Five Years in the Life.

Chapter 5

A/N: Okay, so by popular demand here is Richard Castle Christmas age 21. ;) This story is now going to be 8 chapters long and hopefully, between work, friends and family, I will have it done by Christmas. lol.

Yes, I know I messed up A Rose for Ever After was Castle's second book… but I'm just going to ignore that little tidbit of information and pretend like it was his 1st. Let's just call it a creative license. Lol. Oh, and I apologize if I get any of the ages wrong, but I figured that Castle would have been about 21-22 during this time.

Okay, now on with chapter 5. Thank you all for your responses to chapter 4 and I am so happy you love the story and want it longer! Remember, as always, reviews are love! :)

Twenty-one year-old Richard Castle ran a hand through his hair. She was pregnant. Meredith was pregnant. That wasn't supposed to happen. He had just broken up with Kierra. Meredith was a rebound. They weren't even married or really dating. Well, they had been out on a couple of dates but that wasn't dating dating. It was well, it was kind of dating. Casual, nothing serious, dating. But a baby? A baby was very serious. Rick ran a hand through his hair again. He would marry her. That was the right thing to do, the honorable thing. He had money now; he had published a book. He was young but he could support a family. He had a family now.

He stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and his eyes grew wide as hurried holiday shoppers cursed and skittered to avoid him. Oh, God. He had a family.

Rick looked around from where he was paused. He was outside of his favorite comic book store. He had a baby on the way and he was about to buy an engagement ring for a woman he barely knew but he wasn't too old for comic books, was he? He would never be too old for comic books. He would make sure of it.

Rick swung open the door to Comicadia and shivered as the warm air hit his freezing skin. It was the same as it has always been: the smell of ink and paper, the pimply fresh-faced teenaged boys digging through bins of comics. It was like coming home. He looked around the shop for a minute and let his gaze linger on the rack of books on display in the middle of the sale's floor. His chest puffed out in pride when he saw them. His book. He had written a book, it had been published and people were buying it. Would it be okay for him to squeal in delight? No, probably not. Instead, he settled on meandering over to the corner and checking out the newest Batman books. That way he could blend into the background and be inconspicuous as he kept an eye on his display.

Observing people wasn't creepy; it was research.

He glanced around the store and his gaze landed on a blonde girl standing in the corner by the door. He hadn't noticed her when he had walked in, but he was guessing that was the point. She was standing, shrunken into the corner studying her nails. It was like she was trying not to be seen. She was here with someone, Rick deduced, someone who had dragged her here. He continued to look around and his eyes landed on a tall, lanky girl who was looking through a bin of comics. Bingo. That had to be the blonde girl's friend. Girls always traveled in pairs or packs.

Rick watched as the tall brunette paused in front of his display of books and called Jimmy, the kid who worked behind the counter, over. They talked for a minute and the girl, Kate, Jimmy had called her, put back the comic and replaced it with his book. He puffed out his chest a little bit more. She may not be his target audience, but a sale was a sale, right? He watched as the girl paid and the blonde practically dragged her out of the store. Rick smiled, yup, the blonde girl was definitely not the comic book type.

After debating for a minute, Rick picked up a stack of comics and made his way to the register. He stopped at the counter and looked at Jimmy as the boy completely ignored him and continued to stare after the girls who had just left. The teenager let out a soft sigh causing Rick to laugh. Jimmy was at that awkward stage- caught somewhere between boy and man. His hand and feet were a little bit too big for the rest of his skinny body and his sandy brown hair stuck up at weird angles even though it was evident he had tried to fix it. He was geeky but cute at the same time. Rick shook his head. He didn't miss being a teenager- that awkward middle ground.

His hand came down to clap Jimmy on the shoulder as the boy continued to stare off into space, effectively shaking the boy out of his daze.

"Hey, Jimmy! What's up? Who you staring at?"

"Rick, hey! I didn't see you there," Jimmy blushed slightly as he tore his gaze away from the closing door. "Oh, that was Kate."

Rick started slightly, he would have guessed the boy would be staring after the blonde not the brunette, and chuckled as he took in Jimmy's love struck look. "You like her?"

"Like her? I love her! She's perfect. She's extraordinary!"

Rick looked at the boy and then back towards the empty doorway. "The brunette? Really? Her? No offense, kiddo, but unless she pulls an ugly duckling somewhere along the way, you could definitely do better. What about her friend? The blonde? She was cute."

"Madison? No way man, Madison is a complete bitch. She would never even look at a guy like me. But Kate, oh man, she is smart and funny and her eyes… did you see her eyes?"

Rick watched as the dreamy look crossed the teenager's face. The kid had it bad. "Well, why don't you ask her out?"

Jimmy looked up at him and panic flashed across his face.

"Ask her out?" Jimmy's voice cracked as it raised an octave. "I, um, I don't think I can do that."

Rick clapped him on the shoulder again as he gathered up the bag with his newly purchased items. "Trust me, kid, when you like someone as much as you like this Kate girl, you should just ask them out. You don't want to miss the moment and end up waiting until it is too late. You may end up regretting it for the rest of your life if you don't. If she really is as extraordinary as you say she is, you just need to grab hold of her and never let go."

Jimmy nodded and gulped causing Rick to let out another chuckle. "See you around Jimmy. Good luck. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Rick."

Young, fresh-faced, arguably ruggedly handsome, Richard Castle wrapped his jacket tighter around his body as he made his way down the street towards the jewelry store. He may not have a "Kate" in his life— someone he thought the world turn for, like Jimmy did, but he did have a baby on the way. He sighed and let a small smile grace his face. He had a baby on the way; an extraordinary little baby and that he needed to hold onto. He had to hold on and never let go. He could do this. He had his Batman comics and he was about to buy a ring. Maybe on the way home he would buy a pair of booties.

"Merry Christmas, Richard Castle," he murmured to himself as he pulled open the door to the jewelry shop. "You are about to be a husband and father."