AN: Two stories in one day, yay! And expect a lot more from me since I'm (basically) on holidays until February, which means I will have bucketloads more time to write. Win!
This story is a totally AU fluffy piece. So, timing-wise for this story, Josh does not exist (because quite frankly I don't like the boy and I'm sick of writing him out of stories) and Knockout did not happen. So think post-Pretty Dead, without the stupid Dr Motorcycle Boyfriend.
Also, song credit goes to Diesel, an Australian artist who my dad is madly in love with, who actually makes some seriously good music. The song is called Tip of my Tongue, and I'm sure that if you Youtubed it, it would come up.
I wrote this in about... two hours. So any mistakes (on any of my stories, as I am beta-less) are mine and mine alone.
IBYL
xo
Disclaimer: Don't own them. Would give my right leg TO own them, but as AWM has full functional use of both his legs, I'm guessing he doesn't want or need mine.
Detective Kate Beckett walked into the dingy Tribeca bar, taking a seat at an empty table and swivelling herself towards the small stage in the corner of the large room. She had an unobstructed view, much to her delight. Esposito had tipped her off that a special guest would be making a shock appearance at the bar's open mic night tonight. Turns out, her partner was a bit of a closet musician, just like her. Esposito had teased the information out of him earlier when he declined an invite to poker night at his place, and had kindly passed the information on to Beckett, who was eagerly waiting to see what he could do. She looked around to evaluate the rest of the 'crowd' of about 12 people – from the looks of it, family of people performing. She didn't spot Alexis or Martha though, and couldn't help but wonder if she was intruding on his private life a little too much. Kate didn't get much of a chance to contemplate this, however, as the first act wandered onto the stage and sat behind a small piano, playing a classical piece. Two more acts later, Castle finally walked onto the stage nervously, acoustic guitar in hand. He sat in front of the microphone and looked up at the small crowd.
"This is the first time I've done this, so please be gentle." He said with a self-depricating chuckle. It was then that he noticed Kate, and his eyes widened noticeably, before he took a deep steadying breath and starting to strum the guitar. A few beats later, he started singing.
Tonight's the night I'm gonna
Make my true confession
I got my courage up
There's nothing that can keep me down now
My words get tangled up in good intentions
But I know what my heart wants to say
I've got to let you know for
Worse or for better, there's a
Hundred ways that I could show you
But it wouldn't matter
It's time to tell you
And I'll try to keep it simple
I know what you want to hear
Why do I forget every time you get near
Right on the tip of my tongue
Right on the tip of my tongue
Right on the tip of my tongue
On the tip of my tongue
Three little words that I want to say
You'll never know if you walk away
He looked up then, and Kate's eyes found his immediately. She smiled encouragingly and he nodded at her slyly before continuing to sing.
Look in my eyes and tell me
What do you see
There's a message that I'm sending
And I hope you receive
My words get tangled up in good intentions
You'll know what my heart wants to say
You'll know what my heart's trying to say
Right on the tip of my tongue
Right on the tip of my tongue
Right on the tip of my tongue
On the tip of my tongue
Three little words that I want to say
You'll never know if you walk away
He finished playing and once again met Kate's gaze with a smile, before bowing a little and heading off the stage. Kate got up and slid towards the backstage area, sidestepping someone exiting the room. She walked up behind Rick and clamped a hand over his eyes.
"Guess who." She whispered cheekily, and she felt more than heard him chuckle slightly.
"Hmmm, most kick-ass NYPD detective I've ever met?" He answered easily and she removed her hand as she blushed. He turned around and smiled when he spotted the colour on her cheeks.
"Hey, Castle." She said with a smile which he returned easily.
"Esposito has a big mouth and I am going to hurt him for telling you where I'd be, but I'm glad you're here." He said gently, and she grinned.
"I'm glad I was here too. You're quite the mystery yourself, Mr Castle. I mean, who knew you were musically talented?" She teased a little, and he grinned.
"I barely did, to be honest. But procrastination leads to some fantastic discoveries, so it seems."
"I didn't see Martha or Alexis around." She stated, and he rolled his eyes.
"Not exactly subtle, are you?" He accused good-naturedly, and she grinned. "They're currently unaware of my procrastination. Probably good news since the last time they were, Alexis chastised me and Mother called Gina." He shuddered dramatically, but not before he noticed the flicker of jealousy in Kate's eyes, much to his delight. He didn't comment on it though. "Come on, shall we get out of this tiny little bar? I'm sure I can hear some wine calling my name, and I'd love for you to join me." He said, before pulling out the special smile he reserved for the lovely detective. She caved easily, and they wandered out to the streets, Castle with his guitar case in one hand, with Beckett holding the crook of his other arm. They walked the few blocks to his loft, chatting easily about music as they wandered. Before long they were walking into the loft, and Castle set the guitar case down in the lounge before turning to Beckett. "Drink?"
"Sure. Whatever you're having." She said, and he left for the kitchen. While he was gone, she easily flipped open the guitar case and pulled the instrument onto her lap, setting her fingers on the neck comfortably. Rick returned only moments later and she smiled up at him before strumming out a few easy chords. He raised an eyebrow.
"I brought wine. Dare I ask, are you a bit of a closet musician yourself, Miss Beckett?" He asked, pleased, and she played a few more chords before nodding.
"Absolutely." She said with a grin. "I started playing years ago, just never for an audience."
"Will you play for me?" He asked timidly, and she pondered his request for a second before nodding, and gently started playing What a Wonderful World. A verse in, she stopped playing and looked up at Rick.
"I liked your song better." She said, and he smiled.
"Not really mine, it's by an artist called Diesel." He said, and she nodded.
"The lyrics were good." She hinted, and he laughed again.
"Yeah, they are. Part of why I chose it, the other reason being that I could actually play it." He said, and Beckett chuckled a little. They sat in silence for a while before Kate couldn't hold in her question any longer.
"So what's the true confession you're making within the next… 45 minutes?" She hinted, glancing at her watch to check the time until midnight.
"Who said I have a true confession to make?" He asked coyly, and she scoffed.
"I don't believe for a second that you picked that song to play purely because you liked it, Rick. You love the hidden meaning, and I'm certain there's one here, whether you expected anyone to pick up on it or not." She said confidently, and he bowed his head in defeat.
"You know me too well, Detective."
"Quit stalling, Castle." She said with a teasing smile, pushing the guitar to one side to lean closer to him. She was so close that she felt him inhale his next breath.
"I love you, Kate." He murmured softly, and she smiled dreamily.
"I know." She said with a grin. He sat, jaw dropped for a few seconds before he recovered.
"I see what you did there." He said, still mildly stunned. She decided to save him from his misery.
"You show me every single day, Rick. And even though I hated having you around at first, I thank my lucky stars every day that you were dropped into my life to turn it upside down." He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, brushing a soft kiss against her lips that soon escalated into much more. When they finally broke for air, she couldn't help but grin. "Oh, and Rick?"
"Yeah?" He asked, still mildly dazed.
"I love you too."
CUE MORE AWWWWWW'S! I'm such a sap. I am marking this as complete because I really like where it's finished, but I MAY consider writing another chapter of reactions, etc. if there's a big response.
I'm NOT saying that I'm holding another chapter hostage or something, I'm just not sure if it needs more, which is why I'm asking YOU! So if you story alert/review positively, I'll assume you want more and I'll start writing a follow-up piece, since I have some more time on my hands once again.
Thanks for reading, folks :)