2ND TO LAST CHAPTER!!! hope you like it!

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"What the hell was that I just saw?" Nate yelled at Chuck as he approached.

Chuck gulped and said, rather guiltily, "What do you mean?"

"Don't you dare play dumb with me right now, Chuck. I saw you, just now, with your tongue down my ex-girlfriend's throat!" Nate looked at Blair, "And you! What the hell is going on? You told me there was nothing going on between you two! Then, I see you kissing my best friend! What else is going on that you haven't told me?"

Carter stepped forward then, "Oh, it's not just kissing. I'm pretty sure they're sleeping together. I've been seeing Chuck leaving her place and Blair leaving the Palace at pretty strange hours over the past few weeks."

Serena sighed heavily as Nate looked from both Chuck and Blair to Carter over and over. "Is this true?" He asked Blair accusingly. Blair remained silent, arms folded, just looking at him sadly. "Fine, back to you then, is this true?" Nate glared at Chuck as he waited for an answer.

Chuck closed his eyes and exhaled sharply out of his nose. When he opened his eyes, he mumbled, "Yah..."

Nate charged at Chuck putting his hands around his ex-best friend's neck. "You son of a bitch, I ought to kill you!"

"Nate don't!" Serena yelled, but he ignored her.

"Is that how it is, you get what you want like you do with all those other girls?"

Chuck threw Nate off of him. "Yes, Nathaniel! I took what Blair kept throwing at you and you kept throwing back!"

"So screwing Blair for sport is my fault?!"

"It wasn't for sport! She needed someone and I was there."

"Oh! So you cared about her?"

Chuck avoided the question and sighed, "You guys were broken up."

"For how long? A week?" Nate got up in Chuck's face, "An hour?"

"Look, I'm sorry. I know how long you and I have been best friends, ok?"

Nate dove forward to punch him but Blair grabbed his arm. "That's enough! Stop it!"

Nate grabbed his arm away and inhaled and exhaled heavily as Carter watched, amused.

"Is there a problem here?" The woman in charge of the cotillion came into the ballroom with three security guards hired specially for the event.

"No ma'am, just a...heated discussion. You know..." Serena said quickly, covering for them.

"Good." the woman said, walking away.

When Chuck wasn't looking and Nate thought that the woman was out of sight, he punched Chuck across the face.

Serena grabbed onto Nate, so he wouldn't turn the situation into a full blown brawl, and Blair ran to Chuck to help him up as Carter backed out of the room.

"Hey!" the woman turned around, then signaling her security guards, "Take them outside and get this young man some ice!"

The guards took them all outside to cool down. Serena and Nate were at one side of the courtyard in front of the hotel and Chuck and Blair at the other.

Nate stood there, leaning against a tree, glaring at the two of them as Blair iced the bruise on Chuck's face where he punched him.

Serena stared at Nate for a bit, then finally spoke. "You ok?"

Nate looked at her, "Do I look ok? I just found out that my best friend look my ex-girlfriend's virginity. I don't think I'm ok."

She sighed as Nate stared at his feet. After about a minute went by, he finally asked, "How did this happen?"

"What? You punching Chuck and making us stand out here in the cold?"

Nate looked up at Serena, "How did they happen? Do you know?"

Serena took a deep breath. "Yah."

"Does that also mean that you knew the entire time that they were sleeping together?" he asked bitterly.

"I...wouldn't say the whole time. But a good portion of it, yah."

"And you didn't tell me, because?"

"Nate, it wasn't my secret to tell."

"Just tell me how all of this mess happened, please."

She sighed and went to lean her shoulder against the tree so that, now, she was standing next to him. "From what I've been told, um, Blair was....heartbroken over your breakup. She went to Chuck's opening at Victrola, got a little tipsy. ended up performing on stage, and Chuck offered to drive her home. And somehow during the ride home they ended up and kissing and then..." Serena made a gesture with her hand instead of just saying they slept together.

Nate's eyes widened, "In the back of his limo!"

Serena nodded. "As I said, from what I've been told."

He looked back at his feet and questioned, "How did you find out?"

"I found them together in a room at her birthday party."

Nate's head snapped up. "I thought Blair hated me because of that Gossip Girl blast. Why would she be mad when she's screwing Chuck?"

"I heard from Blair that she hated herself and Chuck after what happened and still wanted you. But after the blast she got really upset because you said you'd come. And because Chuck told her that you only wanted to get back together because of Eleanor and the Captain's business deal. I guess Chuck felt really bad afterward and went to comfort her and apologize...and the next thing you know, I find them making out on the bed."

Nate scoffed. "Great."

Serena glanced over at Chuck and Blair. Blair seemed to just be leaning in to kiss him gently. Afterward she rested her head on his and muttered something, making them both smile and kiss again. "You know, I think he loves her."

He glanced from Serena to the happy couple at the other side of the courtyard. "Really?"

"I've been watching closely the way he looks at her and...I believe he does. I think Blair loves him too."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well, I've never really seen her smile like that, you know, genuinely happy, well...ever." Nate looked at his feet again right when Serena realized what she said. "Oh, um, no offense."

He gave a fake laugh. "None taken."

They stood there in silence for a minute or two, occasionally glancing at the starry sky. Serena finally broke the silence by asking, "How long do you think you'll stay mad at them?"

"Honestly," Nate looked deep into her eyes and Serena could see the hurt in them. "I have no idea."

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sooooo....what do you think? will Nate forgive them and move on or stay mad forever? stay tuned to find out!!!