A/N - Takes place before Chuck vs the Marlin. No matter how much I wish it, Chuck really doesn't belong to me.

Anyway, I am beginning to realize that writing fanfic (like reading it) is addictive (go figure). I was working on Story 2 of "The End is only the Beginning" (to be called Chuck vs The Phantom Pain. It reads better than it sounds, really) when this idea pops into my head. I tried to incorporate it there but it seemed to be more stand alone. So hope you like it and please review/feedback.

Edited to add - I have reuploaded story to correct some errors.

The Words Unspoken Shows The Differences Between Us

20th January 2008

It started out innocuously enough, a proposed double date with Anna and Morgan to keep up appearances. Since it was one of those rare nights that Morgan's mom went for ballroom dancing lessons, it was decided that they'd meet at the Buy More and take one of the Herders to Morgan's place.

Not the most romantic of venues, although the sewer they hid in two weeks ago probably didn't rate as romantic either but he got to hold her hand through most of it and that made it great. So all in all, Chuck didn't mind it because it allowed him to spend time (which was becoming a precious commodity due to the missions and flashes and the lies) with his best bud. If he was being honest, it also allowed him to spend time with Sarah and not the vigilant cool secret agent Sarah but the girl beneath that, the one he wanted to tell all his secrets too. At least the ones that he hadn't already babbled during one of the many, many times he had tried to fill the silence between them.

For Sarah, it was an easier, less demanding outing that if it involved Ellie and Awesome. She had noticed Ellie scrutinizing her more, had seen the questioning looks the young doctor had give to Devon every time she tried to shy away from personal questions. Truth be told, where did you last spend thanksgiving wasn't the most personal of questions for normal people. So a night out with Morgan and Anna sounded fine, it meant not being too conscious of having to deflect personal questions and just really ensuring that Chuck was protected. It also allowed her so much insight into Chuck, not little Brother Chuck as deflecting questions about her childhood always made Ellie share stories about Chuck's, but more Best Friend Chuck, who would give his last dollar or sometimes more. Sarah was used to being around heroes, her line of work attracted them. They volunteered and expected the accolades for a job well done. Bryce used to frame his commendations, not that he could display them but he did it anyway. But Chuck was different. He had not asked for any of this, maybe if given the choice, he would have volunteered but Sarah knew that he would still not demand the attention. He'd just go about doing the best he could, like he did everyday since Bryce send him that email.

So here they were in Morgan's mom's house, eating take-out Mexican food and sharing a bottle of tequila which had been Sarah's contribution, knowing that a drunk Chuck would not recall if she showed him too much affection and knowing that she would regardless and lie to herself that it was for the cover. Anna was practically sitting in Morgan's lap while Chuck had his arm comfortably draped around her as they both sat on the sofa, eating off the same plate, she held between them.

"So you guys wanna play a game?" Anna looks coyly at Morgan as she voices the question.

What kind of game?" Morgan asks (it 's like they've rehearsed this somehow), a smile forming.

"It's not spin the bottle, is it?" a hopeful note entering Morgan's voice. He knows what Anna is going to suggest. Actually what they both plan to suggest in order to help Chuck. Not that Chuck really needs much help but when your best friend tells you that he's not sure his super HOTT (yes it really needs the caps and the additional t) girlfriend may not be totally into him, well, Morgan just needed to prove him wrong. Chuck was the best and for once, a smart and beautiful girl recognized that and Morgan saw the way Sarah looked at Chuck, especially when he didn't notice. Her eyes would soften and well. Morgan just knew she was the one. Jill was never really the one and although she was good to look at, she was never really beautiful on the inside.

Chuck almost spits out the salsa laden chip at Morgan's comment and Sarah tries to hide her smile as she rubs his back, suddenly realizing this is what high school should have felt like. Her smile turns bittersweet as she does remember what it was really like for her.

"No silly" Anna leans into Morgan giving him a kiss "We don't need a bottle." Pretty soon, Morgan's got her fully sitting in his lap, her hands grasping at his shirt and they're kissing open mouth like it's their last or first kiss, depending on if you asked Sarah or Chuck

Sarah's slightly envious of the way Anna goes for what she wants, romantically speaking of course. On all other levels, Sarah, the adult Sarah, always got all she wanted.

Chuck's just trying not to look, not that he didn't have a front row seat at the Buy More everyday. This was different though. If Sarah were really his girlfriend, he'd ignore Morgan and Anna and just compete head to head with them, knowing that if he really kissed Sarah, he would never stop. So he clears his throat and reaches for his glass, hoping that it would be enough to distract the other couple. He doesn't notice Sarah's wistful glance.

Morgan does though and slowly pulls out of the kiss, "Sorry buddy" he smiles both for Chuck's benefit and Anna's. "So Anna. What game were you thinking of?" he continues, just like they planned.

