A/N: Hi, this is back, doing what it wants, not listening to me.

Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck

Sarah awoke from a deep sleep, smelling bacon. She sat up and winced, her body protesting from the fight she had been in the night before. She pulled back the covers and looked at her leg. The bandage covered the wound, but she could see the discoloration of the skin around it. There had been no seepage of blood, which was good news. She gently bent her leg, wincing. She discovered the cane that had been brought for her, huffed out a breath and grabbing it, headed for the bathroom.

After she finished, she made her way into the kitchen, where Chuck was humming while making breakfast. "Pulls out a bullet, sews up your wound, makes you breakfast… how the hell are you single, Chuck?" she asked, making him laugh.

"Oh, no one wants to date me. I'm hung up on someone," he said, grabbing the pan. Jerking it, he expertly flipped an omelet, it landing perfectly on the other side.

"Show off," she muttered, grinning at him. He grinned at her, and plated the omelet. Walking over to the fridge, he brought her orange juice and a small container. He pushed the container in front of her. "What's this?"

"Yogurt," he told her, giving her a look. "Eat it." She gave him a look. "Ellie said you should."

Sarah rolled her eyes at him, opened it, and took a bite. She gave him a look. Chuck just smiled. "When did they make rocky road yogurt?" Chuck shrugged and went back to the stove. "Can I say something?"

"You can say anything to me, Sarah," Chuck told her.

"Something happened to you… not bad or anything… but something happened." Chuck turned off the stove, flipping a towel over his shoulder as he turned toward her. He leaned onto the counter, his hands behind him. "You weren't this confident before."

"I'm not exactly uber-confident," Chuck replied.

"No," Sarah said shaking her head. "But… you know you. You know who you are."

Chuck tilted his head to the side, grinning. "Uh, it's sort of a lot, and I promise, I'll tell you. We literally can't do anything for a few days, given your leg." He pushed off the counter, walked over, and grabbed a bag. "Ellie and Awesome went clothes shopping at some second-hand stores, in cash, so I hope these fit."

"Thank you so much," she told him, a grateful look on his face. "So, who's the idiot that has spurned you?" Chuck chuckled at that. "Come on, you're a great guy, hell of a cook, and can operate in an emergency."

"It's more of an unrequited love," Chuck told her. "Mind if I look at your leg?" he asked, nodding toward it.

"It's right there," she said with a shrug and a smirk as she took a bite of her eggs. She paused, letting a low moan escape her throat. "Okay, she really isa moron."

"I don't think she knows," Chuck said, walking over and looking at the injury. He looked up at her, and she nodded. He gently pulled back the dressing. "Not irritated, very little heat," he muttered. He put the dressing back. "After you eat, I need to change the dressing. I suggest you wear shorts, so as not to irritate it for a day or three."

"You remember that bike ride we went on?" Sarah asked. Chuck nodded. "Do you remember what you told me before you got on that bike?"

"I had never ridden a bike without training wheels." Chuck smiled, thinking back to those days when they were kids.

"And do you remember what I told you?" Sarah asked. Chuck nodded. "I had your back, no matter what," she reminded him. "So, tell me."

"She's amazing," Chuck said with a shrug. "And she is out of my league, and that's okay."

"Chuck Bartowski, I do not believe any woman is out of your league," Sarah told him.

"She is," Chuck assured her. "She has a lot going on in her life, and I don't want to be a problem to her, so I'm not going to say anything."

"How long have you been in love with her?" Sarah asked. Chuck gave her a look. "Come on, Chuck, I know you. Every time you mention 'her' you look like you do when talking about a comic book, or a computer." Chuck snorted laughter. "So, how long?"

"I think ever since I met her, if I'm being honest," Chuck said softly. "I'm gonna go grab a shower. You finish, and then we'll work on that dressing."

"Are you gonna give me a sponge bath?" Sarah asked him. He slowly turned around, shaking his head when he saw the grin on her face. He walked back over, stopping right in front of her.

