This story takes place a couple of months after that kiss on the beach. Sarah doesn't actually remember much but she is willing to meet up with Chuck and try to get some semblance of their life together. I'm hoping to write a few chapters on this story so please read and feel free to review! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

CHAPTER ONE

Sarah sat in her apartment wondering whether or not to go on this "date", as Chuck called it. That was his idea, naturally, to have a sort of date night once a week where he took her to places that were special to them as a couple. And Sarah agreed, but mainly because she ached so desperately to remember all of these things that meant so much to him. It hurt her to see the pain in his eyes whenever he animatedly told her a story about one of their missions or of a night they spent together and then realise that she had no recollection of event ever taking place. He would apologise and then change the subject and pretend as if nothing was wrong but she was beginning to think that maybe this date thing wasn't a good idea.

She felt it on the beach; that kiss, his tender lips on hers and weight of his love for her in every move he made. She felt something inside her stirring, trying to escape but just before it could, he pulled away, not wanting to overstep boundaries, and she couldn't let herself go and melt into him the way she felt that would have done if she could remember everything. He never kissed her like that again after that – just the sweet caring peck on the cheek every time he dropped her back at the apartment after each date.

But even though she didn't remember a lot, she felt herself longing to spend time with him. The way he got when he talked about his family, how protective he was of his friends and her, the way he tried effortlessly to make her at ease and crack jokes in awkward situations, the way he got fired up talking about comic books and something called 'Star Wars', his sweet considerate nature, his unwillingness to see the bad in people; everything about him was so endearing and lovable. Who would have thought that she, super spy Sarah Walker, would fall for bumbling, adorable nerd Chuck Bartowski? She for sure didn't. As far as she could remember, she wasn't even remotely interested in a long-term relationship – let alone marriage! And yet, that's exactly what happened to her. Even just thinking about it was completely surreal to her.

An abrupt knock on her door yanked her out of the puzzle that was her mind, and she pulled herself together before opening it up to see Chuck with his signature smile that somehow sent butterflies fluttering in her stomach and caused her heart to skip a beat. And his eyes, his subtle compassionate eyes, that looked at her and really saw her were alight as soon as they landed on her face. The difference, Sarah noticed, was that Chuck saw what others guys didn't; he saw everything she had beneath her cold exterior. And it was like he understood her; that he got her and she had never been 'gotten' before. That feeling alone brought on her biggest smile.

"Hey," he greeted. He was wearing a navy shirt, with the sleeves cuffed just past his elbow, a pair of dark blue jeans and, of course, a pair of Chuck Taylors.

"Hey," Sara replied, almost forgetting to breathe. How can he have such a hold on me? she wondered to herself.

"You ready?"

Sarah looked at what she was wearing. Since she didn't know where they were going she didn't know what to wear. Like, what exactly is proper surprise attire? All she had on was a white blouse and a pair of old jeans. "Em…yeah I guess so."

Chuck cocked his head inquisitively. "You guess so?"

"Well, if I knew where we were going I could have dressed better. Can I at least get a hint?" Sarah smiled wide-eyed, hoping to break down his reserves.

"Ah, Chuck Bartowski does not reveal his secrets," he explained, waving his hands around for effect. Kinda cute. "I am a mastermind; my brain is impenetrable."

Sarah narrowed her eyes. "Impenetrable, huh? We'll see about that," she toyed, grabbing her bag and keys and heading out the door. "Okay, mastermind Bartowski, let's get this show on the road." She couldn't help playing along with him; it was like she was a totally different Sarah when she was around him. That nerved and excited her all at the same time.

They made their way out to Chuck's car and Sarah noticed the way he kept trying to sway his hand towards her and then pull it back, deciding against it. She assumed that he used to take her hand if they were walking anywhere. It was probably second nature to him at this stage.

"So, how you doing?" he asked as he opened the door for her. How gentlemanly.

Sarah climbed into the car. "I'm doing good. How's everything with you?"

"Oh, everything's…good, too. I've just been hanging around and doing some filing down in Castle and stuff. All very exciting, I assure you," he laughed lightly.

"Of course."

"I have you know, Sarah Bart-" he quickly corrected himself, "I mean, Walker, that I am exciting. I'm a beacon of excitement, a poster boy for-"

Sarah chuckled. "Chuck, I get it."

Chuck smiled cutely and closed her door. As he made his way around to his door, Sarah realised that she felt…safe. And that feeling was alien to her. She was a spy. Spies are constantly on alert, anticipating anything and everything. Always guarded, never relaxed. But being with Chuck was like an outer-body experience; she felt like a normal person, somebody that didn't work in the line of danger on a daily basis. Chuck had some kind of spell on her. And, much to her surprise, she liked it more and more each day.

