A/N Hello, and welcome to my first fic. I've always wanted to read a fic where Sarah and Chuck meet as kids in high school, and Chuck enters the con game as Sarah's new partner. Unfortunately, there aren't any out currently there, so I thought I would write my own. I started this before Indigogold's new fic came out, so any similarities are coincidences/regular Chuck fic cliches.

This has not been beta'd, but I'm relatively certain that I've caught most of my spelling and grammar mistakes. Also, I've only seen the first episode of Season 5, so if something in here goes against something established in S5, you'll know the reason why. I'd love to see the episodes, but I can't catch them on TV, and they can't be streamed online, so I'm majorly bummed about that.

I've never actually written any fiction like this, but I always got A's on my papers (even though a lot of them were Econ papers...)

I hope you have as much fun reading this story as I had writing it.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck or any of the characters. If I did, the travesty of S3 would only be a bad nightmare. Or at least Chuck would have actually killed Shaw correctly the first time.

Chapter 1

Flight

April 11, 1995

Somewhere on the I-5, California

His father left them.

He and his sister are all alone.

His father left them and now they're all alone.

Not that this was a huge change in the status quo, but before, his father was at least physically present, even if he was hiding from them in the basement. He would show up to dinner (not always, but enough), and sometimes help him or his sister with their homework. Not that his sister needed the help, she was (still is) brilliant, with a work ethic that he frequently envied, and more often than not, she helped him with his homework, albeit at a price. "Practice makes perfect," she always says to him, so he lets her practice being a doctor on him, even though he hates needles. She's going to be a doctor, because when Ellie sets her mind to something, nothing stands in her way. And honestly, he doesn't mind being her practice dummy; he likes it when his sister is happy, even if he can't stand needles.

But Steven Bartowski abandoned them, abandoned her.

And it was all his fault.

He had just wanted to join the baseball team. But he couldn't throw the ball very well during the try-outs, so all the jocks made fun of him for throwing like a girl, then started insulting his dad's parenting skills. Chuck would be the first person to admit his father was lax in the parenting department, but he was family, and no one insulted his family. He was about to stand up to the jocks when the coach approached them and scattered the jocks.

"Practice with your dad, and try out next year," the coach (who also happened to teach his favorite class, Basic Programming) Mr. Henderson, suggested. "I'm sure he'd be happy to help you improve. It'll be great father/son bonding time!"

Chuck bit his tongue to keep from venting that his dad would be too busy to do anything with him, instead only meekly nodding his assent to the coach's idea, and left. He didn't think it very likely, but hoped deep down that his father would be proud that he wanted to participate in a sport, and help him get better. But he didn't show up to dinner that night, or the subsequent night. On the third day after the try-outs, Chuck went looking for his father after lunch, and broke the most important rule of the house.

Never go into Steven Bartowski's basement.

There were rows upon rows of shelves, filled with all sorts of gadgets and files and knick-knacks. Chuck never imagined that there would be a whole warehouse of...things...in the basement. Curiosity getting the better of him, he wandered through the shelves, careful not to touch anything (if anything is out of its place, his father would surely notice). At the far end, he noticed a work area, with a table overflowing with notes, sketches and diagrams. One of the topmost pages catches his eye, but he can't understand his father's notes that well. Something about how the brain and neurons intersect with computer code, and Chuck can't help but think that whatever all that means must come straight from StarTrekor perhaps Tron. Nearby is a computer screen with the word Initialize? in bold italic letters. He is hit with a weird sense of déjà vuas his finger hovers above the enter key.

"Charles Bartowski! What do you think you're doing in here?"

Startled by his father's voice, Chuck whirls around, and spotting his father's angry look, can only gape like a fish.

"Dad! I'm so sorry I went in the basement! I was looking for you to play catch and throw a ball to join the team and..."

