He laced their hands together as they stepped out of the club. Chuck couldn't help but smile back at Blair. They had both finally given in, and while neither of them had said anything to the other in the form of the three little words, the two could no longer resist the attraction between them. Pulling her close, he snaked his arms around her waist and pressed his lips softly against hers and when he pulled away, he jerked his head back towards the limo just across the street. A sly grin spread across the brunette's face. Sharing another kiss they started for the car, but Blair stopped him for a moment and pulled him to her lips again. Neither of them noticed the headlights of the car as the engine roared to life and the glass pedal was floored. They broke apart when they heard the tires squeal. Chuck was the only one with any instinct as to what was about to happen; he shoved Blair away from him, causing her to hit the ground, rolling away, just as the car connected with his body. Over the hood, top, and trunk he rolled until he was slammed onto the hard pavement. Slowly, looking up from where she had landed, Blair ignored the grim that was coating several parts of her body now, including her designer dress. Her cheek and hands were scraped up from hitting the street, but that was the last thing she was concerned about as she moved quickly towards his body. A small cry fell from her lips as she saw the blood pooling beneath his head. Crouching beside him, Blair shook his shoulder, calling out his name trying to get him to stir, but there was no response. At one point her voice broke with tears, and she looked up through glassy eyes and called out for help, yet no one came.

They were lying on Blair's bed, it was about three in the morning, and they were just laying there. Chuck's eyes were fixated on her fingers as his hands played gently with them.

"Are you having fun," she asked, stifling a yawn and kinking a perfectly sculpted eyebrow.

He wasn't really paying attention and he merely looked up with a "huh" before returning to fidgeting with her fingers.

"Chuck," Blair said, slightly frustrated, "this is the fourth night in a row you've come over and just laid here. Why?"

Chuck shrugged, "I guess it's just better being here than being at home."

"There are a hundred other places you could be, but you keep coming here…and I want to know why."

His hands had stopped moving, but they didn't pull away. It looked as if he was contemplating what he was going to say, or if he was even going to say anything at all. But instead of explaining, he sighed and got up from the bed, "I should go," was all he said.

"Chuck," Blair pressed, slightly pleading as she sat up to watch him throw his coat back on.

"Maybe I missed you all right Blair! There I told! I'll see you at Hazel's party at the club tonight."

And with that, he was gone, leaving. Blair was left staring at the spot where he had just been standing.

His voice was hoarse from continuously shouting her name. But she wasn't answering him. Chuck watched the brunette move from where she had landed, towards him, and he had a fleeting hope that she had heard him, but as he stared at her dampening cheeks he realized she was moving towards something on the ground. Following her eyes he stared confused at the unconscious body that Blair was now weeping over. It looked exactly like him, but he was standing right here…wasn't he?

"What the hell is going on," he yelled.

"You're dying," answered a calm female voice beside him.

Quickly turning his head to look at her, his eyes widened as he stared at the all too familiar face of someone whom he had always seen in pictures.

"Mom," he breathed quietly, watching the woman whose eyes he had inherited nod towards him, "but you're dead."

Again Misty nodded, and Chuck suddenly felt dizzy. Her hand touched his shoulder lightly to keep him from falling, but he flinched at the unfamiliar touch and he pulled away quickly.

"What the hell is going on," he demanded.

"Like I told you sweetie, you're dying. You're in a coma until you decide if you're ready to move on, or go back."

"Go back. That's my choice, I want to go back. Right now," Chuck answered quickly.

Misty held up her hands with a soft smile, "you can decide in time, but first there are a few things you need to see."

Blair paced back and forth in the waiting room. Her fingers laced and unlaced as Serena watched her. Nate was leaning back against the wall. They had seen Chuck come out of ER but the doctors weren't permitted to tell them anything about him or let them in until Bart had been spoken to.

"This is torture," Blair groaned.

"My mom said Bart was on his way, just sit down Blair," Serena said with a sigh.

Blair sat, but then she stood, and then she sat back don, and once more stood. It continued like this until Chuck's father made his appearance, saw his son, and then informed the kids that only one of them could see him since it was after visiting hours. Both Nate and Serena waited as Blair walked into the room.

Sucking in a sharp breath, the brunette felt her bottom lip begin to tremble, and she quickly covered her mouth to keep the sob from escaping. It only looked like he was sleeping, and with the constantly beeping IV connected to him, Blair couldn't help but let a few tears fall. She couldn't believe that her strong, confident, handsome Chuck Bass was the same bruised, battered, and weak boy lying on this bed. But the moment she reached her hand out for his and felt his warm flesh beneath her fingers, a gurgled cry fell past her lips and she collapsed in sobs over his chest. Why would he…how could he do this to her? She had gotten him, truly gotten him, and she could tell, as she looked at his sleeping form through blurry eyes, Blair was on the verge of losing what she cared most about.

