"Run baby run, don't ever look back, they'll tear us apart if you give them the chance"
-Check Yes Juliet, We the Kings

Chapter 4

Blair

I'm standing in a room empty of people besides us, kissing Dan.

"Ready?" he asks, pulling away.

"As I'll ever be," I sigh, leaving him alone and leaving.

I take a deep breath as I step up to the podium, picking up my big pink dress to walk easier.

"I kissed someone," I admit to the crowd. The people of my court watch me like hawks, scrutinizing my every move and word. They already know this. They're just waiting for me to tell them who.

"It was a life changing experience. That one kiss….changed me."

I hear a murmur go through the crowd. They know I kissed someone, but this is new information to them. A kiss that was life-changing? A kiss that changed me? They wait impatiently, hungry for more.

"Who was it, Queen B?" one person finally shouts out.

I close my eyes, preparing myself.

"It was me," Dan declares, walking into the room.

"Dan!" I yell, astonished.

Gasps and angry yells come from the crowd. I'm faced with accusing glares everywhere I look, Serena crying hysterically and starting to run away, and worst of all, Chuck's face standing in the middle of the crowd, not even looking angry but so disappointed and hopeless. He shakes his head and walks away, but not before I see the words he mouths to me.

I'm done.

Guards grab me and start to pull me away from the crowd.

"Where are you taking me?" I demand.

"The dungeon."

"For what crime?"

"Kissing a Humphrey."

I scream as they carry me down, down, down…

I sit up straight in bed, panting.

The door to my room opens, revealing Serena.

"Hey, are you okay?" she asks, concerned. "I heard you yelling…"

"It was just a nightmare," I say, still breathing heavily.

"What was it about? Was it set in an Audrey movie?"

"No. It was about…a car crash," I lie lamely, and Serena can tell, but she chooses to ignore it.

She knows my dreams are much more dramatic than that.

"I'd really like to stay and talk all about it, B, but I have to go meet Vanessa."

"Vanessa?" I ask in disgust. "You mean the freak from Brooklyn who tried to kill you? I mean, one of the freaks from Brooklyn who tried to kill you?"

"Yes," she acknowledges. "Unfortunately. But she ended up being right about Ben. Not that that even made me like her any more or want to forgive her, but she says she knows something that might help my mom. So I'm going to meet with her. Just for a little bit, in a public place."

"Good idea, but still, be careful, S. Vanessa is not a good person."

"I know," she says, "and I will be. See you later."

I sigh and fall back onto my mattress as Serena leaves the room. I have enough to worry about with Dan, and now I have to worry about my best friend too. I highly doubt Vanessa just wants to help Serena and Lily. Vanessa is desperate to get back on the good side of Serena and Dan, and this meeting with Serena reeks of a scheme.

Serena

I'm still thinking about my home situation when I meet Vanessa.

Grandma brought in the whole family: well, dad and Aunt Carol anyways. It's strange, having them back. In some ways I'm still furious at my dad, but I can't help but be relieved to see him. As for Aunt Carol….well, it's been a long time since I've seen her, but I'm glad to see her. I can't imagine that she'll be happy when she finds out that her daughter, my cousin Charlie, followed her out here. I met her on my way out of the building. The whole mother-daughter rebellion thing…I understand that. I'll try to do as much as I can to help her, and make her feel welcome here and to give her a taste of life here.

Later we have some kind of "Family Picture". Only my family would turn the arrest of my mother into a photo opportunity. I don't really want to go, but I want to show support for my mom, so I'll put up with whatever my family wants to do. I'll do anything to support or help them right now, even talking to Vanessa.

I walk into the restaurant and spot her sitting alone.

"Make it quick," I greet Vanessa, sitting down at her table. "And remember that the only reason I'm here is to help my mom."

Vanessa looks smug. "I can't help with that," she says. "But I have something better. I have-"

"What do you mean, you can't help with that? It's the whole reason you asked me here!"

"No, it's what I knew would get you here, not why I asked you here," she says, looking a bit nervous now. "I have something you need to see-or, rather, hear."

