K, so I know I promised a good, longer chapter this time around, so this one is more like my normal length. About 3,500 words in this one, give or take. I am also, in addition to being a hopeless romantic, quite old-fashioned. (Don't worry, you'll get what I mean by that when you start reading.) This takes place a little later same night, because I thought it'd be cute to finish said night. Happy reading XD.

Chapter Ten:

"Anybody hungry?" Margaret Scully called from the kitchen.

It was about six o'clock, and the three teenagers were gathered in the living room. Charlie had talked Mulder into playing "Left 4 Dead" with him. He also invited Scully to play with them, but she declined after pulling out a well-worn copy of "Breakfast at Tiffany's" She was now huddled up on the couch, her iPod's earbuds in her ears to drown out the sound of gunfire and death that emanated from the televisions speakers.

At the sound of that simple question, however, three hands shot into the air.

Margaret laughed as Scully got up to help her. As she did, a golden-haired Pomeranian came walking out of the kitchen and walked up to Mulder, sniffing him tentatively.

"Well, hello." Mulder looked down at the dog and reached out to pet it. When he did, the dog backed away.

"It's alright, Queequeg." Charlie said to him. The dog then jumped into Mulder's lap and curled into a furry little ball.

"Queequeg?" Mulder asked.

"Dana named him." Charlie explained.

"I see." he ruffled the dog's hair a little, then turned his attention back to the television.

(X)

Scully doused the pizza dough in pepperoni, green peppers, and mushrooms while her mother did the dishes that were already in the sink. A small smile tugged at Margaret's lips, her daughter noticed, as she slid the pizza into the oven.

"What?" Scully asked as she wiped her hands on a towel, getting ready to take on the drying task.

"Nothing, it's just…" Margaret handed her a plate to dry as she looked out into the rain. "Charlie and Mulder seem to be getting along nicely."

Scully smiled. "Yeah, I should tell him he's two for three."

"Oh, don't think like that, Dana." Margaret slightly whined.

"I know I shouldn't, but sometimes…I just can't help it." Scully deadpanned. "Did Bill ever tell you exactly why he doesn't like Mulder?"

Margaret sighed, "I think he's just being a big brother. I don't think he's destined to like any of the guys you bring home."

Scully looked up at her mother's profile, a deep seriousness set in her eyes. "Who's to say there will be any more?"

Maggie looked up as well, "What do you mean?"

She breathed, "I know it sounds crazy and it's just a 'what if', but what if there isn't anybody after Mulder. What if this is it?"

Margaret averted her eyes, not sure what to say to her daughter's question. The first thing that came to mind was to say that there will, in fact, be others after him. Thinking better against that, she simply said, "That bridge'll be crossed when you get to it, Dana."

Scully smiled, "You're right, I'm just thinking too far ahead of myself."

"Carpe Diem, hon. Don't think about a future that doesn't exist yet." Margaret ran her hands up and down her daughter's arms.

"Seize the day." Scully mumbled, then nodded, "Thanks, Mom."

"Anytime, sweetheart. Now check on the pizza before it burns." Maggie pushed her in the direction of the oven.

(X)

After everyone had eaten rather comfortably, Mulder and Charlie were about to switch out videogames to play something different when Maggie stepped into the living room.

"Everyone done with their homework?" she asked with a raised voice.

"Yep." Scully said as she flopped onto the couch.

"Affirmative." Mulder smiled.

Charlie was silent.

"Charles?" Maggie called her son by his given name. "Did you finish your homework?"

"Um…" Charlie looked like a deer caught in headlights.

Maggie pointed to the stairs, "Move it on up. You can come back down when you're done."

Charlie looked at his sister, then to Mulder, for salvation. Scully wouldn't acknowledge him and Mulder simply shrugged his shoulders. He grumbled and trudged up to his bedroom reluctantly and Margaret returned to the kitchen to clean the new 'bout of dishes.

Queequeg, who'd moved back into Mulder's lap, was picked up and put back on the floor. Mulder then thought it best to jump up too quickly for the dog to return to his new favorite resting spot. The dog looked at him for a few seconds, then walked over to the easy chair and jumped up into it.

Mulder then decided to curl up in his own favorite spot. Crawling over to the couch, he jumped up onto the opposite end that his girlfriend was sitting with her legs stretched out, her face buried in a book and glasses perched on her nose.

He squeezed in between her and the back of the couch, resting his head on her shoulder and draping an arm across her stomach.

Scully wrapped her own arm around his shoulder to get more comfortable, assuming he was going to stay there for awhile. "Your little friend disappears and suddenly I'm your number one choice for entertainment?" she asked sarcastically.

He nuzzled her shoulder with his nose, "You know you're always my number one." he mumbled.

