Chapter 3

Author's Note: Thank you all so much for your continued support of this story. I'm so glad you like Nate and Serena stepping up to support Chuck and Blair. It really bothered me that on the show they weren't supportive of their friends who've supported them in the past. I correct that in this story.

I can't even say how sad I am with the direction the writers have taken on the show. And as much as I want my happy Chair reunion, it will be a long time before it's believable. I've decided to show Chuck and Blair on their own before we see them together at all in this story again.

Chuck needs to get his life in order and sober up for good before he can think of reuniting with Blair again. He also needs to get back in control of Bass Industries, not to mention cutting the Empire loose once and for all. I hate that place after all that's happened there, such bad juju, ugh. And Blair deserves to find the life path that will make her happy before she can even think of inviting Chuck back into the life she's creating for herself.

I also wanted to get this chapter out before 4x21 airs as I don't want to be swayed from the current plotline I'm working on. From what I've read we could be getting a Chair reunion or the writers just take a sick pleasure in toying with us (which I'm sure they do). Anyways, I hope you continue to like this version of the Chair saga and I look forward to your feedback.

For the purpose of this story, Charlie is no longer in NYC. She won't be mentioned and it doesn't matter as I still don't understand why her character was even introduced to us in the first place. Let also pretend that Lily didn't totally snub Chuck during her "family photo shoot" because in this story she will be the supporting mother figure, albeit from her apartment on house arrest.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gossip Girl, or Ed Westwick – sigh.

May 6, 2011

"It's so good to have you here for the summer, Blair bear," Harold said as he and Blair walked into the villa from getting her from the airport.

"Blair," Roman exclaimed as he embraced her. "It is so good to have you with us. Come, I have our tea all set up on the terrace."

She smiled as he took her hand and led her back outside, so happy to be with them for the summer.

Once they were all seated and Roman served them their tea, Harold spoke.

"Are your courses all finished now?" he asked.

"I just have to email my last paper," she told them. "I finished writing it on the plane and want to reread it one more time before I submit it."

"Then you're free for the summer," Roman said happily as he raised his champagne flute to her. "I propose a toast. To spending the summer together."

"I'll drink to that," Harold smiled as Blair raised her glass to them.

After a bit of small talk, Harold asked the burning question about the giant elephant in the room.

"What happened with Louis?" her father asked. "You seemed happy with him."

"We moved too fast," Blair told them with no emotion in her voice. Looking back now, she was grateful that she wasn't engaged to the prince. She didn't love him and she knew she never would. "And his family never would have approved of me."

"Is that the only reason?" Harold implored further. "Because I've never known my Blair bear to give up on something she wants."

"Harold," Roman chided, "He isn't the one she wants."

"What are you talking about?" Harold asked before turning to his daughter. "Is that true?"

"It is, but I'd rather not talk about that," she said. "Not now, at least."

"Of course, mon cherie," Roman said as he put his hand on her back and shot Harold a look. "Tell us about Columbia."

"I've finally decided on a major," she said with the first real smile they'd seen from her since she arrived. "Pre-law."

"Well, I certainly didn't see that coming," Harold said with a smile. "I was certain that you'd follow in your mother's footsteps and go into fashion."

"That's what I thought, too," she told them. "But when I was at W I realized that's not what I wanted. With law I have so many directions I could go with. I want to make some calls this summer and see if I can set up an internship for the fall. This is something I really want and I want to start as soon as possible."

Harold smiled as he wrapped his arm around his daughter's shoulders, "Whatever will make you happy sounds wonderful to me."

"Thank you, daddy," she told him as she took a bite of her macaroon, wondering how long, if ever, she could get through a day without wondering about Chuck Bass.

May 16, 2011

"It just going to be us, mom, and Eric," Serena told him as they their way up to the van der Humphrey apartment. "Rufus and Dan are at the loft."

"You're doing the right thing," she assured him as she looped her arm though his again.

"I hope so," Chuck said uneasily. This decision was the most difficult one he ever had to make but it was also the easiest. Nate was right-on when he told him he hit rock bottom. A treatment facility was the only place that could bring him closer to the person he once was, the man that Blair was proud to show off as her boyfriend. He had to get back to that place, not just for Blair but also for himself.

