QUANTICO, VA
It had been a few weeks since the book release, and Mulder found himself completely addicted to Scully in that time. They had spent almost every day together, getting their relationship back on track. They both knew that their relationship was moving rather fast, but neither was willing to pull on the brakes. Mulder made his way over to Quantico to meet her for lunch, and ran into a familiar face along the way.
"Davis!" He yelled from across the courtyard.
"Mulder, good to see you. What are you doing here?" AD Davis asked, feigning innocence. He had suspected that they were dating, based on the recent change in demeanor of the usual stoic Dr. Scully. Their relationship hadn't been a public announcement yet, other than the small tidbits that Scully disclosed to her family.
"I, uh - I was just following up on some things. You know, working on my second book in the series." Mulder answered cautiously. He knew that Scully was apprehensive about making their relationship public so soon. He didn't want to overstep in her work place if she wasn't ready.
"I see." Davis replied with an all-knowing smirk on his face. "Well, I'll let you get to it." Before he dismissed him, a brilliant idea popped into Davis' head, and he had to try to suppress the amused grin forming on his lips. "Hey, actually, I would like to invite you to the annual FBI Holiday Ball. It might give you a chance to find your next muse, and you can bring a date, of course." Davis said, basking in the pure entertainment value of the situation.
"Oh, I didn't know you had an annual thing, hadn't heard about it." Mulder said, slightly hurt that Scully hadn't mentioned it to him. He shook those thoughts, thinking she would have said something if she were planning to go, right?
"Well now you have, I'll send you the info, and put your name with a plus one on the list. Hopefully I'll see you there next week." Davis said, still trying to mask the amusement he knew was so evident on his face. From what he could tell, Scully hadn't spoken to Mulder about their conversation in the hospital just yet.
"Uh, yeah, thanks. Maybe you will." Mulder smiled a small smile and made his way to Scully's office.
As he peered around the corner, he could see her office door just slightly open, and caught a glimpse of her sitting deep in thought at her desk. He took a moment to gaze at her through the small sliver, and smiled to himself. She was sitting there, with her glasses on the end of her nose, and what looked like grading papers. This was work Scully, and he loved having the opportunity to catch glimpses of her.
"Knock, knock, doc." He said, sauntering into her office.
"Jesus, Mulder. You scared me. I was just finishing this up." She said startled, as she tried to compose herself.
"Sorry." He chuckled as he moved closer to her, just close enough to lean down and place a small kiss on her lips.
"Mulder, someone could see us." She said, breaking the kiss immediately and backing away.
"Would that be such a bad thing? We've been dating for a little while." He said, trying to mask the offended tone in his voice. He was still sulking in his feelings about the earlier conversation with Davis, and began to glance around the office for evidence of the upcoming event. He found the newsletter for the announcement peeking out from under a stack of papers sitting on her desk.
"I know, but I just - I don't know if I'm ready for that next step. Mulder, I haven't dated anyone, really, since my academy days and..." Her voice began to drift off, not wanting to head into that conversation, but knowing he would keep up his persistence if she didn't give him an answer that satisfied his curiosity. "That didn't end as well as I had hoped. Plus, everyone knew what happened, and I'm not ready for people I work with to be in my business again." She finished with a wince.
"Ah, so there's a reason behind the madness then." He said teasingly, but with genuine interest. They hadn't really spoken about past relationships, because they were enjoying the light heartedness of their new foundation. "It's okay, Scully. I was just wondering." He said with a shrug, as he pretended to lose his balance and knock off the stack of papers from the corner of her desk.
"Mulder, I can't take you anywhere." She said with a small chuckle, as she began to help him pick up the strewn papers.
"It's all part of the Mulder charm, Scully. It comes with the whole package." He said as he winked at her. "Oh, what's this? Annual FBI Holiday Ball. Should I be polishing my dancing shoes?"
"Oh, um, I wasn't planning on going. I never go, just not my thing." She said in a small whisper, trying to avoid the issue.
"Come on, Scully. It could be fun, you should go."
"Would you not be planning to come with me?" She said, as her eyebrow began to arch. He knew he had her, by implying that she should go alone, she would insist that he come along. He didn't think it was fair to use some of his psychological mind tricks with her, especially since they didn't always work, but when they did, it had a great outcome for everyone.
"Well I would love to go with you, I accept your invitation. Come on, let's go grab lunch, I'm starving." He said before turning his back and exiting her office.
She was left standing there, completely confused about the events that just transpired. Somehow, Mulder had tricked her into going to the stupid ball, with him as her escort. She scoffed in disbelief, and knew it was time for payback.
"We should go to that Italian restaurant we went to, on our first 'date.' I remember them having a pretty good lunch menu." She said with innocence in her voice as she caught up to him. He stopped in his tracks, and his eyes widened. He had barely escaped awkward run-ins the first time, and didn't want to chance it again.
"Uh, there's another place that's a little closer, so you can get back sooner." He tried to dodge the issue.
"That's okay, my next class isn't for a few hours, and I need the break." She said with an innocent smile she knew he couldn't refuse.
