Well, here it is: the final chapter. I'm not one for author's closings, but I have to say one thing. Writing is my love, and whenever I finish any long story that I've been writing I become a little saddened. It feels like something that I've put so much effort into is done in the blink of an eye. I'm sure anyone reading this who also writes for enjoyment knows what I'm talking about. However, I really, really loved writing this story and I thank everyone who has read and supported it. I wrote the first chapter as a total gamble, not expecting it to receive the reviews it has. Thank you so much to you all; and yes, I will definitely write and post more stories here (go Waldass fluff!). It's been too much fun not to do it again.
The Music in Me: Chapter 7
Chuck froze, and then involuntarily shook his head as his music teacher faced him with harsh, questioning eyes.
"I can't," Chuck said. Mr. Smith seemed confused.
"Why not?" he asked. Chuck rocked on his heels a little and put his arms behind his back. He cleared his throat, trying to push his uneasiness down to his feet. "Why didn't I think about this option?!" he asked himself. "This is the last thing we needed."
"I can't sing alone in front of people," Chuck made up a lie. Mr. Smith raised an eyebrow and studied Chuck's face.
"That's strange. You're always a very confident individual. Maybe even too much for your own good." Chuck almost frowned at that, but instead just smiled nervously. Mr. Smith straightened up, his chest sticking out. Chuck tried not to frown. He normally could think up lies on spot, but he knew Mr. Smith was wary of him.
"Maybe someone else could get a chance. Someone just as good," Chuck suggested.
"I already told you, you're the best singer in my class. You'll do it," Mr. Smith said. It wasn't a matter of choice anymore. The teacher began to turn around, when suddenly he faced Chuck once more. "If it will help, your father will be proud of you. He's sitting out there with his fiancée, Lily Van Der Woodsen. He won't be expecting you to walk out." Chuck was taken aback, as if he had just been hit with something.
"My dad is here?" Chuck asked, trying not to sound too surprised. His father never came to anything he was in. It was a huge shock to Chuck's system. Luckily, Mr. Smith didn't seem to realize.
"Yes. He's sitting in the third row," Mr. Smith said. He smiled a little. "Good luck, Mr. Bass. I'll see you backstage in a few minutes." He turned and walked away, leaving Chuck standing alone and baffled. He wondered why his father was there, when suddenly he heard a whisper.
"Chuck!" Chuck turned and saw Dan and Nate.
"We'll meet you at the limo outside!" Dan whispered. The two tried to sprint away on tiptoe. Chuck watched them go, then he looked back towards the stage. He crossed his arms and sighed. He had told his father about the concert, but he hadn't expected anything to come out of it--like Bart actually showing up. A small smile formed at Chuck's lips, and he almost laughed. People always said that he was full of surprises. Now he knew where he got it from. He was more like his father than he sometimes wished he was.
The smile vanished, and Chuck started pacing slowly back and forth. He sighed again and brought a hand back behind his head. He stopped walking and his face turned red as he considered his options on what to do.
Chuck knew that he could make both; he would just be really late to the band's performance. If he went out onstage and took Nate's solo, his father would see what he had been doing. He might even be a little proud. Not only that, but all of the parents of the rich St. Jude's boys would recognize the hidden talent he possessed. That would surely score some points with Bart.
Then Chuck thought about the band. He knew how angry Dan, Nate, and Carter would be with him if he were late. He didn't know how long the club crowd would hold off, either. A vision of Blair came to Chuck's mind. If she showed up and he wasn't there, she may be upset. Chuck closed his eyes, his stomach doing flip flops. He could deal with Dan and Nate alienating him again; Nate would probably forgive him in the end anyhow. But he couldn't lose Blair. If there was one thing he couldn't handle, it was that.
Chuck opened his eyes back up, a glint of resolution flickering in them. He realized how good he would make his dad look if he took the solo. Chuck was always secretly worried about his dad's opinion of him. It hung over his head constantly. Did his father ever care to ask him what he was up to? Never. He always assumed it was the same old crap.
Chuck took a deep breath, knowing what he was going to do. He was going to the people who did wonder about him and who did encourage him. Throughout his life, Chuck never thought he had a real family. He was wrong: his friends were his family. They had known each other since they were young, with the exception of Dan. Blair, Nate, and even Serena were in his earliest memories. Unlike Bart, his friends were always on call if he needed them.
"Moon River…wider than a mile. I'm crossing you in style…someday…"
Chuck turned his head slowly to the stage doors. He heard the high voices of Jenny and the other Constance a cappella girls resounding through the walls. Chuck thought he recognized the song, oddly enough. He walked forward, entering the enveloping blackness surrounding the stage doors. He grasped the handle of the door on the right side and opened it slowly.
A radiant light passed through the crack, causing Chuck to narrow his eyes. He could hear the lyrics more distinctly.
"Dream maker…you heart breaker…wherever you're going, I'm going your way…"
Chuck did know the song. He had heard it back in sixth grade. Blair had come down with a stomach flu, and he had gone over to her house with Nate for a visit. Blair had been watching "Breakfast at Tiffany's", her favorite romantic movie. Serena had shown up a little later. Nate and she had gone downstairs for some of Dorota's homemade chocolate cake, leaving Chuck and Blair alone. Chuck remembered going to sit with her on her bed and snuggling up next to her. Blair had looked up at him and smiled.
"Thanks for coming to see me, Chuck. It made me feel better," Blair had said. She had held his hand, and they had finished watching the movie. It was nothing Chuck would care to see again--he despised fluffy romantic stuff--but two lines of the song had stayed in his razor-sharp memory.
"Two drifters…off to see the world…there's so much of the world to see…"
Chuck smiled a little as he heard the lyrics he recognized. It could only remind him of Blair and the band. The pleasant voices only made him surer of his decision. He wasn't going to let his girlfriend down again, or his best friend, or the outsider who had envisioned that he could do more than he gave himself credit for.
"Screw you, dad!"
