Okay first off, thank you to my fans. Second, thank you to my beta. Third, I hate feeling sorry for Jenny. Fourth, Vanessa you bitca! Fifth, Kill, kill, kill Juliet! Sixth, This chapter is dedicated to TriGemini who was my 100th reply.

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Serena buttoned up the shirt she'd chosen to wear from Blair's wardrobe and smiled at Nate's reflection in the mirror, as he appeared from his attempt to feed the twins after Serena's attempt at bathing and dressing them taxed her nerves, "How'd you do?"

Nate shook his head as he stepped in behind her and grabbed her around the waist, "How does she do that every morning by herself and not drop either of them? They're so squirmy."

"Blair was always better at balancing things than either of us," Serena smiled.

"Funny," Nate frowned at her. "Do you know how odd it is to have two infants make you feel incompetent?"

"Think of it as practice," Serena smiled. "You want a family one day, right?"

"You know all this time, I've actually wondered what it would've been like to have a family with Blair. Now I know," Nate released and her sat down on the bed. "I can't imagine being in Chuck's place right now."

Serena turned around and looked at him, "Did you ever want to have a family with Blair?"

"It crossed my mind once or twice when we were together," Nate admitted.

"I guess that makes sense. You two were together for a long time," Serena nodded.

"Did it ever cross yours?"

"Modern science hasn't made procreation between me and Blair possible yet," Serena teased.

"Funny," Nate responded sarcastically. "And you know what I mean."

"You're asking if I ever thought about having a family with Dan," Serena guessed.

"Yes," Nate nodded.

"Maybe, at one point, I considered it, but we were both so young" Serena nodded as she sat down next to him on the bed. "That particular dream faded long ago."

"Any new dreams," Nate asked as she rested her head against his shoulder and entwined her fingers with his.

"Maybe a few," Serena admitted with a smile. "But we will talk about those later, much later. Right now, I have to catch a cab and go to the hospital while you wait here for Mrs. Katz and Dan. Once Mrs. Katz gets here you're going downstairs to help Dan clean up the mess in Blair's café. Then, with any luck, you can open up for a while."

"And when exactly did I volunteer for this duty," Nate inquired.

"When you were taking a shower this morning, Dan was looking for help, and you seemed like the natural choice," Serena explained.

"I'd like to go to the hospital too," Nate reminded her.

"You will," Serena assured him as she got up to find her shoes. "We can switch around five. One of us is going to have to bring Chuck home for a shower and some real food. Speaking of food, find Blair's chef's number and call him. Let him know he might have to work today."

"Anything else?"

"Yeah. Let's try to have dinner together tonight," Serena smiled at him as she slipped her feet into her flats.

"Deal."

-x-x-x-x-x-

"Okay Rufus. I will send someone to help Mom and Eric," Serena said into her cell phone as she walked down the hall of the hospital towards Blair's room. Internally she was wondering why she was becoming the coordinator for everything that needed to happen; first Blair's café and now Eleanor's memorial service. If the doctors began asking her for medical advice, she was going to scream.

"Serena, your mom just handed me a note. Did you know Harold had arrived?"

"No, I didn't know Harold had arrived. I wish he'd called. I would've met him at the airport," Serena frowned. "He and Chuck shouldn't be in the same room at the moment."

"How dare you show your face here?"

"Me? Where the hell were you yesterday when she was in surgery and fighting for her life? While we're at it, where were you when she making herself sick for most of high school? Oh, that's right. You were where you always are, someplace else, which is conveniently an ocean away."

"Uh, Rufus? Let me call you back," Serena said as she heard and recognized two very angry voices coming from the waiting room.

"Okay," Rufus said.

Serena hung up her cell phone and walked into the waiting room where Harold and Chuck were circling each other. She spotted Roman on the other side of the room and he waved at her nervously but neither Chuck nor Harold had noticed her arrival. She sighed, knowing she had only one course of action, and put her purse in the seat nearest to the door before she marched to the center of the room and got up on the small wooden coffee table.

"That will be quite enough," she commanded angrily.

"Serena, get down from there," Harold encouraged.

"No. Would you two care to explain yourselves? I could hear you halfway down the hall."

"He doesn't have the right to be here," Harold pointed at Chuck.

"He doesn't have the right to decide who should be here and who shouldn't be. He hasn't been around for years. He barely knows her anymore, and she surely doesn't know who Blair would wouldn't want here," Chuck growled.

"Oh my God," Serena rubbed her forehead as she felt a headache forming. "You two have got to be the most selfish people on the planet."

"Serena," Chuck looked offended.

"Young lady," Harold said sternly.

"No," Serena shook off both of their reprimands. "First off, have either of you called Cyrus to see how he is or to offer your condolences? Because, in case you've forgotten, his wife just died. Harold, you especially should call him because she's not only your ex-wife, she is the mother of your daughter. Maybe you could offer to help with the arrangements so that he and my mother aren't stuck arranging everything? Next have either of you bothered to call Dorota? You remember her, right? The woman who pretty much raised Blair."

