Rocket Man Chapter II

99 Story Alters! Are you kidding me? You're awesome! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Now if all of those people would leave a review at the end of this chapter that would be just
S.U.P.E.R.C.A.L.I.F.R.A.G.I.L.I.S.T.I.C.E.X.P.I.A.L.I.D.O.C.I.O.U.S. !

No pressure though! ;-)

Thanks to all you lovely people who already did leave a thought!

Again I have to thank my fabulous BBB's. You rock! I will try to stop forming sentences that include the word: that. ;-) Seems to be a German thing ...

Disclaimers:

They are not mine. I'm not keeping them, just borrowing, although I wouldn't mind to keep Castle. ;-)

The second they sat down Alexis grabbed Kate's hand and held it in what could only be described as a death grip. Kate gave it a gentle squeeze, knowing that she couldn't take away from the fear and worry Alexis was feeling. All she could do was to hold her hand and hope that Alexis knew she wasn't alone. Words ran through her mind. Words that Alexis had yelled at her not long ago, 'They're all I've got! Do you hear me? They're all I've got!' and now one of the only two people she had in this world was lying in a hospital, while the other was unreachable.

Dr. Bernstein sat down next to them and two sets of eyes, one blue the other green were expectantly directed at him, both fearful and hopeful at the same time.

"How is he?" Kate finally asked, trying her best to sound calm, but failing.

Dr. Bernstein raised his hand in a reassuring gesture, "Mr. Castle is doing as good as can be expected under the prevailing circumstances. He suffered a fracture of the left humerus," he pointed at his upper arm to indicate the exact location where the bone had broken, "and several bruises, cuts and abrasions, all of which are minor concerns. We took him into surgery to repair the bone with a metal plate and screws. This process provides the best prognosis and will prevent further damage to the bone, muscles, blood vessels and nerves."

Kate looked over at Alexis. This didn't sound too bad, right? A broken arm and some bruises, nothing time wouldn't heal.

"However," Dr. Bernstein continued and those words made her stomach churn and she felt Alexis' grip tighten, "When Mr. Castle was admitted he had no recollection of what had happened, nor who he was. As a matter of fact he had no personal memory at all."

"He lost his memory?" Kate verbalized the question spinning through Alexis' mind.

"We can't be certain about this right now. He reportedly hit his head when he was struck by the car," that was as far as he got before Kate interrupted him.

"He was struck by a car?" she exclaimed and risked a side glance at Alexis, who had gone impossibly paler.

"Yes, I thought you knew that," the doctor stated confused. "Didn't your colleagues inform you?"

"Colleagues?" she frowned.

"Yes, the Officers that came in to interview Mr. Castle. I sent them away, telling them that he was in no condition to answer any questions regarding the accident." Dr. Bernstein gave her a puzzled look, but it finally dawned on Kate what he was talking about. In a case of a personal injury incident an official police report was filed and for that statements were needed.

"They must have been Officers from a different precinct," she said more to herself than to someone else in particular and made a mental note to contact them to learn what exactly had happened. "I'm here because of Mr. Castle's daughter." She clarified and when she didn't elaborate further Dr. Bernstein took this as his cue to continue.

"He suffered a minor scalp laceration on the back of his head. I can give you more details, but this explains it simply. His disorientation is most likely due to the trauma to his head. The memory loss could be caused by the concussion. How bad that is can only be determined after some tests, and when Mr. Castle is awake after surgery. I ordered an PET and CT to be repeated after surgery to exclude any potential brain damage, such as bleeding. That's all I can tell you right now. I will be able to give you a more accurate diagnosis once I've seen the scans and Mr. Castle is awake."

"Thank you," Kate mumbled, while trying to process what she had just been told. It could have been so much worse however this was certainly not good news.

"I'll send a nurse to take you upstairs. And I will let you know when Mr. Castle gets out of surgery and you will be able to see him," with that he got up and disappeared through the sliding doors, leaving them on their own again.

They sat there, Alexis' hand still securely enclosed in Kate's. "Are you okay?" Kate finally asked when she was done contemplating the situation herself.

Alexis gave a small nod and Kate decided that it was the best she could expect under these circumstances. A situation like this called for someone close to her, a family member and who knew how long it would take until they could get hold of Martha.

"Do you want me to call anyone, your mom?" Kate suddenly asked, not sure how to help her.

Alexis' head jerked up, "No!" she exclaimed, startling Kate with her unexpected strong resistance. "No, please don't! You're here, I don't need anybody else." she added a bit softer, almost pleading.

