Thank you to everyone who reviewed, you guys make me so happy! I am really enjoying writing this story and am happy to hear you are all interested. I'm having an awful lot of fun at Ryan's expense. So here is chapter 2, please enjoy.

Chapter 2:

The Kevin Affect

"Ugh! Just forget it!" Teenage Javier jumped up from the coffee table he'd been hovering over and stormed in circles around his mother's living room. "Who the hell needs math in real life anyway?" He roared. "It's a waste of time." They'd been studying for hours and hadn't gotten any closer to a break through.

Kevin leaned on his elbows. "Sit down Javi, it's not that hard." He said with a chuckle.

"Maybe not for you! You're a brainy know-it-all, but I'm not made for this stuff." He glanced down at the offending papers. "And whose bright idea was it to put the alphabet in math? It's stupid."

"Javi." Kevin said gently, easing the other teen's anger. How the skinny Irish kid had wormed his way into his life, he couldn't figure out. But his persistence had eventually worn Javier down. Kevin pointed to the spot across from him and Javier plopped down with a grunt. He pulled the paper over and ran his pencil over it. "Here, try it like this. If you're looking at the problem just as it is, it can look harder but…" He slid the paper back, circles were now drawn around different pieces of the equation. "If you break it up into smaller pieces and step back, it's not so hard. Solve the pieces in the circles first and then put it together."

He sat back and waited patiently while Javier worked at the problem. Javi groaned as if he was in actual, physical pain but kept at it. Kevin chuckled a few times and Javier stuck out his tongue, but eventually he slid the paper back and Kevin looked it over. "Right!" He declared. "You got it right!"

Javier couldn't stop the smile that broke across his face. "Really?" Kevin nodded. "Cool… I'm hungry." He jumped up. "Want a snack?"

"B-but we still have like… ten more problems." Kevin stuttered as he got up and followed his new friend to the kitchen. "We have to get you through them, this is due tomorrow."

Javier pulled down a bag of chips and a jar of peanut butter. He shoved them into Kevin's hands before rooting through the fridge. He came back out with two sodas and a package of cheese. "You need to relax a little, we got time. Right now, we fill our stomachs."

"With cheese, chips, and peanut butter?" Kevin, asked, nose scrunching.

Javier pulled out two spoons. "It's the best I got, so quit your whining."

They walked back to the living room and dumped the food on the table. "Won't your mom be home for dinner soon?"

"Nah, she's at her night job, she won't be back till late." Javi grabbed one of the spoons and scooped it into the peanut butter jar. "Go on, eat up." He said, sliding the jar across the table. "So I'm thinking about joining the football team, you should too."

Kevin laughed as he licked at the peanut butter. "Are you kidding? My skinny ass wouldn't survive a second out on the field."

"Yeah, that's a good point." Kevin scowled and Javier laughed. "But you want to be a cop don't you?" Kevin nodded. "Well then you've got to bulk up a little." He looked him over. "Well for you… maybe a lot of bulking up."

Kevin looked at the papers buried by the food. "I'll make a deal with you. If you can pass this next math test then I'll try out for the football team with you."

Javier groaned. "Pass it?"

"Yes, with at least a C."

His mouth scrunched as he thought. "Okay, you've got yourself a deal skinny boy." They shook hands and broke open the bag of chips.

"God, he looks terrible." Castle said as they all stood outside the holding cell. Ryan was in the corner of the cell, scrunched as far into a ball as he could manage, rocking back and forth. "Remind me to never do drugs… ever."

"Do you really need to be reminded of that?" Beckett asked. She glanced to Javier. His eyes never left the Irishman balled in the corner. "You okay Espo?" She asked gently.

He cleared his throat and shifted, finally breaking his stare. "I'm okay. Gates said we can question him again once he dries out a little."

"So do we believe his story?" The writer asked. "About him trying to save Sharp?"

Kate watched Ryan shake. His whole body seemed to vibrate on its own. "I ran it by Lanie. She said she'd let me know if she finds any indication of revival attempts when she does the autopsy."

