The investigation was put on hold, as Beckett knew it would be. There was far too much to go through in a single day, and for security purposes they kept the documents in the wall-vault of Castle's office with not a single piece of data being entered into the computer. It was kept entirely old school but Beckett knew in the long run it would be entirely to their advantage to have done so.
On top of which, there was also the new cases that poured in every day and today, most importantly for Beckett and Castle, they had their birthing class refresher course with Andrea and Honey-Milk. It still both Castle and Beckett a little bit to get used to Andrea's pixie-esque haircut but it most definitely suited the redhead. She'd already had those large smoky eyes but now she looked like a Japanime cartoon with the auburn fringe falling at her brow.
'Castle,' Beckett murmured as they sat down in the comfy beanbag chairs of the classroom, 'I think we need to have sex after this class is done.'
'Again? Not that I'm complaining.'
'If I'm looking at Andrea and thinking she's hot, I need to do my husband pronto,' Beckett giggled.
'Can't blame you, Andrea is hot.'
'Nice, you pig.'
'Hello mood swings, can't say I missed you,' Castle teased her back, rubbing her belly. 'Will they be joining us for Shane's birthday dinner tonight?'
'Depends on if we get a little afternoon delight in or not.'
'Welcome back everyone,' Honey-Milk said at the front of the room, smiling at them all, and giving Beckett and Castle a little wink. 'Why don't we go around the room and introduce ourselves, and then we'll get started.'
When introductions had been made, they began to go through all the familiar routines; Castle was amazed at how much Beckett had remembered from their first time around with RJ. He remembered how much pain she had been in in the final stages but that was the magic of women, he knew - they had an extraordinary ability in their bodies to forget and remember and forget again, and then remember again.
Holding her hand tightly, he watched as she listened intently, just as if the captain was giving a briefing, to Andrea and Honey-Milk's instructions. As they were in a class of second-, third- and even fourth-time parents, much of the focus was on handling young children through the potential chaos of the birthing room and the long waiting of labour.
'Some of you may wish to have your children, especially first-time siblings, in the room during the early stages of your progress. This of course will depend on two major things, the comfort level of your child being in the hospital and the doctor's level of comfort with a small child in the room,' Andrea explained, writing it on the chalkboard.
'Excuse me, Nurse Brick?' One mother raised her hand like they really were in school. 'When you say being in the room in the early stages of labour, what does early stages mean?'
'Every doctor is different and you'll have to discuss that with you physician, Julie. Are there any more questions? Don't be shy, speak up if you have any concerns because chances are someone else probably has the same one and is too shy to ask.'
'I have a question about guests,' Beckett asked, smiling with motherly love as she rubbed her belly, wrinkling her nose at the little wince she felt. 'I have a large extended family and it's rather difficult to shake them from leaving the hospital. Any tips on managing them?'
'Of course. The biggest thing is noise management, as women in the maternity wing need their rest, so as long as they are kept occupied and quiet I don't think the number of people should matter. Food helps,' Honey-Milk added, 'as people tend to be less noisy and disruptive when they eat and it helps to keep them focused on something other than watching the clock tick down.'
'Fair enough.'
'What about keeping the mother focused since all labours are different?' Castle inquired, letting some of his own daddy worries creep out; he'd been through being a birth partner twice but there was something about this time around, whether it was Beckett's comfort level being so high or the new lines they were working on her mother's case that made him edgier this time around.
'Excellent question,' Andrea replied. 'Music and audiobooks are good, it gives her something to mentally focus on and not let her get too far into her own fearful anticipation of the birth itself.'
There were other questions, but Beckett tuned them out, looking at her husband. 'You really think I want to see a movie while this one is coming out of my body?'
'I was just thinking of when I put on The Little Mermaid for you when you were having false alarms with RJ.'
'Oh. That's sweet.'
'You sound just like him when you do that, you know?'
Beckett laughed, then rubbed her belly as it gurgled. 'Man, I hope they wrap this up soon, I'm getting hungry.'
It was not to be as they heard Andrea and Honey-Milk say it was now time to practice breathing techniques and various discomfort relief positions, which both Castle and Beckett remembered took at least two hours. Fortunately, they still made it to Shane's birthday dinner on time though the restaurant was over near Shane and Alexis' apartment. Shane had chosen Bangkok Palace, a little Thai place that was the antithesis of Spice Island; despite how much they loved it, there was always the risk of the real-deal ingredients not agreeing with their North American digestion and the last thing Castle wanted for his baby-mama was her gushing like a fire hydrant from either end.
The air smell deliciously of cooking oil and sauteed seafood, an item which Beckett had lost her taste for entirely with this pregnancy, but she knew there would be red meat and lots of it. She grinned when she saw the cozy but spacious booth near the kitchen, where Alexis and Shane sat with RJ, engrossed in a fierce game of Hangman. Alexis glanced up, then did a double take when she saw her parents approaching.
'Hey guys! How was the baby class?'
'Good, but long. I need a snack,' Beckett declared as she sat down beside her son. 'Hey my little prince.'
'Hi-hi Mumum, I winnin'!'
'Okay, Charlie Sheen, pardon me for interrupting.'
'Here,' Shane nudged a basket of bake roti towards her. 'There's chili dip for it if you want.'
'Nope.' Beckett ripped off a hunk of the bread and crammed it in her mouth, relishing the chewy texture. 'Great jus' like this.'
Mumum, lit-tle bites, you gonna be sick,' RJ told her, rubbing his mother's bump. 'Hi-hi, bumpy, you learn lossa at suh-chool to-day?'
'RJ, it's a class for helping me to know what to do when the baby's actually born.'
'But bumpy gotta know whatta do too.'
'Babies are smart, RJ,' Castle informed his son as he flagged down the waiter. 'Don't worry, your bumpy will know what to do when it's time for his or her birthday.'
'Her bur-day, Daddy, I guessin' it a gil. My sisser Sho-ana.'
'And what if it's a little boy like you?' Alexis inquired, charmed by her brother's certainty. 'You have a name all lined up for that possibility too?'
'Uh-huh, if bumpy a boy, he name Alessander.'
'That's pretty close to mine.'
'Uh-huh, but you my Alessis. You jus' you.' RJ wrapped his arms around her body, pecked her cheek. 'You the bes'.'
'And here I was thinking that me, the birthday boy, would get all the attention,' Shane teased them, then looked at the package Castle passed him. 'What's this?'
'A new car,' Beckett deadpanned.
'Good job folding it up.' Shane ripped into the present and grinned at what he found. 'Hey, check this out, Lex!'
'What is it?' She craned her neck over to look at the gift, felt her jaw drop. 'Oh my god, Dad, where did you find that?'
'Nancy Cartwright was at one of my book signings and we had coffee when it was over, I said my future son-in-law was a big fan and would probably love her autograph for a birthday present. Three weeks later, my publisher mailed me that.'
Shane flipped through the signed copy of the Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire script, the cover page of which had been signed by all the cast members. 'I feel like I've just been handed a piece of a UFO.'
'Why are you so addicted to that series?' Beckett asked, wondering why she'd never thought to ask it before.
'When I was a teenager in Israel, it was the only American show I was allowed to watch, and I thought it was amazing. My dream when I was about twelve was to be the voice of Milhouse. When I moved to the States, I was learning English by watching reruns and it made my homesickness for everything familiar be not as bad as it could have been.'
'That nice,' RJ said, then looked at his parents. 'Mumum?'
'Yes.'
'If bumpy a boy, we name'im Alessander Sim'son?'
