Disclaimer: Oh please! I might be smart enough to write this story, but to think up characters like Mulder and Scully…I don't have that much brain power.
Author's Note: With all the crap that Scully and Mulder endure on XF, I felt that there had to be someone that Scully could at least talk to and get an unbiased opinion about her work and her partner. For all of those with friends miles and miles away, I hope you enjoy it.
Also, the little anecdote told in this story is based on an actual event that I have experienced, but the names have been changed to protect the innocent.
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She WOULD have to arrive on a Wednesday, the busiest day at the airport. The whole day was just one disaster after the other. Scully's car had broken down, so now she was on her way to the airport with Mulder to meet a friend she hadn't seen in a year.
A whole year. Had it passed that quickly? It seemed like only yesterday that Scully was saying goodbye. It's not like Scully had time to count the days. This past year had been so hectic, with no time to slow down. Yeah, this visit was exactly what she needed: a little taste of reality, a night talking to Mandi, no aliens, conspiracies, and the bureau altogether.
Mulder parked the car in the "loading and unloading" zone in front of the baggage claim. Scully climbed out of the car.
"Just stay here with the car and we'll meet you right here."
In reality, Scully didn't want Mulder to meet Mandi. Ever. For it was Mandi who knew how Scully truly felt about him. But there was no way around it. Mulder insisted on driving her to the airport. Scully saw the shocked expression cross his face when she mentioned she had a "friend" coming to town. There was no way out of it, though. It was Mulder's car, and Scully had no right to ask him to just let her borrow it.
As she ran down the corridor, Scully began to rattle off the gate numbers in her head, 'Gate 18, Gate 19, Gate 20…there we go, Gate 21.' The passengers were starting to depart. As Scully scanned the faces, she noticed Mandi wasn't among the passengers. 'She did say Flight 297 from New York at 5:00pm,' she thought. Scully was so deep in thoughtless confusion, she didn't notice a tall, brunette walk up behind her.
"You owe me dinner now," Mandi said.
Scully spun around and saw her. Man, she hasn't changed, she thought. A big grin came across Scully's face, "You little bitch." At that, Scully embraced Mandi in a tight hug. Mandi returned the gesture by spinning her around fast, causing a little dizziness for both.
When Mandi finally stopped, she set Scully down to the floor and smiled widely. "God, it's good to see you again."
"You have no idea," Scully replied.
Mandi began to walk at a brisk pace down the corridor towards the luggage retrieval. It was all Scully could do to try and keep up; it was a lot like trying to walk with Mulder. Oh no, Scully thought, Mulder's at the car.
Mandi grabbed her one bag from the claim area. "So where's your car?" she asked.
Scully, nervously, answered, "My car broke down, so I got a lift from, my partner."
Mandi turned and had a shocked expression on her face, "Is this THE partner? The Agent Mulder you told me about for the last six years?"
Scully cuts off her path before they reach the sliding doors, leading out to the parking area. "Not a word," she said, as she glared hard at Mandi.
Mandi nodded in response with a big grin on her face. She knew what Scully meant, and knew her well enough to take the cue.
Mulder was leaning against the car on the driver's side, guarding it as if it was the president's limo. He heard Scully's voice and quickly turned around to see her and Mandi walking towards him. As they approached the car, Mandi looked Mulder in the eye, and for a brief second, saw a hint of passion when he looked at Scully. Mandi tried to hide her grin as she introduced herself to Mulder.
"You must be the Fox Mulder I've heard about for the last six years."
Mulder looked confused. "I guess I am, but I'm sorry to say I haven't heard much about you."
Mandi turns to look at Scully, "That doesn't surprise me. I'd actually be surprised if Dana mentioned me at all." Scully lowered head, as if she was embarrassed, but in actuality praying deep down that Mandi wouldn't talk to Mulder that much. Scully climbed into the car, Mulder put Mandi's bag in the trunk while they got in.
As they pulled out of the airport and headed towards the freeway, Scully turned to Mandi. "What do you want for dinner?"
Mandi pondered the question, "Something homemade. I've eaten in so many restaurants in the past few months, it's not funny anymore."
"How about some lasagna? I still can make a mean tomato sauce."
"If it's your mother's recipe, I know you are telling the truth."
Scully looked over at Mulder, who was trying to navigate safely through D.C. traffic. "Do you mind taking us by the grocery store? I need to pick up a few things."
