Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.
"Come on, Baby, it's Mama, it's time to kick," Blair tried to coax her child into providing some movement she could feel. "Come on, I know you can do it, kick. Doesn't my bladder look like a good target to kick?"
"Blair, what are you doing?" Chuck inquired as he stumbled into the nursery with an exhausted yawn. His hair was sticking up every which way and there were a few deep creases in his skin from the bed sheets. He looked adorable.
"I'm nearly nineteen weeks along," she told him, "And I have yet to feel this baby kick. I'm giving him or her permission to get a good whack in."
"Blair, the baby will kick when he or she is good and ready," he replied as he went to kneel next to her, "We just went to the doctor just a week ago. She said everything was fine. She played the heartbeat for you. You even have it programmed into your phone so that you can hear it whenever you want."
"I just keep waiting for the other shoe to drop," she sighed, "Things have been too perfect lately. I just can't help but worry that when things balance out, it's going to be something to do with the baby."
"Sweetheart, we are doing everything right," he told her, "You're eating healthy. You're taking your vitamins. You're doing pregnancy yoga. Everything that you can do, you're doing. We've both read the books. It can take awhile to feel the baby move, especially for a first child. If there was something wrong, the doctor said she would have told us."
"You think I'm being silly," she concluded.
"I think you are worrying about something that doesn't need to be worried about. This baby is going to start kicking soon enough, and when he or she does they are going to make up for lost time. Just relax," he encouraged her.
"Who are you and what have you done with my husband?" she glared at him, "My Chuck is just as prone to overreaction as I am."
"I'm thinking about my family's wellbeing right now," he told her as he caressed her stomach rhythmically, "The more you stress out about this, the more stress the baby feels. That's not good for either of you."
"You make a lot of sense," she sighed before she threw in a curse, "Dang it."
"Dang it?" he chuckled in amusement, "What happened to damn it?"
"We're parents now. We need to keep it PG," she replied.
"Oh, Beautiful, you'll have to accept that there will always be some aspects of our lives that are going to be rated R," he lifted a suggestive eyebrow as he smirked while he moved slowly to untie the knot of her robe.
"You mean NC-17," she smirked along with him.
"Come on, you have a few hours before you meet Serena to have one of your epic shopping adventures with my credit card," he stated as he lifted her into his arms, "And I could use one of our NC-17 sessions before I go see my therapist."
"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" she inquired as he carried her back to their bedroom, "I can cancel on Serena."
"It's just another introductory meeting," he replied.
"Still, I should be waiting for you in the waiting room when you're finished," she insisted.
"It's very thoughtful of you, but I insist that you have fun with Serena," he stated as he laid her out on their bed, "You don't know how many more trips like this you'll have left in you before you start waddling around."
"You jerk," she pushed on his shoulder as her eyes widened with outrage. "Just for that I am going shopping with Serena, and I'm going to max out that credit card of yours with ridiculously frivolous things that I don't want or need. And none of them will have any benefits that you find enjoyable."
"Yes, that will teach me a lesson," he chuckled.
"Basstard," she admonished him.
"I love it when you talk rough," he smirked triumphantly.
"Look at you with your baby bump," Serena chuckled as she caressed Blair's stomach as they met up for their day of shopping.
"I've had this baby bump for a few weeks. Why is it that people are only now starting to see it?" Blair inquired.
"Maybe because you're starting to wear clothes that show that you have a baby bump instead of clothes that hide it," Serena offered.
"What was I supposed to do, wear muumuus until I give birth?" Blair scoffed.
"So we'll call that mood swing number one," Serena teased.
"I need new friends," Blair sighed.
"Come on, you love me and you know it," Serena chuckled, not taking Blair's words seriously.
"And I constantly ask myself why," Blair added.
"So, Chuck handed over his credit card. I say we start with Pucci," Serena suggested.
"What exactly am I going to be shopping for at Pucci?" Blair inquired as she glared at her best friend, "They don't exactly cater to the expectant mother. I say we start at Bergdorf's."
