Posted February 28, 2022

A/N: Chuck and Sarah interact more in this one. No Charah yet, but blame the show.

"Chuck vs the Helicopter" (1x02) Recap
Here are a few things you might need to know in case you forgot.

After chasing down a shoplifter in the Buy More Plaza parking lot with Morgan and Casey, Chuck noticed Sarah working at Wienerlicious. When he went to see what she was doing, she told him there was a plan for getting the Intersect out of his head, so she invited him on a second date.

The "date" was at the Buy More so the NSA's Dr. Zarnow could test "Patient X" to determine if the Intersect could be removed. Chuck did unbelievable well on the test. When Sarah dropped Chuck off after the date, he said it was the best/only second date he had had in a long time, and he invited her to dinner with his "family" the next night.

Zarnow's car was found destroyed. Instead of the scientist's remains, an NSA Incinerator was found. Sarah and Casey blamed each other and fought. Casey escaped and called Chuck away on a Nerd Herd call. When he was about to take Chuck into custody for his safety, Casey's car was destroyed. Casey made Chuck suspect Sarah, so Chuck rushed home to protect Ellie, Devon, and Morgan from his cover-girlfriend/CIA agent, who was already there. Casey joined the dinner as a new neighbor. He privately told Chuck an old alias of Sarah's, causing Chuck to flash on the fact she poisoned people at a dinner.

To prevent a possible poisoning of his family, Chuck pulled the dining room tablecloth out like a magician, but Casey knocked over a candle, setting the soufflé that Sarah had brought for everyone to eat on fire. Sarah confronted Chuck in private, said the reason for the poisoning was a mission, and realized that neither she nor Casey killed Zarnow. She abruptly left dinner, and outside the apartment she was tranquilized and kidnapped by Zarnow. He had faked his death and was still alive.

Casey and Chuck tracked down Sarah, and Casey told Chuck to stay in the car. Chuck saw Zarnow leave a building, so he got out of the car and went inside to rescue Sarah. When Zarnow returned, Chuck flashed on him as a traitor who was selling secrets to North Korea. Zarnow identified Chuck as Patient X, aka the Human Intersect. Zarnow captured Chuck by shooting him with a tranquilizer dart and started to fly him out in a helicopter.

The tranquilizer was stuck in Chuck's name badge, so he had only fainted. When he woke, he overpowered the pilot and Zarnow, and then under Sarah's guidance, landed the helicopter. She wasn't happy that Chuck had risked his life for her because he was too valuable and he hadn't trusted her. With everyone safe, Casey started needling Chuck about his obvious crush on Sarah.

Chuck went to Bryce's funeral, where he saw Sarah. Chuck apologized to Sarah at the Wienerlicious for not trusting her. She told him with Zarnow gone, Chuck was going to have to be the Intersect awhile. Ellie, Devon, and Morgan showed up for a second attempt at a dinner, this time with Sarah cooking.

Chapter Characters: Ellie, Sarah (with Chuck, Morgan, and Devon)

Songs (from 1x02):
- "Challengers" by The New Pornographers
- "Gone Daddy Gone" by Gnarls Barkley

www. imdb. com (8.0/10)
chuckthisblog. wordpress. com (57/91)

September 24-October 3, 2007
Wienerlicious
Burbank, CA

So far, so good.

Ellie really hoped that Chuck hadn't ruined it with Sarah. She was the first person who Chuck has been on more than one date with since that evil devil-spawn he dated in college. Ellie never liked Jill, and while she barely knew Sarah, she already knew the new woman in Chuck's life was special.

Unfortunately, that disastrous family dinner happened. Ellie had no idea why Chuck did what he did. First, he showed up late and dirty. Then he pulled a magic trick she knew he didn't know how to do because if he did, he would have been bragging about it for months. It somehow almost worked, but set Sarah's soufflé on fire. Just to ensure it was destroyed, he put it in the shower and drenched it. It was like he was trying to sabotage the date.

