[UESers & friends - Aftermath thread]

[l0nely_boy]

There was only so long that Dan could avoid the compound. He'd found an empty hut to crash in, sneaking back to the building for a shower and food. Part of him was wondering if he could make a go of hunting and gathering; perhaps just swimming instead on needing the shower

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[l0nely_boy]

There were people in the kitchen, of course. There were always people in the kitchen. Thankfully they weren't any of the people that Dan was avoiding at the moment. Even still, the faster he grabbed some food and got out of here, the better.

He had an apple in his mouth, and three sandwiches piled on a plate when the door opened again, ending his short-lived run of good luck.

[dillon_princess]

Lyla had spent most of Sunday lounging in the rec room, reading magazines. Today she'd had thoughts of heading to the beach for a bit, but hadn't been able to find Blair anywhere. Giving up, she'd thrown on a bikini and a sundress; she'd go alone, it wasn't like she hadn't done it before. Heading to the kitchen, she wanted to grab some fruit and maybe a bottle of juice or something before heading out. And besides, maybe she'd still see someone she knew first.

[im_chuckbass]

Perfect timing, Chuck thought, as he entered the kitchen and saw Lyla standing at the counter. She had her back to him as she sorted through the large bowl of fruit that was always out, and he took the opportunity to slip up behind her and lean back against the counter before she'd noticed he was there. He reached past he to snag an apple from the bowl, and raised his eyebrows with a smirk as she met his eyes. "Fancy meeting you here, Cinderella."

[dillon_princess]

"Cinderella now?" Lyla raised an eyebrow, breaking into a smile she couldn't quite stop at seeing Chuck there. "I didn't know that I had glass slippers or turned into a pumpkin."

[im_chuckbass]

"Ah, but you certainly looked the part the other night." He grinned, eyes flashing with amusement as he bit into his apple. "Though I certainly hope you had a better morning after than she did." And after all, though Chuck would never be a white knight, Prince Charming was considerably easier to fake.

[im_chuckbass]

Sunday had pretty much been a missing day, as far as Chuck was concerned. He'd been at New Pemberley until after dawn, staying until the last of the partygoers had left, then cleaning up and preparing everything to be moved back to the compound later that day. Again, he'd been in a little bit of disbelief as to how much work a party like this really required, but worse yet was the idea of burning their bridges with the best venue on the island. When he'd finally crawled into bed, the sun had been bright in the sky, and he'd passed out for a good eight hours. He'd risen late in the evening only to eat, and then the remnants of a pretty nasty hangover had hit and he'd slept again.

The result of all this was, on Monday morning, a remarkably chipper and well-rested Bass who, fresh from the victory of the party's smash success, made his way to the kitchen for a bite to eat. As he arrived, he noticed that, apparently, he wasn't the only one of his acquaintances who'd had this same idea.

[turnthebadinme]

"Chuck," Serena greeted, admittedly just a bit wary of dealing with him or any of the others. She'd purposely avoided staying in the Compound since the party, preferring Beat's company to putting up with what anyone had to say about the commotion Dan had caused. After a day away, though, she was, if not yet ready to return, at least back at ease. She moved past him to get coffee and offered a smile. "You look like you're in good spirits. Did I miss something?"

[im_chuckbass]

"Just the satisfaction of a job well done," Chuck said as he poured himself a tall glass of juice from the pitcher in the fridge. As far as he was concerned' the party had gone off without a hitch. Humphrey's meltdown had, in the end, been an embarassment only to Humphrey himself. Frankly, at home, a party hadn't been a party if a punch or two wasn't thrown. All things considered, the altercation had given the evening just the air of unpredictability and tension that he'd wanted. Not, of course, that he wouldn't be using it against Dan for months to come, but that was beside the point.

"What about you?" he asked. "I hope you've been basking properly in our success."

[turnthebadinme]

Ordinarily, Serena would have done just that. Part of the fun of throwing a party was hearing how much everyone had enjoyed it and how well they'd done, and any and all fights aside, she knew they'd really pulled off something spectacular this time, if only by island standards. While those were, admittedly, low, there was no denying they'd done well. A fight or two was only to be expected, honestly, she knew that, but when they had something to do with her, she didn't want a thing to do with them.

Besides, she'd had better things to do with the last day, little of which she wanted to share with Chuck. He'd only ask for details. "Something like that," she said instead with a little smirk. "I figure we get at least a week of resting on our laurels before we start planning the next big island bash."