NOTE: FanfictionNET has added a Gossip Girl TV SHOW category. All of my completed works have already been moved there. I will keep the new ones on the Gossip Girl BOOK category until December 1st. After that, you need to make sure you check the TV SHOW listing if you don't alert me.

This story takes place following the events of A Thin Line Between Chuck and Nate. Concepts for later episodes are fair game.

Given the extent of the situation, Serena was rather calm.

She was running away from Blair and Chuck and straight toward the guy who was responsible for raping her best friend.

As much as she wanted to make him hurt for everything he'd done to Blair, her first priority right now was to get that other girl away from the monster before he could do to her what he'd done to Blair.

She grabbed a beer bottle out of some guy's hand as she passed through the crowd, almost to the door. She heard the muffled "hey" behind her, but didn't even flinch. The guy could just get another beer. Besides, Serena was on auto pilot. She wasn't sure what she was doing, but she had to do something.

So she tilted the bottle upside down and let the remainder of the liquid spill all over the floor.

An empty beer bottle would be much more useful than a half full one.

When she arrived outside, she saw her quarry already pushing the girl into a cab. Cursing to herself, hoping she wouldn't be late, she turned the beer right side up and pretended she was drinking it as she swaggered up behind him.

"Headed my way?" she said dreamily, taking a hold of the outside of the car door frame before he could close it.

"Not really," he mumbled before looking up at the gorgeous blonde girl standing outside the car. She certainly put the other one he'd just picked up to shame.

"That's a s-s-shame," she said, with a pout, still not letting go of the door frame even though she wiggled backwards.

He slid back out of the car and stood up. "Don't I know you from somewhere?" She did look oddly familiar.

"Shush," she said shaking her head so that her blonde hair fell into her face—if he'd been watching Blair last week, he might recognize her from when she was sitting with her. "I bet you say that to all the girls."

"Not really," he shrugged, wondering how drunk she was. He'd never had two girls at once, but it could be fun. "On second thought, I think I am heading your way."

"Pardon me, do you have any Grey Poupon?" said a very slurred voice out the window before the girl dissolved into giggles.

He turned and leaned back down into the cab, "Just sit back and shut up."

"Now that, I'm sure you say to all the girls," she said before dragging the door toward her a little and slamming it shut on him.

She wasn't sure if she'd hit anything, but she knew she'd hit something. Where the hell was Chuck?! She was hoping he'd get there before she had to go this far, but he wasn't there yet. Now the guy was howling.

Apparently she'd managed to hit his shoulder and side, and when he tried to stand up, he was still ducking inside the cab, so his head connected with the top of the door frame when he jerked.

He pushed the door wide open against the pain and glared at her. She jumped back before the door could hit her. She made her eyes go wide and innocent and forced a stumble. "Oops... I'm soo sorry," she slurred.

"Find another ride," he said, deciding to give up on picking up this girl too. He wasn't entirely certain she'd closed that door by accident, but if she was this accident prone, he didn't need to deal with it.

He turned and started to get back into the cab.

Serena looked around frantically, still not seeing Chuck leaving the party. He wasn't coming! Why wasn't he coming? She had to do something to make this guy stop… so she did the only thing she could think of…

And broke the beer bottle on his head.

He went down like a ton of bricks at the same time that she cried out. In the movies, it never looked like the hitter got hurt, but evidently she'd done something wrong because a piece of glass had just cut her hand.

She pulled the shard out before she scrambled to the other side of the cab and opened the door.

"Vat is you doing?" said the flabbergasted cab driver in heavily accented English.

"Saving you from a lawsuit," she spat out as she grabbed the girls' arm. "Come on sweetie, time to go back to the party."

"Party?" the girl said with hope in her voice as she struggled out of the cab. "I love to party! Party hardy!"

"Yes, let's party," she said, dragging the girl around the back of the car. She flinched when the cab driver squealed off; probably wanting to get away from whatever bizarre stuff was going on. She could see some people on the street giving her weird looks and some people pointing at the guy on the sidewalk, but no one came over to offer their help or anything. Figures.

She saw the guy on the ground starting to move. She looked to the doors of the party again and Chuck still wasn't coming. She didn't know what to do. She had to get this girl away before the guy came to and went after them. There was no way she would be able to fight him with this girl hanging off her side… but if she went inside and the guy woke up, he could take off before they found out who he was…

She cursed before walking up to him and struggled to squat while holding the girl up. She managed to drag his wallet out of his pocket. When she stood up, she felt a surge of rage that she couldn't control just thinking about what this asshole had done to Blair, so she kicked him a couple times in the side for good measure, almost losing her balance with each kick.

She had to get the girl inside. At least she knew who the guy was now from his wallet. She could let the police handle everything. It was probably a good thing Chuck hadn't come out. The guy would get away for now, but the police coming after him would be much better than Chuck.

Blair felt like she was walking through a daze. Chuck was holding her hand, dragging her behind him as he struggled to get through the throng of people.

He was going for the door.

The door that would take her outside…

And there he would be.

The guy who'd done this to her.

The guy who'd drugged her.

The guy who'd used her.

The guy who'd invaded her life and made it a living nightmare.

The guy who'd taken all control and power she had over herself away.

And as much as she knew that she should be strong, as much as she knew that she had to go with Chuck because Serena was dealing with the monster by herself…

She couldn't do it.

"No," the word came out like a whisper. Chuck couldn't possibly hear it, or see her shake her head.

