Chuck vs. The Courtyard Bench

Well, in the previous chapter: It was about Charah. How Chuck felt like a King with Sarah as his Queen. The nerdy blonde shared with Chuck how he has satisfied her in the following 3 ways: mentally, emotionally, and physically. Unfortunately, it left Molly wanting to seek therapy after her older sister loudly informed everyone that Chuck physically satisfied her multiple times. The interaction ended in true Chuck Bartowski fashion with an Army of Darkness movie quote by Ash Williams and a kiss between the engaged couple. So, what happens in this chapter? Here are the who, what, where, when, why, how's? Who is the hypochondriac that shows up that hospital that Sarah has to focus on Per Board of Directors? What does Sarah say on behalf of heather to the hypochondriac that asks who she is? Where did Sarah meet the hospital's Attending Phyician who has been treating the hypochondriac? When Chuck was meeting with a potential sponsor for his company, can you guess what happened that involved Pollak who was shadowing on that particular day? Why did Chuck have to walk off and end up in a Santa Monica Buy More? Read and find out! How does Pollak help when it comes to the newest Rockstar chosen for Friday's Bash At the Bench? I hope you enjoy the read and leave a comment to share your own thoughts on this particular chapters. As always, reviews are awesome.

Again, if you enjoyed reading my stories and left a comment, I truly appreciate it. Please continue to do so as it gives me the incentive to write more chapters.

I don't own Chuck.

Patients and Patience

XXX

The past weekend for Sarah was absolutely amazing, especially the kiss she had with Chuck on the outside terrace of White's office. For her, it was magical, and she imagined fireworks at that point going off up into the starry filled night sky. Although it wasn't at the same intensity as their kiss after their first date, it surely felt different in the execution because of how it was delivered, she thought to herself. Sarah expressed a soft smile as she reflected back on that memorable moment with the iconic Evil Dead movie quote uttered by Ash Williams as the exclamation point.

Of course, that aforementioned exclamation point was captured then posted by Molly on social media and eventually shared, which garnered another firestorm of likes, as well as comments. One of those likes and comments came from her gal pal, Heather Chandler, who later shared with her that after she followed White into her office with Pollak right behind the both of them, all 3 of them immediately noticed something. What they noticed was that 4 of the 6 individuals who waited in her office had their attention focused out on the terrace.

Sarah received text messages/calls from her gal pals in which they discussed the moment before, during, and after the magical kiss she shared with Chuck. She remembered thinking that she didn't want the magical kiss to end because the both of them were in the moment. Unfortunately, it was interrupted by the sound of a clearing throat, which subsequently broke their romantic moment together. Although it didn't happen, it would have been truly unfortunate if Chuck accidentally dropped her knowing how clumsy he can be when faced with suddenly finding himself in an incredibly awkward situation. Maybe early in their relationship, she thought to herself. Thankfully, he didn't on that particular Saturday evening.

That was 4 days ago, and it was now the middle of the week. The past two days were certainly busy, not just for her as Chief Operating Officer, but for Westside Hospital as well. It seemed like people picked today to have the waiting room jam-packed with potential patients who were either suffering a physical ailment or probably thinking they were, especially during cold/flu season. Of course, that's when hospitals become inundated with hypochondriacs. One of those hypochondriacs was Jean-Claude who was considered a regular fixture at Westside Medical Center.

Sarah had the misfortune of meeting Jean Claude one time by accident, a month after she started her position as Chief Operating Officer. Essentially, that initial first introduction was all it took for her to experience why he was deemed a constant nuisance to her staff. According to her staff, and Chief Beckman, they do their best to accommodate Mr. Claude because they not only wanted to provide the best customer service for a man who was known for being highly eccentric, but at the same time spent a tremendous amount of money at the hospital. So, the Board of Directors informed Beckman that whatever Mr. Claude wanted when it involved every kind of test imaginable, he would get it.

Unfortunately, the hospital's weasel of an attorney, Emmitt Milbarge, truly disliked the man and would try everything in his power to keep him from stepping foot on Westside Medical Center grounds. Sarah found out the reason why he disliked Jean-Claude was because he forged a friendship with Chuck and Morgan. Her nerdy boyfriend and his bearded best friend loved spending time with him because he sort of resembled the actor who played Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars trilogy, Mark Hamill. Plus, he had an infectious laugh that sounded oddly similar to that of the Joker from the Batman animated series, which they completely nerded out over.

Speaking of Jean Claud, he would be arriving at the hospital for another checkup and Sarah was instructed to set aside whatever she was doing to focus on him. This was the Board of Director's mandate and not Beckman's. Of course, she was not the only one who was greeting him with a somewhat warm smile on her face. Heather Chandler was by Sarah's side as they were standing by the main nurses' station on the 1st floor. A special V.I.P pass attached to a lanyard hung around her neck. The actress had been shadowing her so she could further broaden her understanding concerning Sarah's position as Chief Operating Officer by continuing to carefully observe and study her while Sarah was doing her job. She expressed a warm, welcome smile as well, similar to Sarah's.

