Trigger Warning: Infant loss is discussed in the flashback at the beginning. If that bothers you, you can skip the italicized section.

Chapter 26

Epilogue

April 11, 2020

Blair drew a deep breath as Serena's shaking hands tied the crystal-embellished rose gold sash over her already swollen bump. At 17 weeks along with twins, she'd grown much quicker than expected, and she sighed in relief that her dress still fit her perfectly. She and Chuck agreed that they wanted to get married as soon as possible, but they wanted to wait until he had transitioned into his position at Bass Industries so that a long honeymoon wouldn't cause more stress than necessary.

Chuck was already on edge, constantly worrying about Blair and the twins. She had continuously reassured him that she was fine, but he grew more anxious with each passing day. She tried not to push him because she knew that his fears resulted from his experience with Landry and Everly, but he was starting to suffocate her. He'd insisted on hiring a night nurse for the times that he couldn't be there, and Blair felt like she never had a single moment to herself. She remembered the moment that it finally hit her, and she couldn't remain silent any longer.

"Miss Blair, you shouldn't be up. Mister Chuck would have a fit if he knew you were coming down the stairs by yourself this late at night," Lydia admonished softly. Her employers had put her in a precarious position; Blair was a headstrong woman who strived every day to maintain her independence, while Chuck was a stubborn man who was fiercely protective of his fiance. He had all but ordered Lydia to guarantee that Blair stayed in bed and didn't attempt the stairs on her own at any time that he wasn't home. Chuck had practically put Blair on bedrest himself despite the doctor's clear explanation that she was healthy and as low risk as a woman carrying twins could be.

"Lydia, you didn't see anything. What Mr. Chuck doesn't know won't hurt him. I know he means well, but I am perfectly capable of making a cup of tea. Your services are not needed," Blair desperately tried not to take her frustrations out on the girl in front of her. She knew better than anyone how intimidating Chuck can be to the help. His intentions were pure, but his application was suffocating and unrealistic. As Blair searched for her favorite teacup, she had to stand on her tiptoes to reach the top shelf. Her fingers barely brushed against the porcelain, but she couldn't quite get a grip on it. As she tried to work it into her grasp, the fragile cup fell from the cupboard and shattered into a hundred glass shards at her feet. "Shit," she cursed under her breath when one of the sharper fragments pierced her foot, causing her to bleed more than one would expect from such an insignificant cut.

Lydia rushed to her side with a first aid kit and led her to sit on the nearest chair so she could bandage her wound. "Miss Blair, I really wish you would let me help you. It's why I'm -"

"What the hell?" Chuck muttered under his breath at the sight of blood dripping from Blair's toes with Lydia working to clean her up. He immediately ran to her side and knelt in front of her, taking her hand in his own, "Are you okay? What are you doing down here?"

"Chuck, I just dropped a teacup. I'm fine. It looks worse than it actually is," she sighed at her soon-to-be husband's overreaction.

He released a breath and placed his hand gently on her stomach in a subconscious gesture to calm himself and the babies, "Why are you down here Blair?" he repeated. "We talked about this. You're supposed to stay upstairs when I'm not here. That's what Lydia is for. She could've brought you tea. You can't risk getting hurt like this, especially when I'm not home. I wish I could be here all the time, but this is the only other way I know how to protect you."

She had to close her eyes. It was all too much. She loved him; she loves him so much, but he was making her miserable. "I can't do this, Chuck," she whispered quietly, no longer able to suppress the tears as they rolled freely down her cheeks.

Lydia looked up at her employer, knowing where the conversation was headed. She quickly finished bandaging Blair's foot and excused herself from what she knew was a private conversation. Chuck kissed Blair's knuckles softly, "What do you mean that you can't do this, Blair? What's 'this'?"

