Chapter 14
Song Recommendation – I Need You Now. Lady Antebellum.
A/N1 – For those of you who PM me or were wondering about the timeline for this story. I was trying to follow canon loosely, so it’s over three to four years and beyond. In hindsight, I should probably have included dates (which I’m doing in the story I’m currently writing because the story needs it). If I ever decide to remaster this story, I will add dates.
Disclaimer – Unfortunately, I don’t own Chuck.
Chapter 14 – A New Mission
Burbank, CA
Enough time had passed since Chuck ended his relationship with Lou. In that time, the wounds left behind had slowly faded, helped along by the unwavering support of his family, his friends, and the people who had always believed in him. He had finally reached a place where remembering Lou no longer meant reopening the wound.
If Beckman had been asked to name the team’s greatest strength, she would not have said the Intersect. It was trust – Chuck trusted Sarah, Sarah trusted Chuck, and Casey trusted both of them.
That trust had survived everything the Agency had put in their path.
The three of them had taken down Fulcrum with little to no help from others. The victories during that time had changed the balance of their lives. Chuck still carried the Intersect, but he was no longer just surviving it. He had learned how to use what was inside his head without losing sight of who he was.
XXXX
General Beckman’s image appeared on the conference room monitor.
Beckman started the briefing, and before ending it, said, “Agent Walker, Major Casey, please remain at the end of this meeting.”
Chuck completed his review of intelligence reports and headed upstairs to the Buy More. He had become comfortable moving between the two worlds. With the government work below and the absurdity of the Buy More above. Neither felt completely separate anymore; both were simply parts of his new life.
After the doors closed. Beckman waited another moment before speaking. “I’ve reviewed the last two and a half years’ worth of operational reports, and the data is interesting.”
She touched a control, and a chart appeared on the screen. Chuck’s mission performance had steadily improved. Reaction times, Intersect recall, decision-making, situational awareness. Every measurable category had increased.
Another chart appeared. Sarah’s performance had dipped during Chuck’s relationship with Lou, but had returned to her customary exceptional level after Lou was no longer part of Chuck’s life.
Beckman folded her hands. “I’ve reached a conclusion…”
Casey already suspected what was coming.
Beckman continued. “… Mr. Bartowski is no longer the frightened civilian we subjugated to the Asset years ago. He has become a capable intelligence officer.”
Casey nodded. “Agreed, General. He has.”
Beckman looked directly at Sarah. “The original Asset-Handler arrangement was designed because Mr. Bartowski required constant supervision.”
She paused. “I no longer believe that to be true…”
Sarah looked up at the monitor. “General?”
Beckman continued. “I’m recommending to Langley that Mr. Bartowski be reclassified.”
The room seemed to be in slow motion and a bit colder to Sarah. She had spent years accepting the rules because rules were easier than questions.
Suddenly, one of those rules was disappearing, and she wasn’t sure whether the freedom made her excited or frightened.
“Effective immediately upon approval, Mr. Bartowski will become an NSA and CIA Intelligence Analyst assigned to Castle.”
Sarah blinked. “He’ll no longer be my Asset?”
“No… He’ll be your partner.”
General Beckman’s answer lingered in the room, and now the room felt a bit warmer to Sarah.
Partner. Not Handler, not Asset, but equals. The word ‘partner’ carried a weight Sarah hadn’t expected. It meant Chuck had finally earned something she had always wanted for him: the right to stand beside her because he belonged there, not because an assignment required it.
Casey grunted faintly, “Took long enough.”
Sarah glanced at him. “You sound pleased.”
Casey shrugged. “Don’t make a big deal out of it.”
Beckman continued. “I expect the three of you to remember that professionalism remains mandatory while working together… Understood?”
Sarah replied, “Yes, General.”
The transmission ended.
Sarah remained seated long after General Beckman’s transmission disappeared from the monitor. She looked at the empty screen, then toward the stairs Chuck had taken. For years, the Agency had defined their relationship for them. Now, for the first time, the Agency had stepped out of the way. For now, she had no idea what that meant.
