Fic: Fireworks

[etherealflaim]

Title:Fireworks Author:EtherealFlaim Genre:Slash, Fic Exchange Rating:R Fandom:Castle (spoilers for S2E18 and S4E6) Characters:Ryan/Esposito, Castle, Beckett, Martha, Alexis Summary:There's more than one set of fireworks at Times Square... Author's Notes:This fic was written for apodiopsys in the ryanandesposito Secret Santa Fic Exchange 2011. It's, uh, rather longer than I expected... So I broke it into chapters for you :). Disclaimer:I do not own these characters or have anything to do with Castle (other than the fact that I'm a fan).
Chapter 1: Fireworks

The first time it happened, he didn't think anything of it.

The second time it happened, he still didn't think anything of it.

The third time Javi's hand "accidentally" brushed against his on the way to fetch something or other, Ryan started to take notice. Peering back through the champagne-filled haze of his memory of the evening's events, he could pick out at more than a few times where he'd caught his partner watching him. He squinted to himself and tried to remember if this had been happening for awhile, but couldn't seem to focus on anything before Castle had-much to Martha's dismay-produced a trio of $300 bottles of champagne three hours before midnight and popped the cork off the first. After she had finished her tirade and drifted off to gossip with Beckett and her granddaughter, Castle had winked conspiratorially and whispered "Don't worry boys, I've got a better bottle for later!" Anything before that (and a respectable portion of the two and a half bottles since) was just wavy, bubbly, unbalanced, and unidentifiable.

Ryan let it go and poured more champagne.

"Dad, I'm not really sure you should have left the champagne over by those two," Alexis said as he joined her at the railing. "They look like they've had enough already. I know you've taken care of my friends when they've had too much at the party, but I was kinda hoping to have a quiet evening with Asimov before bed, and I think I'm going to have my hands full with you anyway." Alexis cocked her head and smiled up at her father.

"Asimov? Since when do you read science fiction?" her father asked with a curious look. He tried to keep a straight face, but he could barely manage that even when he wasn't drinking.

"That's not the point! Anyway, I have my reasons." Alexis crossed her arms and sent her father an exasperated look.

"Oh, this is about a boy, isn't it?" Castle asked with a smirk. "I might have known!" Castle feigned disdain at her daughter's behavior and took another drink.

Alexis rolled her eyes. Her father was so insufferable. At least he wasn't as drunk as Ryan and Esposito. She looked over at the pair, sitting hip-to-hip on the sidewalk, laughing dumbly at God only knew what. She rolled her eyes again and checked her watch. Only ten minutes left!

The pair of them spent the next few minutes playfully elbowing each other as they watched the final band of the evening finish up their set and start to tear down.

Beckett leaned away from the railing as the band finished up. She smiled as she saw Castle and his daughter goofing off, and headed back to check on the guys. She made her way through the VIP block Castle had somehow managed to acquire (ostensibly for the Precinct) right beside Countdown stage. There were a few cops there, but not as many as she had expected... The ones who weren't back at the station waiting for the inevitable flood of petty crime probably weren't that interested in standing in the middle of a drunken, yelling mob.

"And here I was enjoying the prime real-estate Castle scored for us," Beckett said with mock exasperation as she reached the curb, "and you boys are going to be passed out back here on the sidewalk before the ball even has a chance to drop."

"Ah, chill out Becks," Esposito responded, "It's just a little champagne!"

"Yeah," Ryan laughed, "I've seen Javi show up to work more drunk than this."

"Hey!" Esposito said as he punched Ryan in the shoulder.

Beckett reached down and grabbed Esposito's wrist on its way to the open bottle of champagne and dragged him to his feet. He stretched his arms wide and turned back and forth a few times.

"You know Beckett, you are such a kill-joy," Esposito noted. "Why can't you be more like Castle?" he asked, indicating the nearly empty bottle of champagne on the ground. He saw Ryan trying to stand up too and leaned in to help.

