This is just something that bugged me about the latest ep, and my muse sort of ran with it and it snowballed slightly lol
Hope you enjoy…
Title: Let It All Change
Disclaimer: I still own nothing. It's still a crying shame.
Title is from the Lighthouse Family song of the same name.
Summary: It's not a family photo if your son's not in it. Post 4x18.
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"Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother."
Oprah Winfrey
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"Charles," she greets him, as soon as the line connects, a lift in her tone as if it matches the bounce in her step. Her feet are firmly on the ground right now.
"Lily," he acknowledges, and the pause he allows before he says her name tells her she is not what he expected. Then again, she never has been.
"Are you busy right now?" she asks, already calling patience into line while he readies his answer. It's unnecessary, as she doesn't have to wait long.
"For you, not at all," he says, his words delivered in as timely a fashion as ever.
She smiles; she should've expected that.
"Good," she replies, pleased. It shows across her features, her voice. "Then I wonder if I could trouble you to come over to the penthouse."
"Lily," he starts, his concern for her evident even as he dons his business tenor. "About the proceedings – "
She dips her head, and slowly exhales with silent laughter. Of course, Charles would already know; there's rarely anything that gets by him. So very like his father and the lessons he instilled: knowledge is power and time is money.
This is what contingency plans are for; this is when they're put into play. They're important factors in any business, especially the business of family.
"We'll deal with that later," she informs him gently, but firmly. Time will be made available for such talks, there is no way around that, but while such moments are still her own, Lily will do with them as she wishes. "Right now, I'd really just like it if you allowed me the pleasure of your company."
"Of course," he accepts easily. "I'm already on my way."
"Oh, and Charles," she says, before he hangs up. "Bring the proofs from your photo-shoot today. I want to see the image people are going to get of the Bass family."
Her tone is light, but the heaviness in his weighs on her own tongue.
His message is but a murmur, yet it prickles in her ear long after the dial tone has become background noise.
If it were anyone else, she might wonder how something so empty could hold so much substance, but this is Charles and every word he carves out has purpose, and she listens to every one.
"What family?" is his hollow response, before the line goes dead.
Her feet couldn't have been as tightly held to the floor as she first thought, or the gravity he provided wouldn't have brought her to her knees.
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She greets him with an embrace, and he folds easily in her arms as he always does.
"Van der Woodsens. Humphreys."
He merely inclines his head in turn to the two sections that make up the group congregated on the other side of the living room.
William calls over to her and she gives Charles an apologetic smile, touching his arm in that unconsciously affectionate way she's prone to adopting whenever he's near.
"Excuse me a moment," she says, and he nods and says nothing in that strange display of tolerance he only employs for a specific few.
Lily steps away from the cluster her family has formed that is yet to open itself up to include Charles, and tries not to dwell on the frown on her husband's face or the way her ex-husband's mouth is set in a thin line.
"What's he doing here?" William questions, looking across to where Charles is currently standing by the sofa, casually perusing the scattering of photos that cover the table next to him. Photos that do not include him.
She frowns at the man opposite her; they might have been getting on well for the moment, but the manner in which her ex-husband refers to Charles, the derisive tone in which her ex-husband implies that Charles has no place in her home at a time like this; it is by no means going to endear her to his side.
"Charles is here because I asked him to come," she tells him, succinct; there is no need for anything further.
He seems to take note of all the photography equipment still in the room then, as he asks her, "You're having your picture taken with him?"
His head is tilted to the side as he lifts an eyebrow in question and watches her for her response; she doesn't appreciate being put under scrutiny over this.
She put her hands on his hips, staring him down.
"No, William, we all are," she informs him, resolute.
He releases a chuckle.
"Family photo," her ex-husband retorts, the pads of his fingers pressed to his mouth to stem the rise of the sardonic smile that's stretching it at the corners.
Lily narrows her eyes at him; absently realizing she'd have much preferred his blatant betrayal at the original photo-shoot than his attempt at downplaying any role Charles plays in their lives. He has no right to pass judgment.
"That's right, a family photo," she repeats his words right back to him, speaks slowly so there's no room for error, no way he can mishear what she's telling him, "A family, which Charles is a part of."
