One More Skeptic
Rating: It's fine.
Disclaimer: So... I don't own the characters or the idea! (Got this from Tumblr... again).
Summary: Dana Scully had never been stood up on a date before... until tonight.
A/N: YOU GUYS ARE SO SWEET I LOVE YOU ALL OH MY GOD. So... Before you guys read this chapter, I know there are a few things that are a bit out of place. Like... Mulder needed to go through the Academy and work in the behavioral unit for a good four or so years before getting assigned to the X-Files and then Scully's situation... bleh. LETS JUST PRETEND FOR THE SAKE OF MY STORY :) Thanks for ALL the reviews. You guys keep me motivated AF! Sorry for any grammar mistakes!
He sits at his desk, alone in the basement, with the scrap of paper he found in his car after leaving Scully's apartment. There was a ten digit number scratched elegantly onto the torn piece of paper and he stared at it with hope.
He didn't call her yesterday in fear he'd disturb her from studying from the exam she had said she had today. He looked down at his watch, realizing it was almost lunch time… and that maybe she'd be out of class by now. But he dismisses the idea to show up at his old college campus and tucks the piece of paper back into his jacket pocket.
The rest of his day goes by oddly fast enough. He found himself often still organizing and refiling certain aspects of cases that Diana had left unfinished. Months after her leaving, and he was still picking up the pieces. But for the first time in those months, he didn't dwell on the fact that Diana had left him and their work unexplained. For once, he didn't feel the need to search for all the answers.
He gets back to his apartment around the same time as he usually does and lets his car keys fall onto the kitchen table. He shrugs off his coat and hangs it up. The phone that sits on his desk in the living room catches his eye.
There had never been an instance where he found himself wanting to call any particular female back, given how many of their numbers he had acquired over the years. He'd always just throw them away or completely forget about them. But his thumb passes over Scully's number and before he knows it, he's picking up the phone and dialing her number.
It takes a few rings and he nearly hangs up the phone, but she finally answers it and her out of breath greeting puts a smile on his face.
"Hello?"
"Scully?" He can hear a bit of rustling through the line.
"I was wondering when you'd find my little note."
"The second I got back into my car Saturday night." There's more rustling and he suddenly feels bad, thinking he's called at a bad time. "Hey, if you're busy, I can let you go. I just-"
"No, no. I'm sorry. I ugh… I just got back from campus."
"How did your exam go?"
"It was… alright."
"You don't seem to confident."
"No, I mean… I passed. I'm sure of it."
He glances at the clock that's hanging up on his living room wall. It's almost six o'clock. There's an overwhelming feeling that passes over him now that he's had a change to hear her voice. There's a sudden urge to see her, but he's apprehensive about asking her out again.
"Hey… I wanted to ask. Do you have class tomorrow?"
On the other end of the line, she's twirling the cord that's connected to the headset of her phone. She glances back at her backpack that's propped up against her living room wall.
"No. I only have class on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays," she explains. Truth was, she probably had a lot of homework to catch up and finish, but she was hoping he'd ask to do something with her this week. She had spent the majority of the night with him only two days ago, but she was experiencing a yearning need to be near him.
As if it hadn't been lousy enough that she had thought about him all day Sunday and today, to top it off.
But she waits patiently, anticipating his next question.
"Let's celebrate you passing your exam." She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth. Her heart is screaming 'yes' and her brain is screaming 'homework'.
"I don't know, Mulder…"
"I'll have you home before midnight."
"I've got a lot of homework I need to start on," she argues… feebly.
"Scully." All it takes is him saying her name into the phone and her homework is long forgotten.
"Alright," she gives in and on the other end of the call, Mulder's grinning like a lovestruck puppy.
"Give me thirty minutes. I'll come pick you up."
"I'll see you then." And they both hang up. She huffs a piece of her hair out from her eyes and walks into her bedroom, throwing open her closet doors and looking for something to wear.
She settles on a pair of skinny jeans, an oversized band t-shirt, a long sleeve flannel that she leaves unbuttoned and tops it off with her trusty pair of black Converse. And after reapplying her makeup from this morning, there's a knock at the door.
She passes her mirror in the bedroom which occupies the space next to her twelve month calendar. There's a date circled in red permanent marker that catches her attention and she remembers she has a job interview with the FBI tomorrow for a Forensics Instructor position. The FBI had approached her even without a completed Medical degree, but she had intentions to graduate.
'These outfits won't do anymore,' she realizes when the job interview comes up. She makes a mental note to call her sister in the morning to borrow some of her clothes… and then to go shopping for a new wardrobe.
But when she opens the door to reveal Mulder, her anxiety about the job interview and homework melt away. She's replaying their kiss from two nights ago and she blushes instantly, standing in the same spot where he had pressed his lips to hers. 'He's doing it too,' she tells herself.
She's fighting against her mirroring smile, but the corners of her lips give way when he holds up his car keys and jingles them in her face, signifying he's ready to leave.
