Ellie was freaking out. They had to leave to get to the wedding rehearsal in less than half an hour, and she was sitting in the living room on her own. No Devon, no Chuck, no Dad, no Sarah... She needed to cook, but she was all dressed up, blue dress picked especially to bring out the blue of her eyes. A touch of sophistication to go with her chignon, but short enough to be fun and flirty. Modest enough for a bride on the eve of her wedding. Only at this rate there wouldn't be anyone left to have a wedding with.

On the verge of screaming or pacing or, god forbid, crying, which would ruin her carefully-applied makeup, Ellie jumped as the door opened.

'Devon! Did you find Chuck?'

'Don't worry, babe.' Devon strode into the room and hugged her. 'He'll be here.'

'So you have seen him?' She searched his face as he hesitated.

'No! Yes... no...'

'What? Devon, it's simple. Did you speak to Chuck or not?' Of all the times for her fiance to come apart!

Devon took a deep breath, put his hands on her arms, stroked. 'Ellie, Chuck loves you. He'll be here. And no matter what, I'm not going to turn into your dad. I'm not going anywhere. I'll always be here for you.'

Ellie sighed, tension leaving her shoulders. She could feel tears in her eyes. This was why she loved Devon. No matter what, he'd be there, comfortingly solid, reliable, dependable. The knot in her stomach eased.

'I love you, Devon,' she whispered, letting him fold her into a gentle hug.

The door swung open again.

'Where have you been?' Ellie scolded as Chuck stood nervously in the doorway. 'You didn't come home, you haven't been in work-'

'Don't freak out, Ellie!' her brother cautioned. 'I was getting your wedding present.' He stepped forwards, glanced over his shoulder, then moved fully into the living room. With a hopeful smile, he said, 'I found Dad.'

Behind him, Stephen raised a hand in a tentative wave. 'Hi, Ellie.'

#

Makeup repaired, excuses and hugs made and exchanged amongst rapid showers and hurried donning of suits, Ellie, Devon and Stephen left for the hotel. Chuck made his way across the courtyard and knocked on John's door. It opened immediately to reveal the stone-faced agent..

'Hi,' Chuck smiled. 'So... I was wondering... Would you like to come to my sister's wedding?'

The door slammed shut.

Chuck sighed, turned.

The door opened again and John stepped out, pulling on a suit jacket over his polo shirt. He smiled. 'Cigar?'

Chuck laughed. 'Thanks, John.'

'Hi.'

Both men turned. Sarah was standing in the entrance to the courtyard, wearing a stunning indigo dress.

'Wow.' Chuck blinked.

John put a hand on the young man's shoulder. 'Looking good, Walker.'

'Thank you, Casey.' She smiled hesitantly. 'So, who's driving?'

'Oh, not me!' Chuck raised his hands.

'I'll drive,' John said. 'Come on, or we'll be late.'

Together, Team Bartowski headed out.

#

The rehearsal went well, with more than enough laughter from a minister experienced in settling pre-wedding jitters to ensure that by the time the wedding party filed into a private room at the back of the hotel restaurant for the rehearsal dinner, everyone was relaxed and having a good time.

Devon kept giving Chuck, John and Sarah odd looks. And every time Chuck thought about the talk he had to have with Ellie, he felt sick. Sarah was at her effervescent best, though, charming the Woodcombes, distracting the ushers, and John was a solid presence at his shoulder. Ellie hadn't even blinked at his presence, welcoming him warmly as though she hadn't even considered he wouldn't be there.

Before Chuck could find a way to talk with his sister in private, the meal was over and they were bundling into cars and cabs, heading off to get a good night's sleep before tomorrow's hectic schedule. Sarah travelled with John and Chuck, sitting in silence in the back of the SUV as John handled the big vehicle expertly.

Back in the courtyard once more, they stood together awkwardly before Sarah broke the silence. 'Chuck, do you want me to talk with Ellie?'

Chuck shook his head. 'I'd better do it. Ellie's going to want to talk it through with you in the morning, though, so be prepared.'

Sarah nodded. 'No problem, Chuck. Just let me know what you tell her, so our cover's straight.' She walked away to her car, leaving the two men looking after her.

Chuck sighed. 'I'm really not looking forward to this.'

'Hey,' John put a hand on Chuck's shoulder. 'It's not the end of the world.'

'No, I guess compared with defusing bombs and getting shot at and foiling international arms deals and stopping Fulcrum from taking over the world, this isn't so bad.' He glanced down at his feet, shrugged, then looked back up at the tall man with a half-smile just about reaching his eyes. 'Oddly enough, though, I think I'd rather be running for my life again.'

John leaned in and kissed Chuck softly. 'You can always hide out at mine. Or if things get really bad, there's always the Castle.'

Chuck smiled. 'I guess so. If I scream like a girl, don't come running in with your gun out.'

