Summary: When Casey has to leave for a week, Chuck and Sarah have to stay locked down in Castle for the duration of his leave. In order to pass the time, they decide to play a drinking game. This leads to confessions and connections. Some adult situations and consumption of alcohol.
Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck. NBC owns Chuck. Some people have all the luck.
A/N: So this is just a little one-shot that popped into my head last night while I was trying to figure out what I want to do next with Bryce and Jill vs Chuck and Sarah. There is heavy drinking, and talk about sexual situations. The language is very tame though, so I think a T rating is enough. I've thoroughly proofread the peace, but many times as the writer, you read what you meant, not what is typed. Like I said, my main focus right now is B&J, so I didn't bother to get this beta'd (so it may very well be a mess. Timewalker saves me more embarrassing mistakes with his edits than you guys will ever understand. I should have a new chapter of B&J vs C&S out tomorrow. I just wanted to take a step away from it for a minute to make sure I wasn't letting it get away from me. And once again, all mistakes are my own. Please enjoy, then review. Thanks for reading.
Pyongyang, North Korea
It really couldn't have come at a worse time. With Orion –who happened to be Chuck's dad- in Fulcrum custody, Chuck was in more danger than ever. He really needed both of his handlers there. But duty called, and he had intimate knowledge of the situation over there, and so Major Casey reported to his one week assignment in Pyongyang, North Korea like the good soldier he was. He only hoped the other two members of his team would still be in one piece when he returned. Then an image of him returning to find his teammates "in one piece" floated into his mind and suddenly, any negative thoughts he had about leaving for a week quickly vanished.
Casa Bartowski, Echo Park, California
"Yeah sis, you know, with all the wedding stuff coming up, Sarah and I thought it would be a good idea to just get away together for a little while." Chuck pulled the phone away from his ear to prevent Ellie's squeal from deafening him. Wouldn't want to limit the Intersect to only visual stimuli, he thought morbidly.
"Alright ,Ell. Alright. See you in a week."
Chuck only wished that he and Sarah were really just "getting away from it all" for a week. The truth was, with the imposing threat of Fulcrum having Chuck's father -inventor of the Intersect- and possible knowledge that Chuck was the Intersect, having Casey out of country for a week meant lockdown time for Chuck.
By orders of General Beckman, Chuck was to stay in Castle for the entirety of the time that Casey was away. Food had been stocked to hold them for up to six months if need be, so there would be no reason for Chuck, or his CIA handler Sarah to leave the security of the secret underground facility.
If he took one consolation in it all, it was that of his two handlers he would much rather be stuck with Sarah than Casey. Nothing against the Major, but Chuck was almost certain that given a week locked up together, that Casey would cause Operation Bartowski to be a failure when he killed his asset. For whatever reason that Chuck couldn't quite understand, Sarah seemed to tolerate him. Not just that; more often than not, she seemed to even enjoy his company. He was afraid however, that one whole week without any reprieve from his nerdiness would break her of that for good.
With a sigh, Chuck picked up his bag and headed for the door. Throwing his bag inside of Herder 3, he began his track towards the Buy More Plaza and his week long sentence below the Orange Orange.
Castle Base, Below the Orange Orange
The door slid open to allow Chuck's entrance. He saw Sarah sitting in a recliner –something that Chuck didn't remember being there this morning during the briefing- reading…some book. That wasn't the only thing out of place though. A small kitchen had been set up in the artillery room. A queen sized bed rested at the back of the main room of the base. And…
"Is it me, or is it a lot darker in here?" Chuck asked in his greeting to his cover girlfriend.
"It's not you," she replied seeming distracted. After about a minute of silence, she looked up at him. Must have gotten to a good stopping point, he thought. "Per protocol, all video and surveillance equipment, along with all computers and communication equipment in the interior of the base has been shut down. This is to reduce the chances that anyone could track us here by using the trace signature of the equipment." She explained to him.
"So basically, we have lights, power in the kitchen over there…and I'm assuming plumbing. Because you are quite ravishing Agent Walker, but I don't know if I'd even want to be around you after seven days of no showers. Especially after having seen the sweat you tend to work up during those workouts of yours." Sarah playfully pushed Chuck as he finished his observation.
