FINALLY! A multi-chapter fic brought to you by me (Alissa) I hope I'll finish this one! ;)
Disclaimer: I only own Ed Westwick's pants, not Gossip Girl.
Before there was 3 words 8 letters. There were 2 words 10 letters.
Two separate names. Each 5 letters long.
Chuck and Blair.
Close comrades since they were conceived in the womb.
Evelyn Bass and Eleanor Waldorf were best friends and spent their pregnancies together in bliss. Always shopping. Always laughing. Always going on double dates with their husbands. They repeatedly joked about their kids being best friends when they were born. However, when Evelyn found out she was having a boy and Eleanor a girl they quickly changed their minds and decided that their children just had to get married. So for the last few months of their pregnancies, in between nursery decorating and name picking, Evelyn and Eleanor were mentally joking as well as planning Blair and Charles' wedding.
Blair was born first. November 15, 1991.
It was a cold night but Evelyn ran right over to the hospital despite being in the middle of fighting a cold and stood by Eleanor's side throughout the whole thing. Harold passed out somewhere through the middle of the experience, and even though Evelyn herself was due any day now she stood on her feet for a whole six hours. Exhausted, both ladies where finally happy when Blair was snuggled up by her mother's side.
"She looks like you," Evelyn commented admiring Blair from afar. She was happy that she finally got the chance to sit down now.
"Nonsense! Look you can clearly see the resemblance to Harold's mother by the way her face is shaped," mused Eleanor couldn't having believed she had survived that experience. She made the decision right then and there that she wouldn't be having any more children.
Both women laughed.
"It's your turn next," Eleanor replied tauntingly looking at Evelyn with a teasing glance.
"Oh no! After seeing what you just went through I don't think I want to relive that."
"Oh come on it wasn't that bad!" Eleanor suggested looking down at her daughter and how tiny she was, "Okay maybe it was a tiny bit painful."
Evelyn smiled, but she had a bad feeling in her gut. This cold wasn't going away.
"When are you due again Evie?" Eleanor pondered stroking Blair's tiny hairs.
"Any day now…I'm just hoping I get delayed a little further. I'm so tired and not ready. Plus if I'm being completely honest I'm a little nervous too. This whole pregnancy has been a tad aggravating."
Eleanor looked at her friend compassionately. She knew that she had a lot on her plate. Evelyn had worked and maintained her hotel business throughout the whole time she was carrying Charles. I mean, she had worked too but not to the extent that Evelyn had. Her and Bart always seemed so busy.
"I'm going to go home now. Take care of Blair!" Evelyn winked and made her way out the door.
"I'll try my best! Go get some rest Evelyn! Trust me, you will need it!" Eleanor laughed and watched as her dear friend exited the room.
3 days later….
Bart made his way with Evelyn through the emergency room's door.
"Mr. Bass, what can I do to help?" one of the assistants came rushing to his side.
"My wife is in labor, could you please get a doctor STAT. She isn't feeling well!" Bart responded anxiously. Evelyn hadn't said a thing but he could tell from the expression on her face that something wasn't right. She was usually calm in stressing situations but not this calm.
After someone brought over a wheel chair for his wife, and took her to a room, Bart decided it was safe to make some phone calls.
"Eleanor?" Bart said urgently once someone finally picked up the phone.
"Bart? Hello? What's wrong? What happened? Is it Evie?" Eleanor asked noticing the desperation in his voice.
"Yes…well she's in labor. I just felt like I needed to let you know." He suggested, not sure of how much more to say, he didn't want to worry her.
"Well you know, as much as she, how much I want to be there. But leaving my three-day-old child alone isn't the smartest decision. Especially with Harold. But wish her the best and give her a hug for me!" Eleanor laughed and spoke with the greatest sincerity.
"No problem. I'll do just that." Bart sighed and hung up the phone.
He was bracing himself for the inevitable.
He'd heard of Harold's terrible experience in the birthing room, but he was a Bass. And Bass men did not chicken away from women giving birth to babies. Especially if it was his son.
10 hours later…
It had been a gruesome experience. Something he never wanted to repeat ever again. He immediately decided that Evelyn's dream of having five children would not be fulfilled. He smiled now though, at the thought of her cuddling up with their son. It was truly a sight to see.
