Twelve Days Of Christmas
Three : On The Twelfth Day Of Christmas…
It's Christmas.
The twelfth day.
The big day.
Whatever you want to call it, it's the 25th of December and though Blair has checked – five times now – there isn't anything for her on this special morning. She is growing impatient, but also worried. She'd been out late last night at the van der Woodsens' Christmas dinner – what if something had happened to Chuck and no one had been able to contact her?
But she's being ridiculous. She just needs to get up, get ready for the day and somehow push this to the back of her mind. Maybe Chuck's busy. Maybe he ran out of ideas.
And maybe he did buy her a car, which would explain his odd pause on the phone the other day. She certainly hopes not, because as far as extravagant and utterly useless gifts go, a car would rank quite high on the list.
She considers calling Serena to make plans for the day, but the blonde will probably be with her family all morning and so Blair is left to her own devices, for now, at least. She's constantly reminded of the fact that she has no family with her right now, and it hurts because Chuck was supposed to be her family this year. But she doesn't hold it against him, just like she doesn't mind Eleanor being gone most of the time. It's work; she should understand, workaholic that she is.
But it still hurts, just a little bit.
"Merry Christmas, Blair!"
Serena calls after a long morning with her family, because while planning her day she'd realized that her best friend would be all alone, and that simply wouldn't do. And yes, also because a certain step-brother of hers had called with a plan, and how could she resist the chance to partake in a Christmas miracle of her own?
"Merry Christmas, S," Blair sighs, lounging around, reading past issues of her magazine. She'd usually use work to distract herself, but they'd put next month's issue to rest a week ago, and planning for February in December seems a little desperate. But then again, it never hurts to be prepared.
She could map it all out now and have everyone work on it the minute they get back to work. And everything would be breezy and there would be no last-minute crisis, like the one she'd dealt with last week.
"What are you doing today? I was thinking we could have our own Christmas, just the two of us." Serena suggests, feeling a little nostalgic.
Blair considers a Christmas between just the two of them. Well… the magazine can wait. Yes, it can. She tries to hide her eagerness as she twirls a lock of hair around her finger.
"I suppose that would be nice." She answers carefully, and Serena knows it's Blair-speak for thank you so much, you just saved my life, and yes, yes, yes, I do want to go out and do childish things with my best friend.
"Great!" The blonde squeals in excitement. "I'll be by in… half an hour? We can get a cab together and you can tell me what Chuck got you today." She's really curious, especially now that she knows he's got something up his sleeve, and it's very much unlike Blair to be able to keep quiet the entire conversation without once talking about her gift.
Blair's fingers still and cease their mindless tapping as she debates her next move – change the topic or answer honestly to get some real insight. But this is Serena, and they've moved past all those childish games and lies.
"Nothing," She sighs. "It's past noon and I haven't even heard from him yet." The words really hit her once she says them out loud and admits it to Serena.
"Oh, B, I'm sure it's just a glitch or something. You know how Chuck gets. It's probably some over the top thing that takes time."
Serena tries to control her burning curiosity – now she really wants to know what Chuck is up to. But first things first – time to distract Blair.
So they go ice-skating and giggle like children, and hit Serendipity's and do what they used to fifteen years ago – order tons of different treats and get so sick halfway through, ruining their appetites for the rest of the day.
Blair pushes away her huge ice-cream, having barely tasted it. "We are horrible people," She laughs, feeling as if she's on a sugar high.
"Totally," Serena agrees, mimicking Blair, sighing wistfully as she gives up trying to finish all of this sugar. "I can't believe we still do this. You'd think that we'd have learned better after first… decade or so."
"You make us sound so old," Blair wrinkles her nose in distaste. "What are we doing for New Year's Eve?" She asks casually, pulling out her phone.
"I don't know – who's throwing the party this year?" They've taken turns the past few years, but Serena's lost track. But then she remembers the big fuss about a theme last year. "Oh, wait! It's your turn."
"I thought so, too." Blair nods, tapping away at her phone, nodding with a satisfied smile when she finally puts it down. She looks up at Serena.
"I was thinking…"
Serena doesn't leave her side until it's dark, and something keeps popping up every single time Blair mentions going home. She gets a bit suspicious after the fourth time but doesn't comment on it, because she's probably better off having fun with Serena rather than moping around her place, working on the magazine and the party.
Eventually, she does get home at eleven, and it's a huge relief to step through the doors and come home. She heads straight for her room, impatient to fling off her heels, shrug off her warm coat and slip into something comfortable after a nice, long bath.
A single light turned on in the kitchen space catches her attention.
She walks closer, with a cautious edge to her steps. Her bag is gripped tightly in her hands, but as she begins to make out features in the dark, it is rendered unnecessary.
She walks faster now until she stands just in front of him, taking him in. He looks tired but relieved to be home, and so is she.
"Chuck," She breathes quietly, unwilling to end this moment in time, choosing to preserve it in her mind – the moment she got home to find him waiting for her; the best Christmas present she could have asked for.
She steps closer, takes in this moment. And then she jumps up and throws her arms around him, holding him close. She smiles brightly when he speaks in that familiar voice of his, and she closes her eyes and feels as if she's finally home even though she's never really left.
"Merry Christmas, Blair."
THE END
~ MERRY CHRISTMAS ! ~
And that's it, folks! Candy canes to those who guessed that Chuck would be the twelfth gift. Frankly, I'd take Chuck Bass over any other present, any day of the year. Yummy!
Thank you all for the wonderful support throughout this little mini-fic. It's been great sharing the Christmas spirit and I hope to hear from you all – I'd still love to know what you thought of not just this chapter, but all of them. And don't forget to check out the rest of my Christmas Specials!
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!
E Salvatore,
December 2011.