AN- You know when you have an idea and then the characters go off in their own direction? Buckle up. As always, unedited.

Undisclosed Location, near Washington DC

As she marched down the corridor and up the stairs one of the guards directed her to, she marshaled her thoughts. This had to be done very carefully to protect herself… and Chuck. If anyone got any hint that she knew him from before… Anger. That's the key, people on the defensive answer questions, they don't ask them.

She stormed into the control center and slammed her fist down on the desk at the head of the room. Glaring at Casey and Graham, she yelled at them. "What the hell did you tell him?"

Both of them looked at her in surprise. Graham blinked and took a step back. As did Casey. Her reputation was such that they knew anger of this sort usually resulted in a body count. "What are you talking about?" Graham replied, raising his hands as if to say 'It wasn't me.'.

"How did he know about my father? How did he know the name Jenny Burton? That I came from California? Dammit, sir, this could get me killed! I can't go deep cover anymore, maybe not even if or when we know how far this spread!" Sarah all but shouted. "That a… broker like this knows… its basically the end of my covert career!"

"Walker, its not just you. He knows who I was." Casey said, oddly calmly. "We have to cool down and try to find out what he knows and where he got it. I've read the files, he came through the Farm, we're not going to be able to beat it out of him before that time limit he gave us."

Her heart gave a lurch as the possibility that someone might try that. She had to head off that line of thought. No one is going to touch my Chuck. "He was trained like I was, yes. We don't have time to break down the sort of resistance he'll have." she said quickly, nodding firmly.

Graham grimaced and looked at her. "He…" He trailed off. Then he took a breath. "Agent Walker, I know you've avoided so called honeypots or seduction assignments in the past. I am also aware that you were the highest scoring student in that course. A record that still stands."

Don't smile, don't smile… Is he really about to ask you to seduce Chuck? The guy you shared a mutual fumbling first time with inhigh school? The one man you've ever loved? "Sir…" she said, putting a plaintive note into it.

"I don't like it either, but he seems to have an attachment of some kind." Graham said with an apologetic shrug. "You should be able to use that to work your way into his trust."

Casey grunted. "I sure as hell can't do it."

"With that chiseled jaw?" Sarah quipped, then sobered. Seeing Chuck was bringing out her sense of humor. She looked at Graham. "I don't see how we have much choice in the matter. I'll need some… latitude."

"So long as we have a location tracker. I don't want to loose you, but, approved." Graham said, after some thought.

Sarah nodded.

"Latitude?" Casey asked.

"I may need to go off script with the subject to gain his trust. Probably off grid as well." Sarah said, uncomfortably. Not entirely faked either. She was going to have to balance 'Agent Walker' with 'lovesick Jenny'. "I'm probably going to have to demonstrate loyalty. You know how it is with deep cover. Some actions may be, on the surface…" she trailed off and saw Casey nod.

"Returning to the topic at hand." Graham said, brushing his hands together in a sign of being rid of something. "How do we approach this potential attack in California. I've verified both pieces of intel he referenced, but as he noted we don't have the final parts. Who wanted it, who the target is. We can make some good guesses though." He waved at Casey.

Casey rose and pointed at one of the technicians who called up a schematic on screen. Then the screen split and showed the blueprints on one side and a street level photo on the other. "This is the Burbank Convention center, adjacent to the Burbank Airport. The blueprints match up precisely." Another the blueprints disappeared and were replaced with the picture of an Army general. "This is General Stansfield. He's a senior officer, due to take over NATO Allied Command Operations later this year. He's giving a counter-terrorism speech that fits the timeline."

"Stash the army brass in a bunker for the night, flood the area with Homeland and fibbies, then we go for a late breakfast. I'm thinking pancakes." Casey said, dismissively. "I don't see any complexity here. Stop the bomb. Move on."

"We want the bomb maker. He's a lead on Fulcrum." Sarah said, before Graham could. "And I have a feeling… I think Carmichael wants us in the field. Directly involved. I'm not sure why."