"Yes, we have plumbing, power over in the kitchen area, and lights. But that's all. Anything else up and running could be considered to be a risk if the right people with the right equipment came looking." Even after she said it, Chuck had a hard time grasping the concept.
Deciding to change the subject momentarily, Chuck asked, "So I see you have a bed here. Where am I supposed to sleep?" He asked her eyeing the bed.
"You," she started, drawing out the word 'you', "are supposed to sleep in the bed. I'll get a cot or something."
Chuck had no intention of letting Sarah sleep on a cot while he got the comfortable bed, but he knew arguing otherwise at this point was futile. When it came time for bed, he would just rush to the cot before she could try to make him take the bed.
"So-ooo," Chuck drawled. "What are we supposed to do for entertainment?"
"Well, with no electronics, you're kind of screwed I'm afraid." She bore him a sympathetic smile at this revelation. "I brought a few books that will keep me busy for a while. Unfortunately, I only brought four, and I'm a really fast reader. I'll be done with them by day three." Now she had depressed herself. She didn't know why she didn't bring anything else. "We could always talk."
"You mean I could talk and tell stories, and you would not be able to reciprocate? While that sounds terribly fascinating, I fail to see how I'll be entertained by hearing stories that I already know." Sarah was disappointed. She always loved to hear Chuck's stories. She loved the fact that even after knowing him for almost two years, she seemed to learn something new about him every day.
"I could run back home real quick and get some board games or something," he offered.
"No can do," she expressed. "Once you entered, we were locked in until Beckman opens the doors herself. She'll do that when Casey is back and has contacted her."
Now Chuck was really depressed. This was like living on Gilligan's Island. In fact it was like that right down to the beautiful girl trapped with him that had no intention of being romantically involved with him. "I know what we could do to prevent boredom," he said wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
"You really think you could keep me from being bored?" It would have been a hurtful statement if not for the teasing lilt she delivered it with.
Sarah sighed. Chuck had a point. If they didn't do something to keep themselves entertained, this one week cohabitation would end up going in a bad direction. Either they would grow to despise one another, making working together in the future more difficult and strained than it already was, or the would end up in a….compromising position.
Then Sarah had the perfect idea. "Let's do a 'Power Hour' and see if we can't get more creative."
"Power-what now?" Chuck asked.
"A 'Power Hour' is where I go get the booze I was smart enough to bring down here and we each do one shot, every minute for an hour. Sounds easy, but by the time sixty minutes is up, you'll be completely bombed." She explained the game as though she was the grand-master of this "Power Hour."
"Getting drunk does seem to have some appeal right now." He paused, deep in thought about something. "So did you learn this particular game in CIA training? Or is it something that stuck with you from Harvard?"
"What?!" She demanded, nearly choking on air. "How did you-"
"Neat little trick my dad taught me." Chuck suddenly took on a somber expression upon thinking about his father, who was now in the hands of Fulcrum.
"We'll get him back, Chuck," Sarah assured him, rubbing his back softly for support.
Snapping out of his seeming trance, he added, "He showed me how I could flash on anything I wanted to. I just have to focus. Of course I tested it with your file." Catching an angry look starting to appear on her face, he quickly attempted to cut it off at the pass. "I didn't look at it very in depth. I just was testing it to see if I could pull it up. Even in the Intersect, a lot of your stuff is redacted. The only thing I really gleaned from the second I spent on your file is Harvard, and, well, your weight. Which by the way, how you keep such a slight weight, 112 lbs. with your height and muscle tone, I will never know. As if you hadn't impressed me enough, Sarah Walker…"
She blushed at his compliment. Men commented on her physical appearance all of the time, but for whatever reason, whenever Chuck did it, it just seemed more…sincere. It seemed more real. He always had a way of making her feel good about herself. That's not something many people had done for her in her life.
Sensing that the situation was getting uncomfortable, Chuck broke the silence that had suddenly fallen upon them. "So, you ready to get drunk?"
"Let's do it, Chuck." They both were taken aback by her slip of tongue, but she quickly recovered enough to amend her statement. "I'm ready to get wasted."