"Hurry it up, Ryan. It's almost midnight. I'm not going to let you drow-" Beckett stopped short and looked down at her shin and then up at Esposito. She wasn't sure how he'd managed to kick her while helping Ryan to his feet, but he had. The meaning behind the kick and his glare were obvious enough, though: Shut up, Beckett, it's way too soon to be making jokes like that.

Beckett decided it was lucky that Ryan hadn't heard her and drained the last of her glass of champagne. I guess they're not the only ones who've had a bit too much, she thought to herself as the three of them made their way up to the railing. She certainly wouldn't have wanted to be reminded if her fiancé had thrown his ring at her and stormed out, especially the same evening. She'd been trying all day to ask him how he was holding up, but now she had her answer.

Javi watched as Ryan continued to massage his shoulder, leaning against the railing next to Castle. The two of them were laughing about the case they'd just closed that morning: a soccer mom had run over her husband with a neighbor's mini-van, and done a spectacularly poor job of framing its owner. It had been one of the easiest cases they'd had in months, and made for some pretty great woman-driver jokes. For some reason, Javi didn't find much of anything funny that evening. He put on a show of good humor, laughing along with the rest of them, but he just couldn't enjoy the evening when Ryan was so clearly in pain. He didn't like seeing his partner-as Beckett had almost put it-drowning his sorrows in alcohol, but he had to admit that he'd done the same many, many times and that it wasn't his place to tell Ryan how to cope. He wished there was something that he could do to help ease his partner's pain, but he was drawing a blank.

"Come on, dear, it's just one glass," Martha said, waving the champagne at Alexis. "You're going to be going off to college before you know it, you might as well get used to having some booze in you."

"Fine, Gram, but only one glass," Alexis replied with a resigned smile. "If Dad sees me drinking this, I am putting all of the blame on you."

"Here you go, that's a good girl. It's not like your father is likely to notice anything, of course; that boy has been watching Detective Beckett out of the corner of his eye since she got here." Martha waved her hand at the four leaning against the railing and wiggled her fingers at the sky. "Love is in the air! How I do love a good Times Square New Year's Celebration."

Alexis checked her watch again and smiled back up at her grandmother. "It's not just the two of them, you know. Have you seen how Esposito has been looking at Ryan?"

Martha nodded back at Alexis with a conspiratorial wink. "When you've been around as long as I have, especially in the theater, you develop a certain sense for these sort of things."

"Oh come on Gram," Alexis laughed. "You thought Dad might have been turning gay before he met Gina."

"Not true! I was merely preparing for the possibility that-"

"And bringing eligible men around whenever you got the chance?"

Martha smiled and shrugged. She brandished her champagne at her daughter and shook her head. "I don't know where you get that brain of yours, darling. It wasn't from your father, and God knows it didn't come from your mother. Ah, it looks like the countdown is about to start."

The crowd began to chant. It took awhile before everyone caught on-as if half the crowd didn't realize midnight was rapidly approaching-but as they did, each successive second was greeted with an escalating roar. In the final seconds, lights flashing, all eyes on The Ball, it felt as if anything could happen. Martha and Alexis, arm-in-arm, counted down the final seconds of the year as loudly as anyone.

"Three!" they shouted, "Two... One! Happy new year!"

As a giant sphere of light finished its descent, a million people cheered, toasted champagne, and celebrated a new beginning beneath a shower of fireworks. The pyrotechnics going on above them, however, were not the fireworks Martha and Alexis were watching.

As Times Square rang in the new year, Beckett-throwing caution into the wind-spun Castle around and threw him against the railing. Before he knew what was happening, she pulled the champagne glass from his lips and replaced it with a kiss.

Javi put his hand on Kevin's shoulder. As his partner turned around, his hand moved up and cradled the back of his head. Their eyes met. Time slowed down, and finally stopped. Javi forgot to breathe. Alone in the middle of a cheering crowd, Javi drew Kevin in and kissed him.

