A/N: I know people have already written stories about Chuck and Sarah with at least one of the main changes from canon featured here, but not sure about both. However, I couldn't resist writing this near-canon, Charah AU.
Captainrick944 beta'd this for me. He helped me fix some anomalies in this chapter, but also gave great advice on how to flesh it out. Thanks, my friend. His very popular "Orion Cyber Security Systems" is still running and great read. Check it out, if you haven't already, you won't be disappointed.
As for this story:
It started with a guy who worked at Buy More. And then, one day, an old college friend of his sent him an email that was filled with secrets…
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Chapter 1: The Email
His twenty-sixth birthday seemed to be going the same as usual. A crappy day at work, then arriving home to find his sister and her boyfriend setting up the courtyard for a party that he didn't want. Chuck groaned.
Morgan had arrived with him, much to the annoyance of his sister, but she knew better than to complain. Morgan was, after all, his best friend, so having him attend Chuck's birthday party was to be expected. However, that didn't stop her from commenting, "You better mingle tonight."
He just rolled his eyes and headed to his bedroom, friend in tow.
Two hours later, still playing Call of Duty 3, they are interrupted by Ellie bursting into the room. "You need to get out there now!" she demanded.
"Why should I?" he fired back.
"Because I invited a lot of people to meet you on your birthday," she responded, looking annoyed.
"They're your friends, not mine," he retorted. "You mingle with them."
"I have put a lot of effort into persuading these women to come here," she snapped back. "You get out there and find yourself a girlfriend!"
"I don't want one," he muttered.
"You need to stop moping about Jill and get out there. Five years I've put up with this and with you working that crappy job at the Buy More. Make a change!"
"She's right, dude," Morgan chipped in. For once, Ellie smiled at the bearded man, who lapped it up. Morgan rose and opened the window.
Chuck was already glaring at his supposed friend. "What are you doing, Morg?"
"Leaving so you can 'mingle,'" Morgan replied, getting a further smile from Ellie.
Needless to say, the mingling was a disaster. It seemed that female doctors weren't interested in stories about his ex or video gaming.
Chuck retired to his bedroom after another 'talk' with his sister. He was even more depressed than normal. Before climbing into bed, he checked his email. There was one from someone he never expected to hear from again. Bryce F'ing Larkin! He was tempted to just delete it but decided he'd look at it when he was in a better mood and just headed to bed.
Stephen Bartowski watched his son with frustration. Like his daughter, he thought Chuck was wasting his time in the Buy More wallowing in self-pity over what happened in Stanford five years ago. The girlfriend disaster on top of the cheating fiasco.
Of course, Stephen had initially been happy with the latter. He had, after all, persuaded that CIA newbie to implicate Chuck in the cheating to avoid him being pulled into the CIA.
However, he hadn't expected the 'girlfriend' situation. That girl was just a gold digger, he had realized, so Chuck being an unsuitable 'target' caused her to shift her attention to the next best thing; his friend, Bryce Larkin. The effect on Chuck was unexpected. In hindsight, Stephen should have guessed this would happen, and he reprimanded himself for not thinking of it. However, Chuck had been safe, so he did nothing about it.
He had, of course, continued his development work. He still planned to remove the faulty Intersect, as it was now called, from his friend Hartley's head and enable both him and Mary to return home. However, seeing his son in the state he was in made him think about what he could do for the boy. What he discovered completely changed his mind about Chuck having this 'Intersect.'
Bryce was right about Fulcrum being after it and needing to stop them from getting it, but Stephen had planted the thought in his head that it would be good to send it to Chuck.
So, earlier that day, Bryce began executing Stephen's plan, while Stephen was standing by to alter the code from his remote lab. Government firewalls and security were no match for him.
"I'm there," Bryce told him. "Heading to the Intersect room to get it."
"It'll only take a minute to install the additional code," Stephen advised him.
"Better make it quick, then, because I won't have much time," Bryce replied.
Stephen had already connected and started the installation.
After a minute, Bryce said, "I need to download it now."
The installation finished. "Go," Stephen called out. He then sat back and hoped this would all work as he expected.
Now, after Bryce had indeed sent it to Chuck, Stephen watched his son, through the camera of his computer, heading to bed, rather than read the email, It was probably just as well. With the amount of alcohol Chuck had consumed, his head might not have coped.
Tomorrow was another day.
Chuck ignored the email when he got up, late for work. Thankfully, Morgan had turned up to chivy him along.
The email would get archived as usual, but Chuck could still look at it when he got home, if he didn't choose to delete it, that is.
The day went as expected until the afternoon when an angel walked into the store with a broken phone. Chuck fixed it with ease, and the banter between them made Chuck almost wish Morgan's prompts to make a pass at her were viable.
Of course, such a beauty would have no interest in him, so he did nothing. Besides, he had to help a stupid dad who forgot to put tape in the video camera, and when he got back to the Nerd Herd desk, she was gone.
Morgan showed him the card that she'd left, but Chuck knew he wouldn't follow up. After all, this Sarah Walker was too good for him.
Chuck didn't really notice what Morgan said or did. Harry Tang had delayed him getting back to the desk and had mentioned there was an Assistant Manager vacancy. 'Should I apply?'