"Well-"

Serena put her hand up, "Don't go to the trouble of answering that because I know the answer. And the reason I know the answer is because I just got off the phone with Rufus. Dorota is on the phone with Eric and she can't stop crying."

"Serena, we appreciate your concern," Harold started.

"I am not done, Harold. Next, your daughter is a grown woman with a business and two children of her own and like it or not, Chuck's their father. I realize you love her but she does not need you to protect her from Chuck because, no matter how much of a jackass he was last year, Blair does love him."

"Thank you, Serena," Chuck said dryly.

"Oh don't thank me," Serena turned to him. "You, of all people, know how much Blair loves her father and how close they are. What on earth made you think it'd be a good idea to get into a screaming match with him in the middle of the hospital? When she wakes up you two are going to have a lot of explaining to do because there is no way I'm not telling her about this. Now, I am done." Serena got down from the coffee table. "Roman, it's always a pleasure," she said with a smile before she left the room.

Chuck and Harold looked at each other with guilt. Serena had made valid points. Whether they liked it or not, they were going to have to deal with each other's presence. Begrudgingly the muttered apologies as they shook each other's hands. If only for Blair, they would try to remain civil.

-x-x-x-x-x-

"Hey B," Serena sat down next to her friend's bedside. "You wouldn't believe the idiocy I just walked in on. But I think you'd like the way I handled it. I got up on a coffee table and said in true Cornelia Waldorf fashion, 'That will be quite enough.' I think your grandma would have been proud of me."

"Serena," Blair moaned as her eyes fluttered open.

"Blair," Serena nearly dropped the flowers she'd picked up to change their placement. Instead she put them back quickly and stood back up. "Blair?"

"Not so loud," Blair groaned as she felt the sound of Serena's words ringing in her ears. "Where am I? What happened? Where are Sabrina and Sebastian?"

"They're fine. They're at your apartment with your neighbor. Oh my God," Serena felt tears spring to her eyes. "You're awake."

"Where am I?" Blair repeated, "What happened?"

"You're in the hospital. You were shot," Serena told her quietly. She pressed the call button. "But you're going to be okay and you're awake. Thank God."

"How long have I been out?" Blair inquired as she looked around the room. The only personal touch aside from the sterile hospital furnishings were the pink peonies next to her bed, a telltale sign that Chuck had been there. "You called him?"

"I had to," Serena protested. "You were shot. If you had died, he'd never have forgiven any of us."

"How could you, S?" Blair groaned as the sudden pain in her chest hit her. She wanted to rage at her best friend some more for the gross miscalculation, but the pain became unbearable.

Serena bolted to the door in panic, "Hey, we need some help in here!"

Aside from the doctor and nurse that sprinted towards Blair's room, Chuck and Harold were close behind as the panic in Serena's voice caused their own panic.

Both men gasped in surprise to see Blair awake, but in tears as the pain was almost too much for her to take.

Serena met them at the door, knowing that the doctors wouldn't want them in there. "No," she said to both men. "We stay here until the doctors say something."

"She's awake," Chuck gasped as he looked through the hospital glass as the doctor and nurse moved around the room quickly.

"She's awake. She woke up when I started telling what idiots you two were being," Serena told him.

"Does she know about her mother?" Harold inquired.

"I don't think she remembers what happened yet. She knows she was shot and she knows that the kids are okay," Serena said. "But that's all she knows. I didn't have a chance to tell her anything else.

"It's probably best if she doesn't know right now," Serena added after a few moments of silence as the trio continued to watch the medical professionals work to ease Blair's considerable discomfort. "The bullet she took came awfully close to her heart. News like this could make what little recovery she's made obsolete and possibly do further damage to the fragile repairs the surgeons made last night.

"And that means you two are not going to cause her any stress," she faced them both. "No talking about taking her and the kids back to France once she's better and no asking for forgiveness until she's ready. That is my best friend in there and if either of you compromise her recovery I will personally strangle you and on your end Chuck, I will send the name of every girl you've ever slept with and the name of the guy you kissed to Gossip Girl."

"Just the one," Chuck tried to lighten the mood a little. "There were others. And if you know the names of all the women, could you let me know. I'm not sure I knew half of them."

Serena couldn't help but laugh before she hugged her step-brother. Chuck accepted it in surprise and tightened his grip when he realized she was crying. "It's okay, Serena," Chuck whispered into her ear as he felt her fighting her emotions. "Let it out."

Serena gasped as her tears ran down her face, soaking Chuck's shirt. She shook her head, "I-I h-have to c-calm down. B-Blair can't see me like this."

"Take as much time as you need," Chuck assured her, "Nobody is going anywhere, certainly not B."

Serena slapped his chest as his attempt at humor fell flat. "Ass," she muttered. "Thank you, by the way. I told Nate how I felt last night. I wouldn't have done it if I hadn't known he felt the same way."

"You two deserve to be happy," Chuck told her. The gentleness in his reply surprised her. She'd never seen him like this in all the years she'd known him. She began to understand how Blair had allowed herself to fall for him in the first place.

