Left Behind
By: Olivia
Chapter 2
1 Week Earlier
Salt Lake City, Utah
"Monica Reyes," she said into her office phone.
"Is this the same Agent Reyes that I use to sit next to in a little basement office in the J. Edgar Hoover Building?"
Monica smiled into the phone at the comforting, familiar voice. "Hey, John."
"How ya doin', Monica?" asked John. She could hear the concern that lay in his question.
Monica's smile only faltered for a moment. "Fine. Fine. Utah's great."
"Well then I guess I made the trip for nothing."
Monica stood up and looked across the office full of agents toward the door where she saw John grinning at her, his cell phone in hand.
"John!" Monica's smile radiated as she quickly bridged the distance between them after hanging up her phone. She had to stop herself from pulling him into a big hug as she became aware of the fact that she had unconsciously garnered the attention of all the other agents in the room. They all knew where she had come from before being forced to join their office. They had already pegged her as being different, spooky. And now with her old partner in the room, they were even more curious. Rumors had floated around that the two had been, or were, tight.
John was more than aware of the stares. They were probably just curious co-workers, but if John had learned one thing from being on the X-Files it was that a person's trust had to be earned. Trust no one except the proven few. He too had heard the rumors and if there was one thing he was overprotective of, next to his partner's life, it was his partner's reputation. He suggested, "Let's take a walk." Monica nodded.
A few minutes later found the two outside the Salt Lake City regional office building. They were silent as they walked out into the sunshine. They shortly came to a park bench that was placed in front of small lake. They sat down, close but not touching.
Neither knew what to say to each other. It had only been three months since they had last seen each other, but back then they had been use to seeing and/or speaking to each other almost every day for over a year. After the X-Files unit had been so unceremoniously closed, they assumed that they were still being watched.
They had kept contact to a minimum and had worked out a code for when they did speak. Three months ago it had seemed like a good idea. Neither had realized the emotional toll the separation would have caused on the two of them or the strength that they had drawn from their partnership. And their code didn't allow them to express what was really in their hearts and minds.
John was the one who finally broke the silence. "So how's work?"
"The anti-terrorism unit is not the X-Files." Monica knew why they had assigned her to Utah. After closing the X-Files, they had wanted to break her, to get her to quit, to separate her and John. She decided to lighten up the mood and to mention something that was a source of pride to her. "I hear good things about you in D.C. I heard A.D. Stricklyn has praised your work in the Missing Persons Bureau."
John just shook his head, trying to deflect her praise. He felt guilty about Monica's transfer. He had fought, more so than Monica knew, to stop her transfer to Utah. He had thought only of keeping them in the same city. When that failed he tried to get himself transferred to Utah, but to no avail. The powers that be were relentless and were higher than either Skinner or Kersh and so John had convinced Monica to accept the transfer for now. They would still work covertly on the X-Files, to get them back. But somehow it seemed that with Mulder and Scully's disappearance, the two had taken away every alien and paranormal case with them. He missed Monica, and despite his skeptic bent, or maybe because of it, he missed the X-Files too. "Like you said, it's not the X-Files, almost too comfortable there. No super soldiers, kids with imaging's that come to life, or Brady Bunch households."
Monica and John both chuckled at memories of times spent on the X-Files. Their current work, although important in it's own way, did seem rather dull in comparison to what they use to investigate.
"I know you're bored in your present assignment....," began John before Monica cut him off.
"I'm thinking about leaving the Bureau."
John was absolutely floored. He had no idea that it had all come to this. For a moment he was panic stricken as well. Where would she go? "And do what, Monica?" You've been with the Bureau since you graduated?"
"I know," said Monica nodding, "and maybe that's the problem. Doesn't it bother you that the same government we serve is conspiring against us? Against the very people we are supposed to protect? I'm not sure what I'll do, but I need a change. I need to get back to where I was. Maybe I'll help Jimmy and Yves for a while until I see. I just don't know what I'm doing here, John. Let's face it. We're no closer to getting the X-Files back than we were three months ago. They'll never let us work together again. And those were the only things that were keeping me here."
John felt her words deeply because they echoed his own. His face broke out into a grin despite all of it. She had not asked him the reason for him breaking silence and traveling all this way to see her. He was about to reveal his reason. "I think I might have found a way to get us back on the X-Files."