"I'm wondering about the timeline too." Javier said slowly as he thought. "Our witness said that she saw Ryan running away when she arrived at eleven but Lanie put the time of death before ten in the morning, why would he stick around so long after killing him?"

Beckett thought it over, nodding in agreement. "It would really help clear some things up if he would just talk to us." They watched Kevin a few more minutes as he continued to shiver.

Castle turned his attentions to Esposito. "So who is this guy to you anyway?"

Javier sighed. "An old friend… that's all I want to say for now." He said, warding any further questions away.

Unfortunately Castle wasn't swayed so easily. "This guy? Why would you be friends with someone like him?"

"It was a long time ago." Javi said quietly. "He wasn't the same person… and neither was I. Guys, can I have a minute alone?"

Beckett shook her head. "Javi, I'd like to but I'm not sure that's a good idea. This might be a little too close for you."

He looked into her eyes. "Please." He asked gently, adopting a soft tone that wasn't normal for him. "Just one minute."

She caved quickly. "Okay, but just a minute." She grabbed Castle's arm and dragged him out, leaving the old friends alone.

Esposito entered the cell, not afraid of Kevin escaping, he was hardly a flight risk, the man could barely move. He sat quietly on the bench and waited for Kevin to acknowledge his presence. "W-what do you want?" He stuttered, barely loud enough for him to hear.

"Just wanted to talk." Javier answered quietly. "Do you need anything?"

Ryan shifted on the floor to face him, his mouth breaking into a wry smile. "I could use another hit but I'm sure you won't be giving me that."

Esposito let out an uneasy laugh. "Sorry bro, but I don't think so."

Kevin nodded and drew his knees back to his chest. "So a cop huh? Oh… sorry, detective I mean. Couldn't come up with a dream of your own so you stole mine."

Javier shifted. "It wasn't a bad dream. I became a cop after I went into the army… Special Forces."

"Congratulations." Ryan sneered. "As you can I see, I took a slightly different path… thanks to you."

His words bit straight to Javier's conscience. "Look man, I never really got a chance to apologize for-"

"Save it." Kevin hissed. "I don't want your damn pity, what happened… happened. End of story. You made your decision, cowardly as it was, and I made mine. And here we are, sometimes you just got to roll with the punches, you taught me that."

"Yeah… yeah I did." The cell fell into several minutes of uncomfortable silence. "Well, we'll forget the past then." Not so easily done. "And we'll focus on now. You're in a lot of trouble Kev. You're on the hook for murder here. Now I took a look at your file, you have a couple counts of assault, weapons possession, and, of course, drug possession."

"Read my file eh?" He interrupted with a chuckle. "Guess you know me so well now."

Javier rolled his eyes. He was growing tired of the attitude. "My point is, you haven't done anything as bad as murder."

"That you know of."

That statement did little to ease his worries. "Do you want to dig yourself in a hole you can't get out of!" He snapped, growing angry. It seemed to please Kevin. "I'm trying to help you Kev, could you just work with me? I know you, you would never hurt anyone. So please just tell us the truth."

Kevin leaned his head against the dirty wall. It hardly seemed to bother him, his face, jeans, t-shirt, and jacket were just as dirty. "I did tell you the truth Javi." He sighed. "I didn't kill him. I always wanted to but… I never did."

"So what were you doing at that penthouse? How do you know Sharp?"

Kevin clenched his eyes shut, withdrawing into himself again. "I don't… I didn't.. Javi, just leave me alone." He curled back into a ball and fell to the floor.

He would have to go about this a different way. Clearly talking to him while he was still high wasn't doing him any good. But he couldn't leave him here in this hole, his conscience wouldn't allow it. Javier stood and grabbed Kevin's arm, dragging him to his feet. It took a few tries to get him standing straight but once he had his hands were cuffed in front of him while the Irishman stared with confused and bleary eyes. "Come on, let's get you something to drink. Are you thirsty?"

"I… I could use some water." He said gently. Kevin continued to stare as he was led out of the cell on unsteady feet. "Aren't you going to get in trouble?"