It seemed like Chuck and Sarah might be making up when she locked them in the bathroom. It was too fast to be quite what Devon implied, but for an instant, it seemed like Chuck and Sarah might get past everything that had happened. Then, Sarah suddenly left with no explanation. If she was mad at Chuck, Ellie would expect yelling. It was more like Sarah realized she left the iron on at home.

A couple minutes ago, Chuck went into Wienerlicious first to apologize one more time. Whatever he had said seemed to have worked because Sarah had that look again; her eyes were sparkling. When that was the case, she looked at Chuck like he was the most important thing to her in the world. That's how she was when Chuck showed up at dinner even though he looked like a mess. After a quick apology today, all was forgiven, and she was looking at him that way, again. Sarah was really into Chuck.

Now, they had a second attempt at family-and-friends dinner. This time, Sarah was cooking. Hopefully, there would be no fires and no one would rush out. They all came when there wouldn't be a flood of customers, but that meant Sarah had to start new batches of hot dogs, corn dogs, and fries.

The corn dog Sarah gave Chuck before they ordered was burnt to a crisp. Chuck behaved like someone who wanted her as his girlfriend. He took a bite, acted appreciative, and didn't say anything about how it was very "overdone."

Ellie hoped all of their food would not be like that. The chocolate soufflé Sarah brought the first time was not an easy thing to make. Ellie thought Sarah was new in town and wouldn't have a kitchen set up, yet. However, it didn't look like it was from a store or a local bakery. That meant Sarah somehow cooked something difficult the first time she was meeting Ellie and Devon. That was impressive—the opposite of a charred corn dog.

While Ellie sat patiently with Devon and Chuck's annoying best friend, Chuck stood by the counter quietly talking with Sarah. Whatever Chuck was saying, Sarah was laughing. A small part of Ellie wished she could hear what they were talking about. Then again, maybe not. She didn't really want to hear her brother flirting. We wanted him to be happy, but there was a line. Going past that would be weird.

After a few minutes, Chuck and Sarah brought over their food. None of the new food looked blackened or raw, which was a good sign. Chuck picked up his over-well-done corn dog, but before he took a bite, Sarah stopped him and gave him a new one. That was another good sign. While Chuck was supportive, eating what he was initially given, Sarah had looked out for him, had seen the problem, and had given him another.

They were so sweet to each other! They made a cute couple! Ellie hoped Chuck wouldn't blow it again.

No one else came in for food while they ate. It looked like this Wienerlicious was dying and wouldn't be there in a year. On the upside, it meant no interruptions for this second attempt at a family-and-friends dinner. Everyone was in good spirits. It was like the disaster at the apartment never happened. No one left early. As far as Ellie was concerned, the only problem was that Morgan was there. That wasn't new, though. Morgan being at dinner was always a problem.

The food wasn't half bad…for a place like Wienerlicious. She had never eaten there before, but it was closer to In-N-Out than McDonald's or Burger King. She wouldn't be eating there much because on the healthy-scale, it was closer to all three than a chain like Subway. It'd probably be more accurate to say they were closer to the Wienerlicious than Subway. Ignoring the risk of clogged arteries—that was Devon's concern, not hers—Sarah seemed to be able to pull off making a meal.

The thing that didn't make sense was that Sarah moved across the country to work at a hot dog dive. Fortunately, Ellie didn't have to sound nosy because she wasn't the only person with the question. Devon asked, "So Sarah, you moved to LA from DC. Why here? Are you from LA? Tired of DC winters?"

Sarah didn't seem offended at the personal line of questioning. "When I was growing up, we moved all over the country. Some of the places, like Wisconsin, had snow, which I didn't mind, so that's not it. After DC, I felt like I needed a fresh start. For a couple years, I went to high school in Southern California. It wasn't LA, but having all of that sun seemed like a good place for a fresh start. I got lucky when I met Chuck so quickly after coming out here."

Chuck's new girlfriend reached across the table and took his hand. He smiled, but something seemed off. Ellie only could tell because she had known Chuck for his entire life. Maybe Morgan could tell, but then again, he probably didn't see it. He only saw the best in Chuck, even when he fell apart after Stanford. He was loyal, but not observant. On the other end of the spectrum, Ellie always noticed everything and was always looking to protect Chuck from the worst, so she was probably imagining something out of nothing.

