Wow, I was blown away with all the reviews and favorites and follows, etc from the first chapter! I honestly thought no one would even see it, so thanks for making my day! I have some fun ideas for some future chapters, so hopefully I'll be updating fairly frequently. Cheers!
Warning: lotso fluff. They won't be all this fluffy, I promise. Unless you're into that sort of thing :)
Disclaimer- Henry is all mine, but the rest, sadly, belong to the Haus of Marlowe
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The Castles fell into bed immediately upon entering the loft. At first, they lay cuddled together- Castle on his back with one arm stretched around Kate and Henry stuffed between them. He traced circles on her forearm while she breathed in the mixture of his cologne and the brand new smell of baby. After a few minutes, Kate shifted onto her stomach, Castle mimicking her movement, so they were both staring at their sleeping son. The room was completely silent as they watched the rise and fall of the baby's chest.
"I could never get tired of this," Kate murmured. "He's perfect."
Castle agreed and added, "Can you believe he's ours? We created a human being, Kate. A human being! Obviously, I know how this works- I already went through it once with Alexis- but there are still moments that strike out of nowhere. Alexis turned out so well, smart and beautiful, that it doesn't seem possible she's mine. And Henry is so tiny and already so spectacular... I'm speechless."
Kate laughed at the thought of her writer not having the words, but was interrupted by the ringing phone. Castle groaned and got up to answer it in the kitchen, returning a few minutes later to find Kate still vigilantly watching Henry.
"Hey hon, I hate to do this, but the everyone is dying to see Henry again, so it looks like we'll have to share him for a little while," Castle said, clearly torn between wanting to stay in their little cocoon, just the three of them, but yet thrilled to show off their bundle of joy.
"When?" Kate asked.
"Well, that was Javi; he said that he and Lanie would be over around 5ish, which is in an hour. Alexis texted and said she and Mother would be over around then as well, and I'm assuming Ryan, Jenny and Connor won't be far behind. You sure you're up for visitors?"
"Yeah, as long as they don't stay for hours. I have a feeling our sleep tonight will be choppy at best, so I'd like to get to bed a little early."
"Of course, I'll kick them out around 8ish, earlier if you give me a signal. I was thinking we could order in Thai food?"
"Oh Castle, you read my mind. I'm really in the mood for some pineapple fried rice."
"Thai it is, then." Castle leaned in to kiss Kate on the forehead, and then Henry as well, who squirmed under the movement. "Mind if I jump in the shower really quickly?" he asked.
"Not at all, I have to feed Henry anyways." Kate said with a smile. Even though breastfeeding was still a little bumpy this early on, she was already loving the tender moment with her son.
Castle stripped into his boxers- he was wearing the ones that had "Big Daddy" on the butt in honor of his renewed status as a father- and walked into the bathroom to run the water. Kate chuckled as she saw his outfit; she'd given them to him as a Valentine's Day present long before a baby was in the picture.
Henry let out a quick squeak interrupting her thoughts. "Hey, sweetheart," Kate whispered. "You hungry, baby boy?" She tossed off her shirt- no need for modesty in the comfort of their bedroom- and pulled him into her arms. They were both still getting the hang of it, but Henry attached pretty quickly after a minute of rooting around and getting settled. He reached out for a strand of her hair as they locked eyes. This was Kate's favorite part of breastfeeding- looking down at her sweet boy as he stared back without pause or deviation. His blue eyes were crystal clear, reaching right into the core of her being. She stroked through his soft hair and traced her finger over each of his tiny features. After a minute or two, she closed her eyes and leaned back into the headboard, continuing to rub rhythmic circles on his back.
A little later, she felt the the bed shift as her husband slid in next to her. She opened her eyes to smile at him and saw him holding a tiny bag in his hand. She looked at him with a puzzled expression, waiting for an explanation, her attention peaked.
"Didn't think I'd forgotten to get you a push present, did you?" Castle smirked.
"What the heck is a push present?"
"Don't tell me you haven't heard of it! All husbands- well, at least the good ones- get their wives a present as thanks and congratulations for being a total badass and pushing out a baby," he replied, smiling now.
"You really didn't have to do that."
"Yes, but I wanted to," Rick said earnestly. "Open it!" Castle loved giving gifts- he was like a kid on Christmas morning whenever he bought her something special.
Henry was done nursing so Kate traded the baby for the present. Castle cradled Henry's tiny head in his huge hands and shifted him onto his shoulder to burp him while Kate pulled out the tissue paper. As she opened the two gifts (one necklace with Henry's thumbprint and initials, and the other a diamond ring with Henry's birthstone), she started to tear up. Damn those pregnancy hormones, she thought to herself. "Oh my god, Castle, they're beautiful. How did you even think of these?"
"Easy," he responded with a grin. "One night, before we were even trying to have a baby, I was writing in my study and I got bored so I decided to do a little online shopping."
"You are SUCH a girl," Kate interrupted.
"I was buying a new lightsaber!" He interjected, insulted.
"Alright, let me rephrase. You are SUCH a little kid."
"Whatever Kate, two hours later you weren't complaining the other night when I fu-"
"CASTLE! You are holding our newborn, watch your mouth."
"Sorry babe," he chuckled, "but so I was shopping and I googled crime-themed gifts, because duh, and I found the necklace. It was a perfect compliment to the Caskett family!" He exclaimed.
