Beauty and the Beast
Author's Note: Last night's episode was so intense that I was really disappointed the way it ended. I kept wondering how it could have gone differently so I started writing and this is what I wrote. If you couldn't tell I'm a diehard Chair fan who will never lose faith in them as endgame, no matter what roadblocks they may face along the way.
I couldn't help thinking that if Chuck hadn't attacked Blair the way he did he might have had a chance with her. After all, she wasn't wearing the engagement ring from Louis when she went to his apartment. And I hate how people are saying he was going to rape her, he wasn't. He got a bit rough with her but when she said stop he did and he punched the glass above her, not her. And the look on his face when he realized what he did was heartbreaking.
So, the following is how I wish the episode ended, or rather not ended. I want to say that I do not condone the violence that we saw on the show in any context and in my story there will be none of that. And please remember, this is me rewriting the end of 4x20 so forget how the episode ended as you read this.
I hope you enjoy and I look forward to reading your reviews =)
Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl, or Ed Westwick – sigh.
May 5, 2011
Blair didn't know why she was on her way to see Chuck but she was. When he asked her at the party to tell him where her heart truly was, she couldn't answer. As much as she wanted it to be with Louis it wasn't, it never would be. No matter how much she fought it, her heart would always lie with Chuck Bass, it always did.
She was so desperate to put him in her past that she made a fool of herself with the way she acted with Louis. He was such a good man and she would be lucky to marry him, but she wasn't in love with him. Not the way she felt for Chuck, that all-consuming passion that never died.
What Serena said to her about her prince and his empire always being in Manhattan struck a chord with Blair and she didn't want to admit that her best friend was right. Chuck was her other half and always would be but that didn't mean she was ready to be with him again. The thought of Serena defending Chuck over her hurt so she desperately insisted that he brought her nothing but misery and that it was Louis who finally made her happy.
Once in the solitude of her bedroom, Blair allowed herself to think about the two men who were fighting for her affection. One was the prince she left behind in Paris and the other was the man she ran to. Louis was the person who filled all of her criteria perfectly but no matter how she tried to force it, he would never live up to how Chuck made her feel. On the other hand, Chuck did bring her nothing but misery as of late. But he was different, she knew all about his dark side and loved him in spite of it. She told him after his father's funeral that she would always stand by him and her heart was telling her that he needed that support more than ever now.
She was broken out of her thoughts when she heard a knock on the door. Blair expected it to be Chuck but it was Louis. He told her that he didn't care what his family thought as he dropped to one knee and proposed. She was desperate to say yes, but she couldn't. He could see that he wasn't the one she wanted and as much as it hurt him to, he told her to follow her heart. Blair told him that her heart was with him but even she didn't believe it.
The prince told her that he wouldn't bring any more humiliation to her by having people know the real reason why they didn't get engaged. Louis said he would have his handlers let word get out that the family pressure was too much and he retreated back to the safety of Monte Carlo to ride out the scandal. With a kiss to her hand and a sad smile on his face, Louis Grimaldi gracefully exited Blair Waldorf's life.
XOXO
Chuck sat in the dark with yet another glass of scotch, feeling sorry for himself. He was certain that Blair still loved him and would come back to him as soon as he asked her to. But he was wrong, she would rather be with some prince that she didn't love than him.
He hated himself for always destroying his chances with Blair but was resigned to live a life of misery. What right did he have to be happy? Chuck Bass wasn't a good person, he was selfish and he was destined to fail from the time he was born. His mother was a lying whore and his father was a self-serving bastard who as it turned out was also a cold-blooded murderer.
"What's wrong with you, man?" Nate asked when he walked into the apartment to see Chuck in the corner, drinking again. "Haven't you put Blair through enough?"
"Leave me alone," Chuck slurred as Nate made his way towards him. "Don't you have a date with Raina to get to so you can stab me in the back even more?"
"You're drunk," Nate stated, "So I'll let that go. And as much as I like Raina, you've been my best friend for years. I'm on your side here. But get your act together and start acting like the decent person we know you can be, when you're not smashed."
