It was an accident. The words just slipped out.
The two of them were enjoying a rare day off, just spending the day together. The majority of the morning was spent in bed with each other, talking quietly, laughing, holding each other, losing track of time.
He had told her to play hooky with him and they could spend the rest of the weekend in the Hamptons together. He promised she could use her handcuffs on him to keep him inside the house and away from an unexpected case. A weekend away from murderers and death. Maybe they wouldn't go back ever.
"The sounds a lot like that summer you went away to write Naked Heat and almost didn't come back."
"Well had I known you and Demming were split up I would have come back sooner!"
The instant she looks away, he knows something is up.
"Kate?" She looks up at him. "When did you two split up?"
The look on his face when she tells him is, heartbreaking. He looks so confused, lost, upset.
He doesn't know what to do with this information. He slides out of bed and slowly stands. Both hands go to his mouth for a moment, then one falls down to his hip and he starts pacing.
"Kate. Kate we could have- we-" He's at a loss for words. She's not doing much better.
"Castle it doesn't matter now. That was a long time ago. Please just come back to bed." She reaches her hand out to him. He continues pacing. Stopping every few steps to try and form words, but failing each time.
"Castle please. It doesn't-"
"It does! It does matter. Two years! We could have been together two years sooner." He runs both hand through his hair and resumes pacing. She lets him have a moment to gather his thoughts before she speaks.
"Castle-" She doesn't want to argue about this anymore. She just wants him back. Back in her arms.
"It matters because I won't get my entire life with you!"
Silence. She looks at him quizzically, asking him to help her understand.
He stops pacing, his hands steepled together, he takes a deep breath before sitting down next to her hip.
"It matters because I found you after two marriages. Because every day, every minute, every second with you matters. Because the rest of my life isn't enough time with you. One-hundred lifetimes wouldn't be enough. Because those could have been two more years of me telling you that I love you. And I do, Kate. I love you so much more than I could ever put into words."
It takes all his concentration to get these words out and to make her understand.
Kate is staring at him, tears having already run down her cheeks. She can't be bothered to wipe them, because his words keep on coming. She's paralyzed by his words, his emotions, his love.
"Every moment counts with you Kate. Every time you smile at me, every laugh that leaves your lungs, every touch, every kiss. It's everything to me. You always have been. You always-you always will be." One lone tears leaves his eye.
His deep breaths fill the silence of the room. Accompanied by the occasional 'pat' of Kate's tears dripping onto their comforter.
"You have less than a year left to live, and I could have had two more with you."
He breaks. He's done trying to be strong. He's done acting like he's fine. He's…done.
His head falls into her lap and the tears fall too.
He wraps his arms around her waist, fingers digging into her sides. She drapes herself over his body. Clutching tightly to him, trying to pull him as close as possible. Her own tears staining the back of his shirt. He cries desperately, she does too.
She tries to pull him up. She wants to see his face, his eyes. Rubbing his back, quietly calling his name, trying to lift his chin. He won't try, he can't try. His world will be gone in 10 months. She will be gone in 10 months. They've spent 10 years together and in 10 shorts months it will all go away. Reality finally comes crashing down, for both of them.
"Castle. Castle look at me." She tugs at his shoulder, his neck, his ears.
"Rick." She can hear it in her voice. The fear, the uncertainty, the love. He must hear it too. He looks up.
She gently places her hands on his cheeks. Seeing the same fear and love reflecting back at her, it breaks her all over again.
"I love you. Always." She runs her fingers down his face, down his arms, to his hands. She brings them up and holds them in a kiss.
"Always."
8 Months Later
She fought long and hard. Till the very last day. He was with her, right by her side, just like he promised.
The night she died, he lost himself. The light in his eyes left the moment hers did. He cried for hours, and stayed right next to her. No one had the heart to pull him away, them away.
At some point, he fell asleep next to her, his hands cradling one of hers. So small and fragile. When he woke, the tears came instantly. He was dreaming that she was still there with him. Waking up to find she wasn't there, he knew he would never recover.
He stood slowly and traced the outline of her face. Leaning down, he pressed a light, lingering kiss to her forehead. Something in him felt strange, out of place. Like something was missing. He sat back down and looked at her. She was missing. She was gone. The ache in his chest was back, the numbness was returning. How was he supposed to go on?
At this moment, he didn't care. He wasn't sure he would ever care again.
Taking back her hand, he laid his head down on her bed and closed his eyes. He tried to fall back asleep as fast as he could. In his dreams he had Kate.
