A/N: So, this is the end! This is the first chapter-length story I've ever actually finished, which, I guess, says a lot about how awesome and inspiring NS are. It's been fun, and you guys have been awesome! Enjoy this last one, and let's hope we actually get something like this is season three! :)

3x24

[Loveboat]

Nate smiles to himself as he roughly folds a pair of shorts and jams them into his duffel bag, watching Serena dance around the room with Blair, her hair piled on her head and held there by a chopstick, wearing only her cut-off shorts and a white bikini top. They're about to head out, and Nate is only just packing, while Serena and Blair laugh about how guys always wait until the last second to pack their things, and Blair insists that Serena not help him.

"Nathaniel." Chuck, who is sitting on the bed next to Nate's open bag, pulls out a shirt and shoots him a disdainful look. "No," he says firmly, dropping the shirt on the floor with a shake of his head.

Serena and Blair flop onto the bed, making the mattress bounce, breathing heavily. Blair rolls onto her stomach and asks, "So where are you guys going?"

"Where aren't we going?" Serena replies laughingly. "I don't know, we've got a couple destinations planned out, but mostly we'll just see where we end up."

Blair sighs happily. "That sounds romantic."

Nate elbows Chuck as he zips his bag closed. "I'm romantic," he gloats.

His friend arches a single eyebrow. "Blair and I are flying to Paris in my private jet tomorrow evening."

"Aw," Serena coos when she sees that Nate's lost that competition. She scrambles off the bed and hugs him, kissing him quickly. "I still think you're romantic, I promise."

"You don't deserve her, Nathaniel," Chuck inputs laughingly.

"Shut up, bro," Serena snaps back, laughter hidden in her words as she half-heartedly slaps his arm. She turns back to Nate and asks, "You all packed, Natie?"

"Ready to set sail," he agrees.

She sends him a sweet grin before she kneels on the floor next to Mr. Fuzzy's carrier. "And you, baby bunny, you ready to head out of here?"

Erik, standing in the doorway of the room, pipes in with: "You know, I could take care of him while you guys are gone. What if he gets seasick or something?"

"He won't," Serena says assuredly. She's not sure how she knows, but she's certain of it. "He'll have fun."

Erik looks doubtful and Nate laughs. "Your sister can't go anywhere without her baby," he says with a roll of her eyes.

"Do we have everything for him?" Serena asks, tugging lightly on Nate's hand to get his attention. "Anything he could possibly need?"

Nate wraps an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him, and presses a kiss to her temple. "I promise we do." He smiles at her. "So…we're ready to go."

"Yeah. I guess…" She turns to their friends and shrugs. "We're going."

"Okay," Blair says softly, standing up and pulling Chuck with her. All four of them get tangled up in a group hug; Blair pokes her head out to smile at Erik and open an arm: "Get in here, E."

He slips into the hug between Blair and Serena, and his sister drops a kiss on to of his head. "I'll miss you, baby bro." As they all pull apart, she takes a deep breath and shoots him a warning look, dropping on eyelid in a wink. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

"That is one hell of a short list," he mutters, and everyone else laughs at her expense.

"Okay," Serena sighs as Nate slings both of their bags over his shoulder – they're not taking much since they'll be spend the majority of their time at sea in their bathing suits or nothing at all – and picks up Mr. Fuzzy's carrier. She reaches out and pulls Chuck, then Blair, into one more farewell hug.

"Have a good summer, S. Have fun. Be safe."

"Back atcha," she says into Blair's hair.

Her best friend smiles serenely as they let each other go. "We'll see you in the fall. We love you."

"We love you, too," Nate inputs gently, making them all smile.

Serena glances at him over her shoulder. They've got nothing left to do. They already called his mother to let him know of their plans, packed up everything Mr. Fuzzy could need, and said goodbye to her family. It's late in the day and they want to get out on the water before the sun sets. All that's left to do is leave.

She slips her hand into his as they step into the elevator. She's sad to be saying goodbye to Blair and Chuck for the whole month, but it's really no different than any other summer, and she just can't feel lonely when she's got Nate with her; all she feels is excitement.

[xo]

Once they're on the Charlotte, she takes all the bags and Mr. Fuzzy's carrier from his arms to take down into the cabin. She throws their bags on the floor and settles Mr. Fuzzy in a corner, opening the door of his carrier for a moment to check on him. "You okay?" she asks him, even though it's obvious that he can't reply. He looks pretty content, so she feels okay about leaving him there for a little bit. She opens the fridge and pulls out a beer for Nate and a vodka cooler for herself, popping the caps off before she heads out again.

On deck, Nate's already untied all those knots that she usually struggles with for what seems like hours. She almost actually wants to lick her lips as she walks over to him. He looks amazing, with his sun-streaked blond hair, his tan, and his shiny blue eyes. He's wearing his blue swim trunks and a white polo shirt that only make him look better still, and she notices all of his muscles.

"Hey, you," she says softly.

Nate turns to look at her and grins. She looks insanely good; her tan highlighting her blonde hair and navy blue eyes, and her short shorts and bikini top don't leave much to the imagination. Serena van der Woodsen doesn't have physical flaws, she never has, so he admires every inch of her skin.

"You're such a good sea guy," she compliments him laughingly, holding out a bottle of beer. She knows very little about sailing but she's always been enthusiastic about it, bouncing around and offering her help.

"Thanks," he says as he accepts the beer from her. "You know we match?" he asks her. They're both wearing white and the same shades of blue.

Serena nods. "I planned it that way," she smirks.

He's not sure whether she's kidding or not, but either way, he says, "Well, it's too bad that you put that much effort into it, because…I don't plan on letting you stay in those clothes for very long."

She grins brightly and pulls him close by the collar of his shirt. "Take me now, sailor," she purrs, only half-teasing.

Nate smiles back at her. "Let's get out of here," he says huskily, wrapping his free arm around her waist.

She wraps her free arm around his neck and taps her cooler against his beer. "Welcome to vacation," she says.

He kisses her fiercely and she wraps both arms around him, holding him close. She tastes like her drink, strawberries and liquor, a little bit like freedom, a lot like love, and it's enough to make him ache for her, to want her even closer. In turn, he's got both his arms around her waist, and she can feel the cool glass of his beer bottle pressing against her bare back; it makes her shiver in a good way. He tastes a little bit smoky, like Nate has ever since the first time she kissed him, and she's practically dizzy with want for him.

"If we keep this up we'll never leave New York," he says against her lips.

She laughs and reluctantly lets him go so that he can fiddle with buttons and levers and the wheel while she peers over his shoulder curiously. She likes that he's so knowledgeable about all this ship stuff – it's undeniably sexy, especially when he's trying to explain something to her.

"There," he says with the triumphant twist of a knob, turning back to her as they begin to move. "We're off."

"You and me," she says happily, "One month."

Nate laughs, setting his beer down and tucking Serena's out-of-control hair out of her face. "We're going to have a whole lot longer than one month," he says solemnly, despite his perfect smile.

There's no better way to respond than to kiss him. She presses her lips to his fiercely and opens her mouth against his as she wraps her arms securely around him. His arms are around her with an equal amount of force, pulling her so close that she stands on her tiptoes as one of his hands gets lost in her hair. When they finally break apart, just barely, to breathe, she inhales the sea hair and smiles. The sun is setting, beating down on in shades of deep orange and pinky-lavendar. Her nose brushes sweetly against his and he tightens his grasp on her just the slightest bit.

It's the perfect moment.

And they're going to make that feeling last forever.