"Bergdorf's it is," Serena agreed as she linked her arm with Blair's and walked along New York's famed Fifth Avenue. "So what is Chuck up to today?"
"He's meeting with a new therapist," Blair replied.
"Another one?" Serena inquired, "Mom says that is like the fifth new therapist since you two got married. Shouldn't he have found one by now that works for him?"
"The last therapist called him a disgusting pig of a man," Blair stated, "Apparently Chuck nailed his daughter once, and he was still holding a grudge."
"Imagine that," Serena rolled her eyes dramatically.
"It's been harder than we both thought finding him a therapist that he feels comfortable with and feels like he has his best interests at heart," Blair replied.
"But this can't be healthy for him either. If he's always having first meetings with these people, how is he getting the therapy that he needs?" Serena inquired.
"I've been playing therapist," Blair replied, "By no means am I qualified, but I make him talk to me about what's going on in his head. Mostly it's about how he's feeling about becoming a father, but we mix in some other issues. It's actually been very educational. There are things going on in Chuck's head that I never knew about."
"If it's about sex, you're under no obligation to share," Serena replied.
"I would never share the details of our sessions!" Blair exclaimed, "That's privileged information between the patient and his therapist."
"I think you'd actually have to be a licensed therapist for that to apply," Serena stated.
"Then it's privileged between a husband and his wife," Blair amended, "How about we skip the Blair and Chuck portion of this conversation and move on to Serena? Chuck and I are boring. It's just nonstop sex and baby talk anyways."
"Yes, by all means, let's skip the sex part," Serena agreed, "But we still haven't talked about the baby yet. How was your appointment last week? Did you find out if I'm having a niece or nephew yet?"
"No," Blair shook her head, "Chuck and I haven't come to an agreement on if we want to know or not. Until we do, neither of us gets our way."
"Well technically one of you is getting your way," Serena amended, "I'm guessing that it's Chuck. He really doesn't want to know?"
"What makes you so sure it's Chuck that doesn't want to know?" Blair inquired in defense of her husband.
"Because you're you," Serena stated, "I know it has to be driving you nuts not to know if you're having a boy or a girl."
"It is literally keeping me awake at night," Blair confessed, "I mean, either way, it's going to be amazing. If we have a little boy, I get to dress him up in little designer suits like his daddy and put him in sailor outfits and those cute little denim overalls. If we have a girl, I get those frilly little dresses and 'I love my Daddy' onesies. I just want to know which I can start buying."
"Why don't you buy both," Serena suggested, "You can always return what you don't use."
"No, I'll wait," Blair sighed, "I'm fairly confident that I'll wear Chuck down eventually. I happen to be pretty persuasive."
"Everything else went okay at the doctors?" Serena inquired.
"Yes," she nodded with a smile, "We got to hear the baby's heartbeat, and then they sent a recording of it to our phones so that we can listen to it whenever we want. I swear I've about worn my recording out already."
"I want to hear," Serena demanded.
"Give me a few minutes," Blair replied as she began fiddling with her cell phone, "I still can't work this damn thing… I mean darn thing."
"Well you were the one that smashed your phone to pieces at the groom's dinner, so you have no one but yourself to blame," Serena teased.
"Best thing I ever did," Blair stated, "No more darn Gossip Girl blasts. My life is much more peaceful now, and I find that I'm much more self confident when I'm not worried about what she could possibility be posting about me next."
"Once the news of your pregnancy went public, she hasn't had anything really to post," Serena replied, "Actually, she's been pretty boring lately, and now that Diana's website was launched as kind of a rival to hers, she doesn't really have the scoop anymore."
"So it's Diana now," Blair stated, "I thought she was merely the cougar with her claws in Nate."
"I guess I never really gave her a chance," Serena conceded, "The few times we've met, she seemed to be a very lovely woman, and she actually seems to care about getting the facts straight when publishing her stories. We never could say that about Gossip Girl."
