Serena put down her tea and blew her nose into a paper napkin. She, too, had a terrible cold. ?What??  ?Sex. With Nate.? Serena crumpled up the napkin and stuck it under her tray so they both wouldn't have to look at it. Was this a trick question? Was Blair just waiting for her to say the wrong thing so she could pounce on her with her claws out and rip Serena's head off with her teeth? ?It was really ?? She paused, waiting for Blair's expression to turn ugly, but Blair just sat there looking genuinely interested.She really wants to know, Serena realized. ?It was amazing. We were both kind of scared, but because it was with Nate, it was fun.? She smiled, remembering. ?And we weren't embarrassed about it afterward.? Blair nodded and looked down at the table. That was all well and good, but what about her? How were she and Nate ever going to do it if they weren't?? Over Serena's shoulder Blair could see the girls from their ninth-grade peer group heading toward the table. It was time to change the subject. ?Never mind,? she muttered, grabbing her bag off the floor to get out the materials for peer group. ?Hey, guys, how was your break?? Mary Goldberg, Vicky Reinerson, and Cassie Inwirth asked the two seniors in unison. The three perky freshman girls were all wearing matching black V-neck sweaters. They set their lunch trays on the table and sat down practically on top of one another. ?Ours was totally crazy.? ?Good,? Blair said without much enthusiasm. She gave each of them a handout. ?If you could just read this before we get started.? The girls glanced down at the handout and giggled as if to say,Like we're really going to talk about that? ?So, Serena, did you have to do any modeling over break? I heard you were in a shoot with the Dutch Olympic snowboarding team, like for some lip balm or something?? Mary Goldberg asked. Serena flashed them a wry smile. The shit people made up about her was so insane, she almost wished it were true. ?Yeah, it was awesome!? The other two members of the group, Jenny Humphrey and Elise Wells, came over carrying their lunches in brown paper bags. Instead of the tired cafeteria salad bar or hot lunch of fish sticks with sweet potato fries, they were eating egg rolls from the Chinese restaurant over on Lex, which they'd had delivered right to the school doors. It was always surprising to discover how crafty the two girls could be when?except for Jenny's gigantic chest?they were the picture of innocence and goodness. ?Jenny is depressed,? Elise announced as she sat down. She pulled a piece of shrimp out of her egg roll and popped it into her mouth. ?She needs advice. Bad.? Jenny nudged her friend irritably. ?I'm fine.? She stared at her egg roll, which was soaking, untouched, in a deep bath of sweet-and-sour sauce. After what she'd done to it, it was basically inedible. ?See, Leo turned out to be totally normal instead of a French duke or something,? Elise explained, as if they all knew exactly who Leo was, or even cared. ?And the only reason he knows stuff about fur and dog boots is because he walks Madame T's dog for her, and we all know she wears a ton of fur.? Blair yawned rudely and dumped a packet of Equal into her tea just for something to do. Hopefully Serena would take care of this one. Suddenly, Serena grabbed the empty Equal packet out of Blair's hand and wrote something on it. Then she passed it back. He's still in love with you,Blair read. The ninth-graders looked back and forth between the two seniors. ?What are you guysdoing ?? Mary Goldberg and Vicky Reinerson whined with annoyance at being left out. Blair folded up the packet of Equal and dropped it into her bag. ?So, who here knows how to knit?? Jenny wasn't sure what the hell was going on. ?I do. I learned at arts camp last summer.? Blair blew her nose. ?Doesn't everyone learn to knit up at boarding school?? she sniffed in Serena's direction. Serena shrugged. ?I never learned, but all the models are doing it. It's all they do backstage at the shows.? ?We've always wanted to learn!? Cassie, Mary, and Vicky piped up. ?Knit?? Elise asked, completely lost. Blair zipped up her Coach hobo bag and stood up. ?Come on,? she told them. ?We're going out to buy yarn. And after school, we're all knitting booties at my house.? Across the cafeteria, that shaved-headed senior weirdo, Vanessa Abrams, was filming their meeting, a crazy pink plastic spaceship whirling and blinking on the table in the foreground. Serena stood up and gathered her things. ?You mean socks,? she countered. ?No.Booties ,? Blair corrected with a smile. At least it was something they could do with their hands besides smoking. And after school would be a great time to start, especially with the boys otherwise occupied. The ninth-graders trailed Serena and Blair out the school's great blue doors, thrilled by the idea of being on a field trip led by the two coolest girls in the entire school. After so many cold months, the warmth of the sun was so intense, it was shocking. ?I'm sorry we were fighting,? Serena told Blair as the group of girls ............