We loved with a love that was more than love.

- Edgar Allan Poe

Castle could only stare at the ground while listening to Kate talk. And each word that she said held both truth and pain. Rick never meant to give Kate these doubts, these questions, but after talking to his mother and listening to her now, he cannot help but realize that it is his fault that they are in this spot. He wants to believe it's because Kate went on that interview, he wants to believe it's because of Eric Vaughn or Agent Stack, but he knows they only became problems because of his hesitance. It took so many years to finally be in a relationship, to break through her walls, that he was afraid to move fast in fear of her being scared away. But it was that tepidness that ended up causing their problems

Now Rick can only sit and wait, listen to Kate Beckett as she tells him that she's taking the job, that she didn't want to hurt him; that she wants to do this for herself.

"Rick, I'm not going to lie to you anymore. This job…this job is something that I want."

Kate can see how those words have affected Rick, how he's almost resigned himself to them, knew they were coming. And Kate hates that.

But this is the moment where she has chosen which path to take, and as hard as it is, as hard as she may be giving up the chance of something good, she's having faith that she's chosen the right way. And she needs Castle to look at her while she says what she needs to, because it's the only way to fully communicate the depth of this decision. Words are not enough; they need to be able to look each other in the eye, so that all the unspoken words can be said at the same time as the spoken.

Kate reaches out to Castle's arm, to anchor him to her, and her to him. And when their eyes meet, Kate knows this is the time to say it all, spoken and unspoken.

"A year ago, after I was hanging off the roof, after I was suspended, this is the place where I came. I didn't know why exactly at first, but then I remembered that it was here that I told you I couldn't have the kind of relationship I wanted until my wall came down. And it was again here where I knew that I wanted to be with you. Rick – I need you. More than any job, more than anything else, I. Need. You. I don't want to put the job ahead of my heart anymore. Yes, the job offer is great and something that I thought I wanted now, but it doesn't even compare to you, to us. I was just afraid because I had no idea what you wanted from us."

Kate has to take a breath, she's said what she needed to and she can see the light returning to Castle's eyes, but she has one more thing that needs to be said.

"But Rick, this..." and her eyes drift down to the hand that is holding the ring,

"We have a lot more that we need to talk about first. I'm not saying "no," Castle, I'm just saying "Ask me later," I want that moment to be one of the happiest of our life, I want to give you that opportunity to make it both big and intimate, I want to give you the chance to ask my dad for permission to marry his daughter. I don't want this to be because our backs were against the wall. Rick, I love you. I meant it when I said I thought we were just getting started. When I told you I was trying to think about what our best kiss was, I was imagining our wedding day and every kiss after that."

The smile now on Kate's face is mirrored by that on Castle's. Smile's that even with no engagement; hold the promise of so much more.

"So Castle - my decision is you; my choice is here. We do both deserve more. And I want to make this, us, work; I want to make this last. It's not going to be easy, but when is it ever with us. So what do you say?"

Rick Castle could not imagine how a rejected proposal could give him such renewed hope, but then it really wasn't a rejection, was it. It was a pause, a delay, a one step back to take two giant leaps forward. So Castle couldn't help but to smile, and look at Kate with such a love as if seeing her for the first time all over again.

And for all the words he knows, all the books he has written, Kate Beckett has made him speechless. And rather than search his mind for some words that could never fully portray what he needs to in this moment, he does the only thing that could come close; he kisses her. Gentle, yet passionate; timid, yet fierce. Everything Rick Castle is feeling, he tries to say through his kiss.

For seconds, minutes, hours, even days could pass by and Kate Beckett and Rick Castle would be none the wiser as they are blissfully trapped in a moment that no other power than love holds. And as they both slowly pull back, it's Rick Castle who breaks the sweet silence,

"That was amazing. You're amazing."

And Beckett can't help but smile, and think back to the first time they kissed, and Castle said the same thing.

"Let's go, Castle."

What's a soulmate?

It's a.. Well, it's like a best friend, but more. It's the one person in the world that knows you better than anyone else. It's someone who makes you a better person, well, actually they don't make you a better person... you do that yourself- because they inspire you. A soulmate is someone who you carry with you forever. It's the one person who knew you, and accepted you, and believed in you before anyone else did or when no one else would. And no matter what happens.. you'll always love them.

- Dawson's creek

YouTube com/watch?v=PRBvs6YWi-s

AN: Thanks for sticking with it! I know by the reviews and PMs I got that a lot of people where confused with Beckett's reaction and her response in Chapter 1, so I hope that this clears all that up. I didn't just want to blow by the offer; Beckett said to her dad that this job was something that she "wants." So I had to think how could I mesh what she wanted (the job) with what she realized she needed (Castle). Was it perfect, of course not, I'm sure there are definitely better writers who could pull this off, but I guess you guys are stuck with this and me haha.

I tried as best as I could to keep Castle and Beckett in character, and describe the possible emotions they would be going through, so I hope I at least did that justice somewhat.

I may do a 3rd part, which would be the 2nd Proposal, when both of them are ready for it to happen. It would definitely be less angst-y and more fluff haha.

But thanks again to those who stuck with the story, or just happened across it. I know I'm not much of a writer, I enjoy immersing myself in other people's stories, those with much more talent than I have. But it does mean a lot to me to see those that take the time to read my story. And even sending me PMs or reviews that critique me. I love the reviews from people who enjoy the story, but I also equally love those from people who offer me their opinion or views on things that I may have done that seemed off or wrong. You can't get better if you don't know what you're doing wrong.

So thanks everyone! We've got a long 4 months till Season 6 so hopefully we can fill that time with some great Castle fanfictions!