A/N: Okay, here's chapter 13, possibly the second to the last chapters of this fic. Thanks for voting in the poll, and thanks for the lovely reviews i've recieved. You guys were right, Dylan and Nate do belong together. hahahaha.
Dylan and Chuck were already on the bed, making out, when Dylan suddenly pulled away. The moment they had out in the hallway was a little confusing. The feeling was gone all of a sudden. She remembered the night he broke her heart. She couldn't understand herself. 'come on Dylan, before you were head over heels for Chuck, what happened now?' she thought. "what?" Chuck asked, as Dylan got off him and straightened herself up. "I suddenly realized that, I just-I just can't do this" Dylan said, standing up and fixing herself. She went out of the room. "Nate" she said, looking at him. "Dylan," Chuck went out as well. "Nate, what are you doing here?" he asked him. "I was just passing by, when Dylan saw me" he explained. "Chuck, I can't do this. Not now" Dylan said. "you said you loved me" he said. Nate looked at Dylan, with a nonplussed expression on his face. "yes, I did. I'm just not so sure, why I said that" she said. Chuck stayed quiet. "maybe, I should just go ahead downstairs" Nate said to Dylan. "yeah, maybe you should" Dylan said to him, patting him on the shoulder, while he was walking away. "you see, before, it felt like that. But when you told me that awhile ago, I-I don't know anymore. I'm getting confused" Dylan said. Chuck couldn't say anything. He was surprised. "I told you I loved you, but, the truth is, I just-I just got caught up in the moment. All of a sudden, you're there, and saying these things. You took me by surprise, you caught me off guard back there. Right now, I'm not so sure anymore. Look, I meant what I said when you came by the apartment. You broke my heart, now I'm breaking yours. I'm sorry" she said, looking down, then leaving Chuck standing there, in the middle of the hallway.
She came down the stairs, and saw Nate, standing by. "what happened?" he asked. "I told him the truth" she said, a little shaken by what just happened. "and then?" he said. "I think I've gotten over him completely" Dylan said, looking at him. "you sure? You look a little sad" Nate said to her. "no, no, I'm fine. I think. I just can't understand myself tonight" she said. "you want a drink or something?" Nate said. "yeah, sure" Dylan said, looking at him, and they walked towards the bar. "you okay?" he asked. "I don't know. I told him everything. I told him what I really felt, and what you heard isn't the whole thing" she said, downing her glass of champagne. "you want to go home then? We can watch those classic horror movies you like so much. I know you like old movies, and your favorite tub of ice cream. Cookie dough, right?" he said, in an attempt to make her smile. Dylan looked around, and looked everywhere. "please take me away from here" Dylan stood up, while she draped her arm on Nate's and went out of the event.
Chuck went down the stairs. "have you seen the girl in the black gown, this height, with brown hair, in a bun?" he saw a girl pass by. She shook her head. In the far corner of the gala, he spotted her, her arm draped on Nate's, and they were about to leave. "Chuck, where's Dylan?" Serena saw him. "I'm asking the same question" he said, trying to get through the crowds of people, and getting out. "Dylan! Dylan!" he called out, but he saw Dylan and Nate, get in the limo. "Dylan! Dylan!" he pushed past a couple of people in the entrances. "Dylan!" he called out again. By the time he was outside, he saw the limo take off again. He watched it leave and make a right turn. He didn't know what to do anymore. He didn't want to believe what just happened, happened. His phone suddenly rang, and a gossip girl blast was in it, about him and Dylan. He groaned, and went back to the gala.
The following weeks were awkward for both of them. They didn't speak to each other. They ignored one another, when they passed by the halls and the courtyard. Nate, however, was becoming torn among both of them. Both of whom, he knew very well. "hey, D" Serena sat down in front of her in the courtyard. "hi, Serena" she said, while writing something in her notebook. "so, how've you been? I saw the thing with you and Chuck in Gossip Girl" she said. "listen S, I know you want us to be together, but, last night, what happened, was really complicated. It's even more complicated to explain to people over and over again. Like Marge for instance" she said. "come, on, tell me everything" Serena said. Dylan sighed, then began to explain. "oh, that happened. Aww, I'm sorry D" she said. "it's fine. We're not talking right now, anymore, at the least. Who would expect us to? I turned him down for crying out loud" she said. "you feeling better about it now?" Serena asked. "of course. Those movie marathons with Nate did it" Dylan laughed. "so, how are things with Dan?" she asked. "things are fine. But we're old news. You're, apparently, in the buzz these days" she said. "what? what's so interesting about my life? I'm not exactly, like your best friend, Blair or anything. With the posse, and the reputation that I hear, that actually precedes her" she said. "that's why you're interesting. You're the one being talked about" she said, grinning. "and people have been asking me about you and Nate" she laughed. Dylan chuckled. "I have been getting that. Actually we have been getting that" she said. "where is Nate, by the way?" she asked. "uh, still caught up with something. Family drama. I asked him if there's anything I could do to help him in his situation, but he just doesn't want me to" Dylan shook her head. "and besides, my mom wants to drag me to Paris, for their fashion week. Want to come? We can ride our G5" she said. "your family owns a G5? Wow, I'm amazed" Serena looked impressed. "yeah, my parents bought it. So that we won't have to book first class anymore, we could just fly straight, no stopovers whatsoever, if there is a need or something" she said.
