第16部分(第6/7 頁)

ightly；　and　saw

Nate　underwater　right　in　front　of　her；　his　green　eyes　wide　open　too。　His　hair　was　standing　straight

up；　and　he　waved　his　hand；　a　liquid　？hello？　escaping　his　lips　with　a　rush　of　bubbles。

She　giggled；　nearly　choking；　and　suddenly　thought　of　the　games　of　Marco　Polo　she　and　Nate　and

Blair　had　played　when　they　were　younger。　Nate　would　always　cheat；　shouting　？Marco！？　and　then

opening　his　eyes　for　a　moment　to　see　where　they　were。　Then　he？d　grab　the　girls　with　huge

splashing　lunges；　pretending　he？d　just　found　them　by　accident。　Nate　never　seemed　to　care　which

girl　he　caught；　he？d　just　grab　whomever　was　in　front　of　him　and　held　on。　Serena　closed　her　eyes；

the　sting　of　the　chlorine　now　too　much　to　bear；　and　shot　up　to　the　surface。

Nate　sidestroked　into　the　shallow　end　and　hopped　up　onto　the　edge　of　the　pool；　letting　his　legs

dangle　in　the　water。　Serena　looked　so　peaceful　floating　on　her　back　in　the　calm　water；　her　blond

hair　forming　a　halo　around　her　head；　an　angelic　smile　on　her　face。Being　with　Serena　was　so　much

less　stressful　than　being　with　Blair。　Immediately　he　thought　of　his　last；　highly　stressful　interaction

with　Blair；　whom　he？d　been　avoiding　since　the　day　before　yesterday；　when　she？d　thrown　her

shoes　at　him。

Blair　had　left　him　hundreds　of　voice　mails；　but　Nate　thought　he　should　wait　to　speak　with　her

until　she？d　had　a　little　more　time　to　cool　off。

Just　not　in　this　particular　pool。

He　knew　that　Blair　was　angry；　but　he　also　knew　that　she？d　eventually　forgive　him；　just　like　she

always　did。　He　could　still　visit　her　at　Yale　on　the　weekends。　And　Serena　would　be　here　with　him　in

New　York。　He？d　always　thought　he？d　have　to　choo