Title: Life Taking Place Elsewhere

Author: NickyM96

Rating: K+

Summary: Kate Beckett goes to DC to fulfill a life long dream. But what happens when she realizes she's leaving behind what she's wanted all along? Can she find her way back home?

Spoilers: Watershed

Disclaimer: These characters don't belong to me. I'm just borrowing them for my own entertainment purpose and will return them for the next user when done.

Prologue

THE look of shock - or is it horror - on Kate Beckett's face says it all.

"Why now?" she asks the man kneeling before her.

'Because I love you.'

'Because I can't live without you.'

'Because I've been dreaming of this moment since the second I met you.'

All things he should say, it occurs to him later. Much later. When it's far too late. Instead, he just sits there with his mouth open, not sure how to answer her. But she knows how to answer him.

"I can't marry you," she says finally, closing his hand over the ring so she won't have to see it tempting her. "I'm going to DC."

"That's fine. DC is great," he tells her, not really understanding what she's trying to say. "We can get a townhouse in Georgetown and …"

"No, Castle," she stops him before he can finish. "I am going to DC. Alone …. Without you."

The silence is deafening. He runs her words around in his mind over and over until they begin to make sense to him.

"You don't want me there," he gasps, realization striking him as if it were a physical blow. "You're not just leaving New York or your job. You're leaving me."

"I have to," is all she says to explain. Her throat burns trying to hold back her tears. The look on his face is killing her on the inside.

"No, you don't have to," he corrects her. "I'll go anywhere with you, Beckett. I thought you knew that. Five years you haven't been able to shake me. What makes you think I'd let you leave me now?"

"This isn't about you. This is about me. This is about what I have to do."

"But what about us. Or is there no 'us' in your mind?" he asks, not needing the answer from her. The look on her face says it all. He nods, not so much in acceptance, but more in resignation. "I understand."

He finally rises from his knee, wiping the dirt off his pants and praying he won't have to do the same with any tears on his face. Having a proposal rejected is embarrassing enough. It would be mortifying if she saw him cry. Because if he started to cry, nothing would stop him from begging her. His pride couldn't take that second blow.

"Have a good life, Detective …. oh, excuse me. I mean Agent Beckett."

The word 'agent' comes out of his mouth sounding more like a vulgarity. He reaches for her hand, but not to shake it. Instead, he places the ring inside and closes her fist around it.

"Keep it. I don't want it," he says before turning to walk away.

x.x.x.x.x

A/N: Fear not … I'm probably the BIGGEST Caskett shipper out there. So trust me when I say this separation won't be lasting long. I just wanted to put this out there to whet some appetites while I polish up some of the later chapters. My furlough days are Fridays, so expect an update then … maybe sooner.

The title came with some help from some twitter chats with CastleHeatFan, so many thanks. It comes from a poem called "Moves in the Field" by Sara Miller.

Thanks in advance for reading and I'd love to hear from you ... NTM