As they continued to wait, the hospital's Head of Security appeared and stood there with his arms crossed. He acknowledged Sarah first, then the young actress who stood beside her.

"Ms. Chandler."

"Mr. Casey," nodded Heather nervously. A nervous wave added in, as well.

"Just Casey," Casey paused for a moment and then spoke up again. "Or Colonel."

In that instance, Sarah eyed and then playfully elbowed her friend after she heard how Casey responded back. Essentially, the playful elbow told the Chief Operating Officer that Casey likes you and you're on his good side. A few seconds of silence went by before Casey spoke up again.

"Claude."

"Yup," responded Sarah. She briefly glanced at her partner who stood to her right. then returned her attention to the main entrance of the hospital. "How was your time at the monastery? Did it help your sensei, Bennett?"

After she asked that question, Heather and a couple of the nurses who were working behind the nurses' station ears perked up. They all heard about Casey's other life and were now thoroughly interested in wanting to know more.

Casey cracked a smirk. "How did you know?"

"I have my sources," responded Sarah, cracking a smirk of her own. She briefly paused, then continued on. "So, what's the plan? Is he going to stay and get some help there?"

Casey expressed a soft grunt and then spoke up. "It's on the table." He shook his head afterwards. "Nothing really set in stone."

"Will he listen to you?"

"He's stubborn, hard-headed, and set in his ways."

"Reminds me of someone I know," Sarah retorted, giving a playful side eye up towards Casey.

The hospital's Head of Security expressed another soft grunt, which Sarah interpreted as amused with a hint of cynicism. For the Chief Operating Officer, the friendship she forged with Casey was often times described as a brother-sister relationship and they even acted like it at times. What made their friendship oddly unique was her being able to decipher the growls and grunts that he expressed once she was able to get to know the guy, she considered the best damn partner she has ever had. The Casey whisperer. It was what Chuck and Morgan proudly dubbed her, then welcomed her into a very exclusive club that had one other unofficial member concerning the hospital's hulking Head of Security. That one official member was Chief Beckman.

"Seriously though," Sarah uttered. "I know you feel obligated to look out for him…"

Casey chimed in and cut off Sarah. "I owe him, and I don't consider it an obligation."

"What do you call it then?"

"A marine looking out for another marine," Casey stated. He took a deep breath then continued on. "Semper Fidelis."

"Always faithful." breathed out Heather.

Instantly, Sarah and Casey turned their attention to Heather. Speaking of Heather, she quickly noticed the attention was now on her instead of the main entrance of the hospital. The attention that was suddenly on her felt uncomfortably awkward, but she remedied that by quickly responding to what she said, "My grandfather was in the marines. He always said, 'Once a marine, always a marine.'"

"Oorah." Casey proudly grinned and then expressed a noteworthy grunt.

It was at that point, Sarah elbowed Heather again as she turned her head and faced the actress. "That's grunt #7. He respects you and your grandfather."

The nervousness that Heather was experiencing suddenly faded and then she softly breathed out a sigh of relief. Afterwards, she expressed a smile on her face as she continued sharing the memory involving her grandfather. "I loved it when he used to tell me stories as a young girl about his time in the marines. One of the things he truly valued was the steadfast loyalty to his fellow marine that he fights side by side with."

"If he were here right now, I would salute him," Casey grunted. "And then thank him for his service. One marine to another," he added, with a firm nod.

"Sadly, he passed away last year," shared Heather. "90 years old," she proudly added, expressing a soft tight-lipped smile.

"Tour's over, soldier," Casey faintly breathed out, in a respectful way.

Sarah heard what Casey uttered and was about to say something out loud to that effect to Heather, but she suddenly noticed something, or in this case someone.

"Mr. Claude, it's good to see you again," greeted Sarah. A polite and courteous smile was given as Claude approached the main nurses' station on the 1st floor, seemingly with a skip to his step. A small paper bag was clutched in his right hand.

"We both know that's a lie," replied Claude with a smile, waving off what Sarah conveyed with his left hand. "I know I can be a pain in the ass, but I try my best not to be." Afterwards, he turned his attention to the woman who was standing next to Sarah. "I haven't seen you before. Who are you? Are you new here? Are you my nurse?"

Heather's eyes widened and didn't know what to say after being asked a number of questions by Mr. Claude. Thankfully, Sarah intervened.

"She's," Sarah paused and briefly glanced at Heather then returned her attention to Claude. "Doing a research study."

"On what?" inquired Claude, who was keenly interested.

It was a question that completely stumped Sarah, which caused her to seek help from her partner. Unfortunately, he wasn't help as he expressed a grunt #3 that she knew as `don't look at me you're on your own'. The Chief Operating Officer tried to rack her brain and say something. Anything actually, but she couldn't find the words as she stood there in front of a man who has had more visits to the hospital than the doctor from Doctor Who has had regenerations, she thought to herself. Thankfully, somebody spoke up.

