When We Where Heroes (Chapter 1 of See No Evil)

Author: Isabelle

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Gossip Girl characters; this is just for a fun & entertainment.

Rating: PG-13

Summary: Set after 'Bad New Blair', an accident leads Chuck to loose his sight. Him and Blair slowly grow closer as she helps him adjust to the loss of his sight. Chuck/Blair.

A/N: Special thanks to my BETA, Tati.

--

"Walking with a friend in the dark is better than walking alone in the light." Helen Keller

They entered her room laughing, still dressed in their blue and red dresses.

"Can you imagine her face?" She asked Serena as the blonde threw herself on her bed.

"She's going to be furious!" Serena let out, her blonde mane spread around her. Blair dropped next to her and sighed.

"I haven't had this much fun in so long," she admitted and turned her head to look at Serena.

"Me neither," Serena admitted and gave her a smile.

"I mean, Chuck was great as a BFF, but there's something odd about playing dress up with him."

They burst out laughing.

"BFFs forever?" Serena asked her, and Blair reached out to grasp her hand.

"Forever."

They chatted idly as Dorota brought them cookies and skim milk. She looked outside and noticed it was getting darker. She hadn't heard from her boyfriend.

This was not unusual these days. It seemed like he would disappear for hours and she wouldn't hear from him. It bothered her, of course, but she didn't want to become the overbearing girlfriend. The one that called him 100 times a day to find out what he was doing.

"I haven't heard from Nate." It was 7 pm by the time she confessed this to Serena.

"Call him." Serena munched on some carrots now as she idly flipped through magazines and texted back and forth with Dan.

"I don't want to be needy girlfriend," Blair explained, sitting next to Serena, almost envious of the back and forth texting between Serena and Dan.

"Just say what's up. Lost weekend ended this morning, right?"

Blair nodded.

Maybe if she called Chuck and asked what they were up to, maybe that wouldn't be so needy. Ok, she liked this plan. Call Chuck, ask about Nate. No needy girlfriend title.

Except Chuck would totally know she was being needy. Ugh, she hated that bastard sometimes.

She called his number, and it went to voicemail.

Dammit. He was probably passed out in a sea of hoes.

They decided to watch Roman Holiday because Blair loved it and Serena tolerated it. Serena had wanted to watch When Harry Met Sally, but Blair bristled. Friends didn't fall in love, she had said. You either fell in love with someone at first sight, or it didn't happen. Love was magical.

Serena dropped it because she always lost this argument.

Audrey & Gregory were getting photographed as they rode in a vespa when her phone finally rang. It was Nate.

"Finally!" She said, and Serena paused the film.

"I was feeling neglected," she said in her Nate-voice.

He was unnaturally quiet.

"Blair?"

His voice sounded hoarse. She instantly sat up.

"What's wrong?"

Serena perked up and listened to her.

She was hearing his words, but she felt her body numb.

"…And they came out of nowhere, and they set the limo on fire, and before I knew it, I was out. Apparently Chuck pulled me out…"

"Oh my God!" She cried, hand over her mouth.

"What's wrong?" Serena pulled her sleeve.

"Nate and Chuck were attacked, and Chuck's limo was set on fire!" She quickly explained.

"Are you hurt?" She demanded from him.

"I have a broken arm-"

"Oh my God!"

"What?" Serena was desperate.

"Blair, listen, I'm fine. I'm just bruised, and I have a bad headache."

She was shaking.

"Ok, I'm listening," she said, giving Serena a look to calm her down.

"It's just that… Chuck…"

Her stomach felt empty.

"What happened to him?" She demanded.

"Something happened to his face, Blair. They won't tell me what. Can you come?" He was almost whispering. So very quiet. "Bart's out of the country, and they haven't been able to reach him."

"Yes, we'll be right there."

She hung up and turned to Serena.

"B, you're pale."

"We need to get to the hospital," she said quickly, jumping off the bed and grabbing her coat and shoes.