Sarah's assessment of Chuck Bartowski when she met him was that he was probably innocent; he seemed like such a 'nice guy.' She winced at those words, but they really seemed true. She liked the guy and doubted he was a traitor.
He hadn't taken the hint and called her, and time was precious, so she decided to take action.
She sat in her car watching the front of the store at closing time. She guessed he wouldn't leave straight away, but she could wait.
She eventually saw him approaching the doors and climbed out of her car, hastening forward.
He sauntered out, thankfully alone.
Subtle hadn't worked before, and she didn't want to hang around, so she grabbed his hand and pulled him to her car. He gasped in surprise but didn't actually object.
As they reached her Porsche, he noticed it and said, "Wow! Cool wheels."
She pushed him into the passenger seat and ran around the car, and climbed in. "I work for the government," she said as if that was all the explanation needed. "You received an email from Bryce Larkin?"
His eyes narrowed. "So, your phone was just a ruse? And… you're not interested in me." The latter was a flat statement. "Just as I thought."
"I didn't say that," she replied, surprising herself with her honesty. She had enjoyed flirting with him more than she should, and what he did for the dancer had pierced her heart. It had all unsettled her, which was why she left so quickly. However, she didn't have time for such distractions.
"I need that email. It contains government secrets." Then she thought more and asked the question. "Why would Larkin send that to you?'
"I have no idea. I haven't opened it to see. I actually surprised myself by not deleting a mail from that bastard."
Sarah grasped his arm. "Please take me home and give it to me."
He raised his brows, hearing that.
Sarah realized how that sounded and blushed but laughed too. "Not... That." She cast her eyes over his form. Maybe it would be good, though. It has been a while.
Seeing her checking him out, Chuck felt he could do the same. This beautiful blonde had a gorgeous figure and the most amazing long legs. The thought of doing... That with her captured his mind. Just holding her and kissing those luscious lips would be wonderful.
Seeing Chuck look her up and down and then glaze over made her feel good for some reason. It was probably because he hadn't checked her out before she did it to him. The fact that he ended up focused on her lips, and not her body, impressed her too.
She needed him to focus on what she needed, though. "I need the email, Chuck."
"That email mailbox is archived off each night, so I can't access it here. I will have to take you home." He blushed.
She turned on the engine. "Don't worry. I won't ravish you," she teased. He froze again, making her grin. He was so easy. She liked him all the more because of that.
She knew where he lived, so had no need for directions.
As she pulled up to the parking lot, she turned to Chuck. He was deep in thought. "Talk to me, Chuck."
"How did Bryce get hold of these secrets? He's just an accountant."
She decided he deserved to know. "He wasn't an accountant. He was a CIA operative."
He was stunned. "A spy?" She nodded. "You too?" She nodded again. "Wow!" Then he asked more, "Are they CIA secrets?"
She sighed. "Yes, Chuck, and we need them back."
"Well, I don't want them." He got out of the car. "Come on." He set off for the apartment. Sarah rushed to catch up.
Fortunately, his sister and her boyfriend were on late shifts, so not home. He took Sarah through to his bedroom. He paused and looked at her. "First girl in here other than my sister," he muttered to himself, then turned on his computer.
Sarah thought about that comment. It matched his profile, but looking at him, she couldn't understand why. He was a tall attractive guy. A bit skinny, maybe, but you almost didn't notice that. His face caught your eyes, as did his hair. She found she wanted to run her fingers through those curls.
She shook herself. Those thoughts were not productive.
Chuck had accessed his email backup and opened Bryce's email. She just wanted him to forward it to her, but he was staring at the screen. "What is it?" she asked.
"It's not government secrets. It's a line from a game Bryce and I adapted back at college." He read it out,
"The terrible troll raises his sword"
Sarah looked at it. What a weird thing to send. She then realized Chuck was answering it.
"Attack troll with nasty knife"
Before she could stop him, he pressed enter.
The dark display was replaced with a series of flashing images that held both their gazes. When it stopped, Chuck fell to the floor, and Sarah slumped on top of him.
Stephen cursed. He hadn't factored in someone like this woman being there with him. A CIA operative was certainly not someone he wanted to receive this download. However, that was exactly what was happening.
He'd need to contact Chuck when he could and help him out of another mess.
What to do with this woman was another matter entirely. Maybe he'd have to arrange an accident for her.
As Sarah started to come to, she found herself lying partly on a warm body. Not a normal situation for her. She controlled her reaction so as to keep the fact she had awakened hidden and tried to recall what had led to this.
The last thing she remembered was looking over Chuck Bartowski's shoulder at his computer screen as he typed his response to Bryce's question, then images started to flash on the screen, then oblivion.
'Oh God, we've both downloaded the Intersect!'
"What the hell's the Intersect?" She heard Chuck's voice say and felt it rumble through his shirt into her other ear.
She quickly pushed herself off of him and sat up. 'Did I speak those words?'
"Well, I heard them as clear as anything, so you must've."
She certainly hadn't asked the question out loud, so she glared down at him, shocked, thinking one word.
Chuck raised himself enough to lean on his elbows and looked at Sarah, and thought, 'Telepathy? Can I read her thoughts?'
Sarah heard his question as if he'd said it, although his lips hadn't moved.
"Oh my God! You can read my mind and project your thoughts!" She cried out.
Chuck saw her lips saying the words as he heard them as if with an echo. 'Am I reading her mind, or is this gorgeous woman herself projecting?'