"So does that mean you've stopped giving Nate grief for dating her?" Blair inquired.
"She's too old for him," Serena still insisted, "What future do the two of them have? I mean really?"
"Chuck says that Nate is pretty smitten with her," Blair stated.
"He's getting sex regularly with a smoking hot woman, of course he's smitten," Serena scoffed.
"You sound jealous, S," Blair informed her.
"I am not!" Serena exclaimed.
"Yes, you are," Blair chuckled, "And honestly I'm a little surprised that there hasn't been a Nate and Serena redux. You two were looking pretty cozy at my wedding reception."
"Honestly, I thought we were heading for a reconciliation myself, but then Diana returned to town, and she couldn't get Nate out of his pants fast enough," Serena replied, "I actually stopped by to see his office because he was so proud of it. I walked in on the two of them. It was mortifying to see her long legs wrapped around his bare ass."
"There's an image that is going to haunt me for the rest of the day," Blair cringed as she continued to fiddle with her phone.
"Think how I feel," Serena stated, "I saw it in Technicolor."
"Yes, I imagine you are thoroughly scarred," Blair stated as she finally found what she was looking for on her phone, "How about a little baby heartbeat to cheer you up?"
"Yes, please," Serena requested.
Blair played the recording as Serena listened.
"Wow, it's so fast," Serena replied, "Is it supposed to sound like that?"
"Yes," Blair nodded as she played it again.
"B, I can't believe that sound is coming from something inside your body," Serena stated as she snatched Blair's phone out of her hands and quickly forwarded the recording to her own phone, "If Chuck has only done one thing right in his life, inseminating you has to be it."
"That's not the only thing he's done right," Blair stated as she snatched her phone back.
"But if you had to choose, it would be that," Serena stated.
"Well, maybe, but I'm not choosing," Blair replied, "Now let's get shopping. I have instructions not to return home until Chuck's credit card is smoking."
"Whose instructions are those?" Serena inquired as she watched Blair pull out a credit card and wave it around.
"Mine," Blair smiled triumphantly.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it," Blair cursed at her front door as she scoured her purse to find the keys to her front door. "Sorry, Baby, but Mommy is bumping up the ratings here because she can't find her damn keys. I know I put them in here when I left this morning."
Finally haven't her fill of searching through her purse, she decided to dump the contents of it on the limestone steps at her feet. Still no keys.
"I know I had them," Blair insisted as she began kicking around the contents to spread it out, hoping that something was covering them. Still nothing. "Mommy has to find those keys."
"Blair, are you talking to yourself?" Chuck inquired as he startled her by opening their front door having heard voices as he passed through the entryway.
"I can't find my keys," she pouted as she motioned towards her belongings on the ground, "I dumped out my purse to try and find them. They aren't there, and I'm just realizing that I'm too pregnant to bend over and pick everything up."
"You aren't that pregnant," Chuck assured her, "But don't worry, I'll pick everything up for you."
"I still can't find my keys, Chuck. Now we're going to have to change the locks because they could be anywhere between here and Fifth Avenue," she informed him, "This is one of the advantages of having a doorman and living in an apartment that has an elevator for a door. I've never lost my keys before."
"It's not a big deal," he assured her as he bent over to gather the contents in her purse. He was amused to find an unused condom on the ground. He held it up to her for review. "You obviously didn't have this with the night of the bar mitzvah."
"Obviously not," she rubbed at her pregnant belly, "Thank goodness for small miracles."
"Did you and Serena enjoy the perks of my credit card?" he inquired as he stuffed everything back into her purse and then traded the purse for all of the other shopping bags she was carrying.
"When I wasn't stopping to go to the bathroom, yes," she sighed in mild annoyance, "This kid may not be kicking my bladder, but I think he or she is sitting on it. I had to pee about once an hour. You could literally set your watch by my need to empty my bladder."
"We'll have to try that later," he chuckled.
"I'm not amused," she glared at him as she stepped into their entryway.
