A/N: I am so thankful for each and every review, it's a very nice feeling. Thank you guys! Not just for the reviews, but for accepting me and including me into this incredibly warm community :)

A/N2: I just remembered that I first got the idea to write a Chuck story while listening to "Live Forever" by Oasis and "When I Come Around" by Green Day. Both great songs. Okay, onto the story :p

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"Chuck, get back!" said Sarah firmly, her face set.

Casey and Sarah stood and pointed their shotguns towards the sound, from their hip.

The keypad beside the door stopped flashing red, and turned green, with the letters "LASER SENSORS DISENGAGED" flaring.

The door burst open, and a blood-soaked, limping, barely functioning Agent Cole Barker of the MI6 staggered inside. He was greased from head to foot in dry blood. "Did you miss me?" he asked, breathless, not looking at anyone in particular.

"Cole?!" Sarah blurted out, worry appearing on her face at seeing his bloodied appearance. "Here, take this," she called to Casey, and threw her stockless shotgun over to him, who caught it easily. She rushed to Barker's side and placed her arm on his back, steadying him from collapsing and allowing him to bend over and catch his breath.

"Don't worry," he gasped, his voice as gravelly as ever, but breathless from exhaustion, "I didn't say a word." He proceeded to fall onto his knees, still breathing heavily.

"Look at that," said Casey, glancing at Bartowski with his sharkey, smirk-like grin, "Looks like you're not going away after all. Lucky you."

Chuck was looking on, shaken, his mouth hanging open - for multiple reasons. Cole Barker, as it turned out, was back. He had mixed feelings about that. But above all, he was worried for the agent. He appeared to have undergone torture of an extreme kind. His appearance was absolutely horrifying. He felt extremely sorry for the guy. Next, he felt a pang of jealousy rise within him - seeing Sarah immediately rush to his side to help him was bringing back a bad memory. But that was just because she was also worried - right? It's a good thing that Sarah Walker had an empathetic side - a side that he had taught her how to show over the past two years.

Still, he felt incredibly jealous as she fussed over Cole, even though she literally just finished crying her heart out and begging him to take her back. She still had a lot of explaining to do. What was going on? He was more than a little confused. "Yeah... lucky me," he responded to Casey, still looking at the pair on the floor.

When Sarah saw Cole stumble through the door, she immediately gave her weapon to Casey and rushed to his side, scrambling to help. Although the man really disgusted her, he was in a bad place physically and required urgent medical attention. "Cole?!" she had yelled. Internally, she winced at how that might look and sound to Chuck. She didn't care about Cole romantically at all, in fact she was feeling repulsed by the man. But he needed her help in this moment.

She hoped to God that Chuck didn't take this the wrong way - hell, especially after the moment they had only about forty minutes ago. She would've hugged him and kissed him, and explained to him very clearly that she wasn't interested in Cole at all - that he - Chuck Bartowski - was the only one for her, ever - but the damn surveillance was everywhere. She just wished he would hang on, and wouldn't spiral off again. She heard Casey saying something to Chuck, but wasn't really listening. She was checking Cole's upper body for injury.

"I'm glad you're so worried about me," said Barker smugly, with a confident grin.

"Oh, please," she deadpanned. She didn't have time for his stupid advances.

Chuck pretended to take interest in something down a different hallway, and slowly shuffled away, not looking at anyone, deep in thought. He needed some time to himself, that was all. A lot to process in the last twelve hours. Not to mentioned he really needed to sleep - he was dog-tired. His bones ached and he felt like was going to collapse soon. Never mind. He'd stick it out till they found out what was up with Cole - why he wasn't gone yet, and perhaps more importantly, what happened when he was captured. He went back to the main room of Castle and sat down.

Sarah, upon seeing him walk away, cringed inside. She was getting slightly angry. At Cole, for showing up, and at Chuck, for walking away right now. Then she reflected upon that thought: 'I can't exactly blame him. Cole Barker's probably not his favorite person, and he probably doesn't want to see me tending to his medical needs right now. I just wish he could be a little more understanding.' She thought, 'I still have a lot of explaining to do if I want him to accept me back - God, I hope he's not in another funk. And I have to find a way to keep this whole thing from Beckman - that's all I need right now, a reassignment. Not happening.'

Casey and Sarah walked Cole's panting form to the main room of Castle.

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Cole barker was sitting at a small table in one of the Castle interrogation rooms, holding a wet cloth to his bare torso. A lone light was shining above him. Sarah was sitting opposite him, now changed into a more comfortable outfit, listening to his account of what happened while in possession of the rogue agents.

"After that it was eight," he drew in a breath "maybe nine guys until the door," he said to Sarah, while looking at the table. Sarah looked on with a blank, uninterested expression.

