CHUCK VS. THE CAMPAIGN
DISCLAIMER: I don't own "Chuck."
SUMMARY: After what happened in Chuck's attempt to have a normal relationship with Jill, his ex from college who turned out to be a Fulcrum agent, General Beckman orders Chuck and Sarah to maintain their boy friend-girl friend cover relationship on much stronger levels, meaning live together and give all appearances of a happy, loving couple to ward off any troublesome normal girls coming after Chuck. Sarah decides to take advantage of the situation to make Chuck hers.
NOTE: If you are looking for adventure and suspense, you won't find it in this story. This is all character, romance, and fluff, fluff, and more FLUFF!
ANOTHER NOTE: Once again, THANK YOU to all who have reviewed!
PART 10 – He's Baaaaaack!
The alarm came on and Chuck turned it off from where he stood by the bed, fully dressed. Good thing I got back just now, he thought, because it would have stayed on and awakened Ellie and Devon down the hall. Then Ellie would have been alerted to the fact that he and Sarah had been out all night and never came home to sleep.
Their latest mission had been the cause of that. He and Sarah had just gotten home yesterday from work and found a note from Ellie and Devon that said they were out for the evening and wouldn't be back until late. Chuck was about to suggest some dinner ideas when Sarah grabbed his hand and pulled him to the couch and said that she wanted to talk to him. She started to speak and then her phone rang. Much to Chuck's surprise, Sarah cursed at the interruption. Then she pulled out her phone and answered with a loud "WHAT?" The caller was Casey who wanted them at his apartment pronto. Sarah acted upset as she and Chuck wandered over there. And then he noticed that she looked even more upset when they found out that they had to leave right away to go on another mission.
It turned out to be a long one, all night. They had finished it successfully about an hour ago and returned to Casey's apartment for the debriefing with Beckman. That had just ended and then Beckman wanted to talk to Sarah and Casey alone. So Chuck left. And as he departed, he noticed that Sarah looked at him sadly. He paused and almost asked her what was wrong. But he quickly remembered that Beckman and Casey were there, so he shut his mouth and came back home and had arrived in time to catch the alarm.
He sat down on the side of the bed, tired and more than ready to crash. The alarm came on again. Annoyed, Chuck reached over and pressed the off button. But then he realized that what he heard wasn't the alarm clock. The noise was tapping at the Morgan door.
"Morgan, now is definitely NOT a good time," Chuck groaned as he stood up to greet his friend. Then he came to a complete and sudden stop when he saw the face in the window. It was not Morgan. It was –
"What the hell?" Chuck said out loud in shock.
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Sarah walked back to the apartment. She couldn't believe the meeting with Beckman took over two hours. After being up all night, a long meeting like that was definitely not something she wanted or needed. Last night, when she and Chuck got home and found out that Ellie and Devon were gone for the evening, she had wanted to have a serious talk with Chuck about their relationship. But that had been interrupted by the call from Casey to immediately come to his apartment for a mission. While she and Chuck walked over there, she held out hope that it would not last long and they could return home and try to have that conversation or go out to dinner or something. But no. It had lasted all night.
And when they finally got done and returned back to Casey's apartment, Sarah hoped that she and Chuck could go back home and maybe have that talk. But Beckman had to have the debriefing right then and there. That eventually ended and Sarah was all set to get Chuck back to their room and try for that talk. But then Beckman had to have another meeting without Chuck present. And of course, that meeting took forever. Probably by now Chuck was in bed and dead to the world. So she could most likely forget about any talk with him for now.
But she couldn't wait to join Chuck in bed and sleep all day. She was thankful that he had the day off. They both needed to crash after this mission.
She unlocked the door, entered the apartment, and saw Ellie, making breakfast in the kitchen.
"Sarah?" she said, obviously curious about Sarah's entrance because she had assumed that her brother and his girlfriend were asleep in bed.
"Hi Ellie. The burglar alarm at the Orange Orange went off earlier and I had to rush down there to check it out," Sarah improvised.
"Oh. Everything OK?"
"Fortunately yes, it was a false alarm. But it wasn't any fun getting up for that."
"I can imagine," Ellie replied sympathetically. "Coffee?"
"No thank you. All I want right now is to get in bed with Chuck."
Ellie smiled and arched her eyebrows in response. Sarah, suddenly realizing the innuendo of her words, shook her head. Well, she DID want to get in bed with Chuck. The fact of the matter was that she looked forward to sleeping with Chuck. And if just sleeping with him was this good, she could only imagine how fantastic the love-making would be. A few images popped up in her mind. She shook her head again and wandered down the hallway to their bedroom.
Sarah opened the door and was surprised to discover an empty room and an empty, made-up bed. And no Chuck. She quickly looked down the hallway and saw that the bathroom was empty. She spotted Chuck's watch on the desk. Then she saw the window. It was open.
