AN: So, here it is! Sorry it took so long, got a little stuck on this chapter. This is unbetaed, so mistakes are mine. Thanks to those who have followed, favorite, and reviewed this story. As always, constructive criticism is welcome.
The weeks in the Hamptons flew by quickly and before Kate knew it, it was the middle of July. She was having so much fun with Rick and his family, always finding things to do around town. The weather was usually nice, allowing the small clan to visit the beach every day. However, on this particular day, it was starting to rain. The weatherman the night before had forecasted a thunderstorm for the following day. So, with much excitement, Rick had gone out shopping the previous day, and returned home with bags filled with every junk food imaginable. When Kate had asked what it was for, Rick just gave her a mischievous smirk and told her it was a surprise. She just rolled her eyes.
Currently, Kate watched rain from the living room window. Behind her, she could hear Rick shuffle around in the kitchen, emptying out the shopping bags and putting the food on the counters. She could also make out the opening and closing of cabinets. There was also the occasional sound of chopping and slicing. Rick had made her promise not look until he told her to do so. After a few more minutes, Rick spoke, "You can turn around now."
Kaye smiled and whirled her body to face the counter. Her eyes widened as she took in the sight before her. The counter was covered with bags of candy, pretzels, various chocolate chip flavors, and other snack items. There were also three bowls beside all the bags.
"What is all this?" she inquired as she picked up a bag of M&Ms and examined it.
"It's for trail mix," Rick explained. "Whenever it rains during the summer, Alexis and I make our own concoction out of all of the junk food we can buy." As he spoke, Alexis came down the stairs from her room.
"Did I hear trail mix?" She grinned.
Rick nodded. "Yep, just about to start making it. Want to choose a movie?"
"Okay," Alexis replied and then turned to Kate. "It's a tradition we do every year when it rains here, trail mix and a movie. We used to make a fort too."
Kate chuckled. "Why I am not surprised?"
"Maybe next time we can get all nice and cozy." Rick winked.
Kate shook her head. "So, what do you have?" She grabbed one of the bowls and began to look at the ingredients in front of her.
"Can you toast some of the marshmallows?" Alexis asked her father as she rejoined them.
"Sure thing." Rick moved away from the countertop to turn on the oven and then put some of the miniature marshmallow on a cookie sheet. Kate raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "What? You never roasted marshmallows inside before?" The brunette shook her head. "Oh it's easy; all you need to use is the broiler." Rick put the tray in the oven, leaving the door open. A few seconds later, he removed the tray to reveal nicely roasted marshmallows. "Voila!"
Kate grinned before carefully taking a few and placing them in her bowl. The trio commenced adding various snacks to their own bowls. Soon, the three had bowls filled to the brim with sugary and salty treats. When Rick looked at Kate's concoction, he chuckled.
"What?" she asked him as she nibbled on a bit of pretzel.
"You really do have a sweet tooth." He smirked, eyeing her bowl. The contents of the bowl mainly consisted of chocolate chips; cookie crumbs; pieces of hostess cupcake; multiple candies; and some popcorn.
"That's not a bad thing," she protested, leaning in. "Besides, I believe that's one of the reasons why you're attracted to me," she murmured, before gently kissing him.
"Mmm, yes," he conceded, before gently kissing her again. They stayed like that for a few moments, before someone cleared their throat.
"You guys going to watch the movie?" Alexis teased. Kate blushed as she moved away from her boyfriend. It was so easy to think they were the only ones around sometimes.
"Yes, we are," Kate answered as she walked over and sat down on the couch. Rick joined a moment later sitting on the end of the couch and beckoned her to sit with him. She smiled as she settled into his arms as Alexis started the movie.
"What did you pick?" Rick asked, taking a handful of his mix. Alexis held up the cover and beamed.
"Fitting," Kate commented as the opening credits flashed across the screen. The movie may have been a bit childish, but it was fine with her, Kate loved this movie.
