en she sat down at the crowded table a few minutes after the
group had begun。 ？Sorry I？m late。？
？That？s okay；？ Serena replied gaily。 She？d gotten a plimentary trim and highlight job before
the fashion show； and her long blond hair was even shinier and more perfect than it had been
before。 ？We were just talking about Elise？s parental problems。 She thinks her dad might be having
an affair。？
Elise？s thick； straw…colored bangs were pulled back and clipped to the sides of her head with tiny
pink heart barrettes。 There were dark circles under her bright blue eyes； like she？d been up all
night worrying。 ？That sucks；？ Blair said sympathetically。 ？Believe me； Iknow 。？ She decided to
leave it at that。 Peer group might have been a place for sharing； but she wasn？t about to go into the
details of her father？s affairs with other men while he was still married to her mother。
Serena nodded vigorously。 ？I was just telling them how all families are totally fucked up。
Actually； Blair； your family is a perfect example；？ she added cheerfully。
Blair bristled。 ？Thanks a lot；？ she shot back。 ？But I don？t think everyone needs to hear about my
problems right now。？
Jenny bit a cuticle and banged her foot nervously against the leg of her chair。 She？d been fretting
all morning that as soon as peer group started； Elise was going to dive right in and start talking
about same…sex kissing。 Thank God Elise had other things on her mind。
？Anyway； we don？t have to talk about our messed…up families if it？s going bother you；？ Blair
told Elise； trying to be supportive。
Elise nodded unhappily。 ？Actually therewas something else I wanted to talk about。？
Jenny winced。