A/N: Things are going to move quickly over the next couple of chapters.
Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck or any of the associated characters. This is purely for entertainment purposes. And love, of course.
They walked out of the Buy More together, hand in hand, and Sarah found herself once again focusing on her breathing. Six heartbeats in, hold for one, six heartbeats out, repeat. It helped keep her heart rate down, but it did nothing for the irrational fear she felt. She knew it was irrational too but knowing didn't help either. The thing that was making it a little worse was that in her world, fear had always been a danger response. This meant she was suppressing an instinctual fight-or-flight reaction, trying to convince her body that there was no imminent threat associated with the fear she was also fighting off. Sarah was fighting a battle in her heart and head, but maintained a calm, composed external demeanor.
"Let's walk over to the Orange Orange and talk. It's been a busy couple of days, and I have a lot to share. We might be a few minutes late for dinner, but this can't wait." Talking seemed to help.
"I'll text Ellie and let her know we might be a little late, but that we're definitely not bailing, right?" He asked, a little concerned.
"No, that would be too cruel." She said smiling. She really hoped she would be going to dinner with his family. But she was freaking out inside.
As they walked she gathered her thoughts. She knew how she needed to start but she was terrified. She couldn't remember the last time she was this afraid and this calm at the same time. Her body was demanding that she sprint immediately towards or away from whatever the hell it was that was making her feel this way.
They ordered a couple of small frozen yogurts, and sat at a table outside, away from any other people. She needed more time to gather her thoughts, but there wasn't any. She heard Carina's voice in her head. "For Christ's sake, just tell him already. You know how he feels, he wears his feelings like a damn suit for everyone to see." She smiled inwardly at that.
"Chuck, I have a lot to tell you and some of it is going to very hard to process, but there's one thing I have to tell you first." She took his hand across the table, almost absentmindedly and started rubbing his fingers in her hands.
"We've joked about how unreal this last week has been for the two of us. How it's like we're in a dream. How this is crazy. It's all just so insanely unlikely. I guess I'm saying that even considering how totally off-the-charts nuts this has been, it's also been wonderful, exciting, exhilarating, beautiful and just so completely unexpected!" She laughed at herself a little, knowing she was rambling.
Chuck laughed but looked a little unsure. "I absolutely agree with all of that," he said.
Sarah sighed and new she wasn't doing this the way she meant to. She heard Carina in her head again, Say it already! So she did.
She took a moment to look into those spectacular eyes of his, then took a deep breath. "I love you, Chuck." She said finally, smiling at how wonderful that felt to say, so she said it again. "I love you. I'm in love with you." His mouth had fallen open and he was staring at her with those golden-amber-chocolate eyes and she thought he looked… well, she didn't know how he looked, other than beautiful.
He stood up slowly and for one brief, terrifying, irrational moment, she thought he was going to walk away. But he simply walked around the table, his hand still in hers and he pulled her up out of her chair and wrapped his arms around her in the most wonderful embrace she had ever felt. "Sarah, I knew it would be impossible not to fall in love with you the moment I looked into those amazing blue eyes of yours.
"I guess I did know you were flirting with me, that first day but I made myself not believe it because it scared me. I think maybe that's really why I didn't call you back when you left your card. I was scared because I knew that if you were at all any kind of interesting person that I was going to be lost. I wouldn't be able to help falling in love with you.
"And then not only were you the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen, you were also the most interesting person I'd ever met. But then the most amazing thing of all happened; when I fell in love with you, I didn't get lost, I got found. I was already lost, and you helped me find my way back. My way back to the person I buried under that pain and loss after Stanford."
She realized that he'd actually picked her up during that little speech, her toes dangling an inch of the ground as he held her, and she held him back. He set her down, put his hands on the side of her face and said, "I've been in love with you since you broke that Russian dude's hand." He said softly. "Every moment after that has only increased that love to the point that sometimes I feel like I'm going to burst with it, or float away or some equally ridiculous, sappy analogy that only a guy this much in love can come up with. I love you too, Sarah. So much." Then he kissed her, and she kissed him, and she felt like she could just stand there kissing him until the world fell to dust around them.
She'd never known one person could hold onto this much joy and happiness all at once. She understood what he meant about feeling she was going to burst with it. But she also understood they still had a lot to cover, so she pulled out of the kiss and looked at him. He smiled at her with one of those full body smiles of his and she had to consciously restrain herself.
"I need your help here, Chuck. I've got so much to tell you but all I can think about is kissing you." His smile deepened which really didn't help. She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths, then opened them. Yeah, that didn't help either. One step at a time. First, sit down. "Ok, Let's sit down again. We've got a lot to cover, OK?" They sat down but continued to hold hands while she talked. "Ok, here goes." She took a deep breath. "Chuck, I started looking into your Stanford situation yesterday morning. I found out what happened and why. I know everything."
He mouth fell open again. "But… how… what?" He started.
"Chuck, it's ok. Ultimately, this is very good news for you but some of it is going to be, well, hard to hear. I'm not going to lie, some of it is going to be upsetting." She said earnestly.
Chuck took a deep breath. "Ok, I guess, start at the beginning. I guess the first question I have is, why?"
"Because what happened to you didn't make any goddamn sense, and well, because I could, I guess." She explained. "I had the power to look into it, I have resources. So, I used them. I wanted to find out, for you and for me too."
"Wait, you used your… you know… work resources." He asked quietly.
She nodded again.
"Wow." He breathed, impressed. "Sarah, I mean I never would have asked you to do that. I meant it the other night that I've let all that stuff go. Really, all of it. You helped me do that. Having someone like you in my life has really shown me that I don't need that stupid degree to do the things I always wanted to do. You go to college for the knowledge they give you while you're there, not the stupid piece of paper with fancy calligraphy they give you at the end."
Sarah smiled. "That's really wonderful to hear, Chuck. I'm glad you feel that way, but you have to be honest about it too, right? That piece of paper with the fancy calligraphy has value. That's the thing that employers look at and if you have it, you make more money. It's just the way the world works, right?"
He nodded. "Yes, I understand that's true."
"Ok, so by Stanford denying you this tangible thing, it had a negative effect on your life. Forget everything else about how that all went down. Just think about going out into the workforce. On one hand you're a Stanford graduate, and on the other, you were kicked out for cheating. What's the variable in potential income for those two scenarios?" She asked simply.
Chuck whistled softly. "Yeah, I see what you're getting at. In one of those scenarios I'm making six figures easy, in the other I'm barely employable. I'm a nerd herder."
She nodded. "Exactly, Chuck. So, by denying you your degree, which you earned, they negatively impacted your future earning potential. It's quantifiable."
"Yes, it makes perfect sense and I sort of knew all that, but just never really internalized it, I guess.." He said. "But don't leave me hanging! What did you find out?" He asked, suddenly very curious.
"Well, bear with me here, I feel like I should start at the beginning and walk through everything step-by-step. I think that will answer questions you're going to have as we go."
He nodded. "OK."
"So, the first thing I looked into was what happens when a student is accused of cheating. If they're paying their own way, it doesn't have the same implications as someone who's on a scholarship. Then the rules get sticky because there's money involved. Potentially a lot of money."