"I can't live like this. You're treating me like a porcelain doll, and I know why you're doing it. I love you, but you're suffocating me. I feel like a prisoner in my own home. I don't need a babysitter, and I desperately need some time to myself. I'm not fragile, and I'm not going to break by walking down the stairs. What happened to Landry was a tragedy, but it was a freak accident. She was running down the stairs. I hold the rail every time. I'm careful. I -" she was sobbing and could no longer finish her sentence.

He lifted her into his arms and carried her to the sofa, pulling her swollen feet into his lap careful to avoid the cut. Chuck stroked her hair softly as the tears continued to fall, and he cursed himself for making her feel trapped because of his own crushing fear. "I'm so sorry," he soothed. "I'm so sorry."

She lifted her head slightly to look at him, and she saw guilt reflecting in his eyes. "Chuck, we've never really talked about Everly," she spoke so quietly she wasn't even sure that he heard her. She remembered back to the time in September when she and Landry discussed Everly's death, but she had never been brave enough to really broach the subject with Chuck. She had thought that he would want to talk about it after he found out that she was pregnant, but he still hadn't brought up the topic at all.

She saw his jaw tighten as he swallowed hard and diverted his eyes - the tell-tale signs that he was struggling to keep his emotions under control. He remained silent for several moments as she caressed his hand that rested tensely against her upper thigh. Finally he spoke, "I'm sorry that I made you feel suffocated. I just wanted to protect you and the babies as best I could. I didn't think about what it was doing to you."

He was purposely avoiding the conversation. She knew it was for the same reason that he had procrastinated so long in meeting Millie - it would hurt too much, and it's easier for him to keep the pain locked away in the back of his mind than to allow it to consume him so wholly.

Pulling her feet under herself, she turned her body to face him more directly and used her hand to force his face to hers. "Chuck, I don't want to push you, but this is important. Please don't shut me out. Please talk to me."

"It's been over three years, Blair," his voice was even gruffer than usual.

"That doesn't mean -"

He cut her off with further explanation, "It's been over three years, and it still hurts as much as it did on that day. If I don't talk about it - about her - then I get a little reprieve. The ache is still there, but the pain isn't quite as crushing." His chin shook slightly, and his eyes shined with unshed tears, "Every day, I wonder who she would've been. Would she have Landry's black hair and my stubbornness? What would her little voice sound like when she says 'Daddy'? There's a piece of my heart missing; she took it with her, and I'll never get it back -" His voice finally cracked under the weight of the emotion, and he was no longer able to hold back. For the first time since the night in the hospital when he held his daughter's stillborn body, he allowed the tears to fall freely from his eyes while Blair sat silently and listened as she stroked his hands and arms as reassuringly as she could, "I feel like I'm bleeding, but there's no bandage that can soak it all up. If I allow myself to think about her too long, it's like all of the air has been pulled from my lungs, and I'm drowning so slowly that I'll never actually die, just continue living in perpetual hell without enough oxygen to fully breathe."

Blair didn't know how to respond; in all the years that she'd known Chuck, he had never been this open and raw with her. Even with his father's 'death' in high school, he had remained more guarded than he was now. It's as if something had opened, and now he was finally able to let it all out. She remembered the gift that she had bought for him after her discussion with Landry; she'd originally intended on giving it to him at Christmas, but it just didn't feel appropriate with his father's return and her pregnancy announcement. She squeezed his hands, and whispered, "I've got something for you. I'll be right back, I promise."

She found the small box where she'd hidden it months earlier in a drawer in the hall bathroom where she kept the linens that they never used. Returning to the couch, she handed him the box and watched anxiously as he tore open the ribbon. The rich satin box inside was engraved EBC 7.25.2016. His chin quivered when he pulled out the two silver cufflinks from their cushioned surroundings in the satin container. He had to close his eyes and bury his head in his hands to keep from losing control of himself.

Blair reached for the cufflinks gently and replaced the pair on his suit jacket. After he regained his composure, he looked up at her through swollen eyelids as she spoke softly, "Landry told me how much comfort the necklace you made for her brings her everyday. She feels like she always has a piece of Everly with her. With her help, I was able to find a jeweler to make an exact, tiny replica of her handprints for one and footprints for the other. She existed, she was part of you, and her life mattered. I want us to honor her memory as your daughter, Chuck."