Mulder glanced between her and the road. "No, not at all." Scully sighed in relief, and Mulder veered to car towards the grocery store in Scully's neighborhood.
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It shouldn't have taken that long in the supermarket, but since Mandi insisted on having Margaret Scully's famous lasagna, gathering the ingredients were going to take a while.
Mandi grabbed a cart and latched on to Mulder's arm simultaneously. "Dana, you go ahead and get the stuff for the dinner, and Agent Mulder and I will go get the stuff for later." Mandi hurriedly walked away, leaving Scully standing there with a nervous look on her face. A year may have passed, but Mandi had a great memory, and a big mouth to go with it.
Mandi veered quickly down the candy aisle, causing Mulder to lose his balance a little bit. All of a sudden, Mandi began to dump graham crackers, marshmallows, chocolate bars into the cart. "Grab anything you want…she'll pay for it and think it's for later." Mulder grinned at that remark and grabbed a package of sunflower seeds. Mandi, in turn, grabbed a bag of fireballs. "Gotta have our fixes, right?" Before Mulder could respond, Mandi grabbed his arm, whipped him around fast and began to head towards the dairy section. "We need cookie dough."
"Why, just what the hell are you going to make?" Mulder asked.
"It's my own recipe. You take a regular smore, spread a little bit of cookie dough on it, nuke it for about 30 seconds, eat it with a mudslide and it's a great sugar rush."
Mulder let out a little laugh. Mandi looked back at him.
"What are you laughing at?"
Mulder chuckled. "It's just hard for me to believe that Scully has a friend who's so,"
"Spontaneous, wild, different," Mandi prompted.
"Yeah, different would be the word I would use." Mulder said.
Mandi found the roll of already-made chocolate chip cookie dough, grabbed it, swung the cart around, and dragged Mulder backwards by the arm towards the checkout line. "There's a lot you don't know about Dana, then," Mandi said.
Scully was waiting for them at the checkout line with an arm full of food. She plunked it all into the basket along with the other items. Noticing the package, Scully pulled out the large bag of sunflower seeds gracing the top of the pile.
"Do you expect me to pay for these," waving the bag in front of Mulder.
He grinned in response, "Severance pay?"
Scully grinned and threw the bag back in to the cart with the other groceries. Mandi began to dig through for the fireballs and noticed one thing missing.
"You forgot the garlic."
"Shit," Scully said. "I'll go get it. You two stand here and start putting the stuff on the belt." Scully walked swiftly towards the produce section. Mulder began to watch her leave with the same look in his eyes that Mandi had noticed earlier.
"Be careful," Mandi said, "she has eyes in the back of her head."
"Don't I know it," he replied.
Mandi just chuckled as she put the groceries on the belt. "Have you told her yet?"
"Told her what," Mulder asked.
Mandi opens her candy and puts one of the fireballs in her mouth, "Oh, come on Fox, I see how you look at her. You can't tell me that you don't love her."
Mulder began to place the groceries on the belt, "I won't tell you anything because it's none of your business."
"I take it by that reply that you haven't told her." Mandi pushed the cart forward as Mulder continued to put things on the belt. Silence rang out loudly among the beeping sounds of the register.
Finally, Mandi said, "Sorry, Fox, I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable, but do you ever wonder what would happen if you did tell her?"
Mulder laughed lightly, "Best case scenario, she would laugh in my face. Worst case…she would leave. It's better to keep what I do have than risk it all."
Mandi laughed, "You would be surprised at how much gambling can pay off." She paused and saw the smile come across his lips. Was this the same Fox Mulder Dana had described all these years?
"You know, Fox, you'd be surprised at how much you and Dana are alike."
"And how's that?"
Mandi leaned over the cart; Mulder met her halfway as she whispered, "Both of you are afraid to put it all on the table."
Mulder cocked his head and smirked. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Scully heading back towards them. Mandi noticed her as well and softly spoke, "Yeah, it's probably best you don't tell her. Most couples I know do fine until the thought of commitment enters the picture, but in case you haven't noticed it yet, you and Dana are not most couples."
Scully walked up and plopped the fresh garlic clove down in front of the cashier. Silent tension was somewhat evident when she returned. She knew instinctively that Mandi had said something to Mulder, but knew this wasn't the time or place to bring it up.
As they carried the bags out to the car, Mandi had an idea. "So, Agent Mulder, will you be joining us for dinner?" Mandi felt Scully's gaze on her and turned to reassure her. "It's the least we could do for his lovely driving services today."
