A/N: so as you can probably see, I'm on a major X Files writing spree, eeeep! Here's another one, set a few days after Providence. Reference to Existence, Trust No1, Provenance and Providence, but nothing major. Reviews are love - happy reading!

One Lonely Night

She sighed wearily as she shut the door, only after making sure her mom had made it to the staircase in one piece. It was silly of her, really, but after what happened in her apartment a few days ago, she didn't want to risk her mother getting hurt without her knowing about it. Too many of her loved ones had been hurt in this apartment, one way or another. She didn't intend to add her mother to that growing list.

It had been an incredibly long day. She hardly had the time to recover from the previous days' events before she was required to go back to work. It was still strange not to think of the little basement office as work, now that she was reassigned to the FBI academy in Quantico. In a way, it was like going back in time, as if the years she had spent in the X Files division had never happened.

She was very iffy about her reassignment, but it was convenient, considering the turn her life had taken now that she had William. Her old-new job didn't involve risking her life, and she was only teaching until the early hours of the afternoon, which allowed her spending a considerable time at home with her son; that is, when Agents Doggett and Reyes didn't need her urgent assistance on one case or another.

Placing the safety latch over the now locked door, she smiled to herself as she made her way down the hall and into the room next to her own. Her smile widened an inch at the sight of him, the very reason for her reassignment, and as for now, her everything. Her baby boy was sound asleep, curled into a tight ball in his crib. An involuntary shudder went through her at the thought of what could have happened to him three nights ago, if she and Monica had arrived too late. She leaned over the crib to lay a soft kiss on William's forehead. They were there on time, she reminded herself in what felt like the dozen time; he was safe.

At least for now.

Those pressing thoughts kept whirling in her mind when she crawled into her own bed. She snuggled into the covers, hoping it would help against the sudden chill that overtook her. She knew what was missing; she had known it for a while. The last months had passed with a sense of resolve she was slowly and painfully coming to terms with. It was simply one of many other lonely nights.

It was still rather early to call it a night, about 9PM or so, but she was still nursing, and she figured she had a few more hours to rest before William would get hungry again. She closed her eyes, suddenly exhausted, but she couldn't stop thinking of what that man had told her about her son. Could it really be true? The facts remained that he was the only survivor of whatever the hell happened there, in that site in North Dakota. And what did it say about Mulder? Was he really dead like so many people had led her to believe? She wasn't even sure she wanted to know the answer to any of these questions.

A rustle made her open her eyes instantly. She gasped; she didn't even realize she had fallen asleep. She sat up, disoriented, and looked around the room. She thought she saw a shadow in the corner, where the armchair stood. The weirdest sensation made her skin crawl; it was as if she was being watched. She shook her head dismissively. After the last few weeks, she was just getting paranoid, ridiculously so. But then, just when she intended to lay back down, whoever was there in her bedroom got up.

She froze, heart pounding. She frantically started to think where she had left her weapon, and how long it would take her to dash out of the room, retrieve it, and run into William's nursery, but then something else occurred to her. The approaching shadow had familiar features. Her hand flew to her mouth to muffle the gasp that was rising up her throat when realization hit her.

"Shh… don't scream, it's just me."

Impossible. She was dreaming this. It had to be a dream. Only… she felt wide awake. She blinked once, twice. "Mulder?"

He stepped into the light. She had just a second to take in the fact that he was alive and well before he knelt by her bedside and gently removed her hand from her mouth. Then, her hand still in his, he got up and sat on the edge of her bed.

She followed his movements wide-eyed, still too stunned to speak. And then, at once, she snapped. "What are you doing here? How the hell did you get in?"

"If I told you that I would have had to kill you," he replied, chuckling, and she found herself laughing at his oh-so-typical backfire. For a moment it felt as if the nightmare they were trapped in had never happened. Only she knew that it was far from being the case.

She frowned. "Mulder, it's not funny. They're watching, all the time, they can – "

Her voice trailed off when he pressed his thumb against her lips. "I know. But I needed to know that you're safe, after what happened three nights ago."

She gasped. "How do you know about that?"

"Let's just say I have eyes and ears in the right places."

"Mulder, you're not safe here," she said nervously. She was torn. She was so relieved to have him there, yet at the same time, she was scared. Each moment he was there with them endangered him further. She had a clear recollection of the phone call she had had a few weeks before, from the man who claimed to know every last detail about her life.

