Um so WOW. I got so many notification e-mails tonight that I just had to write another chapter. This one has very little Josh and a lot of Caskett fluff (yay!)

They're not in the precinct, so I hope I kept them in character. If not, please let me know, because keeping them in character is one of the most important things to me. I hope you think this is cute.

I don't live in NY, but I did some research about Central Park and stuff, so the restaurants where they eat are all real places. I'm going with the idea that Beckett lives in Greenwich Village, so I mapped it on GoogleMaps and the walk would take approx. 1 hour. So sorry if the geography is a little off.

Also, I'm not a Yankees fan (GO RED SOX!) so it was weird for me to write about Mickey Mantle. I'm going to try and keep the Yankees out of this as much as possible. If they do go to a game, it'll be against the Red Sox and the Yankees will lose. So yeah...

Also, I've never seen Serenity, I just know that Nathan Fillion is in it.

Haha, one more thing then I promise I'll shut up - No one knows Alexis' exact birthday, so I tried skirting it and it will probably never come up again.

Disclaimer: I do not own Castle, Redbox, either of the restaurants where they eat or Serenity

Chapter 2

"Good morning, Detective," said Castle, sitting himself down on her couch. "I thought that since Josh was at work, that we could spend the day together, you know, just hang out and walk around. Chill out after all the running we did yesterday."

"Ugh Castle, it's early, and I haven't had my coffee yet," she groaned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"Beckett, it's ten thirty. You're usually awake at the crack of dawn."

"Yeah, well I had a pretty tiring day yesterday," she said with a hint of laughter.

"That would be an understatement. But I was serious, I'm going to take you out today and we're going to forget all about yesterday. Now, go get ready and I'll get you some coffee and breakfast. Wear something that's comfortable for walking."

Kate simply rolled her eyes. Leave it to Castle to come to her house unannounced and say that he was taking her out for the day. She shook her head in disbelief. He was truly crazy.

She reentered her room and began her morning ritual. She took a leisurely shower, making sure to use the cherry body wash she knew he loved. Why, she was not sure, because, after all, he was just her friend.

She finished her shower and decided that since it warm day that she would let her hair dry naturally. She put it up in a pony-tail to keep it out of her face. She applied some light street makeup – even less than she wore to the precinct. Once she was satisfied with her reflection, she went to her closet to pick out some clothes. She chose her favorite pair of faded jeans. They still fit her very well, but were soft enough and had enough give to make them her most comfortable pair. She put on her favorite button down shirt – it was purple plaid and right under her bust, it turned into more of a magenta shade. She took her mother's ring and slipped it over her neck and then fastened her father's watch to her wrist. She holstered her gun and clipped her badge to her waist band. She grabbed some money and her phone and put them in her pocket. She put on a pair of tennis shoes and gave herself a once over in the full length mirror by her dresser. Satisfied with her appearance, she walked out of her room.

"Okay, Castle, I'm ready," she called, apprehensively. She didn't hear anything, so she made her way to the kitchen to make herself a cup of coffee. She paused when she saw a sheet of notebook paper on the counter with a certain author's handwriting. The time in the corner said that he had written it about half an hour before.

Good morning, Detective.

Hope you're feeling better now that you're all dressed and squeaky clean. I wanted to make you something, but your milk stinks, your bacon is fuzzy, and your eggs expired last month. Honestly, do you ever go shopping? Wait, I can answer that myself – you have quite the shrine, Detective Beckett. Anyway, I'm getting off topic. Back to the main point I'm trying to make: I went to Grey Dog's Coffee, and I'll be back in about half an hour. I'll have breakfast and coffee. Later today, we'll have to go shopping.

Hope you don't have to wait long,

RC

Kate barely had time to laugh to herself when she heard the buzzer in her apartment go off.

"Castle?" she asked, pressing the button to 'talk'.

"Are you expecting someone else?" he said back. She could hear the smile in his voice.

"You wish."

She pressed the other button letting him in.

She opened her door, waiting for him to come up. She thought about the letter and how quintessentially Castle it was. It made her heart warm to know that she had such a good friend – one that even wanted to spend time with her after she went home with her boyfriend the night before.