"It's research on the doctor-nurse-patient relationship. The title of it is," Heather paused and then turned to Sarah to get her assistance. Unfortunately, her blonde bestie couldn't think of anything and ended up turning to Casey, but quickly turned back to Heather when she heard grunt #10. Fortunately for Sarah, the small break that was provided gave Heather enough time for a plausible title for her fake research study. "Patients and patience," she revealed. She cleared her throat and then decided to continue bullshitting because Mr. Claude seemed genuinely interested in something that was totally made up on the spot. "A deeper understanding of how much patience do doctors and nurses have as they deal with patients who are considered challenging."

Claude stood there in front of Heather as if he was judging whether or not what she said was true. Meanwhile, the young actress felt her ass tighten up and her armpits sweating because she bullshitted her way through it. In her mind, that's what actresses are paid to do and thankfully she listened to her agent about signing up for improv classes because they would certainly come in handy someday.

"I like it," responded Claude, briefly pointing at her with his left finger. "Let me know when it comes out so I can read it."

Instead of saying anything, Heather just nodded. Afterwards, Claude got briefly distracted by something that caused him to briefly walk off and it provided a small window for the two women to look at each other with absolute shock, surprise, as well as disbelief. Before Claude returned, Sarah exchanged a quick fist bump to Heather's quick and masterful improvisation of bullshit.

"Let's get the show on the road, Sarah," happily stated Claude, clapping his hands together.

Sarah nodded and then motioned for him to follow her. "Right this way, Mr. Claude."

"How is Chuck doing? Got a wedding date set yet?"

Before he walked past Casey, the hospital's resident hypochondriac handed over a medium- sized paper bag over to the hulking Head of Security he had brought in with him.

"What's this?" growled Casey.

Claude glanced over his right shoulder and responded as he continued walking. "Just my vitals, bottle of my urine," he announced, for everyone within earshot of the 1st floor nurses' station 1. "And a stool sample," he added, without blinking an eye.

Casey lifted the bag at eye level, snarled, and grunted his displeasure. After he did that, Heather walked past him and made a quick comment before she followed Sarah who was escorting Claud to his private room on the 5th floor. "Better you than me, Colonel."

Casey took several deep breaths as he watched Heather catch up to Sarah. As he momentarily stood there with a small paper bag filled with Claud's vitals and bodily fluid, he knew his patience was being tested at that very moment. Afterwards, he expressed a soft annoyed grunt and then proceeded to begrudgingly follow Sarah, Heather, and Claude to the 5th floor.

XXX

After getting situated in his 5th floor private room, the hospital's resident hypochondriac and the Board of Director's special guest was dressed in his own custom-made patient gown. He then hopped into bed, slid under the blankets, and made a few adjustments before getting comfortable. When he finally did, he acknowledged the nurse who was standing to his left and briefly scanned her ID badge.

"Nurse Wu," uttered Claude, peering up and locking eyes with the Asian nurse. "Are you new?"

"I took a leave of absence…"

Sarah interjected, "Vacation." Sarah briefly nodded at Anna.

The Chief Operating Officer became familiar with not only the history of her attitude, but her job performance as well after reading her employee file. Burnout. It was one of the main reasons she needed to take some time off and just be away from the hospital after she suffered burnout, especially individuals working in the medical field, Sarah thought to herself. Plus, the fact the relationship she once had with Morgan added to her burning out and nearly snapped at Chief Beckman, which would have caused her to be suspended or fired.

"She was on vacation, and it truly invigorated her zest for the job. Isn't that right, Anna?"

Before Anna responded, Casey handed her the medium sized paper bag that was filled with Claude's vitals, urine and stool sample. After looking inside, she peered up and narrowed her eyes directly at the hospital Head of Security, expressing a WTF look towards him. Afterwards, she turned her attention to Sarah. "Sure, my zest has most definitely been invigorated," she sarcastically remarked. Anna then made her way out of Claude's private room with the medium sized paper bag pinched between her thumb and finger on her right hand.

During the whole exchange between Claude, Sarah, Anna, and Casey, Hollywood's young rising star did her best to keep herself from laughing. She was successful, barely. Fortunately, she was able to keep her composure as she continued shadowing and observing Sarah doing what she does best.

"Your doctor will be right with you momentarily, Mr. Claude."

"Fantastic," Claud happily responded. "I want the works, including a CT scan."

After Heather heard that, her eyes widened. Ever since she got a brief rundown of the highly eccentric hypochondriac, Jean-Claude, from Sarah she was in absolute disbelief on how much money was spent getting his tests done. Tests that have turned out negative each time, she thought to herself. Her attention then directed to Sarah who she saw gave a nod, then he spoke up.

"I've already talked to my insurance company," Claude noted.

"I'm sure you did, Mr. Claude," retorted Sarah. "Just wanted confirmation."

