Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.
"Now you have to listen to the doctors," Harold told Blair as she walked slowly into her home. Both he and Chuck were at her side.
Chuck could see each step pained her, but she was trying not to let anyone see her wincing. She was being stubborn. Her doctors had wanted her to stay in the hospital for at least one more day for observation, but she'd used her charms to get released. She'd even talked her way into getting the cast removed on her left wrist, opting for a second brace instead.
"I will, Daddy," Blair nodded.
"Charles, I'm counting on you to make her follow orders," Harold told her doting boyfriend.
"I will," Chuck nodded with a small smile.
"I'm going to go lay down," Blair announced as she touched Chuck's cheek softly.
"I'll come lay with you in a few minutes," Chuck told her as he kissed her forehead softly as he urged her towards their bedroom. She nodded slightly as she disappeared from their view.
"This is the calm before the storm," Harold warned the young man.
"I know," Chuck nodded, "When things sink in, I know she's going to start freaking out."
"Her doctors recommended a therapist for post traumatic stress," Harold stated.
"You know she'll never agree to therapy," Chuck shook his head, "She grumbles when she has to go to her therapist for her eating disorder."
"I know you love her, and I'm sure you think you can get her through anything on your love alone. This is different, Charles," Harold told him gently, "She was attacked. She has bruises covering nearly every part of her body . . ."
"I know that!" Chuck hollered, "And it could have been so much worse. He could have had a weapon, a knife or a gun. He could have pinned her down and for . . . forc . . ."
"She may not be the only one that could do with therapy," Harold told him softly as he reached out to touch Chuck's shoulder to calm him down.
"I should have been here," Chuck brushed his hand away abruptly. "She should have been able to come home every night and tell me about her day. She would have told me about the flowers. I would have gone ballistic, but I would have stepped in to ensure that this asshole knew to stay clear. He never would have had the chance to try this."
"This isn't your fault," Harold stated, "I've talked to the police. This man was dangerous. He's done this to other woman. Some weren't as lucky as my little girl. He was a ticking time bomb. It was only a matter of time before he struck again. I know this isn't a comfort to you, but he's in jail now. He can't hurt Blair again, and I know you well enough to know that you'll make sure he stays where he belongs."
"I want to confront him," Chuck scowled at Harold, his eyes dark with anger, his irises completely black.
"Now is not the time, Charles," Harold tried to calm him down. "Right now, my little girl needs you. I'm not going to be the one she going to turn to. We both know I haven't been that person in a long time. You are."
"Focus on Blair," Chuck replied.
"Focus on Blair," Harold repeated as he encouraged Chuck to take several deep breaths.
"I'm going to go lay with her," Chuck stated, "Feel free to stay if you like."
"No," Harold smiled, "Roman and I are staying with Cyrus and Eleanor. Blair needs her space. I just wanted to see that she was settled. We'll all stop by tomorrow to check on her."
"I'll walk you out," Chuck offered.
"Go to her, Charles," Harold guided Chuck towards his own bedroom.
Blair jumped slightly when Chuck crawled into bed next to her and lightly put his arm around her waist.
"It's just me," he whispered into her ear as he kissed her lobe softly.
"Sorry," she mumbled as she forced herself to relax into his embrace. "Did Daddy leave?"
"Yes," he nodded slightly as he buried his head in the crook of her neck, "He's staying at your mother's. He said he'll be back tomorrow."
"Are you able to stay for awhile, or do you have to go right back to Japan?" she asked quietly.
"I'm done in Japan," he told her quickly, "I'll be here as long as you need me."
"But you weren't finished," she replied. "Last we spoke, you said you probably would be pushing right up to the July first deadline."
"I'm done," he repeated, "Anything else that needs to be done will be done from here in New York."
"Good."
"Do you want to talk about what happened yet?" he tried to broach the subject gently.
"No," she shook her head slightly. "I just want to sleep, with you next to me, if that's alright?"
"Of course," he nodded. "Whatever you need from me, I'll do."
"Thank you, Chuck," she sighed.
"I love you, Blair," he replied.
Blair choked up at his proclamation. He felt her sobs begin before the tears started flowing. Chuck continued on with his proclamation, repeating it over and over, as he tried to help her navigate through the heartbreaking sobs.
Chuck awoke to a darkened room. He had no idea what time it was, but he knew he was alone in bed. Blair's side was vacant and cold. He was about to call out for her when he heard the shower running. Through the glass he could see her scrubbing her body vigorously with the loofah, suds flowing steadily down the drain. As he opened the door, she jumped in fright as she turned towards him, tears streaming down her face.
"Blair," he began.
