Title: Without You Part 19

All other information is in part one.

Author's Note: Sorry that its taken so long for this update. Thanks for all of the continued feedback and support--it is greatly appreciated. For this story I see about another two or three more chapters.

Thanks again for the great feedback and keep it coming!

Enjoy!

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St. Mary's Hospital

Roseau, British Columbia, Canada

May 24, 2002

3:19 a.m.

I hate waiting rooms. I always have. Maybe its the idea that we might not ever see the person that we are waiting for again or the idea that they are just so damn cold and sterile.

Mulder sits next to me and Doggett is across the room, reading or at least trying to. William sleeps on the couch in the room. We are all here together. Together we have taken on this fate and together we will wait it out until the end. We are not alone this time, which is amazing for anyone that has ever set foot inside the X-files office.

I swear to, God that that place has a curse or something. They should have put a warning on it: Danger! Serious risk to personal happiness, health, and well being -- when we started working there.

The room is horribly quiet, too damn quiet and I can't get comfortable.

John gets up and puts his head out of the door looking around for anyone...for news.

"John," I say trying to reassure him.

"What is taking so long?" Doggett asks, nervously.

"Surgery takes awhile."

He starts to pace the floor, looking down, not truly believing that he's there waiting to find out if his significant other will survive. I've been there. Mulder's been there and we both watch him, with empathy.

"Agent Doggett, stop!" Mulder finally says.

John stops in his tracks and looks to us both.

"Wearing a hole in the floor isn't going to make them come out here and talk to us any quicker," Mulder goes on to say.

John just nods his head and continues to walk.

"Look, we've got to figure out what we're going to do," Mulder starts breaking the silence of the room again, "Obviously whoever shot Monica, is still around, waiting for us."

Both John and I are quiet. What is there to say?

After more time of the ghastly silence John replies, "Will we ever be safe?"

Again, the silence meets another question.

Half an hour later, Dr. Neil Anderson walks through the door looking just as exhausted as we all are.

John leaps up and nearly runs the doctor over.

"How's Monica?"

"The surgery was very complex, but Monica pulled through it with flying colors."

We are all silent, digesting the news. She's going to be all right. Maybe we, too, will end up all right.

"Can I see her?" John asks, his eyes lighting up with life again.

"She's sleeping right now, but I don't see any harm in you going in there. Your wife was shot pretty badly and I've never seen such success in this type of injury," Dr. Anderson goes on to say.

John doesn't correct him. Monica and John, like us, don't need a certificate saying that we were wed in the presence of the law, our souls have been joined for long time.

He follows the doctor out of the room as we stay in the waiting room, quiet for a long time.

Will is still sleeping. I think the kid could sleep through a tornado and not even open his eyes. This child that sleeps before us is what we always wanted. These two babies in my abdomen are the future that is so close to us.

"Mulder," I speak up.

Mulder turns his head towards me with those piercing hazel eyes that could fix anything.

"What are we going to do?"

"I have no idea, Scully. I think what we all want to do is settle down and have a normal life, but maybe its not possible."

"Why not?"

Mulder puts his head down in defeat.

"Mulder?"

"Everything that we lost and sacrificed will continue to follow us around. Monica is proof that we will never be truly safe."

I shake my head at Mulder's answer.

"No."

"What?"

"I won't let you give up hope. That's my department--being skeptical, shooting everything down," I move closer towards him taking his hand and placing it on my abdomen, "This is our future, our children, and even though we lost everything and sacrificed it all we still somehow ended up with one another and with children. I hate to sound like you, but maybe this is all meant to be. Maybe we are meant to live happily ever after. Did you ever think of that?" I say grinning at him.

He laughs along with me at the thought.

"Happily ever after, Scully? When did fairy tales start to interest you?"

"They never did, I just thought it was the appropriate time for a cheesy cliché," I tell him laughing.

We laugh and then Mulder gets a serious expression on his face.

"I think you might be right."

"About the fairy tales?"

Mulder never answers my question as a police officer walks through the door of the waiting room.

"Are you with the woman that was shot?" Police Officer Daniel Mc Caleb asks.

"Yes," Mulder replies.

"We think that we've found the guy that shot her."

We both stare at him waiting for an answer. Any kind of answer.

"Apparently, just a lot or two over a couple was having a dispute. Very heated by the neighbor's account, but the husband got out his pistol and headed out he door," Officer Mc Caleb starts.

"Yeah? Where does Monica's shooting come in?" I ask, confused.

"The husband headed over to the motel room and when the manager threatened to call the cops he went out into the parking lot and just started to fire off his gun, one of the stray bullets hit Monica."

"That's all it is? Just a simple open and close case?" Mulder asks surprised.

"What were you expecting? A conspiracy?" Officer Mc Caleb jokes.

From our looks Officer Mc Caleb quits laughing.

"What happened to the husband?" I ask curious about this case.

"He headed around back and shot himself, died instantly."

Officer Mc Caleb leaves the room and we stare at the empty room. Monica was just shot by coincidence. How could that be possible?

"Mulder, what does this all mean?"

"Maybe, we've actually found our safe haven."

"So do you want to look into that home?" I ask him.

"After I get some sleep, sure."

We both laugh as Mulder picks up William and carries him out of the door. I head to Monica's room and find Doggett sleeping with his head resting on the edge of her bed. He looks so peaceful that I don't want to wake him, so I leave him a note.

The future for us all still looks bleak, but maybe, just maybe we are starting to see the light. Starting to get out of the rut that we've been in for the past ten years which is the misfortune that has broken our hearts, but never our spirits.

Reaching the motel again, I lay down next to Mulder and for the first time in a long time I feel truly safe. Nothing evil is lurking outside, no one is trying to break down our lives and destroy us. Is this what it's like to live a normal life? If it is, then I like it.

Darkness takes over as I drift off into a nothingness of dreams with the hopes for a very bright future.

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More to come

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