"My Evening Star" Chapter 2
Rating: T, just to be safe
Word Count: 3,043
TV Spoilers?: Again, I'm kinda just going off what I've seen and some things I've heard were in store for Episode 5 but nothing real specific.
Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Gossip Girl or really anything affiliated with it.
Other: Thank you guys all so much for the reviews! I absolutely adore them so thanks again!
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"So just to clarify, you've spent the last five years living in Boston, Los Angeles, and Phoenix and vacationed in Venice, Barcelona, Birmingham, and Düsseldorf?" Blair stated as she sat back in her chair in the sushi restaurant she had chosen and raised her brows. "My, my. Don't you keep busy."
"I've also spent quite a few of my breaks in Lyon." Will replied as he took another piece of unagi in his chopsticks. "It's one of my favorite places in the world."
Blair's dark eyes instantly widened. "You vacation in Lyon? My father's vineyard is in Rhône-Alpes!" She told him, instantly recalling the beautiful lands surrounding Roman and her father's classic French chateau. Though the few months she had vacationed there had been wasted thinking about a certain jackass, she had admired the scenery, nonetheless. "I just spent the summer there."
"Really? What a coincidence." He replied, watching her carefully with his pale blue eyes. "The bouchon there is delicious, don't you think? And the Chartreuse…"
Blair smiled at his question before she linked her fingers together and rested her chin upon it. She then looked up at him under her thick lashes. "Bouchon? Chartreuse? Jetsetting around the world? You really aren't the Billy Kensington I remember, are you?"
He stiffened at that, but his suave smile never faltered. "I told you, I've put that particular part of my past behind me."
Blair wasn't going to let him off quite that easy. "As in you abandoned that black cape you used to wear to school everyday? Or you no longer sit hunched over in your seat, never speaking…just carefully watching everyone in the room?"
"If I recall correctly, the majority of my staring was aimed towards you." He replied smoothly, and Blair's smirk slipped away.
"Me?" She asked in disbelief as he leaned forward, closer to her.
"Yes, you. I had quite a bit of a crush on you, you know." He told her very seriously, causing her to blink in surprise.
"How is it possible I did not know that?" She asked, narrowing her eyes. Very few things slipped under Blair's radar.
"I suppose you wouldn't when you never really knew I existed." He replied, and though his posture was still laid back and relax, Blair thought she could detect a little edge to his voice. "Must have been hard to when you were always distracted by your friends."
"Friends?" Blair repeated questioningly.
"Yes, you know. That blonde girl, Selena…, or Serena. One of the two." He said, staring upward as though it was difficult to remember the names. "Then there was Nate. And that Chuck boy…Chuck…"
"Bass." Blair finished for him bitterly, anger clearly in her voice. Will raised a brow suspiciously. "Did I hit a nerve?" He asked, staring intently at her with his icy blue gaze.
"No." She lied, as she rolled her eyes and composed herself once more. "I'm just no longer friends with him…or any of them for that matter." She told him as she daintily patted her lips with her napkin in order to look as poised as possible.
"I don't really want to get into it. All you really need to know is the moral of the story and that is that none of the three are worth my time…..and I'm certain at least two of them will one day burn in the deepest pits of hell." She said, before she thoughtfully added. "And hopefully that time will come soon."
Blair missed the flicker of a triumphant smile that appeared on Will's face for a split second, and when she finally looked up, all she could see was him looking at her with undeniable concern in his pale blue eyes.
"Listen, I know you said you don't want to get into it, but we still have six more pieces of bakagai and spicy tuna rolls coming if you change your mind..." He told her thoughtfully. Blair rolled her eyes at this.
"You know, you really don't need to play the role of the sweet, sensitive guy coming to save my tortured soul." She told him with a glare. "I think I've got things covered." To her surprise, he simply smiled in return.
"You clearly have some severe trust issues." He told her, before he became serious again and locked his gaze onto her own. "Perhaps you're not the Blair Waldorf I remember." She knew in an instant he was challenging her once again.
"What is it you want to know?" She asked him crossing her arms. Though she intended on seeming like her usual, icy self, she couldn't help but to drop the act a little when she saw the soft look he was giving her. The paleness of his skin only succeeded in making his eyes look even more blue.
"Just tell me about your life." He replied, leaning a little closer to her. "You can call it catching me up on my Upper East Side Gossip if you want. I just want to know where you've been… What you've done., Who you've seen…ect. But first…" He paused. "Tell me what's been upsetting you."
Blair said nothing, and instead just stared at him for a moment. Did he really want to know about her that much? Blair could not help but feel flattered by the attention he was giving her, especially since this was one of the few times she hadn't had to work for it. Sure, there had been another who had made her feel this way, better actually if she was going to be honest… but she didn't want to think about him anymore. It hurt too bad.