The conference room was silent. For the first time since she joined the CIA a decade ago, the rules that had governed her life had changed… in her favor.
Casey broke the silence first with a grunt that brought Sarah back to the present. “It’s about damn time.”
Sarah looked across the table. “You knew?”
Casey shrugged. “I saw it coming. You forget I see everything.”
He stood and gathered the mission folders. “The kid stopped being an Asset months ago.”
Casey had watched it happen slowly: Chuck learning to trust himself, learning to make decisions under pressure, and learning that his value was not limited to what the Intersect could show him.
Sarah smiled faintly and nodded. “He just never realized it.”
Casey looked toward the stairs. “Neither did you.” Casey let that sit for a moment before walking away.
Sarah knew exactly what he meant. She had stopped seeing Chuck as just an assignment long before she had admitted it to herself.
XXXX
Sarah stood alone in Castle’s main room with the Buy More bustled above.
Chuck was helping a customer carry a computer to the Nerd Herd desk. Sarah watched him for a moment through the monitor. There was something almost ordinary about the scene, and she found herself appreciating that ordinary life more than she ever had.
Casey stepped beside her. “You heard the General.”
Sarah nodded. “I did.”
“So, what are you waiting for?”
Sarah looked at him, I don’t know.”
Casey folded his arms. “Since we started this assignment, you’ve had the perfect excuse. The Asset/handler rules, the cover, and the mission.”
He looked at the surveillance monitor at Chuck. You don’t have that excuse anymore.”
Sarah quietly replied, “What if I’m too late?”
Casey surprised her with a small smile. “You know what Bartowski’s biggest problem has always been?”
Sarah shook her head.
Casey continued, “He thinks everybody else is smarter than he is, and he’s 100% wrong. He’s usually the smartest person in the room. And when it comes to women, he’s a complete idiot and totally clueless.”
Sarah laughed, a real laugh, for the first time in ages.
Casey continued, “You know something? I think you’ll have to make the first move because he won’t know unless you tell him…and soon.”
Sarah looked through the glass toward Chuck. “You’re right, I’ve spent this entire time hiding the truth.”
Sarah had built a career around control. Control of her emotions, her identity, her surroundings.
Chuck had been the one variable she had never been able to control.
Casey nodded. “Good, then stop hiding.”
He started toward the stairs before turning back. “Oh, if you hurt the nerd, I’ll never forgive you.”
Sarah smiled. “I don’t plan to.”
XXXX
The following morning, the doors opened, and Chuck walked down into Castle. He expected another briefing, another assignment, more reports to look at. Just another day in the strange routine that had become his life.
He had no idea that before breakfast, the rules governing his life were about to change.
He looked puzzled as he entered the conference room.
On the main room’s monitor was Beckman. Her expression remained as composed as ever.
“You wanted to see me, ma’am?”
“Please have a seat, Mr. Bartowski.”
Chuck glanced at Sarah and Casey. Neither offered any clue.
Chuck’s eyes moved between them. Sarah’s expression was calm, but he knew her well enough now to recognize the small smile she was trying to hide. That made him even more nervous.
He sat down. “General, am I in trouble?”
Casey grunted and answered before Beckman could, “If you were, you wouldn’t be sitting here.”
Chuck considered that. “That’s…actually not reassuring.”
Beckman folded her hands and continued. “Mr. Bartowski, since you received the Intersect, you have served this Agency under conscription of the NSA and CIA with the designation of ‘Civilian Asset’ assigned to Agent Walker and Major Casey.”
“Yes, General.”
“You were placed under that arrangement because you possessed the Intersect with its military intelligence, which is vital to national security, but you lacked the training necessary to operate independently.”
Chuck nodded. “I know, I remember that.”
Beckman continued, “Since then, you have completed advanced operational training, assisted in the capture of numerous hostile agents, including our biggest success, stopping Fulcrum. You’ve demonstrated exceptional analytical ability and repeatedly exercised sound judgment under extreme circumstances.”
