The Domino Effect Part 14
Headers and disclaimers in Part 1
The first thing that Mulder noticed when he woke
again was Scully, holding his large hand between her
two smaller ones. She was holding them next to her
right cheek while she dozed with her head propped on
the side of his bed. She was so beautiful that she
took his breath away. The thin strip of sunlight
coming in between the closed drapes hit her hair in
such a way that it appeared to be on fire.
He decided to lie quietly and watch her as she slept.
She was so wonderful in every way, that he counted
himself a lucky man just to have this brief
opportunity.
The air-conditioning unit kicked on softly. Mulder
observed the dust motes stirred up by the moving air
as they swirled about Scully's head. He suddenly
felt the urge to sneeze, no doubt from the dust set
into motion by the air conditioner.
He tried to stop it. He'd done it before in the
middle of important meetings, boring meetings,
stakeouts, you name it. He was usually successful.
This time it was most important that he stop that
sneeze. Despite the fact that he knew it would cause
a dizzying, excruciating, all encompassing,
unbearable pain across his stomach muscles and back,
that wasn't his main concern. No, Scully was
sleeping and he would do anything to insure that she
would stay that way.
He brought his free hand up to his nose just in time
to stop the explosion. Ah! Success! Just as he
pulled his hand away the dust swirled again and took
him by surprise. Try as he might, there was no
stopping the reaction this time. He let loose a
manly sneeze, one that nearly took his head off.
As he recovered from the force of the sinus explosion
and the resulting muscle pain, he heard three dainty
sneezes erupt next to him.
Scully sat up, looking somewhat dazed.
"You all right, Scully?"
"I think so. What about you? That had to hurt."
"I suppose I'll live to sneeze again." He managed to
paste a smile on his face despite the lingering pain.
"What brought all of that on?"
"Air conditioner started, stirred up some dust and
got to both of us."
"Evidently," she agreed, rising to a sitting
position. "You sure you're okay?"
"Uh-huh. Just hurts a little now."
"It was an interesting way to wake up."
"I can think of more interesting ways to awaken." He
leered at her.
"Oh, really? Care to share?" she asked playfully as
she reached for a tissue.
"I'd rather demonstrate instead, but that would
require a much different setting."
"And, what would that be?"
"Scully, I need to ask you something first. If I
don't I may get slapped when I tell you about my
alternative methods of awakening."
"All right," she agreed hesitantly.
"Okay, here goes," he thought. "I'll either crash
and burn or be a very happy man, but I have to know."
"Well?"
"I've been pretty much out of it the past couple of
days, but I know I didn't dream this. I told you
that I loved you, several different times, in fact,
but I don't remember receiving a response."
"I know, Mulder. I wasn't entirely sure you were
aware of what you were saying."
"I meant every word, Scully."
"Then you deserve my reply. I have the same feelings
for you, Mulder. I love you too. I'm so glad we
finally have this out in the open."
Mulder's face broke out in a shy, shit eating grin.
He could hardly contain his joy. For a moment he
thought he would cry, but he took a deep breath to
steady his next words. "Me too, Scully. The big
question now is where are we going to go with this?"
he asked softly.
"Oh, I think Skinner has given us an opportunity to
explore that."
"The condo in Destin?"
Yes, but I'm still trying to figure out what made him
offer it to us."
"I honestly don't know, but I'd like to take him up
on it."
"So would I," Scully agreed with a huge smile.
They moved toward each other, closing the gap
literally and figuratively, and their lips met in a
kiss. Neither of them pulled back as they deepened
the kiss, tongues exploring.
Finally, Mulder had to reluctantly break the kiss,
his breathing ragged. "Scully, I'd like to do that a
little more, but I'll have to get some of my strength
back to do it properly."
"Yes, uh, you certainly do need to get your strength
back. I'm, um, looking forward to that because that
was pretty amazing as it was," she stammered.
"We'll just have to keep practicing, then," he smiled
at her.
"In the meantime, would you like to tell me about
those alternative methods of awakening?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Skinner made a quick stop in the ER to say hello to
Karen then went straight up to check on Mulder. He
was quite surprised when he found Scully sound asleep
on the foldout couch while Mulder was sitting on the
side of the bed, his long legs dangling.