Sarah's lips curled up. "Gorgeous, huh?"
That made his eyes focus hard on her face. 'Of course, she's gorgeous. She's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen.'
Her smile blossomed further. "That's very sweet of you, but we have to work out what's going on."
He smiled as he heard the words echo, but with a single lingering voice saying he was very attractive too, but she 'heard' him thinking about it and realized she needed to control her thoughts to avoid thinking that.
"Why?" He asked.
Sarah sighed and looked at him. "Because it's not professional and won't help us work this thing through."
"I won't be able to stop thinking how beautiful you are," he declared and thought, 'My mind is filled with such thoughts.'
Sarah could see that was true. She smiled slightly, and warmth filled her. "I like that, Chuck, but we have to get our heads in the game and work out what to do."
Chuck could feel the sincerity and nodded. "So, this Intersect…"
Sarah thought about what she knew about it and how it was supposed to be downloaded into agents' heads to enhance their abilities.
It was then that the benefit of their mind link became apparent to him. "So, that means you're their super spy?"
The thought terrified her. She'd been wondering about quitting as she was fed up with being used as a weapon. She thought of the assassinations she'd had to perform. This would be worse.
Chuck's eyes fluttered, and images of her killing people flashed through his head. Not surprisingly, Sarah saw them too. It made her feel sick seeing them in such graphic detail again rather than the retained memory of them happening. She had compartmentalized and hidden the details from herself, but seeing them from the hard facts only seemed worse. Not only that, someone else was seeing them too.
She looked at Chuck. He was looking slightly green. 'God, he must think I'm a monster.'
Chuck gazed at this vision before of him and tried to reconcile it with what he had just seen. He just couldn't. However, he latched onto her own thoughts. "You were ordered to do these things and didn't want to do them." He deliberately thought the next thoughts, wanting them projected. 'You aren't a monster. A very sharp weapon, but not a monster.' He hoped she got that but couldn't stop the following thought that he didn't want her to 'hear,' '…but it sickens me to see what you've done.'
Sarah 'heard' it all, not knowing the difference between the thoughts. "Thank you, Chuck, for both those thoughts and the honesty."
He chuckled. "You weren't supposed to 'hear' the last bit."
"So, we have to learn how to control this, or each other's thoughts will become a distraction."
She was right, but only if they stayed together.
"Oh, I can't leave you with all this information in your head, and we're in this together, Chuck." She smiled. "You're stuck with me."
Both knew what she meant, but his sudden thoughts of them kissing each other passionately caught her by surprise. Chuck saw her shocked expression and her surprised thoughts. "Sorry," he expressed.
Sarah was better at suppressing thoughts in the field, so her desire to follow through with what she had seen never got to him.
"You need to call in sick," she told him. He saw why. It was so that they could work on this together. She didn't have to say it, another benefit. "And I need to buy more time with my boss."
Chuck would've been able to work it out, but her thoughts were on display. "You're not telling him what happened but that you are going to try to get the email from me."
It was disconcerting having her thoughts vocalized by someone else, but she nodded.
He saw the fear that flashed through her thoughts and remembered her previous thoughts. "You really don't want to be that enhanced weapon, do you?"
She saw the sympathy in his eyes as well as his thoughts and just replied, "No."
Both knew where that line of conversation was leading and thought it was best to end there.
Chuck had phoned in sick but also had told Morgan not to just turn up. "You took Vicky home, didn't you?" Morgan accused him. "You spending the day with her?"
Sarah smiled at the thoughts that flashed through Chuck's head. As if they were spending the day in his bed!
Chuck replied to Morgan but frowned at Sarah. "No, Morgan, I have a stinking headache." That was true for both of them.
"Ok, man, you keep telling everyone that. I'll keep away. Proud of you."
Chuck blushed. Morgan really thought he'd scored. The man who never had success with women.
As he ended the call, Sarah grabbed his other hand. "Chuck, we're not spending the day having sex, but you need to stop putting yourself down. You are more attractive than you think."
Chuck's brain had stopped at her first sentence, and his head was filled with the idea of having sex with this gorgeous woman. A slap on his arm made him focus his eyes on her. "Stop that. Not happening!" Her words, however, weren't harsh, and he could see the amusement in her eyes. He grinned and thought something most unlike his usual. 'Not just yet.'
She laughed out loud. "You wish." However, he saw the hint of possibility in her eyes too.
Sarah then called Graham. She told him exactly what she had thought earlier. Graham told her, "Once you have it, kill him, he's obviously a traitor."
Sarah had been expecting something like this, but his words still got to her.
Chuck covered his mouth to suppress his gasp. 'Yeah, we need to talk about this too.'
"So, he can just order the murder of an innocent, law-abiding American citizen?" Chuck asked when she came off the call.
"He doesn't see you as innocent, Chuck," she pointed out.
"No validation, just elimination?"
Sarah thought about Graham's approach, and yes, that summed him up quite accurately.
Chuck was busy flashing on the details of Langston Graham from the Intersect. Sarah saw it too. It was a story of a bully who did whatever he felt necessary to advance his career with no care for the lives he destroyed along the way; once he got to a position of power, the intersect held no further details about him, but he was clearly ruthless.
"This is the man who ordered you to assassinate all those people?" Chuck asked.
