The Love Boat

A/N: Do you know how hard I laughed typing Sarah entering the bathroom behind Chuck and shutting the door. Sure, she’s in a disguise, but…you know the look on his face would have been priceless.

Disclaimer: I do not own Chuck

Then [redacted]

She watched his face. Outside, with the little girl and the family, it had been kind. It had been full of love, and laughter. As she entered the bathroom, and he realized that she had followed him, it went to wide-eyed shock. And now, as she told him her predicament, the kind face was gone, and it was one of disappointment and anger.

“Why are men like that?” he muttered. “I can go get my brother-in-law and we can,” he began.

She laid her hand on his bicep. His words…the look on his face…he didn’t know her and he was trying to help. “It’s not like that,” she said. She reached up and pulled off the wig. “I’m an American spy, and those men are trying to find me.”

“What happens if they find you?” he asked.

She began to pull of the prosthetic. “Eventually they will kill me,” she told him. She threw all of it into the coat. She was going to wrap everything up into the coat, and bury it in the garbage can. She knew they’d probably eventually find it but hopefully she’d be far enough away by the time they figured it out that it wouldn’t matter. It was the best of bad choices.

“And during the eventually,” he asked. She was looking in the mirror as he asked that question. She was making sure everything was off her face. She turned and saw the look on his face. “Okay,” he said, seeing her face. “What do you need?”

“I need that stall to change clothes, unless you do,” she told him. He looked confused. “You came in here to…”

“Oh, I’m good,” he said, shaking his head. She got a questioning look on her face. “Shy bladder,” he said with a shrug.

She found that absolutely adorable and was berating herself. She was in the middle of a mission. She did not have time for this. “I need you not to leave. Please.”

“I won’t,” he said, assuring her. His words didn’t matter to her. It was his face. In an instant, she knew he would not. She nodded and stepped into the stall, closed the door, and began peeling off the oversize clothes, thankful for the outfit she had on underneath it.

“Why?” she asked, shrugging the clothes of as quickly as possible.

“What do you mean?” He asked.

The door opened, and she stepped out. She was wearing a floral print dress and looked like someone out enjoying their day. “Why are you helping me? For all you know I could be being chased by police.”

“I considered that,” the man said, shrugging. She gathered everything into a ball, pulled off the trash can lid and started to put it inside. “Wait!” he said. He ran over and got some paper towels, and gently took it from her, the towels wrapped around his hands. “You don’t know what’s in there.”

She couldn’t help but smile at that. “I’ve dealt with worse,” she assured him.

“I’m sure you have, but why chance it,” he told her putting the clothes in the bin. He put the lid back on, and began to soap and wash his hands. “Honestly, it’s a version of The Kobayashi Maru.” She stared at him. “It’s the unwinnable scenario.”

“Choosing to help me?” she said.

“Yeah, with the facts available, I have no idea what the ‘right’ answer is,” he said, making air quotes and then reaching for towels to dry his hands. “Here’s what I know. If you are the… ‘bad guy,’” he said using air quotes again. “What’s the worst that happens?”

“You could go to jail for being associated with me,” Sarah told him.

“I could,” he agreed. “But, if you’re telling the truth…”

“I could die,” Sarah finished.

“Exactly,” he told her.

She stared at him for a moment. “Sarah Walker,” she said reaching out her hand.

“Chuck Bartowski,” he said, and began to stick out his hand. He pulled it back. “They’re still a little damp-” she reached over and grasped his hand, making him smile. She was ignoring what she was feeling, his hand in hers. She had to. She had a mission. She had to survive.

But somewhere, deep inside, she heard the voice she rarely heard, saying something. Something from a movie or a book, she didn’t remember which. She was young then, and still believed in a happy ending. Those days were long gone. But yet…it sprung up in her…bubbled up, like her heart had revived and was warming her cold, dead life of nothing but existence.

Love is many things none of them logical

She pushed that thought down. This wasn’t fair. Why here, why now? And that thought, brought another.

Life isn’t fair, it’s just fairer than death, that’s all

In this moment, that her life hung in the balance of a stranger, she was remembering quotes from The Princess Bride. Both the movie and the book. Why now? Why was the eight year old girl in her doing this now.

Because that eight year old girl had prepared her entire life for this, and regardless of whatever her name was or the age. Sarah Walker…she always was prepared.

}o{

Now

“You can’t resign,” Langston told her.

“I’ll tell you the truth and its up to you to live with it,” Sarah said softly. Langston looked confused.

“It’s from The Princess Bride,” Chuck told Langston. “Yeste says it to Inigo Montoya.” Langston looked even more confused. “See, Yeste took in Inigo Montoya after his father, Domingo, is killed for two years until Inigo runs away.” Langston looked from Chuck to Sarah. Sarah was just watching Chuck, an unchecked smile on her face. “Yeste was a famous sword maker who frequently took on commissions that were above his skill level and he secretly had Domingo make them instead.”

“What does this have to do with anything?” Langston asked.

“You’ve known her longer than I,” Chuck pointed out.“I have,” Langston said, feeling like he was getting the upper hand.

“And when have you ever know when she’s decided something that she goes against it?” Chuck asked.

Sarah watched in real time as Langston processed exactly what had been said.

A/N: Such. Angst.