Chapter 27

Blair sighed contently as she lay curled up in Chuck's arms, holding him close without a care in the world. She slowly opened her eyes, not moving from her position with her leg hitched over his leg and his arm wrapped around her waist. Blair smiled at the sight of him. He looked so peaceful as he slept beside her. It was moments like this with him that Blair realized how genuinely happy she was with him and taking the chance on giving them a try all those months ago was the best decision she had ever made for herself. She felt safe and secure in his arms like this and her reality was even better than any of her past daydreams about her life before.

Blair slowly moved her head towards her nightstand to check the time. It took a moment for her to register what it was saying to her before she jumped up in bed and looked over at Chuck in a panic before she reacted and slapped him hard on his arm. "Ow! What the hell, Waldorf?" Chuck yelled as he jerked away from her as she slipped free from his grasp.

"You need to get up, now! We must have fallen asleep while plotting against Georgina, but what I don't understand is how we ended up in bed when we were on the floor as far as I remember," Blair demanded an answer, not enjoying the chance that something happened to her without her being aware of it.

Chuck sighed as he rubbed his forehead tiredly as he began to explain, "I moved us up here because I didn't want to hurt my back."

Blair smirked as she teased, "Why? It's not like you ever do anything athletic."

Chuck sat up on the bed, smirking at her right back as he propped his arm on his knee as he responded, "Well, that's not entirely true, now is it?"

Blair tilted her head to the side and corrected herself, "Fine. Nothing that requires you removing your scarf."

"That was one time. It was chilly," Chuck responded with a light pout causing Blair to laugh and kissed his pouting lips briefly, not letting herself get caught up in him as she knew there was a lot that needed to be done today.

"Enough about the past. Before we land back in my bed, we actually landed on a good idea," Blair spoke as she watched him check his watch and quickly get up off of the bed to grab his jacket and head out.

"Well, I trust you can take it from here. I have a best man speech to write and, unfortunately, no time to write it," Chuck explained as he quickly slipped on his shoes.

Blair, figuring as much, simply smiled at him, "Don't worry. I can be bitch enough for the both of us."

"I have scars on my back to prove it," Chuck retorted with a smirk before swooping in to give her a kiss.

Blair turned her head to the side, still smiling as she put both of her hands on his chest and began pushing him out of her bedroom, "Out, Bass."

"You know, they say if you love something, you should set it free," Chuck mentioned as he let Blair push him across the room and out the door.

"Really? You don't say. And what do they say about a kick to the shins?" Blair asked innocently as they arrive at her door.

"Again with that rough play, Waldorf. You know I'm always up for anything," Chuck smirked at her.

She rolled her eyes, "Out or we'll see just how rough you like it, Bass."

"I love it when you talk dirty-," but before Chuck could finish, Blair had already shut the door in his face and turned her back to it with a small smile, enjoying the brief banter before heading into her bathroom to shower and dress for the takedown and make a few very important calls.

After Blair got out of the shower and got dressed she began to do some needed research and realized that she needed to find a way to get Georgina to come out into the open so she could take the bitch out. It was as if the gods, themselves, smiled down at her in that moment because Blair's phone chose that moment to ring, revealing that one Humphrey was calling her. Blair smirked as she answered, "Hello?"

"Blair, it's Dan," he greeted, sounding stressed.

"Dan, just the Humphrey that I needed to talk to," she spoke as she leaned back into her chair at her vanity with ease, "I'm assuming Serena caught up with you and told you everything. Otherwise you wouldn't be calling me."

"You're right. She-she did. Wait, what did you need to talk to me about?" He asked, confused.

"Georgina needs to be handled immediately. Unfortunately, my usual partner in crime is unavailable to me. Come over so we can discuss the details?" Blair asked, making it very obvious that it was more of a command than a request.

Dan sighed through the phone, Blair could almost picture him with that confused, dopey look on his face before he responded, "Okay, I'll be there in half an hour."

"Great," Blair smiled as she hung up the phone. Her plan was now completely formed and she now needed to set up the rest of it to work in her favor perfectly. She quickly dialed a number that, up until this moment, never used, but was forever grateful to have it in her arsenal in this moment. After explaining her intentions to the person on the other line, Blair headed downstairs with her jacket and bag for later. "I'm so happy that I could help. I'll text you the location once it's set and see you there?"

Blair felt her smile grow as she hung up her cell phone as she heard her elevator door announce that she had a guest arriving. "Perfect timing, Humphrey."

"I still don't know what you need me for," Dan responded as he walked towards her.

"I need you because you're the only one that can persuade her to meet. This will also allow you to confront her and I'll take it from there," Blair smiled giddily as she led the Brooklynite over to her dining room as she went on in detail of what she had plan for Georgina with his help. "Don't you think she deserves to pay for her misdeeds against both you and Serena?" she asked, sensing that he was still hesitant after she laid the plan out to him.

