, and Serena followed him, her long blonde hair flying behind her.
Blair went to follow them, but something caught her eye.
"Blair?" Serena called over her shoulder "You coming?"
"One minute" Blair called back, and Serena nodded and reentered the living room.
Turning back to the newspaper lying on the table, Blair picked it up and studied the page it was opened on.
Sure enough, there it was. Coffee worker Dan's story.
Blair quickly glanced over it, and smiled. He wasn't a bad writer.
"Blair!" Eleanor called.
"Coming!" Blair called back, and made her way to the living rooom, making a mental note to read more on Dan's story later.
...
After dinner, Blair stood with Chuck as they said their goodbyes to everyone else.
Well, while they waited for the goodbyes to begin.
"It was nice-" Blair began, before the ringing of Chuck's mobile cut her off.
"Excuse me" he said, once he glanced at the caller ID "I have to take this. It's an important call."
Everyone nodded, and Blair smiled and turned back towards the others.
"Well, it was great to see you all" she smiled brightly, as she gave Lily a hug.
"Oh you too Blair" Lily replied, as Blair shook Bart's hand.
At that moment, Chuck returned to the room, a smile on his face.
"That was quick Chuck" Serena remarked.
"Well" Chuck paused, before pulling something out of his pocket "I only needed to ask one simple, yet very important question."
Things had already clicked in Blair's mind, and she stiffened.
Chuck got down on one knee, and Serena gasped, while Eric brought his hand to his mouth to stifle his 'Oh my god.'
The parents, on the other hand, were merely smiling. Obviously, they had been informed beforehand.
"Blair" Chuck began "We met 6 months after you finished college, 6 months prior to when we started going out. You were beautiful, intelligent-and you haven't changed a bit since. You're perfect, and the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with. So Blair Cordelia Waldorf, will you marry me?"
All eyes were on Blair.
She should've just said yes already.
But she couldn't.
"Excuse me" said Blair quickly "I need to be alone."
And she ran into the elevator, and out of the suite.
...
Blair ran down the streets of New York, her heels hitting the ground, and her hair flying out behind her.
She pulled to a stop outside a coffee shop, and had only realized it was the same one from the morning when she was inside.
"Well look who's back" called a familiar voice "The closed sign seem to faze you at all?"
"I just ran away from an engagement" Blair burst out, without realizing.
Coffee guy Dan raised his head from the table he was cleaning "What?"
"I just ran away from an engagement. From the man I have been dating for five years, who just happens to be Chuck Bass! Who is also the man I love! What the fuck is wrong with me?"
"Shock?" suggested Dan.
"Oh, I don't know. Right now, all I know is that I'm an idiot, and that I need some liquor."
Dan made his way over to the counter "We don't really have much in the way of alcohol, seeing as the only time people want it is in when a big game is on."
He handed her a beer, and Blair took a swig.
"Why would you have it anyway? This is a coffee shop" Blair asked curiously.
Dan shrugged "My boss says that he enjoys the game with a beer. So we turn into a bar every so often."
Blair raised an eyebrow.
"Enough about that. You just ran out on an engagement" Dan told her.
"I know! And I don't even know why!"
"Do you love him?"
Blair rolled her eyes "Yes. Of course."
"Do you want to marry him?"
"Yes."
"Do you wish you accepted the proposal?"
"Yes."
"Well there you go" Dan said simply.
Blair frowned "It can't be that simple! There has to be another reason!"
"Well if you figure it out, you tell me, okay?"
Blair rolled her eyes "My mother's going to kill me as well. How could I turn down an engagement to Chuck Bass?"
"I don't know."
"You're losing interest aren't you?"
"It's not my problem."
"Oh, alright then" Blair straightened up in her seat "Tell me about your family while I think."
"What?" Dan looked like he couldn't believe she was serious.
"Tell me about your family!" Blair said, more sharply this time.
"Um, there's not much to tell. My mom and dad divorce when I was seventeen. My mom moved to Hudson, fell in love with her next door neighbor and married him. My dad married my best friend, and my sister's a budding fashion designer."
"Your dad married your best friend? Is your best friend your age?" Blair asked, completely shocked.
"Yeah. So what? My best friend Vanessa married my dad Rufus. It's no big deal once you get used to it." Dan shrugged as if it was all so simple.
"Oh, I'm sure that will never happen for me. So, how long have they been married?"
"6 years."
Blair nodded slowly.
"Okay, enough about me. Tell me about your family."
"There's not much to tell, besides I want to hear about your sister."
Dan laughed "Alright. I'll make you a deal. If I tell you more about my family, then you tell me about yours, before we try to finish this little problem of yours."
"Well, I wouldn't call it a little problem, but alright. Deal" she nodded.
Dan laughed again, and pulled up the seat across from Blair.
...
After about an hour or two of talking with Dan, Blair checked her watch and stood up to leave.
"I'm sorry, but I have to go. But thank you for everything" Blair smiled, and grabbed her coat.
"Oh, sure. It wasn't much, but I appreciate your thanks" Dan smiled and got up.
Blair laughed "Alright. Bye Humphrey."
"Humphrey? Okay then, later Waldorf" Dan said with a wave, and Blair rolled her eyes and made her way to the door.
"So, any last advice?" she paused, as the door was halfway open.
"If you love him and you do want to marry him, say yes."
"Thank you. Now, if you excuse me, I have to go get engaged and you have to go back to being a man. Seriously, as much as I appreciated this advice, you're reminding me of my best friend Serena."
Dan chuckled, and Blair gave him one last wave before leaving.
...
Blair entered the apartment she shared with Chuck, and took a deep breath.
"Blair?" Chuck called "Is that you? What happened before?"
"Chuck!" Blair exclaimed the second he entered the room "I'm sorry. And I accept it. Yes. I will marry you."
"Really?"
"Yes."
Chuck smiled and kissed her, and when they pulled apart, Blair laughed.
"That's great, Blair."
"It is, isn't it?"
But somehow, it didn't seem great. Somehow, Blair wished she was still drinking beer with one particular barista worker.