I've been around fanfiction for a while, but until now I've never actually posted anything here. I really hope you enjoy this.

Disclaimer: As much as I would like to, I do not own Castle.

Edit - Sorry guys, just re-uploading to fix a typo that it took me way too long for my liking to even notice.

Time Stands Still - A Castle One-shot

"So whatever happens, and whatever you decide… Katherine Houghton Beckett, will you marry me?"
Time stood still for Detective Kate Beckett. She stared at her kneeling boyfriend, speechless. She had been expecting him to break up with her, not to propose to her. And she certainly didn't expect him to sound to serious about it when he asked her what was basically the most important thing he would ever ask her (although, now that she thought about it, why the hell didn't she expect it? It was a serious question, after all!). The funny thing was, she thought that she already knew, had probably always known, exactly what her answer was going to be. But first she had to find out his reaction to the two things she absolutely had to say to him. "Kate…"
At last, she found her voice. "Rick. Before I give you my answer, before I tell you whether I can agree to spend the rest of my life with you or not, there are two things that you really need to know. Once I've told you what they are, if you're still sure that you want to marry me, and then I'll give you my answer" she said simply.
He merely nodded. "What's the first thing?"
"I got the job".
Unsurprised, he nodded. "I knew you would, Kate. But that doesn't change a thing. I didn't propose to you to force you to stay in New York. I proposed to you because I can't imagine my life without you anymore. Because I am head over heels in love with you, and I want to make sure that the entire world knows the depth of my feelings for you. Because... well, I want to spend as much time as I can showing you how extraordinary you really, truly are. Because... well, when I think about my future, there's only one person I want beside me, and that person is you, Kate. Because I know that you'll always have my back, just like I'll always have yours. Because whether you take the job or not doesn't matter to me in the slightest, only that you're happy"
She could feel her heart skip a beat, and she knew that he was telling the truth. God, how could she ever have doubted him? "I see. But... I'm going to turn the job down, Rick. My mind has finally realized what my heart has been trying to tell me all along. New York... it's where I belong. The 12th Precinct is my home. And you, Richard Castle, the ruggedly-handsome millionaire author who basically forced your way into my life five years ago… You are my best friend, my partner, and my boyfriend, and you have no idea how much I have enjoyed the past five years with you. Without you working with me… well, it's like I said when you offered to stop shadowing me after I shot Coonan the day we realized that he was responsible for killing my mother. I have a hard job, Castle, and you make it just that much more fun. I'd be a fool to give that up. Besides, I am insanely in love with you. I'm not going anywhere".
He smiled at her, meeting her hazel eyes with his own intense blue ones. "I understand. And, for the record? The feeling's mutual. God, Kate, I feel like I'm falling in love with you more and more every day that goes by. So, anyway... What's the second thing you need to tell me?"
She sighed. Luckily for her, he had taken the first piece of news easier than she had expected him to. Now to see how he takes the second... "Do you remember that time that you mentioned you were worried about the possibility that you might not be able to have children any more, and, when I asked you about whether you actually did want more kids or not, you said you'd like to have the opportunity to?"
He nodded briefly, before gesturing for her to continue. She hesitated, not really sure whether he would accept what she was about to say or not, though she knew that she didn't want to drag this out any longer than was really necessary, and it was probably easier to say it now, just after she found out about the pregnancy, than it would be once she got everything figured out. "Well, needless to say that any worries you may or may not have had were completely unfounded. Castle… I'm pregnant".
His mouth dropped open. "Are… Are you sure?"
She forced a smile. "Pretty damn sure, Rick. You're going to be a father again".
As soon as she had spoken those words, he stood and moved to her, taking her face in his hands and enveloping her lips in a passionate kiss. A kiss, that, had she been standing, would have probably made her knees buckle. "A baby. You're pregnant. Wow. Just... thank you, Kate. You have no idea how much I wanted to have this opportunity with you" he whispered.
"I want this opportunity with you too, Rick. And there's no-one I'd rather have it with"
He smiled at her, pulling the diamond ring from his pocket one more time. "So with you staying in New York for good, and pregnant with my child, my question still stands. And this time, I really do want an answer. Katherine Houghton Beckett, will you marry me?"
That's when she knew that she had made the right decision when she decided to stay in New York. His response to the news she had shared with him, as well as the fact that he still wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, had only served to prove that. "Richard Edgar Castle… Of course I will!"
He slid the ring onto her left ring finger and leaned in again, the two of them sealing their engagement with one last passionate kiss. This time, it was Kate who pulled away. "Let's go home, Rick. We have an engagement to celebrate…"

This 'fic was always intended as a one-shot, so I'm marking it as complete for the time being, though I might extend it at some future date.