Chuck followed her, but just as he was about to shut the door something caught his eyes. "Um, Blair," Chuck motioned her attention towards the door lock.
"Great," she threw up her hands in forfeit as Chuck reached for the keys that were hanging from the lock, "Now I have pregnancy brain too."
"Look on the bright side," he chuckled as he handed her the keys, "At least now we don't need to change the locks."
"How was your session with the new therapist?" she inquired as she kicked off her shoes and left them in the entryway for their housekeeper to pick up.
"Probably one of the more productive meetings I've had with a therapist since this diagnosis was first made," he responded.
"So this one might be a keeper," she concluded, "That's good."
"I left the session with the sense of accomplishment," he nodded, "That's the first time I've been able to say that."
"Good," she replied as she patted his chest affectionately, "Will you take those things upstairs? Arthur should be back with the limo in a few minutes with the rest. I sent him on an errand for me."
"There's more?" his eyes went wide in surprise.
"Do you know how good Serena is at spending other people's money?" she replied, "She has this gift of finding the most expensive items in the store that I for some reason found that I had to have. Every time I came back from the bathroom she was holding something else up."
"What's the errand you sent Arthur on?" he inquired as he followed her up the stairs to their bedroom.
"I'm craving one of those salty soft pretzels," she replied, "And those hot mustard packets that go with them."
"I would have gotten that for you if you'd asked," Chuck stated.
"I know," she nodded, "But as he was helping me with my bags out front he asked if there was anything else I needed. I needed a soft pretzel, so I asked for it."
"A soft pretzel, huh," he chuckled, "You have the sodium cravings down to a science. What happened to the sweet cravings, like ice cream and chocolate?"
"And marshmallows," she gasped suddenly as another craving hit, "Chuck, do we have any marshmallows? I want to roast a few in the fireplace and then snack on their gooeyness straight off the stick."
"I'm sorry I asked," he muttered as he placed her purchases on their bed, "I'll go check with Rosa to see if we have any marshmallows and something we can use to roast them. You lay down for a while to give your feet a rest. I can see that those ankles are beginning to swell, which means that you didn't take it nearly as easy as you promised."
"You're so sexy when you get all bossy and protective," she cooed as she kissed his lips.
"Lay down," he commanded as forcefully as he dared, "I'll be back in a few minutes."
"And if you could bring me a glass of that strawberry lemonade that Rosa makes, I'd really appreciate it?" she added as he was nearly out of their bedroom.
"Yes, dear," he replied to let her know he hear her. He knew from experience that if he didn't acknowledge her, she'd keep calling out to him until he did.
"More pregnancy cravings, Mister Bass?" Rosa inquired as Chuck ambled into the kitchen on an apparent mission.
"Yes," he nodded, "Do we have any marshmallows?"
"Marshmallows?" she repeated with her Chilean accent that Chuck was starting to find endearing. She wasn't going to replace Dorota for Blair's affections, but Chuck was growing quite fond of her, especially since she helped him cater to Blair's sudden cravings. "I check."
With that she disappeared into the pantry that she kept stocked with nearly every possible food that Blair could crave as Chuck went to the refrigerator and pulled out the pitcher of strawberry lemonade that Rosa was fond of making and that Blair had become addicted to drinking. As he was pouring Blair a glass, Rosa appeared with a bag of marshmallows in her hand.
"You are a lifesaver, Rosa," Chuck smiled, "I'll throw a bonus into your wages this week if you can come up with something Blair can use to roast the marshmallows on."
Rosa walked over to one of the utensil drawers and rifled through it until she pulled out several long wooden skewers sticks. "These will work?"
"They certainly will," he smirked victoriously.
"I start on dinner, Mister Bass?" she inquired.
"Yes, please," he nodded, "Blair doesn't know it but I invited Nathaniel and Serena for dinner."
"I make extra special dinner then," Rosa assured him.