As soon as Kate heard the ding of the elevator, her nostrils were assaulted by the scent to fresh coffee, eggs, chocolate, croissants, bacon, and potatoes.

"Geez, Castle, what did you do? Buy out the whole coffee house?" she cried, peering at the bags he was holding.

"I just want to make sure you're well nourished. And anyway, breakfast is the most important meal of the day," he answered her, placing his parcels on the counter.

Before she could answer, her stomach gave a mighty growl.

"Whoa, Beckett, you don't have to be so harsh," he laughed. She merely rolled her eyes.

"Okay Castle, time to eat. What is there?"

She started unpacking the bags, investigating each one.

"Well, let's see. We have some egg and cheese croissants, some chocolate croissants, home fries, bacon, bagels, lox, and some oatmeal."

"And the coffee?"

"So impatient this morning, Detective," he teased. "Here, I even made a special stop just to pick up your favorite kind: grande, skinny latte, two pump sugar free vanilla."

"Thanks, Castle. Let's eat."

The pair ate almost all the food Castle had bought. The only thing that had been left untouched was the oatmeal.

"Do you not like oatmeal?" Castle asked, when they were cleaning up.

"I used to like it. When I was younger I'd eat it every morning, but then I got really into the Ramona series, and I read about the time when Ramona threw up after eating oatmeal for breakfast, and for some reason, ever since, I have not been able to eat oatmeal for breakfast," Kate said. If Castle was surprised by her answer, Kate was even more surprised. She usually didn't let anyone know much about her childhood, but for some reason, it felt normal to tell Castle that small anecdote.

"Ha ha! Another layer to the Beckett Onion has been demolished!" Castle cried, sounding a little too happy.

"Relax Castle, it's not like I told you why I can't eat pudding of any kind."

"Why Detective Beckett, will I get to learn more about your youngster years today?" he asked, leaning closer to her from across the counter.

"You wish," she said, smiling. "So Mr. Mysterious, what are we doing today?"

"How about a nice long walk to the Park? We can see the zoo!"

Kate laughed at the pure innocence on Castle's face when he asked if they could go to the zoo.

"Sure, Castle. I'd love to see what you look like in your natural habitat," she said, baiting him.

"Oh how you wound me."

"Uh huh. C'mon, we've got a long walk ahead of us."

Kate double checked to make sure she had everything she needed. She took her gun out to triple check that the safety was on. They had taught her that in the Academy, and every time she left her house, she always made sure her gun's safety was on.

"All right, I'm ready."

She lead Castle out of her apartment and turned to lock the door.

"Do you want to bring a sweater or something in case you get cold?" he asked.

Kate was touched by his concern.

"Sure, grandma. Let me go grab one," she smiled and darted back inside to grab her favorite leather jacket.

When they were both finally ready, they headed out for the hour long walk that was ahead of them.


The weather outside was perfect. The sun was shining, and there was hardly a cloud in sight. The temperatures hardly went above 75, and there was a light breeze that rustled the trees.

Kate and Castle walked slowly, savoring the good weather. They were in for a hot summer, so anything resembling Spring was a pleasure.

They talked about inconsequential things. Castle kept trying to get more out of Kate about her childhood and Kate kept hiding it from him. It wasn't that she didn't trust him; it was just that it hurt her to think about that time. She was so happy and so carefree, and she had no idea that her world would be turned upside down. She didn't like talking about when she was younger, because it reminded her that she would never have that again. Yes, she knows that everyone grows up, but people who don't face a tragedy like she did, manage to keep their innocence just a bit longer. It doesn't cut them like a knife when they think about laughing around the Christmas tree.

She wished that she could tell him more, but something in her didn't feel quite right about it.

"Earth to Beckett," said Castle, waving a hand in front of her face.

"Sorry, what was that?" she asked, jerking from her thoughts.

"Nothing, you just looked far away. Twenty for your thoughts?"

"What, a penny is too low for you, Castle?" she teased.