Smiling, she ran a hand through his hair absently as she continued on with her book as they both grew quiet, content just to be near each other. It lasted for only a few moments before Scully turned her attention down to him.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her hand refusing to stop in his hair.

"Why wouldn't I be?" came the answer, muffled by his mouth partially buried in her robe.

"Your heart's beating like a drum. You think I can't feel it?" she chuckled as he buried his head in her shoulder completely.

Mulder went quiet for a bit, then tilted his head to look at her. "Can I ask you to consider something?"

Scully had gone back to her book and didn't meet his eyes, "You can ask me anything, Mulder."

She felt his hand move from around her stomach to hover over her book. When he opened it, an intricate sterling silver chain fell in front of the line she'd been reading. Just about a paragraph lower was what weighed it down. A chunky, complexly engraved ring with a huge amethyst centered in the middle of it. The side that was visible to her had the name 'Fox' etched into it.

Scully swallowed, "Your class ring?"

He pulled it back up like it was a yo-yo, "From my old school. I know it's old-fashioned, but I was wondering if you wanted to wear it? It's completely your decision, and I don't expect-" she pressed a finger over his lips to silence him.

"I'll wear it" she smiled, "…under one condition."

"You don't have to, Scully." he said again.

"Wait here." Scully pressed a kiss to his forehead and got up, climbing the stairs two at a time.

Mulder was suddenly very cold as he folded his arms to fight off the slight chill that enveloped him.

When she came back, she plopped down next to him with her palm open. Scully offered him her own, considerably less-chunky ring that had a giant emerald in it with her own name engraved on either side of the stone.

"Only if you wear mine." she whispered as she bit her bottom lip. That nervous look that he just loved to clear from her face warmed his heart as Mulder laughed and kissed her sweetly. Once he released her from the lip-lock, she slipped her ring over his third finger on his left hand.

"Oh, my, my!" he gasped falsely and held it up to watch it glimmer in the light.

"You're gay." Scully grinned as she poked him in the ribs. "I hope I didn't make you that way."

"My turn." he ignored the comment and motioned for her to turn around. She did so without another word and let him drape the garish ring around her neck happily. When she turned back around to him, he gave her one more quick kiss before they returned to the comfortable position they were in before, only now on opposite sides of the embrace.

Margaret watched the entire spectacle from the kitchen doorframe, neither teen knowing the wiser. She couldn't help the hand that came over her heart as she reminisced when she was that young and that happy. Smiling, she returned to the kitchen.

Silence filled the Scully household for all of about ten minutes. Ten minutes that the young lovebirds spent in each other's embrace. Once that ten minutes was up, five twenty-something males rushed the front door, dripping wet and cussing about said fact, with Bill Jr. as their leader.

Margaret returned to the living room and into the foyer, a look of surprise on her face as greeted her supposed new houseguests. "Bill, who are these people?"

"Mom, you know the guys: Danny, Frank, Brad, Tom, and Barney." Bill said with a smile.

"Yes, but why are they in my house?" she asked in a hushed voice.

Bill kept the cocky smile on his face, "C'mon Mom. It's a typhoon out there. Can't they spend the night?"

"Bill, I don't have room for all these people plus us. This isn't a halfway house for drowned rats." Margaret stated.

Mulder chuckled and Scully grinned like a moron. Maggie didn't necessarily have a mean bone in her body, but it was funny to see her try.

Bill kicked off his wet shoes and came into the living room where the couple sat grinning. A flash of irritation came over his face as he saw who was holding his sister. He turned back to his mother. "You're letting Mr. Popularity stay here?"

"Yes, but the difference is I invited Mulder to stay." she sighed and ran her fingers through her short brown hair, "If your friends stay, they stay down here, in the living room. And that means camping out in here, too."

Her son bit his tongue. Scully got up before her brother got in the mood to fight with her because, frankly, she didn't want that kind of fight to happen in front of Mulder. If there was anything he didn't need to see, that was number one on her list.

She started for the kitchen, her boyfriend two steps behind, and passed the line-up of college guys that she'd remembered were ones to make cat-calls at anything that resembled a woman.

It seemed, however, at least Bill's friends had moved up the jackass totem pole. As Scully passed by Frank, She felt the large, unfamiliar hand hit her, not gently, on the rear end.

Scully froze, shocked and embarrassed simultaneously. Her shoulders rose in tension as she held herself and continued to walk.

She was willing to let it drop, but someone else wasn't.

Mulder shoved him into the wall, his elbow resting dangerously against Frank's windpipe. Frank writhed and gagged, obviously not as strong as his newfound opponent.

"You wanna try that again?" Mulder spoke with a venom Scully had never heard before now. It had her turning on her heels and going to his side, placing her hand on his curled arm.

"Mulder…" she said, barely audibly. He met her eyes, a deeply burning, perhaps eternal fire that she'd seen glimpses of over the past month she'd been in his life. That fire's power had increased ten-fold. "I don't feel like cleaning blood off the floor."