Kevin's hand opened, and the champagne flute tumbled out, following the last of the champagne on its way to the ground.

As the glass shattered against the pavement, the sound of the fireworks, the cheering of the crowd, and the realization of what had just happened crashed in on Javi. Their lips parted, but neither moved. The tender kiss had lasted mere moments, but to him it had seemed a lifetime. Javi wasn't sure he could look Kevin in the eye at just that moment, so he pulled his partner close and hugged him.

Chapter 2: Taxi

Javi shrugged Kevin off his shoulder into the back seat of the cab. His partner had been nearly silent for the duration of their desperate search for an open cab, and the only things he'd said had been directed at the people, buildings, lamp posts, and curbs that had gotten in his way. That suited Javi, though, as he didn't know what he would say either. Part of him hoped that Kevin would forget the whole affair by morning, and that everything would go back to the way it had always been.

The other part, of course, wanted no such thing.

Javi ducked his head into the taxi, fumbled around for the seat belt-trying his best to touch Kevin as little as possible in the process-and finally managed to clasp it over his partner's waist. He backed out of the taxi and took his time walking around the back of the car. His brain was in overdrive (as much as it could be while soaked thoroughly in champagne) trying to figure out if he'd made a mistake, and second- third- and fourth-guessing himself. He found himself at his own door, climbed inside, and gave the cabbie Kevin's address.

Kevin gave up pretending to be asleep. He leaned against the window instead and watched as the buildings creeped by outside the cab. The cold glass felt really good, and seemed to clear some of the fog in his head. He noted idly that there were more lit windows in the squat, dilapidated buildings than he would normally have expected at this time of the night. Of course, it was New Year's, and this city never slept, so he wasn't particularly surprised. He thanked God yet again that he and Javi hadn't drawn a short straw and were able to take the evening off. He immediately regretted it, and silently cursed himself for letting his mind wander back to Javi again. He couldn't seem to avoid thinking about him for more than a few minutes at a time. More specifically, he couldn't stop thinking about the kiss; how smooth Javi's lips had felt against his own, or how warm. He couldn't forget how he'd parted his lips and allowed Javi's tongue inside, or how his own had followed it back out again.

Most of all, he couldn't avoid the fact that, as their lips were parting, he hadn't wanted it to stop.

As he relived those few brief seconds, his head started to swim again. He closed his eyes, took deep breaths, and swore he'd never get this drunk again.

It wasn't long before Javi finally broke the silence. "You okay bro?" he asked.

Kevin tried to answer, swallowed, and tried again. "No... I'm feeling really dizzy at the moment," he finally managed.

"Hey, you should really lie down. Here..." Javi said, taking off his jacket and balling it up on one knee. "Use my jacket."

"Thanks," Kevin croaked as he adjusted the seatbelt around is waist enough that he could lean over and put his head on the makeshift pillow. He had to admit, it didn't take long before the throbbing in his head had to die down. He turned his head slightly so that he was looking up at Javi and thanked him again.

"Thanks, Javi." Kevin said. Javi looked down at him, and they made eye contact for the first time since the kiss. The light smile on Kevin's face made Javi feel as if an ogre had just climbed off his chest, and he started to breathe again. He smiled down at his partner and gently ran his fingers through Kevin's beautiful brown hair. The tension in the back seat of the cab evaporated, adding to the condensation already accumulating on the cold windows. He breathed a sigh of relief as Kevin's eyes closed contentedly in his lap. He still wasn't sure if he'd crossed the line what seemed like a decade ago in Times Square, but he knew he'd do it all over again if given the chance.

There had been something about Kevin the day they met; they had clicked immediately, and they had only grown closer since. He couldn't really put a finger on when it had happened, but somewhere along the way he'd stopped thinking of Kevin as his partner at work, and wanted to make something more of it. The guys he picked up at bars to take the edge off of his many bad breakups had started to have brown hair, fair skin, and distinctly Irish features without him really noticing. He’d finally ended up in a bar the night Lanie had broken up with him taking shots with a guy who could easily have been Kevin's twin. After the third shot, he'd looked over at him and-for a split second-thought that he was Kevin... and the realization finally dawned on him that he was living out the fantasy of sleeping with his partner.

