So, an idea came to mind, and I thought I would write about it. Granted, I haven't read much Castle fanfic, but I felt it wouldn't hurt to do this. I hope you guys enjoy reading this nonetheless!

I do not own any of the characters.

Painful Truth

Chapter One

Castle paced around the hospital lobby. He never thought something this tragic would happen. It was just a normal day, so how did it go so wrong?

The doctor came out. He walked over to Castle, who had brought her in himself.

"Have a seat, Mr. Castle," Dr. Davis instructed.

Castle sat down on the chair, and Dr. Davis followed.

"So, how is she doing, Doctor?" Castle inquired.

"She's in considerable pain; it's going to take her a while to recover. Given her lean body, someone should watch over her care at home. I presume you live with her?"

Castle was shocked that he had assumed. "No, we just work together, that's all."

"Uh huh..." Dr. Davis continued. "So does she live by herself?"

"Yes she does."

"Then I advise that she stays with you, or someone else she knows well. There is no way given her condition that she can live on her own for the next couple weeks. Does she have family?"

"Yes, she does have her father."

"All right, she could stay with him."

Castle paused before asking a question. "So, how bad is she?"

"Her spinal cord got hit a little, but it's nothing major that would cause pernament damage. Her abdomen was hit hard, so it will take the longest to recover. In particular, her liver was hit the hardest, which got a little bruising. Her stomach was slightly affected with bruising as well from the way she was hit by the car. She also had some internal bleeding in addition to all the bruising. Luckily with the timely response we were able to minimize the effects of the internal bleeding. Knowing her body, though, I say it's best she's under some assistance in healing. The damage may not be permanent, but it's serious based on her physical state and well-being."

Castle stared in horror. Never in his life would he have thought that the impact did that much damage. Surely she didn't look like she was in that much pain. Then again, she was a tough woman.

"I'm gonna go call her dad and let him know about this. You have his number?" Dr. Davis asked.

Castle paused a little, not expecting that question. "Uh, no, actually. But I'm sure she has it on her cell phone."

"No good. Cell phone's not functioning."

"Then call the precinct, I'm sure Montgomery would know."

"Thanks." Dr. Davis got up to call her work place, leaving Castle by himself in the hospital lobby. Castle stayed sitting this time, only he bounced his right leg in anticipation.

About fifteen minutes later, Dr. Davis came back.

"I called her father. He would love to take her in, but he's away and would not be able to do so. That leaves you to take care of her. Would you be willing to do that?" After a quick pause, Dr. Davis added, "I would give you all the infomation you need to take care of her properly."

"Of course," Castle said with no hesitation. "What would I need to do?"

"She'll need proper bed rest, more than anything. She also needs to be sure to eat the proper food, in particular foods high in vitamin C. I'll write you up more detailed instructions, as in good food for her to eat, when she's ready to leave. For now, you can go home, because we want to monitor her behavior and be sure she's stable enough before we release her."

"Understand," Castle replied.

During the ride back to his apartment, Castle kept going over the scenario in his mind. He wanted to forget about it, but it was like a plague that wouldn't go away.

As he swung the door open, Alexis and Martha were in the kitchen, almost as if they were waiting for him.

"Hey Dad!" Alexis called out.

"Hey," was all that Castle could muster at the moment.

Alexis knew something was wrong. The tone of his voice and the look on his face gave it away. "Is something wrong?"

Martha turned her head to see what was going on. She wanted to make a dry quirk, but after seeing her son's face, there was no way she could.

Castle walked his way over to the counter to talk to them. He took a deep breath, then said the heaviest two-word phrase from the entire day. "It's Beckett."