Graham gave her a speculative look. "Head out as part of his team? Investigate the hotel and capture the bomb maker. Call in tactical when you've secured the information?"

"If we have time to do it that way, yes sir." Sarah said. "However, Casey's right. If we can't wrap it up quickly we should shut it down. Its not worth the risk. If we can make it work though, its gives us a good start with what Carmichael's game is."

"Carmichael's got an organization, we know that. Its small and loyal. We haven't been able to penetrate it. If you use him to get us to Burbank, that might be our first glimpse into his syndicate's inner workings. I'll head out on a military flight first, get there early to nose around while its daylight. Which is great, I'm feeling a little pasty." Casey said, rising. He looked at Sarah. "Once you walk out of the building with him…"

"He's my responsibility, I got it." Sarah said, interrupting.

"Not what I meant, CIA." he replied with a tight grin. "I know I've got a rep as a solo act, and a killer, but I also know what its like to be in a team. I was going to say, you're in danger. No backup. You OK with that?"

"Solo ops have been my thing for a few years now. Plus, he's not a killer." Sarah said. "Profile's wrong. Its not the safest thing I've done, but not the most dangerous by a country mile." Who am I kidding. Unless he's turned into a brain damaged psycho, the only danger I'm in from Chuck is to my heart.

"Alright." Graham said decisively. "Casey, General Beckman has ceded operational control to me for now. If you need to confirm it, call her, but for now – get on a plane and get ready to deal with a bomb." He turned his head to look at Sarah. His voice took on a note of concern. "Accompany Carmichael. See if you can find out something about his organization by the way he handles you. Attempt to determine the bomb maker's ties to Fulcrum. Be careful, you're right about the profile but people change. He's smart, Sarah, one of the smartest people I've ever met. Don't play a mental game on him. He's harder to beat than a polygraph and fMRI. If anything at all goes wrong, extract. You're worth more to the agency than he is, is that understood?"

Sarah nodded. It was a rare note of emotion from her boss, the man who'd taken her in after her father had gone to prison. He'd mentored her, molded her, and she knew considered her something of a surrogate daughter. He'd said 'to the agency' but she heard 'to me'. It felt wrong to be deceiving him, but until she knew more… it was too risky. "Understood, boss." she deliberately used the term to tweak him a little. His answering grin told her the message was received.

When she re-entered the room that held their prisoner, she did so now with a small roller bag, and a key dangling from one hand. Agents had swung by her place and grabbed the bag for her. She was pretty sure they'd looked through it and she made a mental note to check the contents later. She dropped the bag on the ground and wordlessly walked over to the chair and unlocked his right hand. She lingered only briefly on the contact of her hand on his. Sarah placed the key in his hand and retreated to her earlier seat to wait. She focused on ignoring the burning connection she'd felt.

Just as wordlessly, he undid his other restraints and stood. He placed the key in his pocket and looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"Your belongings are in the next room." Sarah stood and gestured towards the door she'd come through. She picked up her bag and followed him. As they walked she continued. "What's our next move? I've been directed to go with you and find out what we can about the bomber and his ties to this conspiracy. Casey is going ahead to prep a more… tactical response, if we fail."

"Just like that?" he asked with a smile. "They'll send you off with me to save the day?"

"Of course not. I'm a CIA agent being sent out with a dangerous criminal rogue. I'm going to find out what I can about you, your intentions, and your organization. However, the threat is credible and imminent. So first we deal with that." Sarah smiled back. "What exactly did you expect? Indecision? We're not the FBI, we're more practical."

"Its refreshing to work with professionals." Carmichael replied as they left the large echoing room. Hanging on hooks just outside of the room's view were the previously mentioned items. He didn't waste time, he slipped into the jacket while pocketing the tie. It took him a few moments to get his shoes on.

Sarah used those few moments to control her breathing. Those looked like exactly the same shoes he'd worn to prom. Come to think of it the suit was rather reminiscent of it as well. Goddammit Chuck, you're making it really hard for me to avoid betraying myself here. And holy crap if the clothes aren't a clear message…

He looked up after tying his shoes and brushing off some imaginary dust. "I presume some dreary bureaucrat kept my phone?"