He sighed with resignation, and nodded slightly as he escorted her to the car. She had to suppress the small smirk beginning to form on her lips. If he was going to push her more out of her comfort zone, so was she.
ITALIAN RESTAURANT
When they finally arrived at the restaurant, it was relatively busy for the lunch hour. They made their way inside, and Mulder leaned in to speak with the hostess, out of Scully's ear range. They were shown to a back table, in the corner, hidden away from the main busyness.
"I see you really pulled out the stops for prime seating, Mulder. Is this all part of that charm as well?" She said with her eyebrow raising. She could tell he was uncomfortable, and she almost felt bad for him. Almost.
"I, uh, figured it would be nicer back here, quieter." He smiled nervously. Perhaps she underestimated just how much Mulder didn't want to be here. Just as he was about to speak again, his mouth closed, and his face paled as he glanced over Scully's shoulder.
"Mulder, what's wron-?" Before she could finish her question, a woman appeared at their table, with the same expression on her face that was bestowed upon his. Scully wanted to ask for clarification, but she didn't need it. She could sense that there was history between these two, one that was not often spoken about.
"Fox, it - it's good to see you." She said with a small whisper.
"Yeah, you, too. I, uh, didn't know you were back from Italy. I thought that was a permanent thing." He said matching her tone, but trying to hide the emotions in his voice.
"It was, but I came back for personal reasons. I've been back for about a year. I tried contacting you, but you must have changed your number from the last one I had." Scully watched this play out, and was fascinated. It wasn't often that she had the opportunity to take a glance into Mulder's life, as it wasn't something he liked to talk about. She took in the appearance of the tall, slender woman before her. She had dark brown, curly hair, and bright, warm brown eyes. Scully slightly cleared her throat, to let them know they had an audience for their apparent reunion.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I, uh, this is Dana Scully. Scully, this is Valentina." He said, making the awkward introductions. They both smiled at each other in meeting, and she stayed standing beside the table nervously. She took their orders, and made a hasty exit towards the kitchen.
"Whatever story is behind this place is becoming more fascinating by the minute." Scully said with slight intrigue in her voice.
"Uh, yeah. She, um - I, we, Valentina is my ex...fiance." He said, barely audible even to himself. Scully stopped mid drink at the word 'fiance' and immediately regretted her decision to come here. She knew this place held some kind of meaning to Mulder's past, but she hadn't expected this. It was also a conversation about past relationships that they weren't ready to have yet.
"Mulder, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you this uncomfortable. We, uh, we can get the food to go, if you want." She said apologetically.
"Yeah, maybe we should." He said passively. She winced at his lack of conversation, and knew this day had gone so wrong so fast.
They went to the front, and let the hostess know that their order would need to be placed in to go boxes. He paid for the meal, and they waited towards the front. He sighed as he saw Valentina make her way from the kitchen with the bags of food in her hand.
"I'm sorry you have to leave so soon, I, uh, was hoping to talk to you." Valentina said, taking a glance towards Scully.
"I'll call you, are you staying with Sofia?" He asked quietly.
"Yes, call me there, I would love to just, talk. Stop by any time as well." She said with a sad smile.
They made their way to the car, and Scully's mood immediately plummeted and she realized Mulder hadn't escorted her out with his hand on her lower back. It was a small gesture, but one that she thought of as their own. Whatever happened with Valentina in the past, wasn't going to ruin their future, she wouldn't let it.
"Do you, uh, want to eat this back at work, or?" He asked cautiously. He knew she liked to spend as less time as possible around her colleagues with him, avoiding any rumors that could form.
"Sure, let's head back. We can eat in my office." She let out in a shaky voice. She wasn't ready for people to inquire about the handsome stranger keeping Dr. Scully company on lunch, but her jealousy was getting the best of her.
QUANTICO, VA
SCULLY'S OFFICE
As they traveled back to Quantico, they both sat in a heavy silence. Both completely lost in their own thoughts about the events that played out during their short lunch visit. Mulder knew that he needed to elaborate to Scully about Valentina, but didn't know if their relationship was ready for it. Scully wanted to know more, but wasn't positive she was prepared to hear the answers to questions she didn't want to ask. They approached her office, and sat side by side on the small, loveseat couch she had placed in front of a coffee table. They spread the food out, still maintaining their silence, and began to separate the portions.
"The food's really good, I love the salad." She said in a small voice, trying to break the awkwardness clouding them.
"Scully, we need to talk." He said with a resigned sigh as he placed his plate on the table. She stopped mid bite, and laid her fork shakily on the plate, placing it down on the table as well. She swallowed the lump in her throat, along with her food, and wearily turned to face him more. She never liked those words, and was unsure about what this blast from the past would mean for them.
"Valentina and I, our split wasn't exactly amicable. We were young, and caught in these feelings of our whirlwind summer romance. We engaged quickly, but she got cold feet. She went on about how she couldn't settle down yet, because she hadn't found herself. She planned to move to Italy, and live with family out there. I didn't know until she was gone. She left me a letter, with the ring that I gave her. I was heartbroken, and I honestly didn't think I could ever recover. That's when I wrote my first book. It was the best outlet for me to let out all of my emotions. In a way, she was my first muse. She was the reason I made my rule, to never get close enough to the subject of my story." His voice drifted off in memory.