Chuck blinked. “I have?”
Casey looked at him. “Try keeping up, Bartowski.”
Sarah couldn’t suppress a small smile.
Beckman continued, “I have reviewed your performance evaluations, mission reports, and recommendations submitted by Agent Walker and Major Casey.”
Chuck looked from Sarah to Casey in surprise. “They wrote recommendations?”
“They did.”
She paused just long enough to let the moment settle. “Mr. Bartowski, effective immediately, I have approved your reclassification.”
Chuck frowned slightly. “I’m…not sure what that means, ma’am.”
Chuck’s first reaction wasn’t excitement; it was uncertainty. The word Asset had defined so much of the past few years that he wasn’t sure what remained when someone took it away.
“It means you are no longer classified as a civilian asset.”
The words seemed to hang in the air. Chuck looked at Sarah, and then Casey, and finally back to Beckman. “I’m not?”
Chuck stared at the monitor, trying to absorb what Beckman had just said. He had spent years believing the government tolerated him because it needed the Intersect. Now, they were telling him they valued the person who carried it.
“No,” Beckman allowed the smallest trace of approval to enter her voice, “You are hereby reclassified from an Asset to a CIA/NSA Senior Intelligence Analyst attached to Castle.”
General Beckman continued, “In addition, you will receive a salary that is equivalent to a senior federal intelligence analyst. Also, you will get back pay for the time and work you’ve spent with us already.”
Chuck stared at the monitor. For several seconds, he couldn’t find any words,
He looked at Sarah. She was smiling at him, and somehow that made the moment feel real.
“I…,” He laughed softly in disbelief. “You’re serious.”
“I do not make jokes, Mr. Bartowski.”
Chuck smiled. “No, General, you most definitely do not.”
Casey looked down, hiding what might almost have been a smile, but grunted instead. Chuck had no idea how significant the moment was. For once, Casey was happy to let him enjoy it before explaining what came next.
Beckman continued, “As an analyst, your responsibilities will include intelligence evaluation, Intersect analysis, operational planning, and mission support. You will continue to work alongside Agent Walker and Major Casey.”
Chuck glanced toward Sarah. “So, we’re partners now?”
Sarah met his eyes. A warmth spread across her face that she didn’t bother hiding. “Looks like we are.”
For the first time since ending his relationship with Lou, Chuck smiled without forcing it. It wasn’t the smile of someone trying to convince everyone else he was all right. It was genuine, a full Chuck Bartowski smile… a grin.
Sarah noticed immediately.
“So,” Chuck asked Casey, “does this mean you will stop calling me ‘The Asset’ or ‘Nerd’?”
Casey considered the request. “Don’t hold your breath, Bartowski.”
Chuck laughed again.
Beckman waited for the room to settle. “Mr. Bartowski.”
“Yes, General?”
“This reclassification is not a reward.”
Chuck straightened immediately. “I understand”
“It is recognition that you have earned the confidence of this Agency.” She looked directly at him. “And mine.”
For perhaps the first time since the encrypted email that had changed his life forever, Chuck felt something he had never expected to feel. He wasn’t the man carrying the Intersect. He was finally being recognized for the person he had become. The realization was almost overwhelming.
“Congratulations, Analyst Bartowski.”
Chuck stood at attention instinctively. “Thank you, General.”
The transmission ended.
Silence lingered for a moment before Casey walked past him toward the door.
“Come on, Analyst, we still have a cover to maintain upstairs, and I’ve got BeastMaster grills to sell.”
Chuck couldn’t help smiling at the sound of ‘Analyst’.
Sarah remained beside him. “I guess this means I can’t order you around anymore.”
Chuck tilted his head with a playful grin. “You ordered me around?”
Sarah laughed. “Occasionally.”
Chuck smiled. The joke was easy; the change underneath it was not. They both knew that something important had happened that morning, and neither wanted to rush past it.
