Name: Pride

Rated: T

Length: 690 words

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

"Oh, yuck," Serena announced, backing out of Chuck's suite quickly. "I just stopped by to tell you Mom and Bart want you at dinner tonight. And they said Blair could come."

"Why the 'yuck'? We're not doing anything," Blair announced with an eye roll. She was simply laying on Chuck's bed, with his frame spooning behind her. One of his hands played with her chestnut colored ringlets, while the other one was entangled with hers.

"Anything but cuddling," Serena announced from outside the door.

"Chuck Bass does not cuddle," Chuck yelled indignantly.

"Oh contraire, brother dearest. I'll see you at dinner." They listened to Serena flounce off, and Blair smirked.

"We are too cuddling."

"I'm appreciating your fine features, Waldorf. I don't cuddle. It's right up there on the list with pillow talk."

"What do you call it when you list off your favorite parts about me after we have sex?"

"That's different. That's me being nice," Chuck announced huffily. "Which doesn't happen often, so don't push it."

"Admit it. You buy me gifts for no reason, too."

"I do not."

"You had your gay butler pick out those shoes for me last week!" Blair turned to face him and pressed their foreheads together.

"I was in a giving mood. Besides, he needs to feel like he's being useful."

"You cuddle me."

"I do not."

"You give me compliments a lot."

"I do not."

"You loooove me," Blair replied in a sing songy voice, wrapping her arms around him.

"I do not."

It was a knee-jerk response, only because his last few had been that phrase. He froze up immediately, realizing what he had just said. Blair's face fell, for only a fleeting moment. Then she regained her composure, stood and yanked on her Sigerson Morrison flats, and fixed her hair in the mirror.

"Blair. Come on, you know I didn't mean that. You know how I feel about you."

She left the suite, slamming the door behind her. He yelled after her, but she refused to turn around.

He grabbed his iPhone and called her. After four tries, she finally answered.

"What."

"We have pillow talk, okay? We do. And I like to buy you pointless stuff. I'll even cuddle with you, if you come back. Fuck it. I love cuddling. I love you, okay? You know that."

Blair sighed. "I don't believe you. Everyone says what they truly mean right away."

Chuck rolled his eyes. "Bullshit. You're making that up. Just come back. Please? You won't be disappointed," he added in a devilish tone.

"I've got stuff to do at home."

Chuck groaned, rubbing at his temples. "Come to dinner tonight. You heard Serena, you're invited. 7 PM sharp, as always. The van der Bass residence."

Her phone disconnected, and he sighed. God damnit. Did Blair always have to be so fucking difficult?

That night, she arrived at dinner, looking very Jackie O. She sat next to him with a fake smile on her face, and when he tried to hold her hand under the table, she batted it away.

"So, I told Alicia that it's her turn to do the invitations, and she -"

"I'm sorry, Lily," Chuck interrupted suddenly. "But I have something incredibly important to say."

Bart glared at his son. "And what, pray tell, is so important you would interrupt your new mother?"

Chuck sighed, knowing when he was defeated. "I'm in love with Blair Waldorf."

The entire table gave him a confused look- except for Serena, who was hiding giggles behind her hand.

"I'm in love with Blair Waldorf. And tonight, we're going to cuddle."

Bart cleared his throat uncomfortably, and Lily averted her eyes. Eric and Serena were about an inch away from dying of laughter, and Blair, looking pleased and accomplished, grazed his ankle under the table with her own, and scooped up his hand in hers.

"So, as I was saying, I told Alicia…"

AN: Thank you guys so much for the AWESOME reviews! You guys are amazing. Enjoy this chapter. I think I've finally found a type of writing that's as short as my attention span, haha.