"What happened?" Serena followed her lead as the DVD case of When Harry Met Sally slid to the floor.

Blair told Serena what she knew as they held hands on the way to the hospital. Blair herself tried to call Bart a few times, but to no avail.

It wasn't until Serena called her own mother that Lily said she would try to find Bart. This worked because Lily called them back and said Bart was on his way to New York, but it would be a few hours.

--

When they arrived at the hospital, Blair had to remind half the staff that the Waldorfs were on the charity committee and had been there for over fifty years. They were then allowed to see Nate, who had just finished getting dressed and out of the hospital gown they had placed him in.

She threw herself into his arms and attempted very hard not to cry. But seeing his bruised face and arm in a cast did her in. Plus, there was incredible guilt and sadness in his eyes.

"I'm fine, Blair," he tried to console her as he patted her back and gave Serena a small smile.

She calmed down. She wasn't going to make a total fool out of herself. Especially not around hospital staff.

She sat next to Nate, holding his good hand as he listened to the doctor go over his prescriptions.

When the doctor left, she turned to him.

"What happened?" She asked quietly.

He swallowed and looked away.

A nurse interrupted them at that moment. She peeked in with a clipboard at hand.

"Your friend is out of intensive care. You can go see him now if you like, but only for a minute." She smiled at Nate, and Nate nodded, instantly dropping her hand and walking to the door.

She and Serena followed him as the nurse led them through a maze. They finally made it to a closed door.

"Only one," the nurse told them, and Blair nodded for Nate to go ahead. Both girls watched from the window as Nate slowly walked up to a sleeping Chuck. Chuck was in a hospital gown, and his head was covered in gauze. He looked like a mummy, Blair thought. However, this didn't faze her. She knew Chuck. He would bounce back and all would be well in no time. In a few days, when she brought him flowers and his homework, she would find a nurse straddling him. She would insult him and be upset, and then tell him her latest Nate problem.

That's how it was supposed to go.

Nate talked to Chuck for a bit, and then the nurse interrupted him. Nate glanced one last time at his friend and then walked to the girls.

"Bart's on his way," Blair told him when he sat outside with them.

It wasn't half an hour after that the Archibald driver arrived to pick Nate up. His parents were nowhere in sight.

She saw Nate's jaw clench.

"I should stay until Bart arrives," Nate told them.

"No! You're hurt, Nate!" Serena said, and Blair nodded in agreement.

"So is Chuck!" And she saw the anger radiating off him.

Something else was going on, and she had yet to be let on it. She would get it out of Chuck once he woke up, she decided. So she volunteered to stay.

"I'll stay, Nate. Go home, and I'll call you once he wakes," she urged him.

"No," he stated, and then winced when he tried to cross his arms.

"Go." She ushered him out.

Serena next to her yawned and Nate noticed. Blair noticed that, too.

"C'mon, I'll take you home," he told Serena. He turned to her and blinked. "Call me the moment he wakes."

Blair pursed her lips and nodded. "I promise."

She stood there and watched her boyfriend and her best friend walk slowly behind the driver. That insane little pit in the bottom of her stomach shivered.

She turned to Chuck's room and sighed. She looked in through the window. He looked the same. The heart monitor told her that his hollow heart was still beating, and the slow rising and falling of his chest told her he would spring back in no time.

"What exactly were you two doing?" She asked quietly.

A nurse passed by her and studied her. "You want to go in and sit with him?"

Blair quickly shook her head.

"I'm waiting for his father to arrive," she explained quickly.

"Are you sure? If he wakes, I'm sure he'd like his girlfriend to be next to him."

Blair let out a laugh. Chuck and girlfriends were things that just didn't mix. "That guy is incapable of having a girlfriend. I'm just a frienemy."

--

So she sat on the hard plastic chair outside. Leave it to Chuck to keep her up at 3 am, annoyed, hungry, and worried.

Not that she was worried about him. Knowing Chuck, he would use the facial scars to his advantage. He would make this heroic story up that would have girls dropping their panties faster than they normally did. She didn't know why they did it. But they did. A few even did it in her presence.

