Takes place just after the last chapter. AND this also has All Things!
Enjoy!
"You okay?" Anna asks as she, Kyle, and Chloe enter the school. With a sigh, Chloe replies, "My dad won't tell me anything about his job."
"Mine won't either," Kyle replies hoping to assuage his new girlfriend's frustration. Turning to Anna, Chloe replies, "Be thankful your parents don't work for the government."
Seeing Kyle nod, Anna decides to let the topic rest. The next couple weeks are fairly strained between her and her father, and she barely brings up England again. The Saturday officially beginning her Spring Break, Chloe sits at home on the phone with Kyle as her dad goes to work. Hearing the main apartment door open and close, Chloe hears her father come in the door. Hanging up the phone once she tells Kyle that her father is home, Chloe enters the living room.
"Dad?" She asks carefully noticing his upset expression. Sighing, Mulder answers, "Hey, Chlo. How would you feel about going to England? I can shoot your mom and e-mail and tell her we're coming."
Excited, the teen asks, "Really?"
"Yeah. Go get packed for a week. We leave at 5:30 tonight," He explains. Hugging her father, Chloe immediately goes to her closet. Deciding to go ahead and pack for himself, Mulder takes his suitcase out to the living room where all of his clean and folded clothes currently reside. Throwing some items into his suitcase, Mulder turns on the TV only to find himself and Scully staring at him.
"Chloe!" He yells. When his daughter enters the living room, Mulder points to the screen and asks, "Chloe, what is this?"
Sheepishly, the teen answers, "X-Cops?"
"X-Cops?" Mulder questions. Nodding, Chloe sheepishly replies, "That episode you said wouldn't air, aired. So, I taped it."
Rolling his eyes, Mulder dismisses his daughter to continue packing. Changing out the X-Cops tape for a movie, Mulder happily listens to mid atlantic accents to keep his mind from the day he has so far. Soon distracted, Mulder checks his e-mail to find a group meeting in the area about crop circles. Calling Scully, he asks her to check up on it.
"'Mulder, I'm not going'," Scully responds. Throwing a couple t-shirts in his suitcase, Mulder answers, "'I got to ask you a favor. One of the researchers lives out near the hospital and they've got these sensitive photos and data and stuff that they won't fax to me so I was just wondering if you would just, maybe go over there and, you know, and get it and put it in the bureau pouch for me'. I'll let you do anything you want the rest of the week! No more favors."
Hearing no response, Mulder asks, "'Speak to me, Scully.'"
"'I'm out for the evening, Mulder'," Scully annoucnes. Now defensive, Mulder questions, "'Well, why didn't you just say so in the first place?'"
Receiving a noncommital answer about her possibly looking something up for him, Mulder wonders what is wrong with his girlfriend. Ever since she disappears with The Smoking Man, Scully acts strangely. Shaking his head, Mulder goes to his bathroom to grab his toiletries. Passing his daughter's room, he asks what she wants for lunch. Looking up from a pile of clothes, Chloe answers, "Something easy?"
"Sandwich and chips," Mulder announces. Chloe smiles at him.
Getting a call later in the day that Mulder and Chloe are headed off to England, Scully officially begins her free week alone. However, after The Smoking Man, Scully starts to question her life choices. Working as an ME for the week, Scully begins to wonder what life is like without her boyfriend and his daughter. She catches a glimpse of that life when she miraculously sees her ex boyfriend and professor from Grad School. Spending the rest of the week on a bizarre journey of her own, she finally sees a familiar figure in front of her.
"'Excuse me!'" Scully exclaims when she reaches the person she has been following. When the person turns, she is instantly releived when her boyfriend greets her.
"'Mulder?'" She asks in surprise. Smiling, Mulder answers, "'I was just looking for you.'"
Confused, Scully asks, "'But you're supposed to be in England.'"
"'I'm back'," Mulder announces wondering how she can be jetlagged when he is the one gone for almost a week.
"'What happened?'" Scully asks.
"'Nothing. There was no event. No crop circles. Big waste of time'," Mulder admits. Scully sighs answering, "'Maybe sometimes nothing happens for a reason, Mulder.'"
Confused, Mulder asks what she means.
"'Nothing. Come on, I'm make you some tea'," Scully states as she leads him to her car. Getting in, Mulder states, "Actually, Scully. While you were gone a few weeks ago, Chloe asked if we could see her mom. I figure at 15, she can probably decide if she wants to see her."
"Did Chloe end up seeing Phoebe?" Scully asks as she puts the car in drive and figures out how to get out of her parallel parking spot. He shakes his head answering,
"Her mom's here, Scully."
His girlfriend smiles at the comment knowing he means her. She is not usually one for sentimentality, but knows Chloe means as much to her as she does Mulder.
"She did like Oxford, though," Mulder continues with a grin as they wait for traffic.
"May follow her father," Scully replies with a smirk.
"Maybe," He adds before asking if she is okay. Scully sighs.
"I just had an interesting last few days," She comments. Staring at her boyfriend, Scully grins realizing she is happy her life turns out the way it has. Suddenly, she kisses her boyfriend in silent gratitude which causes Mulder to question the action.
"I'm just glad I have you," Scully remarks before driving back to his apartment.
Walking into her boyfriend's home, the red head can tell he and Chloe have just gotten back. Looking around, Scully asks, "Where's Chloe?"
"With Anna," Mulder replies. "She wanted to tell her all about England."
"Ah, Jolly Old England," Scully teases in a frighteningly perfect English accent. Shaking his head, Mulder answers, "You have to stop doing that."
Smirking, the red head looks up at her boyfriend happily. Liking her playful attitude, Mulder comments on it. His girlfriend merely smiles in reply.