"Well, it looked like your thoughts were worth more than just a penny."

"Ever the charmer, Castle. And no, you will not hear my thoughts."

"You're such a party pooper," he complained. He stuck out his bottom lip in a pout, hoping to earn some more sympathy.

"C'mon Castle, butch up. We're here," she said, pointing to the sign that read 'Central Park Zoo, this way'.

"Can we go see the monkeys?" he asked, his visage suddenly turning into that of an eight year old boy.

"Why does it not surprise me that you want to see the monkeys first?"

"Oh, you just wait, Detective, I have plenty of surprises for you."

She raised her eye brow, showing him that she did not approve.

"C'mon, Castle. Let's go get some tickets."

She led him to the ticket booth and pulled out her credit card.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Beckett, who said you're paying?"

"Me," she said, staring him down, as if he were a suspect in the box.

"I've seen that look too many times for it to work on me."

He physically pushed her aside and pulled out his Visa.

"This one's on me," he said, flashing the Kate the smile that brought most women to their knees.

"Fine, but I'm buying dinner," she said, refusing to give up control.

"Ooh, feisty, I like it."

Kate rolled her eyes. He was incorrigible.

"Okay Castle, here's a map. Let's do this strategically," she said, laying the map down on a picnic bench near the ticket booth.

"Come on, Beckett, it's your day off, lighten up! We don't have to be all procedural today," he pouted again.

"Nu uh, Castle, you paid, so I get to pick how we go."

Kate pulled out a black pen from her pocket and began to mark the map.

"Okay, so we're here," she began, putting a star near the 5th Avenue entrance. "Let's go see the Sea Lions, then we can go to the Penguins, and the Polar Circle. From there, we can go the Temperate Territory and visit the Snow Monkeys and the Red Pandas, amongst others. Finally, we can go to the Tropical Zone, before finishing off at the Zootique."

"You're so systematic," he complained.

She simply smiled and began to walk off.

They visited each section, just like Kate planned it. Every time they got to a new animal, Castle would get really excited and blabber on and on about some random fact or another. Even though Kate would never admit it, she really did learn a lot from listening to him jabber about each animal.

It was fun for Kate to spend time with Castle outside of work. She was genuinely enjoying their time together and everything that they talked about. Castle made sure to steer clear of talking about anything work or Josh related. Though it was an elephant in the room, it was on kitten feet. Kate found it so easy to joke and be herself around Rick. She even began to think of him as 'Rick' and not 'Castle'. It scared her, knowing that she was having these feelings for him – not in a romantic way, but in a friend way. She had never had such a close friend, other than Lanie. It unnerved her to know how well Rick tore down the walls she built around her heart. She knew that she would never be this carefree with Josh, but she also knew that she had to give Josh a chance.

"Kate," he began. She looked at him sharply – it was the first time all day that he had called her 'Kate'. Most of the day he would call her 'Beckett' or 'Detective'. She wasn't sure how she felt about the new moniker (even though it was her own).

"Yes, Castle?"

"I'm hungry," he said.

"Geez, you sound like a little boy."

He smiled innocently at her.

"Here," she said, handing him a granola bar.

"Where'd you get that?" he asked, looking at it apprehensively.

"I found it in my purse. I must have grabbed it from the box I keep in my desk at the precinct. I found it in my jacket from yesterday – I guess with everything going on, I forgot to eat it. It's perfectly fine," she said, holding it out to him.

He looked at it skeptically.

"Oh, come on Castle, I'm better at keeping the food in my desk up to date than the food in my apartment," she said, finally catching on to what he was worried about.

"Are you sure?"

"I bought this box last week, Castle. It's fine," she said again, nearly shoving it in his face.

"Okay, I'm trusting you," he said, reaching for the snack. He opened the wrapper and ate it in three bites.

"Are you trying to be like the snakes?" she asked, looking at him like he was crazy.

"Wha do yoff men?" he asked, around the granola bar.

"You hardly chewed! Are you waiting for it to digest in your esophagus, because I think that only works for snakes," she said, a smile playing at her lips.

He took a massive gulp before answering her.

