A/N: I don't own GG or One Republic.
Take all the time lost
All the days that I cost
Take what I took and
Give it back to you
All this time
We were waiting for each other
All this time
I was waiting for you
We got all these words
Can't waste them on another
So I'm straight in a straight line
Running back to you
"All This Time"
One Republic
Chuck rushed out of his limo, not even waiting for Arthur to come to a full stop. He glanced around quickly but couldn't see what he was looking for. Searching each side of the building, Chuck saw no sign of the young boy.
Worried that he had misread the message or that something had changed, Chuck reached into his pocket to fish out his phone.
Meet me at 51st and Madison. It's urgent!
He had read the message right, so where the hell was Will?
Chuck had been working on plans for BI's newest expansion when he had received the urgent message to meet Will. He had questioned why Will would be at The Palace, but had called Arthur to bring the limo around immediately nonetheless.
Now, standing on the street, Will nowhere in sight, Chuck began to question if this was just another trick of the young boys; something to pass the time while he sat in the hospital room.
He might have to teach him the meaning of the word "urgent" for future reference.
He scrolled through his phone to call Arthur back around and just as his thumb was poised on the send button, he heard his name ring out above the street noise.
"Chuck," came a familiar voice.
Looking around to find the face, Chuck's expression was a sight to behold. He was both happy and confused by her appearance and both showed equally on his handsome face.
"Chuck," she called again as she slowed to a stop in front of him.
"Blair," he questioned, "What are you doing here?"
And suddenly an idea dawned on him. "Did Will call you, because I can't find him anywhere."
"I'm not here because of Will."
"Oh," Chuck said, more confused than before as he began to take in her appearance.
She looked gorgeous. Of course, he always thought she looked gorgeous, but this was different. He could tell she had gone to extra lengths that day. She had even brought out her high school trademark, he noticed as he took in the silky headband, resting atop her even silkier curls.
"You look…" he began, "gorgeous."
She smiled at his compliment, happy that her efforts had not gone unnoticed.
"Thank you."
"And I really wish I could stay and see what you were up to, but I think Will really needs me. Or else I really need to kick his ass." Chuck said with a smirk.
On impulse, Chuck leaned down and placed a soft kiss on Blair's cheek, inhaling the scent of lavender and Dior that was uniquely Blair. As he turned toward the limo, he felt a gentle tug upon his lapel and found himself being turned back to face the brunette.
"Will doesn't need your help," she said calmly, a smile dancing in her chocolate eyes.
He stared at her skeptically as he waited for her to explain.
"I had him text you," she stated.
Pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place as he began to realize that Will had been a pawn in one of Blair's schemes. But a scheme for what? He would do anything she asked him to. Even things she didn't ask him to.
"Why couldn't you just call me?"
"I wanted it to be a surprise and I couldn't figure out another way to get you here," she said.
"Wanted what to be a surprise? And where is here? We're standing on a sidewalk," giving the normally brilliant girl a look that told her he had no clue what was going on.
Taking a deep breath, Blair reached out and took both of Chuck's hands in hers, surprised that her hands felt steady.
"I'm done waiting, Chuck," she said as she stared into his warm eyes. "I want to be with you. I don't want to wait anymore. When people ask me if you're my boyfriend I want to say yes. I want to be able to say that you're so much more. Chuck, I'm just, I'm just done," she finished with a shake of her head as she continued to hold his gaze and hands.
His grip on her hands had become immeasurably tight yet she had no intention of asking him to loosen his grasp.
She never wanted to let go.
"You want to be my girlfriend," Chuck teased, an amused smile dancing on his lips.
"No," Blair replied. "I want to be more, but I'll settle for girlfriend. At least for now."
"Hmmm," Chuck pretended to ponder for a moment, as his fingers began to lightly stroke her hands, her ring finger in particular, "Now why would you want to be my girlfriend?"
Blair rolled her eyes, but couldn't keep the dopey smile off her face as she replied, "Because I love you."
"I suppose that's a good enough reason," he mused, his faux air of indifference offset by the sparkle in his eyes.