"I really don't care," I say, annoyed now. "Whatever scheme you have, I want no part in it. The last one ended up with me in the hospital and later the Ostroff Center."

"This isn't like that, Serena, and I'm sorry about it, but-"

"I'm leaving," I say impatiently, grabbing my bag and turning out walk out the door.

"This is about Dan and Blair!" I hear her shout.

I stop. Dan and Blair? I almost turn around. Almost. Almost ask "what about them?"

I don't.

But even without saying a word, even walking out the door to leave and never speak to Vanessa again, I hear what she has to say. Just before I'm out of her range.

"They kissed!"

I don't even stop as I whip the door open and leave.

Chuck

"Hello?" Blair finally answers her phone, sounding out of breath.

"Blair," I say. "Are you busy right now?"

"I'm going to meet Serena for this family photo thing."

"Can I meet you there? "

There's a pause on the other end.

"Blair?" I finally ask.

"Sorry," she says quickly. "You'll have to ask Serena. It's not really my place to invite you."

"Okay," I say. Why is Blair acting strangely? Is this about the kiss I read about on Gossip Girl? It has to have been a fake post. Blair wouldn't kiss someone else. "Everything alright?"

"I'm fine," she says. "I'll talk to you later."

"Wait, are we going to meet at the pho-" I say, then stop as I realize that she's hung up.

What is going on? Blair seems to be giving me the cold shoulder. She seemed fine when we talked the other day….but she did shrug me off kind of quickly at the end.

Is there someone one else?

Whatever, or whoever, it is, I'm going to find out at that photo shoot.

I may not be invited, but Chuck Bass never needs an invitation.

Serena

I pick up my ringing cell phone to hear Chuck on the other line.

"Serena, It's Chuck. I'm calling to let you know that I will be at your photo shoot thing today. I have to talk to Blair."

"Okay…?" I say, surprised.

"Did you see the Gossip Girl blast?"

Ah, the real reason he's calling.

"Yes," I say uneasily.

"It's not true, right? She's not seeing someone, is she?"

"Look, Chuck, I really don't know," I sigh. "She has been acting strangely, and Vanessa told me some really crazy stuff that I don't buy earlier. I don't know what to think. If you really need to know, ask her yourself."

Serena hangs up, and I get the feeling that she's not too happy about Blair keeping something from her either.

"Oh, I intend to," I say to no one, and get ready to leave for the photo shoot.

Blair

I glance at the entrance again, but I still don't see him.

I'm terrified for Chuck to show up. I don't know what to say to him. I don't even know how to act around him right now.

I turn my gaze back to Serena and the photo shoot.

"Blair," I hear from behind me.

I wince, recognizing the voice immediately. I slowly turn around.

"Chuck," I say, realizing I sounded less than enthusiastic a little too late.

We stand there for a moment. Chuck looks…unsure of himself. He can tell that there's something wrong, something different about me, but he knows I won't tell him what it is.

"I've decided to look for Raina's mother," he says finally.

"Oh," I say.

"I thought that there may be a chance that Russell was lying, however small, and that I should find out the truth before I lose sleep over it."

"That's a good idea."

We're silent again. I wonder why he even bothered coming, and he seems to be wondering something similar.

"I can't stand this," he finally says. "Something is going on, Blair. Something with you. You're not acting like yourself."

I shake my head. "I already told you, I'm fine. Nothing is going on."

"You're lying."

He knows me too well.

"Please, don't shut me out. Whatever it is, we can talk about it. Is something wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong, Chuck," I say, annoyed now. "Why pretend to care now, when you weren't there when something actually was wrong?"

"What are you talking about?" He looks confused. "What was wrong? Tell me."

"It doesn't even matter anymore," I snap. "It's done. And last time I checked, I had no obligation to tell you anything."

"No matter what we are friends, Blair. And…we said that we'd find our way back someday…I thought we had worked everything out. Why are you mad?"

