7 Months After

"Alright, to the left. The left. The left. Kate, your other left."

"Castle. I am trying. Do you see my left."

"Well I can't get out of the elevator without you pulling the backside up further. Otherwise we'll have a mattress jammed in the elevator and I think your neighbors might begin notice," Castle said as he poked his head around the side to see Kate…'s shoulder.

"Okay, well pull down as I pull up."

Castle did as he was told . . . and nothing happened.

"Kate, just come out here. Look at it from a different angle."

"Easier said than done. Things might get a lot quieter with me stuck behind a mattress forever."

"Okay. This time try twisting it while you pull."

Kate leaned her body weight onto the side as she tried to push it up with her feet. Castle pulled down on the edges of the mattress and felt it giving.

"Wait, Castle – "

Kate wasn't quick enough. The entire mattress fell down along with Castle underneath of it and onto the floor.

"You okay?" Kate winced while holding back laughter.

"Yea. Great. Never better," He said as he stood up, brushing off his pants. Kate climbed over the mattress – over Castle – and onto the floor of the building to help him up.

They got the mattress through the hallway and to Kate's apartment. Getting it through her front door was easier than they had thought, with all the space open behind them.

"I can honestly say I have never been more grateful for wide hallways," Castle said, still in the doorway.

Kate responded with a relieved smile as she carried her half of the mattress to the living room. She leaned it up against the back of the couch and fell into the depths of the chair next to her.

"That was long."

"At least getting it through the last doorway will be easy." Kate said as she pointed to her new "guest room," or as Castle would begin to call it, "his room."

"Maybe we should leave it out here for tonight, since we painted it yesterday."

Kate agreed. She didn't feel like setting up the room today anyway. She was exhausted from the shopping, the lifting. Sitting on this chair was where she wanted to be. Castle sat down on the couch with his head leaning against the mattress and joined her in the temporary silence. He closed his eyes and let his body mold to the cushions underneath of him.

"I talked to Alexis today," he interrupted.

"Yeah? How's college?"

"She likes it. Well, she still likes it. She finally began talking to her roommate. They've gotten dinner a few times. Apparently this girl is painfully shy. But, everything's great. She got a job in the campus bookstore." Castle dragged off and gave Kate a look of assurance.

"That's good. At least she is doing something when she isn't studying."

"When is she not studying."

Kate smiled. Her phone rang in the other room. She didn't want to get up. She was finally comfortable and she had the day off, but she needed to be available. Her body protested, but she got up and went to get her phone from her purse.

"Who is it?"

"It's my dad," she said, confusedly staring at the caller i.d.

"Hey, dad. What's up? Yeah. Okay. That sounds great. You can meet us here. Okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

Kate hung up and went back to her seat, phone in hand.

"We're seeing my father tomorrow."

"What's the occasion?"

"Nothing, he's going to be down our way so he decided to have dinner. I don't know where, but he will be here tomorrow at 5."

Castle shook his head and closed his eyes again.

Kate was equally exhausted. The silence comfortably sat between them and they let it occupy the room. But, with a sigh, Kate stood.

"What are you doing?"

"Well, if my father is coming here tomorrow we really can't have a mattress in my living room and your bedroom on my couch."

"He doesn't know I live here?"

"Not technically."

Castle rolled his eyes and smiled as he joined Kate.

"Looks like we have a project ahead of us."

By the end of the day they got the mattress in the already made bedframe that Castle had put together this morning thank god. The room that was once blue and was once for a child now held a brown, wooden bedframe with a mattress lying inside of it. The new comforter and sheet set spread across it. Instead of a crib and a chair, there were end tables, a dresser, and a mirror. The walls matched the other rooms – a shade of white and cream. Kate walked into the room pushing aside everything that she knew she should be thinking and flopped on the bed. It was easier to occupy her mind with decorations and paint colors than the emotion that was seeping from the walls beside her. Castle followed Kate and felt the same relief that she was expressing. He lied down beside her and tested out his new bed.

"Do you think it's weird that you have everything here but still have a home?" Kate said. She was too tired to let herself think before she spoke. She knew the odd line they have been walking. They knew it would hurt to see the other in a relationship, but they haven't talked about anything besides the few hints here and there.

"Not really. I don't know what we have here," Castle said as he grabbed her hand, "but I know that there is no where else I'd rather be. Alexis is at college. My mother, she's never home and when she is – I'd rather not be there for whatever I'm going to have to pay for later."

Kate smiled and deep down she knew he was telling the truth, but she felt guilty. They were in this stoic state and she couldn't do anything about it. And he was giving up so much.

"Alright," Castle said as he got up, breaking the conversation. "Time to eat."

Kate spent the next morning cleaning her apartment. It wasn't messy, but it wasn't how she wanted to present it to her father. She had never really been this unprepared. This was the first time he was seeing her instead of her making the trip to see him. She finished straightening her room – even though no one was going to see it – and made her way into the living room.

"I got in here." Castle said, kneeling by the couch.

"Okay."