Dan nodded as he took a seat silently as Blair gave her order, "Good! Now when you call her, I want you to sound as if you're choosing her over Serena and that you really need to talk to her in person about your "relationship". She may be trying to skip town, but she's not the type to back down when it comes to an opportunity to finish what she started."

"What makes you so sure?" Dan asked with a frown.

"I just do, okay?" Blair responded getting frustrated, "Now call her from your cell, now, so we can set this thing in motion."

She watched as he sighed in self-righteousness as he did as he was bidden, Blair forced herself to refrain from rolling her eyes at his dramatics since she still needed him as a key to make the plan successful. After he dialed Georgina's number, Blair leaned towards him to listen to what was said; after about a minute of silence, Dan explained, "Voicemail."

"Okay, like we talked about," Blair waved her hand to encourage him to go through with it as she faintly heard the sound of the beep.

Dan took a deep breath before he spoke into the phone, "Hey, hey it's me Dan. Um, after you left, Serena and I got in a huge fight, and-and she said all this crazy stuff. I honestly don't know what to believe, but- but what I do know is that I want to see you." Blair nodded, liking how it was going as he wrapped it up, "So, uh, call me."

Blair beamed as he disconnected the call, "Excellent work. She's totally calling back."

Dan sighed as he looked at his phone, "This is so weird. I don't normally do plots against people."

Blair looked at him as she spoke to him a condescending tone, "Don't worry, virgin. I'll talk you through it." She rolled her eyes just as the phone rang in Humphrey's hand, "Right on schedule."

She rocked a bit in excitement as she watched Dan answer the phone, "Hey."

Blair leaned to hear Georgina's side of the conversation as she responded, "Hey. I just got your message."

"Oh, good-good. So…sorry about this morning with Serena. That was very awkward, to say the least," Dan started off.

"Yeah, a little bit," Georgina responded.

"Last night really changed things for me," Blair paused in her relishing this moment and frowned over at Humphrey, now intrigued with what he was talking about as he continued on, not meeting her gaze, "Serena and I left things kind of uncertain, so I-I think I want to end it. I know I do. Will you meet me?"

Blair waited, knowing that this would make or break the plan. If Georgina didn't come to the party the take down would be a failure and there was no way that Blair would be able keep to her goal of getting rid of the psycho by the end of the night. After a moment's pause, Georgina finally spoke, "Our spot in the park by the pond?"

Blair nodded to Dan as he responded, "See you there."

"Humphrey, you are a born liar," Blair praised after he hung up the phone.

"Thanks, I think," Dan responded, still looking uncomfortable.

"All that stuff about last night was genius," Blair spoke, deciding to get to the answer behind that particular comment, "anything you want to tell me?"

Dan looked at her as Blair gave him a firm look showing that she was serious as he shook his head and looked away, "Uh, no like you said, just born to lie."

Blair didn't buy it for a second but decided to let it go. He and Serena talked and obviously worked through at least some of their problems. If it turned out that there was more, it wasn't Blair's business until Serena talked to her about it. The only thing on Blair's agenda for the day, other than going to Bart and Lily's wedding with Chuck, was to get rid of one of the couple's hindrances in the form of Georgina Sparks and, thanks to Dan Humphrey, that was exactly what Blair was going to do.

xoxo

Blair got into position after leaving Humphrey to go meet with Georgina at their spot and sighed as she checked to see that everyone else was in position as well. She was amazed at the amount of information she had acquired in such a short time about her target and she knew that this was going to be even better than her little Jenny Humphrey take down from last week. It was one thing to take down a social climbing freshman from Brooklyn, but it was another thing entirely to take down a foe as worthy of her station as Georgina.

Georgina couldn't be destroyed with a rumor, her reputation was filled with them and she relished in them, and she couldn't be destroyed by outing her gay boyfriend because Georgina didn't do boyfriends. She did one night stands, very much like Serena used to before she went away for boarding school. No. the only way to properly destroy Georgina was through her love of excess. She was a party girl at heart and loved to live it up to the fullest that her financial means could allow her, and that was how Blair was going to succeed.

She made sure to be out of sight as she heard Georgina's voice coming down the way, "Honestly, Dan, last night was fun, but I didn't really know what it would all mean to you."

Blair rolled her eyes at how Georgina was playing her hand as she continued to listen, giving Humphrey his time to say what he needed to say before she took over. "Well, I-I normally don't jump into things like that," Dan explained with a shrug, "So when I do, it means a lot."

"Me, too. That's why I think we should be together forever," Georgina said with a smile as she attempted to take his hand as they got into position.

