Disclaimer: I don't own Castle… if I did, I'd be a lot more at ease for what's to come in season 4. :P
A/N: Anybody still alive out there in the Castle fandom? Well, if you are, I present to you the conclusion of If. Thank you all for sticking with me for this unique story. I hope you all will keep your eyes peeled for Connection. I'm thinking of posting it (at least the first half) in about a week or so, once I figure it out, I'll let you guys know. However I'll reveal the artwork to it some time tomorrow – and I'm sure Christy'll make the trailer public too. :D In the meantime, I hope you like the end to If…
Previously in If…
Castle looked from Beckett to Ryan and Esposito and back to Beckett. His mind started racing. This particular standoff was exactly like the situation he found himself in a year ago with Dick Coonan. Swallowing all his courage, he took one last look at Beckett for strength before he head-butted Jack. The next few seconds seemed to elapse in slow motion. As Jack reached for his nose that now bled as he aimed his gun at Castle, Beckett pulled her trigger. The bullet sailed toward Jack as Jack fired his gun at Castle simultaneously.
Jack went down, eyes wide, dead. All heads turned to Castle who staggered backwards. Ryan leaped in just in time to catch him.
"Castle!," Beckett ran toward him and knelt down. Ryan was now kneeling on the ground behind him due to Castle's weight, "Castle! Why in the hell did you do that for?"
"It worked last time," Castle managed a smile and looked down. There was a small crimson circle in his side, growing in size, "Well, that's not good."
"Esposito, call an ambulance!," Beckett ordered. Esposito stared at Castle before Beckett yelled, "Esposito? Now!"
"Right," Esposito shook himself out of it and dialed 9-1-1.
"You stay with me, Castle," Beckett said, grabbing his hand with one of hers and with the other, applied pressure to his wound. A small tingle went through his hand from her touch, "You're going to be fine."
"Yeah, Castle," Ryan echoed, "You gotta come to my wedding."
"Proposed to Jenny, then?," Castle assumed.
"Last night… Thanks to you for giving me the confidence boost I needed," Ryan smiled, "I need my co-best man."
"Wouldn't miss that for the world," Castle said, coming out in short breaths, "Wow, nobody ever really says how much this hurts, do they?"
"You're going to be fine, Castle," Beckett said, "You're going to be fine."
"I'll always be there for you, Kate," Castle said, his eyes watering partially from the pain and from the tenderness of the moment.
"Castle?," Beckett reached for his bangs that now stuck to his forehead from his sweat. He managed a small smile.
"Paramedics are on their way," Esposito informed them.
"See? You're gonna be just fine, Castle," Beckett smiled through tears, looking from Esposito to Ryan and down at Castle, "Castle?"
"I heard you," Castle said, his breaths getting shallower. He started to close his eyes and whispered, "Until we meet again, Kate."
"Castle! You stay with me!," Beckett yelled as Castle's eyes closed. The pain in his side was too much for him. She repeated his name over and over again, her voice getting more and more muffled as darkness consumed Richard Castle.
Now the thrilling conclusion of If…
Epilogue
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Beeps were the next sound Castle heard as he slowly opened his eyes. He found himself staring up at a white ceiling. As he became more aware of his surroundings, he felt someone holding his hand. Turning his pounding head, he saw the top of Katherine Beckett's head. Her eyes were closed as she laid on his hand, sleeping. He turned his head once again and saw his daughter curled up on a chair, lying against her grandmother, both of them sound asleep.
Rick licked his dry lips, whispering hoarsely and almost unrecognizably, "Beckett?"
When she didn't hear him, he flexed the hand she was holding and repeated himself, this time his voice sounding more like itself, "Beckett."
"Castle?," Beckett mumbled, sitting up and rapidly blinked the sleep out of her eyes. As soon as she saw his baby blues smiling at her, a smile crawled on to her lips, "Castle, you're awake."
"How long was I out?," Castle blinked and reached up to take out the breathing tube in his nose. Beckett tentatively stopped him, "You need that… you've been out for almost forty-eight hours. You had us all pretty worried."
"That's what I do best, right?," Castle tried a failed attempt at adding levity to the situation. He switched his gaze to his mother and daughter, "Have they been here long?"
"Almost as long as me," Beckett said, "Should I wake them?"
"Yeah," Castle nodded, "Though could you hand me that cup of water first? My throat's a little dry."
"Our favorite nurse here Christy Schatzie said that it's nothing but ice chips for you, Rick," Beckett said, taking an ice chip out and placing it in his mouth. She smiled at him as he began to suck on the small ice chip.
Beckett got up and slowly shook Alexis awake which in turn woke her grandmother, "Alexis? Your dad's awake."
"Dad?," Alexis said, wiping the sleep out of her eyes.
"Right here, sweetheart," Castle said. From hearing the sound of her father's voice, she shot out of her chair to be by her father's side, "Daddy, you're awake."
"I am," Castle replied, his voice soft, "Sorry if I scared you."
"I knew you were strong enough to pull through," Alexis smiled. Castle furrowed his brows. That was what she said in his study when she said she hadn't said anything. That was a strange coincidence.
