Home is Where the Heart Hangs Out Postscript
An AU story that peeks in on a visit by Castle while Beckett is recovering from being shot at Montgomery's funeral. A Postscript to the original story.
A/U: This is just a quickie that a few asked for. Rick visiting Kate while she's at her family's cabin recuperating.
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Kate was dragging. She had been all positive and smiling till her cheeks hurt in order to convince her dad that he could go home for a while. She knew she'd been a bitch for those first few weeks and it had to have been a living hell trying to put up with her moods and outbursts. It was a miracle that he didn't disown her, or strangle her.
But she had finally managed to convince him that he could go home for a while. The only reason she was able to persuade him to go was that she told him she'd call Castle and see if he could come up for a few days.
She hadn't. She didn't want him to see her like this. Before this happened she had been living at the loft for nearly two years. It was working well, and they were able to deal with it as work partners and two good friends. At the time they were both seeing other people romantically.
Hah! What a joke that had been. Both had ended their relationships months prior. Josh and her had realized that his constant being gone on his Doctors without Borders just didn't make for a solid foundation for a relationship. And apparently Rick and Gina had decided to take their relationship back to business only around the same time.
Neither had mentioned the fact back when it happened. Both were too embarrassed to confess their failures in their dating lives. Kate realized that she had stronger feelings, stronger than just friends for Rick going back to the summer fiasco that almost put her on the streets.
She had been living at the loft for months after Scott Dunn blew up her apartment, Castle had stepped up and offered her his spare room to stay in until she could get back on her feet. She never left.
She wasn't sure if it was Tom Demming's pursuit of her that pushed Castle back into the arms of his ex-wife Gina, or if his assumed indifference to her seeing Tom had driven her to stay with Tom longer than she had planned.
She was able to admit that her dalliance with Tom, which never got further than a couple of pretty innocent dates, had started as means to get Castle a little jealous. Sure, he'd asked her to go to the Hampton's with her, but he made such a big deal of how innocent, and 'just friends' it would be. She wanted him to acknowledge she was more than just a friend.
Rick had stayed in the Hampton's much of the summer. In that time she's stayed at the loft with only occasional interactions with Alexis or Martha. She had dumped Tom before Rick ever left, but when he showed up at his going away for the summer party, he showed up with Gina before she had a chance to swallow her pride and ask him if the invitation was still valid.
Needless to say, she never got out to the Hampton's and Gina was still around when he got back. Over that summer she just happened to run into Josh at a gas station filling up their bikes. They chatted, traded numbers, and being horney did the rest.
As anyone who knew either one of them would have realized. Neither relationship had a chance in hell of working for very long. If she hadn't been shot when she had been, she and Rick might well be exploring the whole girlfriend/boyfriend experience now.
But she couldn't risk it right now. She had told Rick that when she had a chance to get a handle on her recovery she'd call him and have him come out to the cabin for a visit. The thought had been that they might be able to become more than just friends.
But seeing the way her dad ran out of here as soon as his conscience would let him, she couldn't risk putting Rick through that right now. Not while their budding romance was still is such a vulnerable state.
A few days with Beckett the she-devil and he'd run like an Olympic sprinter as fast and as far away as he could. She'd come back to find her stuff in boxes on the sidewalk.
She didn't want to show him what a bad patient she was.
In her defense she was in a lot of pain, and the rehab was frustrating because she didn't see any immediate results for the torture the physical therapist was putting her through. It wasn't fair. Getting shot in the chest was bad enough, so why did her supposed healing hurt more than getting shot!
She was slapping around the living room in her bare feet, wearing an old robe that had been left at the cabin by her Aunt Teresa decades ago. She liked it because it was roomy enough for her to get off and on without lifting her arms higher than her shoulders.
Right now that was the one physical problem that bothered her the most. It was maddening not being able to raise her arms high enough to actually wash her hair, and dry it, and comb it.
