Dichotomy

Summary: He will destroy her. It's the one thing about him that she can say for certain. Chuck/Vanessa

Setting: season 2 (around the era of "Remains of the J")

A/N: i should probably mention that i have no idea where this is going...so, i'm not sure how long this story will be. suggestions are welcome; reviews appreciated. enjoy!

duality.

The morning sun is bright and cheery the next morning - almost mocking, taunting.

Vanessa rubs a hand over tired eyes, refusing to acknowledge the fact that her restless sleep was the result of going to bed alone for the first time in a long while. Vanessa reasons that it's only been a month of Chuck (and his games) and that there's no possibility that she's become attached to him in any way.

Still, her body is cold and lonely as she treads across the floor of her empty apartment. The light of her answering machine stares back, unblinking; she's never felt more forgotten or lonely. God, she's tired.

Dan's face is the first thing she sees when she walks down the steps in front of her apartment and Vanessa tries to hide her disappointment behind her sunglasses. What was she expecting, Chuck standing out on the sidewalk in a disheveled tuxedo, playing "In Your Eyes" from the stereo in his limo?

After all this time, her expectations really shouldn't be set so high.

"Hey." Dan is the one who speaks first, always unable to let a fight settle between them for too long without being addressed, meddled and fixed in some way.

"Hey," Vanessa greets him reluctantly. She tries to smile, but it just feels awkward; it's early and she winces when she sets her sunglasses on top her head, eyes squinting at the brightness of the day.

"Breakfast?" He holds up a bag from the bakery down the street and realizes just how hungry she is.

"Thanks." She peeks inside at the egg sandwich, inhaling the scent of fresh dough. "Well, since you brought the food...mind if I bring the apology?"

Dan nods. "Accepted, as long as we can get some coffee." She casually loops her arm through his and they stroll in a slightly awkward silence down the sidewalk.

Vanessa knows that Dan wants to bring up Chuck, and his sudden meaning in her life, but even if she wanted to talk about it, she wouldn't really know quite what to say.

It's later in the day when Vanessa finds her video camera buried and lost in an abandoned corner of her room. The thinnest layer of dust that coats the top of it very nearly breaks her heart in half. It's a gentle reminder of all that she's been missing, the part of herself that she's been neglecting.

She's made the resolution to make more time for her first love, filming, and telling herself to ignore any other distractions - certain heirs to billionaire fortunes that shall remain nameless - when not five minutes after she's settled herself onto a park bench, the seat next to her becomes occupied by one Chuck Bass.

She glares at him; he smirks. "Are you following me?"

"No. I happen to love Washington Square."

"Liar," Vanessa scoffs. She tries to concentrate on adjusting the focus of her lens when she feels him lean towards her. His lips are near her ear and she's subconsciously leaning towards him. Vanessa rolls her eyes at her inability to concentrate or control herself.

"So there's an event tomorrow night..."

"Of course there is," she retorts. His silence is far more distracting than any other thing he could come up with and Vanessa stops fidgeting with her camera lens to turn and face him. "Stop hemming and hawing, Chuck. You don't pull it off well. Just tell me what you're here for."

"Come with me."

"Is that a request?" Vanessa asks glibly.

"Well I would get down on bended knee but these pants are new."

"I have better things to do with my time."

"No, you don't."

Vanessa narrows her eyes. "Is Blair going to be there?"

"I didn't ask."

She's surprised by this little fact, and, honestly, not sure if she believes him - if she should believe him. "Really? Because our deal was—"

"I know what 'our deal' was. But, it's time to change things up a bit, don't you think?"

"...How so?"

"Is that a yes?"

"Chuck," she sighs, shaking her head.

"Say yes." He brushes his thumb across her cheek, wrapping his hand around the curve of her neck and turning her to face him.

You're going to regret this, she chides herself.

"What time?"

She shouldn't be here.

Vanessa takes a deep breath and holds it before exhaling through her nose.

She shouldn't be here. This is probably about the tenth time that thought has run through her mind since she and Chuck have arrived. She heads nervously toward the bathroom, trying not to seem like she feels completely foreign and out of place without Chuck nearby.

"Why are you here?" As always, Blair is right by her side, ready and willing to feed into Vanessa's insecurities.

"Excuse me?"

"I don't repeat myself; you heard me, Abrams."

"I was invited. I know you like to tell yourself otherwise, but you don't own this city."

"That's what you think."

"Blair, please. This little dance is getting a little old, don't you think so?"

"So you're admitting defeat?" She seems almost...smug.

Vanessa scoffs and rolls her eyes, crossing her arms defensively across her stomach. "Did you actually read The Art of War, or did you just have your band of Bergdorf Blondes do it for you?"

Blair narrows her eyes, getting closer than necessary into Vanessa's personal space. "I don't need to work that hard to destroy you, Vanessa. Remember that."

"You need to remember that I'm not afraid of you."

"You should be."

Vanessa allows their stand-off to last another minute before she shoves past Blair and heads into the bathroom.

"You know, it was fun at first, almost cute even, but now it's actually getting really annoying."

Chuck's eyes flit over Blair's form out of habit, taking in the snug fitting black dress and casual - but deliberate - tousle of her brown curls and smooth shine of her red lips as she leans against the counter of the bar, her hip brushing against his leg. "What is?"

"Your pet project. How long are you planning on slumming, anyway?"

"What do you care what I do in my spare time?"

"More like who," Blair corrects snidely. "And I don't. I care about right and wrong. Someone like Vanessa Abrams shouldn't get a free pass into the Upper East Side simply because Chuck Bass is bored and suddenly wants to borrow a toy that no one else wants to play with."

"You're preaching to me about what's right and wrong?" He chortles, examines the contents of his drink. "Well I can certainly appreciate the irony."

Blair's smirk increases, knowingly. "You can't honestly tell me that you're not bored of this already."

He notices Vanessa, coming out of the bathroom over Blair's shoulder. "Honestly, I'm not..." Chuck pauses, and shifts his gaze to Blair pointedly. "How much does that bother you?"

"Please. You're not on my level." Blair runs her finger along the rim of the martini glass in front her. "You really shouldn't string her along, Chuck. It only makes her look pathetic."

"Isn't that what you wanted?"

"No, but it's certainly a bonus." Blair tilts her head to the side, trying to catch his gaze. Chuck looks away when his eyes land on hers. "You still want me…why are you trying so hard to hold onto her?" she asks frankly and that's when he notices her fingers toying with the cuff of his sleeve.

"I don't know," he answers, honesty trumping everything else for the moment. He stands, leaving behind Blair and his drink.

"Come on." Chuck slides his arm around Vanessa's back. It doesn't take much effort for him to steer her away from the ballroom filled with people and walk towards the elevators.

"But, we just got here—" Vanessa frowns, looking over her shoulder at the sound of a sudden swell of applause.

"Aren't you the one who said you had better things to do with your time?"

"Yes, but I thought that you were the one who wanted—" She stops as he tugs on her arm and gently pulls her into the elevator lift with him. He doesn't want to be here, not tonight, with Blair breathing down his neck, questioning his motives and trying to intimidate Vanessa with the utmost subtlety of an Upper East Side queen.

"What are you doing?" she asks him, softly, her gaze dropping to his lips.

He pulls her toward him, aligning her body with his and eliminating any extra space between them. "Proving what I want."