A/N: Another short one, but I'm just doing some transitioning here. More to follow soon!
Detective Kevin Ryan was pleased that his life returned to some sort of normalcy in the weeks following Christmas and the start of the new year. He hadn't heard much of anything from Alexis, but after their kiss, he knew it was probably a good thing. They clearly needed some space or this friendship was going to fall into a hazardous territory, both to them and their friends. He respected that, he knew it was the right decision, and he was glad there hadn't been an uncomfortable conversation between them where it needed to be said. But still. He missed her.
It was as he was thinking this, as he mulled over some paperwork at his desk, that Alexis appeared coming into the bull pen from the elevators.
"Hey Alexis," Esposito greeted and Kevin looked up, a stupid smile taking over his face.
"Hey guys, is my dad here?" She asked, greeting them both nicely, then looking around.
"Yeah, he's in the break room," Ryan gestured where they could make out the figures of Castle and Beckett at the espresso machine.
"Thanks," Alexis gave both detectives a grin before heading over.
"What was that about?" Esposito asked, glancing over at Ryan.
"I don't know," Ryan said, shrugging. "We haven't talked much the past couple weeks. But it looks like good news."
Esposito turned back in the direction of the break room to see Castle and Alexis hugging, then Beckett and Alexis hugging. Esposito got up and wandered over to see what he could overhear. Ryan stayed where he was; if Alexis wanted him to know what was happening, she would tell him.
Sure enough, after a couple more minutes, Alexis left the break room, allowing Esposito in, under the guise of getting coffee, and she wandered over to Ryan's desk.
"Hey," she said, smiling and jumping up to sit on one side of his desk. He turned in his chair to face her, a half smile on his face and one eyebrow raised.
"Hey," he replied. "What was that all about?"
"I broke up with Pi," she said, not looking at all broken up about it. "I wanted to give it another chance after how well Christmas and New Year's went, but getting back to that apartment and thinking of spending a whole new semester stuck in the same loop I was in last year… I couldn't do it. It's completely not worth it. Regardless of how stubborn I am, I do want good enough grades this semester to be proud to get into med school, and not feel like I have to play catch up over the summer because I didn't do as well as I wanted."
"Ah," Ryan nodded. "A good decision, I think. Terrible to lead someone on when you've already decided the relationship is doomed."
"Exactly," Alexis said, thinking briefly of Ryan and Jenny. She wondered how long it had been that they'd had the same arguments, who was leading who on? She doubted she'd ever know, but what she did know was that he looked good. Tired, but as well put together as always, and the smile on his face always made him look good. "Oh, I wanted to return this to you."
Alexis pulled a key out of her pocket and handed it to him. She saw a flash of disappointment in his eyes, but he did take it from her.
"You don't have to, you know. No one else to use it."
"I know, but I have my home back again. And you are going to have dates," she replied, giving him a friendly half smirk. "Many dates. How weird would it be to say 'Oh sorry, by the way, this is my friend's daughter that just comes over sometimes,'?"
"Hmm, maybe you do have a point," he said, putting a fake thoughtful look on his face. "You know you're always welcome though, right?"
"Yeah, I do," she said.
Alexis swung her legs back and forth from his desk as he leaned back in his chair.
"So, last semester, senior year. Are you ready for it?" She'd been asked the question many times, but somehow when Ryan asked, it felt like a peace offering. He wasn't upset with her for giving the key back or mostly avoiding him for the past couple weeks. But the glimmer in his eyes also told her that he still cared. They were still friends. Maybe they'd had a crazy month and a half where no one else really seemed to matter, but that was behind them now. They were both content to move forward with their own independent lives. It gave her an odd sort of courage that she didn't even know she'd been looking for.
During the conversation between Ryan and Alexis, there was another conversation happening between Esposito, Beckett, and Castle.
"I'm glad to hear she's coming home," Esposito said to Castle after he and Beckett explained what Alexis had come to tell them. "I know Ry's been pushing her to for ages."
"He has?" Castle looked surprised, turning away from Esposito to look at Ryan, talking with Alexis, who had taken a seat on his desk. The pair looked strangely domestic, though they weren't even touching one another.
"Yeah, I guess she was having issues with Pi and Jenny had just left him, so they bonded," Esposito said shrugging, remembering the conversation with Ryan before Christmas. Looking at them now, it wasn't out of place to see them sitting close, joking with each other.
"I knew they'd gotten friendlier, but not how much," Beckett contributed, also now watching the pair closely.
"We just fought over a guy," Castle sighed. "We don't have to fight about Ryan now, do we?"
"Nah, man, they're just friends," Esposito chuckled, clapping Castle on the shoulder. "We're all glad your fight is over, no need to start a new one."
"Although," Beckett started, a teasing smile on her face. "They would make a really cute couple. Imagine the blue, blue eyes those babies would have."
Castle groaned loudly, stuck his fingers in his ears, and turned his back on all of them to walk out of the break room. Esposito and Beckett laughed, but then Beckett turned serious.
"You don't think…?"
"Not now," Esposito assured her, but as he watched Ryan lean back in his chair, relaxed and easily meeting the red-head's gaze. "In the future, though, I'm not so sure."
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Beckett sighed. "We'll have to keep an eye on them."