"No, I'm just a guy, so we can fit more in our mouths," he said. "Wait, don't say it. I walked right into that," he continues, cringing.

Kate looked at him skeptically before moving onto the next reptile.

About an hour later, Kate and Rick emerged from the gift shop. Castle, being the little boy he was, decided that he wanted everything. Kate honestly felt like his mother when she admonished him repeatedly, and finally setting a limit of one souvenir for each friend. He protested lightly, but when he saw her cocked eye brows, he quieted down. In the end, he bought a stuffed penguin for Alexis, matching mugs for Ryan and Esposito, a leopard print throw for his mother, poster of a tiger for Kate.

"You know you didn't have to buy me anything," she said, when they were walking out.

"Yeah, but I wanted to. You can keep this with your gun at night, so if you ever have to use it, you can remember that you are a tiger," he said, roaring mockingly.

"Okay, Castle," she said, nodding, slowly. "Let's go grab a bite to eat. We can have an early dinner."

"I know just the place," he said, motioning for her to follow him.

They walked a couple blocks before stopping outside Mickey Mantle's Restaurant and Sports Bar.

"I know you're a huge baseball fan, so I just thought this would be an appropriate place to eat," he said, opening the door for her.

"Thanks Castle, this is perfect," she said, walking in.

The hostess recognized Rick (of course) and insisted that they get a ten percent discount on their bill. She sat them in a corner booth, so they could have a little more privacy from prying eyes.

They had hardly opened their menus when the waiter came to take their orders.

"What can I get you today?" the pimply teenager asked politely.

"We'll have two orders of Mickey's Barbeque Hickory Smoked Ribs, a large fries, and two beers," Castle ordered.

Kate looked at him in surprise, slightly confused by the fact that her menu was being taken from her and she had yet to even read it.

"Well, we can't go to this place and not have their special," explain Castle.

Kate just nodded her head, with a small, "Ah."

"So, Detective, any more stories from your childhood?" he asked, leaning in towards her.

"Haha Castle, you wish. How's Alexis?" she replied, knowing that Alexis would derail him for a while.

"She's great. She's still seeing Ashley, who I think is scared that I'm going to shoot him if he does more than kiss my daughter. Oh, ew, bad mental image," Castle began, getting lost in his own world.

Kate smiled, knowing how much Alexis means to him.

"Anyway, the first time I met him, he thought I was going to shoot him—"

"You told me this already, Castle," she said, smiling.

"Well it's still an amusing story," he defended.

Kate rolled her eyes.

"Fine, I'll just tell you Alexis' life story then. It was a blustery day in the year one thousand, nine hundred and ninety four, the month was—"

"Here you go," said the waiter, placing two steaming plates in front of them, effectively interrupting Castle's story. He set the fries between them and walked away before reappearing a moment later with two large glasses of foaming, ice cold beers.

"Yum, looks good. Dig in, Detective," Castle said, shifting in his seat in anticipation for the meal.

"You're such a kid," she answered, picking up her fork. She was amused at how quickly his mind changed gears. One moment he was telling an embellished tale of Alexis' life and the next moment, he looked like the nine year old on a sugar rush.

They ate in mostly silence, enjoying each other's company. Castle looked at his watch and saw that it was already 5:30.

"Come on, Detective, it's getting late, and we still have lots to do today," he said, putting his hand up, motioning that he was ready for the check.

Castle was reaching for his wallet when Kate interrupted him.

"Ah, ah, ah, Castle, remember our deal?" she said, taking out her own Visa card. She put it in the clear slot in the bill. The pimply teenager took it away and Kate turned to Rick.

"Okay, Castle, what's next on the agenda?" she asked, leaning in attentively.

"Well, we have to take you grocery shopping, so that's a must. Then I was thinking we could get some ice cream and watch a movie. How does that sound?"

"Sounds perfect, as long as we don't have to walk back," she said, grinning. Even though she was a cop and spent a lot of time on her feet, after the day they had had yesterday, her body was tired and her feet were hurting.

They waved good bye to the hostess and hailed down a cab.