"Come on in, sir, Scully's dead to the world right
now. The nurse just came in to help me walk around
the bed and she didn't stir."
"Is she all right?"
"Yeah, just tired, I think," Mulder answered, looking
toward her sleeping figure, affection showing on his
face so much that it almost shone from him.
"It looks like you're feeling much better."
"The nurse said my temperature is still slightly
elevated and I'm weak as a kitten, but I feel much
better. Thanks."
"Great, Mulder. I'll have to admit that you had me a
little worried early this morning."
"Thankfully, I don't remember much. Have a seat,
sir."
"Thanks, Mulder. I can only stay for a few minutes.
I have a dinner date then I'm heading back to the
hotel for a good nights sleep."
"I'm sorry that I kept you up all night, sir."
"Nonsense, Mulder and would you please call me Walter
when we're not working? I think six years of working
together and a friendship has afforded us that
privilege."
"Thanks, Walter. I'll try to remember that," he
grinned, rubbing his back.
"You must be pretty sore."
"Yeah, I am. I feel like I've been beaten. It's a
side effect of that procedure."
"Let's hope that clears up pretty quickly. Any idea
when you'll be discharged?"
"Maybe in 48 hours if I'm lucky." He rolled his
eyes.
"I'll have to admit that it looks like you could use
a change of luck. You've had one hell of a week,"
Skinner commented.
"Can't argue with that."
"Have you and Scully discussed my offer of the condo
in Destin?"
"Yes, we have and we've decided to take you up on
your offer," Mulder reported happily.
"Great! I think you'll enjoy it. One bedroom has a
king-sized bed with a large whirlpool bath, while the
other has twin beds. There's a small kitchen along
with a nice living room, a dining area and another
full bath. There's also a heated pool and it isn't
very far from the beach."
"Sounds wonderful, Walter."
"Well, you two need some time to recuperate and just
kick back and enjoy each other's company." Skinner
noted the shy expression on Mulder's face all of a
sudden. Was that a blush?
"That's just what we intend to do. Looks like you .
. .er, could win the office pool after all." Mulder
grinned when he saw the astonished look on Skinner's
face.
"Mulder, I . . .how did you know about that?"
Skinner stuttered, blushing.
"I'm 'Spooky' Mulder, remember?" Oh! Damnit!"
"Mulder, what's wrong?" Skinner inquired, standing up
to steady Mulder as he began to sway.
"Passing another piece of that stone," he gasped,
hugging his midsection momentarily.
"Here, let's get you back in bed." Skinner helped
him get situated, keeping a wary eye on him the
entire time. "Should I call the nurse? Get you
something for pain?"
"No, thanks. Got everything I need here," Mulder
replied painfully, pushing the control for his pain
medication. "It's starting to ease off a little."
"How long will you continue to have these pains?"
"No idea, Walter," he sighed wearily.
"Mulder, I hate to leave you like this but . . ."
"Go on, Walter. I'm okay now."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah, go, but could you do me a favor?"
"Sure, if I can."
"Take Scully back with you when you're finished?"
"Of course, I was going to suggest that anyway.
Karen only gets a 45 minute break, so I should be
back up here in about an hour."
"I'll make sure she's ready to leave."
"I'll see you two in an hour then." Skinner grinned
as he left for his date.
"Trying to get rid of me, Mulder?" Scully asked,
rising from the sofa.
"Never, Scully. I just want to be sure you get a
good nights sleep."
"I know that. Thank you."
"How long have you been awake?"
"Oh, a few minutes at least. How's the pain? Gone
now?" She gave him a quick kiss on his forehead
before sitting down in the recliner and taking his
hand once more.
"All gone for the time being anyway. I hope that was
the last one."
"Maybe it will be. How about eating some jello for
me before I leave?"
"Sure, I'd do that for you, Scully. I'd even eat
green jello if you insisted."
"Oh, I don't think I would force you to do that," she
laughed.
Nita entered the room carrying a plastic container of
red jello and a plastic spoon.
"Looks like your lucky day, Mulder," Scully chuckled.
"What do you have for me, Nita? Strawberry or
cherry?"
Nita looked at the label. "Strawberry."
"Wow, my favorite," he said sarcastically.
