This is a non-profit work of fan-fiction based upon The X-Files television series created by Chris Carter. The X-Files, and all related characters, places, and events, belongs to 1013 Productions, and is used without permission. This story, along with any original characters, belongs to the author, © 1997, 2005.

Fish Food and Roses
By Orianna-2000

X x X

Dear Mulder,

This may come as a shock to you...

No, that wasn't right. Scully frowned, and held down the delete key until the screen was blank. Maybe something a little more personal.

Dear Fox,

I have something I've been wanting to tell you.

He'd kill her if she used his first name. Try again. She sighed, and thought about it. With a little help from her mother, she'd figured out why she'd been feeling so strangely, and she owed it to her partner to not keep him in the dark. But telling him was turning out to be the hardest thing she'd ever done.

Mulder,

I want you to know how much I respect you and your work, and your friendship has been one of the best things that has ever happened to me. This is hard, but I need to tell you...

Scully pursed her lips in frustration. That made it sound as if she wanted to leave the X-Files, which couldn't be farther from the truth. She closed the file, and stared at her PC's wallpaper. The enigmatic green rippled design had been sent to her from Mulder after he'd noticed that she still used the background that had come with the computer. He was so considerate sometimes, she thought. And other times...

What if it scares him and he runs off again? Maybe I should just wait.

No, you can't wait, she told herself firmly. If you put it off, it might be too late.

But it could ruin our friendship.

Or make it even stronger. She opened the file again.

Dearest Mulder...

Absolutely not! How about just plain and simple?

Mulder,

Better, but how about something brief?

-M,

Our friendship is what's kept me going through these years. I wanted to thank you for always being there.

True, but again, it sounded like she was trying to say goodbye. She chewed on her pencil, wracking her brain for the words to tell him. Inspiration suddenly hit, and she began typing.

Finally satisfied, but with a nervous hand, she copied the letter to a sheet of her personal stationery. With precise handwriting, she omitted his name, addressing the envelope directly to the post office box that she knew he used for mail that he didn't want sent directly to his apartment. A quick lick and the envelope was sealed and stamped. Not daring to delay, she swept up her keys and headed for her car.

As late as it was, the post office was deserted. Grateful, Scully stared at the letter for a moment. Was she doing the right thing? Yes, she told herself, and without hesitation slid the envelope into the Local Mail slot.

It was done.

---

Fox Mulder sat and pondered.

Sometimes he wished Scully wasn't so literal minded, and unwilling to believe. But then, she wouldn't be Scully. And he needed Scully. The one person, the only person, that he trusted with his insane theories, with his latest schemes to uncover the Truth, with his life. He could always count on her to draw him back when he'd gone too far over the edge. She was the calming influence that helped him to not play right into the hands of those who wished him gone.

"Agent Mulder?" The Assistant Director glowered at his best, and oddest, agent. Mulder took no note, caught up as he was in his thoughts.

Scully was Scully, his partner, his friend.

"Agent Mulder," repeated A.D. Skinner, louder and firmer.

Startled, Mulder focused on his superior. "Sir?"

"Agent Mulder, are you aware that you have been in this office for twenty minutes, and I have yet to hear your report on the Barelli case?"

Mulder apologized immediately, but didn't present the case. "Sir, have you ever had something just hit you? Something that's right in front of you, but you don't see it... until it smacks you in the face?"

Skinner leaned back in his chair, twisting a pencil between his fingers. "I take it you're not referring to the incident you had with the glass door last Monday."

"No, sir." Mulder gave a lopsided smile. "I just realized that I'm in love."

"That's very nice, I'm sure, but meanwhile -" The A.D. stopped midsentence, and sat forward. "What did you say, Agent Mulder?"

"I'm sorry, sir." Mulder realized his mistake, and a redness began creeping up his cheeks.

"No, that's all right." Skinner gestured for him to go on.

"Uh, well. I just figured it out, and it was kind of a surprise. It shouldn't have been. I mean, I should have known!" He shook his head in confusion."But I didn't."

"Love is a common enough thing, sometimes it hard to identify."

Mulder just nodded.

"Pardon my asking, but does this person return the feeling?"

A frown appeared on Mulder's lips. "I don't know. It's possible, but..." He shrugged helplessly.

"All right, I'm going to tell you something. I realize it's not my place to say this, but take my advice: Don't let the opportunity slip past you. You'll spend the rest of your life regretting it, and wondering what could have been."

Slightly confused, Mulder tilted his head. "So you think I should admit my feelings to this person?"

Skinner glanced down at his wedding ring, then back up at Mulder. "Absolutely. Seize the moment, Agent Mulder, before the moment is gone."

"All right, thank you, sir." Mulder stood, headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Skinner frowned. "I'd like that report!"

"Oh," Mulder turned around. "Would you mind reading through it yourself?" He handed the sheaf of neatly typed papers to his supervisor.

"And may I ask where you intend to be?"

"I've got some planning to do, sir. At your advice."

Skinner couldn't argue with that, so he dismissed Mulder with a faint smile.

---

Dear Scully,

How do I tell you this? You're my best friend, my partner, my life.

Mulder stared at the words on his screen. They didn't seem adequate, so he erased them and began again.

Dear Scully,

He never even considered addressing her by her first name. She was Scully to him, and always would be.

Dear Scully,

I love you.

Too bold, he decided, bending a paper clip around his thumb.

Scully,

You have changed my life for the better. If it hadn't been for you I would be dead many times over, in body and spirit. You've reached out to me, a light in the darkness of my solitary existence.

