Quick Note(s):
1) This story is used to get me through my Human Biology class, nothing else.
2) As of late, I've only been writing in script format, not novel, so excuse the mistakes.
3) After four years of being gone, it feels good to be back.
Enjoy.
Two Year Surprise: Chapter One
Castle paced the floor. It was late; she should be home by now. No, she should have been home hours ago.
He had wanted to surprise her, took his private jet just for her. Just for them. It was their two year anniversary. And of course, she was late.
She was always late. Late to say "I love you", late to tell him about her new job opportunity, late to tell him "I do".
Ok, maybe he wasn't being completely fair. He was finally at the point to admit that he had jumped the gun in asking her to marry him. But her response, Not like this, still haunted his mind.
If not this way, then what way? How was he supposed to know when she'd be ready if they weren't even living in the same city? He was a firm believer that when two people truly loved each other, distance was irrelevant. But he couldn't deny that their relationship had been on the rocks the last couple months. There were no more long talks, barely time to see each other with the hours she'd been working; the one-weekend-a-month off breaks, making her only want to catch up on sleep. And he couldn't blame her. Though she never denied his asking to come visit her, he could see the effect the late nights were having on her and the last thing he wanted to do was add to that burden.
So he stopped asking, he let her be the initiator, and since then, visits had become even rarer and spread out.
And somehow, by sheer act of God, he was able to figure out her schedule without her knowing, convince her there was no way he could make it down due to book meetings, and plan a surprise trip. And now it all seemed to be a waste.
He checked the time on his phone: 12:08 am. He could call, act like he was about to head to bed just to see where she was. He hadn't been responding to her texts in fear that his GPS would somehow give clue as to where he was. He had wanted this to work out so badly.
He scanned his thumb over the lock on his phone, her face in the background smiling back up at him. He couldn't help but smile back. Even in a picture her beauty captivated him, made his breath catch. If only she knew how he felt, how much he cared, how much he wanted to say but felt he couldn't…
Never again, she thought to herself. Never, ever again. She should've known three flight delays ago that this was a bad idea, but in the eyes of Kate Beckett she saw it as a challenge.
When she first arrived at the loft, she wasn't surprised to find him gone. He'd told her about the many book promotion meetings lined up, and how he'd try to call throughout the day, but made no promises.
It was five past midnight and he still wasn't home.
She shouldn't be worried. After being with the man for two years now she knew he had the tendency to get his publisher off topic. But really? Till midnight? Something about that didn't feel right.
God, two years. The thought hit her unexpectedly. It was hard to believe where they had started, and how far they had come. Hard to believe that she had fallen madly in love with her best friend; her partner. It was an ideal fairytale, at least on the outside.
Kate shook her head, these past months flying through her mind in a blur. They had been hard, no doubt about it, but they were making it work which was a testimony in itself. He was making it work, and she couldn't be more grateful for it. Which was part of the reasoning for finding herself sitting on the couch…in his loft...alone.
She had been looking forward to this day, had even asked off work for it. She thought surely he would have said something about celebrating the day they had first gotten together. Wasn't he the one who was always so adamant about dates and time? He was the planner, the one with the creative ideas and to be honest, she was more than happy to let him have control over that aspect of their lives.
Yet not once had he mentioned a word about coming down or her coming up. It was different a few months ago when he could hardly keep quiet about it, before the long, over-extended hours her work began throwing at her just so she could have this time off. They had begun to talk less; he made his visits short and sweet. It seemed as if he was pulling away—her fears before she took this job becoming a reality.
She had to show him she cared; show him that even though she had turned down his proposal, she still want this—them.
She knew the rejection had hurt him; could see it in his eyes every time he looked at her from there on after. But her moving to a new city was not an ideal start for an engagement. Which is exactly why she had said not like this, rather than "no". She wanted this, but more than anything she wanted it to work.
She picked up her phone, scrolling through her contacts. To hell with it. If he was going to put her through this much frustration waiting on him, then she sure as hell didn't see why she'd have to kee[p this a surprise much longer.
She needed her man. She'd needed him yesterday.