Humphrey quickly began changing his tune as he pulled his arm away, "Georgina, look, Serena told me everything. Alright? And I believe her."

"No, you don't understand," Georgina tried to rectify this situation, "She was upset and- and jealous. I'm sure she told you all kinds of things to make you think the worst of me."

Dan rolled his eyes as he looked away before looking back at her with a firm, "No, just stop it."

"I never meant for this to happen, but it did," she continued on with her sob story as Blair glanced over at her cohorts as they waited for her signal, "and I know you feel it, too. I mean, how else do you explain last night?"

"I don't know. I don't know, and I wish I could," Dan sighed as he shook his head in confusion.

"S-so you're just going to go back to Serena lie nothing happened and just leave me all alone?" Georgina asked, playing up her hurt, giving Blair the perfect moment to make her presence known.

"Oh, you're not alone, G. I'm here now," Blair announced with a smirk as Georgina slowly turned towards her, "and I brought some people who really, really want to see you."

Blair motioned over to her cohorts as the turned towards the trio with a photo flourish, "I think you remember your parents?"

The only thing feared by the spawn of Satan? Mom and Dad. Leave it to Blair Waldorf to know that bitches don't just happen. They're made…but parents even more wicked than their offspring.

Blair relished at the look of pure shock and fear on her nemesis's face as Dan quickly turned and left Blair to have her fun as she completed her take down just the way she envisioned it this morning. When Georgina looked over her shoulder to find Dan gone and a very muscled man in his place preventing her from being able to escape, she began to talk, "Okay, I'm…Mom, Dad, this is not what you think. You have to believe me."

"There, there, Georgie," Blair soothed insincerely as she handed Georgina a yellow handkerchief, "It's going to be okay."

"No, this time, it won't," Georgina's mother spoke firmly as she walked towards them with Mr. Sparks by her side.

"Or it won't," Blair corrected herself with a light shrug and a smile before she started to name off the dirt she had accumulated from Mr. and Mrs. Sparks from just that morning, "Your parents were so worried, G. they told me everything: How you're supposed to be on the equestrian circuit but sold your show pony for cocaine."

"That was a difficult time, but I-I've put that behind me," Georgina tried to brush it off.

"When?" Blair asked with a look of confusion, "When you were in rehab? It's hard to get clean when you hitchhike into town, steal a credit card and book a ticket to Ibiza."

Georgina began to plead her case to Blair, finally realizing that the only way she would be able to get out of this relatively unscathed was with her help, "You didn't see where they sent me. I mean, that place was awful. It was- it was in Utah. At least I lasted longer than Lohan."

Blair adopted a look of sympathy as Mrs. Spark began to speak, "We were trying to help."

"I've had enough. I have to go," Georgina spoke , trying to sound firm as she through back the yellow handkerchief to Blair before she turned around to leave, obviously forgetting about the muscle man behind her.

"Georgina, stop," Mr. Sparks ordered before she could get too far.

"Yes, stay, Georgina. I'll go," Blair offered before realizing she forgot something, "Oh, that reminds me. I almost forgot to leave you the information that I discussed with your parents."

Georgina reluctantly took the brochures that Blair handed to her and looked at it in horror, "What's this?"

"A boot camp for troubled girls," Mrs. Sparks explained.

"Where you're going," Mr. Sparks added, "Blair was kind enough to do some research."

Georgina's eyes widen as she looked towards a smirking Blair as she slowly walked towards her fresh kill, lowering her voice so she wouldn't be overheard by the parentals, "Haven't you heard? I'm the crazy bitch around here."

Blair smiled at the look of fear on Georgina's face before she added in her normal voice, "Have fun at reform school," before she turned and walked away to leave Georgina to her fate with her parents.

The take down was everything she knew it would be. It was perfection and Blair knew that it would satiate her for months to come and it would bring a smile to her face every time she thought about it. She sighed as she slipped into her waiting town car to take her home to get ready for the wedding. Mentally reviewing her to do list and smiled as there was only one more thing left to do before the end of the semester and she had no worries that she wouldn't be able to succeed in finishing it off with a well-placed sentence and a smile. She looked out the window as she released a sigh of contentment it was such a beautiful day, perfect really.

xoxo

Chuck checked his watch to see how he was doing on time as he read through his index cards containing his speech. He had to admit that he worked extremely well under pressure and that this speech was definitely going to bring everyone to their feet. He smirked to himself as he read over the words. It was still hard to believe that at the beginning of the school year he and his father were fending for themselves and yet here they were on his father's wedding and he with Blair Waldorf as his date and his girlfriend.