"Castle," Lanie entered the room followed by Ryan, Esposito, and Montgomery, "Good to see you back amongst the living."
"Thanks," Castle smiled. The room was quiet for a few minutes. Nobody knew what to say until Castle cut the silence, "Kate? Have you eaten at all?"
"Not that much," Beckett shook her head.
"That's it, you've got to eat something," Castle stated, "I can't have my favorite detective fainting on me."
"I'll get her something," Montgomery volunteered.
"That's okay, sir, I'm fine," Beckett insisted.
"Nonsense, Beckett," Montgomery wouldn't take it, "I know for a fact you've been here longer than any of us and in that time, you barely have eaten anything. I'm getting you something from the cafeteria and you're going to eat it… and that's an order."
"Yes, sir," Beckett nodded as Montgomery left the room to get her something to eat.
"Ryan?," Castle turned to him, "How you doing?"
"Fine," Ryan nodded, "How are you doing?"
"Just dan-dy," Castle smiled, his reply was a little slurred, "Am I still your co-best man at… your wedding to Jenny?"
"Of course, Castle," Ryan smiled, "With Esposito."
"Awesome," Castle said. He started to sound a little loopy and looked to Esposito and Lanie, "Is your wedding next?"
"I don't think so, bro," Esposito shook his head, his arm around Lanie. She gave him a look, but let it slide under the circumstances.
"Sounds like the morphine is starting to work again," Alexis commented.
"Morphine?," Castle asked, wide-eyed, "Is that what that feeling is?"
"Maybe we should get somebody to lower it," Beckett recommended.
"Good idea," Alexis said with a half-laugh at the face Castle was making. She disappeared for a second and brought in Nurse Christy Schatzie.
"Glad to see you finally awake, Mr. Castle," Christy said as she came in and adjusted his bag of morphine drip by his bedside table, leaning over Beckett. She leaned forward on Castle so the nurse could get an easier reach. Christy smiled, "There, is that better?"
"Mmm, yeah," Castle smiled, wrapping his arm around Beckett's head. Everybody laughed at the position he forced Beckett into – she was practically lying in his lap. The morphine level in his blood started to decrease again and he looked more like himself. He took his arm off of Kate's head and she sat back up and fixed her hair.
"I hate to be the bearer of bad news," Christy started, "But now that you're awake, you actually need some more rest. That episode you had before when the last morphine bag was running on empty did a real number on you and your broken ribs."
"Is that what happened?," Castle asked, feeling his side and winced. He was more coherent and less loopy now.
"Yes, now your daughter and mother can stay," Christy said, "Family should be the only ones in here right now."
"Then they all should stay," Castle stated, "They're all my family."
"All right," Christy smiled, looking from everyone individually and back to Castle, "Ten more minutes, but then you should rest. You've had enough excitement for the day."
Christy left the room and Castle turned back to Beckett, "So… Broken ribs, huh?"
"Yeah," Beckett nodded and Ryan continued, "Two of them actually."
"Wow," Castle said, "They get the whole bullet out?"
"Bullet?," Beckett furrowed her brows and everyone else followed her, "What bullet?"
"The bullet I was shot with," Castle said, "I mean, it'd be kinda cool to carry it around with me, but I think that would lead to some medical complications in the future. Am I right, Lanie?"
"Castle," Lanie started slowly, "You weren't shot."
Now Castle was confused, "Yeah I was, I don't think I could forget that. How else would I have broken ribs?"
"From the truck," Beckett replied.
"Truck?," Castle asked and sat up a little straighter, "What are you talking about?"
"After you left the precinct the other night," Esposito started an explanation, "You were hit by a truck and broke some ribs in the process, as well as some pretty bad cuts and bruises."
Esposito gestured to his face. Castle reached up and felt some stitches on his forehead and one on his cheek. He looked down at his arms and saw some apparent bruises and scratches and widened his eyes at the sight. Castle looked up at Beckett, a little frightened, "A truck? I don't remember getting hit by a truck. Who hit me?"
"We've got him in custody," Beckett said, "And in an odd turn of events, the man who hit you, John Buns, was also the man who killed our victim. He was fleeing town and ran into you – literally."
"Our victim," Castle started slowly and licked his lips, wishing for another ice chip. His brain still wasn't firing on all cylinders quite yet, "Our victim Anna Snow?"
"No, our victim Ron Carlton," Beckett replied, "The case we were working on when you left."
Castle looked lost in thought for a minute and everyone let him process it. The doctors told them he might be a little out of it after first waking up. After taking a deep breath, Castle gathered up the courage to confront the matter, "Okay, I'm going to ask you something and I'd appreciate it if you replied truthfully."
"Of course," Beckett nodded, grasping his warm hand once again.
"Have I been shadowing you for the last three years?," Castle asked with all seriousness in his eyes.
"Castle," Beckett started, confused. Castle squeezed her hand a little tighter and said, "Please, just answer the question."
"Yes," Beckett said, "You've been shadowing me for three years. You're my partner, Castle."
"I'm back," Castle laid his head back on his pillow in relief.
"Richard, what are you talking about?," Martha asked.
"I don't know what happened," Castle shook his head, "It must've been all a dream."
