I really appreciate any feedback/comments I get - I had planned to jump straight on to the picnic, but this is a little chapter inspired by a comment from dksxf.

Scully woke spooned inside the warm cocoon of Mulder's body. She smiled, rolled over in his arms and snuggled her face against his warm neck.

Mulder hummed and ran his hand lazily up her back, "Mornin'…"

She kissed up his throat and then inhaled deeply, "Mmmmm…"

"We need to get up?" Mulder asked sleepily as he pulled her tightly against him and entangled his legs around hers.

Scully opened her eyes to look at the clock and then dropped her face back to his chest, "We have three hours…we could get up and do some more sightseeing…"

"We could…" Mulder said as he sleepily kissed along her hairline, "…or we could just stay here and…"

Scully smiled, "…and?"

Mulder chuckled, "Would you think me very old if I said I'd really like to just lie here and hold you? I can't remember the last time I felt this…peaceful."

Scully grinned and kissed along his clavicle, "That sounds perfect…" She leaned her head against his chest and surprised herself when she felt a tear escape and slide down her cheek.

After a few seconds Mulder sensed something and felt the dampness on his chest, he opened his eyes to look down, "Scully are you crying?"

Scully smiled in spite of her tears and shook her head lightly, "No…I mean yes…" she laughed, "…I guess I am crying, I'm just not entirely sure why…" Scully dropped her face to Mulder's chest in embarrassment.

Mulder pulled a face and ran his hand through her hair, "Is this…a hormonal thing?" he asked carefully.

Scully giggled and slapped his chest lightly, "No it is not! I guess I'm just…"

Mulder brought his hand up to lift her face to meet her eyes, "Scully?"

She smiled and further tears slipped down her face, "I guess I've just never felt this safe…this happy…this comfortable in somebody's arms before."

Mulder smiled and now that he was satisfied that these were happy tears he allowed her face to drop back to his neck.

Scully continued quietly, "I've been in serious relationships before, I've even genuinely believed that I was in love. I've thought that I might want to spend the rest of my life with a couple of them…"

Mulder tightened his arms around her and tried to ignore the ridiculous jealousy that was bubbling in his chest.

Scully sensed his reaction and smiled as she playful bit his neck, "Caveman!"

Mulder chuckled and shook his head, "I just can't bear the thought...even now. The thought of who I'd be if I didn't have you, if you hadn't come into my life…"

"That would never have happened Mulder. All the choices we made…good, bad or indifferent…they all led us to each other. I believe that no matter what road we had taken we would have found our way to here."

"Like fate? How can you be so sure?" Mulder asked, "Everything we've seen, everything we've done...you are always the one looking for empirical evidence…demanding proof."

"My proof is lying here in your arms Mulder…I've never felt so sure of anything. I'm not questioning you, I'm not analysing my own feelings, I don't doubt the future or worry about what comes next. I know that I have a partner now, in every sense of the word, and whatever comes next we will face it together."

"Your faith in me…in us…it's completely…" Mulder whispered in awe.

"Deserved. Earned. Based on empirical observations and experiences." Scully finished. "You feel exactly the same way Mulder." This was a statement and not a question.

"Of course I do, how could I not?" Mulder said simply.

Scully nodded and kissed his neck before cuddling back into his side and sighing, "That sort of certainty, that can be a little overwhelming…but in a good way."

Mulder held her tightly and nodded, "Definitely in a good way." He repeated.

After a few minutes Mulder couldn't help but ask, "So these other guys…"

Scully smirked, "I didn't think you'd let that go…are you sure you want to know caveman…?"

Mulder chuckled and ran his hand down to the small of her back, "I want to know everything about you Scully. Maybe just leave out the…details."

Scully nodded, "I'll leave out the details Mulder." She paused for a moment collecting her thoughts, "So Marcus was my first, after a few false starts. It was young love, nothing serious and it ended at the beginning of the summer, before we both went to college."

Mulder nodded, "Before you went to stay with your grandmother..."

Scully smiled and nodded.

"I wasn't very popular at college," she continued, "I was a bit of a swot and didn't have much time for dating…which I guess is why I was so flattered when my lecturer at med school hit on me…"

Mulder pulled back and raised his eyebrows, "Seriously?"

"Which bit?" Scully asked smiling.

"I do not believe that you didn't have guys falling all over you in college. A twenty year old Dana Scully, sitting in the corner of the library lookin' all sexy and nubile, surrounded by books…the guys in your year probably just thought you were out of their league." Mulder grinned.

Scully laughed and assumed he was teasing. "Yeah, I was a real catch…" she grinned and shook her head.

Mulder ran his hand down to her ass, "I'm not joking Scully…I'm getting hot just thinking about what I would have done to you if I'd known you back then." He thrust his growing erection against her hip.

Scully hooked her foot over his calf, "I wished I had known you back then, you would have been wonderful for my ego…but like I said once before, dreadful for my studies."

"Moi? If you'd have even given me a second look I'd have been your slave Dana Scully…" Mulder sighed dramatically and ran his lips over her throat tickling her until she was laughing uncontrollably.

"Mulder! Mulder! Stop!" She shrieked as she tried to push him back.

Mulder kissed her forehead and signalled for her to rest her head back on his chest, "I will…but only because I want to hear the rest of your story…"

Scully smiled as she caught her breathe and then lay back against him, "So…Daniel…"

"Daniel?" Mulder asked cautiously suddenly sensing a deeper story.

