CHAPTER 24

Chuck was free. Or so he thought until he was woken up by the doorbell and opened the front door to find Sarah in her Wienerlicious uniform while Casey was exiting his apartment in his Buy More Greens. Both were surprised to see him in a t-shirt and pajama bottoms.

"You okay?" Sarah asked putting a hand to his head.

"I'm fine," he said pulling his head back and laughing. "I'll head in later today or something."

"What are you talking about?" Casey said waving his hand. "We're early shift today."

"Not me," Chuck said with a grin. "I quit."

Both agents gaped at him. Casey was the first to break, striding over to the door. "What the hell did you say?"

"I quit," Chuck said sounding as if he wasn't sure.

"When?" asked Sarah.

"When I was being arrested. I can't work there anymore, I punch Harry! They would have fired me if I didn't, but I was looking forward to quitting so I figured either I was going to be fired or I was going to be thrown in a bunker. Either way I wasn't going to at least quit before they dragged me away."

Seeing both of them groan, Chuck grimaced. "Look it's not that bad. I figured I can maybe do some side jobs or something for money." He was grinning as he looked to Sarah. "Maybe I can work with you at the Wienerlicious."

"Chuck the Wienerlicious is being shut down," she said shaking her head. "They couldn't afford rent so the CIA is switching it to some yogurt chain store. It's going to be down for a few weeks while they remodel."

"Beckman was thinking about having them build a base under it."

"I thought we'd present our business plan so they could save the effort," said Sarah crossing her arms.

"Well this is good then, isn't it? I need a new job."

"I don't want them to think we're trying to force their hand," Sarah said shaking her head.

"Sorry," he said quietly, running a hand through his hair.

Casey shrugged. "Guess I get to quit today too."

Sarah sighed, looking herself over. "At least I can get rid of this thing soon."

"Hm."

Sarah's eyes snapped up at the noise, catching Chuck's disappointment. Seeing her arch her brow and smirk, Chuck flushed and cleared his throat.

"How about, uh, give me a minute to throw something on and I'll come to empty out my locker." Chuck looked between them before nodding and closing the door, hurrying off to get dressed.

Casey crossed his arms, glancing toward his bedroom window before asking Sarah. "You sure he's not just hiding his porn?"

Sarah shook her head. "He uses his computer."

Casey grinned. "And how do you know that?"

"Because he's not fifty, Casey," she said rolling her eyes. "It's not like he has a stash of magazines under his mattress."

"You going to ask him about it?"

Sarah bit her lip. "I haven't decided."

"You want me to?"

Sarah shook her head. "You'll make clam up."

"He told me about his buddy the Piranha," Casey countered, smirking when Sarah shot him a glare like he'd expected. He'd picked up on how much that bothered her.

"Just give it time. You focus on figuring out how he flashed on Bryant."

"It has to be hacking, right?" Casey sighed. "I checked his computer but there was nothing there. Nothing on the ones in the store."

"Maybe one he repaired and turned in?"

Casey shrugged, unable to answer as Chuck opened the door with his messenger bag slung over his torso. "Alright. Who am I carpooling with?"

Grunting, Casey spun around, leaving him with Sarah who smiled at him. "I guess me."

That clearly pleased Chuck, who quickly locked the door before following her to the car, taking the chance while her back was turned to sniff his collar. Satisfied he still didn't stink after his sixth check, Chuck slipped into the passenger seat of her car, watching her start it and pull out of the parking lot.

After everything that had happened the day before, or even just on the helipad, Chuck wasn't sure what the hell they were. He'd all but admitted he had serious feelings for her, and though she'd been silent he was sure he'd seen the same in her eyes. Her tears definitely meant she cared to some degree.

The problem was he'd intended to stay away, but that had been back when he thought she and Bryce had restarted things. After that he thought she was angry at him for being the reason she had to be away from Bryce, but all of that seemed unlikely after the rooftop. She wouldn't get worked up like that if she thought those things. She'd have been happy to see him go, but Chuck had noticed her hand behind her back when Long Shore was debating whether to let them have their minute. She wouldn't have been ready to shoot an agent if she didn't at least like him.

But they still worked together. They would still get crap from their bosses if anything happened. She would get sent away at least. So here they were, stuck in limbo knowing both of them wanted more but neither could really make a move.

"Sarah?" He said, not sure why he had.

She glanced at him, a smile suddenly breaking her stoic face. "Yeah?"

"I, um… Can we talk about last night?"

Sarah sighed. "What about it?"

"I just…" He sat back and shrugged. "It was real, right?"

Pulling up to a red light she looked at him confused. "What?"

"What happened. Before Lizzie showed up. Our minute."

