Disclaimer: 'Chuck' and all it's affiliated characters and settings are the property of their respective owners. This fiction is written for entertainment only.
No financial profit was made. Spiritual profit, sure. Creative profit, heck yeah. Just no coin.
C'est la vie.
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The emergency room was a madhouse when Chuck arrived. From what he could tell, it seemed like tonight was the night that everyone in the Greater Los Angeles area decided to have some kind of accident. The moment he walked through the doors, a nurse came bustling up to him with a chart.
"Name, injury, and insurance provider." She demanded.
"Err, Chuck Bartowski." He ventured. "I'm looking for my sister, Ellie?"
The nurse only seemed to be half listening. "When did she come in?"
"Oh, no." He tried to explain. "She's a doctor here. Dr. Ellie Bartowski."
Realizing Chuck wasn't a patient, the nurse spared enough effort to shoot him a particularly scathing glare for wasting her time, gestured vaguely to a nearby curtain, and vanished into the crowd.
Blinking, Chuck headed off in the direction the woman had indicated. Reaching the curtain, he pulled it aside just in time to reveal his sister forcibly re-setting an open leg fracture. The audible cracking sound wasn't so bad, but at the sight of the jagged tip of bone retracting into the torn flesh, Chuck turned slightly green and stumbled backward a step.
"There you go." Ellie stated brightly, patting the young man on the shoulder. "Good as new. Now I'm gonna give you a little something, and then we'll see about that hip of yours."
She nodded to the nurse, who handed her a small vial of clear fluid, from which she filled a small syringe. When Chuck's eyes fell on the vial, he felt his face go slack, and the now familiar rush of images and knowledge wash over him.
Ketamine. General aesthetic. Powerful sedative.
Chuck grinned, suddenly knowing what was about to happen to the patient.
Taking the arm of the young man she was treating, she swabbed the inside of his elbow. Finding a vein, she gently pushed the needle in, and injected the sedative. The patient gave her a watery smile, his eyes rolled back, and he fell unconscious. Ellie laughed lightly, and turned to find her brother standing behind her, leaning against the medicine cart, grinning.
"Chuck? What're you doing here? Is everything okay?"
"Yeah, everything's good." Chuck smiled. "You have a minute?"
"Sure." She pulled her latex gloves off, tossing them in a nearby trashcan. She turned to the nurse beside her. "You got this, Angie?"
The nurse, Angie, nodded, and Ellie led her brother out of the exam room. Following her through a few hallways, she led him into the employee break room. She grabbed a couple bottles of water from the fridge, and tossed one to him. "So what's up, Chuck?"
One the way there, Chuck had rehearsed his words a dozen times, but all the same he suddenly found himself speechless. "Uhh…"
Ellie crossed her arms over her chest and gave him the look he'd long ago come to recognize as her 'Come on, out with it' expression.
Chuck sighed. "Ellie, I just wanted to tell you I love you, and I appreciate everything you've done for me over the years. I don't think I could've made it without you."
Her stern expression melted. "Chuck... I... thank you. What brought this on?"
"I just..." He stepped forward and pulled her into a hug. "No matter what happens, Ellie, you be happy. You promise?"
She pulled back to look him in the eye. "Chuck, you scaring me. What's going on?"
"Nothing." He answered shortly. "I just know I've been a pain in the ass lately, and I wanted you to know I'm sorry, and that you're the best big sister I ever could've asked for, and I'm really happy for you and Devon. I don't say stuff like that enough."
"Oh, Chuck." Her eyes began to shine with tears as she pulled him back into the hug. "I love you too, you doofus. And you never have to thank me for being there for you. I'll always be there for you."
"I know." He replied, stepping back and letting his arms fall to his sides. "But I better let you get back to work. Lives need saving, and all that."
"Okay." She sniffed, and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "See you at home?"
With some effort, Chuck managed to keep his expression from cracking. "Actually, I'll be out with Sarah tonight. Could be a late one."
Ellie grinned, and dabbed at her eyes once more. "Okay. Go get 'em, tiger."
Chuck shot her a thumbs up, and made his way out through the bustling crowds, willing himself not to look back.
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Fighting to keep his composure, Chuck reached up and knocked on the door. A brief scuffle was heard on the other side, before it swung open to reveal a dishevelled looking Morgan.
"Chuck! Mi compadre!" The small man cried happily. "What's up, man?"
Chuck shrugged lightly. "I was in the area, and I sensed someone playing Call Of Duty 4. What can I say?"
"Yes, yes..." Morgan nodded sagely. "I too understand the siren call of COD 4. Come in, fellow pilgrim. Multiplayer awaits."
Grinning, he followed Morgan into the small apartment, cracking his knuckles on the way. "Let's do this thing."
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Some time later...
"Which is why I'm certain Chewbacca must've used conditioner on his fur." Morgan concluded, pausing briefly to take down a mouthful of pretzels. "You don't get that kind of body and lustre without working for it, and I should know."