Scully looked timidly towards Mulder, "It's alright with me, if you don't have any plans."
Mulder shut the trunk, looked at Mandi then to Scully, "No, I don't have plans, if you don't mind having me."
Scully nodded, all the while Mandi is watching both of them. "Good," Mandi said, "then I can tell all the stories of Dana in her wild days." Mulder smiled as he got in the car and pulled out of the parking lot.
Something about Mandi made him uneasy. Could it be because he didn't know her? Didn't know who she was, where she came from, how Scully knew her? Or maybe it was the fact that she had seen his true feelings for Scully, and the risk of that information getting out was dangerous.
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The drive to Scully's apartment was relatively short. She and Mandi immediately started making the dinner while Mulder was sent to buy a bottle of wine.
"She loves a good Pinot Noir," Mandi whispered to him as he ran out the door. Scully felt she should talk to Mandi while he was out, but didn't want to chance him walking in the middle of the conversation.
When Mandi saw the concerned look on her friend's face, she made it a point to reassure her. "I didn't say anything to him, so don't worry."
Scully was stirring the sauce in with the meat, checking the noodles, avoiding Mandi's comment. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said.
God, Mandi thought, do they realize how alike they are. "Dana, you know that anything you tell me in privacy stays private. I would never jeopardize our friendship." Scully nodded and decided to drop it, but Mandi wouldn't let go just yet.
"Why haven't you told him yet, Dana?"
Scully stopped and looked at her. "There's too much at stake. You wouldn't understand."
Mandi stopped what she was doing, crossed her arms, and faced Scully.
"Try me."
At that moment, there was a knock at the door.
"Later," Scully whispered, and opened the door to find Mulder standing there with a bottle of Pinot Noir in hand.
"Will this do?" he asked, walking past into the kitchen.
"Yeah," she said, "this is actually my favorite. How did you know?"
Mulder looked at Mandi, who turned away with a grin and continued chopping onions.
"A little birdie told me."
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Dinner was fulfilling. Not only did Scully cook a mean lasagna, but it allowed Mulder to see another side of her for the first time.
He hardly recognized the woman he'd been partners with over the last seven years. Everything he said would remind Mandi about another story, causing Scully to go into hysterical laughter as she told the tale. It was almost serene, seeing Scully in this light. Seeing her enjoying herself with a friend. Seeing her in the life he felt she deserved.
Mandi kept pouring out the stories left and right. She wanted Mulder to see Scully as very few did. She knew they wanted to be together, but knew certain circumstances prevented it, even though Scully had always been vague as to what. Seeing Scully laughing loudly reminded her of their younger days. Seeing Mulder look at Scully brought back memories of her and Peter. So much in love, so far apart.
Mandi pushed the thought out of her mind as she threaded her fingers around her wineglass, stood up and finished the story.
"So there we were, it had to be about three o'clock in the morning." Mandi began, becoming more animated with the story's progression.
"Dana and I are sneaking up this long ass driveway. I have the shaving cream, and she has the shoe polish. As soon as we reach the car, Dana is about to place this big white dot on the windshield. All of a sudden we hear 'I don't think so.'"
Mulder's eyes widened in anticipation, "What happened?"
Mandi replied, "We just froze, too afraid to make any kind of movement. When we finally found our courage, we turned back around and slowly walked back down the driveway to the car. Apparently, we weren't walking fast enough because the woman yelled out a threat to call the cops, and that's when Dana runs off full speed, leaving me standing there, trying to walk as fast as I can with all this crap in my arms."
Mulder let out a hardy laugh, "That sounds like something she would do."
Mandi complied, "Yeah, it was the only time she ever out ran me in anything."
"So did the guy every find out what you tried to do?" Mulder asked.
Scully, playing lightly with the rim of her glass, confessed the rest of the story. "Uh…It turns out we went to the wrong house. It was the house next to it that he lived in. But all was not lost." Scully took a long drink from her glass while Mulder looked at her almost confused. "We were able to get our hands on a big roll of plastic wrap, so a week later, we went back, to the right house this time, and, let's just say his car didn't get freezer burn."