She looked like the Wicked Witch of the West. All she needed was a conical hat and a cackle.
Her father had left hours ago, and she decided she'd look for something to eat for lunch. A late lunch. Thank god it wasn't a physical therapy day, yesterday almost did her in. If she'd had her gun she might have shot her therapist right there.
He had brought her to tears and if there was anything she hated the most, it was looking weak. After he was done with here she was a weeping puddle of broken flesh and spirit.
As he gathered up his stuff he nodded at her and gave her a wink. "You're doing okay," was all he said. Unfortunately even if she'd had her gun, she would have been too weak to lift it to shoot him.
She'd been staring at the open cupboard for several minutes now, but she realized the she wouldn't be able to reach the box of cereal that was on the top shelf. And since she didn't really feel like heating up a can of canned spaghetti, she wasn't sure what she wanted to do.
Maybe she'll just go out on the porch and sit on the swing until she was ready for her nap. That had pretty much become her life since her shooting. Either she was in pain or asleep. And it was only the pain pills she was forced to take that let her sleep much.
She hadn't walked more than a couple steps when there was a knock at the door. Her brow furrowed. She had no idea who that would be. The nearest neighbor was several miles away. Most of the people around this lake were on the other side, which was closer to the only town for miles.
"Hold on." She shouted out as she shuffled toward the door.
She reached out and pulled the door open. Her eyes got big when she saw who was out there. She suddenly was overcome by the flight or fight reaction… without the fight.
"Castle! What are you doing here?"
The man who'd been in her dreams many of these past nights was standing out on her porch with a bag of take out that smelled wonderful.
He raised a brow. "Can I come in? I brought lunch or dinner. Whichever you want it to be."
When he looked at her he almost laughed. She looked like she was going to run away. The expression on her face was one of fear. He didn't understand.
She waved a hand over toward the table that sat in the middle of the kitchen area.
"I'll be back." Kate turned and scurried into the hallway where he assumed the bathroom and bedrooms must be.
Castle found plates and silverware and set them out of the table in front of a couple of chairs. He pulled down some paper towels to act as napkins, then he proceeded to dish out the chow mien, over rice and noodles. He was thankful that it was still warm. At least it would be if she'd come out soon.
He checked the fridge and found beer, orange juice, and bottled water. He grabbed two bottles of water and set them on the table. He also put out a couple of glasses… just in case there was something else available.
Castle sat down and waited for her. It was another five minutes before Kate finally showed her face in the main part of the cabin.
She was now wearing a pair of baggy sweat pants and an oversized hoodie with the hood pulled up over her head. She also had on slippers and her face was red with embarrassment.
She sat down without a word. She shoved a few forkfuls into her mouth, like a starving street person. She finally looked up at him.
"Thanks, this is great."
"Apparently you father hasn't been feeding you." He smirked at her.
She shook her head. "No, it wasn't his fault. Much of the time I was never hungry. Most of the time I'd just go back to bed and wallow in my pain."
Castle's expression quickly turned to concern. "How are you doing?"
"As good as can be expected."
Castle gave her a hard stare. "And what is expected?"
She dropped her fork. "Oh, let's see. Pain, frustration, sweat, tears, continual harassment by a guy who learned his trade from the gestapo, and a father who will take me out of his will."
Castle smiled sadly. "I see. That sort of fits with what your father told me."
She looked up at his face. "You talked to my dad?"
He nodded. "Yeah, he called me this morning."
She grimaced. "So he told you all about my problems and poor showing in therapy?"
Castle shook his head. "No, that he was taking you out of his will."
Her eyes flashed as she glared at him. He just smiled at her. Her glare gradually soften, then her lips twitched at the corners until her lips surrendered to a smile, then laughter.
Castle slid his chair next to hers. He put his arm around her.
"He called me and said you needed a reason to smile and asked when I was planning to come out. I told him that you were going to tell me when to come to the cabin. He said that you'd never call, and that I should come out now. He thinks you need me."
