a/n: Chapter 8, That Dress

I don't own Chuck

He felt something rubbing lightly on his chest, down to his navel, and then back up his chest. The sensation continued.

"I know you're awake," he heard her voice in his ear, like a soothing melody. "Your breath keeps hitching every time."

"I'm afraid if I open my eyes, it will stop," Chuck replied, eyes still shut.

"Okay, what's wrong?" she asked. "Open them and I promise I won't stop."

He opened his eyes, a sad look on his face. "You probably better stop… this is sort of serious," Chuck admitted. Sarah stopped and sat up, the covers falling away, and Chuck's eyes bulging. "Woman, I'm trying to concentrate."

"Concentrate away," she said, a suggestive smile on her face. Chuck gave her a pleading look, and she pulled up the sheet. She looked on the floor, found her top, and pulled it on. "There… you happy?"

"What? No," he replied. "You think I want to talk about things instead of…"

"Yes, I do… you always talk," she teased him.

"I do," Chuck admitted.

"Hey," she said, rubbing his arm. "Okay, this is serious… talk to me." He was silent for a moment and she kissed him on the cheek. "It's Bryce, isn't it?"

"Of course it's Bryce," Chuck replied. "The man had the gall to come over here last night and try and do… well, whatever the hell he thought he could. And honestly, if I was dumb enough to break up with you and still thought I had a chance, I'd probably try like he did."

"No, you wouldn't," Sarah replied. "First, you wouldn't dump me the way he did. And it wasn't so much a dumping, as him realizing we really had nothing meaningful. Good sex, sure."

"I really didn't need to know that part," Chuck muttered.

"I didn't say great sex," she told him. He gave her a look, started to say something, thought better of it, and pressed his mouth shut with a slight head shake. "Chuck, I don't know what goes beyond great, but that's where we're at. But when it comes to us, it's not sex, baby. I love you, you love me, and you are giving… so giving."

Chuck grinned. "Are you implying…." Chuck trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

Sarah smirked at him. "That Bryce is more worried about himself than others?" Chuck began to chuckle. "Why yes… yes, I am." He began to laugh.

"Listen, I know why you're worried," she said. He sobered. "Is it fair to say there are days you don't have a lot of confidence in yourself?" He nodded. "And you now know that Bryce is really good at seduction?" He nodded again. "Chuck, I love you. I never loved Bryce… I've never loved another man. Please, trust in that."

"I do," Chuck said. "It's just…"

"He's an ass," Sarah said, making him chuckle. "What? He is!"

"Yeah," Chuck admitted. His phone beeped. "Beckman?" Sarah reached over, got it and handed it to him. "You can look."

"I'm not that girlfriend," she told him.

"But you are a spy," Chuck countered.

She put the phone in his hand, leaned over, and kissed him. "Girlfriend trumps spy." With that, she got out of bed and headed toward the shower. She heard his breath hitch. "Oh, does this shirt not cover everything?" she asked innocently. All she heard was wheezing as she walked to the bathroom, smirking.

}o{

"He's still out," Casey said a little later, with Bryce over his shoulder, packing him to his Crown Vic. "I must have accidentally hit him with too high a dose."

"Will that cause any permanent damage?" Chuck asked.

"It might make his reaction time seem a little slow, and lower his comprehension a little," Casey said with a shrug, throwing Bryce into the car. Chuck winced as Bryce's head hit the doorframe.

"So, we won't notice a difference," Sarah said. Casey and Chuck both turned to her, Casey chuckling, and Chuck's eye's wide. "What? For a nerd, he's not the sharpest tool in the shed. He's one of those that give pretty people a bad name, when it comes to intelligence."

"Is this because he dumped you?" Casey asked. Sarah gave him a look and he cut his eyes to Chuck and then sighed. "Not because you're jealous, because obviously you never want him back in your life."

"Save it," Chuck said, walking back to the apartment. "I'll be in later." They both watched him disappear into the apartment.

}o{

Chuck found himself at the hospital later, looking for Devon. "Bro!" Awesome called out. His big smile faltered when he saw Chuck's face. "Everything okay, Chuckster?"

"No," Chuck replied. "I need to talk to you about Sarah."

"Ah, affairs of the heart," Devon said with a smile. "You came to the right place, I'm a heart doctor." Chuck gave him a sad smile. "Tough room," he said, leading Chuck into an examination room. "What's wrong, Chuck?"

"Bryce is back in town," Chuck began.

"The spy that was with Sarah, and gave you that thing in your head, also your former college roommate, Bryce?" Devon asked for clarification.

Chuck pressed his lips together and blew out his cheeks. "Yep, that's the one."

"Got it," Awesome said, nodding. He put his hand on Chuck's shoulder. "You love her?"

"Absolutely," Chuck replied.