In the early hours of the morning, a nurse came to check on him. Before entering the room, she took in the sight before her.
A beautiful woman, laid out, taken too soon from this world.
A broken man, handsome, but torn apart.
Their love was something only imagined. A bond forged by trust and mistrust, secrets, lies, truths, friendship, and pure unimaginable love.
As the nurse walked closer to him, something seemed off. When she reached touched his shoulder, it became very clear. He was gone. She ran out of the room to call for help. But it was too late.
The autopsy showed no signs of poisoning, heart attack, stroke, nothing. His heart just stopped beating.
The tabloids read "Richard Castle Dies of Broken Heart", "Real-Life Notebook; Author and Muse Pass Away Together", and while it may have been exaggerated, there was some amount of truth to the headlines.
His mother and daughter were devastated, but oddly comforted because they knew he wasn't alone. Just like in life, he followed Kate where ever she went.
An incredibly bright light was all he could see. The numbness and pain before were gone, replaced by a sense of weightlessness but also awareness.
Things were coming into focus. Not things, a person. Not a person, her.
He had dreamed of this day, imagined what it would be like, but nothing could prepare him for it.
He felt the tears, but he wouldn't let them fall, he needed to see her with clear eyes.
She reached out and took both his hands in hers, squeezing them tightly, he felt her strength, a familiar presence.
Her right hand came up and brushed his cheek, a touch that felt familiar too.
"Rick," Her voice was melodic, warm, comforting. "We finally meet."
At a loss for words, he reached out and pulled her in to him. After a moment he picked up this glorious, wondrous woman and spun her around. Her laughter filling his ears. He knew where he was, he knew it wasn't a dream. Once he placed her down, he noticed another figure over her shoulder, eventually coming into focus.
Hands slid up his arms and around his back, pushing him.
This time he didn't stop the tears. The happiness, the excitement, the joy, the love. She was here.
He slowly walked forward, but the moment he saw her step towards him, he was running. No, flying.
"Castle!"
"Kate!"
Crashing into each other, arms, legs, hands, lips, tangling together. Holding each other and feeling more complete than ever before. The kiss was passionate, whole and unending. Breath isn't needed, so their lips met over and over, the pair hardly knowing or caring how long they kissed. Cries escaped each other, grasping to stay close and never be parted again.
As the pair slowed down to take in each other, Castle was overwhelmed to see Kate looking healthy and strong. He grabbed her fiercely and embraced her as tightly as he could. She returned in kind.
Finally breaking their intimate reunion, Kate dared to ask, "Castle, how are you here?"
He pulled back slightly, still holding a tight grip on his love.
"I don't know. One minute I'm in your hospital room, the next I'm hugging your mother."
Kate leaned around his body and began to ask her question.
"Mom, how-"
"When we come here, we're told that our soul mates will eventually find us. Some soul mates we met on Earth, others never got the chance. Some bonds are stronger and more powerful than others. But, then there are the special ones. The soul mates of the past. Bonds that have been paired since the beginning of time. Many of them stay here, their power is too much for any human to possess. But occasionally, a few make their day down and two humans have a love unlike any other."
Castle and Kate were both still wrapped around each other, but Johanna had their full attention.
"You two, are one of those. Your love is strong, pure and true. And as you have seen, unbreakable. Should one soul leave Earth, the other will almost immediately follow."
Kate hugged Castle tighter upon hearing these words. She always knew what they has was special, but she had no idea how deep their love ran for each other.
"And while your father and I are soul mates, Katie, what you and Rick have is nothing short of magical."
Kate ducked her head into Castle's chest, as he ran his hand down the back of her head and pressed his lips to her crown.
Johanna happily observed her daughter and how much she cared for Rick. Their love for each other was contagious and left the people around them feeling happy and loved as well. Noticing Kate's focus was back on Rick, she decided that she could explain this new world to them at a later time. For now, they just needed each other.
When Castle looked up he was surprised to see Johanna had vanished.
Kate sighed from the comfort of his chest, "She'll come back when we need her. She always does."
Castle smiled at that and wondered how many times Johanna had come to their rescue when they were down on Earth.
Castle slowly lowered himself and Kate to the ground, him laying down on his back and Kate on his chest. Just laying and basking in the others presence. To have been permanently cut off from the other for even a few hours was torture. He would do anything to make sure she never left his side ever again.
Ever.
He was going to spend the rest of forever with Kate. He had told her once that one-hundred lifetimes wouldn't be enough time with her. Well now he has her, and he has her for good.