Sarah leaned into Chuck and bumped her shoulder into his. It had to be nothing. It was obvious that Sarah was into Chuck. Chuck never liked PDA and was out of practice with a girlfriend, so that had to be it.

Chuck hadn't ruined it, but Ellie was worried Morgan would. She felt the need to apologize. "I'm sorry we brought that barnacle." She flipped her hand towards Chuck's best friend. "We've learned to roll with his antics. Don't let him scare you away."

Sarah wrinkled her brow. "Why would I care about him? If it wasn't for Morgan, I might not have gotten a date with Chuck when I did."

Morgan had helped? Under Ellie's stare, Chuck looked rightfully embarrassed, like he wanted to sink through a crack in the tile floor. Sarah squeezed Chuck's hand and said towards Morgan, "I'm glad he did. If not for him, I might have had to buy a bunch of phones to break so I could go back to Buy More half a dozen more times."

Morgan beamed at the gratitude. Ellie couldn't believe Morgan had been helpful, so she stared at the little man, demanding an explanation. He gulped. "I knew Chuck was free. I'm his schedule coordinator." Ellie rolled her eyes and relented. At least he didn't lead Chuck to escape out the window, like he had at Chuck's birthday party.

With the food almost gone, Sarah got up, went behind the counter, and brought out extra fries for everyone, this time drenched in cheese. Ellie only ate a couple. The fries were really good, and she definitely couldn't eat there very often, unless she wanted Devon to have to refer her to a good heart doctor.

Ever the cardiologist, Devon said, "I am obligated to say this is too much cholesterol, but this is awesome!" He proceeded to devour all of his and all of Ellie's that she didn't eat. "I'll work it off tonight on the exercise bike." He didn't admit that he would have ridden the bike anyway. If that wasn't enough to work off the fries, she looked forward to helping him work off the rest in other ways. She wouldn't share that with everyone there, but just thinking about it… The fries were awesome for him, but working them off would be awesome for both of them.

Morgan inhaled his fries, as evidenced by the cheese on his beard. Chuck ate his fries more slowly, mainly because he was mesmerized watching Sarah eat hers. She was definitely flirting with him over food, and he wasn't missing a second of it. After she ate the first half, Chuck realized everyone was watching his reaction to watching her. He turned red, and he finished his fries with his head down, not looking at Sarah eating anymore of hers.

With the food finished, Devon offered to pay, but once again, Sarah turned him down, saying it was her treat. Considering what they probably paid here, which had to be less than Buy More, it really wasn't right. Ellie pulled Sarah to the side and said, "It's ok, Sarah. It's not your fault they pay you pennies at a place like this."

"Ellie, don't worry about it. This was my meal."

"Is this about using an employee discount? If so, Devon and I can pay you back."

"I haven't asked if we get one here. Seriously, you don't need to worry about it. I didn't pay you when you cooked."

"Of course not. You were a great guest who brought dessert, and I didn't pay for that. Chuck shouldn't have ruined that." And Ellie wanted to kick herself. She shouldn't have brought that up.

"Ellie." She put a reassuring hand on Ellie's wrist. "I forgave Chuck for that before I left. The reason I left had nothing to do with that."

"I know that." When they came over, Chuck had said there was another reason, but he wanted to apologize again. " I also know how little a place like this pays, and I don't want us to wipe out everything you make today. Chuck lives with Devon and me, and Morgan lives with his mom. Otherwise, they could afford—"

Sarah cut her off and spoke up to the group at the table. "Chuck, where do I live?"

"Uh, I don't know. You left the day we met because you had to talk to a realtor."

"I've decided not to move. I'm going to stay where you picked me up for our date."

"Really?" Chuck didn't sound like he believed it. "That's where you are going to live."

"Yes. Tell everyone where."

Chuck said, "Maison23"

Ellie thought it sounded familiar, but couldn't place the neighborhood. Devon gave a low whistle and asked, "The hotel? You are living in a hotel?" That's why Ellie couldn't place it. It was a long-stay hotel.