Sluts.

She was dozing off at 3:45 am when Bart finally came in through the doors.

"Blair?" He looked down at her and took in her bedraggled appearance.

"Mr. Bass!" She sat up, running her hand unconsciously over her curls. She was a mess. And to think that a few hours ago, she thought she would be a model. "I was waiting for you to arrive."

Bart said nothing but turned to Chuck's room.

"Has he woken?" He asked her.

Blair shook her head.

"Any word on his condition?" He asked, taking off his gloves.

"He's a minor. They wouldn't release any information."

She watched as Bart looked into Chuck's window. He didn't enter.

"I'll find a doctor," she volunteered, and he nodded without looking at her.

When the doctor was found, he took Bart aside and explained to him in hush tones about Chuck's condition. Of course she was going to eavesdrop. Not that she cared, but what else was she going to do at 4 am?

"Severe eye trauma," she heard and blanched.

"Slim chances of him regaining his sight-"

And she sat there cold.

"We'll have to do some test-"

Oh my.

--

It was exactly seventeen hours later that Chuck Bass finally woke.

She had just arrived back at the hospital and found her pale-looking boyfriend staring ahead.

They had told him about Chuck's apparent blindness not long ago. She had brought the blind bastard flowers. But he wouldn't be able to see them.

This made her so sad that she didn't know whether to feel pity for the guy or wonder if this was karma getting back at him.

"I brought him flowers," she stated the obvious as she sat next to Nate. Nate continued to stare straight ahead.

"Have you talked to him?" She asked, and Nate shook his head.

"He's asleep again." Nate's voice was monotone.

"Ok," she said quietly and decided to venture into the room. Chuck asleep was safe.

She opened the door as quietly as her 4 inch heels would let her. There were already tons of flowers, as well as some teddies and balloons.

From his sluts, most likely. She scoffed.

She walked to the side of his bed, took out a trashy-looking bouquet (daisies, really!), and set it on the floor. She placed her elegant purple hydrangeas on the table and smiled at them. Much better. She was such a good friend.

Next to her, he stirred and she went stock still.

She hadn't really looked at him. They had removed some of the gauze from his face and all that was left was a thick white band over his eyes. She saw some red welts around the bandages, and she winced in sympathy. His arm was also bandaged. Apparently he had some minor burns on his hand. Poor fool, she shook her head.

Knowing him, he would probably still get laid, blind and all. She grimaced. A blind Chuck was going to bring her party down.

She sniffled, looked around the room, and exited. Her boyfriend needed her right now.

--

She was there a few hours later when Chuck was told he was blind. His father wasn't around, but Nate was and she was with Nate. She was such a good girlfriend. Of course, said girlfriend ignored the way Nate couldn't seem to touch her. At all.

Nate stood outside as she heard Chuck bark to the nurses to leave him alone.

Nate stood outside his door for two hours, hands in his pockets, not daring to go in.

"You won't tell me what happened?" She asked him when he finally sat down.

Nate stared at the door and shook his head.

He was infuriating. She was just going to have to get it out of Chuck. Chuck was many things, but he was not a liar. Chuck would tell her the truth.

When Nate decided to take a walk, she sulked and stared at the door. She was supposed to be at home preparing her sleepover.

The whole school was abuzz with what had happened to Chuck. Blair had even seen some skanks crying together. Pathetic. Honestly.

I mean, yes, she understood. She got a slight bump in her throat when she looked in on him sleeping. But he was Chuck Bass. Bastard extraordinaire. But not worth crying over.

She scoffed at them and glared.

She looked down at her watch. 11:45pm. She should be in bed, not in a hospital. She would leave, but she felt kind of bad leaving Chuck alone when Nate was taking a random walk.

It was then that his scream startled her.

She sat up and walked to Chuck's room. His head was moving violently from side to side, and he was yelling.

Oh, God!