Carefully he removed his hands from her grasp and slid them around her waist, bringing her forward until they were connected in the most innocent yet intimate way possible.
"I guess I could be your boyfriend," he whispered into her ear, his breath on her neck sending chills through her body.
She closed her eyes for a moment to bask in the moment. He was finally hers. They were finally together.
"That's all," she whispered lightly as she pulled back to lean her forehead against his.
"What more could you want," he said mischievously.
"Three words, eight letters," she breathed into the centimeter between them.
"I," he began, his lips now so close that they touched hers with every movement, "Love you."
As the last syllable fell from his lips she felt her arms lift to encircle his neck as they closed the miniscule space between them. Burying her fingers in the hair she had missed so dearly, Blair pressed herself against him, unable to get enough.
He wasn't nearly close enough and it couldn't last nearly long enough. It would never be enough. She would never be satisfied; she would never be able to get enough of him.
She sighed as he pushed his tongue deeper into her mouth and began to languidly stroke hers in a well-practiced way. She responded in kind but had to pull back to catch her breath after a few moments.
She would never understand how kissing him was always so new. Each kiss felt like the very first. There was still so much need and desire but mixed with an unmistakable bit of tenderness. The way he seemed to do the exact right thing at exactly the right time.
It wasn't just that he was a technically skilled kisser, though he certainly was. It was more in the way that he would hold one of her curls in his fingers as though it were the most delicate flower, as his tongue pressed against hers. It was the way that when he held her impossibly close, he would pull her closer still as if he could never get enough.
And that was fine with her, because she was quite sure that she'd never have her fill of him.
As their foreheads touched lightly, their breathing still uneven from the heated kiss, something crossed Chuck's mind.
"You said you wanted to do this here," Chuck asked dubiously, his mind still foggy from the kiss.
"Why did you want to become my girlfriend on this street corner? There are plenty of street corners in New York, why this particular one?" He said with a smile as he dragged her closer to him, looking at her shining face with wonder.
"Don't you remember," she said pulling back so she could look into his eyes as a dream-like expression crossed her features.
He shook his head slightly, wishing he could.
"It was four years ago," she said, trailing off. "Right after your father's funeral."
She paused for a moment, trying to assess his gaze if it was ok to continue. His slight nod was her cue to commence.
"You were upset and you had left. I ran after you," she answered with a wry smile on her face.
Chuck grimaced at this part, the memory flooding back-the look of hurt that had washed over her face when he had shut the limo door.
"And I told you I loved you," she said softly, squeezing her eyes shut as she pictured the moment.
"I remember," he said, cutting her off before she could finish, not wanting to be reminded of how he had left her there.
"So why here? Because it just seems like another place I let you down," he said sadly.
"Aren't there better places to serve as permanent reminders of our love?"
She nodded slightly.
"There are a million places in this city that could have been right," she mused softly.
"I picked here because," she paused, searching for the words. "Because this is where I knew. Knew that you were it for me. Knew that you were more important than my pride and that I didn't want to hide from what I felt anymore. Right here-on this street corner-the world rushing by, I knew there was no one else in the world for me. No one but you," she said as she gazed intently into his eyes as hers began to fill with tears.
"These past few years," she said with a shake of her head, "I've been trying to run from this moment. Run away from these feelings-from this place. But I just keep ending up here; standing in front of the Palace, watching you go and realizing how much I need you to stay," she said reaching up to brush his cheek.
"This is where forever started for me. It's where I want forever to start for us."
She stared at him, wondering what he'd have to say to her admission. She hadn't planned on saying all that, but she couldn't stop once she had started. If they were going to work this time, there could be no secrets, least of all secrets about how they felt. So she had opened her mouth and poured out her heart.
Without a word, his arm snaked around her waist again, pulling her close to him, but not all the way. He stared at her for a few moments. His lips were a breath away and just as she thought he was going to kiss her, he whispered two familiar words.
"You sure?"
Very much like the first time he had asked that question of her, a kiss on the lips was his only reply.
A/N: Shorter update but at least it didn't take two months! There are two-ish chapters after this. The next update will probably not be until September. Thanks for reading and thanks for reviewing!