Thanks for all of the reviews! Here's the next chapter. Sadly, there will only be about four or so more. Maybe more, maybe less. But here it is! Enjoy, and remember to let me know just how much you enjoyed it or didn't enjoy it (though I doubt you won't enjoy it… heehee) and hit that little blue button that says Submit Review on it, because I love it when people hit that little button. It makes me all warm and fuzzy inside…
Chapter 12: Back on Track
The silence was deafening and awkward and Blair couldn't take anymore.
"Damn it! Stop being so quiet! Stop looking everywhere else!" She snapped.
Chuck's head snapped up to look at her, though he didn't exactly look at her. She was pretty sure he was looking at her nose.
"What? Is my nose suddenly more interesting than the rest of my face?"
Chuck's eyes snapped up, like his head just moments ago, to look into her eyes. She almost smirked at the sense of control she felt over him. But she wouldn't smirk because she wasn't supposed to have control. That was part of the enticement of being with Chuck, no need for her to be completely in control. With Nate it was always her controlling him because it was what they did, but with Chuck, it was like a clean slate, she didn't have to be demanding and she could trust that Chuck didn't want nor need her controlling attitude. With Nate, it sometimes felt like he needed her to be controlling and wanted her to be the dominant one in the relationship, so that he could sit back a coast through it all while admiring Serena from afar.
She felt a twinge of something stir in her gut as they maintained eye contact, but just as soon as the moment had started, Chuck's eyes looked away, leaving her frowning and angry. Was it so hard to just look at her? Was she really that ugly?
"Shit. I forgot to call Serena. She's going to kill me." He muttered, taking out his phone.
He started to get up to leave, but she stopped him with a hand on his arm. He turned to look back at her, and was surprised to find confusion reflected in her eyes.
"What?" He asked her, frowning. Since when was Blair Waldorf confused about anything?
"Why are you leaving?" She asked, and there was an underlying hurt to her tone that made Chuck want to kick himself. He just didn't know how to act around her right now, but from the look on her face, his uncertainty was causing her self-doubts to rise to the surface.
I mean, come on, we're in a hospital, she just woke up from a two and a half week coma. What am I supposed to say? He thought as he answered, "You're not allowed to use cell phones in a hospital…"
She gave him a pointed look, "Since when do you care about that? You've used a cell phone in a hospital before…"
He smirked, "True… But I wouldn't want to kill anyone or anything…"
"Then use the phone right there."
Chuck looked over to see a phone on the table across from the bed. How did I not see that before? he wondered. Blair raised an eyebrow at him and he caved, raising his hands in mock surrender and walking over to the phone. As he dialled, Blair considered what was going on. Chuck was avoiding looking at her, he was uncharacteristically silent, he was jumping at the chance to leave the room, but yet she'd heard his confession to her father. Did his feelings change or something?
Her thoughts were interrupted by Chuck's voice into the phone.
"Hey Sis."
"Well, practically. The wedding's in three weeks. Just trying to get us both accustomed to the word."
"Whatever."
"No, not much, just phoned with an update as per your request."
"No, not really any change except that her eyes are open," He said into the phone, without changing his tone. Suddenly, he flinched and pulled the phone away from his ear and Blair grinned as Serena's screech was probably heard throughout the hospital.
"OHMYGOD CHUCK! SHE'S AWAKE? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?"
"Ow, watch it Sis. I had ear drums you know!"
There was a softer response Blair took to be a 'sorry'.
The conversation went on for a few more seconds before Chuck hung up the phone and returned to his chair. Then, startling Blair, he spoke.
"I just don't know what to say anymore Blair."
She frowned.
"I don't know how to talk to you. Come on, what am I supposed to say? Hey Blair, wow you just woke up from a coma! You look great, how've you been? Let's face it, there's no right conversation topic for this kind of situation…"
Blair had to give him that. There really wasn't anything to talk about that didn't seem unsuited for the situation.
"You could… tell me about all of the latest gossip…" She suggested. Really, she wanted to know if he'd tell her about their relationship being exposed and Nate's visit. Chuck gave her a crooked smile.
