The Last Truck Stop

Story Summary: He'd always be her Chu-Chu Chuck. Bittersweet ChuckBlair.

Genre: Romance/Hurt/Comfort

Rating: T/PG-13

Author's Starting Notes: This is now officially either a chapter story, or like a three-shot or something. These will be short but I will keep writing them if people are reading. This is a good practice in writing in present tense as I suck in writing present tense. They have a lot of dialogue because once again, I suck at present tense and I try not to write too much in it. Just so you guys know, I wrote this like the day after the first one but I was working on other stuff and never put it on.

Time Stamp: Posted June 8th, 2008

Two:

"I tear my heart open, I sew myself shut, My weakness is that I care too much"

A gasp escapes her thin lips as she hears the song she vowed never to listen to again. It was their song! It was a bit unconventional, sure, but, no matter what they were, they always have been. She's at the phone before the next line of the song can even finish. You have to excuse her enthusiasm, this will be the first time she truly hears his voice in two, whole years.

"Hey, B," he whispers softly the way he used to do when they were dating.

"Hey yourself," she says laughing slightly, "Pretty big surprise hearing your voice today,"

"Yeah, well, I've been busy,"

Like that's any excuse, she silently remarks. She can almost see him scratching the back of his neck in the way he always does when he's nervous. It doesn't look as cute when she can't see it.

"Too busy to call, Chuck? I know we like chat on AIM a few times a month, but… it's not enough, not for me at least,"

"It's not enough for me either, Blair," he admits, "I've just been busy with school and stuff,"

"You sure spend a lot of time on 'school and stuff',"

"Yeah, I do, but only because it's my education. I have to work on it,"

"No, you don't. You don't have to do anything, you're just suddenly choosing to,"

That sounds a bit harsher than she expected, but it serves its purpose. Chuck finally hears her, even if it's just her frustration coming through.

"Are you mad at me or something? You said we never talk but I'm calling you, aren't I?"

"Yes, but you don't know how much I wish you called earlier. You have no idea how hard it has been over here,"

"It's been hard here too,"

"Yes, sunning and studying at your lakeside college must be so difficult, Chuck,"

She rolls her eyes.

"Just because it seems simple, doesn't mean it is! And, I have kept in touch with everyone,"

"Really? You kept in touch? So, you know that Jenny is now attending a school out there? Pursuing her fashion with the Eleanor Waldorf scholarship? Or, maybe you knew that Dan's mom moved back to the city to work at the gallery while Rufus goes on his second-no, third tour since the wedding back in junior year. Wait, I know, you spoke to my mother and now know she's engaged to Jack Roth, the guy she's been dating,"

"Wait, your mom is engaged? I didn't know it was that serious,"

"Yeah, it is. You'd know that if you kept in touch. You know, it's kind of funny really. They've been seeing each other for as long as we would have had you not left,"

"Okay, you cannot still be mad at me for that! You were the one who told me to go,"

"You weren't supposed to listen!"

"You should know reverse psychology doesn't work on me, Blair,"

"Well, I didn't know that! Chuck, I prayed to every single God I knew that you would come back to me. You never did. Do you have any idea how many nights I cried after you left? Do you know how many times I bought a ticket out to California just to be in the same state as you? Do you even care?"

"How can you say that I don't care about you, Blair? I loved you,"

She freezes instantly hearing his words. Was that just past tense? Did he just say he loved her, not loves? Oh, God. She feels like crying already.

"Loved?" she squeaks, "So, what, I'm like last season's lime green Prada bag? Old junk that you aren't quite sure what you saw in anymore? Let me guess, you went out to the Sunshine State, cruised a few beaches, and found some little tramp who'll do you until you're balls your fall off?"

"No, actually, I found some snippy brunette who wouldn't spread her legs for a single soul but me, then I told her she was a whore, broke her heart, went back, scooped up the last piece of said heart after her best friend was almost done putting it together, mounted that piece on my trophy case, dated her, and, finally, I left her to think about me for two years while I tried to make myself a better person for her. … Wait, that wasn't here, that was back home,"

The tears are slowly evaporating within turning instead into anger simultaneously. He better stop soon, or else he may end up getting more than he bargained for with this call.