"And make sure that Serena and Nathaniel are seating on opposite sides of the table," Chuck added, "Serena has a tendency to become abusive when Nate sticks his foot in his mouth, and he's been doing that a lot lately."
"I keep separate," Rosa nodded.
"I'd better get back to Blair before she has yet another craving," he replied as he grasped the bag of marshmallows and the sticks in one hand and the glass of lemonade in the other, "Thank you as always, Rosa."
"You welcome, Mister Bass," she replied as she bowed ever so slightly as he left the kitchen.
"Perfect timing, Arthur," Chuck stated as his chauffeur appeared in the entryway with several shopping bags and the pretzel Blair had requested.
"Where shall I put the bags?" the driver asked.
"Just set them here in the hall," Chuck replied, "I'll have Rosa see to them."
"And here is Mrs. Bass's pretzel," Arthur stated as he held the pretzel up for Chuck. Somehow he managed to get a grasp on it and juggle it with everything else he was carrying. "I thought Mrs. Bass might change her mind, so I made sure that all the possible toppings were included."
"Excellent foresight, thank you," Chuck replied, "Take the rest of the evening off. I don't see Blair or myself leaving tonight."
"Thank you," he nodded as he watched Chuck ascend the staircase.
"I have both salty and sweet cravings," Chuck announced his presence as he returned to the bedroom.
"Good, because we're hungry," Blair stated as she rose from the bed and snatched the glass of lemonade from his hands and took a long drink.
"What shall we eat first, the pretzel or the marshmallows?" he inquired as he dangled each option in front of her.
"What's this we nonsense?" Blair asked as she snatched the pretzel bag, "I hope you don't think I'm sharing my pretzel with you."
"I lost my head," he chuckled, "By all means, enjoy."
"Wait, hold that thought," Blair stated as she threw the pretzel back at him and darted towards the bathroom with her hand over her mouth.
Chuck sat the pretzel and marshmallows down and walked over to the fireplace and flipped the switch. He desperately wanted to go to her, but his experience over the past month had taught him to let her have her space when she went through her bouts of morning sickness. They embarrassed her enough as it was because of her history with bulimia.
"Keep telling me that this is normal," Blair replied as she emerged from the bathroom after gargling with the last of her mouthwash.
"I've read that the sicker you get, the healthier the baby will be," Chuck replied.
"Then this is going to be the healthiest baby in the universe," she grumbled as she plopped herself down on the bed, "You need to buy me more mouthwash."
"I'll head right out," he replied, "Are you still wanting the pretzel and marshmallows?"
"Yes," she nodded as she snatched the pretzel out of his hands, "And bring back some pineapple since you're going to the store."
"Pineapple and mouthwash," Chuck nodded, "Anything else?"
"Anything else that might catch your eye," Blair smiled, "Just nothing with a strong odor, okay… or with breasts."
"Got it," he replied as he kissed her forehead. "I'll be back soon. If you think of anything else, call my cell."
"I love you, Chuck," she cooed through her first mouthful of the pretzel.
"I love you too," he replied as he left the room.
"Mister Bass, I have dinner in oven," Rosa announced as Chuck was grabbing his coat.
"Thank you, Rosa. I'm going out for a few minutes to get Blair a few items. If Serena or Nate arrives, keep them occupied until I get back. I still haven't told Blair about dinner, and I'd rather not have Serena or Nathaniel spring it on her."
"Yes, Mister Bass," Rosa nodded.
"I'll be back shortly," Chuck replied as he left the manor. He mentally cursed himself when he remembered that he'd just given Arthur the rest of the evening off. He should have known better. As he made his way down the steps, he contemplated his options – walk to the store or hail a taxi. The decision was quickly made for him as a taxi approached. His hand was only half way up when the taxi came to a screeching halt in front of him.