"I won't be staying long," he replied, squeezing her hand reassuringly. When he spoke next, his voice was resolute. "I'm going somewhere tomorrow. I'm not sure for how long, but I'm guessing I'll be having hard time contacting you once I get there. I just… I needed to see you before I go, in case…"

He didn't complete his thought, but it was very clear where it was headed. She nodded, and then slowly wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him close, suddenly terrified to be left alone again. He held her just as tight for a few moments, but then slowly pulled away. Their eyes met once more, a single unspoken intention flowing between them. They moved towards one another, lips locking in a kiss long yearned for.

She found herself clinging to him almost desperately, with a need she didn't even know to possess. Her hands tangled in his hair, bringing him closer. He smiled against her lips when he pulled away to catch his breath. His stubble brushed against her cheeks as he spread butterfly kisses on her face, wherever his lips could go. Then his lips were back on hers again, as he slowly lowered her back to her bed.

A cry tore into the silence, forcing them apart, but only as much as necessary. He kept her close, pressing his forehead against hers as he laughed softly. "I knew there was something I missed."

She smiled and sat up, brushing his hair off his forehead. "I'll be right back, okay?"

Her heart was still pounding when she walked into the nursery and scooped the crying baby in her arms. "Shh… it's okay, honey," she murmured, rocking him against her until his crying became a soft fuss. She lingered there a moment longer, steadying her breath, trying to make sense of what had just happened. A few days before she feared Mulder's life and now he was there with her, with them. She didn't stop to question how he happened to hear of the events of the last few days, or how he found his way into her apartment in the middle of the night. It seemed silly to do so, instead of making the best out of the situation. She should cherish those few precious moments they had been given, not question them.

Mulder seemed to be dozing off when she returned to her bedroom, but being the light sleeper that he had always been, his eyes snapped open at her entrance. A smile lit his weary face. He followed her with his eyes as she advanced. Well, not her, exactly, but the bundle of blankets that she held in her arms. She could read the expectation in his eyes. She wondered how he managed that. She couldn't bear staying away from her baby for longer than necessary. If she had to stay overtime at work from one reason or another, she always found it more difficult to do her job properly without fearing for him. She wondered how it felt, being forced apart from your child. A shudder went through her. She hoped she would never have to experience that.

She reached the bed, and laid the baby in his father's arms. William looked up, his eyes surprisingly alert. An astounded sound escaped Mulder's lips. She smiled when she realized she had heard it before, that night after she had been discharged from the hospital. "Do you think he knows who I am?"

"I think he does." There was no doubt or hesitation in her reply. It was the one thing she had to be sure of, the one thing that still mattered. She looked at him urgently. "Mulder, I need to know that wherever it is you're going, it's for his sake."

"It's only for his sake," he assured her. "For his sake and yours." He shifted a bit so he could lean against the bed-board, still holding the baby. She slipped back into bed beside him, leaning her head against his shoulder, as they both looked down at William.

"You wouldn't believe the things they said about him," she whispered, as those horrible words surfaced once more.

"I don't care what they said. He's ours. That's all I need to know," he said. "Now go back to sleep." She shook her head, refusing to give in to slumber as long as he was around. He smiled, wrapping his arm around her. She snuggled closer to his chest. "I can see you're shattered. Come on, don't fight it."

"Will things ever be safe again?" she asked, her eyelids heavy, her head lolling against his shoulder.

"I want to believe that they will. Nothing's left but believe in it."

She felt his lips brushing against the top of her head with a hasty kiss. She wanted to protest; it seemed so cruel to be so tired when he was there. But she was drifting too fast. It was an easy thing to do, surrounded with his warmth. Before she knew it, first light streamed into the room, and William's cries interrupted her dreamless slumber. She woke up alone. William's cries came from the nursery, although she had no recollection of putting him back in his crib.

She sat up as consciousness threw itself upon her, and with it recollections from the previous night. Shadows. Mulder. A sense of security, no matter how short-termed. She pressed a finger to her lips. If she closed her eyes, she could almost feel his lips against hers again. But was it because she had yearned for it for longer than she cared to remember, or because it had happened not too long ago, and the memory was still alive and burning?

And as she wandered groggily from her bedroom to the nursery, she couldn't help but wonder if Mulder really was there that night, or was it just another dream, the result of yet another lonely night.