Quickly pushing aside any panic she felt, Sarah dashed through the hallway back toward the kitchen to Ellie, who was just sitting down at the dining room table with coffee and newspaper.
"Ellie, do you know where Chuck went?"
Ellie looked surprised. "He's not asleep in bed?"
"No."
Ellie was about to say something when Sarah's phone rang. She grabbed it from her pocket and checked the readout: Chuck. "Chuck, where are you?" She said into her phone. But it wasn't Chuck. It was someone using his phone and she recognized the voice. And with that, she had an idea of what was going on in regards to Chuck's disappearance.
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Sarah ran into the hospital emergency room and scanned the area. More than likely, he was long gone, having made an exit the second after he called her. But she still looked and much to her surprise, there he was, sitting over in the corner. He spotted her, smiled, and waved. She quickly marched over to him.
"Hey sweetheart," he greeted her as he stood up and spread his arms for a hug.
"Where is Chuck?" Sarah demanded.
"What? No greeting or hug for your father?" Jack Burton replied, looking a little hurt.
She glared back at him. "Where is Chuck?" she repeated, this time more forcibly.
Burton sighed and shook his head. "You have it bad for that schnook, don't you?"
"His name is Chuck," Sarah said to her father in a malevolent tone and with an equally malevolent look.
"Yep, you got it bad," he replied. "He's with the doctors right now. He got a little banged up but he's OK except for some cuts and bruises. They've only kept him this long because they wanted to check him for a concussion and do some more X-Rays."
Sarah pushed back the urge she had to punch this man, who though her father, had caused a lot of pain and disappointment in her life. Now he had literally brought pain onto Chuck. If looks could kill, he would have been dead several times over by now.
"How dare you! How dare you drag Chuck into one of your cons. It's one thing to drag me into something like that but to drag my boy friend into it is going too far!"
"Hey, you didn't have any problem with him helping last time. You know me and what I do. You've always known that. You're making too big a deal out of this."
"Last time was different. I was there and able to keep an eye on you and him and make sure that he didn't get hurt. But this time you got him in on something without me and what happened?" Sarah fumed. She spread her arms out to indicate the surroundings. "Where are we, dad? Where is Chuck? We're in an ER. Chuck is in an ER because of you."
"He volunteered to help me. I didn't force him or anything like that."
And just how he had persuaded Chuck to join in on one of his schemes was something that had been nagging at Sarah since her father called a little while ago, telling her that Chuck was hurt and to meet him at this ER. Chuck wasn't stupid and he knew that her father was a con artist. If her father hadn't forced him, then he must have somehow tricked Chuck into going along on this. But what could her father have done to ….? Then it dawned on her.
"You used me didn't you? You know how he feels about me and you made Chuck think whatever scheme you had would help me or save me, or something like that, didn't you? You used me to get Chuck in on this," she raged.
"I just stated a few facts and he assumed from there," Burton explained. Then his face softened at the dark look that Sarah gave him. "Look, I didn't intend to get him involved. I was trying to find you for some help. The phone number I had for you didn't work. So I went to your old address and they told me you had moved out. I couldn't find any new address for you and then I figured that the schno—"
When he almost used "schnook" again, it drew an angry look from Sarah. He quickly swallowed back that word and then continued his tale.
"I figured if anyone would know where you were, he would. I was able to track down his address and I pulled up at his apartment right when he walked in the door. So I tapped on his window and he let me in and we talked. And by the way, you're living with him? You know, I'm still not sure what you see in him."
"What do I see in him? Where do I start? He's loving, honest, wonderful, kind, honest, caring, trustworthy, honest, beautiful, dependable, fun, honest, likeable, smart, and did I mention that he's honest? All of the qualities that I didn't have much of in another man who I spent a lot of time with and who happens to be standing in front of me right now," Sarah said.
Her father stood silent for a moment, as if weighing what she just said. Then he looked directly at her. "So you really do love him?"
"Do you want to hear it directly from me? Fine, I'll say it. Yes, I'm in love with Chuck. I have been in love with Chuck for some time now. I was in love with Chuck when you last visited. And I'm in love with Chuck now. Which makes me all the angrier about Chuck ending up in an ER thanks to you," Sarah said.
"Now honey, it wasn't supposed to go this way. Things just got out of hand. But Chuck will be OK and –"
"NO, it's NOT OK! The man I love got tricked into one of your cons and ended up in the hospital. And if I find out that his injuries are worse than you let on, YOU are going to be in the hospital."
