Today is the big day. Chuck ran through his mental checklist for the umpteenth time, quadruple checking that everything was ready. From the address that Hannah sent him, the dress code seemed to be black tie. Apparently she was celebrating her birthday at some hotel downtown, the Marriot or something.

Relieved that everything was ready, Chuck straightened his tie and left his house. Normally he would not have to worry about his tie, for some reason unbeknownst to him, Sarah always seemed to tighten it. Before leaving, he contemplated leaving his phone home just to avoid any unwanted – interruptions. But in the end, he decided against it, better he be pulled away than risk one of the spies turning up at Hannah's house to retrieve him.

Chuck had picked out one of the suits that the government had gotten him. It was cleanly cut, black with a slit through the middle. Inside that, he wore a dark red dress shirt that Sarah had bought for him and on that a black tie. His usually wild curls had been temporarily tamed by a generous lathering of gel and it gave his hair a slick sheen.

As he drove over to the given address, his mind ran through the different things he wanted to say. Truth be told, he was clueless on what to say. Hannah had clearly specified that they were to remain friends and Chuck was not someone to disrespect another person's decision. Furthermore, if he could not get together with Hannah, why did he deny Lou last night?

His deep brooding made time pass quickly. He pulled up in front of a sophisticated-looking building. Double-checking that he had gotten the address right, he handed his keys over to a valet and stepped out of his car. The hotel was a magnificent building, a testament to eighteenth century design. It was decorated with high curving arches and had at least thirty stories.

Not one to regret his actions he entered the fine establishment. Inside was a bustle of activity, doormen moved large bags on trolleys while residents tried to find their way.

"Are you Mr. Bartowski?" a voice behind asked politely.

"Yes I am" Chuck replied turning around to face a hotel employee. The employee was rather old, looking to be about fifty. Chuck noticed several scars on his rough hands and detected a slight cockney accent in the man's words. He greatly reminded Chuck of the British butlers he used to see on television.

"This way if you please." the man directed signaling with an arm the direction he wanted Chuck to go. Chuck nodded and followed dutifully. The man led Chuck to a large ballroom filled with people. Everyone was wearing extremely fancy and expensive clothes. Chuck was glad he made the choice to wear a suit.

He weaved through the crowd, twisting and turning. There was only one person he wanted to see right now. All of a sudden a silence fell upon the room. Everyone had simultaneously stopped their activity and had turned to face a common direction. Chuck stopped walking and followed suit.

Everyone's gaze was fixated upon the gigantic spiral staircase. It was carved from marble and wide enough for five men to walk side by side. Two thick banisters ran following the curvature of the steps. Although the staircase was immaculately designed, Chuck had his attention on the lady walking down the stairs.

She was dressed in a pink gown and covered her face in a mask. The only features he could make out were that she was lithe and slender, and that she had hazelnut brown hair. The enigma stepped down incredibly gracefully, every step seemed to be timed and planned.

Finally she made it down to the ballroom floor. Instantly a crowd formed in front of her, some extended their hands for a hearty shake and others simply wanted to get a better view. From his left, Chuck overheard some ladies swooning over the mysterious lady's dress.

Relenting to the crowd, Chuck made his way to the bar to wait for the crowd around the girl to thin. Unfortunately, it seemed that she had a permanent entourage, no matter where she went people followed. Chuck waited patiently, hoping that some of her followers would tire but no matter how long he waited her followers never thinned.

Chuck was just about to throw in the towel when he noticed that the large crowd was now headed towards him. He assumed that their 'leader' wanted to get a drink and to avoid being a nuisance he grabbed his champagne flute and left the bar.

Before he could get away, though, a familiar voice called out to him. "Chuck," it said.

Chuck turned to find a lone hand sticking out from the miniature sea of people. He headed towards the beacon like a moth towards a flame, slow but steady. Surrounded by her admirers, he saw the lady of the hour waving towards him. "Aren't you going to wish me happy birthday?" she asked.

"Uh, happy birthday."

"Thanks for coming; it's really good to see you. You look great by the way, love the suit." She complemented.

"Thanks, well" that's all Chuck managed to get out before a handsome man stepped in front of him.

"Hannah, happy birthday and you look lovely as usual." the man said. He was slightly shorter than Chuck and had short blond hair. His frame suggested something athletic but nothing like body building.

"Oh hi Derek," Hannah acknowledged curtly.

"Anyway, I didn't get a chance to congratulate you on the Henderson deal, good job." he continued.

Hannah did not even bother to reply him and actually shifted him to the side so that she could see Chuck. Chuck watched silently as the man glared at him, jealous of the attention he was receiving.

"So, Chuck, sorry I forgot to mention that this was a masquerade ball." Her voice was smooth and supple. She had perfect emphasis and listening to her was almost like eating a piece of gourmet chocolate. It left the senses wanting more.

"It's alright; I didn't have a mask anyway." He shrugged.

"Chuck is it?" the blond man interrupted. "What do you do?"

"I work at a" Chuck coolly said before Hannah cut him off.

"Chuck's in the IT business." Hannah said.

"Really that's interesting, I'm in banking myself. Where did you say you worked again?" the man questioned, insistent on finding a flaw on Chuck.

"A Buy More." Chuck answered matter-of-factly.

"The man almost choked when Chuck said this. "A Buy More, wow that must be exciting." he said voice oozing with sarcasm.

"I used to work there." Hannah said looking towards the man.

"Oh err… I didn't know that. Well I'm sure it was a fine job." the man salvaged weakly.

"It is." she said clearly articulating the is. "Come on Chuck" she grabbed Chuck's free hand and pulled him away from the crowd. Without their 'queen bee' the crowd soon dispersed. "Sorry about Derek." she apologized sincerely once they reached the bar.

"Don't worry about it." Chuck reassured her. "How does he know you?"

"Oh, I kind of work for him. In fact, he was actually the one that put this together. He has this thing for me and his family's pretty wealthy." she explained.

"I see, well I dropped off your gift at the table." Chuck said indicating to a mountain of gifts at the side of the door.

"Thanks," Hannah said. A period of uncomfortable silence followed as both parties simply sipped their drinks.

"Well, this has been fun, but I should probably go" he said awkwardly.

"Really, it's still pretty early." she reasoned.

"Yea well Derek over there has been giving me the stink eye every second I looked at you and I wouldn't want to hinder you at work."

"What? No. Don't mind Derek, stay," she pleaded.

"Nah, I should go, it was good seeing you again. If you ever need technical help, well you know where to find me."

"Oh yeah. It really was good to see you…Bye." she said sadly.

Chuck downed his glass of champagne and stood up to leave. This went well, he thought, pleased that he stayed calm and did not make a fool of himself.

This couldn't have gone worse, she thought miserably.