So... this is alive because of a prompt from an anon on tumblr because hello writer's block for three weeks you suck.
(I really like the beginning, and the end. The middle? eh... not so much).

And life has been absurd recently and I'm actually publishing this right before I have to run off to my three hour night class so any mistakes are mine and I'll fix them if I catch them later tonight and I'm sorry but life and college and responsibility and...
yeah...

you know...

"Do you think we should tell them soon?"

Castle shifted at the murmured words, his eyes opening through the last of his blissful haze to look down at the woman in his arms, her brown hair splayed across torso. He could feel the burrow in her brow against the too warm skin of his chest, her hand curled into a fist around the sheet he had pulled up over them so they could go to sleep.

"Tell who what?" he asked, his eyes falling shut again.

"Everyone," she sighed, "About, you know… us. My dad, Lanie, the boys…"

"Whoa now," he said, his eyes snapping open, "please don't tell me that you were thinking about the boys while we were –"

She turned her head and bit at the skin above his heart, smiling when he hissed at the pinch. She smoothed her hand from around the sheet, sliding her palm over his chest until she reached his shoulder. Using it as leverage, she pushed herself up, throwing a leg over his hips so she could straddle him. When she was comfortable, she sank down, letting her weight rest against him as her hands wandered up and down his chest.

"You know I wasn't…" she murmured, her nails scratching lightly against his chest and he had to fight the urge to groan at the sensation.

"I think we should tell them though…"

He hummed underneath her, his eyes locked on the lean line of her torso and this was entirely unfair.

Did she really expect him to have a conversation with her perched on top of him?

Naked?

She caught his eye, saw him staring at her chest. She rolled her eyes.

"Castle, focus."

He didn't look away.

"I am."

She sighed, reaching behind her and tugging, the sheet coming loose from the bed as she wrapped it around her chest.

He frowned up at her only to see her glaring in response.

"I'm serious."

He sighed, lifting a hand and rubbing it up over his eyes.

"Alright, so you want to tell them."

She looked at him questioningly.

"You… you don't?"

He shook his head.

"I never said that."

Kate looked at him imploringly.

"So you do?"

He shrugged, "I want to do whatever makes you happy."

Kate's brow furrowed.

"But what about what you want?"

"I want whatever –"

".. Makes me happy," Kate finished, rolling her eyes, "Yeah, I got that. It's not enough for me. I'm not the only person in this relationship, Castle, and I don't want to be. We make decisions together."

He looked at her, trying to hide just how in awe he was at her because she was in this. She was really in this with him and he could tell by the look in her eyes that she loved him and it still took his breath away.

He reached out and grabbed one of her hands on his chest in his own, lacing their fingers together.

"I want to tell everyone," he said quietly, his thumb brushing over his fingers.

He'd been most worried about telling his daughter, because he knew that she hadn't been Kate's biggest fan ever since her shooting. But Kate came over one time his mother and daughter had gone out to see a show but came home early because his mother forgot his credit card on the counter to pay for dinner and he had to explain why his hand was up her shirt and her lipstick all over his neck. Of course, his mother rolled her eyes and badgered them that really, darlings, it was about time, but Alexis had been shocked, unable to say anything even as Martha ushered her out of the loft again, calling behind her to say that they wouldn't be back again until very late. The next day, a worried Kate took an angry Alexis out for coffee, and 3 hours later, Alexis returned to the loft with Kate in tow and immediately hugged her dad, murmuring a hushed 'okay' before walking quickly upstairs to her room, smiling softly at Kate as she passed her. Castle had looked at her questioningly, could immediately tell by the smudges of her make-up and the slump in her shoulders that she had been crying.

She didn't tell him what had been said, but the next morning, he woke up to Kate, his daughter, and his mother making breakfast, together, in his kitchen.

They were getting there.

And now that they knew, he wanted everyone to know.

Kate's lips quirked at his response, her eyes warm as she squeezed his fingers in return.

"We can't wait much longer," Kate murmured, "It's time."

"It's time," he agreed.

The sat in silence for a moment before Kate began to drag her fingers over his skin again.

"I'll call my dad later today," she said, absentmindedly drawing patterns on his skin. He felt himself responding to her touch, knew that she could feel it to by the way she shifted on his lap, her eyes growing darker at the friction.

"Yeah…" he murmured, reaching out with his free hand to tug the sheet away from her chest, his hand running up her bare side once he could see it again, "… later."

