Sounds like Chuck was really sweet in the prom episode! I have to watch another couple of weeks to see the episode in full, but I saw some clips on youtube. If only there was more Chuck and Blair and less 80s flashbacks. I mean I don't even like watching Lily that much on the regular show. Anyway, thanks to those who reviewed!
Chuck Bass's mouth curved into one of the few genuine smiles that so rarely crossed his face, while he flicked an imaginary piece of lint from the cuff of his tuxedo jacket. He had succeeded in his mission for the night, had ensured that Blair had had the perfect evening. He had been slightly worried during her screaming fit, especially when she was practically begging him to defend himself, something part of him had desperately wanted to do. He could let her know exactly who she was indebted to for her dream prom. Jesus, he'd even been the one to get the school to allow the electing of a prom queen for the first time ever so that she would have that satisfaction as well. And then stopped the Constance bitch brigade from wrecking it when he overheard their little scheme. (He still couldn't imagine how they thought that anyone would actually believe that Nelly Yuki had been made prom queen in a non-rigged election.) But he'd managed to refrain from telling Blair any of that. Because if she knew that, then she'd also know that he'd been lying when he said his feelings for her weren't real, that it was just a game. Then they'd be right back to where they started. Miserable.
Probably even more miserable than before, because he was pretty sure that Blair didn't love him anymore. Nate was back in her life, and she had always loved Nate. But if she knew that Chuck loved her it would probably make her confused, and make her sad that she couldn't return his feelings. She would pity him, and that would be worse to him than simply knowing she didn't love him. At least at the moment he still had his pride. And while he was certainly far from exuberant, seeing her happy allowed him some small measure of contentment. It eased the sickness in his stomach that had started the morning after their first night together and returned whenever things weren't going well between them.
He had felt that sickness rise up momentarily tonight when he had handed the key to the hotel suite at the Plaza to his sister with instructions to give it to Blair. Providing the perfect spot for her trysts with another man so that every aspect of the night lived up to her fantasies – that was devotion. And a severe test of his commitment to this new role as guardian of Blair's happiness. He had nearly considered not handing the key over to Serena. After all, what was wrong with Nate and Blair ending the evening the old-fashioned way, with him kissing her goodbye on her door-step? It was very proper, and Blair liked proper. But it wasn't what was in the scrapbook, and he had treated the scrapbook as his gospel in planning this event. No detail could be missing, even if this particular detail twisted his stomach into knots.
So Chuck handed Serena the key whilst drinking in the delicious melancholy of seeing Blair on stage in all her radiance. She was magnificent, and it struck him that she was meant to be on stages – here, at Victrola – meant to have all eyes on her, especially his. It made him regret having missed seeing the school play. She was probably an amazing actress. After NYU perhaps she would go on Broadway, and he would be reduced to buying front row theatre tickets in order to get a good look at the girl he loved.
After handing Serena the key, Chuck had even gone into the foyer to ring the hotel and confirm that they had prepared the room to his specifications – peonies throughout, a bottle of Dom and the godiva gold collection by the bed and a collection of Audrey movies by the DVD player (the last detail wasn't in the scrapbook, but represented a last ditch effort on Chuck's part to distract Blair from the other entertainments that could be pursued in the room without detracting from her perfect evening). Given his reputation amongst hotel staff, maybe the confirmation phone call wasn't strictly necessary, but it did provide a convenient excuse to leave the ballroom and thus miss seeing Blair and Nate enjoy their dance as prom king and queen.
Although he liked seeing Blair happy, he didn't think he could be witness to such an intimate moment between the two. He knew he wouldn't be able to stop the little voice inside his head that sometimes whispered 'that could have been you'. If he hadn't waited to talk to her until after she'd move on to Carter then Nate, if he hadn't allowed Jack to distract him from her in the first place, if he had told her he loved her after his father's death, if he'd told her at the white party, if he'd got on the plane in the first place, if he hadn't turned her away the night she came to him distraught, maybe even if he'd just been honest with her about his feelings when this whole thing started instead of secretly plotting against Nathaniel and ruining her Cotillion – he might be with her now. He'd had so many opportunities, and he'd wasted them all. That was why he didn't deserve another chance, even if she'd give it to him. She might trust her happiness to him, but he couldn't trust himself with it. Her happiness was too important to him.