"I can't get clean," she sobbed as she continued to scrub away, "I'm almost through the entire bottle of bodywash, and I can still feel his hands all over me. I need another bottle. Please get me another bottle."
"Blair, stop," he told her as he reached out to still her hands, "You're going to rub your skin raw."
"I can't," she responded as she fought free of his grasp. "I need to get clean. When I'm clean then maybe I can sleep."
Chuck stepped into the shower, completely clothed, and put his arms around her, stilling all of her actions. The loofah fell to the shower floor.
"Don't touch me," she screamed out as she thrashed around, elbowing him in the stomach as she frantically tried to break free. Chuck groaned at the contact and wanted to double over in pain but knew he couldn't. He had to focus on Blair. "Don't fucking touch me! I'm dirty!"
"You're not dirty," Chuck tried to assure her as he stepped a safe distance away from her, "Blair, you're beautiful."
"Look at me, Chuck, I'm covered in bruises from head to toe. I can barely see out of either eye, yet even I can see how hideous I look," Blair hollered.
"I don't see the bruises when I look at you," he tried to explain, "I see the woman that I love. I see the woman that I'm planning on spending the rest of my life with."
"You're a fucking idiot then," she snarled at him, "And you are completely blind. How can you say that you love me and want to spend the rest of your life with me, when you abandoned me for five months and let this happen to me."
Chuck froze at her words. The thoughts that he'd been having since the moment he got to her had been verbalized. They hadn't come from him, but her. She was blaming him as much as he was blaming himself.
"Get out," she demanded, "I can't handle being naked in front of you right now, and you touching me makes my skin crawl. Maybe you should sleep in one of the guest rooms right now."
"Okay," he nodded numbly as he stepped out of the shower and reached for the nearest towel. "I do love you, Blair. You can keep pushing me away right now, but now that I'm going to continue to be there for you. We are going to get through this. We are going to have that life together."
"Don't count on it," she muttered as she slammed the shower door shut.
Chuck laid in the guest bed, tossing and turning as he tried to get comfortable. Try as though he might, he just couldn't. The bed felt as hard as a rock even though it was the exact style mattress that he and Blair shared in their bedroom. Exhaustion appeared to finally be winning out though as he began to drift off into a light sleep. The door to the bedroom opened slowly. The light from the hallway hit his eyes instantly.
"Chuck, are you asleep?" Blair whispered softly as she crept closer to the bed.
"No," he replied, trying to keep his tone light so as not to frighten her. "I can't seem to get comfortable.
"Will you come back to bed?" she asked meekly. "I can't sleep. Every little noise frightens me."
"I thought you wanted some distance right now," he replied gently.
"I want sleep," she replied. Her voice broke as she added, "Please."
He nodded as she pulled the covers away from his body. He was dressed in the silk pajama bottoms he'd pulled from his dresser drawer earlier. He thought he remembered the top, but when he went to dress for bed, it had mysteriously disappeared. He hadn't wanted to wake her by going in search of the missing garment, so he decided to make due with what he had. As she grasped his hand and pulled him back to their bedroom the mystery was quickly solved as she was wearing the top. She must have snuck into his bedroom sometime before he'd gone to bed and taken it.
"I'm sorry about what I said earlier," Blair stated as she climbed into their bed, instantly curling herself against him, practically demanding that his arms wrap around her body. "Your touch doesn't make my skin crawl."
"You're going through a difficult time right now," he made the excuse for her. "Just know that I'm going to be there for you through all of this. Whatever you need me to do, I'll do it, even if it's sleep in the other bedroom for awhile."
"Just hold me," she told him as she rolled so her back was facing him. She pulled his arms tighter around her body until she felt his chest pulled in tight against her back. "I don't want to be alone right now."
"You will never be alone," he told her as he tentatively placed his hand over her heart. "Even when I'm not physically with you, I'm in your heart."
"Go to sleep, Chuck," she replied as her head fell back against the pillows.
"I love you, Beautiful," he whispered as his hand fell to a more neutral position. She nodded slightly in acknowledgment, but didn't repeat the words back. The silence in the room was deafening, but soon her rhythmic breathing filled the silence and he was able to finally drift off.
"Blair, Sweetheart," Eleanor greeted her daughter cheerfully the next morning. She and Cyrus had arranged with Chuck to stop by first thing in the morning. "You're eyes are open this morning. You're looking so much better."
The swelling in Blair's eyes had gone down considerably overnight. Her eyes, like the rest of her bruises were still a hideous purple, but it was progress that she was going to take, though when she looked in the mirror to get dressed, she wished her eyes were still swollen closed. She looked dreadful.
Eleanor went to hug her, but Blair stepped away. There was a pained expression on Eleanor's face as she did so, but Blair couldn't handle anyone touching her at the moment. Cyrus was very understanding and kept his distance.