“I’ll have to think about whether or not I’d miss that.”
She stepped a little closer. “I have a feeling you’ll still listen.”
Chuck grinned. “Probably.”
Together, they walked out of the conference room, not as Handler and Asset, but as partners beginning the next chapter of their lives. Chuck glanced at Sarah as they walked. Neither said anything, but the smile they shared said more than either was ready to put into words.
XXXX
Buy More
A few weeks later, Chuck locked the Nerd Herd counter. The Buy More lights dimmed as the last employees had gone home, and Chuck was getting ready to leave.
He grabbed his backpack when he heard someone say. “Chuck.”
He turned and saw Sarah standing near the entrance.
For a moment, Chuck looked at her. He’d seen Sarah in tactical gear, formal clothes, disguises, and cover identities, but this version felt different. This was the woman he had come to know.
She was not in her usual professional attire or Orange Orange uniform. Instead, she wore a simple blue sweater beneath her leather jacket. There was no tactical purpose to what she was wearing tonight, no reason to impress anyone. She had chosen clothes that felt like Sarah, rather than Agent Walker.
No briefing folder, no earpiece, and definitely no mission.
Just Sarah.
“Are you heading home?” she asked.
“I was.”
“Would you mind walking with me?”
Chuck smiled. “Sure.”
They wandered through the quiet parking lot outside the Buy More.
For several minutes, neither spoke. Chuck could feel that something was different. Sarah had never asked him to walk with her like this without a mission attached. Whatever she wanted to say, he knew it mattered.
Finally, Chuck laughed softly. “This feels familiar.”
Sarah looked at him. “How?”
“You usually wait this long before telling me somebody’s trying to kill me, or we have a mission.”
“Chuck, no one’s trying to kill you tonight.”
“That’s a nice change.”
They continued walking. The evening air was cool, and the plaza had nearly emptied. Sarah finally stopped. “Chuck, I need to tell you something.”
Her heart was beating faster than it had during some missions. Facing an armed enemy had always been easier than standing in front of Chuck with nothing to hide behind.
He immediately became serious. “What is it?”
She looked down for a moment, looking at him, and every speech she had rehearsed disappeared.
So she decided to tell him the truth: “When we first met, you were my assignment.”
There was no perfect speech anymore, no carefully chosen words. She had to let Chuck see the part of her she had protected since arriving in Burbank.
Chuck nodded. “I know.”
She took a slow breath. “I told myself everything I felt was part of the cover. I kept saying that even when I stopped believing it.”
Chuck remained perfectly still.
Sarah looked into his eyes. “I watched you. You were the kindest, most selfless man I had ever met. You never stopped caring about people, even when caring put you in danger. Somewhere along the way, that became the thing I trusted most in the world.”
A tear rolled gently down her cheek. “And somewhere along the way…I realized… I wasn’t pretending anymore.”
Chuck’s heart suddenly began to race.
Sarah’s voice became softer. “Chuck … I love you.”
Every hope he had tried to keep under control suddenly seemed to be standing in front of him. He was afraid to breathe, afraid that one movement might somehow break the moment.
Silence filled the parking lot, and Chuck stared at her. Not because he didn’t understand, but because he had imagined hearing those words so many times that he no longer believed they ever would.
He asked, “You … love me?”
Sarah smiled through her tears. “Yes, I love you. I know, I should have said it a long time ago. I was afraid, but I fell for you a long, long time ago. After you fixed my phone, and before you started defusing bombs with computer viruses”
Chuck stepped closer. “I thought you’d never feel that way.”
Sarah reached for his hand. “I know,” she whispered.
Chuck looked down at their hands and smiled. For once, there was nothing complicated about what the gesture meant.
“I did; I just didn’t know how to admit it. I couldn’t because of my assignment.”
XXXX
For a long moment, neither of them moved. Chuck had imagined this moment so many times that reality felt almost unreal. He wanted to be certain this wasn’t another dream he would wake from.
Chuck slowly reached for her hand. “Can I ask you something?”
