A/N: Entertainment wise, writing 'Chuck' fanfic trumps reading Commonwealth Caribbean Constitutions almost every day!

I didn't get to post anything on the anniversary of the finale, but I hope you guys enjoy this piece. Thanks for reviewing and placing the story on your alerts or favourites list. It's nice that the fanfic community is still interested. Thanks to charahkids for looking this over. :)

Chapter 17: Twin Milestones

Words: 3,954

"Say Ma-ma," Sarah half cooed, half pleaded to the nine month old twin in front of her. "Ma-ma."

Her children, Matthew and Mackenzie were sitting in their high chairs eating their blue berry pancakes. Matthew, the oldest by all of two minutes, had most of his pancake smashed between his fingers and had also managed to get some tangled in his hair. His hazel eyes danced with mischief and he reared back his hand, preparing to launch an attack on his sister. She seemed to sense the imminent assault and began to raid her own arsenal, grabbing a handful of her own pancake in one hand.

"Put it down," Sarah instructed the babies and they unwillingly dropped the bits of pancakes into their bowl. Still, Matthew could not resist the temptation and wiped his hand over his sister's face. Mackenzie ended up with bits of blue berries and maple syrup over her face. "That was not nice Matthew." She turned her back on them to grab the baby wipes from the counter. As soon as she did so, Mackenzie took her revenge on her brother. Smiling, she grabbed a handful of pancake from her bowl and ran her chubby fingers through her brother's blond curls. He began to babble angrily at her, and she replied in earnest. When Sarah turned to them, curious about the commotion and wipes in hand, she found that they were considerably dirtier than they had been mere seconds ago.

"What am I going to do with the two of you?" She asked jokingly, taking their bowls from in front of them and resting them in the sink. She then wiped Matthew's face and hands and picked the bits of food out of his hair. Then it was Mackenzie's turn. Her clean-up was less messy.

"Dada! Dada!" The two babies squealed when they caught sight of their father. Sarah watched as Mackenzie's blue eyes sparkled once Chuck's body was in full view and her brother began to wriggle in his chair, reaching out for his father.

"Traitors," Sarah muttered, slightly envious that 'dada' had been their first word.

"Aw, come on babe. Don't be jealous," Chuck laughed. "Good morning Matthew and Mackenzie," Chuck greeted his children, kissing each of them on their foreheads.

"But they've said dada, no, and Mimi," Sarah whined, the latter being the twins' word for their grandmothers. "It's not fair!" She huffed.

Chuck came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Sarah, with you going the whole Baby Genius route, I'm sure the twins will be expanding their vocabulary soon. They'll be saying Mama in no time." He kissed her temple and Sarah sighed.

"Yeah, I guess I just need to be patient."

"Exactly. Now go on I'll hold the fort down here."

Sarah kissed him on the cheek and then headed upstairs. It was apparent that the twins were more interested in playing with their pancakes rather than eating it, so he ignored their pleas for more. Instead, he gave them each a bottle of warm formula and drank his coffee as he waited for them to finish. Once they were done, he took away the bottles and placed them in the sink. It was a bit difficult to carry both children at once, but he managed to successfully take them out of their high chairs and carry them to the living room. He sat with them on the couch. First he let Mackenzie sit on her own while Matthew sat in his lap in order to burp him and then switched places. After burping, the babies began to get restless.

"Okay guys, how are we gonna do this? Do you two wanna play together or are you gonna play separately?" Matthew pointed to the green play pen and Mackenzie to the rose pink one, so Chuck obliged their wishes. He watched them silently as they got settled. Once he was sure they were okay, with Matthew chewing on his teething ring and Mackenzie tossing her stuffed bunny all over the play pen, he left them. "Daddy's gonna go have breakfast okay," he informed the twins and they replied with a garbled response.

He had finished eating and was in the process of washing up when he heard the doorbell ring. Jogging to the red front door, he peeped through the peep hole and, after seeing his mother outside, opened the door with a bright smile on his face. "Hey Mom," he greeted her, and kissed her cheek.