"The swelling went down overnight," Blair nodded. "It was a miracle really. I woke up this morning and was able to see."
"Did you sleep well?" Eleanor asked as she followed Blair to the breakfast table where there was a gigantic spread of all Blair's favorite breakfast dishes.
Blair shrugged her shoulders and nodded, but she wasn't telling the truth. She'd woken up several times screaming into the darkness that surrounded her. Chuck tried to comfort her, but she flinched at his touch and moved herself as far away from him on the mattress as she could.
"Where is Daddy and Roman?" she asked.
"Your father had a little business to take care of this morning. They'll be stopping by as soon as it's finished," Eleanor explained. "Blair, I was hoping to take you on a shopping spree today. Your father graciously handed over his credit card and said we can go wild. What do you say?"
"No, thank you," she shook her head as she pushed her breakfast around her plate but none of it was going into her mouth.
"You used to love our crazy shopping sprees," Eleanor frowned.
"Not today," she shook her head again. "I'm a little tired. I think I'm going back to bed."
"Did you want me to come with you?" Chuck offered as she stood up.
"No," she smiled slightly as she caressed his cheek in a gesture of gratitude. Her fingers dusted along his lips for a brief moment before she left the room.
"Charles, how do we fix this?" Eleanor inquired as she looked to the man who she had despised over the course of the two years her daughter had been dating him.
"I have no idea," Chuck admitted. "One minute she's pushing me away. The next she's pulled me towards her. There really isn't an answer at the moment. I think we just need to wait this out and see where it takes us next."
"Did Harold talk to you about therapy?" Cyrus prodded gently.
"He mentioned it," Chuck nodded, "But I know Blair. She's not ready to talk about that just yet. She's not ready to talk about what happened yet with anyone, certainly someone that she doesn't know."
"Are you sure waiting is wise?" Eleanor pressed, "We waited with her bulimia and it was the worst thing we could have done."
"We wait," Chuck nodded.
"Okay," she nodded, "This is hard for me, Charles, but I'm trusting you to take care of my daughter right now."
"And I'll do everything in my power to assure you that your trust is not wasted," Chuck replied. "I love your daughter, Eleanor. I'm not going to put her wellbeing in jeopardy."
"I know, Charles," she smiled.
He looked at Blair's mother for a few moments. There were resemblances to her daughter throughout her features, but her smile and her eyes weren't two of them. Those were most definitely features she'd inherited from Harold.
"You must be happy to be home," Cyrus decided to change subjects.
"Thrilled to be home, yet not thrilled at the reason to be coming home," Chuck nodded.
"Are you here to stay?" Eleanor inquired.
"I'm finished with my trips to Japan for awhile," he nodded.
"Has anyone thought to ask Michael about Blair's internship?" Eleanor inquired.
"I talked to Lucy for a few moments at the hospital," Chuck nodded, "Blair can take as much time as she needs to recover. If she doesn't make it back for the rest of the summer, she'll be graded on the work that she's already done. Her work was exemplary, so her grade point average won't suffer. Michael is pretty concerned about her. He's in Paris right now, but when he returns Lucy said he might stop by to check on her."
"How is Blair going to get over this?" Eleanor gasped. "Good heavens she was attacked while at work by her boss."
"We'll just have to wait and see," Chuck responded as he stood up. "I'm going to go check on her. Will you excuse me for a few moments."
"Of course," Cyrus nodded.
"Chuck, I don't want visitors right now," Blair told Chuck when he entered their bedroom and laid out next to her, as he waited for some cue as to whether or not it was safe to touch her.
"Eleanor and Cyrus aren't visitors, Blair," he replied, "They're your family."
"I don't want family either," she shook her head, "Even Daddy. I don't want people to see me like this."
"It's okay to be a little self conscious right now, but you don't need to be embarrassed," he told her gently.
"Chuck, please, just keep everyone out," she demanded.
"What about Serena and Nate?" Chuck pressed.
"Them too," she stated after a moment of thought.
"Are you going to lock yourself away from everyone?" Chuck inquired. There was no anger or sarcasm in his tone. It was meant strictly as a question of information.
"Yes," she nodded.
"Even me?"
"I don't know," she replied, her voice breaking as she spoke.
"Blair, we love you, no matter how you look," he replied, "And we just want to help you through this."
"I know," she nodded as the tears tumbled down her checks, "I just don't know how any of you can help right now except to leave me alone."
"I'm not going to do that," he replied, "I'm not going to let you ignore this. It happened. We have to deal with it or it's going to drive us apart. I will never let that happen. I love you."
"Just go away, Chuck," she sniffled as she spoke. "Just let me deal with this in my own way."