"hey Dan" Dylan spotted him, as he sat down beside Serena. "and how are you, Dylan?" he asked. "I'm dandy, thank you very much. And I can see you are doing very, very well too" she noticed him kiss Serena on the cheek. "oh yes, glad you noticed" he said. "so, Serena, I was saying, want to come for Paris Fashion Week? We're going to be there next weekend, so, I have to leave by Friday night, after school" she said. "why don't you take Nate with you?" Serena asked, then exchanging looks with Dan. "ah, Nate? Fashion Week? I don't think the two can be linked together" Dylan shook her head in disbelief. Serena began to let out an evil grin. "let me see; you, Nate, a G5, Paris, together, for the weekend" she said. "he might not be interested, and plus, it's not like we're together or anything" Dylan said. She then looked at Dan and Serena. She knew what was going on. "wait a minute, you want me and Nate?" she said. Serena sighed. "yes! That was it! You two look great together!" she said, her tone almost pleading. "what? you are way off girl!" Dylan said. She looked at Dan. "Dan! Control Serena please" she said, trying to write in her notebook. "I'm sorry. Can't" he grinned. Dylan gave him a look. "Dylan and Nate, see?! It fits perfectly! You two could never be more perfect for each other" she said. Dylan rolled her eyes. "you two have been watching those soap operas, have you?" she looked at both of them. "no we haven't. We're just saying, after seeing you two hang out, and live together, I might add," Dan said. "we figured, you would've seen this coming, you know" Serena said.
"okay, what did I miss?" Nate suddenly sat down beside Dylan. "nothing, nothing" she and Dan said. "uh, I was just talking about Paris Fashion Week, and my mom wants to drag me back there, to see the shows and everything. But I'll only go on the weekend, next week, and I was inviting Serena to come" Dylan said, then giving Dan and Serena looks. "Nate, do you want to come with us?" Serena asked him. "uh, why not? it's Paris, right?" he said. Serena gave Dylan a look that said "I told you so". "great. We leave Friday night, next week" she said. "we'll be riding their G5 going there, landing in their Paris house! I'm so excited!" Serena said. "you want to come too, Dan? Like my parents always say, the more the merrier" Dylan gave him a look. "you sure?" he said. "it's totally fine. I'll have Marge call Eva in Paris to set up the extra bedrooms in the house. It won't be a problem, invite Jenny and Eric too! It'll be fun!" she said. "I don't think my dad's going to approve me and Jenny suddenly flitting off to Paris for the weekend" Dan said. "okay, okay, I see your point on that. Okay, I'm going home, all this homework piling up, is not really helping me get through today. I'm suddenly having second thoughts on going" she said, getting her notebook. "I'll see you at home" Nate said, as she walked off, turning left. "yep. They're still not talking" Nate said, turning back to them.
But he was wrong. By the time Dylan turned the corner, she was building momentum, when she suddenly stopped as Chuck was in front of her. They stared at each other. "Dylan" he said. "Chuck" she said, trying not to catch his eye. It was awkward, to say the least. "excuse me" she began to walk, when she felt him grab her wrist. "listen, I didn't believe you when you said that you didn't mean it. I know in the back of your mind, you actually meant it" he said, staring into her eyes. Dylan looked at him. "then you must really know me, huh?" she said, pulling away. "you'd think I would've gotten over you that easily, distracted myself. Truth is, I can't. I'm not" he whispered in her ear. "just leave me alone, Chuck. I-I meant what I said that night. Things are now complicated between us, and if we get together, things will be even more complicated. I think we shouldn't see each other anymore" she said. He looked at her in disbelief. "I mean it, Chuck" she said. Chuck gave her a look. "I'll see you at school then" he said, letting her go. He looked down, then at the opposite direction, then started to walk to his limo. "Chuck! Hey!" he saw Nate standing there, waving at him. He didn't say anything, and got in.
