SAN DIEGO, CA
Scully landed in San Diego later that night, and took a cab to her brother's house. Bill and Tara had just had their first child a few months ago, and she didn't want Tara to have to truck an infant to pick her up from her late flight. She contemplated calling Mulder on the way to the house, but didn't want to seem too desperate. She felt like she was in high school all over again and had to follow the rules of dating. She mentally laughed at herself at the adolescent feelings she was having for Mulder. He made her feel like no one had, really ever, if she were to be honest. Sure, she had past, serious relationships, but none made her feel like she was walking on air with just the thought of them. She never opened herself up to anyone as easily as she had with Mulder either. All of these new revelations brought an anxious twist to her stomach, but it was overpowered by the giddiness and comfort that she was feeling.
She didn't know what her and Mulder were even considered. Dating? They had only really known each other for a day and both of them had so many more layers to uncover of the other. The only thing she was certain of was that Mulder was going to bring change to her life, that much she could tell already, and she was willing to take on that adventure with him.
Scully was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't realize she was almost to the house. She finished giving the directions to the cab driver and arrived shortly after 11. Tara had left a spare key for her under the mat on the front porch, just in case she was asleep when she arrived.
Scully opened the front door and tried to be as quiet as possible making her entrance into the house. She knew how tired Tara had been recently with the baby, and didn't want to wake her. She saw that some of the lights were left on for her, but then heard a small noise in the kitchen. She made her way quietly and found her sister-in-law making some tea.
"Dana! You're here! How was your flight?" Tara asked, a little louder than a whisper.
She hugged her sister-in-law. "It wasn't too bad. You know I hate flying, so any flight seems long to me."
"Well the guest room is ready for you upstairs, the same one you were just in last week, since you missed us so much!" Tara chuckled at her own joke.
"Thanks again for letting me crash here while I'm working. I figured I could save a few bureau bucks by having them not reserve a hotel room for me. Especially since I don't know how long this case is going to take." Scully answered, slightly exhausted thinking just how long her stay would seem here.
"Of course! You're always welcome here, you know that. You look exhausted though, I'm sending you up to bed." Tara shooed her out of the kitchen and towards the stairs. Scully was tired, she would admit, but she gained a sudden energy thinking of the phone call she was going to be placing.
She entered the guest room that she would be staying in, and before she could even set her suitcase down she pulled out her phone. It was late, even more so for him with the time difference, but he had asked that she call when she lands, and she promised she would.
It rang several times before she heard his machine click on. A slight frown of disappointment spread across her face.
Hey Mulder, it's me. I was just calling to let you know I got in safely. I'm exhausted though, so I'm going to turn in. I just wanted to call, like I said I would. You must be asleep, or out on a hot date. She smiled into the phone. I'm hoping for the former. Just give me a call when you can, I already know I'm going to be busy tomorrow since it's my first day catching up with everything, but call me anyway. Mm, goodnight.
The small smile stayed plastered on her face as she finished getting ready for bed. She grabbed her toiletries and made her way to the bathroom across the hall.
Scully was startled as she exited the room, running into Tara who was standing outside the slightly cracked door, with a secretive grin on her lips.
"I was just coming to make sure you had everything before I went to bed." Tara's grin only spreading further.
Scully stared back at her sister-in-law with wide eyes. Shit, caught. She didn't know how much Tara had heard of her conversation, or what she would infer from her simple message, but she knew exactly what the woman standing in front of her with the smug grin on her face was thinking.
"I - I, uh, yes thank you. I was just, uh, getting ready for bed, but I seem to have everything I need." Scully bowed her head to hide the red rushing her face.
"Well, I don't want to keep you from your sleep. I'll see you tomorrow, Dana, we definitely have some more catching up to do. Goodnight." Tara said in almost a mock tone.
Scully let out a deep breath as Tara disappeared into her own room down the hall. She made her way into the bathroom, and situated herself over the sink with both arms supporting her on each side. She looked up at herself in the mirror and let out a small chuckle as she shook her head.
She knew that her family would be over the moon that she was dating someone, but she honestly didn't know if that's what you can even call it. She knew that she was interested in him, and from what she could tell, he reciprocated those feelings. She just wanted to have the chance to explore this new relationship before barreling him into the Scully family crazy that she knew too well. So much for that plan. She knew that Tara would drill her for every detail of the mystery person putting a giddy smile on her serious sister-in-law's face. Scully also knew that Tara would talk to her mom, and that would only confirm her mom's suspicions of her whereabouts late last night.
