I do not own any of the characters or lyrics mentioned in this story.
Post episode for "The Time Of Our Lives". Inspired on the song Thinking Out Loud by Ed Sheeran (some lyrics may be recognized)
The wonderful colors of the sunset illuminated the last hours of the day. The kids played on the beach, running of the waves. The smell of salt water and the sea breeze were making him feel in peace. Silence reigned around Castle. He was sitting on a bench on the porch of his Hamptons house, enjoying the view and the stillness of the place, when he heard her footsteps.
He didn't need to look to know who was approaching. He knew the little dragged steps of his wife, her legs did not work as they used to before. He kept his eyes focused on the sea, a smile spreading across his face as he heard her approaching slowly.
"Hey, babe," Kate put an arm around his shoulders and kissed his white hair.
"Hey," he turned his head to look at her, "I missed you. Sit here with me," he asked, patting the empty space beside him on the bench.
"Does your back still hurt?" she asked when she sat.
"Yeah, I'm fine. But I think we should be more careful the next time," Rick wiggled his eyebrows.
"Oh, for heaven's sake, Rick," she exclaimed. "It won't be a next time," she took his hand in hers. "Babe, I think we're getting too old to do certain things."
"But… But, Kate, it's our thirtieth anniversary. I had to sweep you out of your feet. I've been doing this since our first night as husband and wife. It's some kind of tradition."
"Rick," she sighed, "I'm sorry, but I think we have to stop this tradition," she looked deeply into his eyes, which were already surrounded by wrinkles, "I don't want you to get hurt again."
Castle glanced at his wife. Her hair, which was brown before, became gradually white and had infinite shades of gray; it still sparkled at the sunlight. Her skin, so soft before, had signs of aging. Her hazel-green eyes were full of concern. She was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He couldn't stop himself of smiling at the thought.
"What?" Kate asked, her eyebrows furrowing with worry, "Why are you smiling?"
"It's nothing. I'm just thinking about how lucky I am for being married with the most beautiful woman in the world," a grin spread slowly through her face, her eyes shining. Beckett leaned over him and kissed his lips lightly.
"I fall in love with you every single day," said the writer that no longer published books, kissing her one more time.
When they parted from each other, Kate rested her head on his chest and sighed when Castle pulled her closer. He put an arm around her shoulders and rested his chin on the top of Beckett's head.
They remained in that position for what could have been hours; lost in memories of the years they passed together, of all the difficulties and the achievements, of the moments they were alone, with their children or with their grandchildren.
When the moonlight replaced the sunlight and the sky, which was earlier painted with pink and orange, went black, a man came out of the back door of the house and stood behind the bench where the couple was sitting. A smile, that reached big and expressive blue eyes, appeared on the face of the brunet man when he saw the love, still evident after years, emanating from the couple.
"Mom, dad," he hesitated, "I hate to interrupt, but dinner is ready."
Castle raised his head, looking bewildered to be removed from the bubble that always formed, excluding the rest of the world, when he was with Kate.
"Thank you, Cosmo," he replied after some time, "We'll join you guys in a second."
Cosmo smiled and yelled to the children who played on the beach, calling them to go home and get ready for dinner. Rick and Kate continued sitting there for a few more minutes, enjoying a little further each other's company before going inside.
"C'mon, Mrs. Castle," he stood up and reached for her, "Let's see what surprise our kids prepared for us this year."
With all pleasure, Mr. Castle," she smiled the smile reserved just for him and took his hand, using it as a support to stand.
They twined an arm and walked toward the back door of the house, one supporting the other, physically doing what they had done for years on the emotional core.
As soon as they stepped into the kitchen, eleven voices yelped "SURPRISE" in unison. Their four children, including Alexis, had prepared a huge feast, entitled to all the favorite foods of the couple (even potato chip fudge ice cream) and a beautiful decoration with bands and purple balloons (Kate's favorite color).
"Told ya," Castle whispered into Beckett's ear before pulling away and giving a big hug in Cosmo. Kate rolled her eyes (with a smile on her face) and stepped forward to hug and thank Alexis.
After they greeted all their children and gave a kiss on the cheek of their seven grandchildren, Rick and Kate sat, side by side, at the table. They would celebrate the thirty years of a very happy marriage with the people they loved the most.
After dinner, the children demanded attention from Grandma and Grandpa. The couple sat in the comfortable armchairs and started telling stories of the time they fought crime, turning themselves into medieval warriors which fought dragons.
"Well, I think it's time to let Grandpa and Grandma go to bed," stated Alexis when she saw her nephew of 2-year-old, the youngest of the family, yawning.
"Noooooooooooo," protested in unison all the kids, Castle included.
Eventually, they ended up giving in to pressure from their parents and went to their bedrooms. They all gave a goodnight kiss on the cheek of Grandma Kate and Grandpa Rick as a thank you for the story.
"So," Beckett smirked, "Just us now," she sat on the arm of Castle's chair.
"Just us now," he echoed.
"Happy anniversary, Rick," she kissed him deeply, "Thank you for making me the happiest woman in the world," another kiss, "And for giving me the finest family I could have ever asked for."
His eyes filled with tears, "Thank you for being part of my life, Kate. I would be lost without you," he put his hand on her waist and pulled her to his lap, "Thank you for being with me for the time of our lives," he whispered into her ear and kissed her cheek.
"How couldn't I?" she laughed and rested her head on his shoulder, inhaling the scent of his perfume, "You hitched me to you the moment you started shadowing me."
He smiled and hugged her tightly. They remained like this, safe in the embrace of each other, for a few more precious moments.
"Then I am the child who is nine years old, uh?" he said subtly.
"What?" she raised her head, looking at him as if he was crazy.
"You. Katherine Beckett Castle. Mrs. Maturity."
