Chapter 5
Scully was vacuuming the following morning. Mulder woke to a whirring sound. He stretched and tossed back the covers. He stood right in front of her so she had to turn it off. "What are you doing?"
"What does it look like I'm doing?" she started again.
He reached for it. "Let me have it."
She turned her back to him and kept going.
He pulled the cord from the wall. "We talked about this, Dana."
"Mulder, your place is a PIGSTY! I can't live in this!"
"Then don't."
"Fine!"
She stormed back into the bedroom and grabbed her suitcase. Then she slammed his apartment door so hard it shook. He slammed a few things around before it dawned on him that she left.
He was about to follow her when he realized he was still in his underwear. He threw on some clothes and grabbed his keys and cell phone. He was dialling her number while walking out the door. He got her answering service. "Dana, come on...answer the phone. I'm sorry. Please?" He hung up and continued down the stairs.
Scully was putting the keys in the lock to her mother's apartment at that moment.
She had heard her cell ring and put it to her service the moment she heard it. She knew it was Mulder. She didn't want to talk to him.
He went to every place he could think of looking for her. He left her about five more messages. Finally, he headed toward her mother's. She was out of town, but wouldn't she have a key? He knocked gently.
Scully buried her head under a pillow when she heard the knock. "Go away," she said tiredly, muffled.
"Scully, you open this door now. I'll break it in. You know I will. Let me talk to you...Please?" His voice was scared now.
With a sigh, she got up. Her mother might have a few things to say about a broken door. She undid the latch and went to sit down again.
He silently turned the knob. He stood in the doorway and watched her for the longest time. "Dana, I'm sorry." Tears threatened to fall down her face but she said nothing.
He moved to kneel in front of her. She turned away from him, but he grabbed her and turned her to face him.
"It's not that I don't want you to clean...you shouldn't have to clean for me...Dana, I let my pride get in the way and as usual I've landed on my ass."
"All I wanted was to be helpful..." it was said so softly, so timidly it didn't even sound like the confident woman he knew.
He caressed her cheek with his thumb. "I'm so so sorry, Dana. I won't let it happen again. I can't stand that I've hurt you."
Her face softened. "You didn't get much sleep last night, did you?"
"I didn't, Dana...I never do." He said softly.
"If you still want me to come stay with you, I will. And I promise, no more griping."
"I don't want those kinds of promises, Scully." He said tilting her head up.
She sighed. "Just humour me this one time?"
"Okay," he relented.
"Let's go home."
"Mulder?"
