Golden Girl

“That– was something I definitely don’t need a visual image of,” Eric said as he shook his head, pretending to actually shake off any image Serena had planted inside his mind. Back in New York, the house had already been packed enough with five teenagers and his mom and Bart all under the same roof, but with family joining in for the holidays, there was only so much Eric could take. It was a big beach house, and Eric cherished family, but sometimes it was just too much. “I’m so happy I slept in,” he said with a big grin as he looked at his sister, who’d had to suffer through the cheek pinching marathon on her own. “Yes, coffee, and then we can hit the beach. I’ve been really wanting to build a sandcastle,” he said, never letting go of his child side.

“You owe me and before you say anything—no, macarons from François Payard will not suffice as compensation.” Serena insisted, rubbing her cheek for emphasis of the ordeal. “That sounds perfect Eric!” The slight burn she’d suffered initially from the Hamptons’ harsh sunlight had only just faded to a tan, but the thought of spending an evening with her brother could be anywhere and still seem appealing. “Coming?” She added quickly, pinching his cheek like one would a baby’s and jumping up from the bed before he could get her back. 

Lexi didn’t fully know the Story Of Serena’s Disappearance, but she’d read enough on Gossip Girl to have a gist of the whole thing. No one knew why the Golden Girl had left, but now that she was back and it had been revealed that she’d slept with that Nate boy, Lexi could see why it’d be strange. “Well, it’s still a party. All that matters is that you dance and have fun,” she replied, always one to look at things from the bright side. “Can I take it you’re not a fan of Katherine? Or your brother?” She could always use more people who disliked Katherine by her side. 

“That’s very true.” Serena said, smiling. Maybe the party wouldn’t be as bad as she’d initially feared. Blair, Nate… she hadn’t even seen them in the Hamptons. Pushing her blonde hair back messily, Serena looked deep in thought for a moment. The White Party, Katherine… whoever said summer was the season to relax clearly wasn’t from New York. “I love my brother. That incredible idiot is my best friend, my everything. Katherine on the other hand… I just don’t know how he can’t see through her facade.” The most frustrating part of their budding friendship was that Serena had the power to decimate it in one conversation. She could prevent all of the horrible things Katherine was bound to do to her big brother, but then she couldn’t. Eric could never know what had happened and why Serena had left to begin with—it would make him an accomplice. “You don’t particularly seem like a fan of hers either. What happened?”

Kenna heard what her blonde step cousin had said and smiled. “Of course I have! They used to come to England all of the time and I’d go with my mother! Maya was her favorite dancer! Gosh, I had no idea anyone here liked the ballet as much as I did!” Kenna exclaimed, excited to have something in common with her cousin. Finally, a friendly face. She had been wanting to connect with the blonde since coming to New York, seeing as she seemed so kind and understanding. “We should go! I mean, if…if you don’t mind going with me, that is…” Kenna said, looking down, her cheeks turning a bit of pink. It was no secret that Serena was the it girl around this city and Kenna? Kenna was no one, no one at all. She felt like no one too, as if a ghost. 

“I would love that, Kenna!” Serena said, hugging the younger girl around the shoulders as they both walked along East 82nd street towards Central Park. Although only knowing her step cousin briefly, she had decided to make the effort to get to know her better. New York was a big city, it’d be scary not knowing anyone. Kenna may have had Chuck and Bart, and now even Eric, but it wasn’t the same as another girl. “Hey, don’t be embarrassed to ask anything. Ever. We’re family now. How are you settling in anyway? A little different than London, I’m sure.”

Eric could easily see that Serena wasn’t telling him something, but he didn’t want to push the issue. It was most likely Blair-related, and he knew that if his sister wanted to talk about it, she would. “Great,” he said when she agreed to come to the White Party, before breaking out in laughter when she went on talking about Cats. “S, come on, you know I’m more of a Fiyero man,” he said, pretending to be disappointed. He’d always loved musicals, but Wicked was definitely a favorite. “Yeah, she’s been sick a lot lately, I hope she’ll be better quickly,” he agreed when she rested her head on her shoulder. “I miss you too– the house is a madhouse right now, so many people,” he admitted with a smile before nodding. “Alright, let’s have a sibling day. Without Chuck and Kenna I mean. You and me. What do you want to do?” Eric didn’t have a problem with Chuck or Kenna– he liked them both, but it felt like ages since he and his sister’d had a day to themselves.

“Madhouse is an understatement. I walked in on an elderly man in my bathroom this morning, one of grandma’s friends from one society group or another I think. I won’t scar you with the gory details.” Serena said, feigning horror. “It’s unfortunate you slept in, you missed a cheek pinching marathon and our great aunt Lucy. Eric, she looks like Neville’s grandmother from Harry Potter now. I kid you not.” She was rambling and she knew it. Even though her brother never pressured her into revealing secrets, it felt like the truth would undoubtedly spill out on it’s own accord sooner rather than later. “You and me sounds perfect.” She added, taking a deep breath. “Want to grab a coffee?” 

A devious smirk formed across Chuck’s face as his half sister covered her face in embarrassment. “Don’t think that I haven’t made every room in here, my own..if you know what I mean.” He said, pushing his limits with her even further, which was something that wasn’t difficult to do and much enjoyable.

“I did not want to know that. God, we need to have our couches reupholstered… actually maybe a house wide refurbishment wouldn’t go astray. The unveiling of renovations would even give my mom an excuse to throw another party. Hey, stop smirking!” Serena berated jokingly, hitting his arm. “I’m serious!”

“Probably, in fact my therapist constantly reminds me to work on my self-confidence.” Chuck replied with a sly smile. “Serena, I’m heartbroken that you’ve never informed me of your new smoking habits. I would love to join you, but I think a bathroom seems a little too crowded, don’t you think?” He said with a laugh.