Neither quite knew how or why it happened, but one second they were staring at each other, and the next their lips crashed together in what had to be the most passionate kiss either of them had ever experienced. Blair felt the feeling in her gut that she'd first experienced when she'd held eye contact with Chuck a few moments ago return, but this time she knew what it was. It was desire. It was her need to have Chuck with her. It was so corny she almost laughed, but she couldn't because her lips were occupied at the moment. She felt the desire burn through her as she wrapped her arms around his neck, running a hand through his hair, pulling his mouth more firmly against hers, deepening the kiss. Somehow they readjusted themselves so that Blair was half-sitting, half-laying, leaning against the propped up head of the bed and Chuck was sitting on the side of the bed, leaning into her, his left hand placed lightly across her body, resting on her right hip, his left balancing him so that he didn't squish her. If possible, their kisses became even more passionate, both wanting more, needing more.
If they would have been paying attention, they would have heard the excited clicking of Jimmy Choos on the tile floor and the squealing that announced Serena's presence down the hall, but they weren't, so her appearance was a surprise they didn't notice until they heard a shriek.
"OOOOOOOOO! B! You're awa- Ewwwwww! Oh gross! GROOSSSSSSSSS! I did NOT need to see that!" She screeched, turning away, covering her eyes as the couple broke apart in surprise, turning to see what her outburst was all about.
Blair pressed her lips together in an effort not to smile and Chuck looked thoroughly amused at Serena's reaction.
"I think I'm just going to go… gouge my eyes out now… Don't want the image of my best friend and soon to be step-brother eating each other's faces in my mind forever…"
"Oh come on, S, we weren't eating each other…" Blair tried to contain her laughter.
"Yeah, it was more like snacking," Chuck filled in. Blair couldn't stop it anymore, she started laughing as Serena gave a disgusted squeal again, flapping her hands, then bringing them up to cover her face.
Just to bug her some more, as soon as she uncovered her face, Chuck leaned in and kissed Blair again. Serena wrinkled her nose as Blair didn't protest. However, when the two started to look like they'd forgotten she was even there anymore, she cleared her throat; Quietly at first, and then louder when the sound didn't register. The two broke apart, guilty expressions on their faces.
"Sorry S. Kinda forgot you were there…" Blair said.
"Yeah, you really should give more of a presence in the room Sis."
Serena rolled her eyes, "Are you two done now?"
"Not quite," Blair grinned. And to emphasize her point, she sat up and kissed Chuck again, except this time she made sure it was short, so Serena wouldn't run away. Serena shuddered as she watched the two of them. How they could be so affectionate when they were the two least affectionate people she knew was beyond her.
"So, anyways. Speaking of more pleasant things than that-" Serena started, only to be cut off by Blair.
"Actually, I found that very pleasant, didn't you, Chuck?" She asked as if they simply discussing a movie.
Chuck nodded his agreement, as both turned to Serena with matching smirks on their faces.
"Ok, now that's just scary," Serena stated as she took in how much alike they looked at that very moment.
Their smirks turned into grins and they disentangled themselves from each other, Chuck moving back into the bedside chair.
"So, how long have you been awake B? I assumed Chuck called me the minute your eyes fluttered, didn't he?" She asked the last part in a dangerous tone.
Blair decided to tell the truth, just for the sheer amusement of seeing her best friend react, "Well, taking into account your travel time and the doctor's check up, as well as the phone call... about an hour."
Chuck actually looked frightened. Blair grinned as she could see the steam spouting from Serena's ears.
"CHUUUUUUUUUCK! YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO TELL ME THE MINUTE SHE WOKE UP, NOT THE HOUR!!" She screamed, scrambling around the bed, grabbing a rolled up newspaper that Blair's father had left there on one of his visits. Chuck's eyes widened as he anticipated what was coming, stood up, trying to escape. However, he began to regret his decision to sit on the opposite side of the bed from the door when he realized there was no escaping the crazed girl charging him. So, he took the only defence he could: He cowered in the corner and tried to deflect her anger, expressed through repeated whacks with the newspaper. Blair was laughing by now; Chuck was such a wimp sometimes.
"Whoa, whoa. Must the newspaper be punished?" Came a very familiar, warm voice that Blair loved.
"Daddy!" She exclaimed happily.
"Blair-bear!" he said in reply as they hugged, and he kissed her cheek.
As soon as he said that Blair's cheeks turned slightly pink. She caught Chuck and Serena's amused expressions out of the corner of her eye. S had finally stopped pummelling Chuck with the newspaper and they now stood in the corner of the room, Chuck still eyeing Serena warily. Serena took a step away from Chuck, and he thought that maybe it would be safe to skirt around her, but as he was passing, she whipped out her arm, catching him right in the stomach with the paper. Chuck made a loud OOMF! noise and Blair's head snapped over to the pair. She started laughing again.
