a/n: Set in Season 4. Includes (light slash with): Kevin/Jenny, Kevin/Castle, and (suggested) Kevin/Javier.
Kevin dreams, but he likes reality better
Bro-mance = Bro-mare
When Kevin Ryan woke up in the morning, his bed used to have an occupancy of one. Now that he married Jenny, it has a capacity for two. A fact that he is very happy with. Now he has another reason to stay in bed instead of the dread of looking at another dead person that day. He loved to hold her small body close, breathing in her scent, and the feel of her soft skin under his fingertips before he was called in and forced from bed. And that's what he does now, reaching under the blanket to the other side of the bed.
He touches her skin and pulls himself closer, and wraps his arms around her waist as he snuggles close. Eyes still closed, he buries his face in the back of her neck and breaths in... a scent that's not hers. His brows furrow in confusion, still sleepy, he must be dreaming. But more awake now as he realizes that the skin he's touching, while smooth, has more hair and is a little rougher now, the waist broader.
As he jerks back and upright in bed, he finds himself staring down at not Jenny, but the back of a man, in a dark tee and short brown hair. He exclaims, "What the hell!?"
The man in the bed awakens slightly and is in the cusp of wakefulness as he groans softly, before shifting and rolling over to face Kevin. "No, no. Don't get up, stay in bed." He murmurs, reaching out and touching him.
Kevin doesn't react immediately, because this man is no stranger. He stares in open-mouthed shock as the man's eyes flutter open to reveal a dark blue irises. "Babe, what's wrong?"
Kevin's lips part multiple time before he can actually form the words that are in his head. "Castle... why the hell are you in my bed!"
Castle's definitely awake now, and his brows rise. "What're you-?" He pushes himself into a sitting position, leaning on his right hand, and he rubs his sleeping eyes with his left.
Kevin notices something on his finger, a golden wedding ring. He's deterred from the Castle-in-my-bed thing for a moment. "Why are you wearing a wedding ring?" he asks, Castle isn't married, as he point with his own hand. His eyes widen further, as the ring on his finger isn't silver any longer, but gold to match Castle's. "What the-Where's my ring?" He demands, grasping his hand in confusion and fear.
"Kevin," Castle starts, and Kevin thinks that's the first time that he's ever used his first name before, "are you okay? What's wrong?" He reaches out and caresses Kevin's cheek in concern.
Kevin is still to shocked about his missing ring, to fully process how intimate the action is; that it was what Jenny would do, his wife, and not Castle when she was worried and wanted him to focus. He finally looks back up at Castle, who's still touching him, and says, "What's happening?" for lack of he couldn't think of anything else to say.
Castle's brows lower with the amount of worry his feeling, and his big hands grip Kevin's shoulders before pulling the smaller man to his chest, and wrapping his arms around him. Kevin's stiff as a board as Castle holds him. "Sweetheart," -Kevin starts at the endearment- "That must've been some dream." -Kevin was sure that this was the dream- "I know, sometimes I still find it hard to believe that we're married, but I'm so glad that Captain Gates bent the rules for us."
Kevin jerks back in surprise. "Married-!" and before he can get further, Castle kisses him.
Kevin doesn't know what's more shocking. Waking up in bed with Castle. Finding that he's not married to Jenny, but the Mystery Novelist instead. The fact that Castle's kissing him. Or that he'd so unbalanced that instead of shoving the man away, he thinks, I'm cheating on Jenny! and Castle's actually a pretty good kisser. This is too much, in such a small time, that he has no time to think anything through, and catch up. He's a cop for Christ sake, but the hits just keep coming and he has no time to dodge them.
Finally, Castle breaks the kiss, and Kevin is left flushed and breathless. As much as he doesn't want it, a stray thought passes through, It really is true what they say. He didn't know who "they" were, but apparently there was a "they" and there was a "saying".
"What-what are you doing?" he asks, more shocked than he'd ever been, even while on the job.
"Oh," Castle looks thoughtful for a second. "Morning breath. I knew it, but it was worth it anyway."
That was not at all what Kevin was talking about. He didn't think it possible for his world to be turned upside down, but there it was, multiple assaults.
Castle trailed a hand slowly down Kevin's slim chest. "As much as I would love to continue this, Beckett's going to call any minute now, I just know it." He ran his fingers through Kevin's light hair and climbed from the bed, and disappeared into the bathroom, leaving Kevin as shocked and shaken as when he found him.
For lack of anything else, Kevin slams a pillow in his face, trying to either block it all out, or knock himself into reality.
When he woke up, he stretched long, and reached out to the other side of the bed as he opens his eyes, in the brightening morning light. The sheets were still warm and rumpled from recent occupancy. He could hear Jenny in the bathroom. He rolled onto his back with a soft groan, still sleepy as he threw an arm over his eyes to block out the light. He had the weirdest and most craziest dream last night; because that was a little to bromancian...even for him.
Hanging out with the guys so much and sitting though Jenny's romance movies, plus his late work nights didn't seem to be mixing well. He love those two, but he didn't love them that much -he gave a little shudder as he remembered Castle kissing him.
He hears her finish up in the bathroom and open the door, he takes his arm from his face and turns his head to the open doorway, a dopey smile on his lips. Back to reality.
"What's up, bro?"
Kevin sees Javier standing in the doorway with a towel wrapped around his waist.
He bolts up in bed and screams.
"Kevin, what's wrong?!"
Kevin shakes his head rapidly, his eyes squeezed shut tight before he opens them again to see Jenny, his Jenny, wrapped in a towel rushing towards him, her long blond hair wet from her shower.
"Kev, honey, are you alright? What's wrong?" she demands in concern as she grasps him.
Kevin just breaths a grave sigh of relief, and clutches his newly wife to his chest. "Nothing," he promises her, his face buried in her bare shoulder. "Just a bad dream," he repeats, "just a dream."
Yeah, less time with the guys and romance movies, and more time with Jenny and sleep. That would drive the "bro-mares" away... and if that didn't make then go away, there was always, you know, a good blow to the head.
F
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