19. Chapter 19

After Punked

By

UCSBdad

Disclaimer: I so do not own Castle. Rating: K Time: See above.

Castle was in shock, but came out of it quickly. "Um, did any of you guys know about…?" He waved in the general direction of Beckett and her departed…date?

Everyone shook their heads. "Not a thing, bro." Espo said.

Castle nodded. "Okay. I guess I should head home. Later, guys."

Later that night, Kate Beckett walked into her apartment with a smile on her face. It had been so long since she'd had so much fun. Josh is good for me. He's fun. I just loved racing our Harleys together and he tells the funniest stories about all the places he's been in the world. His work in the Third World can't be that much fun, but he manages to put the best possible light on everything. That story about the two doctors in Uganda was hilarious. I can't remember when I had such a good time. And it's not just that he's fun. He's a good person, too. A surgeon who works around the world to help those in need. Now that is man for you. The sort of a man who would be good for me. Maybe I've finally found him.

And maybe I haven't. I don't want to get my hopes up, not after having them crushed just a while ago. I'll just have to take this easy. Slow and easy.

It's funny, though. I was so upset with Castle because he went back with Gina, and now I've found someone. I'm glad he's got someone, too. I really need to thank him. He's the one that got me out of my funk and started me thinking that I needed a big change in my life. Life is funny that way.

Castle sat in his office and poured himself another Scotch. He wasn't sure if it was his fifth or sixth, but he knew it wasn't his last. He looked at his computer, the screensaver flashing, "You… Should… Be… Writing…. He could see his reflection in the computer screen. He silently raised his glass in a toast to himself, then drank.

"So, Mr. Castle." He said to his reflected image. "How do you like the Universe's sense of humor? You were quite worried about Beckett and Demming. You thought she had chosen Demming over you. When you found out she didn't, do you remember what you thought? Correcto mundo, Mr. Castle. You thought she had dropped Demming for you. But it turns out she dropped Demming for the Motorcycle Boy."

"Whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad. That's me, Mad Rick Castle."

He took another sip of his drink. "It's not like you didn't see it coming, if you just had been smart enough to pay attention to what was going on. She hadn't seen Sorenson for years and she let him kiss her right off. She hadn't been with Demming for more than a few days and they were making out right in the precinct. Even Motorcycle Boy got to put his arm around her. If you had tried any of that, Mr. Castle, she'd have sent you to the emergency room. It's like she's put a wall around herself to keep you out." Castle laughed. "No, it not like she put a wall up to keep you out, it's that she did put a wall up to keep you out."

Castle put his glass to his lips only to find it was empty. He poured another and drank again. "I'm forty-one years old. I'm no kid. It's time I started thinking about the rest of my life." He leaned forward and wagged his finger at his reflection in the computer screen. "Try to think this time, Mr. Castle. Do try to think for once." He leaned back in his chair. "You're a wealthy man. You don't really need to do all this writing. You need to step back and look at your life. Where it's going."

"The whole Nikki Heat thing was a giant mistake. Look where it got me. I have to think outside the box." Castle chuckled. "I know! I have to think outside the bottle!" He drained his glass and refilled it.

"But, I still owe Black Pawn one more book on the three book deal. If I go up to the Hamptons tomorrow by myself, I bet I could knock out the last one in a couple of months and get that out of the way. Then I need a change of scenery. No more New York. How about the West Coast? LA? No, I don't really need LA right now. How about San Francisco? My kind of a town. But why stop at the edge of the Pacific. How about Hawaii? Why the US? How about New Zealand? Australia? Hey, Hong Kong! There we go. Asia is where it's at anymore. And no more detectives, Mr. Castle. This time we'll try a reporter, no a war correspondent. Or I could be a war correspondent! There are plenty of wars going on, and I can do some research if I want to write again."

Castle downed his drink and bowed clumsily to his reflection. "Mr. Castle, you are a genius, sir. You have a plan to forget Beckett. I salute you. And now time for bed."

Castle downed his last drink and lurched off to bed. He was too drunk to realize he was crying.