Behind the one-way window separating the interrogation room and the rest of Castle, Chuck turned to Casey with his arms crossed, exasperated:

"Oh, comee onnn... we're supposed to believe that he took out nine guys and escaped a FULCRUM holding facility, all by himself? Please, I don't think we can trust this guy." He wasn't buying Cole's story. He still held resentment for him.

"Oh, I've done nine before," said Casey off-handedly, sort of under his breath. He kept his eyes on the interrogation taking place.

"You've taken out nine guys?" Chuck asked, surprised.

Casey turned to face him from where he was leaning against the window: "I'm just saying - it's do-able," he muttered. He looked back into the other room.

Back inside the interrogation room, Sarah continued her line of questions, with a soft tone of voice.

"So when they questioned you about the Intersect...?"

"I didn't tell them anything," he said with his characteristic low tone of voice, looking at Sarah, "it's not my first dance Walker. If I'd told them, then Chuck, Casey... You... are all in the crosshairs. Not an option," he looked her directly in the eyes as he said 'you'. He continued applying more antiseptic to his body, smearing it over his ribs.

Sarah was slightly annoyed at all the dramatic pauses he was making. She didn't have time for any of his acting up. Looking straight back at him, she said seriously: "Why come back here after you escaped?"

"I wanted to make sure you were safe..." he said matter-of-factly, glancing down at his elbow as he wiped it with a tissue.

"Bullshit," she said, after a moment's pause. She kept staring straight at him. "I can't believe how persistent you are," she maintained a steady tone of voice. Barker looked momentarily shocked, but his confidence returned soon and he followed up with:

"I am telling you the truth. Then I made my way over here on foot."

She did not want to put Chuck through this. She knew he was listening just outside. She didn't want him being forced to hear all of Barker's embarrassingly pathetic pick-up attempts.

"I think we've got just about all we can from him," she spoke loudly to those outside. Standing up from her chair, she looked down at the floor and walked quickly out of the interrogation room, back into the main room. Cole remained inside, obviously puzzled at Sarah's behaviour and her continued resistance to his charms.

Once in the larger room, the first thing she looked at was Chuck - her eyes met his. She tried to convey her love and affection to him, as she couldn't physically or verbally right now, due to the cameras everywhere. She desparately willed him not to give up on her yet. Fortunately, she got a small smile from him. His eyes were a lot more cryptic than usual ever since earlier today, making it a lot harder for her to gauge his thoughts. She smiled softly at him, too.

Casey, as always, broke the moment with a gruff interruption. "Alright, let's wrap it up. Cole stays with me tonight. Bartowski, you get some rest. And Walker - drop him off." His voice was all business, but underneath, he knew how important it was for Chuck and Sarah to work things out on their own terms.

Sarah turned to Casey with a grateful nod. "Let's regroup tomorrow."

Cole had by now stepped out of the unlocked interrogation room and was leaning weakly against the wall. He gave a cocky smirk despite his condition. "Take care of him, Sarah."

Chuck's stomach twisted, but he forced a half-smile, more out of politeness than anything else. Sarah didn't even bother with a response. She simply turned her back on Cole, motioning for Chuck to follow her toward the exit.

As they walked side by side through the dimly lit halls of Castle, the silence between them felt heavy, but not in the usual awkward way. It was a waiting kind of silence - like both of them knew that a conversation was coming, one that they had put off for too long.

They reached the parking lot, the cool night air filling the space between them. Sarah unlocked her Porsche, the sleek car humming quietly as they climbed in. The drive was mostly quiet, both of them lost in their thoughts. The buildings of LA flashed quickly past.

Finally, as they pulled up in front of Chuck's apartment complex in Echo Park, Sarah cut the engine. Neither of them moved to get out of the car. The quiet hum of the streetlights outside and the distant sounds of the city were the only things that filled the space between them.

Chuck glanced over at Sarah, his voice softer than usual. "Thanks for the ride."

Sarah turned toward him, her eyes searching his face. She had so much she wanted to say but didn't quite know where to start. "Chuck..." she began, her voice quiet but firm, "I know things between us are complicated. More complicated than they've ever been. There's something I need to explain," Sarah continued, her voice faltering slightly. "About what you saw earlier… with Cole."

Chuck's face stiffened. The memory of her kissing Cole still burned fresh in his mind. "Yeah," he muttered, the hurt creeping into his tone despite his attempt to stay calm. "I was wondering when we were going to talk about that."

Sarah took a deep breath, her fingers tightening around the steering wheel for a moment before she looked back at him. "It wasn't what you think," she said, her voice quiet but sincere. "I didn't want to kiss him. I... I was just caught off guard. Cole kissed me, and for a second, I reacted - instinctively."

Chuck's brows furrowed. "Instinctively?"