"Just let me worry about that." Esposito grumbled. He led him down the hall, through the bullpen, catching Beckett's attention, and into the break room. "Sit down here." He ordered, placing him at the table, "And don't move." To his surprise, Ryan obeyed. He fished out his wallet as quick taps of heels approached.

"Esposito!" Beckett snapped, her eyes flashing to her suspect in the chair. She shut the breakroom door as soon as Castle slipped in. "What are you doing?"

"He's dehydrated." Javier said calmly, punching the buttons on the vending machine. "He just needed some water."

"You could have given him a glass of water in the holding cell." She hissed.

"Yes… I could have." He handed the bottle over and Ryan drank it greedily.

"Espo." Beckett growled. "I knew you were to close to this."

He dropped into the chair next to Kevin and grinned. "Relax Kate, have a cup of coffee." She rolled her eyes but made a cup anyway.

Castle slid into the chair across from Ryan and extended a hand. "Hi." He greeted. "I'm-"

"Rick Castle!" Ryan cried, taking his hand and shaking it excitedly. "I know who you are! I can't believe it. I-I've read all your books. I love the Nikki Heat series, it's great!"

Castle smiled wide. "Always nice to meet a fan. You know Nikki Heat is based off of Detective Beckett here." He smiled at the female detective, she sighed and drank her coffee. "And I even have a character based off of Esposito."

Ryan's eyes widened. "No kidding!" He shouted. "That's so cool." He looked to his old friend with a wide, genuine smile, clearly impressed. Esposito shot the writer a grateful glance.

Beckett joined them at the table. "So Mr. Ryan, I hope you know how much trouble you're in here."

Kevin rolled his eyes. "Yeah, Javi already cleared that one up for me. You guys are like a broken record." He lowered his gaze to the water in his hands. "But… I didn't kill Sharp, I got there and found him bleeding to death with a knife in his chest. I tried to pull it out but he just started bleeding more so I tried to stop it. He died… before I could do anything. You have to believe me."

Beckett leaned forward. "We don't have to believe anything you say." She warned. "All we have to believe are the facts and so far the facts say that you killed him."

"Well maybe you're looking to close at the obvious." Ryan snapped. "Maybe you should get your head out of your ass, step back and look again."

"Kevin!" Javier snapped in warning.

He held up his hands in defense. "I think you'll find that the obvious is usually the truth." She said calmly. Beckett shook her head, pulling out her phone as it rang in her pocket. "Hey Lanie… alright. We'll be right there." She hung up with a grin. "Okay Mr. Ryan, looks like our medical examiner has something to tell us. So why don't we go down to the morgue together and we'll see who needs to pull whose head 'out of their ass'." She stood quickly, making them all jump and grabbed Ryan by the arm.

"The morgue? Sweet!" The Irishman cried as he was dragged away. Castle and Esposito shared a glance before following.

"Alright Lanie." Beckett said as soon as they were in the morgue and beside the examining table holding their latest victim. She kept a tight grip on Ryan's arm. "What do you got?"

The medical examiner's gaze fell on the cuffed criminal standing in her morgue. Kevin gave an awkward wave. "I'm sorry but is it now part of the routine to bring your number one suspect into my morgue?" She asked, crossing her arms. She looked him over again. "And while he's coming down from a drug high?"

"Sorry Lanie." Esposito said quickly. "He's sort of an… old friend of mine."

Ryan let out a snort at the look that crossed Lanie's face. He wiped his smirk away when she hit him with a hard glare. "Mr. Sharp here bled out for several hours before he died."

Beckett's gaze shifted to Ryan. "And is there any signs that someone tried to help him?"

Lanie watched Kevin as well. "Actually, there is." She pointed to the stab wound. "There are marks along the wound that indicate someone tried to pull the knife out." Consistent with his story. "And there is also bruising on the chest that looks like someone pressed down around the wound."

"Perhaps when someone tried to stop the bleeding?" Ryan questioned smugly.

Lanie crossed her arms again, effectively wiping the smug smile away again. "Perhaps, but these marks could also have come from the struggle."

"Well you're not helpful at all." Kevin grumbled quietly, too afraid to actually speak out loud.

"Anything else?" Esposito questioned as he stifled a laugh.

