A/N I have been made aware of another story on FanFic that is similar to mine, I contacted the great Frea for advice.
I will NOT be reading the other story until after I have finished as I do not want it to even subconsciously change the direction of this story. The other author said they have read my story and believe that they are not the same.
I will leave it up to the readers to decide on what they want to read.
My main concern is confusion of stories; I wouldn't want people to stop reading both stories because they were getting confused with updates.
If the readers would prefer I handle this differently then please let me know.
I have decided to release a few chapters in order to make this stories direction understood, therefore another update will follow within the next few hours.
Chapter 5
They came back in from the water and were just relaxing on their towels; Chuck had gone onto his back and closed his eyes.
Several minutes later Chuck opened his eyes to look at Jenny, he thought he might sneak a little peak while she was relaxing on her towel.
Instead of finding her relaxing on her back or stomach he found her on her side staring at him with a smile.
"Um, everything ok Jenny?" asked Chuck.
"Yep great, just admiring how sexy you are and I find it hard to believe that we are actually going to go on a date" said Jenny.
Chuck looked confused "Why do you find it hard to believe?" asked Chuck.
"Well I told you that I had a crush on you in school but what I didn't tell you was that I have fantasized about you a few times in the last ten years" said Jenny shyly.
"So how do I measure up to the fantasies?" asked Chuck.
"Well so far the fantasies don't measure up to the reality" said Jenny mumbling.
"What was that?" asked Chuck.
"You are better than the fantasy so far, I never imagined you would look this good" said Jenny smiling.
"Jenny, well I need to look my best if I am going to be seen at the beach with you. Because you are a vision, you are a goddess. It would be understandable to assume that you were only put on this earth to define perfection" said Chuck smiling.
"Chuck, I have already agreed to go on a date with you, are trying to get in my pants now?" asked Jenny.
Chuck coughed and turned red.
"Okay then, I think I might go onto my stomach for awhile" said Chuck.
"I'm sorry Chuck just teasing...well sort of" she said with a smile.
"Chuck were you involved in any battles, was your life in danger?" asked Jenny.
"When?" asked Chuck.
"When you were in Afghanistan of course" said Jenny.
"Oh, um Jenny why do you ask?" said Chuck.
"Well, just wanted to maybe understand you better, to maybe help you. Casey was in the Marines and he said he saw some pretty messed up stuff that affected him" said Jenny.
"So if I said one way or the other would it affect how you felt about me?" asked Chuck.
"Chuck, it's not what you have done that defines who you are" said Jenny.
Chuck just gave a little smile.
"Yeah, I have been in some battles. Kind of what we were there for" said Chuck.
"Did you get injured?" asked Jenny.
"No not seriously, I have a couple of scars you can see if you look closely" Chuck rolled over to face Jenny.
"See here" pointing to a scar on his abdomen.
"That was when an Al Qaeda terrorists stabbed me with a knife" said Chuck
"This one here" pointing to a scar on his thigh "was a bullet that luckily missed the bone" said Chuck.
"They are probably the worst of it?" said Chuck.
"You were shot and stabbed, and you say you weren't seriously injured" cried Jenny.
"Jenny its ok, If I wasn't close to a medical facility then it would have been worse. Once I was with the docs there was never any danger that I wouldn't recover completely. I would have said it was serious if there was a concern for my life or that I would have lasting damage" said Chuck.
Jenny crawled over to where Chuck was.
"Chuck, if something had happened to you I would have never had the opportunity to get to know you" said Jenny.
With that she put her head on Chucks side and Chuck put his hand around her.
"Jenny, if I didn't join the army I don't know what would have happened to me. I don't think I would have been alive" said Chuck.
"Chuck we are here for each other now, we both have someone to talk to" said Jenny
"Jenny, was there any other questions you wanted to ask about Afghanistan?" asked Chuck.
"Well yes but not sure how to ask" said Jenny.
"Well if you wanted to know if I have killed anyone, the answer is yes. I don't feel proud of it but in the beginning it was like every terrorist I killed, I was killing the ones that murdered Dad and Ellie" said Chuck.