That was why he was about to walk out of prom alone. At least he wasn't leaving in tears, like Penelope, whose date had dumped her for an unattached redhead half an hour into the event. He was at least leaving with the satisfaction of knowing that his only expectation for the night, that in this one instance Blair Waldorf would be made happy by his doing, had been fulfilled.
However, this conviction was shaken as he prepared to walk out the door and spotted Serena and Blair huddled on the steps below him, Blair's head resting on Serena's shoulder. Serena's arms were around Blair and she was obviously in comforting mode. What the hell had Nathaniel done to screw up all his hard work? He spotted Humphrey passing by and called out to him.
"Humphrey!" Chuck began, his tone clearly stating that he would not be talking to Dan if extreme circumstances did not demand it. "Any idea why Blair and Serena are on the stairs together rather than on the dance floor being groped by their respective dates? Have they given up on men already? I thought the experimentation wasn't supposed to start until they were actually at college."
Dan rolled his eyes at Chuck's pretended nonchalance. After the confession Chuck had made to Serena and himself earlier that evening it was becoming easier to see that Chuck's use of sexual innuendo often disguised the real meaning behind his banter. In this instance, Chuck was worried about Blair.
"Well, firstly there are chaperones inside that have implemented a 30cm apart rule for dancing that pretty much prevents any form of groping. But I think Blair and Serena are talking outside because Blair and Nate broke up. That's what I just heard, anyway."
Chuck's face grew stony. "Is he still inside?"
The vicious, more than intimidating look on Chuck's face meant Dan was not sure how to answer, but he had never been much good at prevaricating so he responded with a slightly nervous, "uh...yeah."
This was all Chuck needed to send him off in the direction of the ballroom. "What are you going to do Chuck?" Dan called after him, worried about the trouble he might just have got Nate into.
"Destroy my former best friend." Chuck bit back, as he wrenched the doors to the grand ballroom open.
"Okay, not good," Dan said under his breath, turning back towards the exit. He had to find Blair and hope that she still cared enough about Nate not to simply let Chuck murder him. Dan also hoped that Blair would not want to murder himself when she found out about how his revelation to Chuck about the break-up (not a great idea, he now realised) had contributed to the explosive situation.
"Serena, Blair, wait I need to talk to you," Dan called out as he saw the girls heading for the line of waiting limos.
"Just in time to see us home, hey lonelyboy? But we prefer cars to pumpkin carriages and it's after midnight Cinderella," Blair gibed at Dan smilingly.
"Um, I just thought you might want to reconsider leaving, seeing as it looks like Chuck is planning to punch out your boyfriend, or former boyfriend," Dan said.
"What?!" Blair screeched, turning on Dan.
"Yeah, Chuck may have found out that you guys broke up and then he said something about destroying Nate before heading back into the prom," Dan explained, cleverly leaving out the part where he was the one to tell Chuck about the break-up.
"But I don't get it. Why would Chuck even care that Nate and I broke up? If anything I thought Chuck would be happy, given the way he loves to share the misery," Blair rationalised, as she, Serena and Dan headed back up the steps.
Serena bit her lip. "Except he wants you to be happy. In fact, he's been working really hard all night trying to make sure you were," Serena told her friend somewhat guiltily, aware she was breaking Chuck's confidence but knowing this was something Blair needed to hear.
"What are you talking about? Serena, he tried to have Nelly Yuki elected prom queen instead of me!"
Dan shook his head. "He wasn't putting those ballots in, he was taking them out."
Serena took Blair's hands, looking into her shocked face. "And he got you the dress from Paris, and made it so you would have a horse-drawn carriage instead of a limo and he got you and Nate into the Plaza penthouse." Serena handed her the key, Blair looking down at it in astonishment, unable to process the meaning of it all.
"But...why?" Blair asked Serena.
"Because he knew about the scrapbook. And...he loves you, B. He told me so himself. He just wants you to be happy. He was afraid that you wouldn't be with him," Serena told her gently.
Blair's face, previously bewildered, was suddenly a cold mask, devoid of any emotion. She remained silent.
"B...this is good news right? You do still love Chuck?" Serena pleaded, hoping she hadn't just made a huge mistake in revealing Chuck's secret.
"I need to get inside," was all Blair said in clipped tones. Then she turned on the baffled pair and hurried towards the ballroom.