Kate moved into the kitchen, which was already clean. The dishes were put into the correct cabinets. Nothing was in the sink. She looked over to the bathroom, which was equally as clean. Everything was done.

"What – what else needs to be done?" she said looking around.

"Nothing, I think you're done. There is not an ounce of dirt left in this apartment. Now. Go get ready."

Kate looked at her father's watch. He would be here in three hours. Her mind climbed down from the height it took from the adrenaline of cleaning. She was tired, but that would pass. Kate walked into her room and turned the shower on. As it heated up she looked in her closet. Nothing. Well, everything – but nothing. She'd face it when she got out. She tested the water with her hand before she got in. The warm water trailed down her back as it washed away the sweat that gathered throughout the day. This had become her space to get away and not think – the opposite purpose it had served previously. When she was done she stepped out, grabbed a towel, and made her way to the long decision process that awaited her at her closet.

Castle usually showered at home besides the few times he used Kate's shower. She didn't mind. But, recently he's been getting ready in her bathroom because of how much he has been here. He finished up in the living room and waited until he heard the shower turn off. And then waited until he knew she would be dressed. Her door was closed, as it should be.

"Hey, Kate. Let me know when I can use the shower."

"Give me a few minutes and then it's all yours."

Castle went into his room and picked out the clothes that he was going to wear. They were now situated nicely in the dresser that was in his room. He didn't need to iron them from sitting in the duffel bag or air them out to get out the plastic smell. When he knew exactly what he was going to wear he brought it with him into Kate's room. He knocked, and when he was told to come in, he opened the door. Kate stood at her closet in shorts and an old t-shirt. He could see that she was not wearing a bra.

Face. Look at her face. She has two eyes, a nose. Her eyes. Her nose…

"You can use the shower. I'm going to be in here forever. When you're done I'll start my hair." Kate said as she walked around her room.

"Okay."

Kate waited until Castle was in the bathroom and she heard the shower start to break out into full fashion mode. She brought out a couple shirts. Some dresses. Some pants. She spread them across her newly made bed to look at everything at once. She could wear the dress pants and new white shirt she had just bought. But she felt girlier than that. She did have a dress that she had been meaning to wear. It was gray and it cut at the knees. The hemline at the waist hugged a few inches above her hips; a fitted, feminine cut. The sleeves went down to right above her elbow and had a black trim where they ended. She would pair it with high, black Mary Jane-esque heels that complimented the style she was going for. She'd get dressed after she had finished her hair. There was no sense of walking around the apartment for hours with a dress on. She looked at the alarm clock next to her bed. She needed to start her hair. If she started it now she would have around forty minutes before her dad arrived giving her curls just enough time to unwind to a perfect loose length. Castle was still in the shower where she had left her hair dryer a curling iron. They have seen each other in various states of undress before so there was no reason she couldn't just knock on the door and grab her stuff.

Would that be crossing a line?

No. Yes. Maybe. No. She did have a glass, square shower. There wasn't a curtain, but the glass was muggy. And with the steam added to the fade. That line needed to be crossed anyway.

Did it?

It wasn't like she'd be looking. She walked to her bathroom door and knocked – a strange thing to be doing in her own room.

"Hey Castle? Can I grab my hair dryer real quick? I'll be five seconds. I'll close my eyes."

"Yeah, that's fine."

No it wasn't. Was it? Castle felt the awkwardness force itself into the room when she opened to door. She kept her head faced away from the shower. The mirror was fogged. Kate bent down in front of the cabinet below her sink and quickly grabbed the items she needed. It wasn't even thirty seconds before she exited the room. Castle turned off the shower and opened the sliding door. He took one foot out of the shower and onto the damp towel on the floor to grab the clean one sitting on the –

"Oh, sorry!" Kate said as her hand flew to her eyes, the door slamming into Castle's assumingly naked body.

"It's okay." Castle said as he held the door in place.

"Sorry, I - I needed the hair cream," she said as she pointed to the sink, and then swapped hands, swinging her palm to her eyes once more, "I thought you were - I didn't hear the shower - I thought - I'm going to go now."

Kate shut the door and leaned against the wall next to it. Her hand flew to her face once more and the embarrassment exited her through a smile.

That line was crossed.

Her father arrived on time, but they were still running around. Regardless of what time they start getting ready both of them would always be doing something at the last minute.

"Can you get that?" Kate yelled from the bedroom as she was buttoning the strap on her shoe. She heard her father come in and greet Castle as she grabbed her purse off of her bed that she managed to keep somewhat clean while she got ready. She walked out of her room to meet the two men standing in the hallway.

"Hey dad."

"Hey Katie," Jim said as he hugged his daughter, "you look wonderful."

"Thanks. You ready to go?" she said as her eyes went from her father's to Castle's.

"Yep, I already made reservations. Let's go." Jim said as he held out a hand to the door.

"and then – then," Kate tried to speak between laughs, "Ryan came walking back from the bathroom – with a look – this look was priceless."

Both Jim and Castle burst into laughter with her.

"Sounds like your back into the swing of things," Jim said with a smile.