"I then became even worse, I turned off my feelings and only reacted to the stimuli around me. I guess I became the perfect soldier. But that is why I need to reconnect, remember who I was before?" said Chuck.
"So why did it take this long, surely you have been out of the Army for a long time now." said Jenny.
"Well I guess I was too busy trying to find the next place for me to fit in rather then were I came from. I came to the realization that I can't really find out were I fit in until I understand who I am first" said Chuck.
A good minute passed without any words being said.
"So have you spoken to your dad at all lately?" asked Chuck.
"No, I believe he would be out of Jail now he got caught on one of his schemes not long after he left here" said Jenny.
"Well I think it is about time to head back, I need to show Bryce the shelter and I guess you need to get to work" said Chuck.
"Thank you for getting Bryce to come? So what experience has he had?" asked Jenny.
"He was Army Rangers with me, he now works for the FBI but currently suspended for excessive force with a suspect" said Chuck.
"Oh, so why is he doing it?" asked Jenny.
"He owes me a couple of favors, he is ok he sees himself to be a bit of a ladies man but his heart is generally in the right place" said Chuck
They packed up their stuff and headed back to his rental. They threw all the stuff in the back and headed off.
They decided it was best for Chuck to drop Jenny of at hers, so she could get ready then Chuck would go back to his hotel room to wait for Bryce.
When he got there he found the two suspected mobsters outside their room, one was on the phone. He overhead part of the conversation.
"Yes we are sure it's her" he said.
"Yes tomorrow" he said
'Hmmmm, whatever is going down it's happening tomorrow, something about a female.' Thought Chuck.
Chuck went into his room and had a quick shower, he was dressed and ready when he heard a knock at his door. Chuck carefully checked the door.
"Who is it?" asked Chuck.
"Bartowski its Larkin what are you doing?" said Bryce.
Chuck opened the door and let him inside.
"Hey Bryce thanks for doing this for me" said Chuck
"No problems Chuck, I owe you and you know why, so what's the deal here?" said Bryce.
"Well this is where I was born, and someone I knew in school had an urgent need" said Chuck
"You mean you weren't hatched….so this someone male or female?" asked Bryce with a smile.
"Female" said Chuck.
"So anything going on between you two, and is she a looker?" asked Bryce.
"Kind of casual at the moment nothing too serious supposed to go on our first date tomorrow night. Yeah she's amazing, just keep your mitts off her Bryce, I like her" said Chuck.
"Yeah, yeah. So what kind of trouble?" asked Bryce.
"She runs a shelter, which includes a secure shelter for battered wives. One of the husbands came back from 'Stan' and took to taking it out on his wife. She went to the shelter for protection. He came looking for her at the shelter and beat up on her current muscle, ex marine. Lucky I was there and took him down. But now she has no muscle for evenings which leaves her vulnerable" said Chuck.
"Sounds pretty straight forward" said Bryce.
"There is something else though completely unrelated, in this hotel there are two guys staying here. They smell like mob and I get the feeling something is going down tomorrow and it involves a woman. They are in room twelve, five doors down, would appreciate if you could keep an eye on them tomorrow" said Chuck.
"So Chuck, what have you been up to since you left the service?" asked Bryce.
"Bit of this, bit of that" said Chuck.
Bryce could tell he was being evasive.
"You look like you have stayed in shape?" said Bryce.
"Yeah, I guess exercise is one of the true friends I have in this world" said Chuck sadly.
Bryce could see the darkness still in Chuck, he tries to hide it but it occasionally comes back to the surface.
They went out to their cars and Bryce followed Chuck in his rental.
They walked into the Shelter and were greeted by security at the front desk.
"May I help you?" he asked.
"Yes Chuck Bartowski to see Jenny Burton" said Chuck.
"Is she expecting you?" asked the Guard.
"Yes she is" responded Chuck
"Just a moment" said the guard.
"Ma'am, I have a Chuck Bartowski here with another gentlemen" he said.
"Very good Ma'am" he said.
"You can go in" he said releasing the door lock.
Both Chuck and Bryce walked in and headed towards Jenny's office.