Before he can finish his babbling apology, Steven roughly grabbed Chuck's arm and proceeded to drag him outside, all the while angrily mumbling under his breath. Chuck only catches something about dangerous crossroads (I look both ways before I cross, honest!) and curious sons (Wait, I have a brother?), before they are back in the house again. Hearing a commotion, Ellie appears in the hallway, but before either her or Chuck can say anything, Steven spoke up.

"Go to bed kids, and I'll make pancakes in the morning." Turning to Chuck, Steven continued on, "Charles, forget everything you saw down there, and just go to sleep. We'll play catch tomorrow."

There were no pancakes the next day.

Because his father left them.

And it was all his fault.

He's sure his sister will hate him for driving their father away, and he can't stand the thought of his sister hating him, looking at him with anything other then the love and adoration usually present in her kind eyes, so he left.

At fifteen, he's not legally old enough to drive, and the fact that he is driving would normally be enough to cause him to freak out. But he doesn't. The fact that he's driving a stolen car should definitely cause him to have a mild panic attack, but it doesn't. Not even the knowledge that he is the one that stole the car, hotwiring the ignition (he saw it on an old episode of McGuvyer once) pierces the fog of his mind.

Because his father left Ellie.

Because he is leaving Ellie.

He is leaving Ellie.

That thought races across him mind, jolting him out of his depressed stupor. Awareness slams back into him, and he nearly avoids hitting the car he was passing. The fog in his mind lifting, everything comes crashing back to him, and for once in his life, Chuck Bartowski does not freak out, he remains calm and collected. Slowing down to take the off ramp, Chuck pondered the source of his Zen state. After a moment of reflection, he settles on the fact that the reason for his calm came from the speed he was driving at. Zooming about on the highway at 100 miles an hour is not the best place to freak out, he mused.

He continued driving aimlessly for another half an hour or so, examining his surroundings, trying to ignore the steady increase in his heart rate and perspiration, and his increasingly sweaty palms. Reaching a residential district, Chuck parked the stolen car-it's a mustang, similar to his father's car, and slowly got out. He briefly considered turning off the engine, but he had no clue how to do that. McGuvyer never had to turn off the car he had to hotwire. He got on the hood of the car and looked at his watch, noticing he'd been gone for over 2 hours. He had no clue where he was, only that he had been driving for the better part of two hours, going over 100 on the I-5.

"Ellie's going to kill me for being gone so long. Then she'll bring me back to life, and then kill me again for stealing a car. What if I had gotten pulled over? What if..." Chuck continued to ramble on the what ifs for a few minutes. He then stared at his hands, willing them to stop shaking, even as his vision started to go white around the edges. Everything that happened to him in his life, his mother leaving, being bullied, the needles, not getting on the baseball team, his father leaving as well, and OhGod, the needles, all became too much for him to handle, and he started hyperventilating. Panic growing, he swung his head around wildly, looking for something, someone, anything, as the sun lost its luminescence, the wind picked up a cold chill, and the clouds got darker and heavier, as if ready to deluge its watery burden upon him.

"Hey, are you alright?"

The soft voice, tinged with something (concern? For him?), ghosted right through his turbulent thoughts, and suddenly he could only focus on her. She was a young teen, right around his age, with slightly curly golden hair roughly hewn in a short boyish cut that reached down to her chin. Her sharp blue eyes were looking right at him, and he swiftly found himself mesmerized, drowning in the sea blue of her eyes. Her hand on his arm caused him to release the breath he wasn't aware he was holding, somethingstirring in his chest. Just as quickly as it dimmed, the sun regained its brilliance, the wind was no longer cold and he could swear there were birds chirping somewhere. For some reason, while he was still lost in her stare, he couldn't help but compare her to one of the myriad of Disney Princesses that his sister was always so fond of, and found them all wanting.

He looked into her eyes for another hour (truly only a moment ), took a shuddering breath, and despite his suddenly dry mouth, managed to breathe out a reply. "Yeah...I will be. Just got a little overwhelmed." Chuck couldn't help but notice that his voice was about an octave lower than usual, and his savior's blue eyes got a shade darker, her cheeks a tad pinker, as though she was just as affected by him as he was by her. They remained frozen, lost in each other's eyes, feeling as though time itself had stopped. A passing car honked its horn, and time re-asserted itself. The girl removed her hand from his arm, and he instantly felt the loss of warmth that her contact provided.

