Hello all! So this is the end of the first Alexis & Shane story, and this ending kind of sprang up on me but I feel like it makes sense to end on a surprise as the relationship story itself started as a surprised. I also held off so that this chapter and the next chapter of Andrea and Daniel's story could line up in terms of chronology. I'd also like to take this moment to thank Ariel119, NCISchick, tayababy, anomalymona and all the others who have reviewed this story. So happy to see how much love you guys have given me and my Crumbsverse. From the bottom of my heart, thank you so very much. So for one more time in this story, read, review and share the love!

By New Year's Eve, Shane was more than a little bit of a nervous wreck. Tonight was the night to put into plan his idea to show everyone that he had no intention of ever looking anywhere else for a lover other than Alexis. He had known of course that he was going to be nervous as hell, but once he woke up the day of, he hadn't been hardly able to see straight. Thankfully being on the last of a four-day days-rotation helped with that and he had a nice fresh stiff in need of attention along with the whole battery of tests that it would entail. It would help with the distraction but nothing could take his mind off that night.

'You think I'm nuts?' he murmured to the corpse on his table as he removed the man's liver, took a small slice to run for tissue sample. 'You think I'm gonna end up looking like the biggest stud in the room or the biggest schlemiel?'

'Wow, you must be nervous if you're busting out the Yiddish.'

Shane glanced up, saw Beckett there on her own. 'Just a tad.'

Beckett smiled gently. 'Wanna talk about a DB to soothe your anxious little heart?'

'Sure. Cause of death is not drowning.'

'Didn't think it was.'

Shane nodded, pointing with one bloody latex-covered finger. 'At a glancing guess, it's going to go down as misadventure. Guy had undiagnosed Marfan's and he had a massive aortic dissection. His body was relax by the water of the hot tub, so he didn't feel a damn thing, he would have just closed his eyes and slipped into unconsciousness. In a way, the hot tub did him a favour, gave him a peaceful passing rather than the gut-clenching brutality of a fatal heart attack.'

They both stood in silence for a moment, taking a minute to think on the dead and his unfortunate passing. It broken when the doctor continued, 'I should have something conclusive by this afternoon. That is, of course, unless I don't have my own heart attack by then.'

'Shane, relax. You'll be fine,' Beckett told him.

'Right. You're right, of course you're right. God, I sound like my father. Oh, damn, wait.'

Beckett watched fascinated as the man switched off his head set and quickly dialed his father, began to speak in a mix of Dutch and Hebrew; as she spoke only English, Russian and a little German she was more than a little lost. But there was something about the tone of Shane's voice that made her raise an eyebrow just a little bit. Of course, that was probably also because the only Hebrew she'd ever heard spoken was when she was on her lady-days feel gross and bloated and watched Schindler's List to remind herself others in history had had it much worse than her right at the moment.

'Sorry about that,' Shane said with a little sheepish grin after he hung up. 'My father always wants to keep updated on his future shiksa shani daughter-in-law.'

'Future shiksa shani daughter-in-law?' Beckett laughed.

'Yeah, shani means 'red' in Hebrew, it's his pet name for Alexis. He also says what you said, I should just calm down and be more concerned about work while I'm at work. He also says Happy New Year.'

'Just your dad? Not your mother too?'

'Already talked to her. She was organizing security for a UN diplomat's arrival tomorrow so she's at work. She might even be coming to New York for a visit next March, she really wants to meet Lex but won't let either of us come to Israel right now.'

'Understandable,' Beckett agreed. 'A mother's first and last instinct is protection of her baby, even if her baby is thirty-eight. Anyways, I should get going if I'm going to be home on time tonight for the party. See ya later.'

'Hey.' Alexis looked at Shane as they rode up the elevator to the loft; he'd been a bundle of nerves ever since he'd gotten off work tonight. 'You okay?'

'Yeah, just fine, why?'

'Well, you're acting your shadow is going to stab you.'

Shit, Shane cursed himself. He thought he'd been doing so well with keeping it together. 'Sorry. It's just weird, you know? Last year at this thing, you and I were together but the only person who knew it was Kate.'

'Understandable.' Alexis tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. 'You think I look okay?'