'She loves you, Chuck. It'll be fine.'

'I guess... It's just... This is so new, you know? What we have. I hardly know how to describe it to myself, let alone to Ellie.'

'You want to wait 'til after the wedding?'

Chuck shook his head. 'For once, I'd like not to have to lie to Ellie about absolutely everything. It's exhausting.'

'You'll be fine.' John slapped Chuck on the shoulder. 'You know where I am if you need me.'

'Yeah, sitting in front of a monitor, watching me.' Chuck shrugged. 'At least I won't have to recap for you later.'

'Night, Chuck.'

'Night, John.'

Chuck went inside and shut the door, feeling John's eyes on him, watching those couple of yards to make sure he was home safely before he opened his own front door. A tingle went down his spine, and for a split second he was back in Castle, where in the dark and the quiet it had seemed so right, so natural, to lean over and kiss John, rub himself against that incredible body, let John touch him- He snapped back into the present before an inopportune erection made it even more difficult for him to talk to Ellie.

Ellie was lying on the couch, her legs across Devon's knees, head back against the cushions with her eyes closed. Devon pressed strong fingers into the arch of her foot.

'Oh, that feels good!' Ellie groaned. 'Why do pretty shoes have to be so uncomfortable?'

'The day they can make hiking boots with little straps and high heels is the day women officially rule the world.' Chuck dropped into a chair.

'Did you have a good evening?' Ellie asked, turning to face Chuck.

Chuck nodded. 'Yeah. It was great. You looked beautiful, and it was kind of emotional, seeing you and Devon and Dad. Speaking of...'

'He's grabbing a shower,' Devon said. 'Said the suit made him itchy.'

Chuck smiled. 'Yeah, I get that.' He tugged off his tie and undid the top button of his shirt. 'It wouldn't have been the same in jeans and a t-shirt, though.'

'You all look so handsome in your suits,' Ellie said wistfully. 'Men should dress up more often. Even John looked really good.'

'Again, speaking of...' Chuck began.

'I'm glad he was there. He's a nice man. I like having him as our neighbour.'

'Ellie, there's something I need to tell you.' Chuck sat forwards, eyes fixed on his sister's.

'What is it?' Ellie frowned. 'What's wrong, Chuck?'

'It's about me and Sarah.' He hesitated. Frowning, Ellie reached out and took Chuck's hand. He took a deep breath. 'Sarah and I split up again.'

'Oh, Chuck! Why? What happened?' Ellie's face was filled with concern. 'You guys seemed fine this evening!'

'We are fine, I think,' Chuck said, surprising himself. 'She dumped me this time. Because of John.'

'Wait - Sarah and John?' Ellie's voice rose in disbelief. 'She dumped you for John?'

'No! God, no. She didn't dump me for John. She dumped me because I like John.' Chuck held his breath.

'You like John,' Ellie repeated slowly. 'As in... Like, like?'

Chuck nodded. 'As in, boyfriend, like. Please, don't freak out, Ellie!'

Ellie squeezed his hand, opened and shut her mouth a couple of times. 'You and John. You're... seeing John. Dating him.'

'Yeah,' Chuck said softly.

'You're gay,' Ellie stated flatly. 'This is the night before my wedding and you're telling me you're gay.'

Chuck winced. 'Sucky timing, huh? And no, I don't think I'm gay. I guess it makes me bi. Actually, I'm not sure what it makes me, because I'm not attracted to other men. Always been the ladies. But now...' He blew out a sigh of frustration, ran his free hand through his hair. 'Ellie, it's John. And somehow he means enough to me that I want to be able to stand at your wedding with him. I don't want to have to pretend that things are fine with Sarah. And I know the timing is about as far from perfect as you can get. But can you just, I don't know... Can this be something you don't freak out over?'

Ellie stared at Chuck, then looked across to the hallway where their father was leaning against the doorway. Devon rubbed a comforting hand on her shin, but kept quiet.

She squeezed Chuck's hand. 'Okay.'

'Okay?'

'Yes, Chuck. It's okay. I can't promise I won't freak out after the wedding's over, but if you want John, if you love him, then yes, that's okay with me. He's a good man. He's practically family as much as Sarah is, anyway, and all I've ever wanted is for you to be happy. Chuck, I love you.' Ellie's smile was tremulous, her eyes a little teary, but her grip on Chuck's hand was firm.

Chuck swallowed the lump in his throat and managed a tremulous smile of his own. 'I love you too, Ellie.'

'You know, I think this calls for a group hug,' Devon said, prompting a laugh from Ellie. She slid her legs off her fiance and stood up.

Devon sighed in relief. 'Awesome! Group hug!' she smiled. Chuck got to his feet and hugged her. Stephen came into the room and hugged them both and Devon wrapped his arms around all of them. For the first time in years, Chuck felt safe, surrounded by all of his family.