He leaned in with trembling lips and kissed her gently while tears continued to flow from his eyes. She couldn't keep her own tears from falling, as he continued to pour every ounce of emotion that he was feeling into that kiss. When he finally pulled away, he rested his forehead against hers, and murmured, "I love you. I don't have the words to explain how much."

"I love you, too, and that's why I'm asking you to see a grief counselor. You can't keep this bottled up anymore, Chuck. We have to find a way for you to feel the pain, but also be able to talk about Everly. I know it's important to you that our children know about their sister."

The next morning he set up the appointment, and as hard as it was, it helped him tremendously in being able to sort through his guilt over his daughter's death and his ability to move on while still honoring her memory.

Now Blair stood in front of the large full length mirror in the bridal suite just an hour before it was time to walk down the aisle. She looked up at her friend and saw tears reflecting in her bright blue eyes. "Oh, B," Serena whispered, "No one has ever looked more beautiful." A tear slid down her cheek as she wrapped her arms around Blair's waist, pressing her palms to the sides of her swollen belly, silently expressing her love to the babies growing there.

Blair took in the image staring back at her in the mirror. She never imagined that this is how she would look on her wedding day. In high school, she was certain that she would have a fancy fairytale wedding with Nate, complete with a puffy Cinderella-esque gown, with doves released into the sky as she and her knight rode away in a horse-drawn carriage. Then, when she'd gotten engaged to Louis, she'd prepared herself to have a real fairytale wedding, which meant that she would have very little control over the details, including all of the royal traditions that had been passed down over the years. She was positive that she would've lost the real Blair Waldorf to either one of those marriages.

A large smile spread across her face as she realized that she didn't need Chuck Bass to be Blair Waldorf, but she never felt more like her real self than when she was with him. With Nate and Louis, she was a pretty accessory; with Chuck, she was a true equal. He worked hard every day to make sure she knew her worth outside of him. She was powerful - period. Not because she was the future wife of Chuck Bass or because she was Eleanor Waldorf's daughter or because she was Serena van der Woodsen's best friend. But because she was Blair Waldorf (soon-to-be Waldorf-Bass), and she was a storm waiting to bring New York to its knees. He had no doubt that she'd do it; he believed in her more than he believed in himself, more than he believed in the air he breathed, and it was that unwavering confidence that he had in her that inspired her to take an unprecedented risk in rebranding and remarketing Waldorf Designs to a younger demographic. The company was already seeing the positive results of Blair's vision.

Her long blush colored gown skimmed her swollen bump beautifully and displayed just enough cleavage to be both tasteful and subtly sexy. She'd opted for a low chignon swept off the base of her neck to show off the Erikson Beamon necklace that Chuck had gifted her so many years earlier. Blair spoke so softly that Serena wasn't sure if it was directed toward her or her friend's reflection, "I can't believe this is real. It's all I've ever wanted in life, but I never thought I would make it to this point."

Serena smiled in understanding at her friend, whom she had witnessed crumble at Chuck's departure and finally come alive again after his return. She'd always known that there was no one else in the world for either of them, but she was afraid that they'd never be able to overcome their many obstacles to make it to this point. Watching Blair smile at herself, Serena realized that this is how a bride should feel on her wedding day - not the uncertainty and fear that she had felt the day that she married Dan. "B, I'm so happy for you," A tear trickled down Serena's cheek, "I've never seen two people who love each other more than you two. It's like you're never fully breathing without each other. I love you so much."

"I love you, too, S," She turned and embraced Serena in a deep hug that spoke more than the words that either one of them could form, "Thank you for being my sister. I wouldn't be here without you."

