It was a hot and balmy day in the office that morning. The air conditioner had somehow broken, so while the janitors were rushing to fix it, the interns had brought around cups of cold water. I had removed my jacket and was sitting at my desk, fanning myself with a folded piece of paper, pausing every now and then to take a sip of water. The computer had gone down too, so we had all resorted to using more primitive forms of technology.
I spotted Mulder as he passed my desk, nose buried in a manila folder. Two weeks ago we had been called to Georgia to investigate a case in which a woman had reported hearing strange and "unnatural" noises coming from her neighbor's house. After arriving at the house, we had discovered nothing. Skinner had dismissed the case, but Mulder was convinced that there was something else there.
I jumped up a bit too eagerly from my desk and ran to catch up with him, my pace slowing down to match his brisk one. I noticed his shirt was ruffled and his hair was mussed.
"Did you get any sleep?" I asked him. He didn't answer. I frowned a bit angrily as we entered his office. He sat at the desk and turned to the next page of the file, eyes scanning the material, taking a break to sip the water that had been left for him or to turn a page.
"Mulder--" I interrupted his reading, placing a hand over where he had been reading. He took a while to respond to my distraction and his eyes followed up my arm to my face. When our eyes met I almost blushed. His hazel eyes were set behind his glasses, and his face looked haggard.
"Sorry," I apologized, removing my hand as I sat on the edge of his desk, reaching for a spare piece of paper and folding it into a fan. I waved it around my head, the wind blowing my wispy bangs around my face. I closed my eyes, enjoying the slight relief this was giving me from the heat. When I opened them again Mulder had returned to his folder.
I leaned over to see what he had been so carefully reading, but his head was blocking my view. I moved even farther downward, so that our heads rested almost together. Stubble on his face brushed against my cheek, and I noticed that he didn't flinch nor move away. His eyes moved up from the folder, and I shifted back as he turned to look at me, almost studying my face, as if he could read my very thoughts.
A question formed on the tip of my tongue and before I could even think it had escaped my lips.
"Mulder, why don't we call each other by our first names?"
My words seemed to make him think a bit, and he sat back, stretching strained muscles that had been hunched over a desk for the last twenty-four hours. I watched him, brushing a stray hair out of my eyes as he thought about what I had said.
"Well, Scully, it would appear that we are co-workers, and--" I cut him off, waving my hand dismissively.
"That's not it, Mulder. You and I both know it. Protocol doesn't have an explanation for this. Why don't we?"
He leaned towards me, and I leaned back, face set. Even when he hadn't gotten any sleep for about three days, he still had that gaze that could make my stomach do somersaults. I leaned my elbow on the desk's surface and waited. He moved as if to say something, but thought better of it, and kept silent. My inside emotions were raging, and I didn't even think about what would happen before I kissed him.
My lips met his and it seemed that the whole world spun around. Fireworks went off. Cheering filled the air, only heard by my ears. My hand reached up to play with the little wisps of hair on the back of his neck, and that seemed to encourage him because the kiss became firmer, harder, more passionate. My tongue snaked out tentatively, and his own joined mine in a dance which I had not taken part in for the larger part of my adult life. Our hands explored parts that we had both been longing to touch in so long. I sighed, content, peaceful.
But as soon as it had started, it was over, and we were both back to where we had been, him sitting back in his chair and me looking very awkward with my shirt slightly ruffled and my hair gone astray. My lips were still tingling from that fantastic kiss and I could feel Mulder's wonderful scent on my skin. He looked at me once, twice, before his gaze went back to the folder. I managed to stumble out of the room.
As I walked to my desk, I suddenly remembered that I hadn't closed the door behind me when I had entered Mulder's office. I wondered who exactly had gotten an eyeful of our excursion. I laughed softly as I rounded the corner that would take me back to my own desk.
Well, I thought. I suppose we could just blame it on the heat.
I spotted Mulder as he passed my desk, nose buried in a manila folder. Two weeks ago we had been called to Georgia to investigate a case in which a woman had reported hearing strange and "unnatural" noises coming from her neighbor's house. After arriving at the house, we had discovered nothing. Skinner had dismissed the case, but Mulder was convinced that there was something else there.
I jumped up a bit too eagerly from my desk and ran to catch up with him, my pace slowing down to match his brisk one. I noticed his shirt was ruffled and his hair was mussed.
"Did you get any sleep?" I asked him. He didn't answer. I frowned a bit angrily as we entered his office. He sat at the desk and turned to the next page of the file, eyes scanning the material, taking a break to sip the water that had been left for him or to turn a page.
"Mulder--" I interrupted his reading, placing a hand over where he had been reading. He took a while to respond to my distraction and his eyes followed up my arm to my face. When our eyes met I almost blushed. His hazel eyes were set behind his glasses, and his face looked haggard.
"Sorry," I apologized, removing my hand as I sat on the edge of his desk, reaching for a spare piece of paper and folding it into a fan. I waved it around my head, the wind blowing my wispy bangs around my face. I closed my eyes, enjoying the slight relief this was giving me from the heat. When I opened them again Mulder had returned to his folder.
I leaned over to see what he had been so carefully reading, but his head was blocking my view. I moved even farther downward, so that our heads rested almost together. Stubble on his face brushed against my cheek, and I noticed that he didn't flinch nor move away. His eyes moved up from the folder, and I shifted back as he turned to look at me, almost studying my face, as if he could read my very thoughts.
A question formed on the tip of my tongue and before I could even think it had escaped my lips.
"Mulder, why don't we call each other by our first names?"
My words seemed to make him think a bit, and he sat back, stretching strained muscles that had been hunched over a desk for the last twenty-four hours. I watched him, brushing a stray hair out of my eyes as he thought about what I had said.
"Well, Scully, it would appear that we are co-workers, and--" I cut him off, waving my hand dismissively.
"That's not it, Mulder. You and I both know it. Protocol doesn't have an explanation for this. Why don't we?"
He leaned towards me, and I leaned back, face set. Even when he hadn't gotten any sleep for about three days, he still had that gaze that could make my stomach do somersaults. I leaned my elbow on the desk's surface and waited. He moved as if to say something, but thought better of it, and kept silent. My inside emotions were raging, and I didn't even think about what would happen before I kissed him.
My lips met his and it seemed that the whole world spun around. Fireworks went off. Cheering filled the air, only heard by my ears. My hand reached up to play with the little wisps of hair on the back of his neck, and that seemed to encourage him because the kiss became firmer, harder, more passionate. My tongue snaked out tentatively, and his own joined mine in a dance which I had not taken part in for the larger part of my adult life. Our hands explored parts that we had both been longing to touch in so long. I sighed, content, peaceful.
But as soon as it had started, it was over, and we were both back to where we had been, him sitting back in his chair and me looking very awkward with my shirt slightly ruffled and my hair gone astray. My lips were still tingling from that fantastic kiss and I could feel Mulder's wonderful scent on my skin. He looked at me once, twice, before his gaze went back to the folder. I managed to stumble out of the room.
As I walked to my desk, I suddenly remembered that I hadn't closed the door behind me when I had entered Mulder's office. I wondered who exactly had gotten an eyeful of our excursion. I laughed softly as I rounded the corner that would take me back to my own desk.
Well, I thought. I suppose we could just blame it on the heat.