Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.
Charlotte woke up after a few hours of napping. It suddenly hit Chuck as he began getting her ready for their adventure, that he'd never been in charge of getting Charlotte ready before and didn't know what he needed to bring. He began throwing every possible toy into her bag along with an abundant supply of diapers and formula. Their pour limo driver had to make several trips from the building to the car to load up all of the supplies.
"Where to Mister Bass?" Chuck's driver, Henry, asked as he held the door open to the limo for Chuck and Charlotte to get in.
"Central Park, please," Chuck requested before the driver closed the door. His usual morning newspaper was waiting for him as he usually read it during his drive to the office every morning. He made sure that Charlotte was secure before he began scanning the headlines. He suddenly froze upon seeing the current date. How could he have forgotten what today was.
"Change of plans, Henry," Chuck stated as he rolled down the partition to speak with his driver. "You know what today is, and you know where to go." Henry nodded in understanding as Chuck rolled the glass back up before turning to his daughter. "We're going to be taking a little side trip before we go to the park, Charlotte. I promise we won't stay long." The little girl reached out her hand to him as if she wanted him to hold it. He happily complied.
"Did you want me to watch Charlotte?" Henry asked once he arrived at their destination and opened the door to allow Chuck out.
"Don't be ridiculous," Chuck stated as he pulled Charlotte from her car seat and exited the vehicle, "I pay you to baby sit my vehicles not my daughter. We won't be long."
"Certainly, Sir," Henry agreed as he handed Chuck a bouquet of roses he had made sure to have available before he watched Chuck walk through the cemetery.
"It's me," Chuck responded as he sat down at his parents' graves with Charlotte in his lap after he laid the flowers down in front of his mother, "And I brought a visitor with me this year. I want to introduce you two to your granddaughter Charlotte.
"She is the most adorable little thing in the world. Even you, Bart Bass, the hardest SOB in the world, would melt under her influence. She looks like Blair, thankfully, but Mom she has your eyes," Chuck continued. Charlotte began giggling in his arms. Chuck smiled slightly as he kissed her hand that was reaching out to him.
"Charlotte, these are your grandparents. You'll never be able to meet them, but I'll make sure that you know about them, at least the important things," Chuck assured her. He took a few deep breaths to regain his composure as a tear fell down his cheek.
This day was always the hardest day of the year for him. It was the day that Bart Bass died and left him alone in the world, well almost. He still had the van der Woodsens. They filled a small hole that his father had left, but really it was Blair that put him completely back together. Chuck had begun coming to the cemetery last year on the anniversary of the day his dad died. It had always been a hard day for him, and Blair had suggested it. She had even volunteered to come with him, but he refused. He didn't understand why, but it felt right being here with Charlotte.
"Like I promised on my wedding day. I'm making you both proud. I'm an excellent husband, and I'm learning to be a good father. I love Blair and Charlotte with everything I have in me, and I make sure that they hear it every day.
"Dad, Bass Industries is doing great. I know that's important to you. I've done my best to make sure of that, but I'm going to be stepping away from it for a while. I'll make sure that it's well looked after, but it's what I need to do for me and my family. I don't want to look back on my life when Charlotte is twenty years old and see all of the things that I miss because I was trying to be Bart Bass. I'd rather be Charlotte's Bass's father. I hope that doesn't disappoint you," Chuck responded. Each word became harder to verbalize and suddenly he found himself crying softly.
Charlotte sat quietly for a few minutes as if she somehow knew that Chuck needed a few moment of complete silence. Finally, she began gurgling and giggling, which brought Chuck to reality. He began laughing with her as he raised her up to kiss her. She was exactly what he needed to pull himself out of his funk.
"Oh, I love you, Charlotte," Chuck sighed as he hugged her, "You and your crazy mother." She continued to giggle. "Come on, let's go have fun in the park." Chuck stood up with Charlotte, turned towards his parents' gravestones again and had Charlotte wave goodbye to her grandparents. "I promise I'll bring her back to see you again."
"Alright, Charlotte, it's time for you to become a true New Yorker," Chuck stated as he laid her down in her stroller as he began walking her into Central Park, "You can never truly claim to be a New Yorker until you've gone to Central Park and ate a street vendor hotdog. Obviously, you'll have to save the hotdog for another day, as you haven't even cut your first tooth yet, but Central Park is a start."