"Alright…if you want to know everything…"
"I do." He cut her off, gazing at her intently. With a small smile playing around her lips, she then leaned coyly towards him as well.
"Well, though I'm not exactly sure when all my woes began, I think its pretty safe to say all roads to hell can be traced back to Chuck Bass, and my life is no different…."
An hour and a half later, Blair and Will were still sitting at the sushi place, talking quite animatedly. Or at least she was talking, spilling her guts to a boy she really didn't remember all that well while he took everything in. Literally everything. Not only did he pay attention to her words, but he was also completely tuned into the way her thick brown hair shined under the light… The way her perfect red lips moved when she spoke. …The way her dark, doe-like eyes lit up and darkened when she told her story…
But Blair didn't notice his obsessive attention. She was too busy finally getting everything that had been bothering her off her chest to a person who genuinely seemed to care. It was nice the way he nodded his head along in agreement to what she said and it felt good to see the concern in eye as she talked about Nate, Serena, and Chuck's treachery. Though she was still skeptical due to her trust issues, she could not help but to be pleased by his obvious interest in her.
Perhaps the return of William Kensington was one of the best thing that had happened to her in awhile.
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The next day, Blair woke up not quite dreading school as much as she had been lately. Will had not only asked her to show him around Constance now that he was going to attend school there, and also if she'd spend lunchtime with him, as well.
Though Blair had pretended to mull this over, as if she had been hesitant to break other plans, she finally accepted his offer, secretly delighted. It had been over a week since she had someone to eat with. Plus, having a good looking boy following her around would definitely work to her benefit. She knew it would give plenty of things for people to talk about.
Looking in the mirror, Blair set one last brown curl into place before she smirked at her reflection for the first time in a long time. Everything was perfect.
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It was only Monday morning, and already this week was a bad one for Chuck. He had come to school early to do some basic snoop work, only to find that not only was Kensington back, but he was also enrolled at Constance now….and he was in every single one of Blair's co-ed classes.
Call him a skeptic, but Chuck didn't believe for a second that was mere coincidence.
The issue of Blair was already difficult enough before Kensington had decided to make his grand return. Ever since Chuck had rubbed in her face the fact that he had ruined her life and she had retaliated by saying the cruelest possible things she could, there had been virtually no interaction between them.
Not only were they not speaking, but she wouldn't even look at him anymore. At least last year after the whole gossip girl/pregnancy scare/"rode hair and put away wet" debacle she had shot him one of her patent death glares every time she saw him. But she didn't even bother with that anymore.
For the first time since before Kindergarten, Blair Waldorf was truly, and completely out of his life. And Chuck hated it.
But even if she planned to ignore him for the rest of her life, that just wasn't going to happen. Now that Kensington was back and cozying up to her, it was about time they had a chat…and the sooner the better.
As expected, he didn't have to wait very long for she soon arrived at school early, just like always.
Chuck took a moment to appreciate her classic, doll-like beauty as she stepped out of her town car and began to smooth out the nonexistent wrinkles in her school skirt. It never failed to amaze him just how beautiful she was in a delicate, dainty sort of way…like she would break at the gentlest of touch.
But Chuck knew better than anyone else that that wasn't her at all. No, Blair Waldorf was not made of porcelain and lace. She was fire and ice. Haughty and aloof one minute, fierce and passionate the next. But more than anything, she was one of the toughest, most resilient people he had ever met.
God, he missed her.
And judging by the emotion that flickered clearly across her face the moment she caught him staring at her, she missed him, too. But she soon averted her gaze, tossed her head haughtily, and began to march towards the school with her chin held high. Yes, even when dethroned, shoved down, and stomped on, Blair Waldorf still radiated dignity and grace in a way that put all false nobility to shame.
Yet when she tried to strut right on by Chuck, again, without sparring him a second glance, he soundlessly caught her around the waist and began to lead her back towards the corner he was just standing in. Not once did he bother listening to her cries of protest.
"Let go of me, Bass!" She hissed as she began to struggle in his grasp, smacking him with her handbag as she tried to pull away.
"We need to talk." He replied smoothly, releasing her only when he had managed to pull her towards a more secluded area outside of school.
"What could we possibly say to one another?" She snapped. "Unless you're about to tell me you plan on taking a plunge off the Brooklyn Bridge, I'm not interested."
Chuck smirked at this. "You know, I almost forgot what a charming sweet talker you can be when you want to."
Blare leered at him. "Now that you've had your reminder, can I go?"
"Not quite." He said as he leaned up against the wall behind him and his crossed arms. "I have a few questions first."