Sarah felt like slamming her father up against the wall for what she was going to say next. Instead, she assumed a commanding look and stance and spoke to him as if she were dealing with a Fulcrum agent, not her parent. "What you did today crossed a line, it went too far! Don't you EVER involve or try to involve Chuck in any of your schemes. You stay away from him! Chuck is one of the few wonderful things I have in my life. And I intend to keep him in my life. And not you or anyone will ever change that. You stay away from Chuck! Understood?"
"Perfectly! I'm sorry sweetheart. It won't happen again," he vowed.
"See that it doesn't." Then Sarah smiled at her father. "Now, empty your pockets."
"What?" her dad asked, looking puzzled.
"Empty your pockets. You were in our room and you were with Chuck for more than two hours. I want to retrieve whatever you took from Chuck."
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Right after Sarah's dad returned two of Chuck's credit cards and his iPhone, a nurse shouted "Charles Bartowski! Who's here for Charles Bartowski?"
Sarah stepped up to the nurse and asked if Chuck was OK. "The doctors are releasing him. They said he doesn't have a concussion or any broken bones. However, some of those bruises are going to hurt for days. They're bringing him out right now and you can take him home," the nurse explained.
Sarah sighed in relief. Her dad had been honest about Chuck's injuries. They weren't severe. She turned to speak to her dad but he wasn't there. She looked back at the corner where they had just talked. Not there. She scanned the entire ER but he was gone.
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"Easy," Sarah said as she watched Chuck slowly get out of the passenger side of her car. Even though his injuries were mostly bruises, she still was worried about him. She had not been able to determine what happened and how. All she knew for sure was that Chuck had gotten roughed up when something had gone wrong with the scheme that her father had gotten him involved in but nothing more, no specific details. Her father had vanished before she could get any information and Chuck didn't want to talk about it.
Sarah studied him as they walked together from the car to the apartment. He had been silent for the entire drive home from the hospital. He looked crushed, defeated. Another thing to thank dear old dad for, Sarah thought angrily. She grabbed his arm and directed him to sit down at the edge of the fountain. She looked at him with concern.
"Are you OK?" she asked.
"Yeah, the bruises look a lot worse than they are. The doctor didn't even give me any pain killers. He said that over-the-counter aspirin or ibuprofen would do me just fine. And fortunately, none of the bruises and cuts are on my face. So I can hide them with clothes and Ellie won't suspect anything."
"No, I meant are YOU OK?" she asked again and touched his forehead with her finger.
"Other than feeling stupid and like an idiot, I'm fine. I guess we don't need to wonder why your dad calls me a schnook," he replied.
"You're NOT a schnook. You're a good person, you believe in people, and people depend on you. And I'm sorry that my father took advantage of that," Sarah said.
"Well, I –"
"Chuck, I have seen the effects that my father and his schemes can have on people. So I know how you must feel right now. And I understand why you don't want to talk about it. But please don't tear yourself up about this. My father is not worth it."
"I don't want you to hate your father because of me," Chuck said.
"Believe me, my father doesn't need your help with that."
He looked up at her from where he sat and Sarah could still see a crushed, defeated look in his eyes. She didn't like that look in Chuck. She didn't like him feeling that way. She wanted to comfort him and she did. She leaned down and wrapped him in her arms, holding him close.
"Enough. My father is not worth this. I don't want him to take up any more of our time. And I don't want you to feel badly about all of this," she emphasized.
Then Sarah grabbed his arm and gently pulled him up and directed him toward the apartment front door. "Come on. I want to get you into bed," Sarah said.
"WHAT?" Chuck asked.
Sarah shook her head. First she did that in front of Ellie and now Chuck. She looked at him. He was standing there, looking stunned and she could see the cute, fun, bewildered Chuck that she knew and loved. And then she knew that he would be OK, he would be fine. She acted on impulse and leaned forward and kissed him.
He looked at her, surprised, after she pulled back from the kiss. "What was that for?" he asked.
"You earned it," she replied.
Then she led him into the apartment hoping that they could go right back to their room and get to sleep. But when Sarah saw Ellie standing in the living room waiting for them, she knew that wouldn't happen.
"Sit down you two," Ellie said as she gestured at the couch, "I want to talk to both of you."
Sarah looked at Chuck who had an I-told-you-so expression on his face. He had noticed a while ago that Ellie had been acting suspicious and curious about the two of them and wondering if all was what it seemed. And because of that he had warned Sarah that an Ellie confrontation was probably coming up. It looked like this was it.
"Come on. This is long overdue," Ellie said and pointed again for them to sit.
They walked over to the couch. Chuck tried to walk normally but his bruises still hurt. He managed to make it to the couch without groaning in pain, but by the slow and careful way he had to walk, Ellie could easily see that he was hurting. Plus, the concerned glances that Sarah gave him and the time or two that she reached out to hold his arm and help him along also tipped off Ellie.
