Serena pushed her chair back, startling Dan as the actor's continued to read. She picked her bag up and quietly exited the room, with no one noticing except for the man who had been sitting next to her.

She was over Dan; she had been over Dan for seven long years.

But she was still walking away from their script; their story.

Ignoring the occasional beeping that vibrated from her blackberry deep inside her handbag, it was most likely either her ex-husband or her mother; neither she really wanted to talk to at the moment, Serena enjoyed walking through the streets of Manhattan, unnoticed by the throbs of people that passed her – camera wielding tourists ogling at famous landmarks, hectic natives rushing past in their daily routines.

She relished in the fact that she had made a break from the claustrophobic inducing conference room where the words of her teenaged past were being recited back to her by complete stranger; that for today, for right now, she had no one to please and no responsibilities to adhere to.

Without thinking, her strappy-heeled/pedicured feet guided her towards the closest Starbucks, the alluring thought of caffeine to properly jump start her start pulling her closer and closer.

While she waited in the slow moving line, staring at the ever-growing menu, she considered her next move in her day. She could go visit Blair in her office, lure her away from lawsuits to join her for an early lunch; she could go visit Nate in his office, she hadn't seen him in weeks as he prepared for some political campaign.

But once she had the insulated cup firmly grasped in her hands, sipping the heaven inside, she made a split decision and hailed for one of the number of cabs that littered the busy Manhattan street.

She was going down to Brooklyn.

"Please, Jenny. I don't want anyone else to make the dress."

A twenty one year old Serena sat cross legged on her living room floor, her back leaning up against the couch; as she kept one close eye on her eleven month old daughter who was having a fun time exploring everything, with her hands and her moth, that was within reach.

"Don't you want someone else…?" Serena's nineteen year old sister-in-law sat on the floor opposite Serena in a similar position.

Dan had disappeared for a couple of hours, a meeting with his publisher, and that was just fine for the girl's who were enjoying the girl time.

Serena had been begging her young friend, a fashion design student at NYU, to design a dress, a one of a kind, for an upcoming charity event; and so far she had been reluctant. It wasn't that she wanted this chance, she just didn't want to disappoint the girl she had considered a sister for a long time.

"Think about it." Serena smiled, "I wear an amazing dress, and I tell the reporters that it's a Jenny Humphrey exclusive. Think of your portfolio, think of the clients you'd get."

Jenny faltered, having a difficult time declining; Serena's offer was just too tempting. Eventually she nodded, and Serena knocked her over as she leapt up for a hug.

"I'll be out in a minute." Serena stepped into the renovated former fire-station, music drifting quietly out of the loudspeakers positioned high in the corners and the blonde recognised the opening chords of the song to be the latest by her (second) ex-husband's band; as the feminine voice sounded from the back room.

"That's fine, take your time." Serena called back, already sorting through the outfits that hang neatly on the displays.

"Serena?" The voice sounded surprised and abruptly louder as Jenny Humphrey appeared in the doorway, behind the counter, which led into her office; she had come out instantly once she recognised the voice. "What are you doing here?" She didn't sound angry, but rather excited as she came out onto the selling floor to give her ex-sister-in-law and still popular client a hug.

"I had a free day." Serena shrugged. "So I thought I'd come down to visit my favourite fashion designer." She giggled like a teenager, and returned the hug.

"Why aren't you at the run through?" Jenny asked casually as she fixed up a display that was beginning to look slightly untidy. She had last talked to her brother last night, so she knew the woman next to her was meant to be in that room back in Manhattan with her brother and his new girlfriend.

Serena shrugged again, "I didn't want to spend my day in that room, I guess." She became overly fascinated in one particular dress and Jenny smiled to herself, dropping the questioning.

G~G

Dan held his iPhone in his lap, out of view from Olivia sitting next to him who was still focused on her script and on Max sitting opposite from her and out of view from the rest of the table, still oblivious to Serena's sudden exit.

They were beginning to near the end of the script, the lead up to the climax. Even Dan had beginning to tune out; how many times had he read the script? How many times had he rehearsed it late at night with Olivia? How many times had the words just felt…wrong?

"Where is Serena?" The realisation finally came as Olivia looked next to Dan at the empty seat, presumably to ask a question about how the lines should be delivered. It was now that everyone else looked at the only empty chair in the room.