She stumbled along for another few steps, and then she saw how close they were to the front door. She froze.

She stopped walking, just came to a dead stop, shivering and shaking her head. "No…"

"Blair?" he turned back when he realized she wasn't moving. He saw how white she was and realized… she was scared to death. "You can do this…"

"No… no, no, no," she mumbled over and over, shaking her head. She didn't care that this was Chuck and she wasn't supposed to show him any fear. She didn't care that she was Blair Waldorf and backed down from no one. She couldn't see that monster again. It was too soon. "No, please, don't make me…"

"Blair, I'm not going to make you do anything," Chuck said, trying to fight back his panic. He had to get outside now. "I have to go to Serena. She needs my help. Our help. Come with me, Blair."

"No, you go," Blair said, pulling her hand away from his. "Go! I'll be right here."

"I'm not leaving you alone," he said, grasping her hand again.

"I'll be fine," she whispered. "Just go, go help Serena."

He shook his head, looking around frantically, trying to see if Serena had come back. "Come on, Blair. I won't let him hurt you ever again. Just come with me."

"Chuck!" Blair yelled, seeing something behind him.

"What the hell is your problem!"

Chuck had a split second to hear the angry words and Blair's scream before the guy he'd punched a moment ago slammed him up against the wall. Shit.

"Case of mistaken identity," Chuck managed to mutter, getting more frustrated by the minute. He had to get to Serena now. What the hell was happening outside?

"Oh, really? And why shouldn't I return the favor right now?"

"Stop it!" Blair said from behind the guy, trying to pull on his arm to get him to let Chuck go.

"Fine, go ahead," Chuck sighed. "Just hit me and then go away."

The guy tried to hit him, but Blair had forgotten about her fear and decided to slam her heel down on the guy's foot. "Don't touch him!" Blue shirt guy hollered and jerked his foot away, cursing and hopping.

"Chuck! You stupid jerk! Where the hell were you?!" Serena's angry voice came from Chuck's other side.

"Where is he?" he asked, suddenly not giving a shit about any of the stuff going on around him. Serena was in front of him safe and sound, with a girl hanging off her arm.

"I thought Xena had brown hair," the girl slurred, staring at Serena in awe. "You kick ass like a brunette."

Serena paid her no mind. "I left him outside, he's probably gotten away by now but I've—"

Chuck didn't wait to hear the rest of what she had to say, he was already running for the door.

"Got his wallet!" she shouted after him. "Chuck! No!" but it was no use, Chuck was gone.

She had to go after him, but the girl was leaning more heavily on her now.

"Blair! Stop him!" she hollered to her best friend who was staring at some guy in a blue shirt holding his foot up and wiggling his shoe.

Blair looked in the direction Chuck had just gone and froze up a little. "I can't…" She shook her head. She knew that he was going after the monster. He probably figured she'd be safe with Serena.

"He's going to kill him!" Serena said, nearly groaning as the girl giggled and tried to bend over to look at Serena's shoes up close, exclaiming about "light patterns" and "juicy sounds". "Blair, do you really want Chuck to spend the rest of his life in jail!?"

Blair almost blanched, her face going white again.

She didn't want that. She needed Chuck, just like she needed Serena. She couldn't let Chuck do this for her. She couldn't…

"Stop him!" Serena insisted, struggling with the girl again.

Blair went running for the door. She had to stop Chuck. She just had to.

Serena breathed a sigh of relief, but wasn't sure if Blair would succeed. The words Georgina had screamed at her the last time she'd found herself in a sticky situation were running through her head. "Take everything with you on it!"

That was how she was going to save Chuck and Blair. That was how she was going to stop Chuck from killing someone, and protect Blair from the publicity.

She just needed to do something with the girl for a minute…

"Here, hold her for a sec," she said as she pushed the girl toward the blue shirted guy.

"Excuse me?" he said, his face no longer red from the pain of the heel imprint permanently branded on the top of his left foot. He caught the girl before she started to fall.

"What's your name?" Serena said, hurrying across the room with him following and dragging the girl.

"Robert," he replied jerkily, a bit stupefied. He didn't want this girl to be falling all over him. He didn't understand anything that had just happened in the past ten minutes, but he still owed that asshole a punch to the face—his jaw still hurt, not to mention his foot.

"Well, Robbie," Serena said as she grabbed her purse and dumped the contents out all over the table. "Someone's going to die if you don't help me, k?"

He hesitated and slowly nodded. She looked serious.

"Just take her," she said, nodding toward the girl, "by the doors. I'll be right there. I have one more thing I need to do."

He nodded followed her instructions. He didn't want to get involved with any of this, but he couldn't just drop the girl on the floor.

This was definitely one hell of a night.

"Chuck!" Blair called as she ran out of the building. She looked around and saw him down the street to the right, pulling the monster with him toward what could only be Chuck's limo. "Chuck, stop!"

The guy hadn't gotten away. He'd been standing up slowly when Chuck had made his way outside.

"Need a hand?" Chuck asked; his voice deadly soft.

The guy coughed and nodded. "Some bitch just hit me with a fucking beer bottle."

"I'll give you a lift," Chuck said before turning the guy abruptly, pressing his fingers deep into his shoulder. He wanted nothing more than to beat the shit out of this guy right now, but he had enough sense to know he had to get him away from spectators first. Attacking that other guy the way he had earlier, that had been the first time in a long time that he'd reacted physically without thinking first. It wouldn't happen again—at least not until he was in more control of the situation.

