**chapter four**

After two hours of cleaning, Mulder barely made a dent in his apartment. The living room was finally clean. As he starts on the kitchen, the baby began to cry. He walked over and tried to take the baby from Scully. Scully, though still asleep, tightened her grip on the baby. Mulder finally loosened her hold and picked up the baby. He was not really sure what to do. He swayed from side to side, hoping to lull the baby back to sleep, but he soon learned why the baby is crying. Mulder felt the soggy diaper and immediately pulled back in disgust as he got a whiff of the baby's little present. Mulder looked around for a diaper, but he knew he did not have one. He finally settled on a Knick's T-shirt, and after pinning the shirt to the baby's bottom, he held the baby in front of him to look at his work. Mulder decided he needed to go shopping for some diapers.

After all of this, Scully finally woke up. "Give me my baby," she said softly. Mulder looked at her, confused.

"Scully, is he yours?"

"Give me my baby." she demanded, her voice raising.

He handed her the baby as she sat up. She then proceeded to lift her shirt and feed the baby. Mulder looked around nervously. He had seen his partner naked before, but he felt like he was somehow violating her. It was even worse that Scully was not exactly Scully right now. After the baby finished, she continued to burp him.

Mulder watched in awe. He knew that Scully always wanted a baby, but he also knew that she couldn't have one. He was surprised to see how motherly she was, even in her current mental state. Mulder had always looked at her as a partner and as a friend. He has seen her stop men twice her size dead in their tracks as they tried to escape the scene of a crime. Even with Emily, he never actually saw her act so, natural. He could see that she kept her distance. But with this baby, it was different. He had so many questions, but he knew he would have to wait to ask them. His first priorities were taking care of the baby and helping Scully regain her memory. If she ever did.

"Scully, I think we need to go shopping for the..urr..your baby. You don't have to come, if you don't want to."

Scully did not respond. She merely put her shoes on and waited patiently for Mulder to leave so she could follow. Mulder found this a bit odd, but he just shook it off. They went to Wal-Mart and he picked up a box of diapers, baby wipes, baby shampoo, a rattle, and some bottles and pacifiers. On the way home, he pulled into Babies 'R' Us. He let Scully pick out the baby furniture, but she was not interested. She just followed him, looking at nothing in particular. He bought a white crib, a car seat, a stroller, bedding, and clothes for Scully's baby.

During the car ride home, he tried to remind Scully of her past. "I've missed you at work. The X-files weren't the same without you," he paused, giving her a chance to respond, but she just stared at him. "I quit a while ago. I have a new job now. I'm on a Search and Rescue Team. That's how I found you," he said as he smiled at her. She did not respond. The rest of the ride is silent. As he turned off the ignition, he looked over to find her asleep. He gently woke her up and carried the baby inside with Scully in tow. As Scully stared at the blank television, he brought up everything they bought and assembles the crib. He put the baby in the crib and watched as the infant quickly fell asleep.

He walked back into the living room and watched Scully for a moment.

[she is a shell of the woman she used to be.]

"Scully, I set up the crib in the bedroom. The bed has new sheets on it so you can sleep in there."

Scully turned to go to bed. "Oh, you don't have to go to bed, yet, it's only eight." She just lookd at him and then continued into the room. She closed the door and fell asleep.

Mulder sighed and flipped on the television. His insomnia kicked in and he spent the night watching B-rated science-fiction movies.

While Scully slept, she dreamed. She was in the dream with a man. At least, the woman

*looked* like Scully, but she did not feel the same.

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She walked over to the man and smiled. She held up a small brown bag.

"If there's iced tea in the bag, it could be love."

She smiled at him and lifted the bottle out of the bag. "It's root beer."

She had these strange feelings for the man. In the dream, she thought of him as Mulder. She felt close to this man. She felt as if the man knew her better than she did.

Suddenly, the scene changed. The mood was a sad one. She was standing in a dark hallway. The man was right in front of her. He leaned his head down towards hers. She felt herself lean into him. She thought they were about to kiss. Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her neck. She felt weak. He lowered her to the floor.

The scene changed again. They were in a waiting room of some kind. The room had a funny yet familiar smell. They were watching a television that was attached to the wall near the ceiling. The people on TV shouted a countdown as a ball dropped. The man was standing next to her. They turned to face each other. He lowered his head. "Happy New Year," he whispered. They kissed.

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Scully woke up. Her baby was still asleep. She looked around the room. It was still dark. She lied back down. She slept again, this time her slumber is uninterrupted.

a/n: sorry about the iced tea/root beer flashback typo...i meant to say root beer...thanks

dana-maru!!