Chuck Bartowski is a huge nerd. (chuckmate) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2014-03-11 20:08:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, chuck bartowski, sarah walker |
Who: Sarah and Chuck.
When: February 14.
Where: Sushi.
What: A ~date~.
Rating/Warning: Low for fluff.
Status: Complete.
If Chuck had thought he was nervous on New Year’s Eve, then he clearly hadn’t anticipated the stress of Valentine’s Day with the most perfect woman ever. It was pretty much make-it or break-it time, he figured, and if all went well then he’d probably have to tell Bryce that he and Sarah were more or less a couple.
Oh man. Were they actually a couple already?
He tried not to think about it as he finished getting ready, thanking the powers that be that he has more than one suit. He also tacked on a thanks that he found a pretty ritzy sushi lounge that had a table because of a cancellation. It seemed like all the stars were aligning for this. Good omen, that. Making sure he had everything, he went to Sarah’s and buzzed her apartment number.
When her buzzer sounded she quickly crossed over to the pad to press the button to allow him in. He was a little early and she did admire him for doing that, but she wasn’t quite ready. She threw the locks so he would be able to enter when he got up and then crossed back over to her bathroom to finish putting her earrings in. She smoothed down the fabric of her dress and touched her hair a few times to make sure it looked perfect.
She had posted that message on the network earlier and she could still feel the butterflies in her stomach. There was something about Chuck that she really really liked, but she could still feel a bit of guilt nagging at her to talk to Bryce about everything, but was there something to talk about? Were they going to actually become a couple? It had been so long since she had dated Bryce that she knew she was hopelessly rusty. With a sigh she grabbed her lipstick to apply as she heard her door opening.
Chuck stood outside her door and took a deep breath before walking in. In his hand was a bouquet of pink roses, because he thought maybe red was overdone and he didn’t want to look like a total moosh, and he held them tightly as he walked inside. From the sound of it, she was just finishing getting ready, and he glanced toward the bathroom as he lingered near the door.
“Sorry, I’m early, I know,” he said, apologetic. “I just figured it might be better to get to the restaurant a few minutes early, just in case they think maybe we’re not going and give up our table and all.”
“Oh no, you’re totally fine,” she called out quickly as she smacked her lips together and then blotted with a tissue. As she spoke she gave herself another once over and mentally told herself to stop being so nervous, “I have no issue with going early. I’m pretty much finished.” As she spoke the last word she stepped out of the bathroom, flicking off the light, and gave him a bright smile. Her smile almost faltered when she looked at him because she wanted to drop her jaw as she stared at him. Damn he looked good in a suit and she could feel the butterflies going crazy in her stomach.
“You look amazing,” she told him a little breathless still and she could feel her cheeks go a little rosier than she had intended. It had been a moment that she was rooted to her spot and she had to mentally push herself to start walking towards him to greet him. And before she could allow herself to overthink things she leaned in to kiss him in a greeting because even if she wasn’t sure where they stood in this relationship she did enjoy kissing him.
“Uh, I’m flattered, but have you actually looked in a mirror? Because if I look amazing, you look … Whatever better than amazing is.” He grinned one of his signature half-smiles, and was certainly more than happy to return the kiss. He’d never get used to that, he thought.
Before he forgot himself, Chuck held out the roses. “I hear it’s sort of customary to give flowers on Valentine’s Day,” he told her, teasing a bit. “But who knows what the kids are doing these days.”
“Thanks, but let’s just say we’re the most amazing looking couple ever,” the half-smile definitely caused a flip in her stomach because it was becoming one of her favorite things about him. How dorky was that? She was slowly regressing into a teenager with her first crush. When he held out the roses her smile brightened and she took them from him, “Aw, Chuck, that’s so sweet of them. They’re beautiful. Let me go find a vase in my kitchen really quick. And if the kids are giving flowers then I’m okay with that.”
She always secretly enjoyed when guys brought her flowers, which hadn’t happened in quite a while, but she still had a vase from New York among her things. It took a moment to locate it in a cupboard but she quickly filled it with water while she cut the stems and arranged them before bringing them out to set them on her dining table, “Thank you so much.”
Couple. She’d said they were a couple. Was it a serious thing, or just an off-hand comment? Chuck was going to lean towards serious, if only because he’d like that.
“You’re very, very welcome.” He looked fairly pleased that she putting them out in a vase, rather than just leaving them on the counter. That gave him hope. “Well, my lady, if you’re ready, your chariot awaits.”
“I am definitely ready,” she answered as she grabbed her purse off the dining room table and reached over to take his elbow when she reached him. She still couldn’t believe that she was going on a Valentine’s Day date with him right now. It was a little silly to be so excited about it, but it made her feel normal and happy, “Are we going back to your place tonight or did you want to come here for Netflix?”
