A/N - Hey guys, so here's the next chapter. Thank you all again for the support and reviews! It is greatly appreciated. Sorry for the delay in updating. I actually had the chapter written days ago but just haven't had a chance to upload. Anyway, I hope you guys like it. Please review!

Disclaimer: I own nothing

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Dan, what are you doing here?" Blair smiled from the top of the stairs. "Did we have plans today?"

"No." Dan shakes his head, moving to meet Blair halfway on the stairs. "But it's a beautiful day and I thought we could spend the afternoon together."

Dan rests his hands on her hips lightly, pulling her closer to brush his lips across hers and Blair can't stop the giggle that escapes her throat. Good Lord, what was the matter with her? She was giggling like a schoolgirl over Dan Humphrey. If the girls at Constance could see her now.

"Come on." Dan presses one more kiss on her lips before taking her hand and leading her down the stairs toward the elevator.

"My jacket…" Blair starts to pull her hand away but Dan tightens his grip, shaking his head with a smile.

"You don't need it. I have everything you need right here." Dan patted the bag he was carrying and Blair just looked at him.

"Do I even want to know?" Blair raises an eyebrow in his direction as the elevator arrives and Dan just smiles, sliding his arm around her waist as they step in.

"Probably not." Dan murmured into her hair before kissing her temple.

XXXXXXXXX

"Central Park, Humphrey?" Blair looks up at him with disbelieving eyes. "You dragged me out here for a walk in Central Park?"

"Be quiet, Waldorf." Dan shakes his head with a smile as he takes her hand, lifting it to his lips to kiss the back of it softly. "I just wanted to spend the day with my girlfriend without having to worry that she's scouting the place for an exit strategy."

"Ha, ha." Blair shoots him a look. "Don't think I'm not eying the exits with my peripherals."

"I don't think so." Dan moves closer and smirks when he sees Blair's breath shorten. He's not going lie, he kind of loves that he has that kind of effect on her, plus it's nice to know that he's not the only one.

"You don't know me as well as you think you do." Blair holds her head up and she scowls at the amusement dancing in Dan's eyes.

"I think I know you pretty well." Dan steps closer again and his eyes flick to Blair's lips for a second. "I know that, right now, you're thinking that you want me to kiss you."

"Ha!" Blair huffs, crossing her arms. "That's quite the ego you've got, Dan." Blair turns away and Dan just laughs as he grabs her hand, pulling her back so that she's flush against him before he kisses her sweetly.

Dan tightens his arms around her as he deepens the kiss. He couldn't seem to stop wanting to kiss her all the time. It was like he had this overwhelming need to be constantly touching her. Honestly, it was starting to worry him. She was like a drug and he was becoming more and more addicted to her.

Blair lets out a contented sigh when Dan finally pulls away and she smiles up at him for a second before linking her arm through his.

"OK… maybe I wanted you to kiss me."

XXXXXXXXXXX

Blair looked up from the magazine she was reading when her phone beeped. She flipped the phone open and frowned when she read the Gossip Girl blast before she glanced at Dan, who was stretched out on the blanket next to her, completely oblivious as he read.

"What's wrong?" Dan asks, not looking up from his book. "I can feel the tension coming off you in waves, Waldorf. Just spill it."

"Gossip Girl." Blair holds out her phone to him and Dan looks at the blast.

Spotted: Dan Humphrey and Blair Waldorf strolling arm and arm in Central Park, looking every bit the young couple in love. That's right, boys and girls, you read it here first. It looks like Lonely Boy and Queen B are apparently quite the item. We couldn't believe it either and we can only imagine how Chuck Bass is taking it.

"Well, this is pretty tame in comparison to some of the stuff she's said." Dan shakes his head, handing the phone back to her. "I guess we should be thankful that we made it under the radar for this long, right?"

"Yeah, I guess." Blair drops her phone into her bag. "Gossip Girl is going to have a field day if someone sends a picture of this." Blair shakes her head, motioning around before laying back and shielding her eyes to look at Dan.

"And what exactly is 'this'" Dan looks down at her, slightly curious as to what Blair's mind was coming up with now.

"This, Humphrey!" Blair motions around again and Dan just looks at her.

"Yeah, still not any clearer, Waldorf." Dan laughs, shaking his head. He would never completely understand the way Blair's mind worked.

