nice cliffhanger. I hope ypu will continue. Great story

Excellent chapter thank you so much!

Oh Eleanor Bartowski how I adore thee! The Bartowski siblings really are similar in terms of personality, both brilliant, tremendously kind, and dorky. Just in their own different ways. The brilliant Jane Goodall comment showcased Ellie’s subtle dorkiness. You balance the maternal but still older sibling vibe by having Ellie gently reminding Chuck that all jobs have extra stupid crap then go and tell Chuck to pick up his shit. Thanks for the laugh lol! “Melo. Dramatic.” I can feel the slight exasperation in that line. I am convinced she knows who Duncan Idaho is because Chuck, the nerd, had it on so often it was impossible not to know the name. She simply said Iowa because of the instinctual sibling urge to resist doing exactly what Chuck wants because he’s being a slight stinker. All teasing aside Ellie is the best sister. Planning to glare at ‘Yuck’ for lying about Chuck not calling. Also Ellie said she needs friends and my mind went SARAH CAN BE YOUR NEW FRIEND! I just want them to have wine nights and brunch outings where they can vent and laugh with each other, while Max is with his grandparents or bonding with Chuck.

Omg Max and his little rocks! You captured the pure wonderment children have with the simplest things of the world. He even had a favorite one and my heart felt all mushy. Honestly you’re nailing toddler behavior, I mean Max wanting his shoes tied a certain way, unable to properly communicate how he wants them (bcuz he’s a toddler) just that mommy isn’t doing it the /right way/ and having Sarah to retie them four times. I hope I don’t sound pretentious in my reviews on the way you write Max. I’m by no means an expert but I’ve worked with toddlers and in the past two chapters I can picture specific interactions I’ve had/seen with toddlers and adults in your writings of Max. I get excited because I think this is one of the most accurate kid!fic in the way of how kids act that I’ve read.

It’s surreal to read the Walker family with this level of communication with each other. You’ve managed to write family man Jack Walker while still keeping that edge to the character, the macho type swagger that makes me feel like he will still call Chuck a Snook when they meet because Jack’s kinda a dick to put it lightly.

I really thought Chuck was going to be sent Sarah’s way personally by Casey or Zondra somehow. Them meeting by Sarah calling for a NerdHerd adds a different dynamic. There isn’t any preconceived notions about each other. Unless of course you have Sarah remember bumping into Chuck at the station and it seems he was too preoccupied to on his end.
Charles you may have some shit together but you’re a mess bahaha! His thoughts on Sarah’s cagey call plus the outside ambience leading him to think murderers look like normal people and then talent agency for children with bad parents/adults in the entertainment business. Those dorky thoughts are so in tune that I can picture him saying them out loud and Sarah giving him that ‘head tilted really?’ look.

Not that Sarah needs a man to install the new blinds or fix her jammed window she’s perfectly capable of doing those things herself once she has the funds. It’s just, I can imagine Sarah fiddling with the window and get frustrated, though not an expert handy man, Chuck asks to help due to his inherent kindness and using that engineering brain of his figures a way to stop it from jamming.

Chuck is such a giant fucking sap and I love it. Thinking Sarah is the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen in his life and so stunned that all he can do is tentatively raise a hand. The last bit of the sentence got me. So, in essence /I’M/ the giant fucking sap.

Nice to see some Ellie/Chuck interaction, it's always good for a laugh. Making her say the name of his car was classic Chuck and it was something that was easy to picture. But underlying their banter, you still have the same protective older sister, trying to make sure Chuck is happy.

I have to admit that this version of Sarah has me very intrigued. She's clearly prioritized a balance between her job and her family, something we don't see very often from her, so I'm curious how those priorities are going to play out when she meets Chuck and, inevitably, starts to develop feelings for him. How will she balance that with what she already has and, maybe more importantly, will she be able to trust again after what happened to her already to put her in this situation? Time will tell.

I feel for Sarah. She's really straining to make ends meet and now she has the potential of being the leak in a very important case. Her fears that this could cripple her business if she has been hacked are very real. Hopefully, Chuck can do something to calm those fears.

I love the banter with Chuck and Ellie.

I love that she hits her head before seeing him for the first time. Don't know why that got me so good but it's perfect. You're a genius at the meet cute.

Max is the cutest kid ever and I love his relationship with Zondra. Can't wait to see more of all of this! Thanks for having the Buy More actually somewhat functioning enough that they see Chuck's potential to be a bigger part of their company. Gives him an interesting different angle.

Oh I loved the way you ended this chapter!

Another great chapter Karen. The plot thickens. Will Chuck find any bugs? Will he be able to speak with the attractiveness of Sarah? Looking forward to find out next chapter.

Ken

Just love the Ellie and Chuck banter here. You absolutely nail their loving siblings teasing second to only your Chuck and Sarah flirty banter. I like how Sarah feels the need to successfully raise her son alone. Not only does it show her independent streak but without the CIA to train her to wall up and shut down she needs that reason to close herself off a little even to having misgivings over friends and family helping her with Max. Just the think a friendly nerd can work on changing lol. Like Jack and Emma are together here and their interaction with Max was so cute. Great job with the overwhelming love Sarah has for Max, makes me wish that test was positive in canon lol. Can absolutely picture the closed mouth smile Max has that mirrors Sarah’s. Chuck arriving in a Nerd Herder, the crazy sight greeting Chuck when he peeked in the door, what great first meeting! And the last words of the chapter... left me with such a big smile! Thanks so much SC can’t wait for the next chapter.

And so they met... aaaaah I can't wait to read more ! This is awesome so far and I'm sure it'll keep being awesome ! I love how Sarah's parents are present to help out with Max, this little family warms my heart ! And how Sarah is panicked at the idea of being the leak... I just want to give her a hug and say that everything will be okay cause she's a badass ! Anyway thank you for this awesome chapter, you're the best !

More please! Thanks for writing this!

How are we only two chapters in and I am already obsessed?

I can't wait for more of this!

The rest of his life had just begun...ahhhhhhh. SC. You are the greatest. Love, love, love this. I know you got it, and I’m gonna sit back and enjoy it. Thank you.