"Mulder, behave, or I will insist on lime," Scully
warned him with a smile.
"Behaving now, Scully," he grinned as he accepted the
jello and spoon from Nita.
"How's it going, Mulder? Still having those sharp
pains?" she asked as she prepared to take his blood
pressure.
"Some, it passes pretty quickly."
"What about the nausea?"
"I haven't had any since I woke up in the recovery
room," he reported happily.
"Fantastic. I'll make a note of that and I'm sure
the doctor will adjust your diet accordingly. Your
blood pressure and pulse are normal and I'll come
back and take your temp later. Can I get you
anything or do anything for you while I'm here?"
"Can't think of anything, Nita. Thanks for the
jello."
"Not a problem. Dana, you look tired. Why don't you
go back to the hotel where you can really rest? I
promise we'll take good care of this guy here."
"I know you will. Thanks for your concern, Nita.
Walter will be picking me up soon."
"Looks like you have all the bases covered. I'll
just go and find someone who needs me," she joked.
""Thanks for all of the help you've given us, Nita,"
Scully started.
"Just doing my job, Dana, and making some new friends
along the way. It has been my pleasure."
"Well, you've been more than helpful."
"I second that, Nita. I don't remember much until I
woke up in the recovery room, but I'm grateful you
were there for Scully," Mulder chimed in.
"Stop it, you two. You're embarrassing me."
"Okay, Nita. We'll stop for now." Scully promised.
"Well, okay. If I don't see you before you leave,
Dana, get a good nights sleep. Mulder, I'll see you
later."
"Oh, I'm looking forward to it," he grinned, rolling
his eyes.
"Well, it looks like I'll have to see what nasty
procedure we can put you through," Nita threatened
with a grin.
"All right, all right. I will be eagerly awaiting
your next visit."
"That's better. See you later."
Nita left, and Scully got up and sat on the side of
the bed. "You're going to behave until I come back
in the morning. Right?"
"Right. You won't get any bad reports on me."
"Good."
"My goal in life now is to keep you happy all of the
time."
"Wow, Mulder. I don't know what to say."
"Just say you love me and give me a kiss."
End Part 14
Headers and disclaimers in Part 1
The first thing that Mulder noticed when he woke
again was Scully, holding his large hand between her
two smaller ones. She was holding them next to her
right cheek while she dozed with her head propped on
the side of his bed. She was so beautiful that she
took his breath away. The thin strip of sunlight
coming in between the closed drapes hit her hair in
such a way that it appeared to be on fire.
He decided to lie quietly and watch her as she slept.
She was so wonderful in every way, that he counted
himself a lucky man just to have this brief
opportunity.
The air-conditioning unit kicked on softly. Mulder
observed the dust motes stirred up by the moving air
as they swirled about Scully's head. He suddenly
felt the urge to sneeze, no doubt from the dust set
into motion by the air conditioner.
He tried to stop it. He'd done it before in the
middle of important meetings, boring meetings,
stakeouts, you name it. He was usually successful.
This time it was most important that he stop that
sneeze. Despite the fact that he knew it would cause
a dizzying, excruciating, all encompassing,
unbearable pain across his stomach muscles and back,
that wasn't his main concern. No, Scully was
sleeping and he would do anything to insure that she
would stay that way.
He brought his free hand up to his nose just in time
to stop the explosion. Ah! Success! Just as he
pulled his hand away the dust swirled again and took
him by surprise. Try as he might, there was no
stopping the reaction this time. He let loose a
manly sneeze, one that nearly took his head off.
As he recovered from the force of the sinus explosion
and the resulting muscle pain, he heard three dainty
sneezes erupt next to him.
Scully sat up, looking somewhat dazed.
"You all right, Scully?"
"I think so. What about you? That had to hurt."
"I suppose I'll live to sneeze again." He managed to
paste a smile on his face despite the lingering pain.
"What brought all of that on?"
"Air conditioner started, stirred up some dust and
got to both of us."
"Evidently," she agreed, rising to a sitting
position. "You sure you're okay?"
"Uh-huh. Just hurts a little now."
"It was an interesting way to wake up."
"I can think of more interesting ways to awaken." He
leered at her.
"Oh, really? Care to share?" she asked playfully as
she reached for a tissue.