A light knock shook them from the moment, and Nate peeked his head in through the door. "Wow, Blair, you've never looked more beautiful. Chuck's truly a lucky man." He walked toward her and kissed her on the cheek, before placing a navy envelope in her hand with the gold foil signature CB inscription on the front of it. "He asked me to give you this."

He grabbed Serena's hand and pulled her from the room to give Blair some privacy to read Chuck's letter. She opened it carefully to preserve the envelope, and she found sophisticated stationery inside that she knew he reserved for his most important correspondence. She grinned to herself, running a finger gingerly over his perfect penmanship before reading his words:

Blair, my love,

I'm not even sure how to start this letter because words will never come close to explaining what you mean to me. Every morning when I wake up, it all feels like a beautiful dream because surely I don't deserve you - not after everything I've done to you, not with how perfect you are.

You're more than my fiance, my wife, my love. All of those words are wonderful, but you're just more - always more. You're my reason for existing. Without you, life doesn't have meaning. Without you, I'm lost, and I'm not sure I even want to be found. For those ten years apart from you, I was alive, but I wasn't living. Everything was dark, cold, and empty without you.

But with you, everything is clearer. With you, everything shines brighter, and happiness no longer feels like a myth. You're the fire that ignited my soul to finally burn with the intensity of lightning. You're the art that finally brought color and joy into my black heart.

Simply put, you're everything, and I was nothing before you.

Thank you for choosing me. I'll spend the rest of my life trying to figure out why just to prove to you that, while you deserve better, no one will ever treat you better than I will. I'll give you the world, no matter what it costs me because you are my only reason for breathing.

Always,

-C

XOXO

Chuck paced impatiently in the groom's suite, waiting for the notification that it was time to begin. To anyone who didn't know him as well as Landry, he appeared nervous - like the kind of anxiety that grooms get when they aren't sure if they made the right choice and their feet start to grow cold in their expensive shoes. Landry knew, though, that her ex-husband was anxious for entirely different reasons. This was the one thing that he had wanted for as long as he could remember - from the moment that he realized that his feelings for Blair were a kind of rare love that few people ever get to experience in life. Chuck Bass was anxious to be Blair Waldorf's husband - nothing else in the world mattered as much as this moment that would finally make everything - every shed tear, every broken heart, every stabbing pain, every kiss, every I love you, every embrace, every argument - real and worthwhile. Everything they had endured led them to this moment.

Landry couldn't help but smile as she watched him check his watch for the sixth time in the past fifteen minutes. For someone who always seemed so confident, he acted as though Blair would change her mind if he didn't marry her immediately. "She's not going anywhere you know," Landry teased.

He looked at her and smirked, "I almost lost her forever. I can't make her mine soon enough. It's way past due."

Landry felt tears prick the corners of her eyes as she stood from the sofa and walked toward Chuck. He looked so handsome, and she was overcome with emotion to see how indescribably happy he finally was. At one point in her life, she had wished to be the source of his happiness, but now she knew that this moment was the perfect culmination of all their heartache and pain. She was going to stand beside her best friend as he married the love of his life, and the beauty of that realization felt overwhelming. She placed her arms on his shoulders, and he wrapped his tightly around her slim waist pulling her into a deep hug that sent waves of comfort through both of their bodies. She stroked his hair softly, and whispered against his ear, "I love you so much. I'm so proud of the man you've become, Chuck. Blair is such a lucky woman. Truly. I hope you can believe that."

He kissed her temple sweetly, and asked, "How did I get so lucky to have you by my side through everything? I have never deserved you."

She simply smiled at him before handing him a long blush-colored envelope with soft pink flowers blooming in the corners with bubbly letters reading To My Love. "Blair sent this. She looks beautiful. You really might just fall to your knees when you see her."

Chuck took the letter from her and tried to open it as carefully as possible, knowing that Blair would want to keep it in her treasure chest. He found himself smiling at her words as he read, imagining the way they sounded from her lips.