No longer distracted (or enticed) by her eyes, he took another moment (just a few seconds this time) to take in the rest of her appearance. The mystery girl was wearing white sneakers, faded and slightly ripped jeans, and a modestly loose gray shirt. It was basically the prevalent fashion for teen girls, not that he paid much attention to that sort of thing. She gave him a shy smile, and the braces she was wearing did nothing to detract from the brilliant smile.

"Oh... good... I, uh...I guess... I'll just, uh, go now?" Her hesitant statement sounded more like a question, and she blushed a bit more as she hoisted her backpack and turned to walk away.

Chuck panicked, and said the first thing to pop into his mind, "Wait! Do you... need a ride somewhere?"

"Oh... sure. Thanks." She looked hesitant at first, but brightened afterwards.

"Ok, where do you need to go? My name's Chuck by the way." He stuck out his hand and waited.

She shyly shook his hand, and replied, "Hi Chuck, I'm Je- my name's Sam. It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise, Sam. I hope you know where we are, cause I got lost a while ago." He said, rubbing the back of his head in an embarrassed manner.

"I'm actually running away, so it doesn't matter where I go." As soon as the words left her lips, Sam's hands flew up to cover her mouth, her eyes widening.

Chuck's eyes widen as well, and he notices that she's getting ready to run from him. Not acceptable. "You too?"

His comment clearly derails whatever action she intended to perform, and she stares at him for a beat longer before asking softly, "You're running away too? Why?" Chuck's eyes fill with sadness, and Sam feels guilty. He probably doesn't want to talk about it, just like me.She thinks. "It's OK, you don't have to tell me..."

Chuck shakes his head. "No, it's alright. My dad abandoned me and my sister, and it was all my fault and now my sister hates me for driving away our dad after I already made our mom leave and..." Chuck says all of this in one breath, and Sam places her hand on his arm to stop him.

"I'm running away from my dad because he kidnapped me from my mom years ago and we've been conmen and thieves ever since." Once again, Sam is surprised by what she says to this near complete stranger. Something about him just makes me feel safe... She thinks.

Chuck grabs her hand, entwining his fingers with her, and a jolt of something neither can identify pulses through them at the contact. "I'm so sorry..." He says this with such sincerity, that she can tell he doesn't say it as just another meaningless platitude.

"It's OK... There's a park nearby, do you want to go there for a while?" He agrees, so they pile into the car and she directs him to the park. Upon arriving at the park, he realizes that he needs to turn off the car, or they won't be able to use it for much longer.

"You don't happen to know how to turn off a hotwired car, do you? I kinda stole this car. I wasn't thinking at the time."

Sam looks at him, and bursts out laughing. "Yeah, I can do that for you. You were really able to hotwire the car? How?" He parks the car, and she turns it off for him. They slowly walk towards the park, neither aware of their still linked hands.

"I remember seeing McGuyver do it on TV. It wasn't too hard. I'm pretty good with computers and other electronics. A car's ignition is nearly all electronic nowadays." Chuck rambled, and Sam can't help but find his rambling cute.

"Wow, I'm impressed, it took me a few times to learn. By the way, who's McGuyver?"

Chuck gasped, "You don't know? He's a character on a TV show, who is crazy smart and can figure out unorthodox solutions to problems."

"Oh, I never had much time for TV or movies before. It was always the next con with my dad..."

"Well, we'll have to fix that. If I'm not in jail for stealing a car I mean..." Before Chuck can start to panic, he hears Sam's melodic laugh, and all worry is driven from his mind, as all he can think about is how he wants to hear that laugh more.

"Oh Chuck, your funny, which is good, cause I'm not." She says, her eyes sparkling with laughter. They finally reach the park, and sit down at bench overlooking a small pond. No one else is around.