"And?"

"You're approved," she shared.

A wide smile was expressed by Claude. "Music to my ears. Now," he happily responded back. He took a quick moment and adjusted how he was positioned to get more comfortable in his hospital bed then continued on. "It gives us time to chat," he added, sounding genuinely giddy.

"About what?" wondered Sarah. While she stood there in front of Claude, she mentally repeated the following words: Please not about the wedding. Anything but the wedding.

When it came to the subject of the Bartowski-Walker wedding, Sarah didn't want to talk about it mainly because there was so much going on from ordering this and that to making reservations for the venue location of where they're getting married, which they finally pinned down. She needed a mental break from anything involving wedding- related because there was so much to go over, especially when it came to choosing a wedding dress. Essentially, she thought it would be easy going and fun, but it turned into an anxiety- ridden and frustrating nightmare of an experience.

She recalled the moment one weekend where she went wedding dress shopping with Emma, Molly, Alex, Ellie, Carina, and Zondra. Heather was an added bridesmaid after she formally asked the young actress to be part of her bridal party. In any case, she got lucky enough that all 5 women were not only able to be there for her, but they were also patient and supportive in every sense of the word, knowing how the pressures of planning a wedding can break anyone. including Sarah. Of course, their job was to not let her turn into an absolute bridezilla, which they successfully averted.

For the most part, she had an initial idea of what dress she wanted to get married in. However, the initial helped she asked for in helping to choose a wedding dress ended up causing more harm than good, she thought to herself. In her mind, she wanted to find that one dress she imagined would just say awesome. A dress she either immediately saw, felt, or wore that she instantly fell in love with. Granted, she tried them on by herself first and each time she stepped on the platform she gazed at her reflection on the 3-sided mirror before doing a 360-degree turn.

Each time she saw the wedding dress that she was wearing, she didn't feel that awesome feeling. What she felt instead was nothing but disappointment one after another. The first one that she tried on was a sequined dress that was shoulder less with string straps and 3 layers at the bottom of it. When she stumbled up onto the platform and immediately looked in the 3-sided mirror of her own reflection. Her face instantly scrunched up as if she smelled a fart. Afterwards, she reached up with both hands and adjusted the top part of the dress to make herself comfortable. Unfortunately, she didn't feel comfortable and then kicked the bottom part of her dress off the platform before she got off it herself to try another one.

The second dress that she tried on was simple and had a white, long sleeve see through top. The moment she looked at herself in the 3-sided mirror she pretended to gag, then quickly turned around to try on the next one. It didn't get better after that because at one point she stepped on the platform, took a small glimpse, and then made a quick U-turn to try again. When it came to the next dress, there was so much of it she was practically holding the bottom half of it over her right arm. It was an instant no for that dress as she gathered it all up and it somehow ended up over her head.

Needless to say, it was looking bleak searching for her dress, until she finally felt it after she stepped on the platform and saw herself. It was THE dress. Her perfectly awesome dress. As she stood there in absolute awe of the dress, she imagined herself wearing, she suddenly felt absolutely emotional. It was at that point, she stepped through the curtain of the enclosed fitting room to show her mom, younger sister and the rest of her bridesmaids in absolute tears knowing she found the dress that she was going to marry the nerd of her dreams.

That's when it instantly hit her to the point where she remembered, with tears in her eyes and a smile on her face, breathing out the following words: I'm getting married. Although tears were shed, a celebration was shared amongst the gaggle of women, she vividly recalled. Her thoughts concerning one of the most emotionally and mentally frustrating moments in her life but ended up turning out euphorically gratifying, were inevitably set aside as Sarah opened her mouth to respond to the hospital's special patient.

"Well, Mr. Claude…"

After Sarah uttered Claude's last name, the doctor that was assigned to him suddenly sauntered into the room with both hands tucked in the pockets of his white lab coat. His stethoscope hung around and dangled around his neck over his blue scrubs. "Jean, we've got to stop meeting like this," he stated, with a sense of amused sarcasm. As for Sarah, she breathed out a sigh of relief the moment Claude's doctor appeared.

"What's up, Ed!" happily greeted Claude. He, along with the individuals who were already in the room, watched as Dr. Edgar Winterborne approached, then stopped at the foot of his patient's bed where Sarah was standing. "How are the wife and kids?" he inquired, with genuine curiosity.

"My wife and the twins haven't changed since the last time we spoke," responded Ed. "Last week."

"And?" Claude retorted back, eyeing his doctor.

Ed expressed an amused chuckle then briefly shook his head. "Lily, Samantha and Dean are still doing fine." He then briefly directed his attention to Sarah and gave her a nod. "Chief."

"Doctor Winterborne," acknowledged Sarah.