Retrieving a small box from the kitchen area, Sarah sat it down on the table in the middle of Castle. Opening the box, she revealed several different types of liquor. "Pick you poison Mr. Bartowski," she said in a playful tone.
"Huh…let me think." Chuck actually looked to be thinking about this, which amused Sarah greatly. "I think I'll go with the Lord Calvert. It's been a long time since I had a talk with the Lord. I'm due for a confession."
"Ah…" he warned. "That's between me and the Lord."
Rolling her eyes, she quickly made her decision. She picked a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue out of the box and reached for a Sharpie sitting just to her right. Crossing out the "Johnnie" and writing "Sarah" over it.
"Sarah Walker Blue huh?" Chuck asked. "I don't want Sarah Walker Blue. I want Sarah Walker happy," he said with a goofy smile.
"You are such a cheese ball. I can't imagine it will get any better when you're actually drunk," she said with her hands on her hips in mock indignation.
"It will get funnier when you're drunk though," he said matter-of-factly. Sarah sat for a moment and then nodded her head in acknowledgement of just how right Chuck was.
"Alright, enough with the talking. You said that was boring. Time to get torn back!" She exclaimed with an unusual enthusiasm.
"You ready?" he asked once more.
"Show time" Sarah supplied.
First drink
The first one always burned going down, thought Chuck. This was kind of a flash back to Stanford. Then something caught his eye. The box that Sarah had brought the booze in was marked "SPIRIT BOX."
Chuck raised a curious eyebrow towards Sarah. "Spirit box?"
"Yeah. You know spirits, libations, booze...." She answered him.
"I know. "Spirit Box" just sounds a little…how to put this…cheerleader-y." Her indignation at the very mention of cheerleaders made Chuck laugh.
"It is NOT!" She declared adamantly.
"Alright, fine." He looked down at the stop watch they'd set up to denote time. "Well, time for number two."
Second Drink
Not bad. I still, however, wish I'd gone with the tequila, Sarah thought to herself. Yeah Walker, that would have been great. About twenty shots in you'd have your asset either thoroughly seduced, or sexually assaulted. That would have been the professional thing to do. She sighed. Fine, she agreed with her rational side.
"You know, I don't know about "Spirit Boxes." But I feel I must warn you that once I get good and sauced, I tend to get…umm…"Spirit Fingers" if you will. Please don't take it to mean that I don't respect you. I do. It won't be me, it will be the alcohol." His tone actually sounded regretful, which was one more example of why she lo… no not now! It was an example of why he was such a good person. Keep telling yourself that's all he is, sister. You might believe it one day.
Thinking quickly, she decided humor was the best way to avoid awkwardness right now. "I don't mind your "Spirit Fingers" at all, Chuck." She said this in a very sultry tone, almost breathing his name. "In fact, you, should know that when I get good and…lubricated…" she put a strong emphasis on 'lubricated.' She then leaned in close to him, lowering her voice to a whisper with her lips hovering within millimeters of his ear. "I have a tendency to get very…fast…and loose…with my…" she paused then watching Chuck swallow nervously. "Knives" she said in a serious tone, producing one from the sheath on her ankle and twirling it over his lap. She stared at him dangerously, her sharp blue eyes seeming to cut right through him. Seeing the utter panic on Chuck's face her lips began to twist up into a smile, and before she knew it, she was doubled over in laughter.
Not seeing quite as much humor in it as she did, he interrupted her amusement with a reminder, "Time for another."
Drink 7
I'm almost positive that Sarah is the most beautiful living being ever. I don't see anyone beating her for the title. Maybe I should tell her that…maybe later.
Drink 14
He is so adorable. He honestly has no idea how sexy he is. If that boy only knew the amount of times I nearly had to inflict bodily harm on myself to resist mauling him in passion, it would probably scare him.
Drink 20
"Is there any rule that says that we have to drink the same thing for the entire contest?" Chuck asked out of the blue.
"I suppose not. Why do you ask?" She inquired of him.
"I was thinking maybe we should do some tequila shots. I mean we have salt, lemon, and tequila. It might be fun."