"Right, and I was on a scholarship."
"Exactly. So, when a scholarship student is accused of cheating, it's a big deal. The school has specific, state mandated rules they have to follow. There are supposed to be hearings and, reports have to be filed with the appropriate authorities. If the student is ultimately found guilty of the cheating charge, they could be on the hook for paying back their scholarship funds." Chucks eyes got wide at that. "Yeah, exactly. Serious consequences mean the rules have to be followed. In your case, they weren't. Not at all."
"Because I left without a fight. To protect Ellie." Chuck said, remembering.
"Well, sort of, but yeah, that's the part that didn't sit well with me. That felt personal. Why would a professor do something like that? I had to find out. And you leaving voluntarily doesn't release the University from those rules. The only thing that could do that is if you signed a waiver and confession admitting to the cheating, but then they'd just take those documents and add them to the report they have to file with the authorities."
"That all makes perfect sense. Why didn't Fleming make me sign a waiver?" He said smiling.
"Before I get into that, I have a question I have to ask you. It's related, trust me." He nodded. "You were accused specifically of cheating on your Psychology and Symbolism final, right?" He nodded again. "Part of that test included a section on something called "Encoded Images", right?" Another thoughtful nod. "What can you tell me about that section? What exactly are encoded Images?"
"Well, it's really a pretty fascinating topic but we could be here all night. The short version is that your brain captures everything your eyes see – everything. Some of the things you consciously recognize, but the vast majority of it, you don't. But, it's still in there," he tapped the side of his head. "Just kind of waiting to be accessed, but it's in sort of a hidden part of your brain that you don't have conscious access to. There might be a way to tap into that secret storage place your brain keeps all the things you see. Encoded Images could be a way to do that. Say I show you a picture of a bird in flight, but really that picture has other information encoded into it, like information regarding the operation of a helicopter's tail rotor. Now let's say I show you a thousand images, and all those images together have all the encoded information you need to actually fly a helicopter. The various pictures you did see, which is stored in your conscious mind creates a kind of link to the encoded data that you saw but didn't consciously register. If we could implant those images in your brain, we could theoretically teach someone everything they need to know about how to fly a helicopter in like 30 seconds. The information is literally encoded into their brain subliminally."
"Holy shit!" Sarah exclaimed. "Is that really possible?"
"It's still theoretical, but the baseline science is sound, so, yes." He replied.
"That's a little terrifying." She said, thinking about the implications.
"Yeah, like any new technology, the opportunities for misuse are pretty significant." He admitted
"Ok, well thank you for clarifying that. It adds a new dimension to all this." She paused and looked at him. "So now we're going to get into the meat of what I found Chuck, and I'm obligated to tell you that this information is secret. You can't share this with anyone. Not Ellie, not Awesome, not Morgan. No one. You and I should probably avoid talking about this in the future."
"Ok, Sarah, you're starting to freak me out a little." Chuck said with wide eyes.
"Sorry, don't freak out, I just had to tell you that. Chuck, Professor Fleming was a CIA recruiter." She said simply.
He looked stunned, like she expected. "A CIA recruiter." He said.
"Yes, it's pretty common for the more prestigious schools to have active recruitment for government agencies going on sort of behind the scenes. It's hard to find good people so you go where the good people are. And they want young people because they're easier to mold. Universities are perfect recruitment centers."
He nodded. "Ok, that makes sense. Fleming worked for the CIA to find new talent."
"Yes, well that was just one of his jobs. He was also working as an agency scientist, and that test on the final? The encoded images section? That was actually a CIA test he designed to find people who were specially suited for a new program centered around that technology."
Chuck looked confused. "Ok?"
"Chuck, you scored higher on that section of the test than anyone ever had before. Like, way higher. It meant that the CIA was going to want to recruit you."
"Then why did Fleming accuse me of cheating?" He asked, still confused.
"He was ordered to by a field agent." Sarah said. "In the hierarchy of the CIA, field agents have greater authority than analysts or recruiters or even scientists in some circumstances. So, when he was ordered to accuse you of cheating, he didn't really have a lot of choices."
"I don't understand, why would a field agent want me kicked out of school? How would a field agent even know or care about me?"
"It wasn't about getting you kicked out of school, it was about keeping you off the CIA's radar." Sarah took a breath, then continued. "Chuck, if you had been approached by Fleming at the end of senior year, would you have wanted to join the CIA? Leave your friends and family? This encoded images project was paid for by a joint military/CIA black operations slush fund. That means that after graduation, you would have immediately been sent to a military training academy – maybe The Farm at Langley where I was trained, or maybe some other military boot camp, but it would have been rigorous, military based training. Shooting, fighting. Training you to be a killer. They would have tried to make you into a field agent as part of that program. The kind of person I thought I was before I met you, the one who was starting to feel like a monster inside." She wanted to convey what that really meant.
Chuck didn't have to think about it for long. "No, I can honestly say I would not have wanted that. I can see working for the government because you want to help people, but I couldn't kill anyone. Not unless someone I loved was being threatened." He shook his head. "No, I would definitely not have wanted that."
Sarah was visibly relieved. "Chuck, you scored so high on that test that the CIA wouldn't have given you any choice. It's called forced recruitment. It's incredibly rare, but it does happen. They would tried any number of different methods to get you to sign up on your own, but if none of that worked, they would have eventually threatened you or your family to get you to cooperate. And they would have meant it."
Chuck looked shocked. "They really would have coerced me into joining the CIA?"
"Yes." She said emphatically. "And the field agent who ordered Fleming to accuse you of cheating knew that would happen. He also knew it's not what you would have wanted. He was scared for you, he thought it could possibly kill you, or at the least, change you into a different person, a killer. Either way, he knew it would destroy Chuck Bartowski. This was the only thing he could think of to protect you. He destroyed your life to protect it because he didn't see any other way."
"Sarah, who was this field agent?" Chuck asked. She thought maybe he had figured it out and just needed to hear the words.
"Chuck, it was Bryce. He was recruited at the beginning of freshman year. By senior year he'd been a field agent for nearly two years."
"Oh, my God." Chuck said softly. "Bryce. He was the one person who never called me afterwards. And besides Jill, his was the one call I would have answered."
"I'm so sorry, Chuck." Sarah had to push on, they were running out of time. Ellie was waiting. "Chuck, Jill was CIA too. She was recruited at the beginning of your senior year and Bryce was her handler. That's sort of an agent's combination boss and mentor, but it's a little more complicated than that. When he told her about you possibly being forced to join, she agreed with his plan to frame you for cheating. It broke her heart to do it, but she didn't see any other way either."
Chuck looked shocked for a moment, then angry. "Goddamn it!" He exclaimed suddenly. "Is everybody around me with the fucking CIA!" he almost shouted.
Sarah grabbed his hand again. "Chuck, shhh. Please."
He ran his free hand through his hair and looked abashed. "I'm sorry, it's not your fault."