Chuck closed the door and unzipped the slip-on chorus robe in back. He grinned, feeling a sudden liberation. He felt a certain joy building up inside him, rising up from his chest. It was such a new feeling for him, one of pure relief. The last person whose opinion he cared about, the seemingly most important person's, didn't matter so much anymore. He placed the robe on top of a water fountain nearby, and took off rapidly in the direction that Dan and Nate had gone.
Chuck ran down the long halls, not seeing them. Had he really been standing around for a long time, or were they just quick? Chuck ran outside of the school and looked around, trying to catch sight of Nate or Dan. He squinted as a gust of chilly wind blew into his eyes. He could see his breath against the cold.
Chuck suddenly spotted the blonde head of a tall boy hopping into a limo. He smiled and ran towards them.
"Nate! Humphrey! Wait up!" Chuck called out. Nate poked his head out of the long car, and Dan looked in the direction of Chuck's voice.
"About time! Come on!" Dan called out. Chuck reached them and gave Dan a smirk.
"Temper Humphrey, temper." Chuck hopped into the limo as Dan shook his head. He got in after Chuck and closed the door. He told the driver where to go, and soon they were speeding down the streets.
"Yes! We made it!" Nate exclaimed, his eyes bright. "We ditched school!"
"Wow Nathaniel, you're such a rebel," Chuck said sarcastically. Nate talked in a high-pitched and fast tone from his excitement.
"I know, I know!" Nate exclaimed. Chuck smirked again, and Dan pulled out his cell phone to get in contact with Carter. Chuck reached to the floor and pulled up the clothes that he had brought.
"I'm changing, you two. No looking unless you want to compare sizes," Chuck said, moving over away from them as far as he could.
"Now where have I heard that before?" Dan asked with a smirk of his own. Just then, Carter picked up on the other end. "Hello? Carter? We're on our way," Dan said.
Suddenly, the limo came to a screeching halt. There was a major pothole in the middle of the road, and the driver hadn't seen it until the last second. Chuck was flung from his seat and onto the rubber mats of the limo's floor. From the side it looked like he had flown. Dan and Nate were wearing their seatbelts, but they were still jolted forward slightly. Dan gasped as he hit back against the seat. Nate let out an ear-piercing scream, sounding like the woman who was picked up by King Kong. Chuck looked up at the inner roof of the car for a few moments, in shock from the fall. Suddenly he started laughing hysterically, so hard that his face turned beet red.
"Yeah, we're okay," Dan told Carter on the phone. He looked down at the frenzied, shirtless Chuck who clutched his stomach and rolled on the floor. "Are you alright?" Dan asked.
"That was fucking awesome," Chuck said through his boisterous laughs. Nate was cracking up too.
"You flew like two feet!" Nate exclaimed. Dan started to laugh as he recalled seeing Chuck plummet forward.
"What? What's so funny?" Carter asked on the other end with a little smile. He was at the club and standing backstage, looking out at the group presently playing. Dan answered with a few laughs and wheezes.
"You're a such mess, Bass!" Carter heard Dan shout on the other end.
"Have you guys ever thought about how stupid our last names are?!" Nate asked, leaning back against the leather seat and cackling.
"Yeah, Dan's sounds like humping," Chuck said, getting up off the floor.
"At least mine doesn't rhyme with ass!" Dan exclaimed with another laugh. Carter wanted to laugh, not believing they were sober.
"I'll see you in a few," Carter said. He hung up the phone and looked out at the bright stage lights, the cheerful voices of the three boys echoing in his mind. He hoped that they would remain friends. Lord knew that he had wished for his friends back many times.
Dan peered out from the side of stage right and gulped. There were so many people in the club, a much larger crowd than he had expected. His eyes wandered over to the group playing onstage, and he smiled. He couldn't help but be reminded of his own band. He thought back to their first meeting in the music room. They had come such a long way since then. Even he didn't expect it to happen.
"Dan? Are you alright?" Dan turned and smiled.
"Yeah Nate, I'm fine. How about you?" Dan asked. Nate drew in a breath and looked outward toward the crowd.
"A little nervous," Nate admitted. He wore a loose, black t-shirt with black jeans and his hair was uncut and messy. He wore a black studded belt. Dan's hair was more styled, and he wore the black dress shirt with rolled up sleeves that he had talked about. The tie he wore was striped black and white, and tied very loosely around his neck.
"You'll be fine," said Carter's sudden voice from behind them. He looked outward towards the crowd as well. "We'll all be." He sighed. "So this is it, you guys. The moment we've been waiting for." He turned to Dan. "Is the agent out there?"
"Oh yeah. In fact, I think I see him in the third row," Dan said. He turned behind him and looked at Carter. "This is the first time I've ever seen you dressed in something other than a suit." Carter wore a black t-shirt like Nate did. It had white words written on the chest that read, "I'm not lying. I'm bullshitting." Carter smiled.
"Yeah, I actually borrowed this from an old friend from France. I never gave it back," Carter said. All three of them suddenly got a whiff of cigarette smoke.
"What are we looking at?" Chuck asked, appearing next to Carter out of nowhere. He wore a black leather vest with no shirt underneath, revealing his toned chest and muscular arms. His dark brown hair was spiked up with jell. Chuck had just gotten it cut so that it was short enough to spike but not too short. He blew some white cigarette smoke out through a pouted mouth.
"The crowd," Dan whispered.
"How big is it? Let me see," Chuck stated. He pushed Nate down and tried to look over his head. Nate yelped as Chuck suddenly pressed down on his shoulders and hopped over him. Chuck looked outside and smiled. "It's big. Good," he said. "I was worried that you would be bringing us to a loser club, Humphrey."
"I told you, my dad has played here before. I would never take us places he hasn't guaranteed have good audiences," Dan commented. He looked back at all of them and sighed. "Tonight is it, you guys. Either we make history or we fail."
"Even failures make history. That's what sucks. You're either screwed or you're not, and either way you're infamous," Chuck said. He took a puff from his cigarette.