"Oh, for the love of God!" Blair lets out an exaggerated sigh as she pushes herself up on her elbows. "Look at us! You've got me on a blanket in Central Park! It's completely cliché! You've turned me into a commoner!"

Dan is quiet for a second as he looks at her and he chuckles lightly before leaning down to brush his lips over hers.

"Don't try and distract me with those lips, Humphrey." Blair murmurs as Dan moves his lips to her neck. "I'm being serious…"

Dan pulls away to smile down at her again, his eyes dancing affectionately.

"I know you are." He brushes the hair from her face before kissing her softly again. "But believe me, there is absolutely nothing common about you, Blair."

"Well, that is true." Blair looks at him for a second before grabbing the front of his shirt and pulling him down on top of her, crashing her lips against his.

"You know the loft is empty." Dan murmurs into her neck as he leaves a trail of kisses up to her cheek.

"The penthouse is closer." Blair turns to kiss him. "And I'm not sure I can make it to Brooklyn."

"Blair…" Dan lets out a strangled groan as Blair pulls him closer and for a second he contemplates dragging her behind a brush but somehow he doubts that would go over too well. "Ben and Serena are at your place, remember?" He reluctantly tears his lips from hers.

"Right." Blair shakes her head, trying to clear her head. "OK, Brooklyn it is." Blair pulls him in for one last kiss before pushing him off of her and climbing to her feet. "Come on, Humphrey." She looks down at him expectantly, holding out her hand and Dan smiles before reaching out to take it and puling himself up.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Can't you control yourself even a little bit. We're almost at the door." Blair laughed as Dan's arms snaked around her waist and his lips attacked hers when they were half way up the stairs to the loft.

"No, not really." Dan smiled against her mouth, spinning Blair so her back was against the wall. "It's nice to know that I finally don't have to share you with anyone." Dan's voice is low as his head dips to kiss her again and Blair sinks into his embrace for a few seconds before pulling away.

"I'm sorry that I ever made you believe that you weren't important to me; that you had to share me." Blair stares up at him for a long moment before pulling him closer and kissing him deeply.

"I know." Dan whispers before taking her hand and leading her up the rest of the stairs. "Now, can we talk about something else? Maybe like the fact that a very empty loft is waiting for us and…"

The words die in Dan's throat when they turn the corner and both he and Blair freeze when they see Vanessa outside the door to the loft.

"Oh that's just great." Blair rolls her eyes and Dan glances at her quickly before turning back to Vanessa.

"Oh my god! So, it's true?" Vanessa stares at the two of them in complete disgust and Dan feels Blair stiffen next to him.

"I take it you saw the blast." Dan says evenly, digging his keys out of his pocket. "I'm not in the mood, Vanessa. Blair and I were actually in the middle of something, so if you don't mind." He throws her a look before unlocking the door and holding it open for Blair.

"You can not possibly be serious about this, Dan." Vanessa glares in Blair's direction and Blair finds herself struggling herself to keep her anger in check.

"You listen to me, you little vagabond, Dan and I…" Blair begins but stops when Dan places a calming hand on her shoulder.

"Can you give us a second?" Dan looks down at her and Blair stares at him for a second before sighing.

"Fine." Blair throws one last scathing look in Vanessa's direction before heading inside. Dan waits until Blair has closed the door to the loft before turning to Vanessa, who looks like she's about to explode.

"This is a whole new level of depravity, Dan!" Vanessa immediately starts into a rant before Dan can speak. "Blair Waldorf? Seriously? She's awful! She's everything that you always said you hated about the Upper East Side. She's.."

"My girlfriend." Dan cuts her off, trying to keep his frustration in check as he stares at the girl who was once his best friend in the world. "You're about a month late to this party. Blair and I are together and you're just going to have to deal with it."

"Deal with it?" Vanessa stares at him as though he's completely lost his mind. "I'm not just going to deal with it! After everything that she has done.."

"After everything she's done!" Dan finally snaps. "What exactly has she done, Vanessa? Did Blair drug Serena and leave her to OD? Did Blair blame my sister for all of it and then run away when she got caught so she wouldn't have to deal with the consequences of her actions?" Dan's voice practically echoes in the hall as he yells and Vanessa just stares at him in shocked silence. "That's right, that wasn't Blair, was it? That was you!" Vanessa opens her mouth to speak but Dan keeps right on going. "Blair is a lot of things, but at least she doesn't pretend to be something that she's not. And she's apart of my life now, Vanessa - something that I still haven't decided on about you. But if you ever want to have that chance, you better learn to accept Blair because if you don't, if you make me choose… well there is no choice. I will always pick her."

