A/N: Hello fellow Chuckaholics. Or perhaps I should say nerds. After far too long, this story will continue. After a hectic personal year, I've returned to this fandom. I rediscovered my desire to write the last few weeks, along with rediscovering Chuck(btw those first two seasons really are amazing) And I remembered this story. So here is the second chapter for it. Perhaps good to mention, I have a lot of ideas for this one. Including some possible one shots to fill in the AU. I'm not going to give anything away. Not even how and where and when Chuck and Sarah met. Time will tell.
All right, hope you guys enjoy it, even if I am a little rusty.
Disclaimer: Sadly I don't own Chuck. But I do own my OC's.
Chapter 2: One of those days
The pit in her stomach was slowly becoming a huge chasm. With every page she read, the uneasy feeling she felt was growing. What have you got yourself into? She thought to herself, as she flipped yet another page. If any of this intel is right, if just one of these pages held any truth, he was in serious trouble. She wasn't sure how the CIA had gotten the info, or if any of it was true. No, that isn't right, she knew it wasn't true. There was no way he had done any of this. Perhaps Graham is playing some kind of game. She wondered quietly to herself. It wasn't something she would put past him. Perhaps he wanted to put her in her place, but for the life of her, she couldn't figure out why. Although… no that couldn't be it. But there had to be another explanation. Because this… this had to be garbage. It just had to be. Chuck, her Chuck, would never be capable of doing this.
Frustrated she threw the folder on the empty chair next to her. She needed to get some rest. Not that there was much time left for that. She could see the fasten seatbelt light pop up, and shortly after the pilot announced that they were going to land. Despite having flown hundreds of times, she never liked this part. But the descent was smooth, and so was the landing. Unconsciously she let out a soft sigh she had been holding.
With a loud thud, the door opened. The aircraft had finally come to a halt down on the airstrip of the small private airport that was nearly abandoned. A faint glow was coming from the traffic control tower, accompanying the glow that came from the glistening moonlight. It all only added to her gloomy mood. She had to come up with a plan on how to get through this without hurting either of them too much. She wasn't sure how yet, but she needed to clear him, and she needed to do it without The sheer thought of him was enough to send a jolt of pain through her body. But she owed him, she knew that. There had to be an explanation to this situation. The CIA just had to be wrong. But to prove it… She just wanted to get this over with, preferably without seeing him.
She made her way to the exit, made sure to give the pilot a short thanks and before she knew it, there really was no turning back. She breathed in the cool night air. Trying to steady her nerves. There was this constant mantra in her head, warning her of the fact that it just couldn't end well. Not to mention the growing fear in her stomach. Sarah Walker didn't get scared, but now she did. Now all she wanted was to flee.
As In a daze she moved through the airport. She hardly registered a single face that she came in contact with. Before she finally found her way to the driver Graham had pick her up from the station.
"Good evening ma'am" The driver said. His tone flat yet serious. As he held open the door for her.
"Thanks." She muttered. While she gave the man a look over. It was clear the lack of sleep didn't agree with him. And there was something oddly familiar about him. But she couldn't be sure of what it was. There didn't seem to be any indication of recognition on his face. But then again, maybe he'd been too tired.
"I'm sure my employer told you where to go?" She queried, even though she was certain that it wasn't necessary.
"Indeed he has. Not to worry, we'll be there in a jiffy." He replied.
She sighed, that is exactly what I'm worried about, she admitted to herself. For every second she got closer, was a second that she couldn't handle. And now that she was here, she had to come up with a plan. A plan that meant, exonerating him, preferably without having to come in contact with him. And more importantly, before someone else would come looking for answers.
X-x-x-x-x
Chuck Bartowski wasn't quite sure what kind of person he was. But one thing he was certain about, was that he wasn't a morning person. Every morning he had the same urge, to pull the plug of his alarm and sleep in some more. Especially since having your own company apparently meant, you weren't entitled to sleep in. He couldn't remember the last time his alarm hadn't gone off at 6. It almost made him miss the buy more, almost.
