DISCLAIMERS: 'Castle' is the property of Andrew W. Marlowe and ABC Studios. No copyright infringement is intended. The story is the property of the author and may not be archived without her consent.
SUMMARY: While in Atlantic City having a girls' weekend with Kate, Lanie, and Jenny, Alexis and her best friend Paige find themselves suspected of murder. My entry for the 2015 Castle Summer Ficathon. The cover art was created by the incredibly talented Angie ( dtrekker on Twitter). Rated 'T,' but the rating might change.
SETTING: Early Season 7, after 'Once Upon a Time in the West.'
A/N #1: I want to thank Kelly, also known as KJ and UofMgirl on Twitter for the idea for this story. While I'm doing the actual writing, I'm giving all credit to her for supplying the idea.
A/N #2: This is the first story I've written where I've made Alexis a central part of the plot. So, please be gentle with me.
FINDING A PURPOSE
CHAPTER 1: PLOTTING AND PLANNING
"So, why did you want to meet for lunch?" Jenny Ryan took her seat across from Dr. Lanie Parish on a blustery day in early November.
"Girl, we're friends," Lanie scoffed. "Do we need a reason to meet for lunch?"
"No, I guess not," Jenny took a French fry and dipped it in ranch dressing. "Are you still getting over the shock of Kate and Rick getting married?"
"Yeah," Lanie sighed. "The shock and the disappointment."
"Kevin was upset, too. I told him that he should just be happy for them. It wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear."
"I was just so happy when Kate got engaged. It took her so long to come to her senses where Castle was concerned. I wanted to be there to share in their happiness."
"Maybe we still can," Jenny suggested as Lanie gave her a nod to continue. "We didn't get to throw her a bachelorette party or a shower. Maybe when her and Rick get back from Arizona, we can all go to Atlantic City and do some gambling. Maybe see a few shows."
"That's a great idea!" Lanie suddenly became very animated. "We can ask Martha and Alexis if they want to join us."
"And Capt. Gates," Jenny added.
"I doubt she'll want to come with us."
"Maybe not, but Kevin said that she wasn't happy about not being invited to the champagne celebration at the loft. So, you should ask her."
"Me? Girl, this is your idea. You ask her."
"Lanie, are you going to sit there and tell me that you're scared of Capt. Gates?"
"I never see her. You go to the precinct to see Kevin quite a bit. You can ask her then."
"All right, I'll ask," Jenny conceded. "When do we want to do this?"
"Well, we'll have to see when Kate has a weekend where she's not on call. Because it would suck to get to Atlantic City and have her get called back here because of a body drop."
"That's true. Okay, you talk to Martha and Alexis while I handle Capt. Gates. When Kate gets back, we'll set a date."
"That sounds like a plan," Lanie grinned.
***CCC***
Alexis and her best friend Paige Livingston were working on Psychology term papers in Paige's dorm room. Or they were trying to. The text alert on Paige's cell phone was going off every 30 seconds. "Paige, just ignore it," Alexis told her when Paige picked up the phone and glanced at it again.
"If I ignore Brandon, he'll just send me more messages."
"Then turn your phone off," Alexis suggested.
"Alexis, you don't get it. If I keep ignoring him, he'll just show up here and want to know why I'm not answering his texts. He'll ask me if I've been with some other guy."
"Paige, you should break up with him. I'm scared that he's going to hurt you. Doesn't it worry you that Brandon is so possessive and jealous?"
"He says it's because he loves me. He said that he loves me so much that he just can't stand the thought of me being with anyone else."
"Paige—"
"Alexis, I'm okay," Paige smiled at her best friend. "I've got it under control. Let's finish up and go get something to eat."
Alexis bit her tongue to keep from saying what she was really thinking, concentrating instead on the thick textbook in front of her. Paige had been her best friend since elementary school and they'd both been there through all kinds of travails, romantic and otherwise. But this situation was different.
Paige had met Brandon Scott at the beginning of the school year at one of the dorm meetings. They'd hit it off instantly and had been dating for almost three months. But Alexis and their other friends had noticed that Brandon was extremely possessive of Paige. He wanted to know where she was and who she was with every single second. And when he wasn't right by her side, he was either calling her or texting her. Even Paige had admitted that texting her upwards of 100 times a day was excessive. But when she complained, Brandon was always apologetic, telling her that he just loved her so much that he couldn't bear not to be in constant contact.
"Alexis, I'm sorry," Paige finally broke the silence. "I know that you don't like Brandon—"
"Paige, it doesn't have anything to do with how I feel about Brandon. He's not my boyfriend. But you're one of my best friends and I don't want to see you hurt."
"Alexis, I've got it under control. Wow," she shook her head, "since your dad started working with the police, you worry about everything."