"Then you have to do the hardest thing in the world," Devon told him. "Trust her."

"But Devon, I do trust her, it's him," Chuck argued.

"You have to trust your love is enough to stave off Bryce," Awesome explained. "Chuck, what do you think I have to do every day? Have you seen your sister? She's a stone-cold fox!"

"While I appreciate you appreciating Ellie," Chuck began.

"Let's face it, I'm a good-looking dude," Devon continued.

"Only you could say it like that and it not sound egotistical," Chuck observed.

"I know, right? Anyway, I do have my faults. I can be… frat-boyish, and immature, and sometimes… sometimes that wears on her. I know it does. But your sister loves me, and I have to trust that love will overcome that flirty, tall, dark, handsome, cool drink of water… Dr. Hernandez," he said in a disgusted voice. Chuck's eyes were wide. "And he speaks perfect Spanish," he said, looking at Chuck. "I have an American accent, he does not, and you know how that drives her wild." He raised an eyebrow, and lowered his voice. "It's a love language, after all."

"Wait, you are actually worried about another guy?" Chuck couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Worried, no," Devon said, and then, his face twisted a bit. "Concerned, maybe," he admitted. "Everyone has insecurities." Chuck's eyes went wide. "Dude, all men are insecure to some extent, and we all display it differently. Some are pompous and act like buffoons. Others voice them, like real adults… like I assume you have, with Sarah."

"I have," Chuck replied.

"And what did your personal spy have to say?"

"She's not my personal spy," Chuck replied, looking away, and grinning.

"Chuck, I've seen that woman look at you; she'd be your personal whatever you want her to be." Chuck's face reddened. "So, what did she say?"

"Trust her," he said softly.

"Then do it, okay?" Chuck nodded. "Did that help?" He nodded again. "Awesome," he said, clapping Chuck on the back.

"Hey, Awesome, have you talked to Ellie about… you know?" Devon pulled his top lip between his teeth and sucked on it. After a moment, he nodded. "And what did Ellie say?"

"To trust her," Devon admitted.

"And how's that going?"

Devon stood there a minute, found a stool, and sat down. "Bro, it sucks hard… that man has the nicest teeth," Devon began. His pager went off. "Gotta run, buddy," he said standing.

"Hey, I know you have a lot more experience in love than I do, but if you ever need someone to, you know, just listen, I'm pretty good about that… except sex stuff. I don't need to know that… ever."

Devon grinned at him, clapped him on the back, winked, and headed off. Chuck stood there, watching as the big man strode away.

"Trust her. I can do that," he said to himself. "I mean, I can." He was silent for a moment. "It's just Bryce, who got me kicked out of college, stole my girlfriend, and put the Intersect in my head. This is fine," he muttered to himself, walking out of the hospital.

}o{

Chuck walked downstairs as the screen came on. Sarah gave him a look, but turned to the screen before she said anything to him. "Team, we have a… what's wrong with Agent Larkin?"

"I think he partied a little too hard last night, General," Casey replied. Beckman gave him a look, and Casey tried to look innocent… and failing, miserably.

"An update for the Intersect has been stolen from the NSA," Beckman began.

"General, has anyone considered upgrading your security?" Chuck asked. Sarah twisted her lips, and Casey looked away as Beckman glared. "Just a suggestion."

"A software engineer named Von Hayes will be holding a party. He has the chip," Beckman continued. She paused, and looked at the four.

"Will Agent Walker and Larkin be posing as a married couple, General?" Chuck asked. Beckman's eyes went wide, and he felt everyone staring at him. "If I'm not mistaken, the idea would be for me to be a waiter, so that I can circulate freely and flash, and then the… ahem, 'loving' couple can sneak away to do what loving couples do, and get the chip."

"Yeah, I get to make out with Walker," Bryce slurred. Casey slapped his hand on Bryce's shoulder and he suddenly spasmed a bit and fell to the floor.

"Blast!" Casey said. "I forgot I was working on this handheld stunner." Chuck gave Casey a grateful smile. "Begging the General's pardon…" Beckman nodded. Casey turned to Chuck. "Have you lost your damn mind, numbnuts?"

Chuck felt a hand on his shoulder that gently turned him around. "Okay, what is going on, last night you were quite… confident."

"Major, I'm going to leave this to you and Agent Walker to figure out all… this," Beckman said, with a dismissive wave of her hand. She paused. "But, it might be best to actually hear out your teammate." With that, she ended the feed.

"Talk," Casey grumbled.

"This isn't me spiraling, I swear," Chuck said, his hands up in defense. "Listen, last night, Roan gave me a heads-up of what might be coming from Bryce. He knew Bryce was coming back, and Roan knew what Bryce would do. Bryce is good at being a spy, and I'm not… like that," Chuck said. He could tell by the look on Sarah's face she agreed… reluctantly, but agreed.