Scully sighed as she headed back into the bedroom. She was hoping that she was overthinking everything, and that her family wouldn't meddle into her new acquaintanceship. She snickered at even the hope of the thought. She settled herself into bed and something sticking out of her purse caught her eye. She grabbed the book that Mulder had signed for Tara and stared at it in her hands. She was curious about this story, now knowing the main character was based on her, and opened to the first page.
Settling into bed a little further, Dana Scully was introduced to Daniela Skye.
FOX MULDER'S APARTMENT
Mulder was roused awake by the busyness of his neighborhood the following morning around 7am. He looked around and realized that he had fallen asleep on the couch, again. He took in his surroundings and saw his computer hanging halfway off his coffee table, and papers strewn around his floor. After his lunch with Scully, he had been in a writing frenzy. Once he hooked himself into his writing, the real world was lost to him.
Scully.
Mulder woke quickly and ran to his phone. There, he saw the red blinking light that let him know he had a new message. He knew exactly who it was from.
"Dammit!" Mulder cursed himself. He pressed play, and her smooth voice began to fill his apartment.
Hey Mulder, it's me. I was just calling to let you know I got in safely. I'm exhausted though, so I'm going to turn in. I just wanted to call, like I said I would. You must be asleep, or out on a hot date. I'm hoping for the former. Just give me a call when you can, I already know I'm going to be busy tomorrow since it's my first day catching up with everything, but call me anyway. Mm, goodnight.
He smiled to himself, he could hear the teasing in her voice, still with a brief uncertainty. If Dana Scully didn't know where she ranked in Mulder's life, he would really need to step it up. He was completely engrossed by her, and he loved every quirk about her. He was addicted.
He looked at the clock and realized it was only just after 4am in California. He could call her now, and more than likely leave a voicemail for her to wake up to. If he was being honest with himself though, that just wouldn't do. Mulder was selfish, and wanted to hear her voice. He also didn't want to risk calling her and waking her up, knowing she had a long first day ahead of her. Mulder sighed and went back to plop down on his couch. He would attempt to wait patiently until it deemed a decent time to return her call. He flipped on his TV to a mindless station and waited.
SAN DIEGO, CA
Scully woke to her alarm, bright and early at 7am. She groaned at the incessant sound filling her room. After turning it off and dragging herself to a seated position on the bed, she felt even more exhausted than she did yesterday. She stayed up until almost 2am reading Mulder's book. She knew it wasn't the wisest decision since she had to be at work all day today, with an early start, but she couldn't put it down.
As the book introduced the character of Daniela Skye, Scully was completely in awe of how much Mulder was able to capture about herself before he even said as much as two words to her. It was almost like he was able to see into her soul after observing her so intently for a month prior to their official meeting. It unnerved her, but not as much as it exhilarated her.
Scully dressed for work and made her way downstairs. She could smell the fresh coffee brewing, and mentally thanked her tiny nephew for being an early riser, because that meant Tara would be awake making breakfast before she had to head out.
As she entered the kitchen from the hallway, her pace began to slow as she remembered the run in with Tara last night, right after her phone call to Mulder. She grimaced slightly as she entered the room, not really wanting to have this conversation before coffee. She let out a deep sigh and rolled her eyes, might as well get this over with.
"Good morning, Tara. Please tell me there is enough coffee to go around." Scully said, still slightly groggy from lack of sleep. She was never a morning person.
"Morning, Dana! There's plenty, I just made it, too. Sleep well?" Tara asked, with that similar tone of amusement to her voice that she held last night.
"Yes, I did, thank you." Scully responded, trying to keep conversation as minimal as possible.
"Well I would hope so, you seemed awfully content right before you went to bed." Tara said as she sipped her coffee, staring at dana with gleaming eyes over the edge of her cup.
Scully choked slightly on her coffee, coughing to clear her throat. She had expected to have this conversation this morning, but she didn't think Tara would be so blunt. She should have known, her sister-in-law was never one for subtlety.
"I, uh, I just had a good day yesterday. Looking forward to working, I guess. Um..." Scully sighed. Just get it over with Dana. She scolded herself. "Look, Tara, I don't know what you heard, but-" Her voice was cut off by the ringing of her cell phone. She grabbed it from her purse that she placed on the counter, and answered.
"Hello?"
"Hi, yes, I was told for a good time to call this number."
Scully smirked as she heard the familiar, teasing voice. "Well, I only deal with dead clients, so if you're coming to me, you might have already had too good a time."