"Hello Chuck," Mary returned the greeting. "You're looking smart," she complimented, taking in his dark blue suit and pinstriped button down.

Chuck smiled warmly. "You know I'd rather wear my Converse every day. But today we have a meeting with some potential new clients from Geneva."

"Ah, I see. I hope everything turns out how you want it to."

"Thanks Mom," Chuck grinned. "You know where everything is but I can get you something if you want. Tea? Coffee? Juice maybe."

"No thanks. I'm good. Devon gave me some smoothie recipes and I made one this morning. It was really nice."

Chuck's face soured. From his experience, Devon's concoctions were rarely nice. "Well the twins are in the- " he trailed of when he realised that his mother was already making her way to them. He followed her and watched their interactions from the arch way. Mary took the twins from their play pens and sat with them in the couch. They seemed very excited to see their grandmother and launched into babbling.

Mary laughed and responded to each babble with a combination of 'Really?' 'Is that so?' and 'Wow' as though she understood everything that they were saying.

Chuck smirked at the scene. It was amazing that they had gone twenty years without communication but now could go no more than two days without some sort of interaction.

"Mom, I'm gonna finish getting ready," he announced, only to have Mary respond with a dismissive wave of her hand as she listened with rapt fascination to the story the twins were taking turns in telling.

Shaking his head, Chuck went into the master bedroom, he found Sarah half dressed and putting on her makeup.

"Chuck," Sarah began speaking when she heard his footsteps. "Your jacket looked a bit wrinkly so I ran the iron over it. It's in the closet on a hanger."

He came up behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist. Sarah put her primer on the vanity and relaxed in his embrace. "As nice as this is, I need to finish getting ready," she said but made no effort to escape his hold. Ignoring her, Chuck bent his head slightly and rested his chin in the crook of her neck. "Chuck," she warned, all too familiar with where this was headed.

"Sarah," he answered. His voice was low and Sarah felt her stomach begin to swirl.

"We're gonna be late."

"Hmmm?" he replied and she could feel the vibrations in his body because of their proximity. He then kissed her neck. Sarah felt his fingers graze across her skin as Chuck pushed her bra straps down her arms. He then kissed her bare right shoulder. With one hand still around her waist, he snaked his hand under her skirt, his hand inching its way up her thigh. Sarah's breath hitched when she felt his finger graze her underwear.

"Work," she continued, her voice not as strong as it had been moments before.

He removed his hand from beneath her skirt and for a moment Sarah thought that his teasing had come to an end. That was before she felt his arms around her once more as he turned her body so that she was facing him. Then, he pulled her close and bent his neck, capturing her lips in a deep passionate kiss.

Sarah threw her arms around his neck, her hands desperately seeking purchase on his body. Eventually they came to tangle in his hair and Sarah relished in the softness. A guttural moan escaped her lips when she felt Chuck nibble her bottom lip. She bit him back and smiled into the kiss. When Chuck pulled away, Sarah's eyes were hazy.

"What about work?" he questioned, toying with the waistband of her skirt.

"Work can wait!" she replied, simultaneously pulling him in for another kiss while trying to shed him of his shirt.

/\

"That was... That was," Sarah panted. "Wow!"

Chuck propped himself up on one elbow and looked at her adoringly. "I know." He still had a goofy smile on his face and Sarah found it adorable.

"You know, I really hope we don't get rug burn from this," Sarah commented as she took in their state.

Their clothes were all over the floor and they had barely had time to grab a blanket to put on the carpeted floor. "But it would have been worth it don't you think?" He smirked at her and Sarah nodded in agreement.

Sarah peeped around his body to look at the alarm clock on their bedside table. "Gosh Chuck, enough of this pillow talk. We need to get ready."

