Free I Will Always Love You by Cecily von Ziegesar Page A

because they’d been with each other. Blair had spent the night at Nate’s. No wonder she was in such a good mood.
    Serena sighed, trying to will her bad feelings away. This fall she’d tagged along to a yoga class with Alysia, where the instructor
     told them to think of their minds as an endless blue sky, and any negative thoughts as little rain clouds that would eventually
     go away. She would not let her rain clouds ruin her reunion with her two best friends. “Blair, I am so sorry about last night!”
    “Oh, it doesn’t matter.” Blair shrugged, as if she hadn’t been cursing out Serena for the entire night prior to meeting Nate.
    Nate licked his lips nervously as he glanced between Serena and Blair. Serena had that sexy, just-rolled-out-of-bed look.
     Blair wore jeans and an old navy blue Ralph Lauren sweater of his. He loved the way his sweater hung off Blair’s frame, reminding
     him of how small she was compared to him. They were both beautiful. But Blair was his girl.
    For now, at least.
    “It’s great to see you, Serena,” Nate said awkwardly, offering his adorable, lopsided smile. Serena felt her stomach twist
     in jealousy. Let it go. She imagined her angry storm cloud thoughts disappearing to reveal a blue sky.
    “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m starving. Let’s go out!” she announced brightly, sounding like an overcaffeinated camp counselor.
    Or a jealous best friend?
    The cab pulled up to Serendipity on Sixtieth and Third, which was equally famous for its retro-kitschy Tiffany glass lampshade
     decor as it was for its high-calorie desserts. Once they were seated, Serena glanced down at the cracked hexagonal floor tiles
     so she wouldn’t have to watch Blair and Nate gazing adoringly at each other. She didn’t get it. Didn’t Blair have a boyfriend?
     And wasn’t Nate supposed to be off sailing the world still?
    “So, Nate, where the hell have you been?” she asked. She poked the ice cubes in her water glass down with her straw as if
     she were trying to drown them.
    “All over.” Nate shrugged uncomfortably. He’d been everywhere, from sailing around Latin America to exploring the Pacific
     Northwest, but he didn’t know where to start. Besides, no matter where he was, he’d been thinking about both of them. But
     he couldn’t say that to Serena in front of Blair. Serena’s navy blue eyes gleamed, and she looked like she wanted him to talk
     for hours. But he didn’t know what else to say. “We sailed without a navigation system. It was really cool,” he added vaguely.
    The waiter, a chipper man who had way too much energy for New Year’s Day morning, approached the table. “Happy New Year!”
     he practically shouted, causing droplets of spit to rain on the table. “Now, where are you folks from?”
    “I’ll have the eggs Benedict and coffee and he’ll have scrambled eggs and bacon that’s just a little crispy,” Blair said,
     ignoring the waiter’s inane question. How embarrassing to be taken as tourists. Then again, this was a tourist trap. Sure, they used to come here all the time when they were little and split a frozen hot chocolate while their
     nannies gossiped over coffee. But that was years ago. Didn’t Serena realize they weren’t kids anymore?
    Serena smiled tightly. “I’ll have coffee. And toast,” she said, brushing away the menu. She didn’t have much of an appetite.
    “You’re not eating? That’s no fun!” Blair wrinkled her nose. “She’ll have chocolate chip pancakes. With extra whipped cream,”
     she announced.
    “Sure thing, captain!” The waiter dorkily saluted her. Blair rolled her eyes.
    “So are you back for good?” Serena asked, turning to Nate. He looked gaunt and more careworn than she remembered. She wanted
     to call the waiter back and order extra pancakes and sausages and eggs for Nate, then feed them to him until he regained his
     strength.
    Nate shrugged. “Maybe I’ll borrow the Charlotte and do some