Sarah nodded.
“Were any of those moments real?”
Chuck wasn’t asking because he doubted her. He was asking because there were memories he had carried for years, and he suddenly needed to know whether they had belonged to both of them.
Chuck asked. “The second ‘date’ after we met?”
“Real, at least for me.”
Chuck continued, “The dance?”
“Real.”
“The night we sat on the beach?”
“Real.”
“When I asked you if our relationship was ever going anywhere, and you told me ‘no’ while on truth serum?”
“False. I was trained by the CIA to withstand Sodium Pentothal.”
When Chuck heard her confess to something he had wondered about since the truth serum incident, he knew Sarah was telling him the truth.
“The kiss in front of the Buy More?”
She laughed softly. “I was supposed to be acting.”
“Were you?”
She shook her head. “No.”
Chuck smiled. “I had a feeling.”
Sarah laughed. “You always did have those feelings that can see the truth through everything.”
“I guess the Intersect isn’t the only thing that sees patterns.”
“No, sometimes you just know someone.”
He gently brushed a tear from her cheek. “You know, Sarah, I’ve loved you for a very long time as well. Since the first time you walked into the Buy More. If you had told me the truth when you were on Pentothal, I would have never considered another woman.”
Sarah looked down at her shoes. “I know.”
Chuck took one more step. “So, now what?”
Sarah smiled. “Now we stop pretending.”
The simplicity of the words made Chuck smile. After everything, the missions, the lies, the danger, and the years of waiting, the answer had become wonderfully simple.
She placed her hands gently against his face. For the first time, there was no cover story, no mission, no fake relationship, no CIA requirements, and no audience.
It was only Chuck and Sarah standing in the Buy More parking lot.
She leaned forward and kissed him.
It wasn’t hurried. It wasn’t born out of danger or adrenaline. It was slow, tender, and honest. For both of them, it felt less like beginning something new and more like finally admitting what had been there all along.
When they finally pulled apart, neither could stop smiling.
Chuck rested his forehead gently against hers. “I’ve waited a long time for that.”
Chuck’s voice carried years of hope in a single sentence. Sarah heard it and knew that every moment of hesitation had been worth overcoming.
“So have I.”
He laughed softly. “I was beginning to think I imagined us.”
Sarah squeezed his hand. “You never imagined us. I was just slow.”
“I noticed.”
She playfully nudged his shoulder. “I deserve that.”
He looked at her for a long moment. “So… do we finally get to go on a ‘real’ date?”
Sarah smiled. “The first ‘real’ one sounds wonderful.”
Sarah smiled because the word ‘real’ suddenly meant more than either of them could explain. There would be no mission report afterward, no cover story, and no explanation to anyone.
Chuck offered his arm. “Then let me do this properly.”
She slipped her hand through his arm. “I’d like that.”
Together, they began walking to their cars.
Halfway through the parking lot, Chuck stopped.
“What?”
“I almost forgot.”
He reached into his jacket pocket and gave her a Reese’s peanut butter cup from a chocolate bar he’d bought at the Buy More.
Sarah laughed, “Is this a romantic gesture?”
Chuck shrugged sheepishly.
She accepted the chocolate, broke off a piece, held it to his lips, and then ate the other half. “I think we’ll keep working on your dating skills.”
Chuck took the offered piece and smiled. It was a ridiculous little gesture, but it was also exactly the kind of ordinary moment he had wanted for years.
Chuck smiled as he took a bite. “Fair enough.”
As they resumed walking, their fingers naturally intertwined, and neither of them let go.
Above them, the evening sky over Burbank glowed with the last colors of sunset.
For the first time since the day they met, Chuck and Sarah weren’t pretending to be a couple.
They were finally a real couple, with nothing left to hide behind.
Whatever came next would belong entirely to them.
XXXX
End Chapter 14
E/N1 – Thanks for all of the reviews, PMs, and comments. I’m still a novice at creative writing, especially the narrative. So feedback has really, really helped me learn.