Sarah saw the distaste in Chuck's mind. She nodded.
"Bastard! I'd hate him for putting you through that even if he didn't want me dead."
Chuck's words got to her, but she managed to stop herself from thinking about how that made her feel. "We have to work out how to avoid that happening."
He looked at her and thought about the question. It was easier than vocalizing it. 'Why do you care?'
Sarah hadn't thought about that but did now. She realized how important he was to her now. Not from a relationship point of view, but he was the only person she could now relate to in her current state. They needed each other. As she looked at him, she deliberately thought they were now meant to be together. That meant, at least as a cover, they would be in a relationship, and others couldn't get between them.
Chuck was a bit taken aback by her thoughts but saw the merit in them. He did, however, think of the implications and chose to vocalize them. "You may not know me, but I will probably fall in love with you if I am around you a lot."
She grinned. "Would that be so bad?"
His gaze intensified, and he replied in thought only. "It would be if you didn't feel the same.'
Sarah nodded. "We'll tackle that if it happens." The stray thoughts that she might fall for him too escaped, causing him to grin. She slapped his forearm but grinned back.
She decided that being with Chuck would be good as long as they could find a way past this stumbling block.
It didn't really take them long to conclude that there was only really one way forward.
Communicating telepathically was becoming easier and was so much faster than talking. Well, talking required thinking of what to say, saying it, and the other person hearing it and interpreting the facts into thoughts. All that was needed here was just the first step of that process.
Chuck did, however, like to say things out loud for clarification.
"So, I opened the email on my own and downloaded all the government secrets into my head."
"That much is true, apart from the alone bit," Sarah commented. "Keep the lies close to the truth. Makes it easier."
He didn't comment but carried on with the story. "You found me, comatose, and revived me."
Sarah nodded.
He thought about that and grinned. 'Waking up seeing the face of an angel hovering over me.'
She shook her head. "How can you still think of me as an angel, knowing what I've done?"
"Your beautiful face doesn't show the scars, Sarah."
She thought of all the surgery she'd undergone to repair and then hide those scars. He winced. "I didn't want to see that!"
She waved a hand over her face, saying, "Just think of this angelic face, then." She then pecked his lips. Both were surprised by her action but chose to ignore it.
"What next?" he asked.
"We need something to trigger its use to show you have it and the benefit of you keeping it, here in LA."
"Where else would I have it?"
"A deep dark bunker somewhere, probably near DC," she replied.
They were interrupted by Ellie walking into the room, having heard voices. "What are you doing here, Chuck?" Ellie stopped and gawped at Sarah. "…and who's this?"
Sarah also 'heard' Ellie think, 'She's so beautiful!' Sarah appreciated the thought itself, but it also showed she could read minds herself.
Sarah got up from the end of the bed and walked to Ellie, holding out her hand. "Hi, I'm Sarah, Chuck's new girlfriend." She and Chuck had talked about this, but it was the first time either had said it to someone else. It was still the best cover for them being together a lot.
Sarah was surprised when Ellie squealed and took her hand just to pull her into a very tight hug. "Thank you," Ellie whispered into her ear. Her thought of 'Thank, God!' also surprises Sarah.
Chuck explained Ellie's thought. 'It's because she's wanted me to get a girlfriend for five years now.'
Sarah pulled back and smiled at the woman. "It's my pleasure."
Chuck could tell that what Sarah had said was true. That made him start to think she liked him.
'I do,' she thought at him. He smiled just thinking that. 'Cover story seems to be working, boyfriend,' she added.
He couldn't stop the thought. He hadn't her control. 'I wish it was real.'
She sent a tight thought to him. 'Can't be now.' She expected the following thought to stay just in her head. 'And you don't deserve to have to put up with me and my baggage.'
However, she hadn't got as much control as she thought when she 'heard' his reply. 'If you could put up with my insecurities, I would happily be your baggage handler. I would love to be your real boyfriend.'
Sarah flushed and glanced his way. 'Thank you. You're very kind.'
Ellie brought them back into the normal world when she said, "God, it's almost as if you share thoughts when you look at each other like that!"
Chuck smiled at his almost girlfriend, who said, "We sorta connected." That earned her another tight hug.
'Does she hug a lot?' she thought.
'Only people she likes,' he thought back, which made Sarah feel good.
'I like her too. You Bartowski's have infected me. I never like people!'
Chuck laughed out loud.
Ellie released Sarah and looked at him. "What's funny?"
Chuck thought rapidly, but Sarah helped him. 'Not sure I could survive another hug.'
"I've only just got a girlfriend, and you're gonna squeeze her to death, El," Chuck told his sister.
Ellie released Sarah. "Well, Devon and I are pooped, so we're going straight to sleep." She then grinned. "…so, keep the noise down!" She swept out of the room, closing the door.
An image of the two of them having sex and crying out the other's name sprang into both heads, but not supplied by Ellie. Both blushed at the image. 'I've had more dream sex with you than ever before!' Sarah thought.
Chuck had to stifle a laugh, then thought back, 'Not sure that reality would be as good. My ex left me for Bryce, after all.'
'You want me to make a comparison?' she teased back, then thought how inappropriate that was. 'Sorry!'
Chuck had slipped into "I hate Bryce" thoughts, so didn't 'hear' her last word.