Sarah nodded and held out her phone. "The NSA loves to borrow people's tech. You can use mine until we pick up another one for you."

Taking the phone, he smiled at her and began punching in a number followed by a long text message. He then dialed a number from memory. After a moment he spoke up. "No, sorry Langston, its just me. Agent Walker has graciously allowed me to borrow her phone since you kept mine. I'm calling to let you know that our ride will be here soon. Expect them to contact your security for clearance." He ended the call and handed the phone back to her. "Why thank you. This will speed things up. Shall we?" He gestured at the corridor. "I assure its not just an excuse to glimpse you from behind. I believe you know the way and sadly I don't."

"Alright." Sarah replied, suppressing the urge to laugh and take his hand as they walked. Apart from the oddly flowery language and cadence, I swear its like the last ten years never happened and we're headed to lunch at the cafeteria. I used to give him crap for staring at my ass when we roamed the halls senior year.

"You have questions, I'm sure." Carmichael said after they'd been walking for a bit.

Sarah nodded. "Many. However, they're less pressing than a potential bomb and a bunch of dead civilians. What can you tell me about the bomb maker?"

"Back to business so quickly? If we must." He shrugged and raised a finger to make a point. "I must clarify, bomb designer. I have no hard information to indicate if he actually built this device or is involved in delivery. It could be all local hires."

Turning them at the direction of one of the guards roaming the corridors, they found themselves at a door. Sarah swiped her card and it opened. "OK, so bomb designer?" she said as they began to climb the stairs revealed by the door.

"Vuc Andric." he replied promptly. "He's a charming fellow who enjoys Indian food, oil painting, and killing innocent bystanders in misplaced rage for attacks on his countrymen."

"Is all of that true?"

"The last part, certainly. The rest? No idea, the Interpol dossier was quite dry and lacked background." he shrugged and paused as they reached the top of the stairs. "Last chance. Step out there with me, we do this my way and things… well they might get complicated. We could always go back down, toss me in a cell, and let Major Casey handle this. Its been a busy few years, I could use a nap."

Sarah took him firmly by the upper arm and guided him through the door to the parking area. There was absolutely no way she was passing up the opportunity to figure out what had happened. Absently, she was pleased to note a tone to his muscles that he hadn't possessed in high school. I suppose the Farm did you some good. She had an urge, which she suppressed, to run a hand through his hair. "Not getting out of it that easily. Lets go." She stopped and looked around. "Do we need to call someone?"

"Give them a minute, I expect gaining flight clearance is taking some time." Carmichael replied.

Less than five minutes later his response was explained as a helicopter swooped in from the north, circling once before coming in for a landing on the lawn. It looked to be a private bird, one of the nicer executive Sikorskis. They jogged over to the transport and boarded, she took in the luxurious interior. It was quiet and no headsets would be required for conversation. They were the only passengers and the flight compartment wasn't accessible or visible to the passengers. They appeared to have a fair amount of privacy.

"Nice ride, yours?" Sarah asked, looking around.

"A favor from a friend I help from time to time." His voice was odd, nervous. She wondered why, but he kept talking. "This will get us to the private terminal at Dulles. Then we'll switch transport and be on our way to Burbank."

Sarah tilted her head. "You seem nervous."

"I'm technically a fugitive and I'm alone in one of the most dangerous modes of transport on earth with an even more dangerous CIA operative who's beauty is quite heartstopping." his tone was dry. "Allow me a few first date jitters."

"Chu…" Sarah started to say it most certainly wasn't their first date, and stopped when he sharply raised his finger to his lips. "You're perfectly safe with me." she concluded instead.

"Until I'm suddenly not. And you should be aware, we're being tailed by a drone equipped with a laser pickup. Isn't that right Agent Casey? You'll have a bit more trouble bugging my jet." he replied wryly. "Don't worry about it. Shouldn't you text someone to get them started on tracing Andric?"