Mulder chuckled, continuously enchanted by her quick wit. "I'd say your clients are just dying to see you, then."
She couldn't help the grin that was spreading to most of her face. "Mulder, cheesy pathology jokes are beneath you."
Scully shifted her body to lean her hip against the counter, and it was only then that she noticed Tara staring back at her with pure joy plastered on her face. Scully's eyes widened as she realized that she completely forgot she wasn't alone. Tara silently excused herself from the kitchen, chuckling as she made her exit. Scully knew she was raising more questions than giving answers, and would suffer the consequential interrogation of her sister-in-law later.
"Well now I need new material if you're going to bash my best jokes, Scully." Mulder laughed. "I, uh, was just calling you back. Sorry I didn't answer, hot date, you know how it is. I'm glad you got there safely though." He continued.
A brief moment of jealousy began to rise in Scully, until she heard the joking tone of Mulder's voice. He was simply referencing her voicemail that she left him late last night. She couldn't help but feel silly at the jealousy that did wash over her, because she didn't think it was hers to feel, yet.
"What happened to staying up late? Did Miss Thursday Night wear you out early?" She joked back.
"Nah, I sent her home. My nights from now on are reserved for a beautiful, brilliant redhead..."
He could hear the small gasp that escaped her lips and smiled at the affect he was having on her.
"Daniela Skye, of course. I was up all night in a writing bubble, and kind of blocked out reality until I fell asleep on my couch."
Scully wanted to ask more about his second novel in the series that he was working on since she was already so captivated by the first. She wasn't willing to admit to him though that she had been reading his book, she didn't want to give him the satisfaction yet.
"Oh, of course. Lost in your own little world, Mulder."
"Hey, it's not such a bad place to be."
"I'm sure I can't wait to find out." Scully mumbled softly.
There was a comfortable silence that they both sat in, smiling through the phone at the developments in their new - whatever this was.
"Well, I can't wait to give you the grand tour. You'll have VIP access and everything." Mulder said in an excited voice.
She couldn't help but laugh. Her mood was broken when she looked up at the clock in the kitchen and let out a heavy sigh.
"Gee, Scully, please try to contain the excitement." He teased when he heard her sigh.
"Oh I can't wait to cash in on this grand tour of the World de Mulder, but unfortunately it's going to have to wait. Dead bodies just don't autopsy themselves." She joked back.
"I think it was be cool if they could."
"Mulder, get some new material." She chuckled. "But I do have to get going to make it to this morning's briefing. I'll try to call you later tonight, if it's not too late again. Don't want to interrupt another hot date."
"Yeah, you know my Fridays are pretty lively. I usually order pizza instead of chinese. But I will welcome the interruption, please don't hesitate to call."
She giggled at his humor. Who was she this past week? Giggling like she had some teenage crush. "I'll call you tonight, Mulder. Goodbye."
"Goodbye, Scully."
FOX MULDER'S APARTMENT
After getting off the phone with Scully, Mulder was instantly in a better mood. He was really going to have to learn this whole patience thing, since he would have to wait for her to call him. In past relationships, he had always gone in starting strong. He would almost invade their lives and throw himself into the relationship wholeheartedly. He wasn't completely sure how to play it this time with Scully, since she was even busier than him, but he was willing to welcome to change of pace. Only for her.
He had a few errands to run that would help him pass the time of his day. Normally, he would mull around until something came up, but that routine wasn't going to work today. He needed to be out and busy to preoccupy his mind until the best part of his day would come. His phone call with Scully.
Mulder began to attempt to clean up the tornado of papers strewn on the floor from his frenzy last night, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Mulder, my man. Don't you know how to answer your phone?" Frohike grumbled as he pushed past him, followed by Langly and Byers.
"When did you call? I haven't heard it ring." Mulder asked, puzzled.
"Maybe 10 minutes ago?" Byers answered.
A wide grin spread across Mulder's face. "Oh, I was on the phone then, sorry."
"Does Mr. Hides-In-The-Shadows-And-Doesn't-Talk-To-Anyone have a new lady friend? Is she hot?" Frohike asked with complete amusement.
"Something like that. And she already knows I'm friends with you three and has gone running yet, so I think there's hope." He mused.
He looked at the three men standing before him, and saw the quizzical looks on their faces. He was waiting for it to click on who he was talking about. Byers made the connections first.
"Dr. Scully? You've been talking to Dr. Scully?" Byers finally asked.
