* * *
Mulder was jumpier and jumpier as they drove towards his apartment. Scully looked out the side window and held on to the door. Her partner was weaving through traffic and exceeding the speed limit by a lot. She prayed they wouldn't be stopped by a policeman on the way. As if on cue, flashing lights and a siren cut through the air behind them. She didn't breath again until the squad car had sped past them. "God-damn it Mulder" she thought.
"I'm sorry Scully," said Mulder unexpectedly.
"For what?"
"I know how much you freak out when I drive like this… I'm just in such a hurry…" His voice trailed off.
"Look Mulder, we're here."
"There aren't any close parking spots here. Why don't you get out here and I'll go do something with the car," he suggested. "If nothing else I can find somebody to take it off my hands." He smiled devilishly at her.
"Great Mulder. Wonderful plan. Meanwhile, I'll let myself in with that key you gave me. It's way too cold to just stand here on the corner waiting for you."
Scully shut the door behind her and turned to hurry up the steps. Mulder pulled away from the curb when suddenly a sharp noise filled the air. "Damn," he thought, "I blew a tire." Not wanting to stop in the middle of the street, he kept going until he could pull over to the side. "Wait a minute," he thought. I certainly didn't pop one of my tires. It was driving too smoothly for that. Scully!"
Mulder threw open the door, narrowly missing a passing car. Ignoring the curses of the driver and the annoying dinging sound the car was making due to the lights being left on, the keys being in the ignition, and the door being open, he raced back the two blocks to his apartment building, passing squad cars and an ambulance. He found a group of people standing around in a circle, talking excitedly. He pushed his way through the crowd, plowing people out of his way to the center. Two paramedics were loading Scully onto a stretcher. Her clothes were covered in blood.
"Oh my God!" he exclaimed. "Scully!"
"Do you know this woman, sir?" asked a police officer.
Mulder flipped out his identification and handed it to the officer. "She's my partner. What happened!"
"We're not entirely sure of the details yet sir. That's what I'm trying to discover."
"We were going to meet an informant in my apartment and I went to park the car…" His voice trailed off and he was forced to brush away tears.
"I'll have to get a statement later sir. Would you mind riding in a squad car to the hospital?"
Mulder muttered something inaudibly. The officer took it as assent and signaled for another officer. "Take Mr. Mulder to the hospital for me please."
Mulder followed the officer in a daze. The squad car pulled out behind the ambulance and headed for St. Mary's. Questions began flowing through his mind and he asked the officer. "What happened? How serious is it? Will she be okay? Who called the police? Did you catch anyone at the scene? Do you have any leads?"
"I don't know. I just got there. I'm driving you to the hospital. You'll have to see when you get there."
Mulder was getting impatient. "Come on people. Get out of the way! Don't you see the flashing lights? It's an ambulance for pity's sake!"
The officer shook his head silently.
* * *
When they finally pulled up in front of the emergency room, Mulder hopped out of the car before it even stopped moving. The paramedics had already taken Scully through the doors.
Mulder had almost exploded when he had found out that he wasn't going to be able to ride with Scully to the hospital. The scene seemed all too familiar: the abrupt change in Scully's heath, the ambulance getting there just too quickly and his inability to ride with Scully to the hospital. Mulder had pushed his body to get into the emergency room before he lost sight of her, but was stopped by a doctor.
"Can I help you?" The doctor asked just a little to ruff for Mulder's paranoid personality.
"Yes!" Mulder let all of his rage and grief fly at the man in front of him. "I'm looking for my partner. Scully, Agent Dana Scully. She was taken in here just minutes ago!"
"Agent Scully? So your in on that too? I don't know what you are trying to pull, but we don't like those hoaxes here at _this_ hospital, even if-"
"Wait a minute, whatdoyoumean _hoax_? She was shot goddamit! I heard it- practically saw it with my own eyes!"
"So you are completely unaware that your partner is fine?"
"Fine? You call shot fine? What kind of half assed-"
"Excuse me _Agent_ Mulder, but _we_ have done everything right here. I don't know _why_ your partner has a bullet hole in her blouse, I don't know why she was covered in her own blood when there is obviously no puncture wound in her entire body, but I do know that she could not have been shot in the heart and then have the bullet, the entry wound and any other damage done just heal itself. Like I was going to say: We don't care if you were the president of the United States, we don't like having to use our staff on these stupid pranks, which you should've given up years ago!"
Mulder was stunned silent for a moment, but that period soon passed. "Where is she?"
The doctor sighed. "She was quite weak when we brought her in so we figured she could use some rest. She's in room 6-19. And Agent Mulder, I don't want to see either of you here again without some serious reason, or next time we will press charges and we _will_ inform your superior.
Mulder only half nodded grimly before racing down the hall. If he had bothered to look back he would've noticed the doctor stripping off his jacket and tossing it lazily across an unoccupied chair before heading towards the door. A young nurse noticed him and wondered at his strange behavior, but she was new at the hospital and didn't want to seem as green as she felt. Still, she had never seen that doctor before and lighting your id pass before lighting your cigarette didn't quite seem to be normal, even in this line of work. Mid-life crisis, she muttered and hoped that the rest of the staff wouldn't go off the deep end as well. She gave the doctor a second glance as he strolled off and seemed to disappear into the blackness. She was unable to resist shuttering, but tried to put it to the back of her mind. Maybe she felt uneasy because of the sponge bath she had to give; she hoped she was right . . .