"Chuck, I know it might seem strange that so many people around you were CIA, and yeah, it kind of is, but you were just moving in really advanced circles. You were surrounded by smart, strong, talented people. Exactly the type of people the CIA wants. It's very possible that Bryce and Jill were the only two people recruited in that time frame. It's a ridiculous coincidence, but around you ridiculous coincidences seem to be the norm. I've seen it myself."
Chuck paused for a few moments to calm down and gather his thoughts. "Ok, so Bryce and Professor Fleming conspired to frame me for cheating. They did this to get me kicked out of school so I wouldn't be force recruited into the CIA and Jill backed them up."
Sarah nodded.
"I guess knowing all this does help. Will help, I don't know, give me closure I suppose? Eventually?" Chuck sighed. "Thank you for telling me all this, Sarah." He said looking at her.
"I'm not done yet." She said simply.
"What else is there? I know what happened now and why?" He said, confused once again.
"I couldn't leave it there, Chuck. I couldn't sit with the injustice of it all. So, I sort of unraveled it."
"What do you mean?"
"It was a false accusation of cheating against a scholarship student and they didn't follow the rules. Your scholarship provider could have come after you at any time, Chuck. They still could because there's two years left until the statute of limitations runs out. That's why Fleming threatened Ellie. He needed you to back down without because he knew the charge wouldn't stand up to a fight. That's probably why he didn't have you sign a waiver because that would have explained that you might be on the hook to pay back your scholarship funds, and since there's no way you could do that, you'd be forced to fight the charges. They didn't actually have any evidence, Chuck. The charge against you was fraudulent." She paused. "So anyway, I kick started the investigation to clear your name." She added quietly.
It took him a long moment to respond. "But won't that make the CIA be interested in me again?" He seemed on the verge of panic.
"No! Absolutely not, Chuck. The CIA is no longer interested in you! My boss told me that himself." She said quickly, emphatically.
He was visibly relieved. "Ok, good."
"But, the investigation still happened and it's basically over. Chuck, you're going to get a call from an FBI lawyer tomorrow."
He looked stunned. "What, why?"
"Fleming was forced to recant his accusation of cheating against you. Since he and Stanford didn't follow any of the rules, it means they committed fraud against you. They're going to offer you a settlement, so you don't sue them."
"Stanford is going to offer me a settlement, so I don't sue them?" He said slowly, trying to understand the words.
"Yes, Chuck." She said smiling.
"What exactly are they going to offer me as part of this settlement?" He asked, again very slowly.
"Well, for starters, you're getting your degree, Chuck. Back dated to the date of your graduation and with your Summa Cum Laude recognition."
Chuck's voice fell to a hoarse whisper. "Stanford is giving me my degree?"
"Yes, but that's not all." Sarah said smiling.
"It's not?" He said, still whispering.
"Remember what we were talking about earlier. How the degree has a quantifiable monetary value?"
"Yes." She could barely hear him.
"Chuck, they are authorized to pay you one million dollars."
She saw the blood drain from his face, and she reacted quickly to catch him as he passed out and fell forward while sitting at the table.
It only took a few moments to revive him and she though a walk would help him regain his equilibrium, so she helped him walk to her car. A few minutes later, Sarah was driving them to Chuck's apartment, and she thought he might be in a minor state of shock.
"Sarah, why are they going to offer me so much money?" He eventually asked.
"Just so you know, they'll probably start at five hundred thousand, and make you negotiate to get the full million that has been earmarked. As to why, a couple of reasons, but the main one is to make you go away. And the CIA wants to protect Fleming. His work on the encoded images thing is important to them. He's losing his teaching credentials, but he's going to be running a CIA lab and focusing on his work. You have to take the settlement Chuck. The CIA won't let this become a court battle. Fleming is too important to them."
"Oh, I fully intend to take the settlement. How do I look at a five hundred thousand dollar offer and then tell them to double it? What kind of douche bag does that?"
"Chuck, I'm not going to tell you what to do here. If you want to take the five hundred, it's up to you. But if you do, you're just giving the Stanford board of trustees five hundred thousand dollars to play with however they want with no reporting or oversight. If you want to give Stanford five hundred thousand then take the million and make a five hundred thousand dollar donation. Then at least they'll have to account for it in their budget." Sarah said
"How do you know it's a million?" Chuck asked
"Chuck, that money is more about protecting Fleming than anything else. The CIA is footing the bill through a front group. A foundation that Stanford has a relationship with. The cover story is that this foundation wants Fleming to run a research lab, which is all true. So, they are providing the money to Stanford to cover the settlement, so Stanford doesn't go after Fleming. Since Stanford is off the hook for covering the settlement, and Fleming is quitting to go run this lab, everybody is happy. The CIA gets Fleming for his research, Stanford doesn't have to pay anything even though they technically broke the rules, and you get your degree and a nice payday. I gotta tell you, Chuck, in my line of work, these kind of scenario's where everybody walks away happy? They don't happen often. More like never."
"I understand all that, but how do you know it's a million specifically." He asked again, curiously.
She had hoped she could avoid having to admit to this part. "Because I'm the one who set all this up, Chuck." She sighed.
"Wow." He said so softly she could barely hear him over the wind noise with the convertible top down.
"Chuck, is that a good wow, or a bad wow?" She asked
"In what universe could it possibly be a bad wow?" He asked, confused again. "It's a wow, like I'm holding a winning lottery ticket in my hand, only this lottery ticket comes not just with a payday, it also comes with one of the most amazing women who ever walked the earth telling me she loves me. Oh, and as a nice little cherry on top, I get that degree that I couldn't stop thinking about for the last five years and is suddenly the least important thing in the whole mix."
"You were overdue for some good news, Chuck. I think we're both a little overdue."
"How is this going to work tomorrow? Like, logistically?"
"Well, I'm expecting the FBI will call you relatively early because the meeting to close this all out is scheduled for 2pm. So, expect a call no later than 10am, by which point you will be at the Buy More. They will call your cell phone so keep it on you. The lawyer will ask you to come in regarding your Stanford expulsion, but they won't explain anything over the phone. Once you get there, they will sit you down and walk you through it all. A representative from Stanford will be there, probably their in-house counsel. They will explain to you that you were defrauded and that they recognize the fact, but they'll want you to sign a non-disclosure as part of the agreement. Stanford doesn't want to admit to any wrongdoing. They'll offer you your degree and like I said, and probably five hundred thousand as a starting offer. It's sort of understood that it's a negotiation, they offer, you counter and so forth. Whatever amount they offer, just say you want one million – tell them the rest is for defamation or pain and suffering or whatever. They will stop to confer but it won't mean anything because they're already authorized to do that. Like I said, it's not Stanford's money. There is a very slim chance they will start the process with the one million just to expedite things and if that's the case then just accept the offer. They might be a little disappointed they didn't get to keep a little to play with, but they won't push back. They won't want to risk looking bad to the foundation. So, they'll very quickly agree to the million before you have a chance to ask for more. Once you agree to the terms, you'll sign the paperwork. Then you wait while they messenger over a check for the agreed upon amount. That won't take too long because the bank is in the same building. They will have your degree on hand already. I imagine that part is done by now."
"Can you be there?" He asked.