"I've been trained my whole life to use people, to seduce them if it helps the mission," Sarah explained, her voice tinged with frustration - mostly with herself. "When Cole kissed me, for a moment, I didn't think. I just... reacted like I was supposed to."

Chuck felt a knot form in his stomach, but it wasn't as much from jealousy as from the realization of how deeply ingrained Sarah's training was—how much she had been conditioned to suppress her true feelings. "So, it was just reflex?" he asked, his voice softer, more understanding.

Sarah nodded. "But it wasn't real, Chuck. It never was. The second I realized what was happening, I wanted to pull away, but... for a moment, I imagined it was you kissing me." Her voice cracked slightly as she admitted that last part. "I hate that I let it happen, and I hate that it hurt you. But I swear, it didn't mean anything."

Chuck looked down, absorbing her words. She imagined he was kissing her. That thought made him feel warm inside, despite the situation. He wanted to believe her, and deep down, he knew she was telling the truth. But it still hurt. "It's just hard, Sarah. Seeing that... it messed with my head. I've always wondered if I was just part of the job for you, and today, it felt like I finally got my answer."

Sarah's heart ached at his words. "You're not just part of the job, Chuck," she said firmly, her voice thick with emotion. "I care about you. More than I probably should. More than anything, actually."

Chuck's heart skipped a beat, but he didn't let it show. He just watched her, waiting.

"I'm not good at this," Sarah admitted, her gaze dropping to her hands for a moment before she looked back at him. "This... feelings stuff." Her voice cracked just slightly. "Growing up, my dad used to tell me that love was for suckers. He'd say that caring too much about someone only led to getting hurt, to being used. And then when I joined the CIA, they pretty much drilled that into me even more."

Chuck nodded, though his chest tightened. He could imagine how hard it must have been for her, learning that kind of emotional discipline. But hearing it now, knowing how she struggled, made him want to reach out and tell her it didn't have to be that way - not with him. Then he backtracked - did she say LOVE?

Sarah sighed softly, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's hard for me to say... you know..." she hesitated, her eyes briefly flicking away before returning to his. "That I love you." Her voice cracked slightly as she stumbled over the words. "I want to say it, but... every part of me pulls back."

Chuck swallowed, feeling a mix of relief and sadness. He had been waiting, hoping for those words from her for so long. Hearing them now, even in this indirect way was the most refreshing thing in the world. It felt like he had survived two years of constant dehydration, and was finally getting that drink of water. He thought back to what she was saying; he understood now - understood how hard it was for her to let herself be vulnerable like that. "You don't have to say it," Chuck said quietly. "I know how you feel, Sarah. Deep down, I've always known. Sometimes our problems would almost make me forget that, but I never really did."

Sarah looked at him, her eyes softening with gratitude. "I care about you more than anything, Chuck. I just... I don't want to screw this up."

Chuck smiled sadly, a warmth spreading through him despite the bittersweetness of the moment. "You won't," he promised, his voice full of sincerity. "I'm not going anywhere."

For a moment, neither of them spoke. The air between them seemed to hum with the weight of everything they'd left unsaid. Then, slowly, Sarah leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek, lingering just a little longer than necessary. Her breath was warm against his skin, and it made Chuck's heart race.

She pulled back slightly, her face just inches from his, her eyes shining with a mixture of uncertainty and affection. "I'm trying," she whispered.

Chuck nodded, his voice just as quiet. "I know you are." He wanted to reach out, to pull her into a real kiss, but he knew that they both needed more time - time to heal, time to figure out what their relationship really was. So, he settled for the soft comfort of her presence, the way her hand lingered on his arm for just a moment longer than usual.

Sarah gave him a small, almost apologetic smile. "Goodnight, Chuck."

"Goodnight, Sarah," he replied, his voice tinged with the kind of hope that had always been there between them.

Chuck stepped out of the car, and as he walked toward his apartment, under the moonlight, he couldn't help but glance back at her one more time. Sarah was watching him, her face thoughtful, as if she too was trying to hold on to this moment before the weight of their world came crashing back down.

As the Porsche pulled away and disappeared into the night, Chuck stood there for a moment, feeling more at peace than he had in a long time. They weren't there yet, but for the first time in a long time, he felt like maybe - just maybe - they were on the right track.

He went inside, and endured a barrage of questions from Ellie, who was just back from her evening shift, about how the supposed "party" he had been to with Sarah had went.

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Inside the car, Sarah's heart was racing. She had said more to Chuck tonight than she ever thought she could. But as much as she cared about him, the fear of opening up still haunted her. The walls she had built around herself - years of being taught that love was a weakness - still loomed large. But tonight, she had taken the first step.

And maybe, just maybe, that was enough for now.

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A/N3: So! Sarah confessed her feelings for Chuck. Chuck seems to have mostly forgiven her. To me, it seems that things are getting much better. What do you think? See you guys with the next chapter.