Kate leaned her head against his chest and began to cry. He held her and let her get it all out.
Once the hiccups were finally over she leaned her head back to look up into his beautiful eyes.
"I'm sorry that you had to come out here and see me like this, but I'm am really glad you are here."
The Castle grin flashed on his face. "Me too. Now let me see that gorgeous face of yours." He reached up and pulled the hood down on her hoodie.
"No," she screamed and tried to stop him but it was already too late.
She closed her fists and her eyes, as her rat's nest of hair escaped from the cover she hide it under.
Rick reached over and ran some strands of her fuzzy hair through his fingers. \
"I'd say you need to use some conditioner next time you wash your hair."
She glared up at him through some stubborn tears. "I can't. It's so frustrating. I can't lift my hands and arms above my shoulders. I can't massage any shampoo into my hair. All I can do is stand under the shower and get my hair wet. Then I can't comb it out properly. I just walk around with wet hair until it dries, and turns all frizzy."
Castle pulled her into a hug. "I'm so sorry. I can see how that could be frustrating, and knowing what we're going to have to do is also probably upsetting."
Kate gave Castle a blank stare. "What do we have to do?"
"Well it's obvious, if you can't raise your hands or arms above your shoulders for some time to go yet, I'm afraid the only thing we can do it cut your hair really short so just standing under shower will be enough to get it clean." Castle smiled at her. "And it will dry really quickly too."
Her eyes got big. "What! There is no way I'm letting you cut off all my hair." She punched him in the chest.
Rick shook his head sadly. "Well that's what makes the most sense under the circumstances."
She shook her frizzy mane back and forth. "No way. Are you crazy?"
Rick took a breath and let out a large sigh. "Well there is one other thing we could try, but it will take a lot of trust on your part."
She squinted her eyes at him. "I'm not going to let you cut off my hair. What is this other idea of yours?"
Castle made a show of deep concern. "I know it might be hard for you to accept… but I could wash your hair for you."
Kate pulled away from him. "Are you crazy? If you think I'm going to… wait, that's not a bad idea." She wiggled her brows a bit then placed her hand on his chest. "The shower stall is kind of small, it will be pretty crowded in there."
Castle gave her a quick kiss. "I'm willing to risk it, if you are."
She sat up on her chair and stood up. She reached down with her hand. He took it and let her pull him to his feet.
They walked side by side toward the hallway. The bathroom with the small shower was at the end.
"Did you bring any other clothes with you?"
He smirked at her. "Will I need any?"
She began to unbutton his shirt. Then pulled it out of his pants. "Probably not."
By the time they reached the bathroom, there was a trail of clothing both his and hers on the floor of the hallway.
"You know," She looked up at him with her lower lip between her teeth. "I've haven't been able to wash my hair properly since before I got shot." Her eyes literally sparkled. "I think it will take many applications of conditioner, with rinse and repeats to repair the damage I've already acquired."
Rick nodded. "I understand, and I'm here and ready to do this for you as long we need to."
She went to her tip toes and kissed him on the lips. "My hero."
They were now in the bathroom. She had the water running in the small shower, and they were both naked and staring at each other.
"I hope you aren't against the occasional kiss and tender touches between the conditioning and shampooing?
"Oh, I expect more than just occasional kisses and tender touches."
"I think I can agree to that."
"Good." She drew her finger down the middle of his chest.
Castle ran his fingers through her messy locks. "What if, even after dozens to times doing this? Our skin is all wrinkly, and we've used up all the hot water and your hair is still frizzy?"
Kate leans against his chest and shrugged. "If all that fails, and we are still able to stand… I guess we just cut it all off."
With shampoo and conditioner in hand they both stepped into the spray of warm water.
FIN
A/N: Since I am currently in the middle of a longer heavier story I thought I'd toss out this little silly throw away just to remind all that I'm still around.