Grinning, Chuck replies, "Oh, is that what's wrong with you then? I was here wondering, she's either a cannibal, or she's not funny. Frankly, I was pulling for cannibal. Never met one before."

Sam laughs, once again mesmerizing Chuck with its sound. "Nope, not a cannibal. And thief and conman isn't on that list?"

"Nah, those just add... character. Just like stealing a car." Sam marvels at his ability to make her laugh. She is discovering that she likes to laugh. Or maybe it's just the company. Or maybe it's both, she thinks.

"I like you Chuck. But I should probably go. You don't want to get caught up with me or my past..." Sam stands up, but is quickly yanked back down on the bench. It is only then that she realizes that she was still holding on to Chuck's hand, and that's what pulled her down.

"Did you forget that I've stolen a car? We don't have to carry our pasts around with us if we're running away, the car has a large trunk. We'll stuff them in there. If there's not enough room, then I'll carry it for you. I'll be your personal baggage handler." He gives her a goofy grin, and once again, she can't help but smile and laugh with him.

"Chuck, even now, your cracking jokes and making me laugh... Thank you..."

He flashes her the smile she is beginning to associate with Chuck, and they continue to talk, holding hands on the bench. Chuck tells her all about his favorite video games, the latest movies and TV shows, and why he is running away. Sam in turn, is mostly content with her new favorite activity, listening to Chuck ramble. He notices her reluctance to talk about herself, but doesn't push her yet. Their conversation eventually tapers off, and neither say anything else, both content to hold hands and stare into each other's eyes. The sun setting draws their eyes away from each other, and they look at the myriad of colors on the canvas of the night sky.

When the sun finally dips below the horizon and the park lights come on, Chuck and Sam realize that yes, it is getting dark. Chuck checks his watch, and lets out a whistle when he sees the time. "It's nearly 8. We've been talking for over 6 hours!"

Sam raises her eyebrows in response to his statement, but doesn't say anything, mostly because Chuck is still rambling. "… And we should find a place to spend the night, but I also just realized that I'm starving, and you must be too, since I skipped lunch, so we really should get something to eat." Sam simply smiles at him, standing up, mindful of their linked hands this time, and drags him along the park.

"Let's take a walk around the park, it's beautiful and I've never really seen it before." Even though his stomach is begging him for food, Chuck finds he can't say no to Sam. Besides, the park really is beautiful. Even if he's staring at her more than the park.

"Do you want to tell me why you're running away?" Chuck softly inquires. Sam stiffens and tries to pull away, but Chuck grabs her and brings her close, hugging her to him, faces inches apart. "It's OK, you can tell me anything." His eyes show nothing but compassion, and she eventually relaxes and buries her face in his chest.

"It's because of the last con my dad and I pulled. He was pretending to be a businessman, and I was his rebel daughter. He had a meeting to sell advertising space in his magazine and he was on the way to a random office to complete the deal. Since he couldn't actually go in, I called him, pretending to be the principal of the school I go to. Said that his daughter had been caught skipping class and smoking weed. My dad managed to convince the client to come with him to pick me up, and we went to a restaurant. I had to be a nuisance, without being too annoying, distracting the client so my dad could work his con on him. It wasn't working too well..."

Sam took a deep breath, inhaling Chuck's scent, while he continued to stroke her back soothingly. After a minute, she continued her story.

"So my dad pulled me aside, and told me to seduce the client. He was my dad's age..."

"WHAT?" Chuck all but shouted, and immediately regretted it. He caught a glimpse of Sam's face, she was crying. "Oh, Sam, I'm so sorry, I'm not angry or upset at you... I'm angry at your dad, forcing you to go through that…" He held her tighter, and whispered soft reassurances in her ear while she cried. After a while, she was reduced to just sniffles.

