Scully sat alone in the office, staring at the door through which Mulder had left less than five minutes ago. She sighed deeply as she leaned back in the office chair and folded her hands across her lap, dropping her head back and closing her eyes.

Two days had passed since she had gone over to the house. Two days since she had left, going back to her own empty and quiet house. Two days of odd dreams, feeling lost and waking up still feeling tired.

Two days of Mulder behaving differently. He had been quieter, more serious. He had also been more attentive, while also being withdrawn, in a way that had made her yearn for him.

He had stopped touching her.

His hand on her back, shoulder, or her arm had stopped. His hands had been in his pockets more often and he had kept space between them.

Since day one, he had invaded her space, his touch one that had never been unwelcome, and now… now he was keeping his distance.

It was unnerving.

And it made her desire his nearness and his touch even more.

She sighed and put her head in her hands, looking down at the desk. She had lied to him earlier as he was leaving, telling him she needed to stop by the lab before she left for the day when he had offered to walk her to her car. He had nodded and accepted her words, smiling as he left the room, while she had wanted to chase after him and tell him to wait.

But she had stayed at the desk and said goodbye, hating herself for being a coward.

"God," she breathed, raising her head and closing her eyes.

Taking a few deep breaths, she stood up and stretched. Sighing heavily, she gathered her things, put on her coat, turned out the lights, locked the office and walked to her car.

Leaving the parking lot, her mind on the past few years and especially the past few days, it was not until she was halfway there that she realized she was heading home and not to her house. Taking the next exit, she pulled into a gas station and parked the car, turning off the ignition.

She sat in the silence, her heart aching as she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Opening her eyes, she shook her head and turned the car back on, intent on turning around and going to her house. She could pick up some food and…

"Eat all alone in the silence," she whispered.

Sure, she could put on some music, a podcast, something on television, but it was not the same. Not the same as speaking with someone, sitting together, laughing over a shared memory, feeling the touch of a hand, or simply sitting in comfortable silence. Quiet, but together.

"No… not tonight," she said and turned left instead of right, her decision made.

She stopped at a restaurant they had frequented many times, ordering their favorite meals for takeout.

And two of the largest iced teas they had.

Smiling, she got back into the car, the scent of the food making her stomach rumble. The cups of tea barely fit into the cup holders and she laughed, keeping a hand on them from tipping over and spilling the sweet liquid.

Pulling up the driveway, her mouth went dry, suddenly feeling nervous. It was unnecessary and she knew it, but it was still there, that feeling of uncertainty.

He would not deny her, or send her away, she knew that… but the past couple of days had left her feeling unsure and off kilter. Pushing that aside, she parked the car and turned it off. Stepping out, she gathered the bags and drinks and walked up the steps.

Setting the drinks on the rail, she opened the screen and knocked on the door, her heart racing as she waited for him to answer. The door opened and he stood with raised eyebrows and a smile.

"Well… this is a surprise," he said and she smiled with a nod.

"I hope you haven't eaten…"

"Not anything of substance," he assured her, taking the bags from her and she turned to pick up the drinks. He held the door and they both walked inside and to the dining room table.

Silently, they gathered utensils, napkins, and glasses filled with ice, setting them on the table beside the takeout containers. Sitting down, they opened them and he hummed appreciatively.

"I can't remember the last time I had something from Sonny's." He picked up his fork and took a bite of the pasta, humming again. "It's not as good as your mom's, but it's a close second." She laughed softly and nodded, taking a bite of her salad.

Halfway through the meal, he picked up one of the to-go cups of tea and poured it into his glass, smiling as he glanced at her. He set his glass down and picked hers up, filling it to the very top and placing it carefully beside her. She smiled as she looked at him and he nodded, setting the now empty cup in the center of the table.

Knowing she would not be able to lift her glass without spilling it, she took a straw from the bag and held it to the top, drinking a small amount, before sticking the straw in all the way.

"Ahhhhh," she breathed out and he laughed softly, taking another bite of his food with a smile. She smiled as she picked up her glass and took another sip through the straw.

She watched him, his other hand on the table, his fingers moving absentmindedly as they often did as he ate. It was something she had noticed about him nearly right away, his nervous energy unable to still even through a meal.

Some things don't change, she thought with a small smile, setting her glass back down. She picked up her fork and reached across to his container, taking a forkful of pasta.

He turned it closer to her, not saying anything, but allowing her to take whatever she wanted. He took the cucumbers from her salad and crunched them loudly, causing her to smile as she took another bite of his pasta.

The second cup of to-go tea was half full, their glasses the same, the ice nearly melted. The food containers were empty and Mulder cleared them away, coming back to the table and picking up the to-go cup.

"Do you want more ice?" he asked and she nodded.

"Hmm, yeah I could do with more. Thanks."

He took her glass and added a few ice cubes to it and then to his own before he sat back down beside her. Taking the lid off the to-go cup, he refilled their cups and set the cup down with a smile.

"Thanks for dinner."

"You're welcome."

She smiled and picked up her glass, taking a small sip as she watched him. He nodded with a sigh, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms.

"Same stipulations as last time or would you like to stay and watch a movie or something?" She smiled as she looked down at her glass and then back at him.

"Depends on if you plan to switch the glasses again."

"I'm not above such actions."

"I am aware."

"There's still some tea in the cup and a whole pitcher in the fridge. A man's gotta be prepared." She smiled again and then sighed, setting down her glass.