"Tea or coffee?" Scully asks making her way into the kitchen.
"Coffee. England left a bad taste in my mouth," Mulder states as he drags his suitcase into his bedroom to deal with later. Handing her boyfriend a coffee mug when he returns, Scully asks, "Was England really that bad? I may regret the accent, now."
Sighing, Mulder follows Scully to the couch.
"No," He replies as he sits down, "it was just weird being back. There were too many memories, and Phoebe never e-mailed me back. Thankfully, Chloe had changed her mind on the plane."
Scully toes her shoes off and puts her feet up on the table before asking tentatively, "Has Phoebe ever shown Chloe affection?"
"For a few years, she'd send Chloe small gifts for her birthday or Christmas, but that stopped after she turned six, I think? Her coming here was for work, not for Chloe. Thanks, by the way," Mulder announces. Scully looks at Mulder confused wondering why he needs to thank her. Taking a sip of his coffee, Mulder explains, "You just came in at the right time. Diana had just left, and I felt hopeless. Then Phoebe came to mess with our heads. I was going through the motions before you came in. I know I said you saved me, Scully, but really you saved the both of us."
Scully stays silent after her boyfriend's declaration. Never giving a thought to taking care of Chloe the first time, Scully is overwhelmed by Phoebe's lack of care. Sure, she knows of fathers abandoning their children, but the thought of a mother doing so is both awe inspiring and heartbreaking. Not wanting to feel like a saint in her partner's eyes, Scully states, "I had an affair, in med school."
Seeing Mulder's shocked expression, Scully immediately explains her entire backstory and the last couple days events. Mulder listens with rapt attention until his girlfriend finishes. At a loss for words, neither speaks until Mulder comments, "'I just find it hard to believe.'"
"'What part?'" Scully questions knowing how much information she loads onto her boyfriend.
"'The part where I go away'," He begins, "'and your whole life changes.'"
Snuggling closer to her boyfriend, Scully admits, "'Mmm, I didn't say my whole life changed.'"
"'You speaking to God in a Buddhist temple. God speaking back'," Mulder remarks. Reveling in simply being near him, Scully answers, "'Mmm, and I didn't say that God spoke back. I said that I had some kind of a vision.'"
"'Well, for you, that's like saying you're having David Crosby's baby'," Mulder supplies as he notices Scully smile. Curious, he asks what she's thinking about. Knowing her boyfriend knows about Daniel, Scully states, "'I once considered spending my whole life with this man. What I would have missed.'"
"'I don't think you can know. I mean, how many different lives would we be leading if we made different choices. We... We don't know.'"
"'What if there was only one choice and all the other ones were wrong? And there were signs along the way to pay attention to'," Scully theorizes. Contemplating her theory, Mulder replies, "'Mmm. And all the... choices would then lead to this very moment. One wrong turn, and... we wouldn't be sitting here together. Well, that says a lot. That says a lot, a lot, a lot. That's probably more than we should be getting into at this late hour.'"
Not hearing a response, Mulder looks down to see Scully asleep. Staring at his girlfriend, Mulder gently brushes some hair from her face wondering how he gets lucky enough to have this woman in his life. Moving slowly to keep her from waking up, Mulder takes the blanket from the couch and puts it over her. Grabbing the mugs from the coffee table, Mulder puts them in the kitchen sink. Coming back into the living room, he sees Scully wake up a little and ask how long she was asleep.
"Five minutes," He smirks. She nods before thanking him for the blanket and removing it.
"You can go back to sleep," Mulder states. Shaking her head, Scully gets up and stretches. Realizing in the last couple days that she really does miss Mulder while he is gone, she goes up to him and kisses him.
"Thank- you," She says. "Thank- you for being in my life."
Mulder smiles and kisses her back. She deepens the kiss and soon finds Mulder picking her up and heading toward his bedroom.
"I'm sorry fo being so distant," Scully whispers to Mulder later that night as they lay in bed. He strokes her hair a moment before asking, "Why were you?"
Trying to figure out how to explain herself, the red head finally admits, "After the Smoking Man, I started reevaluating my life. I've never been lied to like that."
"Join the club," Mulder jokes. Sobering, he asks, "How do you feel now?"
Scully ponders the question a moment. She does not feel as confused as before. Knowing her partner is waiting for an answer, Scully whispers, "Now? Whole."
Mulder smiles down at her before he kisses her again.
The next morning Scully wakes up in Mulder's arms content. However, realizing she needs to use the bathroom, Scully reluctantly gets up, grabs her clothes, and gets dressed just in case Chloe comes home. Even though she and Mulder are dating, Chloe is still wary about how the teen will feel about them having sex. Taking extra care to look as presentable as possible, Scully is unaware of the door opening. Closing the door, Chloe tip toes through the apartment after staying over with Anna and nearly bumps into Scully who creeps quietly down the hall.
"Morning. Have fun?" Scully asks kissing her daughter on the head. Chloe nods asking, "How were your days without us?"
"Interesting," Scully replies determined to never tell the teen of her affair from med school. Chloe nods before heading off to her room.
Entering the kitchen, Scully begins to make breakfast knowing that Mulder will also be hungry when he wakes up. Just as she begins to fry bacon, Scully notices an arm around her waist and a kiss to her neck.
"Morning," She murmers. "Chloe's in her room."
"Kill joy," Mulder mumbles as he steps away and heads toward the refrigerator. With a small smirk, Scully asks, "Me or your daughter?"
The man decides not to comment as he searches through his fridge for the orange juice.
"Ha!" He exclaims triumphantly before grabbing the juice from the fridge and taking a swig.
"Mulder!" Scully chides not wanting spit in her drink later. He merely gives her an innocent expression to which she rolls her eyes before resuming breakfast.
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