A/N: This is where the story takes the turn you want it to.

Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck

Sarah looked across the room in the funeral home where the Marshall was talking to Chuck, and surprisingly it looked as though Chuck was standing up to him.

It had been a strange few days. She had gone to talk to Chuck, only to find he wasn't in the house, and when he did come back, he told her he would be here for her today, at the funeral. Given the way their last conversation had gone, she was a little surprised. She felt bad about what she had said. She never meant to hurt his feelings, and she was sure a lot of what she said was pent up frustration and anger from her own situation.

She watched Marshall Casey walk away from Chuck, looking frustrated. Chuck walked the other way, and Sarah followed Casey, outside. "Casey," she said quietly, but forcefully. He turned around and started to speak. "Leave him alone."

Casey snorted. "I should have known it was you that gave that boy a backbone." Sarah looked at him in confusion. "Do you know what he told me?" Sarah shook her head. "That you get to live your life however you want, and he was going to help you do just that."

"He did?" Sarah asked, turning her head back toward where she thought Chuck might be inside.

"Yeah, and he told me that living safe wasn't living." Casey shook his head. "Wonder where he got that idea?"

"Yeah, I wonder," Sarah muttered, thinking. "Uh, I need to go inside."

"Walker…Sarah." Casey paused. "I'm sorry about your father."

"Thank you," Sarah told him sincerely. Casey nodded and walked away as Sarah turned and went back inside.

}o{

He was beside her during the funeral. He was beside her in the SUV as they drove to the gravesite. She noticed Mary raising an eyebrow in the vehicle at him, but he held her gaze and when Mary turned around, Sarah swore she saw a bit of a proud look on Mary's face.

At the gravesite, the loss hit her and her hand was in his. His large hand holding hers, made her feel safe…grounded…it made it bearable. He stayed at her side, and when she thanked him, he told her it was the least he could do. Carina and Zondra approached her and Emma and told them they had a surprise for them if they were up to it.

Again, Sarah found herself in the backseat of the SUV, sitting beside Chuck, and she noticed him constantly wiping his hands on his jeans. She didn't know what to say to him. Guilt was eating her for what she said. He was allowed to grieve however he wanted to, but what he did wasn't grieving. The thing was, she wasn't sure she had the right to say anything to him. She didn't know him like that.

Sure, since she had met him there had seemed to be a…bond between them, that she didn't know how to explain. When Chuck was around, her spirits were higher. He made her feel safe, not that she felt unsafe when he wasn't. It was hard to describe. She found herself laughing more around him, and what he told her about protecting himself, living in the way he did…she found herself so disappointed.

It made no sense to her. He felt as close as her family and she barely knew him. She mentally shook herself. What did she expect? She had really gotten to know no one outside of her family for nearly her whole life because of everything she had been through with WitSec.

She turned to him, and watched him, wiping his hands on his pants. She knew that meant something, what she had no idea, but for some reason it amused her. Chuck Bartowski always amused her, made her smile, made her feel just a little bit better, even on her worst days, in the worst moments. He had been there for most of them, even after the things she had said to him

"Thank you," she said softly. She didn't see the look that Carina gave Zondra in the rearview mirror when Sarah said it. Emma didn't seem to react, but if one had a view of her in the passenger of the car, she would have seen the tiniest smile play on her lips. It was the day she buried her husband, but she found hope for her daughter…hope that she dared not dream with the life she had been forced to live.

"Thank you," Chuck replied, confusing Sarah to no end. Sarah didn't know what to say, so she reached over, took his hand, which was quite sweaty for some reason, and squeezed it. It felt right. Nothing felt more right, and for some reason she couldn't explain, the hope she had begun feeling since talking to John Casey was growing in her. Hope that she thought would never exist with-in her because of the life she had been forced to lead, was growing.

"So," Carina said, pulling Sarah out of her thoughts. She didn't let go of Chuck's hand, instead, she laced her fingers through his, and wondered why it seemed sweatier than before. "We've purchased a house." Carina leaned over to Emma. "That's what we do."

"I'm sure Emma knows about flipping houses, Carina," Chuck said dryly.

"Hush, Chuckles, those in charge are talking," Carina admonished him, winking at him in the rear view mirror.

"You've alway got to drive and be in charge," Chuck retorted. Carina's mouth dropped, and a soft smile covered her face. Chuck had a proud look on his face.

"So, now that we're friends you get to take shots, huh?" Carina said.

"Careful, Chuck, she's been waiting for this," Zondra told him.

"What do you mean now that we're friends?" Emma asked.

"Chuck has been doing some soul searching and is now trying to move on from the past," Zondra told her.

"I see," Emma said, a knowing smile on her face. Sarah didn't know why that made her so happy…or why Chuck's hand was literally dripping with sweat right then.

A/N: Yeah, yeah, another double chapter. I'm just too nice.

"So what does this have to do with us?" Emma asked.

"Well, we have a sponsor to pay for the house and it's makeover," Carina began.

"Carina, that money should go to someone else, WitSec will pay for us!" Emma told them.

"And if it does, we'll use that to do a different house for a different family," Chuck told Emma. Zondra and Carina locked eyes in the rearview mirror again. "The funds were given knowing your story, yours and Sarah's."

