A/N: Thank you, Dia for the beta-read. Your flailing made my evening so much better. :)

And thank you, Lou for the prompt. Keep 'em comin'.

Oh, and I might have been a bit hungry when writing this. ;)

Disclaimer: Don't own them.

Fic prompt by lousiemcdoogle: Early season 5 (before anyone knows C&B are together) Castle and Captain Gates get stuck in an elevator together

When stuck in an elevator

"Hold the elevator!" Castle shouts as he rushes through the precinct lobby.

He sighs in relief when he sees a hand shoot out to keep the doors from closing. He's running late and Beckett just called that they have a new lead.

He could hear the grin in her voice when she had admonished him for not being there on time. Oh, she knows exactly why he's not at work yet, that evil woman. He was right on schedule when he hopped in the shower. And then she walked in – or sashayed to be more precise – and dropped to her knees in front of him. The things that woman can do with her tongue…

He had a little trouble getting his brain to function after that, so his morning routine took more time than usual.

A shiver of pleasure runs up his spine at the thought of her extremely talented mouth, but he comes to an abrupt stop when he sees the other occupant – the only other occupant – in the elevator.

"Mr. Castle, I would appreciate if you stepped all the way in, so the elevator could actually move," Captain Gates says, looking wholly unimpressed.

"Wha- Oh! Sure, sure. Sorry," Castle stammers as he takes the last step into the car.

Their slow ascent is made in silence and Castle curses the old elevator in his mind. Could this ride take any longer?

Suddenly the elevator jerks, before lurching to a stop. There's a shriek and Gates narrows her eyes at Castle.

"Sorry. It's a reflex," he says, embarrassed.

"Uh-huh."

"Okay, we need to figure out a plan to get out of here," Castle says, ignoring the look Gates is giving him. He looks around quickly and then continues, "I don't think we're very far from the homicide floor, so one of us could slip through that hatch in the roof of the elevator and then bang on the doors. I'm sure someone is be close enough to hear the noise and come rescue us. I think you should be the one getting up there. I can give you a-"

His rambling is cut short by a sharp Mr. Castle from Gates and he sees her pointing at the wall.

"Ooooor, you know, we could press that button with the little bell on it and call for help," he says airily.

"Yes, I think we should do that," the Captain says dryly as she presses the button and waits for the call to connect.

After she notifies the building maintenance of their whereabouts, they are told to just sit back and wait for the repairmen. Gates remains standing while Castle plops down against the wall. He opens his mouth a few times to start a conversation, but the Captain is not really exuding amicability, so he gives up.

He pulls out his phone, intending to play a few rounds of Angry Birds, but notices that the battery is almost empty. He quickly sends a text to Beckett, explaining the situation and asking her to make sure that the repairmen work fast. Her reply is short: LMAO! Frustrated, he turns his phone off and proceeds to glare at the doors as he waits.

"I've got Skittles. Would you like some?" Castle asks, breaking the silence, as he pulls the bag out of his left coat pocket.

Gates simply gives him a look that Castle interprets as a no.

"What? I'm hungry. We've been here for hours!"

"We have been here for 15 minutes, Mr. Castle," she says pointedly and they lapse into silence again.

"Beef jerky?" Castle offers, after finding some in his right pants pocket.

"Didn't you just eat an entire bag of Skittles?" Gates asks incredulously as she declines the offered packet with a shake of her head.

"Well, I'm still hungry," Castle says and continues under his breath, "I didn't exactly have time for breakfast this morning, thanks to Ka..." he trails off as he remembers that he's not alone.

"What was that, Mr. Castle?" Gates inquires.

"Erm…" Castle tries to think quickly, "Just forgot to set the alarm."

"Hmm, I thought you were going to say something else."

"Nope," Castle says, trying to look both innocent and convincing at the same time. Judging by the skeptical look she gives him, he's not doing a very good job at pulling off either.

Gates doesn't press further, and Castle suppresses a sigh of relief. Maybe it's better if he doesn't open his mouth.

"Mr. Castle, could you stop doing that?" Gates says sharply. Her tone indicates that it isn't really a request, so Castle stops drumming his fingers against his thighs.

They have been stuck for nearly an hour and he is bored out of his mind.

And he's still hungry.

He digs through his pockets and aha! pulls out a small zip-lock bag of animal crackers from his left pants pocket. Most of them are crushed, but that won't stop him from eating them.

"I would offer you some, but these have suffered a bit in my pocket," Castle says apologetically when he sees Gates watching him from where she's sitting against the opposing wall.

"That's fine, Mr. Castle," she replies, but continues to steal glances at him while he munches on the crackers.

"Oh, but I do have a Snickers bar that's unscathed," he announces brightly, producing the candy from his right coat pocket.

"Really? Are you the Mary Poppins of snacks?" Gates asks, but Castle notices that she is eyeing the chocolate bar hungrily.

"Hey, now. There's nothing wrong with Mary Poppins. She got those kids to clean their room, didn't she," Castle says, as he enticingly reaches the Snickers bar closer to Gates.

She takes the proffered candy and tears through the wrapper.

They eat in silence for a while, until Castle starts to hum 'A Spoonful of Sugar'. He thinks he sees her smile a little and is just about to start a conversation when she beats him to it.

"Are you unable to simply sit still and be quiet, Mr. Castle?" she asks, but the question doesn't have her normal bite to it.

"Only when I write. Or when I'm looking at Ka- I mean, when I'm watching a good movie," he corrects lamely. He can't really tell Beckett's boss that he can look at Kate for hours. That he especially loves to watch her sleep. The Captain is once again looking at him suspiciously, so he hurries to continue.

"I think it's a writer thing. My mind needs stimulants all the time."

"Is that why you still follow Detective Beckett?, Gates asks, "Because she stimulates you?"

She smirks when he splutters, but luckily he's saved from having to answer when the elevator jolts and starts moving again. Soon the doors open and reveal the concerned faces of his friends.

"Are you okay Sir," Ryan asks as they get up from the floor and exit the elevator.

"Yes, Detective, I'm fine," she says briskly. She turns to Castle and continues, "Thank you, Mr. Castle. I'm sure that experience would have been a lot less… entertaining, if I had been by myself."

Three sets of eyes turn to stare at Castle, when Gates strides to her office and they see a small smirk on her lips.

"What the hell happened in there, Castle?" Beckett hisses when Gates is out of earshot.

"Yeah, bro. I don't think I've ever seen Gates smile," Esposito chimes in.

Castle looks at them with a smirk of his own.

"I charmed her with my Snickers bar," he says smugly and struts towards the murder board, leaving three dumbfounded detectives gaping after him.

The End