“Why doesn’t that surprise me,” Serena said with a chuckle. “I thought up close and personal was your desired method Chuck. Ew, wait, I don’t want to think about that—especially in the same context as my bathroom.” Shaking her head, the blonde scrunched her nose. It had been months since the Bass x van der Woodsen nuptials, but whether he was her brother-in-law or her friend, the mental image was no less disturbing. 

“Well of course, I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Summer Parties are always just.. bigger. Friskier.. Better,” Lexi said as she looked up with a bright smile. She liked Serena; she seemed nice enough, and she was a great party person, although latest rumors said she’d changed her ways. “Are you going?” she asked the other blonde. “Your brother? Eric? I think I saw him walking past a while back with Katherine”, she said, trying and failing not to spit out the name of the brunette.

“That’s definitely true,” she agreed, smiling warmly at blonde. These days Serena wasn’t much of a partier—she’d happily attend an event such as the White Party, purely because it was the kind of refined gathering where most guests weren’t doing lines and doing private escorts in the backs of limos by the end of the evening. A little champagne never hurt anyone. “I’ll be there. I just haven’t seen a lot of people outside of school for a while. It’s going to be strange—at best.” Admitting her uncertainty wasn’t easy, but S. found Lexi very easy to talk to. “Oh, I suddenly regret asking. See this face? This is my everything is alright face. My I’m totally not going to destroy her if she hurts my brother face. Thank you anyway, I’ll probably just head back to the house. He’s bound to show up sooner or later.”

Ignoring Serena’s comment, Eric left the brush for what it was and sat down on his bed, looking at her when she went on about the White Party. “Grandma would behead you,” he agreed with a smile and a nod, though slightly worried about Serena forgetting a party. “But, uh, you’re going, right?” he asked. Serena not going was as rare as being contacted by aliens, as that had never happened before. “Okay, enough, Van der Woodsen,” he said with a laugh when Serena joked about Glee, but then shook his head. “Hmm, nah, I don’t really have plans. I was supposed to babysit Julia but she’s got the flu so she’s at home with her parents,” he said. 

“Oh my gosh, she would.” Serena replied, covering her mouth in mock terror. Their grandmother was nothing, if not her own force of nature. Luckily for the siblings, this seemed to be heredity and many in their family possessed a similar strength and presence. “I suppose…” Her eyes began doing that thing where she looked everywhere except her brother as her words trailed off—desperate not to talk about what truly bothered her. “Fine, I’ll go, but in exchange I want free tickets to the next production of Cats. Wouldn’t miss my big brother’s broadway debut for the world.” Moving to sit on the bed beside Eric, she rested her head on his shoulder. “Poor thing, I hope she’s feeling brighter soon. Do you want to hang out instead? I know I’ve been home a while now, but I miss you.”

“Very funny, but I know that’s not true. Oh and what did my step-mother Lily to say about me?”

“Could you be any more self assured?” Serena asked with mock seriousness, before laughing. “Actually, she was curious as to who it was lighting up in my bathroom.” Hopping down from the counter, the blonde began to pour herself a cup of coffee. Before taking a sip, she added, “Your secret is safe with me Chuck.”

“Yes, yes, go ahead– Laugh all you want,” Eric said as he playfully rolled his eyes. “But when I’m at the White Party and they play a slow song, I will spin Kate around and people will be astounded with my skills,” he said with a determined nod before swatting away the T-shirt she’d thrown at him. He really did need to clean his room. He was always a clean guy, but at the beach house, it was different. He enjoyed the sun too much to worry about his room. “I will get you back one day, I promise,” he said, pledging to himself. “Why are you in here anyways? I thought you’d definitely be at the beach by now.”

"Thank you, I will.” She concluded sarcastically, nodding her head in victory. Blonde hair fell over her face and when she pushed it away from her eyes, they were wide. “I keep forgetting about the White Party! What is wrong with me? Wait, don’t answer that. Grandma would be livid if I missed it…”  In all honesty, Serena was just nervous about seeing Blair. The younger van der Woodsen never forgot a party, regardless of her reformed ways. “I’d like to see you try Eric,” She said, winking. “I came back to grab my magazine. What about you? Are you up to anything today other than practicing your Glee audition? 

“Wh– No, I was.. Fine, I was dancing. I have skills, you know,” Eric said as he got up from the floor, “I could be on Broadway,” he went on with a joke. “But if you ever show that video to anyone we’ll have problems,” he ended as he pointed a finger at his sister, pretending to look serious.

It was times like these the love for her big, goofy brother surged. “To deny it would have been futile—and I certainly know now!” Serena laughed, her childlike giggle filling the room. Picking a T-shirt off the floor, she flung it at him like a sling shot. “Don’t blame me, blame your blatantly false cover story. Oh and this?” She added, waving the iPhone between her dark red nails, “This is my latest insurance policy.”

“Oh hey, I was just– Not dancing with this broom. I was.. cleaning. Yeah, cleaning. It needs to happen from time to time. And, I mean, the maids deserve a day off, right? It’s summer.” 

“Eric… you’re not fooling your sister, not for a second. I'm so impressed though that I got the entire thing on film.”

“I swear I heard ‘Chuck Bass’ being said around in here. I hope for your sake it’s all good things.”

“Good things and ‘Chuck Bass’ rarely appear in the same sentence. Not that it’s any of your business, I was just on the phone to mom.”

“—Or, if you think it through carefully, we could do something fun instead. Come on, this summer has been dreadfully boring so far.”

“In New York, it is essentially a crime not to have an exciting Summer—so I suppose you’re right. What did you have in mind?”