"You chariot," said Castle, waving gallantly at the bright yellow door of the cab. The driver looked at him like he was a nut bar, and Kate just rolled her eyes. She slid in and told the driver her address.

In the New York traffic and the fact that it was rush hour, the ride that should have taken all of fifteen mintues took a whopping forty five. The cabbie was happy to pick up the extra fare.

"Welcome home, Miss Beckett," said the doorman, Greg.

"Thanks Greg. Have a great day," she said, smiling.

"You too, miss."


"Okay Castle, drop your stuff and we can go food shopping. There's a super market around the corner," Kate said, grabbing herself a glass of water. She offered one to Castle, and he took it gratefully.

The pair rode the elevator down and said hello to Greg, again. They walked to the grocery store and they each took a cart.

"Okay, we're going to play a game I used to play with Alexis when she was little," Castle said, walking up the frozen food aisle.

Kate inclined her head, showing that she was listening.

"In addition to all the necessities, you have to by one thing that you've never tried before, and something that starts with every letter of the alphabet."

Kate raised her eye brows.

"What?" he asked defensive. "It makes shopping fun. And it made Alexis an adventurous eater. So, let's go," he pushed his cart to the left, heading toward the bakery.

Kate rolled her eyes, again thinking how childish he could be. She followed him, because she knew that there was no way that even a simple trip to the super market could be boring with Castle around.

She got all the basics – bread, eggs, bacon, milk, orange juice, and items such as those. Then it was time for their alphabet game. Since Kate really didn't have much in her apartment, they had most of their letters, but they still needed some.

"Okay, I need a 'Q,'" she said, checking their carts.

"Every had quinoa?" he asked.

"No, it sounds ominous," she replied.

"Well then, it'll count for 'Q' and the food you've ever had before," he said as he rolled his cart towards the grain section.

"How 'bout an 'X'?" Castle called.

"No, I don't have one. Got any ideas?"

"Sort of," he said, pushing his cart towards to produce section. He reached for a watermelon and held it out to her.

"Castle, that's a watermelon," she said, as if talking to a small child.

"I know, but in Chinese it's called 'xigua,'" he said, defensively. He pronounced it 'Shee-gua.'

"Did you also learn that from the show you used to love?" she asked, remembering the last time he used Chinese in her presence.

"Why Detective Beckett, I'm touched that you remember. No, I learned that from years of searching for a food that starts with 'X'. It's the only one we'll do in another language," he explained.

She nodded in understanding. "I see," she said.

"Come, I think we have everything," he said, leading her to the self checkout. "Ooh, this was a fun game with Alexis," he began. She looked warily at him. "We race to see who can finish their cart first," he said, smiling broadly.

She sighed, but decided to indulge him, just this once. They each took their position at the checkout and Castle said, "Go!"

They furiously checked out their items, and by mere seconds, Kate beat him.

"I win!" she said, giving him an 'I-told-you-so' face.

"You might have won this, Detective, but there is one thing I forgot to mention. Loser gets to pick the movie," he grinned and he walked the to Redbox that was near the exit. "C'mon Detective, watch as I chose the movie and you cannot say a word."

She rolled her eyes, not believing how he was acting.

He rifled through the Redbox selections before turning to Kate.

"Have you ever seen Serenity?"

She shook her head.

"Okay, then we're watching that. It's not here, so we'll just have to get it On Demand or something," he said, nearly jumping up and down.

"Calm down, Castle," she said, looking at him weirdly.

"Let's go! Beckett, this is such a good movie!"

She rolled her eyes, again, but followed him from the store.


"Okay, are you ready to see brilliance at its best?" he asked, bringing a huge bowl of pop corn, a bottle of soda, a bottle of water, a package of candy, a tub of ice cream, and a bottle of wine to the living room.

"Castle, we're seriously going to eat all that?" she asked, her eye brows raising higher than they had in a while.

"Of course, Detective."

He took the remote and clicked a few buttons. Before she could comprehend what he had done, the title sequence to the movie was playing.

