01X04,

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Hey Upper East Siders. There's nothing Gossip Girl likes more than a surprise. And we hear Blair Waldorf got a 3 for 1 special. Her mother, Eleanor, who just returned home from Paris, and Serena Van Der Woodsen and Ellie Bass: brunch buddies.

♛

That was an unfamiliar term in the Upper East Side. According to the internet, and basic common sense, it was 'a state or period in which there is no war or a war has ended', and for Elizabeth Bass, she could not have been any happier. Serena Van Der Woodsen and Blair Waldorf met in Central Park after the disastrous turn of events at the Ivy Week Mixer, and decided to start off fresh with one another. That meant that Blair would no longer hold Serena's mistakes against her, and vice versa, and Ellie would no longer have to play the peacemaker between the two.

After an eventful week filled with drama and mayhem, all Ellie wanted to do was start her weekend off with croissants, a hot bath and a romance novel with a tragic end, but, Chuck derailed her plans with his own. That was his weekend meant for him and his friends, the famous 'Lost Weekend' that Ellie loved to joke was another word for an orgy. There was also Serena who had the bright idea of showing up at the suite early that morning, and practically yanked Ellie out of bed. Serena wanted, now that their relationship was mended, to spend the day with her beloved best friends. She wanted it to be like the old times where they would walk down the street gossiping, laughing and admiring the gorgeous pieces of eye - candy that past them.

When they arrived at the Waldorf Penthouse that morning, Blair was still asleep but her mother wasn't. Eleanor treated the duo to breakfast and a brief catch-up, while they waited for Blair to rise from her beauty sleep. Ellie listened to the conversation between Eleanor and Serena, with the older woman bragging about the fact that Bendels was interested in carrying her latest line of clothes. She took a bite of her scone just as she noticed Blair walking towards the three of them, confused about why they were all together without her. Ellie beamed, "Hey. You're up."

Blair looked between Ellie and Serena, "Did we have plans?"

"Uh, we -" the Bass managed to say before Eleanor cut her off. She looked at her daughter, "Darling, it's impolite to interrupt," she blew an air kiss at Blair. That was ironic. She lectured Blair on the importance of not disrupting a person mid sentence and yet she had done the same thing to Ellie. "I was just telling Serena and Elizabeth that Bendels is interested in carrying my line,"

Blair's eyes widened in surprise, "Really?" she beamed. Eleanor proudly nodded. The bright light on Blair's face fizzled for a moment before she covered it up by being overly excited, plopping herself next to Ellie on the couch. "Oh, that's fantastic. Why didn't you say something?"

Eleanor was much too caught up in her own world of fantasy and dreams, and paid little attention to the disheartened expression that Blair held on her face while she helped herself to breakfast. The older woman smugly smiled, "I came back from Paris early to put together my look book and if they like what they see, it would be the beginning of an entire lifestyle collection."

Blair picked up her croissant, holding it up to her mouth to take a bite, and glanced at her mother, "Because most people should be like you, mother."

Eleanor hummed in response. Her brown gaze followed the interaction that her daughter made with the croissant, before she made it her duty to intervene. "Before you tuck into that, you might find a low fat yoghurt more appealing," she commented. She thought that it was in Blair's best interest to watch her figure and how much she ate, but all that Eleanor did was contribute to Blair's eating disorder. The younger Waldorf felt a lump form in her throat as she made a face and left the croissant back on the coffee table before she covered her sadness, "I lost two pounds while you were away," she stated, hopeful that her weight loss would have been the thing that impressed Eleanor the most about Blair. Serena excused herself from the conversation to take a look at the clothes that Eleanor's assistant had brought in, in a bid to leave the mother - daughter duo to themselves, and Ellie wanted to do so as well. When she got ready to stand up, she felt a hand onto hers and looked at Blair to see an unreadable expression on her face. Blair did not have to tell Ellie anything because she already knew what the Waldorf wanted. They had a bond with each other.