Chuck watched Blair cling to his body, weeping; he felt his own eyes burn with tears as she traced the outline of his lips. He closed his eyes trying to feel her hand, but there was nothing. Turning angrily, he glared at his mother, "why are you showing me this?"

She didn't reply, and just nodded towards the scene, watching her only son look back. A soft knock sounded against the door, and Nate stepped through. He touched the small of Blair's back lightly, Chuck's fist curling into a ball, as she turned to look at him.

"You should go home, get some sleep Blair. You look exhausted."

She shook her head and tightened the grip she had on Chuck's hand, "no, I'm not leaving him alone all night."

"Blair," Nate started to protest, but after receiving a sharp glare from her he sighed, "all right. Well, Serena and I are going to head out. We'll stop by in the morning."

Nate reached up and brushed a few tears dangling from her eyelashes.

"He's going to be all right," he whispered as he pulled the brunette into a comforting hug.

Chuck's other fist curled into a ball as he watched his best friend comfort the girl he was in love with…something he couldn't do.

The sudden touch of his mother caused him to flinch, and the scenery surrounding him changed quickly. They were standing in a sunny playground, Chuck's gaze directed at a younger Bart Bass, a little boy clinging to his leg.

"Charles," the man said, prying away the vice grip his son had on him, "if is your first day and I need to get back to work."

At the mention of work, the little boy slowly pulled away from his father, knowing that work was far more important to the man than what happened on his only son's first day of school. It wasn't long before Chuck was standing alone, staring at the children that had already bonded and were laughing gleefully as they chased each other through the grass, or played in the sandbox. He knew he was the strange boy that nobody had the guts to talk to. He was the one that had been brought in late and had hopelessly clung to his father. He was slightly paler than the other children, his hair was too messy and he was smaller than the other boys. Especially the glorious Nate Archibald they all seemed to circle around.

The first day of kindergarten was never more than the kids just playing and getting to know each other for the whole day, but for Chuck, it was hours alone spent outside in the bright sun under the gaze of several kids as opposed to being alone at home, curled up on the couch with his favorite stuffed animal. At lunch time, the teacher gave him the lunch his nanny had packed for him, and while the other kids sat in groups at the lunch tables or on the grass, he retreated to a far corner of the playground and picked at his food beneath the shade of an oak tree. He always ate the chocolate pudding first, and then the bag of carrots, and then he'd have his peanut butter and banana sandwich with his grape flavored juice box. By the time he got to the sandwich, he found he wasn't very hungry and started to pull the bread apart, attempting to keep himself entertained. He didn't even notice the squirrel that had crept down the tree beside him and was staring intensively at his hands. When his brown eyes gazed up at a curious sound, he found the animal watching him and with a small smile, he reached out his hand holding a few pieces of bread. Chuck watched as the squirrel cautiously sniffed the food, and then snatched them from his hand and greedily stuffed them into its mouth. A small laugh echoed from his mouth as he watched the sensation, but it seconds it disappeared from his eyes.

"Eww," came the shrill shriek of a brunette as she ran from the boy, "Nathanial Archibald get that frog away from me. It's slimy and disgusting, and I don't want it anywhere near me."

But despite her protests, Nate still chased the girl all the way to the tree where they scared the squirrel back up the tree, and squashed what was left of Chuck's lunch. With a sigh, he looked towards them sadly, but that's when the bounce of the little girl's chocolate curls hit the sunlight and he felt himself mesmerized. When Nate finally stopped chasing her, she stood beside a blond girl, smiling and laughing, clutching at her stomach. It was almost angelic the way she looked in the sunlight. For the rest of the day, she was the only thing he looked at.

And when Bart came to pick up his son later, irritated that the nanny had come up with an excuse not to, he grudgingly asked his son as he led the boy towards the limo how his first day of school went. Chuck's only response was, "daddy, I think I saw a princess today."

Present day Chuck and his mother stood on the curb as the car disappeared around the corner.

"So you thought she was a princess Charles," his mother asked with her eyebrow raised.

He almost blushed as he looked away, "come on, I was four years old. I didn't have any friends, and dad never really got me out of the house until then. And I didn't want to be the kid escorted around by a nanny. I was naïve."

"Were you? Or do you still think she's a princess to this day?"

He shook his head with a soft smile, "no, Blair…Blair is definitely much more than a princess."

With a sigh he looked back towards the playground and for a moment almost wished he could go back to that. Sure it was lonely, but things were so much simpler back then. Especially when he decided to stop being invisible and start getting noticed. That's when he made best friends with Nate, and that's when he started to develop the cold persona that everyone knew so well.

"All right," he said looking towards Misty, "so we've been down memory lane, can I please go back to my life? I'm doing being this spirit thing or whatever the hell I am."

Shaking her head, she smiled sadly at him, "I wish I could, but there are a few more trips down memory lane that you need to visit, a few questions you need to start asking yourself, and then we take a trip to the future…see what life might end up like."

Chuck stared at her and shook his head, this had to be a dream, but maybe the more he cooperated the sooner he'd wake up.