Prompt (kinda): Since I'm sick myself I decided to write a short one shot about Kate being sick and Castle taking care of her. Not sure it turned out the way I wanted but hope you enjoy anyway.

Kate Beckett woke up with her head feeling too heavy for her to lift, her nose almost impossible to breath through and her throat feeling like a grater every time she swallowed. Even though she felt as though she could cry she forced herself up from the bed and setting her feet towards her bathroom. With her eyes every once in a while checking her clock she tried to get ready for work as fast as she could without passing out. Going into her kitchen she knew she didn't have time for coffee and simply grabbed a sandwich she'd bought the previous day before putting on her shoes and heading out.

Once at the precinct she blew her nose in the car before getting out and walked towards the elevator. She'd started freezing sometime during the ride over and while she was in the elevator she crossed her arms around her to try and keep warm. Closing her eyes she tried to ignore the heaviness that had taken over her whole body during night.

"Beckett?"

She opened her eyes and realized she'd missed the ding from the elevator and in front of her were Esposito and Ryan, both having troubled looks on their faces.

"You okay?" Ryan asked and Kate was unsure if he'd been the one saying her name or Espo had been the one getting her attention.

"I'm fine," she said and pushed herself from the wall of the elevator, setting her steps towards the bullpen.

"You sure?" Espo questioned and she felt her two partners follow as she sat down at her desk.

"Yes, I'm sure, leave me be," she said through her pounding head.

Her voice sounded weird even to her so she wondered how much longer it would take before her brothers would call her out on her lies. To her relief they left her alone, and she was even more relieved when none of them stepped towards the captain's office but simply sat down at their own desks. She didn't need Montgomery to send her home, didn't need him to think she couldn't handle her job when she had a simple cold.

"Morning Beckett," her partner's voice spoke through the air and it didn't take more than a second more before her ordinary cup of coffee was set down in front of her.

Richard Castle, the writer who had shadowed her for three years now, sat down in his chair beside her desk. When she looked up at him she saw his eyes widen with instant concern in the blues.

"Are you okay?"

She growled as she thought she'd put on enough makeup to hide her pale face. "I'm fine." Picking up the cup she took a small sip, humming silently at the taste of her favorite beverage. She felt her partner staring at her and she returned an angry glare before she started her computer and started with paperwork in her wait for a case.

"You don't look too good," Castle said and she rolled her eyes.

"Jee, thanks."

He was starting to say something again but she didn't listen anymore, she got a feeling she suddenly had to lay all her focus on. Her head was spinning and she tried to close her eyes to make it stop. When it wouldn't stop she pulled out her chair and started to stand up in order to get to the restroom but she didn't get to take more than one step before her body got frozen. Her legs were too heavy to move and her sight got invaded by black spots growing bigger and bigger as her head's spinning got worse and worse. Somewhere at the back of her hearing she could hear her partner calling her name, same as her two brothers, but before she could concentrate enough to talk back her sight gave up on her and everything went black.

"Kate!" Castle yelled out as he quickly flew out of his chair in order to wrap his arms around her middle to catch her from reaching the floor.

Her limp body was heavier than he thought so even though he managed to catch her he only slowed down the impact with the floor, putting himself under her so she landed in his lap. It didn't take long before Esposito and Ryan was right there too. Castle tried shaking her gently and when her eyes started to flicker open he felt himself let go of the breath he'd been holding.

"What the hell happened?" Espo asked and Castle put his hand on her forehead.

"She's burning up, she shouldn't be here," he answered and started stroking her hair out of her forehead. "Hey, Kate? Have you taken any pills today?" He tried keeping his voice as smooth as possible and when she simply grunted with a small shake of her head he looked up at the two detectives who immediately got his request without him saying it.

"I'll get it!" Ryan was the one who ran off for the pills.

"I'll get water!" Espo ran off as well and Castle couldn't help himself but stroke her face smoothly with the tips of his fingers.

"Mmm, that's nice," her hoarse voice hummed through the air and now he was really wondering how sick she must be to actually confess that out loud.

"What's going on out here?" Montgomery came out of his office and Castle saw a fear in the captain's eyes once he saw them on the floor. "Is she okay?!"

The man took quick steps towards them as Castle shook his head. "No, she's got a bad fever, I don't even understand how she drove here."

"Here," the two detectives said in sync as they appeared again with pills and a bottle of water.

Castle steadied Kate up in a sitting position against his chest as he held out his hand towards Ryan. When he got them in his hand he turned back to the woman in his arms.

