AN: Hope you're all enjoying the story and where it's going so far :)
Monday morning found Blair perched upon a stool at the island in her kitchen, clutching her triple shot espresso that she prayed would be enough to help her power through the jet lag that seemed to be hitting her. As she flipped through the NY Times, her maid Alice brought over a parfait and green juice smoothie with an encouraging smile.
As a graduation gift to herself, Blair had purchased her very own Fifth Avenue penthouse just across from the Met. She poured all her energy into designing and decorating it to reflect the image in her mind and she was incredibly proud of the end results. Dorota had continued managing the Waldorf-Rose household Blair had grown up in, but agreed to also help with her own. In turn, Blair hired Alice, whom Dorota personally trained and oversaw. After a rigorous recruiting and interview process, Blair and Dorota agreed that Alice was the perfect fit. Over the last couple of years, Alice truly proved her worth and became Blair's right hand woman, next to Dorota.
Taking a deep breath and massaging her temples, Blair realized she couldn't ignore the call of the real world any longer. She gathered her smoothie, grabbed the coat that Alice was standing by with, and headed out the door to start her day.
Entering the office, Blair was greeted by her colleagues, as well as Mr. Kramer and Mr. McCarty who were all waiting with congratulations on the completion of the Tanaka case.
"Jimmy Tanaka could not say enough great things about you Blair," said Craig Kramer. "He's truly singing your praises to us and most likely to the rest of the business world. We're so proud of you!"
"You've really proven that you deserve your spot as a partner in this firm, Waldorf," added Alec McCarty. "We can't wait to see what you accomplish next!"
Truly taken aback and caught off guard by the onslaught of praise, Blair blushed slightly before thanking everyone and making her way to her office. As she was getting settled at her desk, her assistant Andrea popped in.
"Welcome back!," she greeted. "I thought you might be a little jet lagged so I pushed off all your meetings until after lunch so you can wade through your inbox first. Oh! And I have a bone dry capp on the way for you. It should be here by the time you finish your smoothie."
"You're truly a lifesaver, Andy," Blair offered. "Fingers crossed I don't crash before 2pm."
#
It was just after 8pm when Blair finally came up for air. Shaken from her focus on the contract she was currently analyzing, Andrea appeared in her doorway with a light knock.
"Sorry to bother you, Blair," she quickly apologized. "If you don't mind, I'm going to head out. I took the liberty of ordering you some dinner - the gem salad you love from Osteria 57 with some grilled salmon on the side."
"Oh my gosh. Andy. I'm so sorry - I didn't realize it was this late. You really didn't have to stick around. Go - go! Make sure you charge your Uber to the company card. It's too late for you to be taking the subway home."
"Thank you. I will. Try not to work too late, huh? The firm will still be here in the morning," Andrea replied in jest, fully aware that Blair would continue working for at least another two hours. "Here's a copy of your schedule tomorrow so you can get some things in order for that before you leave. And here's the latest briefing on the Cranston case."
Blair eagerly accepted the print outs and bid her faithful assistant good night.
Still on Tokyo and Singapore time, Blair found herself with a burst of energy that she used to power through the next few hours.
#
It was just after midnight when Blair finally sunk into her bed. She was pretty sure she slept walked from the towncar through the lobby and on the elevator ride up.
Feeling only a little relieved that she had survived the day, she drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
Around 4am, Blair found herself wide awake and decided to use her energy to get in a quick workout. Only a select few were aware of Blair's athletic habits that she had honed during college.
As she set her pace on the treadmill, Blair thought back to her freshman year at NYU. With Serena wrapped up in her will she/won't she saga surrounding her potential venture to Brown and Nate fully immersed in his studies at Columbia and his family pressures to pursue a political career, Blair often found herself alone and even floundering in her own academic career. Without minions and the Met steps, she had an abundance of energy to focus elsewhere and eventually that manifested itself in a relapse of her bulimia.