True, but too poetic. Not his style at all.

Hey Scully,

Guess what?

He laughed softly, and hit the delete key. This was harder than he'd imagined it would be. He leaned back at his desk, searching for inspiration.

Scully,

I like you... I love you... I adore you. Will you marry me and make life complete?

That's pretty good, he thought wryly. Maybe I should send her a bouquet of pink cotton candy to go with it.

Giving up temporarily, he shut down the computer and checked his watch. The mail should be in by now, and he was expecting a couple of magazines.

---

Scully flipped aimlessly through a series of reports that had already been completed. She had been trying not to think about it, but the letter was foremost in her mind.

Maybe he decided to ignore it, like I said he could. As much as she disliked that theory, it was possible.

Maybe he didn't get it. But it had been four days, more than enough time for Mulder to have received it.

What if he doesn't check his mailbox? Knowing Mulder, that was most likely. She sighed anxiously, and deliberately changed her thoughts.

A week after she'd mailed the letter, Scully got home from a day of shopping and tiredly dropped her bags on the floor. There was a sealed envelope sitting on her table, her name scrawled across the front. Surprised, she picked it up and slit it open. A single piece of folded paper fell out.

Scully,

7:45, my place. Dress casual and bring fish food.

Love,
Mulder

Fish food? was her first thought. Then her mind recognized the significance of the way he'd signed it, and the fact that she was invited to an evening at his apartment, albeit not a formal affair. She sat down hard, a stunned grin filling her face.

Scully pulled up at Mulder's apartment building at a quarter to eight. Her hair was neatly pulled back in a ponytail, with a few strands left out to gracefully frame her face. Her makeup was light, and her clothes suitably casual, being a clean pair of jeans and a light gray, cropped sweatshirt. She double checked the fish food in her purse, wondering again why he had requested she bring it, and hoping he didn't have some sick plan in mind. Rubbing her hands nervously on her pants, she took a deep breath and exited the car.

There was a peach rose taped to his door, along with a note that read:

Come on in.

Not knowing what to expect, she pulled the rose off, and slowly opened the door. "Mulder?" There was no answer. She glanced around, wondering where he was. On his kitchen table, another note lay beside a white rose and a cluster of lollipops.

She smiled, and read the note.

Scully,
I assume you have the fish food. Sorry, nothing kinky planned. Please pour one teaspoonful into the aquarium.

Thanks,
Mulder

Scully laughed. His fish were hungry... she should have known. She turned to the aquarium and shook her head with a bemused smile. Oh, Mulder! Lying on top of the tank was another rose, this one a silvery lavender.

As you can probably tell, I'm not here. Please go out to your car, and don't forget to lock my door.

Ok, Scully thought, closing the door behind her with a smile. Strange was her partner, definitely strange, but she found herself enjoying this little prank. My car, huh?

She approached warily, half expecting him to jump out at her. Glancing in the window as she unlocked the door, she grinned. A light pink rose lay across the driver's seat, along with a small box of her favorite chocolates.

Carefully, she set the other roses down on the passenger seat, and opened the box of candy. Popping one into her mouth, she read the attached paper, which instructed her to drive to a nearby coffee shop.

The small diner was easy to find, and she walked in, looking for Mulder's familiar face. She didn't spot it, but the waitress gestured to the back table.

As she was starting to expect, he wasn't there. A pale yellow rose marked his presence, along with a short letter asking her to go to their bench. She knew instantly which place he referred to, the park bench which sat alongside the water, where she had met him so many times during their separation from the X-Files.

It was dark by the time she arrived, and the monumental park was nearly deserted. Scully picked up the dark pink rose that lay across the bench, and opened the note that lay beside it.

I know you must be wondering if there is a point to all of this, and I assure you there is. There's something I've been trying to tell you and it is this:

The rest of the page was blank. Furrowing her brow, Scully quickly turned the paper over to see if he'd written on the back, but there was nothing there. Then she felt someone behind her, and a voice in her ear: "I love you."

She turned around, and there was Mulder, clutching a long-stemmed red rose. He tentatively kissed her cheek, and pressed the flower into her hands.

I can't believe this is happening, her mind whispered over and over. Realizing he was looking at her nervously, she finally responded. "I love you too."

Mulder grinned in relief and led her to the bench. They sat comfortably, his arm draped around her shoulders, staring out at the shimmering water.

"So, I guess you got my letter," Scully said softly, touching his knee.

He looked at her, liking the way the just-risen moon reflected in her hair. "What letter?"

Uh oh! She pulled away slightly to stare at his face. "What letter! The letter I sent you that started this whole thing."

He shook his head, mouth parted slightly in a smile. "I never got a letter from you. What did it say?"

"You didn't - then why all this?" She lifted the rose questioningly.

"I wanted to tell you how I felt."

"Oh." She stared down at the flower, suddenly confused. Warm fingers touched her chin.

"Scully?" He forced her to look at him, knowing that something strange had happened, but not willing to let it ruin the evening.

"Don't you check your P.O. Box?" she asked, trying to sort things out in her mind.

Mulder laughed. "My P.O. Box? I haven't used that since right after you joined the X-Files. I gave it to Frohike."

"What?" She looked up at him, her eyes widening with horror. He confirmed it with a confused nod, and she groaned.

---

Across town, Melvin Frohike adjusted his tie. Smoothing his suit one more time, he held a bouquet of inexpensive flowers behind his back and rang Scully's doorbell.