With a loud groan followed by a deep sigh, he slung his large legs out of the bed. The cold sensation quickly conquering his feet. He dragged himself to the shower, only barely aware of his own existence. Let alone anyone else.
It took him to the moment he was eating his cereal that his mind was finally starting to wake up. Back in his buy more days, he would read the newspaper. Now he spent most of his time during breakfast canvassing his schedule for the day. His secretary, one he had only hired after Ellie's insistence that he couldn't do without one anymore, would make sure it was up to date. And by the looks of things this would be one of those days. A day full of client meetings. He disliked meeting clients, it wasn't why he had started his own company two years ago. But he realized it was part of the job. And he was determined to make it success. Even if it was only because he was determined to show everyone he knew that those years didn't define him anymore.
As he walked over the courtyard to his car he mused on how lately he had been trying to move past his own past. Now that his business had taken off, perhaps one day he would be able to move forward in other areas of his life as well. No doubt it would be something Ellie would bring up at dinner tonight. It was why he had been avoiding her and Devon lately. They had decided that since everything was going so smoothly he now needed to put some of his attention into his private life. But he wasn't ready yet. Not yet. And even though he knew they meant well, he just wasn't ready for their lessons on life.
By the time he had reached his car, he knew, today was definitely not going to be his day.
x-x-x-x-x
She was quietly looking out of the window of the hotel Graham had put her in. The sun was warming up the unexposed parts of her skin as her eyes sought out the small figures walking past. A few young kids on skateboard, a businessman busy on his phone, and a mother and her young child. The last sight somehow had given her an uneasy feeling. And she had some trouble shaking it off. Keep it together Walker, she muttered quietly.
She was desperate to go outside. She had been cooped up in this room for most of the morning, and all she could think of was the things she had to do. The fact was, she wasn't ready for this. And sitting in this room only made it worse.
Normally when she was in a place like this for a mission, she'd go out. Perhaps relax on the beach a little. Then go to canvas the area of the building to get the last bit of intel she needed before she had to go in. But there was a chance, a very small one, but still a chance, that people would recognize her.
Resigning herself to do some paperwork, she returned her focus to the idle screen that had been on the small table in the room for the last few hours. Not that much work had been done. After a few minutes, her mind was already wandering again, and she decided that perhaps a small chance was worth the risk.
She grabbed her purse, walked out of her room, and before she knew it, she was outside of the building. It felt like a part of the weight had been lifted. Even if it had only been for a few minutes. This was so much better than sitting in that comfortable, yet boring, hotel room. Perhaps she would go to a small ice cream parlor that she had spotted on her way over here. She was definitely in the mood for some rocky road.
Her mind distracted, she had no idea that sometimes, fate has a way of creeping through the smallest of openings.
X-X-X-X-X
It was his last client meeting of the day. The man across his desk was boring him to tears. Not just because he was the last in a long string of clients, but because this assignment had been going on for quite a long time and he was bored by the project. It didn't help that the client was constantly coming with new demands.
"So what you're asking for, is some extra encryption on the various data?" He asked flatly.
"That's right, Mister Bartowski." The comparatively short bald man named Green answered a little to sweetly. And Chuck resisted the urge to say he could just call him Chuck. He had tried often enough, but this was the only client that wouldn't budge. Perhaps it added to his weariness on this contract, but it was a government gig that he had gotten through his Stanford contacts, with the possibility of more work if they were satisfied.
"Well of course it's possible, but it would take a few weeks to get things straightened out." He answered. He could go into all the details, but there was no need to bother.
"What about the decryption software. Does it match your requirements?" He continued, wanting this to be over.
"It all looks very promising." The other man answered. "Though it is always a matter of seeing it in action before one can really tell with this sort of thing."