"Hey Chuck, what happened to the white and black scarf?" Nate asked jokingly.
"Come to think of it, I haven't even seen you with your regular scarf lately," Dan said. He looked at Chuck and smirked. "Has the emblem of New York's seventeen year old sex pervert been locked away?" Chuck smiled.
"Not for when it's cold, or when I feel like being a smart-ass," Chuck said.
"You're a smart ass all the time," Carter observed.
"Yeah, but not a single one anymore," Chuck said.
"Oh, so that's what it's about," Nate said, giving Chuck a punch in the shoulder. "You don't wear it around Blair?" Chuck's eyes glinted naughtily.
"Who says I don't?" Chuck asked.
"Okay, TMI," Carter said, looking back out at the stage.
"There are only two ways to stay warm in the winter, after all," Chuck said, dragging out his voice. He grinned smarmily. "Scarves can be used both ways; you just need to have a good imagination."
"Holy shit, what part of 'TMI' do you not understand?!" Carter asked, trying to stop the images forming in his mind. Chuck and Nate laughed. Dan looked back at all of them once more and smiled, thinking again about how great of a band they had become. He never would have thought the three Upper East Side boys would have helped him become a musician.
The group onstage had one last guitar strum, and then they took their bows. The club people went wild, cheering and clapping. Carter looked his watch and saw that it was eight. The other group walked off stage left, and a man came up on stage and walked up to the microphone.
"That was one of our regulars, 'Death Living.' Our next guest group tonight consists of four guys whose oldest member is twenty-one. New to the music scene, let's have a hand for 'Secret Addictions!'"
There was a bust of screams and applause from the audience, who either were really excited or really drunk…most likely both. Dan picked up his father's guitar that rested on a stand nearby. He looked at his band members and smiled.
"You guys ready to face the music?" he asked quirkily.
"That was so bad," Chuck told him. And then they stepped out into the blinding light.
Blair hopped out of her limousine and looked up at the club's overhanging, neon sign. She smiled as she bounce-walked over to the man who held the guest list. Everyone standing in line waiting to get in watched her approach and frowned. She looked rich in an elegant forest green short dress, black tights, and carrying a Dolce black purse. They wouldn't be getting in before her. Blair walked up to the tall man with the guest list, who peered at her over gigantic black sunglasses. Blair smiled at him giddily, and the man noticed a diamond necklace glittering on her neck.
"Waldorf," she stated. The man looked at the list near the end, and then nodded.
"You can go," he said. Blair walked past him and to the large brown doors. She pushed them open, and immediately a flood of illuminations struck her eyes. Blair stepped inside, trying to regain her vision. She heard a bunch of loud cheering from the people around her. She looked and saw many couples dancing, talking, and some walking away to make out behind the building. Some groups of friends were hanging together by the bar.
Through all of the commotion and excitement, Blair could distinctly hear the flowing, entrancing voice of her boyfriend. She pushed through a few people to get closer to the stage. Once she approached the middle of the room she looked up and through the intense lights. She spotted Carter in the back, banging on the drums and occasionally singing. Dan stood on stage right, strumming his guitar and jumping up and down. Blair couldn't help but smile a little. Cabbage patch was such a showman. Her eyes quickly darted over and she saw Nate on stage left, holding his bass guitar and singing through a smiling mouth. He seemed to be enjoying himself. Blair was done with her quick looks. Her eyes went to the boy at center stage.
Chuck grasped the microphone in one hand as he sang. He mainly stayed at center stage, but he occasionally moved back and forth from Nate's side to Dan's. Blair watched him with amazed, gleaming eyes. Chuck looked so content up there, not to mention incredibly hot. Blair grinned, not believing how astonished he made her with everything he did. She realized that he impressed her onstage just like she had impressed him onstage at Victrola the night he fell for her. Except that Chuck wasn't stripping.
There was a musical interlude, and after Dan's guitar solo there was a drum beat that started to grow.
"Is it always this hot at this club, or is it just because we're here?" Chuck asked aloud. A few people in the audience laughed.
"I think it's more our audience," Dan said, keeping his showman attitude in tact to cover up Chuck's natural haughty ways. Blair saw her chance.
"I say take it all off!" she exclaimed loudly. Chuck looked in her direction right before he went back to the refrain. He spotted her and smiled widely. Blair waved a little, grinning brightly back. She was surprised he had heard her over the music and the cheers. A handsome man over at the bar spotted Blair in the center of the room and he approached her suavely.
"Hi," he said in a husky voice. "What's your name?" Blair looked at him.
"I'm Blair Waldorf." She pointed to Chuck onstage. "That's my boyfriend," she said proudly. She turned back to face the stage. "And I love him to death!" she exclaimed at the top of her lungs. The man walked away, seeing how crazy she was for the lead singer. Another person with flowing blonde hair took his place.
"Blair! You came!" Serena exclaimed, running over to her best friend.
"Of course, S. What do you take me for?" Blair asked jokingly. She looked back up at Chuck and eyed him as she heard his smooth voice crooning a new song.
"There was nothing he could do…his poor sis was doomed…" Chuck sang, his dark brown eyes glaring sexily downward. Blair smiled, not believing that he was hers. She looked around, noticing for the first time that the crowd's reaction was very positive. She couldn't believe how much people seemed to love the music.
"They're really great, aren't they?" Blair asked. She was a little surprised that they were such a big hit. Serena looked up at Dan onstage, his graceful fingers flying from string to string. He sang with such emotion in his voice and played like he was releasing a fire from his soul. Serena smiled happily, glad that her boyfriend's efforts had paid off.
"Yeah B. They really are."
"Oh my God, that was awesome!" Nate exclaimed as they entered the backstage area. He high fived Carter, then jumped in the air with an excited yelp. "It was so exhilarating!" Nate beamed as if he had won a million dollars.
"We totally rocked ass," Dan said, grinning himself.
"Hell yeah!" Chuck said, giving Nate a playful shove. Nate shoved back, and then Dan shoved Chuck. Their adrenaline was on high after the crowd's reaction to their first performance.