"Jenny this is Bryce" said Chuck introducing him.
Bryce leaned forward to shake her hand, and gave her the big Bryce Larkin smile.
"Wow, Chuck said you were pretty but you are stunning, it will be a pleasure working for you" said Bryce.
Jenny gave a little giggle and a shy smile.
Chuck felt uneasy already about introducing them.
"Well I will let you get back to work, Bryce I suggest you probably want to have a talk with the guard out front, get to know the lay of the land so to speak" said Chuck.
"Don't have to worry about me Chuck, this isn't my first lemonade stand" said Bryce with a smile.
Chuck went out to his car; he could feel the green monster rearing his ugly head. But considering he wasn't even sure if he could have a relationship with her he had no right to be Jealous. He just didn't want the chance to find out be taken away from him by Bryce Freakin Larkin.
Maybe he should have contacted the slacker Jeff Barnes, instead of Larkin. Nope he would trust Bryce with his life and the life of the girl he wished he could have. He just couldn't trust him to keep his hands to himself.
Jenny's protection is more important he sighed, and drove off he really didn't have much to do tonight. He decided that he would get something out tonight and see what happens in Warwick after dark.
Jenny came out to see how Bryce was settling in.
"Bryce, so everything in order you know where everything is?" asked Jenny.
Bryce could see that she didn't come out just to ask that question she wanted to see him, 'maybe that smile before was more then friendly' thought Bryce.
"So how serious are you and Chuck?" asked Bryce.
"Not that serious, would like it to be more serious I guess, why do you ask?" said Jenny.
"Just interested, Chuck is a great guy I would trust him with my life and have on many occasions but I wouldn't trust him with my sister" said Bryce.
"Why, is he violent?" asked Jenny.
"Oh shit no, its just he had something in his past that really affected him, he was dark. Over in Afghanistan there were four types of soldiers. The First is there but shouldn't be will get himself or other killed, the second will do his job because he knows he has to, third the crazies that just seem to enjoy the power the killing and get off on it. Then there is Chuck, he just seemed to treat everything personal he hated what he had to do, but when he was in action he was like a man possessed" said Bryce.
Jenny was only nodding her head.
"He wouldn't tell anyone what happened to him, but everyone knew that some personal tragedy helped shape him" said Bryce.
Jenny just walked off in thought; she had suspected what Bryce had told her the way that Chuck kept her at a distance. But it did not make her want her to give up on him, it only made her more convinced to help him.
Bryce had a smile on his face, he knows he has planted the seed of doubt with Jenny. He only needs to give her some water and sun and she will be putty in his hands. Yeah Bryce feels a little bad for Chuck, but all is fair in love and war...
Meanwhile Chuck was having a sleep on his bed in his room, he started tossing and turning as his nightmare returned.
He was in a room and his father was there and he was saying.
"I am disappointed in you son" said Steven Bartowski.
His sister then appeared holding a gun and it was pointing directly at him
"We both are disappointed and it is now time to end it, you don't deserve to be the one that is still alive" said Ellie Bartowski.
Ellie pulled the trigger it was then that Chuck woke up in a sweat.
It was the same dream that came to him almost every night, sometimes it was his father that would pull the trigger sometimes it was a different room. But they were always disappointed and they always said it had to end.
Chuck went in to his shower and tried to wash away all the feelings he had and tried to clear his mind.
He had gotten ready and before he went out he decided he would drop into the hospital and check on John Casey.
He arrived at the hospital and was told the room that he was in. He walked down to the room and walked in the door and found a nurse talking to him, but all he was doing was grunting in response.
"Hello Jarhead, thought I would check on you and see how you were going" said Chuck.
"Terrible, being here is worse then a Field hospital In 'Stan'" said Casey.
"Ah sorry, maybe I should have brought you some flowers to brighten the place up" said Chuck.
"Don't you dare?" said Casey.
"So how long do they think you will be out of action?" asked Chuck.
"Light duties in a couple weeks probably will not be fully recovered for months. Thanks for what you did. Is the Shelter ok, did jenny find someone to cover my shifts?" said Casey.