He bit his tongue and dropped his grip. Frank slid the floor, wheezing with broken pride.

Scully followed his journey to the floor with her eyes. She'd known Mulder was strong from the moment she met him, but she'd never been on the dark side of that strength. Making a mental note not to, she pulled him out to the kitchen without looking back.

"I wasn't gonna kill him, Scully. Just gonna rough him up a bit." The calm, cool Mulder she knew was back and smiling.

"Promise me you won't do that again." It wasn't a request, it was a statement.

Mulder leaned up against the counter and let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "I can't make that promise, Scully. I hope you understand that."

She stepped as close to him as she could without touching him. "You're not my bodyguard."

"I never said I was, but you're my girlfriend." he whispered.

"What does that have to do with anything?" she asked, a little angry now.

"I've never had one before, Scully. I don't know all the rules. I…" Mulder slouched, hanging his head. "I guess I always thought that a guy was supposed to defend his girl's honor."

Scully tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before she folded her arms and looked down at her slippers, the hair she'd just fixed falling forward and into her eyes again. Biting her bottom lip again, she mumbled, "I'm your girl?"

Mulder chuckled, "I thought that's what this meant." he thumbed the ring that rested just a couple of inches below her little gold cross.

"It does." she nodded and picked up his left hand, watching the emerald glint in the light. "Just remember this is a two-way street."

He smiled, "That I can do." he stated and pulled her into a brief hug before they were greeted with Bill charging into the kitchen with Maggie hot on his heels.

"What the hell was that?" Bill asked.

"Not tonight, Bill." Scully rubbed her eyes, feeling a headache setting in.

"I wasn't talking to you, Dana." he turned his eyes on Mulder. "What gives you the right to suffocate one of my friends?"

"Your friend's actions. I agree I didn't handle the situation well, and I apologize for that." Mulder's calm voice was almost impossibly passive.

Bill nodded sarcastically, "You're sorry. You're sorry. You should be thanking me for not beating you into a bloody pulp right now!"

Mulder shrugged, "Why beat me up when all I tried to do was defend your sister? If you haven't figured it out yet, Bill, I care about her."

"And if you don't think I havent figured you out yet, you're wrong. You're a teenage guy, just like I was, and I can tell you the only thing we care about at that age is what a girl will do in the back of our four-by-four's."

Scully sank to the floor sometime in the midst of the argument. "If there's a God in Heaven, he'll kill me now." she whispered as she leaned against the cabinet for support.

Mulder kneeled down beside her, "Don't think like that, Scully. You know none of that's true."

She nodded, but the second two big, salty tears slipped from her eyes, Scully bolted out of the room and up the stairs. She buried herself under the covers of her bed, her head under the pillow, and, if she had it her way, wouldn't come out until late winter. Knowing that was impossible, she'd just have to be grateful for her current solitude.

Back downstairs, however, Mulder felt his heart crush into a million pieces. He hadn't moved from the spot he still occupied, right next to where Scully had been not five seconds ago. When he heard that door slam at the top of the stairs, the sounds resonated through his brain like a siren call. A call to go to her, to comfort her, and fix what he could of this mess.

"Where are you going? We're not done here yet." Bill stated as Mulder tried to leave, tugging on his shoulder to turn him around.

"Yeah, we are, Bill. I don't know what kind of game you think this is, but your sister's been torn to pieces with her emotions for weeks now, trying to get you to understand. I'm someone in school that a guy like you wouldn't associate with and you think I'm weird. Whoopdee-fricken'-doo. But I'm not going to stand here and say I'm sorry for falling for her just because you think I'm strange." Mulder said.

Bill, taken aback a little by the nobility of the other man's speech, drew one single detail out from all of it. "'Falling for her'? Do you love her?"

Mulder took several deep breaths before he answered, "If I say 'yes', you won't believe me and call me a liar. If I say 'no', you'll beat me up and throw me out in the street. There's no point." he finally shook his arm free and left the kitchen.

(X)

Scully rolled to face her alarm clock. The red numerals that stared back at her, taunting her.

11:35

After the small headache developed into a full-blown migraine, she told Mulder that she felt better about the whole thing and told him to go get some rest. That had been almost an hour ago now, and the pain behind her eyes had dulled to slow throb. She watched the clock intently as she laid on her stomach. She couldn't remember how long ago Queequeg had come in and curled into a ball on top of her, but he was sound asleep in the middle of her back.

11:36

"Ugh…" she rolled, startling Queequeg, to lay on her back. Scully pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes as her dog came up to comfort her. He licked her arm until she reached one hand out to absently stroke his head.