Sarah stood there with Heather as they both listened and watched the banter between the two men. For the Chief Operating Officer, she briefly met Dr. Edgar Winterborne when Chief Beckman introduced her to the senior medical staff on her first day on the job. However, she formally introduced herself to the scruffy looking doctor when the two found themselves sharing the same elevator as they were doing their individual rounds. In the short time they were in there, Sarah learned he was not only an attending physician, but also a doctor of internal medicine. Ever since then, he became a friendly colleague who shared valuable marriage advice from time to time, like the Turners have done in the past. She also learned that his nickname around the Hospital was Lucifer due to his devilishly witty, and sometimes sarcastically dry, sense of humor. In any case, when it came to treating a hypochondriac like Jean Claud, it was something that had happened by default since none of the other doctors wanted to deal with Claude. Essentially, it was mainly to keep their own sanity intact.

Speaking of keeping their own sanity intact, Sarah took note of the engaging conversation going on between Dr. Winterbourne and Claud. At that moment, she made an executive decision and cut in, breaking the friendly banter between the two men. Before she did, she heard the sound of a ding, and it notified her that she received a text message. She retrieved her iPhone and read the message she received.

"If you'll excuse me. gentlemen," Sarah took a step back and before taking her leave she nodded at Heather then at Casey. "I have another matter to attend to that just came up. My apologies,." she added, politely ducking out. Heather and Casey followed the Chief Operating Officer towards the door. "Dr. Winterborne…Mr. Claude," acknowledged Sarah.

"Chief," nodded Winterborne.

"Well, talk about wedding details later, Sarah," smiled Claude, giving a quick wave over to her.

Sarah didn't say anything. Instead, she waved and mentally repeated the penguin's line from the animated movie Madagascar which was 'smile and wave boys'. After stepping out in the hallway with Casey and Heather, all three individuals headed towards the elevators. It wasn't until they finally reached and stood in front of the elevators that Heather briefly directed her attention to Claud's room then turned her head to face Sarah.

"What's the emergency? The look on your face," Heather stated with concern in her voice. "Is it bad?"

Before Sarah could respond, the sound of an elevator ding was heard. The 3 individuals heard and then saw the elevator doors to their right open up with a couple employees with assigned badges stepping onto the floor. After the elevator was clear, all 3 individuals stepped inside and turned around facing the doors. As they waited for the elevator doors to close, Sarah turned her head and faced Heather, who was standing in between her and Casey.

"Casey wanted to know where I wanted to go for lunch?" she revealed, holding up the text message from Casey. The serious look on her face softened and was replaced with a smile. "We came up with an exit strategy when it involved these types of situations."

Heather cracked an amused smile of her own after she briefly scanned the text message from Casey. She then turned to her left and peered up at him. Speaking of Casey, he expressed a noteworthy grunt. A few seconds later, the young actress' eyes widened. Afterwards, she retrieved her own phone and the reason she did was to make a note for herself to add that as part of the relationship her character shared with Omaha's Head of Security, Cobb. When she was finished, she asked a question.

"So," Heather looked back and forth at the individuals standing on either side of her. "Where are we going for lunch?"

XXX

Morgan and Kathleen joined Chuck in his office at Kessel Run Technologies to go over the next Rockstar Rebel that the nerdy host was going to introduce this Friday. They weren't alone because they were joined by Pollak who was shadowing Chuck and took note of anything that helped inspire a better performance when it came to the role of Brody. Unfortunately, Pollak's way of shadowing led him to become an annoying nuisance by asking stupid and irrelevant questions. Questions that caused the normally patient Chuck Bartowski to actually become impatient to the point where he wanted to actually strangle the man. However, Morgan and Kathleen were there to help him reconsider his actions, knowing Pollak was getting on their nerves as well.

In any case, before the usual conference call with Alex, the nerdy host owner took care of professional business that consisted of finalizing a face-to-face deal with another sponsor to be part of Kessel Run Technologies earlier in the day in his office. The deal was going smoothly until Pollak nearly blew the whole thing when he suddenly interrupted the conversation by asking the potential sponsor if he had a great relationship with his parents. It all went downhill from there when he continued talking. That astoundingly inappropriate question completely stunned not only the sponsor, but Chuck and Morgan as well. It left all 3 individuals speechless to the point where Morgan grabbed Pollak and forcibly escorted him out of Chuck's office because he saw the look on his business partner's face. If looks could kill, Chuck would have been arrested for murder.

Thankfully, Chuck was able to smooth things over with the sponsor and explain the situation. Fortunately for the sponsor, he was understanding because when it comes to Chuck, he does thorough research and one of things he made sure to avoid was talking about his family. More specifically, the sponsor's parents. After the deal with sponsor was successfully done, Chuck walked him out the door then shook his hand before parting ways. The moment the sponsor drove off and disappeared out of sight, he had a heated discussion with Pollak about his question that was considered completely out of line. It took everything in Morgan and Kathleen's power to calm him down and Morgan even told his best friend to walk it off so he could cool down.