The guy winced and jerked his shoulder away from the jabbing fingers. "Thanks, I got this."

"I insist," Chuck said through clenched teeth as he pushed the guy forward before walking up next to him.

"What the hell is this?" the guy said, stumbling forward, still discombobulated by the hit to his head.

"I'll explain everything in a minute," Chuck said, glancing over his shoulder when he heard his name being screamed. He wanted to stop, but he knew Blair didn't want to face this guy, and what he had in store for him… Blair and Serena probably wouldn't agree with anyway. "My limo is right up here."

Chuck walked faster, hearing the heels behind him, indicating that Blair was running down the street. He grabbed the door handle and shoved the guy inside quickly before hopping in behind him. He slammed and locked the door a split second before Blair arrived. She tried the door handle and banged on the window.

"Chuck! Stop! Don't do this!"

"Go!" he said swiftly to the driver before closing the limo divider.

He couldn't stand to look at Blair as she kept banging on the window and shouted for him to stop the car.

But he could look at the son of a bitch on the seat across from him—the one holding his head and looking at Chuck with some trepidation—yeah, he could definitely look at him.

Now if only he could get himself under control so he could deal with him properly.

"Chuck…" Blair whispered, watching the limo drive off.

She didn't want this for him. She wanted that monster to die more than anyone, but Chuck couldn't do it… he couldn't be the one responsible. He couldn't lose his life, his future, just because he wanted to seek vengeance for her… she couldn't let him do it.

But now, it seemed like it didn't matter what she wanted… he was gone. And he was probably going to slay the monster for her…

She felt tears rimming her eyes and she gasped, trying to catch her breath.

"Where is he?" Serena called from behind her.

Blair turned slowly and saw a sight that would have been humorous under any other circumstance.

Serena was struggling up the street with the girl from earlier leaning on her again. This time Serena had her purse, but it was bursting at the seams, and slightly out of shape. Serena seemed to be trying to drag the girl along while protecting the purse.

Blair glanced at the purse for a second before she explained. "He's gone. He got him. They're in the limo together."

Serena cursed.

Then she looked around and exclaimed, "Taxi!" She tried to hold up the hand holding the purse, but she nearly lost her balance. "Blair, help, we need to follow."

"How? He's already gone," Blair said dejectedly.

"Just get us a ride, B!" Serena exclaimed, completely frustrated. Here she was about to keel over, doing all she could to help Blair and save Chuck; and Blair couldn't do one little thing for her? Like hail a cab?

"Okay," Blair finally said before walking off the sidewalk and waving frantically. Miraculously, a taxi stopped almost immediately.

"Get in!" Serena exclaimed.

Blair got in quickly. Serena pushed the girl in, telling her to scoot over. Blair looked perplexed when Serena said something about going to a different "party". Then Serena got in, being extremely careful with her purse as she cradled it in her lap.

"What's with your purse?" Blair asked.

"Just go straight! Step on it," Serena yelled to the cabbie.

The guy looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Destination?"

"Look, you want a tip? Double the fair?" Serena said, glaring at the man. "Just drive!"

"Yes, ma'am," he said before taking off.

"Try to call Chuck," Serena said. "He might answer if you call."

"I doubt it," Blair said, but she reached for her phone anyway. "He didn't stop the car when I told him to."

"We just need to try to get through," Serena said. "He might answer…" She prayed that he would. She knew how to end this. She just needed him to back off first.

"E. T. phone home!" the drugged girl said, giggling as she pretended to hold a phone to her ear.

"I hope so," Blair responded to Serena's words, while looking at the other girl oddly and listening to the phone ring.

Chuck studied the male across from him.

He didn't look like much, but he didn't look like someone who would have that big of a problem finding a date and would have to resort to something like drugging girls to get them to sleep with him either.

He had the brown hair Kati and Is said he would. And it wasn't long, and it wasn't short. It was a shaggy in between.

He had broad shoulders, one of which was probably slightly bruised from the pressure Chuck had exerted a few moments ago.

There was really nothing remarkable about this person.

Except he had a secret perversion that had ended up hurting someone Chuck cared about.

That would be the last mistake he ever made.

Chuck knew he was a heartbeat away from exploding. So, for the moment, he sat as still as possible, glaring at the trash across from him.

And then all the images that had been haunting him came back.

He had no details about the rape. He didn't know where it took place. He didn't know what exactly had happened to Blair other than actual intercourse.

Therein laid the problem with those word pictures flying through his head while he was in the middle of trying to regain his control…

His hand formed a fist and his body tensed.

Control, Charles, he thought. Control.

"What the…" the guy looked out the window as the limo merged into traffic.

Chuck didn't have to look; he knew what…or rather who… he was seeing.

Blair.

The guy's face, perhaps, paled a little as his gaze shifted back from the girl standing in tearful frustration on the sidewalk to the hard and unyielding face of the guy who had just shoved him into a vehicle, virtually kidnapping him.

"Recognize her?" Chuck said softly, eyes flashing dangerously.

"Listen, I don't know what she said but—" he shifted on the seat and started making excuses.

He shut his mouth when Chuck held up a hand.

"Let me guess…" Chuck drawled. "She's lying?"

The guy sunk back when Chuck leaned forward a little in his seat, glaring with eyes that the guy would later swear weren't human.

He attempted to nod his head, but he knew he was fucked, and he knew that no matter what he said to this person, he wasn't going to believe any of the excuses.

