Face to Face

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: I have not owned Castle for a very long time now. Rating: T Time: AU between Season Two and Three.

Author's note: Okay, absolutely nobody liked the direction this was going in. So, I've changed the story line completely for this chapter. I removed the Castle crucifixion scene with Gates presiding, completely did away with 3XK's murder of Alexis and Martha by beating them to death with marshmallows, not to mention the part where Espo, Ryan and Jenny get eaten by giant, rabid, mutant teddy bears. Oh, and the part where Senator Bracken slowly dissolves Kate in a bath of Kool Aid is out, too. Happy now?

The idea came to him as he was showering next morning. Okay, there was a down side to it if Kate was as angry and stubborn as he thought. But the downside to not doing it was having no Kate, forever. Rick got out of the shower and made a phone call, then went to his kitchen.

"Good morning, mother." He said, pouring himself a cup of coffee.

"You're in a chipper mood this morning, Kiddo. What's up?"

He smiled cheerfully. "I have a plan."

Martha frowned. "Your plans have a way of…"

"Being spectacular?" Rick finished for her.

"Not the word I was looking for."

"Don't worry. Now this may involve me being away for a little bit, maybe even for a long time, but don't worry. I'm sure I'll get Kate back. All I have to do is talk to her."

"She won't talk to you." Martha pointed out.

"Ah, but she'll have to." Castle checked his watch. "I have to be off now, Mom. I'll be back when I'm back."

"And where are you off to?"

"I have to go see Jerry Coleman."

"You're seeing your attorney? Your plan is to sue Kate to get her to talk to you? "

"Don't worry about a thing. I'll be back with Kate in no time."

"Sure." Martha muttered as the front door closed.

Rick walked into his attorney's office and was greeted by his secretary. "Mr. Castle, go right in. Mr. Coleman is always glad to see you."

Rick smiled at the lie and walked into his attorney's office.

"Rick! How are you?" Jerry held out his hand and Rick shook it. Jerry was ten or fifteen years older than Rick. His hair was receding and his stomach was expanding. He looked worried. Rick noted that Jerry always looked worried when he saw him. Well, that was the price you paid for being Richard Castle's attorney. "What can I do for you Rick?"

Rick explained his problem to Jerry and his proposed solution.

When Rick was done Jerry looked at him for almost a full minute. Finally, "Rick, are completely and utterly out of your mind?"

Rick nodded happily. "Of course. I thought that was a given with us. I get into trouble and you get me out."

Jerry shook his head. "I knew I should never have let you shadow that detective, or go anywhere near a real crime scene. How could I have let you do that?"

"Jerry, it 's not your fault. You're my lawyer, not my keeper. And if you thought I was crazy before, I'm a lot crazier now that I've met Kate Beckett."

"I won't help you. I can't do this. I can't let you do this. Do you know what could happen?"

"That's why I'm here. And Jerry, if you won't help me, there are lots of other attorneys in New York. Would you really want me to go into this with someone who wasn't as good an attorney as you are? Someone who didn't know me as well as you do? Someone who might not…"

"All right! All right. Let me look up the relevant laws." Jerry turned to his computer and called to his secretary. "Claire, can you bring us some coffee? And put something in it."

Kate Beckett rode up the elevator to her apartment. She had left it at 4AM and had been away for almost sixteen hours. She hoped she had made herself tired enough to get some sleep and not toss and turn all night. She got off the elevator and turned towards her apartment. There, sitting in front of her door, resting his back against her door was a familiar figure.

"Castle, what the hell are you doing here?" She barked.

"I want to talk to you."

Kate took a deep breath. "And you haven't figured out that I do not want to talk to you? You're not that stupid. Now get the hell out of my doorway. I'm tired and I do not want to spend another second talking to you."

"Sorry. I'm not moving."

"Did you hear me? You do remember I'm a cop? I could arrest you for criminal trespass. For that matter I could arrest you for harassment and for stalking. Now move!"

"I said I'm not moving."

"Okay. Stand up, Mr. Castle. I'm placing you under arrest. Turn around and put your hands behind your back." Kate cuffed Castle.

"This isn't going to do you any good, you know." Rick said calmly.

"You arrogant, self-centered, egotistical prick. Do you think that you can use your money and friends to get you out of anything?" Kate screamed at him.

A door behind them opened. "Hey! You two! Will you shut up? I have better things to do than listen to you tonight. You want me to call the cops?"

Rick waved his cuffed hands at the man. "She's a cop and she's already arrested me. You're too late."

The door slammed.

"Castle, please just leave. Can you just do that?"