Alexis was about to say something when Paige's cell alerted again. "I'm going to let you answer him and see what he wants," she began to pack up her books and her laptop. "I'll see you in class tomorrow."
"Alexis—"
"It's okay. Call me later if you can talk. Tell Brandon that I said hi."
Alexis left the dorm and walked across campus to hail a cab home. She was looking toward the ground when she heard someone calling her name. "Alexis!"
She turned to find Brandon striding toward her. "Paige is alone, Brandon. We were trying to work on a paper. We probably could've finished it if you'd stop texting her for two seconds and let her get some work done."
"You're just jealous of mine and Paige's relationship," the young man looked her in the eye.
"Right," Alexis stood her ground. "Keep telling yourself that. I have to go." She turned to go when she felt Brandon's ironclad grip on her upper arm. "Brandon, let me go or I swear they're going to have to surgically remove your testicles from your abdomen."
"Listen, you little bitch," he closed the gap between them; "if you know what's good for you, mind your own fucking business."
"Take your hand off of me, Brandon," Alexis hissed through clenched teeth.
After about 30 seconds, Brandon finally released Alexis, who turned and quickly ran from him as fast as she could. Her heart was pounding in her chest when she hailed a taxi and jumped into the backseat, giving the driver the address of the loft. She took several deep, calming breaths, staring out the window at the traffic. She was more angry than hurt, but she knew that somehow she had to convince Paige that she needed to dump Brandon. What had just happened on the quad proved it.
Martha was sitting on the sofa drinking a glass of wine when Alexis walked into the loft 15 minutes later. "Hey, kiddo," her grandmother called out a greeting. "Your father called! He said that he and Kate will be home early tomorrow evening."
"That's good," Alexis answered in a subdued voice, walking into the kitchen to grab a bottle of water from the fridge."
"Sweetie, are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?" Alexis walked back into the room just as her cell phone rang. She pulled it out, frowning when she saw the caller id. "Dr. Parish?"
"Alexis, how many times have I asked you to call me Lanie?"
"I'm sorry," Alexis headed for the stairs. "It's just been a long day. Is something wrong?"
"No, not at all. I had lunch with Jenny Ryan today and we were thinking of maybe getting together for a girls weekend after your dad and Kate get back from their trip. It would be great if you and Martha could join us. Please say yes, Alexis!"
"It actually sounds like fun."
"Girl, if this is how sound when you're excited to have fun, I'd hate to hear how you sound when someone dies. What's going on?"
"It's nothing—"
"Alexis Castle, I've known you since you were a freshman in high school. You know that you can talk to me or Kate about anything. How about we meet for dinner or lunch tomorrow?"
"Dinner actually sounds great, Lanie. I'll talk to Grams about the girls' weekend. How about Luigi's at seven?"
"I'll see you there. Bye, sweetie."
"Bye, Lanie," Alexis hit the 'end' button on her phone before going downstairs. "Grams, I'm going to meet Dr. Parish at Luigi's at seven. You're welcome to come if you want. I know that Dr. Parish wouldn't mind."
"That's all right, sweetie, but I have lesson plans and stuff for class tomorrow."
"She said that she and Jenny Ryan want to plan a girl's weekend when dad and Kate get back. I guess as a way to celebrate the wedding since she didn't actually get to be in the wedding. She'd like for all of us to go."
"That sounds like a lot of fun. Tell Lanie to let me know where and when."
"Okay."
"Now, do you want to talk about what has you so down in the dumps?"
"I'm just worried about a friend," Alexis sat beside her grandmother.
"I'm sure that everything will work out," Martha squeezed her granddaughter's hand.
"I hope so," Alexis kissed Martha's cheek. "I'm going to take a shower and get dressed to meet Dr. Parish . . . Lanie."
***CCC***
When Alexis walked into the small Italian restaurant, Lanie was already at a table waiting for her with a glass of water in front of her. "Hi, sweetie," Lanie stood up and embraced Alexis. "I haven't ordered yet, except for the bread sticks," she nodded toward a wicker basket of warm, freshly baked bread sticks in the middle of the table.
"So, where did you want to go for this girl's weekend?" Alexis asked, sitting down and giving her drink order to their waiter, waiting for Lanie to do the same.
"Jenny and I were thinking about Atlantic City. We could gamble and maybe see a couple of shows. Do you think Kate would be okay with that?"
"I don't know. You've known her longer than I have. But it sounds like fun. I just wonder if my dad will be so willing to let her out of his sight for a weekend away," Alexis couldn't help smiling.
"Oh, I'm sure Kate can convince Castle that she'll be just fine."
"They'll be back tomorrow evening. My dad sent me a text, but I was studying with Paige and missed it," Alexis stared down at the napkin in front of her.
"What's on your mind, Little Castle?" Lanie asked, calling Alexis by the nickname that Kate and the boys sometimes called her.