Charlotte had fallen asleep on the drive from the cemetery to the park. He still talked to her as if she was awake, but he decided to just stroll around the park with her until she woke up, then he would take her to the zoo. It was a beautifully warm fall day. He had made sure to dress Charlotte appropriately for the season and wrapped in her an extra blanket so that she wouldn't get a chill, but now he feared she might get overheated so he quickly stopped in front of a bench, sat down as he unwrapped her. She fussed a little as she slept, but soon was back into her deep slumber.
"What an adorable little girl," a young woman cooed as she bent over the stroller to look at the sleeping baby, "How old is she?"
"Two months," Chuck responded proudly, not even paying attention to the woman. His focus was on Charlotte.
"What a lucky girl. Getting to spend her day with her daddy," the woman responded.
"I'm the lucky one," Chuck replied as he pulled back to look at the woman. He immediately recognized the bohemian dressed woman, "Vanessa!"
"Hey, Chuck," she responded with a laugh at his surprised expression, "It's been awhile."
"A long while," Chuck agreed, "What's it been five years?"
"Six," she corrected him as she sat down next to him.
"Are you still doing the filmmaking thing?" Chuck inquired.
"I certainly am," Vanessa nodded, "And of course, you're still doing the CEO thing. That's worked out pretty well for you, I hear. I'm surprised that you're not at the office."
"That was Blair's doing," Chuck replied. Vanessa noticed the way Chuck's eye's lit up at the mention of Blair's name. Clearly, he was as in love with her as ever. "She called me in sick from work so that she could go shopping with Serena."
"That's right, I heard the two of you got married," Vanessa responded, "Congratulations."
"Thank you," he responded graciously.
"How are Blair and Serena?" Vanessa asked curiously. Chuck was surprised at her interest. Vanessa never really had a problem with Serena, but he knew that she couldn't stand Blair.
"They're good," Chuck replied, "Blair obviously is amazing. She's taken a year off from her fashion label to be home with Charlotte. She's still drawing and consulting on this year's line, but she didn't want to be forced back into a heavy workload with our daughter still so young. Serena is . . ." He suddenly struggled to come up with a description of what Serena was doing. After graduating from Brown, Serena had been drifting. She did a little modeling for a time, but didn't seem to enjoy the competitive nature of the business. She then spent a summer working with the Peace Corp. She talked about doing that again, but mostly she was happily coasting through life without a care in the world although occasionally she ended up on Page Six. "Serena is doing good," he finally decided.
"And Nate?" Vanessa asked curiously. From the bite of her lip and the slightly reddish tint to her cheeks, he could tell she was embarrassed to ask.
"He's doing great," Chuck replied, "As soon as he took control of his inheritance, he got himself out of the clutches of the Vanderbilt family and is doing his own thing. He's involved in fundraising for non-profit organization for the homeless. He's constantly hitting my company up for money."
"And I'm sure you happily turn him down," Vanessa assumed.
"Quite the opposite actually, Bass Industries is one of his largest contributors," Chuck laughed. It didn't surprise him to see the genuine look of surprise on her face. "A lot has changed in six years, Vanessa."
"I guess so," she replied as she continue to study the man in front of her. He definitely wasn't the man she had known in her youth. He was so much different, so much kinder and gentler. "Do you still see Nate often?"
"At least once or twice a month," Chuck replied, "Whenever Blair scrounges up another blind date for him. She keeps saying that she promised to help him look on our wedding day. Doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but she can't help herself. She wants everyone to be as happy as she is." He studied Vanessa closely for a moment. There was something in her eyes when she put together that Nate was still single that told Chuck she was relieved by it. "You should stop by the penthouse tonight. He's coming over for a quiet dinner. He made Blair promise to not bring him a date this time."
"I don't know about that," Vanessa responded hesitantly. He wasn't sure what was deterring her. Was it the thought of seeing Nate again after so many years, or being in Blair's house.
Charlotte chose that moment to wake up and start fussing. Chuck could sense that she wanted move around. He quickly reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a business card and a pen. He wrote the address to the penthouse on the card and handed it to Vanessa. "Dinner is at seven," Chuck responded, "You should come."
"It was good to see you again, Chuck," Vanessa responded as Chuck pushed the stroller and walked away.
"Nathaniel, it's Chuck, you should join us for dinner this evening at the penthouse," Chuck suggested when he phoned his best friend once he knew he was clear of Vanessa.
"Another blind date?" Nate groaned.
"Nah," Chuck assured him, "Just some good food and adult conversation."
"I've heard that before, Dude," Nate grumbled.