"I hate those lights! I'm sweating so much," Carter said, wiping his forehead with his hand.
"Dude, whatever! They loved us!" Chuck exclaimed in disbelief. He had never expected such positive feedback.
"Chuck!"
Chuck turned and saw Blair standing in the doorway of the backstage door. They both grinned excitedly, and Chuck ran over to her. He opened his arms and she fell right into them. They looked at one another, loving the thrilled sparks in each other's eyes.
"What did you think, Waldorf? Were we good?" Chuck asked, a smile forming at the corners of his mouth.
"No, Bass," Blair said. She smiled. "You were fantastic." She playfully ran a finger up from the center of his bare chest to his warm face, and up to his head. She tapped the spikes in his hair and giggled in her throat before reaching up to kiss his soft lips. Chuck kissed back, delving deep into her mouth. Nate watched from where he was standing, a huge grin spreading across his face. He noticed the way that they fit together, and the adoring way they looked at one another when they stopped kissing. He knew that they really were made for each other.
"Nate, are you okay?" Dan asked, coming up from behind him. He noticed what Nate was looking at. Nate turned to Dan, still smiling.
"I've never been better," Nate answered with surety. He looked back to the backstage door and then back to Dan. "There's someone looking for you." Dan turned his head toward the doorway and smiled as he saw Serena squeezing past Chuck and Blair. He turned to Nate. Nate smiled and took Dan's guitar out of his hands. "Go ahead," Nate urged. Dan smiled thankfully and ran over to Serena, who squealed happily upon seeing him. She jumped into his arms and looked down at him with affectionate eyes. Dan looked back up at her, and Nate saw them talking for a few seconds before they kissed. Dan placed Serena back onto the floor, and she placed her hands on his face as they stayed lip-locked. Nate continued to smile, knowing that one day it would be him.
Harold Price was a successful music agent. He usually hung around the clubs, searching for random talent that he could expand and show to the world. When he had met with Dan and Rufus Humphrey, he had doubts that a band composed of three seventeen year olds who practiced in a school music room could be anything special. They had sure proved him wrong.
Harold walked backstage and saw the four boys sitting in a group with two girls, a brunette and a blonde. He recognized Dan Humphrey, whose lap the blonde had placed herself on. He walked over to the group.
"Mr. Humphrey?" Harold asked. Dan looked up and smiled.
"Mr. Price!" He looked at Serena. "Can you excuse me for a minute?" Serena looked at the agent and smiled, knowing he was going to say something good.
"Of course," she said, standing up off of Dan's lap. Dan stood up, along with Chuck, Nate, and Carter. The four boys walked over with Harold to the corner. Harold cleared his throat before giving them all an approving smile.
"You four have it," Harold said. "I never thought you could pull it off, but I was wrong. There was some serious talent up on that stage a few moments ago." The boys couldn't help but smile with pride. "I'm willing to sign you all on a contract." Dan's mouth dropped open in shock, and his eyes popped out of their sockets. Chuck let out an exclamatory sound and roughly patted Dan on the shoulder. Carter crossed his arms and nodded with a smile, as if he knew it all along. Nate nearly fainted.
"That's incredible!" Dan finally uttered. "Wow, I'm…I'm so shocked that I don't even know how to react right now."
"How about telling us how fantastic we are?" Chuck suggested with a smirk.
"Your work has paid off, Mr. Humphrey. And it doesn't end at a contract. There'll be studios booking you, concert dates to be made..."
"What about tours?" Carter asked. If Carter was a cartoon character, there would have been dollar signs flashing in his eyes.
"I have no doubt. The possibilities are endless!" Harold exclaimed. "I can get you to California right away, the day after tomorrow even." Dan raised an eyebrow.
"Wait, California?" Dan asked.
"Of course. California is where the life of stars is at, Mr. Humphrey. I have connections there, friends who can make you guys the hottest new rock group in America. I would give you directions from here in New York, but it wouldn't be a problem." Harold seemed enthusiastic. So did Carter, who looked at his fellow group members with a smile.
"Sounds good, you guys," Carter said.
"Yeah, it does," Dan said. He smiled weakly, then turned to Harold. "Can we have a few moments alone to discuss this?"
"Sure," Harold said. He walked off to the corner of the room, far from the four. Dan huddled them together.
"What do you guys think?" Dan asked.
"It's everything we've dreamed of! It's like fame in the bag!" Carter exclaimed. "Guys, do you know how many people try to get famous and how many years it normally takes? We're one of the lucky few! It's great!" There was a silence, and Carter looked slightly annoyed. "Well, isn't it?" he asked.
"Guys…" Nate said, looking down at his feet. The others looked at him, and he looked back up with a face colored red with shame. "I know this is going to sound stupid, but I don't want to leave here."
"What?!" Carter asked.
"The life of an Upper East Sider is all I know. I wouldn't fit in with the stars. I mean, California would be a great place to live, but I'm just not outgoing like that," Nate said. "Plus, this city is my home. I only have one more year left before I become an adult. I want to graduate here. I think I finally know where I'm going with my life, and that's the first step." Carter looked at Nate like he was a dumb-ass, then at Dan.
"Dan, you can't seriously agree with him," Carter stated with a harsh tone. Dan looked down, blushing himself.
"I wasn't expecting having to leave. Nate is right. I think I'd want to finish school before anything else," Dan said. Carter shook his head, his mouth gaping open.
"I do not believe this! Dan, this was your dream! The whole point of making the band was to get famous! Now we have the opportunity that rarely comes along, and you just want to throw it all away?!" Carter asked. "We worked so hard, all for this! You can't say no, you can't!" Dan crossed his arms and looked up at Carter with a sigh.
"To be honest, Carter, I was only really thinking about our first performance and how we would sound. After that I honestly wasn't sure about what I was going to do. I thought maybe we could record some CD's and all, but not in California. As amazing as this whole experience is, I can't let it takeover my life. I have school to finish and responsibilities to handle," Dan said. "I never thought the whole point of the band was to get famous. It was a personal experiment for me, to see what I could do with music. It was like testing a new roller coaster, you could say. I didn't know that we would be this good, that we would have come this far." Carter threw his hands up in the air.