Javi smiled down at Kevin. Somehow, it felt different this time, different from all the nameless guys for whom he’d felt nothing. He'd taken a chance with Kevin, and it was already worth it.

Kevin's headache was entirely gone by the time their cab had escaped the mass Times Square exodus and made its way to his apartment. He'd been fading in and out of consciousness for most of the ride, though when he was awake he mostly just looked up at Javi staring out the window, wearing a tiny smile away from which Kevin couldn't manage to tear his gaze. He loved Javi's smile. It was infectious, and often more than a little bit mischievous. He would probably have spent a lot more time staring at it at work, he realized, if Beckett and Castle weren't constantly hovering around them. He'd always assumed that he felt about Javi the way he would feel about any partner with whom he got along-which had not been the case five years ago-and with whom he hung out frequently, but he realized that it had always been something more than mere admiration and friendship. The chemistry had always been there, from the day they were partnered up and sent on their first case.

Each of these realizations momentarily frightened him. He'd only ever been with women before. Not a lot of them, but he liked them. He'd never really connected with one before Jenny, but even that had felt like an incredibly powerful friendship that happened to be conditional on periodic sex. In retrospect, she'd probably sensed something of that distance, which probably contributed to their final knock-down drag-out throwing-of-the-rings. They'd fought so rarely, he thought, when they finally had a big one it was bound to be nuclear.

Like he had when Javi had offered his lap as a pillow, Kevin took a deep breath and put aside his apprehension. He didn't care who might judge him. He'd given up on trying to please other people long ago, and wasn't about to start now. He still wasn't quite sure to make of what he was feeling, but he wasn't about to let it go.

"Kiss me."

Javi had been staring out the window, counting down the streets to Kevin's apartment. They were almost there; only eight more blocks. He hadn't realized that Kevin was awake, and when he heard him say... something, he was taken a bit off guard. "What?"

"Kiss me again, Javi." Kevin repeated, barely loud enough for Javi to hear. Kevin raised his hand and reached for Javi's neck.

Javi wasn't about to give him a chance to reconsider. With one smooth movement he unbuckled Kevin's seatbelt and drew the younger man into his arms. He felt as if he could drown in the beautiful, blue eyes suspended mere inches in front of his face. He tilted his head and drew Kevin close for the kiss, and-unlike their previous one-let Kevin close the distance.

Kevin couldn't remember ever having felt anything close to the same, almost palpable shock as their lips met. The kiss was tentative, sensual. After their lips had met briefly, Javi nipped his lower lip and proceeded to nurse the spot with his tongue. Kevin's lips parted just enough to meet Javi's tongue with his own. The kiss slowly deepened as their tongues wrestled and chased each other back and forth. Kevin was stroking the back of Javi's neck and enjoying how soft his hair was when they felt the taxi slow down and finally stop.

Their lips parted at last, and their eyes met again.

"I'd like it if you'd come up with me," Kevin said tentatively. "But you don't have to," he added quickly.

"I'd love to, bro." Javi replied, kissing Kevin on the forehead. "I think we should get out anyway; I think we're making this cabbie uncomfortable."

As Kevin climbed out of the car-resisting the urge to sprint up to his apartment-Javi peeled off some bills and handed them to the driver with a wink before following his partner out of the cab.

Kevin tried to grab Javi's arm as he fell back onto the bed, but only caught air. He only vaguely recalled the events between closing the taxi door and Javi's feigned-kiss-turned-to-shove. Pretty much the only thing that made an impression was Javi standing behind him-against him, really-as he tried to find his key and get the front door open. The rest was a blur of stairs, darkness, unholstering of weapons, and now a short fall onto a soft mattress.

