A/N: So I lied - this chapter doesn't have the anniversary or the Christmas party, but that will be next I promise. It's already half written. This chapter just started getting a bit long (there were some things I wanted to say) so I decided to split it into two. Also, my parents are visiting this week, so I probably won't be writing for awhile and I wanted to get this out there. Again, it's probably OOC and full of fluff, but I hope it's not too bad. Please read & review!

Chapter 3

Sometime during the next week

Blair's alarm went off at 5am. This was the morning she had been dreading. She had a feeling it would be bad last year, but never expected it to turn out the way it did, with Chuck shutting her out and Serena ending up in the hospital. When Chuck finally did open up to her, she thought things were on the mend, however it turned out to be the beginning of the end. That was the night he found the locket that set off a series of disasters that changed their lives forever. Blair hoped that today wouldn't be a repeat of last year. She and Chuck were in a good place, happily married and prospering in life. In fact, the trainwreck of the last year and their separation had made them both value each other and what they have now that much more. Still, she knew she needed to be with him today, regardless of what propriety deemed was appropriate behaviour.

As Blair made her way to Chuck's penthouse at the Empire she started to get a queasy sensation in her stomach. Sure she had been back to his place a number of times since the whole Jack fiasco, but she never stayed for long and she was usually distracted by a mission or a scheme so those memories didn't have time to overtake her. She had a feeling that this time would be different, but she couldn't let that prevent her from being there for Chuck today. She exited the elevator and quietly stepped into the main room. She glanced around the room and noted that it looked the same, as if nothing had changed in the past year, as if nothing bad had ever happened here, as if Jack had never been here. But of course she could still remember that night, she had just locked that nightmare away and willed herself not to think about it. At that, she shook her head refusing to recall the events of that evening, set down the spray of yellow roses she brought, and set forth to Chuck's room.

When Blair walked to the doors of Chuck's room she had to stop. She felt an aching in her chest as she looked at the doors. This room used to be her sanctuary, her home-away-from-home, her little piece of heaven with Chuck. She knew he had sex with many women in this room, disgusting tramps and one-night-stands, and that changed how she viewed his room. This was no longer her refuge, her safe place. Now she just thought of this room as the place where Chuck slept when he wasn't with her. But that wasn't the only reason her heart ached as she stared at his doors. This was the room he shared with Eva. She was more than a one-night-stand, she was the only other woman Chuck had ever cared about besides her. Eva and Chuck had lived together in this place, in this room, and that, combined with everything else, poisoned her romantic memories of this place. Still, Blair knew that Chuck would need her today. Today wasn't about her, today was about Chuck and filling that hole in his heart that was only visible to her. "You can do this Blair. You need to do this for Chuck," Blair whispered out loud for only herself to hear. With that, she reached for the knob with an uncharacteristically shaky hand, and she slowly opened the door.

As soon as the crack in the doorway was large enough, Blair discretely poked her head through and she saw that Chuck was sound asleep. In complete silence, Blair stepped into Chuck's room and gently shut the door behind her, trying not to make a peep. She stood there for a second and swiftly took in the room. She noticed there were changes to the room, they were subtle but Blair saw them. She caught the picture of herself and Chuck that was taken over a year ago, sitting on top of the dresser next to a picture of Chuck and Lily, one of the van der Bass family from the wedding, and one of Chuck and Nate from high school. She saw that the picture of his mother that used to sit there was missing, and she wondered if that was even really his mother. She realized that she and Chuck had barely talked about Evelyn/Elizabeth after everything that had happened, and she knew someday, when both of them he were ready, that they would discuss it all. As she got closer to the bed she couldn't help but smile at the sight in front of her; Chuck was sleeping on his side of the bed, his arm draped around a pillow that had been turned lengthwise. On his nightstand she saw a lone framed picture of Bart besides a photo album, a loose picture of Blair and Chuck laughing at their wedding, and an empty glass which had probably been filled with scotch.

