Hi there!

I have another one shot for you, this one coming from PenguinsPenguinsPenguins: A Killshot continuation scene of her breakdown after she tells the paramedic to take the lady and runs to the other room. Castle goes after her and sees the bandages on her arms for the first time while he's comforting her. Thank you for sending this and the others!

Thank you for all your amazing reviews, they are so nice to read. If you have prompts you'd like to see, feel free to send them in! Also, for those of you who have sent in prompts, I will be doing them all shortly.

Enjoy!

"Just go, get her out of here, go!" She could barely keep it together as she turned from the victim and ran. She couldn't distinguish Emily's terror from her own. Emily had been shot at; she had been shot at. Emily was alive; she was alive. Emily would have to live with this fear and trauma and pain; she was living it.

Panic sparked deep within her, rising into her chest, choking and crushing her. She pulled her gloves off as she ran, trying desperately to calm herself down. She couldn't do this right now, not here. Not with him watching her.

"Beckett!"

No. She could feel her breathing becoming rigid as tears pricked at her eyes. No, no, no. Don't do this. You're fine. Was all she could think as she continued to search for somewhere safe to go.

"Kate?"

She couldn't turn around. She couldn't respond. She went for the first door she saw, she had to get away. Employees only. She swung it open, making sure no one saw her enter and that it was closed behind her. She just needed a minute. She just needed to get away and be alone for one minute to let herself breathe. She was stronger than this.

But it didn't go away. The panic turned to fire as the walls closed in around her. And where the fire danced around her, ice swept over just as quickly. Everything inside of her was at war making it hard to determine what was real and what wasn't. Her chest was heavy and her head was pounding as her limbs tingled with every gesture. The shear horror of it all came crashing back, making her anxiety spiral out of control. Kate ripped off her coat, desperately trying to put out the fire and melt the ice. She soon found her gun and her badge, her armor, being tossed in the pile on the floor as a last ditch effort to expel herself of any reminder of her trauma. She was naked without it, but since the shooting, she was naked with it also.

But the weight in her chest persisted. She pressed her palms into the wall in front of her, her breathing mixing with whimpers as the hallway started spinning. She was frantic now, knowing she had no control over anything that was happening; she was powerless. She leaned her back against the far wall, her whimpers being replaced by sobs as tears streamed down her face. It was just too much for her to handle; she wasn't strong enough.

Kate rubbed her forehead as a last ditch effort to calm herself down, but the bandage on her arm brought all the memories back from the night before, the alcohol, the coffee table, the gun, sending her into a state of terror. She didn't want to think of the shooting, but no matter how hard she tried not to think of it, it was always there. The corners of her vision started to blur as she slid down the wall and into a pile on the floor. The blurriness turned to black spots until his voice heightened her awareness enough for her to see straight.

"Kate?"

She could hear the door close behind him. He was coming and he was going to see her like this. But it was no use trying to hide what was happening. So she sat on the floor, sobbing and taking gasps of air frantically, letting it consume her.

"Kate?" He was there now, standing over her.

"Castle." She choked out as he hurried to her side. She sat there, her back to the wall and her head leaned back, eyes closed.

"Oh, God." He squatted down next to her, hesitant at first, not knowing how she would react. But he couldn't let her sit on the floor sobbing, so he gathered her in his arms. "You're okay. You're safe, Kate."

She crumbled into him, allowing him to hold her, allowing him to be there for her and be her sanity and control while she couldn't. She could barely hold it together, still, her tears staining his dress shirt. She buried her face deeper, trying to muffle the sounds that were escaping her lips. She just wanted this to go away.

He rubbed her back as she cried, trying to console her in any way he could. "It's okay, shh. You're safe, I promise."

Eventually, she could feel herself regaining control. She breathed in and out slowly a few times, still shaky, but able to process her thoughts. She sat there in his arms, eyes closed, until he spoke again.

"What happened?" He noticed the bandage wrapped around her entire forearm. He had no knowledge of what could have happened to her.

Kate sat straight again, her back against the wall. "Nothing." She averted her eyes from his.

"Kate, what happened to your arm?" He looked her dead in the eye, not taking nothing for an answer.

She was so embarrassed that she couldn't even look at him. She picked a spot on the floor, focused on her breathing, and talked slowly. "Last night, I was drinking, a lot." She chewed the inside of her cheek before continuing. "And I was drunk, like really drunk." She could feel the heat in her cheeks as she spoke. "And I heard a car horn or something. I don't know what it was now that I think about it. But I freaked. I flipped my coffee table and it shattered all over the place." She rubbed her forehead trying not to get emotional again. "And I must have closed the blinds because it got dark, and I couldn't help but think that the sniper was coming for me. So I saw my gun on the ground and I dove for it and cut my arm on the glass from the coffee table. God, I'm so stupid."

Absentmindedly, his hand found her knee. "Kate, it's not stupid."

"Yes it is, Castle. I'm pathetic! Look at me right now!" She raised her voice slightly before it returned to normal. "I can't even do my job properly anymore. It's embarrassing."

"You have nothing to be embarrassed about. You have no control over this, and it's not your fault." He shook his head, signifying what he was saying. He couldn't help but push a stray lock of hair behind her ear that had fallen out of place. "It's okay to not be strong all the time. You're human."

She felt the tears coming again. "I just want this to go away."

"I can't promise you that this is going to be easy or that it's going to be okay right away. But I promise you that no matter what, I'm going to be here. As long as you need me, I'll be here." He never broke his gaze from hers as he spoke, his words truer than she realized. He wanted to be there for her and he wanted to be the one that she went to when need be.

She nodded just a little, "Thank you."

"Always." He gave her a half smile, rubbing his hand up and down her upper leg where he had let it lay before. There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. "Let's get you out of here, okay? I'll tell the boys that you needed the rest of the day, and we can go back to my place and just relax."

She took another deep breath. "Okay, that sounds," She paused for a moment, "nice." And she meant it. She wanted to feel safe, and she felt that way with him.

"Okay." He stood, extending his hand to her. She took it and he pulled her to her feet quickly, reaching down to get her things. They made their way back to the door, Castle's hand on the small of her back. He couldn't help but think that maybe they were finally getting somewhere; just maybe.

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