Sarah blinked and almost slapped her forehead. She'd been thinking about what she'd say once they reached a private spot and had forgotten, almost, the mission. "Yes, of course." She picked up her phone and sent several messages. Texts sent, she then dialed Director Graham and updated him on the situation. Graham had been cool and professional before she ended the call but she could detect a hint of his previous worry.

In the intervening minutes they'd settled into an uneasy silence. She could tell that he had things he wanted to say, God knew she had some choice words. However, she trusted him in this. If someone who'd evaded the CIA, NSA, and every other 'A' for over five years thought it wasn't safe to talk… it wasn't safe to talk. She took a moment to look through her go bag, the contents seemed undisturbed so she did all she could, she leaned back in her chair and dozed.

Some time later she heard a distant voice that slowly got louder. Finally her eyes snapped open and she woke up, reaching for a knife before she realized where she was. Across the cabin, Chuck sat back out of reach smiling at her. "We've landed Sarah, time to board." He pointed out the window at a G550 that was idling not far from them.

She grabbed her bag and followed him out of the helicopter, walking over to the jet. The stairs were down and a naggingly familiar bearded man in a pilot's uniform took her bag from her as they boarded. She noted that he stowed it in the closet to the front of the plane. She was about to take a seat when Chuck held out a hand. "Phone please. We must observe the rules and avoid nasty wireless signals that might interfere with flight operations" he said in a pious tone.

Shrugging she handed him her phone and he dropped it in a box, closing the lid. He then removed a device from a cupboard and began to wave it around, looking for signals. She heard the door close and a voice from the front. "We'll be taking off soon, I'd suggest grabbing a seat." The voice, like the look of the man with the beard, was oddly familiar. She was having trouble placing it.

Chuck didn't reply, he continued methodically sweeping the interior of the craft as they taxied. Sarah shrugged and dropped onto one of the seats that could swivel, buckling herself in. Chuck reached the part of the aircraft she was sitting in and frowned as the device in his hands beeped. He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "GPS tracker only." Sarah said. "No audio. Graham just wants to know where I am. I checked the device out myself. You can put it in with the phone if you feel like it." She smiled at him.

He nodded, then waved a hand as if to say it wasn't important. "The plane will jam it, lasers, sats, and the tracker in my arm once we're at altitude." Then he turned and put the detector away, dropping into a seat opposite her. He fastened his seat belt and they sat in a slightly more relaxed silence as the plane took off and climbed rapidly. He remained silent through the climb and level off.

Takeoff and climb seemed to coincide with the a drop in his tension and his shoulders began to sag slightly. She hadn't even seen how tightly he had to be wound until he started to relax. Once they leveled off and banked towards the west, he spoke. "We're secure… finally." Chuck breathed out a long sigh of relief. He unbuckled from his seat and stood, stretching.

Sarah did the same and looked at him until he met her eyes. "Chuck." Her feet carried her a step closer involuntarily.

"Hey Jenny, long time." His smile now was totally natural and what she remembered.

"Its really you." she said, now standing nearly toe to toe.

"Yep."

Ten years of questions. Words failed her. She slipped her arms around his neck and kissed him. It was a lot like a second first kiss, full of wonder and two people not quite sure of what was happening.

1995 – Bartowski Residence, San Diego

It was Tuesday evening and Jenny sat in Chuck's desk chair, spun to face his bed, with her feet comfortably propped up on the frame. Fiona Apple's latest album was on playing on Chuck's stereo. In her lap was her physics textbook and she was skimming through the last few chapters. There was a test coming up and she wanted to be ready. Chuck was there. All was right in her world. She looked over the edge of her book at him when she noticed Chuck hadn't moved the past twenty minutes. He was laying on his back, staring at the ceiling. His feet were up on his wall, leaving small marks where his shoes rubbed.

"What's wrong?" she asked, flipping a page, but not really reading. She set the textbook aside. Her best friend was much more important than studying.