Chuck begrudgingly listened to Morgan who stood in between him and Pollak. As for Kathleen, she pulled, dragged, then pushed her boss away for his own sake to walk it off. He did and after a while he found himself walking around inside a Buy More, which he hadn't stepped inside in years. He remembered working in one in Burbank when he was a teenager to help pay the bills before he went to college at Stanford. In any case, it gave him the opportunity to take a much-needed breather. Plus, it provided a way for him to call Sarah because he just wanted to vent. Fortunately for him, she just returned from a lunch break with Casey and Heather.

"I'm glad you walked away, babe."

"I just went off on him after the sponsor left." Chuck shared, shaking his head in disbelief. As he walked through the DVD section of the store, he continued talking. "He just wouldn't stop talking, which made matters worse."

"I could send Casey over there," offered Sarah. "He's been a bit grumpy today, she added.

Instantly, Chuck heard a distinct combination of a grunt and growl, which told him Casey was standing near her.

"Tempting, " Chuck actually considered Sarah's offer. "But Pollak's not worth it,." he added, declining it.

In any case, there was a brief moment of silence on the other end before Chuck faintly heard some murmured conversation. Afterwards, a female voice spoke up, but it wasn't Sarah's. "Hey, Chuck."

"Heather?"

"Yeah," Heather started off. "It's one of the reasons that Steven was assigned a handler ever since he signed on to do the project we're both starring in."

"I wish I had one during my meeting." Chuck softly breathed out. He reached up with his left hand and rubbed his forehead.

"I'm sure he deserved it," Heather retorted. "And you don't have to worry," she added, with reassurance in her voice.

"When you say that, it just makes me worry more," he responded, stopping in the middle of the DVD section.

"I got your back, Chuck." There was a small pause before Heather continued speaking. "And Sarah's."

The way Heather said that gave Chuck a small sense of relief, even though in his head the thought of being in court and being sued by Five Elder Studios for possibly slander. He ended up losing the case and all the money he and Sarah saved for the wedding/honeymoon went into legal fees. True, he did have the best, and intensely focused, father-daughter lawyer team on speed dial for legal advice or to actually be represented by them in case he did get taken to court. Of course, he knew they'd fight tooth and nail for him, which greatly comforted him. A few seconds later, he was suddenly snapped out of his thoughts concerning one of many scenarios that swirled in his head after he heard his name shouted over the phone.

"Chuck!"

Chuck was startled. It caused him to fumble with his phone and nearly dropped it to the ground. Fortunately, he caught it before it did and breathed out a sigh of relief before he responded to Sarah, "I'm here."

There was a brief moment of silence before the sound of Sarah's voice was heard again by Chuck. "You were spiraling."

"I wasn't…"

Sarah quickly cut him off. "Charles Irving Bartowski."

Chucked ducked his head and hunched his shoulders. "I was spiraling," he blurted out. It sounded like a little kid who knew he was in trouble with his fiance instead of his mother.

"Listen, Heather's right. She's got our back," Sarah firmly stated. "Plus, I made sure we were covered since I added a clause in the contracts that we signed."

After he heard that, Chuck arched his right brow. "A clause? What kind of clause?" His eyes suddenly widened. "Is it anything like the escape clause from Santa Clause 3?" he inquired, sounding genuinely sincere.

"Seriously?" After Chuck heard that, his eyes dimmed out of disappointment. Sarah resumed speaking on the other end of the line. "What I meant was that if either of us were treated in an incredibly disrespectful way, we can walk away clean as technical advisors. No questions asked," she elaborated further

At that point, Chuck cracked a small grin. "I take it you went over the contracts with Hartley and Vi?"

"No," answered Sarah. "You learn a few things when you're the daughter of Jack Burton," she added.

"Thanks Jack. That's my girl," Chuck proudly stated.

"Feeling better now?"

"I am," responded Chuck. "Have I ever thanked you for all the times you've been patient with me?"

"You just did." There was a slight pause when Chuck heard Sarah's voice again. "You know, the same can be said for you with me."

In that instance, Chuck faintly heard the words 'lady feelings' following two words grunted out on Sarah's end, which caused him to crack an amused grin. As he stood there half listening to conversation between his fiancé and Casey, he perused the DVD's and picked one up and read the following title on it: Less Than Perfect. He flipped it over, checked out the back, and when he did, something caught his eye. It was one of the actors that was pictured on the back cover, and he looked very familiar. Unfortunately, his focus quickly changed, and the amused grin was suddenly replaced with a pained expression on his face. He refocused his attention and spoke into his iPhone.

"Sarah, you there?"

"Yeah. What's wrong?"

"It's just…sorry about dumping this all on you. How has your day been?" he inquired, placing the DVD back on the shelf.

"It's fine, Chuck. I'll always make time whenever you need to talk or vent. As for my day…"

Chuck heard a seemingly soft and tired sigh on the other end of the line. "What happened?"

"Your friend, Jean-Claude, happened."

"Awesome."