The Bass men had actual partners that allowed them to be happy and because of these two women they found a way to connect and actually form a sort of father/son bond. Chuck Bass now had a family that he would do everything in his power to protect from outsiders as was his nature. He nodded in greeting to some people passing by, not wanting to dwell on being social at this time since he didn't want to run the risk of being dependent on his note cards when he stood up for his big moment. He managed to put together a great speech but it would be lost if the presentation wasn't right.

"Best man speech going that well?" a voice teased from right beside him.

Chuck smiled as he looked over at his girlfriend in a light pink, floral bubble dress and a matching headband, "There won't be a dry eye in the house. Trust me, and you look absolutely stunning."

Blair smiled at the compliment as he leaned towards her and kissed her cheek gently, choosing to not go for her lips so as not to mess up her lipstick, but Blair had other ideas and turned her head and kissed him full on with a smile. "Thank you," she replied softly, "You don't look so bad yourself, Bass."

Chuck smirked as he asked the obvious question, "How did things go with Whore-gina?"

Blair smirked in return as she responded, "Not a dry eye there either."

"Good to know I wasn't missed," Chuck volleyed back, enjoying this moment of reveling in Blair's successful take down.

"Dan Humphrey actually lent a hand," Blair explained as she reached up and began to straighten his floral bow tie, "It was nice to see him get his dirty for once. Not sure how much fun he had, though. No one ever enjoys their first time."

Chuck couldn't help but respond as she continued to straighten his neckwear and lapels, "Except you."

Blair laughed, "I guess I'm the exception to the rule."

"I wouldn't have you any other way, Waldorf," Chuck smiled at this amazing woman standing in front of him, "Save me a dance?"

"I think I can be persuaded," Blair played it coy as she finished with her handiwork on his outfit.

"And I can be very persuasive," Chuck nodded to himself with a smirk.

"I'm aware," Blair smiled before continuing, "Get back to practicing your speech, I'm going to go check on Serena. I'll see you at the reception."

"I'll be waiting with anticipation," Chuck spoke as he lifted Blair's hand in his and gave the back of it a lingering kiss before she left his side to head in to seek out the blonde. He loved that woman so much.

Blair made her way to the bridal suite, taking in the décor as she went, finding it becoming of the setting. Lily always knew how to throw a party, and a wedding was just an elaborate party. Plus with this being her fourth one, Lily obviously developed a taste for what worked and what didn't. Blair smiled as she peeked into the room, finding Serena sitting on a white settee alone. "Hey," she called out softly to her best friend, gaining her attention.

"Hey, B." Serena responded, with her signature smile.

Blair walked further into the room and took a seat beside the blonde as she asked, "How goes the prenuptials?"

"Well, my mom's done this enough times. You'd think she'd be a pro by now," Serena joked, "but…I don't know. Her heart doesn't really seem in it."

"You think this will be us in 20 years?" Blair asked as she looked around the room, "onto our fourth husbands?"

"A girl can dream," Serena responded, resulting in the duo laughing, "But, with the way things are going with you and Chuck…you may not need to go looking for husbands 2 through 4."

Blair sighed softly, choosing to keep coy, "Maybe."

"Oh come on, B. you mean to tell me you haven't already started planning for the day when you'd become Mrs. Bass yourself?" Serena teased as she gave Blair's hand a squeeze.

"Waldorf-Bass," Blair corrected, "And I plead the fifth. I learned my lesson with Nate; right now, I just want to focus and enjoy the present and plan the immediate future instead of the distant future," She explained before she gave a light smirk, "Besides Chuck is really good at keeping me involved in the now."

"Oh god! My ears!" Serena yelled dramatically with a smile, genuinely happy for her friend.

"Speaking of loves, Dan isn't here," Blair pointed out.

"He's coming," Serena responded as her smile began to lose its brightness.

"So all is forgiven?" Blair asked, knowing that something was wrong.

"I'm working on it," Serena answered as she looked off into the distance.

Blair frowned in confusion at Serena's sentence, "What do you have to work on? He's the one that has to forgive you. Right?"

Serena looked back at Blair and nodded faintly, "Yeah. Yeah, that's what I'm working on."

Blair continued to look at her best friend, not entirely convinced, but choosing to not push. Serena would tell her when she was ready. All Blair could do was give her friend a hug in comfort before she got up to go take her seat for the ceremony. She may not enjoy Humphrey's company on the best of occasions but she learned to tolerate him for her friend's sake because he made her happy. But something told Blair that his days were numbered in regards to being in Serena's life.

xoxo

After Blair left to go check on Serena, Chuck moved towards the entrance of the building, hoping the new location would help with his concentration. He didn't want anyone to know, but he was stressing a bit on this speech. He knew Bart was proud of him with all his work with Victrola, but he didn't want all his hard work to go out the window just because he messed up on his speech in front of everyone. Failure was not an option.