My Dearest Chuck,

All the articles announcing our engagement talked about how we reignited our love when you returned to New York in August, but the truth is that there was no need for it to be reignited because it never ended. I have loved you more fiercely than I ever thought it was possible to love another human being, but I continue to grow more and more in love with you every day. Right now, as I put this pen to paper, I cannot imagine how I could possibly love you more tomorrow than I do right now, but I know that somehow I will.

At the reunion, I knew that you had ruined me the minute I put my arms around your neck for the first time in ten years. I was immediately transported to the Snowflake Ball, where I realized for the first time that you were it for me. There was no use in fighting it; you were right - we were inevitable. Time didn't matter for us because our love transcends such trivial concepts.

I know that you will never believe that you deserve me. You somehow have it in your head that I am too good for you, but, Chuck, you don't see the beauty in your fractured soul that I see every time I look into your eyes. You've matured into a man who gives his love freely and selflessly. You carry the weight of the world on your shoulders so that I don't have to. I've forgiven you wholly and completely for everything in our past (just as I know that you have forgiven me); please don't go into our wedding with any doubts of your worthiness because you are the only person on this planet who could make me this happy.

Your love is all I need in this life.

I never thought I would be lucky enough to carry the babies of my true love. Thank you for that gift. Thank you for being you.

Yours forever,

-Blair

He stared at the paper in his hands for several moments, allowing himself to absorb her words and let them wash away any self-doubt he may still have. Before he even realized that he had let the tears fall, a perfect wet spot formed into a small circle next to Blair's elegant signature.

She was his safe space.

His light in the darkness.

His everything and his forever.

XOXO

Eleanor had spent most of the wedding day, busily bossing the staff around, overseeing decor and centerpieces, and obsessively double checking the checklist. When she first heard of the return of Charles Bass, she was filled with a great fear and dread that was accompanied by a morbid curiosity. She'd never fully forgiven Chuck for what he put Blair through the summer after he left. When she had seen the shell that her daughter had become over the Bass boy, she had been ready to hire a hitman. She had never been so scared in her life as the time when Serena called her to let her know that she'd had to take Blair to the hospital due to severe dehydration from uncontrollable vomiting. Those fears were reawakened when she got word that Chuck was back and that he was married to a beautiful young Australian girl.

She'd fully expected for Blair to fall apart again, but instead, her daughter had proven herself to be one of the strongest women she'd ever known. Blair had prepared herself to lose Chuck all over again, but she maintained her composure and refused to allow herself to fall apart. Eleanor watched her daughter grow strong and independent at the thought of letting Chuck go once and for all, but then she saw her face speak more joy than had ever been written in her eyes in her entire life. She finally realized that her daughter's path to fulfillment was on Chuck's arm, so she had hesitantly given him her blessing when he had asked for before proposing to Blair. It wasn't that she didn't like Chuck; in fact, she had always had a soft spot for the young playboy. Her reluctance had more to do with the fact that she knew that he held Blair's entire heart in the palms of his hands. She was relieved when they rekindled their relationship because she saw Blair come alive for the first time in years. It wasn't until Chuck's ring was on her finger that she saw how truly empty Blair had been with Louis.

She opened the door to the bridal suite softly and felt her eyes well with tears when she saw her only child standing in the center of the room in the custom-made gown she had created to skim effortlessly over Blair's emerging bump. Eleanor wasn't a woman who showed her emotions easily, but the image of Blair looking so angelic overwhelmed her heart. It wasn't just the fact that her baby was getting married, but that she was also building a family of her own with the precious lives growing in her womb. If she were honest, she would say that she could never picture Blair as a mother when she was younger; she had too much of Eleanor in her to ever seem maternal, but now, she could barely remember Blair without the warm glow of motherhood reflecting in her porcelain face. Pride radiated through Eleanor as she approached her daughter and embraced her in a tight hug that relayed the message that she hoped Blair understood: I love you, and I'm proud of you.

