The back garden of Chuck and Blair's new townhouse was one of the main reasons Blair had fallen in love with the house, at the moment she was hosting in it one of the many parties it would host over the year.
The Welcome Party to their new house was the epitome of Upper East Side of New York's elite was invited family,friends and enemies couldn't miss the event of the year.
Servers were holding glasses of champagnes as they strolled the space,twinkling lights hung from the trees, casting a warm glow over the manicured lawn, where New York's elite mingled with champagne flutes in hand. It was the perfect way to celebrate their new home, and Blair had spared no expense to make sure everything was flawless.
As the party unfolded, Blair floated through the crowd with her usual grace, exchanging pleasantries and basking in the admiration of their friends and enemies as Blair couldnt miss an opportunity to rub in the face of their minions and other socialites who had critisized her over the years.
On the other hand, Chuck was lounging with Nate in a corner catching up with the latest as he was mainly observing what was happening. To be more precise, he kept his eyes fixated on Serena and the man next to her: Dan Humphrey.
Chuck still saw red whenever Humprey was aroung, his role as Gossip Girl was a betrayal that was still bothered him. Although Blair had recently adopted an attitude of aloofness mainly due to Serena and the fact she no longer cared, it was not that easy for Chuck to forgive and forget.
Chuck was nearby the table with the drinks as he chatted with Nate who was trying to pitch him an investment idea. That was when he spied upon Serena and Dan both giggling next to the drinks lounge.
This was his signal to go over and hold a short chat with Brooklyn's most notorious exported commodity.
Chuck seemed to be so easy breezy whenever he was around, perhaps someone would think that the strain was something that he imagined. Dan was giggling with Serena when Chuck came up to them.
He saw the glint in Chuck's eyes and straight away could tell that this was not going to be a pleasant exchange.
Chuck used a very charming smile to Serena.
"Hey sis, would you mind giving Dan and me a moment? There's something I need to
discuss with him."
Serena looked between the two men, sensing the undercurrent of tension, but before she could object, Dan gave her a reassuring nod. "It's fine, Serena. I'll catch up with you in a bit."
With a worried look at both of them Serena walked away to find Blair ,leaving Chuck and Dan alone. Chuck motioned to the house in what he had perfected as his CEO tone. "Shall we take this inside? I'd hate to make a scene in front of our guests."
Dan swallowed a lump in his throat and nodded as he followed Chuck into the townhouse, then down the hallway passing a couple rooms to reach to the study.
The room was relatively small but elegant, Dan was sure that it wasnt the only study in the house. Once they were inside, Chuck closed the door behind them with a soft click ,he set his whiskey at the small library self and turned to face Dan.
"Let's cut to the chase, it was up to me you wouldnt be here today, I don't trust you. Not around Serena, and especially not around Blair. You might have weaseled your way back into Serena's life, but don't think for a second I've forgotten who you are or what you're capable of." Chuck said coldly.
Dan squared his shoulders, meeting Chuck's gaze evenly.
He'd known this conversation was coming, and he was determined to handle it with as much dignity as possible.
Dan squared his shoulders, locking eyes with Chuck. He had anticipated this confrontation and was determined to handle it with grace and poise.
"Listen, Chuck, I understand, we don't need to be pals, heck, we don't even have to be on good terms. But for Serena and Blair's sake, we need to maintain a level of civility. We've all moved on from the chaos of Gossip Girl. I'm a changed man now."
Chuck smirked, his voice dropping to a menacing whisper. "Civil, Humphrey? I can be civil.I can be a saint if i wanto to. But remember this: if you dare to hurt Serena or Blair, if you even look at them the wrong way, I'll ensure your life becomes a nightmare. And trust me, I excel at that."
Dan clenched his jaw, trying to keep his cool.
He knew Chuck wasn't making idle threats, but he wasn't one to back down either.
"We may come from different worlds Chuck, but our fates are now intertwined. How about we agree to steer clear of each other's paths? Let's do it for Serena's sake."
Chuck stared at Dan for a long moment, his eyes narrowing slightly as if weighing his options. Finally, he gave a small, humorless smile.
"Fine, Humphrey. We'll stay out of each other's way.'' he leaned in, his voice dripping with irony ,''A word of advice—watch your back, you are now part of the UES world,betrayal is common here. You never know when it might come in handy."
With that, Chuck turned on his heel and left the study, leaving Dan standing alone in the elegant room. As the door closed behind him, Dan let out a slow breath he hadn't realized he was holding.
"Well, that went about as well as I expected…"Dan muttering to himself
At the party Chuck re-entered stage right and picked up his role of gracious host. Blair caught his eye from across the lawn and raised a perfect eyebrow in silent question.
Chuck simply gave her a small nod, signaling that everything was under control. But as he picked up a glass of champagne, a smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth.
Chuck: to himself "Brooklyn's going to have to try a lot harder if he thinks he's safe here."
Chuck worked the room and as he did the adrenalin from his earlier run in with Dan drained away, replaced by a feeling of gratification that he had at least showed him who was boss, he would stay out of Humprey s way alright but that didn't mean he wouldn't be watching.