Mulder laughed and silently made a mental 'thank you' note that he didn't really have a personal vehicle. Despite all the fun, Mulder was afraid he was impeding on a very important visit. Quickly glancing at his watch, he noticed the time said 11:00pm. It wasn't really late, but he felt guilty about being with them. From the way it looked, Scully didn't get to see Mandi that much, and he felt like a third wheel interrupting their visit, even though they BOTH invited him. No, it was time for him to exit stage left and allow Scully her time with Mandi.
Mulder graciously excused himself from the table and proceeded to the kitchen, where he put his dishes in the sink. Scully soon followed with her plate, as well as Mandi's, while Mandi went into the living room and scanned the music selection.
Mulder proceeded to wash his dishes when Scully walked up next to him.
"Don't worry about that, I'll get it," she said.
Her hand brushed lightly against his as she took the plate from him and set it in the sink. A brief glance was exchanged. And that's when Mulder saw what Mandi was talking about. The love and compassion he had so many times wanted to see in her eyes when she looked at him. He had finally seen it, even if it was just for a second.
Knowing this, he knew it was time to leave. He bent down to Scully and whispered for her ears only.
"I'm going to head home now. I've interfered with your visit long enough."
Scully's eyes changed emotion. Deep down, she wanted him to stay, but for the wrong reasons. She knew once he left Mandi would want to talk about him, ask questions she didn't want to answer. But to keep him there for that reason was wrong, so she complied.
"Okay, Mulder, if you think it's best."
Mulder smirked, "I didn't say it was best, but I don't think you want Mandi to tell me everything about you." Scully smirked at that remark, and Mulder turned to leave.
"It was nice meeting you, Mandi," he shouted.
Mandi turned in shock and walked towards him. "You're not leaving yet, are you?"
"Yeah, I've interfered long enough. Plus I'll bet you and Scully have a lot to talk about."
"Not really. We'll just talk about you." Mulder smiled, not knowing if she was kidding or not. As he opened the door, Mandi hugged his neck tightly. Mulder draped one arm around her waist, the other not leaving the door handle, not sure what he was suppose to do.
"I told you she felt the same way," she whispered.
Mulder pulled back and looked confused. Mandi smiled lightly at him, and he realized what she was talking about. But how did she know? It only happened a few minutes ago.
"Now, what are you going to do about it," Mandi asked, interrupting his thought.
Mulder smiled and turned to walk out the door. Mandi patted him lightly on the back as he exited into the hallway.
"Don't give up," she said. With that, Mandi closed the door, went back into the living room, put on the only decent CD she could find, and went into the kitchen to help Scully with the dessert.
As Mulder walked out of Scully's building, he couldn't shake the fact that he was beginning to trust Mandi. He had only known her for a few hours, and yet it felt like he had known her for years. Somehow, an instant trust was beginning to form, and there was only one explanation: Mandi had discovered the secret of his heart, that he was in love with Scully. When she told him not to give up, Mulder smirked a little. He was not prone to giving up, but he knew that Scully just needed time. But how much time? And how much longer would he have to wait?
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"Smores and mudslides all around," Scully said with excitement. She only indulged herself this pleasure with Mandi. This was their tradition: once a year visit, making smores, drinking liquor, and talking until dawn. It was the sense of reality Scully had for the past ten years, and she wanted to keep it that way.
Scully spread a thin layer of cookie dough over the graham cracker, placed the chocolate and marshmallow on top and placed bunches of them on a plate in the microwave. Mandi walked into the kitchen and hopped up on the cabinet opposite of Scully. Even though she loved meeting Mulder, Mandi was glad when he left, for she knew that Scully wouldn't talk to her with him in the room.
"Dana, why haven't you told him?" Mandi was always direct.
Scully hesitated with her response. "You were always one to get right to the point."
She didn't even turn to face Mandi. Besides Mulder, Mandi was the other person who could read her without saying a word. Instead, she pulled the smores out of the microwave, grabbed the mudslides, and went into the living room. Mandi, of course, followed her, and sat across from her on the couch.
"You haven't answered my question." She grabbed one of the crackers and swallowed it with the mudslide. Scully did the same and remained silent.
"Dammit, Dana. How long have you been playing this song and dance with him? Seven years? Don't you think it's time for you to take it to the next level?"
"It's more complicated than that."
"How?"
"You don't know our work. What we do, where we go. The enemies we make."
Mandi looked across at her friend, as Scully stared serenely into the fire. She felt for her so much, wanting to be with the man she loved, but unwilling to accept the risks that went along with the challenge.