Chuck led them down to his car, looking thoughtful along the way. “I don’t know. Honestly, I don’t mind. Whichever you want, I’ll agree, one-hundred-percent.” He gave her a grin as he held open the door for her, then he got into the driver’s seat.
“So. Just to clarify. You do like sushi, right?”
“Who has the nicer couch?” She teased him as she got into the car and buckled up. A nicer bed and couch would make the choice quite clear because she wanted to make sure they were comfortable while watching tonight, “And yes, I like sushi. Sounds delicious.”
“I would say, having sat on both our couches, they’re pretty even.” He flashed her a grin as he drove them toward the restaurant. “Although, I have a pretty amazing television and sound system, if we wanted to go for big impact. I’m very serious about my entertainment,” Chuck told her with falsely serious face.
“Well, then you’re winning in that category. I think we’ll end up at your place as long as I don’t die from stuffing myself full of sushi,” Sarah couldn’t help but give him a playful smile at his falsely serious face. He was so bad at trying to be serious, but she really liked that about him. Things were far too serious in her dreams and she liked something happy in her world.
“If you die, I think this will be the worst date in the history of the universe.” Chuck just laughed. When they got to the restaurant, he took her arm and walked her inside. They were just getting their table ready so he got them both a drink to enjoy while they waited.
“Well, cheers, I guess,” he said, holding out his glass. “To the first Valentine’s Day in a long time for each of us.”
"I certainly don't want us to have the worst date in the history of ever, so i will do my best to not die," Sarah countered with a playful laugh. It was a goal she knew she could keep because truly wanted this to be a good date. When Chuck toasted to their date she reached out to clink her glass against him, "To having a lovely date to spend the evening with."
Once they both sipped from their drinks she leaned over to give him a kiss. It was something she hoped she would do more of this later in the evening. But for now a few small kisses would suffice and let him know things were going well.
Well, Chuck wasn’t complaining. He was more than happy to return the kiss, and when their table was ready, he pulled out Sarah’s chair for her before sitting down himself. “Wow, look at this place. My sister would be so pleased with me.”
"You picked a great restaurant. I have heard about this place from a couple people, but I will let you know that we don't always have to be so fancy when we go out. This is perfect for today," she smiled and reassured him because she was more than happy to eat pizza on the couch as she was to be at a fancy restaurant, "you haven't told me much about your sister yet."
“Phew,” Chuck said, over exaggerating a bit, “good to know.” He gave Sarah a smile and then shrugged. “She’s pretty much one of the best human beings you’ll ever meet. I mean, I know I’m her brother so I have to say it, but it’s true. She’s all crazy smart and is a neurologist, and, if I’m gonna be really honest, she pretty much raised me.”
“Ah, so smarts runs in the family. Good to know just in case I meet her and I can mentally prepare myself for an inquisition,” she teased as she tipped her drink back and finished up her drink as the waiter came by and proceeded to take their drink order. She still wasn’t completely sure what she wanted for actual sushi, “Do you want to split some of these rolls? Because some of them have 6 or 8 in an order.”
“Nah, Ellie will probably just be excited I’ve got someone. She’s always on my case about it. But it’s her motherly instincts. Wants the best for me.” Chuck smiled into his drink. “She’ll like you. I know she will. I mean, it’s hard not to, right?”
He glanced over the menu, nodding. “How about we order something that we know is definitely delicious, and then take a chance and go for the chef’s special. I bet it’s really fancy, for the occasion.”
"You've got someone? Oh really," there was a playful quirk of her eyebrow as she used the menu to cover her blushing cheeks. They on turned a deeper red as he complimented her once more. Meeting his sister would be one of the more nerve wrecking things she would do when it finally happened. But the idea that he was basically saying they were together was making her a little giddy, "And that sounds perfect for tonight."
“Oh, yeah, should I have told you before asking you out?” Chuck asked, teasing. “She’s pretty amazing. Blonde, great smile, could probably most definitely kick my ass if she wanted to.” He laughed. This was so much easier than in the dreams. Maybe because they came together sort of naturally here, and there wasn’t any government stuff keeping them apart. Chuck gave Sarah a big smile and ordered their food.
“Well shit, looks like I don’t really stand a chance against this lucky lady. I hope she won’t be intruding on our affair,” she commented before biting her bottom lip for a brief moment to stop herself from smiling too much. She didn’t have the menu anymore once she handed it over to the waiter, but she honestly didn’t mind it. Chuck was so lovely to be around and she hadn’t been on this good of a date since Bryce, which meant quite a while.
“Fingers crossed.” There was a brief moment where Chuck suddenly wasn’t sure what to do. Should he reach across the table and hold her hand? Should he make more jokes? Should they talk about work? He shifted a bit and folded his hands on the table. “So, uh, how have things been on the dream front for you? Anything?”
