A/N: I'm nervous to post this chapter because, as much as I tried to read up on it, some of the things may be wrong. Like I said I'm not a doctor nor have I ever given birth and I'm just going by what I've read… If anything is too out there you can tell me and I'll change it if I can…

"Oh God! Okay! Baby! Oh, okay baby! Okay! Okay baby!"

She watched Castle freak out in front of her, flailing his arms around, eyes wide pointing to her belly. She was breathing quick short breaths as she was supposed to, waiting for him to quit freaking out and get her to a hospital.

"I don't think that is how you are so supposed to react right now." She breathed, wincing in pain as she felt a contraction rip through her.

"Right! Right! I should…I should!" He fumbled, looking around completely lost.

How had he even done this before, wasn't she the one who was supposed to be freaking out right now? He already had a kid, then again she was freaking out, she was about to give birth, but she had other things to focus on right now, like breathing.

He was still looking at her at a complete loss, as if he didn't know what to do.

"Get the car!" She yelled as he sprang into action, finally, still babbling nonsense. If he kept this up, she was going to end up having this baby right here in his kitchen and from his reaction right now, she was sure he wouldn't be able to handle giving birth to a baby.

"Get the car! Okay okay! I'm gonna get the car, Uh I need keys, where are my keys, where the hell are my keys?"

Was he serious right now? He had been hovering over her all day, ready to take her to the hospital because of a few contractions and now he couldn't find his keys? She fixed him with the best glare she could manage as another contraction took her breath away and she doubled over in pain.

"Don't look at me like that babe, I know what I'm doing okay? I'm gonna get the keys, I'm totally and completely calm."

If this is what he called calm, she didn't want to know what his panicked was. All she knew was that she needed to get to the hospital and Castle was still running in and out of the rooms in the loft searching for his keys, which were right where he left them on the coffee table.

"WHERE THE HELL ARE MY KEYS?!"

Men are so not made for this, she waited until he gave his attention back to her.

"I can't find them, do you have them babe? Do you have the keys?" He panicked, turning in a circle.

"Castle!" She yelled, getting his attention.

"Coffee table." She panted. She just needed to get to the damn hospital now, she would yell at him for this later.

"Right! Okay! Here we go!" He nodded, coming over to her to help her stand and walk over to the door. He grabbed her hospital bag that had been packed and waiting by the door since month seven.

They reached the elevator and he pressed the button, multiple times before the elevator opened in front of them. It was empty, thank God, she didn't want to freak anyone out in her labour and if she had to kill Castle, there would be no witnesses.

"How you feeling?" He asked, still sounding hysterical, eyes still wide.

"I don't know Castle, I'm about to push something the size of a water melon out of me, how do you think I feel?" She said, breathing deeply and leaning into him.

He wrapped an arm around her, to help her stand, afraid she would fall as she groaned in pain as another contraction hit her.

"How far apart are they?" He asked.

"About six minutes."

She gripped his hand tightly as she tried to breathe through the pain, she wondered if she could go through with her decision not to take an epidural because God damn, contractions alone were painful.

The elevator finally opened and he led her out into the parking garage, quickly locating her car and opening it up, sitting her inside. He ran around to the driver's side and started the car and pulled out of the garage into the traffic.

"Castle," She breathed, struggling to find a better position. Her hair was sticking to her skin and there was a sheen of sweat covering her.

"Yea honey, I'm gonna get you there don't worry!" He slammed his foot down on the gas, cursing when he saw a red light ahead.

"It's so hot in here, oh my God!"

"The A/C's blasting Kate." He turned to her as she reclined the seat.

She was groaning and rubbing her belly, breathing through yet another contraction, this baby clearly did not want to wait.

"Someone's impatient, just like her mom." He chuckled as he waiting for the light to turn green.

"This isn't the time to make jokes and why the hell are we not moving!?" She yelled, making him jump in his seat.

"Well, Kate, the light's on red." He tried to explain calmly to her.