"There he is. Best man ready to do his dad proud?" a familiar voiced called out to him.

Chuck turned and smiled as he shook the Captain's hand, "Captain, good to see you. Welcome back." He turned towards his best friend and teased, "Nathaniel, I'm impressed that you managed to dress for the occasion."

Nate chuckled and the duo exchanged a manly hug, "I am able to dress myself, man."

"I'm aware, but it has been proven that you have a hard time dressing yourself well when the occasion called for it. I feared what you would come dressed in without Blair there to pick it out for you," Chuck smirked as he backed away.

"Well I hope I did you proud," Nate said as he opened his arms and gave a spin to show off his suit as Chuck nodded his approval.

"You fellas have been friends for such a long time, it warms my heart to see that that hasn't changed while I was gone," the Captain spoke up with a proud smile, giving Nate's back a light pat before heading over to greet some people that were arriving.

Chuck smiled as he pocketed up his speech, "So where's Vanessa?" Choosing to be polite for the moment in regards to the Brooklynite.

Nate raised his brows in surprise that Chuck actually referred to her by name before responding, "Um, I'm not sure. She sent a text saying that she was running a bit behind schedule, but that she'd text to find me when she gets here."

"Well she better hurry up," Chuck responded with a glance at his watch, "The ceremony's supposed to start in ten minutes."

Nate nodded in agreement as he looked around as if hoping she'd appear, "Yeah, I'll keep a look out. I'm gonna head inside to grab a seat. Good luck, man."

With a friendly pat on the arm and a final glance around, Nate headed inside to get seated along with all the other guests. Chuck didn't see the captain around so he decided to take the last few minutes to go back on working on his speech for the reception. As he got to, what he viewed as, the climax of the speech, he looked up away from his notes to make sure he had this particular part memorized. He paused in his muttering as something caught his eye.

Across the street he saw the Captain approaching some shady guy, looking heated before the two made an exchange and quickly separated to go their own ways. All Chuck could do was stand there in shock. Maybe it wasn't what he thought it was. Maybe the Captain wasn't making a deal after just getting out of rehab. After all according to Nate everything seemed to be coming out fine with the Captain's return. Granted, Chuck found it a bit strange that Anne chose not to come to the wedding, especially one of this social standing. The Upper East Side women lived for these types of events to show off and gossip about the latest dirt; to them this was like the watering hole of the New York Society jungle. And with Anne, who was such a prominent figure in their society, this would have been a good opportunity to smooth over the scandal involving her husband.

Before Chuck could continue to dwell on what it was he saw, the wedding planner called him over to get into position inside beside his father. Chuck pocketed up his speech and went where he was supposed to, spotting the Captain beside Nate and figuring that he'd have someone watch the older Archibald just in case he pulls something. Nate had gone through a lot this past school year with his family drama, not to mention the drama with himself and Blair, and Chuck would do anything to try to prevent his friend to go through more unnecessary pain.

Before he arrived at his spot he motioned over a man from the security team and spoke softly, "Do me a favor and keep an eye on Mr. Archibald." The man nodded before getting into position to do what he was told as Chuck went on to stand by his father with a smile. "Today's the day. How are you feeling father?"

"I'm feeling good, Charles. Other than the ceremony, I'm looking forward to hearing your speech later," Bart responded as he wrapped his arm around him, giving him a light squeeze.

"And I look forward to giving it; thank you. For letting me be a part of this, father," Chuck spoke as he smiled up at the elder Bass.

"There's no one else I'd want standing beside me, son," Bart gave a tight smile to him, but it was the happiness shining in his eyes that showed how he genuinely meant those words that caused Chuck to beam.

"Where's my mom? Shouldn't we be saying vows around now?" Eric asked with his hands in his pockets, looking around obviously growing bored.

Bart checked his watch and looked towards the building as he answered, "Your mother is a wonderful woman, Eric, but being on time- not a strong suit."

Chuck and Eric laughed and nodded in agreement as they looked out at the mass of people getting a bit antsy at having to wait. Chuck caught Blair's eye and smirked at her with a wink, resulting in her smiling back at him and shaking his head. He motioned behind her towards the very late Brooklynites finally making their appearance. Chuck had to work hard to refrain from laughing at Blair's look of disgust as she glanced over her shoulder and caught their greeting. No matter how much things change, things also stay the same.

Almost as if they were waiting for the last of the guests to arrive, the string quartet began their rehearsed piece as Serena walked down the aisle with a forced smile on her face. Chuck grew more concerned when she glanced over at Humphrey as she passed and the blonde couldn't even keep up the façade of being happy for a moment before she took her place across from Chuck by the alter.