Sarah shrugged and said, "I don't need much space, and it seemed easier. I signed a lease this morning." Ellie wondered why would someone who could afford living in a hotel work at a place like this. Sarah said, "Chuck, when you're leaving, could you please point out my car?" Chuck gave her a wide-eyed surprised look. "It'll explain why I don't need someone else to pay the check."

Chuck nodded that he would do as instructed. "I'll show her the Porsche."

Sarah owned a Porsche! Living in a hotel and driving a Porsche—Sarah was loaded. Now, Ellie really wondered why Sarah was working at a place like the Wienerlicious. The meal was done, though, so it made no sense to fight about the bill when Sarah didn't need the help and didn't want to argue. Ellie dragged her boyfriend outside and Morgan followed, letting Chuck say goodbye in private.

Outside, Ellie looked inside with Sarah and Chuck standing and staring at each other. Chuck turned his head and saw the three of them watching from the sidewalk, through the glass. Her brother never liked PDA! She turned to let him kiss his new girlfriend goodbye. Devon did the same, but unsurprisingly, Ellie had to clue-in Morgan by pushing him around.

A moment later, Chuck joined them, pointed out the black sports car, and they all went home. It would have been nice to leave Morgan, but his bike was at the apartment. Ellie didn't want him walking and showing up to get in a few hours. It was better to get rid of him quickly.

Ellie had been so happy that her brother had multiple dates with a woman who seemed to be amazing, she really hadn't thought about the fact that he was stuck at the Buy More and she was working at a fast-food place nearby. Not everyone was a doctor dating a doctor. Dating was expensive. Apparently, that wouldn't be a problem for Chuck and Sarah.

With this successful make-up meal, her concerns about Chuck being alone again were short-lived. Chuck hadn't blown up the relationship, and Sarah wasn't a misguided gold-digger trying to squeeze every last bit out of a Nerd Herd supervisor. She simply liked Chuck. Ellie knew her brother was great, so that wasn't too hard to believe. It was great that someone else finally saw it.

The only way a job at Wienerlicious in the Buy More Plaza for someone like her made sense was as a way to be close to her new boyfriend. In a way, that was almost a little stalker-ish. Sarah didn't seem creepy to Ellie, though. She seemed to genuinely like CHuck, and he seemed to be completely taken with her. Throughout the meal, they were constantly making eyes at each other. Chuck had been without a girlfriend for so long, he probably needed someone who realized what a great guy he was and thought of him as the most important thing. Sarah seemed like exactly that type of person.

Sarah cleaned up after dinner and thought back to the date. She was pleasantly surprised Chuck showed up to apologize like he did. She never liked surprises, but that was a good one. He was going to be difficult to handle because he was a nice guy who wanted to help, even when he shouldn't. His apology was a sign that he was learning and that it wouldn't happen again.

She was more surprised that everyone else came. That surprise could have gone very badly. The soufflé from last dinner was a CIA prop. She had no one to help her this time. The last time Sarah had been so nervous cooking when mixing explosives. Exploding food wouldn't have killed anyone, but she didn't want to get in between Chuck and his friends and family, so she made everything as well as she could. Earlier, she had burned Chuck's first corn dog because she was paying more to parking lot security than whether the food was done. When she took the job at Wienerlicious, she thought food quality wasn't that big of deal, so it gave her the opportunity to watch the outside of the Buy More. This time, Chuck was close by, so she was completely focused on making the best meal she could.

It worked. The next probably was being a convincing girlfriend to Chuck. He did his part by being a good boyfriend by taking the burnt corn dog she had made earlier. It was a good move for the cover. She saved him from that disaster on a stick, which she would never have eaten. Overall, the meal was a success, and pretending to like Chuck was easy.

What date number was that?

The first date was when she thought of Chuck as a mark, and it was broken up by a car chase and Chuck defusing a bomb. Sarah stayed with him all night at the beach. It had to count because Chuck called the cover-date when Zarnow tested Chuck's Intersect their "second date." Dinner last night would have been the third date, but she left so early, it couldn't count. This one was an unplanned make-up. This was their third date.