"She walked out, about an hour and a half ago." Dan announced, looking up from his phone where Serena was flat out refusing to answer the calls and messages.

"Why would she do that?" Brian Goldberg asked, slightly irritated. "She was the one that asked to be involved."

Dan shrugged his shoulders, pretending not to know how Serena's mind worked; but truthfully he could take a pretty accurate guess as to why she had suddenly disappeared.

With Dan unable to give a definitive answer on the whereabouts and/or motives of Serena van der Woodsen, the table turned back to their scripts, not giving the absentee woman a second thought; they had other things they needed to worry about.

Dan turned back to his phone after flicking his eyes obligatory towards the script, to make sure he was on the right page, swiftly his fingers typed another, final, message.

S – What's wrong?

"I just…I couldn't do it." Jenny's knowing silence, and accepting nature had been enough to get the model in her store to break, and soon over another cup of coffee she had spilled everything to her ex-husband's sister. "I don't know how I'm going to do this." She looked up to Jenny for advice, an answer.

"You're looking at the wrong girl, S. I'm with your daughter; I'm still dreaming the day you two finally get back together."

Serena glared at her friend, and thought about telling her what she constantly told Emily, but she had a feeling that, like her daughter, her words would fall upon deaf ears.

"Just keep going back." Jenny finally answered. "You can do it for yourself, you can do it for Emily, you can do it show everyone just how strong you are."

Serena stayed in the Brooklyn boutique, until it was necessary for her to leave to pick Emily up from school on time. As she walked back into the afternoon air, she considered calling her mother's limo to come and collect her, just so she could see her mother's face when she found out her daughter had been down to Brooklyn.

Standing outside the familiar walls of Constance Billard and St Jude's, waiting for the three o'clock final bell to ring, Serena waited with a small, secret smile on her face as she considered what her mother's reaction would be if she told her that her daughter had actually caught the subway.

"Mom!" Emily fled down the stairs following the final bell, finding her mother resting on the stone wall that kept everyday Manhattan from entering the school. Emily flung her arms around her mother's waist, and Serena enjoyed the innocent moment.

"Hey, sweetheart." Serena smiled, taking Emily's book bag from her as Emily detracted herself from her mom eventually. "How did today go?"

Emily half shrugged, half nodded her head as an answer, one that Serena took as it being so-so. Nine and ten year old girls were curious; and difficult when they wanted to be, and they still wanted to know about her relationship to Olivia Burke; it was still a novelty.

"Well, how about I call Michael and cancel your tennis practice today," Serena suggested, revelling in her sudden adult rebellion against her own mother and her upper society lifestyle, "And we can go home, and pig out on ice cream, while we do your homework." There was still some responsibility she had to have as a mother.

Emily squealed and raced off with a bounce in her step, her straight honey blonde hair falling out of her pigtails, as she weaved in and out of people without a care in the world.

By the time that Serena managed to catch up to her daughter again and got her to stay with her, there was always the fear that she could just disappear; they were almost at their building.

For the ten minute walk back to the house, they had talked about everything; Emily's day at school, Serena's visit to Aunty J, what homework Emily had to finish, giving the topics of Dan, Olivia and A Life to Love a wide birth. Both blonde's were perfectly happy with that arrangement.

"Okay, how about you run upstairs and get changed, and I'll get the ice cream ready." Serena said as the elevator finally came to a stop at the top of the building. Emily nodded racing into the lobby and dropping her bag at the base of the steps as she raced up to her room.

Serena absent-mindedly picked up the bag as she made her way through the lower floor, placing it on a chair at the dining table, before she noticed that something was not right.

She looked up, and for the first time, noticed there was someone sitting in her living room, their back to her as they looked out the window. She studied the back silently as she considered calling security, but there was something familiar about the cropped black hair.

"Carter?" She choked, grabbing the edge of the kitchen counter as one hand reached out for the phone. The figure stood up and turned to smile at her.

"Hello, Serena."

Dum, Dum, Dum… =P

Don't abuse me =P

Next chapter…

The reason for the DS divorce is revealed

And the real turning point for the DS relationship

I loved everybody's reaction to my DO question last chapter; you were all incredibly quick to hate her. And I promise she won't be an issue for DS much longer.

Don't forget to review, because you're all incredible people and I love writing this story for you… =D

Casey xXx