"We're going out."
Dan goes back to bed and covers himself with a blanket. She lets out a little grunt as she watches him hide under the covers with the pillow covering his head.
"No." His answer is muffled. She rolls her eyes and shakes her head.
"Humphrey! What are you, 12? If you don't take a shower now, I'm going to drag you out of bed and pull you into the bathroom."
"I don't want to go out, Blair." He says, peeking out from under the pillow.
"Fine." She says, sitting down at the edge of his bed. "But please take a bath or you'll start looking like a hobo. Plus, you smell terrible."
…
He finds her sitting on his bed, fiddling with his computer.
"So… aren't you supposed to be in Monaco or something?" He raises his eyebrows. If he is going to be honest with himself, he's more than happy to have her here.
"The things that should and the things that are are often different things, Humphrey." She tells him. Her look seems as if she wants to say something more but is somehow unsure if she should proceed.
"Which explains why you're here when you're supposed to be with your fiancée, yes?" He gives her a quizzical look, pushing her to continue.
"Well, yes and no. I bought some coffee and pierogies while you were in the shower." She nods her head towards the dining room. Obviously, she doesn't want to continue with the topic, so he nods.
She gets up from his bed and walks towards the kitchen. Dan doesn't stop himself from pulling her towards him, almost crushing her small figure against his chest. He could smell her hair, he could smell her. That causes him to relax and loosen his hold on her. She surprises him when she rests her head on his chest and wraps her arms around his waist.
"You're going to be fine." They both say.
…
"Who would have thought, huh?" She says as they munch on their pierogies while playing tick-tack-toe on his yellow pad. He raises his eyebrows in question.
"Dan Humphrey and Blair Waldorf: friends. If you tell my 16-year old self that I'd be friends with you, I'd probably banish you… to hell." She chuckles and draws X's on the entire grid.
"To be honest, I don't think it's that bad. You're cheating." He draws O's on top of her X's and draws another grid.
"I like it here." Blair says, almost to herself.
"You should. Who doesn't like being with the Humphreys?" He nudges her arm and looks at her softly.
The way his eyes sparkle as he looks at her made her blush. It's like she's the only one he sees and everything else doesn't matter. It's as if everything in the background turns to black and a spotlight is shining on her. She looks down as tears start to form in her eyes. She doesn't know why being with him is comfortable. That fact overwhelms her. Being with Louis is fun and surreal. Yet, somehow, she feels that something is missing.
"I know why you're back, Blair." He pushes a newspaper towards her.
HEADLINE:
ROYAL WEDDING A NO-GO. BLAIR CORNELIA WALDORF BACKS OUT.
He lifts her chin up and waits for her to answer. Instead, she stays silent as the tears start to fall.