oklahomasky1995 asked: Three word prompt: Tired of Bullsh*t
"Man, I'm tired of this bullshit!" Esposito threw down his pen and leaned back in his new desk chair.
"Javi, keep it down, she'll hear you!" Ryan remained hunched over his paperwork, casting furtive looks into Beckett's office where his new Captain could be seen frowning at her computer screen through the open blinds.
"Good. Let her. I'm not scared of Beckett," Espo shrugged, posturing, and Ryan suppressed an eyeroll. He knew for a fact his partner was lying, but it wasn't worth pointing out.
"What are you going to do about it?" he asked instead. "They're adults, and it's their marriage. Has nothing to do with us."
Esposito leaned forward. "Except it does. They're our friends. And Beckett being happy is now the whole 12th's concern. Our overtime pay is dependant on her mood now."
Ryan nodded sagely. With Number Two on the way, small bonuses like overtime made a big difference. "What's your plan?"
"Lock 'em up together, make 'em talk," Esposito replied promptly.
Ryan leaned back, folding his arms smugly. "Oh, really? Where are we gonna do that, huh? Beckett has the keys to more of this place than either of us."
Espo opened his mouth to respond automatically, then paused as he struggled to come up with anything to overcome his partner's rebuttal. "Fine, then, how would you do it?" he finally snapped.
"Not that way. Marriage is more delicate than that, man. No wonder you're single," Ryan shook his head at his partner.
Esposito's nostrils flared. "Or maybe I'm just too much man for one woman, Honeymilk."
Ryan simply smirked. He knew better than to respond to the jab. "I go home to the love of my life every night. Not a shoebox apartment filled with old pizza boxes and Mrs. Hernandez upstairs screaming at her husband.
Esposito waved his hand in dismissal. "You're straying from the point. What do we do about Castle and Beckett?"
"Nothing. It's not our business," came the prompt reply, as Ryan picked up his pen to keep going with the form he was working through.
Esposito sent him a withering look. "Seriously, bro?"
Ryan didn't even glance up. "What do you want me to say?"
Esposito huffed, grabbing his baseball and passing it back and forth between his hands. "What if it was Jenny who tossed you out without telling you why? What would you want to happen so you could talk?"
Ryan paused, pen hovering above the page, and let out a long breath. "Not comparable. Jenny's a completely different person to Beckett."
"Come on, you can think of something," Esposito huffed. "Don't make me ask Lanie."
Ryan snorted, flipped the page and filling out more of the form. "Yeah, like she'd help."
"She might. But that's not the point. You've gotta help me here." He stopped tossing the ball to lean forward earnestly.
Ryan gestured vaguely with his pen. "I don't know, invite them both out for drinks without telling the other, then get out of there before things get awkward?"
Esposito slammed his baseball back in it's holder, standing so suddenly his chair scooted back. "That's perfect! You call Castle. Friday's good, right? I'll talk to Beckett. You're a genius!" He ran off to tap on Beckett's office door.
Ryan slumped over his desk, head in his hand. There was no way this was going to go well. Beckett was going to kill them both, and then bust them down to traffic. Castle would never lend them the Ferrari ever again, or sign any more books for Jenny's grandma – the one thing that had charmed the old matriarch over at the start. He had too much to lose to go along with this.
On the other hand…
He thought about Castle and Beckett, and all they had been through, both separately and together.
With a sigh, he pulled out his phone, searched for Castle's name in the contact list, and dialled.