"Yes, yes of course" he replied while he momentarily wondered how and when they were going to test this program. It had some odd requirements. When clients wanted such specific things, he would sometimes wish he had gone into the world of game development rather than this.
"When do you think it will be ready?" Green queried eagerly. Chuck caught a small glint in his eyes that made him somewhat uneasy.
"A month, maybe two, depending on how easy it is to squeeze the new requirements in there." He answered carefully. He paused for a moment before continuing "I do think this program will reach its limits with this last addition." He spoke slowly. Even if he could add more, he was quite certain he didn't want to.
The other man eyed him for a second, before he nodded. "Very well, mister Bartowski, we'll be in touch. I'll see myself out."
Before Chuck had a chance to reply, the other man was out of his chair. He barely had time to get up himself and shake his hand, before he saw the figure leave. With a sigh he let himself fall back into the chair. This really was a weird guy, he thought to himself. He wasn't even sure if the guy was named Green. Perhaps it would have been wise to use an alias himself, he mused quietly. Something like Carmichael would have been a nice fit. He shook it off as he was taken out of his thoughts by the familiar female voice filling his office.
"Morgan is here to see you Chuck." She said cheerily. Then again, everything she did was quite cheery.
He couldn't help but grin a little. Morgan was just the distraction he needed. "Thanks Kayla, sent him in."
He saw the door open, which revealed the short bearded man. "Hey buddy. What brings you here." He asked with real enthusiasm. The first he had felt in the last few hours. These meetings really didn't give him any enjoyment.
"Hey Chuck." His longtime friend replied. But by the looks of things something was wrong.
"Morgan?" He started gently. "What's wrong?"
"Don't freak out…" Morgan started cautiously, but he knew Chuck would. This was what they had all feared would happen one day.
x-x-x-x-x
It really was going to be one of those days for Sarah. She had screwed up. She knew it the moment she had noticed herself being followed. This mission had just gotten a lot harder than it needed to be. She should have confronted him, demanded his silence. But she had frozen. The same flight response that had been taking hold of her since Graham had given her this mission was there. She had made a cautious run for it. Enough for him to not follow, not enough for him to notice. Why on earth did she always have to be so restless? She couldn't remember the last time she had felt at peace, since the last time she was happy with Chuck.
For what felt was the first time in weeks, she pulled an old picture from her suitcase. The many creases on it showing the wear and tear on it. Almost without her noticing the first few tears escaped from her eyes.
"I love you Chuck." She whispered so soft that even if he had been standing right next to her he wouldn't have noticed. But it was enough for her. And she knew, for the next few minutes, she would allow herself to indulge in this and the tears to go freely.
x-x-x-x-x
"Wait what…?" He asked in complete shock. He couldn't believe this was happening. Not now, not when he felt some hope he could get past it. "You're telling me, you saw… her?" He continued his voice filled with the pain and conflict he felt. He wanted to see her, he needed to see her. But at the same time he felt it was the last thing he wanted.
Morgan looked at him sadly "I am" He replied sadly. "And I am sorry I did. But it felt wrong not to tell you." He continued apologetically.
He took a moment to process it. "And you're sure it was her?" He questioned. Though he knew there was little chance he was wrong. Morgan wouldn't be here if he wasn't certain.
"How many long legged, blonde, Valkyries do we know?" He said with a pointed look. "So yeah I'm quite sure."
They both sat in silence for a few moments. A whole range of emotions going through Chuck's mind as he sat there pondering what on earth he was going to do about this.
"You're certain it was at this hotel?" He questioned his longtime friend.
Morgan nodded, "You sure you want to do this?" He asked worriedly.
"I'm not." Chuck started hesitantly. The conflict visible on his face. "But I need to do this."
Chuck looked at the time. If he left now, he could make it to the hotel and back home in time for dinner with Ellie and the captain.
He looked at his friend and spoke with only a hint of determination. "I guess now is a good as time as any." And as he spoke, he realized, it was indeed one of those days.