"Chuck, I set this whole thing up with Stanford as a representative of the Tanaka Foundation, the front group providing the settlement funds. If I was there, it would have to be as part of the Stanford representatives. You'd have to pretend you don't know me. I can be if you want, but would that be weird for you? Having to pretend you don't know the woman you're in love with?" She said smiling at him. Wow, it feels so good to say that.
"Yeah, I think I can do that. So, if you can be, I'd like you to be there. And I like hearing you say, 'the woman you're in love with'." He said smiling. "And it sort of just sank in that this time tomorrow I could be holding a million dollar check in my hand."
"Keep in mind, you're not supposed to know about any of this, Chuck. This is all supposed to be a big shock to you tomorrow. Ostensibly, the reason Fleming did this was to keep you from having to pay back the scholarship funds for cheating. He broke the rules, he's been fired, and they want to make things right with you without actually admitting they did anything wrong."
"I don't think pretending to be stunned will be hard. I'll just think about how I feel right at this moment." He paused for a moment. "How much of this can we tell Ellie?"
"I'd say avoid talking to Ellie about this until next week after everything is settled. When it is time to tell her, you can say you talked to a lawyer and found all this out on your own and negotiated the settlement that way. We can't mention my involvement at all."
"I feel like I should be freaking out about all of this but thing my brain keeps coming back to?" Chuck looked at her expectantly.
She grinned at him. "What's that, Chuck?"
"You love me." He said as his smile and his eyes swelled her heart. She nodded.
"And you love me." She said, to which he nodded emphatically.
They spent the next few moments in silence while Sarah drove, and she let him marinate in all the information she had given him.
A thought occurred to her. "So, am I spending the night at your place tonight?"
"We're definitely spending the night together. I know Ellie won't care. Whether it's at my place or yours. You could stay with me. I have spare pajamas you could borrow if you need them. I get the feeling we'll be up a little late talking with Ellie tonight. Either way, today has been too momentous for me to not be with you tonight." He said simply.
"It's been pretty momentous for me as well. Now think back and tell me when you and I have ever slept in any clothing at all." She said with a grin.
"Good point." He said with a smile.
"Ok, we're here." Sarah said pulling up to the curb and looking at him intently. "You're going to be ok with not talking about this tonight, right?"
Chuck nodded. "Yeah, once we get in there and start talking about us and other stuff, it'll be fine. Are we going to tell them about our big step with each other?" He asked, smiling.
"You tell me. How do you think Ellie would respond seeing as how we've only been together a week. Oh, and happy anniversary by the way." She added leaning across the center console to kiss him.
"Happy anniversary." He said quietly, leaning in to meet her. He sighed softly as she pulled back. "As to the I love you thing? Honestly, she knows I'm there and she's worried about me. But as far as how quickly it happened, she'll understand. Something similar happened with her and Awesome that's happened to us. They had a crazy fast romance too. They had sex the first time earlier on than we did. I mean, at least we got through most of a first date!" He added laughing. "I'm sure you'll here that story."
"Well then, when it comes up I'll be sure to put her mind at ease." She paused for a moment. "You're stuck with me, Chuck."
"But we can still see other people, right? I mean I'm an eligible bachelor in LA and apparently I'm going to be a millionaire soon." Chuck said with a grin.
Sarah couldn't help but laugh at him. "You're such a nerd. But get it through your head, Bartowski. You're MY nerd."
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They walked in the front door together and Sarah had the bottles of wine in a small paper bag. She heard a woman yell from the other room, "Hang on, I'm coming, I'm coming." And Sarah saw an extremely attractive brunette come running in to the front room from what she guessed was the kitchen. She stopped when she saw them, and her mouth fell open looking at Sarah. For a moment Sarah thought maybe she had something on her shirt but then Chuck laughed.
"See, Haha! I told you, right?" He said victoriously.
The brunette gathered herself, "Chuck, you weren't kidding! Hi, I'm sorry! I'm Ellie! I'm Chuck's sister." She said pulling Sarah into a hug. "I'm sorry for staring, but with how Chuck has been going on about how beautiful you are, I couldn't help but think he was exaggerating or overcompensating!"
Sarah felt herself blushing. "Thank you very much, that's very sweet." She said hugging her back. "I brought these for you. Chuck told me you're a Malbec girl."
"Oh my God, that's perfect. That will go great with the pot roast. Would you like a glass now?"
"Um, sure, that would great, thank you." Sarah said.
"I'll help, sis." Chuck said. "Sarah, just make yourself at home. I'll get your wine." He gave her a peck on the cheek. "Ellie, where's Awesome?"
"His name is Devon. He's getting dressed. He had to go in today for an emergency and just got home a little while ago. He'll be out soon." Sarah heard her say.
A few moments later, Sarah heard a door close down a hallway off the main room and the poster boy for the stereotypical blonde haired, blue-eyed Southern California surfer walked into the room. "Never fear, Captain Awesome is here!" He said dramatically. He spotted her in the living room, walked over and shocked her by pulling her into a bear hug.
"You must be Sarah! I can't tell you how happy we are that you're a real girl! We were starting to wonder if Chuck had finally snapped and was dating a figment of his imagination." He said, sounding sincere.
"Haaaa. Very funny Awesome." Chuck said dryly, handing Sarah a glass of wine.
"And you weren't kidding, bro! She's easily the second most beautiful woman in California" Awesome said, giving her a wink. "But where's the first? Ellie?"
"I'm in the kitchen working on your dinner!"
"That's code for 'get your ass in here and help me'." He said quietly to Sarah, giving her another wink.
"I'm coming sweetie!" He yelled, walking quickly to the kitchen.
Sarah was completely flummoxed during the entire exchange with Captain Awesome, unable to get a word in. She looked at Chuck and laughed. "Oh my God, he's like a force of nature!" She said quietly.
Chuck smiled knowingly. "That is Captain Awesome!"
Chuck sat down on a couch and patted the seat next to him, so she sat down. "You're not going to show me your room?" She grinned at him.
"That's probably a bad idea. Besides, you've seen it."
"Mmm." She said taking a drink of wine and giving him a steamy look.
"Oooh, now who's starting something they can't finish?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." She said innocently.
Devon came out with a tray of appetizers.
"Ellie!" He yelled suddenly. "You need to get out here, they're making googly-eyes at each other!"
Ellie walked out with a glass of wine and rolled her eyes. "Oh my God, Devon, stop teasing them! I'm sorry, Sarah. My boyfriend is a giant man-child."
Sarah laughed. "No, he's right. We were making googly-eyes at each other when he came in. I'm afraid it's something that happens when I'm around Chuck!"
Ellie giggled and made a high pitched noise. "Sarah, I can't tell you how happy it makes me that a woman finally recognizes what a great guy my brother is!" She practically jumped on the couch next to Sarah.
"Ellie please do not embarrass me more than absolutely necessary tonight." Chuck pleaded.
"Ok, but I get to decide what absolutely necessary means. And it will just be nice for us all to move on from Lipless McBitchface."
Sarah almost choked on her wine. "How does that keep happening to me!" She asked. "I'm sorry, did you say…?"
Chuck interjected. "Yeah, that's what Ellie calls Jill."