Dan turns to open the door and Vanessa reaches out to grab his hand, stopping him.

"After all these years, after everything that we've been through, you're actually telling me that Blair Waldorf is more important to you." Vanessa's eyes flash. "Do you really think that Blair is going to give up anything for you? Do you think that she's going to stand by your side when Chuck and Serena find out about this? She's going to toss you aside faster than last season's Jimmy Choos."

Dan is quiet for a long moment as he looks at Vanessa, wondering how and when she became this person and all he can do is shake his head.

"That right there shows how wrong you are about her, V." Dan glances over his shoulder at the closed door and smiles a little before looking back and Vanessa. "Serena and Chuck already know. Serena was upset at first, but she came around…"

"Don't you dare try to tell me that Chuck 'came around' because we both know that's a load of crap. There is no way that Chuck Bass would ever be OK with this and when he gives her that ultimatum…"

"He already did." Dan shakes his head again, this time with a smile that looks almost amused. "She told him that it was over." Dan shrugs. "You can try to keep coming up with ways to make me doubt her, but it's not going to work. I'm in love with her, V, and if you ever want us to have any kind of relationship again, you better start getting used to that."

Dan gives her one more look before turning and heading into the loft, leaving Vanessa staring after him.

He finds Blair pacing his room. She looks… well vicious is the only word he can think of that would accurately describe it. She mutters some pretty choice swear words and Dan can't help but smile.

"Why is it that whenever I hear you swear, I feel like I've stepped into an alternate universe?" Dan speaks and Blair looks up at him with a start. "Don't get me wrong, I find it strangely sexy but still…"

"Seriously? The sight of me so angry that I could rip that nasty polyester hair extension right off Vanessa's head is sexy?" Blair raises an eyebrow at him. "There is something very wrong with you, Humphrey." Blair rolls her eyes but she's half smiling so Dan figures that's a good sign. "Is she gone?" Blair asks and Dan nods. "Good, I'm sorry for getting so mad earlier but she is just…"

"A vagabond?" Dan offers, a grin planted firmly on his face and Blair just looks at him. "Vagabond, Blair? Really? I mean, who talks like that?"

"I talk like that!" Blair crosses her arms and Dan just keeps on grinning, crossing the room to slide his arms around her waist and press a kiss on her neck. "You're doing it again." Blair sighs as Dan continues his assault, moving down her shoulder.

"Doing what?" He murmurs as his lips slowly make their way toward hers.

"You're distracting me with your lips again." Blair says in a breath as Dan twists his hands in her hair.

"Good, that was the plan." He whispers before his mouth attacked hers hungrily and Blair felt like her whole body was on fire. She can vaguely hear her phone ringing but she couldn't be bothered to even think about answering it as Dan lowered her back onto the bed. A few seconds later Dan's phone starts to ring and Dan reluctantly pulls away from her. "One second." He digs his phone out of his pocket and looks down, sighing. "It's Nate."

"Answer it." Blair says, pushing Dan off her and he sighs again before flipping his phone open.

"Nate, this isn't a good time." Dan falls back on the bed, holding his arm out Blair and she smiles before cuddling closer to him and Dan absentmindedly runs his fingers through her hair.

"Sorry, man, but is Blair with you?" Nate's voice sounds strained and Dan immediately notices. "I tried her cell but she's not answering and Serena said that she was spending the day with you."

"Um, yeah, she's right here." Dan holds the phone out to Blair, who looks at him completely confused. "He wants to talk to you."

"Me?" Blair sits up, taking the phone from Dan. "Nate, what's wrong?"

""Blair, I'm sorry to do this but I didn't know who else to call." Nate begins ominously. "It's Chuck…"

"Nate, stop. Don't." Blair doesn't even let him finish as she sighs. "Look, Chuck isn't my problem anymore. He and I need to make a clean break from each other. Dan and I…"

"I know, I know. But just hear me out." Nate says immediately, his tone practically begging. "I know that you and Dan are just starting to get to a good place but I wouldn't have called if it wasn't an emergency. He hasn't been sober in days and he's only gotten worse since he saw the blast. He's spiralling, Blair. It's really bad… Bart's death bad."