He sighed and didn't reply immediately. She'd noticed over the past year, she couldn't explain why – but her gut seemed to mirror his emotional state. When he was happy, she had light and kind of fluttery feelings. When he wasn't… Her stomach began to knot and hurt. She knew he was hurting in some way, and that she had to do something about it. That was when it hit her. I'm an idiot. Yes Chuck was her best friend, but he meant a hell of a lot more to her than that. She was absolutely certain that if he was cut, she'd bleed. Oh god… I like, like him.

Her dad's comments about love being the biggest con of all popped into her head suddenly. Shut up dad. She wasn't totally sure about how to go about things, how it would change. If he felt the same way.How do you ask your best friend out on a date? Probably the wrong time for that… best find out what's wrong first. Besides, what if he doesn't feel that way? What if he said no? So instead she cut off the incipient spiral of doubts, got up, stepped over and flopped onto the bed next to him. She grabbed his hand and turned her head to look at him before she said anything. "The guy who can't shut up is silent." she said finally, with a smile. "I repeat. What's wrong?"

"You know you're my best friend." Chuck said with simple sincerity. Her heart gave a little lurch but she didn't say anything. "Even over Morgan, which took some doing since he had a nine year head start."

"I am awesome." she said softly.

"Yeah." he replied looking at her. "You are." And that comment… the knot in her stomach unraveled and she felt… something else. He looked back at the ceiling. "And that's what's wrong."

Jenny sat up and looked down at him. "Your best friend is too awesome?"

"Kinda…" Chuck sat up and faced her. "I…" His face turned red.

Oh… She blushed slightly. Well, I guess that settles that whole asking him out thing… "What, you can't stop thinking about kissing me or something?" she asked, deliberately putting on a teasing tone.

He stared at her in shock and a note of guilty panic. The sort of look you saw on someone caught doing something wrong.

"Chuuuck." She said, a note of frustration into her voice. "Have you ever thought that maybe, just a bit, I might be thinking the same things?"

"What?" he said, blinking in surprise.

Jenny shook her head. "Oh for crissake, Chuck." She reached out, grabbed him by the shirt and kissed him on the lips. As kisses went, she wasn't sure how well they did. It was a bit fumbled, but it was filled with a sense of wonder. She figured they'd get better with practice. However, when she finally pulled away, they were both grinning.

Chuck laughed. "I'm not very smart am I?"

"Don't feel too bad, I just figured it out myself." Jenny replied, also laughing. "Wanna go on a date?"

"A date?" Chuck asked, a bit numbly it seemed.

"Yeah, I've heard people who like each other do this thing where they go out, but together. Sort of like when friends go out to do stuff, but they don't take anyone else." Jenny said, faking a conspiratorial tone. "The rumor is, they do things like dress nicer, argue over who pays, and talk about 'important' things like their futures."

Chuck laughed, her joke breaking through his shock. "So… what we do already, but with nicer clothes?"

"And kissing." Jenny added.

"That was nice." Chuck said, tapping his chin.

Jenny smiled and leaned in. "I liked it. Wanna try that again? I think we need to learn all we can about this curious situation."

"Well, if its for our education…" Chuck replied, and kissed her.

It was better than the first one. When they broke apart, neither of them could keep the stupid goofy grin off their faces. They just sat there, staring at each other. As with all things, this came to an end when external events intruded. How long Chuck's sister Ellie had been standing there, they never really knew. They first noticed her presence when she emitted a squeal that made them both jump and was probably heard by passing aircraft.

"OH MY GOD!" Ellie yelled. "MOM! They figured it out!" Her voice trailed off down the hall as she continued yelling.

Jenny looked at Chuck with wide eyes. "Um. If your sister and Mom knew before we did, neither one of is is very smart." She paused, thinking. "Hopefully we figured it out before your dad did."

"You know what this mean, right?" Chuck said, smiling and holding up a hand and counted off seconds.

Mary appeared in the doorway. "It means I'll be keeping a closer eye on you two. And you, missy, we're going to have a long talk soon." her voice was stern, but her expression was glowing. She continued in a much warmer tone. "That being said, it took you two long enough."