So, she snuggled into Rick as they watched the movie, ignoring the pounding rain outside.
Rick smiled as he and his two favorite women watched the red-headed mermaid on screen. He was amused and slightly surprised when he noticed Kate mouth the lyrics to some of the songs. He chuckled softly as his fingers played with the ends of her hair. This caused her to snuggle closer to him, but she kept her eyes on the movie.
As the film neared its end, the three were all smiling at the happy ending the couple was finally obtaining. However, as the movie ended, Rick felt something vibrate next to him. He looked at Kate to see her furrow her eyebrows before pulling her cell phone out of her pocket. She frowned as she glanced at the caller I.D.
"I think I need to take this," she announced, before getting up and going toward the kitchen. Rick watched as she answered the call and began talking to whoever it was on other end. Alexis gave him a confused look; he just shrugged before turning back to Kate. His mouth turned down when he realized she was growing upset, her free hand grabbing her arm and rubbing it nervously. He walked over to her immediately, ready to comfort her if needed.
"Well, where are you now?" she asked the person on the other side. It was quiet for a few moments before she frowned, a hint of moisture in her eyes. "How long will you be there?" Silence. "You don't know? Where is she?" Kate's eyes widened at whatever the answer was. "That's it, I'm going there." Another pause. "No, I'm going. I want to see her myself. I'll talk to you more when I get there." She hung up the phone and let out the frustrated sigh, wiping her eyes with her sleeve.
"What's going on?" Rick asked, taking her hand in his.
"That was my dad, apparently Mom's in the hospital,"
"I'm sorry," Rick said. "How come?"
"Apparently, Mom wasn't as healthy as she led me to believe," Kate muttered bitterly. "Dad wouldn't tell me much; just that the cold she had earlier in the year never really went away and really affected her lungs. She's in the OR as we speak, getting a pic line placed in her arm.
"So now what?" Rick asked.
"The doctor wants her to do a treatment that will help improve her lung function. That's all I know though." Kate shrugged before heading into their bedroom. Rick quickly followed after her, worried about her mental status. She seemed calm, a little too calm. When he entered the room, he noticed Kate immediately went to the closet where her suitcases were and pulled them out frantically. She then began to walk toward the drawer where she kept her clothes and began yanking them out. Rick stood frozen for a moment, before snapping out of it and rushing to his girlfriend's side.
"Hey," he murmured, only to be ignored. He gently grabbed her arm, turning her to face him. "Hey," he repeated, a little louder and firmer this time. Kate looked at him, new tears forming in her eyes. "What are you doing?"
"I need to leave and go see her," Kate replied, starting to pack her clothes. "That means I need to pack everything." She refused to look at him as she went through the drawers.
Rick frowned, his heart breaking for her. However, he knew she wasn't being reasonable.
"Kate you can't go now," he said.
She turned and glared at him. "Why not?" she challenged.
Rick could feel annoyance beginning to build. He took a breath to calm himself before saying, "Because it's too late to be driving. It would be well after dark by the time you got into the city." Kate scowled at him. "Also, the weather isn't exactly the best to be driving in at the moment." As if on cue, a loud clap of thunder sounded which was followed by a flash of lightning. Rick raised an eyebrow.
Kate frowned, looking down at the floor. She wrung her hands nervously.
"Hey." Rick's fingers gently tilted her chin up and blue eyes met green. "We can go first thing in the morning, okay? I promise." He gave her a small smile.
"Okay," Kate agreed quietly. "I guess one day wouldn't hurt."
Rick pulled her to his chest and wrapped his arms around her.
"I know you want to see her, but I don't want you to hurt yourself either." He rested his chin on the top of her head. He felt the brunette nod under him. "Come on, let's start dinner. I have some chicken that needs to be flavored, something that you definitely know how to do." Kate had proven her cooking skills the past few weeks while staying with his family.