Chuck didn't have time to dwell on what was going on with those two as just then Lily made her entrance looking in her element. Chuck reached over and gave his father's arm an encouraging squeeze. Bart nodded with a soft look on his face as he took in his bride before reaching forward to take her hand in his as the performer of the ceremony began to speak. Chuck glanced over at Serena as she stared at Humphrey in the front row looking devastated while Humphrey looked as if everything was coming to falling apart. Chuck glanced over at his girlfriend to silently ask what was going on with them to which she just shrugged lightly; she didn't know what was going on either, but from the look on all their faces, Chuck knew that whatever it was, it wasn't good.

Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today in the face of this company to watch this man…and this woman…totally eff things up.

Excuse me while I pull out a hankie and pass it to S. and D.

Looks like I'm not the only one who cries at weddings.

xoxo

The ceremony was beautiful and it didn't take long before the party moved inside for the reception. As Blair sat down beside Chuck at the wedding party table, she took in the other couples and notice that the blondes, with the exception of Eric, appeared to not be present mentally. Lily was looking off into the distance as Bart nodded his head in greeting to some of the guests as he ate, and Serena was picking at her food, not saying a word, but looking as if her heart was breaking.

Chuck reached towards his girlfriend and gave her hand a gentle squeeze in comfort, noticing her attention on her best friend. When Blair looked over at him he slowly raised her hand and kissed it as he did earlier before the ceremony. Blair found herself smiling as he leaned towards her ear and whispered, "I love you."

"I love you too," Blair whispered back, still smiling as she took a sip from her glass of champagne. It wasn't her favorite vintage, but it was still suitable for the occasion. Blair noticed Serena and Dan whispering back and forth before the blonde stood up from the table and left the room. Blair decided to just let her friend be for now and made a note to check on her after about fifteen minutes.

Chuck witnessed the same thing and was about to ask Humphrey what was going on when the man from the security team that Chuck talked to earlier came up to him and whispered into his ear that the Captain was leaving. Chuck knew that he had to act fast and he quickly set his napkin down on the table with a quiet, "I'll be right back," to the table, giving Blair a reassuring look that everything was okay before he released her hand that he was still holding and made his way across the room to his best friend.

He leaned towards Nate and whispered, "I need to talk to you. Your father's leaving."

Nate looked up with a look of confusion on his face and sighed before responding, "He just stepped out to call my mom."

"Everything okay?" Vanessa asked, butting her nose in where it doesn't belong.

Chuck responded with a firm, "No." while Nate responded with an equally firm, "Yes."

Chuck didn't even bother continuing to talk with the vermin as he pulled Nate to stand up with Nate reluctantly going with him as Chuck whispered, "He just asked to have his car brought around."

"He probably left his phone in it," Nate offered up as an explanation.

Chuck sighed, knowing that Nate needed to go and talk to his father before something bad happened and knew he had to tell him what he saw earlier, "Before the ceremony, I saw him with a guy doing a deal. It looked like drugs."

"My father is clean, Chuck," Nate defended, "I don't need you spying on him."

"Look I know what I saw and it did not look good. I know you want to think the best of him, but you and I both know that something isn't right. You're my best friend and I'll always have your back when it counts. We do not have time to argue about this," Chuck tried to get his friend to see reason.

Nate looked towards the door before looking back at Chuck, his decision obviously having been made before he turned and headed out to the front door with Chuck trailing behind him another look of reassurance to Blair as he went. Neither of them even thought of giving their excuses to Brooklynite still sitting at the table, now alone as her date left to go outside.

Nate came outside just in time to stop the limo carrying Harold Archibald from leaving, "Whoa! Stop!" He yelled, hitting the driver's window with the palm of his hand before he made his way to the back passenger door where the Captain still hadn't climbed out of. Chuck watched from a safe distance so he was able to hear everything was still able to give the two the illusion of privacy as Nate attempted to open the door, finding it locked, Nate yelled through the door, "Dad, what the hell are you doing?"

The Captain finally climbed out of the car, "I left you a note at home," as his way of explaining himself.

"Yeah? What's it say?" Nate asked frustrated.

"It says I'm sorry," Howard said softly.

"For what?" Nate asked before understanding dawned on him, "Dad, if you've relapsed, it's okay. We'll get you help." The captain looked away and shook his head in denial as Nate spoke firmly, "Chuck saw you earlier."

"I wasn't buying drugs," he responded firmly as he took something out of his pocket and handed it to Nate.

Chuck tilted his head to the side, spotting the cover flap of a passport and realized instantly what the Captain was truly up to as Nate looked up at his father, "A passport? You're skipping town?"