"I'll say it again. I just do not believe what I'm hearing right now!" Carter turned and looked at a deep-in-thought Chuck, who had rested his chin on a cupped hand. "Chuck, you were in it for this, weren't you?! I know you have more sense than these two. You'd never turn down a chance like this." Chuck stared downward at the floor, and then he turned behind him to look at Blair. She stared at him with broad doe eyes, wondering what was going on.
If anyone had told Chuck Bass a few months ago that he would be turning down a chance at fame for Blair Waldorf, he would have laughed in their faces and smacked them for saying such crazy things. Now, he didn't think he could be without her. She was his dream--she had always been his dream. She had turned him into something good that he never thought he could be. Chuck continued to look at Blair as he pondered the thought of what he would be without her. Then he turned back around and looked at Carter.
"I would agree with you…if I didn't have reasons for staying too," Chuck said. Carter shook his head.
"You're all idiots." Carter laughed a little. "You're all idiots! Do you realize that you're giving up the life everyone dreams of having?! And for what?! School and girlfriends and other, less promising hopes for the future." Chuck looked over at Carter with slit eyes. His mouth twitched downward in annoyance.
"If you had commitment to any of those things, Baizen, you wouldn't be in this group, would you?" Chuck asked. Carter's fists clenched in anger and Chuck smirked. "If you were committed to any of those things, you wouldn't be stealing and cheating people out in the world, would you be?" Carter's moss green eyes flickered with anger.
"I have been more committed to this band than I ever have been to anything else in my life, and what do I have to show for it?! Nothing! Nothing but wasted hours of my precious time!" Carter exclaimed.
"Carter," Dan said, keeping his voice calm. "I never thought that I would pick people like you or Chuck or Nate to be in my rock band. Yet I did, and I learned things about you all, good things, that I never would have known before. I know that I didn't waste my hours getting to know you guys better. If you think that it was all a big waste of time hanging around with us, then I feel sorry for you," Dan said. Carter paused, not expecting those words to come from anyone let alone Dan.
"So that's it, then?" Carter suddenly asked. His voice shook a little. "The band is done?"
"No," Dan said with a small smile. "I say we still make new stuff and still get club gigs. That way it can still be like a hobby of ours without becoming something too big."
"I like that idea!" Nate exclaimed. "It's like having your cake and eating it too!"
"I agree," Chuck said with a slight nod. He couldn't believe he was actually agreeing with Dan on something. Then he realized that he had been doing so for a while.
"We'll still get money for it," Dan said. "So it will be all cool."
"No, it won't be," Carter said. The three looked at him and he shook his head. "I'm done. I'm sorry, but I'm done."
"Baizen, quit acting so asinine," Chuck said with a bitter voice. Carter didn't become angry in response, but instead his face turned genuinely saddened.
"There's no future left for me here. I thought maybe if we went on to bigger things, I wouldn't have to worry about finding steady ground," Carter said.
"What does that mean?" Dan asked. Carter sighed, knowing in his heart how much better the three of them were than him. He envied every one of them.
"You guys are right. You have commitments, things to live for now. I never have. If there's one thing I learned from all of you, it's that I've been missing out on that my whole life. I need to find it." Carter smiled a little at their baffled expressions. "I know. I hardly understand what I'm thinking myself. But it's how I feel." He suddenly reached over to Nate and extended a hand. "Nate, it was great getting to know you again."
"Yeah, you too," Nate said, shaking Carter's hand back awkwardly. He didn't know how else to respond. Carter turned to Chuck, who crossed his arms and smirked as he waited for Carter to say something to him. Carter shook his head.
"Chuck, if there's one person who stole my spotlight in this town, I'm glad it was someone more despicable and wittier than me," Carter admitted. Chuck grinned cockily.
"At least you realize that you got beaten by the best. Oh, and Baizen, I'll be sure to have a billion more faulty checks ready hence you come onto my territory again," Chuck said in a mock threat.
"I'll remember that," Carter said with a smile. Nate and Dan looked confused, but decided to ask about it later. Carter then looked at Dan and paused for a moment.
"What else can I say…except thank you so much for everything, Dan."
"You're welcome," Dan said. "Are you sure you're not staying? We'll have lost a good drummer." Carter smiled.
"Thanks, but I'm sure you can learn more. I'm going to try not to come back, like you said I always do. But trust me; I won't forget this anytime soon." Carter slowly turned and walked away, leaving an empty space in the circle. Nate moved in a little and filled it in.
"You do realize what we just did, right guys?" Nate asked. "We basically just threw away the best chance at fame any of us will ever get." Chuck looked back at Blair and smiled, not regretting it in the least.
"Yeah, but who says we still can't play? Who says we still can't go chase the music?" Dan asked.
"Oh no, you're not going to get all sappy and musically reflective, are you?" Chuck asked with an eye roll. Dan smiled.
"I am my father's son," Dan said. They laughed a little, knowing how true that was. "Come on, let's go tell Mr. Price about how big of idiots we are," Dan joked. They walked over to tell the agent that they were planning to stay in New York but continue the group for fun. Harold completely understood that they wanted to wrap up their teenage years. He gave them the number of a recording studio in Brooklyn and told them to call him if they ever changed their minds.
As he stood talking in the group, Chuck caught sight of a silhouette in the entryway. He looked past Dan's head and saw Carter about to walk out the open door of the backstage. Carter carried his brown briefcase and his drum sticks in one hand. He checked his watch on the opposite wrist, and then he looked up right at the three boys. He noticed that Chuck had spotted him, and Chuck kept looking on, wondering what Carter was going to do next. Carter smiled at him a little before turning his back and slowly walking out the backstage door.
That was the last time Chuck would ever see him.
Mr. Price left, and the three boys walked back over to Blair and Serena.
