Disclaimer: I own nothing. Castle isn't mine. Websites, blogs, movies, television shows that are alluded to are also not mine.
Disclaimer #2: Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of my imagination or are used fictitiously.
This is what happens when I am sick. I scrounge the internet for celebrity gossip, and then my mind give birth to plot bunnies. Plot bunnies that involve misunderstandings, missed chances, nerd references, and hilarity in general. I should also mention that this hasn't been beta-ed and I haven't really gone over it, so if you see any grammatical errors screaming at you, please let me know so I can fix it. I am not so sure where this story is going and I have no immediate plans for it. After my IB exams are over, I'll probably revisit this. I guess it depends on a multitude of things. But until then... enjoy Chapter One.
Flash
Oh No They Didn't
Kate Beckett expertly dodged the incoming New Yorkers as she made her way down the Manhattan sidewalk. She had fresh coffee in one hand, a file tucked under her other arm. It was a gorgeous summer day, and as she looked around at the Japanese tourists and the high school girls showing skin, she couldn't help but feel overdressed for the weather. Her black dress pants were standard, and so were her trademark pumps. But she wondered if maybe she should have ditched her blue dress shirt and gotten changed at the precinct instead. She was only halfway there, and she was already feeling grimy. As she approached the intersection, Kate turned the corner.
And promptly ran into a stranger.
The burning liquid dripping down the front of her shirt immediately registered in her mind.
"Oh, my God," said the man in an unmistakable British accent. "I am so sorry."
Kate stood disbelieving for a moment, glancing from the stranger to her now brown shirt. Her day was just getting better and better.
"Here, I've got some tissues," he added as he started pulling them from his pockets.
Kate finally found her voice. "I doubt that's going to do any good."
"You're probably right," he sighed. "At least let me buy you a replacement shirt?"
"Please don't do that," she interjected.
"A replacement drink maybe?"
"You don't have to buy me anything. I mean, it's partially my fault too."
"And if I insist?"
Kate smiled at looked up at him. You're not going to give up are you?" she sighed.
"Nope," he cracked a grin. With a dramatic swoop, he added, "Let me lead you to the nearest Starbucks, Milady."
"Kate," she said as he led her to the next corner. "My name's Kate."
"Ah, as in the future Princess of Wales?"
"Only a true subject of the Queen would say that," she laughed. "And please don't tell me your name is William. That would be too weird."
"You don't know who I am?" he asked curiously.
Kate frowned. "How could I possibly know you? You ran into me like two minutes ago."
"Never mind," he said shaking his head. "My name's Danny- well Daniel actually. But, nobody except my mother calls me that. So just call me Danny."
Kate smiled at his ramblings. There was something adorably awkward about this man that amused her. Maybe it was his Britishisms, or maybe it was his brown hair that stuck up in every direction. It might have been Danny's evident geekiness in the form of a Superman t-shirt he wore underneath an open dress shirt. (It kind of reminded her of Castle actually.) Or maybe it was because he was tall. Like really tall. If she hadn't been wearing heels, he would have easily been a head taller than her. Considering her 5'9" stature, that was saying something. Besides, Kate had always liked the tall ones.
"So you're obviously not from around here," she found herself saying. She really didn't know what possessed her to do it.
"Was it that obvious?" he smirked. "It was the accent wasn't it? It's always the accent."
She rolled her eyes. But she supposed that she deserved that answer. Now standing in line, she became aware of everybody's eyes on the two of them. There were some people who were trying to act cool, but she could tell that she and Danny were at the centre of attention.
"Great, everybody's starting at us," she said. "Does my shirt look really that bad?"
"Of course not! They're just not used to seeing such a beautiful, umm… I mean…" he trailed off. He scratched his head and shifted his gave away from her. "I don't mean to sound so creepy. I just find you refreshing."
"Refreshing?" Kate cocked her eyebrow.
"Yes," he smiled. "Refreshing." Beat. "So what's in the file?"
Kate couldn't help but let a chuckle escape at his awkward transition. "It's a case I'm working on. I'm a cop," she explained.
"Intense."
"It can be," she said. "But it's also very rewarding."
"I love my job too," he said. "But it can be very time consuming. And it's rare that I can escape and just talk to a perfect stranger."
Kate opened her mouth to continue this line of conversation, but changed her mind as they neared the cashier.