Blair freezes at the words and images of Chuck standing on the ledge of the roof at Victrola flash through her mind.

"I…" She glances at Dan, who is watching her with a curious expression. If she went, Dan would never understand but if she didn't go, Chuck would probably end up doing something that everyone would regret. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

Blair slowly closes the phone and hands it back to Dan, who is staring at her like she's grown a second head.

"Blair…" Dan's jaw clenches and Blair internally cringes. "Where are you going? You said that this thing with you and Chuck was over."

"It is." Blair grabs his hand. "Nate wouldn't have called if it wasn't an emergency."

Dan pauses for a second as he looks down at her and Blair stares up at him with pleading eyes and he lets out a frustrated sigh.

"Blair, you can't go running every single time Chuck has an emergency." He gently takes her face in his hands. "You were right when you said that you and Chuck need to make a clean break. The both of you need to do that."

"I know that, Dan, I do, but I can't just ignore the fact that he's in trouble anymore than you could ignore Serena if she was trouble." Blair pulls away from him climbs off the bed, heading out of the room.

"Serena didn't spend the last month trying to undermind our relationship at every turn, Blair!" Dan follows her out into the living room. "When is this ever going to end?" He was getting sick and tired of constantly arguing over Chuck fucking Bass.

Blair stops half way to the door before she slowly turns to look at him. The two of them stare at each other for a long moment before Blair crosses the room and wraps her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder as she hugs him tightly.

"I'm sorry, but please try and understand. He's in a really bad place right now, Dan. Nate compared it to Bart's death." Blair looks up at him. Dan is quiet for a long time as he looks at her. He remembered all too well how dark Chuck had gotten their senior year in high school.

"He's really that bad?" Dan stares at her conflicted and Blair nods. The part of him that despised Chuck wanted to let the bastard rot in his own self-loathing but the rest of him knew that if anything happened to Chuck, Blair would never forgive herself. "OK." Dan says finally, his voice barely a whisper. "OK. We'll go check on him."

"We?" Blair looks up at him, slightly surprised.

"I trust you, Blair, but I don't trust Chuck as far as I can throw him, so yeah, we." Dan picks up his keys and takes Blair's hand as they head out of the loft.

XXXXXXXXX

Blair is practically vibrating next to him by the time they reach the Empire, but she smiles a little when Dan squeezes her hand reassuringly as the elevator doors open to Nate and Chuck's apartment.

"Blair, Thank God you're here. I…" Nate comes around the corner and stops dead in his tracks when he sees Dan. "Ugh, Dan what are you doing here?" He glances over his shoulder toward the living room. "Look, I don't think you being here is a good idea. Chuck's not really…"

"He's here for me, Nate." Blair stops him. "I want him here. Now, where is Chuck?"

"In the living room." Nate nods behind him and Blair squeezes Dan's hand before letting do and making her way down the hall.

"Listen, Dan, I know you're probably pissed at me for calling her but I didn't know what else to do. You know that she's the only one he'll listen to." Nate rubs the back of his neck nervously and Dan just looks at him for a second.

"It's done." Dan shrugs. "Look, I'm not exactly a fan of Chuck but I don't want him plummeting to his death because he's on some self-destructive downward spiral. But on the off chance that he does, I'm not letting him take Blair down with him."

XXXXXXXXXX

Blair can hear Dan and Nate talking quietly behind her as she makes her way into the dark living room.

"Chuck?" She stops when she sees his outline on the couch. "Chuck, what are you doing?"

Blair makes her way across the room to kneel down in front of him. She winces when Chuck looks up at her with blurry eyes and Blair can't help but wonder if he even realizes that it's her in front of him.

"Blair?" His voice is raspier than normal and reaches out to her slowly, almost like he thinks she's going to disappear if he tries to touch her.

"Chuck, what are you doing? You don't want to do this." Blair reaches for his hand and holds it tightly. "After everything you've done; how hard you've worked to save Bass Industries. You're so much better than this."

"I'm nothing, Blair." Chuck pulls his hand away. "I don't care about any of it." He stops to look at her and Blair frowns at his cold eyes. "Why are you here?"