Eleanor hummed at Blair's previous comment although her attention was primarily focused on Serena. "

proud of her recent weight loss just as Serena excused herself to look at some of the clothes Eleanor's assistant had brought in. "And you look marvelous,"

At times when Eleanor Waldorf acted like an insufferable and judgemental human being, it made Ellie glad to know that she did not have a mother. All that Blair wanted in her life apart from acceptance into Yale University, was her mother's approval and yet Eleanor could not even give her that. Eleanor seemed to continuously put her daughter down, and turn a blind eye to Blair's needs.

"Wow, these are beautiful, Mrs. Waldorf." Serena admired the rack of clothes

Ellie gave Blair a small smile when they shared a look with each other. She couldn't help but feel bad for her friend. All that Blair wanted in life, apart from Yale, was her mother's approval but Eleanor Waldorf wasn't easy to please. Eleanor nodded at what Serena had said to her and walked past Blair, "Well, they will be if they're all not squished from traveling," she frowned. She moved even further but Blair got in her way. "Darling, please." She mumbled. She walked over to Serena and smiled, "Serena, you and Elizabeth should come back when everything is unpacked. I would love to hear your thoughts. You both have such great personal style,"

Ellie widened her eyes in surprise at Eleanor's comment in front of Blair. She awkwardly took a sip of her tea before she looked at the older Waldorf, "Thank you, Mrs. Waldorf," she began but trailed off when she realised what had really been on her agenda for that day. She took a deep breath and sighed, "But Serena, Blair and I have plans today."

Blair furrowed her eyebrows, "We do?"

The Golden Trio might have plans for the day, but Nate and Chuck are fully booked for the weekend... if they survive it.

♛

years of Ellie's entire being, there was not a time where she was not friends with Serena and Blair. They had always been a trio, despite the stigma about there actually being a duo inside of every trio. They loved each other like sisters, and had seen each other in their ugliest moments but had always stood by each other through the good and the bad. The bond was nearly broken for good before, but now that Serena and Blair had made up, things were close to being the same as it was.

They walked down down Madison Avenue together, in a fit of laughter and rarely stopping to window - shop. Being with Serena and Blair again, with their iced coffee and shopping bags, reminded Ellie of all that she had missed in the past year. Even when she was with Blair, there was always something missing and now their friendship felt whole again. They walked side by side, with Blair in the middle, while two men had walked past and stared at Serena in a lustful manner. Blair and Ellie shared a look while Serena remained oblivious to the fact that she gathered attention to herself whilst doing nothing at all.

Serena noticed the expression on her friends' faces and narrowed her eyes at them. "What?"

Ellie laughed, "Nothing. It's just that Blair and I forgot what it was like to be with you," she explained. She wasn't jealous of the attention that Serena got when they were together. She was used to it, but it felt different this time around considering how long they had been apart for. Serena instantly shook her head and fought against the claims, "No, no. They were looking at all three of us,"

Blair scoffed, "Don't insult me," she replied, "It's been like this all morning, starting with yours and Ellie's lovely visit with my mother. She didn't even call to let me know she was coming home,"

"Well, she was busy. She was rushing to get home and everything to see you," Serena objected.

Blair pursed her lips, "She didn't even wake me," she stated with a roll of her eyes.

Serena shrugged her shoulders, "Well, you know how Eleanor feels about beauty rest," she defended the fashion designer in attempt to make Blair feel better about the whole scenario. Blair did not buy whatever the Van Der Woodsen had to say to her. She rolled her eyes, "She likes the two of you more than she likes me," she scoffed.