"Well, guys?! Did he offer you a contract?!" Serena asked excitedly.
"He did, but we turned it down," Dan said. At this, both of the girls examined all of them in complete shock and confusion.
"Why the hell would you do that?!" Blair asked sharply. Chuck smirked a little at her confusion, then casually put his arm around her shoulder.
"Come with me, Waldorf. I'll tell you in private." Chuck began to lead her to the backstage door, but turned around slightly as he walked to see Dan and Nate trying to explain the story to Serena. Chuck smiled, knowing that she would understand. They reached the door, Chuck opened it, and the couple walked outside. The sky above them was pitch black, but a few stars dotted it as if it were a background for a play. The fresh scent of mist hung in the air, making everything seem fresh. Chuck pulled Blair over to the wall and they both leaned up against it. His arm never left from behind her head, and his body leaned in close to hers. Blair's face was scrunched like that of an impatient five year old. Her facial features softened as Chuck looked down at her with warm eyes as dark as the sky above them. He gently lifted her chin up with his thumb so that she completely faced him.
"Your little charms won't distract me, Bass," Blair said. Chuck smiled and brought his hand over to the side of her face and moved some of her hair back behind her ear.
"You think I'm trying to distract you?" he asked. A star brightened in the sky above, casting a very dim light down on both of their faces. They gazed at one another gently, hearing nothing but each other's calm breaths. The misty aroma, combined with Chuck's natural manly scent, stimulated Blair's senses.
"Yeah. Knock it off," Blair said teasingly. Chuck's eyes moved downward and she felt him examining her. He worked his way up, finally stopping when his eyes met hers again. Blair's stomach twisted as his stare burned through her, just like the night in the music room. He held her there in a tensioned trace until he blinked. Chuck laughed slightly when she blinked at the same time he did. Blair turned red with embarrassment and shook her head. "Now you're doing it on purpose," she said.
"Guilty as charged," Chuck said lowly. He smiled sinfully. "You look ravishing tonight," he whispered. Blair blushed and giggled, then slapped him on the shoulder lightheartedly.
"Seriously, stop!" she exclaimed. She tried to not let his flattery distract her. "What about the band? Why did you turn it down?"
"Nate and Dan didn't want to leave New York, and neither did I. We would have had to go to California for arrangements," Chuck said.
"Why didn't you want to leave?" Blair asked. Chuck looked at her and said nothing. Blair put a hand to an open mouth, realizing. "You stayed behind for me?!" she asked in disbelief. Chuck nodded slowly, and Blair gasped. The last thing she wanted was to be in his way of success. "Chuck, don't do that! Don't feel obligated to stay behind! Don't give up your dreams for me!" Chuck moved his arm out from behind her head and took both of her hands in his. He looked down at her with sincerity.
"Blair, my dream is standing right in front of me," Chuck said. Blair felt her heart fluttering, and Chuck softly stroked her fingers with his. "You were always what I dreamed of, even if I didn't realize it until recently. I finally got what I've always wanted, and to be away from it would literally kill me." Blair smiled so widely her cheeks hurt. She held back the tears forming in her eyes, realizing that she would have done the same for him. Even if everyone else told her it would be a dumb move, she would have given it up for him too. They loved each other that much. She had never truly appreciated that fact--until now.
Blair wrapped her arms around Chuck and laid her head on his shoulder. Chuck hugged her back, securing her in his strong arms. They stayed that way for a few minutes, two figures standing against the blackness of night. Blair finally pulled back a little and looked at the face of the man who not only loved her but set her free.
"I love you Chuck."
His tender fingers moved to the diamonds sparkling on her neck, and then moved upward to trace her red lips. He smiled as he moved his fingers away from her lips and replaced them with his own. Once they stopped he gently grabbed her hand once more.
"I love you too, Blair." They walked hand-in-hand back into the club, where they joined Nate and Dan in singing one of the Secret Addictions songs in celebration.
Many philosophers throughout history, as great of thinkers as they were, could never define a dream. All they knew was that dreams were not constants and that they could change throughout a life. Today, people know that dreams are influenced by human emotions and human relationships. The simple actions of one person can make another person realize what dream they wish to follow. The four members of Secret Addictions didn't know how true this was for all of them. They understood what dreams they wanted to grasp all because of a few notes and chords.
"Live and learn from fools and from sages…you know it's true, all things come back to you. Sing with me, sing for the years; sing for the laughter, sing for the tears."
Aerosmith
The night at the Brooklyn club was Secret Addictions' first performance, but it wasn't the last. Dan continued to practice the drums, and Nate began lessons as well (as soon as he was keen with the bass guitar). They played in clubs in both Brooklyn and the Upper East Side, and they never failed to impress their audiences. They became New York's own private, infamous band. People began to find out where they were playing next and would go to see them again. Many other agents approached the group asking for contracts and such, only to repeatedly be turned down.
The three continued to meet every Thursday after school in the music room to create and sing new songs. Word eventually got out that they did so, and soon many fans and freshmen aspirers came to quietly watch them practice. There were some random Thursdays when the group didn't feel like doing much work, but they still met in the music room. On these days they wouldn't let anyone in, and they just ordered takeout and hung out.
Secret Addictions recorded seven CD's containing all of the songs that they ever made, even some that they never performed. The recording studio that Harold Price had suggested always welcomed them. At first the CD's were only intended for personal nostalgia, and the group kept their copies to themselves for a year. Finally, Chuck's repeated suggestion to sell the CD's was finally taken to heart. Dan arranged for many burned copies to be made, and they were sold at the Brooklyn club on the night of the group's second-to-final performance. The copies sold out completely.
Secret Addictions took their final bows on the night of the St. Jude's prom. They had been requested by the students and Mr. Smith to play a live show. When the three boys left the stage, the senior classes of St. Jude's and Constance Billard knew that their class's band had turned into their class's legacy.
Chuck, Dan, and Nate knew their band was a legacy, too. For more personal reasons.