"Don't worry about it, guys like that give us all a bad name. When I found out he was beating on his wife I was angry I didn't do more to him. The shelter is fine too, I got an old army buddy of mine to look after it" said Chuck.
"You really came into Jenny's life at the right time for me and her I guess. So is he Ranger as well?" asked Casey.
"Yeah, ex Ranger now suspended FBI, excessive force deal" said Chuck.
"Don't worry I will not tell Jenny your secret, but I think…." Said Casey but Chuck interrupted.
"It's ok John, I told her today. I know she has gone through some stuff herself and maybe we can both talk about our pasts to each other and maybe help each other. I am not sure she understands what I did in 'Stan' but baby steps" said Chuck.
"So when did you get deployed?" asked Casey
"October 2001" said Chuck.
"Oh you were part of the initial deployment?" asked Casey.
"Yeah" answered Chuck.
"John, you know much about the local LEO's "asked Chuck.
"Yeah, they are ok. But not much happens out this way. Mostly B&E and pick pockets involving holidaymakers. We sometimes get some guys blowing off steam, but that is about it. Why do you ask looking for a change in career?" asked Casey.
"Nah, just some things I noticed and wasn't sure if anyone really has his ear to the ground in this town" said Chuck.
"You could ask my mate Benny he runs the local Bar" said Casey.
"How involved is he, connected with anyone?" asked Chuck.
"No not at all, he is clean as a whistle, but he does keep his ears open and people tend to talk at the bar. Anything I can help with?" Said Casey.
"No you stay comfy one question though, the town had much trouble with any organized crime families?" asked Chuck.
"No not at all, if it was maybe just selling a bit of drugs around the beach, there is a local Gang but they are more into destruction of property then anything else. You talking something serious?" asked Casey.
"Just some guys I saw at the hotel I am staying stank like Mob goons. Might be nothing, maybe just getting some Sun." said Chuck, deep in thought.
"Anyway is there anything I can get or do for you?" asked Chuck.
"Could you maybe organize some magazines, guns and ammo type magazines" said Casey.
"See what I can get" said Chuck smiling.
Chuck headed out and headed straight to the Bar that Casey mentioned, it looked like the place where everyone went. He sat at the bar and ordered a drink.
After Chuck had about half of his drink he asked the barmen.
"Is Benny here tonight?" asked Chuck.
"I'm Benny" Benny said.
Chuck just smiled.
"Sorry someone I know told me to talk to you about something, and wanted to check if it was you" said Chuck.
"Who was it?" asked Benny.
"John Casey" said Chuck.
"Ah, how is big John?" asked Benny.
"Not that good, got hurt at work and is in the hospital. Will be ok but needs some time to recover" said Chuck.
"Ah that sucks, so what can I help you with?" asked Benny.
"Well John said you keep your ear pretty close to the ground in this place. Just wondering if you have heard anything about any Mob or organized crime activity in town?" asked Chuck.
"Normally I would have laughed at the question, but there are a couple of guys in town that smell of something and have been talking up big" said Benny.
Chuck described the two guys he had seen
"Yeah that was them" said Benny.
"Just the two I have seen, I am trying to work out why they are in town. If you here anything call me on this number" said Chuck.
Chuck handed him a business card, all it had on it was the number.
Chuck was just sitting at the bar finishing his drink when another drink turned up.
"Benny, didn't order this one" said Chuck
"Yeah I know, it is courtesy of the Brunette down the end. You have an admirer" said Benny.
'Here we go last thing I need tonight' thought Chuck as he looked down to the end of the bar and gave her a smile.
Down the end of the bar was a gorgeous looking brunette smiling back, sure Jenny still won hands down, but this brunette wasn't the type of girl he expected to receive a drink from tonight.
Chuck walked down to the end of the bar to meet the girl.
"Thank you for this but I am kind of involved, but let me by you one so we are square" said Chuck
She just flashed him a beautiful smile.
"So how do you get kind of involved?" she asked.
"Well, I met this girl and we have our first date tomorrow night" said Chuck.