He took a deep breath. "As for this morning… Bryce is good at seduction, and not the way you're thinking. The way you can make someone more… pliable."

"Get you thinking the way he wants you to, for his benefit," Sarah said, nodding. "He's very good at that."

"And I'm easily pliable," Chuck continued.

"Christ," Casey muttered. "So many jokes."

"And I thank you for not making them," Sarah said. "Go on, get it all out."

"I trust you, I do. But I don't know if I trust me, so this mission, I am going with the person I trust. And that's you, Sarah. If you think you'll get more being a couple with Bryce and following up on my flashes, then so be it."

He stood there, outwardly appearing tall, calm, and together. Inside, he was curled up in the fetal position, and shaking.

"I see you," she said, a soft smile on her face. "Doing what's best for all of us. Now, let me tell you what I think. You know what's the best cover? A… very… loving couple," she said, making him shiver. "Going who knows where doing who knows what, the guy getting so excited, his eyes roll back into his head."

"It was one time," he stressed.

"Jesus!" Casey groaned.

"I mean, I don't need you replaying the scene for me," Chuck said. He turned back to Sarah, saw the look of horror on her face, and realized what he had said. He swallowed.

"I meant flash, Chuck, not…" She gave him a significant look, and he nodded.

"Hair-trigger," Casey muttered.

"He reloaded just fine," Sarah replied, making Casey wince, and hold up his hands in surrender. She turned back to Chuck. "And you know what no one notices? A lone waiter, going behind that couple, making sure everything is okay, and stealing what we need."

"She's right," Casey grumbled. "And for the love of God, we never had this conversation."

"That means you never get to tease me about it," Chuck said. Casey took a deep breath, and nodded.

"To be fair, it has never happened since, and he's had lots of opportunities," Sarah said.

Casey fled.

}o{

Chuck looked around the party, holding a flute of champagne. He thought he was in a dream, then he reconsidered, thinking he might, in fact, be dead. It had to be one of the two, because no human could look as beautiful as Sarah Walker did at that moment. It was just not humanly possible.

"You've been awfully quiet," Sarah said, giving him a look. "And you've barely looked at me. Have I done something?"

"I've lost the ability to talk," Chuck replied, chugging the champagne. Sarah gave him a small smile. "If I look at you directly, I feel like either I'll go blind, or I won't stop looking, and that would be very disrespectful. Plus, I'll forget we have a mission."

"It wouldn't be disrespectful," Sarah told him. "I wore this for you, for us."

"It's very… red. Or is it salmon? Either way, it looks beautiful on you," Chuck said.

"It would look beautiful on anyone," Sarah said, shaking her head.

"Sarah… no, it wouldn't," he said with so much warmth and honestly in his voice she felt her knees buckle.

She blew out a breath. "You remember our dancing lessons?" she asked. He nodded. "Good. If you forget, just hang on."

"So, you'll lead, is what you're saying," Chuck replied, being led to the dance floor.

"Do you mind?" she asked.

"Never," he admitted. The dance began, and as it went, the sexier it became. There was a point where she snapped her head to the side, and Chuck became lost in her. There was no one else there. They were alone, it was just Chuck and Sarah. There was no mission, no Bryce, no Casey, no one around. It was just them… and their overwhelming love for each other. When her lips touched his, he thought he might explode. The not-bomb kiss, which had been tremendous, felt like a peck on the cheek compared to this. Passion and love filled him, and he thought he might never come out of the world to which she had just taken him.

That's when he heard the champagne bottle break. Von Hayes was yelling at Bryce, and Chuck heard Casey snickering over the coms.

"We have to help him," Chuck said.

"No, we don't," Sarah reminded him. Chuck shook his head. He hated what had happened to Bryce, hated what this did to him. "We'll fix it," she said. She slid her arm around him, and they headed in the direction of Von Hayes. Hayes saw them, and started to pull his hands out of his pockets to applaud the couple's dance. As he did, he pulled out his keys, and that's when Chuck saw it.

"File," he croaked before the flash hit him.

"Baby, are you okay?" she asked, grabbing him, making a scene.

"On the keychain," he got out, his lips near her ear, making her shudder.

"Is he okay?" Von Hayes asked.

"Sorry, I had a bad case of Sphenopalatine Ganglioneuralgia, and maybe I haven't quite recovered like I thought," Chuck said.

Hayes stared at him, and then shook his head. "Come on, let's get you to one of the back rooms, and let you lie down."

They headed to the back of the house and heard a female voice. "I need it, Hayes," and Chuck began to make the face again.

"Is it another attack?" Hayes asked.

"I think so," Sarah said, lowering her head to put her ear to his mouth.