"Or, maybe she wanted it?" Chuck murmured.

"Stop the car," he tried to demand with some fervor in voice, saying it loud enough that hopefully the driver heard. He started sliding down the seat toward the front of the limo, hoping to get away from those eyes that promised all sort of punishment.

"But she didn't want it, did she?" Chuck tensed even more than earlier, his body completely taunt.

"I didn't touch her!" he finally exclaimed.

Chuck stared at him for a long moment.

The guy felt his panic expand and then die down a little when Chuck's face relaxed a little, his lips quirking before forming a slow smirk. He didn't know what that expression meant, but it was better than the dead eyes… maybe the guy believed him…

Chuck looked away. He needed to breathe. He was losing his control again. He needed to wait for the right time and place, and in the back of his limo was not that time, nor that place.

The guy relaxed even more when Chuck looked away. He took the opportunity to slide back down the seat. Maybe he could convince him that he had nothing to do with the girl. At the very least, he'd be closer to the actual door, and could get out of the car before the maniac got a hold of him. He could just wait for a red light or traffic jam or something. This was New York City on a Friday night. Bound to happen any time now… he started to lean forward, closer to Chuck.

"Look, there's been a misunder—"

The guy was cut off when Chuck turned swiftly back toward him and slammed a fist into his mouth, hard.

He wasn't expecting it, and the force of the blow actually made him fall backwards on the seat. He didn't have a chance to blink or clutch his mouth to make sure all the teeth were still there before Chuck was on him, throwing his control out the window. He hit him again in the face before he wrapped his hands around his neck and squeezed hard.

The guy struggled for all he was worth, trying to get air and push Chuck off him at the same time, but nothing was working and he was weakening.

Chuck finally registered what he was doing and that it wasn't part of the plan when his cell phone started ringing.

He stopped squeezing and backed off a little before grabbing the guy by his shoulders and pushing him off the seat and onto the floor of the vehicle.

The guy was just grateful to be able to breathe, and started gasping for air. He was attempting to roll over when a foot came down on his stomach, hard, holding him in place.

He looked up to see his tormenter, looming above him, bent forward a little because of the top of the limo preventing him from standing up further, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket to read the caller ID, all while holding his foot firmly in place.

Chuck took one look at the number, saw that it was Blair, and turned off the ringer. He couldn't talk to her right now. He had just reacted badly. He couldn't stand here and talk to Blair without wanting to go back to strangling her rapist and not stopping this time.

He pushed his phone back into his pocket and looked at the filth beneath his foot.

"Don't lie to me," Chuck murmured. "We both know you touched her. And we both know you're going to pay for that."

"No! I swear," the guy gasped. "I didn't—"

Chuck shook his head before shifting backwards. He pulled his foot back and slammed it forward into the guy's groin.

He screamed like a girl and tried to squirm away from Chuck, but he was having none of it. Chuck held his foot in place, pressing down hard.

"I don't want to hear any excuses," Chuck said, gritting his teeth. "I don't want to hear any lies; I don't want to hear anything. I don't even want to know your name. It doesn't matter." Chuck leaned further down, making the guy yelp as his foot smashed his groin even more.

"You won't last the night," Chuck whispered.

The guy's eyes went wide. Until this very moment, he only thought that he was going to get the shit kicked out of him. He might lose a few teeth, get a couple of broken bones, be rather sore or possibly walk with a limp for awhile… oh, and possibly wind up in jail. But that wasn't this guy's intent.

"So, what," he managed to spit the words out through the pain wracking his body, "you're gonna kill me?" He attempted to snort, showing that he didn't believe the other guy's words. "Yeah, right."

Chuck's eyes when flat as his mind went to a different thought for a moment, but he flashed back to reality almost immediately.

The guy saw the look on Chuck's face and knew deep down that he wasn't joking or making empty threats. He really wanted to kill him.

"It wasn't supposed to go down like that! It was supposed to be easy!" he said desperately, trying to plead for his life but not lying about being responsible anymore. "Shit, its LSD man, the girls get a trip to la-la land and I get to do whatever I want. None of them ever had a bad trip before, and if they remember—which almost never happens—they usually had a good enough time that they don't blow a whistle or anything!" Though he was fairly certain none of them ever remembered him.

"But she didn't have a good time, did she?" Chuck said. He felt a huge flash of anger and took the opportunity to tilt his foot to the side, relieving the pressure on the guy's groin for half a second, before smashing his foot down again and grinding all his junk together as he slid his foot sideways across his groin.

"STOP!!!!!!" he screamed and tremors of pain raced through him and his stomach started to revolt. "You son of a bitch!"

"Did she!" Chuck snapped, shifting his foot to grind across in the other direction.

"Fuck no, she didn't!" the guy finally spat out through his teeth, tears streaming from his eyes at the pain. "She fought me like a wild cat! And you know what, you asshole? She screamed and she cried and, damn, was that hot!"

Chuck froze.

"All she had to do was lay still, but not your girl," he kept going, running off at the mouth now, not even sure why he was doing it, just knowing that he needed the torture to end, but if he could torture this guy a little with his words, that would make him feel better too. "She wanted to fight. I got off in her twice," he smirked as he explained exactly how he'd claimed her. "Did she tell you that? The second time wasn't as hot though. She'd lost a lot of the fight by then. You might want to work with her on that."

Chuck saw red.

"He won't answer!" Blair cried as she hung up the phone.

"Well, text him!" Serena exclaimed. "Tell him I have it all figured out! Tell him we can put an end to this!"

