Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.
"What are you going to do today?" Chuck inquired as he adjusted his tie as he got himself ready for work. It had been two weeks since his brief stint in the hospital. He had reluctantly followed doctor's orders and stayed home for the two days that was required mostly because Blair wouldn't let him out of the penthouse even if Eugenia hadn't refused to have the limo sent to pick him up.
"I plan on eating a lot of spicy foods," Blair replied as she tried to give him an innocent look while failing miserably. He glared at her in response, but he understood what she was telling him. She had had enough of being pregnant. She was tired of being uncomfortable, of having to go to the bathroom at all hours of the day and night, of not being able to dress herself each morning without looking like a complete idiot while doing it, and of not being able to see her feet. She had given up on wearing shoes unless Chuck slipped them on her feet himself as she never had a matching pair otherwise.
"If you need anything, I'm a phone call away," he assured her.
"I know," she replied as she reached out and straightened his tie for him that was just slightly crooked.
"If you feel the need to do any more nesting, please try and stay out of my office. It took me two hours to put my office back to the way it was, and you shouldn't be lifting heavy furniture," he cautioned her. He had come home the previous evening to see that his entire office had been rearranged in accordance with principles of feng shui.
"I didn't," she responded innocently as she batted her eyelashes, "I called the doorman up to do it for me."
"That's my girl," he smirked as he kissed the tip of her nose.
"And I resent the implications that I'm nesting," she sighed, "I'm just tired of living in a pig sty."
"Blair, we have a maid that cleans up after us on a daily basis, and we're hardly barnyard animals," he chuckled as he took her hands in his and kissed each one softly, "Face it, Sweetheart, you have moved on to the final stage of your pregnancy."
"If it means this child finally decides to make his or her appearance in the very near future, then fine I'm nesting," she conceded with a roll of her eyes.
"Have you narrowed down your name list yet?" he inquired as he slid into his suit jacket.
"Have you narrowed down yours?" she challenged him as she reached out to smooth out the creases of his jacket.
"I've glanced at a few names," he smirked. In truth, since he and Blair had made their agreement that she could name their child if it was a girl and he could if it was a boy, he had spent all of his free time combing through a baby book that he had Eugenia pick up for him.
"I'm sure," she grinned. She was well aware of the baby book that he kept in his office at Bass Industries.
"Eight and a half months," he remarked as he rubbed her stomach, "How does it feel?"
"You don't want me answering that question," she assured him as she played with the lapels of his suit jacket, "And if you know what is good for you, you won't ask that ever again."
"One last curious questions, and then I have to go to work," he remarked as he kiss her gently, "Is this one child it for us?"
"It's too early to tell," she stated after a moment of thought as she caressed her stomach, "Ask me again when we hold our child in our arms for the first time."
"I have to be going to work," Chuck groaned as he caught sight of the clock on the bedside nightstand. His voice was full of hesitation. He didn't want to leave her any more than she wanted him to go.
"Go," she nudged him with her belly, "I have plenty to keep me busy until you get home this evening."
"Stay out of my office," he warned her yet again.
"Have a good day," she stated sweetly while avoiding anything that sounded like a promise to do what he asked. While he hadn't appreciated her attempt to bring harmony into his workspace, there was still much that she could do.
"I love you," he proclaimed as he leaned in and kissed her lips softly. She hummed against his lips before she deepened their kiss.
"I have to go," he stated yet again as he pulled away momentarily before his lips crashed against her once again.
"Stay," she requested as she pulled away only to speak, her lips brushed against his as the words left her mouth, "Start your paternity leave early. You're the CEO. You can do whatever you want."
"I wish that was true," he groaned as he pulled away before he was tempted to find a way to make her suggestion a reality, "And I still have a lot of preparations to take care of before I go out on leave."
"You had better hurry up," she smirked playfully, "I'm not holding this kid in so that you can tie up any possible loose ends at the office."
"I wouldn't ask you to," he chuckled as he ran his hands through her hair, her curls sifting through his fingers as the strands fell back to her shoulder. Her hair was one of the few things that she spent time on as she got ready each day now that she was staying home. She didn't put on a stitch of makeup, which Chuck didn't think she needed anyways, and she was content to spend each day in one of the many pairs of baggy sweatpants that he had purchased for her a few weeks earlier as she refused to wear her maternity clothes any longer. "I'll be ready whenever you and this child is."
"Go," she encouraged him as she nudged her stomach against him once again, "I'll call you if I need anything."
"Even if it's some insane craving," he requested as he took a step back to remove any possible temptation to stay. He was playing with fire as it was. He knew it wouldn't take much for him to work from home for the rest of her pregnancy. He also knew if he did that, he would drive Blair insane by checking on her every five minutes. The evenings were bad enough. "You know how much those amuse me."
She tapped his shoulder playfully as she waddled along side of him as he made his way to the elevator, her hand entwined with his. He allowed her to set the pace as she had slowed down with each month that passed of her pregnancy. He paused at the hall table to pocket his cell phone and money clip before he picked up his briefcase and stepped towards the elevator. Blair reached out and pushed the call button as Chuck came behind her and wrapped his arms around her midsection.
