Author's Note: (Contains spoilers for Gossip Girl season two, episodes three and four) Wow! The reviews I received for the last chapter were quite complimentary (or frantic) and I appreciate all of them soooooo much! Hope you like this chapter (I've been writing a lot of it in my physics class... Brilliant idea, I know). Also, hope you don't mind a little more angst before the official end. And what did everyone think about 'The Dark Night' and 'The Ex-Files?' I think I hate Chuck even more- if that's even possible. But hey, Serena and Dan are done (yeah right! mixed feelings on that one), so Dan is available for Blair! And Lord Marcus got bounced, so, they're both available! Maybe they'll date, as means of revenge to get back at the bitch Serena is going to turn into?! Wishful thinking... So anyway, here is chapter twenty-three! Enjoy!

Chapter Twenty-Three
"No need to tell her, she knows
That there's another little hole in her heart
Each day, each dollar she knows
It tears another little hole in her heart
'cause she feels it happen, no doubt
That there's another little hole in her heart
This life can only leave us lonely,
There's no tomorrow
Just another little hole in her heart."
-Aqualung

The weekend following the Winter Formal was a dismal one for Blair. She spent all of Friday night wallowing in her bathroom, with the shower and the faucet running cold water. She threw up and cried in intervals, feeling more out-of-control and hopeless than she ever had before. It was long after midnight when she yanked her hair out of its hold, pulled her dress off, scrambled into some sweats, and sank into bed, crying the whole time. And Saturday and Sunday were much the same. All she did for the two days was mope around. She would lay in bed, watching Nickelodeon. The only time she got up was to use the bathroom, get tons of food from the kitchen, or to throw up. She didn't shower, she didn't talk to her mother- who finally asked how the formal was, on Saturday night- she didn't even move to change the channel. The only other thing she managed to do was go on GossipGirl and weep at all the new pictures and information that were being posted every hour or so. Just when she thought the influx would stop, another person gained the courage and sent a picture, or piece of information, that they had harbored prior to GossipGirl's revealing.

So, Blair suffered through the weekend. And when Sunday night arrived, she contemplated skipping school the following day. Some inkling of her pride remained though, and she resolved to show up at school looking fabulous and unbothered. She wouldn't allow GossipGirl and a bunch of low-life high schoolers to tread on her so heavily.

WIth a livened passion in her actions, she got out of bed and marched to her closet.

Is she going to arrange her armor? 'cause I hear those Upper East Siders can be vicious.

She flung open the door with purpose and stepped inside. Because she had little choice, she put her uniform skirt aside, setting about finding something to go with it. Feeling as if her life depended on this choice, she peered at all of her things, thumbing through them with calculated movements. She finally decided on a delicately crisp button-up shirt with pleats, her Constance Billard tie, a red and navy blue striped sweater to go over it all, and a prim red and gold headband. It satisfied her enough so that she was smiling when she walked back into her room. That is, until she saw what was lying on her bed.

The unnamed cat stared at her challengingly, as it had been known to do since her return from France. It was almost like the cat wasn't going to be friendly with her unless things were good with Dan. This made Blair swallow- not because she was so afraid the kitten would dislike her forever, but because she was scared that she would never be on good terms with Dan ever again.

And just like that, she deflated all over again.

She missed him- she missed him so much. But he knew the truth now, and there was no way a guy as good as Dan would be with someone as horrible and selfish as Blair Waldorf- especially when she had used him.

She sank to the floor and began crying anew, with the kitten staring at her disapprovingly.

For Dan, the weekend following the Winter Formal lasted all of an eternity.

He returned from the Winter Formal, his emotions volleying between angry, upset, surprised, and disgusted. When asked how the event had gone, he told his father that it had been a disaster and that he didn't want to talk about it. At all. He retreated into his room, taking off his tux with slow, distracted movements. His mind was elsewhere. His thoughts drifted back to Blair, her confession, the betrayal, the upheaval of feelings in his chest. It was like a tornado had been set loose in his heart, and he had no idea where he could take shelter from its wreckage.