"It's something unpredictable, but in the end is right. I hope you've had the time of your life."
Green Day
Gossip Girl disappeared in the last days of summer before senior year. Her last biggest story was the wedding of Bart Bass and Lily Van Der Woodsen, the event which all of her favorite people attended. However, with all of the Upper East Siders and lonelyboy getting along, her gossip lifeline finally couldn't support her anymore. Sure, every once and a while one would see a boy wearing a scarlet-and-gold scarf going into St. Jude's or a Serena wannabe hanging around the steps of the art museum, but no one could compare to the originals. People eventually stopped reading, and Gossip Girl's mouth finally closed.
There were spats, of course. Chuck and Blair fought over control, Dan and Serena fought over little things, Blair and Serena went into periods of silence after arguments, and Nate and Chuck squabbled over nothing. However, after every fight, they all would realize how much they needed each other and always came back around. It was never anything serious enough for any of them to ruin their love or their friendship.
Often, a New Yorker could spot the entire group of them hanging around in Central Park or coming out of a movie theatre. They always were together on Thursdays in the music room. They were there again on graduation, friends by each other's sides. Four cornered graduation hats of red and navy blue covered the front courtyard. Serena and Blair bawled as they hugged each other and their guys. Chuck and Blair and Dan and Serena were confident that they could keep dating long distance. However, they and Nate wondered how they would do in the real world without having each other to turn to. They realized when they did go out into that real world that they never stopped being there for each other. They were just a little farther apart.
When you're through with life and all hope is lost, hold out your hand cause friends will be friends, right till' the end."
Queen
Carter Baizen never returned to New York. He went back to school in Chicago, a place where he had frequently visited and enjoyed staying at. He went to a few classes and decided that he could be a successful businessman sans the gambling. His attitude towards life turned anew, and Carter found himself becoming a kinder and content individual. It was almost ironic though, because Carter still became something everyone hated: a tax collector for the IRS. He married a fellow co-worker who shared many of his interests. They had one daughter before his wife passed away in a tragic accident. After counseling, Carter bounced back and tried to be there for his daughter as best as a father can be. He remarried to a woman who happened to be the daughter of one of his father's friends. They had two sons together. The Baizen family lived out their days in a quiet Chicago suburb in complete bliss. Carter never spoke to any of his fellow band members again, but sometimes he would hear of what they had become and wondered what they were up to.
Nate Archibald graduated from St. Jude's with average grades except for chorus, in which subject he received extremely high marks. He dated a few girls throughout his last year of high school, including Jenny Humphrey for a short while. He went to a college in California that specialized in music and the performing arts, despite his father's wishes. He stayed away from Hollywood and any overcrowded places and kept to himself often. Nate graduated with a degree in music, notebooks filled with songs, and the ability to play not only bass guitar and drums but piano, saxophone, and violin. When his teachers sometimes wondered aloud if he was musically gifted, he would reply no and that he was only a determined musician. Nate's first job was writing music for television shows. He was eventually noticed by an agent who asked him to, strangely enough, write songs for a band. He accepted and made much money, though he continued to write music for hit TV shows as well. He sometimes would stay in his room for hours on end, thinking up new pieces. Nate traveled back to New York after graduating college to visit with his old friends Chuck and Dan. While there he ran into Jenny Humphrey at a party Dan was hosting. They began dating once again, and fell in love. Nate proposed to the aspiring fashion designer a year later. After a quick wedding, they moved back to California and raised three blonde-headed sons of their own. Their firstborn boy was named Charles Daniel Humphrey.
"When I get to the bottom I go back to the top of the slide, where I stop and I turn and I go for a ride, till I get to the bottom and I see you again."
The Beatles
Serena Van Der Woodsen went to NYU, thanks to the money of her stepfather and her good grades of junior and senior year. She majored in broadcast journalism and worked for a few radio stations before becoming a news anchor for NBC News. She earned the nickname "Sunny Serena" because she was constantly happy and always cheered her co-workers up. She used the money she earned to help her brother Eric pay for college. He got a job in counseling, since he had much experience in the field and felt like helping others who were once like him. Serena married her boyfriend Dan two years after graduating college. He had proposed to her with a diamond ring shaped like a circle. He said that a circle was never ending, just like his love for her. Their wedding took place outside in the summer, and was very elaborate with many people and pretty decorations. Rufus and his band reunited to play at the reception, and their gigantic cake was chocolate with white icing. Serena and Dan moved to their own apartment in Brooklyn and had two children, a son named Eric and a daughter named Rosalie.
Dan Humphrey was the Valedictorian of his class, graduating with straight A's. He gave a speech on graduation day, while everyone else listened and cried at his reflective choice of words. Dan went to Dartmouth University and came out with a Bachelor's degree in art. He became an advertising director, though he never stopped writing. He published three poetry books and an autobiography about his teenage years. It included everything from Gossip Girl's stalking to Secret Addictions. The book was a literary hit, and made number one on the New York Times book list. People began approaching him and begged him to write a continuation, for they wanted to know what happened to Chuck and Nate and Serena and everyone else. Dan would just smile and reply that they were alright, and that was all anyone needed to know. When he wasn't working or spending time with his children (who were very polite, caring, and resembled both him and his wife), he was playing his guitar. He often got his poetic inspirations from his music, in vise versa. The members of the Humphrey family remained very close throughout life. It was very awkward, however, when Eric and Rosalie grew up and asked about some things in their father's autobiography. They were never told that their mother slept with their Uncle Nate in high school. When the kids moved out, Dan and Serena stayed in their apartment and kept each other happy the way they had throughout life. While some older couples went on vacation a lot, the Humphrey couple was perfectly content on their living room couch, wrapped in each other's arms. If there was anyone drifting down Moon River, it was Dan and Serena.
I think about you; honey, all the time my heart says yes. I think about you, deep inside I love you best."