Sarah felt his pain and hated Bryce that bit more as a result. She gripped Chuck's hand, drawing him out of those thoughts. She held his gaze and thought, 'You are a much better person than him.' She really felt it.
'He still gets all the best girls,' he thought back. The background thought that he was looking at one of them was there too.
'He was my partner. Things just happened. I don't like him, either,' she contemplated.
He grinned. 'Enemy of my enemy is my cover girlfriend?' She grinned and nodded. 'Will your boss buy that?'
She instantly replied, 'We need to convince him. Like I said before Ellie heard us.'
He thought back to Ellie's last comment, and another twisted thought sprang to mind. 'Could we cry out silently, like this?'
She slapped his arm. "Come on, we're getting out of here." She rose and pulled him toward the door.
They silently left the apartment and walked to her car. She hadn't realized it, but their hands had rejoined and swung between them. To outsiders, they would look like two people in love. Had she thought about that, it was just what would suit the cover she'd proposed.
When they reached the car, Sarah realized she hadn't 'heard' any thoughts from Devon. Chuck immediately thought, 'That's strange. I did. He was just thinking how great it was to be able to sleep.'
Sarah considered this. 'We must have different ranges for our reading of people. I'm happy with that, less distractions for me.'
She drove him to Maison23.
On the way, he looked out of the window and saw a cavalcade passing beneath them. He wondered what dignitary was in it.
Once in her room, Sarah decided to have a shower and get changed. She grabbed some clothes to take into the bathroom, calling out, "Make yourself at home.".
He sat on the bed and flicked through the channels. On a local channel, a news broadcast showed an image of a military man. Chuck flashed on him. "General Stanfield," he said at the same time as the newscaster.
Sarah hadn't gotten into the shower yet and popped her head out, "What?"
"General Stanfield is supposed to be coming to LA tomorrow, but I think I saw him arrive today," he replied.
"You probably did. Security's better that way," she replied.
Looking up at her, he saw she had bare shoulders and just a bath towel wrapped around her. He looked away quickly, squashing the thoughts that appeared.
Sarah 'heard' those thoughts anyway and almost wanted to drop the towel to see how he'd react.
'I'm looking away, so I wouldn't react,' he thought.
She reentered the bathroom, chuckling and casting a thought out to him, 'Maybe I'll shave first.'
His mind went blank, which made her laugh out loud.
While he waited for Sarah, Chuck got a text from his sister.
Bulb went in the bathroom, run out. Can u get some? xx
He quickly typed back,
On the way home xx
Her reply came quickly.
Thanks xxx
When Sarah came out of the bathroom, she was just wrapped in a towel. Chuck had to drag his eyes away from her body. He already knew she was stunning, but looking like that? Wow!
Sarah, of course, knew exactly what he thought of her attire. 'Thanks, Chuck. You know how to make a girl feel good about herself.'
He chuckled. 'Most girls don't know what I'm thinking!'
She grinned. 'Well, this girl does, so thank you!' Then, she said, "It's only a cover, though, Chuck. If we get Graham to buy into this story, you will become my asset, and I will be your handler."
Chuck flashed on those terms as CIA terms. "So, I would have no rights? Even though I am an American citizen?"
Sarah thought more about that and who normally became assets. Chuck was right. Assets were normally foreign nationals and usually enemies of the US of A. Chuck was neither of those.
Chuck saw Sarah's thoughts and was pleased she was thinking that way. She started wondering what his situation equated to. Her first thought was that if he was providing valuable information and insights, that seemed like an analyst role.
"Agreed," he said, which caught her by surprise, when she realized he was agreeing with her thoughts. This mind sharing was going to take some getting used to. "I will demand to be an analyst," he declared.
She wondered what he thought he would bring to that role, but didn't ask. Pf course, with their link, she didn't have to.
He tried not to, but thoughts of hacking sprung to mind.
What she 'heard' floored her. "You're Piranha? The agencies have been hunting you for years!"
He sighed. "I know. And now because of this thing in my head, you know."
Her mind was spinning, thinking about how that skill could be used on a mission. Each thought got a corresponding reply from Chuck.
'CIA records?'
'Yep.'
'NSA and DEA records?'
'Yep.'
'Local Police records too, I guess?'
'Yep. and traffic cameras and recordings.'
This next would be invaluable on missions, 'Internal security systems of businesses?'
'Easy.'
"Wow! If we can convince him the latter are just down to good IT skills, we have a chance."
"We?" he asked.
She felt more comfortable talking about this now. "Chuck, you and I are a team now. It will always be 'we.'"
Without thinking, he placed his palms on both sides of her face and pulled her in for a kiss.
At first, she was shocked, but he was a great kisser, and she just decided to enjoy it.
When they separated, he thought, 'You didn't mind?'
'Chuck, you are a great kisser, I enjoyed it, but you have to stop that… Too distracting.'
Chuck just focused on what he wanted to 'hear.' 'Kissing you is wonderful, Sarah. Your lips draw me to them. I think I'm in love. I can't hide it.'
'Well, I'll have to hide any feelings I have for you, or I'll be sent away,' Sarah thought back.
He saw the reasons. The handler/asset relationship being the main blocker. 'God! They suck the life out of… well, life.'
She grinned at that but then thought about it. Yes, the CIA did do that. It was one of the reasons she was thinking of getting out.