"Well to me that means you are available" she said.
"I find you incredibly attractive and I am flattered by your offer, but I think I will have to say no" said Chuck.
"So there is nothing I could do to change your mind" she asked
"Well how about this, if my date tomorrow doesn't work out I will look you up." Said Chuck with no intention of calling her.
"So if you are kind of involved how come you are out by yourself tonight or are you meeting someone later?" she asked.
"Ah, well she is working tonight, and I guess I just wanted to come out get something to eat and have a little fun" Chuck said.
"Why don't you get something to eat with me and we can have something to drink and I am sure we can find some way to have some fun" she said.
"Well as wonderful as that does sound, I will have to say no cause it sounds pretty much like a date" said Chuck.
"Ok, how about you me and two other girls" she said.
Chuck's eyebrows went up.
"Oh no, no, you look like the kind of guy I would definitely not want to share. Just some dinner cheap nothing flashy, some drinks at a bar and then maybe some dancing but only if you want to" she said.
"Well it does sound good, now you or one of the other girls will not think that it's a date right?" said Chuck.
"Nope, really the three of us will just be out to have some fun. I wasn't too keen to go out as I was worried the kind of guys that would hit on us. When I saw you I thought sexy, now he is the kind of guy I would want to hit on me. But if you could we would all be grateful. You know just so we will not be fed to the sharks" she said.
"How do you know that I am not a shark myself?" asked Chuck.
"Well for starters I had to almost beg you to come out with us" she said
"Maybe part of my act" Chuck said.
"The other part was your eyes, I could see you were generally a nice guy and were being honest. Most guys would have just had a night of fun then ditch me or the other girl" she said.
"Now not to sound paranoid but the other two girls are going to show right?" asked Chuck.
"Yeah, should be here any minute, I guess I should introduce myself, my name is Hanna" she said.
"Hi Hanna, I'm Chuck nice to meet you, so what kind of work are you in?" Chuck said.
"IT Support mostly high end stuff, what do you do?" she asked while taking a sip of her drink.
"IT wow, I thought about getting into that. Even had a scholarship to Stanford, but it wasn't to be" he said.
Hanna noticed that he didn't say what he did, but let it slide as unintentional.
"Sad Stanford didn't happen, it's a good school" Hanna said.
"Yeah, I had a bit of a family tragedy but that was ten years ago now" said Chuck.
"Sorry, so I didn't catch what you ended up doing" Hanna said.
"Ah, yeah didn't throw it…. Boring job I work as an Insurance Actuary" he said.
"Well ok, that's ok. However you look a little too buff for someone in that job. Have some interesting hobbies?" Hanna asked smiling and raising her eyebrows.
"Yeah I like surfing, running, swimming and I do a bit of boxing and martial arts" Chuck said.
"Well sounds like you are just the kind of guy to keep us safe, here are the other girls, this is Jill and that's Vanessa, girls this is Chuck" Hanna said.
"Hi Chuck!" they said in unison.
"Chuck is going to be our protector tonight, but girls he is kind of involved with someone. But he hasn't been on the first date yet. This is not a date for any of us either, he is off limits unless ofcourse he says otherwise" Hanna said winking at him.
"So girls you all work with Hanna?" asked Chuck.
"No, I am a Biochemist and Vanessa is a Lawyer" said Jill
"So where are you lovely ladies from anyway?" asked Chuck.
"We are all from LA, just down for a bit of a break. Hit the waves catch some rays have some sex" Vanessa said.
Chucks eyebrows went up
"You have to try to ignore Vanessa, she is just trying to shock you, if she flashes her boobs at you don't worry and as the night goes on she might flash something else" said Jill smiling.
"So let's get something to eat?" said Hanna.
Everyone agreed and the set off out of the bar, Benny just shook his head. Comes in alone and walks out with three hot women, some guys have all the luck.
Both Jill and Vanessa had their arms around Chuck as Hanna led them down the street, to Chuck it looked like Hanna was giving Chuck a dirty look.