"You're starting to become a bad influence," she warns as she steps through her door, locks it up, and takes the lead down the stairwell.
"I think you'll manage one night away from your homework," he suggests as they climb into his car.
He drives them not far from her apartment, but he's in the middle of the city, and when he stops at a local bar that houses the college kids. It's only Monday and there's still a decent sized crowd there. He takes the lead now, showing her through the groups of people and finds a cozy spot at the bar where he lets her sit and then comes to stand protectively behind her.
He raises a hand and the bartender zeros in on them, asking them what they're drinking for the night. Mulder orders himself a Shinerbock and Scully seconds it.
"Beer drinker, huh? I knew I liked you," he says from behind her, his voice tickling the hairs by her ear. She fights the shiver that threatens to course down her spine and straightens up when the man behind the bar returns with their two beers. Mulder reaches around Scully, handing him a five dollar bill and tells him to keep the change.
She grabs her bottle and turns in the bar stool where she can face Mulder. He's dangerously close, but there's almost no other place for him to stand without bumping into one of the other bar goers… and she doesn't mind.
He holds up his own bottle and she brings hers up so their necks clash together, and they each take a sip. She closes her eyes when the cold beer washes down her throat, the near freezing alcohol soothing her worries and bringing a rush of blood to her cheeks.
"So besides catching up on your homework tomorrow, what else is the elusive Dana Scully up to?"
"Job interview, actually," she proudly announces. "The FBI seems to have a special interest in yours truly." She raises her eyebrows for a dramatic effect before taking another long sip of her beer.
"The FBI, huh," he asks facetiously. She's turned her back to him to reach for some napkins to wrap around her cold beer bottle, and when she moves back, her eyes come to rest on his FBI badge that he's displaying.
"Fox? Your name is Fox," she asks amusingly.
"That's the first thing you notice?" He looks at his badge. "Really? The FBI part didn't throw you for a loop first?" She suppresses a giggle as he sighs and folds his badge back up. "What position?"
"Forensics Instructor. I've got to go through the Academy first, though." She's trying to hide the fact that she's thrilled he works at the FBI. 'Such a small world,' she thinks to herself. "Will you be at work tomorrow?" He nods his head and sips at his beer. "Good. You can show me around the place."
It's an entertaining idea at first, but the fact he works in the basement makes him hesitant. He had just recently been assigned to the X-Files and to no one's surprise, he absolutely loved it. He had made it his life's work and the search for his sister had been a little easier on him with the resources and contacts he found in the hidden away files tucked in the basement.
But she had painfully made it clear her stance on things of that nature. 'She'll understand if I show her why,' he thinks.
—
The night progresses quickly and after a few more beers, he decides to call it a night and bring her home. She's not drunk, but definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol. He laughs to himself as she begins hiccuping as she climbs the steps to her apartment.
"You gonna wake up on time," he's asking as she unlocks her door. She throws him a well-knowing look over her shoulder and pushes the door open, keeping it that way for him to follow her in.
She doesn't say a word, but instead, goes to her backpack and pulls out a folder full of papers and handwritten notes. She stumbles back to where he stands in her living room and stops just short of bumping into him. He smiles down at her, but she hits his chest with her folder.
"Read these to me," and she's off, heading down her hallway and peeling off her flannel over-shirt.
"Ugh…" He peeks into the folder and see's her psychiatric medicine notes. He recognizes some of the words, but the medicine part is in a completely different language. He's stuck to his spot in the living room and he's unsure if he should follow her into her bedroom or stay where he stands.
"I can't hear you," she calls out from her bathroom. He takes a few uneasy steps down her hallway and begins reciting her notes. From inside her bathroom, as she changes into something more comfortable, she can hear his voice grow louder and clearer with every step he takes. She smiles when he mispronounces 'Amitriptyline'.
She emerges from her bathroom in a pair of her old volleyball shorts and a t-shirt, nearly colliding with him as his eyes are glued to her beautifully hand written notes.
She pulls the folder from his hands and tosses it onto the bed. He watches as the folder bounces on her mattress and turns back to her with a questioning look.
"You get me drunk and then you read my notes back to me?" He narrows his eyes.
"You're drunk?"
"Irrelevant." He smirks. "No."
"What's your point?"
"You're a gentleman."
"When you put it that way…" She rolls her eyes at his flirtatious grin. "What time is your interview tomorrow?"
"Nine o'clock."
"Tell you what…" He's reaching down for her alarm clock and sets it for her. "Go to the information desk after your interview and ask for me." She nods in agreement, walking past him to show him out for the night.
He walks through the door and turns to find her leaning against it, her head supported by the wood.
"Good luck tomorrow."
"Thank you." He leans down and presses a gentle kiss to her cheek and she closes her eyes at his touch. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"I'm counting on it."
A/N: So there it is! Fourth chapter. I think I may have a few more up my sleeve. I still have to update my other college AU fic, but this one was for you guys. REVIEW AND LOVE ME! (Sorry for any grammar mistakes... again).