DISCLAIMER: Gossip Girl and its characters are the property of Cecily von Ziegesar and Warner Bros. No infringement intended.
ARCHIVING: Only with the permission of the author.
SEQUEL: To The van der Woodsen Charm
Don't Jinx It
By skyz
The Galliano was black, backless, and flowed in a way that she knew looked delicious on her. It showed off her legs and paired with her black BCBG heels would cap off a perfect outfit, at least in her mind.
"How does this look?" Serena asked anxiously as she stood before her brother Eric in the dress and heels. She shifted slightly on her feet, as Eric looked her over from head to toe.
"Awesome," he finally answered his somber expression turning into a grin as he lay sprawled on Serena's bed. "And you know it."
Serena groaned and turned to face her full-length mirror. She stared at her reflection pensively before she shook her head.
"Blair said Galliano's new line has silhouettes that make whoever wears them look like an ugly hippo."
"What?" Eric asked with laugh. "Did someone get her coffee order wrong? Or call Eleanor a whore—wait she'd agree with that. She adores him. Maybe she was exaggerating. You know how she can be."
"She really wasn't, Eric. She was being completely honest. She's done with him; her love has vanished replaced by single-minded loathing. Do I look like an ugly hippo? I can totally take it if I do."
Serena tugged at the dress as she turned this way and that way trying to see herself at all angles. She couldn't quite tell if the silhouette was that of a hippo or whatever had been the intended silhouette.
"Wow, are you feeling insecure, Serena? Since when has Blair's hatred of a designer led to you freaking out about wearing said designer?"
"It's not a big deal. I mean really because I love this dress and it fits really well. I look good in this dress. But honestly Eric, do I in anyway, look like an ugly hippo?" Serena demanded voice rising until it almost resembled a shriek.
Eric sat up abruptly and shook his head vigorously.
"No," he denied quickly, the smile fading from his face. "You look slender and gorgeous. No sign of a hippo anywhere. And those shoes are great. You look really tall and tan and beautiful. The dress just looks great."
He stared at her as he waited for her response. Unused to seeing Serena this visibly upset over a stupid dress.
Serena gave Eric a grateful smile even as she turned to her closet.
"I can't wear this," she announced. "But thank you for that. What about this? I wanted to wear something black but Blair loves jade."
Serena held up a Rucci jade green knee length sheath to her front.
"I think maybe a gold belt with my Manolo's. Not too formal or anything. Casual, even."
"Casual? Formal? It's just Blair right? Where are you two going? What's going on? You're acting weird. I don't know it's almost like…nervous. Wait, you are nervous! What's going on?"
"Nothing. It's just Blair and I haven't spent much time together lately. She's been busy with work and so this is the first time we're going out in awhile. I don't want Blair to bitch all night because I wore Galliano or Betsey Johnson. I want us to have a nice evening."
Serena really did want to have a nice evening and having a relaxed and mellow Blair was at the top of her to-do list. Well, not at the top. The number one thing to do on the list was Blair herself, but that wasn't going to happen anytime soon. She'd only just gotten Blair to admit that they could just be whatever they wanted. That kissing and touching wouldn't strain their friendship, but that it might even make it better.
"She'd love it. Another thing to call you out on, Serena. You know she loves finding fault with you. If only to make herself feel better."
Serena sent Eric a look over her shoulder as she sifted through her walk in closet.
"She's not like that anymore. She's more secure," Serena defended Blair. "So don't say that, okay?"
"Blair secure with herself?" Eric scoffed and rolled onto his stomach resting his chin on his folded arms. He watched silently as Serena disregarded dress after dress. "Is this a new version? A pod person, perhaps?"
"You haven't spent much time with her but she's different now. She can be a bitch but that's only part of her charm."
A fond smile made its way across Serena's lips.
"Charm? If a barracuda had charm then sure, Blair could too."
"Oh, dear brother, you've spent too much time away in la, la, land. It's dulled your wits and made you unappealingly sarcastic. Where has my wide-eyed, naïve, happy little brother gone?" Serena asked with a grin as she channeled Blair.
"I don't know dear sister," Eric replied with a matching grin. "The way of the beast, into the belly of it. Eaten away at by the plastic Ken and Barbie's'. Or maybe it's just the way they butcher my last name. Von der Vetchin, von der Wettigs, von der Woodon. We can't all be the Dutch van der Wonderkid, S."
They laughed together, then. Serena leaning against the wall holding her stomach and Eric covering his face with his hands as his shoulders shook.
"That's what you get. Moving all the way to L.A. in the land of all that's fake and de trop. You should have taken the name Blair made up for you. Eric van Magnus."
Eric rolled his eyes.