When Blair pulled back from her mother's hug, she saw tears shining in her eyes, and, feeling herself overcome with emotions, she joked, "C'mon now, Mother, none of that. We didn't spend two hours perfecting my make-up for it to be ruined with tears."

Eleanor chuckled, thankful for her daughter's well-timed humor, and told her, "You've never looked lovelier." Lowering her hand to Blair's stomach affectionately, "Motherhood suits you."

XOXO

Lily found Chuck sitting quietly with a scotch in his hand, staring absently out the large window. He appeared calm and steady, but Lily could see the tightness etched on his face indicating that his mind was racing.

Approaching her adopted son, she took the plush chair next to him and placed her hand on his knee, "You look so handsome, Charles."

He gave her a kind smile, allowing her soothing voice to wash over him. "Thank you, Lily."

"Blair is radiant," she told him, as if it was possible for him to be unaware how perfect Blair would look. "What's on your mind?"

"After everything I've done in my life, I don't deserve this happiness," he said it so quietly that he wasn't sure if she actually heard him.

"Our past actions don't dictate our paths, Charles," she assured him in understanding. In the time that she'd known him, she'd discovered how much he internalized his guilt and relentless feelings of unworthiness. His self-doubt ran so deeply that she was afraid that he would never completely accept his good fortune without feeling undeserving; this was especially true when it came to Blair and the babies. "You cannot change anything that's happened in the past, but you can spend the rest of your life making up for it. Blair has chosen you because she sees you for who you are - a man who loves fiercely with all that he is. Those babies will never know a single moment of what it feels like to be unloved or unwanted because of who you and Blair are. It's my hope that one day you will see yourself the way I see you, the way Blair sees you, and the way your children will see you. I love you - unconditionally."

He stood and embraced the woman who'd been more of a mother to him than anyone else in his life, and he tried to allow himself to believe her sincere words, "I love you, too."

XOXO

As Blair stood in front of the large oak double doors that led to the rooftop garden where they had chosen to have their ceremony, she felt waves of serenity wash over her. Her babies were kicking happily in her womb, as if they were silently speaking their support for the union of their parents.

She had elected to walk down the aisle alone, explaining to both Harold and Cyrus that her choice was not one she'd made lightly, but she felt like the act was a symbolic gesture to Chuck, indicating that she was making a conscious choice to give herself to him wholly and completely - that it was him, her, and their babies from that moment forward.

As the door finally opened and the soft hum of the processional began to fill her ears, she gripped her bouquet tightly over her bump and stepped onto the rose-gold runway laid out before her, littered with soft pink petals from Camilla's basket. Her eyes found him, and the world stopped. She watched his throat ripple as he swallowed at the sight of her. This aisle led down the path that she was always destined to take. She believed in that certainty as much as she believed in the realness of their love. She locked her eyes on his and everyone around them slowly disappeared until they were the only two people in the world.

When Chuck saw her, it was like he was seeing her clearly for the first time. He had no clue how he was still standing because he felt as though he had stopped breathing. She was always beautiful, but this was something else entirely. She looked like an ethereal goddess, an angel of light who was too pure for earth. His palms felt clammy, clasped together in front of him, begging to pull her to him. He felt like he was staring straight into the sun: her presence was a bright light of captivating radiance that both mesmerised and blinded him at the same time. His heart pounded with a thud - boom boom, boom boom - with each step that brought her closer to him. The subtle golden amber hues around her eyes pierced into his so fiercely that he could read the emotion in her expression even from such a far distance.

Serena watched Chuck the entire time. Over the years, she'd seen a multitude of emotions from this man: mostly negative and reactionary if she were honest - jealousy, contempt, frustration, anger. But today, she saw a man who was metaphorically brought to his knees by the sight of the woman whom he loves so passionately that flames danced in his eyes. Chuck's face was almost always fixed into a cold stoicism - something she realized was a learned defense mechanism, but now as he watched Blair with an intensity that made her falter for a brief moment, she saw a softness that she didn't even know he was capable of. Finally, looking back toward Blair, she saw the same fire burning on her face. She could almost see the invisible force that pulled Blair toward Chuck like a magnet. Despite the large space filled with people, not a single other person existed to either of them.