"Dan, we need to talk," Jenny said into his door when she got home.

By that time, Dan was laying on top of his bed, dressed in flannel pajama bottoms and a t-shirt, staring at a blank sheet in his notebook.

Tiredly, he said, "Jenny, please-"

"No, I want to know what the hell is up!" she all but shrieked.

Dan heard his father ask what was going on, from the other side of the door.

"GossipGirl just revealed to the whole world that Dan is having an affair with Blair Waldorf behind Serena's back!" Jenny huffed, as if she couldn't believe her brother was possible of such a crime.

Rufus said, "Ooooh," as if it was a nasty mess that he understood- but Jenny didn't- and that he sympathized with his son for. "Jen, let's leave him alone for tonight," he also said, and- luckily for Dan- Jenny retreated from the outside of his doorway.

So, Dan spent the rest of the night on his bed, staring at his notebook, unable to think of any poems to write. Long after Jenny and their father had gone to bed, he still lay in the dark. His sighs filled up the spaces around him, and he stared at the ceiling. He couldn't sleep- he couldn't ease his thoughts enough for relaxation of any kind to arrive- so he stayed up, thinking of bitter rhymes and epic tragedies of a young man who has his heart ripped out of his body by a tiny, vicious siren, without the man even realizing.

That's one way of art imitating life.

Eventually he fell asleep, but his sleep was fitful and uncomfortable. When he woke up on Saturday morning, he had a crick in his neck, he was still exhausted, and he got the feeling that he had a very strange or upsetting dream that he couldn't recall. His thoughts were plagued before he could even realize that he was awake, so he dressed quickly and left the house without eating breakfast.

He spent all of his Saturday walking around the city, taking random subway rides up and downtown, wandering into random shops, and listening to depressing music on his iPod. He felt listless and anxious. There was a weak, nervous feeling in his stomach, and he felt perpetually afraid of something he couldn't define. Even when he walked through the farthest reaches of Brooklyn- somewhere Blair would never be caught dead- he felt like he was going to see her, and that the gaping feeling in his chest would ache even more. Something about the mix of betrayal on her part- and the heaviness of the importance he had placed on her- made him feel as if he was going to fall apart. He was sure he had never felt so pathetic before, but that was the effect she had on him. As much as he wanted to be able to pick himself up and dust himself off- to be more angry than crushed, it wasn't possible. It was as if someone was ripping part of himself away and telling him everything he had ever known at been a lie. He felt lied to and weary, and he wasn't sure how he'd be able to bounce back and attend school the following Monday.

But Sunday was spent writing angry, depressed, frightened, and confused poems. Words flowed from his mind to the paper, making him feel as if all the thoughts and feeling inside of him had finally been released. And he felt better, but only slightly.

He would go to school, if only to prove to Blair that she didn't mean that much to him.

Even though it would be one big lie, he would seem unbothered.

The clouds were gray and the winds were sharp on that following Monday morning. An eerie darkness hung over the sky, making it seem as if it were really nighttime. Cabs and cars inched down the avenues, with the roads clogged from the influx of people refusing to walk in such threatening weather. But no rain fell from the sky, and no thunder sounded overhead. The heavy grayness stayed opaque above them, making everyone wonder what the day's weather would bring. Because of this wondering, only a handful of Constance girls were meeting on the steps of the Met, before seeking shelter inside their own school. Within this handful of girls, was Blair's (former?) posse. Serena, Kati, and Isabel stood on the steps, watching the cars pass by slowly, gazing longingly at the students scampering into the warmth of school, like woodland creatures into the forest before the storm.

"Miss Waldorf, I'm not permitted to park here," said the towncar driver from the front seat.

Startled into awareness, Blair looked to the driver, from where she had been staring at the girls from out the window, "Oh- Right," she said shortly.

Gathering her books and slipping her Chanel bag onto the crook of her arm, she opened the door herself and stepped into the angry gale of the Upper East Side.