"Yeah so everyone could confuse me with Magneto. His name is Erik Lehnsherr but he sometimes goes by Magnus and everyone would just think I picked it out of a comic book. Besides I think if I were going to change my name it'd have to be something like Silver Surfer's name Norrin Radd, he was so cool. I'm not talking about that fucking useless one they used in that awful Fantastic Four movie. I mean seriously how can the Silver Surfer lose his powers when he loses his surfboard? He can't! And come on what was up with Galactus? The world eater isn't some kind of swarming beast of evilness! He's like a man and—"
"And have you noticed that I'm not listening to this?" Serena cut in. "That what I'm hearing has no meaning to me, Eric? Also that movie was like ten years ago, let it go. Besides I'm clueless in comic book 101."
"It's Marvel 101. I suppose we do have other things to talk about. Like say why can't you reschedule with Blair now that I'm in town? I'm not here for that long."
"You're here for two weeks," Serena retorted dryly.
"Two weeks will be gone in a flash."
"And I haven't properly been out with Blair in ages. I will see you every time I turn around a corner as you're staying with me. Don't pout. You're still my number one brother."
"Right," Eric drawled out just as Serena's cell phone rang.
"Blair," Serena exclaimed as the familiar ring tone sounded. She clambered onto the bed and stepped over Eric reaching the phone on its second note. "Hi! Hello. Blair, it's you right? No—no. Of course I knew it was you. It's still the Puccini ring tone. Right. Of course it's Tosca, you're the one who put it in. So…what's wrong? Nothing's wrong with me. I just thought maybe you were—oh. Okay. Are you sure? Seriously? This isn't a trick is it? No, I know you wouldn't do that. I don't know why I said that. Eric's been putting unwanted thoughts in my head—"
"No I haven't," Eric yelled in mock outrage.
"He is currently eavesdropping," Serena glared at Eric and turned away again. "Okay. So we're still on? I'm just really happy about this. I'll see you then. Six-thirty, right. Bye."
"You almost stepped on me," Eric complained the minute she closed her cell phone. "And really could I have not handed you the phone? What was with the jumping and the leaping? Like a golden haired gazelle. All nervous and twitchy. I mean what the hell?"
Serena just grinned as she walked around the bed and back to her closet.
"No way," Eric muttered shaking his head.
Serena nodded.
"No way," he repeated, "C'mon you would have said something! I'm your brother, Serena. Tell me!"
"I can't," Serena finally said. "Or I'll jinx it."
"No wonder you're so nervous. Oh, wow. Damn I think I'm feeling a tear that wants to shed. In blatant relief that it's only taken you six years to get to this point, but you've made it! A real date. With Blair. Finally."
"Okay," Serena muttered slightly embarrassed. "Stop talking about it. We're not dating. Though she did ask me out but we're not calling it dating or anything remotely resembling dating. So don't freak out when she comes to pick me up."
"She's coming to pick you up?" Eric asked, mouth open. "My God that's progress. Remember when she wouldn't even look at you or talk to you for weeks after you kissed her that one time? Now's she picking you up for your date."
"Really, Eric, don't be so dramatic. She lives upstairs."
"Which makes it even more perfect as she'll be seen doing it. By me!"
"Enough! Calm down. Don't make me regret having you stay here," she warned him with a playful grin.
"Don't worry I didn't really come here to see you anyway. What are you doing?"
Serena paused in pulling out a pair of black jeans.
"Blair said to wear jeans," Serena said with a shrug.
"Where is she taking you?" Eric asked, cautious. Blair and jeans rarely met in the same sentence. She didn't often wear them and now telling Serena to put on pair, well it smelled of disaster to him.
"Haven't a clue. And since I'm not the one you wanted to see, why don't you get out so I can change?"
Eric slowly got up and stretched.
"I'm gonna peek in on the littlest van der Wonderkid. Maybe see if he wants to help you pick out a pair jeans to wear."
"I'll need all the help I can get," Serena murmured turning back to her closet. "And don't wake Lucius if he's still sleeping, Eric. He'll be hell do deal with and you'll be the one left dealing with it."
"Yes, yes. I think I know how to handle him. Try the black Kasil pair," he added as he slipped out of the bedroom closing the door behind him.
Serena tossed an arm full of jeans onto her bed and stared at the pile in befuddlement. She had no idea what Blair had planned for their little assignation that would require her to wear jeans.
She'd thought Blair would be just as nervous as she was but having talked to Blair and heard nothing but confidence, she was even more curious to see what the night would entail. After all this was Blair and she didn't plan parties, she planned soirée's and a date wasn't just a date to her.
Her excitement beginning to out run her nervousness Serena turned her full attention to picking out the perfect jeans that would make her ass look outrageous. She wanted to use her van der Woodsen genes to the fullest tonight. She wanted Blair speechless and filled with need.
Serena couldn't wait until six-thirty rolled around.
The End