Well, this is my first fanfic, so I'm looking forward for any comments/ feedback and of course, constructive criticism!

Hmm...I'm not sure whether I'm posting this in the right format, so...yeah. Also, I don't think I really need to mention this, but, NO. I don't own Chuck whatsoever. This is pure, 100% the product of an enthusiastic Charah shipper.

EDIT : Thanks for correcting me coreymon77. Guilty as charged. I have changed the color of her eyes accordingly. Also, I apologize for not mentioning this sooner, it's set post-season 2 after Chuck has uploaded the Intersect 2.0.


Chapter 1 - Chuck vs the Dumpling Enthusiast

It was an addiction. Like the man who would scarf down bars of chocolate, knowing that he would gag and retch, leaving pools of brownish sludge by the drain moments later; he was addicted. To her. Only, there was no option of cheating, swindling or robbing this article of his desire. Simply he couldn't seem to steal her heart.

Cold, detached, distant. Yet, warm, affectionate, and... his girlfriend - or sort of, at the risk of repeating himself. She was the epitome of contradictions, an enigma in itself. Her slate blue eyes revealed only more secrets. He felt as though he was treading in open water, staring into the unfathomable depths of her gaze.

Her hair was swept into a messy chignon; the curves of her body visible upon the tight-fitting brilliant red gown. It was no wonder that once too many times his mind had wandered during missions. Tonight was no exception. God envisioned perfection like this, the thought had registered in his mind when she had first emerged from the Castle garbed for their newest mission earlier in the evening.

"Chuck?" She broke his train of thoughts, anchoring him back to reality, and the gravity of their situation.

Their bodies were crushed against each other as they tried groping their way out amidst the pitch black darkness of an air ventilation shaft. His hands groped about for purchase as the passage took a sharp vertical drop. Closing his grasp against something firm, he gave a hard tug as he tried pulling himself upwards.

"Chuck!" Her voice was sharper.

"Yeah?"

"That is my upper, upper, upper thigh you're holding on to."

A thought crossed his mind. Well, now that she's mentioned it, this surface does indeed have a very soft, smooth quality to it, almost like...

"Wait! What?" His face contorted into a look of mortification, flushing the color of beetroot as his mind registered and deciphered the very meaning of her words. "Oh god, sorry." He muttered, as an embarrassing silence ensued.

Although he didn't exactly find any shortcomings to their current situation, it wouldn't have hurt either to have stayed in the car and finished the packet of fresh, pipping-hot Chinese dumplings he had taken-away for dinner. That was half an hour ago.

It's funny how a situation can change in a matter of split seconds, he mused, once more pulling onto something he shouldn't have seen and wouldn't have gotten away doing in a less dire situation. Just as he had been about to unpack his dinner, just when he was actually going to listen to Sarah and Casey for once - stay in the car, the action had sought him out. Literally.

Thirty minutes earlier...

"Out!" a gruff voice ordered in a tone that told Chuck the man (he had to be a man, with that deep a voice) didn't mind resorting in violence to get what he wanted. Glancing out, almost jumping out of his seat in surprise previously, he met face-to-face with a bald, menacing giant stooping down and pressing his head against the windows.

"Uh..." The man's patience wore thin at Chuck's hesitation. Smashing the door open, he plucked him from his seat and Chuck found the world spinning about him as he was thrown out of his own vehicle.

"Damn, why does this happen everytime?" Winded, it took him a moment for the sight before him to make sense. Calling out in incredulity, he said, "You could have just asked, you know? I'd have given you those dumplings without the need to dirty this borrowed tux." He picked a rotten banana skin out of his front pocket, muttering, "Oh god, Awesome is going to kill me."

"You take me a fool?" The man turned to him, speaking in between mouthfuls of meat and dough. "You wouldn't give me these babies for nothing." He raised a hand to fish a dumpling out from the lake of oily soup, revealing a tattoo imprinted onto his bicep.

Oh, shit. Even after living three years with a giant computer residing in his brain, the brief feeling of nausea and weakness as the Intersect encroached upon his conscious mind was something he could hardly get used to. Images flickered in his mind, but a single word stood out amidst the garble of text and pictures...

"Triad?" he blurted out all of a sudden, drawing a sharp glance from the giant.

"Say what?"