"yes, mom, I'm not going anymore" she said, on the phone that evening. "alright, have fun in Paris with dad, yes, I will say hi to Nate for you, bye" she said, then placing her phone in her pocket. "my parents say hi" she said, sitting down in front of Nate in the dining room. "oh, tell them hi back" he said. "they're leaving for Paris tonight. Told them I won't be joining them this Fashion Week" she said, eating. "oh" Nate said, watching her, then starting to eat as well. "so, uh, I saw Chuck earlier" he said. She stopped, dropping her fork on the floor with a clutter. "ah, I sense you saw him too?" he asked. "yeah. I ran into him, and there" she said. "okay, what happened this time?" he said. Dylan began to explain. "whoa, I see. Hey, I'm about done here, and I have to tell you something" he said, leaning on the table. "okay, what?" Dylan asked him. "uh, the financial problem I was having, it's been cleared. I finally got some from my grandparents, and Chuck too" he smiled. "that's great, Nate! I'm glad your family's fine, through with all this drama from your dad or something" she said, her eyes lighting up. "yeah, so, uh, I'll be moving out now" he said. Dylan's smile faded. "aww, I enjoyed having you around the house. I'm going to miss you" she said. "I'm going to miss living here. But I have to go back home someday, you know, but I'll keep on hanging out here" he said. "you have a point. Should I help you pack?" she said, as they stood up. "why not? I already started but it's a total mess" he said. "yeah, right Nate" she said. "I'm serious, once you walk inside, you'll be surprised" he said.
They went inside the room, looking at the pile of clothes in one corner, and some other stuff in the other. "you weren't kidding" Dylan said. "let's get packing" he said, as they went in different directions of the room. "you two need some help?" Marge was standing at the door. "why not, Marge, go ahead. Fold up the sheets and make the bed again" Dylan said, folding his clothes, while Nate put his dirty laundry in the bag. "wait a minute, I'll just get the extra sheets" Marge went out all of a sudden. As Nate was fixing the rest of his things, he looked at Dylan, who put the rest of his clothes in his bag. "Dylan," he said. "yeah?" Dylan looked at him. "thanks for letting me stay here" he said. Dylan smiled at him. "no problem. I'm right here if you need me" she said. That did it. It kind of sent him over the edge. "I'll have Max drop you off at your house" she said. "thanks again" he said. "you want to know what Serena and Dan were trying to tell me before you arrived earlier today?" she said. "what? and I bet that's related to Fashion Week" he said. "she was on and on about how we're supposed to be together. And as a couple, I might add" she said, chuckling. Nate froze in his place. "r-really? uh, what else did she say?" he asked. "well, I told her, you are way off, and that they've been watching way too many soap operas or something. Then Dan suddenly says people have been talking about us, you know, about how we look great together and all that. Even Dan thinks it, and he's like, the indifferent one from both of them" she said, shaking her head. "please, we're best friends right?" she looked at Nate. He swallowed hard. "yeah, of course we are" he said. "there. There is no way we'll be together" she said, continuing to put the rest of his clothes in the bag. He zipped up his other one, and put it on the bed. "there isn't?" he asked. "well of course, there isn't. I mean, come on, we're friends. I'm pretty sure I'm not your type" Dylan shook her head. Nate swallowed hard again. "y-yeah, I'm sure I'm not yours either" he said. 'why am I saying that? I had my chance to tell her!' he shouted in his mind. "there you go. You're ready" Dylan zipped up his bag. "thanks, D" he said. "ah, is Nate ready? Max is waiting downstairs" Marge appeared, holding the spare sheets. "yeah, okay, he is" she said. Nate pressed the button and the elevator doors opened. "thanks Marge" he said. "you're very welcome, Nate" she said, waving at him. "goodnight Nate" she said. Nate looked at her. "goodnight Dylan" he said, and the elevator doors closed.
There it was. It was confirmed. Nothing was going to happen between the two of them. He didn't know what to do next. Dylan was just going to be his friend, and nothing more. He got off the elevator, and spotted Ted. "where are you going, Mr. Archibald?" he said. "oh, I'm moving out already" he said. "it's a shame. I bet Ms. Von Furstenburg was sad" he said. Nate looked back at Ted, who went on talking to some people. "she was" he said. All of a sudden, he had an idea. He dropped his bags on the floor. "Ted, watch my bags, will you?" he said, pressing the elevator button. "of course, Mr. Archibald" he said, getting them and placing them on the side. As soon as the doors opened, he got in, and pressed the button to the penthouse. He fumbled with the hem of his jacket impatiently, while the elevator was going up. He wanted to tell her. He was going to. If he didn't, he was just wasting his time going to Dylan's when he had to go home already. This was it, he was finally going to admit to her. He prepared for the worst as the elevator went up floor by floor. If Dylan turned him down, she'd still be his friend, but if Dylan felt the same way for some reason, he was going to be glad he did tell her. By the time he was there, he saw Marge. "Marge, where's Dylan?" he asked. "she's in her room" she said, pointing upwards. "thanks" he said, climbing up the stairs. "Dylan" he said, standing at the door, seeing Dylan fix herself in front of her dresser. "Nate, what are you doing here? I thought you left already" she said, facing him. "did you really mean it?" he said. "mean what?" Dylan asked. "what you said, that nothing was going to happen between us?" he said. "well, I assumed that there wasn't, knowing we're friends and all. Why?" she asked. "because-because I kind of thought there would be" he said. Dylan was suddenly surprised. "what?" she said. "well, I-I-I think" he stammered. Dylan didn't say anything. "what I'm trying to say is," he stopped. He began to pause for a moment, trying to get it out of his system. "I think I'm in love with you, Dylan" he said. Dylan's eyes widened.
