chapter ONE.

The taxi ride from the Waldorf's private jet to South Hampton seemed to take longer than usual and thick silence permeated the air. But Serena van der Woodsen didn't expect much else to come from Blair's mouth other than a sob here or a whimper there. After all, she'd just lost both boys she'd ever felt anything for, all of her friends from school besides Serena, her little minion Jenny Humphrey, and the trust of her mother all in one day.

Oh, and she'd been officially dethroned in the public eye. Can't forget that one.

And even though Serena had done her best to console her best friend in her time of need, she knew Blair wasn't exactly ready to hop on a barstool and dance her heart out any time soon. Which is why she'd suggested they spend the night in a hotel in SoHo, drinking their troubles away while watching Breakfast at Tiffany's and pigging out on those Godiva chocolates Blair liked so much.

And then the two girls could sleep in until noon, wake up and shower, and head straight to the rooftop pool where they'd dazzle any and all males while simultaneously bronzing their smooth skin with a fresh tan. Of course Serena knew that all of that wouldn't really solve any of Blair's problems, but at least when she went back to school Blair'd look as glorious and b!tc#y as ever, ready to take control and take revenge.

But both girls had agreed that revenge could wait a day.

Blair Waldorf's dark brown eyes popped open as she rested her head on Serena's shoulder and she watched the city lights blur by through the windows of the cab. There was The Metropolitan Museum of Art where she'd spent most of her weekdays sitting on its steps, sipping a latte and trading gossip with her once-best friends. And there was Central Park where Nate liked to meet her and surprise her with gifts from Tiffany. And there was The Palace hotel where Chuck was no doubt laying in his suite, sipping a dirty martini and either crying over his lost love or celebrating her riddance by hiring strippers and inviting his stoner friends over.

Blair swallowed hard and tried to push all negative thoughts from her mind, but with each Upper East Side building the taxi passed, more distant memories came with it, flooding the brunette's mind and forcing her to relive the newly-painful past.

Serena noticed Blair's eyes glossing over with fresh tears and she squeezed the girl even tighter, kissing her on the forehead and wrapping an arm around her waist. "You gonna be okay?"

Blair looked up rather quickly, as if she'd forgotten that she was not all alone but rather in a taxi, speeding toward SoHo with her best friend. The lump in her throat suggested that she'd never be the same again, that she'd spend the rest of her nights crying into her pillow and longing for either Nate or Chuck. But she didn't say any of this to Serena. Instead, she allowed her lips to curl into a small, vaguely-content smile, and nodded. "Yeah. I'll be fine, S. Thanks."

Serena smiled too, but she knew Blair all too well. She hadn't gotten over it just yet and despite the fact that Serena would have enjoyed watching Blair turn a new page in her life and become the charitable good girl who wasn't afraid to date guys below her in the social chain, Serena knew that no matter what anyone said, once Blair got back to school on Monday she'd be facing off against everyone who'd ever uttered a word about her, whether it was to her back or to her face.

"Good," was all Serena said in final response. Then she slid her silver Razr out from her coat pocket and flipped it open, typing in a quick text to Dan. After their recent reunion, he'd no doubt be a little pissed off if she just left Manhattan for a day without telling him.

D; Found B, cnvinced her 2 stay. Now we're heading 2 SoHo 4 quick vacation. Be bck Mnday morning. Hope u don't miss me 2 much! --S

She re-read her text and just as she was about to hit 'Send', she deleted the dashes in front of 'S' and put 'Love,' instead. It seemed less robotic that way and ever since Dan had told her the reasons he loved her, she'd been secretly bursting with happiness. . . Now all she needed to do was rub some of that happiness off on Blair before she decided to take out all her bottled-up anger on some random person in South Hampton.


Here's hoping. . . It's really too bad that B's not gonna be back in town until Monday, though. I was sort of pining for quick and unexpected revenge just when everyone thought that they'd triumphed over her. But I guess this just means more anticipation for the big event. And guess who's going down first?

you know you love me.
xoxo; gossip girl