"Girls I think all of you are incredibly beautiful, but me out with you tonight does not change that I will be going on a date with a girl that I like very much. Think of me as a brother someone that can help you fight of the horny animals that just want you for your bodies," said Chuck.
"So Chuck, what qualities do you have that qualifies you to be able to protect us from these said horny animals" said Vanessa.
"Well I can run pretty fast and I have a loud girly scream" said Chuck.
"That's cute but how is that going to help us when some Neanderthal has us on our backs" said Vanessa.
"Just know that I can protect you that should be good enough" said Chuck.
"Not to sound rude, but you are expecting us to trust someone that we have just met" said Vanessa.
"So if I don't protect you how would that be different if I wasn't there" said Chuck a little annoyed.
"Sorry Chuck, I guess I am not making myself clear. I just wanted to know more about you so I could know I could let loose or whether I need to be on the lookout. If you weren't here I would just be miss paranoid" said Vanessa.
"Well I could say something but why would you trust that I am telling the truth anyway" said Chuck.
"Chuck I know you would tell the truth I can see it in your eyes, what I don't know is whether you would bite of more then you could chew" said Vanessa.
"Ok well to satisfy your curiosity and allay any fears that I will not be able to protect you, I will tell you that I was in the army and I was deployed in Afghanistan for a while" said Chuck.
Hanna just stared at him
"Chuck you didn't tell me that" said Hanna.
"Yeah well I didn't go to Stanford, I ended up in the army" said Chuck.
"So what did you do over there" said Vanessa
"Vanessa what do you think, he probably doesn't want to talk about it, you know solider guns explosions" said Hanna.
"But he could have been a cook or did the laundry?" said Vanessa.
"Oh for God sake I was an Army Ranger ok" said Chuck obviously losing patience.
"Yep fair enough no more questions, and I am sorry I intruded" said Vanessa
Vanessa pulled away from Chuck and gave him some distance.
"What so now I have scared you?" said Chuck.
"No Chuck, I am sorry it just reminded me my older brother was a Ranger and he nearly died over there, he told me some of the stuff that went on. I just feel really awful about pushing you" said Vanessa.
"Its ok, so was he deployed in Afghanistan too?" asked Chuck.
She just nodded.
"What is his name?" asked Chuck
"Steve Mells" said Vanessa.
"Stinky, your brother is stinky?" yelled Chuck, Vanessa just stared at him like he had two heads.
"What the hell is stinky up to these days?" asked Chuck.
"He is an electrician works in LA" said Vanessa.
"Wow I haven't seen stinky since 2003" said Chuck.
"Hey, I got an idea. How about I call Steve up on the phone, when he answers you yell out stinky. I am sure he would love it" said Vanessa.
"Ok, as long as I get to say more then just stinky" said Chuck smirking.
Hanna was starting to get jealous of the connection Chuck and Vanessa appeared to be developing.
Vanessa called her brother on the phone. She handed the phone to Chuck, he was just listening to it ring. The phone stopped ringing.
"Hello, Steven Mells" he said
"STINKYYYYY!" yelled Chuck.
"Who the hell is that?" Stinky asked
"Chuck Bartowski" Chuck said.
"aaaaaaaaggghhhhhh" said stinky, the girls watched as they could hear stinky through the phone and Chuck pulling it away from his ear.
"What,…how…. Why you with my sister?" asked Stinky
Chuck just laughed " She just picked me up in a bar" said Chuck.
Chuck and stinky spoke about old times for a couple of minutes and Chuck eventually handed Vanessa's phone back to her.
"No Steve I didn't pick him up, it was my friend Hanna, anyway he kind of already has a girlfriend but Hanna asked him to tag along as our personal body guard" said Vanessa.
"Well you couldn't have picked a better guy, you be nice to him and don't give him a hard time he is a freaking war hero and he saved my life on numerous occasions" said Stinky.
"What do you mean when?" asked Vanessa
"Remember how I told you we got ambushed and I got shot, well it was Chucky that rescued us and carried me out to safety" said Stinky.
"Wow," said Vanessa.
"Hey can you give Chucky my phone number would love to catch up with the donkey" said Stinky.
