TIRED
A/N: I would like to acknowledge applepips16; as my beta for both Chapters 1 and 2. All the credit for the flawless spelling and grammar goes to her! To clear things up, in my fic Nate didn't kiss Jenny at the end of Pret-a-Poor-J. Vanessa and Nate were still going out at the time but Nate had kissed Jenny once at the end of her fashion show at the charity gala and Nate was the one who went after Vanessa, who then immediately ended things between them. Another thing is that Vanessa works in the little cafe as she did in season 1 as well as Rufus' gallery/cafe. CHANGE Chuck Bass looked out of his limo window, in to the streets of Brooklyn or what he liked to call, The Poor Mans Land. He was out of his element in Brooklyn; it was the complete opposite of what he was familiar with. Change had always affected him negatively. Needless to say, no one knew; it was a weakness after all. And weaknesses were meant to be hidden. He was here because of Nathanial, his best friend, one of the very few people he truly cared about. Nate had told him last night about kissing little Jenny Humphrey and how Vanessa had ended it with him. The events had taken place a week ago but Nathanial was Nathanial, he had needed time to brood alone. He'd been talking about trying to make amends with Vanessa and how kissing Jenny was a mistake and how he wished he could take it back. Chuck had just nodded and listened to him, feeling as close to sympathy as he could get. His feelings for Blair were taking its toll on him and it was making him soft, something he hated to admit, even to himself. He was nearly at that tiny little cafe which employed Vanessa, where he assumed Nate would be too. Vanessa looked up as the last person she ever expected to see, strode in through the door. Chuck Bass, how fucking wonderful! Just when she thought her day couldn't possibly get any worse, he of all people had to go make an appearance. Chuck walked up to Vanessa. She looked pissed to say the least. "Ah, Vanessa has Nathanial dropped by?" he drawled, getting right to the point. She was silent for a while, her eyes had shuttered and he was unable to read her. Finally she said, "Yeah you just missed him, he left about 15 minutes ago." Chuck shrugged and sat down at a table as Vanessa narrowed her eyes suspiciously. He smirked in that infuriating way of his, "Well seeing as I'm here, how about a cappuccino." "I would have thought a place like this and in Brooklyn no less would be beneath you," Vanessa challenged. "Oh it is," Chuck assured her, "But sometimes you have to settle for less." Vanessa wondered why he was taking the time out of his oh so important life to talk to her and being civil about it as well; normally she'd be insulted or ignored, mostly the latter. It was fine by her; she didn't need or particularly want the attention of Chuck Bass. The last time Bass was remotely 'nice' to her; she'd actually been humiliated and lied to. It turned out that Chuck and Blair had had a little wager that would lead to her destruction. She wasn't going to trust Chuck Bass anytime soon. She handed him his coffee and watched as he took a sip and grimaced and shuddered. This irked her today even more than it normally would have done and she snapped, "You didn't have to stay here in Brooklyn and drink this disgusting, cheap coffee when you could easily have gone somewhere else that is accustomed to the rich and drink the overpriced coffee you, by all means, deserve. You're Chuck Bass after all, billionaire's son and all." Chuck calmly surveyed her, albeit slightly surprised, but nonetheless amused by her little outburst. "Who said this coffee was disgusting?" He watched as the girl standing over him glared, hands on hips. "Your facial expressions were expressive enough." "If you must know, I have a hangover and that's probably why I looked like I was in pain, Lighten up Abrams." Chuck wondered why he was explaining himself to Vanessa Abrams of all people. Damn that softness. Damn Blair Waldorf. Vanessa frowned, confused for a split second but then unwillingly smiled, just as her pocket vibrated. It was her phone and apparently Chuck's too. She could hear a buzzing coming from his table. She glanced over at him eyebrows raised, as they both flipped open their cell phones. A Gossip Girl page flashed onto her screen, and her eyes focused on the picture of Jenny Humphrey and Nate Archibald embracing like a couple in love. Underneath the caption read: Hey Upper East Siders, N + Little J= LOVE? - It sure looks like it! Watch out lovebirds, I'm sure a certain curly haired Brooklynite will have something to say about this. Cat fight? I'm counting on it. xoxo Gossip Girl Vanessa took off her apron. She called Ziggy, her manager and mumbled something about finishing her shift early. Without waiting for an answer she grabbed her bag and jacket and took off into the busy streets of Manhattan. Chuck Bass watched as Vanessa abruptly ended her shift and walked out. Before he even knew what he was doing, he put down a 20 on the table and followed her. His feet moved of their own accord and he quickly caught up with her. She seemed to sense him as she slowed down enough so she was walking alongside him. Chuck stared at her in surprise. He still half expected her to scream at him or at the very least tell him to get lost. But she didn't, she didn't scream, shout, speak or even whisper, she just carried on walking. She might have seemed serene to onlookers but he knew she was anything but. The slight tremor in her hands gave her away. Finally after walking for about 15 minutes, she stopped and turned towards him. He looked into her eyes which were as large as ever but now a dull grey rather then their usual sparkling azure. He waited, expecting her to address him. She didn't address him and instead whispered, "I don't care anymore," over and over again under her breath like a mantra. She was kidding herself. "You obviously do care," he stated, the harshness of his tone cutting into the air. She looked up at him, startled. The 'tough' girl act was breaking away now; he could see the vulnerability in her eyes. He almost came to an entire halt as he realized that it was the same with Blair, exactly the same. She had looked as broken as Vanessa did now when she'd confronted him about him standing her up in Tuscany. The difference was that Blair's hurt had been directed towards him. Eventually she spoke, her voice laced with bitterness, "I know and I hate it." Chuck Bass contemplated why the hell he even cared enough to not just walk away and let her deal with it. It didn't take him long to find the answer; Vanessa had shown him she'd cared, when his father had doubted him in his decision to invest in the bar. She's said that he deserved more and what really surprised him was that she was sincere. Those three words from a virtual stranger were what Chuck had really needed. Acting before he could change his mind, he reached out for her hand, gently squeezing it. He felt uncomfortable, this was change after all- he'd never really been affectionate to a woman except for Blair (and that was only when she was sleeping). But his and Blair's relationship was, well... different. With other women though it was always charm them, fuck them and then forget them. No feelings or affection involved. He wondered what this was with Vanessa and came to the bizarre conclusion that it was the beginning of a friendship. A/N: I'd just like to let you all know that this isn't a C/V romance but there will be some friendship. I'm sorry if you don't like that. Remember reviews are love and they make me happy. Even a couple of words mean so much! :D
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