Blair is so confident with Chloe, Whitney thinks, wondering if Blair ever yells. Even Xavier talks to Blair comfortably. Whitney sends him upstairs. Blair’s “pretending” makes Whitney feel foolish, so she asks if they are just going to pretend “it” never happened. Blair is stunned, thinking that Whitney is referring to Aiden, and she thinks that this is precisely what she and Whitney do: protect each other by pretending not to notice upsetting things. Whitney clarifies that she’s talking about her outburst at Xavier. Blair tells Whitney that she shouldn’t let it “consume” her and that people will forget. She asks Whitney about what she told the others about Xavier’s mental health, and Whitney says that Xavier is fine. Blair marvels at how “effortless[ly]” Whitney lies.

Whitney says she has something she needs to tell Blair. Blair senses Whitney’s “pity” and quickly says she needs to go. Whitney eyes her clothing, and Blair throws the clothes away later, feeling judged.

Blair feels terrible that Chloe might be responsible for what happened to Xavier. Blair cannot bring herself to tell Aiden what Chloe told her: “She needs to keep control of this and make it go away” (242). When Blair brings up her concern that Whitney might be responsible for Xavier’s fall, Aiden says that Whitney would just lie to avoid blame.