"I'd rather demonstrate instead, but that would
require a much different setting."
"And, what would that be?"
"Scully, I need to ask you something first. If I
don't I may get slapped when I tell you about my
alternative methods of awakening."
"All right," she agreed hesitantly.
"Okay, here goes," he thought. "I'll either crash
and burn or be a very happy man, but I have to know."
"Well?"
"I've been pretty much out of it the past couple of
days, but I know I didn't dream this. I told you
that I loved you, several different times, in fact,
but I don't remember receiving a response."
"I know, Mulder. I wasn't entirely sure you were
aware of what you were saying."
"I meant every word, Scully."
"Then you deserve my reply. I have the same feelings
for you, Mulder. I love you too. I'm so glad we
finally have this out in the open."
Mulder's face broke out in a shy, shit eating grin.
He could hardly contain his joy. For a moment he
thought he would cry, but he took a deep breath to
steady his next words. "Me too, Scully. The big
question now is where are we going to go with this?"
he asked softly.
"Oh, I think Skinner has given us an opportunity to
explore that."
"The condo in Destin?"
Yes, but I'm still trying to figure out what made him
offer it to us."
"I honestly don't know, but I'd like to take him up
on it."
"So would I," Scully agreed with a huge smile.
They moved toward each other, closing the gap
literally and figuratively, and their lips met in a
kiss. Neither of them pulled back as they deepened
the kiss, tongues exploring.
Finally, Mulder had to reluctantly break the kiss,
his breathing ragged. "Scully, I'd like to do that a
little more, but I'll have to get some of my strength
back to do it properly."
"Yes, uh, you certainly do need to get your strength
back. I'm, um, looking forward to that because that
was pretty amazing as it was," she stammered.
"We'll just have to keep practicing, then," he smiled
at her.
"In the meantime, would you like to tell me about
those alternative methods of awakening?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Skinner made a quick stop in the ER to say hello to
Karen then went straight up to check on Mulder. He
was quite surprised when he found Scully sound asleep
on the foldout couch while Mulder was sitting on the
side of the bed, his long legs dangling.
"Come on in, sir, Scully's dead to the world right
now. The nurse just came in to help me walk around
the bed and she didn't stir."
"Is she all right?"
"Yeah, just tired, I think," Mulder answered, looking
toward her sleeping figure, affection showing on his
face so much that it almost shone from him.
"It looks like you're feeling much better."
"The nurse said my temperature is still slightly
elevated and I'm weak as a kitten, but I feel much
better. Thanks."
"Great, Mulder. I'll have to admit that you had me a
little worried early this morning."
"Thankfully, I don't remember much. Have a seat,
sir."
"Thanks, Mulder. I can only stay for a few minutes.
I have a dinner date then I'm heading back to the
hotel for a good nights sleep."
"I'm sorry that I kept you up all night, sir."
"Nonsense, Mulder and would you please call me Walter
when we're not working? I think six years of working
together and a friendship has afforded us that
privilege."
"Thanks, Walter. I'll try to remember that," he
grinned, rubbing his back.
"You must be pretty sore."
"Yeah, I am. I feel like I've been beaten. It's a
side effect of that procedure."
"Let's hope that clears up pretty quickly. Any idea
when you'll be discharged?"
"Maybe in 48 hours if I'm lucky." He rolled his
eyes.
"I'll have to admit that it looks like you could use
a change of luck. You've had one hell of a week,"
Skinner commented.
"Can't argue with that."
"Have you and Scully discussed my offer of the condo
in Destin?"
"Yes, we have and we've decided to take you up on
your offer," Mulder reported happily.
"Great! I think you'll enjoy it. One bedroom has a
king-sized bed with a large whirlpool bath, while the
other has twin beds. There's a small kitchen along
with a nice living room, a dining area and another
full bath. There's also a heated pool and it isn't
very far from the beach."
"Sounds wonderful, Walter."
"Well, you two need some time to recuperate and just
kick back and enjoy each other's company." Skinner
noted the shy expression on Mulder's face all of a
sudden. Was that a blush?
"That's just what we intend to do. Looks like you .
. .er, could win the office pool after all." Mulder
grinned when he saw the astonished look on Skinner's
face.