"Yep I will talk to you later Stinky hehe" said Vanessa.
"My brother said we all have to be really nice to Chucky and to not give him a hard time. My brother owes him big time and so do I" said Vanessa.
Meanwhile Bryce was plotting his next conversation with Jenny.
Jenny was at the same time thinking only of Chuck. From her conversation with Bryce she knew she had to talk to Chuck and make sure he understands no matter what, she will be there for him. She is not going to run and hide from no matter what is in his past. But she decided she wanted to get more information and the best source was in the outside office.
Jenny walked out to see Bryce; he gave her one of his most charming smiles.
"So Bryce you said that Chuck seemed to be driven by something personal, did that continue to drive him. I understand that you were Rangers and I guess while I don't understand what they really do I assume that fighting comes part and parcel. Therefore I assume that Chuck has had to end the life of other men. After he did it did he return to normal?" asked Jenny.
"No actually he didn't he had some pretty shocking nightmares, His personal demons or whatever it was fueled him during combat but after he took things pretty bad and he pretty much hated himself for what he had done." said Bryce sadly.
"So was he a good soldier?" asked Jenny.
"Jenny, well we were rangers so by definition we were better then good soldiers. But Chuck was kind of like on another level. I owe him my life. If he wasn't there me and a heap of other guys wouldn't be alive. He was a god damn war hero" said Bryce.
"Sounds like you admire him" said Jenny.
"Wouldn't want to be him, he comes with lots of baggage " said Bryce.
'maybe I could be his very own baggage handler' thought Jenny.
Bryce doesn't think what he is saying about Chuck is having the desired effect so decides to be a little more blunt.
"Jenny, I think you should think long and hard before jumping into a relationship with Chuck" said Bryce.
"What then have a relationship with you" said Jenny.
"Well, I am not so bad. I could make you feel like a real women?" said Bryce.
"Bryce let's get one thing straight. I met Chuck over ten years ago and I haven't had a serious relationship in the ten years. You want to know why, because sub consciously I was waiting for a chance with Chuck that whole time. Having waited ten years, do you really think I would just go ok let's go out, and throw it all away? By the way, why were you suspended from the FBI? On second thoughts my impression of you can't get any worse. This man you say saved your life, and this is how you treat him." said Jenny angrily.
Bryce was stunned not only did she turn him down she is really hung up on Chuck, this is a real challenge and he never turns down a challenge.
'Ok so the old Larkin charm needs some work, I will try a different tactic' Thought Bryce.
Chuck caught up with Hanna and put his arms around her
"Don't get all jealous on me, nothing has changed and if lets say the girl I am seeing tomorrow night calls up and cancels and tells me to get lost. You will be the first number I call" said Chuck.
'God last thing I want is a girl I am not even seeing getting jealous of her friend because we are talking' thought Chuck.
They got to the restaurant and were shown to a table; it was a fairly standard Italian restaurant Chuck sat next to Hanna with Vanessa across from him and Jill next to her. They looked at the menus and decided on pasta.
The waiter came to the table and took the orders.
"Chuck, Steve said you saved his life on several occasions" said Vanessa.
"Oh he is just exaggerating, the only thing I saved him from was embarrassment" said Chuck.
"Chuck I remember the story about how he and ten other Rangers got off one helicopter and got ambushed by Al Qaeda. You were on another Helicopter with ten other rangers and were the only one who survived from that helicopter. You came up and flanked the Al Qaeda cell that had ambushed them. You took the cell by surprise and by yourself able to save all of the other ten Rangers with only two casualties" said Vanessa.
Both Hanna and Jill's jaws dropped.
"I think he may have exaggerated there, other Ranger survived from the other Helicopter and besides we lost enough men that day as it was. You do what you need to do. Maybe we could find another subject to discuss" said Chuck.
"Chuck, I am sorry if it makes you feel uncomfortable, but I have always wanted to thank the man that saved my big brother and I never though I would get the chance. Yes he did say that another ranger survived in the other helicopter. A man that suffered serious injuries but only survived because you pulled him out of the helicopter before it burst into flames" said Vanessa.
