making a fool's joke of the promises we make

[themuse]

Who: Kaylee Frye and Kate Beckett
What: Post-"I Think I Just Broke Up With My Boyfriend" talk at one of the bars.
When: The evening of December 1st
Warnings: Drinking. Girl bonding.


The bar had been Kaylee's idea, but Kate needed it.

The younger woman must have seen what happened on the phones. And Blake was right; Kate already regretted her indiscretion. She wasn't exactly the type to air dirty laundry and the worst of it was, she hadn't even wanted to let people know that she and Castle were dating back when this all started and then she had gone and done, well, whatever that was.

She was fairly certain she might have broken up with him. But instead of doing what she wanted to do - showing up at his apartment and begging for his forgiveness - she ended up sitting at home sulking instead.

So sulking at the bar wasn't exactly a huge difference. Kate sat a table in a dark corner, a drink in front of her, but she was staring into it more than she was actually drinking.

Comments

[hot4engines]

"Any time," said Kaylee firmly. "I'm always happy to help with men problems. Or problems of any sort, come to think of it."

[themuse]

That actually makes Kate laugh because it's nice to have someone to talk to about men problems. Sheska, for as great as she is, isn't really a font of knowledge when it comes to the relationship front and Anita is just as bad as Kate when it gets right down to it. So in a way, it's nice that her and Kaylee can bond over the difficulties of making a relationship work in a place like this.

"At the risk of learning... way too much about my boss' personal life, how are things with you and Shepard going?"

[hot4engines]

"I don't get to see him as much as I'd like, but steady as she goes otherwise," Kaylee smiled, taking another sip of her drink. The alcohol was sending warmth coursing through her, even if this wasn't quite enough to get her smashed. "We make time when he has it. And he got me a car for Christmas," she added, her face lighting up. "It's old and beat up and barely works. I can't wait for the weather to warm up so's I can start tinkering."

[themuse]

Kate hadn't even touched her beer so she took that opportunity to take a sip, making a face because it had gotten warm during their conversation.

"The biggest thing I remember about you during that pirate thing is how well you kept that ship running. I bet you'll do wonders on a beat up old car." She shakes her head, smiling. "I've never been too good with cars, but I've got a motorcycle back home."

[hot4engines]

"Motorcycles are good, too," Kaylee said, nodding. "I told Sirius I'd help him build one, though he thinks he can make it fly..." She shook her head. "Of course, by now I'd guess anything is possible here. I'm just glad to have an actual engine to work on. Mostly I end up fixing appliances and stuff here, and while it ain't bad work and puts food on the table, spaceships are my true love. I always had a natural talent for it."

[themuse]

"Well, if my coffee machine craps out, I know who to call." She was a little jealous of Kaylee, actually, suddenly missing the freedom of her Harley. Maybe she could live vicariously through her foster sister, if nothing else. "I don't imagine you could build a spaceship here? I mean, supplies and costs aside I doubt you could get it off the island, right?"

[hot4engines]

Kaylee giggled at that. "Wouldn't wanna go without coffee. That'd be a terrible way to wake up."

She then shook her head.

"Nah, definitely not. The Doctor's got his own spaceship- beautiful thing, she is- but she can't make it out any more'n a regular ship could. So there wouldn't be much of a point spendin' the time on it, I guess, since I wouldn't be able to go very far."

[themuse]

Kate nodded, slightly disappointed. The thought of building a spaceship hadn't occurred to her, obviously; not to mention once they were out in space, what would they do anyone? Trading this prison for another one didn't seem like the best form of action in the long run.

"Car's a better bet, Kaylee," Kate encouraged. "And you know... Maybe we can all use the distractions. We all need something here to make it worthwhile, right? Like what you said about having relationships. I guess there's really no point in stopping living just because things aren't going the way we planned."

[hot4engines]

"You know that's always been my outlook on life," Kaylee smiled. "Like I said, things never go the way we planned, whether it's here or back home. If you start thinkin' too much about the what-ifs and negative possibilities and start bein' afraid that every step you take could be the wrong one, it paralyzes you. That ain't no way to live. Looking before you leap, and thinking, and being careful's fine- letting it dominate everything you do ain't. We make mistakes and wrong choices, sure- but at least it's livin', and you can pick yourself up and learn something from it."

[themuse]

Kate smiled warmly. "You're right. I guess I need to remember that here."

She reached out again and patted Kaylee's hand. "I really appreciate your friendship, Kaylee. And taking the time to talk me... I promise I'm gonna keep everything you've said in mind."

[hot4engines]

"Good," said Kaylee, returning the smile with equal warmth. "And really, I was happy to do it. Any time you need some girl talk, you call me. I ain't about to let you throw this away."

[themuse]

"I'm trying to be a little better about actually talking to people about this kind of thing," Kate admitted. "It's this place. With everything that happens here... It's just so different from home. Makes it harder to keep everything in, I guess."