a/n: Yes, I wrote an entire story just so I could use that pun.
Prompt: "When the elevator opened, you can bet your ass that the last thing I was expecting was you on your knees with a ring and a mariachi band. Who even are you and why would you propose like this?"-auideas dot tumblr dot com
Disclaimer: I wish I owned Castle so that I could have moved it to another network because ABC sure as hell didn't deserve it.
She's dead ass tired after her first day of the academy and wants nothing more than to take a hot bath and go to bed. She leans back against the elevator rail and sighs longingly as she thinks of immersing herself into the warm water, of washing away the sweat and grime of the day, of feeling the soft, clean sheets caress her equally clean skin. The ding signalling the elevator's arrival to her floor is music to her ears. As the elevator doors open however, a whole other type of music hits her. Standing in front of her is a fully decked out mariachi band. Upon seeing her, they start singing and she almost has to pinch herself to make sure she hadn't passed out from exhaustion in the elevator. As if that hadn't been dramatic enough the members of the band part to reveal a man kneeling with a ring-pop in one hand and a "will you mari-achi me?" sign in the other. He lifts his head to focus his gaze before him and she watches as confusion flickers across his face.
"Wait, you're not Alexis"
She can't even respond to a situation like this so she just stares, mouth open. The elevator doors begin to close, snapping her back to attention and she steps out, the crowd of band members and instruments giving her no other choice but to stop before the man.
"Wrong person, amigos" he shouts over the music, signalling to the members of the band to stop the music. He rises to his feet, placing the ring-pop on the pinky finger of his right hand, then extending said hand to her.
"Hey, I'm Rick" he says, smiling.
"Umm, Kate" she returns, hesitantly shaking his hand.
"I'm not crazy" he blurts out.
She gives him a look of disbelief, one eyebrow raised, lips slightly tilted in humour.
"Although to be fair that is exactly what a crazy person would say" he rambles on.
"My daughter, Alexis, is doing some project at school where they were supposed to get fake married but nobody asked her and she's sad so I thought I'd cheer her up"
"I didn't ask"
"Yea, you were not asking very loudly"
The phone in his pocket buzzes, signally an incoming call.
"That's must be her" he says, face brightening as he reaches for it.
He excitedly holds it out to her displaying the caller ID of a picture of a smiling redhead about 7 years old. She is the picture of happiness, hair in pigtails, two front teeth absent, fat cheeks pink.
"Isn't she the cutest?" he gushes face filled with awe and love and she can't contain her smile.
He moves the phone away from her face, looking at the picture and sighing contentedly before proceeding to answer the call.
"Hey pumpkin" he greets happily.
Kate can make out the muffled sounds of a child's voice excitedly speaking. She moves to walk away, to give him privacy to converse with his daughter, to finally get to that bath and bed combo she had been looking forward to before meeting him. She begins to make her way through the crowd but he holds up a hand signalling to her, mouthing for her to give him a minute. She obliges, the emotional and physical fatigue of the day forgotten. It is replaced instead by fascination of this strange man, his adorable daughter and the obvious love shared between the two. The conversation goes on for another minute or so then ends with a soft declaration of love.
"So I guess I won't be needing this any more" he says, holding up his ring-pop clad finger, "Turns out Bobby Stevens asked her and she's had a crush on him for the past few months so of course she said yes."
"Thanks for all your help guys, but that will be all for tonight. You can all go home" he says to the band, going around to shake each member's hand.
"Stood up by my own daughter" he says shaking his head, hand over his heart in mock hurt. She can't help it, she laughs, loud and heartily. It sounds foreign to her after all this time. She can't remember the last time she laughed, actually genuinely laughed. Her mother's untimely murder, her father's unfortunate response and her single-minded determination to catch the bastards who ruined her family had pushed trivial things like happiness to the back burner.
"Hey, do you want it?" he asks suddenly, breaking her reverie "It's cherry and you smell like cherries so it's perfect!"
"No thanks" she says shaking her head amusedly. She wonders if he's had a few ring-pops himself. The man is like a 9 year old on a sugar rush.
"Your loss" he says, shrugging and lifting the sweet to his mouth, grinning around it.
The sight of a grown man eating a child's sweet should not turn her on but damn if it doesn't. The members of the band have long since cleared out leaving them alone in the hallway and she needs to leave before she does something she'll regret.
"Well, this has been an uhh interesting experience" she says, her voice deceivingly calm "but I should go. It was nice meeting you, Rick."
"It was nice meeting you too Kate" he says smiling warmly and she can't help but return a smile of her own.
"This doesn't have to end you know" he says as she begins to walk off "Alexis and I live down the hall, in apartment 147. Maybe we could..."
She turns to face him, arching her eyebrow at the direction the conversation seems to be taking.
"Catch a movie and some dinner while I wait for Alexis to get back" he says exaggeratedly, adjusting his jacket in feigned modesty.
"Katherine, Katherine, Katherine" he says shaking his head and clicking his tongue "Who would have thought such an innocent face hid such a dirty mind."
She rolls her eyes and tries (and fails) to contain her smile.
"It's been a long day" she says, the exhaustion returning "so i'll have to decline that completely platonic dinner and movie"
She's tempted to end it there, to forget him like she has done countless others and carry on with her solitary life. But he intrigues her and he makes her laugh, makes her feel like happiness isn't just a thing of the past.
"Tommorow's my day off" she blurts before she can stop herself "maybe we could hang out then?"
"Yea" he says, grinning "That would be great"
"Okay" she says, smiling shyly "Goodbye Rick"
"Until tomorrow. Goodbye sounds like you're going to duck when you see me in the hallway. Until tomorrow sounds more hopeful"
"Until tomorrow, Rick" she corrects.
"Until tomorrow, Kate."
A/N: Hopefully this alleviated some of your heartache