𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗘

𝘉𝘙𝘜𝘕𝘊𝘏 𝘈𝘛 𝘉𝘈𝘚𝘚

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There were only a few hours left until the brunch party and since staying in the Evans mansion was not an option, Angelique thought it would be better to pay Blair a visit. It was a nice excuse to have a martini and maybe clear her head too.

What she didn't expect was to run into Serena in front of Blair's building.

"Good morning to you too, stranger," Angelique greeted her with a light tease, then squinted her eyes at the blonde. "What's with the long face? Is the princess in a bad mood again?"

Serena inhaled deeply and nodded. "Yeah, but I don't blame her."

"Look, Serena," she said, grabbing her hand and pulling her a little more to the side, "we both know Blair gets upset easily. I don't know what's going on between you two, but don't let anything she said get to your head, okay? We all say things we don't mean just to hurt other people—"

"Angelique, please," Serena stopped her. "I would love to talk, but I really gotta go. And for the record, she really does have a reason to be mad at me this time, but this is the type of conversation I'd rather not have on the street, particularly not in front of her building."

Angelique nodded. "I'll see you at Chuck's place, then."

"Hopefully not, but we'll see what my mother has to say about that."

After Serena left, Angelique remained still for a while and watched her walk away. Was everybody hiding something from her nowadays?

A long sigh left her lips. She glanced at the watch on her wrist, then walked right into Blair's building.

As the elevator doors opened, she was met with a confused looking Blair.

"Can't I have five minutes for myself?" Blair complained, then ran a hand through her hair to prove her distress.

Angelique took off her coat and gave it to Blair's maid, then placed her bag on the nearest table. "It's lovely to see you too, Blair." She ignored the roll of Blair's eyes and focused on the maid instead. "May I have a martini? Thank you."

"Isn't it a little early to start drinking?" Blair commented.

"As if that has been a valid excuse for any of us before."

"You do have a point. But don't drink too much, I need you to help me get ready for the brunch."

"Don't worry, I don't want my mother to kill me for showing up drunk at noon," Angelique muttered under her breath, then smiled at the maid when she brought her drink. "I saw Serena downstairs."

"And?"

"She seemed pretty upset."

"And?"

"And so do you."

"And? I still don't see your point."

This was starting to get on her nerves. "What is going on with you two? And don't try to lie to me, Blair, I saw the lack of excitement on your face when you found out she was back in New York."

"Why don't you ask Serena about what she did, then?"

"I did. I wouldn't have asked you too if she told me, but, you know, since I'm asking, I think it means I wasn't successful and I'm trying again with you."

"Don't act smart with me, Angelique."

"Then stop giving me stupid answers."

Blair sighed. "She slept with Nate."

Shit. Out of all the things Serena could have done, sleeping with Blair's boyfriend was something she wasn't going to forgive easily.

"What?! When?"

"At the Sheppard wedding. Nate told me recently. I guess he felt bad about having sex with her and not his girlfriend," Blair explained bitterly.

For a few moments, Angelique remained silent. There was no right thing to do or to say. Blair wasn't a person she trusted, but who could be trusted nowadays? At the end of the day, she was her friend and Angelique was always there for her friends when they needed it.

She put her glass aside and rose from her seat, then wrapped her arms around Blair and sighed. Words weren't a necessity. She knew her friend well, there was nothing to be said that could make Blair feel better, but at least she was creating a safe space for her to express her feelings and let her guard down for a little bit.

"I want her to stay away from him," Blair whispered in a shaky voice.

Angelique held her tight and caressed her hair gently. "I know."

"And she dares to come here to tell me she's trying her best and that I'm the bad guy here?! This is incredible!"

"It's okay, Blair," she replied, trying to comfort her. "You're okay."

Blair nodded and pulled back from the hug, then cleared her throat.

"Come on, I gotta get ready for that brunch. God, I hope Nate woke up."

"What do you mean you hope he woke up?" She wasn't sure if Blair knew he slept at Chuck's place and she didn't want to add fuel to the fire by telling her, so she played it safe instead.

"I called him earlier and he sounded like he just woke up. I'm worried he fell asleep again."

"Somebody's going to call him at some point. It's not like Chuck would let him miss the brunch, right?"

"Yeah, you're right. Should I wear pink? Or maybe blue?" Blair looked down at Angelique's outfit. "I obviously can't wear purple today. Isn't that a little too simple?"

Angelique didn't get to answer Blair's questions. The elevator doors opened once again, revealing the blonde freshman from last night.

"Hi, Jenny," Blair greeted her with a forced, but curious smile. "What do you want?"

Jenny smiled back at the two of them, then followed Blair to the couch. She opened her purse and took out some pens. "Uh, I realized that I still have your calligraphy pens from the party invitations and thought you might need them for something."

"That's the lamest excuse I've ever heard."

"Blair," Angelique hissed, giving her friend a warning look. "Be nice."