"No," he told her, "Because your way is my way, and my way is to run from it."
"I just need time," she sobbed out.
"And you'll have that, but you won't spend that time all alone. I'm going to make you deal with this even if I have to take a leave of absence from Bass to do it."
"Chuck, look at me," Blair demanded, "Look at my face. I'm completely black and blue."
"But I still see my beautiful Blair," he told her as he caressed her face gently, "Your face will heal. The bruises will fade and disappear. Where will you be then if I just let you sulk all on your own?"
"I don't want your pity," she scowled at him as she brushed his hands away.
"You don't have my pity," he replied, "You have my love, unconditionally. You can scream at me and pound away at my chest as much as you want, but I'm going to be here every step of the way."
"Why can't you just do as I ask?" she growled.
"Because it's not going to help you," he replied. "We can go around in circles on this, but we're going to end up in the same place. Now get out of bed. Your mother and Cyrus came to see you, and Roman and your father will be here soon."
Blair nodded as she scooted herself off the bed. Chuck followed her out of the room as he prepared himself for the moment that she'd turn around and try to dart around him. He was very proud of her as she made her way back to the breakfast table without backing down.
"Feeling better, Sweetheart?" Eleanor inquired as Blair took her seat and did breakfast over again.
"A little," she nodded.
Eleanor's view of Chuck improved immensely as Blair was made to sit with them and face the situation instead of run and hide.
"How about a Hepburn marathon?" Chuck suggested after Blair's parents left for the day. She'd been quiet for most of the time she sat with her parents, but there were flashes of her usual self. He knew he had to keep her mind occupied with other things to keep her from losing herself in her own self-pity.
"Okay," she nodded, "Can we make popcorn?"
"Sure," he nodded, "Freshly popped or microwaved?"
"Fresh," she gave a tiny smile.
"Let's get out the popper," he added as he urged her towards the kitchen.
By the time they were done making the popcorn, half of it was black, the other half had remained unpopped, but Blair was laughing. It was worth the stench of burnt popcorn that hung in the air as they cuddled together in the media room with a bag of microwave popcorn and all of Blair's favorite Hepburn characters.
"Thank you for doing this, Bass," she smiled as they finished the last movie of the evening. She'd been drifting off, but trying to stay awake through the end. As the credits began to roll, he lifted her into his arms and was carrying her to bed.
"You're welcome, Waldorf," he replied as she ran her fingers through his hair. "Can we do it again tomorrow?"
"If you'd like," he nodded as he laid her in the bed.
"Will you stay with me tonight?" she looked up at him hopefully.
"Of course," he nodded, "You can even wear the night shirt you stole from me last night."
"I didn't steal anything," she gasped in mock surprise, "I merely borrowed."
"The one shirt that happened to go with what I was wearing," he replied.
"It's the one that is most comfortable," she pouted as she accepted the shirt he was offering. In truth it was the one that smelled most like him. She began unbuttoning her blouse, but froze as she looked up into his familiar eyes. "Will you turn around?"
"Blair," he began.
"Please," she pleaded with him as the tears glossed her eyes.
"I've seen the bruises already," he reminded her as he easily interpreted her hesitation.
"Please turn around," she requested again as a tear slid down her cheek.
Chuck bent down and kissed her cheek before complying with her request. She was doing as he asked and not hiding herself away from her problem like she wanted to. He had to give her this. He heard a bit of rustling as clothes fell to the floor, but it was the sniffles that stopped his heart. He had a horrible thought that perhaps he wouldn't be able to get her through this.
"Okay, I'm dressed," she told him as she scrambled under the covers to avoid him seeing the bruises on her thighs and legs.
"Blair, are you going to be able to get past this?" he inquired as he lay down next to her, on top of the covers so as to give her the space she seemed to need.
"Of course," she responded reflexively. "Chuck, this just happened three days ago. When the bruises go away, I'll be fine."
"Will you?" he pressed, "Is that really all it's going to take?"
"Yes, I'm hideous now, when I'm not anymore, I'll be fine," she stated empathetically.
"You're not hideous," he replied quickly. "You never could be, but you are bruised. That's the physical side of this, but there is a mental side to this that we cannot ignore. We need to talk about what happened."
"It's too soon," she shook her head.
"It's just me, Blair," he told her as he caressed her face softly, his fingers tracing around one of the many bruises. "You have nothing to be ashamed of with me. You have nothing that you have to hide from me."
"Just let this go for now," Blair hissed as she pushed his hand away roughly, "Let me deal with this in my own way. When I'm ready, I'll talk. Don't push me."
"We'll curb this discussion for now," he agreed, "But this isn't over."
TBC. . .