"What? Like where the nearest STD clinic is?" She quipped. "Or maybe you were wondering why you weren't born with a soul?…unfortunately, I don't have the answers to either."
Chuck rolled his eyes impatiently, but he couldn't help but to admire her wit. "Just tell me what the hell you were doing with Little Billy Kensington, of all people, the other day."
Blair blinked, obviously taken by surprise. "How is that any business of your's?"
"That's for me to know, and you to wonder." He retorted with a smirk.
"What? Are you jealous?" She asked with a taunting sneer of her own. "Hate seeing me with another man?"
He glared at her. "Perhaps that was true at some point.." He told her while he took a step forward so that they were standing close. Staring deep into her eyes, he added, "But not anymore" in a voice so cold and so certain he almost believed his words, himself. Almost.
Blair obviously took them for truth. Her taunting smile was quickly wiped away and he thought he could see a flicker of hurt and disappointment in her dark eyes. But just a second later, all traces of emotion were wiped away, leading him wondering if he just imagined it.
"If you really must know, Will and I were just having lunch. And yes, I found his company enjoyable and yes, I will be seeing him again." She eyed him coldly. "Does that answer any question you might have?"
"Not exactly." He replied, before he leaned against the wall once more. "I'm still can't comprehend why you were with a total creep like Little Billy."
"Will." She corrected with a glare. "He goes by Will now. And he's not a creep." She shook her head. "I can't believe a sleazy perv like you would even bother calling someone else that."
"Face it, Waldorf." Chuck told her before he walked up towards her once again and got right into her face. "The kid is a freak."
Blair scoffed at that and jabbed him in the chest with her pointer finger. "You're wrong."
"Remember back in seventh grade? He was expelled. Completely kicked out of school and then he just suddenly disappeared. Don't you think that's a little odd?" He told her, and though she glared at him, he could see the sudden uncertainly he had put in her eyes.
"Trust me, there is something seriously disturbed about him." He said in his soft, husky tone and Blair's head instantly snapped up.
"Trust you?" She repeated in disbelief. "Trust you? I'd sooner put my faith in an armed, masked man sneaking down a back alley than I would you." She rolled her eyes. "No way anyone else could be as sinister."
"Look." He told her as he moved in even closer, and grabbed her tiny wrists in his hand, forcing her to look up at him. "I know you and I have had our fair share of conflict in the past, but I would never straight out lie to you like this."
A strange expression flickered over Blair face as she looked away, quiet. After a moment, she lifted her chin once more to met his gaze….her dark eyes now filled to the brim with emotion. "Wouldn't you?" She asked softly, never breaking eye contact.
Something about her rare showing of vulnerability pulled Chuck right in and he moved closer to her, holding on to her wrists even tighter.
"Blair…" He began softly, before he was suddenly interrupted.
"Blair?" Another voice called out, and both Chuck and Blair turned to see William Kensington standing there in his perfectly fitted Constance uniform. Though his expression was neutral, Chuck could see how rigid his body was, his fists cletched tightly at his sides. He was furious.
"Will! There you are." Blair responded, trying to hide how badly she had been caught off guard. Much to Chuck's chagrin, he could feel her pull away from him and he had to fight the urge to reach out, and grab her once again to keep her with him.
"I was looking for you. I thought you were going to show me around school." He told her in a flat tone, and Chuck couldn't help but to applaud the man for keeping the rage out of his tone. Judging by his acting skills, he was not one to underestimate.
"I am. Chuck here just had something he wanted to talk to me about but we're done." She said as she began to walk towards Will. Turning her head, she gave Chuck one last lingering look before adding. "For good."
Will looked between her and Chuck, eyes narrowed skeptically, before he switched gears completely, broke out into a charming smile and extended his arm out to Blair. "Well then, shall we begin the tour?"
Chuck watched with disgust in his deep brown eyes as Blair flashed him her most dazzling smile, and slipped her arm comfortably into his. "We shall. First we should probably find all of your classrooms so you won't be wandering around helplessly all day. Then I'll take to you to…"
Chuck had to turn away from the image of the two of them disappearing off into the crowd while every student around them eyed them in surprise. Chuck could perfectly imagine what they must be saying about Blair's friend, the handsome new student, and the gossip it would inspire. The idea of it all made his stomach lurch.
Obviously, he was going to have to switch tactics if he wanted to chase William Kensington out of the Upper East Side for good. Blair clearly didn't trust him enough to take his word at face value so perhaps it was about time he had a little chat with Billy, himself.
Maybe then he'd finally get the message that there wasn't a place here for creeps like him.
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Thanks again for reading, and please review if you can! There is still much more to come later...