~~This is my first attempt at a fanfiction story. I appreciate any feedback and welcome any criticism so that I can improve this story for you, the readers.

~~I know you have read so many follow-ups to vs The Goodbye, but I really wanted to an interpretation and I hope you enjoy it. I do not own Chuck or any of the characters portrayed in this story.

Chapter 1 - Chuck vs The Aftermath

The sand glistened off the water as the sun started to set on the horizon, time had seemed to slowly tick by, yet the day was almost gone. Sarah and Chuck just sat in silence staring out the water, watching the gentle waves slowly roll in then recede as the orange and red glow from the day coming to a close bounced perfectly off the reflection in the water. The air turned chilly, well as chilly as one can get in Malibu.

Chuck was thankful he pursued Sarah and had this day with her, reliving their story and seeing her expressions as she heard it for the first time. He shared each powerful moment that had led them to the present or as much as he could remember. He was overjoyed just to have Sarah sit and listen and as he stared at the gorgeous blonde, he realized that even if he never saw her again after this he would always have this day, this perfect moment with woman he had given his entire heart to. As he finished speaking he saw the moment over and over in his head where Sarah in a way that showed she still cared for him said, Kiss me. He would have to give Morgan credit that even if his idea didn't work it created this perfect moment.

Sarah lost in her head trying to piece together fragments of the story, leaning softly on Chuck's shoulder and trying to decide how she wanted to proceed. She felt so many overwhelming feelings, but had no idea how to handle what she experiencing. She knew little of this man past what he had told her, but still she felt close to him. She looked up at Chuck and slowly began to study why she fell for such a man, he was strong, caring, compassionate, gentle, and very attractive. She could tell this just from the brief time she had spent with him after she had hunted down Quinn, only to have to flee after discovering what he was ultimately after and then asking Chuck to help her locate Quinn before he pushed his way into her mission. She thought about the brief recalls she had almost like a subconscious reflex at the stacking order of some cups at a random fast food store that Chuck said she worked at as a cover job, about Irene Demova, and saving the General and everyone in that concert hall. Most of all, the carving at that house, which had saved her from completely losing both this very special man and herself. She didn't know where these small fragments of ideas she didn't recall came from, but that gave her hope, even if it terrified her. Suddenly, she felt an arm around her pulling her closer, just that warming gesture made her feel safe in the arms of this person that she felt close to. She was still processing when she felt something inside her pull back; whether it was the fact she was a spy, the daughter of a conman, they both taught her feelings like this were being weak. So, she slowly pulled Chuck's arm off her and gingerly stood up. As Chuck rose with a look that she could only describe as fearful yet hoping that she could be somebody she wasn't, she look down at the sand as it had almost turned to nightfall, the grains taking on an almost blackened appearance, which matched how she needed to feel to do what came next and spoke.

"Chuck, I really appreciate everything you shared with me about our time together and the incredibly crazy story of the past five years, but.."

As she spoke that word he could immediately sense that this wouldn't go the way he had prayed and hoped, that his wife would stay and try to rebuild what they had, but he would be strong for her and accept whatever choice she made. However, deep inside he was a mess of emotions and that same scared guy that had been destroyed by his best friend and ex-girlfriend, and felt he had no future without her. He knew he had grown a lot and hardened as a spy should, but he still felt every emotion the human body could experience with that one word.

"Sarah," Chuck sighed as he interrupted her midsentence, "Before you finish just know that whatever choice you make from here, I will.. I mean I won't interfere. If you need to go I.." He couldn't finish the sentence it hurt too much as he slowly stared at a spot in the sand, tears slowly ran down his face as he watched them fall on the soft grains under his feet.

Sarah interjected as she could tell he was in a lot of pain, "Chuck. I just don't know who I am right now; I lost five years of life. All I can remember is being a spy and focusing on my next mission. I almost killed you and your sister because someone manipulated me, I can't forgive myself for that. Besides, I don't know anything about what you have told me today, but I need time Chuck. I can tell why I fell for you, but I don't feel it. I'm sorry Chuck, but it is best if I spend some time sorting things out on my own."

She looked up in his big brown eyes as he took in every word and she knew that she needed to go, she needed to find some answers for herself and Chuck was only going to complicate things further. Chuck wiped his eyes and gave a small Bartowski smile, he promised that he would be there for her no matter what, and he meant it. "I understand..Sarah remember what I said, you can call..anytime." He heard the words come out of his mouth, but deep down he hated himself for not fighting harder, for not doing everything to make his Sarah come back, but knew that pushing her would not help anything. He hoped she would find the answers she needed and that he could deal with his wife being gone for any period of time.

Sarah gave a small smile and touched his face as she turned to walk towards her Lotus. Chuck watched as she slowly got further and further away from him, she never turned back to take one last look at him, it already hurt so much to do this to him. As Chuck stood in the sand as the night overtook him he knew that he would never give up on her, hell it was in his vows for God's sake. He thought back to their wedding day and the no-vows speech he gave.

"Sarah. I can't express the depth of my love for you, or my dreams for our future. Or the fact that I will fight for you every day. Or that our kids will be like little superheroes with little capes and stuff like that. Words can't express that. They just don't cut it. So no vows. I'll just prove it to you every day for the rest of our lives. You can count on me."

The words echoed through his head as he slowly made his way towards his herder, "You can count on me count, Sarah." He quietly whispered to himself.