Sarah resisted Chuck's eyebrow dance when he suggested that they conserve water by showering together. She shooed him out of the bedroom and pointed to the bathroom while insisting that she would shower alone in the master bathroom in spite of his advances. After showering, they quickly got dressed and then hurried downstairs, Chuck tying his tie and Sarah putting in her earrings.

"You've got the file on Imogen right?" Sarah asked when they reached the base of the stairs.

"Yeah, I was going over it yesterday and I put it in my briefcase. After we tell the twins goodbye we can leave."

Mary came out of the living room holding two empty juice bottles. "I though you guys wanted to leave by eight thirty Chuck," Mary looked to him for an explanation. It was after ten now.

Chuck scratched the nape of his head and fought the blush creeping up his neck. "Um...we um got distracted."

Mary took in their state- Chuck's button down that had been pristine when she saw him last was slightly wrinkled, his hair was a little damp and to her trained eye, she could tell that Sarah had used makeup to cover up a mark on her neck.

"Sarah my dear, perhaps a neck scarf would better hide that hickey." Chuck looked at her with wide eyes. "Chuck, you should know that there are better places to put a hickey."

"Moooommmmm!" He could've died then and there of embarrassment.

"I'm just saying...inconspicuous places."

"I'm just gonna-"'Sarah trailed off and ran upstairs to find a neck scarf that would go with her outfit.

When Sarah came back downstairs, Chuck had already said goodbye to their children and was waiting at the door for her. By this time, the twins were crawling around the living room and Mary had set up the toddler gate so that they couldn't creep anywhere else. Unlocking the gate, she walked over to Matthew who was hiding behind the couch and gave him a hug and kiss goodbye. Then, she went over to Mackenzie who was playing near her father's Indian chief statue.

"We bought a DVD set for them yesterday that teaches them colours and shapes and stuff like that, so if you could let them watch one that'd be nice."

"Ah, teaching them early," Mary smiled. "At this rate they'll be able to read my children's illustrated manual on how to disarm a nuclear weapon by the time they're four."

"Moooommmm!" Chuck yelled from the door, having heard the last part of her statement.

Mary smiled sheepishly. "It was a joke." She could tell that Sarah didn't believe her from the look she gave her. "Honestly!"

"Chuck! CHUUUUCCCCKKKKKK! Come now! Get your phone! HURRY! HURRY UP!" Sarah screamed as she watched Matthew pull himself up to hold onto the centre table. Then, he began to take his first steps on wobbly, uncertain legs.

Chuck came running to them into the living room, with his iPhone in hand and the camera already rolling. Matthew toppled down and looked at his feet and then to his parents with uncertainty. Mackenzie crawled over to him and patted him on the knee. The twins babbled for a moment and Sarah smiled when she saw Matthew smile. It was almost as if Mackenzie was coaching him through it.

"Come on buddy, you can do it," Chuck offered his encouragement. Matthew nodded and with the same look of determination that Sarah would get when faced with a challenge, he held onto the table and pulled up himself. With his parents and sister offering encouragement and his father recording him, Matthew let go of the table and took small steps. Sarah wiped the tears that had begun to cloud her vision and intently watched Matthew as he took a couple more steps before falling down again. Chuck paused the recording and he and Sarah broke out in applause. Following her parents' lead, Mackenzie also clapped her chubby hands together while her blue eyes danced with delight. Matthew looked over at them and a wide grin spread across his face, showing the four front teeth that had come in.

Matthew crawled back over to where his sister was sitting and smiled at her. He babbled something to her and Mackenzie nodded. Matthew stood up again and Mackenzie followed suit. He took a few steps away from his sister and turned to her, clapping his hands and shouting something in their twin jabber language. By then, Chuck had resumed the recording as Matthew literally encouraged the younger twin to follow in his footsteps. Mackenzie knit her eyebrows together and focused on her brother who was a few feet away. She tottered over to him, her steps getting surer as she advanced. She was about to fall when Matthew closed the distance between them and, leaning forward, hugged her as a means of support and congratulations for a job well done. That was one of the cutest things their parents had ever seen.

