Thanks for the reviews! The next two chapters have more to do with Dan and Blair, but keep in mind that this is and will always be a Chuck & Blair fic!
A couple of days had passed since her fateful conversation with Serena. Another day, she said to herself, except this time, she was smiling. Her classes at Columbia were not as unbearable as she had assumed, mainly due to the fact that Chuck dropped out of school a week ago on the premise that he had a business to run. She couldn't help but think that this was his way of waving his white flag at her. Her throat still grew tight at the sound of his name, but she knew she was healing and for now, that was enough.
After having drinks with Nate and Serena at Kellari, another trip they insisted on taking her to in hopes of checking up on her, Blair finally made it home only to find Dan Humphrey standing in her foyer.
"What are you doing here, Humphrey?" She said, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at the brunette figure in front of her.
"I'm here for you actually," he answered, staring back at her pointedly.
"Oh, lucky me," she said, making her sarcasm all the more evident.
Dan's patience finally grew thin. "Look, Blair, try to put aside all the squabbles you have with my family for a sec, and just hear me out, OK?"
Blair nodded bitterly. "Fine, Humphrey, what do you want?"
"I need your help. Actually, W Magazine needs your help."
Blair's eyes instantly lit up at the mention of one of her favorite publications.
"I have to do a piece on Bergdorf's new corporate vise president, and frankly, I have no idea where to start."
She rolled her eyes, as if this was the most obvious piece of information he had ever given here. "Of course, you have no idea. You're from Brooklyn."
"Look, do you want in or not?" Dan said between gritted teeth.
"I guess I do owe you…" Blair said hesitantly, as her eyes fell to the ground. "For what happened with…you know."
Dan looked at her in surprise. He didn't think Blair Waldorf was capable of human emotion, much less remorse. "Jenny's…happier now, you know," he finally said, studying the sad expression on Blair's pale face. "And…" he couldn't believe he was about to say this, "I forgive you, Blair."
She finally looked up at him, disbelief written across her face. "But why?" She asked incredulously.
He paused for a second, trying to summon the right words. "Because, at the end of the day, it was you who ended up hurting the most," he said quietly, holding her gaze with every ounce of sincerity he could convene. Blair's throat suddenly grew tight, but she nevertheless found the strength to nod her head. Still trying to process the unlikely exchange of words he just had with Blair Waldorf, Dan cleared his throat in hopes of changing the course of their conversation.
"So I should probably introduce you to Epperley and the W staff first, but consider yourself hired, Blair. What are you doing today?"
Blair's expression quickly changed, as she locked eyes with Dan. He had to step back for a second, because it frightened him how quickly she had switched from vulnerable to utterly in-control, a side of Blair that he hadn't seen in a long time. "Well, I'm setting up an appointment with Adrienne Gold today, and you, Humphrey, are coming with me."
"Adrienne, who?" Dan said, furrowing his brow in confusion.
"The new corporate vise president of Bergdorf Goodman," Blair said matter-of-factly.
"Oh, right."
Blair rolled her eyes wearily. "I'm surprised they haven't fired you yet."
"Hey, I make a good cup of coffee!" Dan said defensively.
She shook her head and smirked. "Look, before we leave, you do know that you'll have to change your shirt, right? I assume one of the biggest retailers in the world would have a strict policy against flannel." Dan was about to open his mouth in protest, when Blair studied his clothes once more and added, "And those hideous jeans of yours—where did you even find such a pair?"
"They were my dad's," he said, glancing below his waist in confusion.
"From the 90s? Oh God, Humphrey. We're going shopping."
Spotted: Queen B and Lonely Boy roaming Fifth Avenue, Dior Homme and Bottega shopping bags in tow. A little much, don't you think, D? We all know S prefers ex-cons now, so maybe trade in the Bottegas and stick to your Brooklynite, working-class roots. XOXO, Gossip Girl.
Dan's eyes flashed angrily at the screen of his cell phone. Gossip Girl really knew which buttons to push. He simply couldn't fathom why people would be interested in knowing that he and Blair were shopping in the first place. Surely, there were more controversial topics to discuss. Dan let out a sigh and told himself to calm down. His patience was withering by the second, because Blair insisted they visit every store in the city. Serena owes me big-time, he thought, as he grudgingly tried on the wool, navy Z Zegna sports blazer Blair threw in his direction, before pushing him into a dressing room against his will. Dan let out an exasperated sigh until finally stepping outside.
"Verdict?" He muttered, trying to make his foul mood more apparent.
Blair looked up at him and a small smile of content spread across her lips. "Not bad, Humphrey."
He narrowed his eyes at her before turning around to see his reflection on the mirror. Standing before him was a man Dan only ever recognized in very few occasions. He saw this man during Cotillion and another time during Lily and Bart's wedding. Other than those occasions, Dan managed to attend several society parties moderately unscathed in his trustworthy J. Crew suit, which Blair had apparently had enough of.
"You know, to be perfectly honest, that jacket kind of makes up for your tacky jeans," Blair said, as she edged closer to smoothen the edges of his blazer.
A smirk escaped from his lips. "So have we reached a unanimous decision then, Judge Judy?" Dan asked mockingly, avoiding Blair's icy glare.
"Don't we have a meeting to get to anyway?" He asked, still staring appreciatively at the mirror.
Blair sighed nonchalantly, ignoring him, as she folded the items he discarded. "We don't actually," she finally said.
Dan looked back at her in disbelief. "Blair! I have a deadline. We have a deadline. If we don't get that interview, we're both fired." Blair simply rolled her eyes.
"Look, Adrienne Gold's assistant may have refused to schedule an appointment for us, but I've done enough snooping of my own to know where he goes for his Afternoon Tea," she said proudly.
Dan suddenly grew incredibly agitated, which was evident in the way his voice shook when he spoke to her. "Blair, please tell me that I didn't just spend hours on end shopping for clothes for a meeting that doesn't even exist!" His blood was boiling at this point and even the stares from nearby customers weren't enough to make him lower his voice.
"Will you just quiet down! You think scheduling an appointment with an executive head honcho is easy? If the hired staff at W can't even get a couple of minutes with the guy, then what more with us, interns? This is clearly a test to see if we actually have what it to takes to work for the magazine. So if I were you, I'd shut my mouth and listen to someone who actually knows what she's doing." Dan blinked back at her in complete awe, which she gladly took as a sign to continue. "Russian Tea Room. 3 o-clock. We have approximately half an hour to get there, so pay for the blazer and meet me outside. Can you at least handle that, Cabbage Patch?"
Dan tried to stifle a laugh. Serena does owe me big-time.