This story started of precisely like Knockout, but it continues with my imagination.

Disclaimer : I do not own Castle and the other characters. Every single one of them belongs to Andrew Marlowe.

Survival Days
Chapter 1

"Roy Montgomery taught me what it meant to be a cop. He taught me that we are bound by our choices, but we are more than our mistakes. Captain Montgomery once said to me that for us there is no victory, there are only battles, and in the end, the best you can hope for is to find a place to make your stand. And if you're very lucky, you find someone willing to stand with you."

She paused, and she looked at Castle. Castle was the one who had been shadowing her for 3 years, and yet, it was her happiest years ever after she became a cop. Everyday, Castle brought her a cup of coffee. Simple, but very considerate. He was always there, whenever she needed someone to help her solve the case, someone to talk with, or even when she didn't need him at all. Always.

"Our Captain would want us to carry on the fight."

Suddenly Castle saw a glimpse of light toward Beckett. Before he even managed to figure it out, everything was too late...

"Beckett down! Beckett down!" a police officer shouted at everyone.

Beckett fell down like a powerless dead body.

"Stay with me, Kate. Don't leave me, please. Stay with me, OK?"

Castle knew that it might be the last time he could ever have a chance to talk to her. His courage helped him to reveal his true feeling.

"I love you, Kate."

Castle took his handphone and call an ambulance. He just lost his patience whenever that person asked him to wait.

"Someone is dying here! Just send me an ambulance right now!"

He was pissed off. Beckett was dying on his hands, yet he couldn't do anything to help her. He was always a big fan of irony, but not this time.

Thank God, they heard a sirene coming towards them. It was the ambulance. The paramedics quickly circled her and brought Beckett's body into the ambulance, but they won't let Castle to come with them.

"For God's sake! She's my partner, and I can't come with her? She needs me. Please, let me to come with her."

Partner? They're more than just a partner.

"I didn't know what we were. We kissed and then we never talked about it. We nearly die frozen in each others arms, but we never talk about it. So no, I got no clue what we are. But still, I care about you, Kate." these words echoed in his mind.

"Okay Sir you can come with us, but be cooperative. If we find you disturbing us, we won't let you to come with us."

They rushed to the hospital. Every second they have is very very precious, moreover, she's dying. It might be the last time he could ever seen her breathing. He felt that he's only a burden for her, for 3 years. He had been shadowing her everyday, by using a stupid reason like 'research' and his friendship with the mayor.

Esposito once said to Beckett "Why do you think he's been following you around all this time? What, research? The guy has done enough research to write 50 books." He wanted to chuckle when he remembered this sentence. This guy got a point. He's right.

If he really done that for research, he must have written dozens of books in the last 3 years, with Beckett as her muse. But that's no longer his motive. He loved her, so much. Beckett has become a part of his life, and a day without her is like living a life without any purpose.

Journey to the hospital made him more broken than ever. He was the eyewitness of Beckett, his muse, dying right in front of his eyes, and worse, he could not do anything to help her. Once they arrived at the hospital, Beckett was rushed into the ICU.

"Sorry, Sir, we can not let you in to this territory"

"No! I must go with her! Please, Doc. I will do everything to help her survive."

"The only thing you can do to help her right now is to pray for her, and wait for the result. You can wait in the waiting room, take a cup of coffe, and calm yourself. I promise you will be the first one I update if she shows an improvement. Now I should go."

The doctor left him alone in front of the door. Now he should wait in the waiting room by himself waiting for the doctor to give him...news. He didn't know whether it would be a good or bad one.

"... you will be the first one I update if she shows an improvement." If. The doctor himself couldn't predict Beckett's future. No one knew whether she was going to survive or not.

Around 3 minutes later, Ryan, Esposito, and Lanie arrived at the hospital. They were so shocked, seeing Castle like that. So vulnerable. Usually Beckett was the one who's broken, and Castle was always there to comfort her. Right now? Castle felt sick at the prospect of losing her. Could she really die before they could even give a go at having a relationship that consisted of friendship, passion, lust, desire and pure love? Before he knew Beckett's feeling to him?

The four of them sat closely, supporting each other. They were facing the possibility of losing one of their boss, their best friend, and for Castle, his muse. They knew that as the clock was ticking, the chances were getting slimmer and slimmer.

"Kate, you must survive. You're the toughest woman in this world. You die only because a single bullet? It's so not Beckett. Not my Beckett. Goodluck, Kate."

A/N : Do RnR, give any feedback you like. I'm new to this, so any advice if you don't mind. And my grammar is really really not good, because I came from a country that doesn't use English as their mother tongue. Forgive me for any grammatical errors.