I just thought it was a pretty cool keychain.
He smiled to himself as he heard her footsteps in the grass behind him. Turning around, he raised his eyebrows at her and she rolled her eyes.
"Just a cool keychain?"
"No, a pretty cool one," he said and she grinned, looking down at it.
"Hmm. I mean, it's a nice keychain. And a good gift, but also… what did this set you back? Five dollars? Ten dollars tops?" She held it out and he put a hand to his chest.
"Agent Scully… four years together and this is the first gift I've ever given you. And you don't like it?" He closed his eyes as he put his hand over his heart. "I don't think it's beating. I think I need to see a doctor."
Her hand covered his and he opened his eyes in surprise. She kept her hand there, her eyes moving back and forth, her expression serious.
"Well, Doctor Scully can feel that you're obviously fine, so let's hear the real reason for the keychain." She moved her hand and he stared at her, his breathing heavier than normal. She smiled and crossed her arms, waiting with her eyebrows raised.
"I don't know. It is a little gift, as you said. Not something that was terribly expensive. But…" He shrugged with a smile. "You remember Houston? The Space Center?"
"It would be hard to forget that. It was a very tense and stressful situation."
"Exactly," he said with another shrug. "It was and a lot of the time this job is as well. The Apollo 11 mission was also fraught with stress and worry and yet, it appeared to be smooth sailing."
"Okay," she said, uncrossing her arms and looking at the keychain. "And that made you think of me? With this gift?" She looked at him with a soft smile and he had to think how best to answer without saying too much.
"You…" He took the keychain and looked at the inscribed words once more, though he knew them by heart. "No one gets there alone. It takes teamwork and partnership, this is true. I wasn't… exactly a team player, to say the least. I'm still not, but…" He handed it back to her with a smile and she laughed softly.
"So… I was right. That's all you needed to say," she said, putting the keychain in her pocket.
"You were right," he agreed and she nodded happily. "But it's also… I know the reputation I have, the stigma my name carries, the way people look at me when I enter the room."
"Mulder," she said softly.
"I mean, we both knew it couldn't be me who went to visit Sharon in the mental institution. I would've been in a room down the hall."
"Mulder," she said again, laughing quietly, and he smiled.
"I just… it's a small token, in all regards, but it's something I wanted you to have. A reminder that… even when it may not seem it, I appreciate our partnership."
"Stop or I might cry," she said with an eye roll and he chuckled softly. She smiled and he saw the way his words had touched her despite her reaction. She nodded and stepped forward, once more walking toward the car.
"Still though," she said as he fell in step beside her. "Four years and only one gift… a small token as you say… I'd say you're still lacking."
"Is that right?" he asked, bumping her shoulder lightly.
"Mm-hmm," she hummed, bumping him back.
"Huh…" he mused, taking the keys from his pocket. "Would buying you dinner tip the scales in my favor?"
"It might," she said with a shrug as she walked to the passenger side with a smile. He laughed as he got in and started the car, glancing at her as they put on their seatbelts.
"Then let's go start tipping those scales."