"Castle, are you okay?"
"You told the kids there was a wicked witch called "Iron Gates," who did not approve the love of the good guys. Very mature of you, Beckett," he teased.
"Oh, shut up!" she slapped him lightly on the arm, "I think you taught me that it's important to never let your soul grow old," she admitted after some time.
He smiled widely. "So, Mrs. Castle, what do you think of us going to bed?" his eyes shone with malice.
"I would love to," she giggled. Beckett stood up and pulled him by the hand. Together, they walked towards the bedroom where, thirty years before, they had made love for the first time as a married couple.
Castle woke up feeling cold in his... well, in a place where he wasn't used to feel cold. He opened his eyes and saw the chandelier hanging from the ceiling of the master bedroom of his house in the Hamptons. He could feel an arm and a head lying on his naked chest, whereas his own arms were around a thin waist. He looked to the face of the woman laying on him and saw Kate, his wife for less than a day.
He repeated those words in his head.
My wife.
He stroked her cheeks with the back of his hand, remembering the dream he had just woken up of. He and Kate like elders aged seventy, celebrating their thirtieth anniversary and completely in love with each other.
His thoughts were interrupted by a cold current in his man parts. He looked to his own body and saw half of it uncovered. Kate had pulled the blankets for herself. She used to do it, unconsciously, when it was too cold at night and she had forgotten to put some clothes on after her "activities" with Castle.
Castle smiled when he looked again at his wife/blanket's thief and got up from the bed, picking up boxers and a Batman T-shirt from his suitcase. He knew he wouldn't be able to sleep after the dream he had (it was still too stuck on his head), so he walked towards the balcony of the bedroom.
He leaned against the railing and addressed his eyes to the stars that were shining in contrast with the dark sky. He thought about the first dream he had had that day, in which he and Kate had never met. He felt terrible when he was in that alternative universe. She was better off with him and he was better off with her. That dream was a confirmation that she was indeed the love of his life.
However, now, Castle's subconscious had thrown him in a happy and peaceful place. A future he was looking forward to become true. That second dream was a confirmation of Castle's deepest desire. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with Kate; he wanted to grow old with her and to love her forever. And he certainly wanted to build a family with her. Seeing himself and his beautiful wife surrounded by grandchildren was like lighting a fire on his heart, uncovering a desire that was hidden since he reappeared after his kidnapping.
His conjectures were interrupted when someone wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him from behind.
"Hey," he grinned when she kissed his neck, "what are you doing up?"
"You do realize I could ask you the exact same question, right?" she laughed, "I missed you. The bed gets empty without you."
"Good to know, 'cause now you're stuck with me for the time of our lives, Mrs. Castle" he grabbed her by the waist and flipped them, so her back was pressed against the railing and he was in front of her. He looked at her from head to toe before fixating his gaze on her hazel-green eyes. She had stolen a blue T-shirt from his suitcase. God, he loved to see her wearing his clothes.
"Or you are stuck with me, Mr. Beckett," she brought her hands to his cheeks, pulling him in for a long, slow kiss, "But why are you here and not on our bed? And why did you murmur 'my wife'?"
"Oh! Did I? I think I was just thinking out loud. I still can't believe we're finally married, Kate," he lifted her chin with one finger and kissed her again, "I had a dream. Couldn't go back to sleep."
"Another dream, uh?" she raised an eyebrow, "What was it about this time? You and I, killing zombies during the apocalypse? Or were we on the Enterprise, chasing Khan? Or…" he silenced her with a peck on the lips.
"My God, Beckett, I thought we'd agreed that I was the one who had the job to make stuff up and you were the one who would follow the evidences," she laughed and rolled her eyes, "But no," he continued, getting serious, "It was nothing like that. In my dream, we were celebrating our thirtieth anniversary and…"
Castle told her the dream with all the details that only a writer would be able to remember, getting excited every time Beckett smiled (which was pretty much all the time). When he finished, Kate had tears in her eyes.
"Hey, honey, don't cry," he wiped with his thumb a tear that trickled down her cheek.
"It's just," she took a deep breath, "I'm so happy, Castle," she ran her fingertips on his face, "Because I found you. I found the love of my life where I least expected," he held her closer, "I'm happy because we're finally married," she intertwined their left hands and accompanied the gesture with her eyes, smiling at their matching rings, "And your dream… I want it to be the truth. I want to build a happy family with you."
He smiled wildly at her declaration. She didn't use to open herself with words like that, even after all that time. But it still was their wedding day, after all. She had the right to be emotive.
"I'm happy too. More than you can imagine. I thought I would never be able to call you my wife," he stroked her wedding band with his thumb, "And, when you're ready, I'll be willing to start a family with you."
"I love you, Rick," she smiled and stood on the tip of her toes to kiss him under the light of the stars.
"I love you too, Kate. And I'll be loving you till we're seventy," he kissed her temple.
She pulled him into her arms and rested her head on his chest, listening to the steady beats of his heart. Castle leaned his face on Kate's hair, smelling the familiar scent of her cherry shampoo.
Suddenly, Beckett pulled away from him, "Wait, did you say our son's name was Cosmo?" she squinted.
"Uh… Yeah," he answered cautiously.
"Castle," she took his arms out of her waist, "Our son is not going to be named Cosmo."
"Oh, c'mon, Beckett," he laughed, "Cosmo is an awesome name."
"I do not want our son to have a name that was chosen for your ex-wife's child. I want us to choose a name together."
"Well, in that case," he smiled and hugged her again, "I think I'll give up on this Cosmo thing."
"Good," she said when he kissed the top of her head.
"We found love, Kate," he whispered in her ear, echoing her words. She smiled against his chest.
We found love.
I hope you enjoyed it.
Please review. ;)