She looked around for a nurse but, of course, they were all on lunch break or screwing each other like they did on Grey's Anatomy.

She made an executive decision. She walked in and quickly went over to Chuck. He was probably dreaming, because he kept muttering nonsense. She would've smacked him if he wasn't a poor blind bastard.

So she yelled back.

"Chuck!" She cried.

He trashed some more.

"Wake up!" She reached out and shook his shoulders. That's when his hands went up and grabbed her upper arms, startling the hell out of her.

"Help me."

And he said it so desperately that she was pretty sure she would faint.

And then he was awake. She could tell because his hands felt different on her arms. Like he was feeling her, trying to figure out who it was he was holding.

"Chuck?" Her voice was shaky. "It's ok. You were dreaming."

God, she was soothing Chuck Bass.

He fell back on the bed, his head sideways as he licked his lips.

"Blair?" His voice was hoarse. She quickly grabbed the water pitcher next to his bed and filled a gross-looking cup.

"Here, have some water," she said rather forcefully, and she noticed that he instantly grimaced. His hand reached out… blindly.

That's when she let herself feel sorry for him, because he looked so sad trying to grasp the cup.

Oh God, Chuck was blind. She bit her lip as she reached out and placed her hand behind his head, helping him up.

"Here," she said quietly, bringing the cup to his lips. He drank greedily.

"More," he asked, and she nodded, filling the cup once more and repeating the act.

When he was done with the second cup, he leaned back and she pulled her hands away. She had been touching him.

She swallowed.

"What time is it?" He asked, and she was startled. She looked down at her watch.

"Almost 12. Midnight." She studied his face. He turned his head the other way and then back to her direction.

They were quiet.

"What are you doing here, Waldorf?" He asked, and there was sharpness to his voice.

Somehow this made her feel better because the pathetic Chuck that begged for help made something awful happen to her stomach.

"Nate is here." She said lamely.

"Of course," he snapped.

She glared at him and his bandages. This was definitely karma.

"Are you two the only ones here?" He asked before his head turned away.

She knew what he meant. Was his father here. His father wasn't here, and this made the awful feeling come back to her stomach.

"Yes," she said after a moment. "Nate's been here almost the entire time."

She saw his jaw clenched.

He was quiet for a moment.

"Go home, Waldorf," he finally said.

"Chuck-"

"I said go home." He was forceful this time.

She stood and saw him flinch.

"I brought you flowers, you ungrateful bastard!" She snapped.

"Yes, I saw them. They were lovely. Hydrangeas?" He was dripping with sarcasm.

But his words cut her like a knife, and she had to look away because at that moment she wasn't sure whether to slap him or hug him. So she stalked out.

--

They r releasing him today. Nate texted her, and her stomach felt a bit sour.

What would Chuck do now? He lived in a suite by himself. Bart had probably gotten him a full time nurse that he was sure to be fucking in no time.

It didn't matter, it wasn't her problem. She was too busy planning her Masquerade outfit, and after the success of her sleepover, she was under severe pressure to get this right.

She needed to look flawless. The Masquerade was in a week, and Nate was more distant than ever. She was determined to fix this. Determined. She could fix her and Nate, and she would not let Chuck get in the way.

Regardless of how sorry she felt for the guy.

When Nate started disappearing, she became curious. So she went hunting for him in the only place she thought he would be. At Chuck's.

She grimaced as she got in the elevator and up to the top floor.

She swore even his elevator smelled of sex.

Not that she knew what sex smelled like. Did sex have a smell?

She gingerly knocked on 1812 and waited for the nurse to open the door. She waited. And waited.

And knocked again. More forcefully.

He had to be there. Where else would he go? Maybe he was busy. Ugh.

She turned to leave, when she heard some stumbling and then finally the door was opened.

She let out a squeak and gasped.

Chuck was almost naked. Almost. Boxer-briefs covering his slightly erect penis and bandages over his eyes. He looked utterly like hell.

"Who is it?" He demanded.

He was also drunk as hell.