He paid extra to keep the taxi waiting for him as he wandered the aisles of the grocery store looking for the two items Blair needed and anything else he thought could strike her fantasy later. He was on his way to the cab when a toy vending machine came in to view. He hadn't recalled seeing one in years, not that he'd ever really looked to find one. On a whim, he took a glance. A gigantic smile spread across his face as he found the item he was looking for. He quickly went back to the checkout counter and asked the lady to exchange his ten dollar bill for a roll of quarters. As he went through quarter after quarter, the item of his desire still hadn't appeared. It took one and a half roles of quarters before the trinket finally popped out. He pocketed the prize pod and then handed the rejected prizes to the nearest few kids he could find.
"You look like the cat that ate the canary," Blair observed as he appeared with her container of fresh pineapple and mouthwash in his hands. "What did you do?"
"What makes you think I did anything?" he inquired.
"Because you practically have yellow feathers coming out of your mouth," she replied. "So whatever you did, just tell me so that we can start toasting these marshmallows and pineapple."
"Remember those vending machines that Serena used to pump coins into all the time when we were kids to get those tacky stick on temporary tattoos?" he inquired.
"Yes," she laughed, "She actually managed to convince Lily that one of them was real. It wasn't until she was in the dermatologist's office to get a laser treatment to remove the tattoo that she ended the ruse. Lily was really mad at her."
"I remember a certain brunette that pumped in a few of her own quarters," Chuck replied.
"I never got anything I ever wanted," she frowned, "Except this one time. It was a plastic, pink barrette with a pink bow glued on it. Serena helped put it in my hair. That was the start of my trademark bows. I wore it almost every day for a month, until it broke. What a piece of junk."
"You loved that bow," he reminded her, "You were devastated when it broke."
"You and Nate laughed at me. You said that I was being ridiculous about something that could easily be replaced," she scrunched up her face in a pout, "We went to every vending machine for blocks that we could find. I never found another one to replace it."
Chuck pulled a plastic pod out of his pocket and handed it to her.
"You found one!" Blair exclaimed as she popped the lid on the pod open and snatched the barrette out to admire it. "I can't believe you found one, after all these years."
"I was lucky," he replied.
"How many quarters did you pump into the machine before it came out?" she inquired.
"A few," he replied.
"I want to know how much gratitude I should be repaying," she batted her eyelashes, "I can't know that until you tell me how much you spent on this."
"Nothing needs to be repaid," he assured her, "That smile on your face is quite enough."
"Are you sure?" she bit her lip, "Because I'm feeling very gratuitous."
"Just how gratuitous?" he inquired as he set his other purchases aside and stepped towards her.
"I can't answer your question until you answer mine," her eyes sparkled mischievously.
"I had to get change twice," he offered up his attempt at an explanation.
"More or less than ten dollars?" she inquired.
"More," he admitted.
"More or less that twenty dollars," she asked.
"Less," he replied, "I'm guessing I landed somewhere in between. I wasn't exactly counting."
"What did you do with all the other prizes?" she giggled.
"There were a couple of kids that are benefitting from their good timing and my generosity," he explained.
"You're turning into such a softy on me," she stated as she grabbed ahold of his tie and pulled him towards their bed.
"Quite the opposite, actually," he smirked as he spun her around and pressed himself up against her to demonstrate exactly which part of him was getting hard. Blair gasped at the feel of him against her backside. "Get on with your gratuitous ways, Mrs. Bass."
"Chuck," she moaned as she pulled him to the bed with her and proceeded to thank him for his thoughtful gift.
"After such a thoughtful gift, how could you still be such a clueless ass," she was spewing her venom as she dressed for dinner.
"You were the one that was saying just a few days ago that the four of us hadn't done anything together in ages," he tried to defend his actions.
"I've said a lot of thing in the past few days," she replied, "Why did you have to pick this one to listen to. I'm not up for entertaining. All I want are more toasted marshmallows and pineapple, not to play nice with my best friend and ex-boyfriend, who also happens to be her ex-boyfriend. Let's not forget that on a good day those two can barely tolerate each other."
"Give Nathaniel enough scotch and he'll behave," Chuck replied.