"You have my word," Chuck responded, "Blair will not bring you a date."
"Alright," Nate agreed, "I'll come, only if you promise that I get to see my goddaughter."
"That can be arranged," Chuck laughed as Charlotte chose that moment to squeak out in delight, "Sounds like Charlotte's looking forward to it."
"She's with you?" Nate concluded in surprise, "Is it bring your daughter to work day already? She's a little young for that don't you think."
"Dinner is at seven, Nathaniel. Don't be late," Chuck replied as he chose to ignore his friend's sarcastic remark.
Charlotte looked at her father with what Chuck could only describe as a curious expression as he pocketed the phone. She looked so much like Blair at that moment. Clearly she was asking her father what he was up to. "Daddy is playing match maker," Chuck explained as he made his way to the zoo.
"My two favorite people," Blair responded as she joined Chuck and Charlotte at Central Park after five hours of intense shopping with Blair. She quickly picked up Charlotte, who was sound asleep in the stroller once more and hugged her before she greeted Chuck with a kiss.
"How was your day of shopping?" Chuck inquired as they walked to a park bench and sat down.
"Depressing," she frowned as she plopped down on the bench. "I still don't fit into the size I was before I got pregnant."
"Blair, you gave birth just a few months ago," Chuck rationalized as he put his arm around her shoulder, "It can take time. Besides, if you ask me, you look better now than you ever did."
"So sweet, Bass, but so untrue," she sighed as she leaned into his embrace.
"Stop it, Blair," he scolded. He hated that she had such a low self-esteem. They had fought that long and hard during their first few years together, but it now appeared that her old insecurities were coming back. "You know I think you're perfect just the way you are."
She remained silence for several moments, which caused him to get nervous.
"What are you thinking, Blair?" he finally asked, needing to break the uncomfortable silence.
"I'm just trying to figure out what I did to deserve you," she replied as she turned her head to beam at him.
"All you had to do was love me," he replied as he captured her lips in a scorching kiss. A clearing of the throat interrupted them.
"Ms. Blair, your picnic," Dorota stated as she approached the pair in the park with a picnic basket in her arms.
"Thank you, Dorota," she responded gratefully as she unloaded the basket from her. "Will you stay and join us for a little while?" Dorota looked stunned by Blair's request. Even Chuck was a little taken aback.
"No, Ms. Blair," Dorota replied, "I have to get back to Ms. Waldorf. She's preparing for her trip to Paris, and I have much to do."
"Dorota, you know if you came to work for us, you'd barely have to lift a finger," Chuck teased. Dorota chuckled in response as she blushed. "Whenever you're ready, we have a position waiting for you. Name your price, and your terms and we'll exceed them." Dorota nodded as she turned to leave.
"You sounded so sincere that time," Blair chuckled as she pushed Charlotte's stroller to a clearing in the trees were they could lay out a blanket and enjoy the warm sunshine while Chuck carried the heavy picnic basket. He was convinced that Dorota had added a few bricks just to torment him.
"One day I am going to pry her away from your mother," he insisted sincerely. "I am Chuck Bass. Eventually I get what I want."
"So I've observed," she responded with a glare.
Finally reaching their destination, Blair and Chuck worked together to spread out the blanket Dorota had packed before they set up the food that had been prepared. The blanket has solved the mystery as to why the basket was so heavy. It was a thick wool one. How Dorota had managed to fit it so neatly into the basket was beyond him. He knew without a doubt that it was going to have to go in the bottom of Charlotte's stroller once they were finished. Blair began preparing the plates as Chuck picked up Charlotte, careful not to wake her, and laid down so he could rest her on his chest.
"Do you expect me to feed you?" Blair teased as she took a grape from his plate and placed it in his mouth.
"I'll eat when she wakes up," he assured her as he rhythmically stroked Charlotte's back. "She's been out for over an hour. She's due to wake up soon. Go ahead and eat. You can take her when you're done."
"Did Charlee enjoy the zoo?" Blair asked as she ate her meal.
"She seemed too," he nodded, "She was giggling and cooing the entire time. The penguins appeared to be her favorites."
"Those were mine too," Blair responded in delight.
"Little birds in black and white suits . . . why doesn't that surprise me?" he chuckled, "You always had a thing for formals."
Blair glared at him as she continued to eat.
"You'll never guess who I ran into when I first got here," Chuck stated cryptically.
Blair looked at him expectantly. She didn't want to hazard a guess as there were just too many options. As long as it wasn't her long time nemesis Georgina Sparks, she didn't care.
