Summary: A fluffy (maybe even sappy) addition to "Heartbreak Hotel"

A/N: So this has become a multi-chapter story, or maybe more of a series of new endings and a few mid-ep pieces for most of the S4 episodes through Always. I may end up and do all of the eps, but haven't made that decision yet. Hope you enjoy!


*white blinding noise* *head exploding in pain*

Castle cracked his eyes open, his hand reaching for the thing making the noise so he could kill it, strangle it, something.

But then, Kate's face came into focus on the screen of his phone. She was calling him.

"Hey," he said as he answered the call and sat up on the couch, his body complaining of his every move. How long had he laid here?

"Hey, Castle," answered Kate, "How are you feeling?"

He took in a deep breath, hoping his mind would come out of the alcohol-induced fog. "I'm okay, how about you?"

"I'm not the one who's hung over," she laughed, then said, "How about you open your door?"

"Why? Is this some kind of weird come on? There's no one here, and I'm talking to you." He rubbed his hand over his face and scraped his fingers through is hair. He really needed to never do something like last night again.

"Because," there was a knock on his door, "I'm here, and I've been ringing the doorbell for the past five minutes."

Castle jumped to his feet, knocked over the lamp, and immediately had to sit back down when the room spun and black spots started blurring his vision.

"Take your time, Trigger," Kate teased, he could hear her amusement in her voice, "I heard that out here."

"Very funny," he said, then tried standing again, this time, not so fast. "I'll be there in a sec."

He turned his phone off and carefully made his way to the door, stumbling sideways for part of it. It had been a long time since he'd had partied that hard. Ryan should thank him for the festivities, if Jenny let him live through the night.

Slowly, he opened the door, hardly able to keep in the pounding light-headed excitement as Kate stepped inside. It would have been easier if his head didn't hurt so.

"Sit down," she said, brushing past him with a large bag that smelled wonderful. "I brought dinner."

"Dinner? From the Comfort Food truck?" he asked, amazed by her. His head started to clear a little, just being in her presence. "I can smell the biscuits."

"Yes, early dinner. I heard you had a lot of fun last night, and figured you would be sleeping it off for a while. I guess I was right, since I woke you up." She smiled as she set the bag on the kitchen table. "There's macaroni and a couple of grilled cheese sandwiches, and I got a cup of chicken noodle soup for you, since I didn't know how your stomach was holding up."

It rumbled furiously in that moment, and he could feel the heat radiating from his face. It served him right; he hadn't eaten since last night, and he had no idea how long ago that was.

"I take it that was a good choice?" she asked, barely keeping the amusement from her features.

She really was beautiful beyond words, and it was hard to not tell her this time. "Yeah, I guess so," he joked, and took a seat across from her, trying not to look like he was intensely curious about the contents of the bag. "Did you get-"

"Hot chocolate," she stated, setting the travel mug in front of him. It was like she read his mind. "And it's still hot, so be careful."

Kate gave him the soup and set the other Styrofoam containers out. She handed him a plastic spoon and fork and said, "Have at it!"

If he didn't love her before, it definitely was true now. It brought tears to his eyes, knowing that she was here, doing this, just because. No one had ever done something like this for him before, and his heart swelled with it.

"You really should stop staring and eat before it all goes cold," Kate said, briefly meeting his eyes.

He smiled and dug in, liking this new stage of their relationship.

Castle took a spoonful of soup and almost instantly felt his headache lessen. "I feel better already. Thanks for coming here, and bringing this."

When Kate smiled in return, it made him feel warm all over. "You would have done the same for me. It's what partners do, you know."

"Yeah, I do," he said, enjoying the food. And the company.