"I don't think that's a good idea Chuck. Tequila kind of makes me really…" don't say horny, don't say horny, think of something else…fast dammit "aggressive," she finally added. "I don't think you want to be locked in a bunker with an overly aggressive trained assassin." She feigned a laugh to try to defuse the situation.
"That depends on the type of aggression Agent Walker…"
Dammit, he's on to me. This was such a bad idea. I have a hard time keeping my hands off of shy and naive Chuck. Apparently drunken Chuck is also forward and perceptive Chuck. This is going to end badly. She gave him the best reproachful look she could muster and stated flatly, "No tequila tonight. Time for another drink lover boy."
Drink 35
"Hey!" Chuck started excitedly. "I's gotsnan idea!" Goddamn it Chuck. Barely half way through and you're wasted already. Bryce would be disappointed. Wait…screw Bryce. I hate that guy. Suddenly remembering that he was going to share an idea, he rushed to tell Sarah his new plan. "Okay, so's I know you scan't talk 'bout anything froms your past. But how's 'bout we plays a game where we say one true thing 'bout the time since we's met?"
That's probably a bad idea Walker. Unfortunately, drunken Sarah wasn't listening to her conscience. "Alright. I suspose we can try that," she said very slowly, managing only one slurred word of her own. "But first, time for number…" she quickly tried to do the drunken math of what number came after '35,' "36, she finally said."
Drink 48
The truths that they told started out very mild. Sarah had admitted to having "intimate" dreams about Chuck. Chuck had admitted snuggling with the pillow she slept on when she stayed with him last for a week because it still smelled like her.
They were all out of minor confessions.
"Okay, Chuck…you can't get mad…okay?" Sarah waited for him to nod before she continued. "I slept with Bryce when he was last here and-"
Standing up, clearly outraged, Chuck bellowed, "What!?" as he threw his arm out in protest.
"You said you wouldn't get mad…and you didn't let me finish." She debated with herself on continuing this, but drunk Sarah rarely held back. "When the new Intersect was destroyed, I was heartbroken. But as greedy as it is, I wasn't heartbroken for you." She paused, unable to meet his eyes for this next part of the confession. "When I saw you thrown from that building, and I thought you'd died, it made me realize…" she paused looking for the right words. "I realized that I…" no, can't say that; tone it down even if it IS true, "that I had developed very strong feelings for you."
Chuck had softened considerably. Trying to get her to meet his gaze, he gently reached out and picked her chin up seeing the welling of tears in her eyes, he wanted so much to comfort her. She reached out to nudge his hand away. "Please Chuck, not now. Let me finish."
"On my way back to the hotel, I came to a decision. I was going to request a debasement to an analyst position at the LA branch of the Agency. From there, I would have been free to pursue a real relationship with you. I was going to tell you about my decision that night."
He knew the next part, but she wanted to let him know that what happened had been rough on her too.
"As I was walking out the door, I got a call from Beckman. She said that I needed to hurry over as quickly as possible to let you know what had happened. I cried all the way to your apartment, but managed to compose myself before I saw you. I knew how the news would affect you, and I didn't want to add to your sadness by looking like it was me that was being forced to continue a life I hated." Okay the sucking up part
She knew the next part would be the hardest part of all to tell him, but at least he already knew the part that would really upset him. Taking a deep breathe to try to calm her drunken nerves, she pressed on.
"So now I was stuck, knowing…how I felt about you and not being able to do anything about it. I tried to push you away, as you will remember." She saw the pained expression on his face. She figured it was partially because of the memory, and partially because he knew what the next part of the story was. "When you jumped off the Buy More to save my life…if I would have had to stay with you that night…I don't know if you would have, of course…but I would have tried to…you know." He nodded with a sad expression on his face. "When Bryce showed up at my door, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to escape from what I was feeling for you. The thing is though…it didn't work." He gazed at her, his face a mixture of hurt and confusion. "When Bryce and I were…together…I called him by your name. I called out 'Chuck' in the heat of passion."
"Sarah I-"
"I know it doesn't really make it go away Chuck. I'm really sorry that I betrayed your trust. It was just that…that's when I realized that no one would ever compare to you in my eyes. Even if we're never a real couple. You're a special, special person to me Chuck Bartowski." She finished her confession with tears now running freely down her face.