"If you really wanted me to, I would," Chuck said softly. Sarah's eyes went wide. He winked at her and continued on his way.

"I am absolutely sure that no one is out of your league, Chuck," she muttered to herself. She took another bite of the omelet.

"Damn," she nearly moaned.

}o{

Sarah knocked on his door, and Chuck yelled for her to come in. She had given herself a bath in the sink, then made her way to Chuck's room so he could work on her leg. She pushed the door open, and her jaw dropped as she saw him, wearing only a pair of jeans and barefoot.

It was graphically apparent Chuck had been working out with Devon. While he wasn't ripped, there were muscles there that she knew were not there the last time she had seen him when they were kids.

"Oops, sorry… should have put a shirt on."

"Nope," she said, waving her hand, trying to blow it off. "I mean, you seen one tall lanky nerd shirtless…" she trailed off, and he narrowed his eyes at her. "What?"

"You almost seem… flustered," Chuck said.

"Chuck," she said, giving him a flat look.

"I said almost," Chuck replied, defending himself. He turned, found a shirt, and Sarah was both thankful and a little upset that he put it on. He turned back around, and she quickly schooled her features. "How are you feeling?"

"What do you mean?" Sarah asked. She was finding herself caught off-guard with Chuck. She had always found him sweet, kind, and just an amazing person. She had a crush on him her entire life, and she secretly hated whoever it was he was in love with. But now, him, looking like… that… that just wasn't freaking fair.

"Are you feeling any pain, fever, light-headedness?" She was feeling some light-headedness, but she suspected it was unrelated to her injury.

"Oh, I'm good," she told him.

"Yeah, you are," Chuck said. He then pressed his lips together as though he had realized what he had said. He cleared his throat. "Hop on the bed." Sarah couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at him. "Or we can just do it on the floor."

Sarah burst out laughing. She hobbled over to Chuck, and pulled him into a hug, surprising him. "God, I've missed you."

"Me too, Jenny… I mean Sarah," he corrected himself. She couldn't help herself; she kissed him on the cheek, pulled away, and went to the bed.

"She's an idiot," Sarah said, staring him in the eye. "You should tell her, because apparently she doesn't see a great guy in front of her."

"I wish you wouldn't talk about my dream girl like that," Chuck said, grinning as he gently pulled away the bandage.

"Practice on me," she blurted out.

"What?" he asked, looking at her, confused.

"What you want to say to her," Sarah said.

"It's not that simple," Chuck told her. "You know that sometimes, I can be tactile." She raised an eyebrow, and he began to laugh. "Yeah, even I can't say that with a straight face."

"You are, you're a hugger. Anything more, not really… except with me." Chuck had a mysterious smile on his face. She set her jaw. "Okay, Chuck, pretend I'm her, and be yourself. If you have to… whatever… I trust you."

"That's a lot of trust," Chuck told her.

"And I know you won't abuse it," she told him.

"Okay," he said. He sat on the bed, looking her right in the eye. He gently pushed a lock of hair behind her ear that had escaped. "I think I've loved you since I first met you. You're the strongest person I know, and at the same time, the greatest protector, the funniest, the kindest, and you're the person with the biggest heart. I don't think I deserve to be with you, but if I could, if you'd give me a chance, I'd do everything I could to be worthy of you." He leaned forward, paused, looking her right in the eye.

And then kissed her gently on the lips.

She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close, lost in the sensations of him. All too soon, she remembered why this was happening, and gently pulled away. She took a breath, trying to calm her heart.

"Too much?" Chuck asked.

"Jesus, Chuck," she said. "No, not too much. If that doesn't work, she absolutely is an idiot. Plus, you might want to bring some condoms." Chuck pulled his head back in shock. "I'm just saying. I know you; you weren't being smooth, you were speaking from the heart. And if that doesn't melt a woman's heart, she's a damn ice queen. Even if she is, you'd melt it."

