AN: This oneshot has been sitting on my computer for a while now, but I was in such a good mood because of the final (CB epicness!!!) that I decided to look it over and post it. It's un-beta'd since I couldn't find anyone to do it, but I did my best... I should warn you though, that comma's aren't my forte;)
Summary: Takes place a week after Jenny's party in 2x20. Chuck rescues a very drunk Blair from a club and brings her back to the VdB residence. CB face their demons... Please R&R. Mild spoilers for eppies 19-20, nothing specific though.
~Hangover~
I can't for the life of me remember how I got this drunk. Tequila maybe? Or red wine? Yes, red wine was definitely involved. Too much red wine in fact.
I cling to the wall trying to spot Serena in the mass of sweating, dancing people.
Nate left already. I don't remember why, and I don't really care why. I don't even feel hurt by the fact that he just left me to fend for me self in all my drunken glory, because I know him. It's not that he isn't a gentleman. He is. He really is. He just knows me well, too. He knows that a drunken Blair Waldorf is about ten times as stubborn as the sober version. He knows that a drunk and moody Blair Waldorf only does what she feels like. And when Nate wanted to leave, I wanted to dance. So I did! and he left me with an "I'll see you tomorrow" and a chaste kiss on my lips, reminding me of old times.
And I did dance. And I drank. And now I am kinda wishing I'd left with Nate because the room seems to be spinning and Serena is nowhere to be seen. I hesitantly step away from the wall I've been leaning on only to realise that said wall was in fact the only thing keeping me on my feet.
But it's too late now, and I stumble into to a sweaty guy who smirks at me and calls me baby. I push away from him trying, in vain, to regain my balance.
But just as the room spins out of control and I feel myself stumbling towards the floor, someone grabs me, pulls me up and, supporting my weight, starts dragging me towards what I'm assuming is the exit. Warning bells go off in my head and I struggle against the persons grasp. "Relax, Waldorf" a familiar and rather amused voice says.
I snap my head towards the source of the throaty voice, but regret it immediately as the abrupt motion makes my stomach turn. I frantically look around for the toilets but before I know it, I'm leaning on the wall, puking my guts out, while Chuck Bass is holding back my hair, his arm around my waist supporting me. I faintly hear someone asking us to step outside, but Chuck tells them to back the hell off… his words not mine. I feel awful. Like extremely, pathetically awful, and I feel tears running down my cheeks as I empty my stomach on the floor.
"How the hell did you end up like this" he almost shouts, trying to drown out the music.
His body is pressed up against mine from behind. I shake my head a little, afraid that if I open my mouth I'll puke again.
"Nate…left… didn't want to… too much…tequila" In my head the words make sense, but as I try to explain my very embarrassing situation to my ex…whatever… they seem to come out in the wrong order.
"Let's get you out of here", he says. I close my eyes, and let him drag me out while I cling to him and burry my head in his shoulder. His smell seems to comfort my upset stomach, and something about being close to him makes me feel better… And I'm way too wasted to remember all the perfectly good reasons why I should not be accepting his help. But I don't care right now, and as I feel the cool night air hit my face I breath a sigh of relief all though I don't let go of him.
"Blair?" his voice is soft, slightly worried, and I realise that this creates a funny feeling in my stomach. A feeling I've been missing lately. I lift my head up, trying not to think about my appearance, but his raised eyebrow and his crooked smile makes me burry my head back in his shirt.
"I look awful" I slur out. He squeezes my shoulder.
"This might not be your finest our, but you don't look awful. You never do" I sniff, the sweetness of his words escaping me.
"I'm ruining your shirt" I mutter and he chuckles.
"I'll buy a new one"
When I wake up, the first thing I notice is my throat. It feels like I swallowed sandpaper or something like it. I'm so thirsty I'd drink a gallon of regular coca-cola without thinking about the calories. The next thing become aware of, is my head. Oh God!! It's pounding. Punding, pounding, pouding. Like there's thirty mini elephant having a techno party inside my skull.
I squeeze my eyes closer together trying to make it go away, but instead I feel a wave of nausea run through me, and before I have time to think, I'm sitting up, my hand covering my mouth while I try to adjust my eyes to the bright lights.
