"Nate," Blair said, "Can you hold on one second?"

Nate looked from Blair, who was crossed legged on the floor of Ava's bedroom watching the little girl crawl around on the floor, to Serena who just shrugged and walked out the room. "What's up, Blair?" he asked, taking a step forward and swooping up his daughter in his arms. Blowing a raspberry on his daughters cheek, he put her back on the floor. "Are you trying to back out of babysitting at the last minute and didn't want to tell Serena?"

"You know I would never," Blair said, looking up at him. "She's my favorite member of the Archibald family. Right, A?"

"Don't start on the initials with her," Nate laughed. "So, what's up? What do you want to talk about that you don't want to say in front of Serena?"

Blair shrugged, "I just don't want her to make a big deal of it."

"Okay," he said, placing himself on the rocking chair and looking down at Blair. "Shoot. Unless you are trying to ask me how to break up with Dan in which case I will give you no advice besides not to."

"Nate," Blair said, reaching out for Ava and putting the girl in her lap, "be serious."

Nate shrugged, "You did it once and you came running here afterwards. It's not out of the picture."

"Months ago," Blair rolled her eyes. "And it's almost Christmas. It would be so heartless to break up with someone before Christmas. It's something different than breaking up. I was thinking, I don't know, after the holidays seeing if maybe Dan wants to cohabitate? You know, practically, to get rid of some costs."

Nate leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs, "Blair, since when do you worry about costs?"

She shrugged, focusing on the blocks that Ava was playing with, "Since now. I don't know, it just sounds more practical."

"Is that how you are going to ask Dan? We should save some money and move in together? Save the forests, shower together?"

"Nate," she said, tossing a block at him. "I'm being completely serious. How did you ask Serena?"

Nate shrugged, "I didn't. It just happened organically. That and only I had my own apartment so it wasn't like we wanted to hang out at her mom's all the time."

"You are not helping," Blair said, whining. "I need advice."

"I think you should just tell Dan that you think living together is a good idea."

"That's so unromantic."

"Better than saying it's for saving money," he countered, before pushing on his legs and standing up. "If you want my real advice, I say that you tell Dan that you see a future in the relationship and maybe looking to move in together would be the next step. See what he says." Nate bent down to give Ava a kiss and then ruffled Blair's hair. "I can see why you didn't want Serena here, I'm sure she would be gushing over how mature and grown up you've become since breaking up with Dan over him giving you a key."

"Hey!" Blair said, throwing another block up at him. "We don't speak of that."

Nate laughed, brushing his hair out of his eyes. "Look, I'm sure Dan will handle the proposition much better than you would so just do whatever feels natural. Serena and I should be back around 10."

"Get a hotel room and do whatever married couples avoid after the first year," Blair said wiggling her hotel room. "Ava and I will be just fine together for a night." She looked down at the year and a half year old, really closer to two than one, and smiled, "Won't we Ava?"

Nate nodded, "Well, we'll see."


"Rufus, this was such a lovely meal," Blair said, slightly smiling as her hands were plunged in the warm water as she was washing dishes. When Dan had heard her offer, his eyebrows shot up. Not the Blair was a messy person, but she had enough staff working for her that she barely had to do more than move a dish from the table to the sink. "It was so nice of you to have me over."

"Of course, Blair," Rufus said from his place at the table. He and Dan were currently in the middle of a very intense game of Gin Rummy. "You're always welcome for the holidays. I was thinking about going to Paris to see Jenny again but she'll be home for New Years, so I thought I'd stay home this year."

"How generous," Dan said, picking up from the pile. "Staying home to spend Christmas with your first born because you'll see your favorite child very shorty."

"Now, Dan, you know I don't have any favorites. However, I do have Gin," Rufus said, lying his hand down on the table and Blair laughed at how Dan's face scrunched up in anger. "Blair, just leave the dishes. We can deal you in."

"It's okay," she said, waving him off. "I'm not very good at Gin or cards of any kind really."

"She's more into Monopoly," Dan said as he shuffled the cards. "Somehow, she always convinces me to trade my best cards for her worst. She's very persuasive."

"You just are gullible," Blair countered. "Dan, you didn't tell me that Jenny would be home for New Year's? I feel rude not inviting her to my party."

"I don't think she'd want to go," Dan said, glancing over. "Not her scene anymore."

Blair shrugged, "Well, I hate that I didn't even give her the choice. It's not even going to be a big party."

"You said that last year and I entered to a room packed full of people, Blair," Dan said, his eyes focused on her. "I'm sure we'll see Jen during her visit. You can tell her all about how Chuck proposes to you this year."

Blair coughed and Rufus looked between them, "Am I missing something?"

"It's nothing, Dad. Just a tradition Blair has."

"Weird tradition," Rufus said, shrugging lightly before turning back to the game. "Well, I hope for Dan's sake, Blair, that you deny Chuck's proposal."

A couple of hours later, Blair and Dan were standing outside, shaking from the cold, and waiting for the taxi they called. "Why did you tell your dad about the whole Chuck thing?" she asked, digging her toe into the snow. "It's embarrassing."