Sarah's brow rose realizing what he was talking about, though clearly nervous she smiled and nodded. "It did."

Chuck met her eyes somberly "That's all it can be for now… isn't it?"

Sarah's lips fell to a frown as she nodded. Turning back to the light she watched for the light to turn before saying quietly, "I'm sorry, Chuck."

Chuck was still smiling when they arrived at the Buy More. Casey was waiting for them in front of his Crown Vic, leaning against the hood with his arms crossed. "I'm going to talk with Beckman before I quit. Since Walker's still suck burning hotdogs at least this way I'll be around to keep an eye on you." Looking to Sarah he asked, "Should I tell her we have a proposal for a new cover?"

"Might as well. Let me know when she wants to go over it." Sarah looked from the Wienerlicious to the Buy More before turning to Chuck. "Do you want me to come with you?"

"Sure," Chuck nodded. "You mind if I hang around afterward? Maybe you can treat me to one of those breakfast corndogs?"

"You want me to treat you?" She asked walking toward the Buy More with him while Casey walked ahead of them.

"Well I am unemployed."

Sarah laughed, reaching out to take his hand. "I guess I can manage it."

Casey groaned and picked up his pace, earning snickers from the cover couple behind him. Upon entering the Buy More Casey skipped clocking in to make his way to the theater room. Seconds later Chuck and Sarah entered and noticed the store suddenly go quiet as the staff all turned to look at him.

Feeling him pause, Sarah looked to him, tugging on his hand. "You okay?"

Chuck looked to her and smiled again. "Yeah."

Sarah returned his smile. "Let's go."

Chuck led her into the store, giving small nods to Skip and Anna on his way to the break room. They were about to reach the door when it opened as Harry Tang stepped out and Sarah's eyes widened. Not only was Harry's nose now crooked, he had a pair of black eyes that left him looking like he was wearing a domino mask.

The moment he saw Chuck, Harry yelped and leapt back, pinning his back to the wall and holding his hands up. Chuck kept silent, rolling his eyes and pulling Sarah along with him. Harry caught the door before it closed to yell at them, "Employees only!"

Sarah shot him a glare that made Harry flee. It was only when they got to Chuck's locker that their hands separated. "I'm guessing you know my combination, right?" Chuck asked as he walked over to where a few empty boxes sat and picked one out.

With a smirk Sarah turned and swiftly opened the lock before taking it from the handle and stepping back to let him open the locker for the last time. There wasn't much there, but Chuck didn't want to risk having forgotten something.

Casey entered the room just as Chuck closed the locker. "Looks like I'm joining Moron on the unemployment line," Casey said snatching the box from Chuck's hands and moving to open his own locker.

Chuck held up his now empty hands indignantly while Sarah patted his back. "How about me?"

"She said it's up to you since the Wienerlicious is closing in a few days anyway."

"That soon?" Sarah asked.

"They were rushing it so they could get construction started," Casey said turning to them. "Beckman said she'll meet us at one to discuss our cover idea. Now I need you both to leave while I clear out my locker."

"Really? What do you have a secret gun and money cache in there or something?" Chuck started to laugh until he saw Casey's eyes narrow and gasped. "You do? What the hell?"

"Get moving, Bartowski. I'll let Walker drive you home since we all know she's quitting as soon as you get over there."

Sarah nodded, taking Chuck's left hand in her right and patting the back of it with her left. "We can get a real breakfast somewhere."

"I was actually kind off looking forward to that awful sausage corndog," Chuck said with a mocking pout.

Once he dug his pocket protector out of his bag and started for the door he found his hand once again in Sarah's being guided back to the store. They made it to the Nerd Herd desk where Big Mike stood with Harry behind him.

"Bartowski, where's your uniform?"

Coming to a stop Chuck glanced to Sarah in confusion before turning to Mike answering, "I don't work here anymore. But I'll give you a recommendation, Anna should probably be your supervisor."

Sat at the Nerd Herd desk Anna beamed. "Thanks, Chuckles."

"I refuse your resignation," said Mike.

Chuck rolled his eyes, setting his pocket protector on the Nerd Herd Desk and taking his hand from Sarah's to pull the photo ID from it. Turning back to Mike he snapped the ID in half, which made Mike grunt and jump as if he'd been hit. Sarah took it from Chuck along with his once again free hand.

"I'll have someone pick up my last check," Chuck said with a shrug before walking past them with Sarah, who glared back at Harry.

"You're lucky Casey was here and not me," Sarah told him when they passed and he stepped away from them, "I wouldn't have pulled him off you, I'd have helped him finish you off."

Once they left the store Chuck looked to her clearly amused and surprised by her parting words. She smirked and shrugged as they walked through the parking lot. "I thought I could be a bit of a crazy protective girlfriend. For the cover."

