Title : DECLARATION

Author: Thalassa

Category: MSR. Vignette. Fluff.

Rating: G

Disclaimer: As much as it pains me (and, I bet, the whole fanfic community), no, Mulder and Scully are not mine. These characters are owned by David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, 1013 Productions, Chris Carter, and Fox. There. Happy now? :)

Summary: Mulder's story about how he got together with Scully.

Author's Note: I wrote this ages and ages and ages ago, but never posted it. So much has happened since then, but well, here it is. Hope you guys like it.

Feedback: This is the first piece of fanfic that I ever had the guts to post, so please, be gentle. But I'd still love to hear comments, so if you have the time and the inclination, please feel free to email me at thalassa121@yahoo.com.




"Scully?"

"Yes, Mulder?"

"Marry me."

Silence.



That was the beginning of the rest of my life.

Want me to tell it to you from the start?

I thought so.

Well, here it is.



I've never thought of myself as the marrying sort of man.

I mean, hey, I've tried it once before, and it didn't turn out as well as I hoped it would be.

And so after the divorce set in, I made up my mind.

Marriage is not an option anymore.

I mean, hey, been there, done that.

At least I can say I know how it is, right?

Then she came along.

And that changed everything.



I won't say it was love at first sight.

But I have to admit that I did find her interesting.

There is just something about a woman who strides into your room with a glint in her eye and sheathed steel in her voice.

And so I thought, hey, even if this girl doesn't last a week, I bet the week would be an interesting one.



But surprisingly enough, it wasn't just a week.

Look, it's been eight years and she's still here.

Not that I mind.

Not at all.

Actually, the way things are now, I'd greatly, greatly mind if she was gone.

In fact, I'd go to the ends of the earth to find her and bring her back to me.

Oh, wait--been there, done that.



I don't know if she knows how deeply I feel for her.

Sometimes, I think she does, but then I do something stupid that convinces her that she was just deluding herself.

I did try to tell her, though.

I was in the hospital and so very happy to see her that I suddenly asked her to marry me.

Scully being Scully, she thought it was some perverted sort of joke.

Okay, okay, I admit--it was bad timing.

I was doped up, and I could understand why she thought that I wasn't the most credible person at the time.

But it was true, and I just had to say it.

Too bad she didn't take it seriously.



The second time took her by surprise.

Same dialogue, better timing (I'd like to think).

It was a weekend, and miraculously, we were not on a case.

That being the scenario, I invited myself over to Scully's with a gallon of her favorite ice cream and a video tape as bribes.

It worked, and we spent the afternoon watching "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon".

I was watching her as she was happily scooping ice cream into her mouth when she felt my eyes on her.

She turned at me, smiled, and said, "This is really good."

I think she was referring to the ice cream, but her words struck me in a different way.

Yes, it was good.

It was really, really good.

Saturday afternoon, sitting on the couch beside the love of your life, feet up on the coffee table, watching a great video while eating ice cream, carefree, lighthearted, at peace.

I wanted this.

I wanted this for the rest of my life.

I knew that I couldn't make all my days exactly like this, but this woman--this utterly lovely, mind-bendingly wonderful woman--made everything in my world all right.

She made me happy.

That's not an easy job, mind you.

Ask my first wife.

On the other hand, don't.



And so I made a choice.

Man or mouse, Mulder?, this voice in my head asked.



I stared at her again.

After a while, she got self-conscious, and looked at me.

"What? Do I have ice cream on my face or something?"

I just stared.

She gave me a wry smile.

"If you're thinking of starting a staring game, no, I'm not interested in playing. I'm watching the movie."

With that, she turned back to the television.

I took a deep breath, and made a leap of faith.

"Scully?"

"Yes, Mulder?"

"Marry me."



She turned to me with a smirk of some sort, thinking that I was playing another game.

I just looked at her with my heart in her eyes.

"I'm serious, Scully. Marry me."

And then she froze.



It was funny, in retrospect.

She was looking at me as if I grew antennae or something.

It was then that I decided to go for broke.

"You mean more to me than you'll ever know, Scully. You are everything. And I love you. I do, you know. It seems to me as if I've loved you forever. Please marry me."

At this point, her eyes started welling up, and her mouth started to move. It seemed to me that she'd say no, though, and so I went to plan B.

I swooped in and kissed her.

And what a kiss it was.

I can't find the words to describe it, so I won't even try.

Suffice to say, it was pure love transformed into a kiss. Yes, I know, that was a bad description, but hey, work with me here!

After about an hour (okay, okay, not an hour, but it did seem that way), we came up for air, and I repeated my statement.

"I love you, Scully. Marry me."

She continued to stare at me, and all her doubts and apprehensions flashed in her eyes.

The danger we were continually in. The conspiracy. The gaggle of men who were always out to kill us. Her children located all over the country, maybe even the world. My uncanny ability to find trouble. The fact that if this won't work out, our relationship would undoubtedly be in shambles. Our tendency to be snatched up by aliens, bounty hunters or human conspirators and be gone for months at a time. The fact that we were, quite possibly, holding the fate of the world in our hands.

You know, a bride's regular doubts and fears.

I looked at her straight in the eyes and promised her everything.

"I might not be the man who deserves you, Scully, but I'll do everything to be worthy of you. I've done some pretty stupid things, but if I never asked you this, I would regret it forever."

I paused, and took a deep breath.

"I won't promise you a perfect world because I can't, but what I can promise you is that I am yours for eternity, if you'll have me. This is it for me, Scully. You are it for me."



We were married a month later.



Suffice to say, the Gunmen were thrilled.

Skinner was, surprisingly enough, happy for us.

Scully's mother said that it was about time.

Bill...well, let's not get into that, shall we?



And so here we are in bed on a Sunday morning, I'm reading up on the basketball scores from last night, and Scully's working on the crossword.

The sun is shining, there's no work for the day, and I'm with the love of my life.

Everything is perfect.

Never thought life could be this good.