By: Olivia
Chapter 2
1 Week Earlier
Salt Lake City, Utah
"Monica Reyes," she said into her office phone.
"Is this the same Agent Reyes that I use to sit next to in a little basement office in the J. Edgar Hoover Building?"
Monica smiled into the phone at the comforting, familiar voice. "Hey, John."
"How ya doin', Monica?" asked John. She could hear the concern that lay in his question.
Monica's smile only faltered for a moment. "Fine. Fine. Utah's great."
"Well then I guess I made the trip for nothing."
Monica stood up and looked across the office full of agents toward the door where she saw John grinning at her, his cell phone in hand.
"John!" Monica's smile radiated as she quickly bridged the distance between them after hanging up her phone. She had to stop herself from pulling him into a big hug as she became aware of the fact that she had unconsciously garnered the attention of all the other agents in the room. They all knew where she had come from before being forced to join their office. They had already pegged her as being different, spooky. And now with her old partner in the room, they were even more curious. Rumors had floated around that the two had been, or were, tight.
John was more than aware of the stares. They were probably just curious co-workers, but if John had learned one thing from being on the X-Files it was that a person's trust had to be earned. Trust no one except the proven few. He too had heard the rumors and if there was one thing he was overprotective of, next to his partner's life, it was his partner's reputation. He suggested, "Let's take a walk." Monica nodded.
A few minutes later found the two outside the Salt Lake City regional office building. They were silent as they walked out into the sunshine. They shortly came to a park bench that was placed in front of small lake. They sat down, close but not touching.
Neither knew what to say to each other. It had only been three months since they had last seen each other, but back then they had been use to seeing and/or speaking to each other almost every day for over a year. After the X-Files unit had been so unceremoniously closed, they assumed that they were still being watched.
They had kept contact to a minimum and had worked out a code for when they did speak. Three months ago it had seemed like a good idea. Neither had realized the emotional toll the separation would have caused on the two of them or the strength that they had drawn from their partnership. And their code didn't allow them to express what was really in their hearts and minds.
John was the one who finally broke the silence. "So how's work?"
"The anti-terrorism unit is not the X-Files." Monica knew why they had assigned her to Utah. After closing the X-Files, they had wanted to break her, to get her to quit, to separate her and John. She decided to lighten up the mood and to mention something that was a source of pride to her. "I hear good things about you in D.C. I heard A.D. Stricklyn has praised your work in the Missing Persons Bureau."
John just shook his head, trying to deflect her praise. He felt guilty about Monica's transfer. He had fought, more so than Monica knew, to stop her transfer to Utah. He had thought only of keeping them in the same city. When that failed he tried to get himself transferred to Utah, but to no avail. The powers that be were relentless and were higher than either Skinner or Kersh and so John had convinced Monica to accept the transfer for now. They would still work covertly on the X-Files, to get them back. But somehow it seemed that with Mulder and Scully's disappearance, the two had taken away every alien and paranormal case with them. He missed Monica, and despite his skeptic bent, or maybe because of it, he missed the X-Files too. "Like you said, it's not the X-Files, almost too comfortable there. No super soldiers, kids with imaging's that come to life, or Brady Bunch households."
Monica and John both chuckled at memories of times spent on the X-Files. Their current work, although important in it's own way, did seem rather dull in comparison to what they use to investigate.
"I know you're bored in your present assignment....," began John before Monica cut him off.
"I'm thinking about leaving the Bureau."
John was absolutely floored. He had no idea that it had all come to this. For a moment he was panic stricken as well. Where would she go? "And do what, Monica?" You've been with the Bureau since you graduated?"
"I know," said Monica nodding, "and maybe that's the problem. Doesn't it bother you that the same government we serve is conspiring against us? Against the very people we are supposed to protect? I'm not sure what I'll do, but I need a change. I need to get back to where I was. Maybe I'll help Jimmy and Yves for a while until I see. I just don't know what I'm doing here, John. Let's face it. We're no closer to getting the X-Files back than we were three months ago. They'll never let us work together again. And those were the only things that were keeping me here."
John felt her words deeply because they echoed his own. His face broke out into a grin despite all of it. She had not asked him the reason for him breaking silence and traveling all this way to see her. He was about to reveal his reason. "I think I might have found a way to get us back on the X-Files."