"Is that the trick? That would have been good to know about five years ago," she responded.
"Still wouldn't have kept him from hooking up with Serena," he stated.
"Thank god for that," she replied, "I might actually have had to marry him."
"Never would have happened," Chuck stated confidently as he tempted fate and kissed her forehead, "You were destined to be mine."
"The charm isn't working on me right now," she glared at him.
"Perhaps later then," he replied, "Did you want me to call and cancel?"
"No," she sighed, "Rosa went through all the trouble of making what I'm sure is a delicious dinner. I'd hate for that food to go to waste."
"We'll feed them, make a few minutes of polite conversation, and then boot them out the door," he offered, "I'll fake the stomach flu or something."
"If this afternoon was any indication, I might not have to fake anything," Blair replied.
"You made notes in your journal, didn't you?" he reminded her.
"You took your medication today, didn't you?" she reminded him.
They both nodded as they finished getting dressed just as the doorbell rang.
"That will be Nate," Blair replied as Chuck grasped her hand and brought her down to the foyer.
"You look pregnant, Blair," Nate stated as he greeted her with a kiss to her cheek.
"Is that the polite way of saying I look fat?" Blair glared at him.
"What?" Nate fumbled for a response, "No, that's not what I mean. It's just…you didn't have…and you didn't the last time…dear god, someone help me out here."
Blair began giggling in amusement. She was having fun watching him squirm.
"Blair, that's not nice," Chuck laughed.
"Please, Chuck, let me have my fun. I only have a few more months to enjoy watching people make complete fools of themselves when they think they've insulted me," Blair pouted while batting her eyelashes at him.
"Be nice," he cautioned her.
"Ruin my fun," she continued to pout, "No cougar today, Nate?"
"She went back to London," Nate replied. There was a slight tinge in his words that tipped Chuck off.
"Permanently?" Chuck asked.
"Probably," Nate nodded, "She ended things between us. Apparently there isn't the emotional connection between us that she was looking for in a long term relationship."
"And that surprises you?" Blair inquired, "Can you honestly say that you were emotionally invested with her?"
"I was invested in the sex," Nate replied.
"Typical," Blair rolled her eyes, "You men never think about anything besides sex until forced."
"Pretty sure that's directed at you," Chuck replied as he dodged Blair's scathing glare.
"I'm talking about you too, Bass," she hit him with her scowl, "How many hookers and slutty models did you go through before I finally got you to commit to me?"
"How did I get sucked in to this?"
"So is Serena here yet?" Nate inquired as he tried to change the subject.
"Late as usual," Chuck tried to go along with the abrupt left turn the conversation had taken.
"Typical," Nate replied, "I spent over half of my relationship with her, waiting for her."
"She was probably summoning up the tolerance to deal with your nitwit ways," Blair muttered.
Chuck pressed his finger to her lips to silence her.
Blair bit down on the tip of Chuck's finger.
"Ow, Blair," Chuck hissed as he pulled his finger away quickly, examining it to see if she'd drawn blood, she hadn't.
"He's insulting my best friend, and she's not here to defend herself. Therefore it is my duty as her best friend to defend her," Blair explained, "And it is your duty as my husband to defend me."
"Even when she just bit me," his eyes narrowed.
"Who is supposed to defend me?" Nate inquired.
"Your girlfriend, oh wait, you don't have one," Blair responded smartly.
"This is the hormones talking, I hope," Nate replied.
As Blair continued to stare Nate down, Serena burst into their home without the requisite knock.
"Whoa, what am I missing?" Serena stopped in her tracks as she saw the look of anger in Blair's eyes.
"Nate putting his enormously large foot into his equally large mouth," Blair replied as her mood did a complete one eighty as a smile graced her lips, "How are you, S?"
"Sure, she's nice to Serena," Nate muttered as the two women linked arms, talking animatedly about their shopping spree from earlier that day as they made their way to the dining room.
