One shot that was inspired by the ending of 3XK. I wrote most of it during a Physics seminar, actually, that I was attending for extra credit. Not very long, I know, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless!

Disclaimer: All characters belong to their respective owners at ABC. Title credit goes to Beauty and the Beast.


Castle and Beckett sat at the side of the pool, just letting the silence speak for itself as they held each other's hands.

Beckett was the first one to speak up after a minute or so. "I was really worried about you," she had to get that out of her system one last time.

"I know," Castle replied. "I wanted to call you when we figured out who the triple killer really was."

"At least you tried." There was a small pause. "You're lucky Martha called when she did."

"You still would've figured it out," Castle encouraged, nudging her a little out of compassion.

"Yeah well," Beckett smiled a little, "she did help."

Castle shifted a little, turning himself more towards Beckett. "Thank you," was all Castle could say in the moment. Although it wasn't intended, there was a little affection in his voice, indirectly showing how much he truly cared.

Beckett turned herself in a little more towards Castle, but not shifting her seat. "You're welcome," was all Beckett could say in the moment. Just like Castle, there was a hint of affection in her voice as well.

Castle stared into her eyes, wanting to swim in them, just like he would swim in the pool before them. Even though there wasn't much light, he could see all the beautiful contours of her face. While her physicality hadn't changed (except for her longer hair), there was something different about her that night. Strangely enough, this made his attraction to her slightly greater.

Beckett would not admit this to anyone except Castle, but she liked having him as her partner. The work her team did was definitely dramatic, and Castle brought a more comedic aspect that, strangely enough, made work more bearable at times. No, there was no way she was going to let the triple killer get to him, and even though he got away, she was more satisfied Castle was safe.

The silence was more lingering than the last one. Without realizing it, the two had drifted slightly closer to each other, almost as if there was that attracting force of the triple killer between them, drawing them in for some strange unbeknownst reason.

Almost as quickly as the attraction started, it quickly ended. Beckett turned her head away and tucked her hair behind her ear. No, she wasn't going to do this, not while she was going out with Josh.

Castle was expecting Beckett to make a move after the growing intensity between them, but then it stopped. He was kind of hoping something more would happen, and his heart grew with a little disappointment when nothing came of it. True, he was seeing Gina, but he couldn't help thinking about Beckett from time to time, if not more.

Esposito and Ryan were finishing up talking with the uniforms, ready to head out for the evening. They realized that during their whole talking, Beckett and Castle weren't with them. They then remembered they went out to the pool.

Esposito tapped on the bars behind them, and Castle and Beckett turned around, a little startled.

"We're gonna get going," Esposito told them.

"Guess that means we should get going as well," Beckett replied. Castle was the first one to stand up, and offered his hand in helping Beckett up from her seat. Beckett paused for a couple seconds, then put her hand in his, and they walked off to her car, arm-in-arm.