"Do not say that woman's name in my home Chuck Bartowski – you know the rules!"
"Ellie's pretty protective of me. You know, full disclosure."
"Sarah, tell me he did not spend all night moaning about her when you guys met? Of course not, you're still here." She gave Chuck a meaningful look. "See what happens when you listen to me, Chuck? The girls stick around!"
"You would have been proud of him, Ellie. He didn't say a word about any of it. All night all he kept telling me was how nice I looked. And like two different people we met that first night told me he was "one of the good ones"." Sarah pushed a curl off his forehead. "I gotta say, it was a little intimidating." Sarah said smiling.
Ellie giggled, clapping and bouncing on the couch. "Ok, so tell me about how you guys first met. Chuck has just kind of vaguely said that you met at the Buy More while he was at work and you asked him out, which, oh my God, that so effing cool that you did that!"
Sarah shifted on the couch to face Ellie, leaning back into Chuck's shoulder. He lifted his arm so she could lean back into him more. "Ok, so I'd been having trouble with this phone my work gave me, the damn battery wouldn't say in and no one at work seemed to care and I was just at my wits end with it."
"Uh-huh." Ellie said smiling.
"So, I go into the Buy More to see if maybe someone there could help. I walk in and I see Chuck standing at the Nerd Herd kiosk and this little bearded man standing there who was just hard-core staring at me."
Ellie groaned and put her face in her hands. "Oh my God, that would be Morgan, that bearded little twerp!"
Sarah laughed. "No, Morgan's fine, he's harmless. But anyway, I can see he's saying something to Chuck-"
"Batman." Chuck interrupted and they all looked at him. "It was a line from Batman with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson." They were looking at him blankly. "The Joker sees a picture of Vicky Vale and says, 'Stop the press, who is that!' and we know it's Vicky Vale' So basically, that was Morgan's way of telling me that "Vicky Vale" was walking towards us. Or basically a tall, beautiful, long-legged blonde was walking towards us. Unfortunately, I was distracted on the phone and didn't realize that's what he was saying. I just heard him say 'Vicky Vale', so I did this stupid 'Vicky Vale' beatbox thing and made an ass out of myself." Chuck said blushing.
Sarah turned around and slapped his shoulder. "You stop, we talked about this." She said laughing. "You did not make an ass of yourself, I thought that beatbox thing was freaking adorable." She looked back at Ellie. "Seriously, I had been irritated with this phone thing for weeks, and then in ten seconds this guy totally charms me. You should have seen his face, Ellie. I'm standing right there while he's doing this Vicky Vale thing, then he does this double-take when he sees me, drops the phone and blushes like a tomato!"
"Uh, hello?" Chuck yelled. "I was embarrassed! I had no idea I was being charming, I just thought I was being like a.. Nerd squared or something."
Sarah giggled. "Aww, Chuck, sweetie. You were being a nerd-squared. THAT'S what was so charming!"
Ellie squealed with glee. "Ok, keep going!"
"Right, so then he finally asks me what I need, and I put my phone on the counter and he literally fixed in like 10 seconds, right there!" Sarah exclaimed. "Yeah! That thing that's been pissing me off for weeks, done, no problem!"
Devon piped up from the chair next to Chuck. "Way to go, bro! Charm the ladies with mad phone fixin' skills! That's awesome!" Then put his hand up for a high-five, but Chuck and Sarah were staring at him with open mouthed shock.
Chuck finally high-fived him. "Dude, I said the exact same freaking thing to her on our first date!"
"Devon! This is mine and Sarah's time" Ellie admonished affectionately. "Ignore them. Keep going!"
"Ok, so after he fixed my phone, I'm like who is this guy with his adorable curls and silly beatbox, and I want to talk to him some more and flirt so maybe he'll ask for my number, but then Ellie, the most charming thing I have ever seen happens."
Ellie's eyes were as big a saucers. "Tell me right now!"
"Wait a minute!" Chuck exclaimed. "The ballerina!" Sarah looked at him and nodded, biting her lip. "That's why you left your card?"
She nodded again, blushing.
He leaned forward and kissed her. "Sarah, that's so sweet!"
"If someone doesn't tell me about the ballerina, we're going to have a problem!" Ellie exclaimed.
Sarah laughed. "Ok, I'm wanting to talk more to this guy, and I can tell he wants to talk to me too, when suddenly a really distraught man comes running up with this little girl who's dressed as a ballerina. So, the dad had this new video camera and I guess he didn't know you needed to have a special tape for it, and so he missed recording his daughters recital. Ellie, what would any one of the other Buy More employees have done in that situation?"
"They would have been like-" Ellie makes her voice deep. "-whatever moron, guess you're out of luck. Sucks to be you." Ellie made a dismissive gesture with her hand. "And then like made monkey noises and flung poo."
Sarah cackled with laughter, while Chuck and Awesome just looked at each other, shrugged and nodded. Sarah continued, "And what do you think Chuck here did?"
"Aww, Chuck, what did you do?" Ellie asked sweetly. Chuck just shrugged and blushed.
"Ellie, he had all the other employees move a bunch of displays out of the way, created a stage for this little ballerina girl, put her music on the store speakers and recreated her recital right there in the Buy More and taped it for the dad! He even reassured the little girl when she nervous about being too tall. He told her that real ballerinas are tall. And she did so good! It was seriously the most charming thing I have ever seen."
"Chuck, that's amazing. Why didn't you tell us about that?" Ellie asked with tears threatening.
Chuck shrugged again. "I don't know, it was just kind of thing that happened."
"Ok, so what happened after that."
"Well by that time, I was getting close to being late for an appointment, and then when Chuck started walking back towards me, this other Green Shirt guy just started yelling at him. So, I wrote him a little note on one of my cards and left it on the counter and kinda snuck out."
"Wait, I'm confused. I thought you asked Chuck out. He didn't ask you out when he called you?"
Chuck winced and Sarah shook her head. "He didn't call me that night, or the next day."
"Bro! Not awesome." Devon said quietly, shaking his head.
"Chuck Bartowski, what is wrong with you?" Ellie yelled, throwing a pillow at him. "So, what happened next then?"
"I went back the next day and asked him if he was free to take me out and show me around because I'm new in the area and I don't know anyone."
Chuck jumped in. "Oh, no you don't!" He exclaimed looking at Sarah with a huge grin. "Ellie, she's trying to brush past her brutal flirting. Like I seriously almost passed out."
"What did she do?" Ellie asked softly.
"I was having a terrible day, Jeff and Lester were in rare form and I was losing it a little. I was at the kiosk and I had my head down on the desk when someone rings the bell. I thought it was Morgan messing with me so without looking, I grab his hand to tell him to stop bothering me and go away, but I immediately notice that instead of it being a furry man hand, it's this soft, delicate, very feminine hand, so I look up and it's Sarah looking like she just stepped off the cover of Vogue or something, and I realize I'm like, still holding her hand." He paused looking at her. "So, I drop her hand and I'm like, 'Sarah, hi. Are you having phone trouble again?' and she goes-" Chuck makes his voice breathy and feminine. "'Yeah, actually. I don't know if I can receive calls because I never received one from you.' And she's looking up at with these huge blue eyes and this expression like maybe I'm something edible and I think I forgot how to breath for a minute."