"What dream?," Ryan asked.
"But I pinched my hand and I didn't wake up," Castle was talking to himself now and looked down at his hand, "Or maybe it was just the small prick of pain when they put the IV in."
"Castle," Beckett prompted, but he continued to talk to himself, "And that would also explain the out of context conversations and other things I heard."
"Castle," Beckett said a little louder, finally grabbing his attention, "What dream are you talking about? Did you have a nightmare?"
"I'll say it was," Castle replied, "You all didn't know who I was."
"We didn't even know you?," Alexis asked, stepping up, placing her hand on her chest.
"No, no, sweetheart," Castle shook his head and gestured to his friends from the precinct, "I'm talking about them. None of you guys knew who I was."
"How do you mean?," Esposito asked.
"We had never met," Castle explained, "Those murders, the Alyson Tisdale case, none of that happened."
"Wow," Ryan's eyebrows went up, "That must've been weird."
"Yeah, and I was hearing some out of context stuff throughout it," Castle said, "It must've been you guys talking to me. Alexis, you said you told me I was strong and that I'd get through this?"
"Yeah," Alexis smiled, glad he heard it. Castle turned to Martha, "And you were trying to get Beckett to eat?"
"Yes," Martha nodded.
Rick grabbed Kate's hand once again, "And you told me to come back to you."
A small tinge of red grew on Beckett's cheeks. Instead of a verbal answer, she simply just nodded and squeezed his hand a little tighter once again.
"Well, that makes a lot more sense," Castle said, "It really was all a dream, I'm glad it's over."
"Me too," Beckett said, "They weren't sure how long it would take you to wake up. After a few hours of surgery to fix any internal bleeding, they had to put you in a semi-conscious state for you to get the rest you needed to heal on your own."
"They told us to talk to you," Alexis said, "They said you'd be able to hear us."
"I did," Castle smiled.
A knock came from the door. It was Nurse Christy, "Sorry, guys, the ten minutes are up."
"Just two more minutes, Christy?," Castle pleaded, putting on his best puppy-dog-eyed look.
"Fine," Christy said, "but just one person."
"We'll meet you guys out there," Ryan said and pointed with his thumb to the door, "Get some rest, bro."
Esposito and Lanie echoed Ryan's wish. Lanie gave Castle a kiss on the cheek and followed her boyfriend and Ryan out the door.
"You go ahead and stay, Kate," Alexis said, "We've got plenty of time to see him."
"Thank you," Kate smiled at Martha and Alexis. Alexis gave her father another kiss on his cheek as Martha simply squeezed his shoulder. After a moment, they left the room as Kate continued to smile at them. They sat in comfortable silence for a moment when Kate's eyes started to water.
"Oh, Kate," Castle said and gently rubbed her tears away with his thumb, "Don't cry, you're going to make me cry."
"I'm sorry," Beckett sniffed, "I really thought we… I had lost you."
"I'm never gonna go away no matter what you or anybody else does," Castle smiled, "You're stuck with me. You can't get rid of me that easily."
"Good to know," Beckett smiled, her tears starting to subside. She dabbed at her eyes with her knuckle and gave Castle a small smile, "I guess even when you're semi-conscious your imagination still runs wild, huh?"
"Yeah, I guess it does," Castle smirked, "I don't ever want to see that world ever again. I'm glad I came into your life. That moment you came up to me at my book party changed my life forever and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world."
"I never want to see what my life would be like without you in it," Beckett confessed, shaking her head and took Castle's hand once again. In that moment, Castle knew what she said at the precinct before his accident must've been some sort of misunderstanding. She really did value him – he was her partner.
"Have you been holding my hand this whole time?," Castle asked, looking down at their intertwined hands.
"Yeah," Beckett said and started to let go, "Is it bothering your IV? I'll stop."
"No," Castle grabbed her hand once more, "I like it… I think it was the connection that kept me in this reality."
"You dreamed up a whole case with a victim and everything?," Beckett shook her head in disbelief and amusement, "You truly are something else, Rick."
"Yes I am," Castle smiled. Taking a chance, he brought Kate's hand up to his mouth and gave it a chaste kiss, "Thank you for being there for me, Kate."
"Always," Beckett smiled.
THE END
Well, that's all I wrote for this baby. And I would just like to state that the flipping of Caskett's lines of "Always" was written by me about five or so hours before The Dead Pool aired. It was uncanny when I watched it. Also, I clearly wrote the whole "family" thing before last night's episode. Man, I guess I know these characters. ;D I hope you guys liked the hand kiss that I put in there too. ;) I hope you all enjoyed it and liked the twist at the end.
I'm rather proud of the end scene – a tender moment between Castle and Beckett. Please reply and tell me what you thought. Out of the two Castle serial stories I've written so far, I must confess that this one has a special place in my heart. Connection will start to be posted in about a week or so. I do hope you all will check it out. It does explain some things that you might be confused on and gives this story a little bit more of a sense of closure. If you are confused about anything, just ask me and I'll try to explain to the best of my ability. ;D
Thank you to those of you who simply just read this story. You mean a lot to me too. :D
Clois and Caskett Forever! :D