I quickly realise that I'm not in my own room, but I don't have time to try and remember how I ended up in the Van der Woodsen guest room, because I need a bathroom. Like now! I stumble out of bed, my head pounding even worth and I throw myself in front of the toilet just in time. Holding on to the porcelain bowl with both my arms, my eyes still snapped shot, I don't realise that someone is watching me.
It's not until I get up from the floor, and I'm forced to open my eyes so I can flush the toilet that I see him standing, watching me.
"Chuck!" I shriek, shocked, and embarrased to find him standing in the doorway, hands buried in his pockets, smirk in place.
"Waldorf…" he greets me, and I turn to the sink trying to keep from blushing, because I suddenly remember that Nate wasn't the one playing knight in shining armour last night. And the princess wasn't exactly as graceful as she could have been. I wash my hands, my cheeks burning pink with embarrassment, and I turn to face the devil.
"Thank you" I mutter "for… you know…"
"Saving your drunken ass?" he finishes, his smirk growing wider. I try to stare him down, but my embarrassment takes the edge of it.
"Well... yes" I mumble before I walk past him into the bedroom. I try to locate my clothes, but I feel him starring at me.
"What time is it?" I ask him, because I have nothing better to say. My brain cells seem to be focused on battling the elephants occupying my brain.
"It's half past two" he responds, still lounging the bathroom door.
"What?!" I ask incredulously."It can't be! I'm supposed to meet Nate at 12.30"
"Don't worry, I took care of that" Chuck responds, a bitter tone to his voice now that catches me by surprise.
"What was Prince Charming doing last night anyway?" His smirk is gone, and his eyes have turned dark, almost angry.
"I… I didn't want to leave when he did" I tell him, remembering as I speak. "He was tired and I was having such a good time…" I trail off as memories of me and Serena putting on a show on the dance floor come back to me.
"What were you doing there?" I ask, suddenly remembering that Chuck had reclined Nate's invitation to hang out with the three of us, because he had some business to attend to.
"Change of plans" he tells me, and once again I feel like all my brain sells are occupied elsewhere, because I have no clever response. Non what so ever… We stand for a moment, glaring at each other. The ten feet between us an ironic reminder of how our relationship has been lately; not quite friends but not quite enemies. Never close but never too far away.
"Does Serena know I'm here?" I ask, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
"She's still sleeping"
"oh…" Again. Silence.
"Is it always gonna be like this?!" I blurt out, sick of his uncooperative behaviour.
"Like what?" He bites out. "Uncomfortable? I think you made it that way" he pushes himself away from the doorframe and starts toward me like some predator. I hardly even realise that I take a step back, but he does (of course he does, the Basstard always notices everything) and apparently he finds my retreat amusing because he chuckles darkly and stops, still a few feet from me.
"You afraid of me now?" he asks mockingly.
"No!" I answer indignantly and I really, really wish that my brain would just wake the fuck up. I usually don't have a problem keeping up with Chuck, but I'm out of balance and he has the upper hand. He knows it too.
"How did you convince Archibald to play house with you again?" he asks venomously.
"We're not playing house" I tell him as I narrow my eyes. "And it's none of your god damn business, Bass." I can feel my temper rising and the adrenalin helps clear my brain a little. "Thank you for helping me last night. I appreciate it. Now, would you please leave so I can get dressed, I have to go meet my boyfriend." I really don't mean to tease him, honestly, but the last word accidentally escapes my lips on a mocking tone, and I can see it in his eyes instantly. He's furious. But he doesn't show it. Instead he narrows his eyes and steps closer to me. This time I don't move.
"Right" he drawls, his voice dangerously low, "You're boyfriend, who left you drunk at some sleazy bar last night, your boyfriend who's still hung up on his ex, your boyfriend who cheated on you with your best friend" I keep my eyes on his. I won't let him get to me. But he's close too me now. And it's not so much his words that affect me, but the fact that I can smell him. It's making me dizzy. Really dizzy, in fact. Not that it's a bad smell, because it definetly isn't. But still, the intensity of it is getting to me. I close my eyes and turn around, fumbling until I reach the bed. I sit down burying my head in my hands. A moment passes before he breaks the silence.