"For the cover," Chuck said with a nod, squeezing her hand. "Now come on, let's get you out of that uniform."

"Wow Chuck," she beamed, "I didn't think you'd be so forward."

Chuck came to a stop as his eyes widened and he realized what she thought he said. "N-No, I meant-I wasn't-"

Sarah laughed, holding his hand in hers so he couldn't pull it away as she felt him try to do. "Come on, Chuck. Help me quit." As he let out a breath and started to walk with her she bounced against his shoulder saying, "And then you can help me with the zippers."

A nervous guffaw came from his lips, the next laugh quieter and wary as he glanced at her then kept his eyes forward. Thankfully she avoided punching anyone, instead just peeking her head into the store and telling Scooter she quit and would be back in a few days for her last check, then made her way to her Porsche.

"How about I get us something to eat while you go change," Chuck said as they pulled into Maison23's parking lot. "That way we can go over the plan in your room before heading over the Casey's."

As tempted as she was to tease him, Sarah appreciated the suggestion so nodded. "That'd be great."

Changing out of her uniform she remembered Chuck's disappointment earlier and stopped herself from shredding it, instead tucking it away in case she ever wanted to mess with him. Besides, who knew when they might need it for a mission.

When Chuck returned he did so with chocolate croissants, which had her grinning as she remembered when she tailed him for a night. Taking out her laptop she pulled up plan for Chuck's business and pushed her chair next to Chuck, setting it on the table between them as she scrolled through it, picking pieces of her croissant and chewing them while making small edits.

When they went to Casey's and she sent the file to Beckman during their conference Sarah made sure her nervousness wasn't visible. She couldn't let the General know this was much sooner than she'd hoped to show them. Yet Chuck tapped his finger against her hand beneath the table, rubbing his knuckle against the back of her hand slightly. When she glanced at him she saw him flash her a supportive smile before looking back at the screen and forced herself to do the same, marveling at how despite it all there were times he seemed to see right through her.

And yet he was still lying to them all about whatever was in his closet. The thought helped cool her nerves, but left a bitter taste in her mouth. She knew it wasn't anything too bad, but she couldn't help fearing that it was. It wasn't anything too bad, but it could be something that would unwittingly put him in danger. It could be was forces them to try and put him in a bunker again even after all the work they did to keep him from it the day before. It could be what makes her betray everything she'd done for the last ten years and abandon the only life she'd known.

Beckman had asked a few questions that they each answered as they could, though most of them seemed to be aimed at Chuck, who concluded, "Ma'am, um, General, I guarantee I can do this. Sarah and Casey are the best in the world at what they do, but they're not the only ones who are. It's just I'm the best at useless stuff like Street Fighter, Star Craft, coding and fixing computers instead of kung-fu or sniping or saving lives."

The general stared at him for a moment, noticing the hint of a frown on Sarah's lips and Casey's furrowed brow as both glanced at Chuck, clearly not liking how he'd diminished himself. And in turn Sarah was sure she saw a flicker of a sympathetic smile on Beckman's' lips before she sighed and sat up. "Well then let us put your skills to better use."

Chuck's brow rose. "Really?"

With a nod Beckman glanced down at a folder in front of her. "I'll put a halt on the construction beneath the building at the mall. We'll go through with the shift of store fronts and have your team run out of the Orange Orange while we find you a secure building to house your company and begin expansion underground."

"Thank you, General," Chuck said quickly. "I'll take your investment as serious as I possibly can."

Beckman looked confused for a moment then shook her head. "We'll say your investments came from contracts through Casey's military history."

Chuck snickered and shook his head. "Sorry, General, I meant your investment in our team. I know this is a lot of money to put into this operation, which means we'll have to work a lot to make up for it. But it also means you probably think we can actually do it, so thank you. I'll try not to let you down."

Beckman stared at Chuck and Sarah felt a swell of pride in her, as did Casey, who was a bit better about hiding his smirk. Clearing her throat, Beckman nodded. "Yes, well, you've done exceedingly well so far considering your situation."

"Is there anything else I could be doing, Ma'am?"

Sarah and Casey shared a look behind Chuck as Beckmen arched her brow. "How do you mean, Mr. Bartowski?"

"Well, I know you agreed to let me build the detector and reflector for the team. If they work should I try to make more? Should I be doing something else for the team? We told Carina that I was an analyst, is that a thing we need? Because I could do that. Whatever it is they do."

Beckman stared through the screen again for a moment, then her gaze fell thoughtfully before rising with a nod. "We'll see how your devices come out and decide from there whether to have you build others. As for an analyst, I'll leave it to you three to decide whether that's necessary. If you decided it is then we'll have you take the necessary test to determine if you're capable. Otherwise the team has performed above expectations so far and I see no reason to change it in any significant way."