'You look beautiful.' Shane knew she had on bright red holiday underwear beneath the red blouse and black pants with match pumps. At her throat was the Ferris wheel pendant he'd given her as a gift. He leaned in, pressed a noisy kiss to her neck. 'Love you, my sexy Lexy.'

'Love you too, Shane.'

They went into the loft and immediately, Alexis understood Shane's anxiety - her father had gotten a karaoke machine this year for the party festivity. Shane was known for being a fabulous singer, but it took more than a little convincing to get him on stage. In fact, when they'd gone out in the summer with Body and Faisal for karaoke they'd had to pour a couple of double scotches into him just to get him on stage and he'd sounded amazing.

As was usual for a Castle New Year's party, it was like Christmas two-point-oh, only more booze, more organized party games, and no Secret Santa. And of course, this year, there was the addition of Andrea and Daniel. Pregnancy looked good on Andrea, she was definitely going to be a yummy-mummy, and a good parent, as Alexis watched the nurse give the hiccuping Leo's belly a rub before passing the jiggly boy back to his mother.

They all mingled and mixed, chatting about the five days in between Christmas at the Esposito household until today, and around nine or so, Castle called them all over to the little theatre-nightclub area he'd set up with the karaoke machine, his projector displaying the words for the rest of them in case they wanted to start singing along. Neither Shane nor Alexis bothered to question where exactly Castle had gotten the karaoke machine from; all Shane knew was the closer they got to his song, the one he'd mentioned to Beckett in passing a few weeks prior at the morgue, rather than experiencing the same gut-wrenching anxiety he felt when flying he was remarkably calm.

Finally, when Castle pulled his name from the fish-bowl lottery draw, he looked at Alexis who gave him such a grin of encouragement, he grabbed her hand mid-clap and pulled her up on the little makeshift stage that had been set-up, much to the whistles and cheers of everyone else. Shane looked out, saw everyone there watching and realized that he had absolutely nothing to be nervous about. He took Alexis' hand in his, gave Castle a subtle nod to push the 'Play' and the opening guitar chords of Shane's favourite song by Old 97s.

She woke from a dream
Her head was on fire
Why was he so nervous?

He took her to the park
She crossed her arms
And lowered her eyelids

He looked at Alexis, and in her shaky but lightly pretty singing voice, began to sing with him.

Someday, somebody's gonna ask you
A question that you should say yes to
Once in your life
Baby, tonight I've got a question for you

She had no idea
Started to cry
She said in a good way
He took her by the hand
Walked her back home
And they took the long way

By this point, Shane saw that everyone had begun to sway a little and even sing along with the final verse.

Someday, somebody's gonna ask you
The question that you should say "yes" to
Once in your life
Maybe tonight I've got a question for you
I've got a question for you...

As the last strains of the song faded on the speakers, Shane handed off his microphone, and with Alexis' hand in his, he gave her a sweet kiss on the lips which had everyone applauding.

Then, without warning and still holding her hand, he dropped to one knee in front of her.

'Alexis, you are the most beautiful, brilliant woman I've ever met in my life, and I would be a fool to let another day go by without telling you just how much I love you.' Shane reached into his pocket, pulled out the ring he'd had designed for her back in September - the other special-order he'd had done when he'd gotten her one-year gift. It was a simple platinum band with an emerald-cut diamond flanked by two smaller princess-cut diamonds. Around him, heard heard nothing but stunned, excited and exhilarated gasps. 'Will you make me the happiest man in the world and marry me?'

Alexis had about two heartbeats to register it, and as she'd lost nearly all power of speech since tears had taken over, she could only whisper, 'Yes.'

'Yes?' Shane repeated, scared to death her answer had only been in his mind.

'Yes. Yes,' she said again, a little more confident, nodding so fast it almost looked like she was having a seizure.

'Yes!'

Shane slipped the ring onto her finger, noting how it was a perfect fit and sparkled in the lights. He swallowed deeply as he stood back up and held her close against him. Her body gave a hard shudder against his, just one, and when he leaned back, Alexis pressed her mouth to his in a fierce kiss while everyone cheered and applauded around them. They could have been in another dimension for all he cared, or noticed, because the most amazing woman in the world to him had just promised to be his wife. When she pulled her mouth away from hers, Shane closed his eyes as she murmured the best word in the universe to him.

'I love you, Shane.'

'I love you too, Lex. Happy New Year's.'

R&R&Enjoy