A/N: Here's the next chapter, you guys!
He's early for their "date", and as he waits at the Palace bar for her to arrive, he begins to think about how they ended up like this.
The last time he'd felt the soft touch of her lips, he thinks with a smile, was the day after he'd almost jumped off a roof and she came to see how he was. So he asked her to come to his father's will reading, and just like he wanted, she agreed, and smiled at him. It was irresistible.
Then he kissed her.
And he remembers being glad when she kissed back as he buried his hand in her soft, auburn hair. He'd wanted to tell her right there and then that he loved her, because he did, and he always had. But he stopped himself.
He shouldn't have.
"Sir, what will you have?"
"My usual scotch," he replies. "And. . .a cocktail."
The bartender nods, and goes off, leaving Chuck staring at the door in anticipation.
"Here you go, sir." The bartender places the drinks before him, and he swallows half of his.
She surprises him immensely by suddenly appearing, taking a sit next to him, her cheeks pink with a flush. Beautiful, he thinks.
"You're early," she observes.
"Of course I am," he scoffs. "And I ordered you a cocktail, like before."
"Actually, I prefer martinis now."
He waves his hand, as if to tell her to go ahead and order, like he didn't care. But he did; he hated not knowing her anymore. He hated not knowing what made her smile, or frown, or what to say when he wanted to see her laugh.
She isn't his, he reminds himself for the millionth time.
Never really was.
"So when you invited me for this, what did you think we'd talk about?" she asks, with eyebrows raised.
"I don't know," he admits. "Any ideas?"
"Audrey and Daniel."
He narrows his eyes, wondering if she'd planned to come only for that. "What about them?"
"What do you think about their. . .thing." She sips her drink. "Not exactly a relationship, is it?"
He leans back comfortably. "Daniel's a little rough on the edges, Blair, but he's a good kid. He just gets scared sometimes because people expect Basses to be bastards. They're not supposed to fall in love."
She tries to forget he said that. "Speaking of him, why is he named after Humphrey?"
"He is not."
"Well in any case," she says, grinning as he frowns. "He shares something with him."
"If you must know, he's named after my grandfather."
She shrugs. "Audrey's named after Audrey Hepburn—"
"Of course," he says, smirking.
"And Josiah is named after. . ." Blair furrows her brow. "Actually, Nate picked out that name."
"You let him?"he asked, somewhat pained.
"Why not?"
He cocks his head. "So how does Josiah look like? And since Audrey didn't' inherit the bitch gene, I assume he did too?"
"No, he didn't." She knows he's just saying it because he feels threatened. "Josiah is a Nate with my eyes, and girls worship him."
"A true Archibald," he jokes.
"Handsome and athletic," Blair confirms, laughing. But your son and you. . .well done. You're exactly alike."
Chuck smirks. "Well, he does have a certain. . .charm to him, doesn't he?"
She rolls her eyes. "His ego obviously came from you."
"What ego?" he asks innocently.
Two hours feel like two minutes. He feels so much better by the end, like a load had been pushed off of his shoulders as he talked and looked at her.
And all night long, he couldn't keep his eyes off of her, as hard as he'd tried. When she laughed, he smiled; she spoke, and he hung onto every word she said.
"It's getting late," she tells him. "Nate will be here any second to pick me up."
"I could bring you home."
She looks at him pointedly. "You know I won't let you. And it's unfair to Nate."
"Yes, I forgot. Your precious husband."
She sighs. "Chuck—"
"I get it," he says. "It's fine. I have an early day tomorrow anyways."
She seems to not know what to say next, and fiddles with her phone as he swirls his drink. The silence feels awkward and thick, and he is painfully aware of how slow time passes by.
By a miracle, she soon receives a text from Nate that says he's already outside.
"I should go," she says, lingering.
"Yeah." He shifts uncomfortable, and stands up to bade her goodbye. "We should do this again sometime."
"We should," she agrees earnestly, smiling. "Thank you, Chuck."
He nods, and leans forward to place a careful kiss on her cheek. His lips linger at her ear. "Sweet dreams, princess," he whispers, and pulls back.
She looks broken down. "Goodnight, Chuck."
"Say hello to Nathaniel for me."
To be continued. . .with reviews!
Under the hardest shell, is a person who wants to be appreciated and loved.
--Innerspace