"Not awesome."

"I know he can be a handful, but Jean is a really good guy."

"If you say so. I had to drop everything and cater to him with a smile on his face. Per Board of Directors."

This time it was Chuck who paused on his head and then continued on. "It sounds like you're about to spiral."

"If I am, I know who to call."

"It's me, right?" The sound of laughter was heard on the other end.

"Call you later, dork."

After the phone conversation between the engaged couple was over, Chuck felt considerably better knowing she had a way of calming him down. For him, he was an absolutely lucky man for hitting the jackpot when it came to marrying a woman who by far and away was a dream come true. A dream that finally helped him forget about the nightmare of someone who haunted his heart for years until it was mentally and emotionally exorcized with Sarah's help, he thought to himself. Afterwards, he gripped his iPhone in his right hand and was about to head off but stopped. Before he walked off, Chuck reached over and took one more look at the Less Than Perfect DVD he put back. He flipped it over again and took a closer look at the actor that caught his eye. A few seconds later, he shook his head and set it back again where he picked it up from.

"Naaaah," Chuck faintly uttered, walking off.

XXX

When Chuck returned after he gathered his composure, Morgan was standing outside, apparently waiting for him. His bearded best friend shared with him that Pollak was given the 3rd degree by Kathleen. He went on further and shared that Pollak tried to explain himself, but Kathleen wasn't having any of it. She told Pollak that from now he only spoke when spoken to because she wasn't going to let an arrogant asshole who thinks he's God's gift to women ruin not only her livelihood, but the livelihood of the two men who worked their asses off to build something practically from the ground up.

Chuck was floored, especially after Morgan shared that Kathleen told him to his face that he was an entitled pissant who only cared about himself. After he heard that, the look of shocked amusement on his face suddenly turned to worried concern. Why? As an actor, Pollak's fragile ego may have taken took a huge hit and he got so offended that he cried to White, causing their roles as technical advisors to the project to be seriously jeopardized. That weighed on his mind until he learned what Kathleen did and now there was cause for concern for her job as well. However, Heather's reassuring words lingered in his mind as Chuck and Morgan stepped inside Kessel Run Technologies to go over crowning the newest Rockstar Rebel for this Friday.

As Chuck sat behind his desk, Morgan stood next to him off to his right while Kathleen situated herself in front of the whiteboard with a black dry- erase board marker in hand. When it came to Pollak, he sat quietly in one of the chairs that was usually placed in front of the nerdy business' desk, as if he was placed there in time out. Speaking of the nerdy business owner, he heard a very familiar ring on his iPhone that was placed on his desk. Chuck leaned forward in his desk chair, reached over, and swiped the answer icon and spoke up.

"Talk to me, Charlie."

"Hello Angels!" greeted Alex. "Jagger Renner. Age13. He's been dealing with a type of soft tissue cancer called Rhabdomyosarcoma. The cancerous lump developed on his back and has been slowly growing."

"Poor baby," Kathleen breathed out, turning around. "It must be painful for him."

"For sure, Mom," responded Alex. "Yet, he doesn't complain about it. He told me and a number of the nurses he wants to be strong for his mom and dad. He wants to set an example for his younger brother and sister. His doctor even commented how his patient's threshold for pain is remarkable."

"That's one awesome and strong teenager right there," Morgan stated, with his arms crossed. "Awesome role model for his younger siblings."

"Indeed, Morg." Chuck took a moment and adjusted the way he was seated in his desk chair before he continued on. "Why haven't they done his surgery yet?"

"Part of the lump has attached to the spine. So, they don't want to rush into it."

"Understandable. I get it," responded Chuck, shaking his head. "I actually got to meet Jagger yesterday and once you get talking, you actually forget about that lump."

At that point, Morgan spoke up. "I have a question."

"About what, Morgan?"

"I know this may sound insensitive but," "Morgan paused and took a breath as he briefly looked at the individuals in the office. "Has he been called Quasimodo?" he hesitantly asked.

Fortunately for Morgan, his concerns about sounding insensitive were quelled by Chuck. "He's actually embraced and joked about it. Shows you the kind of young man he is. Granted, when he was 9, he was embarrassed because he had it and thought he was going to get teased about it."

"Yeah, kids can be relentlessly cruel," Morgan stated, shaking his head.

"Thinking about how you were teased back in the day with the nickname Organ?"

Morgan quickly turned, faced a seated Chuck, and pointed at him looking disappointed. "You swore never to repeat that name."

"Sorry, buddy. I forgot about the deal we made, and I broke it." Chuck pushed himself out of his desk chair into a standing nerdy business owner then lifted his left hand and placed it on Morgan's left shoulder. "How many cans of grape sodas do I owe you?"

Morgan stood there and pursed his lips together as if he went into thinking mode. After a few seconds of silence, he responded.

"I think," Morgan paused. "Two boxes will do."

"One box," Chuck retorted, countering the request. "On second thought, that's too much for you. 3 cans of grape soda," he offered.