All three of them burst out laughing and Awesome said, "Sarah, you did not do that!"
Sarah was still laughing so she just nodded her head. She caught her breath and said, "Yeah, I totally did. And I was looking at him exactly like that because I thought he looked so delicious."
"That might be the coolest line I've ever heard!" Ellie said when she stopped laughing. "Ok, so you guys went out to dinner but then Chuck gets vague about what happened after that and why you were out all night."
It was Sarah's turn to blush. "Well, we went to this club and went dancing-"
Chuck winced again as Ellie screamed, "You got Chuck to DANCE?"
Sarah nodded and laughed. "Ellie, when he gets out of his own head, he's actually pretty smooth on the dance floor!"
Ellie looked dumbfounded. "My brother. Chuck. Smooth. On the dance floor?" Sarah nodded, smiling.
Chuck looked at Sarah and asked, "Should we tell them about Crazy Ivan?" Sarah's eyes got big and she shrugged shyly.
"Wait, who's Crazy Ivan?" Ellie asked
"Ok, so picture this. Chuck and I just had this delicious dinner, great conversation, everyone we meet is telling me what an incredible guy he is, we just had like an amazing 40 minutes dancing together. Everything is going like, seriously perfect. We were standing at the bar having some beers and just talking to each other, having a special intimate moment, kissing a little, and then this motherfu-, um, sorry. This asshole-"
"No, you can say motherfucker, I don't mind." Ellie said nonchalantly.
Sarah smiled. "Yeah, so this guy comes up behind me and fucking grabs my ass! Like squeezing my ass really freaking hard. I kinda lost my shit." Chuck spontaneously laughed at that.
"Oh my God, Sarah, I'm so sorry that happened. What did you do?"
"Um, I kinda broke his hand? Pretty sure I dislocated his thumb and tore some tendons and stuff in there."
"What? How? I mean good for you, but how?" Ellie asked.
Sarah shrugged. "I mean it wasn't hard. I've got a black belt in Aikido. There's actually a form you can practice for that exact scenario."
Ellie struggled for a few seconds. "Did you just say you have a black belt in.. Ikee..?"
"Aikido. Yes, I've been studying it since like high school." Sarah said evenly.
Devon spoke up. "Wow. Will you like, date me?" Everyone laughed and he caught a pillow in the face from Ellie.
"Shut up you jerk!" Ellie said. "Hey but why did you call this guy Crazy Ivan?"
Sarah looked at Chuck and shrugged, so Chuck picked up the story. "Ellie, I wish you could have seen it. It was seriously like something out of la femme Nikita or something. In like an instant she whips around and has this guy by the thumb – just the thumb, right? And he is standing way up on his tiptoes, screaming in agony but he's also like screaming words too, but in a foreign language, and I've seen enough movies to recognize that he's screaming in Russian."
"Okay..?" Ellie said, confused.
Sarah shrugged again. "I spent some time in Russia. For my job. I speak Russian." Ellie's mouth fell open.
"Ellie, it was surreal. By this time the bar has gone completely quiet, everyone is looking at us, and there's this stunning blonde holding a guy with his arm twisted behind him but just with his freaking thumb, which all twisted around and pointing the wrong way. And he's absolutely screaming something in Russian and then Sarah just starts screaming right back at him. In Russian. They were like having this screaming conversation in Russian while he's all jacked up on his tiptoes. It was the most amazing thing I have ever experienced." He blushed beet red. "Well, ahem, it was up to that moment anyway." Sarah smacked his shoulder again and blushed too.
"You guys are totally making this up." Ellie said.
"Hey wait a minute!" Devon interjected "Crazy Russian dude with a broken hand! Guys, what night was this? Was this a week ago? Last Thursday night, like a little before midnight?"
"Yeah, how did you know that?" Chuck asked.
"Ellie, at the hospital last Thursday, Crazy Russian dude with a broken hand in the ER! It was this drama last Thursday night in the ER. Crazy Russian dude with a broken hand is making a fuss, yelling knocking equipment over, so they call the cops and he was arrested. Turned out he had an outstanding warrant for sexual assault!" He looked at Sarah. "Holy shit, Sarah. You helped catch a bad guy! That's awesome!"
"Well, I'm glad he was arrested. I could just tell it was something he did all the time and I sure as hell wasn't going to let it stand."
"That is the craziest thing I've ever heard. What did you guys do after that? I imagine that kind of spoiled the intimate moments you guys were having."
Chuck coughed and blushed and then Sarah blushed too. "Um, not really? It sort of amped both of us up, I guess? That's when we left and, uh.. Went back to my hotel." Sarah said awkwardly.
Ellie's eyes got very wide. "Okay then, we can stop there with the needing to know what happened next part. I'm betting the pot roast is ready! Let's eat!"
"Oh, yes please. It smells wonderful!" Sarah said excitedly.
Ellie and Devon set the meal on the table and everyone took their seats. "Ok, I've got to ask something now, Sarah." Devon said as they were starting their meal.
"Sure."
"You mentioned that you spent some time in Russia for you job. What is it that you do?"
"Well, I was a Project and Logistics Manager for a Defense sub-contractor." Sarah said evenly "But I sort of quit my job yesterday?"
"No kidding? Why is that?" Devon said curiously.
"I've been wanting to make a change for a while and things out here just sort of came to a head. I figured now is the time."
Devon looked impressed. "Hey good for you. Way to be decisive. But, hey, you got to learn to speak Russian, right? What was it like living there?"
"Cold as hell. So, so cold. And it's absolute murder on your liver." She said laughing at their confusion.
"What do you mean?" Ellie asked.
"Seriously, you would not believe me if I told you how much vodka the average Russian drinks on any given day. They drink it at like every meal and in between meals. They put it in every beverage. It's insane."
"Oh my God! That's so unhealthy!" Ellie said, shocked.
"Yeah, it's like this running joke in the defense industry that if we ever did go to war with Russia, all we would have to do is bomb their distilleries, and they would surrender. Like they couldn't go to war without their vodka! And part of me thinks there's a nugget of truth in that statement. New cadets in the Russian military are given a pint of vodka as part of their government issue training package. Boots, socks, pants, shirts, toiletries and a pint of cheap vodka, on the first day of boot camp." Sarah said smiling. She loved being able to share some of the true things about her life in the field, and this was one of those things. Russians and their vodka.
"How did you end up out here in LA?" Ellie asked.
"I'd been working in DC for a while and just got fed up with the cutthroat culture out there. Everything is so politicized, and I just couldn't stand it anymore. I was thinking of quitting even then but instead asked if I could transfer out here and they said yes. But even after the transfer, I knew I wasn't happy."
"So, you think you're going to be around for a while?" Sarah saw the quick glance Devon gave Chuck as he asked the question.
"Yeah. I do." She said simply, looking at Chuck, who blushed right on cue.
Sarah took the opportunity to shift the topic of conversation. "What about you guys? How did you meet?"