'All the more reason for me to become an analyst,' he asserted.
She chuckled. 'So, we can have a real relationship?'
'Yep. I want one of those with you.' He would never be able to say the words, but the thoughts came easily.
She placed her hand over his. The warmth got to both of them, but she managed to suppress it better. 'Maybe,' was all she thought. She stopped herself from thinking anymore.
He looked at her and said, "By the way, Ellie and Devon need new lights for the bathroom. I need to go to the Large Mart and get some for them."
"We need to think about how to move forward, Chuck," she cautioned.
"We can do that once we get back. If we go now and drop them off, we can be back in less than an hour."
She waved her hands down her body, still only covered in a towel. "I'm not quite ready to go anywhere, Chuck."
Her hand drew his attention to her attire. He tried hard not to think about undoing the tie at the top.
She could see what he was trying not to think, so twirled around to go and get dressed quickly. She also stopped herself from thinking about his thoughts.
In less than five minutes, she was ready and they were heading to her car.
Shopping in the Large Mart was always depressing, but he knew exactly where to go.
Sarah hung back. Traipsing through the aisles was not appealing, so she stayed near the cashiers, but slowly wandering in the direction Chuck had taken. Consequently, the first she knew about him being in danger was when he flashed on someone and the images appeared in her head. A Serbian demolitions expert, Vuc Andric, was there and had seen Chuck looking strangely at him. Chuck couldn't be far away our she wouldn't have 'heard' him. She hurried that way. 'Which aisle, Chuck?'
He looked up and read it and she ran that way. She was close, as she'd thought.
She had almost got to the aisle, when Chuck came running around the corner, straight into her. The collision took the wind out of his lungs and knocked her off of her feet. He landed on top of her.
By the time they had separated and gotten up, Andric was leaving the store. Sarah wanted to chase him, but Chuck was clutching the light bulbs. "I really need to get these for Ellie and Devon," he told her. He knew putting the light bulbs ahead of pursuing an international terrorist sounded ridiculous, but if he didn't get them, Ellie would demand to know why and their cover story would crumble.
She looked at him as he spoke, then back where she had seen Andric who had now disappeared. "I'll have to call this in," she stated.
"And why would you be in Large Mart?" Chuck asked. She hadn't thought of that challenge. "And how did you happen to spot him and not catch him?"
'Damn, you are right!' she thought at him.
'I'm the analyst, remember,' he thought back.
'What did he want here?' she asked.
'He was buying supplies for the bomb he's making.'
"What?" she shouted, gaining the attention of all in the vicinity.
As he rushed to one of the cashiers and bought the light bulbs, he replied, 'I think it's for General Stanfield.'
Shit! She didn't have to say it or target that thought. 'Where?'
'He was thinking of a hotel,' Chuck mentioned.
"I definitely have to call this in, Chuck. His life is at stake."
Chuck nodded and thought, 'Definitely not a monster.'
She paused, smiled at him, and gave him a peck on the lips. 'Thanks, Chuck.'
She drove them back to her place, trying to think what to do. When they got out of the car, Chuck answered, 'You found me again and asked me to go on a date. On the date, I mention Stanfield and Andric, seeing them, that is.'
She smiled. Even his thoughts were like a ramble. Chuck looked offended. She squeezed his hand after grabbing it. 'In a nice way,' she assured him.
'Would that be in time?' he asked.
'Not if it's at his hotel. I have to call now.'
Once she reached her room, she rang Graham. "He downloaded it, Sir. He has it in his head."
Graham replied, "Interesting. Beckman has sent her man to get him, but this changes things. Bring him in."
"Her man?" she asked.
"You know him. John Casey, old school. Will probably kill Bartowski," he replied.
"I do know him," she observed. "But there's a problem. Ch- Bartowski flashed on two people today."
"Flashed?" Graham asked.
"That's what he calls it when something triggers an Intersect access."
"interesting," Graham repeated. "Who did he see?"
"General Stanfield and Luc Andric, a Serbian demolitions expert," she explained.
"Yes, yes, I know of him." He paused thinking about this.
"Bartowski thinks Andric is going to kill Stanfield," Sarah added.
"We'll check up on him," Graham replied. "Leave it with me; you don't need to be involved. You need to focus on bringing Bartowski in."
"I will, Sir," she replied and ended the call.
Chuck already knew she had no intention of "taking him to DC," that was very clear in her thoughts during the phone call. "You don't like him much, do you?"
"He's the bastard that dragged me into the CIA, so, no."
"So, what are we going to do?" he asked.
Sarah thought about Chuck's earlier suggestion. He smiled and said what he was seeing. "Mexican meal and dancing. I like the former, but I'm not much good at the latter."
"I am and I love dancing; helps me relax and unwind," she commented. He briefly saw her thought of unwinding. Her sensuous dancing.
"I think I might like dancing," he mentioned.
Sarah returned to her room after dropping Chuck at his apartment to change. As she walked past the check in desk, and 'heard' the thoughts of the young man there, she wondered about the range of their mind reading ability, with their own link and when 'reading' others. She was thankful it had a range, as otherwise she'd be drowning in the thoughts of others.
When she reached her room, she pondered the topic of relationships. She saw no reason to avoid them, but today, she just wanted to enjoy the evening with no complications. Relationships were complications.