Charles Bartholomew Bass. Very regal if you ask him. Born on the 18th of November, 1991.
But there was something that did trouble him, and that was the fact that the doctors told him Evelyn had a bad case of pneumonia and she'd lost a tad too much blood. How much was a tad too much?
He couldn't think pessimistically now though.
Things will eventually fall into place, he thought. They just had to.
When he finally got the chance to hold his son, and see his wife staring contentedly back at him, he realized that this is where he needed to be. This was happiness. This was family.
3 months later…
"You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself 'I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' You must do the thing you think you cannot do."
Those were the words Bart Bass had spoken at his father's funeral.
And these same words were being repeated today as they lowered Evelyn into the ground.
She hadn't lasted long after her sickness. It caught her at her most vulnerable state and the doctors couldn't have done anything about it.
He should have expected it, really.
Bart was never good with letting things go, he still internally mourned the loss of his father. It had affected him a lot. However, no one knew that, except for Evelyn. But now she was gone too.
The only comforting words he could muster up to prevent himself from breaking down, was that he was better off on his own.
In the background two infants whined while Dorota, Blair's nanny, tried to hush them.
"Miss Blair! Mister Chuck! Look a plane! Shh Shhh." Dorota attempted to whisper comforting words to them. Then proceeded to sing in Polish, trying whatever she could to shut them up.
"Why must children be so difficult?" she muttered to herself and next thing she knew she had tripped over a bump in the grass.
The infants laughed in unison.
"Oh so now you laugh? Naughty little children." Dorota muttered to herself and stopped her continuous pacing to attend to the babbling babies.
Meanwhile, Eleanor walked up to Bart.
"I know you're probably tired of hearing this and I'm sure it's not helping you in any way…but I'm sorry. At least look on the bright side, this day is almost over. And then you can go home and stop looking at all these sad people! It must be so depressing!" She said attempting to cheer him up.
"Thanks Eleanor. I appreciate the effort." He smiled…for the first time in a long while.
"Well it's the least I can do, I can only imagine how difficult it must be for you to take care of Charles all by yourself." She sighed empathetically.
"I'll find someone to help eventually. Thank you though, for taking him in when I'm busy."
"Anytime! It's what Evie would have wanted." She smiled and gave him an awkward hug.
Evie would have also wanted to see her son grow up and possibly even four more but we can't always get what we want, can we? Bart thought.
They walked together to get their children from Dorota. Outside it was surprisingly warm and the sun was even out! If it hadn't been such a sad day they might have actually commented on how lovely the weather was.
Once they reached the double-stroller Bart headed to pick up Charles. To both his and Eleanor's surprise however, both children started wailing once he had laid a hand on Charles. Eleanor gave him an all-knowing look, but he shook his head in disagreement. Evelyn and Eleanor had always had their little silly ideas. He struggled picking his son up but once he finally accomplished the task, he left the funeral and the Waldorf's without a word.
It was not long before the children's first birthday came around. Bart was in Hong Kong on a business trip however and couldn't make it. So Eleanor, being the concerning mother that she was, decided to throw a conjoined party for the two friends. It was a success and everyone cooed over how cute the Blair and Charles were. I guess you could call it their first official debut in society.
As time continued to pass, it seemed as if every time some big holiday or birthday passed Bart was never there. So Eleanor, Dorota, and Harold ended up taking Charles under their wing. Charles, or recently named 'Chuck' (by Blair because she couldn't pronounce Charles) was technically a member of the Waldorf family. He spent a majority of his time growing up with them. Especially Blair, those two were inseparable. It was uncanny really, and whenever Eleanor saw them together (which was all the time) she couldn't help but muse at how ironic this all was.
But then again, who was she to betray Evelyn Bass' wishes? By the way, it didn't hurt the fact that Chuck and Blair made a dashing pair, even as five-year-olds.
Nevertheless, she couldn't help but feel bad for the boy. He lacked a mother…and technically a father as well. She loved taking care of him but it wasn't something she could permit on a daily basis. Hopefully after Bart stops grieving he'll realize that his attitude is affecting his child.
3 years later…May 29, 1999.