"Blair," she said quietly. She shouldn't have come.

Where was his nurse? Was he alone? She was so confused.

He relaxed his shoulder and absently scratched his balls. She scrunched up her nose.

"Nate's not here," he told her and went to close the door.

She got her answer. She should leave. She had to pick out some jewelry. She was busy.

"Are you by yourself?" She asked. What happened to walking away?

He sighed, and his jaw twitched. He placed one hand on his hip.

"What do you want?" He asked, his head bent down.

He looked so broken. So unlike Chuck that she wasn't sure how to act around him. She fidgeted and bit her lip.

"Look. I don't need any pity," he said quietly. "So please just go."

"Where's your nurse?" She asked, stepping forward ever so slightly. He felt her and backed up. She raised her eyebrow.

"I heard you were busy planning your party, Waldorf. Off with you." He motioned with his hand. His burnt hand.

She took a deep breath and pushed past him into his suite.

She scrunched up her face. The place was a disgusting mess.

"Out, out," he said behind her, but she stayed away from his reach. This pissed him off and he slammed the door shut. He leaned his bare back on it, crossing his arms over his hairy chest.

"You haven't let housekeeping in," she noted.

"I want to be alone," he spit out. "In case you haven't noticed."

She noticed bottles everywhere but no cups.

"Drinking right out of the bottle now, are we?" She quipped and walked to his bar.

"It's easier than stumbling for a cup."

She turned to look at him. He was in the same position. He hadn't moved.

"Come here," she said and saw his jaw twitch.

"I'd rather not," he replied.

"Where's your nurse?" She asked again.

"I don't need a fucking nurse," he snapped.

"How are you getting along?" She asked, coming closer to him.

"Just fine."

She stood before him and reached out to grab his hand. He flinched and pulled away.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly after a while.

He stood there, breathing and just standing.

"I don't need pity-"

"It's not pity!"

"It's fucking pity and I hate it!" He yelled, and his face was so close to hers that she reeled back.

"Fine!" She yelled right back.

"Leave!" He demanded.

His words did something to her that she hadn't expected. So she slapped him and instantly regretted it because he still had welts.

He gasped and pulled back. His mouth was set in a grimace.

"I'm sorry," she said instantly. "I'm sorry."

His jaw clenched.

"Oh God, I'm sorry, Chuck – I didn't mean it!"

He listened to her.

"Just… God, let me help you."

He pulled back from her and grasped the wall as he attempted to walk into the room. He tripped over some clothes on the floor, and she reached out to help him.

He growled, and she instantly let him go.

"Do you mind not looking at me?" He snapped as he steadied himself against a couch.

She swallowed and looked down. He finally sat down on the couch and reached out blindly for a bottle that was there. Half empty, where he had left it.

"Chuck…" She walked closer.

He sighed.

"What do you want, Waldorf?" He sounded so exhausted that she really had no answer to give him.

What did you say to a friend who was now blind? A strong friend that listened when you had all these problems but never shared their problems with you?

She took a seat next to him and grabbed a pair of pants from the floor. They were yellow and looked clean. Clean enough.

"Here, put these on," she said quietly and took the bottle from his hands. He resisted at first, then gave in and grabbed the pants. He had some trouble with them, getting annoyed pretty quickly as he attempted to find the front side of them. She reached out and put them in his hands the right way.

He grimaced once more. He hated this more than she hated it.

"I'm calling housekeeping. If you're not going to let anyone help you, then the floor needs to be clean before you kill yourself trying to walk around here," she told him forcefully. He bristled, but listened as she called housekeeping and gave them strict instructions of what they had to do.

When she hung up, she turned to him.

"Goodbye," he said and leaned back on the couch.

This pissed her off.

"When did you last shower?" She demanded.

This brought a smirk to his face. She rolled her eyes.

"Volunteering a sponge bath?"

She let out a breath.

"Leave it to you," she stated and sat down next to him again.