Kate frowned, not understanding Alexis' reaction but she nodded, "Of course, if you don't want to."

Alexis gave her small smile and seemed to relax, leaving Kate wondering about the girl's relationship with her mother, but she had no time to ponder the thought when a nurse met them to accompany them upstairs.

Patience had never been one of Kate's strongest abilities, and the waiting was gnawing on her while she tried to keep a cool face for Alexis. They sat next to each other but Alexis had made sure to put some distance between them, obviously determined to handle things on her own from now on. Kate's comment about her mother had stirred something in her. Alexis knew that Kate's idea to call her mother was well-intentioned, how was she supposed to know that her mother was not the kind of person to rely on. Kate had only met her once and that was at a rather brief gathering and though she couldn't be sure what or if her dad had told his partner about his first marriage, Meredith and her non-existent qualities as a mother, she was almost sure that he hadn't, at least not much. The last thing Alexis needed right now was another disappointment and it was highly unlikely that her mother would drop everything in L.A. to hop on a plane, fly across the country to stand by her daughter. Suspecting this was bad enough she didn't need to know for sure. So she would pull herself together and get through this on her own until hopefully her grandmother came. She looked up and glanced at the woman sitting next to her who looked as devastated as she felt. Well maybe not all alone.

Kate had tried, but sitting was killing her. She needed something to distract her, before the waiting drove her totally insane. "I'll be right back," she announced and waited until she could see Alexis give a little nod. Heading towards the elevators, she pushed the button and waited. For the first time since she had set foot into the hospital hours ago she recognized that typical smell, a mixture of blood, pain, and disinfectant, so distinctive that it could only be found in a hospital and for her it would be forever associated with that almost fatal day, the day that changed everything. Finally stepping onto the elevator, she stared at the flickering, fluorescent light and couldn't fight the oppressive feeling that planted itself around her heart. "It is just an elevator," she muttered to herself, knowing that what she felt had nothing to do with the elevator, it was her fear of things past. She had talked about this to Dr. Burke once that though she had been unconscious she somehow remembered being pushed down a corridor and the flickering of the lights when she passed them, Lanie trying to push the life back into her and the smell. When the doors opened on the ground level, she stepped hastily out into the corridor and almost got run over by a team of paramedics, hurriedly pushing a stretcher with a whimpering figure towards the ED. She jumped aside, her back hitting the wall and she leant against it for support, seeking comfort in the cold stone against her back. Her head came to rest against the coolness and she closed her eyes for a second. Taking a deep breath, she tried to shake off the feeling that kept her pressed to the wall. "Get a grip!" she mumbled and almost jumped out of her skin when a nurse asked her if she was alright. "Yes, I'm fine," she stuttered and finally pushed herself off the wall and into the direction of the cafeteria.

She couldn't think about food, so when she spotted a coffee cart that's where her feet took her.

The confining feeling hadn't ebbed away on her way back up where she stepped out of the elevator equipped with two coffees in her hand. Her eyes immediately fixated on Alexis, still in the seat where she had left her 15 minutes ago. For some reason that calmed her and with one last deep breath she walked back to her side and sat down.

"Hey," Kate's soft voice made Alexis look up, "I got us something to drink." Alexis saw the coffee cup and a small smile appeared on her lips that quickly faded when she glanced at the clock on the wall.

"How much longer will this take?" Alexis asked and sighed in desperation. And because Kate knew there was nothing she could do or say to make her feel better she opted for silence, asking herself the same question.

Another hour had passed, the clock ticked towards 3:30 pm and Kate got up to make one of her frequent turns to the nurse station, asking for news. So far there wasn't any. Sliding back into her seat next to Alexis, she handed her a bottle of water that she had fetched from the vending machine at the end of the corridor.

"Thank you," Alexis said and meant more than just the water, but before she could add anything else, Dr. Bernstein came pushing through the swinging doors to their right and headed towards them. Alexis shot up from her seat, immediately followed by Kate who came to stand behind her, placing her hands on Alexis shoulders, she gave them a gentle squeeze.

"Miss Castle, Detective Beckett," he said and came to a stop in front of them.

"How's my dad?" Alexis asked, though fearing the answer.

Dr. Bernstein regarded her with a warm smile, "The surgery went well. We were able to repair the bone as planned and expect the arm to heal without complication."

"And his memory?" Kate asked and without noticing it tightened her grip on Alexis' shoulders.

"Unfortunately Mr. Castle still has no recollection of the accident or any other personal memory," Dr. Bernstein continued and Alexis turned to shoot Kate a worried look. Kate shook her head at her, telling her without words that she shouldn't jump to conclusions.