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"Is that them?" she asks, although she knows he would be holding nothing else in his hand, but what she asked of him.
He turns when she addresses him, and wordlessly hands the sheets of images over to her.
Lily lifts her glasses and squints a touch even as they're in position, taking in his stance, his expression, his overall demeanor.
"Charles," she says then, looking up at him, with something akin to horror in her tone. Mild though it may be, it is present all the same, and it is enough to put her point across swiftly and surely. "You look so lonely."
He clenches his jaw, lips pursed; but he doesn't comment on the space next to him that the brunette who holds his heart is expected to fill.
Instead he simply tells her, "It can be a lonely place at the top."
His lips twist with the words, and he blinks slowly; enough to hide the shimmer in his eyes, cover the depths that they can reach.
"Well, luckily it doesn't always have to be that way," she informs him, her tone lifting as her mood does, and she hooks her arm through his and turns so she can get the attention of Laurie's assistant as she stands guard over all the equipment. "We're going to take a new set of photos, and this time I'm going to be in them with you."
"Really, Lily, I can represent the Bass name on my own," he contests.
"I have no doubt," she replies easily; that is not what she is worried about. "Unless you think my presence would be more of a hinder than a help."
"You know you have my full support," he responds to that, putting stop to even the consideration that such thoughts exist where they're concerned.
"It's settled then," she tells him, clapping her hands together in conclusion, and a little glee. "We'll redo the family shots after."
"You're a Humphrey now," Charles gently reminds her, as if she's really forgotten.
"But I was a Bass first," Lily returns easily, with a smile to match; how else would she have ever come to love him as she does?
"What about being a van der Woodsen?" he asks then.
"Well," she says, looking across to a certain pair wrapped up in their own chatter, seemingly oblivious to everyone else. "That's what Serena and Eric are for."
She winks at him, like it's a secret only they share; even though mere hours ago, the two would've been captured on print with only their father and his name to identify their place in society.
His head drops to his chest as he nods at her words, what she has planned, and he stares down at the various images displayed across the counter.
He works his jaw, finger tapping the edge of one of the prints, and comments, "I don't care how poor a man is; if he has a family, he's rich."
"Charles?" she inquires, not quite sure if she'd heard him right, her eyebrows raised in question.
"Nothing," is his effortless response, as he lifts his head back up to meet her eyes.
Lily is the one to nod this time, giving him a reassuring smile as she beckons Laurie's assistant over and starts to tell her of her plans and what she has in mind for the new shots.
"Just never imagined I'd find myself quoting M*A*S*H," he murmurs, his finger lightly tapping his mouth as it twists upwards.
She takes her place by his side while everything is being set up, and take the opportunity to try and right another wrong of her own doing that unfairly cast him out.
"I never should've asked you not to come to brunch, Charles," she says then, apologetically. "That was wrong of me."
"Really, Lily, it's fine," he returns; and if it were anyone else he was talking to she'd be worried at how appeasing he is being. Actually, she is still a little worried; call it a mother's prerogative. "I understand you not wanting to complicate matters with your family by having me there."
"That's just it, Charles," she tells him, and hopes he'll see her smile for what it is: genuine gratitude that she has him in her life. "You're part of this family too."
She hopes the camera captures this moment; perfection is a fleeting concept.
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"More photos, Lil?" Carol's amused tone travels across the space easily as the pair of them look through these new photos; there's no doubt that they portray him in a much better light.
They both lift their heads at the elder's words.
"For the Modern Royalty piece," she replies; and she's not exactly smug, so much as proud. "I've graciously been allowed to help represent the Bass family."
"Ah, fourth husband, right?" Carol responds, as entertained as ever, even by this; she gestures to Lily's current husband as she adds, "Few more billions in the bank than Rufus over there."
"Indeed," the presence by her side takes it upon himself to confirm; the pleasure he takes from the monetary advantage alone clearly evident in his tone.
"Carol," Lily addresses, waiting until she has her sister's full attention before closing, "I don't believe you've met my son Charles before."
"Chuck Bass," he introduces himself, as cordial as his UES manners allow, holding out his hand for the elder to shake.
"You're not the one she gave away then?" Carol asks, forever amused and grinning at what she terms a joke even though she knows the heartache is still present.