"Oh, Charles," Lily exclaimed as she pulled Chuck to her for a hug as soon as he stepped off the elevator. "I've been so worried about you. How have you been?"

"I've been better," he said as she led him to the living room.

"Hey," Eric said softly as he gave Chuck a hug. "It's good to see you."

"You, too," Chuck said as he sat next to Lily on the couch. Serena sat on the other side of him and Eric took a seat in the armchair.

"I'm checking myself into the Ostroff Center, Lily," Chuck told his stepmother, not wasting any time in cutting straight to the reason he was there.

"What?" she asked with surprise. "Why?"

"Mom," Eric said quietly as all eyes turned to him, "If Chuck says he needs treatment, he needs it. Just support him."

"Of course I support him," Lily huffed. "You're my son, and I love you, Charles. But why now?"

"Blair," her name was all he could get out before he stopped talking as he felt his throat closing up again.

Chuck looked to Serena who took that as permission to tell Lily about what happened. "Do you remember that party the prince had that Blair was so excited about?"

"Yes, I do," Lily told her.

"Well," Serena elaborated, "Word was that the prince was going to propose to Blair and when Chuck found out, he cracked. He showed up drunk with the engagement ring he got for Blair last year. Let's just say he made a scene and Blair turned down Louis' proposal."

"I read that in the Post," Lily said as she looked at her son with sympathy in her eyes. "I was quite surprised as I never saw Blair letting her prince slip away that easily."

Eric winced as he saw the pain flash across Chuck's face at his mother's words. They all thought that Queen B would end up with the dark knight she'd been playing cat and mouse with for years. And Eric still had hope that it would happen, especially now that Chuck seemed determined to turn his life around.

"Blair showed up at the Empire to tell me that she couldn't say yes and I said some awful things to her," Chuck said as Lily rested her hand on his arm as he continued. "But she stood her ground with me."

"I need her back, but I need to change before I can do that," Chuck said as he stared at his feet.

"Oh, Charles," Lily said as she got teary eyed, "I'm so proud of you. Taking responsibility and admitting you need help, that takes strength."

"When are you checking in?" Eric asked as all eyes turned to him. "I'll go with you, this isn't something to be done on your own."

"I'll go, too," Serena said. "You won't be alone for this."

"As soon as I leave here I'm going back to the Empire to pack a bag," Chuck told them. "After that I was going to have Arthur drop me off."

"My babies," Lily cried as she put her arms around Serena and Chuck and pulled them to her as she looked at Eric. "I'm so proud of you."

May 17, 2011

Blair's phone went off while she was walking through the vineyard with her father and Roman. She stole a glance at it and saw it was Nate calling.

"Do you mind if I take this?" she asked them.

They shook their heads as she excused herself to answer the phone, "Hi, Nate."

"Hey, B," he said slowly, "Do you have a minute?"

"Yeah, is everything okay?" she asked, worried that Chuck had done something to himself.

"Chuck checked himself into the Ostroff Center," he told her. "Serena called me this morning, she and Eric went with him yesterday."

"Good for him," Blair said as she felt her throat closing. "It's about time he got help."

"He's doing this for you," Nate said quietly. "He told Serena that he wants to be better for you."

"Oh," she said as she choked back the silent sob, "It seems he was conscious enough to hear what I said to him. Like I said, good for him. He's needed this for a long time."

"I don't want to get in the middle of you two, but," Nate started, "What do I tell him if he asks me about you?"

Blair sighed as she said, "You can tell him maybe now he'll get that wing of his own at the Ostroff Center. He'll know what I mean."

"Okay," he stated slightly confused but knowing that they had a complex history and twisted banter that they used to engage in. "And don't worry, I won't tell him where you are."

"Thank you," she said with a smile. "I hate to do this but I have to run, Daddy and Roman are waiting for me. I'll call you soon."

"Talk to you then," Nate said as she hung up, hoping that his two friends would somehow find their way back to each other in time.

May 18, 2011

"Where would you like to start today, Chuck?" the doctor asked in his first therapy session.