Blair clicked her tongue and ignored Angelique, drifting her attention towards Jenny. "You wanna know what Chuck Bass is saying about you," she teased the younger blonde.

"No," Jenny was quick to reply, but sadly, not convincing enough. "Is he... saying things? Or anyone?"

Blair shrugged. "No. Not yet, anyway." Angelique could tell exactly how much Blair loved this conversation. "Chuck likes to brag about his conquests, not his victims."

Angelique was once again tense. She didn't like where this was going. Jenny was a little too young and seemed a little too nice to get involved in all the shit her friends did everyday.

Then, Blair rose from the couch and smiled at Jenny. "Come on, you two can help me get ready for the brunch. Angelique, you coming?"

The brunette nodded. She saw the happiness in Jenny's eyes and recognized it instantly—the girl was happy to be friends with the elitists, of course she was, but she had no idea about how her life was going to change if he kept on hanging out with them.

But this wasn't Angelique's problem. She felt sorry for the girl, but she wasn't going to intervene.

As they went upstairs, Blair and Jenny started talking about clothes and hot trends, while Angelique was absentmindedly going through her text messages and emails.

Until something Blair said caught her attention.

"Does that mean you're friends with Serena now?"

It wasn't hard for her to recognize Blair's predatory stance. She could easily understand why she saw Jenny as prey, but Blair was now going in circles around her, probably waiting for a moment to attack.

Or maybe she was just going to use her to make Serena feel like she has been replaced.

"I mean, I don't have a problem with her," Jenny said. She was playing it safe, smart girl. "But if someone did have a problem with her, I wouldn't have a problem with that either."

When she noticed Blair's winner smile, Angelique felt the need to speak up. "Blair, that's enough." Then, she shot Jenny a warning look. "I think she has had enough contact with this group for a while, don't drag her into your mess with Serena."

"Come on, Angelique. Chill. I'm not dragging her into anything she doesn't want to be dragged in. Right, Jenny?"

The blonde was quick to agree with a nod of her head, which earned a sigh from Angelique.

Champagne glasses were clinking left and right. All the guests were having fun, that much was clear. Angelique and her friends already had a few glasses, so they were all smiling and making jokes.

Blair and Nate were holding hands, while Angelique was teasing Chuck for putting an arm around her shoulder in front of so many people.

"Don't be shy, Angel. People are already talking anyway," Chuck playfully defended himself, pulling her closer to him.

"Oh, really? And what exactly are they saying?"

"That you're way out of Chuck's league," Nate suddenly joined in, speaking right before he took a nice sip of champagne.

"Amusing," Chuck commented and rolled his eyes.

"Do you find the truth amusing?" Angelique teased him by patting him twice on the shoulder before she chuckled.

"You've got to be kidding," Blair spoke up, her eyes glued to the entrance, which made everybody look in the same direction.

And there she was. The last person Blair wanted to see for the second time today. Serena showed up at the brunch. And as if that wasn't enough to piss off Blair, she was holding hands with her new boy toy.

Talk about ruining the mood.

Out of the four of them, Angelique was the only one unbothered by this. Blair wasn't happy to see Serena, Nate didn't even look in her direction and Chuck's disgust was rather focused on Jenny's brother.

"Who wants some more champagne?" Angelique said, trying to lighten up the mood a little bit.

"I'll need something stronger than that," Chuck commented, then got up from his seat and extended his hand to Angelique. "Come with me."

She let out a short sigh and placed her hand in his, letting him help her rise from her seat as well, then followed him around the room.

When they reached the bar, he poured two glasses of scotch and handed her one. Chuck didn't wait too long before downing his own glass.

"Hey," Angelique said, placing a hand on his upper arm. "Take it easy, there's a lot of people watching you."

"So what?"

"You don't want to make your father angry, now do you? Besides, you can't really blame Dan for reacting the way he did considering that was his sister you were trying to undress. On the rooftop. While she was telling you to stop."

"Love, I didn't bring you with me to remind me why I fucked up."

"No?" The irony in her voice was clear. "I thought that's why we were friends. You fuck up and I clean up and remind you of what you did until you die. I can't believe I lived in a lie for so long."

Chuck groaned and placed a hand on her waist, pulling her right in front of him. "You can stop now."

"I'll give you ten seconds to take your hands off me, Bass." She glared at him until he complied. "Don't mistake me for one of the girls you play with."

"I was just showing you how much I love and appreciate you."

"Cut the crap. I know what Nate said bothered you. It was a joke, get over it."

"That's what you think."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means golden boy has been looking at you since you arrived, in case you didn't notice, and he does seem a little unpleased." Chuck discreetly motioned in Nate's direction.

When Angelique's gaze met his, Nate looked away. In the crowd, he saw Serena and gestured for her to follow him.

Angelique wanted to take a step forward and follow them, but Chuck stopped her.

"Let them sort this out by themselves. You're not responsible for the mess they made."