She couldn't say anything. She stayed quiet. She turned around, and took a deep breath, and faced him again. "Nate, this is no time to be joking" she said. "I'm not joking" he said, shaking his head. That seemed to have silenced Dylan. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "please say something" he said, staring at her. She looked up at him, still not saying anything. "I guess I always was. Ever since you came back, I realized that the reason I was so attached to you, was because of it. I'm in love with you, Dylan. For some reason, I don't think Chuck should be with you. But then when you said that nothing was going to happen between us, it really hit me, that even if I told you, you'd turn me down" he explained. Dylan stayed quiet and stared at him. "I know you don't feel the same way about me. I know you look at me as a brother or something like that, but at least you finally know how I feel about you. I don't just see you as a best friend, I see you as someone, someone that . . . I can spend the rest of my life with" he said. She still didn't say anything. He looked at his watch. "I have to go. it's getting late, and I still have to unpack and set up the place. I'll see you around then" he said, turning around and leaving Dylan standing there, her expression nonplussed, her arms crossed, looking down at the floor, trying to process what Nate had just told her. She walked out of her room, and saw Nate getting in the elevator.
She didn't say anything, and he knew it. He felt a little relieved and a little worried about what Dylan would say to him. He looked up at the ceiling, then down at the floor, thinking about what he had just said to her. It was true. He saw her as someone he could be with, not just as a best friend. But, she didn't anything. It wasn't clear what she wanted. He looked at the bright side. 'at least you told her, it's the least you could've done. At least she knows, Nate' he thought, as the elevator went down floor by floor, until he reached the lobby. Once he stepped out, he got his bags from Ted, and saw Max, still standing outside, waiting for him with the limo. "sorry I took so long, I just had to say something to Dylan before I left" he said, as Max opened the door. "you finally told her then?" he said. "how did you know?" Nate asked. "I didn't. it was a little obvious. Did she say anything?" he asked. Nate shook his head. "I'm sorry Nate, hey, get in, I'm taking you home" he said, as he got in. Nate opened the window to the driver. "if it helps, you two do belong together. Marge has been telling me about you two so much" he said, while driving. Nate still thought about what had happened. "on the bright side, at least she knows" Max said, then upon seeing Nate so quiet all of a sudden, he closed up the divider. A few minutes later, he arrived in front of his house. "thanks, Max" Nate said, as his bags were at the doorstep. "you're welcome" Max said, then drove away. Nate sighed, then fished around in his pocket for his house keys. Rain suddenly poured heavily into the streets. 'ugh, all the more I should get inside' he thought as he was about to turn the key into the lock. "Nate!" he heard a familiar voice. He turned around. Dylan was standing in the rain, already soaking wet. "Dylan! What are you doing here? you're getting wet" he said, going down the steps again. "I ran all the way here" she said. Nate just nodded, noticing that she didn't care that she was getting wet. "well I'm sorry I didn't say anything" she said. "look, you took me by surprise. I didn't know you felt that way" she said. "good thing I told you then" he said, looking down. He looked at her again. He was also soaking wet, but as of that moment, he didn't care anymore. "so, now what? are you going to say what I think you're going to say?" he said. Dylan came closer. "but the other reason I didn't say anything was because," she stopped. "was because I love you too. Because of course I do. That was also one of the reasons why I turned Chuck down. I love you, Nate, I always have. Only I didn't realize it until you said you loved me" she said. Nate didn't say anything, but he could tell she was getting teary-eyed. "remember, what you told me, when you were trying to make me feel better, that Chuck doesn't know the Dylan that you know? well, you're right, because you're the one who knows me so well, and you're the one who loves me just as I am" she said. They stared at each other right there, in the middle of the street, in the pouring rain. "so, what do you want us to be?" she asked. And then Nate stepped forward and kissed her. "we are what we want to be" he said, kissing her again. He pulled her into his arms, and held her tight, as if he wasn't going to let her go, ever again.