✔️ | 𝒎𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 ─ 𝒈𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒑 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍

SEVEN

"Thanks for picking up my check in person." Nate said to Serena as they walked down the busy streets of New York. "It means a lot for The Spectator to sponsor the same event as The Times."

"Well I'm glad you wanna be involved. Just do me a favor and please don't invite Blair." Serena said.

"Have you even told her that you're back yet?" Serena shook her head. "This is a long time for you to be mad at Blair just for being Blair."

"I'm not mad." Serena defended. "I'm maturing. We're just naturally growing apart. You know being with Steven has really helped me to understand who I wanna be. I hope you find someone like that too. Maybe someone we both know."

Serena was always the biggest Nate and Jessica shipper. Nessica as she liked to call them.

"You never know. I might have." Nate smiled which the girl catch. 

Serena smiled. Did they actually happen?

"What? Don't tell me it's Jessica?"

Nate frowned. He hasn't talked to the girl ever since what happened in his limo. He knew he fucked up, but his ego was too big to do anything about it.

"Um well no. I met a girl. Her name's Sage."

"Oh." Serena said, less enthusiastic.

"Have you talked to Jessica recently?"

"I text her here and there. We're getting lunch later. I'm guessing the ride back wasn't what you expected?"

Nate shook his head. "No. I might have blown up on her."

"Nate..."

"I know I felt like the biggest jerk after. But I don't know what to say to her."

"Sorry would be a good start."

Nate sighed. "When I'm around her it's like nothing else matters. All the things I've been stressed about it goes away once I see her and like I know she'll be with me for me. Not the Nate Archibald everyone sees me as. The Nate I'm trying to become. The one who doesn't sleep around with every girl he sees. The one that isn't where he is today because of his family name."

"Nate if you feel this way about Jess then you won't you just tell her."

Nate sighed. "Easier said then done. It didn't work out all these years why would it work now."

Serena shrug her shoulders. "Maybe you were too young and dumb to realize she's the one for you."

"Hey."

"What I'm saying is that you only wanted Jess for one thing back then and it was sex." Serena explained which made Nate a little upset she thought he only wanted the girl for that. But it's so much more than that now. "Maybe she still thinks that I don't know but you just gotta be honest to her and tell you how you actually feel and please don't be with Sage as a placeholder., it didn't work the first or second time, and it most certainly won't work this time."

"I know." Nate nodded, knowing what his friend was telling was the truth. 

"If you want, I can ask her about you? Maybe see what she thinks?"

"You would do that?"

"Of course. Like I said before, I'm the biggest Nessica shipper." 

✄-----------------------------

edited: january 6,2022