Lanie turned to the table next to her and grabbed an evidence bag. "I also found this clenched in his fist." She handed it to Castle, since Beckett's hands were full, still keeping a tight grip on Ryan. "Looks like the amulet off a necklace." He held it up, the golden, coin-like, charm glinted in the bright lights of the morgue.

A strangled squeak escaped Ryan's mouth and they all turned on him. Blue eyes went wide and his face fell pale. "What's up Kev?" Esposito questioned. "Do you recognize it?"

Kevin pushed out the breath he was holding and shook his head quickly. "No… no I don't. Can we go now?" He pulled against Beckett's grasp but she held firm.

"If you know anything you better tell us now." She ordered firmly.

"I-I don't know anything." Kevin shifted nervously on his feet, his eyes darting again. Esposito was starting to learn that behavior, he was retreating. "And why would I tell you if I did?" He snapped. "You've already got your mind made up that I murdered him so you may as well just throw away the key now."

"I haven't made up my mind yet." The female detective said, turning him to face her and placing her hands on his shoulders. "But if you're going to fight me every step of the way I can't help you." He challenged Beckett's gaze but was unable to hold it. His eyes fell to the floor in defeat. He shook nervously under her hands. Her features softened and she wrapped an arm around his shoulder. "Come on, let's get you back upstairs."

Javier used to call it the 'Kevin Affect', or the 'sweet-and-innocent-looking-blue-eyed-Irish-white-boy' affect, depending on how much time he had to talk. People took to Kevin quickly, they fell for his charming demeanor and gentle disposition in an instant. They wanted to coddle and protect him, when he was a kid, and even now. Esposito used to use the 'Kevin affect' to get out of trouble. One time as a kid, he broke an old woman's apartment window when he threw a baseball through it (It may or may not have been an accident), she was outraged but as soon as Kevin showed up and flashed his puppy dog eyes, she was inviting them in for cookies and milk. Right now the same thing was happening to Beckett, whether she realized it or not, otherwise Kevin would be sitting in the holding cell.

It seemed to be wearing on Lanie too. The medical examiner stepped around the table and took Ryan's chin in her hand. Kevin flinched but held still. She turned his head as she looked him over with a medical eye. She noted his shaking hands and feverish temperature. "He needs more water and should get some sleep if you don't want him going into shock. Coming down from a high like that is hard on the body." She poked at his stomach. "And for crying out loud get this skinny boy some food, he's thin as a flag pole."

They took her advice and a few hours later, after a short nap for Ryan, the four of them were sitting around the conference room table. Castle was pulling enough Chinese food containers out of plastic bags to feed an army. But Ryan looked hungry enough to eat like an army, his mouth watered as he looked over each container. But Kevin's cuffed hands stayed flat on the table, he didn't move to grab any of it, even when the others started to dish out the food onto paper plates. Esposito watched from the corner of his eye. "You can have some if you want." He said quietly.

"Yeah." Ryan scoffed. "And what's the catch? You want me to talk… confess to the murder."

Castle slid a container closer. "No catch. How long has it been since you ate last?"

Kevin shrugged, softening slightly. "A few days… I-I don't know, I lose track sometimes. But you can't fool me, there's always a catch."

The writer popped the lid open and shoveled some noodles on a plate before grabbing an egg roll and some chicken, adding it to the pile. "I promise you Kevin, there's no catch. We just want to help." He handed him a fork and moved the plate closer.

In that moment Javier was grateful for his friends. They weren't treating Ryan like any other suspect, and it wasn't just because of the 'Kevin Affect', it was because he meant something to Esposito and Esposito meant something to them. "Go ahead Kev, its okay." He said with a friendly smile, Beckett nodded along.

Slowly, Ryan stabbed a piece of chicken and took a timid bite, it was all he needed to reveal how hungry he really was. Pretty soon he was shoveling down noodles, chicken, and egg rolls, barely taking a breath in between. He made plenty of hums and moans of delight. "Is that mushu pork?" He asked through a full mouth. Beckett handed over the container he was pointing at and he dug in. "Wow, this stuff is great. I haven't had Chinse that wasn't either long expired or out of a trash can in a while."

