"Midnight Confessions" – A Castle/Beckett story
A/N: I've only seen a few episodes of Castle, so I apologize if there are some factual inconsistencies in the story. I was just so instantly taken with the dynamic between these two that this story wouldn't leave me alone. Also, I'm sorry it's so short – it was written after midnight!
Castle wandered out to the living room, unable to sleep due to a severe cookie craving. On his way to the kitchen, he was distracted momentarily by the sight of his partner and muse asleep on the couch. He had asked – practically begged – for her to take his room, but she had refused, insisting that she would be fine in the living room. His couch was very comfortable, she said.
She slept now, a thin sheet thrown carelessly across her body. This did little to hide her magnificent curves, he noted. Her feet stuck out at one end, and her arm hung off the edge of the sofa as though she had thoughtlessly cast it aside. He made his way around the coffee table and then sat on it, facing her. Pulling the blanket straighter over her legs, he listened to her quiet, even breaths. He brushed a stray lock of hair off her face as she sighed.
It was one of the first times he has seen her like this, so peaceful. Usually she was in detective mode, focused intently on her work of catching killers and other bad guys. Now, however, her face was serene, empty of all worry and stress. He even imagined that he could see a small smile cross her face as he gently took her hand. His thumb absently traced small circles on her smooth skin as he admired her.
In the time that they had worked together, Castle and Beckett had grown fairly close. He had felt that she was someone special since their first meeting, and she had proved his suspicion correct by inspiring him to create the now world-famous Nikki Heat for his latest novel. With a pang of guilt he recalled that Nikki Heat was the reason Kate was currently sleeping on his couch instead of in her own apartment.
She sighed heavily, and her fingers twitched in his hand. Startled out of his reverie, Castle carefully released his hold on her and instead contented himself with brushing her cheek tenderly. He marveled at how calm she looked, such a change from her usual expression of fierce determination while on the job.
Before he left her to rest (his cookie craving entirely forgotten), he softly brushed her lips with his and whispered a statement he wouldn't dare utter while she was awake: "I love you, Kate."
As he padded quietly back to his room, Kate's eyes remained closed, but a broad grin appeared on her face. Her haphazardly-positioned arm reached up and she pressed her fingers gently to her lips, where she could still feel his warm breath. Snuggling deeper into her pillow, she drifted off to a peaceful sleep filled with very pleasant dreams.