"I'm sorry I left the other night," she said softly, folding her hands on the table. "I…"

"You don't need to explain."

"Don't I?"

"Of course not," he said with a kind smile and she shook her head.

"Why?"

"Why don't I need an explanation?"

"Yes."

"Because… because it's us. Because…" He sighed and looked down, shaking his head. "Because it's been three years and I understand." He raised his eyes and looked into hers and she knew they reflected how she felt. Sad, lonely, and yearning for the other.

"You stopped touching me," she whispered, straight to the point, and he nodded slowly. "Why?" He let out a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"I listened to that song you sent, over and over, and I understood why you came here." He sighed and opened his eyes, looking at her again. "But then, I thought about a lot of things after I sent you that message. Maybe I wasn't completely understanding what you were trying to say. Maybe… maybe you were trying to say something different than what I thought."

"What do you mean?" she whispered.

"I thought maybe you were saying goodbye-"

"What?"

"Goodbye to our life here, wanting to move on. To stop thinking about it."

"Mulder… no…" She covered his hand with hers and shook her head. "How could you even think that?" He laughed bitterly and placed his other hand over hers.

"Scully… despite being able to read one another so well, we are pretty terrible at communicating verbally, even after all these years." He smiled sadly and she let out a sigh, knowing he was right. Why was it so hard for them to say how they felt?

"Because we are both incredibly stubborn people," she said, shaking her head as she answered her own question.

"I'm not stubborn," he said softly, shaking his head. "You are." He smiled and she let out a small laugh, before sighing, tears in her eyes.

"We… Mulder…"

"We are both stubborn, I know," he said with another small smile. "But it's what I love most about you and why you fell in love with me, if my memory serves."

"Among other things," she whispered, with a nod.

"It's also what pushed us apart. Among other things, to borrow your words." He shook his head, rubbing her fingers with his thumb.

"I'd say it was the other things that pushed, and the stubbornness that's kept it that way."

"Hmm," he hummed with a nod, squeezing her hand as she sighed, closing her eyes.

"You didn't answer the question," she said softly, opening her eyes to look at him, needing to see his eyes when he told her.

"Because… because I knew that if you were going to be… moving forward, I needed to let you go."

"Mulder," she breathed, her tears spilling over and down her cheeks.

"I needed to stop… for you, but especially for me. To… to know I would only get that, the small touches, it wasn't enough. In the past, years ago, it was my connection to you, how it could get your attention and convey how I felt, knowing it wasn't crossing any line." He pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and stroked her cheek, softly wiping her tears. "But, we've been as good as married for fifteen years, even longer if you want to be technical."

"Longer," she whispered with a nod and he smiled softly.

"Longer," he agreed, stroking her cheek again. "When the possibility of us being together again was there, the familiarity of touching you was enough. But thinking it would end…" He shook his head and sighed heavily. "I had to stop cold turkey. And Christ, has it been killing me."

"Me too," she whispered and put a hand over his where it lay on her cheek, breathing out a shaky breath. He leaned forward and their foreheads pressed together.

"I wasn't saying goodbye," she whispered, taking a breath. "Quite the opposite, in fact." She pulled back and moved her hand, his own dropping from her cheek. She smiled slightly and exhaled as she looked around. "I miss this house. I miss the life we had here, before the… other things happened. Before we became so goddamn stubborn."

"I miss that too."

"I miss you," she whispered and he drew in a deep breath.

"God, Scully…. I miss you too. Even though I see you every day… it's not the same."

"No. No it's not."

They stared at one another, not speaking but saying so much with their eyes. If a look could pick up a pen and write, pages upon pages of novels would have been filled by it.

"I don't want to be presumptuous here, not after the past couple of days," he said softly, and she smiled. "So I'll be straightforward and communicate what I want. Can I kiss you?"

"Please," she breathed with a nod.

He held her face in his hands and gently kissed her lips, before pulling back and staring at her.

"That's it?" she asked with a smile and he chuckled softly.

"Absolutely not," he said, kissing her again, his thumbs stroking her cheeks as she held his face and mirrored his touch. She moaned, her arms going around his neck as he pulled her closer.

She yawned as she walked across the living room and into the kitchen to make coffee. Sighing as she picked up the pot and turned to the sink, her eyes landed on the glasses on the table. Smiling, she set the pot down and walked over to her glass, still full of tea, though quite watered down.

"Do you want to go out and get some breakfast?" Mulder asked, and she looked up, smiling at the happy smile on his face.

"Hmm… going out would require getting dressed," she said, gesturing to his Knicks shirt she was wearing. He came closer as he chuckled, pulling her close and kissing her.

"That's true, forget I asked," he said, lifting her as he kissed her again and she laughed, her arms around his neck.

He set her down and kissed her once more before filling the coffee pot and measuring out the coffee as she cleared the table, clearing her throat as she brought over the glasses of tea.

"I'd say I surpassed the stipulations of the tea," she said, giving him a sly look.

"Hmm," he hummed, switching on the coffee pot and smiling at her. She smiled back and he bent forward to kiss her gently, her hand on his cheek. Pulling back, she smiled at him and shook her head.

She was thankful that she had heard a song that nearly broke her heart and propelled her forward, back to where she belonged… in the little unassuming house at the end of a long gravel driveway, with the man she had loved for most of her life.