Chuck put his phone down and wiped a stray tear from Sarah's face. Smiling at each other, they scooted closer to the children who were once again sitting. "Walk to Mummy and Daddy," he suggested and he and Sarah held their arms out.

The twins nodded at each other and tottered over to their parents. Sarah scooped Matthew into her arms when he reached her and showered him with kisses, while Chuck did the same. "I'm so proud of you babies!" Sarah looked at them in glee and they smiled toothily at her. They had assumed that Mackenzie would walk first. She was the one who had started crawling first and would speed off, leaving her twin but eventually waiting for him to catch up. Matthew meanwhile had preferred to sweep along the floor rather than crawling on his knees and hands.

Apparently the twins liked to walk as they soon wriggled out of their parents' arms and tried walking again. When one fell, the other would babble something and then the fallen twin would get back up. Their footing became surer the more they practiced and Chuck had a little over an hour's footage of them. The twins tottered all over the living room as if they were experiencing the room in a new, different light. Eventually, they tired and crawled over to their parents, falling asleep curled up in Sarah's arms. Chuck took Matthew from Sarah and the couple took their children into the nursery.

"I know I'm usually elated when they take a nap. But I can't wait until they're up again," Sarah mused as she shut the nursery door behind them.

Chuck laughed. "I know! They look so cute walking."

"And did you see when Matthew helped Kenzie to walk? That was the sweetest thing ever," Sarah gushed.

"That's my little man. Chivalrous basically since birth."

They went back downstairs and watched some of the videos. Sarah mused that her babies were quickly growing up. Chuck began looking around the house to see if they had missed anything when the house had been baby proofed. Casey always liked to tease him about how neurotic he had been during Sarah's pregnancy, going to extreme lengths such as baby proofing the house when she was six months pregnant. The NSA agent had chided that just because the twins would share some of his genetics as the Intersect did not mean they would be born trying to open cupboards. Sarah began Googling for the best way to introduce children to potty training and Chuck stressed about Kindergarten and college tuition. He told Sarah to remind him to either borrow one of Casey's guns or round up Casey and Gertrude so they could find and buy the perfect gun for any boy that dared to even look in Kenzie's direction. When the words left his mouth they realised how ridiculous they were being and laughed at each other.

"Don't freak out," Chuck kissed Sarah's forehead.

"I'm really glad we have them, Chuck," Sarah said and snuggled into his side. She had had reservations about what kind of mother she'd be but now she found that motherhood was more wonderful than she could have imagined. Sure there were moments when the twins tested her patience but she wouldn't trade them for the world.

"As am I," Chuck agreed and kissed her softly on the lips. "I love you."

"I love you too, Chuck."

Chuck and Sarah had made it a habit of taking their children to their beach. One of the times they had come, a sea gull flew near to the children. Mackenzie, thinking that it was friendly, reached out her hand to pet it. The bird inched closer to her and pecked her on her index finger. Matthew then coming to her defence, threw a handful of sand at the gull. By then Kenzie was crying and that caused Chuck who had momentarily turned his back from them to go into overprotective mode. Sarah shooed the offending bird away and scooped up a crying Mackenzie into her arms while Chuck took up Matthew. Mackenzie was so upset that they packed up and headed home. She later commented to Chuck that the bird had gotten off lucky since she hadn't stashed any of her throwing knives in her swimsuit like she had done on previous missions. Chuck thought she got some sort of revenge on the chicken they had for dinner later that night.

This time though, everything was going smoothly and the sea gulls weren't troubling them. Chuck had buried the base of the umbrella in the sand so they were protected from the heat. She loved when they were able to forget about work, and everything else and just focus on their family and today was one of those days.

"Look at Daddy swimming," Sarah pointed to where Chuck was treading the water.

"Dada," Matthew said happily.

"Dada," Mackenzie parroted.