"Look I was just a soldier doing his job, just like the waiter here that serves us our meal" said Chuck.
"Bullshit Chuck you were basically a war hero, and what is with the nickname donkey?" asked Vanessa.
"Ah, you will need to ask you brother that question, just another exaggeration" said Chuck.
They all continued their conversation and Chuck was glad that it had moved away from the war stories. Chuck noticed Vanessa playing with her phone.
"Vanessa did you want to give me stinky's number?" asked Chuck.
"Here take it off my phone" Vanessa said passing it to him.
Chuck looked at the phone and saw a text message from stinky, telling Vanessa about the origin of his nickname. He looked up at Vanessa and she winked at him. Chuck just rolled his eyes.
They finished the meal and headed off to find a bar.
Chuck and the girls were just walking together down the sidewalk laughing when they saw a car go past with stereo blaring.
The car screeched its brakes and came to a halt, it then started backing up to where Chuck and the girls where.
Chuck quickly put himself between the road and the girls, and was alert.
"Girls just don't panic and just do what I say" said Chuck.
The car arrived alongside where they were walking and four young men got out. All appeared to be between the ages of 16 to 21
"Hey pops watchoo doin with all them hotties share them around" said they oldest of the guys.
"Guys, if I'm the same age as you pop I guess that explains the deformities" said Chuck.
"What are you some kind a smart ass, we will teach you a lesson" he said.
"Boys I am only 28, but I think you will find what you are looking for somewhere else" said Chuck.
"No pops whatcha I ama lookin for is right ere and ya gonna get cut" he said pulling out a knife.
Chuck quickly moved the girls back and he noticed another one of the four had come around behind him.
The oldest went for a slash with the knife, Chuck blocked his hand then grabbed his arm then at the same time hit the guy behind him with a back kick just under the chin he went down grabbing at his throat trying to breathe. He then whipped around the guys arm he was holding into an arm lock, A sickening snap was heard as his arm bent unnaturally and Chuck ended up with the knife. The guy that had the knife was screaming and holding his clearly broken arm.
The youngest boy came running at Chuck, he simply side stepped him, grabbed him from behind and found a pressure point on his neck that rendered him unconscious.
Chuck stared at the remaining boy.
"You want this knife, well you can get it when you change your flat tire" said Chuck.
"You blind pops, theys no flat tire" he said.
Just as the boy finished speaking, Chuck threw the knife and it buried itself up to the hilt in the front tire.
"But you do know" said Chuck
He just had a scared looked on his face.
"Get out of here and if I ever see you children out again I will not be so kind next time" said Chuck.
Chuck looked over at the girls and saw the scared look on their faces.
"You girls ok" said Chuck
"Um yeah, are they going to be ok?" asked Hanna.
"Well that guy has a broken arm, this one will have a bruised larynx and will not talk much for a while. This one will wake up with a headache and I think that guy needs a change of pants" said Chuck.
"Chuck, that was amazing" said Vanessa.
"Nah, they were just street punks that have only ever picked on people that wouldn't or didn't know how to fight back" said Chuck.
"Come on lets get to the club I feel like doing some dancing" said Chuck.
All three girls' faces lit up with a smile and started walking on to the club.
Bryce was wondering how he was going to get into Jenny's good books; he was sure she would be interested in more about Chuck's time in the army. Maybe he should talk about how he got rescued by Chuck.
He picked up the phone and called her.
"Jenny, I am sorry about before, I wasn't thinking clearly and you are right I owe Chuck a lot and he doesn't deserve what I was saying. I was wondering if you wanted to know more about his time in the Army" said Bryce.
"That depends on why you would be telling me Bryce" said Jenny.
"Well I just thought you might like to know how he saved my life or why he was awarded certain medals" said Bryce.
"He was awarded medals?" asked Jenny.
"Yeah of course, Chuck was pretty much a war hero" said Bryce.
"Maybe I will come out later and you can tell me about it, thanks Bryce" said Jenny.
"Ok" replied Bryce
A/N Please Review, next chapter things start to get interesting.
For those interested I have added a further option on the Poll on my profile