"Thank you, Ma'am," chuck said with a quick nod.

"The transfer to the Orange Orange should be finished within a few weeks. Try not to get used to your days off," Beckman said before ending the call.

After all three stood in silence for a moment Casey turned to him. "Nice work, Chuck."

"What did I say wrong?" he asked warily.

"I wasn't being sarcastic. You impressed her." Casey smacked his shoulder. "You did well, Chuck."

"You really did," Sarah agreed, rubbing his other shoulder.

"And here I thought I said too much," Chuck admitted with a laugh. He'd felt so pathetic and needy practically begging to be more help to the team, but the truth was he did need it. He needed to help people, but none more so than those who matter to him, and few people mattered more to him than his team.

"You know Intelligence Analysts are a major factor in missions," Casey told him. "Even non-field analyst are important to the success of a mission. They play major roles not only on the missions but in preparing them. Are you sure you want that responsibility?"

"I need to pull my weight here," Chuck answered without hesitation. "I can't let you guys down."

"You're not, Chuck. Like Beckman said you're already doing great."

"But I could be doing more and I want to," said Chuck. "But what's the difference between non-field and field analyst?"

"The field part," Casey said drolly.

Chuck hung his head and sighed, so Sarah rubbed his shoulder again. "Knowing you we might as well cut straight to field analyst."

"Only way we'll keep him off the field is if we cuff him to the damn van," said Casey. "I'll pull what I can on prep. Take some time to think it over and if you still want to go through with it we'll work on getting you tested and certified."

"Now I just need to tell Ellie," Chuck said with a laugh.

"You didn't tell her you quit?" asked Casey.

Chuck shook his head. "It was her night."

"Why don't I go over with you when you tell her so I can help explain the cover stories for me and Casey?"

After the three of them went out for a quick lunch to celebrate their success, Chuck and Sarah headed back to Ellie's. When she came in she was practically floating and her smile grew seeing her brother and his cover girlfriend sat on the couch with their hands intertwined in the small space between them. It wasn't until they followed her gaze that they realized they'd been doing that and pulled their hands apart.

"Did you guys eat yet? We were going to grab something but Devon had to stay late. I thought I'd ordered us all something."

"That sounds good," Chuck said as he and Sarah rose to follow her into the kitchen. "We can get something to celebrate."

"I think we did enough of that last night," Ellie said shaking her head. "I had way too much wine for an early shift."

"Well I meant to celebrate for us," Chuck said looking to Sarah.

Ellie gasped, turning to them with a pile of menus in hand. "What are we celebrating?"

"Unemployment," said Sarah.

Ellie's smile fell. "What?"

"I quit the Wienerlicious today."

"And I quit the Buy More yesterday."

Ellie put her hands to over her mouth. "You did?"

Chuck nodded. "I cleaned out my locker today. Snapped my ID and every-" Chuck grunted as Ellie launched herself into him, apparently thinking this was her chance to squeeze the life out of him.

Pulling back she sighed. "I'm proud of you. So you're finally going through with starting your own business like you talked about?"

"I am. It might take a bit, and I'll probably get another job just so I can pay my share of the bills, but we're already working on investors."

Ellie gasped, looking between the two. "We?"

"I'm helping him and John Casey."

Ellie turned to Chuck. "You're going to start a business with Sarah and John?"

"A security firm," Chuck answered with a nod. "I'll handle computers, John will handle training security teams and Sarah will do just about everything else."

"I'm technically a VP, Manager and Liason," she clarified. "Casey has a few contacts from when he was in the military and I have some from DC so we think we can manage a few government accounts."

Chuck's smile fell when he turned from Sarah to find Ellie holding her hands over her mouth with tears in her eyes. "El?"

She quickly pulled him into another hug. "I knew you could do it. I knew you could."

Chuck shook his head, rubbing her back. "I haven't done anything yet, Sis."

"You will though," she said holding his arms and pulling back to smile at him, "I know you will. You're aces."

Chuckling he said, "Well I'm sorry I was a deuce for so long."

With a laugh Ellie moved over to hug Sarah. "Thank you."

The heaviness in her voice made it clear it was for more than just the business. Either way she couldn't take the credit, so as she pulled back she met Ellie's eyes and said sincerely, "Thank you."

Ellie beamed realizing how honest that was. Their moment was broken by Chuck picking the menus off the table and flipping through them asking, "What are we in the mood for?" Looking up he saw them both turn to him as he held the menus up. "Pizza?"

AN:

Things are clearly off canon here, but the bigger shifts in canon start soon.