He drove silently for a while, and Sarah noticed his frequent glances in her direction. His lips were clamped together and his eyebrows were knitted. "Chuck, are you okay?"

He allowed himself another look at her and this time Sarah saw a flicker of desperation in his eyes. "Who me? Yeah, of course I am." He forced a smile.

Sarah wasn't buying it. "Chuck, what's going on? You look…well, I don't know."

Chuck let out a weighty sigh and clenched his hands around the steering wheel. "I…I was just thinking that maybe…maybe this isn't such a good idea anymore."

"What, today?"

He stopped at a red light. "No, I mean…all of it. This 'date night-slash-day' thing."

That caught her off-guard. "Why? What are you saying, Chuck?" Despite herself, Sarah felt her heart hammer against her chest.

The light went green and Chuck hit the accelerator, gaining speed along the highway. His voice was soft and melancholy. "It's just that I thought it would work. These dates." Sarah waited patiently for him to collect his words. "Look, Sarah, after our kiss on the beach I thought I felt something shift; that you were starting to get a hold on the memories you'd lost and that it would only be a matter of time before you'd be back to being Sarah. My Sarah. But…the more I look at it and the more dates we go on… I just think that it's a waste. I don't see how it could work if it hasn't worked yet. I think I'm just kidding myself." He sounded like a broken man.

"No, Chuck, don't say that, they are helping!" Sarah exclaimed to her intense surprise. She couldn't help herself; the words were out before she had time to think.

"What do you mean?"

Sarah turned toward him as much as her seatbelt would allow. "Chuck, all I know is that I'm a spy and that's all I've ever known. It was like my life was reset and when I woke up in my hotel room, I was Sarah Walker the spy and that was that. And then I learn that I lived a normal life." She paused, smiling. "Well, as normal as settled spies could be and I couldn't grasp that. I couldn't see the girl who was married and who had friends and a family. Someone who had everything that I thought I couldn't have."

Chuck smiled at her hopefully. "I don't remember a lot; bits and pieces here and there but nothing concrete. But what I do know is that I want to know about the life we had and the girl I was. I'm not going to lie; I feel…conflicted. On one hand I want to stay the way I am because that's all I know. I'm scared to change and I'm scared of becoming something different – even if it's something that I want. But on the other hand, I want to be that Sarah; the Sarah you show me and tell me about. I want to be her, Chuck. It's just taking time and I'm sorry for that."

Chuck shook his head. "No, you have nothing to be sorry about, Sarah. I'm just glad that you're here." He stopped and Sarah saw tears glistening his eyes. "It's just hard, you know? I wake up every morning and I stretch over just to find that you're not there. I-I see pictures of us around the apartment and I get this weight on my chest and I find it hard to breathe. I try my best to give you space because I don't want to overwhelm you but it's so hard. I want nothing more than to grab you in my arms and kiss you, like we used to and tell you that I love you and just take off and leave everything behind. But I can't."

His words form tears in her eyes. With each date Chuck tried to make it as light-hearted as possible, but as she sat next to him, seeing his pain and hearing his heartache, she couldn't help but become emotional. To her, she had only known Chuck for a relatively short time but she already knew that she was falling hard for Chuck Bartowski.

As she meddled with her thoughts, Chuck made a turn and pulled into a car spot. "Well, here we are," he said, injecting some faux-excitement to entice her.

Sarah looked out the window to see a sign of emerald and gold. "Our date is at the Buy More?" She couldn't help but laugh.

"I know what you're thinking – not very date material – but this place is very special to us." He unbuckled his seatbelt and placed his hand on the back of her headrest. "This is the place where it all started. I was just a regular guy until one day a supercomputer was downloaded into my brain and my world was turned upside-down by a certain girl by the name of Sarah Walker. It was in this place where the most special and significant moment of my life took place. This is where I met you." He pushed her hair behind her ear and looked at her contemplatively. Sarah's breath hitched. "You know I spent a lot of time cursing and blaming the Intersect for ruining my life, but in all that I forgot the most important thing: if it wasn't for the Intersect I would have never met you. So I guess you could say that I sorta owe it."

Sarah beamed at him. "Who knew you could be such a smooth talker?" she joked, removing her gaze from his.

"That's just the way I roll; smooth like butter."

Sarah got out of her seatbelt and opened her door. "Well okay then, let's go," she smiled, getting out of the car, with Chuck in follow suit. "Gladly."

4