It was Blair and Chuck, forever, for the rest of their lives.

When Blair finally reached the altar, the tiniest tear trickled from the corner of Chuck's eye, and he whispered, "I love you," so that only she could hear him. They were vaguely aware of the minister welcoming their guests, but neither one heard anything besides their echoing heartbeats.

The officiant made a few well-timed jokes and the congregation laughed, but Chuck's eyes continued to bore into Blair's, while his hands stroked her fingers sweetly. She was thankful that they had hired the best videographer that money could buy because she was so overwhelmed by the intensity of her emotions that she missed nearly every word of the ceremony.

Finally, she realized that Chuck was speaking to her, and she gave him all of her attention, determined to soak in his words and memorize this moment. He blew out a slow breath as he started his vows that he'd written the night he proposed to her, "Blair, I'm not always great at keeping my promises, which you know better than anyone else. I know that I will screw up, but I will spend every single day of our lives proving to you that you are my only reason for existing. Where I'm weak, you give me strength. Where I'm broken, you mend the fractures. Where I'm lost in darkness, you guide me into the light. You make me whole, and, no matter where life takes us, you are my home. I can't promise to carry you because you're stronger than I could ever hope to be, but I promise to be right by your side in every battle that you face. The truest promise I can give you is this: I will always love you - no matter what happens, no matter who tries to convince you otherwise, no matter how much our children test us - my love for you will be as constant as the sunrise each morning and the sunset each evening. You're my forever."

"Chuck," Blair's voice cracked under the weight of her emotions as tears streamed freely over her rouged cheeks. She felt his hands grip hers a little tighter, while his thumbs brushed soothingly over her knuckles reminding her that she was only speaking to him, "I gave myself to you when we were teenagers before I even really knew what it meant to love you. Since that day, my heart has belonged to you and only you. My love for you has grown infinitely for the past twelve years. Even when it all seemed impossible, I still clung to the hope that your love inspired in me. I have always believed in you, so now I will spend my life teaching you to believe in yourself. I will do everything in my power to help you see your true worth. You're so much more than my husband, but the English language has yet to create a word to describe what you are to me. You're everything - my strength, my weakness, my love, my whole life. It took us a while to find our way back to each other, but you once said it yourself, we are inevitable. I would've waited another ten or twenty or one hundred years to experience life with you. You are the only ending to my story."

It took all the willpower Chuck possessed not to pull Blair to him after her vows and kiss her breathless. The officiant seemed to be rather verbose in his statements, but after their declarations of intent and exchange of rings, he finally spoke the words they had been waiting to hear for their entire lives: "By the power invested in me by the state of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

As soon as Chuck registered the officiant's permission, he dipped Blair back dramatically and lowered his mouth to hers. Her hand reached to caress his cheek before he pulled back reluctantly, not willing to give the congregation more of a show than that. She nuzzled her nose playfully against his and released a girlish giggle as he righted her. The officiant declared, "It is my great pleasure to introduce to you for the first time - Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bass."

Her smile outshone all of the lights blazing brightly against the New York skyline, and her truly radiant joy caused his heart to swell with pride. She was this happy because of him. As he searched deep in her eyes, he came to the simplest realization: she was love and joy personified.

A/N: This story has been quite a labor of love for me, and I am so thankful to all of you for going on this journey with me. I believe that, of all my stories, I am most attached to this one, so this was a very emotional chapter for me to write. I had originally intended to discuss the rest of Blair's pregnancy, the birth of the twins, and early parenthood in this epilogue, but it was becoming too long, and it honestly felt like it would be too messy to try to squeeze all of that in. I am considering writing either a second epilogue or a short sequel to follow up on the rest of their story. Please let me know if you are interested in either of those.