Ellie dryly chuckled, "B, that's ridiculous," she immediately said, "Eleanor may have the sensitivity chip of a robot, but you're her daughter. You're her favourite person,"

Blair rolled her eyes and noticed that they stopped in front of one of her favorite clothing stores. She gestured to it, "Okay, I'm going inside. Wait for me, I'll be right back," she tugged at Ellie's arm, almost dragging the Bass with her when she noticed Dan Humphrey across the street. The dynamic, and brunette, duo entered the clothing store and Ellie's hazel eyes set sight on the most gorgeous dress she had ever seen in her life, or she was extremely over dramatic. She made a beeline to the dress while Blair followed after her, "Ooh. This is pretty." She hummed. When she saw the look on Blair's face, reality dawned upon Ellie. The dress was tacky and probably owned by at least fifty other girls on the Upper East Side, if not the entire of New York. Blair hovered over Ellie, "Is that for your mystery man?" She asked. Of course Blair had seen the multiple blasts on Gossip Girl that was sent out during the weekend, and the week before, and a month ago. He must have been a pretty big surprise if Ellie had yet to tell her best friends about him. Blair rolled her eyes at the surprised look on Ellie's face and waved her off, "Don't look at me that way. Gossip Girl has been having a field day with all the blasts she sent out. Spotted, Ellie Bass may have finally found her prince. Spotted, Princess E daydreaming in Central Park about her mystery guy. I could go on if you want,"

Ellie coyly smiled, "I'm good."

Ever since her public breakup with Carter Baizen, the topic of Ellie's love life had been a trending topic on Gossip Girl. She was at the start of every blast sent out, and most of the guys who did take her out on dates, were the ones after the fame and prestige of being known as Ellie Bass' boyfriend. But Isaac. She did not have to worry about that with him. He did not care about the fame, or the fortune, because he only cared about her. Ellie could only wonder what society would think when they found out who she was actually seeing. She could feel Blair's brown eyes dig into her soul as she looked at the different articles of clothing hung on the rack. She played it coy with the Waldorf, which had only caused Blair to jump to her own conclusion. She widened her eyes and gasped, hands raised to her mouth to cover her surprise while Ellie tried to shush her down.

Blair made a face, "Are the blasts about a certain droopy - eyed Carter Baizen? E. Are you shacking up with your ex?"

Ellie immediately shook her head in denial. "No." She scoffed, grabbing the dresses that she liked and walked over to pay for it, "I'm baffled that you would think that."

"Well. You're leaving me no choice. It's not like you tell me anything anymore."

Ellie softened her expression. She grabbed the shopping bags from the counter once she had paid for her new outfits and turned to Blair with a small smile on her face, "Because there's this thing called privacy that still exists in some parts of the world." She replied. She made her way to the exit of the store while Blair had quickly caught up, linking her arm through Ellie's with a scowl on her face, "What's the point of having best friends if you're not going to share the juicy details,"

Ellie hated not being able to tell her friends about Isaac. She couldn't risk them knowing about them, as well as Nate. When they left the store, Blair and Ellie walked over to Serena who was unsurprisingly still in a conversation with Dan Humphrey. If it was possible, Blair's scowl had grown even more when her eyes set sight on the boy. "What are you doing here?" She stopped and sniffed the air with a disgusted expression, the scent of pork filling her nostrils. "Do I smell pork? And cheese?"

While Blair had made Dan and Serena feel uncomfortable with her snide remarks, Ellie felt her phone vibrate. She realised that it was a message alert and dropped her gaze, her eyes scanning over the contents of the message as she felt every bit of life drain from her body. The audacity of Carter Freaking Baizen. How dare he message her after the hell that he put her through? It was his fault that Ellie preferred to stay away from love, it was his fault that she was in a secret relationship with her professor. Every bad thing that ever happened to Ellie was Carter's fault.

I'm in town. Drinks?

The fourteen year old Ellie would have dropped to her knees in shock that the legendary Carter Baizen would choose her amongst every other girl that worshipped him at an altar. He was the ultimate bad boy, he was Chuck before Chuck became Chuck. Carter was the ultimate bad boy, and Ellie was the perfect girl next door. They were basically written to be together by destiny, and yet Carter allowed his temptations to get the best of him on their trip to Dubai over a year ago. Ellie would never forget the moment that she entered their hotel room to find a half naked red-haired with him, and Carter staring back at her with guilt.

