Episode 3x11 – Part 3
A/N I suppose you could look at the next few chapters as my version of episode 12, had my episode 11 happened. I don't own Chuck.
I woke up in a cocoon of Chuck. Or rather, a cocoon that smelled like Chuck. After seeing him off last night, I decided to stay. I pressed my nose into the pillow clutched against my chest. Prying one eye open I searched for the digits on the alarm clock. Fifteen minutes before I have to get up. Twenty five if I go for the ponytail look today. Thirty if I push the Porsche a little harder. I closed my eye again and groaned. Mornings are brutal.
I didn't go back to sleep. Instead I just let my mind wander. I was scared that the past year had changed Chuck. I was both right and wrong. He was still the same Chuck, but he was also...more. He finally realised what I've known all along. He was that guy. The awkward nerd I fell for when he offered to be my very own baggage handler. The funny and charming guy who could lift my mood with a simple smile. He was the warm and caring guy who noticed that I didn't like olives and loved extra pickles. He was the passionate guy who stole my breath away last night. He was a strong and reliable man I could count on. Chuck Bartowski was the man I wanted to surrender to.
The alarm went off and I hit the snooze button. I was about to roll over onto my stomach when I heard the bedroom door open. My heart started to flutter as my brain wasn't alert enough yet to realise that it couldn't be Chuck.
"Well this is a surprise." Nope, it wasn't Chuck and apparently it wasn't pleasantly surprised.
Pulling myself up into a sitting position (because I realised I was going to need some sort of leverage), I slowly opened my eyes. "Good morning, Ellie."
Ellie had a laundry basket propped up against her hip. She just looked at me before putting it down on Chuck's side of the bed. "Do you make a habit of committing B and E to sleep in your ex-boyfriends' beds when they're out of town?" She asked as she turned to put away the clean laundry. Seems I'm dealing with scowling Ellie today.
"I didn't break and enter." That was not the response I was going for. I needed caffeine. Ellie just raised an eyebrow. Okay, let's try this again. "Chuck is not my ex-boyfriend."
"So you guys are back together?" I really didn't want to have this conversation without Chuck present.
"We're working on it," I tried to evade the question.
"And it's complicated," Ellie deadpanned. I should have expected that to come up. That word is probably gonna come back to bite me in the butt until my dying day.
Ellie and I always had a bit of a strange relationship even though she wasn't aware of that. She was probably the closest I have to a friend apart from Carina. Chuck wasn't the only Bartowski I had trouble with keeping it strictly a cover. But the past few months we barely spoke apart from her trying to convince me for a while that I still had feelings for Chuck. That's what Ellie did. She interfered. Mostly I didn't mind it so much, but I haven't forgotten about the time she told Chuck to break up with me. It was justified at the time, I suppose, but it still stung. Both for Ellie to think it would be for the best and for Chuck to actually do it. But things are different now. Chuck and I are together for real and I need to patch things up with Ellie. I don't want him to ever feel like he should chose between us.
"Do you have time for coffee?" I was stalling a little, but I really needed coffee.
Ellie closed the drawer after putting Chuck's socks away and turned back to me. "My shift doesn't start for another hour."
We were on our second cup, but so far no one said anything. Normal for me, uncharacteristic for Ellie. I was waiting for an opening, she was refusing to give me one. I took a deep breath and put my mug down on the coffee table. Here goes.
"Ellie, look, I...it's different this time."
"Why?" It was an easy question to answer, if I could tell Ellie the truth. There was another way to respond, but I had trouble saying the word. And I think that if I was going to muster up the courage to actually voice it, it should be to Chuck first.
"It was a mistake to break up. One we don't intend to make again."
"I would hope not. Chuck-post-Jill was bad. You know what he was like when you met him. But at least he made an attempt at having a life, even if it was just working at the Buymore and playing video games with Morgan. After you...when he came back from Europe, he spent weeks on the coach in his robe eating cheese balls and growing a beard. If you leave him again..."
"He left me, Ellie," I didn't want the conversation to go there, but I just couldn't keep it in anymore. "Chuck left me and it was difficult for me to forgive and trust him again." There, how's that for the truth. "Like I said, we both made mistakes."
Ellie was taken aback. "Sarah, I'm sorry, I didn't know..." I didn't want sympathy or an apology. I just wanted her to understand that I wasn't going to hurt her brother again.
"Ellie, it's okay. I got over it. It may have taken me a little long, but I did. From now on I want to concentrate on the future."
"Does that mean you guys are talking marriage?" Oh crap, I've unleashed squealing Ellie. At least I could breathe easier. She was back on our side.
I held up my hands in surrender. "Hang on, it's only been a couple of days..."
"It's been three years. Any girl who can forgive a guy for murdering her soufflé...c'mon, don't tell me the thought never crossed your mind." Ellie was relentless. She was Ellie.
"Fine," I conceded, "it has, but Chuck and I haven't talked about it yet." I was still trying to figure out what to do about Rome. Marriage would make things easier, but I'm not going to marry Chuck for the sake of the job. As far as our personal lives are concerned, we are done being puppets for the government.