Blair softly set her bag down on the ground and slowly stripped down to her slip. At the sound of her zipper, Chuck rolled over, raised himself by his elbows, and started rubbing his eyes. Squinting, he stared over at her and said in a groggy voice, "Blair, is that you?"

"Yeah, its me," replied Blair as she made her way over to him. She ran her fingers through his hair and kissed his forehead.

He grabbed her hand, looked up at her, and spoke in a tone that was both questioning and full of surprise, "You're here?"

"Sshh, Chuck, go back to sleep. I'm coming to bed," she whispered. She then let go of his hand and made her way over to the other side of the bed, her side of the bed. There was a moment of hesitation as she clutched the comforter before she slid in, something that did not go unnoticed by Chuck. As she climbed into the bed and made her way into Chuck's arms, she thought it felt different and her face displayed a puzzled look. "Something's different," she said aloud, not necessarily to anyone in particular.

"New bed and sheets and comforter. I changed them over Thanksgiving," mumbled a still half asleep Chuck and he tightened his hold on Blair and placed a kiss on her lips.

"Oh, that must be it," was all Blair said, but she knew that was only part of it and so did he. She squeezed her eyes tightly to keep the tears that threatened to fall at bay and strengthened her hold on Chuck. She repeated her mantra to herself 'You can do this. Today isn't about you, it's about Chuck. You need to do this for Chuck.' Soon enough, she found herself getting comfortable in Chuck's arms.

They laid in each other's arms, so silent they could hear each other breathe. After a few minutes, a very emotional Chuck finally spoke "I'm sorry Blair," his voice soft and filled with regret. "I'm so sorry. I know it's not the same. I'll fix it, I promise. I'll get us a different suite or new place. God, I'm so sorry Blair, I love you, please don't leave me," he choked out the last bit, and now it was Chuck's turn to almost cry. He pressed his head into her chest and listened to her heartbeat.

"Sshh, let's not talk about this now, not today. I love you and I'm not going anywhere, except maybe back to sleep," and she kissed and cradled Chuck until they were both near sleep. Then she whispered into his ear, "No one leaves, Chuck. No one leaves." He heard every word and understood exactly what she meant.

Blair was woken a few hours later by a kiss from a towel-clad Chuck. "Good morning Mrs. Bass." Blair yawned and stretched her arms above her head to help herself wake up. "Good morning to you, Mr. Bass," and she sat up in the bed so that she could kiss him properly.

Chuck ruffled his hair with a towel to dry it and then walked towards the closet to get dressed. Blair couldn't help but stare at him, her husband, draped in only a towel around his waist. "See something you like?" he asked cockily as he glanced over his shoulder at her. She flushed red at being caught and dove under the covers to hide her embarrassment. He shook his head and laughed at her modesty, before telling her "Breakfast is on its way up."

"Sounds great," she quickly recovered and she climbed out of bed. He seemed okay this morning, almost playful, but she was still trying to gauge his mood. He was quite emotional earlier when she woke him up. She wasn't sure if today would be a repeat of last year or not, she didn't know if her presence was welcome or not. "I'm going to take a shower and," her voice faltered as she finally gained the courage to ask him about his plans for the day, "and then I thought that we could spend today together." It was question more than a statement.

Chuck turned around to face Blair, she looked nervous waiting for his response. He was surprised that she was here, in his room, wanting to spend the day with him, but at the same time he was grateful. "That would be nice," he said and a small smile reached his lips, and he saw her start to relax. He knew that today was going to be a difficult day, but having Blair with him would be better than being alone. Last year he spent the day by himself drinking and he was miserable. The only light of that day was the end of it, when he and Blair left the hospital. As much as he didn't want to admit it, he needed her, today especially.

Chuck and Blair spent the entire day together. After eating a late breakfast, they made their way to the cemetery. Blair stood beside Chuck as he placed the flowers on Bart's grave, held his hand as he spoke to his father, blushed when he spoke of their whirlwind marriage and how happy it made him, and embraced him as a few tears escaped his eyes. As they walked back to the car, he put his arm around Blair, kissed the side of her head and whispered, "Thank you," just as he had a year before.