Devon laughed and Ellie blushed. What was it with these Bartowski's and blushing? As soon as the thought occurred to her, she realized she had blushed more in the last week than in the last 10 years.
Devon spoke up first. "We met in an Epidemiology class our first day of medical school. The professor asked me a question that I got wrong and then Ellie answered it correctly. I was completely done after that, like she's beautiful and smart and I was completely smitten." Devon winked at Ellie and she blushed again. "Should we tell them what happened next?" He added.
"Devon! You stop talking immediately!" Ellie blushed furiously.
"Finally, I'm not the one being embarrassed!" Chuck said laughing. Chuck leaned over to Sarah conspiratorially and whispered quite loudly, "They did it in a supply closet!"
Devon barked a laugh and Sarah had to once again try to keep from spitting wine all over.
Ellie gave Chuck a withering stare. "You realize that payback is a bitch, right?" She said with a glint in her eye.
"Hey, you were going to embarrass me tonight no matter what!" Chuck said defensively.
Ellie took her turn to change the subject. "So, Sarah!" She said a little too emphatically. "Chuck told us that you got your degree in Political Science and International Affairs from Harvard!"
Sarah nodded. "I did, yes."
"Why did you choose that particular field of study?"
"Well, before I started at Harvard I kind of had this idea that I wanted to be a lawyer and that was the field that made the most sense at that time. And I really enjoyed the courses and material, but then after I got my BA, I sort of lost my interest in the academic stuff, I think?" Sarah said. "I just wanted to get out into the world and start working and being a lawyer sort of lost its appeal."
"Do you regret not going to law school?"
"Not at all." Sarah said simply.
Devon jumped in. "Now that you've quit your job, do you know what's next?"
"Well, to be honest, I'm not really sure. I have some money saved up, and I have a ton of vacation time that I'll get cashed out on, so I have a little time to figure things out." She thought for a moment. "I do have some things to wrap up in DC, personal stuff to kind of finalize."
"Like what?"
"Well, when I first transferred out here, I wasn't sure it was going to be a permanent move, so I still have my condo in DC to clean up and put on the market. And I need to get serious about finding a place out here. I've been staying at the Marriot Suites for over a month now."
Devon was surprised to hear that. "No kidding? Isn't that crazy expensive?"
"I don't really know how much it costs. The bill was going directly to my employer, but I suppose it's pretty expensive. I know they have a deal with the Hotel." Sarah shrugged.
"Um, I'm sorry if I'm getting too personal here, but you mentioned that you weren't sure moving out here was going to be permanent, but you've only been here less than two months and now you've quit your job and it's definitely going to be permanent?" Ellie asked
"No, you're fine. It's not too personal at all, really you can ask me anything." Sarah said quickly. "Yeah, it's definitely a permanent thing. I was actually born in Lakeside down near San Diego, and even though I haven't lived in California for a really long time, it feels natural for me to be here. It's a little like coming home actually. And I have no ties to DC at all, other than my Condo, which was really just a place to sleep, eat and keep my stuff. I traveled quite a bit for my job. I think it will be nice to settle into a place for a while." She realized at some point she'd started looking at Chuck while she was talking even though it was Ellie who asked the question. And she didn't think she'd ever shared so much truth about herself in one conversation except with Chuck. She cleared her throat and looked at Ellie. "So, yeah, I'm moving here permanently. I sort of told Chuck earlier he was stuck with me." She smiled noticing that Ellie was beaming as was Chuck and Awesome had a little bit of a sly smile going on.
Chuck suddenly changed the topic. "Um, Ellie, just so you know, Sarah is probably spending the night here tonight?" It was a given that he would blush as he said this.
"Um, yeah, of course. It's your apartment too, Chuck." Ellie said, blushing as well.
Sarah just laughed and looked at Awesome. "What is it with these two and the incessant blushing?"
"I don't know about you, Sarah, but that's like one of my favorite things about Ellie." He said smiling.
"I know, right!" Sarah exclaimed. "It's so freaking adorable!"
Ellie coughed. "Ok, I want you to say something in Russian right now, so we have something else to talk about!" Ellie said quickly.
Without even hesitating, Sarah said, "YA khochu, chtoby vy znali, chto ya vlyublen v vashego brata, no ya uzhasno delyus' svoimi chuvstvami."
Everybody's mouth fell open, and Awesome clapped. "Sarah, that was freaking awesome how you didn't even think about it!" He exclaimed.
"Now what does that mean?" Ellie asked.
"Um, I'll tell you later." Sarah said smiling.
A short while later, Sarah and Ellie were sitting on the couch together while Chuck and Awesome cleaned up the dishes and straightened up the kitchen.
"Does it really bother you when people call Devon 'Captain Awesome', or 'Awesome'?" Sarah asked.
Ellie laughed. "It did at first but that's because I thought they meant it in a slightly derogatory way, but they really didn't. It was always meant with true affection, it took me a while to realize it. Now I just sort of correct people without really thinking about it, and honestly, he fucking loves that nickname."
Sarah giggled. "When Chuck first told me about him, I thought I'd misunderstood him because he said it so casually, like everyone just knows who he is. I had to stop him and make him explain. Now I admit that it's hard to think of him as Devon. But I'll try to remember around you, so you don't have to correct me."
"It's fine, Sarah. It doesn't bother me, and it's just another excuse for me to give Chuck grief." She smiled. "So are you going to tell me what you said in Russian a few minutes ago?"
Sarah smiled and plucked at the hem of her blouse. "Part of what I said, and you'll learn this about me, is that I'm terrible with feelings. Like sharing my feelings. I always have been. I hate crying, I hate just being… emotional. It makes me feel weak, vulnerable. Does that make sense?"
Ellie nodded. "Sure, I can understand that. But if part of what you said was that you're terrible at sharing your feelings, then you must have been sharing your feelings. Because you can do that in a foreign language that no one else in the room understands. So how about this. If you ever want to tell me something about your feelings that you don't know how to, first, say it in Russian." Ellie said.
Sarah's eyes got wide. "Ellie, that seriously genius!"
Ellie smiled. "We Bartowski's have our moments." She paused. "Can you tell me the rest?"
"I'm in love with your brother!" Sarah said quickly, quietly. Then she sighed. "Why is that so hard? It shouldn't be hard, right? That should be something you want to share with someone's sibling?"
Ellie didn't say anything, she just leaned over and pulled Sarah into a tight hug. When she pulled back, Sarah could see Ellie was crying a little. Ellie pulled a tissue out of a box nearby and dabbed her eyes. "You will learn that I have no problem at all sharing my emotions, and right now I'm just very happy." She gave Sarah a slightly sterner look. "Chuck is a great guy. It has killed me to see him this way these past few years. Since Stanford. I assume you know all about Stanford?" Ellie asked.
Sarah nodded. "I know everything."
"I can see such an amazing difference in him these past couple of days. It's like living with a different person and I was a little scared for him. I don't think is feet have touched the floor since he came home Wednesday morning. Which reminds me, so not cool stealing him away again Tuesday night." She laughed. "Obviously I've only seen him for very brief moments over the last week, but that's enough." She looked through the opening in the cabinets that passed through into the kitchen, watching Chuck and Devon clean up. "It's like the light is back in his eyes. Chuck is back." She looked back at Sarah, the stern look coming back. "But please, Sarah. Don't hurt him. I don't think he could handle it, but I know I couldn't. These past five years have been almost like when our dad started disappearing for weeks or months at a time. It closed him down."