1995 – Bartowski Residence, San Diego

They hadn't been able to spend time outside of school together until Saturday, when they'd planned to go to the movies. A tentative date. She was oddly nervous though she knew they both wanted this. I've never been on any date, let alone a first date with my best friend, how the hell am I supposed to act? Dress? Books, why have you given me no idea how to do this for real? There was an obvious answer to her nervous questions however. Right, I'll just walk up to his MOM and ask her for advice on… UGH...

She'd arrived when she normally did on the weekend. Right around lunchtime. When the dishes were cleared, she offered to stay in the kitchen and help Mary clean. Ellie had retreated to study for her anatomy class. Chuck was proof-reading her history paper. To Jenny this seemed like a perfect opportunity to broach the topics that had been bugging her, despite the kind of weird feeling. Mary had been very kind to her and helpful during her first weeks in the school. And when certain feminine matters had come up for her, Mary was far more helpful than any book. This is just a natural progression of those questions.

They worked together in companionable silence for a few minutes. Eventually Mary picked up her lemonade and sat down at the kitchen table. She took a sip and stared at Jenny who was fiddling with some plastic lids. She seemed perfectly content to wait, the silence stretched out. As always, the silence got to her. Jenny dropped the lid and turned to drop into one of the chairs.

"I…" Jenny started to talk and then trailed off. She wasn't sure how to ask.

Mary looked at her and raised an eyebrow.

Jenny sighed. "This is going to sound stupid."

"Yes, quite likely." Mary agreed. "You're young, you're allowed."

This was something Jenny appreciated about Mary and her advice. She pulled no punches. She wasn't cruel, but she cut to the heart of things. "It's a girl thing." Jenny said finally, crossing her arms a bit stubbornly. Mary didn't respond beyond nodding. "I don't know…" she paused and let out a frustrated sigh. "I don't know anything about hair, or makeup, or clothes."

"That's true." Mary said with a smile meant to take the sting out of it. "You think Chuck cares about any of that?"

"No." Jenny admitted. "Its just I never had a reason…" she groped for the words. "I want… no, that's not it… I don't want him to think I don't care. I want to… dammit why is this so hard." She blinked at a prickling sensation. She wasn't normally this way, but this felt oddly important to her. "I just want to look good." she said, then in a small voice. "For him."

Mary tilted her head to the side for a moment before raising her voice. "Ellie! Grab your stuff. We're taking Jenny out."

1995 – Various Shopping Centers, Bartowski Residence, San Diego

The rest of the afternoon and early evening flew by and though the time of 'The Date' as it had become in her head approached, she didn't regret the hours at all. It was an eye opening education as Mary and Ellie tag teamed teaching Jenny Burton what they termed 'the fundamental hunting skills'. She got a primer on skin tone and color and why some clothes didn't actually work for her despite the comfort. They gave her an overview of cosmetics and the miracle of concealer. They made her try on an endless stream of outfits. Then they capped it off with a lesson on hair care and style, given by a nice young man who'd proclaimed her hair a 'tragedy' and set out to fix it. At the end of it, she felt like she was cramming for a test she hadn't known she'd be taking. It was a bit overwhelming.

In the car on the way back, she studied her reflection and sat back in some amount of shock. The girl sitting in that seat looked pretty, very pretty. Gone were the slightly uneven, frazzled locks kept in a rough pony tail. Her auburn hair (dyed, but no one needed to know that) now fell in a gentle curve, framing her face and ending just above her shoulders. She'd be able to manage it for workouts with a simple headband, several of which were in one of the bags riding on the seat next to her. Her face looked like hers… but subtly enhanced. The cosmetics were understated and Ellie had grumbled at how little had been required. No fault had been found with her day to day footwear or her jeans. Well, Ellie had lamented the fact that Jenny had grown fond of the same sort of Chuck Taylor's as her brother, but Mary proclaimed it 'cute'. Her shapeless, but comfortable, t-shirt had given way to a simple blue blouse with white buttons that actually fit her frame properly. Mary and Ellie both had stressed that t-shirts were fine. So long as they were fitted. She'd been allowed to pay for some of it. She'd been willing to pay for all of it, she had more than enough money. Mary and Ellie had simply stared at her until she put her wallet back. In her new purse since simply shoving it in her jeans was no longer allowed.