"Dana," Mandi started softly, "you have told me in some detail about your work, and I see that it makes you happy doing it, despite all the dangers." She paused briefly to lie her hand on Scully's shoulder, "You, falling in love with Fox, has not rendered you helpless in anyway. As a matter of fact, it has helped you and made you better. And I suspect him as well."
Scully sighed and tilted her head down, viewing the couch. "I know you're right, Mandi. But that's not the complication I'm talking about."
Mandi moved her hand away from Scully's arm and placed it behind her head. "I'm assuming you are talking about this Diana person you despise so much." Scully nodded lightly in response. Mandi chuckled lightly, "Oh girl, it's just a case of jealousy. Someone else had their eyes on your man, and you have a right to be upset."
"It's not that," Scully began to retaliate, but backed off, "okay, part of it is that. But there's a bigger picture to it." Mandi looked confused until Scully continued, "It took me years to gain Mulder's trust. He would question my motives on everything up to about four years ago. And then this, woman, walks in to his life, obviously from a part of his life that I don't know about, and he automatically lets her in to his life,"
Mandi cuts her off, "And into his heart as well." Scully sighed heavily, letting the adrenaline leave her body, and nodded in surrender.
Mandi tried to sooth her, "I know it hurts like hell, to feel like you've been slapped in the face by the one you love. But I'm sure it's not the first time he has hurt you."
Scully could feel the tears swelling behind her eyes, as she looked at Mandi, seeing Mandi's expression mirror her own. It always amazed, and scared her how Mandi always knew every part of her soul. She hadn't even talked about Mulder that much until Mandi had forced out of her how she truly felt about him. But, as Mandi predicted, she did feel better telling someone, even if it wasn't the person she needed to tell.
A single tear ran down Scully's cheek, and she wiped it away in hesitant frustration. Tonight was supposed to be a night of remembering and happiness, and it turned out to be the opposite.
"No, Mandi, it's not the first time he's hurt me, but it is the first time he chose someone else over me." Scully gets up and walks towards to kitchen to grab another mudslide and mumbles to herself.
"That's what hurts the most."
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As the night progressed, Mandi chose to move towards "happier" topics. She talked about where she had been, what she saw, and whom she met. Scully talked about past cases that seemed so outrageous to her, but knew Mandi would get a kick out of them. She just happened to leave out the undercover assignment at Arcadia. Imagine that.
Before they both knew, dawn had arrived. Mandi's plane was scheduled to leave at 9:30am, and it was already 8:30. The garage called and told Scully that her car was ready to be picked up, so she was able to drive Mandi to the airport herself.
As Scully walked Mandi to the terminal, she decided that just this once she wanted to tempt fate. "Mandi, do you think we could do this again sooner instead of waiting another year?"
Mandi smiled at her. "Dana, you know all you ever have to do is call me, and I will be here to listen and to help. You are my greatest friend."
A tear fell down Scully's face. "I wish things could be different. There's always so much I want to say, and I hate the fact that I have to wait an entire year to say it."
Mandi decides to tempt fate herself. "Dana, you don't have to wait to see me, you do have Mulder you know." Scully rolled her eyes, knowing where Mandi was going.
"You listen to me Dana Katherine Scully," Mandi started, "you say you want to have an intimate level of trust with this man. Well, to do that, one of you must stop being stubborn and make the first move. You might be surprised, he might feel the same way."
"But I don't know,"
"You don't know if you don't try," Mandi cuts her off.
A loud voice comes over the intercom announcing the boarding of flight 1221. "That's my flight," Mandi says. She embraces Scully in a tight hug, Mandi herself not wanting to let go. Tears are falling as Mandi looks at her one last time before she boards the plane. "Think about what I said okay." Scully nodded as Mandi disappeared around the corner of the terminal.
One year. One whole year she would have to wait to see her again.
As Scully walked out of the airport and got into her car, she began to think about what Mandi said. Maybe it is time she took that next step and tell Mulder her true feelings. After all, even if he doesn't feel the same way, it shouldn't change anything between them, right? As she pondered these thoughts in her head, Scully didn't notice that she had driven straight to Mulder's apartment. When it finally dawned on her where she was, she had this feeling that somehow Mandi had directed her there.
Shaking the ridiculous idea out of her head, Scully decided to get out of the car and proceed to the door. Time to stop being stubborn, she thought. All the bets are riding on this. But what was she going to say? What would Mandi say?
TBC
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