Javier felt the guilt twinge in his chest again. He slid a soda to his old friend and focused on the papers that spread over the table. "So what do we know about our victim?"

Beckett picked up a paper and an egg roll. "Robert Sharp, He's a CEO of a small shipping company but it hardly earns him enough money to afford him that penthouse. The NYPD has been trying to get their hands on him for supplying drugs all over the city but we haven't been able to, he's very smart."

Ryan snorted. "Not hardly, he's just a player in someone else's pocket. He was actually a little dim."

Castle narrowed his eyes. "Are you saying someone was protecting him from the police? Sharp was only a front man?"

Kevin shrunk into his seat. "I didn't say anything." He slurped noisily at his soda.

Kate smirked. "So I'm guessing Sharp used his shipping company to get the drugs in but how did he get them delivered so discreetly?"

Esposito leaned forward, picking up on her game. "He must have used employees from his company?"

"What? Don't be stupid." Ryan spat. "That's a terrible idea. Even as dumb as he was, he would never use his own employees. He used runners, people who were down on their luck. People who desperately needed money."

"People like you?" Javier questioned already knowing the answer.

He shrugged. "Maybe."

"You were a drug runner?" Kate asked sadly.

Kevin nodded. "You get treated like shit but it doesn't pay terrible." He paused for a second. "No I take that back it does pay terrible but it does pay. Someone with a record like mine doesn't exactly get the best jobs. But I've worked my way up since then." He fidgeted under there pitying gaze. "Stop it, please don't look at me like that. It's a crappy life but at least I'm alive." His eyes shifted to Esposito. "You learn to survive when you have to."

Javier hung his head. "Kevin I-"

"What is going on here?" Gates roared making them all jump. She stood in the doorway, hands on her hips. "Why is our primary suspect sitting here, eating Chinese, instead of sitting in lock up?"

Beckett and Esposito shot out of their chairs. "Uh sir, it's a uh… funny story." Javi began.

Kate took over when he couldn't actually think of a funny story. "Sir, he was uh, going into shock and he needed to eat."

"So give him a granola bar." She sighed. "Don't bring him up here where he can get away. He could be dangerous."

"He's not dangerous sir." Esposito said confidently. He slapped Ryan's shoulder. "Give her the puppy dog face." He whispered quickly out of the corner of his mouth. Kevin didn't have to try too hard, his face always seemed to be trapped in a puppy dog pout with his big blue eyes and eyebrows drawn up in the center of his face, but he stuck his lip out to really sell it. Gates crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "See sir." Javier squeaked.

"So are you saying Mr. Ryan here is not a suspect anymore? Based on what evidence?" She waited.

Castle decided to jump in. "He's still a suspect but some things just aren't adding up." She shook her head, still not buying it so he decided to sweeten the pot. "Also sir, he might have something more to offer."

"That's right." Beckett added. "We think that Robert Sharp was into something deep when he was murdered. With Ryan's help we might be able to both solve his murder and put an end to a drug trade within the city."

Esposito shifted, he figured now was as good a time as any to ask for what he'd been planning. "Sir, I would like to request that Kevin Ryan be put into my custody while this case is ongoing." She let out a small laugh that didn't sound good for his request. "Sir, I just uh… he doesn't do well under duress and he would be more useful if he… um.." He was breaking under her glare.

Gates sighed. "Come here Mr. Ryan." She ordered. Kevin swallowed the food in his mouth and stood slowly. With a frightened glance, he approached her. She looked him over. "I'll allow it." She said after several tense minutes. Kevin sighed in relief while everyone else shared matching expressions of surprise. The 'Kevin Affect' was much stronger than Javier had realized. "But Detective Esposito, you will be completely responsible for him. If he runs or anything happens at his hands while in your custody, it will be on you." Gates shot Kevin once last stern glance making him straighten. "And don't think I don't know this has something to do with your history, this better not blow up in my face detective." She turned on a heel and left.

The room was quiet with shock until Ryan spoke up. "Man… the women around here are terrifying… hey, are you going to eat that?"