"Can we?" Blair said, disbelievingly, as she opened up the phone again and began texting furiously.

"There!" Serena had been looking through the windows, trying to spot the car. It wouldn't have gotten too far. "Follow that limo!" she ordered the cabbie.

The man shrugged and did as she insisted, though he was curious about everything. This was sort of like something that happened in the movies. After a boring night of his usual fares, some entertainment was in order.

C, please stop the car. S can fix everything. Just stop. Please. B

She hit send and tried to calm down as she waited for a reply or a call.

"Nothing!" she said, feeling even more lost and helpless after a minute passed in the most dreadful silence.

"Keep trying," Serena said as she took out her own cell phone and tried to call and text him too.

"What is this big plan of yours anyway?" Blair asked, closing her eyes in frustration.

"Where's my shoe?!" the girl between them suddenly shrieked. She had been laying back and staring at the ceiling with her mouth dropped open.

"Not now," Serena sighed as the girl started wiggling in her seat and raised a leg to look at her foot, almost falling sideways onto Serena. Serena pushed her back up to a sitting position and jerked the leg away from the girl's clumsy fingers, forcing her to put her foot back on the floor like a normal person.

"Why did you have to bring her along anyway?" Blair said as she opened her phone to text Chuck again. "You saved her. She doesn't need to be here."

"Yes, she does," Serena said, exasperated when the girl flung her leg up across Serena's lap and giggled. "Unfortunately, we're going to need her."

C! Answer me! Call me! Please! B

"For what?" Blair asked, mumbling as she stared at her phone, willing it to ring.

"To put that bastard away for a long time."

Chuck leaned back against the leather seat, trying to catch his breath, shaking a little, knowing he shouldn't have lost control like that. He couldn't help it though… the things the guy had said about Blair… and…

Your girl… that's what he'd said.

Yeah, Blair had been his girl alright, and look what he'd done to her. He'd set her up and watched her fall. When she had nothing left, he turned her away too.

No matter what Blair had said earlier that day, he was to blame for this happening to her.

Your girl…

No one was watching out for her. No one was protecting her. She would never admit to that though. She would insist that she could take care of herself… and usually she was a force to be reckoned with… but how could she possibly have prevented this? She couldn't have. Because this was his fault. If he hadn't sent that text, if he hadn't turned her away, if he had just told Nate the truth months ago, if he hadn't ruined things with Blair to begin with…

He clenched his eyes shut. Screamed… cried… twice… fight… your girl.

He didn't want to think about his girl, his Blair, going through any of that.

At least now he didn't have to be haunted by all the different 'what ifs' about how everything had gone down between Blair and the human stain on the floor. Now he knew more than he had ever wanted to know. Part of him wished that she had been one of those girls who took their nice normal trip on the drug. Part of him wished she didn't remembered any of it.

He just wanted to take it all away from her. Fix things. Make it right.

But he couldn't. All he could do was get angry and seek revenge against bastard who was stupid enough to think he could get away with this.

Chuck also couldn't help but feel as though this was karma coming back on him and being taken out on Blair… but, he needed to stop that thought completely before he drove himself insane.

He may have flirted and pressured a girl into drinking more, like he'd done with little Jenny Humphrey earlier that year, but none of the females he was with ever left unsatisfied or hurt. Hell, most of them wanted him anyway, so it had come as a surprise and a bit of a blow when Jenny wouldn't give it up. He would have probably given up before things went further even if Dan and Serena hadn't shown up. He hadn't plied her with enough alcohol, and a fighting girl only made things more difficult anyway.

Fought like a wildcat…

He wanted to beat the shit out of the waste of space on the floor again just thinking about Blair screaming and fighting, thinking about Blair crying and hoping someone would show up and help her—make it stop—and no one ever came, no one, not a best friend, not a boyfriend, not a parent, not a Prince Charming, no knight in shining armor. No matter how clichéd that sounded, it was how her mind worked. She'd always dreamed of fairy tales and happily ever after, of love and romance. Things he would have just snorted at because he had never believed in any of it.

Would she ever believe in any of it again?

"Well, we might have a problem with the plan now."

Chuck looked toward the window where the divider was open and the driver was talking to him, looking at him through the rearview mirror.

Chuck wanted to glare at the miscreant, but the guy had a point.

Chuck had given Arthur the evening off. Tonight's driver had been bought and paid for in helping with the evening's disposal.

"Is he alive?"

Chuck honestly didn't know. He finally looked at the floor of the limo. The face was hardly recognizable at the moment and the body was definitely still.

But, no, there was a slight movement of his chest. He was still breathing.

For the moment anyway

Chuck gave the driver a curt nod.

"That's something," the driver said. "We're almost there. Still going ahead with it?"

Chuck stared at the mess on the floor again, barely registering the vibration of the phone in his pocket.

Your girl…

"Yes," he replied simply.

"Did he just…" Serena murmured as she saw the path the limo was going.

"Morningside…" Blair murmured too, and shuddered.

In the light of day, Morningside Park was as friendly as Central Park… but late at night… everyone knew not to walk alone through a dark park with lots of trees and bushes for anyone up to no good to hide in. Morningside was on the Upper West Side, adjacent to Columbia University. It used to have a reputation for high crime and drugs. The City had done a lot to clean it up in recent years… but everyone still knew not to take any chances at night… and the ones who did… it was a chance they might not ever get to take again… and if the victim were female, well, they would never be the same…

… something Blair could attest to.