Guns N' Roses
Blair Waldorf graduated from Constance Billard with high grades and entered Yale without a problem. Blair decided to become a fashion merchandiser since she loved to shop and convince people to do things, like buy expensive things. She was going to take her mother's advice and become a designer, but a surprise in Blair's senior year of college made her change her mind. It was the year when Blair discovered she was pregnant for the first time (the result of Chuck's desires and a broken condom). Chuck took Blair out on the night she was going to tell him that she was pregnant. Before she could tell him, he pulled a teardrop-shaped diamond ring out of his pocket and proposed. After accepting and crying and laughing at the irony of the situation, Blair told Chuck the news about the baby. Chuck stayed frozen in shock for an hour afterward. Their wedding took place early in the fall, and Blair took charge of the sophisticated decorations (big bows were hung practically everywhere). Neither Chuck nor Blair were big churchgoers, but they still had the ceremony at St. Patrick's church. It was a large event and covered by every New York newspaper. Nate was the best man, and Serena the maid of honor. Blair's wedding dress was white and flowing, with a lavender ribbon around the stomach that traveled down the trail. She still wore the necklace that Chuck had bought her so many years before. The bridesmaids wore lavender gowns and the guys wore ties to match (except for Chuck, who went dapper in classic black). The reception was lavish, complete with chocolate fountains and every kind of food imaginable. Chuck and Blair's wedding song, the song that only they danced to, was "Nobody Does It Better." They stayed in the Upper East Side and moved into a sumptuous mansion outside the city. Months later their first son, Darren Bartholomew Bass, was born. He was the first of six.
Chuck Bass graduated St. Jude's but didn't go to college. His father arranged for him to be privately trained in business before Chuck took control of the entire Bass enterprise. This included owning the Palace Hotel and Victrola (along with many other structures), corporate shares, New York business chains, and millions of dollars. The training was grueling, demanding work, but Chuck stepped up to the challenge. To his own shock, he was very good at it and caught on right away. His sharp mind and feeling of responsibility led to his father entrusting him with the business at the young age of twenty-two. Bart even seemed to be proud of his son, a thing that Chuck considered a miracle. When Blair announced that she was pregnant on the night of their engagement, Chuck felt like he had another duty to live up to. When Darren was born, Chuck felt for the first time that he had a purpose in life. He thought it was majestic that he and Blair could create something as beautiful as a new human being. He had a newfound appreciation for life, and this led him to become the father that Bart never was. Chuck had a business meeting practically every day, but he found himself attending less and less just to stay home with Blair and Darren. This made his father angry, but there was nothing he could do about it. As Darren grew, Chuck and Blair had five more children, one more boy and four girls. Only three of the children were actually planned, but the parents didn't care. It wasn't like they couldn't afford it, and their kids brought them so much joy. The absence of younger brothers or sisters in Chuck and Blair's lives seemed to be a factor. All six of the children were very beautiful. They all had skin as white as pure snow, and the two sons and three of the daughters had their father's gorgeous eyes. All of their daughters inherited Blair's high cheekbones, but only two got her curly light brown hair. One of their daughters, Serena Anastasia Bass, had her father's straight, soft hair except it was a reddish-brown color. Chuck and Blair figured that was from Eleanor's side of the family.
Chuck never took the long business trips that his father did and was home with his family most of the time. Blair had never seen any man bestow such unconditional love on his kids as Chuck did, and for that she was extremely grateful. The best thing about it for her was that Chuck loved her that same way. She grew older and gained weight, yet he still looked at her like he couldn't take his eyes off of her. He still kissed her the same way, he still playfully teased her, and he still swept her off her feet. He still surprised and astonished her with the things he did. They occasionally went out to dinner alone and just basked in each other's company. They sometimes went to Victrola to reminisce on the past. This would eventually lead to Blair coming to Chuck a few months later with a positive pregnancy test. That was another thing: as Chuck got older, he just got better and better in bed. And he was still there for her whenever she needed him.
I'd live and I'd die for you, I'd steal the sun from the sky for you. Words can't say what love can do…I'll be there for you."
Bon Jovi
The children of all of the graduates, with the exception of Nate and Jenny, went to St. Jude's and Constance Billard, and their parents made sure that they stayed out of the trouble that they themselves had gotten into as teenagers. Dan and Serena and their kids visited the mansion of the Basses frequently, so much in fact that Eric and Rosalie grew an addiction to Blair's lemon cookies that she put out every time they visited. The kids all became good friends with one another. All of the children knew about Secret Addictions, but all they could do was listen to their fathers singing on burned CD's. They would never hear it live.
The years went by, the children grew up and moved away to live successful lives, and hair dye became regularly bought. Chuck and Blair shared the same room for fifty-four years of marriage. When Chuck died at the age of seventy-seven, Blair locked the doors to the room and never went back in. She moved to a smaller bedchamber that once belonged to one of her daughters and slept there. In her dreams at night, she would sometimes see a seventeen-year-old Chuck walk into the room. He would give her that genuine smile, and his face would glow almost radiantly. Chuck would walk over to the bed, crawl in next to her, and look down upon her with tender eyes. Blair loved that part in the dream, for it was like he never left. She swore that she could sometimes feel his hand laying on hers, or his slender fingers playing with her hair.
"I never thought you'd miss me, Waldorf," Chuck would say with a smirk. Sometimes he would kiss her softly before fading away. Then Blair would wake up and cry, his face all too vivid in her mind. In other dreams she would be seventeen again, and sitting in the music room with Chuck, Serena, Dan, Nate, and occasionally Carter would appear. Those were Blair's favorite dreams. In them the friends would talk and laugh together and Blair would lay her head on Chuck's lap as he stroked her hair. Often the four guys would stand up and sing, and she and Serena would sing along from their spots on the floor. All of their happy voices rang through the room, lingering in her mind with their laughter.
One time she traveled to the music room and never came back.
And Chuck was waiting there for her, the way he always had.
And she heard those four smooth voices, singing their hit from a passed time.
"I've left the world behind. I'm safe here in my mind. Free to speak with my own kind. This is my life, this is my life."
Judas Priest
THE END