"Vanessa Abrams," he replied. Her jaw dropped in surprise. She certainly wasn't expecting that.
"A blast from the past," Blair replied, "Wow, I can honestly say I haven't thought about her in years. How is she?"
"She looked good. She hasn't changed too much. She's still doing the film maker thing," Chuck replied.
"Naturally," Blair replied with a roll of her eyes. She didn't understand the world that Vanessa Abrams came from, nor the interest she had in documentary films. On the best of days she tolerated Vanessa. On the worst of days, she set out to destroy her. She felt guilty about all of that now, but it still didn't open her mind up to the world Vanessa came from.
"I invited her to dinner tonight," Chuck added.
"I didn't know we were having dinner tonight," Blair repeated in surprise. Dinner to Chuck always meant at least a three course meal while entertaining guests, usually Nate or Serena along with their companion for the evening.
"And I invited Nathaniel," Chuck continued.
"Is Chuck Bass playing matchmaker?" Blair teased him with a knowing stare, "Honestly, Chuck, you make fun of me."
"At least my prospects actually show some potential for long term romance," Chuck shot back.
"All of my prospects had potential," she responded defensively.
"Need I remind you of Jessica or Hillary or Eva," Chuck prompted with a smirk as he knew he had made his point. Blair frowned as she recalled those three dating disasters.
"I genuinely thought that Jessica was more intelligent than that," Blair insisted, "She said that she went to Harvard."
"Too bad she forgot to mention that it was only to attend a frat party," he chuckled.
"Fine, but Nate's not interested in Vanessa anymore," Blair shot back.
"Care to make a wager," he responded suggestively.
"State your terms," she countered with a genuine amount of intrigue. She loved these little moments of competition between her and Chuck. It reminded her of why she fell in love with him in the first place.
"If Vanessa and Nate go out on one date after tonight's meal, I win. If they never see each other again, then you do," he proposed.
"And what is it that we'll be betting on," she inquired, "A night of ecstasy, perhaps?"
"So very tempting," he groaned, "And don't think I haven't forgotten about my earlier promise to finish what we started in the bathroom this morning, but I was thinking something a little more family friendly."
Blair frowned slightly, "What do you have in mind?"
"Christmas will be here before we know it," Chuck began.
"Okay," she stated slowly. Where was he going with this?
"Last year we spent the holiday with your father in France," he continued, "And you've said that you'd like to do that again this year."
"What is your point?" Blair responded growing impatient by his drawn out response.
"If I win the bet, I get to choose how we spend Christmas this year," he explained.
"And if I do?" she asked.
"Then we go to France," he countered.
"I liked your terms better before we became parents," she stated with a pout, "At least they were more interesting."
"And what do you propose, Princess?" he inquired. His curiosity had been peaked.
"If you win, which is doubtful, we'll go with your Christmas thingy," she agreed, "But if I win, I get to plan a night of passion for the two of us, and Charlotte gets to stay with Lily or Serena."
"Suddenly I hope I lose," he chuckled as she leaned down to kiss him.
His gaze turned serious as she pulled away. "Do you know what today is?"
She nodded in agreement, "I was hoping that the day with Charlotte would distract you from remembering."
"That was a very good try. I didn't remember until I saw the newspaper in the limo," Chuck replied.
"Forgot the newspaper," she sighed, obviously cursing herself for missing the one detail that tipped him off.
"I took Charlotte to the cemetery," he admitted after a few moments of silence, "I hope that's okay. I wanted her to meet her grandparents."
"It's completely okay," Blair assured him as she set down her plate and went to lay down next to him, "She should know them."
"And I'm glad she was there," Chuck admitted as he began stroking Blair's flowing auburn hair, "She pulled me out of my funk. Last year was the hardest it's ever been. I should have let you come with me last year, but I didn't want you to see me like that."
"I have seen you at your absolute worst, Chuck Bass," she reminded him, "Nothing you do or say could ever make me think less of you."
"Why is it that my worst always involves my father?" he inquired out loud. It wasn't a question that he was looking for her to answer.
"Because you loved him so much and so desperately wanted his approval, but never received it from him when he was alive," she responded as she gently rubbed his chest. Of course she would have the right answer.
Charlotte began to wake up again. She looked up and smiled at the both of them.
"Does our life get any better?" Chuck asked as he smiled down at the little girl, picking her up off his chest so that he and Blair could kiss her.
TBC . . .