Author's Note: Here is the next chapter. I know it's a little short but the next one is going to be a doosey! Enjoy and review!

Chapter 4

If you had told Jenny Humphrey six weeks ago that she would have slipped seamlessly back into her old life in New York, she never would have believed you. Okay, so it wasn't exactly seamless or her "old life" really, but she had weathered her first run-ins with Serena, Nate, Chuck AND Blair and was still alive to talk about it. She had even had a semi-break-down/break-through with Nate and their friendship seemed to be back on solid ground for the first time in years. Each day Chicago moved further out of her mind, and if it wasn't for a few special friends from school, she may have forgotten about it completely.

"I'm not saying I don't want you to be friends with her Dan. Just don't expect me to be so naïve as to believe Blair has really forgiven me for last year."

It was Tuesday afternoon and the Humphrey siblings plus Nate were sitting in the kitchen of their loft having lunch. It was strange, but the three of them had been hanging out like this a lot lately and per usual they found their conversation turning to the topic of Dan's unlikely friendship with the Queen B.

"How do you even know that? I've told her you've moved on and I'll have you know that the scathing comments have been less and less frequent," Dan said, quirking an eyebrow. Nate just listened silently, amused. "Jenny. Are you even listening to me?" Dan asked when Jenny didn't respond.

She wasn't. Her phone had buzzed when Dan was midsentence and Jenny was now fully engrossed in reading the message she had received. A smile spread across her face unconsciously, which both boys noticed before she had a chance to cover it up.

"Who is so important?" Dan asked, clearly annoyed.

Jenny snapped back to reality. "No one," she covered. "I have to make a call. I'll be right back." She escaped to her room before her brother could give a cynical response.

"Girls," Dan said, looking at Nate for agreement. But Nate was staring at Jenny's closed door, wondering who Jenny had been in such a hurry to talk to. He hadn't seen her smile like that in a long time.

Nate didn't even register Dan's voice until he had finished speaking.

"Sorry, what?" Nate asked. Dan just stared at him. Unbelievable.

Jenny emerged from her room ten minutes later to find Nate alone in the kitchen finishing his sandwich.

"Where's Dan?" she asked.

"Where do you think," Nate answered, a small smile tugging at his lips.

"The magazine? Again?" Jenny sighed, rolling her eyes. "We were supposed to go to the Cooper-Hewitt Museum today. They're having this great exhibit on 18th Century European textiles. We've been planning it for weeks."

"I'll go with you," Nate offered.

Jenny straightened, "You don't have to Nate."

"No, no it sounds interesting," Nate lied.

Jenny raised her eyebrows, "Don't you have plans with Juliet today?" she asked. She had tagged along with Nate and Juliet twice in the last two weeks and it was two times too many. She liked Juliet, she hated being the third wheel.

"Yeah, but they're just tentative," Nate said. "I'll just text her and let her know something came up." Jenny still hesitated. "Seriously Jenny, don't make me beg you to let me look at textiles with you."

Jenny laughed at this, "Okay," she conceded. "Let's go."

The exhibit was great, everything Jenny had imagined it would be. As such, she knew Nate was bored out of his mind the whole time, which was why she proposed they get ice cream after, as a sort of unspoken reward for his patience.

"So…" Jenny began. "How are things going with Juliet?" Talking to Nate about his love life wasn't her favorite thing to do but it was what a friend would do. She figured he could use the ear considering Dan was so wrapped up in his weird "whatever it is" triangle and Chuck was always working.

"Good," Nate said chuckling. "They're good."

Jenny smiled. "Why are you laughing?"

"Nothing, that was just really random," Nate answered.

"No it wasn't," Jenny argued. "You've been dating for what? A month? A little more? You should be able to say how things are going by this point."

"You're right," Nate said. It was still weird, Jenny asking him about Juliet.

"Besides," Jenny continued. "Not that I'm the authority, but she seems like a perfect match for you."

"In what way?" Nate asked. He like Juliet but had never really thought of them as similar.

"Oh, you know," Jenny said, pausing to take a bite of mocha chip. "Educated, well-spoken, perfect." She smiled as she said this last word. She was joking, but at the same time, not. "And I could see her sitting down for an Archibald family Thanksgiving and fitting right in."

"You don't have to be perfect to fit in with my family Jenny," Nate countered.

"Yeah," Jenny said. "But you do have to be comfortable with that world."

Nate stopped at this. "What world?"

"Your world," Jenny explained. "The Upper East Sider's world. High society, balls, country clubs." She looked at Nate. She shouldn't have to explain this to him. Afterall, he was the one who lived in it.

Nate furrowed his brow, "I guess I thought there was only one world and we all lived in it," he said, clearly becoming annoyed.

"I'm not trying to make you angry Nate," Jenny said, realizing she may have overstepped but not knowing how.

"It's fine," Nate said continuing to walk. "I guess I know what you think of me now."

"Nate, stop it," Jenny said. She put her hand on his shoulder and he stopped walking. "You know that's not what I meant. You're the only good thing about it."

They stared at each other as their ice cream continued to melt. Jenny suddenly felt self-conscious and removed her hand. "Besides," she said, "It's not like my world is perfect either."

"But you couldn't see yourself anywhere else?" Nate asked, his eyes meeting hers.

"I don't know," Jenny answered, not understanding why he was asking.

That was where the conversation ended. The next second, Nate got brain-freeze, Jenny laughed, and it was like the mention of worlds and where they belonged had never happened. For the next moments, they belonged right where they were.