"I miss you not being able to get your arms all the way around my waist," Blair sighed as she looked at his hands that were barely able to join together at the top of her stomach.
"Soon," he assured her as he brushed aside her hair so he could kiss the nape of her neck. A soft moan escaped from Blair's lips.
"I miss making love to you," she whispered as his lips continued their gentle assault of her neck.
"I miss that too," he mumbled against her skin, "But this isn't forever. We only have a few more months."
"And we'll be back to our love making ways," she smirked.
"Which is as often as possible," he grinned as the elevator chiming its arrival.
"Have a good day," she replied as she spun to kiss him goodbye.
"I'll be home soon," he spoke against her lips, "If you need anything, call me immediately. If you feel the slightest twinge . . ."
"I'll call you," she assured him as she kissed him once more before she nudged him into the elevator.
"I love you," he responded.
"And I love you," she replied immediately as the doors closed. She caressed her stomach and spoke to their child, "Daddy is a little overprotective. You'll get used to it. I promise." She sighed as she turned around and looked at their home as she tried to decide what she wanted to do first. She immediately determined that she needed to tackle his office yet again.
As she stepped into his office her eyes focused on a manila folder on his desk. She walked as quickly as she could to his desk as she picked up the phone on his desk to call his cell phone to let him know he forgot a file, but a look at the tab label had her frozen before she could dial the first number . . . Evelyn Bass.
"Blair, Baby, I'm home," Chuck called out as he returned to their home later that evening. He only heard silence. It was an unusual sound. Usually she would call out to him and let him know where in their home she was, but tonight it was eerily quiet. "Blair?" he called out for her again as he began searching for her in each room. He could feel his heart begin to accelerate as the panic began to set in.
Blair was waiting patiently for him in his office, sitting at his desk as she stared at the file she had flipped through earlier that day while tapping her fingernail against the desk in irritation.
"There you are," Chuck sighed in relief as he stepped into his office. He went to kiss her forehead, but the scowl on her face told him to keep his distance. His eyes narrowed in on folder that he had accidentally left out the previous evening.
"Care to explain this?" she spoke out icily as her eyes gestured towards the folder.
He opened his mouth to explain what she was referencing, but no words would come.
"Chuck," she prompted him in the hopes to break him from his trance as she watched the tears build in his eyes.
"I needed to know," he whispered as his knees buckled, and he collapsed to the floor at her feet. He crawled towards her and rested his head on her lap, "I need to know how I killed my mother."
Blair could feel the panic begin to build as she watched Chuck fall. She wanted to go to him, but her pregnant body refused to move. "Chuck," she gasped as she began working her fingers through his hair in an attempt to comfort him, "You didn't kill your mother. This file proves that."
"She never should have had me," he shook his head as his tears began to spill, "She went against doctors' orders and got pregnant with me. She knew having me could end her life. She gambled and lost."
"There was a risk that she was willing to take because she wanted you so much," Blair explained as she lifted his head to look into his eyes, "I understand where she is coming from. She knew how amazing you would turn out . . .Why didn't you tell me you were looking into this? You had to have known that I would understand."
"I didn't want to put that negativity into your head," he explained as tears continued to fall, "It's been bad enough to have it into mine."
"You and I are a team, Chuck," she reminded him as she began to brush her own tears away, "From the day we finally put aside all of our games and told each other how we felt, we have been a team. If you're having anxiety about this, I need to know. I can't help you if you won't talk to me."
"How can you help me?" he sniffled, "My mother died giving birth to me. Nothing you do can change that." He cried quietly for a few moments as Blair tried to find the right words to comfort him.
"I'm going to be okay," she whispered softly as he rested his head against her stomach. He could feel the gentle kicks of their child against his cheek. Even with all of the pain and anger he currently felt, the sensation brought a faint smile to his face.
"You have no idea how much I want to believe that," he sighed as he kissed her stomach softly.
"Did you read this?" she inquired as she motioned towards the folder once more. She earned a glare in response. "Did you really read this," she insisted as she held up the folder in front of his face, "Did you compare your mother's pregnancy to mine? Do you see how much smoother my pregnancy has gone? There have been no complications unlike with your mother. I was given a clean bill of health before I got pregnant. I'm not on bed rest. After the initial wave of morning sickness, I haven't had any negative symptoms, and the morning sickness ended before you even knew I was pregnant. That was the reason I hesitated for so long in telling you."
"I can't live without you," he proclaimed as he leaned in and captured her lips for a desperate kiss, "I'll turn into Bart if I lose you."
"You wouldn't," she assured him as she reached for his hand and threaded hers into it as she shook her head, "If something ever happened to me, you would never let yourself turn into him. What is just as important is that we have so many people around us that would never allow you to do that . . . Serena, Nate, Lily, Eric . . . the list goes on. You would give our child all of the love and attention that they need."
