AUTHOR'S NOTE : hello everyone ! I hope you still remember this story. And yeah, sorry for the delay…was waiting for it to be beta-ed but sadly my Beta reader is busy with her exams and so unfortunately she couldn't Beta this chapter. But well, she has promised to beta the next for me. So here I thank her in advance for that. :)

Well, now I guess you all have to bear with one more chapter where a few grammatical errors might be there. I apologize in advance for that. I have tried my best to minimize them but a few could have escaped my notice.

And well ,this chapter is the pen-ultimate one. There is one more 'flash-back' chapter after this. Hope you all like it. Happy reading and please review!

And last but not the least...reviews are greatly appreciated. Thanks to everyone who took time to write those kind words. :)

The way he stressed on the word "TRUE LOVE", somewhat made them both wince suddenly to a pain that they felt some where deep inside in the chest…

She leaned on the door for a moment longer when suddenly a pair of hands slid through her shoulder jerking her out of her reverie. The voice said, "What are you doing here dear? And who was it?" when she just shook her head dismissively, he just was considerate enough to just let it pass.

"Ok, now come on…lets go to sleep, I'm sure we both have to leave early for work tomorrow." He smiled and led her to her room. She sure was going to have a troubled sleep tonight. But well off late she surely had those lots.

Chapter -2

RICKS THOUGHTS:

Now what was he thinking? He had just landed up on her door step even without bothering to check up what time of day or more aptly night it was? Seriously! He had lost his mind.

But the thoughts that led him there tonight weren't so confusing. At least that's what he thought … Today he had said "I love you" to her. Well what if he had been just reading some one else's love letter, he did mouth those words to her and suddenly there was that awkward moment after that between them… Oh my God, seriously both of them just wanted to run away from there, that very instant. But thankfully that moment just passed uneventfully.

Later his mom had asked him about whether he would do something extra ordinary for Gina? It got him thinking… Her question lingered in his head for a long time. He knew the answer as for whom he would risk it all, but well his conscious mind had decided to play ignorant, there was nothing he could do about that now ,could he ?

Then there in the morning they both had in some odd sense of the word, reunited two lost desperate lovers. It felt good to do that especially see those two young love birds hold hands, the purity of the gesture tugged at his heart strings. It was an adorable gesture. He was lost there for a moment; until she nudged him that is... he smiled, reminiscing.

But just after that something happened. She had offered to get him out of his hypothetical prison… Now that was a revelation! Kate Beckett just had offered to help him pull a prison break? That was truly extra ordinary! But, what did that simple sentence mean? Surely it had a deeper meaning in it, didn't it? He wondered. He knew the answer his heart wanted to hear, but his silly head still feigned ignorance. Most of it was because of the fear of being hurt... hurt again that is. No matter how much harder he tried, still the image of her kissing Demming did crop up in his head occasionally. It was one of the worst nightmares he had witnessed in reality. And strangely he didn't know why it hurt him as badly as it did then and well now too. It was not like he … he loved her or something now… did he? He felt scared to even think about it. But yet he felt hurt remembering the last day before he left. He never wanted to go, but the thought of watching her with some one else… just hurt too much.

Now wondering back to why she had offered to save him, he thought of the whole conversation with Esposito. He was telling him that a hypothetical situation like that would show him who his true friends were. Yes! A FRIEND… that was the reason she offered to help. She wanted to tell him that she was his true friend, and may be a true PARTNER may be? He smiled satisfactorily. The smile was the way his brain coped. It was denial, denial to the fact that he dint want to get hurt again that his brain was now finding ways to give her simple yet profound words a casual meaning which he could bear. Because this way he thought he was less likely to be hurt in future. But somewhere inside, a bit too deep inside his heart, there was this fear… the fear of this being really the actual reason; she really had meant it as a FRIEND… Something in heart ached at that thought.