"Please." Chuck snorted. "He lived on a spaceship, and a small spaceship, at that. You really think the Millennium Falcon had water tanks big enough for a seven-foot Wookie to lather, rinse, and repeat on a daily basis? I think not."
"Bro, you're killing me." Morgan cried. "They have blasters, lightsabers, hyperdrive, droids and all sorts of other high tech stuff. You think they can't recycle water?"
"On a high class ship, maybe, but on the Falcon?"
Morgan looked offended. "Oh, so now you're calling the Millennium Falcon low class?"
"You know I didn't mean it like that."
"Oh, then how did you mean it?"
Before Chuck could dig himself any deeper, though, he was cut off by a loud knock on the door. Morgan slowly got up to answer it, fixing Chuck with a stern look. "Don't think we're done talking about this."
He returned a moment later, with his sweet, if slightly unhinged girlfriend Anna by his side.
"Hi, Chuck." She greeted him, smiling.
"Hi, Anna." He waved, getting up from his seat.
"Hey, man," Morgan pulled him aside. "I know we were having a pretty important discussion, and the first rule is bros before hoes, but, uh..."
"Could I leave so you and Anna can have some 'quality time'?"
Morgan nodded. "I would've said 'do the nasty', or perhaps even 'dance the horizontal mambo', but you've got the gist of it, yeah."
Chuck shook his head, laughing quietly. "Sure, dude. No problem."
"Cool, man. You rock." Morgan assured him as he not so subtly pushed Chuck toward the door. "See you tomorrow, right?"
"Sure."
"Wicked."
"Hey Morgan?" Chuck called out, just before the door closed.
"Yeah, man?"
"You're my best friend." Chuck told him. "Thank you."
Morgan looked a little stunned, before a huge grin split his face. "No thanks necessary. All part of the Morgan experience."
"Take care of yourself, man."
"Sure, dude. See you tomorrow."
"Yeah." Chuck agreed, smiling sadly. "Tomorrow."
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Pulling the Nerd Herder up to the curb, Chuck took a moment to prepare himself for what was coming. Tonight was the night his life came to an end, and he figured that was worth reflecting on.
He thought back to Stanford, and how Bryce had lied to keep him out of this life, and then, years later, pulled Chuck in with his supposedly dying act.
And now, after all he'd seen and done, there were two government agents waiting in his home with orders to kill him. Two friends he'd trusted with his life countless times, would be the ones to end it.
A rueful laugh escaped his lips. The irony of it all was staggering.
Shaking his head, he climbed out of the car and slowly made his way through the courtyard. He paused at the fountain, pulled a quarter from his pocket, and tossed it in.
Feeling oddly philosophical, he watched the ripples dance over the water's surface, and had the strangest urge to listen to The Doors.
"This is the end," He sang softly, as he unlocked his front door. "My only friend, the end."
He laughed again, this time at how melodramatic he was being. It really wasn't his style.
He walked into the living room, and wasn't surprised to see Casey and Sarah sitting on the couch, waiting for him. When Sarah caught sight of him, her eyes lit up beautifully, and a faint sense of euphoria filled him. God, she was gorgeous.
After a moment's debate, he decided to play dumb. They didn't need to know that he knew what was coming.
Sarah stood hurriedly, crossing the room but stopping just short of throwing her arms around him. Her expression was relieved. "Chuck, where were you? I was worried."
He ruthlessly smothered the feeling of betrayal that rushed through him. "I'm fine, Sarah. Ellie called me. She forgot her pager at home, so I ran it over to the hospital for her. Sorry I didn't tell you."
"And that took three hours?" She looked at him sternly. "It's almost one in the morning."
Chuck actually managed to look embarrassed. "I might have stopped by Morgan's on the way back."
"Smooth move, Chuckles." Casey snapped. "Disappear all of a sudden without telling us. You're lucky we didn't put out an APB on you."
"Right, Casey." Chuck replied, rolling his eyes. He started walking toward the kitchen. "And what exactly would you have said? 'All Officers, be on the lookout for a guy. We can't tell you who he is, or what he looks like, or why we're looking for him, because it's all classified, but if you see him, let us know right away.'"
Casey didn't seem to have an answer for that one, so he just sunk further into his seat, muttering quietly.
On any other night, seeing Casey give up so easily would've puzzled him, but tonight Chuck figured the NSA agent probably had bigger things weighing on his mind. Cracking a half smile, he resumed his rooting through the fridge. "Whatever. You guys want something to drink?"
They both answered in the affirmative, and he returned with three drinks grasped somewhat precariously in his hands. Moving slowly, he managed to get all three drinks onto the table without a major disaster. He looked down at them with pride. "Would you look at that. I'm like a refreshment ninja."
Sarah heaved a heavy sigh. Reaching out, she took Chuck's hand, and pulled him down next to her on the couch. "Sit down, Chuck."
"We need to tell you something."
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