Angry gale, meaning the wind or the people?

She had given it much thought before falling asleep the night before, and again on the way over. And now she did what she had decided to do.

With confidence in her step, and a self-satisfied smile on her lips, she marched up the steps of the Met, listening to the sound of her heels against the stone for support. Serena, Kati, and Is immediately turned and looked at her disdainfully, if not with surprise. But she continued to approach them, regal and most certainly determined. When she was on the same step as Serena, she stopped and smiled at all of them.

"Good morning," she said, trying to sound cheerful and commanding.

They stared at her.

She just stared back.

Serena curled her lip at Blair and asked, "Can we help you with something?"

Blair's heart sped up- she could feel it pounding in her cheeks and in her ears- and she felt her throat constrict. This was what she had been afraid of, but what she had been expecting. The girls were pissed at her, and they had all taken Serena's side. It had been wishful thinking to believe she could go up to them and they would act as if nothing at all had happened at the Winter Formal.

And now she had to fight back.

"No, except you could tone down the attitude," she said with an acidic smile.

"Why should I?" Serena took a step toward her, towering over the small brunette by a little more than a few inches. "It's not as if you even deserve my talking to you."

Blair scoffed automatically, "Do you realize who you're dealing with?"

"Yes," Serena said with a malicious smile. "I'm dealing with Blair Waldorf: the elitist hypocrite who had an affair with my boyfriend to screw over her best friend and her own boyfriend," she continued to smile, shaking her head. "Couldn't get more classy than that, could you B?"

Nearly snarling, Blair's pose grew infinitesimally defensive, "Don't pretend for one second that you were even dating Dan. You were using him to forget about Nate, and you know that."

Serena stared down at Blair, looking as if she wanted to slap her.

"And don't go acting so self-righteous S, you were the one who had sex with my boyfriend in the first place," Blair smiled coldly. "Talk about classy."

"What's going on?" asked Penelope as she ascended the steps and reached the group, looking at Blair with disgust.

She was ignored, as Serena said, "Maybe I did have sex with Nate first, but at least I didn't act as if he was a piece of shit just because of where he lived," she shook her head. "Don't act as if you're in the right here, Blair."

Blair opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

Luckily, Serena cut across her before she could even make a sound, "And besides, I did what I did with Nate because he wasn't happy with you. Do you want to know why, Blair?"

In truth, some part of her did want to know why. But she braced herself for whatever Serena was going to say, as if waiting for a slap to the face.

"Because you're a high-maintenance, selfish bitch. You don't think or care about anyone but Blair," she curled her lip at her again. "He couldn't stand to be with someone so suffocating and needy. Just because you're life is so screwed-up you have to control everyone around you- You did it with Nate and turned him away, and then you used Dan for it. Who do you have now Blair? You've run everyone away from you-"

Blair was shivering and trembling- she couldn't take it anymore- when she said, "Stop it."

"Can't take the truth?" Penelope put in.

Blair continued to stare at Serena in horror.

"It's over Blair," the blonde said with a little smile. "You're not worthy of Queen- you're not even worthy of friend," and with that, the four girls turned and walked away.

Blair was left staring at the spot they had just occupied, stunned and hurt. Slowly, as if in shock, she turned and looked at the traffic passing on Fifth Avenue, hardly able to actually see the yellow of the taxis or the black of the towncars. She felt as if someone had just punched her in the throat, and she couldn't breathe or swallow. Serena- airheaded Serena- had just served her exactly what she was sure she didn't deserve, and she couldn't help but be floored. For a brief moment she contemplated jumping into a cab and going back home, to crawl into her bed and watch Audrey in Breakfast at Tiffany's and forget about her own life. But then she realized that would just be excepting defeat, and Serena would love that, so, with her legs feeling weak and shaky, she began the short walk to school, trying to repair her wounded pride and her bruised ego.

Wonder if Lonely Boy is going to get so equally wounded?