"My dad... excused himself and hid. I started flirting with the man, and eventually he started flirting back. He kept trying to touch me, but I kept pulling away, until he got fed up and grabbed my wrist..." She held on tighter to Chuck, and he tightened his hold in return. "He kissed me for a second before my dad thundered in and stopped him. The client signed the deal and gave us the money and split shortly after that..."

The tears started flowing again, and Chuck was at a loss over what to do, so he guided her to a nearby bench. He continued to hold her, as her tears soaked his shirt.

"Please stop crying, I hate it when you cry..."

"But my first kiss was for a con! And to a man as old as my father!" She sobbed harder.

"Sam, you said you had another name for that con, what was it?" Chuck had an idea, and hoped it would work out.

In between sniffles, Sam replied, "It was...Reb...becca..."

"And you said your real name is Sam right?"

"...Yes...What about it...?"

"Well, think of it this way : Rebecca may have had her first kiss, but Sam hasn't. And since Rebecca isn't real, you still haven't had your first kiss."

Sam's sobs noticeably diminished in quantity and volume as she slowly accepted Chuck's logic. "OK, but I see it playing in my head still..."

Chuck knew there was only one solution left. What he didn't know is where he got the courage to go through with Plan B. So he didn't question it, he just acted. He placed his thumb under her chin and gently lifted her head up. His gaze locked on her lips as he dipped his head down. Sam had frozen, holding her breath, and all she could see, smell, thinkwas him. As his lips closed in on hers, Sam closed her eyes, and waited.

She didn't have to wait long. Sam's first kiss was everything she expected and more. It was sweet, gentle, caring, expressive and wonderful. She wanted, needed more, so she started moving her lips against his. It was clumsy and awkward, but Sam felt as if it was perfect. Chuck congratulated himself for not bashing Sam's nose in when he leaned in, but all thought was erased from his mid when his lips met Sam's. They were so soft and supple, and when she started moving her lips, changing the prolonged peck into a full-blown kiss, Chuck thought he was in heaven.

They sat at the bench for a while, learning how to kiss through the fun way; by experimentation. They finally broke apart, out of breath, but both smiling widely.

"Thank you Chuck, for giving me that wonderful and amazing first kiss."

"Your welcome just doesn't seem appropriate for the circumstances... It was my pleasure Sam... And that was my first kiss too..."

Her blue eyes dark and sparkling with mischievousness, Sam leaned in for another kiss, whispering just before closing in, "Really, maybe I should give it back to you..."

They alternatively stole and gave first, second, third, even sixth kisses to and from each other. A rumbling stomach alerted them to the passage of time. Sam blushed, this time it was her stomach. Chuck stood up, and held his hand out to Sam.

"Oh no, I still have to get rid of the stolen car, what am I going to do?"

Sam grabbed his hand to calm him down. "Chuck, relax, I know a chop shop around here, we can sell them the car and get plenty of money. From there we can get something to eat and then go to a hotel to sleep. That is, if it's OK with you..."

"Of course Sam, thank you! You just saved my life again..."

She gave him a shy smile before pecking him on the lips again. "Hmm, I could get used to kissing you..." She mumbled.

Chuck gives her his Bartowski grin, which she is beginning to learn, does funny things to her stomach, before turning serious again. "In the morning, I want to go see my sister. I need to know if she hates me before disappearing."

"She won't hate you Chuck, your dad leaving wasn't your fault."

"Alright, you will come with me, won't you?"

"Yes, I'll be there with you."

"Whatever happens?"

She nods "Yes, Chuck, whatever happens. And Chuck, call me Sarah Walker from now on."

He nods , understanding the reason behind the name change. "Perfect." Is all he says.

They walk, hand in hand, out of the park, together.

A/N 2 So, how was it? Please feel free to review and let me know what you thought. I also have a question for the readers: Would you prefer I gloss over the High School/College years and go towards young adult C/S with flashback of younger years, or move forward chronologically?

I have another story idea that I'm writing the first chapter for, so I'll likely finish that before continuing this fic. But rest assured that I have every intention of finishing this story.

Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

Thanks for reading!