Thanks so much for the reviews! Fireworks happen in this chapter! Keep reading... (By the way, flashbacks are in italics. Every time a POV changes, there's a ... thanks)
The air was cold as Blair reached the fountain. Sure enough, there was Chuck Bass in all his glory, looking as clean-cut as ever. When he lay eyes on her, he strolled over.
"Thanks for coming, Blair. Where's Humphrey?"
"What do you want?" she said quietly, ignoring his last comment.
"I have something for you." He pulled out a wad of paper.
Blair took it from him, and let out a small gasp. "Divorce papers?"
"I paid the dowry," he said, a smile plastered on his face, "and now we can finally be together."
Blair looked stunned for a moment, and then smiled. "Chuck... I can't even express my gratitude, but–"
Chuck cut her off by kissing her passionately.
Blair responded to the all-too-familiar kiss and there they were, beside the fountain, entwined.
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Rose emerged from Dan's bedroom, wearing a long black dress that enhanced her curvy figure perfectly. Her hair was straight and glossy, and Dan thought she looked amazing.
"Wow," he breathed.
She gave a small smile. "Does it look okay?"
"You look absolutely amazing. Wow," he said again.
"Now you need to shower. You smell horrible."
"Okey Dokey," he said, giving her a small salute.
Rose watched him go. She noticed Dan had left his phone on the desk. She slowly edged over to the desk, and picked it up. She started then to read his texts. She scrolled down, and encountered a variety of names: Serena, Rufus, Lily, Nate, Charlie, Alessandra and... Blair.
Rose had heard of Blair. Dan had mentioned her a couple of times. She was apparently some snob from the UES whose life revolved around the latest designer handbags. Rose hated those kind of people. She was sure Dan did too, so why was he texting her? She clicked on the texts, and raised her eyebrows at the content. Were they... dating?
The sound of the bathroom door opening caused Rose to quickly throw the phone down in its original position.
"Hey," Dan emerged, "miss me?"
"Absolutely," Rose replied, with a somewhat forced smile.
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Blair stared at the person in the mirror. She had dug herself into a hole, and it wasn't going to be easy getting out.
Her phone beeped. It was Serena.
You ready? Party starts in 30 mins! Where are u? xo S
She lay the phone down and resumed her staring. A shadow stirred behind her. It was Chuck, with a huge diamond necklace. He put it on her. It was beautiful.
"Now you look perfect."
Blair thought she looked far from perfect, but she forced a smile and grabbed onto his arm.
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The party was in full swing when Dan and Rose arrived. Serena rushed up to them, squealing, and kissed them each on both cheeks. Rose looked a bit uncomfortable, as Serena was beautiful.
"Dan! Oh my gosh! It's been so long! I'm engaged!" She held up her finger, showing off the huge rock. "Who's this? Are you his girlfriend?" She moved aside to Dan, talking quietly in his ear, "you got a girlfriend? You were so distraught about–"
"This is Rose, Serena."
Rose held out her hand, and Serena shook it. "Nice to meet you."
"Oh my gosh!" Serena shrieked, "You're British! And you're Dans... wow! Let's have some caviar."
Rose looked a bit stunned and looked at Dan. Dan shrugged, and they both followed Serena.
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Blair arrived at the party, and immediately spotted Serena, with Dan and some girl. The girl was pretty, though, she decided.
She immediately took all her words back when Dan kissed the pretty girl.
Chuck grabbed her hand and pulled her in the other direction.
Even though she was with Chuck, she still felt as if Dan was cheating on her.
"Blair, come and meet Graham Smith. He's the director of the firm..."
Blair zoned out and could only think of Dan.
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Rose started kissing Dan possessively. He pulled away, his hair slightly disheveled. "Rose," he hissed, "we're in public."
"So," Rose said acidly. "This girl. Blair. Where is she?"
"Okay, you go from hungry kissing monster to green-eyed monster? What's going on?"
She put her hands on her hips. "You heard me."
"How do you know about Blair?"
"Answer the question Dan!"
"Blair... Blair is complicated. Very complicated."
"Complicated?"
"It's a long story."
"I have time," she said, her expression menacing.
"Dan."
Dan and Rose turned to see Blair standing before them.
"Can I have a moment?" Blair asked solemnly, touching Dan's arm.
"No you bloody can't. Is this Blair?"
Dan looked uncomfortable. Why was he in this situation?
"Yes, this is Blair. Blair, go away!"
"Humphrey, I need to talk to you."
"Why does she need to talk to you? You know what, it doesn't matter. I'm out of here."
"Rose! Rose wait!" Dan tried to run after her, but couldn't find her.
"Can I talk to you now, Humphrey?"
"What?"
"In private?" Blair grabbed his hand, which he promptly snatched away. He followed her into Serena's room.
"What do you want, Blair? You've almost ruined my relationship with Rose, but I bet thats what you wanted all along."
"No, I don't want that, I just want you to be happy–"
"Happy? Happy? How about the fact that you lied to me in Italy and ran off with Chuck, leaving me waiting like an idiot on the steps of the hotel, and when I realised you weren't coming back, I cried. I cried for nights on end, and then I moved to the UK to start again. I met Rose, and I realised that she could be the start of my new life, something great, and I come back here and see you still with Chuck and it breaks my heart and I can't deal with it anymore!" His voice was wobbling.
"Dan, I miss you."
"That's karma."
"Dan, I made the worst mistake of my life leaving you. If I had the chance, I would never, ever leave you. Ever. I love you. I love you so much it hurts and I have been repressing these feelings and it's just so much–"
And then they were kissing and it was so familiar, like home, the feel of her lips on his opened doors and possibilities and love and more love, passion and more love and just–
"Dan!" Rose burst open the door. She was gone before Dan could register what happened.
"That was a mistake, Blair."
"It didn't feel like a mistake..."
"No. I have to go."
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Rose wiped away the tears that were streaming down her cheeks. She wasn't properly looking where she was going and bumped into someone. The strong smell of cologne and whiskey filled her nostrils.
"Sorry," she mumbled.
"No worries," Chuck said, giving her the once-over. "Who are you?" he said seductively.
Rose smiled, and realised this night couldn't be that bad after all