"I don't care about any God damned red light Castle! You're in a damn police car, turn on the sirens!" She yelled, gripping the seat in pain.

"Right!" He quickly turned on the sirens and manoeuvred around all the cars in front of him, speeding through the red light.

"Oh my God!" She moaned, "Castle, I need this kid out of me now!"

"I know honey, don't worry, we're almost there okay?" He soothed her, holding her hand, allowing her to squeeze it as she went through another contraction.

"They're closer together now." He noted as he sped around a corner, grateful to see the hospital now in sight.

"Thanks for the info." She snapped at him.

"We've reached this stage." He sighed.

"What stage?"

"The stage when you're irrationally angry with me."

"Irrational? Castle I wouldn't be in this pain if it weren't for you! This is your fault!" She squeezed his hand, causing him to flinch.

"We're here!" He yelled, pulling up the hospital, prying his hand from his and jumping out to get her.

They made their way into the lobby of the hospital, Kate breathing hard and Castle wincing in pain as she gripped his hand.

"Hey! Hey! I need a doctor! My fiancée is having a baby!" He yelled.

Immediately a bunch of nurses came rushing and Kate was placed in a wheelchair and being wheeled to a hospital room.

Shortly after, Kate was on the hospital bed, with Castle by her side, being examined by Dr. Addison. Castle was wiping the sweat off of her head with a cold cloth as Dr. Addison was examining Kate.

"Okay Kate, you're 5cm dilated, that means you can't give birth just yet, we have to wait a little longer until you're sufficiently dilated okay."

"You mean I have to go through this for more hours?" She asked, incredulous, "You've got to be kidding me." She dropped her head back on the bed as Castle reached over to sweep her hair out of her face.

"Ssh, it's okay, you're gonna be okay."

"You're not the one giving birth! Don't tell me what I'm gonna be!" She yelled at him.

He glanced hopelessly at Dr. Addison who was grinning at him.

"Good luck." She winked at him and left Kate to him.

"How you feeling?" He asked quietly.

"I need this baby out of me Castle." She said, tears rolling down her face.

"That bad?" He asked, wishing he could do this for her, take the pain from her, he hated seeing her in any kind of pain, but he couldn't.

She nodded, slamming her eyes shut, screaming out at another contraction. They were closer now, lasting longer. She just hoped she would be dilated enough soon because this was hell, she just hoped it would all be worth it. He knew it would be, when they heard their child crying for the first time and held her for the first time.

A moment of silence passed, save for the steady beeping from the machine monitoring both Kate's and their baby's heartbeat.

"It's gonna be okay right?" She turned to him, seeking the reassurance she always sought from him.

"Definitely, you're gonna have this baby and you're gonna absolutely love her and it will be all worth it Kate, I promise you." He told her.

She tugged on his hand, pulling him closer. He leaned forward and placed a soft kiss to her lips before she broke it, gasping as she felt another bout of pain course through her.

"I swear to God, she's gonna be just like you all the pain she's causing me." She laughed through her tears.

"Yea, but you love me." He grinned, kissing her again.

They remained in the room for another two hours, Kate was growing more agitated by the hour and had no more kind words for Castle, but he hadn't left her side, hadn't let her hand go.

He was beginning to get nervous, her contractions were extremely close, close enough for her to go into active labour, but she still wasn't fully dilated and it was driving him mad.

He jumped out of his seat when one of the machines started beeping quickly and all the nurses swarmed Kate, Dr. Addison following.

"Okay Kate, we have a problem."

"What!?" She gasped.

"Your baby's losing oxygen and your labour is not progressing. You're not dilated enough to have a vaginal birth and if we keep her in there any longer, she could suffocate." She explained.

"So, this means … "Castle glanced at Kate who was taking deep breaths, he wasn't even sure she was listening.

"She has to do a C-Section. Now." She explained as some nurses transferred Kate to a gurney. Kate didn't let go of Castle's hand as they began to wheel her out of the room.