"You are-"

"What? Insufferable? Inhumane? An asshole? How about a bastard? No! Wait, I got it. I'm an Arabian Trainer,"

The reference to those hurtful words of his so long before cause a sharp pain to course through her starting from her heart. She doesn't let it control her though. She will not let him do that to her.

Her room door opens allowing her best friend to sashay through looking very pleased with herself. Her almost smug look vanishes once she sees the pained expression on Blair's face. What happened in the ten minutes since she left? She wants to ask but the only recognition she gets from Blair is a short look that was practically pleading with her. For what, Serena isn't so sure.

"What happened to you?" Blair asks Chuck inaudibly

He pauses trying to think of an answer that might not be as hard to hear. With no success, he says, "I grew up, Blair. You should too,"

"I did grow up!" Blair shrieks frightening both Serena and Chuck with her sudden outburst, "And I grew up pretty damn fast because of you,"

Serena's eyes widen when she realizes who exactly is on the phone. She silently crosses the distance between herself and Blair and puts her ear near the phone.

"How did I make you grow up, Blair?" he asks and the girls can just see him rolling his eyes. They share a worried glance. Should she tell him?

"…"

"Yeah, that's what I thought. Saying things just for the sake of conversation isn't necessary, Blair,"

"It's not just for damn conversation, Bass. I did have to grow up. I've spent the last year, three months, and nine days growing up in ways you can't even imagine,"

"Well, I'm sure you'll enlighten me later. Look, I didn't call for us to fight. I just called to let you know that… that… that I'm probably not going to come home until after college is out. If I go home, I'm not going to want to come back, and I just love the school here so much,"

"Oh, you mean the university you signed up for knowing good and well that there was no chance any one else would be allowed to go to but Nate. Speaking of your 'best friend', have you spoken to him at all in the last year? I'm sure you haven't, so, let me tell you that he and S are together. They have been since about five months after you left. I'm pretty positive you didn't know that,"

"Maybe I don't care about Nathaniel's love life. You probably still do though,"

"No, Charles, I don't. There are only two men in this world I obsess over and neither of them have Archibald DNA,"

"Wait, two… did you, did you find someone, B? Someone else?"

Serena unknowingly scoffs at how idiotic Blair's ex- it is ex, right? -boyfriend truly is. The two years down in California obviously didn't teach him a thing.

"No. I could never love anyone but you. Not like you care anyway. I mean, this is the first time we've spoken since you left,"

"You could have called me too, Blair," he insists defensively

"I did!" she yells outraged, "I called you, Chuck. I called you for months. You just never, ever answered my calls. You were always 'busy with school and stuff'. What's the point in having a fucking phone if you won't answer it, Chuck!"

Serena sighs knowing where this is going. It's confession time.

"Blair, calm down,"

"I will not bloody calm down!" Blair's pissed now. How dare he treat her this way? After all the time and effort she spent on him and his damn-uhh!

"Did you just say blo-"

"Shut up! You are without a doubt the biggest piece of horseshit on this Earth. And you reside in the lowest, deepest, most disgusting, shit-hole in the universe, excluding the Humphrey loft - "Blair!". You got to say what you wanted to say earlier, Chuck. Well, now, I'm going to say what I've been dying to say for the longest time. Actually, someone else will,"

Chuck can just feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up when he hears her hostile, almost vengeful voice. He's obviously pushed one too many of her buttons during the call. Was it really that serious? She's just being so… impossible. And, really, what has she been dying to say for the longest time? He really, really wants to know. Until a new voice speaks, now, suddenly, he doesn't want to hear it. The words she says make his blood run cold. He almost drops the phone as the reality of the question sinks into his brain.

"Guess you don't handle your business as well as you thought, eh, Bass?" Serena asks spitefully smirking as she looks at the two people across the room from her. Without even waiting, she hangs up leaving Chuck with nothing but the dial tone and his conflicting thoughts.

© Dezi. While everything above was written by myself, the characters and the world they live in was not. I don't own GossipGirl, or the brilliant quote that inspired the last quote of this chapter. Sorry for the confusion.