They rode silently in the car, going nowhere in particular. Blair didn't dare interrupt the quiet, so she sat watching Chuck as he stared out the window, and she waited for him to make a move. All of a sudden, he took her hand in his, looked her in the eyes and said, "Distract me. Let's go someplace where I don't need to think." Blair said the first thing that came into her mind, "The Central Park Zoo?" Chuck gave her a very strange look, but slowly started to smirk and nodded, "Perfect."

They passed the afternoon at the zoo, enjoying themselves like children sometimes and at other times just sitting together not saying a word. As they were getting ready to leave Chuck turned to Blair and said, "When we have kids, we'll bring them here, as a family. I want our children to be happy and to have fun. Our children will have no doubt that we love them, we will make sure they know we love them." His words left Blair speechless, so all she could do was nod in agreement with him. She had never heard him talk about children before, but there is a first time for everything. She knew he was thinking back to his childhood, and the memories that he didn't have with Bart. She needed him to know that she understood, that they were in this together. So she looped her arm through his, tilted her head on his shoulder, and whispered, "Don't worry Chuck, our kids will have the childhoods that we didn't. I promise."

That night Nate came back to the penthouse, not knowing what to expect. He realized the significance of the date after reading the front of a newspaper while waiting in line for his coffee. For that reason he was stunned when he walked into the room and saw Blair and Chuck watching TV and laughing. They were sitting on the couch facing each other, Blair with her shoes discarded and her stocking-clad feet curled up underneath her, and Chuck with his jacket and tie removed, his sleeves rolled up a bit and the top buttons of his shirt undone. She was sipping a glass of wine and he had his signature glass of scotch.

"Nathaniel, if we had known you'd be back by now, we would have gotten you dinner too. I think that we might have a few extra desserts left though, Blair decided to order the whole menu," Chuck said as he rolled his eyes and gestured to the table. On it, there were the remnants of a romantic dinner for two: candles, two empty plates, an opened bottle of wine next to an almost empty glass, and a selection of at least five different desserts not including the ones in front of them on the coffee table.

"Its called comfort food," Blair snapped back as she put down her drink and bit into a strawberry that she had doused in whipped cream.

Nate grabbed himself a dessert, caramel apple crisp from the table, and took a seat on the chair adjacent to Chuck and Blair. He noted how comfortable they seemed with each other, even after everything they've been through. They looked happy, especially Chuck, and he thought this is the way things were meant to be, Chuck and Blair together. It made him wonder if he could spur things along. "Have you guys figured out who outted you at the party? Do you know if it has anything to do with Vanessa setting up Serena?"

"We're not sure. I've got Mike looking into it," replied Chuck, taking a bite of chocolate cake.

"I'm still trying to think of the appropriate retribution for that troll's actions. If it turns out that she also had something to do with what happened to Chuck and I, then we need to take it to a whole new level," and she signaled for Chuck to give her a bite of his cake and he fed her from his fork, neither caring that Nate was in the room. "I guess we could let everyone know that she had a threesome with Humphrey and Olivia Burke."

"Not bad B, going after her 'holier-than-thou' act, but it helps if the gossip is true," Chuck retorted.

"Oh, but it is true Bass," countered Blair mockingly, and she took another bite of strawberry.

"Yeah it is. Dan was bragging to me about it right afterwards," contributed Nate.

At hearing this, Chuck's mouth hung wide open in shock and his piece of cake fell from his fork down his shirt and onto his lap, causing him to groan loudly "Shit!"

Blair couldn't contain her laughter as she teased, "Oh Chuckie, did you have a little accident?"

"No Blair, I think you did," and before she realized what he was doing, Chuck had picked up the fallen piece of cake and tossed it at Blair, hitting her right in the middle of her chest.

"You. Did. Not. Just. Do. That," she screamed, clearly shocked by his actions.

"Oh, I most certainly did. What are you going to do about it?" he taunted.