"You know I honestly never thought I'd say this but, you're a good brother," Serena told him with a smile. "And you're going to be a great father. You're already better at it than Bart or William were."

"That's not saying all that much," he huffed.

"I think you'll be better at it than I was," Harold said quietly.

"Harold," Serena turned around. "Blair adores you. The entire time we were growing up the relationship you two had was something she cherished above everything else.

"It made me so jealous," she added as she reached out to hug the man that began to tear at her words.

"I haven't been much of a father to her these past several years," Harold spoke sternly. Chuck's words stung more than he'd let on because he knew they were the truth.

"You were there for her all last summer. I was there too, remember? You called every two days and you made the trips into Paris just to go to the doctor's with her. You convinced Eleanor to give her access to her trust fund and you managed to find a way around the conditions your mom set up so Blair could have access to that one too."

"One summer and a boatload of money does not make up for how I abandoned her," Harold continued with his self loathing.

"I won't lie," Serena said. "That hurt her a lot but I have no room to judge because I abandoned her not too long after. But when she really needs you, you're always there and that is a lot more than I can say about my father."

"Harold, Blair loves you," Chuck chimed in, "You should see the smile that lights up her face each time you call."

Harold was taken aback by Chuck's kind words, especially after what they'd said minutes earlier.

He studied the man his daughter loved and as he looked in his eyes, he was reminded of Evelyn Bass. She'd been a good woman and he still missed her. She'd have been so happy to see Chuck in love with Blair. "Tell me something, do either of my grandchildren have their father's eyes?"

"Sebastian is Chuck's exact replica," Serena chimed in. "Including his eyes."

Chuck felt a lump in his throat and looked down as he realized what or rather who Harold was thinking about. It still hit him sometimes that Anne, Lily, Eleanor, and Evelyn had all been pregnant around the same time and that the only one who wasn't still here was his own mother. He felt Harold's hand on his shoulder and looked up.

"She was a good woman. Never doubt that," Harold told him.

Chuck nodded as the lump in his throat made it impossible to give a verbal response.

"I think I'm going to go give Cyrus a call," Harold said. "You were right before Serena. I should help him out. Then I think I'll call Lily and ask her if Eric's had any luck calming down Dorota."

"Thank you," Serena smiled.

"Harold," Chuck called out to him as he turned away, "offer Cyrus my condolences as well."

"I will," Harold nodded.

Harold left the step-siblings alone and Serena put her arm through Chuck's and her head on his shoulder, "You okay?"

"I've talked a lot about my mom lately and both times it was with Blair's parents," Chuck admitted. "It just feels a little strange. I hardly ever talk about her."

"If you ever want to, you can talk to me about her," Serena offered.

"My mother?" he inquired, "What is there to discuss? I didn't know her. Bart never talked about her. All I have is one picture. Why do you think I latched onto that faux mother Jack sent to swindle me?"

"Because you wanted to think you had at least one parent still around after all the crap Bart gave you over the years and all the guilt you felt," Serena said. "And while she wasn't your mom, you do still have one."

"And she's buried six feet underground," he growled, "Blair and our children are the only family I have. Somehow I have to set things right with her."

"I wasn't talking about Evelyn," Serena shook her head. "And Blair and your children are your family, yes. But they are not the only family you have. In case you've forgotten, Mom and I both had the crap scared out of us last summer when we got a call saying that your identification was found on a dead body. And while Eric may have been slow to come around after the whole Jenny thing, you are still the coolest big brother he has."

"I'm not sure he would agree with that assessment," Chuck rolled his eyes.

"I am," Serena said. "You've never made him uncomfortable about his orientation. In fact, given the opportunity, you'd probably take him someplace he could meet guys. Somehow, I can't see Dan doing that."

"Humphrey?" Chuck snorted, "Like he has any taste in men."

"I'm being serious, Chuck," Serena scolded him.

"Yes, I know," Chuck said. "Thank you, Sis."

"Anytime, Chuck," Serena smiled.

The doctor came out moments later and updated the pair on Blair's treatment.

"Can we see her?" Serena inquired as she looked in to see Blair asleep once more.

"As long as you keep her calm," the doctor nodded.

"That leaves me out," Chuck responded as his face fell.

"I promise," Serena said as she glanced at Chuck.

The doctor left them alone and Serena faced Chuck.

"I know what you're going to say," Chuck said.

"No, you don't," Serena sighed.

"Stay out here," Chuck guessed.

"Actually, I was going to say, come with me," Serena told him as she held out her hand to him and pulled him into Blair's room. Chuck's eyes went wide in surprise. He could believe she was inviting him into Blair's room

"You better stay back," she cautioned.

Chuck nodded and leaned against the wall as Serena approached Blair. "B? It's Serena. Can you hear me?"

"Sleepy," she mumbled.

"I know," Serena smiled. "I'm sorry about before."

"S'okay," she slurred a little. "He here?"

Serena looked over her shoulder and then back at her friend, "Yeah, he's around. He's keeping his distance because he doesn't want you anymore upset than you were."

"You stay," Blair half-ordered.

"Of course, B," Serena promised.