"I'm gonna be a much better father to you from Dominica than I will be from jail," the Captain attempted to justify his actions as he took it back and stuffed it in his jacket pocket.

"No, Dad. I know you're scared, but we'll get through the trial," Nate assured him.

"No, we won't," Howard spoke firmly, "I'm guilty, Nate. I'm facing 25 years."

Nate looked over at Chuck in disbelief as Chuck did his best to show his support from a distance as his friend turned back to his father and scoffed, "So all this stuff about things looking good and working out, huh? Yeah. What about mom?"

"Who do you think's paying for the private plane?" Howard asked, dropping another bomb on his son.

"Why didn't you tell me any of this?" Nate asked, obviously growing more agitated.

"Cause I didn't want you to know anything, be an accessory," Howard explained, "this is the best thing for everyone. I need you to step up right now. Be the man of the family for your mother."

Nate was silent for a moment before shaking his head as he spoke, "It's been that for a while now." Chuck slowly walked towards his friend as Nate turned away from his father only to stop in surprise as Harold reached for him resulting in Nate turning around and punching his father in the face. Chuck just stood there as he saw the Captain, for not the first time, fall out on the ground. Chuck doesn't say anything as he stood with his best friend as they watched the Captain climb into the back of the limo and flee the country like the coward he had become.

Meanwhile back inside, the reception was still going on in full swing as Blair sat with Eric at the table. Humphrey had left a bit ago to search for Serena and the new Mr. and Mrs. Bass were mingling with their guests. Blair looked over as Vanessa sat alone at her assigned table and slowly smiled to herself as Eric made his excuses to go talk to a friend of his. This would be the perfect opportunity for that well placed word to be put in effect in getting rid of Vanessa before Nate became too attached. He had already left his date alone for some other reason and, from what Blair saw, didn't even give the girl a second thought.

Blair remembered the Bass brunch at the beginning of the school year where she revealed some truths to another Brooklynite and how it forced him to make a decision on if his "perfect" girl was worth everything else and now it seemed that it was Vanessa's turn. Blair stood up and casually made her way over with a polite smile as she took Nate's seat with a cross of her legs and a shrug, "Looks like Nate isn't a fan of the fish…or his date."

"Blair, I'm with Nate and you're with Chuck. Deal with it," Vanessa responded with a sigh.

The poor thing probably thought that what she said was an insult. Blair looked away with a roll of her eyes and sighed before she started spinning her web with ease as she glanced back at her, "I just feel sorry for you is all. Dating an Archibald is a tortured process: The endless supply of family drama," Blair leaned towards the Brooklynite as she added, "the fact that he never really got over Serena. Though, falling for someone who's in love with Serena…you already know how that feels, don't you?"

Before Vanessa could even try to deny anything, the Eric approached them asking, "Hey, have you guys seen Chuck? It's time for his speech."

"I'll look for him," Vanessa offered giving one last look at Blair, "Maybe he's with my date."

Blair simply smiled as Vanessa excused herself to leave, feeling that her point had been proven that she didn't even know where Nate was. She stood up and began to walk with Eric back to their table feeling satisfied. She didn't give Nate and Vanessa long before they went their separate ways after today. And hopefully Blair never had to be bothered with interacting with Brooklyn vermin any time soon.

xoxo

Chuck and Nate were leaning against the brick wall not too long after Howard made his exit in silence. Nate was the first to speak, "So, thanks."

Chuck smiled softly, "It's your dad. I know how important he is to you."

Nate nodded before looking down at the ground, obviously not wanting to talk about his father anymore as he asked, "So…things still going good with you and Blair?"

Chuck smiled and nodded, "Things are going great. Ready to go back in?"

Nate sighed and looked out onto the street and shook his head, "I don't think I'm going back in. Just, um, tell Vanessa-,"

"Tell Vanessa what?" the girl in question interrupted as she came to join them outside. Chuck refrained from snapping at the poor girl since she was about to get ditched by her date without a second thought as Vanessa explained why she was there, "They're looking for you inside."

Chuck nodded and glanced over at Nate to see if he was okay to handle Vanessa and the situation. At the faint nodding from his best friend, Chuck winked before heading inside to leave him to it. He smiled and nodded as he passed by people to get into position to make his speech. He looked to Blair, and it was as if she knew what he needed without him even asking for it because she smiled and gave his hand a gentle squeeze before letting go as he began to clink his champagne glass to gain everyone's attention, "I'd like to propose a toast."

Bart and Lily shared a look and gave Chuck their full attention as he picked up his index cards, cleared his throat and began, "My father is someone who goes after what he wants, and Lily Van Der Woodsen was no exception. In typical Bas man fashion, his pursuit was direct, and at times not exactly subtle."