Later on, as they stood facing each other on the sidewalk, they said their goodbyes.
"I'm really glad to have met you," said Danny, putting his hand out.
Kate shook it and smiled. (She seemed to be doing a lot of that this morning.) "Me too." She motioned to her coffee. "And thanks for this."
"It's the least I could do." He passed her a crumpled slip of paper. "I'm only in town for a few days, and it's nice knowing somebody."
Kate frowned at the slip.
"Bring your boyfriend along," he added as an afterthought.
"Oh, I don't… I mean… I don't…" Kate stuttered.
Danny raised his eyebrow. "No boyfriend?"
"Not exactly," Kate admitted. "It's complicated."
"I understand."
"Anyways, I've got to get to work."
He nodded. "I'll still be waiting for a call."
"See you later, Danny," she said as she walked away. Though she was certain that she would never see Danny again, she was thankful for the coffee. Castle and the rest of his clan had been away for the past two weeks, and she was starting to feel like she was going through caffeine withdrawal.
The fact that Danny made her smile was a bonus.
Castle immediately pulled out his phone and dumped his suitcases when he entered the loft.
"Really, Richard?" his mother called from behind him. "Can you at least clear the doorway before you call Beckett? I can barely make it in!"
"Who says I'm calling Beckett?"
Martha raised an eyebrow. "Surely after last year's kerfuffle you've learned your lesson."
Rick waved his arm, indicating for her to shut up. Martha rolled her eyes.
"Guess who's back?" he said into the phone.
Martha sighed, dropped her bags in the middle of the hallway and proceeded to climb over her son's mess. "I'll be in the kitchen when you decide to move your stuff."
He didn't seem to notice. He was too engrossed in his phone conversation.
"My trip was good," he was telling Beckett. "LA was… well rainy actually. Not as nice as when we went."
"Meet anybody famous?" Beckett asked.
"Nobody I didn't already know. I ran into Natalie Rhodes though."
"And?"
"She's definitely less intense now that they've finished filming," he laughed remembering Natalie's visit to the precinct earlier that year. "What was it like without me around?"
"Quiet. It was nice."
"But you missed me."
Laugher rang in his ear. "Maybe just a little bit."
A crash emanated from the kitchen followed by a string of colourful curses. He sighed. What had his mother done now?
"Listen Beckett, I got to go. Mother's making a mess in the kitchen. I'll call you later."
Hours later, as she was organizing a stack of papers on her desk before leaving, Lanie showed up across from her. Arms crossed, lips pursed, eyebrow raised. Kate knew that she was about to be interrogated.
"What's up, Lanie?" Beckett asked tentatively.
"Oh… I don't know. Nothing really," Lanie replied feigning innocence. "Is there anything new with you?"
Beckett frowned. "Um. Not really."
"Really?" Her voice seemed to rise in pitch. "Nothing you've been meaning to tell your best friend?"
"I think you're pretty up to date on everything."
"So no new man that you've been hiding?"
"Says the one who used to hide Esposito under her bed."
"Oh, don't change the subject," she snapped. "I know there's something you're not telling me."
"Lanie," Beckett sighed. "I really have no idea what I haven't supposedly told you."
"Does the name 'Danny Lyel' sound familiar to you?"
Beckett frowned. The name sounded like it should have been familiar, but as she mentally went through a list of people in her mind, she found that it just didn't click. "Lanie, I really have no idea where you're going with this."
"Your computer on?" At Beckett's nod, Lanie came around the desk. She grabbed the mouse in one hand and proceeded to scrounge the internet for a webpage.
"What are you doing?" asked Beckett.
"Showing you what I'm talking about," Lanie replied. "It's all over Oh No They Didn't"
Beckett stared blankly causing Lanie to gasp. "It's the Livejournal community!" she exclaimed. "It's where I get all of my information!"
Beckett shrugged. "Never heard of it."
"Well here it is."
Beckett glanced at the screen. A photograph of her and Coffee Boy from earlier that morning was plastered on the site. She did a double take. That was definitely the two of them. Somebody had evidently gotten the picture as they waited in line for her coffee. She seemed to be smiling at something he was saying. She scrolled down to read the rest of the article.
British heartthrob Danny Lyel was snapped earlier this morning with his new mystery woman at a Starbucks in Manhattan. Sources claim that she is Kate Beckett, the real-life inspiration for Nikki Heat…
Thoughts?