So he decided whatever it was, he would cent percent not be able to sleep that night ,at least not before saying her thanks or may be even celebrating the fact that she actually offered to save him! Now how often does that happen? He was still overwhelmed by her gesture. God, he knew he just had to meet her. He had lost track of time as he was thinking of the same things over and over again from the time he had gotten home. And today since Alexis and his mom weren't there at home for the night, there was actually no one to remind him of his untimely plans for the rendezvous with the beautiful detective. So he just picked a new bottle which was lying in his fridge and headed off to meet her.

But now, he couldn't for some reason take it. He knew she was with some one else. Hell, he was with some else too, and that someone else being his own ex-wife! For God's sake, he can't be feeling the way he was feeling right now. It was just not right. But yet he felt… he felt bad, sad and yes, totally miserable too. And well other than the obvious jealousy, he was feeling something else too… what was it? Anger? Hmm, now that was inappropriate. He had no right to be angry at her. It's not like she had betrayed him. It was just yesterday he had been with Gina and she knows that too. And God, she didn't seem a least bit affected by that fact. It had hurt him in the slightest when she dint seem to bother. But then they had gotten busy with the case and he had forgotten about it.

He had almost fled from her doorstep, unable to think of the situation they were in. It was awkward. He needed to runaway as soon as possible. But he hadn't missed her "see you tomorrow". He winced, thinking of what he should say, when he saw her tomorrow. And see her tomorrow; that he certainly has to and that he knew by now. He couldn't survive normally if he didn't see her everyday. He had realized it the day when she had landed upon him with the gun and shouted,"NYPD put your gun down!" That was the moment he realized how much he had missed her. That was when he decided that no matter what happened he would never, actually he could never leave her. That was when he and guess she too had made that silent pact of being friends… just damn good friends. May be some day, he hoped to become her 'BFF' at least, if not for her 'BF'.

But now here he was sitting on her staircase which thankfully, people seldom took. He was just too overwhelmed by his emotions, to be steady enough to stand up and go home. He was wondering about what just happened and why he was feeling the way he was feeling just then. He shook his head with a knowing smile almost laughed and got up as if he knew.

Kate's thoughts:

Next morning, she was waiting for him. He hadn't turned up to the precinct. Not that there was a new case. But still, when did that ever stop him from coming there and bugging her? And more over, didn't he say that he would meet her today? Or was it just one of his Writer-ish ways of saying 'good bye -forever"? She feared. Hoping the summer did not repeat itself. But why was she worried? He wouldn't bother about her being with some else now, would he? He had Gina, right? Her heart squirmed at that thought, but somehow she convinced it was all for good and more importantly she wasn't bothered about that FACT. But well, even then her eyes were involuntarily darting to the elevator every now and then.

He came almost towards lunch time, smiling with a take away Chinese and two coffee balanced in his hands skillfully, almost proud of himself with managing the balancing act perfectly. She wanted whack that proud smirk out of his face! The gall of that man to turn up so late and that too with a smug look! Ugh, how much she hated him … how much… that she would never know.

He set them in front of her and then suddenly turned in all seriousness and said, "I'm sorry." She was appalled. How did he know what she had been thinking all night? Oh my God! Could he just read her like a book? That thought scared her. But he continued with his usual playful smirk and added "Sorry for not delivering your morning coffee ma'm. So to compensate I brought your favorite Chinese so that you wouldn't shoot me because of your caffeine withdrawal symptoms." She smiled and whacked him lightly on his arm and said," Good, I was just going to load my gun and turn up on your doorstep." She smirked and they both laughed but it was more from the relief than anything else that no matter what happened they would at least be there for each other. And there they sat, happily chatting and splurging on their favorite food. They surely were a perfect couple. Unconventional? Yes. But a perfect couple never the less...

"Is it alright, is it alright…

If I tell you how I feel?

If it's alright, if it's alright…

I just wanted you to know

How I do adore you so."

Lyrics from Jules Larson- "You know it's true"