* * *
Mulder was jumpier and jumpier as they drove towards his apartment. Scully looked out the side window and held on to the door. Her partner was weaving through traffic and exceeding the speed limit by a lot. She prayed they wouldn't be stopped by a policeman on the way. As if on cue, flashing lights and a siren cut through the air behind them. She didn't breath again until the squad car had sped past them. "God-damn it Mulder" she thought.
"I'm sorry Scully," said Mulder unexpectedly.
"For what?"
"I know how much you freak out when I drive like this… I'm just in such a hurry…" His voice trailed off.
"Look Mulder, we're here."
"There aren't any close parking spots here. Why don't you get out here and I'll go do something with the car," he suggested. "If nothing else I can find somebody to take it off my hands." He smiled devilishly at her.
"Great Mulder. Wonderful plan. Meanwhile, I'll let myself in with that key you gave me. It's way too cold to just stand here on the corner waiting for you."
Scully shut the door behind her and turned to hurry up the steps. Mulder pulled away from the curb when suddenly a sharp noise filled the air. "Damn," he thought, "I blew a tire." Not wanting to stop in the middle of the street, he kept going until he could pull over to the side. "Wait a minute," he thought. I certainly didn't pop one of my tires. It was driving too smoothly for that. Scully!"
Mulder threw open the door, narrowly missing a passing car. Ignoring the curses of the driver and the annoying dinging sound the car was making due to the lights being left on, the keys being in the ignition, and the door being open, he raced back the two blocks to his apartment building, passing squad cars and an ambulance. He found a group of people standing around in a circle, talking excitedly. He pushed his way through the crowd, plowing people out of his way to the center. Two paramedics were loading Scully onto a stretcher. Her clothes were covered in blood.
"Oh my God!" he exclaimed. "Scully!"
"Do you know this woman, sir?" asked a police officer.
Mulder flipped out his identification and handed it to the officer. "She's my partner. What happened!"
"We're not entirely sure of the details yet sir. That's what I'm trying to discover."
"We were going to meet an informant in my apartment and I went to park the car…" His voice trailed off and he was forced to brush away tears.
"I'll have to get a statement later sir. Would you mind riding in a squad car to the hospital?"
Mulder muttered something inaudibly. The officer took it as assent and signaled for another officer. "Take Mr. Mulder to the hospital for me please."
Mulder followed the officer in a daze. The squad car pulled out behind the ambulance and headed for St. Mary's. Questions began flowing through his mind and he asked the officer. "What happened? How serious is it? Will she be okay? Who called the police? Did you catch anyone at the scene? Do you have any leads?"
"I don't know. I just got there. I'm driving you to the hospital. You'll have to see when you get there."
Mulder was getting impatient. "Come on people. Get out of the way! Don't you see the flashing lights? It's an ambulance for pity's sake!"
The officer shook his head silently.
* * *
When they finally pulled up in front of the emergency room, Mulder hopped out of the car before it even stopped moving. The paramedics had already taken Scully through the doors.
Mulder had almost exploded when he had found out that he wasn't going to be able to ride with Scully to the hospital. The scene seemed all too familiar: the abrupt change in Scully's heath, the ambulance getting there just too quickly and his inability to ride with Scully to the hospital. Mulder had pushed his body to get into the emergency room before he lost sight of her, but was stopped by a doctor.
"Can I help you?" The doctor asked just a little to ruff for Mulder's paranoid personality.
"Yes!" Mulder let all of his rage and grief fly at the man in front of him. "I'm looking for my partner. Scully, Agent Dana Scully. She was taken in here just minutes ago!"
"Agent Scully? So your in on that too? I don't know what you are trying to pull, but we don't like those hoaxes here at _this_ hospital, even if-"
"Wait a minute, whatdoyoumean _hoax_? She was shot goddamit! I heard it- practically saw it with my own eyes!"
"So you are completely unaware that your partner is fine?"
"Fine? You call shot fine? What kind of half assed-"
"Excuse me _Agent_ Mulder, but _we_ have done everything right here. I don't know _why_ your partner has a bullet hole in her blouse, I don't know why she was covered in her own blood when there is obviously no puncture wound in her entire body, but I do know that she could not have been shot in the heart and then have the bullet, the entry wound and any other damage done just heal itself. Like I was going to say: We don't care if you were the president of the United States, we don't like having to use our staff on these stupid pranks, which you should've given up years ago!"
Mulder was stunned silent for a moment, but that period soon passed. "Where is she?"
The doctor sighed. "She was quite weak when we brought her in so we figured she could use some rest. She's in room 6-19. And Agent Mulder, I don't want to see either of you here again without some serious reason, or next time we will press charges and we _will_ inform your superior.
Mulder only half nodded grimly before racing down the hall. If he had bothered to look back he would've noticed the doctor stripping off his jacket and tossing it lazily across an unoccupied chair before heading towards the door. A young nurse noticed him and wondered at his strange behavior, but she was new at the hospital and didn't want to seem as green as she felt. Still, she had never seen that doctor before and lighting your id pass before lighting your cigarette didn't quite seem to be normal, even in this line of work. Mid-life crisis, she muttered and hoped that the rest of the staff wouldn't go off the deep end as well. She gave the doctor a second glance as he strolled off and seemed to disappear into the blackness. She was unable to resist shuttering, but tried to put it to the back of her mind. Maybe she felt uneasy because of the sponge bath she had to give; she hoped she was right . . .
* * *