Kate took an afghan from the back of the couch and put it over their legs. They were on either side of the couch, and that was just how Kate wanted it.

The day had been so wonderful. Castle had been so charming and such a good friend. It was so easy to be around him and talk to him. She had had more fun that day than she had in a long time. She was cautious about letting her thoughts go too far, keeping in mind that she had a boyfriend. Josh didn't seem to understand the concept of "hanging out." All he wanted to do was physical stuff. Kate really enjoyed having someone who would be there for her as a friend.

Castle was right – the movie was fantastic.

"Hey Castle," she said after the first half hour.

"Yeah?"

"Has anyone told you that you look like the Captain in this?" she asked, turning to face him.

"Yeah, people have. I don't really see it though…he's not as ruggedly handsome as I am," said Castle, grinning.

Kate turned back to the TV to watch the story unfold. She felt her eyes drooping and her head falling towards the arm rest of the couch. Before she could fall asleep, her phone buzzed.

She took it out of her pocket, and saw that Josh had texted her.

Hey babe, I just got off my shift. I'll be by 20. Miss you. xo—Josh

Kate sighed. She was having such a good time; she didn't want o think about Josh.

"Who was that?" asked Castle, pausing the movie.

"It was Josh," she said, looking down. "He said he'll be here in twenty minutes."

"Oh," said Castle. "I should probably get going anyway. It's late, and Alexis is expecting me."

"Okay," she said, disappointed that they couldn't finish the movie. "Can we finish the movie another time?"

"Sure, whenever you want, Detective."

"Thank you for today, Castle, really. It's just what I needed," she said, standing up.

"It was my pleasure, Detective," he said, mocking tipping a hat and bowing. He took his souvenirs from the zoo, and handed her the poster. She took it and smiled.

"So, I'll call you if a body drops?" she said. Unfortunately, it came out as more of a question.

"Sounds great. If not, I'll see you Monday. Have a great weekend, Kate. Today was fun," he said, heading towards the door. He smiled before exiting her apartment and heading for the elevator.

"Night, Castle," she said to his retreating form.

He stopped and turned to her.

"Until next time, Detective," he said. The elevator doors pinged and he stepped inside.

Kate closed her door and looked towards the living room. The TV was casting an eerie glow to the whole room and she assessed what she had to do to hide her day from Josh.

She wished she didn't have to, but she knew that if she wanted to make amends with Josh, then she'd have to keep her friendship with Castle on the down low.

She put the poster in her bedside drawer, and cleaned up the mess they had made. She kept out enough popcorn for one and poured herself a glass of wine. She put the rest in the dishwasher, and she settled in to the couch. She turned off Serenity, because she didn't want to watch it without him.

She scrolled to her DVR and picked out her favorite episode of Temptation Lane. She pressed play and watched the soap that always gave her warm fuzzy feelings.

Her door bell rang and she took a deep breath. She had had a good day, and hoped that she wouldn't have a fight with Josh to ruin it.

She had let her guard down with Castle and her walls had been eroded. Now she had to put them in place again before she answered the door. She wasn't ready to be that open with Josh yet. TO be honest, she didn't know if she ever be that open with him. But she couldn't leave him hanging for too long. She had had a good day, and hoped that she wouldn't have a fight with Josh to ruin it.

She went to the buzzer and pressed the 'talk' button.

"Josh?" she called through the intercom.

"Yeah," he replied.

"Come on up," she said, buzzing him in.

She took another deep breath. It was only a matter of time before he'd come in and she would have to change her whole demeanor. It was going to be a long night.

Wow...that was a long one. Two chapters tonight - you should be thanking me. Wait, no, I should be thanking you. To everyone who Alerted, Favorited, and Reviewed, it is much appreciated. This story has gotten more hits in one night than any of my other stories. I really wish you would leave some reviews, because I'd love to hear what you guys are thinking about the story and what you might like to see happen in the future. I don't have much of a plan right now, except to keep Josh around long enough that everyone is thoroughly pissed at him. Then boot him off. So yeah, moral of the blabbering - REVIEW PLEASE : D.

Hope you enjoyed, Mangotango101