"So you know?"

"I witnessed it, what do you think?" Chuck scoffed, then poured himself another drink.

But before he could take a sip, his father took his glass out of his hand. "Good afternoon, Angelique," he greeted her with a forced smile. "Chuck."

"Good afternoon, Mr. Bass." Angelique returned the smile in the same manner.

"I saw your mother here, but there's no sign of your father. Did he not come?"

Angelique clenched her jaw before answering. "He had to leave New York. Duty called," she suggested, hoping that he would not press any further.

She didn't realize how tense she was until Chuck placed his hand on her back and she flinched at first, then she started to relax under his touch. Unlike the gestures he made before, this felt more like a reassurance, so she didn't protest against it.

"What a shame. I hope he returns soon," he commented, then shifted his attention towards his son. "Chuck, a word?"

"It was lovely to see you, Mr. Bass. You did a great job at organizing this brunch, just as expected. Now, if you'll excuse me.."

Angelique offered him one more smile before she turned around and left. There had been enough partying for her today. She surely didn't feel like making small talk anymore and she was afraid that if she'd stay five more minutes and get engaged in another conversation, she might slip and people would realize there's something going on in her family, which was not something she will allow to happen.

She saw her mother in her peripheral vision, but she managed to walk away fast enough to let her know that she was not willing to stop for a talk right now.

Her mother got the memo, but somebody else didn't.

"Hey, are you alright?" Nate asked right after he stopped her by grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the crowd.

"What's with you guys and your need to touch me today?!" Angelique snapped and removed her hand from his grip. Then, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'm fine, Nate."

"You surely don't look fine. I mean, don't get me wrong, you're still an eye candy, but you seem more annoyed than usual."

She had to bite her tongue so she wouldn't snap at him again. "I'm tired and I've had enough to drink. I'm going home."

"Angel—"

"I said I'm going home. Before you try to stop me, I suggest you mind your own business and fix the mess you made with Serena. How does this sound for you?"

Angelique didn't wait for an answer. She rolled her eyes and walked out of the building through a side door. She was headed towards the entrance gate, but she stopped when saw Serena's mother having a conversation with Chuck's father.

It was never a nice thing to do to spy on your friends' parents, but Angelique never claimed to be nice.

"I do want to be seen together, I just don't want you to be seen with anyone else."

Lily van der Woodsen's words made Angelique furrow her eyebrows. Now she was sure this was not a conversation she wanted to miss.

"Tell your harem of shop girls and models that you're seeing someone."

Interesting news. It was pretty clear that the two adults have finished their conversation, so Angelique resumed her walk and stopped in front of Mr. Bass to let her know she was leaving.

"Leaving this soon, Mrs. Evans?"

Angelique sighed. "I'm afraid I have a terrible headache and I don't want to ruin the mood. Everybody's having fun, I'll just go rest for a while."

"A headache?" Bart Bass repeated her words. "Do you want me to give you the keys of a room here? You wouldn't have to go home this way and you could come to the party later. I'm sure my son wouldn't mind taking care of you."

She had to fight the urge to roll her eyes. "That's very kind of you, but I'm afraid I won't be able to come back to the party today. Thank you for inviting me, I hope you'll have a lovely day."

"Get well soon, okay?"

She was about to hail a cab, but Mr. Bass was quicker than her. After he stopped the car, he opened the door for her and helped her get inside.

This familiarity was itching her. Yes, their families were friends but she would rather stay away from the big messes her friends' parents made. There was only one thing that was worse than elite children—elite parents.

𝙸𝚝 𝚕𝚘𝚘𝚔𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚊 𝚋𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚔 𝚎𝚢𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚖𝚊𝚔𝚎 𝙲𝚑𝚞𝚌𝚔 𝙱𝚊𝚜𝚜 𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚒𝚛𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚎𝚜. 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚗𝚊𝚖𝚎 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚌𝚎𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗 𝚕𝚊𝚍𝚢 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚜𝚎𝚎𝚖𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚒𝚜𝚝 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚖𝚜. 𝙷𝚘𝚠 𝚍𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘 𝚒𝚝, 𝙰? 𝙾𝚛 𝚖𝚊𝚢𝚋𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞'𝚛𝚎 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚐𝚎𝚝? 𝙾𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚕 𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚕. 𝚄𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚗, 𝚠𝚎'𝚕𝚕 𝚔𝚎𝚎𝚙 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚎𝚢𝚎𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚝𝚛𝚒𝚊𝚗𝚐𝚕𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚝𝚠𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝙱, 𝚂 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙽. 𝙷𝚘𝚠 𝚎𝚡𝚌𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐!

— 𝘟𝘖𝘟𝘖, 𝘎𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘱 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭.

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i can't believe elite hit 11k reads today, are you guys for real ?? what did i do to deserve you ???? anyway, things are starting to get more dramatic in new york and i absolutely love it ! i hope reading this story is as fun as writing it is !