"What are you doing here?"

It's a simple question, but it falls from her lips as accusatory when he lingers in her doorway. Did he even bother to knock or ring her or anything? It's one thing for her to show up in Brooklyn unannounced, but he had no sort of invitation or right, for that matter, to visit her. She's unprepared for his presence. She thought they had parted ways, and the unexpected beat of her heart throws her for a loop as he stands there awkwardly putting his weight on one leg.

"Uh… Is Serena here?" he asks, deflecting her inquisition with one of his own.

She blinks. "No."

So that's why he's here? To see Serena? Her stomach flops, and she breathes in before saying, "What's going on? Is everything okay?" He can't possibly be here because of romantic intentions for Serena. She's with Ben and he hasn't been emotionally invested in her in that way for a long while. So this must be an emergency.

He sighs, frustrated. "I've been walking around the city all night with one all-consuming, paralyzing thought."

'What does that have to do with Serena?' she almost blurts out, but then realizes he must have asked about Serena because he didn't want her to be here for… this. Whatever this might be.

This isn't like one of their witty verbal battles. He's not acting the way he normally does around her. She tries to steer the conversation in a less serious direction.

"Why… am I walking around the city when I live in Brooklyn?" she counters, but with less gusto than she's used to. It's not banter. It's just her trying to ease the ever-growing tension in the air.

"What if my dad and Dorota were right?" He doesn't beat around the bush. Her heart only pounds faster and louder in her chest. "What if there's another reason we're keeping us a secret?"

Us.

She shakes her head slightly, pretending she doesn't understand, pretending that he isn't thinking exactly what she was thinking before he walked in the door. "Another reason like what?"

He narrows his eyes at her in a way she's come to find endearing over the past couple of months. It's the face he makes when he needs to say something important, when he's trying to portray a concept. "Plausible deniability. Blair, we kept us a secret because we were afraid there was something more."

It's a statement, and there's nothing questioning in his voice as he tells her exactly how he's feeling. He approaches her with every word.

Closer.

She can't look at his intense eyes anymore. Her gaze drops to the floor. This is all resonating too clear to her. She can't let him know that everything he's saying is truthful. She shakes her head nervously. "You… need to go back to Brooklyn."

She doesn't push him out the door like she did last time. She doesn't move. She's too scared to.

"Not until I know for sure they were wrong." he says resolutely, looking her deliberately in the eyes.

She stands her ground, though she can feel her hands starting to shake. She clasps them together, willing them to stop. "I can guarantee it." She seems confident and unfazed in the manner that she says it, but her heart is telling her otherwise.

Her mind nearly clouds over as he reaches over, closing the gap between them. He gently brushes his fingers along her neck before settling them on her shoulder. He caresses her bare skin, sending chills up and down her spine. She can't help but watch his fingers as they linger on the strap of her dress, subtly pushing it back into place.

This is too intimate.

She looks back at him, still dizzy. "But just so you're secure in that knowledge, what did you have in mind?" she asks nonchalantly. Inside she is burning with curiosity.

"Just one kiss." he says simply, his head moving to the side. He looks so sure, so unwavering as he says it, as if he's not terrified of the feelings he might experience, as if he's positive he won't experience anything. "Then we can know without a doubt."

She stares at him, the proposition coming to her as a surprise. But if he's so sure that they won't feel a spark, so is she. "I suppose that would work." She raises her eyebrows, daring him to do it.

'Do it. We won't feel a thing.' she convinces herself.

"One kiss, that's that." she says, making sure he knows it's only one. He can't expect more.

"One kiss. That's it." he repeats, nodding and rolling his tongue over his teeth. She tries not to look at his lips. Maybe he does think there will be feelings. Maybe he wants there to be feelings. She wishes she were as brave as him. "So…"

"So."

'So what?'

The seconds lapse between them. His eyes flicker to her lips as if he's imagining what they might taste or feel like. She grows impatient as he meets her gaze once more, prolonging the imminent moment. She didn't realize until now how much she wants to kiss him, how much she's wanted to kiss him, even if he is Brooklyn scum. It must be some odd phase she's going through, to want to experience the unknown and take a risk. One kiss, and that will be done and over with. One kiss, and she can go back to longing for men in suits and bowties rather than lumberjack shirts and, ugh, jeans. He still doesn't make a move.

She can't take the tension or close proximities anymore.

"Oh, for crying out loud, Humphrey!"

She grabs him by the lapels of his jacket and pulls him forward, crashing her lips into his.

AN: Please review! I'd love to hear your feedback!