"Kate? Do you think you can open your mouth and swallow these?" he questioned and without saying anything she opened her mouth.

Carefully he placed one of the two pills in her mouth and without needing to ask Espo was already handing him the bottle of water. Castle was carefully touching the bottle to her lips and murmured for her to get ready for the water. To his relief she didn't choke, not on the first pill and not on the second either. He even managed to get more water into her after she'd swallowed the second pill before he gave back the bottle to Espo.

"What were you thinking coming into work today?" Montgomery said, shaking his head. "Castle, can you take her home?"

Castle looked up at the captain. "Of course," he said without hesitation.

"No, give me a minute, I'm fine," Kate said and Montgomery rolled his eyes.

"You're going home Beckett, consider it an order." The captain turned on his heel and headed back for his office.

Kate grunted something incoherent and Castle laid his hand on her forehead again. He had never seen her sick before and if he was to be honest it was the scariest thing he'd seen. Well, apart from being in near death situations with her. The difference was that she seemed so weak in this state, she'd never been weak before.

"Castle, do you think you can take her yourself, or do you need help?" Ryan asked and Esposito nodded in agreement.

"If I can get my arms under her knees and her back I think I can carry her myself, but I need help getting her up from the floor."

The two detectives immediately dove down to help him, keeping Kate in a sitting state as Castle raised from the floor. Together they managed to heave Kate up until Castle had his arms right where he wanted them. Without needing to demand it, to make it easier, Kate's arms landed around his neck.

"Now get our girl home," Espo said and Castle nodded.

"I will. Bye guys," he said and they said their goodbyes as he set his footsteps to the elevator.

Once in the elevator he planted his back against the wall in order to keep his balance on their way down. He felt shock filling his body as he felt her face snuggle into the crook of his neck.

"You smell nice," her mouth mumbled and he shivered at the sudden touch of her lips at his skin.

"Eh, Beckett, I think maybe I should take you to the doctor," he said with a shudder at the puffs of her breathing kept hitting his neck.

"No doctor, just you," she kept on mumbling.

He got to admit he was quite happy the doors opened then, he couldn't take it if she would keep mumbling things so close to his skin that her lips kept touching. As if it wasn't enough that he had realized he wasn't shadowing her for the books anymore, if she kept being so snuggly he wouldn't be able to keep himself from telling her any longer. He already wanted nothing more than to tell her how he felt, he just felt like she would push him away if she knew. She had tried pushing him away when he returned from his summer at the Hamptons, and he didn't want that again. He just wanted to be close to her at all times. But this close was definitely killing him.

"Come on, Kate. In you go," Castle muttered as he slid her into the seat of his Ferrari, for once grateful he'd chosen the red car.

As soon as he got her down in the seat he leaned over her in order to fasten her seatbelt for her. Her head tilted to the side and he took out a blanket he kept in the backseat in order to wrap it around her neat body. He couldn't stop himself from stroking her hair before he went around to get into the driver's seat. Starting the car he immediately pushed the button ordering the roof to electrically move into place. He barely ever had it on since he found it much cooler off but he considered Kate's state this time and decided she might get worse having the wind whipping her face. To Castle's small delight he can hear her dosing off beside her as he backed out of the parking lot and steered towards her home.

When Kate woke up again she was surprised to find herself in her bed, under her covers. How the hell did she get home? And her head was still heavy, though not as heavy as it had been at work. What had happened? She tried thinking back but she had a feeling it was her fever keeping her brain from comprehending what had happened earlier. At the sudden sound of footsteps coming closer to her bedroom she popped her eyes open and raised her upper body in a haste, only to quickly regret it again and falling down.

"Woah! Take it easy, Kate." She knew that voice.

Looking up again she saw Castle stepping in through her door.

"Castle?" her voice mirrored the exact amount of surprise as she felt. "What are you doing here?" To her small irritation her voice was also as hoarse as it had been when she woke up that morning.

He chuckled but she could also see the small nerves he had as his hand went to the back of his head, scratching it a bit.

"I took you home, you passed out from the high fever you have," he answered as he slowly walked closer to her.

"Passed out?" Oh, so that's why she couldn't remember much.

When he came to her bed she was surprised to see he stretch out and place his hand on top her forehead. His hand was quite nice though, cold and nice.

"Not as hot but you're still burning up," he commented and removed his hand, much to her disappointment. "Do you want to eat the chicken soup in bed or on the couch?"

