Just a short little one-shot given the holiday coming up this weekend! We know Castle loves fireworks…but with Beckett back in the city, what is she up to on the 4th of July? As always, I own nothing. I just wish I did. Thanks to TappinCastlefan for reviewing this for me before posting!
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Kate Beckett settled into the lawn chair on the roof of her apartment building and popped the cap off of the beer she'd been saving for this special occasion. She had come home exhausted from another long day of work. The whole summer was full of long days of work so far, not that she was complaining. As much as it saddened her to know people were dying, it gave her a strange sense of comfort to know that she was a part of the team trying to put those responsible in jail where they belonged. Still, it was nice to be home again.
She could have been out with Lanie. Goodness knows her friend wanted her to hit the town and have a blast. But her mind was full of noise, full of busy thoughts, and hitting the big city just didn't seem like her best choice when internally she was already so distracted.
She could have been at the Captain's home enjoying a barbeque. Even though she was late leaving work, she knew the invitation was still standing. But she had easily decided not to go, even though it had been a while since she'd had dinner with his family. She couldn't bear the looks of sympathy she saw on his face when he thought she wasn't looking.
She could have been with her dad. She had dinner with him two weeks before, and he had mentioned taking a camping trip with a few friends. She could have joined them for the trip…but that would have meant leaving a stack of paperwork undone on her desk. She'd catch up with her dad again soon.
The truth, she told herself, was that she wanted to be alone. It's Independence Day, after all, she thought to herself. And I'm very independent.
Sighing softly, she leaned back in her chair and watched as the sky lit up with the city's fireworks display in the distance. She lifted her bottle in a toast to the colored lights, flickering in the night sky. As she watched them burst, sparkle and fade, Kate realized there was only one person she really wanted to spend the evening with, but he had other plans at the moment.
Rick Castle.
Fifteen minutes later, the night sky became quiet again. She couldn't help but draw the correlation…life with Castle involved was like a night sky filled with fireworks…a little loud, sometimes to a fault, but definitely colorful and interesting to watch. And once they were gone, the sky seemed terribly empty.
Shaking off the somber mood, she packed up her chair and headed for the stairwell.