" What the hell is this, Blair ?" Nate asked accusatory as he held out the small rectangular object for her inspection.
Blair raised her eyebrows and gave him an uncertain smile. " A phone ?" she offered.
" Very funny." He sneered in response. " Don't you still get updates from Gossip Girl ? I would think you would already know exactly what I'm talking about."
Blair took an uneasy step closer to him and gave the phone a quick glance. " I don't follow Gossip Girl anymore because I'm a grown up now. I can't believe you still do." She lied shamelessly. The truth was her mother made them all turn off their cellphone during dinner and neither she nor Chuck had remembered to turn them back on when they left. Now she truly wished she had ignored her mother and just put her phone on vibrate. At least then she would have been prepared for Nate's anger and really she couldn't blame him.
Sitting there for all the world to see was a picture of Blair leaning against Chuck's limo with Chuck leaning against her. The amateur camera person had managed to get a magnificent shot of the two of them tangled up so tightly together that there was no mistaking what was happening. Chuck's tongue was half way down her throat and it was clear she was not resisting him in any way.
" I didn't want you to find out like this." She muttered more to herself than to Nate. But he heard her and it did nothing to alter his anger. In fact it seemed to add more fuel.
" What exactly didn't you want me to find out ?" He demanded shoving his phone back into his pocket forcefully.
It rang before she had a chance to answer him. When he snatched it back out, he let out a quiet growl as he glanced at the screen to identify the caller. Then he hit the talk button and let out a sharp, "WHAT!"
Blair watched him in silence as he began to pace and run his hands through his hair roughly. He was ignoring her for the most part as he listened to his phone call, only casting her an occasional evil glare.
Then suddenly he stopped walking and sank down into a near by chair, resting with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands.
Blair was so intent on him, she jumped when she heard a voice coming from down the long, high ceiling hallway that lead through the length of the Archibald Mansion.
" And I really have no other excuse." Chuck was saying though his words were still a fair distance away. " I love her and she loves me."
Nate looked up at Blair briefly and she immediately looked away. It had never been her intention to hurt Nate. That wasn't something she ever wanted to do. Nate had been nothing but kind to her throughout their entire ordeal. She owed him more than this. But she wasn't sure how to make it up to him.
" You say you love her, Man." Chuck said as he came into the room and lowered his phone from his ear. " If that's true then you want what's best for her."
Nate's eyes were still resting on her when he lowered his own phone and flipped it shut.
" You were only marrying me because your father wanted you to ?" He asked her.
Blair nodded but still refused to look at him.
" This was all just one of your schemes." Nate muttered. " I never thought I'd get caught in the middle of one of these."
" That's not what this was." Chuck said, walking up behind Blair but not touching her. He stood slightly behind her shoulder, ready to step in if things got too out of hand. It was a protective gesture and Blair suddenly felt more confident and safe knowing he was there.
" We never wanted to hurt you." She finally managed as she purposefully pulled her eyes back to him.
" We just didn't know any other way."
" You could have let me in on all this. I might have gone along with you." He retorted.
Chuck snorted. " Come on now, Nathanial. We all know you better than that. You're conscious would have gotten the better of you Besides you are the worst liar I have ever seen."
Nate huffed but didn't deny the accusation. " Would you have gone through with it ?" He asked after a quiet moment lost in thought. " Would you really have married me to make your father happy ?"
" I don't know." She answered truthfully.
" I think maybe you should both just leave. I don't want to see either of you for a while." Nate announced as he stood up and turned his back towards them.
Blair felt Chuck take her hand and try to pull her away. She let him reluctantly while everything inside her wanted to stay and try to make Nate understand.
Guilt pulled down on her like a lead weight strapped to her feet as she glanced back over her shoulder at where her former fiancée stood.
Chuck's hand tighten on hers and she look at him to find him doing the same thing she was. His face a study of regret and self-condemnation. He was losing more than she was as they walked away and she understood that.
The handful of people Chuck counted as his friends were all he really had in the world and the man they were leaving had been one of the most important people in his life. They had shared a childhood together, shared more than that. Nate was, most times while they were growing up, the only person Chuck had in the world besides her that really cared about him. Or at least that was how Chuck felt. His father cared and somewhere deep down Chuck had always known that. But his absences were frequent. Nate and Blair were often the only constants Chuck had in his life.
They were barely through the front door of the mansion when she stopped walking and pulled Chuck into her by their still joined hands. She wrapped her arms around him and felt him sag against her in a way he rarely ever did.
Chuck was the strong one between them. He was their strength. He hardly ever let his emotions get the better of him. But right then he was allowing her to take control, letting her see a part of him she had only witness on the rare occasion before.
" I'm sorry." She whispered against his cheek softly.
He took a moment to pull himself together before straightening against her and moving out of her arms. " He'll come around." Chuck assured her. " I know him. He won't stay mad forever."
" You were supposed to wait in the car until I called you. How did you know to call him instead ?" She asked as they started towards the waiting limo.
" I saw the blast on Gossip Girl as soon as I turned on my phone." He admitted.
" You still get Gossip Girl updates ?" She almost giggled.
" So do you." He accused her, knowing full well he was right.
" So what now ?" She asked, as she into the buttery leather seats and waited for him to join her.
" Now its' over and we get to stop hiding and sneaking around. Everyone knows, or they will soon enough." He held up his phone as evidence.
They barely felt the limo pull away from the curb when both their phones rang simultaneously. Each reached for them in unison.
" Oh my God." Blair gasped out in surprise.
" That fucking, self righteous, hypocrite." Chuck muttered under his breath.
She read the headline over and over again as if she wasn't certain she understood what it was telling her. But the picture that followed left no doubt about what was happening.
Spotted a very engaged Archibald and a very familiar face that certainly isn't his Queen-to-B. Didn't we just get a shot a few hours ago of Queen Bee reeling in her very own prize winning Bass ? Looks like the wedding is off for our favorite 'IT' couple But it doesn't look like either side is complaining.