"No, I'm not going. I spent the afternoon with my lawyer, so let me tell you what's going to happen. You arrest me and I spend the night in holding and then I go to court. I make bail and I'm back in front of your door tomorrow night. You arrest me again. I go to holding and I get bail. And I'm back. You'll probably ask for a restraining order on me, but you probably won't get it. I haven't been violent or threatening and I have no criminal past. So I go to trial. I'm convicted. As a first offender, I get a fine and maybe some community service. And I'm back at your door that night. You arrest me again. I make bail. I'm back again. You ask for a TRO again and you probably get it. I go to trial again. Second offense, I get a big fine and lots of community service. And I'm back on your doorstep again. You arrest me again. Now the courts are worried about me. I get some jail time. How much? Probably no more than thirty days. With good behavior I'm probably out in two weeks and I'm back at your door. You arrest me again, maybe I do ninety days, maybe more. Then I'm right back at your front door. Eventually I get sent to prison. A year? Maybe two. And I'm right back to you. Do you see how this works?"

The door behind them opened again. "Hey, assholes! Will you shut up? I'm tired of listening to you. Shut up or I call the cops." The door slammed.

Kate looked shocked. "What the hell is wrong with you, Castle? You just can't accept that your little sex toy isn't going to fuck you anymore?"

"Kate, I've never thought of you that way and you know it. From day one we've always been about a lot more than sex."

She shook her head. "I don't know anything of the sort. I don't know anything about you. I don't understand you. And you don't know me and you don't understand me."

"Bullshit! I know you were happy with me in the Hamptons. You said you were happier than you'd been in years. Now you're miserable. Everyone I've talked to at the precinct says you've been miserable. So miserable you've been crying. Kate Beckett does not cry, but you've been crying."

"You talked to my friends about me?" Kate's voice rose. "How dare you! How dare you?"

"Funny, Kate. They used to be my friends until you told them that I had done something to you. I broke your heart, according to them. I've gone everything I've said and done since the day we met and I can't find a thing I've done that would break your heart. Would you tell me what I did? Just tell me, dammit!"

"I did not tell them you did anything to me." Kate insisted.

"I suppose that an evil wizard put the idea in their minds without any help from you."

Kate stared at the floor. "Can you please just go?"

The door behind them opened again. "Go, goddammit! Will you two take your damned kinky games, your damned handcuffs, and go? I swear, I'll call the cops." The door slammed.

Kate glared at Castle. "Are you just so egotistical that you just can't accept that we're over? Is that your problem?"

Rick shook his head. "No, my problem is that the woman I love has broken up with me and she's miserable about it. She's told everyone that it's my fault, which it isn't. I just want to know what's going on."

Kate took a step forward and out her head down. "Can you please just go?"

The door opened again. "That's it, assholes. I'm calling the cops."

"Castle, please." She whispered.

Rick just shook his head. He could hardly leave. In addition to having his hands cuffed behind him, Kate now had his coat clutched in her hands. She moved closer to him and he could hear her sobbing as she rested her head on his chest. She was saying over and over, "Please. Please. Please. Please."

"Kate," he whispered in her ear, "unless you want to discuss this with some uniforms, we should go inside."

Kate fumbled in her pocket for her keys. Keeping hold of Rick's coat with one hand, she tried to open her door, finally getting the key in the lock on the fourth try. She dragged him inside with her one hand still clutching his coat. He managed to kick the door closed as he went in. They ended up on her couch.

"Do you really love me?" She whispered.

"Of course. You know that I thought you were special the first day I met you. Since then I've found out that you are remarkable, the most remarkable person I know. I know, I should have figured it out sooner. I should have told you. But losing you, not having you there with me, made me realize that I love you, Kate."

Kate buried her head on his chest and kept sobbing. After a minute she mumbled, "Could you at least hold me?"

"Um, I'd love to, honey, but I seem to have gotten my hands cuffed behind me."

"Crap!" Kate said. She pulled out her keys again. She reached around Castle and tried to undo the cuffs. Castle felt her body against his and he inhaled the scent of her hair. He kissed the top of her head. Finally she got one cuff off. Castle put his arms around her before she could get the other cuff unlocked.

"It's okay, Kate. It'll be okay. I love you and we'll work this out. Just tell me what I did wrong."

"Just hold me. Rick."

Rick held the woman he loved and felt her sobs wrack her body. He stroked her hair and her cheek and whispered his love to her.

Finally, "Rick, you didn't do anything wrong. This is all my fault. It's all my fault."

"It's okay, Kate. Whatever it is, we'll figure it out. We always do."

"I'm pregnant." She whispered.

Her whisper was so soft, Rick wasn't sure he'd heard correctly. "What?"

"I'm pregnant. I'm going to have our child."

Author's second note: Really, guys. Did you really think this was going to be one long gloom and doom? From the Hopeless Romantic? I wrote this before I read your comments. I think you'll find it'll get better.