♛

have known that there was no such thing as 'peace' on the Upper East Side, as the moment she sat down with her friends at café, she received a concerning text message from Chuck. He asked if she had locked her bedroom, and normally Ellie would have not bothered to reply to him, but since it was his Lost Weekend with his friends, she needed to protect her bedroom from hormonal teenage boys and strippers.

Ellie had taken the first taxi she could find in order to get to The Palace the fastest, and before she could even exit the elevator, she had her phone pressed to her ears and snapped at Chuck. He could barely hear her over the loud music and that made Ellie worry more. The Lost Weekend was just an excuse for inexperienced boys to lose their virginity, and boys in relationships to act as if they were single. The aftermath was even uglier with empty beer bottles thrown at every inch of the suite. She wanted her room to at least be kept in one piece.

The elevator doors opened and with her phone still pressed to her ears, Ellie walked out and released a muffled growl. "Chuck. I swear that if I find a half-naked person in my room, you will lose the ability to have children," she stopped in front of the suite and made a face in realisation, "You know what? That actually doesn't sound like a bad idea."

She reached for the doorknob and immediately regretted it when the door opened. The suite reeked of alcohol and marijuana, just like she had imagined, and there were strippers on top of her coffee table. She knew that the Lost Weekend was an excuse for boys to go wild, but she had not expected it to be as disgusting as it was. She cringed in horror, "What the holy hell is going on here?" She scoffed, her widened when she noticed one of the boys place his drink on the coffee table without a coaster, "Hey. Use a coaster or Mommy will hear that you hooked up with her best friend last year."

Ellie was not a mean person, that was Blair's department, but it irked her when things were not going according to plan. She was a perfectionist and incapable of going against the rules. After a very threatening glare at the boy, she sped to her room door and breathed a sigh of relief when she peaked her head in and realised that her room was left untouched. She locked the door and turned around, coming face - to - face with her brother as she placed her hands on her hips and gave him a disapproving smile, "I thought you said 'Lost Boys' not 'Boys Gone Wild'."

Chuck hummed, "Haven't you heard, sis. Girls are forbidden," he leaned closer in order to disgust her even more. "Unless, of course, they're the ones I paid for."

"You scare me. You disturb my inner peace," Ellie replied, "You turned our home into your very own strip club,"

Chuck shrugged, "You should be impressed with my skills."

Chuck was not the best brother in the world, he could remember the many times that he had tortured his sister into doing whatever he wanted when they were young, but he loved her. He would never admit it, but the only thing close to love that he had felt in his seventeen years of living was for his sister. He did not want to see her hurt in any way, and he knew that once she realised that Carter Baizen was in their suite, she would remember how it felt when her heart was ripped out of her chest. But Ellie was oblivious to what Chuck was trying to do. All she knew was that he stood in her way in order to block her eyes from seeing anything that might provoke her anger, especially if it meant seeing a stripper dance on their dinner table. She crossed her arms against her chest and sighed, "Although I appreciate that you aren't renting out my room to your friends, I am going to find Nate to make sure that it really doesn't happen."

Chuck shook his head, "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

His gaze was lowered at her and whenever Ellie took a step, he would stand in her way. She rolled her eyes and scoffed, walking past him and on her way to the bar area that she knew that Nate would be at, but never in her life had Ellie found herself regretting wanting to see Nate. She stopped in her tracks and widened her eyes. It couldn't have been. Carter did not have the guts to face her against after he broke her heart in Dubai. But there he was, standing next to Nate as they engaged in a friendly conversation. He was different. His hair was scraggly and he had a beard. The clothes he used looked second - hand and ugly, a complete change from the designer golfers and pants that he was used to.

"Are you okay?" Chuck appeared behind his sister, gently rubbing her back when he followed her gaze and realised that she had seen Carter again. Ellie released a shaky breath and shook her head, "I can't be here. Not right now."