"I won't know what to do without you," he sobbed. He began to shake as his fears took over. "You have taught me all the important life lessons like how to truly trust people, how to feel my emotions without being ashamed of them, how to be happy, how to be in love, how to live life . . . I won't know how to be a father without you."
"I'm not going anywhere," she assured him as she bent forward as much as she could and kissed the top of his head, "We'll figure this parenting thing out together."
He nodded against her stomach, which he heard begin to rumble.
"You're hungry, let's have dinner," he stated as he pushed the tears out of his eyes and stood up.
"I can wait," she assured him as he pulled her to her feet, "I want you to tell me all of the fears and doubts that you're having."
"You've heard them all," he replied as he kissed her forehead as he brought her arms around his shoulders and pulled her in close.
"Promise," she requested. She knew that by making him promise that he would air any additional doubts that he was having. He'd never promise if he hadn't aired them all because that would be a lie, and he never lied to her.
"I promise," he nodded as she rose up on her tiptoes and kissed him.
"What do you say to our child during your private time?" she inquired as they both lay in the bathtub that evening after they had finished dinner. She had managed to convince him to join her that evening with very little effort. She could see that his mind was still preoccupied from their discussion before dinner. She hoped that a soothing bath would take his mind off of the dark thoughts that still appeared to be floating through his head.
"Don't you listen?" he inquired as he ran the loofah across her skin as her head fell back against his chest.
"That's your time with our child. I would never invade that," she gasped when the sponge ran along one of her sensitive nipples.
"I start by telling him or her how much I love them and their beautiful mother, and how I can't wait to hold them for the first time. I promise that they will have everything that they could ever want. I tell them to be good to you and to not make you too uncomfortable. I tell them stories, both from the fairytales that I read you and real stories about our life together. Of course, I lay down the rules as to what it means to be a Bass," he explained, "Mostly, I just want our child to get used to my voice."
"That's so sweet," she replied as she turned to look into his eyes. He leaned in and kissed her.
"What do you say to our child?" he inquired. He knew that she talked to their child throughout the day when nobody was around to hear her.
"Most recently, I told her to stop kicking me in the ribs or bladder," she chuckled, "But really I tell them the same thing you do."
"You keep referring to our child as a her," he pointed out, "You know something."
"I know nothing other than the feeling that I have," she assured him, "I just feel that this is going to be a girl. I think that you'll be getting your wish."
"Another little Blair running around with perfect ringlet pigtails and a perfectly pressed designer outfit," he smiled broadly. The picture of her in his head from the childhood was flawless. It was as if it happened only yesterday.
"But you can forget about our little girl wear the white gloves," she insisted as she cringed at the memory, "My mother made me wear them, and I hated them."
"I know," he chuckled as a memory that he somehow had forgotten came flooding back, "You always peeled them off as soon as you knew your mother wasn't looking."
"You really were paying attention," she stated.
"To every moment," he replied as he nodded his head against her shoulder, "I don't know that I have a memory from our childhood that doesn't involve you in some way. Even the memories that I have of just me and Nathaniel has some mention of you. I distinctly remember one conversation in which I tried unsuccessfully to convince him that you had cooties."
"Why would you do that?" she gasped in horror.
"Because he kept saying that he wanted to kiss you, and I couldn't let that happen," he defended himself.
"How old were you when this conversation took place?" she inquired as her anger subsided as quickly as it formed.
"No older than ten," he recalled, "And it was obvious that our conversation didn't have its intended affect because he told me that at Chrissy Jenkins's birthday party that he kissed you and got to second base during your turn in the closet."
"That was when we were eleven," she remembered, "And he was so lying. He didn't lay one finger or lip on me. He started hyperventilating as soon as the door closed. Did you know that he used to be claustrophobic?"
"Seriously?" he responded in surprise, "He didn't touch you?"
"I'm going to kill him," Blair hissed, "I felt sorry for him so I told him that he could tell everyone that we kissed, but that was it. Plus I didn't want everyone thinking that I was being my usual prissy Blair Waldorf. Had I known that he was telling everyone that he felt me up, I would have ratted him out."
"He only told me," Chuck assured her as his hand circled her stomach rhythmically, "That was when I first gave up the notion of one day becoming your boyfriend. I knew you would only do something like that with someone that you truly cared about. I think that might have been around the time I smoked pot for the first time to take the edge off of what I was feeling."
"Do you think that if I assaulted Nate in my current condition that I could get off by pleading temporary insanity?" she mused as her cheeks flushed with anger.
Chuck laughed out loud at her question.
"I'm serious," she snapped, "I really want to do him bodily harm right now. How dare he A) sully my reputation by telling you he got to second base on me, and B) hurt you like that."
"It all worked out in the end, Love," he stated smoothly as he kissed her temple as he reached out for her wedding ring around her neck as he held it out for her to view, "You are my wife and the mother of my unborn child. I wouldn't trade what we currently have for redoing the past."
"Neither would I," she sighed as she relaxed against him finally.
TBC . . . .
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