Kate looked up at him and smiled a little. Happy that his plan had worked; Rick led her to the kitchen, hoping to get her mind off of her troubles for a while.
The next morning was filled with tension and slight chaos. Kate had gotten up early to pack a bag that would be enough for a few days. The night before, Rick had filled Alexis and Martha, who had returned later that night, on what was happening. Kate was still too distraught to tell them what happened.
So, after having a quick breakfast and a much needed cup of coffee, Kate and Rick were on the road just as the sun started to peek through the trees.
Rick drove them, allowing Kate to collecting her thoughts.
As she tapped her fingers nervously against the arm rest of her seat, Kate thought about where they were headed, or more like why they were leaving the Hamptons. Kate was both upset for her mother's condition and angry that Johanna had tried to hide it from her.
Kate knew her mother was not the most forthcoming person when it came to her health. She often left out information or hid things from Kate until the last moment. The current situation was a perfect example of the older Beckett's behavior. Kate wished Johanna was more honest with her. After all, if her mother was pushing her to be honest and open up about her past, why couldn't Johanna do that with her own daughter about her health?
"Penny for your thoughts?" Rick asked with a raised eyebrow.
Kate sighed before repeating her thoughts to her boyfriend.
"Well, maybe she just doesn't you to worry about her," Rick suggested gently.
"I guess, but I'm afraid there's going to be a point where it's something fatal," Kate muttered. "I don't want to lose her to something that can be taken care of. I know I'm probably over reacting, but still…" she trailed off, leaving her thoughts hanging in the air.
"It's okay to be concerned," Rick responded. "If it was my own mother, I would be too, even if she does drive me crazy most of the time."
Kate laughed lightly at Rick's joke. Leave it to him to try to lighten the mood.
The rest of the car ride was silent, with the exception of Rick occasionally squeezing Kate's hand in reassurance.
Due to the light traffic, the couple arrived at the hospital in a little over two and a half hours. Once he parked the car, Rick turned to her and raised an eyebrow.
"You ready?" he asked, giving her the option to linger.
"Yeah," she said, wanting to see her mother a soon as possible.
The two exited the car, entered the hospital, and took the elevator up to the floor where Kate' mother was. After introducing themselves to the nurse at the desk, Kate asked for the room number. The nurse politely directed them down the hallway. When the couple arrived in the doorway, Kate saw that her father was sitting next to the bed where her mother was, laughing at something Johanna had said. He looked up and smiled when he saw Kate.
"Hello, Katie," he said as he got up from his chair to greet her. "Hello, Rick."
"Hey Dad." She gave him a kiss on the cheek.
"Hello, Jim," Rick responded, giving the older man a smile.
As the two men greeted each other, Kate stepped into the room. When she did, she was able to get a better view of her mother. Kate had to keep a frown off her face as she took in the sight before her.
Johanna lay in bed, her skin paler than the last time Kate had seen her. There was a blood pressure cuff attached to her left arm, along with an oximetry probe on her finger. Her right arm showed the beginning of a pic line, which had tubes coming out of it. The tubes led to the machine that was next to Johanna's bed.
"Hello, Mom," Kate greeted, taking in her mother's surprised expression.
"Oh, uh hello, Dear," Johanna greeted and then turned to Jim. "You told her?"
Jim shrugged. "Of course, I couldn't not let her know."
Johanna scowled before pouting. Kate just stared at her.
Seeming to detect the tension in the room, Rick spoke up, saying,
"Jim, why don't we go down to the café and have a bite to eat? It will give a chance for the women to talk."
Jim nodded, and shot his daughter a look that said;: "Go easy on her."
Kate pursed her lips, but nodded. The moment the two men left, Kate turned to her mother. She arched an eyebrow, the expression on her face let Johanna know that her daughter was going to be demanding answers.
AN: So, there it is! Hope everyone has a Happy New Year! However, I plan to write one my thing before the year ends, hopefully I'll be able to get it up in time. As always, constructive criticism is welcome.