Sarah looked at her children in adoration. Matthew was wearing orange swim trunks with coconut trees on them and a white baby bucket hat to further protect him from the sun. Mackenzie meanwhile was wearing a purple one piece with one of the Minion characters on the chest and the same hat as her brother. Her hair was longer than Matthew's so little brown curls peeped put from underneath the hat. "That's right. Daddy." She turned her attention to the ocean once again and saw Chuck emerging. "Do you two wanna go for a swim?"

Matthew was more interested in covering himself with sand and shook his head no. Mackenzie, in an attempt to escape her brother's sloppy work with burying himself scooted closer to her mother. Sarah laughed knowing that despite Mackenzie's efforts to stand clear of the sand, she'd probably end up with sand in the most outrageous places.

"Nobody wants to swim with me?" Chuck asked when he reached them.

"It seems the only water these two like is in the bath," Sarah laughed.

Chuck chuckled and sat down next to Matthew. "What are you doing buddy?"

"Dada," he smiled and began to throw small handfuls of sand at him.

"Wanna bury Daddy in the sand?" Sarah asked both of the children. Chuck scooted around so that he was no longer on the blanket. Matthew nodded excitedly at the idea and continued to throw sand on his father's chest. Mackenzie was sceptical at first, but when she saw her mother and brother giggling, she joined in too. The twins eventually tired of playing in the sand and stopped burying Chuck when his body was about half covered. He made a big show of struggling to get the sand off of him and the babies giggled. Deciding they should all go into the water together, Chuck took Mackenzie's hand and Sarah took Matthew's. He was the more excited of the two and tugged on her hand for her to walk faster. When they reached the point where the waves broke, Matthew stretched out his foot to meet the water. He giggled when the water touched his toes and his hazel eyes danced with mirth. Mackenzie though shrunk closer to her father's side when the water tickled her toes. Sarah and Matthew eased a little further into the ocean, the water now up to his knees. Matthew laughed and smacked the water his palm. He pointed a bit further, indicating to Sarah that he wanted to get into the ocean some more. Obliging him, she picked him up, and once he was securely resting on her hip, she waded further until the water reached her waist. Matthew squealed in delight when he felt the water envelop his body.

"Come on Kenzie," Sarah called out. Chuck and Mackenzie were still on the shore.

"Dada?" The baby looked up at her father apprehensively. She was usually more reserved than her brother and took longer than he did to engage in new environments.

"Daddy will be with you the whole time," Chuck promised and hoisted her onto his hip. He eased into the water and when they reached Sarah and Matthew, Mackenzie smiled at them.

"That's my sweet girl," Sarah kissed her on the cheek.

Mackenzie smiled and began splashing the water, mimicking what she had seen her brother doing..

They spent about twenty minutes in the water and then headed back to their spot on the beach to eat. Sarah knew that the twins, whom she was sure had their father's appetite would be getting hungry. She and Chuck towelled them off and then took out some food.

"Oooh, let's see what Mummy packed for lunch," Chuck spoke to the twins in his baby voice.

At the mention of the word lunch, Matthew's eyes lit up and he began clapping his hands. Mackenzie looked pensive for a moment and looked at Sarah. "Mama?"

Sarah immediately turned her attention away from the picnic basket and to Mackenzie. The smile on her face stretched from ear to ear. "Yes! Yes baby girl mama" She pulled Mackenzie onto her lap and showered her with kisses. "Chuck! She said mama! She said mama!" Sarah gushed.

"I told you you had to be patient," Chuck grinned at his wife.

"Mama," Mackenzie repeated, liking how the word rolled off her tongue.

They tried to coax Matthew into saying 'mama' like his sister had but he was having none of it. Instead, he began to cry for his food. Sarah relented as she realised she couldn't force him. Once she handed him a Gerber banana flavoured biscuit, Matthew smiled at her toothily "Mama!"

A/N: Feel free to review, even if it's as a guest.

Until next time,

xoxoxoxoxo

~Barbadiangirl 29/01/2016.