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A date.

This wasn't grabbing dinner after work. This wasn't a movie followed by heavy petting and more at his place. This was an honest to God date with Mulder.

It was the first thing he said with a clear, no-longer-raspy voice after the tobacco beetle incident. "Scully, will you let me take you out?"

After clarifying that, yes, he meant a date and, no, he wouldn't get them caught in public - she said yes. And just like that, after seven years, Dana Scully and Fox Mulder were going to go out on a date.

For the rest of the work day she kept finding herself smiling, an ear-to-ear, cheek-splitting smile that made her feel like a teenager. When she managed to regain her composure, she'd look over and see Mulder, leaning back in his seat as he stared into nothingness, a similar smile taking residence on his face as if unadulterated joy was contagious.

She admittedly felt a little silly, they'd been intimate for a while now, they'd spent every night together for the past month, he'd explored every inch of her body with his fingers and mouth, yet the prospect of going out on a date with him made her irrationally nervous.

He said he could pick her up, but she insisted she'd meet him at his place with her overnight bag since she'd been meaning to bring more clothes to his place. Hell, they were cohabiting at each other's apartments, and here she was feeling giddy about eating a nice meal in a fancy dress with him.

As soon as she got home from work, Scully started getting ready despite the fact she had three hours before she was supposed to be over there.

She objectively realized how odd this looked. A woman dressed to the nines standing outside of a man's apartment for ten consecutive minutes while clutching an old gym bag. Scully wasn't exactly shy, she just didn't want to rush him if he was still getting ready, there were still twenty minutes before eight. She just wanted to play cool and-

RIIIIIING

Scully nearly jumped out of her shoes at the sudden noise, undoubtedly loud enough to alert the whole building of her presence. She scrambled to grab her cell phone out of her purse, and by the fifth ring she answered and pressed the phone to her face, clearing her throat before quietly murmuring, "Yes?"

"Are you gonna come inside?" Mulder's amused voice asked from the plastic of the receiver, his voice also audible from the otherside of the wall.

Before she had a chance to answer, the door swung open and revealed Mulder dressed in a dark suit and a playful smirk. "I think you should, someone's been lurking outside my door for a while now. I think I have a stalker," he teased before hanging up the phone.

"What great timing, I just got here," she replied unconvincingly.

Mulder strutted up to her, wrapping his hands around her waist while his eyes roamed over her. "You look beautiful, Scully," he whispered huskily, leaning down and pressing a firm kiss to her lips. Forgetting her temporary embarrassment, she raised a hand to the nape of his neck and played with the hairs there, smiling against his lips when she felt goosebumps arise in her wake.

When Mulder broke the kiss, she saw her lipstick was smeared all over his mouth. With a small laugh, she licked the pad of her thumb and helped clean him up, feeling how clean shaven he was in the process. Now that she really was taking him in, she realized he also had gotten ready way too early.

"I heard the ding of the elevator and heels walking down the hall but no door opening," he murmured, making the process of cleaning him harder as he kept playfully twisting his mouth to kiss her thumb.

"I was excited to get here," she replied honestly, then adding, "I was ready at seven."

Mulder looked pleasantly surprised at her honesty and replied in kind. "I was ready at six," he whispered, rubbing his hands up and down her spine and spending extra time where fabric turned to skin.

A sweet smile quirked her lips upwards, and he instantly mirrored her. They'd wanted this for so long, she didn't want to wait anymore. Her heart sometimes felt heavy knowing how long they'd waited, but if it all led to moments like these, where he held her and looked at her like she was the most important person in the entire world, she was willing to say they'd gotten the timing just right.