Sarah nodded. "Ellie, one thing I can tell you, as bad as the place that Chuck was in when we met, the place I was in was worse. It was worse in a lot of ways. What it boils down to is that I was just as lost as he was, and he brought me out of that place every bit as much as I brought him back from his." Sarah found herself watching him in the kitchen, goofing off with Awesome as much as cleaning. "He and I have had this conversation. Our natural chemistry, that incredible spark we had? It would have been more than enough for us to get together. But the timing was just... Sublime. Otherworldly. It amplified our innate attraction to levels that scared me, if I'm honest. Like the universe said, ok, I'm done fucking you two over - go be happy." She groaned at herself. "Ugh, that was a terrible analogy."
Ellie smiled, still dabbing tears with a tissue. "No, it wasn't" She said simply.
"What I can tell you is that I will fucking kill anyone who tries to hurt, Chuck." Ellie's eye's widened at the force in Sarah's voice and she smiled. "And I could never hurt him myself. He showed me what's possible." Sarah said, shrugging.
"Ok, that conversation done. Moving on." Ellie blushed. "Something you should know if you're going to be spending nights here. The walls in this apartment are on the thin side. Devon and I have learned to cope, but I often have to keep a pillow nearby." She blushed harder. "To scream into."
Sarah laughed and blushed a little too. "Um, that sort of leads me to another question and another admission that might surprise you." She took a deep breath. "Part of the Sarah Walker plane load of baggage is that I've never had a serious long term relationship before." Sarah admitted. "I was kind of late bloomer you could say. I was sort of an awkward teenager, and then after high school I went into Harvard and sort of threw myself into that with all my focus, and then I got my job and then focused all my energy into that. My relationship history is spotty at best."
Ellie smiled. "If that's the worst of you're baggage, I think you'll be just fine." Ellie said honestly.
Sarah smile shyly. "Well, I find myself wondering if I should ask Chuck to move in with me when I find an apartment out here, but it sounds insane considering we've only known each other a week. But I will admit that Chuck and I work pretty well when we own our crazy and just kind of go with it." Sarah looked at Ellie, who's mouth had dropped open in shock. "Oh, my god, it's crazy isn't it? I'm completely crazy?" Sarah asked genuinely. "Ellie help me out here! How did it work with you and Devon?"
Ellie closed her mouth and took a breath. "Sarah, I'm not going to lie that was a lot to unpack. So, yes, moving in together is a monumental step. And it was a little different for me and Devon. We were in medical school together and then we got internships at the same hospital and then we started our residencies. We were working all the time. He moved in here with me because we only really saw each other at the hospital. And we got tired of doing it in on-call rooms or supply closets. It was embarrassing." She said blushing again. "Anyway, I don't think the moving in question is one I can really help you with. I can tell you a few things. Chuck is incredibly responsible, he makes a pittance, but he pays a third of the rent here, which is probably half his take home pay. And he's never been late with rent once, I never have to ask. Now I will admit that Devon and I pretty much buy all the food, but I don't really care about that. He's always been very tidy. I think he got into that habit after our mom left to help make things easier on me."
Sarah nodded. "He talked a little about that." She said smiling.
Ellie nodded and continued. "And I know you've affectionately called him a nerd a few times tonight, but I don't know if you've seen the full extent of it. Are you prepared to have a Tron poster on your bedroom wall?" Ellie asked, her voice full of amused scorn. "Comic books everywhere, action figures everywhere. The man is a capital 'N' Nerd." Ellie said.
Sarah laughed. "I actually love that Tron poster. It's just so HIM!" She said with pure affection. "Now would it go in our bedroom? No, probably not. But I would have no problem with it going in some other place of honor in an apartment we shared."
Ellie looked thoughtful for a moment then looked at Sarah with a solemn expression. "When you think of living here in LA, and you think of Chuck being there all the time with you, and all the uncomfortable private moments you guys have probably avoided this past week – ahem, potty time and that time of the month time – how does that make you feel? And keep in mind that just because Chuck isn't there with you all the time, it doesn't mean that he won't be there a lot of the time or even most of the time. You guys have been moving at the speed of light since you met, and there's nothing wrong with that. Like you heard, Devon and I were on each other within an hour of meeting and never looked back. But maybe this is an opportunity to get a handle on things and be more deliberate with your choices?" Ellie said, sounding unsure.
Sarah looked at Ellie with a little bit of awe in her expression. "Ellie, you're a goddamn genius! Is that the second time I've said that to you?" Sarah laughed quietly. "I mean, I love the idea of Chuck being around all the time, but you sort of just made me realize that I might have an overly romanticized concept of what that would look like." Sarah shook her head. "You're sort of becoming my advice guru now, you realize that right? Is that OK?"
"Are you kidding me?" Ellie said with a laugh. "I fucking love telling people how to live their lives!"
Sarah was cracking up at that as Chuck and Awesome walked into the living room with coffee and tiramisu for desert.
"What do you think, Chuck? Ten-to-one odds they were talking about you." Awesome said.
Ellie snorted. "I'll have you know we were talking about me and my genius advice and how everyone would be so much happier if they just did what I told them to do."
Chuck burst out laughing. "I don't know if Morgan would agree with that sentiment. Didn't you tell him to crawl up his own ass and die last week?"
Sarah's eyes got wide. "What's wrong with Morgan? He seems so harmless." She asked, curious.
Chuck laughed again. "Yeah, Morgan has had a little boy crush on Ellie since he was six, and he won't let it go. He keeps calling Awesome 'a fling' that Ellie is having even thought it's been what, ten years now?" He asked, looking at Ellie.
"Nine years." Ellie said, giving Awesome a kiss.
Chuck shivered. "Ok, none of that or I'm gonna start macking on my girl in front of you guys as well."
Sarah laughed. "Oh, you will, huh?"
"Absolutely! I'll just give you the Bartowski eyebrow dance and you won't be able to control yourself." He said, as his thick eyebrows started moving up and down his forehead independently of each other.
Sarah gracefully leapt into his lap and started pecking little kisses all over his face for several long seconds, then suddenly feigned a look of confusion and started waving her face with her hand. "Oh, my! I seem to have lost control of myself." She said in a perfect southern belle accent, while Chuck looked completely befuddled. Once he came to his senses, Chuck eventually joined in with the laughter as his expense.
A/N: I find that I enjoy writing the secondary characters almost as much as Sarah and Chuck. And while I know that Chuck was the lead of the show itself, I always thought Sarah was the more interesting character. She had more depth than Chuck did to start, grew more through the series, then suffered the greatest loss at the end of it. For Chuck, it was more about his unrequited love for Sarah that drove the first couple of years, while Sarah had love for him that she couldn't express because she felt it would put him at risk. She was wrong, of course, but this just made her more human to me. I don't know why I shared all that, but there it is.