Javi climbed onto the bed, straddling Kevin's waist, wearing his mischievous grin. With what seemed like no effort at all, he leaned down, put his hands under Kevin's arms, and slid him further onto the bed before going in for a kiss. Where the last kiss was slow and prolonged, this kiss was agressive and filled with need. Javi soon broke off the kiss and trailed his tongue along Kevin's jaw, lighter and more slowly as his tongue made its way behind Kevin's ear. Whether it was the cool air against the damp flesh or the impossibly light tracing of Javi's tongue that made Kevin shiver involuntarily, he didn't know; all he knew was that he didn't want Javi to stop.

Kevin's skin smelled faintly sweet, and had a mild salty taste that Javi couldn't resist. After sucking on Kevin's ear-which, to his supreme satisfaction, elicited a guttural groan-he made his way, kissing and licking, down Kevin's neck. Using a finger, he drew aside the collar on Kevin's shirt and kissed the hollow above his collarbone, taking care not to leave a mark-not yet, at least. He turned his attention to the same spot on the other side of Kevin's neck as he felt Kevin's hands make their way from gripping the comforter to where his knees met the bed and on up to his waist. Javi smiled to himself and went to work on Kevin's ear, trying his best to see if he could be distracted. The ploy worked briefly, but soon Kevin's hands were on the move again, finding their way under his shirt, exploring his abs, chest, and back.

Not to be outdone, Javi sat back slightly and lifted Kevin's shirt up over his head. He ran his fingers lightly over the now-bare chest, admiring the smooth, hairless skin. He followed his fingers with kisses, and then kissed Kevin again. As he broke the kiss, he held his arms over his head as Kevin slipped off his shirt and then proceeded to alternately kiss and lick all over Kevin's chest. When he didn't think Kevin could take any more of it, he slowly trailed his tongue down the center of Kevin's chest, planting a final kiss immediately above his belt.

Kevin put a finger under Javi's chin and drew him up for a kiss. When they parted, their eyes met and Kevin saw the unspoken question in his Javi's eyes. He smiled and nodded, running a finger along Javi's strong jawline before removing his belt.

As the last of their clothing joined their sidearms, badges and shirts on the floor, outside the window the first rays of light began to loosen the hold of darkness upon the city, making way for a new day and a new year...

...and neither of them noticed.

Chapter 3: Pancakes

Reality began intruding on Kevin's sleep when he felt the mattress beneath him sink. A few seconds later, a warm hand followed my a muscular arm worked its way around his side. It wasn't until Javi cuddled up behind him that he remembered to whom the arm belonged.

"Hey Kev, Wake up..." came the whisper in his ear. He could hear the smile in Javi's voice.

Kevin breathed in deeply and opened his eyes. His apartment smelled amazing, but he couldn't place the aroma. He turned himself on the bed so he could look back at Javi. "Hey, good morning." he said. "I wasn't sure if you'd still be here when I woke up." He reached up and cupped his hand against the side of Javi's smiling face. "I'm glad you are."

Javi leaned into Kevin's hand, enjoying how warm it felt against his face. "Of course." He turned his face enough to plant a small kiss against the edge of Kevin's palm.

"Hey, what smells so good?" Kevin asked.

"Pancakes, bro." Javi replied, rolling his eyes. "I was hoping for bacon and eggs, but your eggs are expired and the bacon... has something furry on it."

"Who do you think you are," Kevin asked with feigned exasperation. "Castle?"

"Yo, I'm way cuter than Castle." Javi said with a grin and a wag of his finger. "...and his pancakes got nothing on mine. Anyway, get your ass out of bed and come eat them before they get cold." Javi leaned down and placed a quick kiss on Kevin's exposed shoulder before hopping out of bed and practically skipping away toward the kitchen. He was wearing an apron, Kevin noted with amusement, and nothing else.