"Fulcrum agent, Juliette, killed a lot of people," Chuck muttered. Sarah straightened and stared at the woman. Suddenly Bryce rushed in, and she pushed Chuck behind her, shielding him with her body as Bryce tried to attack Juliette. She got off a shot and ran, as Bryce followed, yelling at Sarah to follow.

"Von, you should give me that chip if you want to live," Chuck told him. "Sarah will protect you. I think the other lady wanted to kill you." An explosion was heard outside, and Hayes threw Sarah the keys.

"Casey, what was that?" Sarah asked.

"The woman threw a grenade at Bryce, and I hit her in the head with a gun. I would have shot her, but she threw the grenade at Bryce, and I thought that made up for some of her wrongdoings."

}o{

He sat on the lip of the fountain, holding in his hand the glasses Bryce had given him. He had told Chuck that Sarah had changed, that she'd get hurt one day protecting him.

"Let me guess, someone made you… pliable?" Sarah asked.

"Maybe," Chuck admitted. "But just because he's a jerk doesn't mean he's wrong."

"Let me guess," she said, sitting beside him. "One day, I'll get hurt because of you, because I care too much."

"Basically," Chuck replied.

"Well, he's got a shot of being right," she said with a shrug. Chuck looked over at her. "Chuck, we have a choice: We can be together or not, but I am going to protect you." She squeezed his bicep. "Just like you won't stay in the car if you think I'm in danger." Chuck looked away, and she reached over and turned his head so that his eyes were locked onto hers.

"I'm not going to apologize for caring," he told her, and he shut his eyes as his own words hit him.

"Samesies," she replied.

"Samesies?" he asked.

"What, can't I use that word?" she countered.

"I mean you can, but you're dangerously close to reminding people how you're a spy, as that word being a description of what you do, instead of being a spy, a description of who you are." Chuck sat there for a second and watched her. "But, you are going to get hurt trying to protect me."

"I won't on purpose, trust me. And Chuck, I would do that if I was just your girlfriend, and not a spy. You mean that much to me… don't you get it?"

"But how am I supposed to live, knowing that could happen?" he asked, frustrated.

"How am I supposed to live, if I don't protect you, and I let you get hurt?" she countered. She chuckled. "Is this… is this… a 'real relationship' problem?" Chuck gave her a look. "Like, say I was a cop, or a firefighter, would you worry any less?"

"No," he replied, shaking his head. "No, I wouldn't. Would you, if I were one of those?"

"Sweetie," she said, laying her hand on his cheek. "Do you really think the police or fire department would let you work for them?" He dropped his head, laughing, and she gently lifted it back up to look at her. "This is who we are. So yeah, the idiot's right. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut, occasionally. But we chose… okay, maybe you didn't originally, but we have now…" Chuck nodded. "…so, we know what could happen, and we know we'd do anything to protect the other."

"We do," Chuck replied. "Listen, I'm gonna worry-"

"And I'm not?!" Chuck grinned and looked away. "Chuck, I am a trained CIA operative. You, at best…." She looked at him, lost for words.

"Got nuthin', huh?"

"Nothing," she agreed. "So, do me a favor: Try, try to stay safe, let me do my job, and be alive so at the end of the day I have you to come home to."

"I like that," Chuck said. He looked over at the pair of glasses. "Bryce gave these to me."

"Intersect update glasses?" Sarah asked. Chuck nodded. "Beckman told me he had them." She shook her head. "He really is an idiot." She stood and offered him her hand. "Come on," she said. "Let's go have you lie your head in my lap while you put them on, and get the update."

"I love you," he said, taking her hand, and standing. "I would do anything for you."

"I know," she replied, grinning at him.

"OMG! You got me!"

"Yeah, I do," she said, her voice dropping.

}o{

He awoke a few hours later, and sat up, his head hurting a little. He blinked, and felt her enter the room. He turned, and there she was, in that red dress.

"Uh… do we have a mission?" Chuck asked. Sarah shook her head slowly, a seductive grin on her face. "Am I dreaming?"

"Nope," she said, emphasizing the p.

"Then why are you in that dress?" he asked.

"Why do you think?"

"You like the way I look at you, when you're in it?" he asked.

She got a concerned look on her face and stepped toward him, feeling his head as if he had a fever. He put his hand over hers. "You like the stupid smile on my face, the way I lose control of some of my functions, and how I usually forget my words?"

"You seem to be doing fine with them right now," she said, her hand moving to the side of his face, cupping it.

He wrapped his arms around her waist, and slowly moved back and forth rhythmically, swaying to the music in his head.

"You're leading," she accused.

"Sorry," he said, pulling back, worried he had upset her, but then he saw the smile on her face.

"You're the only person I'd ever let lead."

"Then I won't take advantage of it," he promised.

"I know you won't."

a/n: Next time, on Chuck vs Playing it Cool. Sarah Walker: The Early Years.