For some unfathomable reason, Dan was optimistic on his way to school.

Though Jenny wasn't speaking to him, and the subway ride and five block walk were tense and awkward, he felt confident. He believed, that, at worst, the school day would be uncomfortable. People would ignore him- like they had before he had gotten involved with the Upper East Side kids. No one would confront him and make a big deal about what had happened at the Winter Formal.

What, is he new at this or something?

Upon arriving at the school, Jenny hurried away from him, and he ascended the stairs alone. All around him, people were pointing and whispering. He could feel the glares on his back, and a sense of foreboding fell over him. He tried to remain calm- to remind himself that this was going to happen. After all, he was a subject of extreme gossip, involving two of the most popular girls in the school. It would have been pointless to expect that he would be completely ignored. But everyone seemed so disgusted or intrigued by him- and this, he wasn't used to.

"Traitor," someone hissed, when he had reached the top of the stairs.

He looked and saw that it was a freshmen, standing with a cluster of her friends, looking at him as if he was a criminal, shaking her head disgustedly.

Dan didn't acknowledge her. Instead, he continued into the building. But inside wasn't much better. As he walked through the halls, conversations ended and heads turned. People were huddled over their phones- looking at the latest GossipGirl installment, no doubt- glancing up to compare the pictures to the live thing. As he moved, he heard people whispering his name, Blair's, Serena's, Nate's. His chest felt tight and his fists clenched angrily. He was annoyed with the gossip-ridden students, but he was even more angry that he was being so publicly humiliated. Not so much because he cared what the Upper East Side high schoolers thought, but because he had been so hurt, and used, and everyone was aware of that, and of what he had done to Serena. Thus far, his act of betrayal to Serena had been overshadowed by his love for Blair, but now he was able to see how much of an ass he had been, on both of those accounts.

At the mouth of the girls' hallway, he saw Serena standing around with her friends before class. With determination and slight apprehension in his movements, he approached her.

Serena turned and met his eyes when Penelope nodded in his direction.

"Serena-"

Without allowing him to speak, she turned on her heel and disappeared down the hallway, with her friends following behind her, giggling and whispering to themselves.

Dan was sure the day had already been too long.

In gym, the boys were playing football. As usual, Dan played, but not as intensely as some of the other boys did. Today, however, he paid much more notice to the fact that Nate's gym class had meshed with his. He cursed his luck and avoided the other boy all he could. But he couldn't ignore the glares he received from Nate, and the weight of the situation when they were placed on the same team.

It was in mid-play, when Dan had possession of the ball, and he was reaching back to throw it across the field to his teammate, when Nate ran into him and knocked him to the ground.

"Are you kidding me?" Dan grunted, pushing Nate off of him.

Nate had his forearm pressed against Dan's Adam's apple though, and he couldn't breathe properly.

"Nate!" the gym teacher shouted. "This is tag football! Besides, Humphrey's on your team!"

Getting close to Dan's face, Nate snarled, "How dare you fucking screw with Blair and Serena!"

"I didn't," was all Dan could manage, as he couldn't breathe, and he was trying to push Nate off of his throat.

"You were playing at dating Serena, while you were fucking with Blair," Nate said, low enough for no one but Dan to hear over their teacher yelling at them.

Dan was growing angry, and he threw all of his weight into pushing Nate off. He managed to wrench the other boy's arm away from his windpipe, and choked, "You don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, don't I, Brooklyn?" Nate hissed. "Blair might have been using you but you liked that piece of ass, didn't you?" and then Dan pushed him off, so he was knocked sideways and rolled onto the grass.

The gym teacher looked annoyed, "Boys, you can argue all you want after school- but keep the tackling and cursing off of my field."

Nate and Dan stood up, and as Nate was walking away, he slammed into Dan's shoulder, growling, "Even Blair is too good for you."