"Miss?" the cabbie asked when the limo turned down Morningside Drive. Even he wasn't anxious to be in these parts at this time of night.

Serena gulped and looked at Blair.

They both knew the only reason Chuck would come here.

Blair gripped her phone tighter.

He must have had this all planned, she couldn't help but think. Chuck hadn't thrown that party just to identify her rapist. Serena was right. Chuck was really going to take matters into his own hands.

"Keep following," Serena commanded, but her voice wasn't as strong.

Her eyes met Blair's across the back seat and it didn't take years of being best friends' for them to tell that they were both sufficiently freaked out.

"Miss?" the cabbie asked again, but this time because the limo had pulled to the side of the road up ahead. He didn't know whether to stop or keep going. They were still a ways down the road; his hesitation at entering the area had given the limo a little leeway.

"Stop the cab!" Serena said quickly. It didn't matter if Chuck saw them or not. They weren't trying to follow Chuck and not be seen. They wanted to be seen, and they wanted to put an end to this insanity.

It was so dark, the only thing they could really make out up ahead was the taillights of the vehicle and the occasional lamp post along the sidewalk.

The cab driver took his damn sweet time pulling up behind the other vehicle, and Serena was wrestling with all the items she was carrying, trying to get to her wallet.

"Here," Blair said, pushing double the fare and an extra bonus to the man. "I got it, just go."

No sooner had Serena opened the door and started dragging the nearly incoherent girl prattling on about fairies out of the back seat, when the limo pulled off.

Serena's mouth dropped open and she swore. Blair sighed and scooted back into the vehicle. "Hurry up, S, get back in!"

"Wood fairies!" the high girl sang out, giggling and pointing to the trees. "Can they hear me?" she lowered her voice to a whisper, gravely, looking at the blonde who'd been guiding her around most of the night.

Serena looked to the woods and her gaze hardened when she spotted a familiar suit flash by. "He must have spotted us or known we were following. He probably sent the limo away to send us on a wild goose chase, make us think he was still in it, when he actually got out to take care of him here. That basshole!"

"That's my word," Blair muttered as she nudged the girl out of the back seat again.

Serena yanked the girl to her feet, though she was still careful of her purse. Blair scampered out, slamming the door shut, and the girls hurried as best they could.

"Chuck!" Serena hollered.

"Bass!" Blair called.

They kept going, yelling as loud as they could, not caring if it alerted anyone to their presence. There were three of them, plus Chuck, and two were so desperate that anyone looking for trouble with them would pay dearly for even trying to interfere.

Fortunately no one came to bother them. Unfortunately, that meant Chuck too.

"Where is he?!" Serena almost screeched at Blair.

She was panicking, more and more by the minute. She didn't know when it had happened, but somewhere in the course of forced family dinners, sibling-like squabbles, and their combined efforts to help Blair—not to mention they already had a history of being friends since he started hanging with Nate—she'd begun to actually think of him as a brother.

She had tried so hard to prevent this from happening. She'd seen the look on his face when the cops confirmed the extent of Blair's attack. She'd seen the glint in his eyes as he blamed himself for everything, even though he never said the words aloud. She'd seen the hurt on his face when she lied to him—telling him that Blair wasn't attacked; that it was consensual.

It had taken all she had to lie convincingly to him, but she had known it was the right thing to do because… well, Gossip Girl had said it… Hell hath no fury like a Chuck Bass scorned. She just knew he wouldn't be able to stop from taking action. She had tried to deny that his intention for throwing the party tonight was for any other reason than to search and decimate.

She tried to tell herself that the party was just to find the attacker. She tried to tell herself that she could handle Chuck's fury and Blair's fear.

She had to admit, she'd chosen the wrong time to live in Blair's land of delusion.

And now, she felt fear herself… because this was her step-brother (well, almost), and he was about to commit an act that could destroy him forever. She could care less what happened to the other guy… but they had all been so lost already, she didn't want to lose him forever.

"Chuck! You fucking Bass!" Serena screamed.

They were near the waterfalls now, and even though she screamed, her voice was drowned out slightly by the sound of the rushing water. Or, so they thought.

"Trying to wake the dead?"

The girls spun around, startled, relieved, and filled with dread, to see Chuck standing behind them.

"The Fairy King!" the third girl squealed, taking the opportunity to genuflect since the blonde girl let go of her.

"Not quite," Blair said softly out the side of her mouth, unable to refrain from answering as the relief at finding Chuck raced through her system.

"That's not funny," Serena snapped at him. Then she realized that his words might mean more than they thought. "Oh my God, Chuck, please tell me you didn't…"

He shook his head. He turned to the side and glanced at the path he'd just come from: the Sellgman Fountain.

"Oh, thank God," Blair said as she raced up to him. "I knew you wouldn't do it! Serena seems to think…"

She trailed off when she saw his face. It was his eyes that did it. She knew him; she knew his schemes, his expressions, and probably his thoughts even before he had them sometimes because they knew each other that well. This expression she did not know. But from the lack of emotion, the deadness of his eyes, she felt a flash of fear for him.

"Chuck?" she murmured.

He wouldn't answer her. He was having a hard time even looking at her.

So he looked to the left of her, almost staring off into space as he addressed Serena. "So, van der Woodsen, what's this plan you have to save everyone?" Disgust and mockery dripping from his voice, the idea of saving the bastard who touched Blair was not sitting well with him, but he understood somehow that Serena was trying to save him and Blair and didn't really care about the other.