She looked up at him with surprise-filled hazels. "You made chicken soup?"

"Mhmm, you need some food and chicken soup what I've always made Alexis when she's sick," he told her and she felt her cheeks blush. He was taking care of her. "Actually, if you want to I can prepare the first disc of Temptation Lane? I saw you have the DVD's and I have a feeling you might feel better if you do something you like, unless you want to sleep instead."

She thought about it, thought about snuggling into him while eating soup and watching Temptation Lane, and she couldn't stop the small smile from sneaking onto her lips.

"Sure, I'll just... change into something more comfy," she agreed and he nodded with a grin entering his lips as well.

"Call if you need help, and please take it slow, I don't want you to pass out again."

"I will," she promised and he hesitated for a second before he turned and walked out of her bedroom.

She couldn't help but wonder what the hesitation had been about but decided she better get changed so she could join him on the couch, maybe she could ask. Taking his advice serious she let it take her more seconds than normally to sit up in her bed and took a few seconds to rest before she rose to her feet and walked slowly to her drawers. She took out a pair of thermo-leggings she owned and a thick sweat shirt, she found a pair of fuzzy socks as well and turned back to her bed in order to change. The second she was done she took easy steps out of her bedroom and went straight to her couch where she saw a bowl of chicken soup on the table and Castle sitting in front of her tv, putting the disc into her DVD player.

"Hey," his voice was smooth and, damn him,why did he have to be so sweet?

"Uhm, hi," she said as she went to the couch.

On her way over she picked up her favorite blanket from one of the chairs close to the couch. Sitting down she swept the blanket around her and reached for the bowl of soup. In the meantime Castle was done with the disc and went over to sit down beside her, picking up the remote and turning his head towards her.

"You ready?" he asked and she nodded, taking the spoon and getting some soup on it.

He put on the first episode and she couldn't stop the moan from escaping her lips when the taste of the soup entered her mouth. Kate couldn't really believe it but she was already starting to feel better. Her throat wasn't hurting as much, her nose was clear and easy to breathe through, also her head didn't feel as heavy at all. She couldn't tell if it was the sleep, the soup, Temptation Lane or the fact that Castle was taking care of her that did it. She had honestly never thought he would take care of her the way he did, he'd taken her home after passing out, had been the one to tuck her into her bed, without changing her clothes in order to let her have some privacy, and made her chicken soup. He had even remembered her telling him about Temptation Lane and how it made her feel at home, safe.

During the second episode she could feel his eyes on her and she sneaked a glance at him to see the adoration his blues held before he looked at the tv again. Observing her partner she wondered why she was so scared of letting him in. He had proved so many times how much he cares about her, especially today. He could've simply taken her home, put her on her bed, left a note and then left. Or waited for her to wake up to tell her she passed out and then leave. But no, he went through the trouble of making her chicken soup and now he was watching Temptation Lane with her, a show he knew meant the world to her thanks to her mom. Maybe it was the fever talking but she was suddenly completely sure of her feelings for him.

"Rick?" Her usage of his first name had his head snapping to her with wide eyes holding concern. "I'm cold, do you-ah, do you mind holding me?" She bit her lower lip the second her question was out and she avoided looking in his eyes, was scared of what she could see in those blues.

He was definitely caught off guard though, that she was sure of because his voice was trembling with incoherent sounds as he tried to decide on an answer. "Yeah, sure," he eventually said and she looked up at him to see his eyes glimmering with surprised happiness.

He carefully moved closer to her and she moved too, placing her head on his shoulder as she felt his arms go around her body. It took a few minutes before she could feel his body relaxing but once he did she snuggled closer and it didn't take long before she was asleep again.

Castle couldn't cope she'd asked him to hold her, but wasn't about to let the opportunity slide by without him taking action. He was just hoping she would remember this, and that her feelings towards him would mirror his own towards her. He was very surprised when her breathing got heavier again though, apparently falling asleep in his arms. He couldn't help but feel her forehead again, it was still hot but he wondered if it wasn't even cooler than when she woke up. He put his hand back around her and leaned back, set his eyes on the tv as he decided to simply enjoy having her in his arms, silently hoping this wouldn't be the last time.

Sometime during the beginning of the third episode, he had fallen asleep too. None of the two woke again until it was dark outside, and by then Castle had almost thought he had dreamt about having her in his arms and her scent so close to his nose. To his delight it hadn't been a dream, to his distress she moved away from him the second they were both fully awake.