Chuck shook his head in disbelief as he followed his wife. Nate still didn't have a clue as how to handle Blair and when to just let the situation end. He thought his wife might just spin around and slap him across the face.
"Because she likes me," Serena shot him a look as they took their seats as the table.
Chuck and Blair's efficient maid came in moments later to serve their first course.
"So, Nate, how's Diana?" Serena inquired as they began the small talk, "Her website is thoroughly entertaining."
"That's because she hasn't had anything to publish about you in weeks," he grumbled, "And she's in London, so I wouldn't know how she's doing."
"Uh oh, sounds like trouble in paradise," Serena observed.
"No paradise to trouble," Nate shook his head.
"They broke up," Blair mouthed to her friend as Nate's head fell forward to hide the tears he felt ready to spill.
"I'm sorry, Nate. I didn't know," Serena added.
"It's for the best, isn't it," Nate offered.
"That's for you decide," Serena stated, "I didn't understand your attraction to her, but if you truly care about her and see a future with her you should do whatever you need to do to convince her."
"It's for the best," Nate concluded as his eyes locked with Serena's.
Chuck and Blair's eyes locked as well. They knew what this meant. Their best friends were on a collision course to a reunion.
Chuck and Blair didn't have to chase Nate and Serena out. After dinner was served, Nate was out the door before the dishes had been cleared. Serena left a few minutes later.
"Should we start a pool as to when those two will officially reunite," Blair stated as they made their way to their bedroom. Chuck was right behind her as they made their way up the staircase one step at a time, with his arms around her waist, his hand on her belly.
"I think they'll be reunited long before they make it official," Chuck replied, "With any luck, this time it will stick."
"I think this is the time it might," Blair replied, "I think she's in a good place. She wasn't last time."
"And when he's done licking his wounds, I think he'll be ready too," Chuck agreed.
"I'm going to read to the baby for awhile. Did you want to join me?" Blair inquired as they reached the doorway to the nursery. He nodded as he ushered her inside. She looked around with a slight frown. "Something is missing."
"The baby," Chuck offered.
"Yes, that too," she smiled as she took her seat in the overstuffed chair as Chuck went to browse the book selection, "But it's missing a theme."
"What kind of theme do you think the room should have?" he inquired as he selected that night's entertainment and knelt down next to her.
"I could make the decision if I knew what gender the baby was," she batted her lashes at him.
"What about the thrill of waiting until we're in the delivery room?" he inquired.
"Chances are I'll be so exhausted from labor that the thrill won't be as exciting as you think," she replied.
"Let me think it over some more," he compromised.
"You keep putting this off," she pouted. That had been his answer every time she'd brought up the discussion that they'd started in the doctor's office. "If you put it off too long, I'll be in labor."
"That's my current plan," he smirked devilishly.
"You'd better start reading before I have the thought to smack you," she stated.
"Yes, Dear," he replied as he opened the book with one hand and placed his other hand against her belly. As he read the story, he could hear Blair whispering her encouragement to get the baby to kick. He had to stop his narration as he was laughing so hard. "Blair, what did we talk about this morning? The baby will kick when he or she is ready."
"Well, I'm ready, so kick already," she replied.
"I don't think it works like that," he stated as both of his hands found her belly as he ran his hands in circles. Finding the hem of her blouse, he lifted it away and began raining kisses.
"What was that?" Blair gasped as she felt an intense fluttering in her stomach.
"Gas," he offered.
"No, Chuck, feel that," she stated as she moved his hand off to the side.
"Is that…" his eyes widened in surprise as he felt the same thing she did.
"That's our baby," she laughed, "And like the good baby that he or she is, it's listening to mommy. Keep kicking, Baby."
"Wow," he replied as he pressed his face against her belly where the movement was the strongest, "We did that, didn't we? We made that."
"Wow," she nodded as the fluttering continued as a tear trickled down her cheek. Relief washed over her. Finally, their baby was kicking.
Chuck picked up the book and finished the story as Blair drifted off into a restful sleep.
TBC. . .