"I thought we had worked everything out too. I thought we were going to wait for each other. Clearly you didn't feel the same way. "

"You told me you didn't expect me to wait. Is this about Raina? I wouldn't have been with her if you hadn't left me. You wanted to wait until you could be successful, remember? It was you who ended it, not me."

"I know," I say, still annoyed.

"Look, I'm sorry about Raina. But that's over now. And you being so clearly upset over that just proves that maybe we can't wait. Maybe today is 'one day'. We don't have to wait, Blair. We can build our futures together."

I shake my head. "I'm sorry, Chuck," I say softly, and turn around to walk away.

I quickly get my coat and walk out the door, but it doesn't take long for Chuck to catch up to me.

"Is there someone else?" he asks from behind me. "I saw the Gossip Girl blast. Please, Blair, you at least owe me the truth. You said that I wasn't there for you when there was something wrong. Was there someone else who was?"

I turn to face him. "I will not deny that Gossip Girl is telling the truth I did kiss someone, and it was a life-changing experience," I say, echoing myself in my dream, "but that's all I will say. I owe you nothing."

I walk away quickly, feeling strangely relieved but at the same time sad.

Chuck and me…it just doesn't feel right at the moment. But neither do Dan and me.

I sigh and speed up as I approach my building. All I want to do is curl up in bed with macaroons and watch movies for hours as my brain slowly figures things out…

But that doesn't seem like an option as Dorota rushes to me when I get off the elevator at my penthouse.

"Miss Blair, someone is here to see you…"

I don't even respond. I'm too busy staring at the handsome French prince behind her who flashes me a gorgeous smile.

"Louis," I say, breathless.

I guess the world thought it was time to add another boy to the equation.

As if the choice wasn't already hard enough.

Dan

I hear a knock at the door and open it to see Chuck Bass standing there.

"Hey, Chuck," I say, not hiding my distaste, surprise, or confusion. "Uh, what are you doing here?"

"May I come in?" he asks, ignoring my question.

I pause for a moment, still very confused. "Yeah…" I finally say. What does Chuck want with me? He doesn't know about Blair and me, right? No. He can't. He would look a lot angrier if he did.

"I've learned some information about my past that's making me reconsider my future…my future with Blair," he explains, walking into my loft. "However, my Intel indicates that she's seeing someone else."

"What's that gotta do with me?" I ask, playing it cool.

"I think it could be someone at W, didn't you work there?"

"Uh…yeah, for one day," I say. If he's keeping such close tabs on Blair, doesn't he know that already? Anyways, why would I help Chuck? This whole situation is rather suspicious and I'm getting kind of nervous. Maybe he does know…

"Did you notice her talking to anyone? Whoever she kissed-"

So he's seen the Gossip Girl post.

"-it seems to have had an effect. 'Life-changing' are the words she used."

"Well, a life-changing kiss may not be something you want to mess with," I point out, trying to suppress a laugh and a smile. Life-changing? Wow. I didn't realize Blair felt that strongly. Chuck doesn't stand a chance. This visit is a lost mission.

"What are you trying to say, Humphrey?"

"With you, she was always caught up in schemes and takedowns. But that's not…that's not really her. She's intelligent, she's intuitive…you know, she leaps when she watches 'Knights of Cabiria'," I realize too late that I'm getting carried away. If Chuck doesn't already know how I feel about her, he's going to soon if I keep this up.

"How do you know that?" he asks suspiciously.

"Uh…Serena…told me," I say, improvising. "But listen, the point is that Blair's happy. I mean, maybe you should let her be."

Chuck nods, and I hope that I've gotten through to him, but I can see a strange look on his face.

"You care more about Blair's happiness than I knew," he says, and I shrug. "Thank you for your time."

I watch him leave, wondering if he listened to a word I said and if he knows the truth yet.

Vanessa

"Vanessa? It's definitely unexpected to hear from you. You have five seconds to tell me something that is interesting or relevant before I hang up."

"I'm not calling to apologize or anything. I have information that Serena needs to hear, but she won't listen to me, so I figured you might. It's about Blair."

