Part 3

"Are you saying you could be that person, Jenny?" Nate slowly turned around and looked at Jenny. His blue eyes stood out in the dimmed light of the apartment.

To say Nate was confused would be an understatement. Lost would probably be a more fitting adjective. He knew his feelings for Serena were real, yet Jenny had just made a valid point: he did want someone who only wanted him. And he knew Jenny had feelings for him, that if they were to be together, she'd never leave him for someone else, she'd never be undecided.

"That's not fair, Nate," Jenny replied, "don't make me think we have a chance when I know that we don't. I'm not saying all this so you'll fall into my arms; I just want you to see what I see."

'How does she know me so well?' he thought. "If you're not doing this so we can be together, then I don't get it," Nate said, walking back over to the couch. "What do you want from me?"

"What do I want from you?" Jenny replied, standing up to face him. Their voices weren't soft from confession anymore: they'd moved on to anger. "You're the one who brought me here, what do you want from me?" she asked.

"I don't know!" He raised his hands in the air in a show of confusion.

"I don't know how many times I can say I'm sorry, Nate! I'm sorry I ruined our friendship, I'm sorry I ruined Blair and Chuck's relationship, I'm sorry for all the scheming!" It was too late now, too late to stop. The words were coming out of her mouth faster than she could stop them, and so were the tears down her face. "I'm sorry I slept with Chuck, you have no idea! I'm so sorry... The look on my brother's face, he was so disappointed!"

She was crying so hard she couldn't speak anymore. Nate slowly, very slowly, pulled her into his arms in a tight hug. He let her cry and after a while she calmed down enough to stop crying. It felt wonderful to be this close to each other again, and they both took the time to revel in the feeling. She felt completely spent and Nate did too. Her words had hit home: he needed to stop blaming her and start forgiving her.

They pulled apart reluctantly and sat back down on the couch, face to face. Jenny took another sip from her coffee and her hair fell down in front of her eyes. She was surprised when she felt Nate pull it behind her ear. The gesture felt intimate, and her heart beat a little faster.

"Tell me what you want, Jenny," Nate said quietly. If she hadn't been sitting right next to him, she might not have heard him.

She had to hold herself back from yelling a big fat 'You!' While that was ultimately what she wanted, she knew she had no chance of getting it. As long as he was in love with Serena, she knew she couldn't have all of him. So she took a deep breath and told him the next best thing.

"I want to come back. I want us to be friends again."

"Well, I don't know about the first one, but the second one you already have," Nate said. "You're my friend, and even though we've had our ups and downs, I still consider you as such. I don't know if it's worth much right now, but I'm sorry for what I did to you. I should have talked to you instead of plotting against you."

"It's worth a lot, Nate. And I'm sorry too." They both smiled. It felt like the beginning of something new, something good.

However, it didn't take long for Jenny to get back to reality. Sure, she and Nate had made up, but she still had to go back to Hudson. Nate saw the look on her face and immediately reassured her.

"I'll try to arrange it so you can come back." The look on Jenny's face was priceless a mixture of hope and admiration, and Nate felt proud to be the one to put it there.

"How are you going to do that?" she asked.

"Leave the scheming and plotting to me, for once," he said, and they both smiled again. Their eyes held for a moment.

"Okay, now that that's settled, we should get you home," Nate said, breaking the moment.

"It's too late to get a train to Hudson tonight, and my Dad thinks I've left already," Jenny said sheepishly.

"Where does your mom think you are?" Nate asked.

"Spending the night at a friend's," she answered.

"Okay, then, you can take the bedroom, and I'll take the couch." They both smiled again. They were settling back into their old routine and it felt right somehow, like they had never stopped hanging out.

Jenny got up and walked to the bedroom, but halfway there she stopped and turned around.

"Nate?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"How did you know I wasn't Serena at the party?"

"You didn't think I'd make the same mistake twice, did you? I've kissed you, Jenny, really kissed you, and I know what it feels like. I know better now."

The end

A/N: Okay, this is it for this one. I already have a sequel in mind but that won't be right away, maybe in a couple weeks. Thanks for all the comments!