Chuck snorted as his friend just took in the disheveled condition of him and went to the bar to empty each decanter of liqueur one by one.
"Hey," Chuck barked as he tried to stand up but couldn't, "Do you have any idea how much those cost?"
"Yeah, I do," Nate said as he continued until the bar was dry. "And you'll thank when you're sober."
Nate left him with the half-filled glass in his hand before closing the door to his room, leaving Chuck alone in the darkness once more.
XOXO
As Blair stepped off the elevator and into Chuck's apartment, she was still questioning her motives. She knew he would be drunk and not in his right state of mind but that didn't stop her from having to see him.
She looked around the darkened living room when he spoke from behind her, "You came."
"You humiliated me tonight, Chuck," Blair said as he remained on the bench with the glass of scotch in his hand. "How could you?"
"How could I?" he asked as he stood up only to sway and fall right back down. "How could you think of marrying someone other than me?"
"When are you going to think about me for once?" she asked. "Did it ever cross your mind how your actions would affect me? Do you even care?"
"Of course I care. The only thing that's ever been real is you and me," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "And you know that. That's why you came back to me."
"I didn't come back to you," she told him. "I only came here to make sure you hadn't died from alcohol poisoning."
"Did you sleep with the prince?" Chuck asked venomously as he made his way to her, getting so close to her that she could smell the alcohol radiating off him.
"Yes, I did," she told him as she maintained eye contact with him.
"Then get out," he said in a dangerously low voice.
"No," she said as she stood her ground. She came to see him for a reason and she wasn't leaving until she did what she came for.
"Get out," he screamed as he threw his glass against the wall, shattering it into little pieces that fell to the floor.
"How dare you judge me for making love with Louis," Blair yelled back. "After everyone you've fucked you have no right."
"Blair," he said softly as her words hit him where it hurt, even under all the booze.
"No," Blair told him with fire in her eyes. "You fucked Gothic Barbie and then you disappeared. I spent that whole summer worrying about you, hoping you were okay. And what happened when I found you? You were playing house with some hooker that you then brought back to my city to torment me with. Even when you told me we were meant to be you still didn't wait."
"Blair," he said again wanting to say anything to calm her down, to calm him down.
"I'm not done yet," she told him heatedly. "After enjoying your sex games in the rainforest you began fucking Raina Thorpe in an effort to save Bass Industries. How did that go for you, Chuck? Are you happy? Do you think you've finally made Bart proud of you?"
"Bart's not who I thought he was," Chuck said as he reached for her. "He's more of a cold-hearted bastard than I knew."
"Like father like son," Blair stated as she pulled away from him.
She knew that was low but she went there anyway. The hurt shone in his eyes as she continued her verbal assault on him.
"Louis asked me to marry him," she told him.
"I don't see a ring on your finger," he said.
"That's because I couldn't say yes," Blair revealed as she kept her face impassive. "I'm a free woman, Bass."
A smile crept onto his face as he took the ring box out of his pocket and reached for her. He was about to kneel when she stopped him with a hand on his chest.
"This," Blair said as she took the open ring box from him and put it on the bar, "Is not helping you. This ring has too many bad memories attached to it. I'll never say yes to it, or you in this state."
"Come back to me," he pleaded as he tried to kiss her only to have her pull back once more.
"Not like this, Chuck, not now," she said. "I've spent too much time trying to forget about you that I forgot about me too. I've made a fool of myself and I need to be on my own and focus on becoming the powerful woman I always wanted to be. If you want me, you'll wait for me this time. You won't sabotage me or make any underhanded deals on my behalf."
"No revolving door of one-night stands, no more liquid diets," she continued. "If you want me, you need to show me you've changed. Don't become your father, Chuck. You're so much better than that."
Blair turned on her heels and was back in the elevator before he could react.
Chuck was left standing there against the bar for support, mulling over what Blair just said to him. Could she really take him back after everything he put her through? Would he be able to get his act together so that he was worthy of her? Even with his entire system full of alcohol he knew that this was his last chance to win Blair back.
"What are you waiting for, buddy?" Nate asked Chuck as he came out of his room. "Fight for her."
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