"You shouldn't drink so much" he says. He hasn't moved, but the anger has left his voice, and I can almost convince myself that there is concern hidden somewhere in the depth of his voice.
"That's none of your business, Chuck" I mutter, afraid to raise my head again. I feel the bed shift as he sits down next to me, feeling slightly disappointed when he leaves space between us.
"Maybe you should get some sleep" he tells me, and I know him well enough to know that he doesn't want to fight with me when I'm not my usual sharp self. He enjoys our verbal combats as much as I do, and in this state I wouldn't even be able to keep up with Nate.
I sigh and raise my head. He's looking at me, a sad look on his face, and I feel tears welling up in my eyes.
"Nathaniel thinks you crashed at Serena's which I guess you kinda did. She just doesn't know about it…." He pauses, and then continues: "I figured it was a bad idea to tell him I helped you home." I look at him strangely.
"Why would you do that?" I ask, confused. "I thought you'd have taken the opportunity to cause some trouble!" I manage to force out a smile.
"Yeah well, the poor guy was actually worried about you so I thought I'd save that piece of information for another time." I can't help but laugh a little at that.
"He probably wouldn't have cared anyway… "I sigh, for the first time since me and Nate got back together admitting to myself that my patched up relationship with him is never going to be the fairytale I once wanted. And I don't really want it to be either. I haven't for a long time. But it is something that's very comfortable, very familiar to me.
What I really want, however, is quite another story. What I want, I can't have. The tears begin to roll down my cheeks.
"You really still care about him?" his voice is so small I almost don't recognise it, and when the words sink in I look at him confused.
"Wha… I… no! I mean yes, I mean…!" I realise that my words must have sounded different to him, that he thinks my tears are connected to Nate's indifference. That I'm crying because of him. I turn my body towards him, for the first time since my life started spiralling out of control letting myself feel the pain again. The walls I've been building are crumbling before I've even managed to make them tall enough.
"That's not why I'm crying" I state, and he looks at me.
Despite my best effort I start sobbing, trying to find the right words to say.
"Nate and I… I thought… I don't know, I guess… I just wanted something… something easy. And I wanted my life back. Before everything got so… so complicated." I take a deep breath, trying to calm my voice before I continue. "Nate used to be apart of me back then, and I just figured if I could get him back everything would be good again." I'm staring at my hands, still sobbing, but at the same time feeling an odd sort of release.
"Did I make you do it?" He's serious now, looking straight at me and I return his gaze.
"Yes..." I tell him, deciding to be hoenst. "...and no" I sniff and finally manage to stop the tears. "You were a part of it, I guess. "Loosing Yale, my Dad being disappointed in me, my mom being too busy with Cyrus…loosing you" I know he's looking at me, but I'm afraid to return his gaze.
"I'm sorry" he says.
"Yeah, I've heard that before" I say, the bitterness of the lack of another three words, eight letters, weighing down on me again.
"Blair…" he says, almost begging, and I look at him then. He moves closer and I can feel the heat from his body.
"What?" I snap, trying not to let myself get carried away. I might have admitted that my relationship with Nate is a scam, but that doesn't mean I've forgiven him. I still can't help being defensive around him. He has hurt me one too many times, and I'm not sure I'm ready to forgive him yet. He's looking at me with this strange look on his face and suddenly I'm absolutely terrified of what he's going to say. Or maybe how I'm going to react. So before he can open he's mouth I beat him to it.
"Where's Vanessa?" I ask, knowing it will piss him off. I feel safer when we're fighting for some reason.
"What about her?" he asks, as predicted sounding pissed off, but also slightly hurt.
"I thought you and her were like and item now" I continue, trying to sound like I'm mocking him, but not quite succeeding. He looks at me incredulously, and then he narrows his eyes.
"What's it to you?" he leers, "jealous?" he asks raising an eyebrow.