"You know… Nate was much more macho than you. S, is he single?"
Chuck's head snapped up to see Blair grinning innocently. Serena laughed and Howard frowned as though he didn't quite get it.
Chuck grumbled something about he would've fought back if he could.
"Why didn't you?"
"'Cause it's mean to hit a girl, and even more mean to make her cry."
"Please, like you could make me cry," Serena said.
"Bet you I could."
"Really," It was more of a statement than an actual question.
"Really."
"Alright then, you try your hardest." Serena scoffed.
"I will. Oh, and by the way Sis, you have a little something stuck in your teeth," Chuck said, "Right about there," he indicated the place on his own teeth, then squinted, "Did you by any chance have a salad for lunch today?"
Serena rolled her eyes, "Nice try Chuck, but pretending that I have something in my teeth isn't going to make me cry."
"I'm not pretending. Just trying to give you a heads up is all. Consider it my good deed for the week."
"Really, so you do one good deed per week, and you pick her to do it for?" Blair asked him, squaring her jaw.
"Yeah, because you get them for free…" Chuck replied smoothly. Blair giggled in a very un-Blair-ish way, which made Serena giggle in a very Serena-ish way. Blair chose then to grimace just a little.
"But he's right S. You do have something in your teeth. I can't believe you wouldn't notice. It's kind of huge…"
Serena's smile died instantly, "Are you kidding?"
"Afraid not."
"Oh my gosh! B, why didn't you say something before?"
"I was trying to work on that whole nice thing like you suggested."
"B, that is not the time to try being nice! The time to be nice is when Jenny had her hair in pigtails and everybody smiled and told her how great it looked. When I have something huge in my teeth, that's the time to be a bitch and tell me there's something huge and ugly in my teeth!" Serena all but yelled, covering her mouth with her hand. "I was smiling my whole way here and people probably saw it and thought wow, what a loser. She's got a huge piece of lettuce stuck in her teeth, and she's smiling!" Serena worried to herself.
"Wait, Little J wore pigtails?" Blair asked in horror.
"Yeah, it was on Gossip Girl and everything. Looked really bad," Chuck filled in while Serena was still freaking out.
"And when I was at Dan's it was probably stuck too, but he's just wayyy too nice to say something about it… And the cab driver, he must have thought I was a hobo…" By this time, Serena's worries had started to border on impossibility. She was now ranting about how the receptionist most likely thought that she was here to get it surgically removed.
"Why didn't you guys tell me sooner?!" Serena asked, she was now on the verge of tears.
"Well, instead of sitting here freaking out about it, why don't you go remove it? It's really grossing me out." Blair wrinkled her nose. Howard made some excuse about going to get a coffee and left the room when Serena turned to them.
"See? Look what you made him do? He was so grossed out by your lettuce-teeth that he left!" Blair complained.
Serena's eyes widened even farther if it was possible, "Oh no! I'm such a freak!" And with that, she rushed off to the washroom attached to Blair's room to remove the offending lettuce. Chuck sat back down in the chair and grinned at her.
"3...2...1..."
"CHUUUUUUUCK! BLAAAAAAIIRRRR!" She screeched very loudly. The couple collapsed into laughter as a very angry Serena came storming back into the room.
"Told you…I could…make you…cry!" Chuck managed to get out through his laughter.
"I did not cry! Having food stuck in your teeth is nothing to cry about!" Serena replied.
"Yeah, but look at your face now!" Blair said, trying to regain her breath.
Serena turned and saw that it was true, she was so angry that tears running down her face. Not exactly the kind of crying she'd expected, but she was crying. Since she was extremely angry, she did the only thing that she could think of to release it. She picked up the rolled up newspaper she'd dropped at the foot of the bed and whacked both Chuck and Blair with it.
They erupted into fits of laughter until Howard re-entered the room.
"Guys, the nurses said that they understand you guys are happy and all, but could you please keep it down? You're going to disturb the other patients."
The trio nodded their heads, taking deep, calming breaths to stop their flow of laughter.
Once the laughter had ceased, Blair asked, "So… Can I see this picture of Jenny?"
And the laughter started right back up again.
A/N: That's the end of the chapter, but not the story just yet; Queen B has to return to school still. I was actually debating on where to leave this chapter, but decided here, because the whole chapter was just an upbeat kind of thing, and the other part would've brought it down. So I'll start with all the depressing stuff next chapter, I know you're so looking forward to it! Please, please, please review, because reviews are dandy!