Lily throws her head to the side with an exasperated sigh and when she turns back to the pair, his gaze is fixed on her; and she wonders how she could've denied him for even a second when all he knows is to look for her.
"No," he responds, his words colored with something more potent than humor, all deep eyes and curved lips; the love he feels for her plain to see. "I'm the one she couldn't bare to part with."
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"Really, Lily, you've done enough already," he tells her; and she knows he genuinely believes that. Silly boy.
"Charles," she addresses. "Earlier I said I wanted my family photo to capture the moment."
He swallows, doesn't say anything; allows her the time to say her piece.
"Rufus should've known better when he gathered us together," she comments with a smile, because whatever ill feelings might still be harbored by certain individuals, she has to believe it wasn't an intentional move on her husband's part not to involve Charles. "As should I."
"Lily," he says, attempting to dissuade her once more, and it's still as touching as ever when he tries to look out for her; except she's the adult, and it's her responsibility to look out for him.
"I think it's about time we stop trying to separate everyone so much, wouldn't you agree?" she says sagely; words long overdue.
She turns then, so her words are directed to the rest of them as well, because that's where their problems all stem from; this idea that they can function without one another. They can't, so what she has to say, it applies to them all.
"This family is bonded in different ways from most, something we need to start acknowledging for what it really is," she tells them all, and then looks to each in turn, a wry smile crossing her lips as she brings an end to any thoughts of her intentions, "It is a blessing, not a curse."
"Some might beg to differ," is the notable murmur from next to her, and she looks over to find the dip of his head partially obscuring the smile that crosses his lips.
It only makes her more insistent on a change.
"We're all family here," she says, finally doing what she should've done long ago. "It's time we started acting like it."
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"Here, Chuck," she hears Serena call out to him. "You can stand by Eric and me."
She'd taken his hand sometime in between telling them all they needed to shape up and learn to be there for one another, and he hasn't let go of it.
Lily gives his hand a small squeeze, and watches as his lips tweak up at the edges; amused by her representation of the encouraging mother. He can recognize that she's trying, as he is, which is why she knows that when he lifts his head and meets her eyes, he makes himself smile just for her.
He inclines his head to her, mouth still curved low on his cheeks as he dips to drop a kiss to the back of her hand, before moving towards the sofa where the rest of their family wait for the two of them to join them.
He winks at Serena as she replies, "No place I'd rather be, S."
"Don't stand too close behind me, Charles," her mother instructs then, with a wave of the hand over her shoulder as she repositions herself just so, once again seated between both ex and current husbands. "I don't want you blocking my shot."
"Of course not, Grandma," is his smooth reply, scathing undertones reminding them exactly whom they're talking to. "I wouldn't dream of detracting the camera's focus from your hair."
Serena rolls her eyes at him, ignoring the titter of giggling that runs across the group like Chinese whispers, and nudges Eric to create a space between them for Charles to fill.
"Come on," Serena cajoles, brimming with delight. "Now we'll be in order of height, so it'll look better this way."
"Between the giant and the midget," Charles remarks as he looks between the two. "Gee thanks, sis. How considerate of you."
He's smirking as he delivers the words, and even Eric cracks a smile; and it's a sight she's so familiar with, but it's been so long since she's played witness to it. It makes her ever more grateful she has this moment with them.
"For the last time, I do not walk like I'm on stilts, Chuck!" Serena cries out in protest, smacking him on the arm.
There's a rumble of laughter that runs through them all at that, and when Lily turns to see her children standing next to one another, she smiles brighter than she has in any of the previous photos as she sees them caught up in their laughter and sibling antics.
There's a smirk on his face, his eyes sparkling with mirth; his arm round Serena as she pulls him in close, beaming at the camera despite herself; flanked by Eric on his other side, laughter lines marking their place on his young cheeks.
It lifts Lily's heart to see even a glimmer of joy sparked in Charles and know that she's played even a minor role in its occurrence.
It's to be expected, of course.
She's his mother.
All she'll ever want is for her son to be happy.
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"There is an instinct in a woman to love most her own child - and an instinct to make any child who needs her love, her own."
Robert Brault
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The End.
Hope you liked it :)
Thank you for reading, and please let me know what you think.
Steph
xxx