She couldn't deny it to herself anymore. How Bill reacted to the situation had cut her deeply. Did he really think that little of her that she was nothing more than a good-time girl to Mulder? That she was at his beck and call 24/7? No job too big or too small? Did they really look that horribly mismatched?

"Do you think the pair of you look that bad?"

"No, I actually think we look cute."

"Do you think any of what Bill said down there applies to Mulder?"

"Hell's bells in buckets, no."

"Do you even really CARE what Bill thinks anymore?"

"After tonight, God no."

"Then why are you still thinking about this?

Playing with her new necklace, she leaned up against the wall. The dog had already buried himself under the still-warm covers. The rain still poured in buckets outside her window; the moon completely invisible by the cloud cover. Scully couldn't remember the last time her room looked that dark or, for that matter, that empty.

11:37

"Oh, screw it." she muttered to no one as she got up. She stepped out of her bedroom and shut the door behind her, knowing Queequeg wasn't going anywhere until she pried him out of her bed with the jaws of life in the morning. Her intent was to go down to the kitchen to heat herself up a glass of milk. Bill and his friends were no doubt passed out and scattered about the living room by now, so she wouldn't have to deal with them. She knew there was about zero chance of her actually going back to sleep, but she couldn't say she didn't try.

Scully walked by Mulder's room, then back-tracked when she saw the dim glow of a lamp from the crack where the door and the frame didn't meet. Tip-toeing up to it, she peeked through the narrow space. It was possible he'd fallen asleep with the light on. She just hoped it wasn't true.

All she could see was the big bed that he wasn't in. She opened the door a little wider, enough to slip inside and close it quietly behind her.

Mulder sat by the window, presumably watching the rain fall or the occasional lightening streak. He sat in pajama pants that he'd went and got out of the convenient duffel bag he remembered he had in the truck and no shirt. His back was to her, giving her the time she wanted to admire the view.

After a few moments, she sneaked up behind him and wrapped her hands over his eyes. Scully felt his chuckle, but she remained silent.

He sighed, "Oh, how I hate this game. But I think I know who this is."

She smiled, but still didn't make a sound.

Mulder smiled, "Come to seduce me in the middle of the night? How very bad romance novel of you."

Scully smacked him on the head as she came around to his side.

"What are you doing up this late?" he asked.

She trailed a hand lightly over his shoulder and went to sit on the bed. "Couldn't sleep and, except for where the dog was laying on my back, I got cold again."

He gave her a disbelieving look. "I've never met anyone in my life who is as cold you claim to be."

Her mouth fell open. "I swear to God I was never cold before I met you and now I'm cold all the damn time."

"Sure you were." he said sarcastically, but he rose and sat down next to her on the end of the bed.

Scully shrugged, "Maybe I just like your hugs. Why are you up this late?"

Mulder wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I've had sleep-issues since I was little. I never slept in my bed, and I was always on the couch. Even when I was asleep, I was a misfit."

"You're not anymore." she whispered.

"Yeah, I'm still insomniac." Mulder stated.

"No, not that, I meant you're not a misfit anymore." she got up quietly and went to his bag that was resting in the corner.

He scooted back up to the pillows in an attempt to get more comfortable. "What do you mean?"

Scully pulled out a black sleep shirt. It was a bit of a contrast to his blue and green pants, but who really cared? "You can probably say it more beautifully than I can." she said as she tossed it in his direction.

"I wanna hear how you see it. If you don't think I'm a misfit, than explain that reasoning to me. It doesn't have to be poetic." Mulder said as he pulled the shirt over his head. He knew it wasn't for her sake, but whoever might walk in on them might get the wrong idea with two teenagers alone in a bedroom at night and one didn't have a shirt on.

Scully sighed as she kneeled on the bed next to him, his hazel eyes holding her lighter ones. "A misfit is somebody doesn't belong anywhere. I don't know about you, but I know there's somewhere you belong. I figured out it's the same place I do."

She felt his eyes falter, if only for an instant. "Which is where?" he asked.

Climbing into his lap to face him, Scully wrapped her arms and legs around his torso, just as she had earlier that same day. "I think you belong right here." she whispered as she tucked his head under her chin.

Mulder smiled as he placed his own hands on her narrow back. "And so do you."

He soon felt her breathing even out and her head grew heavy on top of his own. Once his legs started to go numb, he rolled her onto her back, and she automatically rolled to her side, her back to him. Mulder tried to fight the urge, but the battle was over before it began. He spooned up next to her, took a long sniff of her hair, and soon fell into a deep, blissful sleep himself.

That's how Scully's mother would find them come morning, but Mulder couldn't bring himself to move.

As always, my door's open to suggestions. I know this chapter is kinda frustrating, especially Mulder's little speech to Bill, but how else am I gonna get you guys to review if I don't make you a little irritated with me. XD

Please review because my fingers are too tired to type anything else at the moment :)