Here's the next installment in my CD title series, that started with "Never Enough." Read that first if you haven't already. To recap, the big 4 are on the run from pretty much everything. When we last met them, Mulder and Scully and narrowly made it to La Paz, and the Dogget/Reyes combo was headed for London. Whoop de doo.
Disclaimer: Only characters you don't recognize are mine, the rest belong to someone else, and all the songs are © Natalie Imbruglia. There, happy? I won't say it again.
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"Sweet confetti out looking for a savior, finding it hard to break the chain, nothing ventured nothing gained." -From "Impressed" by Natalie Imbruglia.
Reyes sat cross-legged on their couch in the common room, watching the BBC. Some British sitcom was on, and it was mildly entertaining. She and Doggett now lived on the upper floor of a flat owned by Mr. and Mrs. Doredly, whose oldest son had been a friend of Skinner's in college. As far as they knew, Doggett and Reyes were just friend's of their son's who needed a place to live in London. They paid rent and the Doredlys didn't ask questions. It worked out well.
Their floor had one bedroom, a bathroom and a common room that had a couch, coffee table and TV at one end and a dining table, sink, mini-refrigerator, and microwave at the other end. The floor had a private entrance, and they were mostly content.
Doggett walked in the room, wearing nothing but a towel with patches of shaving cream remaining under his chin. He crossed unnoticed by Reyes, who was becoming enthralled in her show. He walked right in front of her into the bedroom and dressed. His hair had grown out, with the red color remaining only on the very tips.
Soon he joined her on the couch. Her show over, she flipped the TV off and turned to face him. "Didn't you have something you wanted to ask me earlier?"
"Oh, right. I was actually just wondering...well...what are we doing? I mean, god and I had this all planned out in my head, why are we sticking together like this? We know we're safer if we split up, yet we haven't. And if we're going to be stuck together anyway...we're safe here, right? We've been here a few months now and Skinner promises that we're safe." She interrupted him. "Spit it out, John. What are you trying to ask me?
"Do you think we should take our relationship to the next level?" He asked, not looking at her.
"Yeah, I do. That's all you wanted to ask?"
"Yeah, well, no, that's not quite it. I love you, Mon. You know that. And if we're going to be together anyway...why don't we...um..."
She smiled. "Get married? Okay, why not. Let's go. Today. We can go down to the courthouse now, if you want."
"Are you serious?" Doggett looked up at her, nearly falling off the couch.
"Well yeah. We're practically married anyway. I mean, we live together, we love each other, we never have sex...sounds like most marriages I know of." This made him laugh. "Seriously, though, I think it would almost be easier to hide of we were married. I'll get my purse."
He followed her out of their flat, shaking his head in disbelief.
...
On the other side of the world, Mulder and Scully were living on a resort island in the Caribbean. They had lived with the elderly Bolivian couple for several months, until things cooled down a little. They were making plans to take a boat across the Atlantic to England. They knew that they'd probably have to stowaway, and they were prepared. For now, though, they were enjoying paradise.
Scully was laying out on the beach, soaking up the late afternoon sun. She was falling asleep, and had just begun dreaming. In her dream she was watching William and his new family...happy, safe, loved, She slept peacefully, something she had been doing much more of lately. Suddenly, in her dream, it started raining, hard, pouring. The rain washed all over her, choking her.
She woke up sputtering to a smiling Mulder who stood above her with an empty bucket, still dripping. "Good morning," he said playfully.
"You little..." she sat up, wiping saltwater from her face. He extended a hand and helped her to her feet. Then, using a technique she had learned in a self-defense class, she slipped one foot between his and turned her body, causing him to fall over backwards. She landed on top of him, soaking his nice dry shirt.
She kissed him teasingly, then buried her face in his chest as a wave splashed over them both. This time it was his turn to cough and sputter. They played in the sand and the water until long after dark when, exhausted, they would walk hand in hand back to their cabin.
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