She stood silently in front of them for a moment after they sat down, studying them as if trying to decide what to say or how to start. After a few moments, she finally spoke.
"Well, I guess the first thing I want to know is what happened to you Chuck? How did you get injured? Does it have anything to do with where the two of you were all night?"
"All night?" Chuck replied trying to act puzzled. "What do you –"
"Chuck! There is a made-up and un-slept-in bed in your room. Sarah came in early this morning after supposedly going to the Orange Orange to check on the burglary alarm and did not know where you were. Then she gets a phone call and says that she needs to go pick you up but she doesn't say where. Now the two of you return and you Chuck are injured and both of you look like you've been up all night. What is going on here?" Ellie said with a firm look on her face.
"Well … uhhh," Chuck stalled and glanced over at Sarah.
"First, this whole Jill thing is a mystery to me for many reasons. Then you two are living together yet neither one of you seems to know if you are serious about each other. And there are all of these nights out that the two of you go on and you return who knows when and utterly exhausted -- like right now. And a while ago Chuck, you and Sarah went out three nights in a row and stayed out all hours even when you had a double shift at the BuyMore the next day. So I ask again, what is going on here with you two?"
"Ellie, look, it's compli—" Chuck started.
"Chuck, if you say it's complicated, so help me, I will drop-kick you from here to San Diego," Ellie warned.
Chuck immediately got silent. Then Sarah spoke.
"Chuck, we have to tell Ellie the truth," Sarah said as she looked at him and tried to communicate silently for him to play along. He looked shocked at the "truth" comment and was about to speak but Sarah put a finger to his lips. "Let me explain, OK? After all, it's my father, not yours."
His expression turned to surprise as did Ellie's. But he nodded and let her talk.
"Ellie, all of what happened this morning and what happened previously has to do with my father," Sarah explained. "My father has a criminal record. He is a con artist, a crook. I haven't seen my father for a while and I tried to keep Chuck and you from finding out about this part of my life. I didn't want either of you to know, especially Chuck. But my father made some visits recently and I wasn't able to hide him from Chuck. He found out about my father and, unfortunately, almost immediately got see him first hand in action, performing cons. Well, some of those cons didn't go as my father planned and he got into trouble. I had to come to his aid. I tried to keep Chuck out of it. I didn't want him dragged into this. But Chuck, being Chuck, insisted on being there."
"I wanted to help," Chuck said.
Sarah looked fondly at him. "I know you did but I just didn't …" she paused and then went on with her tale.
"Anyway, we've been pretty busy trying to keep my father out of trouble or getting him out of trouble. That's what our mysterious behavior has been about. And I'm afraid it has also affected our relationship a bit. I was and still am worried about what Chuck would think of all this and frankly, what you would think about my having a criminal in my family. Chuck keeps insisting to me that it doesn't matter but I am just so afraid of what he and you and anyone else will think. I am so embarrassed and ashamed about all of this. But one of my biggest fears is that Chuck or you would get hurt by something my father did. And that happened today. Chuck got injured because of my father. When Chuck tried to help, he ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time, right when my father got caught trying to do a con on some people. They got violent and Chuck got hurt. It's all my fault Ellie. I'm so sorry about all of this and I wouldn't blame you or Chuck if you—"
"Stop right there Sarah," Ellie commanded. "You don't have to say anything more. I'm so sorry about your father. But you don't have to worry or be concerned about what I or Chuck think. You're not responsible for what your father did or does. And if my brother ever thinks anything less of you because of something your father did, I WILL drop-kick him from here to San Diego. But knowing my brother, anything your father did wouldn't affect his feelings toward you at all. Both he and I know about bad parenting first hand. Our mom and dad would never be nominated for best parents of the year or even parents of the day for the matter."
"You don't have to worry about that Ellie. Whatever her dad did and does will never affect how I feel about Sarah," Chuck said as he looked directly at Sarah.
Sarah knew instantly that Chuck was not acting in that moment. He sincerely and passionately meant that. She was speechless and appreciative. It took her a moment to compose herself, before she was able to softly say "Thank you" to Chuck. She continued to gaze at him and for a moment she forgot that Ellie was in the room with them.
Ellie's attitude and demeanor had softened quite a bit. She looked at the two of them. "Enough of this. At least I now have an idea of what has been going on. Get up and get back to your room you two! You need to get some sleep," she said.
"Yes we do, and I can't tell you how much I'm dying to get Chuck into bed!" Sarah said as she stood up from the couch and helped him stand up. Not again, she thought, as she realized how her words could be interpreted. Both Chuck and Ellie grinned at her. Was somebody trying to tell me something? she thought. Oh well, they aren't telling me anything that I don't already know.
Sarah led Chuck down the hallway and to their room so that they could finally get some sleep.
END PART 10
Next: A Vacation