During one of the lulls, when Ellie had been hunting through the racks, Mary had taken her aside and explained a few things about how to carry herself. How to walk, how to attract attention – and how to fade into the background. Jenny had taken to it quickly and it made sense. When you looked better, a useful skill would be avoiding attention. The hair and clothes had done that for her before. She'd have to think about that now and, as Mary had told her in the quiet tones of someone revealing a hidden truth, that her striking looks would hide her just as well. People would see that and forget everything else.

Jenny laughed softly. It was like one of those silly movies where the girl got the guy after a makeover. Except that she already had her guy. The thought warmed her right to her toes. She knew that her new look would make him flip, but she also knew that they'd gotten there without it. They'd chosen each other, and she planned on making it stick.

When they returned to the house, Jenny paused before getting out the car. "I don't know how… I mean you both…" Jenny blew out a breath. "Thank you."

Ellie smiled at her and shrugged. "It was my very own full sized dress up doll. And I've got someone to share all my mall shopping secrets with." Ellie's smile turned a bit shy. "I kinda always wanted a little sister."

Jenny giggled and leaned over the seat to hug her. And then she hugged Mary for good measure.

Mary hugged her back and when she was getting out of the car said, "We'll do this a few more times. Ellie grew up with innate fashion sense, somehow. It didn't come from me, I was… taught." She looked Jenny over. "I have a feeling you'll do well with the same lessons I received. For now, go blow Chuck's mind… and don't spend the entire evening… well let's just say I'll be asking you about the movie so don't make out the whole time." She shooed Jenny towards the house.

Jenny knocked on the frame of Chuck's door. He'd already changed, his concession to the date being a green button down shirt and clean Converse. She could see that he was focused, tapping away at the keyboard of a PC. The technical specifications of which she'd had explained to her. More than once. It never seemed to stick though. She smiled at the memory and leaned against the door frame, waiting.

Chuck looked up from the screen and spun his chair around. His reaction was all she might have wished for. He'd started to rise, but fell. The rotation of the chair and movement of the wheels on the floor sent him and the chair over backwards. After a thud and a few choice curses, he popped up from the floor and stared. After blinking several times, he found his voice long enough to say, "Jenny?"

"Hey." she replied, a bit nervous. She stood up straight and walked over to him. "How do I look?"

"Beautifuller?" Chuck said. "I'm not sure that's a word. I think I've lost a few IQ points."

Jenny smiled and gave him a kiss. "I'll take it."

Chuck righted his chair and sat back in it. Jenny crossed to his bed and sat lotus style on it and watched him work through something in his head. "You look great. And I'm fully prepared to deliver any number of compliments. I just…" he paused. "Did I make it seem like something was wrong with how you looked before?"

"Nope" she replied. "Its hard to put into words. I never had a reason to care before… but I wanted to look, better. For you. And before you say you didn't ask for it, I know." She smiled at him. "That's why I swallowed my pride and asked your Mom and Ellie for help."

His smile lit up the room and she grabbed him and hugged him tightly. He rested his chin on her head and snorted. "So many guys are going to hit on you at school now."

"Have to break it to you, they kinda already did. Gym class make it painfully obvious which girls are more developed and most guys are predictable. Now, instead of having to make up something, I'll take great pleasure in telling them I have a boyfriend." she replied, not letting go.

"Oh wow. I hadn't put it in those words before." Chuck said. "I have a girlfriend."

"Yes you do. Now quick, lets go. And… don't tell your Mom we've already seen this movie?" Jenny replied, standing and pulling him to his feet.

"Why?" he asked.

She grinned. "You'll find out."