Last Christmas
Season 2
He'd been humming at her desk all morning, sitting in his chair and sweeping his eyes over the board. They were stuck until the search warrant came in. Beckett had suggested a coffee break and he'd happily disappeared into the break room, returning with two lattes and a few Christmas cookies. He'd been munching on the cookies and he was humming. The same song. Not even the whole song, just the chorus… and it was driving her mad. And when he wasn't humming, he was whistling. And he didn't seem to notice he was doing it. Or he was trying to aggravate her. She wouldn't put it past him. But then the singing started. She was trying to get some paperwork done and he was singing now.
"Castle!" She snapped. She couldn't handle hearing the chorus from Last Christmas for the 20th time in half an hour.
"Huh?" His gaze shifted to her annoyed face and he looked confused as to what had landed him in trouble this time.
"Some of us are trying to get work done," she gestured to the papers on her desk. "We can do without the musical stylings of Richard Castle. We hear enough horrible things on the job."
He knew she was teasing but he chose to pick up his coffee and started to play with his phone, while they sat in companionable silence. Until he started humming again five minutes later.
She sighed. "Do you at least know any other songs?"
"Why Detective Beckett? My voice can't be all that bad if you want to make a request?"
She rolled her eyes. "I just can't stand that song. It's overplayed and you've been humming it for an hour. Switch to something else or go harass the boys."
"It's stuck in my head," Castle shrugs. "I heard it in the cab. Boom. Whammagedoned on my way to serve my city. Where's the justice in that?" He complained.
She rolled her eyes. "Oh, you're such a saint Castle."
"As songs go, I prefer the classics. White Christmas, Winter Wonderland. Sitting round the piano, singing a few carols. But I guess Wham is a classic. Sort of."
"You play piano?" she could just picture him and Alexis, knows she plays violin. If anyone would make a production out of singing carols, it would be her shadow.
"No, Mother. When I was a kid it was just us and her theater friends, it was actually one of the most normal parts of my childhood. Alexis can still get her to sit at our piano and play a few songs every Christmas." He smiled fondly, the smile that warmed her heart towards him, the smile he had for his family and his family alone. It was sweet. "What about you, Beckett? Don't tell me you're a Mariah Carey fan."
"Oh no," she shook her head. "I'm not much of a Christmas person. I'm usually on call. I agree with you on Winter Wonderland though. That would be my go-to. My Dad used to sing that with…" She trailed off and he dropped the topic, only imaging what was going through her head.
He smiled at her, offering to make her a fresh coffee and the last cookie on the plate between them.
"Yo, Beckett!" Esposito called across the bullpen. "Warrant's in."
"Let's go." Grabbing her coat and the cookie from the plate, she led the way to the elevator and down to her car. She flicked the radio on, wanting to head off his singing before he could start again and groaned when the next song on the radio was Last Christmas. Castle laughed.
"Kill me now."