"I'm listening," he says after a pause.

"I know who she kissed. It was Dan."

There's silence on the other end.

"Chuck?" I ask after a moment.

"I'm going to have to call you back. I guessed so much, and you've almost confirmed my suspicions, but you also have every reason to lie to try to break my friends apart. I just talked to Dan, and I was on my way out when you called. I'm almost at his door, I'll ask him and wait and see what he has to say."

"I'm telling the truth!" I insist. "And it's no use talking to Dan. You can confront them, they'll deny it, but it's true. I have proof. I overheard them talking and recorded it on my phone."

"Send it to me," he says.

I hang up and do exactly that. Once Chuck knows, it won't be long before everyone else does too. And then Dan will be begging to have someone to talk to.

Chuck

"…Serena's supposed to be meeting me here, right now!" I hear Blair's voice come out of the speaker on my cell phone as I play the recording from Vanessa.

"Serena?" I hear Dan say. This isn't good. "Okay, I'm leaving, but we're not done talking about the fact that we kissed." My stomach drops. It's true.

"Fine, just leave, Humphrey!"

I take a deep breath to calm myself down and take out my phone.

"Serena, it's me," I say into the phone after she picks up. "I found out who Blair kissed."

Blair

"Louis!" I say, walking up to him and kissing him on the cheek. "It's wonderful to see you! What are you doing here?"

He smiles and hands me my shoe. I take it and look back up at him.

"The truth is, I'm here to see you," he says, still smiling.

I open my mouth to speak but my phone interrupts me by beeping three times.

"Excuse me," I say. I don't want to be rude, but I'm afraid that it's a gossip girl blast, and I want to be prepared if the whole world has just found out about Dan and me.

I quickly take out my phone and look at the messages, but none of them are from Gossip Girl. I read Serena's message first.

I don't know what exactly is going on, but I really need to talk to you. Chuck and Vanessa told me something really unbelievable…

Next I read Dan's.

Chuck was at my loft. I think he might know about us.

I try not to panic as I open the last message, this one from Chuck.

I know about you and Dan, is all it says.

I take a deep breath and look up at Louis, who is waiting patiently for my attention.

Well, no one ever said kissing Dan Humphrey was a good idea.

Now I guess I just have to decide if it was worth it.

AN: I had to post this, even if it wasn't a great chapter. I have bad news…

So today is April 18th. Gossip Girl airs tonight. I don't think it's a good idea to continue this story after the show starts airing again. I'm really sorry guys, I tried to finish it…I really shouldn't have started a story with only a few weeks to write it. I had such a busy week then a busy weekend too, so I couldn't really write and post a new chapter until today, and it's not my best chapter. I feel really bad for taking on a responsibility and then abandoning it.

On a brighter note Gossip Girl is tonight, so that's exciting! Oh, and part of this chapter is word for word from the episode tonight (it was in a sneak peek) and other lines are just from previews I've seen. The quote at the beginning from the song "Check Yes Juliet" by We the Kings was supposed to relate to Dan and Blair...how they have to hide their relationship because if they told everyone (we give them the chance) they would just tear them apart.

I just want to say that I think Dan and Blair are cute together. There, I said it. But I do want Chuck and Blair to end up together, and that wish is stronger than wishing for Dan and Blair to be together. I just hope that they redeem Chuck's character a bit, because he's certainly made a lot of mistakes. I think most of you guys prefer Dair, but let me know who you want to end up together!

This is really random, but if you haven't seen Tangled (the Disney movie about Rapunzel) can I just say that it's my new favorite movie in the whole world? Maybe better than Beauty and the Beast…I love it. I saw it for the first time last weekend and I'm watching it again for the fourth time tomorrow. It's amazing! (Sorry that was random I know.)

Thanks for…

Reviewing: LeftWriter224, MellobonesFan101, MellobonesFan101 (on a different chapter), kt xoxo, Suze18, tvluver92, Chelle, and WhinnythePooh

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Thanks guys! Sorry again! Please review, but don't be too mad at me!