"Mulder, I . . .how did you know about that?"
Skinner stuttered, blushing.
"I'm 'Spooky' Mulder, remember?" Oh! Damnit!"
"Mulder, what's wrong?" Skinner inquired, standing up
to steady Mulder as he began to sway.
"Passing another piece of that stone," he gasped,
hugging his midsection momentarily.
"Here, let's get you back in bed." Skinner helped
him get situated, keeping a wary eye on him the
entire time. "Should I call the nurse? Get you
something for pain?"
"No, thanks. Got everything I need here," Mulder
replied painfully, pushing the control for his pain
medication. "It's starting to ease off a little."
"How long will you continue to have these pains?"
"No idea, Walter," he sighed wearily.
"Mulder, I hate to leave you like this but . . ."
"Go on, Walter. I'm okay now."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah, go, but could you do me a favor?"
"Sure, if I can."
"Take Scully back with you when you're finished?"
"Of course, I was going to suggest that anyway.
Karen only gets a 45 minute break, so I should be
back up here in about an hour."
"I'll make sure she's ready to leave."
"I'll see you two in an hour then." Skinner grinned
as he left for his date.
"Trying to get rid of me, Mulder?" Scully asked,
rising from the sofa.
"Never, Scully. I just want to be sure you get a
good nights sleep."
"I know that. Thank you."
"How long have you been awake?"
"Oh, a few minutes at least. How's the pain? Gone
now?" She gave him a quick kiss on his forehead
before sitting down in the recliner and taking his
hand once more.
"All gone for the time being anyway. I hope that was
the last one."
"Maybe it will be. How about eating some jello for
me before I leave?"
"Sure, I'd do that for you, Scully. I'd even eat
green jello if you insisted."
"Oh, I don't think I would force you to do that," she
laughed.
Nita entered the room carrying a plastic container of
red jello and a plastic spoon.
"Looks like your lucky day, Mulder," Scully chuckled.
"What do you have for me, Nita? Strawberry or
cherry?"
Nita looked at the label. "Strawberry."
"Wow, my favorite," he said sarcastically.
"Mulder, behave, or I will insist on lime," Scully
warned him with a smile.
"Behaving now, Scully," he grinned as he accepted the
jello and spoon from Nita.
"How's it going, Mulder? Still having those sharp
pains?" she asked as she prepared to take his blood
pressure.
"Some, it passes pretty quickly."
"What about the nausea?"
"I haven't had any since I woke up in the recovery
room," he reported happily.
"Fantastic. I'll make a note of that and I'm sure
the doctor will adjust your diet accordingly. Your
blood pressure and pulse are normal and I'll come
back and take your temp later. Can I get you
anything or do anything for you while I'm here?"
"Can't think of anything, Nita. Thanks for the
jello."
"Not a problem. Dana, you look tired. Why don't you
go back to the hotel where you can really rest? I
promise we'll take good care of this guy here."
"I know you will. Thanks for your concern, Nita.
Walter will be picking me up soon."
"Looks like you have all the bases covered. I'll
just go and find someone who needs me," she joked.
""Thanks for all of the help you've given us, Nita,"
Scully started.
"Just doing my job, Dana, and making some new friends
along the way. It has been my pleasure."
"Well, you've been more than helpful."
"I second that, Nita. I don't remember much until I
woke up in the recovery room, but I'm grateful you
were there for Scully," Mulder chimed in.
"Stop it, you two. You're embarrassing me."
"Okay, Nita. We'll stop for now." Scully promised.
"Well, okay. If I don't see you before you leave,
Dana, get a good nights sleep. Mulder, I'll see you
later."
"Oh, I'm looking forward to it," he grinned, rolling
his eyes.
"Well, it looks like I'll have to see what nasty
procedure we can put you through," Nita threatened
with a grin.
"All right, all right. I will be eagerly awaiting
your next visit."
"That's better. See you later."
Nita left, and Scully got up and sat on the side of
the bed. "You're going to behave until I come back
in the morning. Right?"
"Right. You won't get any bad reports on me."
"Good."
"My goal in life now is to keep you happy all of the
time."
"Wow, Mulder. I don't know what to say."
"Just say you love me and give me a kiss."
End Part 14