Her eyes fell closed at his touch, and he reached higher until she gasped against him, her hand clutching at his as she pushed herself simultaneously up into his hand and down against him.

"Later," she agreed.

Kate sighed in front of the coffee machine in the break room, her head falling forward as she rubbed a hand over the back of her neck, trying to rub out the soreness and exhaustion from looking over and over the case file to try and find something that she could use against the victim's boyfriend because she knew that he killed her but didn't have anything solid to tie him to the case. She groaned at the knots in her neck. She could really use…"

"My hands have been known to be excellent stress relievers," she heard him murmur behind him.

She rolled her eyes but smiled, sinking into his touch as his fingers rubbed at the sore spots on her neck.

"I see you agree," he murmured, the smile clear in his voice.

"Not here," she said quietly, shaking her head ever so slightly even as she sank back against him, "You can take care of me back at your place."

"Wow," he chuckled behind her, "you really are tired, aren't you?"

She hummed noncommittally, and Castle didn't stop his ministrations on her neck.

"I will," he promised, "but I can still do this now. Everyone's gone but the boys and some uniforms," he whispered, "Just relax."

She exhaled deeply as his fingers danced across her neck, his palm hot against her spine as his fingers curled into the hair at the base of her neck.

God she really did love his hands…

"Hey guys –"

Kate's eyes peeled open slowly, and Castle's fingers froze against her neck. She looked over and saw Ryan and Esposito

"Uh…" Ryan started, "Are we… interrupting something?"

Kate looked at Castle, biting her lip, and he nodded.

It's time.

"Actually…" Rick started.

"We have something to tell you," Kate finished, "Castle and I are…"

"We've been…" Castle interjected.

"Seeing each other," they finished together.

Ryan and Esposito looked at Castle, then looked at Kate, and then looked at each other.

And then they started laughing.

"What?" Rick said, bristling, his hand still against her neck, "what's so funny about that?"

Ryan calmed down first, looking over at the two of them, wiping his eyes.

"Sorry, man. Just… Whoo! That was a good one. You had us going for a second."

Esposito stood up straighter, too.

"Thanks guys, we needed that today."

"We're not lying!" Rick said, holding up their joined hands, "We're together. We have been for almost 5 months."

"You can let go of the act now, man," Esposito said, "a fake neck message isn't going to fool us."

"This isn't fake!" Castle said, his voice rising slightly.

How dare they?

"Are you serious? Castle, drop it. We'd totally know if you two were... you know," Ryan said almost awkwardly, looking towards Esposito.

"Yeah," Esposito said, looking between the two of them, "We'd totally know if you guys were… you know… We know you."

Rick gaped.

"You're not serious," Kate said, looking between the two of them, "You really don't believe us?"

Ryan and Esposito looked at each other before shaking their heads.

"Nice try," Esposito said, "but we're detectives."

Kate looked at Castle, who was staring dumbfounded at her.

"Now, when you two are ready," Ryan added, "Uniforms caught the boyfriend trying to fly to Jamaica about 45 minutes ago. He's in box two."

And then they left.

The two stared after them.

"Did they just…" Kate started.

"Yeah," He answered, mildly offended.

Kate sank back against his chest for a moment, trying to comfort him without saying anything before she groaned, ignoring the freshly made coffee that was now sitting in a cup under the machine, and pushing away from Castle.

"Come on."

Standing in the observation room, Ryan and Esposito watched as Beckett went after the suspect, Castle watching on and interjecting occasionally when something didn't add up, helping Beckett build her case.

"Did they really think we didn't already know?" Ryan said, watching as Castle never took his eyes off of Kate as she spun the story.

Esposito shook his head, rolling his eyes.

"I don't know, bro," he said, shaking his head, "but they're not nearly as subtle as they think they are."

The two were quiet as they watched their suspect falling apart in front of them, confessing to the fight he had with the victim and how he thought she was cheating on him with his brother.

"I know it doesn't mean anything," Ryan said softly, "but Beckett's like our sister and I'm… I'm just… really glad it's Castle."

Esposito watched the two of them as the suspect was being carted away from some uniforms. Kate leaned back in her chair, her eyes closing, a small, satisfied smile playing at the corner of her lips and Castle watched her, his eyes filled with pride and awe and love as he looked at her. She cracked an eye open, looking over at him and her smile grew, her entire face softening.

She loved him.

Esposito allowed his lips to quirk as he watched the scene in front of him.

"Me too, bro. Me too."

Okay, off to class. I'd love to know what you think.