Kate smiled, but felt uncomfortable. She was feeling good, but this was the closest that anyone had gotten to mentioning anything about that day in March. It was the hidden elephant in the room, only being noticed from time to time. Kate knew she had to bring it up, especially when she gave her dad the card that was burning a hole in her purse. She had thought of the idea early this morning. She escaped the prying questions of Castle by telling him she was taking a quick run before the day started.

"Yeah, and I'm back to writing," Castle said as he interrupted her thoughts.

Kate's eyes lit up, widened, and went to Castle's.

"You didn't tell me that."

"Yeah. I haven't sent anything in, but I opened up a new document for Nikki Heat. She's back to her normal ways. They never left. Picked up where I stopped." Castle said with a smile, "I was going to tell you by leaving a copy of the finished first chapter for you to read, but it's taking longer than I thought. Writer's block. Okay, more like writer's 'wanting to do his character's justice' block."

Kate's eyes stayed on his. She was proud of him and she wanted him to know that. She wanted to tell him all of the cheesy thoughts that were running through her mind about how she knew he would get back into the swing of things. How she wanted to be right next to him when he wrote, reading over his shoulder. But she didn't.

"Good. I'm glad," she responded.

Castle smiled back to her, proud with himself too. It felt good. Kate was back at work. He was back to writing when they got home from work. Everything felt right again.

"If you can excuse me, I'll be right back." Kate said, standing up from the conversation.

Castle's usual look when she left the room appeared on his face, forced out of habit. He stood up with her, concerned.

"I'm okay. Just using the restroom," she reassured him.

He sat back down at the table across from her father who was staring at him.

"Before she comes back, I want to let you know that I am forever in your debt. Thank you for taking care of her," Jim said.

"Oh, sir –"

"Call me Jim."

"Okay – Jim – it was nothing. Honestly, we both feel the same way. I loved – love - being with her, every step of the way."

"She seems strong, but she's just like everyone else. Her façade can't fool everyone."

Castle smiled – not a happy smile, but an agreeable expression. He knew exactly what Jim was talking about.

"She's doing much better. And so am I. I took a hit as well, but we're both doing great."

"And, you know, she does love you."

And we're just diving right into that.

"She won't make the first move, but I think that it's going to be good for her."
Castle started to protest –

"Don't say anything. Just accept because I know you feel the same way. I know you're living with her. She's not too good at lying to me. She never was. And I know how hurt you were. I don't think I could do what you did that day. I would have if I needed to, but it would have killed me. My only little girl just lost her little boy - my grandson. And you stepped up and for that, I am thankful."

Castle accepted this. He wasn't too good at taking compliments, but he let this one sink in. "You're welcome."

Castle locked eyes with Kate from across the room as she exited the long hallway leading to the bathroom. Looking around, registering a quick, easy route to get back to the table. She brushed her hair behind her ear as she had a quick exchange of words with a waiter. Her eyes scanned the room until they met his. Her smile brightened her face when she found him.

"And you know, before she comes back, I really mean what I said."

Castle looked back at Jim.

"I think you should do something about it," he said quickly as his daughter sat down across from him, tailing the end of the conversation.

"What are you two talking about."

"You." Castle said.

"Oh God, Dad, really. Don't tell him that story. It was one time. And I waited in line for three hours, not five."

"What?" Castle said suddenly intrigued.

Kate looked confused to her father.

"Katie, I didn't tell him that story."

"What story?"

"Nothing." Kate said as her eyes widened, "absolutely nothing, Castle."

When they were done eating, Castle reached for the check only to have Jim's hand cover his.

"Don't even think about it. I arranged this. It's on me."

"Sir – Jim – I insist."

Jim proceeded to grab the bill and pay for it.

"Thanks," Kate said.

"I should be getting home, it's late. Katie, it was great seeing you," he said as he hugged her. When they separated he reached a hand and put it on Castle's shoulder. Nothing more needed to be exchanged besides the smiles on their faces.

"I'll call you later in the week," Kate assured him.

Jim opened the door to the taxi waiting for him.

"Rick, think about what I said."

He shut the door and the taxi pulled away.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," Castle said as he put an arm around her shoulder leading her to the steps of the building.

"No, seriously."

"It's nothing, Kate. It's nothing that you don't already know."

"Then tell me."

He teased her with his smile as he pressed the button to the elevator. She smacked his chest trying to get the answer, but he kept his silence, guiding her to the open doors.

Okay, if you have not noticed I'm telling you how I feel about certain chapters (kind of my own type of reviewing that you can all see). I didn't feel as great about this one as I have about others (Chapters 5/6), but I need to get to a point in the future that I know will be worth it - just hang on. In the meantime, many of you have expressed great things about this story - on here and on tumblr - I still need a new description. I also was wondering if anyone wanted to make cover art for this story. Some of you are really good at that and I would love to see what you think of this. I know what I am seeing, but what are you guys seeing? I post every chapter update right to my tumblr and I sometimes put some things underneath describing the chapter, etc. My tumblr is in my bio.

Thanks,

Meg