"Yep. I, uh, was waiting for her outside after you called me about her being in your place a few days ago. We've been talking since then." Mulder smiled.
"We came to apologize about our slip up with your name since we hadn't heard from you since then, but apparently no apology is necessary anymore. You should be thanking us, really. She's hot." Frohike said, waggling his eyebrows at Mulder.
"Yeah, man, she was pretty tough, but cool. You dating now or something?" Langly finally chimed in.
"Or something. I'm not really sure, we've seen each other twice, and talked this morning. She got sent out to California on an active case, so we can only really talk on the phone. She's even more amazing than when I was just observing her. I don't know how long she'll be gone, but I already can't wait to see her again. I mean, I've had the pleasure to somewhat know her for the last month, but she's only known me for the last few days and already I feel a strong connection. I don't know..." Mulder stammered.
He finally looked up at his three guests, and saw the gleaming in their eyes to match the smirks on their faces. The Gunmen had never seen Mulder in such a state, almost like he was a lovesick puppy. This was going to be entertaining.
"Mulder, you've got it really bad." Frohike teased, Byers and and Langly nodded their heads in agreement.
Avoiding that conversation, Mulder began to motion for them to leave. "Well as fun as this visit has been, I've got some things to finish up. Thanks for stopping by, I forgive you for breaking the one rule I set up for you goons, not telling my name to anyone. " He shooed them out the door.
"Yeah well it looks like we're not the only ones to be breaking your rules, Mulder. What was rule number 1? Not ever meeting your muse?" Frohike sneered at him.
And with that, Mulder shut the door behind them as they stood in the hallway outside his apartment.
SAN DIEGO, CA
Scully had a long morning already, but was somewhat relieved when the head Agent suggested they all have a light weekend to let the newcomers catch up and everyone else regroup. She had already looked over the autopsy reports from the first 3 victims, and was going to perform the autopsy on the latest victim after lunch. Then she was pretty much able to relax for the weekend until they dove right back in with full force on Monday.
She welcomed the tiny break, thinking of all the things she could do while she was here in San Diego. A small moment of disappointment spread through her at the thought of having a free weekend, but far away from the person she really wanted to spend it with. Mulder.
She took the chance to call him on her lunch break.
"Mulder"
"Hey, it's me."
"Scully! To what do I owe this pleasure? I know I'm a little fuzzy on time difference, but I'd say it's not tonight there yet." Mulder teased.
"Oh, well sorry for messing up your itinerary, I could always just call back later..." Scully mused.
"No! No...I, I welcome the distraction into my busy schedule." Mulder said quickly, still trying to maintain his wit, and mask the sudden moment of panic in his voice.
She chuckled at how flustered he became. "I was just calling to - uh, just say hi I guess." She answered embarrassingly. She didn't even think of a good reason to call him, she did it on a moment of impulse simply because she had been thinking about him. She was now silently scolding herself, she never wanted to seem desperate or needy to a man. That wasn't who Dana Katherine Scully was.
"You know, you don't need a reason to call me. I like just hearing from you, too." He answered assuringly, detecting the slight embarrassment in her tone of voice.
"Well, you might be hearing from me a lot this weekend. We kind of have a break from the case. They want everyone to regroup and the newcomers to catch up on where everything stands. So I'll have a lot of free time on my hands for the next few days." She said.
"Any plans?" Mulder asked.
"Not at the moment, just figuring out what to do with my spare time. I almost wish I was back home with this free weekend..." She answered, indirectly implicating that she wished she could spend that time with him.
"Well at least you'll be visiting with your family, that's always nice. Listen, Scully I gotta run. Call me tonight when you're done?" Mulder seemed suddenly rushed.
She frowned, he completely missed the point that she was hinting at. That wasn't like him, usually he was on the same wavelength as her. "Yeah, uh, okay Mulder. I'll call you when I'm done. It won't be too late either, I only have one more thing to wrap up for today."
"Sounds good. Talk to you later, Scully."
"Sure, bye." She answered, sounding as solemn as she felt.
She shook herself out of her mood. She knew it was too soon to feel this strongly for someone, but Mulder seemed distracted and she had an uneasy feeling about it. She didn't like that he had dismissed her wanting to spend time with him. She rolled her eyes at herself and gathered her things back up. She would try to gage on his mood later tonight when she spoke with him. Something just seemed off.
Little did she know, Mulder rushed off the phone with her to book the next flight to San Diego, CA.