"Exactly what I told you at the hospital," Serena said firmly. "Let the police handle this."

He scoffed. He knew, and he thought Serena knew, that was impossible. Word would get out and everyone would know what happened to Blair, making it even worse for her.

"No," Serena shook her head, knowing his exact argument. "Look," she said, bringing her purse up and struggling to get the zipper down. "I've got the girl," she nodded at the drugged girl who was now sitting on the grass at Serena's feet, staring at the waterfall in awe. "I've got the glass," she said as she finally got the purse open. "I've even got the liquid," she had really gotten creative on that one. She had to dump out her entire mini-gloss hair spritzer, barely missing Robbie's feet, before pouring the alcohol into the spritzer.

Chuck looked at her dubiously.

"Don't look at me like that!" Serena blanched. "She was drugged," she cried, pointing to the girl on the ground. "We've got fingerprints from the glass, proof from the alcohol and her! You have the one responsible! Just call back the limo, we'll all go to a hospital, get her looked at! We won't bring Blair's name up at all. No one will have to know anything about Blair, but at the same time, he can get arrested for what he tried to do to… to…" she trailed off, just shaking her head in frustration. She didn't know the other girls' name and it seemed sort of fruitless to ask in her current state.

"Have you been watching CSI reruns?" he asked. "Because that is just ridiculous, not to mention, it will never work!"

"Chuck!" she huffed. "Blair, talk some sense into him!"

Blair was still standing near him, still a little disturbed from everything she was seeing and feeling from him. She thought Serena's idea was a little convoluted and doomed to fail—after all, it wasn't like the girl was raped.

"Blair?!" Serena almost shrieked when her best friend didn't reply.

"I'll press charges," Blair finally said softly.

Chuck's head snapped to her at the words, while Serena's mouth dropped open a little.

Chuck shook his head at her. "No, absolutely not."

"I will," Blair said, feeling like her insides were on fire, her stomach in knots. She would rather die than press charges… but she couldn't let Chuck do this… he didn't need to take care of her this way, though she appreciated his show of loyalty. "I'll do it. I don't need you to protect me anymore. I can do this, I swear."

Chuck stared at her, understanding the words but not comprehending how they could be coming out of her mouth. Then he figured it out. She was saying it for him. She was trying to protect him, just like Serena had tried last week with her lie.

No, there was no way he was going to allow her to do it just to protect him.

"What did you think would happen when you IDed him, Blair?" he asked. "I know you; you will never press those charges. You're only saying this because you are trying to protect me, and I don't need you to."

Blair shook her head. "I'll do it! Tonight! Let's just go!" She grabbed his arm, pulling at him. "Please, Chuck."

He pulled his arm away and shook his head. "You two just… just go. I'll handle this. Just keep your yaps shut."

"Do you really think no one saw you leave with him?" Serena asked, desperate now. "And if Blair says she'll do it, she will. Just listen to us. He'll get punished for what he did!"

"Not enough…" he muttered.

"Chuck…" Blair murmured.

"Just go," he said softly, eyes flashing.

"No, we're not leaving," Serena insisted. "You can't kill him! Did you hear me? Kill him? Let's just put the words out there, you know?"

"Why not?" he asked simply.

Serena sputtered. "Be-be-because it's wrong! People don't just go around taking other peoples' lives. That's why we have the authorities, to deal with people like him. He's sick and he deserves to suffer, and he will. But you don't need to be the one to do it."

"Yes," he nodded gravely. "I do."

"No," Blair snapped firmly. "I'll do it."

"No, you won't," Chuck denied.

"No, I mean, I'll do it," Blair reiterated. "I'll kill him. Why should you get to do it? I'll do it. Let me do it."

Chuck snorted. "Yeah, right." Blair may be amazing at scheming and destroying people, but she wasn't a very physically violent person... minus hair pulling and foot stomping. In fact, didn't she mention something to him once before about loving all of God's creatures?

"Lead the way!" Blair said, throwing a hand in the distance to the direction Chuck had looked earlier. "Whatever the plan is, I'll do it."

Serena looked back and forth between them, not knowing if Blair was just trying to call Chuck's bluff or if she really was going to do it.

"Wait!" Serena yelled. "I'll do it! Okay? If you won't turn him in, let me kill him!"

"You can't be serious," Chuck looked from her to Blair, not knowing whether to laugh or not. "Please, stop. You both know neither of you can do this."

"Yes, I can," Serena insisted. She felt a little flushed, and she though she would rather not admit what happened last year, she decided now was the time. "I've done it before."

Chuck laughed while Blair snapped her head toward Serena in shock.

"I'm not kidding," Serena said, taking a step forward. "That's why I left last year, not because of Nate," she looked at Blair. "You should let me do this because I've already killed someone."

"So have I."

Blair and Serena whirled to look at Chuck.

Chuck looked away. He wasn't going to tell them that he'd killed his mother. He hadn't meant to do it, but he'd done it just the same. She would have been better off if he'd never been born… literally. He figured if he could kill his own mother, he'd have no problem killing Blair's rapist.

"Well, that's just great," Blair said sarcastically. "Now I just feel left out. You're going to have to let me do it. Next week it'll be Nate's turn, or whatever. The friends that slay together, stay together," she joked even though she was definitely not laughing.

Chuck just shook his head. "Both of you just go home." He reached in his pocket for his phone. "Do you need me to call you a taxi?" He looked at his phone, waiting for them to respond.