"Okay, I get the message. I'll back off. For now. But can I ask one more question?" I braced myself. Ellie just went into big sister mode. "Are you planning on serving frozen yogurt for the rest of your life?"
After convincing Ellie that I'll reconsider my career choice, she left for her shift and I got ready for a 'difficult day at the office'. It was time to face Shaw and Beckman.
Shaw was sitting at the table reading a report. Judging from the bandage and the black circles under his eyes, I broke his nose. It looked rather painful. Good. My hand felt a little tender, but thanks to Chuck's TLC last night, it should be fine in no time. Before either of us had time to say anything, Beckman appeared on screen. I never thought I'd be happy to see her. Said happiness didn't last long.
"Do you have an explanation for your behaviour of last night, agent Walker?" Her tone threatened to cause the next ice age. Shaw sat back, folded his arms and waited for her to lay into me. Pathetic asshole.
"I broke up with agent Shaw, general." By the look on their faces they were not expecting that. General Beckman recovered first.
"You allowed your personal life to interfere with your professional one?" She looked from me to Shaw. "Care to explain why."
"Agent Walker didn't like an order I gave her. She took it personally," Shaw spoke first, rubbing it in. My knuckles were starting to itch again.
"What order would that be?" The general didn't know? Well this should be interesting.
I cut Shaw off. "He ordered me to give Chuck his red test, general. Agent Shaw used Chuck's feelings for me to manipulate him into killing someone." God, we sounded like second graders in the principal's office. Beckman removed her glasses and pinched her nose between her thumb and forefinger like she was fighting off a headache. That can't be good.
"This is exactly why the agency discourages personal relationships between agents." I didn't like the sound of that. "It's clear to me that this team is dysfunctional and it's time I grabbed in. Agent Shaw, let me make it clear that I do not agree with your methods, but I have no grounds for taking action. You will, however return to Washington tomorrow and head up the effort to capture the Ring director and put an end to their organisation. Any further interaction with the intersect team will go through me. Is that clear?"
"Yes, general."
"Good. Now please give me and agent Walker a moment." I didn't miss his smirk when he turned and left.
"Agent Walker, to be honest, I have no idea what to do with you." I felt the knot in my stomach start to tighten. This can't be good. "I should reassign you as far away from here as possible."
"General..." I haven't come this far to be reassigned. I'd quit first. Or go rogue and protect Chuck in Rome on my terms.
"Let me finish. Off the record, I find agent Shaw's actions despicable and I will be watching him very closely. I also have a feeling there was more to what went down last night than what will be in the report. I don't want to know. Understood?"
"Yes, general." I was surprised by her reaction, but I'm not going to question it.
"Good. Back to business. Should I have any reason to believe agent Bartowski will not choose you as a part of his team leaving for Rome next week?"
"Chuck gets to choose a team?" That definitely lifted my mood.
"We have changed the mission perimeters. I'm assuming he'll make a case for mister Grimes and Co...Casey. That leaves one spot open. Would Chuck want you on his team?"
"Yes, general," I tried very hard not to smile. The team was back together. With Morgan, but I'll chose him ten times over Shaw. The little bearded fellow might surprise us all. Chuck certainly had.
"Well then, we'll consider this matter settled. Chuck will officially notify me of his team tomorrow. Thereafter he's on a weeklong vacation before the mission starts. I suggest you take some time off too, considering you haven't had a break in nearly three years. Mister Grimes and Colonel Casey can wrap things up here."
"Thank you, general." I didn't know what else to say, though the word 'awesome' came to mind.
"Use the time to resolve things with Chuck. Prove to me I wasn't wrong in considering your personal relationship an asset to this team." The screen went black. I guess the general wasn't so bad when she forgot to insert her stick in the morning.
I had one more mission. Shopping. It's time I show Chuck that I am a real girl. My cooking skills may not be an exact match to Ellie's, but she did like my pepperoni chicken. I considered making a chocolate soufflé for dessert, but that can wait for another time. For tonight I'm getting something blue and sexy. Hopefully with little buttons. That reminded me. Morgan had to be taken care off. I decided to give Casey a call and give him the good news about his reinstatement. And ask him to keep Morgan occupied. They had a little bonding to do anyway.
I discovered that I forgot my cell phone at Castle. I made a rather dangerous u-turn, smiling at another motorist who gave me a few choice hand signals. I was in too good a mood to let anyone get to me.
Phone in hand I made my way back to the Porsche. I was too busy thinking about dinner to notice the van pulling up beside me. A bag was pulled over my head and two strong arms grabbed me. I tried to struggle free but it was useless. I was shoved into the van and felt a prick in my neck. Instinctively I pressed the distress button on my phone before the world went dark.
A/N Don't hate me, the next chapter is imminent. I've been working on both simultaneously. On the last three actually. And remember, more reviews make for a more motivated writer haha.