"Daniel was my lecturer at med school…and I guess I fell in love. I admired him, respected him, and like I said I didn't get a lot of attention from guys my own age." She paused and took a breath, "He was married…and I was flattered. I was naive enough to fall for the 'my wife doesn't understand me' line and we slipped into an affair. It was stupid…I was stupid…it ended when I joined the FBI and I haven't seen him since."

They were silent for a few moments.

"He had children?" Mulder asked gently.

Scully nodded, "A girl…"

"Scully I…" Mulder started to say.

"I'm not proud of my actions Mulder. I almost didn't want to tell you because I was scared that you would think less of me…I know your home life wasn't exactly happy and… " Scully looked at him guiltily.

"Scully he was the one in the position of power, he took advantage of you. You are the best person I know and I could never think any less of you over something like that." He leaned down to pepper kisses over her forehead and down to her temple; he understood she was just reflecting her own shame onto fears of what he would think of her. "We're just talking about them, sharing our past and then we're moving on…together."

Scully smiled weakly, "Okay Mr. Psychologist. So next? …You know about Jack?"

Mulder rolled his eyes, nodded and then smiled, "Next?"

Scully smirked, "Next. I was dating a guy called Ethan for a while…when I met you."

Mulder pulled a face, "You mean when we met you were…"

"Seeing someone? Yes." Scully said with a smile.

"We'd been together for about seven months when I was assigned to work with you, I think we spilt up a couple of months later."

"How did I not know about this?" Mulder asked incredulously.

Scully laughed, "It never came up...you never asked about my life outside of work, you were so focused on the job…"

"So you broke up…" Mulder started to ask carefully.

She nodded, "We were travelling a lot and I guess was working longer hours than I had before. Ethan became a little jealous and annoyed by my workload…"

"He asked you to choose?" Mulder said with a wince. "He asked you to choose and I was too blind to even notice that he existed."

Scully smiled and brushed a few stands of hair off his face. "Yes, he asked me to choose. It wasn't a hard choice…it made itself. The X Files was the life that I wanted and over time I came to realise that in making that choice I was also choosing you."

Mulder held her tightly, "Thank you for choosing me, even back when I was too blind to see the truth that was right in front of my face." A tear escaped his eye and he sighed. "So many roads that could have been taken…"

"So many roads that would have led us right back here." Scully repeated with the same certainty as before.

Mulder paused and took a breath, "And then…"

Scully sighed; she knew what came next, "Yes, I slept with Ed Jerse. It was stupid, but I was lonely and scared. I already suspected how ill I was and I really wanted to reach out to you, but I just didn't know how. I was so…angry…angry with myself, angry at the world, and I guess a little angry with you too. I thought we were going to lose our time, our future...the chance to get it right. You know?" Mulder nodded and brought her back into the warm cocoon of his body. He held her so tightly that it very nearly hurt.

"We have that time now Scully. If I'd have lost you…that would have killed me…" he murmured against her skin.

"You really aren't angry?" Scully asked softly.

"With you? No. I wish we could have talked, I wish it hadn't happened. I felt like I was losing you Scully...but you needed me and I was so paralysed by my own fears and insecurities that I wasn't there. You are my life and you have been for so long. I realised during that time that you didn't know that…that you didn't understand how essential you are to me. I'm so sorry that it took me so long to tell you."

"We both made mistakes." Scully said and ran her hand down his arm. "You are all I've wanted for so long..."

Mulder kissed her lips softly and smiled as her mouth opened and her tongue slipped out to play with the tip of his. "Together now?" he asked already knowing the answer.

"You and me." Scully confirmed as she reached into his boxers and grasped his thick hard cock. "One thing that I can say for certain…just in case you weren't sure already…this has made all of them nothing more than a distant memory. Nothing has ever been this good."

Mulder smirked and waggled his eyebrows, "So I'm the best you've ever had?"

Scully reached to pushed down his boxers and quickly kicked off her panties, "You know you are Mulder…and I know I'm yours."

Mulder gasped as he felt her move a leg on top of his thigh widening herself enough so that he could slowly push into he body. When he had filled her completely he sighed and buried his face in her shoulder kissing and biting towards her neck as he pulled back and then slipped back inside her warm core.

"Scully…you are beyond the best…you are on a whole other level…you are exospheric…" Mulder groaned.

Scully laughed and tilted her hip to take him even deeper, "Damn Mulder, I love it when you get all scientific in bed…" she flexed her internal muscles and smiled at Mulder's groan.

"I'm actually surprised you weren't a virgin…" Mulder gasped.

Scully pulled back slightly and looked at him with one raised eyebrow.

"I'm kiddin'!" Mulder grinned and squeezed her ass teasingly, "...but I mean how could anyone have you and then let you go? Now that is the real mystery of the universe."

"You're such a cornball…" Scully grinned and rolled onto her back as Mulder moved on top of her lifting one leg over his shoulder and continuing to slowly slid in and out of her body until they both reached a powerful but serene climax.

Mulder moved them both onto their sides so he could remain inside her for a few more minutes. "I never want to leave…" Mulder murmured softly as he trailed kisses along her throat and tasted her skin.

Scully held him firmly against her body and whispered into his ear, "...You never will."