All of a sudden a spoonful of whipped cream smacked Chuck in the face. Stunned by what Blair had done, he then picked up what was left of the cake and shoved it on top of Blair's head. She then grabbed a handful of strawberries and squished them into Chuck's shirt. The ensuing foodfight resulted in Blair and Chuck chasing each other around the penthouse, alternating between throwing food and ducking behind furniture. Throughout the entire spectacle, Nate sat completely still, unsure what to do. He was certain he had entered an alternative universe because this was not something that the Chuck and Blair he knew would do. Every once in a while he caught phrases like "This dress is Marc Jacobs," and "Well, this shirt is Armani," or "You're lucky I didn't get cake all over you at the wedding," and "At least that wasn't chocolate cake – chocolate stains Bass." It ended with both of them covered in food stains from head to toe, gasping for air and laughing hysterically as they collapsed back onto the sofa. Finally, Nate got up the nerve to speak. "Who are you and what have you done with Chuck and Blair?"

In synchrony, both of them turned their heads to Nate having forgotten he was in the room and glared at him with serious expressions on their faces. Then, without saying a word, they both grabbed what was left of the strawberries and threw them at Nate. All three of them erupted into laughter again, knowing how ridiculous they all must look. When they finally settled down and regained their composure, Chuck said, "I can't believe neither of you told me about the threesome, with Olivia Burke no less."

"Well, Dan told me in confidence, so I didn't think I should," Nate replied.

"Ooh, gross. Even if it is Olivia Burke it's still Dan and Vanessa and that is disgusting, so I'd rather not think about it. Besides, why do we care about what two Brooklynites get up to in bed?" Blair commented nonchalantly and simply shrugged her shoulders. "Bass, do you mind if I get out of these clothes and clean up?"

"Not at all. Do you need any help? I could always clean you myself – I'm sure you taste delicious," Chuck smirked as he ran his tongue over his lips and licked off some of the cream.

"Ugh, Chuck, I meant shower. And if you were wondering how I taste, you could just ask Nate," as she casually flipped her hair over her shoulder to reveal his kryptonite, the nape of her neck, and her eyes gleamed with victory. She then turned and started walking towards Chuck's room.

"Not funny Blair," he scowled and she let out a giggle. Chuck followed her lustfully with his eyes as she went into his room to change and he couldn't help the smile that spread across his whipped cream covered face. It was then that he made a decision, one that had been looming in the back of his mind for a while now but was only solidified today.

He was brought out of his daze by Nate's voice. "Everything okay man?"

"Yeah, everything's great," and Chuck let out a small laugh, still staring at his room.

"You and Blair seemed to be having nice time and getting along. Any change there?" and he got up and grabbed a couple of towels from the kitchen.

"She didn't want me to be alone today, so we spent the day together. We went to the zoo believe it or not, and we actually had a lot of fun," Chuck now turned to Nate and motioned for a towel. He started wiping the mess off his face, took a deep breath and said, "Nathaniel, I'm moving out. If I want to have a real chance at a future with Blair, I can't live in this penthouse anymore. You can stay, but I have to get a new place."

"Are you planning on still living at the Empire or someplace else?" Nate questioned, a bit surprised by Chuck's statement but at the same time he understood the reasoning behind it.

"Someplace else," and Chuck became more convinced this was the right thing to do as the words passed his lips. "You know, I miss the Upper East Side, so maybe I'll look for a place there."

"I understand. And don't worry, I think you definitely still have a chance with Blair."

"Why would you say that?" Chuck asked, curious as to what Nate was talking about.

"Because you ruined her clothes and got chocolate in her hair, and she didn't kill you. She didn't even yell at you. In fact, she laughed about it, something that Blair Waldorf would never do."

"You're right, that isn't something that Blair Waldorf would do." Chuck couldn't hide the smirk that came to his face as he thought 'Maybe it is something that Blair Waldorf-Bass would do.'

A/N: I know I rambled, but I needed to have Chuck move out of the Empire. I still don't understand how Chuck (and Nate for that matter – wasn't he disgusted with Chuck and the IP) can live in that place. Also, I'm open to ideas about getting revenge on Vanessa.