She'd managed to keep this under wraps until a month into the spring semester when, during one of their quarterly secret trysts, Chuck noticed how frail she looked and how her ribs had begun to protrude. As they lay nestled together in his bed, he worked up the nerve to broach the topic and ask Blair if everything was okay. Though she was rather defensive at first, the weight of her secret and the idea of lying to the one person she had always felt most herself around wore her down. Blair broke down in his arms and confessed that she had begun binging and purging around midterms in the fall semester. At first it was just a release for the bundle of nerves she had resigned herself to. Soon it became a weekly and eventually daily habit. He vowed to get her the help she needed to fight this and stand by her every step of the way. After working with a new therapist and dietician, Blair forged a new, healthy lifestyle complete with an exercise regimen to direct her focus and energy towards in a way that would help nurture her body instead of hurt it.
Blair couldn't suppress the laugh that bubbled up in her at the memory of Chuck hiring a trainer and insisting upon joining her in her quest for a healthy lifestyle. He showed up for their first private pilates class in the most absurd purple outfit. While she was fully aware of their mutual love for the color, she knew his overly flamboyant attire was more of a means of diffusing the nerves she was feeling about actually embarking on this new habit than it was Chuck flexing his fashion muscles.
#
By 6am, Blair was showered, dressed, fed, and on her way to the office, green smoothie in hand. She cheerfully greeted Andrea and then got straight to work. There were a few calls she had to take before the meeting that was on her calendar later that morning.
At 11am on the dot, Blair's phone rang with a call from Andrea informing her that her meeting had arrived. Furrowing her brow, Blair realized she wasn't exactly sure who this meeting was with or what it was about and braced herself for the mystery meeting's arrival.
"Hmm, so this is your office?," Chuck observed.
"I wasn't aware that this meeting fell into the pleasure category."
"Unfortunately, beautiful, this is strictly business - though I am amenable to blending the two," he smarmed.
"Well then, please have a seat Mr. Bass. Can I have my assistant fetch you any refreshments?"
Assuring Blair that wouldn't be necessary, Chuck settled into the couch in her office and waited for her to move to join him in the sitting area.
"As you know, this Friday's gala is to announce the Bass Foundation's initiative for the upcoming year."
Blair nodded in agreement.
"Well until yesterday we hadn't decided on what the focus of the initiative would be and I think it would be a wonderful opportunity for you to get involved."
"Me?"
"Yes. We're looking to establish a program to help the underprivileged gain access to the tools necessary to break into the business world and start their careers. I'm picturing a full 360 experience - mentorship, job placement, and, most importantly, access to appropriate attire to achieve it all."
"And you want me to be involved how?"
"I want you to spearhead the program. I can't think of a more successful, established individual than you. You're a total catch in every sense of the word, Waldorf, and these people would be lucky to have you coaching them. What do you say? Please say you'll do it," Chuck practically begged.
Pausing to consider the proposition, Blair finally relented, "Would I have complete control?"
"Final call on all aspects of the program. Scouts honor."
"And I get to vet everyone - staff and candidates alike?"
"Absolutely."
"I'm in, Bass."
They shared the smiles they reserved for one another before Chuck stood to extend his hand and seal the deal with a shake.
"I'm forever indebted to you, Waldorf. I'll have my secretary send Andrea all the information. We'll announce it on Friday."
"I'm looking forward to it. Pleasure doing business with you, Bass," she winked.
#
Once Chuck had gone, Blair got back to work on the Cranston case and powered through until 7pm. Packing up for the day, she retreated to her penthouse to have dinner and spent the rest of the night outlining her mission, vision, and pledge for her new mentorship program through the Bass Foundation.
As she worked through her ideas, her phone vibrated next to her.
New Message from Chuck
I hope you're not still working. Even you need your beauty rest.
New Message from Blair
What are you implying, motherchucker? And how exactly do you think I'll be able to work as a partner in the firm AND spearhead BF's newest program without working late?
New Message from Chuck
All jokes aside - I don't want you to overwork yourself or spread yourself too thin, B. You'll have a substantial budget. You can allocate some funds to hire staff to run this full time while you just oversee the execution.
New Message from Blair
Do you know me? When have I ever been okay with delegating responsibility when it comes to a project that has my name on it? Don't worry, Bass. I've got it under control.
New Message from Chuck
Promise you'll let me know if it's too much?
New Message from Blair
Pinky promise.
Refocusing on her plans, Blair was able to get through most of her ideas before 11pm. After a long soak in her large clawfoot tub, she was ready for bed with hopes that she could sleep past 4am tonight.