All the dots connected to form the whole picture; the last piece of the puzzle fell into place. Their mission had been to spy on General Ming Hao, a chinese high-ranking military officer who had come to the states on diplomatic purposes. The CIA had caught wind of an ulterior motive, namely overlooking the purchase of explosives for the Chinese government which, when amounted, could leave a crater the size of California. They could only have done this with help of somebody influential, someone who didn't mind skirting the authorities. If this operation had affiliations to the Triads...

"You say what?" the giant' eyes squinted suspiciously, his eyebrows crumpling downwards, all to comic effect. However, Chuck was in no mood to laugh. He had to warn Sarah and Casey. They had been involved in a mission regarding the Triads before, and surely they would be recognized soon enough.

"Nothing...no. Just continue having your dinner. Have to run!" With that, he broke of into a sprint. Where was the easiest, fastest way to break into a heavily guarded ambassadorial function? Every entrance and exit was milling with men with large arms and big guns. There wasn't even a kitchen backdoor in sight. So, that left the single, remaining, feasible option - Charles Carmichael.

"The name's Carmichael. You'll want to let me in there right now." Taking a deep breathe to calm his jangling nerves, he walked up to the nearest entrance, hands tucked into pockets and exuding a sense of confidence that he didn't seem to be able to possess.

The guard glance at the guest list in his hand, his companion staring distrustfully at him. "Not on the list it seems. Sorry, sir, we won't be able to allow you in. "

"I don't think you understand the situation here. Clearly, there's something wrong with that list. If you don't let me through this instance, you're going to regret it." He folds his arms impatiently just as his inner voice shouts for Casey and Sarah to appear any moment soon.

"Well, well. You better back off now." The more aggressive counterpart rose to the challenge, drawing his gun from its holster

"Careful...careful there. Okay, backing off. I'm backing off." Chuck raised his arms in surrender just as the Intersect took hold. Whack! Bam! Both guards went down like pieces of dominoes. Well, I do have my moments with the Intersect, he thought, brushing invisible particles of dust off his tux as he strode past the door.

Three minutes. That's the amount of time he estimated he would have before the security noticed something amiss. Where are they? He wondered, scanning the hall for a trace of scarlet, listening for a tell-tale grunt. Looking towards the dance-floor, his gaze fell onto a lean, athletics frame donning a sleeveless dress - Sarah.

"Sarah!" he called across the room. Her face registered incredulity and a tinge of annoyance as she turned to meet his gaze. Excusing herself from the middle of a very provocative dance with her dashing partner (yes, Chuck was a little jealous. No, wait- very jealous), she hurried to him, demanding immediately, "What are you doing here? You need to get out of here before you mess up this mission! Get back in-"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. Sarah, listen to me! These people have connections with the Triad, and I don't think they'll forget who you guys are after last time!" Chuck hissed back urgently, eyes darting around nervously.

"What?" Then, muttering urgently into her earpiece, she related this information to Casey. "We've been compromised. Head out."

"Roger that" came a disembodied voice, and Chuck noticed a tall, broad-shouldered bartender leave his place in the corner of the room.

However, just as they were about to follow suit, a guard appeared out of nowhere, shouting, "That's him! Yes, that man over there! Carmichael!"

Back to the Present...

Of course, they obviously weren't able to catch him or Sarah, or they wouldn't be stuck in the air-ventilation shaft right this minute. Wriggling and heaving himself upwards, Chuck managed to cover several more inches of ascent. Above, Sarah spoke into her earpiece. "Casey, what's the situation out there...Clear?Okay, give us another five and we're out of here." Then, calling down to him, "Come on, Chuck. A little bit more."

He hauled himself upwards another few centimeters, already able to smell freedom. The air felt cooler, and fresher. The clamor of traffic and passersby told him that they were near the end of this tortuous journey. His heart was soaring with joy and relief when...all of a sudden, a hand grabbed onto his leg.

"Oh boy, here we go again," he squeaked in panic, feeling his body beginning to slide back into a downwards tumble. Just before gravity pried him from his perch, holding onto two rusty nails fitted into the walls of the shaft, he managed two more syllables. "Sarah!"


Well, yawn, that was boring. Cementing the base with Chapter 1, I shall hopefully be able to concentrate more on the emotional aspect of their relationship the next few entries, but...

Of course, that depends on the feedback, eh? So, feel free to leave your comments, suggestions, advice - basically, anything! (If it sounds like I'm hounding you too much with the 'leave your comment' bit, I apologize. XD)