The local private elementary school, which all the little elite children attended, was throwing its annual end of the year play. It was something everyone looked forward to, especially Blair. This year they had chosen Peter Pan, and as usual Nate Archibald was cast as the lead (Peter), Blair as the female lead (Wendy), Chuck as the villain (Captain Hook), and Serena as the ridiculous blonde (Tinker Bell).
While they were practicing Serena kept trying to encourage Blair to have fun.
"Come on B! Wendy isn't that stiff! Loosen up!" Serena giggled attempting to break Blair's rigid posture.
"Serena! I think you and I know perfectly well who's smarter here. If you don't think I know how to portray a character as intriguing as Wendy then you must be delusional. Run off and go sprinkle some fairy dust on Nate now! I'm busy practicing my lines." She spewed, tired of Serena's silly antics.
"Fine! I will! At least Peter knows how to have fun!" She stuck her tongue out and skipped towards the only other blonde in this production.
When will they ever grow up? She muttered to herself. Wow, she was starting to sound like Wendy already!
"Kind of silly isn't it?"
Gosh! This guy had to stop sneaking up on her. It used to be funny when they were kids, but not anymore. Especially not in circumstances like this when she was already hyped up.
"What? That Archibald's not a redhead?" she retorted and gave him a glaring look.
Chuck laughed at her facial expression; she never failed to amuse him.
"Well now that you bring that up, yes…but that's not what I was going to say." He smirked.
"And what exactly were you going to say? That you wish you were Tinker Bell and could dress up in that short, little green dress?"
"As if, but you on the other hand…"
Blair gulped, and took a large breath of air. She tried playing with her Tiffany's charm bracelet so she didn't have to look him in the eye. He couldn't possibly know!
"I have no idea what you're talking about. Wendy's intuitive, mature, and an interesting character. I love Wendy!"
"Not as much as you love Nate!" He rebutted with an all-knowing glance. He wasn't completely oblivious. Every time Nate walked by, her eyes subconsciously followed his figure. During practice she all but drooled on him. And recently whenever they went anywhere together she always sat by Nate. Nate this…Nate that…Oh my god Nate you're SO funny….
"That's not true!" She fumed.
"Oh but it is!"
"Stop telling lies Chuck. It's not nice."
"Since when have I ever lied to you?" he suggested.
She thought about that for a second, he had never lied to her. Ever. He told her when her headband was on the wrong way. When her bow was accidentally placed to the left instead of the right. He told her that Serena was lying when she said she was sick and was actually ditching school. He always told her about his dad. He told her all the grown up's secrets. So he did have a point there. But it wasn't fair that he was using her one weakness against her. It was low, even for him.
"At least I'm not always the villain," she blurted out before she even realized what she'd said.
Where did that even come from?
A flicker of sadness flashed across Chuck's face, but it was soon replaced by anger.
"Fine. Then you can ask Nate to go feed the ducks with you next time, because I'm never going again! And might as well bring Serena, because I'm pretty sure he'll never go anywhere without her anyway."
His words felt like another blow.
But watching him walk away left her with an unexpected pang of remorse.
Opening Night…
Finally, after lots of preparing they were ready for the performance. It was warm, and considering it was almost summer there was a lot of traffic. Regardless, everyone made it there, in costume and on time. Blair thought she looked like a princess. Her shimmery-blue dress had received tons of compliments already and she beamed. Her mother always made sure she was the best dressed. On the other hand, Nate had on this comical green suit, and Serena a matching dress. Blair laughed quietly to herself, she's sure that if Chuck were here he'd definitely make some bizarre comment about them. Wait...Chuck?! That's what was missing! But where was he? He couldn't be late! That'd be extremely unprofessional of him.
Just then she saw Carter Baizen walk in. Ewww. He was probably the 'ugliest' boy she'd ever seen. When they were little, Carter had looked under her skirt, leaving her completely humiliated. Chuck once made a comment that he looked like a toad, and she'd agreed.
"What are you doing here Baizen?" she spitted out in repugnance.
"Didn't Bass fill you in? I'm the new Hook." He winked in her direction and started walking towards the dressing room.
Blair didn't believe him though, and yanked him back, "That's ridiculous! Stop playing games Carter! Chuck wouldn't just miss the end of the year play!"