Alexis was about to answer when the waiter returned with their drinks. "Are you ladies ready to order?" He asked, his order pad and pen poised for action.
"Could we start with the antipasto?" Lanie asked as he nodded and wrote their order down.
"Excellent choice. I'll get that started for you," he turned and walked off.
"What do you do when you think that a friend is making a mess of their life?"
"A boyfriend mess or another kind of mess?"
"A boyfriend mess. My friend Paige has been seeing this guy for a few months. But when she's not with him, he's constantly texting her or calling her."
"Alexis, define 'constantly.'"
"We were working on a paper this afternoon in her dorm room. He must've texted her 15 or 20 times in the hour or so that I was there."
"Have you tried talking to her about it?"
"Yes. She tells me that he's like that because he loves her and can't stand to be away from her. Lanie, I've watched enough 'Dr. Phil' shows and I've read enough books to know that this guy might be trouble. Am I wrong to be so worried?"
"You said that she's only been dating him for a few months. Do you remember how it was when you were with Ashley? Those early days when you wanted to talk to him or he wanted to talk to you every single second when you weren't together. It's possible that's all this is with Paige and her new man. But, if you're right and it's not, I'm sorry to say that except for offering your opinion, there really isn't much that you can do."
"I'm worried about her, Lanie."
"I know, and that's what makes you a great friend. If you weren't such a good friend, then you wouldn't even tell Paige what you're thinking. Paige is smart. If he's wrong for her, hopefully she'll figure it out before it's too late. Maybe you should invite her along on our girls' weekend to get her away from her boyfriend for a couple of days."
"Lanie, that's a great idea," Alexis visibly brightened up as the waiter brought their appetizer over.
"Kate raves about the lasagna. Is it as good as she claims?"
"It's wonderful. It's also huge, so if you want, we can split it."
"Sounds good. We'll have the lasagna and the house salad," Lanie told the waiter.
***CCC***
Alexis was up in her room late the next afternoon when she heard the door open and close. She closed the lid on her laptop and ran down the stairs, into the waiting arms of her father. "Dad! I missed you! Did you have a good time?" She moved from him to hug Kate, who was standing by his side.
"We had a great time! Where's your grandmother?" Rick looked around for the other familiar redhead.
"She had stuff to take care of at the school. She should be home soon. Kate, when you get a second, I need to talk to you."
"O-kay," Kate said, looking at Rick, who simply shrugged.
"I'm going to take our bags to the bedroom," he leaned over and kissed her.
"Have you talked to Lanie?" Alexis took Kate's hand and practically dragged her upstairs to her bedroom, where she shut the door behind them.
"No, I haven't talked to anybody. Why? Is something wrong?"
"Lanie and Jenny want to take you away to Atlantic City for a girls' weekend. The two of them, me, and my friend Paige. I asked Gram this morning, but she begged off. Please say you'll let them do this, Kate!" Alexis begged as Kate bit back a smile.
"On one condition."
"What?"
"Did Lanie say that I owe her for your dad and I getting married at the last minute? The truth, Alexis," Kate warned her.
"Well, not exactly in those words, but I think that's how she feels."
"I'll talk to Lanie tomorrow. I know I'm on call this weekend, but the first weekend that I'm free, we'll go. Now I have to break the news to your dad."
"Thanks, Kate. Welcome home," Alexis hugged her once again. "Thank you for making my dad so happy."
"You're welcome," Kate pulled away and brushed Alexis' hair off of her shoulder. "And for the record, your dad has made me very happy, too." Alexis' phone vibrated on top of her bed. "I'm going to let you get that. I'm sure it's probably Paige or Taylor."
"Yeah, it's Paige."
"Tell her that I said 'hi.' I'll see you downstairs in a few minutes."
"Okay," Alexis waited until Kate left the room before answering the phone. "Hey, Paige?"
"Alexis, what did you say to Brandon?"
"What're you talking about?" Alexis sat on the edge of her bed.
"He doesn't want us to be friends anymore. He said that you told him that you hated him. He said that he saw you yesterday and you told him that."
"Paige, that's not what I said. I told him that we would've got a lot more work done on our papers if he wasn't texting you every five seconds."
"He's right. You are jealous of him and me."
"Paige, can we please talk about this tomorrow? There's something that I need to ask you, anyway. My dad and Kate just got home. I want to spend some time with them and hear about their trip."
"All right. But I can't believe that you're jealous."
"Paige, that's so not the issue. I'll talk to you tomorrow."
Alexis sighed as she hung up her phone. How did you convince your best friend that her boyfriend was bad news? She wondered why some relationships didn't come with flashing warning signs.
A/N #3: I have never taken so long to bring Kate and Rick into the story. This story will start slowly, but it will slowly build up momentum.
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