"You tell me," Chuck told him, completely resigned from everything. "There's the scotch that I started drinking at eleven and the drugs I started taking at twelve. The women, the ones I've paid for or the only good one that I let get away due to my stupidity. Or how about my father and how he made me never feel good enough? Then there's my uncle who may be more twisted than me who persuaded me to trade my girlfriend in order to keep my hotel. Which issue would you like to start with, doc?"

"Why don't we start with this? Tell me what made you check in with us and finally seek help," the doctor said.

"Blair," Chuck stated. She was his reason for everything – breathing, getting out of bed each morning, wanting to be a better human being.

"And she is?" the doctor asked.

"The love of my life, the only woman I've allowed myself to feel for," he told him.

"What makes her your reason for seeking treatment?" the doctor implored as he made some notes.

"She deserves better than I've been able to give her lately," Chuck said. "But even with that she still loves me. I need to become someone she can depend on."

"As noble as that reason sounds," the doctor told him, "Treatment needs to be for you. It will only work if it's something you want."

"It is something I want," Chuck said. "Only when I get my act together will I be in any place to show Blair how much I need her in my life. Only then will I be able to fight for her like I always should have."

"Okay," the doctor said as he jotted down some notes, "I think I now have a plan for what we need to talk about in the coming weeks. Also, part of our program is group therapy and family therapy. Would Blair be willing to join us at some point?"

"No," he said, "She's gone for the summer."

"Alright, maybe in the fall," the doctor said, not dismissing the idea of having Blair join them at some point. "Is there anyone you'd like to join us, friends or family?"

"Yes, Serena and Eric," Chuck told him, "And Nate."

"Why are they important to you?" he asked.

"Serena and Eric are family and Nate's been my best friend for years," Chuck said. "They've always been there for me. If it wasn't for Nate I'd probably be lying in a hospital bed or the morgue somewhere."

"That's laying quite a claim to Nate," the doctor noted. "What makes you say that?"

"He got rid of all the alcohol and drugs in our apartment," Chuck stated. "If he didn't do that, I probably would have taken it all."

"How did his actions make you feel?" the doctor implored. "Both then and now."

"At the time I was pissed, but I was too far gone to stop him. Now, I know if he didn't do that I would have consumed all of it without a second thought," Chuck revealed, surprising himself with how open he was now that his drug and alcohol induced trance was lifted. "And I'll never be able to thank him enough for that."

"I think we've made so real progress today, Chuck," the doctor said. "There's still a lot to work through but with determination, you can get through this."

Chuck nodded as he shook the doctor's hand before leaving to go back to his room.

'This is harder than I realized,' he thought as he walked back to his room. 'You're doing this for Blair, this is all for Blair.'

May 19, 2011

Blair felt her heart stop as she read the blast from Gossip Girl. She knew that he had checked into the Ostroff Center from Nate but reading it in black and white made it seem even more real. Blair knew what a big deal it was for him to do that. He hated feeling weak and asking for help from anyone, even her. Maybe he really was trying to turn over a new leaf. And as much as her heart was crying out for him, she refused to listen to it.

'Chuck is getting the help he needs,' she told herself. 'He has the van der Woodsens and Nate there for him. You can talk to him when you get back to the city. This summer is about finding yourself without Chuck Bass to complicate it.'

Even as she thought it she knew it was a fallacy. Just as he had told her that he wasn't Chuck Bass without her, she knew she couldn't be Blair Waldorf without him. But she was going to be damned if she didn't try.

Attention Upper East Siders, it looks like our favorite bad boy just checked himself into rehab. Chuck Bass was spotted entering the Ostroff Center with Serena and Eric van der Woodsen at his side. We all know how out of control he's gotten, but rehab? Maybe with his Queen B fleeing the country for the summer, this Bass was finally pushed over the edge. You know I'll keep you updated, XOXO, Gossip Girl.

Please review if you'd like me to continue.

This story is going to be quite angsty as I want to explore each scenario where Chuck and Blair went wrong with each other in order for the healing process to begin. It won't be easy but they have their friends and family with them.

Any ideas for future chapters? I'm always open to feedback and what you'd like to read about.