第19部分(第4/7 頁)

partment。　It　was　hard

to　stomp　in　angrily　after　climbing　all　those　stairs？and　in　rubber　flip…flops；　no　less？but　Serena　did

her　best；　stomping　on　the　wood　floor；　dropping　her　oversize　white　leather　Jil　Sander　duffel　without

a　thought　for　the　iPod　Nano　and　glass　Dolce　&　Gabbana　sunglasses　inside。

？You　home；　roomie？？　Blair　called　from　inside　the　apartment？s　one　bedroom；　which　they？d

decided　to　share。　They　were　basically　sisters　anyway。

They　certainly　fought　like　they　were。

？Yeah；？　Serena　called　back。　She　grabbed　a　Corona　from　the　fridge　and　perched　on　the

windowsill　overlooking　the　back　of　the　town　house；　her　feet　dangling　out　of　the　window　over　the

fire　escape。

？How　was　work？？　Blair　strolled　into　the　kitchen　wrapped　up　in　a　massive　white　Frette　towel

she？d　swiped　from　her　mom？s　well…stocked　linen　closet。　She　pulled　a　pack　of　Merits　from

Serena？s　abandoned　purse　and　used　the　gas　stove　to　light　one。

？Work　was　work。？　Serena　stared　glumly　down　through　the　slats　of　the　fire　escape　at　the　slate

backyard　below。　She　sighed。　？Honestly；　Blair；　it　kind　of　sucks。？

？What　do　you　mean？？　Blair？s　workday　had　consisted　of　running　fabric　samples　from　the　tailor

on　Thirty…ninth　Street　to　Bailey　Winter？s　home；　where　he　was　enjoying　a　？tea？　party　and　private

fitting　with　a　Saudi　princess。

Blair　pushed　open　the　window　next　to　Serena？s　and　leaned　outside。　She　exhaled　a　plume　of

smoke　into　the　wind　and　glanced　over　at　Serena。　The　breeze　blew　her　blond　hair　gently　as　she

swung　her　bare　feet　and　frowned。

？I　don？t　know；？　Serena　sighed；　chugging　her　beer。　It　had　been　one　of　her　worst　rehearsal　days　to

date。　She？d　overheard　some　of　the　crew　members　c