Title: Stand With Me

Disclaimer: I still don't own Castle. But I'm always open to offers of employment from the Creative Team. Takers? Eh, eh?

Summary: Shot, hospitalized and confused, Katherine Beckett wakes up to a changing future. Richard Castle wants to protect her, love her, save her. But there are things she must face, and she can't make him the promises he needs. Post-Knockout continuation.

Author's Note: This is a short scene. I'll have a much longer chapter ready for 10pm on Monday (just like Castle, if we still had that to look forward to). But, I wanted to write this and put it out. So, here it is.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and signed up for updates and favorited this story. Your support has been overwhelming and deeply gratifying. You guys have MADE my week. Thank you.

And, as ever, comments and input are always appreciated and admired.

Emma

Chapter 2:

"Castle."

"Hmmm?"

"Why are you still here?"

It was late. Everyone had gone home, including most of the hospital staff. Lanie, Esposito, Ryan, her Father, Alexis and Martha had all stopped by to visit throughout the day and it had kept her relatively occupied, when she wasn't dozing off while they were talking to her. But, throughout it all, Castle had been there, hovering at the door, finding her more edible liquid food, and interfacing with the nurses when she was in too much pain to be anything less than a bitch. To her knowledge, he hadn't yet left the hospital, and it was going on midnight.

"What makes you think I'm leaving?"

"Castle," she admonished just as a yawn hit her full force.

"Looks like you're about ready to fall asleep," he said quietly.

She looked over at him where he was sitting in an uncomfortable chair, his feet propped up on the small coffee table, laptop open in his lap and his head cushioned against the wall by a pillow he'd charmed out of one of the nurses. She was exhausted, but she really did not want to sleep. The two nights between Montgomery's death and the funeral had been plagued with nightmares, and she had been so drugged for the other that she couldn't have dreamt if she'd wanted to. But now, she was faced with a night of non-medicine-induced coma, and she was terrified.

"I'm not tired," she shrugged, ignoring the jolt of pain it sent across her abdomen. Don't move the shoulders.

"Liar," he countered, looking up from his writing. "You've been pretending to read that book for a solid hour now."

"So I'm distracted," she mumbled.

"You're exhausted."

She blew out a breath. "Why are you still here?"

"I'm not going to leave you alone," he replied easily, smiling as she frowned. "So go to sleep."

"You're not going to stay there all night."

"Why?"

"Castle, this is a hospital. There's protocol."

He grinned. "Nothing a little charm and a signed book can't fix."

She rolled her eyes and let her head fall back so that she was staring at the ceiling. "You honestly don't have to stay. I'm fine." She heard him shuffling around and after a moment, the bed dipped as he sat down on the edge by her hand. She picked her head back up and looked at him as he took her book and placed it on the side table.

"You are so far from fine, Kate."

"How would you know, Castle?" she asked, her voice a bit rougher and sharper than she really meant it to be. "How would you know how I am? Last time I checked, I was the one in the hospital bed."

His eyes darkened. "And I was the one who watched you die in my arms, so don't give me that crap." His tone shocked her. She hadn't meant to upset him. "You've been doing everything possible to stay awake all day, and you're exhausted, Kate. I'd be worried about you even if you weren't in the damn hospital."

"Castle…"

"What we just went through, what you just went through—Kate, this is the kind of stuff that breaks people."

"I know that, Castle," she snapped.

"I don't want to see you broken, Kate. I already watched you die."

"I'm not breaking, Castle." She wanted him to stop looking at her like that. It was the same way he'd looked at her on the car, when he'd had to hold her up because she had broken. He'd seen her broken. But she wouldn't break anymore. There wasn't anything left to break. "I'm fine. I'll be fine. And you need to go home to your family. Have you talked to Alexis? Have you thought about how this must be affecting her?"

His gaze hardened. "Of course I've talked to her," he replied, his tone just as sharp as hers. "We spent about five hours together today while you were in here with Ryan, Esposito, Lanie, your Father and my Mother. She's shaken, and she's worried about you, and upset about Montgomery, but she's okay. She has school in the morning, and Mother is making sure that she's alright. She told me to stay with you, as a matter of fact."

Kate's eyes widened as his tirade progressed. Again, she hadn't meant to make him mad. She just…she needed him to leave so that he wouldn't see her waking up screaming, or sweating or writhing in the middle of the night. He couldn't see her like that anymore. If he did, he'd just…he'd…he'd never see her as extraordinary again.