Chuck -welling up in his own right- reached out to brush the tears away from Sarah's cheeks. "Hey. You have nothing to be sorry about. I know it ins't just hard on me. This situation sucks for both of us. I just…" he stopped and looked up into the deep pools of Sarah's eyes. "It's not fair, is it?"
"No. It's not." As she replied she remembered strangely an almost identical conversation she'd had about a month ago with Cole Barker. Barker had been talking about Sarah and himself. She had been thinking of the same man both times. She'd been thinking of the man seated across from her.
Despite the sheer volume of alcohol they had both consumed, the emotional conversation they'd just had was starting to make the effects wear off. Deciding it was time to break the somber mood, Chuck spoke. "Hey, looks like we skipped a few drinks. What's say we catch back up?" Sarah nodded in agreement, and they began taking shot after shot until they were back on pace.
Drink 59
Neither had spoken since they'd resumed drinking. Chuck was deep in thought about what he could possibly share that would match what Sarah had just told him. Well, she spoke of the Bryce situation. I should probably reciprocate with the truth behind the Jill situation.
"Alright, last one. When Jill came back…" he could see Sarah seethe at the brunette's mere name, even through her drunken haze. "When we were…when we ran away together, and in fact, the entire time she was here…" this was going to be hard to admit. "We were never together."
Sarah was confused. She'd seen them together. Was he saying that it was a cover or something? She looked at him, hoping he would clarify what he meant.
"I mean, we were never…we never, you know." A blush was creeping up Chuck's cheeks at the thought of discussing his pathetic sex life. "I mean we did stuff. But we never did…we were not…" he still couldn't bring himself to say what he was trying to say.
"It's not that she didn't try. But I couldn't. No matter how hard I tried to make her the center of my universe again…I couldn't. Because every time things got close between us, I thought about you. I thought about how I wanted to kiss you. I thought about how I wanted to hold you. I thought about you running your hands through my hair and whispering in my ear. I wanted to use Jill to get over you…but I couldn't. She didn't compare." Now it was Chuck that was unable to meet the gaze of his roommate for the week.
Now there was a question burning a hole through Sarah. She knew she shouldn't ask him. It would be inappropriate, both professionally, and socially. Luckily, through the alcohol, her inhibitions were basically non-existent. "Chuck…are you telling me that you haven't been with anyone in six years then?"
Chuck's face reddened in embarrassment. "Technically, no. And actually it's closer to seven years. Jill and I grew apart towards the end. I suppose she was busy with Fulcrum stuff," he muttered.
"Hey," Sarah said, lifting his face to look at her. "Don't feel bad about it. That doesn't mean anything's wrong with you. In fact, I'd say there are probably a lot of girls that missed out on being with a great guy."
Chuck smiled up at her. "Thank you." It was simple, but it spoke volumes about how much her words meant to him.
"Chuck? Can I do a bonus one?" He nodded in compliance. She looked down at the table, then back up at him before speaking. "I don't plan on being one of those girls anymore. I want to be the first girl to make love to you in almost seven years."
The biggest smile she'd ever seen appeared on Chuck's face. Sarah guessed she had one to match it. "Can I do a bonus one too?" She nodded vigorously. "I want that too." And somehow, against the laws of science, Chuck's smile got even bigger. "But I think we have something to take care of first."
"What?" she asked dumbfounded.
Chuck poured himself one last shot. Sarah taking a cue from him did the same.
Drink 60
Number sixty went down as smooth as silk, Chuck thought.
Looks like I didn't need tequila after all, Sarah thought.
"That was a really fun hour," he said to her.
"Yeah, but it's got nothing on what I have planned for the next hour, Mr. Bartowski." And with that Sarah stood and pulled Chuck across the room to the queen sized bed.
No one slept on a cot that night.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed a litle bit of fluff. I just wanted to get all the fluffiness out of my system, as I plan to start ratcheding up the angst in my series soon. If you'd take a moment and give me some quick feedback, I would greatly appreciate it. Just click the litle review button down there and let 'er rip. Thanks for reading guys. Peace.