"But she'll be okay right?" He asked, practically running beside the gurney.

"If we get her to the operating room now." Dr. Addison replied.

"Can I stay with her?" He asked, looking down at Kate who looked like she was in severe pain.

"Just hurry up and suit up, we can't wait." She replied, as they wheeled Kate into the operating room.

"Kate, honey, I'm gonna suit up, I'll meet you in there okay?" He whispered in her ear, prying his hand from her grasp.

"Hurry." She whispered.

He nodded as she disappeared behind the doors and he was handed scrubs and directed to wash his hands thoroughly before he could join her.

Once he did as he was told, he entered the room and saw Kate spread on a table and made his way around to her top half.

"Okay Kate, we're gonna give you a spinal block, so you won't feel the pain and you can stay awake for this." Dr. Addison explained.

Kate could only nod as they gently rolled her on to her side and inserted the spinal block and rolled her back onto her back.

"Castle." She reached out for him, seeking out his hand. He quickly slipped his hand into hers and gave it a squeeze, letting her know he was here with her.

"We're having a baby." She whispered.

"Yea, we are." He smiled, kissing her forehead.

He watched as the nurses rubbed her belly with an antiseptic and tested to see if she could feel any pain by pinching her stomach. When they were sure she could feel no pain, Dr. Addison took her position and carefully a horizontal line above her pelvic bone.

Castle was completely in awe and shock as he watched what was happening, he had never had this opportunity with Meredith. She had had a vaginal birth, but she had kicked him out of the room, she did not even get to see when his precious Alexis was born and so he was soaking up every moment of this he could, although he didn't know if his stomach could take it.

He felt Kate squeeze his hand and looked down at her.

"What's happening?" She asked.

He glanced back up as the doctor continued cutting her, before reaching in and separated her muscles. She finally reached the womb and made a small incision.

His heart stopped when he saw the baby's head and the doctor's reach in to pull her out.

"She's here." He whispered tearfully as the room was immediately filled with a loud cry.

"She's beautiful." He whispered, watching as the pulled her out and cut the cord, quickly taking her over to the examining table to make sure she was okay and clean her off.

The doctor continued to work on Kate, delivering her placenta before closing her up. He glanced down at Kate and was shocked to see her eyes closed and tears streaming down her face.

"Kate? What's wrong?" He whispered, kissing her knuckles.

"I don't know." She answered her voice shaky, "Where is she?"

"The nurses have her." He told her, concern focused on her right now, why was she crying? These didn't look like happy tears to him.

She nodded and kept quiet while the doctor worked to stitch her back up and remove the spinal block. They began wheeling her to the recovery room.

"Okay Kate, your baby is fine and we'll bring her to you in recovery, I know you can't wait to see her." Dr. Addison smiled.

Kate nodded, smiling a tight lipped smile. Something was wrong, Kate didn't look happy or excited to see her child and it worried him.

"Kate are you okay?" He asked, once they were left alone in her recovery room.

She stared up at the ceiling for a while, before slowly turning her head to him.

"I don't feel anything." She said quietly, ears forming in her eyes.

"What do you mean you don't feel anything?" He asked her, coming closer to her.

"I thought I would feel happy, relieved, excited to see her but… I'm not." She looked away, wiping at her tears.

"I'm sure when you see her, hold her for the first time, that will change." He assured her, also trying to assure himself. Kate wasn't reacting how he imagined she would, what if she didn't love her? He couldn't do this alone again.

His attention was drawn to the door as a nurse made her way into the room, holding a bundle in her arms, wrapped up in pink.

"Ready to meet your little one?" She asked, smiling.

Castle glanced at Kate who was looking in the opposite direction, tears still running down her cheeks.

Castle stretched out his hands, accepting the small child as the nurse left the room, giving them time to themselves.

"Hey there." He smiled, looking down at their beautiful baby girl, who was staring up at him with wide blue eyes and flailing limbs.