"I am not!" I retort, too quickly for it to sound convincing. The truth is I've been trying to figure out what's been going on between them since Jenny's party last week. In fact, it might have been part of the reason why I felt like downing a bottle of red wine all by my lonesome yesterday. He's smirking at me now and I stand up, my cheeks blushing and anger pumping through my veins. It doesn't make sense. They don't make sense to me. And I'm supposed to know him better than anyone. He's not supposed to get it on with trashy Brooklinites.
"Green suits you Waldorf" he says, as he gets up from the bed.
"I am not jealous, Bass, in fact I don't give a damn about you and that… that…"
"I haven't seen her since the party" he interrupts me, and I let out an involuntary, and, might I add, not very ladylike grunt.
"Why should I believe you?" I ask.
"Look…" he begins, but I interrupt him this time.
"No, you look! I actually don't want to know about the two of you! You can go do whatever the hell you want to. We're not together. I can't tell you who to be with. But seriously Chuck! Nate's ex? Humphrey's best friend? From Brooklyn? Excuse me for being just a little bit curious about what made you stoop so fucking low!" I end my rant almost yelling at him, and I can tell I'm not the only one who's pissed.
"You wanna know why I stooped so low? What about you , Blair? Huh? Going back to your ex? But you wanna know what made me fuck Vanessa? I'll tell you" I flinch at his words. He's so close to me now that I can smell him again. "You" he whispers, his breath caressing my cheek. "Seeing you pining for Archibald again made me crazy." He takes a firm grip on my upper arms shaking me slightly. I gulp and close my eyes because that smell reminds of what it's like when he kisses me. He continues, as I try to concentrate on his words, not his lips.
"Seeing you all over my best friend… What was I supposed to do? Watch you? Vanessa just happened to be there…"
"So you just fucked her because you could?" I snap out of my trance, the furry taking over again. "because you're Chuck Bass and you can get whoever the hell you want?" I shake off his hands and back away. "You mean to tell me it had nothing to do with the two of you wanting revenge?" It's my own theory, which has been my only comfort this past week. And the only way the craziness of Chuck and Vanessa together could ever make sense to me.
"Is that what you did, Blair?" he asks, his voice calmer now. "Did you go after Nate just to get back at me for hurting you?" I stare at him for a moment.
"What if I did?" I ask. "Would it make it better?" He shrugs.
"Would it make you feel better if I told you that I was with Vanessa partly because I knew it would hurt you… and Nate?" I sigh.
"Maybe. Maybe not." We stand in silence once more.
"How the hell did we get so screwed up?" I ask. I don't mean to be funny, but he chuckles anyway.
"It's what we do…"
"Well I'm sick of it!" I exclaim. The tears are coming back now. I walk over to the bed again, letting my self fall down on it. I turn on my back and close my eyes trying to keep the nausea at bay. I'm surprised when I feel the bed shift as Chuck lays down next to me. He turns his head and it's just a few inches from my face. He's looking at me with that strange look in his eyes again, but this time I force myself not to panic.
He inches closer to me until our noses are almost touching and I keep my eyes locked on his.
"I love you, Blair" he whispers.
I stare at him, trying to comprehend what he just said, but my brain is still too slow.
"Blair?" he asks, looking mildly confused.
"Did…did you here me?" And finally the fogs clears, the elephants evaporate and I feel an instant wave of pure joy wash over me. Before I can think it through, I've closed the distance between us, and as soon as our lips touch I feel the familiar electric current that his touch always causes. His lips are soft against mine and his smell consumes me. It's slow and sensual at first, but soon my lips are parting and as I feel his tongue against mine, I can't help but moan as I lean into him. I can feel him smiling against me and I pull away, slightly panting.
"Say it again" I demand, my words intense. I lean my forehead against his.
"I love you" he breathes against me, and I have to stop myself from squealing out loud. I crash my mouth to his again, and he flips us over so I'm on top of him. But the sudden movement is more than my still recovering brain can take, though, and I have to burry my head in his shirt to stop the room from spinning. He chuckles again, and wraps his arms around me, holding me close to his body.
"Maybe we should save the makeup sex for another time, when you're less hungover" he suggests, brushing a curl away from my face with a smile. I nod, snuggling closer. I raise my head slightly so I can whisper into his ear.
"In case you were wondering, Bass, I love you too"
~FIN~