Three dates, but Chuck hadn't kissed her yet. She never worked seduction missions that were longer than a single date. Marks were always making a move on her in the first hour. When she was picking up a mark at a bar, it was by the second drink. Chuck and she had been on at least three dates, but he didn't seem to want to kiss her.

Some agents (like Carina) did seduction missions a lot. They were good at them, liked them a lot, or both. Not Sarah. She did wetwork assignments or complicated cons. She excelled at the former, and the later was something she had been doing for around twenty years, so she was a natural. She was a female agent, though, so she of course had to seduce marks, knock them out, and steal intel. She always had a lot of backup. A long-term cover as girlfriend was something completely new for her.

Chuck seemed to be into her. He seemed to be into her a lot. She didn't understand why he hadn't tried to kiss her. She'd let him. Was he simply that much of a gentleman? She and Chuck were boyfriend and girlfriend now… cover boyfriend and girlfriend. He should have no problem kissing her… for the cover. The government had decided he was supposed to kiss her. Kissing a great guy like Chuck would be a lot better than some of the sleazeballs she had had to seduce on missions.

Wienerlicious only had three customers before the dinner rush. She hoped the place would stay in business long enough for her mission protecting Chuck to be over. Otherwise, she'd have to get a new job. Sarah finished her shift and went back to her room at Maison23.

She was never in her DC apartment more than a couple days, so her apartment in LA was already more of a home than that one ever was. Now that she was to be stationed in the hotel room for more than a couple days, she decided she should make some changes for a long-term stay. She'd need to get some more clothes. Maybe she could hang a bag for working out.

Graham supported her decision to protect Chuck as the Human Intersect and not put him in a bunker. Sarah was still positive being put in a bunker could break the psyche of anyone not trained for something like that. For a person like Chuck, it would happen fast. He did nothing wrong and didn't deserve it.

Before that first date, Graham had been quick to tell her to back off for Casey to handle it and also to tell Sarah that she should kill an American citizen who freaked out and ran. Fortunately, he trusted her judgment: letting her extend the mission when Casey had been sent and backing her when she insisted that Chuck shouldn't go in a bunker. Just because Graham had backed her didn't mean that he was happy about the status quo, with the Intersect in a civilian. She was going to have to stay vigilant, looking for possible future changes in his sentiment about the mission.

The entire mission was not normal, but she was the CIA agent in the field who was in charge, so she needed to act like it. She decided she needed to keep a mission log of what was happening. That way, if something happened to her, the next agent could watch her mission log and understand why things were being done the way they were being done in this atypical mission.

She changed out of her ridiculous Wienerlicious outfit, set up a video recording from her laptop, and started her first entry.

This is Agent Sarah Walker. Today is September 24, 2007. Day One. Today, I made contact with the Intersect, Charles Irving Bartowski, or rather, Chuck. My mission is simple: find out what he knows, gain his trust and monitor his actions until the agency can decide what to do with him.

That was good enough for her first entry. Graham didn't need it because she regularly gave him direct reports. She wondered if anyone would ever watch it.

Talking to the mission log was good because she needed to do something to keep herself focused. It wouldn't be good to talk to Chuck about things he didn't understand as a civilian, and she didn't trust Casey.

Maybe she could even make her new station more "homey." She wasn't sure how to do that, though. She didn't need a TV and wouldn't know what to watch anyway. The idea of...finding something to watch on a Monday...it was absurd. That wasn't her. Maybe she could get a pet. If she was to keep Chuck alive, then she should be able to keep a pet alive. She'd find out what the building allowed and research low-maintenance pets.

A/N: Sarah's staying: Keeping record for work, getting clothes, setting up a place to workout, and... getting a pet?

MyNameIsJeffNImLost AU stories:
- "Ellie vs the Ninja" (chapter 4, "Ellie vs the Major")
- "Chuck & Sarah vs Trust" (chapter 1, "Second Date")
- "The Bartowskis vs the Spy World (chapter 2, "Apache")