"I really do love it, Rick. The ring is gorgeous as well." She murmured, watching him cradle Henry against his chest.
"A beautiful ring for a beautiful woman," he whispered as he leaned in to kiss his wife.
"I love you, Rick," Kate said, emotion oozing out of every word. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"For everything. For believing in me, in us, in our family. For giving me a home, a son, a world. For making me laugh and smile and be whole again. For being you, and encouraging me to be me."
"Same to you, Kate. I didn't know what I was missing until you arrested me. I love you, too, sweetheart."
The doorbell interrupted their conversation, and Castle stole one more kiss before running to get it. "They're here!" He exclaimed, and slid across the hardwood, Risky Business style, to let in whoever had arrived first. To his surprise, he opened the door to a horde of family members and friends.
Alexis and Martha stepped in first, both kissing him on the cheek. Javi and Lanie followed- Lanie with a hug and Espo with a spirited high-five. Finally, Kevin and Jenny wandered in. Ryan had Connor slung over his shoulder, fast asleep, and Jenny carried some sort of casserole. Leave it to the Ryans to never show up empty-handed.
"What, did you all carpool?" Castle joked.
"Nah, bro," Javi replied, "We all ran into each other in the lobby and rode up together."
"How you doing, Daddy?" Jenny asked.
"Honestly? I'm on cloud nine. The fatigue hasn't set in yet, and I'm infatuated with my beautiful wife and brand-new son."
"Speaking of those two, where is your other half and my darling grandson?" Martha interrupted. She was head over heels in love with her newest successor, and had already offered to babysit as much as possible. Castle was somewhat glad she no longer lived with them, because otherwise he'd never get a chance to hold Henry.
"Right here!" Kate said, coming out of the bedroom. She'd changed into a pair of leggings and a loose grey t-shirt, and Henry was wearing a cozy blue sleeper.
Everyone swooned at the baby and swarmed the new mother to get a better look.
"He's absolutely stunning, girl," Lanie said, and everyone nodded in agreement. After a few minutes of fussing over Henry's tiny fingers and toes, the gang moved out of the entryway and settled into the family room.
After putting away everyone's coats and making sure everyone had a drink, Castle ordered a boatload of Thai food. Henry was passed around from person to person as the conversation flowed from baby clothes to strollers to co-sleeping and so on.
Kevin and Jenny's son woke up somewhere in the middle of the conversation, and for a moment, the attention was shifted from the baby to the toddler. Connor Ryan was 18 months old, and captured the heart of nearly everyone he met. The skinny, blond toddler was loud and boisterous (a typical Irishman), but was also extremely compassionate and gentle. He was fascinated by Henry, and spent a great deal of time staring at him and (gently) prodding and poking the tiny swaddled creature.
After asking, ever so nicely, to "pweez hol da new Henee", Jenny set him in the corner of the couch and lowered the baby into his little arms. Kate shoved a pillow next to him to support Henry's head, and Castle retrieved the nice camera to snap a few photos of the precious moment. Connor rubbed Henry's head and whispered adorably into the baby's ear, but the highlight was when he leaned in to give him a soft kiss on the forehead and said, seriously and a little bit in awe, "I wuv you babee Henee."
As Kate watched the scene unfold, she realized how lucky she was to have such awesome friends and family. When she started at the twelfth, she would have never imagined her coworkers would become her best friends, and their children would grow up inseparable. She really never would have guessed that the cocky guy who insisted on following her around would end up being her best friend, partner, and husband. She wondered what the Beckett from six years ago would have thought had she been allowed a glimpse of her future. Kate assumed she would have been baffled, and a little ashamed in herself for falling so deeply into domesticity, and frankly, going soft.
But now that she was here, in this moment, she knew that she wouldn't want to be anywhere else. The old Kate existed in her work, under the constant shadow of her mother's murder. She lived in a fortress protected by steel iron and brick walls. Her relationships were superficial and merely to satisfy her carnal needs.
But now, she was a part of something so much bigger: a family. Esposito and Ryan had become like siblings, and her father was finally acting like a parent again. She had sisters in Lanie and Jenny, and a nephew in Connor. She had a daughter in Alexis, and most of all, she had the love of her life in Rick. And now, she had her own flesh and blood squirming in front of her: a perfect, handsome, swaddled baby boy.
She memorized the scene in front of her so she could catalogue it for later: Castle with his arm around her, laughing at something Esposito had said, Jenny holding a talkative Connor animatedly pointing at the baby, Lanie telling one of her latest stories from the morgue (someone had swallowed a whole goldfish!), Ryan making faces at Henry, and Alexis kissing her brother on the cheeks over and over again. The moment was one she never wanted to forget- both calm and crazy, sweet and hilarious, genuine and natural- the perfect blend of Kate's life.
Castle interrupted her thoughts when he leaned into her ear and whispered, "You okay, love?"
She kissed him softly, running her hands through his hair, and replied, "I've never been more okay in my life." He returned her smile and stole one more kiss, and then Kate was reaching out her arms for Henry, and the doorbell was ringing with the food delivery.
The hustle and bustle carried on for a few more hours, and when everyone had finally gone home for the night, the Castles collapsed one more time into bed, with warm hearts and satisfied smiles. Cheesy to some, but perfect to them, it was a night to be remembered.
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Thoughts? I know, so much fluff. But honestly, I miss the show like crazy (all these sneak pics on twitter are driving me insane!) and fluff felt like the right way to deal with it :)