In some ways, a relationship sounded great, but she'd never been in a lasting one and didn't really think she was right for one. Or more to the point, whether she would be good in one for her partner. Her life had been so unstable prior to joining the CIA, and then all contact with others had been so fleeting. Nothing permanent at all until Bryce, and look how badly that went.
She compartmentalized those thought before picking Chuck up.
The meal was both delicious and the company excellent. They tried their best to talk rather than think at each other. Chuck was the expert at light banter and humorous repartee. Sarah hadn't laughed or enjoyed herself so much in a long time. She knew she was falling for the guy but kept those thoughts at bay.
After the meal, they walked to a club he knew. On the way, he looked down at the road below and saw that cavalcade again. Stanfield had obviously survived the attack.
In the club he bought them drinks, but she soon wanted to dance and pulled him onto the dance floor.
He was right, he wasn't a good dancer, but she enjoyed being with him and let herself go. Thoughts for what might come next could wait a bit.
Then she spotted the NSA team arrive. Fortunately, she always carried weapons, just in case.
'Just stay still, Chuck,' she advised him. He had no trouble with that having seen the threat. She slid her body sensuously around and over his now frozen body, to hide what she was doing. She nearly gave him a kiss, for the show, of course, but decided that was going too far. As she moved, she took the NSA guys out.
Spotting Casey at the entrance, she pulled Chuck to a back exit.
She quickly broke into the first car they found, and she hot-wired it.
Chuck was impressed. She stated, "This comes in handy sometimes."
As she backed the car out, a large black SUV came round the corner, driving straight at them. She put her foot down in reverse. 'Tell me when I can turn.'
He was trying to decide how to get out of here, then visualized them going down the next set of steps. He wasn't thinking that was the route, just somewhere not to go, but she picked up on it and reversed that way.
Chuck was right. That wasn't a good way to go, but they made it to the bottom. She then floored it going forward. Another SUV rounded the corner, driving at them. She put her foot down harder. 'We've gonna die!' he thought.
'No, they'll chicken out,' she replied. And the driver did. She rounded the corner going back the way the other driver had come from. 'Where next?'
He was about to reply as another SUV burst out of a side street and hit her side-on just behind the driver's seat. The car crumpled, but thankfully neither were hurt. 'Get out!' she commanded.
He did, and she grabbed his arm, and they ran down another side street. She needed to get another car.
Chuck tripped and fell. She turned back to him. 'Car!' he mentally yelled at her. She turned and saw one with Casey in the passenger seat pointing at her. The driver accelerated her way, as it became obvious that Casey intended to kill her to get his prize.
She saw the security barricade that would lift to block the road and then the way to activate it, which she did by throwing a knife at the emergency "barricade-up" button on the side of the guard shack.
'Oh my God! No, Sarah!' Chuck thought.
Then the SUV hit the barricade and crumpled.
Sarah got up and rushed to Chuck, pulling him up and running as she saw Casey climb out of the SUV. She made a phone call as they ran. She looked up as she did it. "Requesting emergency air evac. Track location. We're on foot."
They quickly found themselves on the rooftop of a building, perfect for that evacuation. Then she saw Casey climb to the rooftop with his gun pointing at her. 'Don't freak out, Chuck. I'm gonna pretend I'm gonna kill you if he doesn't lower his weapon. You know I won't, don't you?'
'Will he lower it?' Chuck asked.
'I hope so,' she replied.
Casey sauntered onto the deck. "It's late. I'm tired. Let's cut the crap and give him to me now. He belongs to the NSA."
Sarah replied, "The CIA gets him first." Casey continued to close the gap. "You come any closer, and I shoot him." She sent a reassuring thought Chuck's way.
"You shoot him, I shoot you. I leave both your bodies here, go out for a late snack," Casey replied. "I'm thinking maybe pancakes."
Chuck started to panic and wondered about making a run for it. Then he spotted one of the hotels in the distance and flashed. Once that was complete, he spoke up, "He's gonna kill him over there."
Casey paused and asked, "Kill who?"
Chuck sent the thought to Sarah but replied to Casey, "Stanfield, the general. General Stanfield, the NATO guy."
'Graham said he was handling this and we didn't need to,' Sarah thought at Chuck.
'What if he hasn't?' Chuck replied.
Casey looked doubtful, so Chuck continued, "Look, last week the NSA intercepted some blueprints, blueprints of a hotel, that hotel." He then looked Sarah's way. "And then the CIA found a file of schematics of a bomb in Prague. The bomb is in that hotel!"
Casey just snarled and pointed his gun at Chuck, forcing Sarah to point hers at Casey. "He was working with Larkin," Casey stated.
Sarah shook her head. "No, he opened Bryce's e-mail." She turned Chuck's way. 'Let me run with this,' she thought. "Chuck, those pictures that you saw were encoded with secrets, government secrets. If you saw them, then you know them."
He nodded to her, acknowledging both the thought and the words. He played along. "There were thousands of 'em."
Casey interrupted. "Wait a minute. You're telling me all of our secrets are in his head?"
Sarah nodded. "Chuck IS the computer."
Chuck pretended to get flustered. "What did you, what did you say? What does that mean?"
Sarah looked at him. "Chuck, you have to listen to me. You have to tell us where..."
He continued his fluster act. "What's happening to me?"