"Well it a couple's game where one couple (Anna points to Morgan and herself), has to ask as question about either one of the other couple and then the other couple has to answer together at any time. You get a point if the answers are similar and if they're not, you drink (she downs a shot to demonstrate) and you get to ask the questions to the other couple.

Chuck can feel Sarah tense and is about to decline when she surprises him with her answer "Fine but Chuck and I haven't known each other long while you and Anna have"

"True, I have a wonderful rolodex of Anna Banana information but alas the same cannot be said for her" Anna nods vehemently at that statement, enough to convince Sarah that losing wouldn't compromise their cover and maybe, just maybe she'd surprise Chuck.

"Ok, then, we'll ask the first question" Morgan jumps up, one hand tapping his chin, the other still playing with Anna's hair. He looks down at Anna winks and asks "How many days since you first met?"

Chuck knows the answer, it'd be 118 days today and although he knows it's sad that he keeps count, he can't help it. Each passing day is a day further away from where he wants to be with Sarah, especially after Bryce's return. All he wants is to hold her and not feel like she's only doing it for the cover. He wants to be able to tell her about his day and actually get to hear about hers. He knows each day, he realizes just a little more that he can't have what he wants. He's just counting up to when she'd leave.

Sarah looks at the date on her watch and does the calculation in her head. It's been 118 days since she met Chuck Bartowski and each day she gets closer and closer to revealing her feelings for him. She's tried to keep them at bay, spent hours admonishing herself for actually contemplating a relationship with an asset. She needs more time to get use to the idea of him, someone caring and sweet and innocent. She knows each day, she getting just a little bit closer to accepting that this is something she really wants.

She smiles at him. She does not know that Chuck calls that smile the Spinal Tap as it really does go to eleven.

She nods and together they say "118 days".

Morgan grins back and its Anna's turn to ask "What's Sarah's favorite color?"

Red he remembers, the memory still fresh. They had been sitting outside the Wienerlicious, she was nursing a small cut under her right eye and looked distracted when she answered. They were supposed to be on their one-month anniversary date, as Ellie insisted it needed to be commemorated. Unfortunately, he had flashed on a Ukraine drug smuggler the night before. That made Casey the happiest of the three of them that night. So he had to forgo lunch the next day and concoct fake dinner conversation in order to report to Ellie that the date had gone smoothly and he had taken her advice and learnt as much about Sarah as he could. The only problem was that he really didn't know if it was the truth. She wore so many colors, all flattering to her skin tone but red always stood out for him. It was his favorite color on her, without a doubt and even if it was a lie, it was the lie she wanted him to believe.

Sarah liked to win and she knew Morgan did too, so she was surprised that they were going to score another point. She had already told Chuck what her favorite color was. She remembered that day. Chuck was babbling on about the Ellie Inquisition and she'd make sympathetic noises at relevant intervals knowing that he just needed to talk. She, on the other hand, was still trying to decompress from the night before. Chuck's flash had led them to a heroin smuggling ring working out of an auto shop. Chuck had stayed in the car, for once and they had managed to take down the three guys inside. She had left Casey to finish up and was making her way back when she saw a fourth man slowly taking aim at Chuck. Her knife was out and thrown even before she had taken her next breath. Chuck didn't know and Sarah wouldn't tell him. It was her job to protect him and that was what she did. So when he casually asked her about her favorite color, she said red, without even thinking. She had nearly lost him the night before and if he wanted to know some small piece of her, she had to share that at least, as she would never be able to share the more difficult parts of her job.

This time, Chuck took her hand and squeezed it gently and again, in unison, they said "Red".

"Damn, I think we're in for a game here, son" Morgan was surprised but still pleased. Anna had told him she was sure Chuck didn't know what color Sarah liked but he wasn't sure and it was nice to see Chuck show some PDA for Sarah for once.

"Ok, next question, What is the Chuckster's all time favorite movie?" Morgan was a bit afraid to go for the big one so early on. However, he had faith in Sarah, she had to know which movie to pick. He wrapped his hands around Anna's torso and held here close, hoping that Sarah really knew Chuck.