"No," Serena said, crossing her arms across her chest. "As far as I'm concerned this conversation was pointless anyway. We're not going to let you kill him, and we're not going to leave so you can do it. We're staying right here with you. We'll stay all night if we have to. Seriously, you should have planned this better. If you had stayed hidden, we never would have found you out here and you could have just taken care of everything without us bothering you. I think, maybe, you wanted us to stop you. Is that it, Chuck? Because we will."

Blair's brows furrowed. She looked at the way Chuck was holding his phone—not poised to call, but looking at the screen as if he was expecting something. She replayed Serena's words in her head and then she looked in the direction that he'd indicated earlier.

They'd just assumed that he must have knocked the guy out, tied him up, or something… that Chuck had just walked away for a minute to deal with them before returning to finish him off… but that didn't make any sense. What if the guy came to? Chuck wouldn't risk him getting away…

"You were stalling…" she realized.

Chuck wouldn't look at her, still keeping his eyes on his phone.

"What?" Serena asked hesitantly.

"You thought we would see you get out of the limo because we were so close behind. You wanted us to see you. You knew we were following you. But we didn't see you at first. Then we did, and we thought you wanted to send us after the limo so you could take care of things here. That's why we followed you instead of the limo. But… we should have followed the limo, right?" Blair figured it all out.

Chuck just stared at his phone.

"What are you talking about?" Serena asked, confused.

"He isn't here," Blair snapped. "Chuck left him in the limo. He's been stalling this entire time."

"Congratulations, Waldorf," Chuck said, giving an emotionless smirk. He knew they'd figure it out sooner or later. It had worked rather well. He hoped all was going well with his man. He was to receive a phone call once the deed was done.

"Chuck!" Serena dropped her purse, not caring about the contents anymore, and went to him, grabbing his arm. "What have you done?!"

"Stop this," Blair said, walking forward and putting a hand to his cheek. "Make the call, end this now."

Chuck's eyes were burning a hole into his cell phone.

He was torn.

He wanted the sonofabitch to die.

He deserved to die.

But Serena said to leave justice to the authorities.

Blair didn't want him to kill the guy either.

More than anything, he just wished none of this had ever happened.

And he knew that a lot of his anger was at his own self too.

He just couldn't stop blaming himself.

And that sonofabitch had hurt Blair; more than hurt… he'd changed her life forever.

Blair would never be the same.

Chuck would never be the same.

He didn't care what was right or wrong at this moment. He cared about revenge. He cared about avenging Blair.

He just felt… so lost.

Funny how this entire thing started with Serena's frantic call…

"I lost Blair!"

And Blair had been lost, was still lost, but maybe he could give her a reason to breathe easier again. Maybe he could give her a reason to still believe in Prince Charming. He wanted to fix this for her, but maybe he was being selfish… maybe he was so preoccupied trying to make this guy pay for Chuck's guilt that he wasn't thinking straight…

People had seen him leave with the other guy. When he showed up dead—if he ever did show up—questions would be asked, and it might get back to Chuck.

And where would Blair be then?

He had to be there for her. That was more important than anything else…

But if he didn't have the guy killed, would he just go free? Would Blair really press charges against him? Or would Serena's CSI skills really work?

He passed the phone to Blair.

She took it, raising an eyebrow.

"If you want to end this, hit Send. Call him off," he whispered. "This is your decision. Whatever you want to do, it's up to you."

She looked at the phone, looking a little pale, frozen, unsure.

"If he calls first, that means it's already done," he explained.

Blair sucked in a breath. Why did this all have to come down to her? She was all for his death as long as Chuck wasn't the one to do it. But… could she do it?

"Blair, what are you waiting for?" Serena insisted. "Call!"

But Blair wasn't listening.

The decision had been placed firmly in her hands. It was up to her now.

It was fitting.

It had all come down to her choosing his fate.

Everything she'd attempted to avoid all week—the flashbacks, the nightmares—all flooded back.

She'd rather live in a world without him in it.

She didn't want to open herself up to the humiliation waiting if word got out if she were to press charges.

She didn't want him to go free either.

Free to do what? Hurt more girls? Take something from them that he had no right to?

So, it all came down to two options.

Either call the hit man, put a stop to it, and then press charges…

Or… don't call. Just let everything play out the way Chuck envisioned.

Wait for the confirmation that it was over.

What was she supposed to do?

She looked at her best friend—frantic, perfect Serena. Would she ever forgive her if she didn't make the call?

She looked at Chuck… she knew what he wanted her to do. Deep down, he wanted this guy gone. It was just his slow-growing conscious playing a trick on him that made him pass the phone off to her in the first place.

But… it didn't matter what they wanted.

What did she want?

The clock was ticking.

Soon the option would be made for her.

Her thumb traced the 'Send' button.

Just one little nudge…

Just one little…

She took a deep breath and looked into Chuck's eyes. Her own were wide, silently asking him if it'll be okay if she hit the button. He nodded.

"Whatever you want," he whispered. "I'm not going anywhere."

Blair's eyes filled with tears. He was going to support her no matter what she decided. She didn't even need to look at Serena because she knew without asking that Serena would be there for her.

Armed with her two friends from childhood, she could get through everything, right? The public humiliation… she'd gotten through her father's scandal, hadn't she?

If she testified, maybe she could prevent this from ever happening again to another girl…

She stared into Chuck's eyes once more.

And she finally hit 'Send'.

The End.