'Stop now,' she thought, then said, "You said there was a bomb. Is there time to stop it?"
"Maybe," he replied. 'If we hurry,' he thought.
They rushed to the hotel.
'This might be a waste of time,' Sarah grumbled to Chuck.
'Gut feel it isn't,' Chuck replied.
As they rushed into the hotel, Sarah asked Chuck, "Where?"
"This way!" he shouted and rushed through the fountain. He ran into the room in which Stanfield was standing, orating.
Sarah asked, "Chuck, where is it?"
He shook his head. "I don't, uh... I don't, uh..." Then he spotted Andric walking from a trolley that looked like it was carrying food. Sarah saw both too.
"That's it," Chuck cried and rushed to it with Sarah and Casey following. "Right here." Casey opened the lid, and they all saw a laptop with a timer counting down.
"No time to evacuate," Casey said. "Ideas?"
"Disconnect the laptop," Sarah responded.
"There's no trigger," Casey replied. "The cables?"
"No, definitely a trap," Sarah responded.
An officer ran up to them. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" Both Sarah and Casey showed their credentials.
"Stanfield stated, "Uh... ladies and gentlemen, we-we may have a cautionary situation here, so we'll take a short break."
Sarah asked, "Chuck, is there anything else you remember about the bomb?"
Chuck shrugged, then his phone rang, and he answered it, holding it to his ear with his shoulder. "Hi, Morgan."
The other two crouched down to look for ways to stop the bomb, ignoring Chuck completely.
Morgan sounded jovial, "Hey, how's it going?"
Chuck replied, "Little busy right now, buddy."
Morgan chuckled. "In a good way? Details."
Chuck growled at him, "Why are you calling?"
Morgan replied, "I don't know, just... laying on your bed, Ellie's with the captain. My computer's got a case of the Demovas. So, I figured I'd check-in. You old..."
Chuck ended the call and crouched to get his hands on the laptop keyboard. "I have an idea."
Casey grabbed his hand and snarled, "That's not an Xbox. And you're not in the X-Men."
Chuck ignored the sarcasm, with Sarah encouraging him to go ahead. She knew exactly what he had planned.
"I understand that. This is a Prism Express laptop, okay. We sell this at our store. It has a DOS override. I can do this."
Sarah snapped at Casey. "He's our best shot." Casey released him. She turned to Chuck, thinking and saying, "Go!"
Chuck cracked his knuckles and muttered, "Mr. bomb, meet Mr. Internet."
Casey growled, "He's searching for porn."
Sarah knew that and tried hard not to chuckle.
The Irene Demova pictures flashed up, and the laptop died.
Sarah grinned at him. "You did it!" she said, gleefully.
Chuck grinned, "I did it. I defused a real bomb."
'I knew you could do it, Chuck. You're a hero!'
Sarah's thoughts made him feel even better. If Casey wasn't here, he'd kiss her.
'And I'd kiss you right back, you Hero,' she thought.
Once they got out of the hotel, both Sarah and Casey said, simultaneously, "He's coming with me."
Casey glared at her. "What if this was a fluke?" Casey added.
Sarah stood her ground. "And what if it wasn't? What if he can stop something bigger?"
Casey grunted. "Fine, we drop him in a psych tank, let him stare at four rubber walls for a decade. He'll tell us what we want to know."
Hearing what Casey said, Chuck started to panic. 'Not gonna happen, Chuck,' Sarah thought at him, calming him down. She stared at the NSA agent. "Casey, we don't know how this works and what triggers the memories. He'll crack wide open."
He sneered. "Not my job. I break things. I don't fix them."
Sarah persisted, "What about his job? And his friends? What do we do about his sister?"
"What about my sister?" Chuck asked.
Sarah tried to reassure him that she had this handled, but he was now in panic mode. "Hold on a second. You have to leave my family and my friends out of this."
"We'll see," Casey commented, and Chuck read him easily. The big guy had no intention of doing anything Chuck wanted.
Chuck straightened his back. He knew Sarah was on his side, but he had to act otherwise for Casey's benefit. "Look, Bryce sent that e-mail to me. I'm the one remembering your secrets. This means you have to listen to me, both of you. And right now..." He stood. "I'm going to go home."
Sarah mentally applauded him.
"No, you're not," Casey said, grabbing Chuck's sleeve.
Chuck pulled it away and pointed at then, Casey first. "You... you need me. Think about how to ask nicely." Chuck walked away, leaving the two agents glaring at each other.
Sarah turned first to watch Chuck go.
Sarah followed him. He got a taxi to the beach. She let him cool off for a bit before walking over to where he was sitting.
When she got closer, his thoughts burst into her head. He'd sensed her, too. 'Good to know you've still got my back,' he thought at her.
'Always,' she immediately replied. She found she meant it, too.
'Always is a long, long time, Sarah Walker,' he reminded her.
'Yeah, but you're worth it,' she said, resting her head on his shoulder, deciding not to think about the implications of the statement.
'No one else with all your secrets, huh?' he replied.
'There is that, too,' she noted. 'You were a hero today, Chuck. I'm proud of you.'
They sat together like that, not thinking, just enjoying this last bit of peace before his world really turned upside down.
A/N: A different download, and both saw it. Other than the telepathy, we don't know if Sarah can use the Intersect data. Something to find out next chapter?
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