Dan watched as Nate crossed the field, and he felt a surge of anger pulsing throughout his body. Not only did he think that Nate had his whole story screwed-up, but he couldn't stand anyone believing he had stayed with Blair while dating Serena for 'that piece of ass.' He couldn't bear the thought of everyone in school thinking of him as a skeezy teenaged boy who just wanted all the action he could get. He had cared- and still, regrettably, did care- about Blair, and loved her with all of his heart. Sure, what they had done to Serena and Nate was wrong, but he hadn't been doing it out of malice- he had been doing it out of love. He knew that sounded pathetic, but it was the truth.

Blair, on the other hand, hadn't done it for any sort of feeling, other than the desire for revenge. He was convinced that, no matter what she had said or done, she had been lying to him all the time.

And as the gym class wrapped-up, Dan couldn't help wanting to punch someone in the face (specifically Nate).

Don't get so riled up yet, Lonely Boy- the day has just begun.

At lunch, the courtyard was packed.

From the doorway, Blair could see Serena, Penelope, Isabel, and Kati, sitting at a table, eating salads and yogurt, sipping diet Coke, laughing and talking as if they weren't missing a member of their ostentatious clique. She contemplated approaching them, and giving Serena the deadliest insult she could muster, but she couldn't scrounge up any words that weren't bitter and cynical in her own way. So, she stood and watched them.

Resolving, finally, that she wouldn't be pathetic and stand around for lunch, she decided to go to the cafe around the corner and buy her lunch and sit and call her father, or her grandmother who lived in Connecticut. She wouldn't sit by herself and be completely pathetic. But as she walked out of the door, to cross the courtyard and make her way to the other side of the building to leave, she was stopped short.

Halting, mid-walk, as well, was Dan.

They made eye contact, and Blair felt as if the whole world was crumbling around her. He was so angry still, and his eyes conveyed this. She took it straight to heart, and felt as if she was going to collapse. This separation between them was like nothing she had known before. She had never felt so empty without someone before, and it made her chest ache to be standing right before him, to be looking into his eyes, but not being able to have him hold her and stroke her hair. If she could, she would have explained everything to him in a nanosecond, but he looked so angry, that she found the words caught in her throat. And although her big, doe eyes were sad and pleading, he felt almost no sympathy for her. She had used him- had lied to him about everything- and for that, he couldn't help but feel like she deserved what was being dished out to her. Even with the anger though, he couldn't help but long to enfold her in his arms and forgive her for everything, to make everything okay, to make her big eyes sparkly with laughter. But, that's not what she wanted- right?- because he was sure that she didn't really feel that way about him.

"Dan-"

Before she could say anything else though, he had moved around her and left the courtyard.

Loudly enough for everyone in the courtyard to hear if they were listening (and they definitely were), Serena said, "Looks like Queen B got showed up by her peasant."

There was some general chuckling around the space, and Blair tried to ignore them as she walked forward.

Someone stepped in her path, though, before she could get inside again, and she looked up.

"If you want, I have a shoulder to cry on and an empty stairwell for us to use," Chuck said, trying to speak in a lust-inducing whisper, close to her face.

Having no patience for him, Blair pushed him out of the way and went back inside.

So that was what things had come to? The only person willing to spend their lunch period with her was Chuck Bass- and only because he wanted to have sex with her in a stairwell when she was vulnerable?

She very nearly ripped her hair out as she exited the school and made her way to the cafe to plot some kind of plan of revenge or apology.

Blair Waldorf, apologizing to someone? My, how things have changed.

Author's Note: Sorry the chapter was so ginormous! Hope everyone liked it all the same! Also, the commentary for the first chapter of 'When it Rains, it Pours' is up on youtube now. You can find the link to my youtube page on my profile, or you can search 'pottersweetie' on youtube, if you do want to watch it. Really, it's me explaining the chapter and why I did stuff a certain way in it, and explaining the lyrics at the beginning, and me being random and goofy. I'm working on the second commentary, only I don't really have a voice right now, so it might take longer, I dunno. So, if anyone's interested in watching those commentaries they're available now! Thanks for reading! Reviewing is always extremely wonderful!