"Dr. Bernstein, what exactly does this mean?" she asked when Alexis had turned back to face the doctor.

"The scans came up negative. They did not show any indication of bleeding or other head injuries. The laceration is relatively minor and has been repaired. We are dealing with a certain type of amnesia. So while Mr. Castle's lost his episodic memory, his general knowledge of language and facts as well as his procedural memory is intact, which is a good sign."

Alexis wasn't sure she understood and gave Kate another unsure glance over her shoulder.

"So this means he doesn't remember who he is, places that he's been to, movies that he's seen or people in his life, but he still knows how to drive a car, cook, mainly the things of everyday life?" Kate questioned for Alexis, since this was all sounding way too familiar to her, remembering the case Castle and she had worked on about two years ago, when they had investigated the murder of the owner of an art gallery. And she remembered how it ended, Jeremy Preswick's memory did not return.

"Exactly," Dr. Bernstein nodded, interrupting her thoughts.

"Like someone erased his software, but the hardware is still running." Alexis stated more than asked.

Dr. Bernstein smiled, "That's one way to put it."

"How long …," Kate trailed off, because she already knew the answer to this.

"That's hard to say. Tomorrow, a couple of days, weeks. It's hard to put a timeline on situations like this. And I have to inform you that there have been cases where the memory never fully return or," he paused, "returned at all."

"What?" Alexis exclaimed, shaking off Kate's hands when she took a step forward. "What do you mean? That he won't remember anything? That he won't remember - ," she didn't dare to say it. Remember her.

"At this point we have no reason to believe that this will be the case. What Mr. Castle needs now is rest and time. Unfortunately that's the only thing we can do, to help his recovery."

"I want to see him!" Alexis demanded.

"Of course," Dr. Bernstein replied calmly, "One thing though before I'll take you to his room. It's important that you are honest with Mr. Castle, answer his questions truthfully, but don't push him to remember. That often makes it worse and more frustrating to the patient. You must be patient with this type of injury."

Kate nodded, but Alexis was too anxious to listen to anything of this, she just wanted to see her dad. Impatiently she stared towards the doors that Dr. Bernstein had emerged from.

"I'll take you to him," and Dr. Bernstein took the lead, followed by Alexis and Beckett. They briefly stopped at the nurses' station where Dr. Bernstein gave instructions regarding other patients and asked them to wait a moment.

Kate took the opportunity to turn to Castle's daughter, "Alexis," placing a hand on her arm. "He's going to be alright!"

"How do you know? Maybe you don't care, but I want my dad to remember me!" It was unfair, out of line an Alexis knew it, but she was alone and frightened and there was no one else to direct her anger to.

Kate swallowed, knowing that Alexis was stressed and that she was scared, but her words still hurt.

Dr. Bernstein, oblivious to what had just happened, led them to the end of the corridor and stopped in front of a green door, "Now keep in mind, he's still recovering from anaesthesia and needs rest." This time Alexis actually listened and nodded. "I'll leave you alone now. I have informed Mr. Castle that his daughter and a Detective from the NYPD are here to see him." He turned towards Beckett, whom he still assumed was only here because of the accident and the minor daughter of his patient, "Detective, I request that you do not ask about the accident until I give you clearance." Beckett nodded and assured him, that she wouldn't bring it up and she seriously had no intention to do so. She just wanted to see him.

He seemed satisfied, "If you need anything else, please don't hesitate to ask. If you'll excuse me now," and with that he left them alone.

Alexis reached for the door knob and gently pushed it open, peeking into the room she could see her father lying in one of those sterile hospital beds, his eyes closed and looking almost peaceful. She stepped forward and was surprised when she realized that Kate didn't follow. Turning around she looked at her.

"Maybe it's better you go in on your own," Kate whispered.

Alexis looked at her, sorry for what she had said just minutes ago, but couldn't bring herself to say it out loud, so instead held out her hand, Kate looked at her and slowly reached out to take it. This time it was Alexis who gave the gentle squeeze, before she pulled Kate with her into the room.

Standing on opposite sides of the bed, Kate noted that Castle's left arm was secured to his torso with a sling, looking pale, fragile, just a shadow of the animated, bubbly man she had grown so accustomed to. She was afraid to touch him, fearing he would vanish if she did. She bit back the tears that burned behind her eyes. Not now! And while she stood there, her face set in stone, Castle's daughter reached for her father's hand, "Dad?"

Thoughts? Ideas?

I'll be away for a couple of days, so no new chapter until next week. :-(