"Sorry," she mumbled as he finished speaking. "I didn't mean to imply that…"

"No, you're trying to get me to leave, and doing a pretty good job. But," his face brightened and he gave her his best smile. "I'm not leaving. So I suggest you stop trying to get me to give up. I'm winning this one."

She glared at him. "Seriously? You're going to sleep in that chair?"

His gaze changed again. "What makes you think I'll be sleeping?"

"Oh, don't tell me you're here to 'protect me' again? Castle, I'm fine. I don't need protection."

"Just stop it, Kate," he cut in. "Stop pretending that you're not hurting, and tired, and scared, and sad and upset, okay? I know that you're not super woman. I don't need you to be super woman. I just want you to sleep so that you can get out of here and I don't have to come see you sitting in this bed with all of the damn tubes sticking out of you!"

She just gaped at him. "Castle…"

He took a deep breath and ran his hands over his face. "I'm sorry."

"Wha?" He was shifting between things so quickly that she could barely keep up.

"I'm upset, and I'm taking it out on you, and that's…that's not alright at all."

"No, Castle, I…"

"You're the one in the bed with the gunshot wound, and yeah, I want you to sleep, but I shouldn't have dumped all that on you."

"You didn't…"

"Kate." He just wouldn't let her talk. "I'm sorry. I do want you to sleep though. I want you to get better."

"Me too," she managed.

He smiled. "Okay. So. What can I do to help?"

"Other than leaving."

"Yes, other than that."

She sighed. "I don't know, Castle."

"What's stopping you?"

The nightmares. The terror. The earth-shattering sadness. Her mentor had just died. He'd betrayed her, redeemed himself, fought for her, died for her—Montgomery had given his life for hers and she'd never see him again. Her mother's killer, the string puller, was still out there, and she was stuck in here, taped up and tubed. She knew that no matter what, she would not sleep through this night.

But what should she tell Castle? He didn't 'need her to be superwoman.' But she…everything hurt. Her head, her heart, her mind—everything felt more broken than it could ever be. But this man, sitting there on the edge of the bed, he could break every single piece of her if he tried. She wanted…she'd said that she wanted to stand with him. She did. But now…now she couldn't even stand on her own. And if she couldn't stand on her own…

"Hey, you with me?"

She met his eyes. "I…yeah. I don't know, Castle."

"Did you have nightmares the first night?" he asked after a minute. She felt her eyes widen. "I did," he continued. "Montgomery dying, you dying, Alexis, my mother—everyone. And I had to watch all of you die."

"Oh, Castle," she whispered.

"It was awful. Really, really awful. I barely slept at all the next night, before the funeral."

"Have you slept at all since?" she asked quietly.

He looked over at her. "A bit."

"Liar."

He gave her a gentle smile. "I've been trying, I promise. Could you do the same?"

Oh, that was unfair. "Castle…"

"You can have nightmares, you know." She blinked. "I'm sure you have them, and I'm sure this isn't the first time. But, I'll be here."

"What, so I can wake you from the first good sleep you've gotten in four days? No, Castle." The words tumbled out of her mouth. She was so tired that she couldn't even control her thoughts to keep them from becoming speech.

His gaze softened. "Just let yourself sleep, Kate. I'll be here, and you won't wake me. I don't even know that I can fall asleep."

"Rick," she whispered, finding his hand. He looked so exhausted and she just wanted…what did she want? Isn't this what he was trying to do for her?

"We're quite the team," he smiled. She gave a very tired laugh. "Come on, Kate, just let go," he whispered, rising to stand near her head. He ran a hand through her hair and leaned in to press a kiss to her temple. "I'll be right there. Let me know if you need anything."

He smiled and then stepped back, retreating to his corner and picking up his laptop. She felt herself wilting, all of the strength, the fight, the resolve just rushing out of her. Damn him. She wouldn't give in. She didn't want to.

"What are you writing?" she asked, forcing her eyes to stay open even as they tried to fall shut.

"Hey, sleep."

"Castle."

"I'm…just scenes, Kate. I don't know if they'll ever make it into any of the books."

Her brow wrinkled as she yawned. "Nikki Heat?"

He shrugged. "Sort of."

"What does that mean?"

"You take out your frustration at the shooting range, I take it out on the page. Now go to sleep."

"Stop ordering me around, Castle," Kate replied half-heartedly. At least they were on a more even keel now. Joking was normal. Joking was real. Joking was them.

He laughed. "Just try, Kate." She glared at him but couldn't really put her heart into it. She was so tired. "Close your eyes."

She wanted to come back with a snippy retort, but her eyes were falling mutinously shut and moments later, she was pulled under.