Sarah cocked her head and looked at Chuck. Bryce had mentioned in passing about him once. How he had a roommate in college that was just a good nerdy guy but whom just didn't have the luck. Naturally, Bryce conveniently left out getting him kicked out of college or stealing his girl but that was the way he was. Always only sharing his side of the story. So she'd known he was a nerd before she met him and continued to discover just how big a nerd he was although the video games and comics books were big hints. But she also had viewed his DVD collection and between Firefly and Doctor Who, she saw copies of Il Postino and On the Waterfront. Instinctively though, she knew that it would have to be a sci-fi type of movie. Star Wars, (Ok, if she remembered, more specifically, it would have to be The Empire Strikes Back but episodes three and four would be contenders), Dune and Blade Runner were her best bets. Then it hit her, this was Chuck, not Morgan or Bryce or her dad. Chuck thought differently, he wouldn't have a favorite movie unless it meant more to him than just a form of entertainment. It would have to be meaningful in some way. Ellie had told her in passing once that their dad had never really been there for them. Ok, it seemed like it was in passing from Ellie's viewpoint but Sarah was a trained interrogator and she had felt a need to know about the enigma that was Charles Irving Bartowski. The files she read didn't do him justice and the picture she was beginning to assimilate scared her in that it made her feel. so much in such a long time However, the one thing their dad had done for Chuck was introduce him to movies that came out the year of his birth and the first one was Tron. Sarah knew that Chuck wouldn't shy away from the memory even if it were difficult. He was a good man who would always do the right thing not because he was asked to but because he knew it was right. She hoped that her answer was correct and that she really knew Chuck not as an asset but as a friend and hopefully more.

Chuck was surprised by Morgan's question. It was a difficult one to answer not the least because even Ellie wouldn't have guessed it. His sister loved him unconditionally but she would never understand why he would surround himself with things that were a constant reminder of hurtful events. His Tron poster was one and watching Tron with Morgan every year was the other. Ellie never knew the reason Morgan would come over on the anniversary of his dad's departure but she learnt to expect it and helped him move forward the next day. Morgan was the only one who knew what the movie meant to him. That even though it could be looked at as a reminder of what he had lost, he could also view it as an introduction to something special like his first viewing of it with his dad. Sarah couldn't possibly divine this from any of their talks. He babbled incessantly but his parent were not a topic he would touch. She wasn't there to get to know him (hurts and all). Her job was to protect the asset, not get to know the man. He was resigned to doing a shot and reached out to grab a glass, only to stop short as he felt Sarah's hand on his wrist.

He looked up and saw the questioning look in her eyes but still could not believe that she would know the answer. Bu he couldn't deny her the chance, not when she was looking at him wit those eyes. So he took a deep breath and together, they said "Tron".

Morgan's whoop surprised Chuck as much as Sarah's answer. He couldn't believe that the government knew about his love for Tron. He was happy to see Sarah laugh at Morgan's reaction but knew that she was a quick study and he was the proverbial bug under the big microscope of the United States government. Sarah had probably been told early on about Tron and about his father. He sighed inwardly knowing that he'd lost another chance to share part of himself with her.

Sarah wasn't sure what had changed. Chuck was smiling but she could see a wistfulness settle over him, like he was resigning himself to something. On the other hand, she felt elated at the fact that she had finally found out something about Chuck that she did not have to memorize from a file. That she deduced the type of man he was and his favorite movie due to spending 118 days with him and that she really wanted to find out more (if he'd let her).

So the game went on, Sarah and Chuck finally losing on "What is Sarah's favorite Swear word?" (Chuck's pretty sure it wasn't legal to say it in some states). The game's at 13 to 9 in their favor when Chuck sees Sarah staring at him. He feels self-conscious and has to force himself to not touch his face to see if he has dip on his cheek. In the end, he thinks she tired of the act and wants to go back to her room and become Sarah Walker, super spy. He never really considers the toll all this acting would take on her. It must be hard to talk to people like Anna and Morgan and even harder to pretend you like it. Worse yet, it's probably the most difficult to always have to be Chuck's girl especially after having been Bryce's. He thinks he should be considerate though, so he signals to Morgan to stop. He slowly rises and begins to pick up the trash, missing the fleeting look of disappointment on Sarah's face, before her features settle back.

Sarah only began to realized she'd been staring at Chuck on and off for the past five minutes when she keeps having to turn to acknowledge Anna's comments on her shoes. She hasn't had this much fun in sometime and wishes that it would last just a bit longer so that she wouldn't have to go back to her room, alone again. If it wasn't for Chuck, she would never have had to meet Anna and Morgan and it would have been a waste. They aren't brilliant people or were destined for great things (the same couldn't be said about Chuck. He could do anything) but they're good and kind and that had always been lacking in her life, so to be immersed in it now, was like a blessing. However, Sarah knows how protective Chuck can be and he's right to want to minimize their interaction with her. He still does not trust her, not after seeing her with Bryce so it's up to her to work on it.

They drive back in relative silence each lost in their own thoughts. She walks him to his door(another thing that highlights the difference between this and a real relationship).

"Thanks for tonight, I had fun" She can say so much more but knows its not the right time and she's not that brave or ready.

"Really? I was going to apologize and possibly get you some chocolates" He wants to ask if she really had fun or if that was just CIA speak for at least I didn't draw my gun and shoot your moronic friends.

"Really" she smiles coyly, kisses him on the cheek and turns to leave "Chocolates would still be nice though".

The End