Because Of You

Chapter 3

Ryan gently stirs his coffee. Staring off into the distance. Lost in his own little world. Thoughts of Javier consume his mind and claw at the large aching hole he feels inside his chest. The pair very rarely fight so when they do it's a big deal. For the detective, who takes a lot of things to heart, this cuts him deep.

"Ryan!" Castle whispers directly into the Irishman's ear.

Kevin jumps back to reality. The coffee mug jumps too. Some of the boiling hot contents spills out of the side and scorches his fingers.

"Castle! Don't sneak up on people like that!" the blue eyes glare at the writer as searing hot pain races through his fingers "I could have spilt my coffee all over you!"

"Looks like there's a higher chance of you spilling it all over yourself than me" Castle retorts, wincing with sympathy pains, as he leads the detective over to the sink.

Ryan grimaces. The stinging pain in his fingers increases when the cold water makes contact with his skin. Castle leans against the counter. Without uttering a word he just watches his friend with great interest. Now, Castle has been working with them all long enough to know them vey well. The detective before him can most definitely handle a bit of pain. Normally he'd be insisting that his fingers are fine, that Castle hadn't burnt him, but now he seems to be nursing his very minor wound. This only happens when Ryan is feeling pain on the inside. Ryan has a big heart, but he's learnt to guard it well. Perhaps a little too well. Not a lot of things get to him or at least he doesn't let it show that they do. However, the one person Kevin has never been able to defend his heart against is Esposito. Whether the man realises this or not is another story. Rick just knows that Detective Ryan will take anything his partner says to heart.

"So, are you going to tell me what happened or do I have to scold you with some more hot coffee first?" the crime novelist questions after a few minutes of silence.

"Talk about what Castle?" Ryan asks, as if he thinks the writer is some sort of fool.

"What did Esposito say to you just then?" Castle probes, handing his friend a paper towel for his hands "I like to think that I've known you long enough to know when something is bothering you"

"Esposito and I are fine" the clearly not fine detective states as he dries his hands.

"Why are you in here alone then? What did he say to upset you?" Rick queries, feeling very determined to get to the bottom of all this.

"What makes you think he upset me? I could have upset him you know" the detective retorts then walks over to the couch in the break room.

A couch with a lot of memories. Many a night have he and Espo been working late. The Hispanic detective always seeks the refuge of this couch. It's amusing to watch. Javier likes to fidget in his sleep. Constantly wriggling. The way he lies on his stomach with one hand always at the back of his head. Kevin finds it very endearing.

"You seem to have forgotten how long I worked here with you guys. I know what Esposito's guilty face looks like. I know when there's something going on between the two of you" Castle urges as he sits down beside his friend on the couch.

Ryan gives in with a deep exhale "I don't know whether Beckett has told you, but we got a new detective today"

"That's why I'm here. I wanted to take a look at the new guy. Detective Sherman, right?" the detective nods at his writer friend "Where is he from again?"

"I don't know. He didn't say and I didn't ask" the detective inspects his injured fingers "So, Beckett introduced Sherman to us and he seems nice enough, but Javi, well he just behaved like a total jerk to this guy. After Beckett took Sherman to meet Malone, I questioned him about his bad mood and he said that Sherman was rude to him in the elevator. I mean the way he described it... it wasn't that big of a deal and he treated it like it was huge. Javi got mad at me for taking Sherman's side and not defending him"