"You think so?" Chuck asked, honestly.

"If you really love her that much, she deserves to know. No matter who she is."

"Okay," he said.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Chuck said.

"Good," Sarah told him patting him on the leg.

He moved back to her leg, gently applying the dressing. "I figured I might ought to wait until all of this is over, you know… it wouldn't be fair to her."

"I can see that," Sarah said. "So, how'd you learn to operate on my leg and cook like that?" Chuck grinned and laughed softly. "Tell me."

"Well, after my best friend was forced to leave, I might have become a bit insistent that my father find her, or I was going after her myself," Chuck said. "Not that you need a knight in shining armor. I just missed the hell out of you."

She gently rubbed his back, smiling at him. She hated whoever this woman was that Chuck loved. She didn't deserve him, that she was sure of. "What can I say, I'm charming as hell."

"Yeah, you are," Chuck agreed. He lifted his head, and had a faraway look on his face. "Dad had created this program, and he was trying to change it to fix a friend of his. But that's another story. Connected, but another story." He paused. "He told me that he had a program on a computer that would help find you, but he had to find someone to test it on. It was at that moment he got a phone call, and left me alone in the room with it. And the computer it was on."

"I don't understand," Sarah said.

"Dad had created a program that entered your brain, called the Intersect. It allowed you to learn things, how to do something. Obviously, you don't master it immediately, but you can figure a lot of things out on the fly if you need to."

"That's science fiction," Sarah protested.

"You tasted my eggs," he reminded her. She shook her head and snorted. "Out of curiosity… when I tell her, should I cook for her first?"

"God, you trying to get laid as well?" Sarah asked him, making both laugh. "You're gonna kill this poor girl. I mean, she's gonna die happy."

"Doubtful… she's pretty strong," Chuck said, shrugging. "Anyway, I hit the enter button so I could go find you, and the program went into my brain. Dad was really mad, but…" Chuck trailed off and shrugged. "There," he said, gently patting her leg. "Good as new. Well, in a few days, anyway."

She wrapped her arms around him again, and laid her head on his shoulder. "I'm going to make sure nothing happens to you so you can tell her."

"Just remember if something happens to you, I won't be able to tell her," Chuck told her. She pulled back and gave him a look. "Sarah, I got my best friend back. I was in the dumps for months, years, after you had to leave."

"I'm sorry, Chuck," she said softly.

"Don't you dare be sorry," Chuck told her, stroking her cheek with the backs of his fingers. She thought her skin would burn from the heat. "My father did this, all of this, and now we're gonna fix it, for you."

"I'm gonna fix it for you," she told him. She saw something flash in his eyes. He leaned forward and at the last second lifted his neck, making his lips land softly on her forehead. She shut her eyes and just enjoyed it. "I missed you so much."

"Missed you," Chuck told her. She yawned. "Feel free to nap. You are recovering from a gunshot, you know."

"I'd have to walk all the way back to my room," she said, pouting.

"You're more than welcome to sleep in my bed," Chuck told her.

"Your mystery woman might not appreciate that," Sarah told him.

He got an amused look on his face. "I'll deal with that when the time comes," he told her. He pulled the covers back as she lifted her hips. She snuggled into the bed, and Chuck covered her up. "Get some sleep." He walked to the door, turned out the light, turned, and looked at her. Sarah's eyes were closed, her breathing sounding like she was sleeping.

"Good night," he said softly, and he left.

"Good night," she replied just as softly. "I love you."

A/N: Oh good grief you two. I swear, I had a serious…what? You don't care, just keep doing what I'm doing? Fine. Oh, next time.

"What's wrong?" he asked. "Have I done something?"

Her face softened and she smiled at him. "You? Chuck, God, no, never. You've been everything for me, ever since I've known you." She put her hand to the back of her neck and rubbed it. "I guess that's a lie, you have done something." Chuck's look of worry returned. "You're here for me, again, and you always are."

I give up, see you next time. David