"I see," Emma said. Sarah was speechless.

"So, we have the house, and we hope you like it," Carina continued. "Our plan is for you to help us decide how to decorate it and set it for your satisfaction."

"Sarah should," Emma told them. "She has a fine eye for that sort of thing."

"I mean, it's your house mom," Sarah told her. "If you want me to, I will."

"You're not living with me?" Emma asked, turning in her seat where she could see Sarah. The SUV was suddenly filled with tension. Sarah shook her head no. "Good," Emma replied. "It's time you get out and live your life." Sarah smiled at her mother. Emma smiled back and turned around. Sarah looked over at Chuck and grinned. He returned the grin. It fell off of his face as Sarah recognized where she was.

"Well, you're gonna be living close to Chuck," Sarah told her mother. Suddenly her hand was soaked with sweat. She couldn't help but look over at him, and she quickly saw the embarrassment that covered his face. She squeezed his hand in support.

"Not unless Chuck buys a new house," Carina chirped from the front seat. Sarah saw Chuck's lips press together and him shoot Carina a slight glare.

"Warned you about being friends," Zondra said in a sing-song voice. Sarah couldn't help but crack up. Carina pulled up in the driveway and everyone got out of the vehicle.

"Wait a second," Sarah said softly, holding onto Chuck's hand pulling him back. Carina and Zondra exchanged a look and led Emma inside.

"I swear it's like they're out to get me," Chuck muttered watching the three walk into the house. He turned to Sarah and swallowed, seeing the questioning look on her face. "Have I done something?"

"Oh, I don't know," Sarah began. "The other day, I said some things that probably weren't my place to say-"

"Or-or," he quickly cut in. "Maybe they were," he offered. He watched her, and saw the tiniest bit of joy radiate off of her. "I get that maybe we haven't known each other long, but sometimes people come into your life and in a short time make a huge impact."

"Is that what I did?" Sarah asked.

"I think," Chuck admitted. "You made me open my eyes to some things…made me think. I love Morgan, always will, but…" he looked over at the house. "He wouldn't want me to be alone. He wouldn't want me to not have friends and live in my mom's basement. I'm not saying I can ever go back to doing what I did-"

"You don't have to," Sarah said, cutting in. "I get with everything that happened, maybe that's too much. But, Chuck…this is a lot. You went from hiding and protecting yourself to selling this house."

Chuck looked at the house and then back at Sarah. "Morgan always thought that this house would be perfect for his mom. It's a good neighborhood, and he felt love and family inside. I think I just had to find the right person to own it."

Sarah didn't know what to say. "I said too much the other day," she began.

"I disagree," Chuck told her. "I think you said exactly what I needed to hear. I-I….I learned that I could lose people and hurt myself by cutting myself off, and…and I would hate to lose you as a friend." He gestured toward the house. "I'd hate to lose Carina and Zondra."

"You consider me a friend?" Sarah asked.

"I don't know if you believe this or not, but a few days ago, you told me the truth," Chuck told her. "You cared enough about me to tell me the truth. Not that others didn't care, but you saw what I was doing to me…you saw that I was…hiding." He shook his head. "Sarah, from the moment we met we've seen each other in some of their saddest, most dark moments."

"We have," Sarah admitted. She reached over and took his hand. "I'd be honored to have you as a friend, Chuck Bartowski, but I must admit something, I don't know a lot about being someone's friend, given my life."

"Fair," Chuck replied, grinning. "And I'm a little rusty at it, so perhaps we show each other some grace when we do something…I don't know, wrong?"

"Okay, so why do your hands sweat so much?" Sarah asked, chuckling.

"When I get nervous I find my hand sweats drastically," Chuck told her.

"Why would you be nervous?" Sarah asked. Chuck gave her a look. "I don't know, I'm serious."

"I felt like I disappointed you the other day, and…and I don't want to do that," Chuck said with a shrug.

She was silent for a second. "Okay, real talk, yeah, I was disappointed, but Chuck, again, part of that was me, reflecting what I was feeling about my life on you. I'm sorry."

"Please don't apologize," Chuck implored. "You made me open my eyes."

She gave him a shy smile, swinging their interlocked hands gently. "Okay," she replied. "Now, let's go look at this and let me figure out what all we can rip down and knock down!"

"Ow, that hurts, Sarah, that hurts," he told her grinning.

"I promise…I won't be gentle if I have to swing a sledgehammer," she told him, grinning.

"But you'll make it better in the end?" Sarah nodded. "Deal," he told her.

"Come on you two," Carina yelled at them. Sarah took off toward the house, letting go of Chuck's hand, giggling. Carina rolled her eyes as Sarah walked by where only Chuck could see. "Dangerous game," she said, and went inside.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Chuck protested, but realized she couldn't hear him. He scratched the back of his neck. "Fine, maybe I have the tiniest idea."

A/N: I mean….does he? What? Fine…

"How do you know they're in danger?" Zondra asked, all laughing and playfulness gone from her face.

"A Marshall from WitSec told me," Chuck explained. "You may have noticed him at the funeral home earlier."

"Jaw of granite, looks like he grunts a lot?" Carina asked. Chuck just stared at her. "What? He has that look."

…..I got nuthin. Take care friends, tell those you love them that you love them.