"I'm here because Nate is worried about you." She pauses for a second, glancing toward the hall. "I'm worried about you, Chuck."

"Why would you be worried about me? You've got Humphrey now." Chuck sneers as he says Dan's name and Blair sighs, straightening herself up.

"Don't do this, Chuck. Please don't do this. Please don't push away the people who care about you. Don't let this be a repeat of Bart's death." Blair speaks quietly and Chuck just looks at her for a second before struggling to stand.

"Who cares about me, Blair? My father lied to me up until the day he died. My mother didn't want me…" Chuck's eyes look empty and Blair feels tears fill her eyes as she looks at him.

"You have so many people who care about you." Blair frowns as Chuck scoffs and crosses the room to pour himself another drink. "You have Nate and Lily, Serena and Eric…"

"The only person I care about is gone, Blair. You're off in Brooklyn." Chuck downs the scotch and Blair sighs, glancing toward the door again before slowly making her way toward him.

She didn't want to be the reason that Chuck drank himself to the grave. She couldn't live with that but she didn't know what to say to him because she couldn't say the one thing that she knew he needed her to.

"Chuck, please don't do this." Blair closes her eyes for a second. "Don't do this to yourself."

"You were the only person who ever loved me for me - not because I'm Chuck Bass; not because it benefited you in some way…" Blair feels her chest clench as Chuck repeats practically the same thing to her that she said about Dan. "Blair, look at me. I'm a wreck without you…"

"Chuck, please…" Blair begins again, reaching towards him but he shrugs her off, the act of which causes him to stumble back, knocking a lamp over. It crashes to the floor and Dan and Nate come rushing into the room.

Chuck freezes at the sight of Dan, his face contorting into a mask of pure hatred.

"What the hell is he doing here?" He turns his cold gaze to Blair. "You brought him with you? What the hell were you thinking bringing him here, Blair?" Chuck sneers. "Just stop pretending like you fucking care. You've made it abundantly clear that you don't." Chuck glares at the three of them before stumbling out of the room and toward the elevator.

XXXXXXXXX

Spotted: Dan and Blair leaving the Empire looking awfully perturbed and Chuck Bass drowning his sorrows alone. It looks like the cat is out of the bag, kiddies. Get ready for fireworks.

Vanessa flips her phone shut and takes a breath as she looks around the bar. She stops when her eyes land on Chuck Bass, sitting at the bar with a bottle of scotch.

"Chuck, we need to talk." She sits down next to him and Chuck simply eyes her over his glass before turning back to bottle.

"And what the hell would we have to talk about?" Chuck mutters, pouring himself another drink.

"Dan and Blair." Vanessa says and Chuck stops, mid-pour to look at her. "I thought that would get your attention. You and I have a common goal here, Bass. So, are you just going to sit here and be pathetic, or are you going to help me?"

XXXXXXXXXX

"Blair, I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have called you." Blair can hear the regret in Nate's voice over the phone and she sighs a little leaning back on her bed as Dan comes back into her bedroom from the bathroom.

"Nate, it's not your fault. You were trying to help your friend." Blair says and smiles a little when Dan crawls onto the bed next to her. "Listen, I'm going to go. We'll talk later."

"Sure. Hey Blair, can you make sure there's no hard feelings with Dan. I mean, I don't want this thing with Chuck…"

"Don't worry Archibald. Dan isn't mad at you either." Blair bids him goodbye before flipping her phone shut and settling into Dan's open arms. "Nate says he's sorry."

"It's not Nate's fault." Dan shakes his head, kissing her temple gently. "Are you OK?"

"I'm fine." Blair whispers, resting her head on his chest and he runs his fingers through her hair, the act of which relaxes her in ways that she can't even begin to describe.

"Hey, listen to me, I know that you're worried about him…" Dan looks down at her with a serious expression. "But this is the last straw, Blair. I don't trust him, especially right now. He's too unstable and I don't want you around him." He brushes the hair from her face and kisses her deeply. "If anything ever happened to you…"

"OK." Blair nods, leaning forward to kiss him again.

"That was too easy." Dan looks at her a little sceptically.

"You were right." Blair says after a moment, resting against him again and Dan automatically tightens his arms around her. "I can't help Chuck through this. So if you want me to stay away from him, I'll stay away from him."