Yes, perhaps, and no were the answers to those questions, but unfortunately Sarah didn’t have the super power to read minds. She reached up and brushed some hair out of her eyes before laying her hands on the table as well. They were there if he wanted to grab them, but his were folded so she wasn’t going to be making the move most likely, “Nothing since my last CIA dream. I’ve dreamt my whole CIA career and I feel like I could work for them now. My body seems different and I now have this knowledge to do some of the things I do in the dreams. Haven’t dreamt about you yet though. What about you?”
“Aw, shucks,” he said, but Chuck was actually relieved. He had no idea how Sarah would perceive him in the dreams, or if it would change her mind on him, or what. He shrugged. “Things just keep getting more involved and more complicated. I guess that’s sort of to be expected and all, but. I don’t know. It’s exciting, but all dream Chuck wants is a normal life, you know?”
“It makes sense that he would want a normal life. This was kind of just thrust upon him, so it wasn’t really in the game plan. At least you’ve got a cute handler to take care of you,” she commented with a laugh, “I’m excited to see where the dreams go from here. I just wish I had a reason to use all the skills I’ve learned. My leg is almost done with physical therapy so maybe I’ll go to the gym.”
“Yeah, that John Casey is definitely a looker.” Chuck actually smirks a bit, then nods. “I’m excited for when you start dreaming. It’ll be so weird, to hear about it from another perspective. Maybe you’ll find a new life path. I mean, I’m about a hundred percent more on track in this world than the dream world, so I’m not too upset.”
“Well, you have that going for you. You’ve had more time to get settled into a career and things aren’t the same as they were in the dreams. Nothing absolutely horrible happens in them so far, right?” Sarah didn’t want to hear that she died anytime soon and she certainly didn’t want Chuck to die. She took another sip of her drink when the waiter came out with their food not too long after, “Oh my, this looks fantastic!”
“Not really. In retrospect, it’s sort of funny? Like, you look back on it and you have to laugh because everything was so ridiculous. But at the time, when you’re living it, it’s not really funny at all.” He pauses and looks over the rolls that are placed in front of them. “Oh man. I am so excited to eat all of these. Half of these. Sharing them with you, and all.”
“That makes sense. Some of my dreams, like the CAT squad, are just strange. But living it in the dreams is so different,” she agreed with him. It might seem ridiculous the next morning, but it felt so completely real while dreaming it. She did really like how exciting her dreams seemed to be. The comment about sharing earned a laugh as she took some rolls onto her plate, “If I get full you can totally eat the rest. You seem like you have a high metabolism.”
“I seem like I have a high metabolism?” Chuck couldn’t help but look amused. He tried to hide it behind a roll of sushi, but the corners of his lips were turned up in an undeniable smirk. “Who says that even.”
"I do. Don't look at me like I am a massive dork. I watch teenage boys devour massive towering bowls of froyo every day, so I know what I am talking about," she wrinkled her nose and gave him a mock glare, but ultimately had to laugh at his comment. She grabbed a roll and took a bite as she tried to keep glaring at him.
He just grinned, then shrugged and ate another roll. The dinner went, he thought, very well. Great, actually. But Chuck hoped he wasn’t just reading too far into things. “So,” he said, once their table had been cleared, “rumour has it this place has a really great green tea ice cream. You down?”
"Sure! Do we want to eat it here or do we want to see if they've give it to us to go? I have a shameful habit of eating ice cream on the couch while on a Netflix binge," she admitted to him. She was ready to go back to someone's place and snuggle up with him. The night had been going great so far and she wanted to see what would happen after.
“Well,” Chuck said, looking more thoughtful than he actually was, “or we could do this. We could stop at an ice cream place on the way, get a container of something good, and take that back with us.”
"Yes! That sounds fantastic. Let's do that. And real ice cream, no froyo. I want Coldstone or something fun," Sarah smiled brightly over at him before reached over to take his hand in hers, "I am having such a great time with you. This is the best Valentine's Day I've had in a long time."
“Coldstone. Yes.” He nodded. “Like. Something with peanut butter cups in it or something. Something that’s like a chocolate bar explosion.” Chuck grinned, then looked down a bit because he was beyond happy that she was enjoying herself. Once he paid, he went and pulled out Sarah’s chair for her and got her jacket for her. “Shall we, my lady?”
"You are totally reading my mind," she commented before the bill came and was paid for. When he asked if they shall she smiled and slipped on her jacket. Once it was on she slipped her arm through his and moved closer, "We shall. Off to the amazing place of cold and stone." It was fun to be a little more goofy than usual and she grinned up at him as they made their way out of the restaurant.