"I mean, if you're asking, I thought…." He let out a chuckle and this somehow pleased her, because her Chuck enjoyed other people's misery.

"C'mon. I'll grab some underwear and clean clothes. You need to shower." She pulled his arm and led him to the bedroom.

"I don't like this," he said when she stood before him in the bathroom.

"I don't like it, either," she said and placed his folded clothes on top of the toilet. "Your clothes are here." She placed his hands over the clothes and then turned him to face the shower. "The shower is in here."

He sighed.

"I'll leave the door unlocked. Don't slip because I won't come in and rescue you."

--

When Chuck exited, she had just hung up the phone and turned to him. She smiled because he looked like a mess. His shirt wasn't tucked in, the buttons were not aligned right, and he was barefoot.

She walked around the maids clearing the mess and towards him. She took the dirty clothes from his hands and handed them to a maid.

"They're cleaning your room," she explained as he looked around, trying to figure out what was happening.

"You have about ten women in your room," she smirked at him.

"I've had more," he responded and let her fix his buttons.

"Tuck your shirt in," she told him once he was buttoned correctly.

"What for?"

"Because we're heading out," she explained.

"No," he snapped.

"Yes."

If he could glare he would. This made her a bit sad. He would never glare at her again. Chuck really did glare the best. His glare had rivaled hers.

"I need company," she stated, getting some shoes from his closet. His closet was bigger than hers, honestly!

'I don't." He sat down on the bed carefully, and she handed him socks.

She placed his shoes next to him and then went hunting for a belt. The maids were done and said they would be back at 9 am sharp.

"I know you don't want a nurse," she began as she sorted through his bowties. "But one is coming regardless everyday at 3 pm. Once you're back from school."

She was satisfied with the small yellow bowtie she picked.

She turned to him and saw his hands buried in his hair.

She sighed and sat next to him, looking down at his untied shoelaces.

"Chuck," she said quietly, touching his arm. He pulled away and she let out a huff. "You can't sit around feeling sorry for yourself!"

He turned his head to her and set his lips straight.

"What would you do, huh?" He demanded, and she looked away. He was right. She would be suicidal.

"Ok. Fine," she agreed and tapped his leg. "But while you wallow, can you please tie your shoes?"

He groaned and bent down to tie his shoes.

She studied his bandage.

"When can you take this off?" She asked, touching the band slightly. He flinched, and she pulled back.

"I can already take it off. I have prescription sunglasses," he said quietly. But taking the band off meant it was real. She understood.

She nodded. "Here." She handed him his bowtie. He felt it in his hand and let out a breath.

"You're going to have to do it. I need a mirror."

She pulled him up and started his bowtie. It just wasn't Chuck without his bowtie.

That's how Nate found them. She had finished tying his bow-tie, and she was smiling up at him. She was fixing his lapels and somehow his hands had landed on her waist. To steady himself.

"Nate!" She turned to her boyfriend, and Chuck's hands quickly dropped from her waist.

There was a look Blair had never seen on Nate's face. It was a confusion mixed with… suspicion.

"I thought you didn't need a nurse," Nate spat out. And Chuck flinched, pulling away from her and feeling his way to the bathroom. She grimaced when he stumbled a bit and then turned to glare at Nate.

She rolled her eyes and walked past her boyfriend.

"I've been calling you all day," she told him as she grabbed the door.

Nate didn't answer.

"Chuck, we'll go out another time," she called back over her shoulder. He was fine now, now Nate was there and Nate could keep him company. She felt bad, she had dressed him and everything and now he had nowhere to go.

But she was busy. She needed to pick out jewelry. She took out her phone and called Jenny. She would be kept busy by making others busy.

--

To be continued.

A/N - This is my first time writing in the past, meaning re-writing parts of the show. So Im a bit nervous but hopefully it'll turn out in chracter; which is my biggest fear :) I hope you all enjoy it. I'm currently working on Chapter 3 and I will post Chapter 2 once 3 is done. That's the way I publish. Thank you all for the feedback!