"It's not a big deal," Dan argued. "It's just a thing you two do."

"We're not doing it this year," she told him, rubbing her hands together to try and stay warm. "I talked about it with him and we're calling it off."

"But it's tradition and you love traditions."

Blair raised her shoulders, "I think that just because it's tradition doesn't mean it's a good idea. I don't want anyone to get the wrong idea and I'd rather spend my midnight at your side than Chuck's."

Dan pulled her into him, kissing her forehead, "I think I like that idea much better anyways."

Blair nestled her head into his chest and dug her hands into his pockets, "Well, I do aim to please. God, can this cab take any longer?"


Blair felt her shoulder being nudged the next morning and she fluttered her eyes open to see Dan's living room. She had fallen asleep, curled up next to Dan, as they watched It's a Wonderful Life. "Merry Christmas," she said, feeling slight butterflies in her stomach as she glanced toward the tree and saw her neatly wrapped present on the floor.

"Merry Christmas, Blair," Dan mumbled into her hair as he kissed the top of her head. "Do you want to do presents now?"

"Can I brush my teeth?" she asked, standing up. "And then, let's do presents. I hate waiting any longer than ten minutes after the initial wake up. What time did Serena and Nate say to be over?"

"For Ava opening their presents? I think 10 AM."

"Let's make it 11. They went to that gala again last night like they did last year. It's practically a babysitting service. I mean, Ava is not even 2."

Dan laughed, standing to gather their two small piles in front of the couch. "Well, I'm sure they want the best babysitting service money can buy."

A few minutes later, Blair was sitting cross legged on the couch with a small pile in front of her and a small pile in front of Dan. They had both agreed that neither of them would go crazy this Christmas but she doubted that either of them stuck faithfully to that. "You first," Blair said, reaching over to his pile and grabbing one of the small gifts. They went back and forth opening gifts until there was just one left in front of Humphrey. She had carefully chosen which gifts he should open first and the sense of nerves was coming from the last sitting in front of him.

"I feel utterly inadequate that I have one more gift than you do," Dan said, rubbing his forehead. "I'll have to go out tomorrow and act like we celebrate Boxing Day."

"It's not anything big or really technically a present," Blair responded, fastening the bracelet that she had previously opened to her wrist. She was avoiding his eye contact so her nerves wouldn't give her away. "Just open it."

"Okay, okay," Dan said, ripping at the paper to see a real estate listing book in front of him. He held it up, furrowing his brow, "I don't mean to sound ungrateful, Blair, but what is this?"

"A real estate book, Humphrey," Blair said, before biting her tongue before she lashed out which she often did when this kind of nervous energy overtook her. "I mean," she said, crumpling up a piece of wrapping paper in her hands as a diversion, "I was just thinking-"

"Do you not like my apartment?" Dan asked, laughing slightly. "Is this a hint?"

"No. I love it. It's cozy but… I don't think it would fit both of us."

"Blair?"

"I don't know," she said, tossing the balled up paper to the side. She tried to think back on her conversation with Nate a couple of weeks ago and the subsequent follow up conversations where Nate tried to help her figure out just what she wanted to say. "I was just thinking that maybe sometime early next year we could… save money, together."

"I'm not sure I follow you," Dan said, flipping through the pages. "How is real estate saving money?"

Blair yanked the book from him and opened it to the inner cover, "Here, read it. I wrote it down."

It was a simple message really and since she knew she would crack under this pressure, she was glad that she had taken Nate's final piece of advice and written it down.

"Do you want to move in together?" Dan read from the cover.

"Yes, Humphrey, I do," Blair answered.

"I wasn't ask- oh, you're asking me."

"And making a terrible joke of it apparently," Blair said, sighing.

Dan laughed, "No, I'm just an idiot. I think sleeping on the couch must have messed with my mind this morning." He leaned over their separate pile of presents and kissed her, "I think living together would be a good idea. I do love my commute in the morning but I guess I could live with having to take a subway to my work like most New Yorkers."

Blair smiled, "We don't have to do it anytime soon. I was thinking after we hit one year of dating-"

"You know, things don't have to be perfect. We could do it before that magic one year mark."

"I know," Blair said, "but I want to give us time to find something we both love and given how picky I am, it will take me at least until March until that happens." She leaned in to give him a brief kiss, placing her hand on his neck. "You know you are handling it much better than I would have."

Dan laughed, "I thought we didn't joke about it."

"I can make the jokes," Blair told him with an authoritative nod. "And you can laugh at them. It will never go the other way around."

"Got it."

"Good," Blair said, pulling back. "I should shower."

Dan nodded, "Same. It's only 9 though so we have two hours before we have to be at Nate's." He stood and then leaned down, placing an arm behind Blair's back and one under her knees. "Come on, Blair, I think there is some mistletoe above my bed."

"How romantic, Humphrey," she said, laughing as she threw her head back and pressed the back of her hand to her forehead. "You owe me a present anyways," she told him. "You know, to even the numbers."

"I thought the real estate wasn't really a present," Dan said, carrying her off to his bedroom.

Blair shook her head, "I've changed my mind. It's definitely counting as a present."