Would he?
"Hey! OW! I don't know, he just told me didn't want to do it and to fill in! Now let me go!" Carter yelled trying to get away from the obviously insane Blair Waldorf.
"But why?" she pleaded…this was so un-like Chuck.
"I don't know! He said something about his dad. Now leave me alone." He complained, pulling his arm out of her grasp.
His dad? His dad came home? Oh great.
The next thing she knew she grabbed a hold of her dress and started running out of the theater. Not having time to stop and look at the hundreds of spectators watching her leave the building. Or stop at her mother's frantic cries.
Once she reached the street she hailed a cab, and quickly got in. Her emergency money would finally be useful for something.
"To the Plaza hotel. STAT!" she commanded and threw random bills of money at the driver.
This better be good Bass.
When the elevator doors finally opened and she reached Chuck's suite she looked around to find it surprisingly empty. Everything was gone. Except for a few random suitcases in the middle…
Suitcases? Suitcases! What was going on?
"Chuck? Chuck!" she called urgently.
Still no noise…
"This isn't funny Bass! Whatever prank you're trying to pull or whoever you're trying to fool this isn't working!" She continued to cry out.
"Could you just shut up already? You're voice is annoying." He shouted back, revealing that he had been hidden behind a couch.
Her voice was anything but annoying, however he'd never tell her that.
"Oh thank god Chuck! You're here! I was so worried!" She said running to embrace him.
However he stopped her in the act.
"Were you really?" he asked questioningly. Curious to see what her response would be.
"Of course I was! Carter came to the theater and started saying stuff and that you made him take your spot but I didn't believe it. You have to come NOW! We're going to be late for the show!" She explained, recalling what had happened about twenty minutes ago.
"I'm not going to the show! Carter was telling the truth! I'm leaving!" he said...barely being able to look her in the eyes.
"On vacation?" she asked puzzled, not quite sure what was going on.
"No! I'm leaving! FOR GOOD! As in I'm never coming back." He continued, going to reach for his coat. He needed to do this fast before she changed his mind.
"But why?" she inquired, heartbrokenly. This doesn't make any sense.
"Because! I'm sick and tired of this place. My dad asked me if I wanted to go live with my Uncle Jack in Australia, so I said yes." He summarized, hoping that she wouldn't somehow figure out he'd practically begged his father to leave New York.
"You have an Uncle Jack?"
"Trust me, I didn't know either."
"But you can't leave!" she fought back the tears that were forming in the back of her eyes.
"Why not?" he pondered.
"Because you're family's here!"
"What family?" he asked angrily, surprised by her answer.
"Dorota, Mom, Da-"
"Blair! Don't you get it? That's your family! Not mine!" He shouted, infuriated by her answer.
"But what about me?" she suggested, looking at him earnestly.
He avoided her gaze, "I'll get you a koala."
She almost smiled, but then remembered what was actually happening.
"Chuck! Don't go! Please! I didn't mean what I said the other day! I'm sorry!"
"This isn't about you Waldorf. This is about me."
He took one last glance towards her and she could see his retreating figure heading towards the elevator. She wanted to say something, but she was choking on her sobs and couldn't.
She'd known Chuck for her entire life. He'd always been there. He 'd always been her partner in crime. He told her jokes. He stayed by her side when she was sick. He taught her how to tie her shoes. There hadn't been a single moment in her life that she hadn't spent with Chuck. She knew him better than she knew herself.
She also knew that Chuck Bass never cried. Ever. But she could've sworn that the last thing she saw before those elevator doors closed was a single tear streaming down his cheek.
tbc...
AN: Ahhhh I hope you guys like this! I tried my best! This is just the prologue so I need to know if there are enough people interested in this for me to continue! So reviews would be very much appreciated! I'd also like to clarify that I think Sebastian Stan is gorgeous and is only ugly for the sake of this story. Blair giving Chuck his name was important for me to bring up. & Also Peter Pan is a good play to adapt to GG.
ALSO SLIGHT SPOILER- *IMPORTANT* If people are interested and I DO continue then the next chapter they're going to be older. In their 20s to be specific...this is a flashback sort of thing! ;p
Thanks for Reading! - A & J