Chuck paused and glanced at Blair for a moment, feeling a sudden wave of inspiration as he sat his cards down on the table with a smile before continuing on off the cuff, "One thing I learned from my father's courtship of Lily is the importance of perseverance. That in the face of true love, you don't just give up, even when the object of your affection is begging you to."

The guest chuckled at the joke as Chuck smiled and continued on, "And one thing I learned from Lily is the importance of forgiveness. She gave my father the gift of a second chance, and in kind, I've watched him become someone actually worthy of that gift. I've been fortunate to have found someone that has given me that, and I only hope that one day, I'll be lucky enough to have followed in my father's footsteps and become worthy of it. "

He raised his glass, locking eyes with Blair as he finished, "To the happy couple." Blair tapped her glass with his, smiling as she felt genuinely moved at his words as he sat back down beside her as Bart and Lily began their first dance as a married couple. She rested her chin on Chuck's shoulder as she whispered, "That was quite a speech. All your hard work must have paid off."

Chuck smiled as he took her hand and led her to the floor for a dance as he responded, "That wasn't what I wrote." Blair frowned in confusion as she willingly went with him as the two began to dance as he continued on, "I was inspired in the moment."

Blair looked at him in amazement, "So…what you said about us and them…?"

"I meant every word," Chuck answered without hesitation.

Blair bit her bottom lip lightly before she spoke again, "Serena asked me earlier if I ever thought of our future in regards to all this. I didn't give her the answer she was looking for."

Chuck nodded, misinterpreting what she was saying, but Blair quickly finished her thought, "But I have. Thought of us, I mean, like that in our future, but I learned my lesson with Nate. I don't want to plan so far into the future that I lose sight of the present. Because I know with you, I'd end up missing out on some pretty spectacular things."

Chuck smiled softly at her words and felt his heart lift, "And what answer did you give Serena if not that?"

"I gave her another form of the truth. That I wanted to focus on the now and the immediate future with you," Blair said softly.

"Then that's what we'll do," Chuck responded as he rested his forehead against hers, "I just wanted you to know that I have thought of us like that and that I want that with you."

Blair leaned back as she smiled happily, shaking her head gently, "Chuck Bass is a romantic. Who knew?"

Chuck smirked as he pulled Blair back to him and answered, "Now you do. That's all that matters."

The couple smiled at each other happily wrapped up in their own bubble of bliss. Unaware that while all was right in their world, their friends' worlds were ripping apart at the seams and there was nothing anyone could do to stop it. Granted they were aware, this is Chuck and Blair after all, but they mutually agreed to let the dust settle for the night before meddling. The other half of their non-judging breakfast club seemed to need the time to reflect and come to grips with the changes occurring in their lives and hopefully they'll come to them when they felt ready to talk about it. For now, Chuck and Blair were simply: Chuck and Blair, Blair and Chuck.

A/N: The end! Don't worry there's still the epilogue where the main question I know that all of you guys have running through your heads will be answered! Lily and Bart are married and Chuck and Blair are in a great place and in agreement about where they stand at this point in their relationship which I feel is very important in regards to these two. A lot of their problems that happened on the show I felt could have been fixed if they were on the same page on where they were relationship wise (and of course if a certain someone would just say those three words, eight letters!) and I'm glad that I was able to give you guys that. I tweaked the best man speech obviously adding some to make it more relevant to my personal story since Chuck and Blair are already together and I hope I did the scene justice!

While watching this episode, I had to grow even more pissed off with Humphrey. Can anyone explain to me what the heck he meant by "I may as well have"? when he said he didn't sleep with Georgina? 6 years later and I still don't know. Either you did or you didn't! And then he turned into a little hypocrite and using it as an excuse to break up with Serena just because she wasn't ready to tell him her secret when he was ready to hear it? I'm sorry, but she thought she killed somebody! When you compare that to "cheating" I can kind of see which is the lesser of the two evils. Granted I'm not saying that Serena is completely innocent, but if Blair, Chuck, and Nate can understand how is it that Dan couldn't find the least bit of understanding for the situation, it's proof that he loved the idea of Serena instead of the reality of Serena.

Anyway…

Thank you all for the birthday wishes and for taking this journey with me! After the Epilogue next week I'll be "technically" taking a couple of months off so I can focus on graduating in August. By technically I mean I won't be posting much of anything, but you can take this to the bank that I will be writing the sequel to this. Too much happens in second season for me to not take it there and see where our beloved characters go in this new reality and I hope that you guys will still be here to continue on with this journey because you all are the best readers ever!

I love you all and I'll see you next week with the final chapter of this story! I'd love to hear your thoughts and views for this chapter and even for the sequel. I'm open to suggestions and ideas for the next phase!

See you next week!

-Plei4fun