"We should eat something," she said and he nodded as he yawned.

"I'll cook something, how are you feeling?" He didn't even stop himself this time from feeling her forehead. To his surprise it felt normal.

"I'm feeling a lot better," she said with her own small surprise in her voice. "Thanks."

He smiled gently at her, seeing her eyes glimpse down to his lips he gave her the promise he'd started giving her not that long ago. "Always."

Her smile got bigger and he felt a warmth fill his body, butterflies flying around his belly. He started to raise from the couch but before he could walk away he felt her hand tangle around his. Looking back at her he could see hesitation in her eyes.

"Castle, why are you doing this?"

There was an immediate knot in his stomach and he tried desperately searching her eyes for what she was after. Did she want him to tell her about his feelings or would she run off the second he did? Her hazels were so open and honest he had to bite his lip not to let it quiver at his nerves. He sat down again and took a deep breath.

"I-ah..." he started and cleared his throat. "I care about you... a lot. I actually think I'm... kinda... falling... for you." It was a lie. He knew he had already fallen.

To his biggest surprise yet her lips broke out in a big grin from ear to ear.

"Gosh, I wish I was fever-free now," she mumbled under her breath and he had a feeling she hadn't meant it to escape past her lips, yet he couldn't help but part his own to comment.

"Why?"

He watched as she bit her lower lip, and how he wished he could attend to her lips with his own.

"I want to kiss you, but I don..." he didn't let her finish.

He had waited for this for three years and there was no way he would miss his chance. He cupped her cheeks with his hands and claimed her lips with his, kissing her with a tenderness that both aroused and pleasured. She didn't hesitate to kiss him back, to his relief, but it didn't take long before they had to pull away because she was in need for air. Being sick took away all the fitness no matter how brief the time of infection was.

"Fool, now you're gonna get sick," she said accusingly but he could both hear and see the smirk on her lips.

"I don't care." He said and pecked her lips again before pecking the tip of her nose, her cheeks and her still a bit warm forehead.

She giggled and he wondered if it was the virus that had made her open up or if it was his kisses. He found himself not caring though, he was simply amused and grateful he got to hear it. There was nothing more he wanted than to hear that sound again.

"You will care when you get sick," she complained again and he struggled not to kiss her lips again.

"Nope," he leaned closer to her again and he was amused to see how she licked her lips and tried her best not to move closer to him.

He nudged her nose with his, his forehead leaning towards hers, her breathing was hoarse still but he didn't care if breathing the air coming out her lungs would make him sick too.

"Castle, I like you too, but you shouldn't be so close to me," she half-whispered as her eyes looked deep into his and, god, she had beautiful eyes.

He had heard from somewhere that if you ever should fall in love with a part of a person, you should fall in love with their eyes. Because that's the one thing that won't ever change, not even by age. And those hazel eyes of hers? He fell for those the first second he looked into them those three years ago, long before he knew what an extraordinary person she was. He couldn't help but wanting to wake up to her hazel eyes every day for the rest of his life.

Starting to open his mouth there were so much he wanted to tell her, so many times he wanted to let her know how badly he'd wanted to tell her how he felt, but he couldn't get a single word out. He felt the need to let her know how much he had wanted to tell her every time they were in a deadly situation, how he'd almost told her when they were looking at that bomb just waiting to set off.

"For a writer you choke a lot on your words," she teased after a few seconds of him not being able to speak.

She giggled again and he couldn't help but claim her lips again, feeling her surprise by the way she sucked in a breath with parted lips and he couldn't stop himself from taking the opportunity to taste her. He felt his lips pull up in a grin when she moaned into his mouth. Her hands were suddenly on his chest and he got surprised when she pushed him away.

"No, no, no, I'm not getting you sick," she mumbled and pulled away her face so he couldn't kiss her again.

He chuckled at her effort and decided he would leave her be. "Fine, let's get you some dinner and then back to bed for you," he rose from the couch again.

This time she didn't snatch his hand but he didn't pass her without leaning down to cup her cheek and kiss her forehead.

"Could you stay?" she asked and he glanced back at her to give her a questioning look. "For the night, I mean."

"Always," he promised and they smiled sweetly towards each other.

THE END

A/N: Thank you once again for reading one of my one shots and I really hope you enjoyed it despite my feverish brain being the one writing it, or well... thinking it, my fingers did the typing lol. Anyway, until next time xxxxx