A smile broke out on the baby's face and she began kicking about happily as if she recognized the voice of her father, the voice that had soothed her so frequently over the last nine months.

"You're finally here." He whispered, tears blurring his vision.

"She's so beautiful Kate." He said, allowing the baby girl to grasp his index finger with her tiny fingers.

He was so overcome with emotion, feeling the soft, warm skin of his new born child, watching her wiggle around and smile up at him, smiling a bright toothless smile. She looked just like her mother.

"Do you wanna hold her Kate?" He asked, hoping she'd say yes, hoping her feelings would change when she saw this tiny bundle of joy.

She began reaching for her mother when Castle held her out to her.

"No."

Castle couldn't believe what h just heard, did she say no? She didn't want to hold her?

"Are you sure? She looks just like you, except, she has blue eyes." He tried again.

She didn't respond.

Dejected he drew the baby back to his chest and as if she could sense her mother's feelings, the baby girl's face twisted and she began to cry.

Castle stood and walked around the room, bouncing the baby, trying to sooth her, but it wouldn't work, she wanted her mother, but her mother didn't want her.

"Kate?" He pleaded again.

She closed her eyes and folded her arms across her chest, slightly shaking her head.

What was wrong? A few days ago, she was excited and they were discussing names, speaking of which, they had yet to name her, but he couldn't do that alone, he needed Kate to be in this with him, but she seemed so far away.

He was grateful when Dr. Addison appeared in the doorway, looking between Kate and Castle, a look of understanding on her face. She motioned for Castle to follow her.

"Kate, I'll be right back okay?" He told her.

She didn't reply.

Castle made his way out of the room, following Dr. Addison into the hall. The doctor reached for the baby and placed her on her shoulders, gently patting her back, while bouncing.

"How's Kate?" She asked.

Castle ran his hand through his hair, feeling stressed already.

"She doesn't want to hold her, she seems, I don't even know. " He told the doctor, as the baby continued to cry. "She thinks her mother doesn't love her." He gestured to the crying baby.

"It's totally common this type of behaviour, to feel like you're not happy or feelings of hopelessness or inadequacy." She explained.

Castle nodded, "She always worried about not being a good mother."

"And now that the baby is born, she's being faced with those problems again. It's just a bit of post-partum depression." She told him.

He looked around, in the direction of Kate's room.

"How long does it last?" He asked, feeling a bit hopeless himself.

"It depends on how it's treated, in Kate's case, we could give her medication or you could make her feel like she's good enough, try and involve her in the baby issues, but don't overdo it, that could drive her away."

Castle nodded, looking at the baby in the doctor's arms who had stopped crying now, but was quietly whimpering. She had to know her mother loved her, she just doubted herself. She loved her so much she didn't want to fail her.

"She needs to be fed though, so try and convince Kate to do that, otherwise, we're going to have to resort to formula and it's best at this stage for a baby to receive the milk from her mother."

He accepted the baby from the doctor and made his way back to Kate. Depression or not, the baby was hungry and needed to be fed, he just hoped he could convince Kate to feed her.

He just hoped it wouldn't last too long, he couldn't deal with raising a child on his own again. He would do anything to convince Kate she wasn't going to be a bad mother, that she was going to be the best mother this child could possibly have.

He looked down at the fussing child in his arms and took a deep breath.

"Wish me luck little one, she's always been a stubborn one." He spoke to her, smiling when she made a baby sound in response.

"That's my girl."

He smiled as he opened the door to face Kate again.

End A/N: In the beginning, Castle's reaction, for those of you who watch Bones, is the reaction Hodgin's had when Angela went into false labour in the episode "The signs in the silence" I just found it hilarious so yea, shout out to Bones there. I'm hoping I got most of the information here right, I don't want to misrepresent medical information, so like I said if there's anything wrong in this, please tell me, so I can fix it. Leave me a review? Please? Let me know I didn't screw this chapter up? Thanks.