TITLE: Waiting For a Miracle
AUTHOR: Dana Hale
EMAIL: K
SPOILERS:Redux II
SUMMARY: Set during Redux II. Scully has a new chip in her neck. Will it do what it's supposed to?
DISCLAIMER: The X-Files television show and characters belong to Chris Carter, 1013 Productions, and the Fox Corporation.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: There are a gazillion cancer arc stories out there already. Can I play too?
It had been twelve hours. Twelve long hours waiting to see if the newly implanted chip in Scully's neck would make a difference. A difference between life and death.
It had been an extremely long day for Mulder. The events of the hearing had been a shocking and confusing display of both truth and betrayal. Blevins was dead, Cancerman was presumed dead, and somehow the murder of Scott Ostlehoff was forgotten and forgiven. Mulder was a free man. But not in his mind. He was responsible for the most heinous crime of them all...the vicious disease that was slowly taking his Scully away from him. "They gave me this disease to make you believe," she had said to him.
Mulder sat slumped in the white plastic chair outside of Scully's hospital room, where he had been camped for most of the evening. He would much rather be holding Scully's hand and watching her sleep, but Mrs. Scully and Bill were in her room, and Mulder wanted to give them some breathing room and privacy. She needed to be surrounded by her family. After all, this was all his fault. He should be the one lying in that bed, not Scully. He didn't blame Bill at all for what was said earlier. Bill's words had stung him, but at least it was the truth.
Mulder heard the jiggling of door knob next to him as the door to Scully's room opened. Mrs. Scully quietly appeared. Standing in front of Mulder with her arms crossed tightly to her chest, she let out a huge sigh. Compassion shown in her weary eyes. "Why don't you go home? We'll call you if there is any change. You haven't slept in two days."
"No. I'm staying here," Mulder replied softly.
"Don't do this to yourself, Fox. I don't know what Bill said to you earlier, but I know you've done all you can to help Dana. You need to help yourself now. You need to stay strong for her, and that means getting your rest. Now I want you to go home, and I promise we will call you if the situation changes."
It had been a long time since Mulder had been mothered by a real mother. He supposed she was right, but he was torn between the strong need to be with Scully and the painful desire to run away from it all. Did he really want to be there when she slipped away into the depths of the unknown, never to see her again?
"Has she been asleep this whole time?" Mulder asked.
"Yes. She's resting comfortably. You should too."
After a long pause, Mulder finally said, "Alright, I'll go home, but just for a little while." He slowly got up from his chair and stretched his long limbs. "But please call if..."
"You know we will," Mrs. Scully interrupted as she placed her hand on his arm and gave him a gentle squeeze.
She watched Mulder walk down the hallway and through the double glass doors. He looked so defeated. Mrs. Scully remembered seeing him distressed early on in his partnership with Dana, when Dana had been taken that first time. But this was different somehow. This had hit him even harder. She knew the two had a friendship based on mutual respect for each other, but could this now be love that was showing in his tired, sad eyes? If Dana didn't make it this time, Mrs. Scully feared how Mulder would react.
Mulder tossed and turned on his worn-out leather couch, pulling the scratchy afghan up higher over his shoulders. He ended up lying on his back with his eyes open, listening to the gurgling sounds of his fish tank. He had slept for a few hours, but it was a restless sleep. Was Cancerman right about the chip? Could Scully's cure be as simple as that? He had no reason to believe Cancerman, although this man seemed to hold all of the cards. Dangling his sister in front of him, only to take her away again. Flaunting a cure for Scully, but never really promising anything. Was Cancerman still alive? If he was alive, there was one thing Mulder knew for sure. Mulder would not hesitate to pull the trigger on him this time if he had the chance.
The ringing of his phone interrupted Mulder's thoughts. It was five a.m. Mulder knew who it was on the other end, and in one split second, his heart sunk deep into his stomach. Was it bad news? Was this it? He let it ring a few more times, trying to prepare himself for what he would be hearing, and then he slowly picked up the receiver. He wasn't expecting to hear Bill's voice.
"Mr. Mulder, Dana has taken a turn. Not that I want you here, but she has been asking for you, so you better get over here."
"What's wrong?" Mulder asked, swallowing hard to tame the lump in his throat.
"Just get here." Bill hung up the phone.