Javi was just flipping the last pancake out of the skillet when Kevin walked sleepily from the bedroom, rubbing the last of sleep from his eyes. "You know I have to burn that apron now, right?" he said.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Javi said, looking around innocently. "I took a shower when I woke up while your drunk ass was still asleep."

"What time is it?" Kevin asked, looking at him quizzically.

"A little bit after 3," Javi answered. "We didn't get to bed until late."

"Well, actually, we didn't get to sleep until late," Kevin corrected, sporting a mischievous smirk of his own.

Javi slid a few pancakes onto each of the plates he had sitting out on the counter beside a pair of already-full glasses of orange juice. "Have a seat. I'll grab the syrup," Javi said as he walked to the refrigerator. He grabbed the bottle of maple syrup from the door and, as he turned to pop it in the microwave, heard a soft curse. Based on the subsequent stumbling sound and the scooting of a stool back into place, it seemed Ryan hadn’t been paying attention to the seat when he’d tried to sit down. Javi grinned at his success. Too easy, he thought.

The microwave dinged and Javi brought the hot syrup with him as he walked past the stove and joined Kevin at the counter. He slid his barstool a bit closer to Kevin before taking a seat. Kevin had already started applying liberal amounts of butter to his pancake. Javi shook his head, poured a small amount of syrup on his own stack, and sat the syrup down next to his partner.

"You keep eating like that, you're going to give yourself a heart attack."

"Yeah," Kevin scoffed as he created a generous pool of syrup on top of a pancake. "If only butter was the most dangerous thing I had to deal with every day." Kevin finished cutting off a piece of butter-covered and syrup-soaked pancake and popped it into his mouth. He chewed it slowly while staring at Javi meaningfully.

"Who, me? I'm not dangerous!" Javi insisted. "If anyone's going to get us killed," he said, waving a syrupy fork at his partner, "It's that whack-job writer that keeps following us around." Javi impaled another corner of pancake and made it vanish.

"Nah," Kevin said after he swallowed another mouthful of pancake and washed it down with OJ. "He's harmless."

They continued to eat their pancakes in relative silence. Javi could tell that Kevin was thinking about something, or wanting to ask something, so he didn't interrupt. He had just finished his pancakes and was taking his dishes to the sink for a rinse when Kevin finally broke the silence.

"So, uh..." he started, taking a deep breath. "About last night."

Ah. Javi had figured that was probably it. He left the dishes in the sink and turned around, leaning back against the counter. He was afraid of how the conversation would go if it got stuck in "serious" territory, so he took a chance on humor. "Last night?" he asked with a grin, "You seemed to enjoy it at the time."

Kevin's face turned bright red. "I- Well, I did..." he stammered. "That's not what I meant."

Javi opted not to push his luck and stayed silent.

"I guess what I mean is..." Kevin trailed off, breaking eye contact. "Well, what does it mean?" Kevin continued to stare out the window over Javi's shoulder while he asked the question.

"Oh, Kevin..." Javi said softly, making his way around to the counter. He knew what his partner must be thinking. He hadn't known for sure up to that point that Kevin knew about his post-breakup habit, but from the look on his partner's face he could tell that Kevin was afraid he'd become just another in a long list of guys with whom Javi spent a single night. "It's not like that. You're not like them, you're nothing like them. They meant nothing to me, but you?" Javi put a finger under Kevin's chin and turned his face until their eyes met. "You mean the world to me. You always have."

Javi watched as a weight lifted off his partner's shoulders, as if he were un-shouldering a heavy hiking pack. He took a step around behind Kevin and wrapped his arms around him from behind, resting his chin on Kevin's shoulder.

"I'd like nothing more than to wake up next to you every morning for the rest of my life," he said.

Kevin closed his eyes and smiled, turning his head slightly so that their cheeks met.

"I'd like that."

Thanks for reading! Comments, constructive criticism, gushes and squees all welcome.

Shameless plug: this was composed with my online fic formatter and a copy of it lives there too.