Chapter 4

Eight hours after she received the phone call from Dan, they were packed and ready to go to the airport. She had managed to get two first class tickets on the night plane to New York. She had spent the whole day packing their stuff and making phone calls to the office, making arrangements for her three day absence.

Kate couldn't stop talking about New York, she was so excited that she was going to the city that never sleeps. She had read a lot about the city in the storybook Dan had sent her for her fifth birthday; it was a collection of six self-written stories about six different people who lived in New York City.

When they arrived at the airport, she gave the driver a twenty-bill not and turned to her daughter while she was waiting for her change.

"Remember what I told you about the airport, Kate. It's a very big place where you can easily get lost, so stay close to me and don't talk to strangers, okay?"

Kate nodded, remembering to act like a lady because that was what her mother always expected of her and she hated to disappoint her.

They checked in and took their seats on the plane, and not long after they sat the plane was being readied for take-off.

When the plane started making a lot of noise and speeding up right before lift off, Kate grabbed Jenny's arm and squeezed it tightly.

"Mommy, I'm scared." Kate whispered, eyes watery.

"It's alright, honey. The plane is just speeding up so it can take off into the sky. See, we're already off of the runway, doesn't that tickle in your belly?"

"Yes, it does!" giggled Kate, as they gained height and the plane began to even out.

Jenny smiled at her. She remembered the first time she'd every flown. She'd been really scared, and her brother making plane-crashing noises hadn't helped. She rolled her eyes at the thought.

After some time, the stewardess brought their dinner and they ate it while watching The Terminal together. It wasn't long before Kate fell asleep in Jenny's arms, and she stroked her daughter's hair for awhile. She didn't deserve such a beautiful girl, she thought, holding Kate close until she too fell asleep.

–

The next morning Jenny was woken by the stewardess, who told her that they would be landing in the next thirty minutes so she needed to put her chair up and her seat belt on, and to do the same for her daughter who was still sleeping.

Jenny woke Kate, and they landed not long after that. After they had checked out, Jenny called Dan to tell him that they had arrived and they would take a cab to the loft. Kate stayed very close to Jenny while they made their way through the front gate, where Jenny hailed a cab.

After the luggage was in the trunk of the car, they sat down in the taxi and Jenny gave the driver the address of the loft where Dan and Georgina were currently living and where she had spent most of her childhood.

She swallowed hard, locking the memories that were resurfacing back in the box she had made for them in her head years ago. She blinked a few times and looked at her daughter, who had her nose pressed against the window because she didn't want to miss anything of New York.

As they drove away, somebody watched them from across the street. Chuck Bass was there by accident; his driver had dropped him off at the wrong address and he was currently giving him a piece of his mind, all but yelling down the phone as he walked to the corner of the street.

Just then, he spotted the blonde woman across the street and, squinting his eyes together to try and see more clearly across the distance, he could have sworn it was Jenny Humphrey. She was with a young child, and the two of them were stepping into a cab.

He must be wrong, he thought, it couldn't be her—it just couldn't be. Shaking the thought out of his mind, he continued his conversation with his driver.

The journey in the cab lasted about fifteen minutes, and by the time they got to the elevator Kate was nervously fidgeting with her hair. She always did that when faced with something strange and new—another trait she must have inherited from her father.

"Stop fidgeting, Kate. You'll see that Uncle Dan and Auntie-" she grimaced for a moment as she said that "-Georgina are really nice people."

When they got to the familiar door, she rang the bell and waited, which felt very strange to her. Almost immediately, the door swung open and Dan stood in front of her. He hadn't changed much; his hair a little thinner and hairline receding a little...

"Jen, I'm so glad that you finally found your way over here! Come here!" He pulled her into a hug, and she hesitantly clapped him on the back, uncomfortable. Kate giggled, knowing how much her mother hated for people to touch her.

Over his shoulder, Jenny could see Georgina standing with Milo in her arms, leaning against the breakfast bar and looking nervous.

"Hey, Jenny." Georgina started to walk towards them, and Jenny simple nodded to her. She'd never trusted Georgina in the past, and now was no different.

"Jenny, this is Milo." Dan said, turning towards Georgina. He took Milo out of her hands and put him on the ground, "Look, Milo, this is your Aunt Jenny and your cousin Kate. Don't be shy, say hello." He encouraged, sounding friendly.

Milo looked at Jenny and then at Kate, and Kate stepped closer to Milo. "Hello, I'm Kate Humphrey, your cousin." She said seriously.

"Why don't you show Kate to her room, Milo, and then you can show her yours." Georgina said, and Kate and Milo trailed off to the back of the loft. Jenny could hear Kate talking about all the things she had seen through the window of the taxi.

"Wow, Jenny, you've changed so much, I almost don't recognize you anymore!" Dan said, sounding enthusiastic.

"A lot of things have happened, Dan." Jenny sighed.

"Well, tell me everything then." Dan replied, throwing his hands in the air and walking to the kitchen table.

This is going to be a long night, Jenny thought to herself.

A/N: I'm sorry it took me so long to update this story ! So I hope you enjoyed the story so far! Please review !
The next chapter is going to be about Jenny meeting her father and everyone else .. including Chuck for the first time in this story!

Thank you again Victoria-Eliza to beta-reading this!