A look of disappointment was expressed on Morgan's face, but it quickly disappeared. "A two-liter bottle of grape soda then."

"Deal."

Chuck and Morgan exchanged handshakes to confirm the deal. then commenced with the proceedings that involved 13-year-old Jagger Renner. During that whole deal between business partners, Pollak sat there quietly with a perplexed expression on his face. Afterwards, he glanced over at the woman who yelled at him, and she sternly glared at him, which caused the actor to lower his head, inevitably sinking into the guest chair.

"Anyways," Chuck clapped his hands together and continued on. "Anything else we need to know. Charlie?"

"He wants to work for Disney in the animation department. I've seen his artwork and it's awesome, guys, especially his drawings of the character Quasimodo," Alex revealed. "Whenever he got bored, he'd sit and watch all the videos in the entertainment room, including The Hunchback of Notre Dame. That's when he started drawing, and he's a talented kid, Chuckles."

"A great way to distract himself to pass the time," Kathleen pointed out, after writing additional information down on the whiteboard.

"Indeed, Ms. K," Chuck retorted. "I also know he sings to himself while drawing."

"What song?" wondered Kathleen.

"'Out There' from the Hunchback movie," answered Chuck. "I think it has become his favorite song on a subconscious level."

"He does sing to himself," acknowledged Alex. "All the nursing staff have heard him sing the song, but it sounds more like mumbling than singing. It's just adorably cute, though."

"Thanks, Charlie."

"No problem. Do what you do best, Angels."

After the phone call with Alex was over, Chuck crossed his arms and stood there behind his desk for a moment as if was pondering something. As he did, Kathleen joined Morgan and the both of them carefully observed Chuck's facial expression. It led Pollak to do the same as his focus deviated from Chuck to Morgan and Kathleen while he continued to sit quietly. What the nerd was pondering seemed to last quite a long time but was quickly over when he suddenly snapped his right finger and thumb.

Instantly, Morgan spoke up. "What plan have you cooked up, Hannibal?"

Chuck looked directly at Morgan and Kathreen and responded. "Do you remember what we did for Everette Conway?"

"How could we forget? We went above and beyond to contact Vinnie Jones."

"We're doing it again," revealed Chuck.

"Who are we trying to contact this time?" questioned Kathleen.

"The guy who voiced Quasimodo," answered Chuck. "Here's what…"

The nerdy business owner was about to huddle up with Morgan and Kathleen when he suddenly noticed a raised hand. He wasn't the only one who noticed, as the two other individuals in the room directed their attention to the man who raised his hand. That raised hand belonged to Pollak. It was at that point, the 3 individuals who were standing looked at each other stopped. It led Kathleen to direct her attention to the man sitting down.

"You have permission to speak."

"Tom Hulce."

"What about him?" questioned Chuck, arching his right brow.

"He's the actor you're talking about. He voiced Quasimodo."

"And you know this how?" inquired Morgan. A mixture of suspicious skepticism expressed on his bearded face.

"I worked with him doing voiceover work for an animated character for a movie we both were in a few years back. I can save you the trouble and just call him."

Pollak then waited for a response instead of continuing to talk. He didn't dare anger the woman who chewed his ass out earlier. The actor watched as the 3 individuals huddled up together and every so often one of them looked back at him. A few moments later the huddle broke up and Kathleen looked directly at him once again.

"Go ahead and call him."

At that point, Pollak stood up and retrieved his iPhone. As he was searching for Hulce's name on his contact list, he lifted his head and directed his attention to all 3 individuals. "If I can get him for this Friday, you won't call my mom and tell her what I did?"

After Chuck and Morgan heard that, they did their best to keep their composure, but it was difficult. Yet, they somehow succeeded as Kathleen gave her response.

"We'll see," she sternly stated, with a motherly tone of voice. Pollak stared at her for a few seconds but then broke eye contact with Kathleen.

Speaking of Kathleen, she, along with Chuck and Morgan, watched as Pollak briefly glanced down at his phone and found the number he was looking for on his contact list. After pressing the name, he lifted his right hand and placed it up against his right ear. The next moment would either have Pollak off or still on Kathleen's shit list as all 4 of them waited for the other end of the line to pick. If it actually did pick up.

XXX

NOTE: You may have noticed a couple nods to certain episodes in this chapter. Vs The Zoom with Mark Hamill's character Jean-Claude and Vs. The Bank of Evil with Sarah's wedding dress scene. Hope you enjoyed it and the possibility of a redemption for Pollak who is actually helping out Team Bartowski when it comes to a Rockstar Rebel named Jagger Renner. I know he may not deserve it but writing that he got a verbal tongue lashing from Kathleen and then treated like a kid in time out was enjoyable. Anyways, as always leave a review and share your thoughts because they give writers like myself the incentive to keep writing. Tip of the hat to NEVR for the doing the beta once again! You rock dude!