"You got close to me..." Scully answered in a small whisper. She was fearful that Mulder's previous emotions would make him apprehensive to move forward in their relationship. Neither were able to look at each other, until his hand caressed the crook of her neck, and his fingers gently lifted her chin towards him.
"You are the reason I broke that rule. I don't want you to worry about this." He said as he leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. She normally would pull away, but she needed this assurance. She pulled the back of his neck towards her, deepening the kiss. His other hand softly caressed her hip, and he pulled her slightly towards him, closing the space between them. They both needed this, to reassure them of their relationship.
She finally broke away, and rested her forehead on his. They smiled to each other, both lost in their moment, they didn't hear the knocking on the door.
"Dr. Scully, we just had a question about the outline for the-" The student stopped short upon seeing her professor entangled in the arms of the hot stranger. Scully jumped as far away from Mulder as she could, given their limited space, and stood up to greet her students.
"Uh, sorry. I was just eating lunch, with my, friend. What can I help you girls with?" She said, trying to compose herself. She could see the mischievous gleam in her students' eyes as they raked over Mulder. They had also never caught their serious professor so flustered.
"We just had a few questions about the outline for the final exam. We can come back later though." They said as they glanced towards Mulder again.
"It's fine, we were just finishing up. Why don't you come back in about 15 minutes and I can go over your questions." She said as she so effortlessly slipped into her Dr. Scully persona. Mulder tried to stifle the laugh building inside of him. He loved watching her try to suppress how flustered she truly was. The students made their way out of the office, closing the door behind them.
"I'm never going to hear the end of it now." She groaned as she buried her head into her hands.
"Nah, Scully. I'm sure it won't be that bad. You were just having lunch with a friend, what's to tell?" He said with a teasing chuckle as he stood and pulled her into his arms. She placed her hands on his chest and looked up into his comforting eyes.
"Mulder, I'm sorry, I panicked. I'm sure they gathered that you're more than a friend, by the way I was practically sitting in your lap. Geez, they're going to tell everyone about the hot stranger in Dr. Scully's office now." She scoffed.
"You think I'm hot?" He asked, wagging his eyebrows at her, trying to lighten the mood.
"Don't let it go to your head, Mulder. But I am kicking you out, that's enough embarrassment for me today. I need to clean up, and wait for their return." She groaned again, not wanting to face her students.
"So now that our cover is pretty much blown, does that mean we for sure get to go to the FBI ball?" He asked innocently, as he played with her necklace.
"I'm starting to think this was some twisted plan of yours all along."
"Ah, come on, Scully. You're giving me too much credit here. I just mean, now that everyone here is going to know you have a hot, mysterious, man friend, we don't have to hide it anymore." He said, chuckling at her wincing.
"Gee, Mulder. You really know how to cheer up a girl don't you?"
"I'll make it up to you, I promise. How about tonight, I bring over dessert after you get home from your late class?"
"Okay, but only if you bring something chocolate." They both smiled at each other, and he placed a quick peck on her lips before making his exit.
He knew that as new as their relationship was, they always had an understanding dynamic between them. He reveled in the fact that they were able to get through any obstacle they've faced so far, and found a comfort there. He made his way back to the restaurant to speak with Valentina in person. He knew she needed closure, much like himself, and figured that in order for him to move forward with Scully, he needed to tie up the loose ends of his heart from his past.
ITALIAN RESTAURANT
He arrived at the restaurant, and asked the hostess to call Valentina to the front. She approached from the kitchen, and slowed her pace upon seeing him standing there. She wasn't sure why he had come back, she wasn't really expecting him to even call after what she did.
"Fox, you're back, so soon." She said nervously.
"Yeah, uh, I was hoping we could talk about whatever you wanted to talk about. If you have a minute." He answered sheepishly.
"Of course, we can take the table in the back." She led him to a table further away from the main dining area, and they sat down in an awkward silence. "Fox, I just need to start off by saying I'm sorry, for how I treated you, and handled things. It was unfair to you, and you deserved better."
"Valentina, it's okay, it's behind us. We were both young, and made stupid choices. I forgive you, I promise." He said as he enclosed his hand around hers, reassuring her of the closure that he assumed she was looking for.
"I'm glad to hear that, I - uh, Fox...I missed you. I still do miss you. The only mistake I made was walking away from you." She said in a small whisper. He instantly stiffened and began to piece together the true meaning behind this reunion.
"Valentina, that was a long time ago. I don't, I'm with someone."
"Do you love her?" She challenged.
"I - it's still new, but, I think I'm moving in that direction." He said with a smile more to himself. He hadn't really sorted his feelings for Scully out, as he hadn't had to face them directly.
"I see, I'm happy for you. You deserve to be with someone who cares for you. I'm just sorry that it wasn't me. I'm glad we were able to talk, I should be getting back to work." She said, trying to avoid any further feelings from being exposed. She didn't expect him to just fall back into her arms, but she had hoped that he would at least give her a chance.
Mulder mulled over the conversation on his way back to his apartment. He sighed, knowing he should feel more depressed about their talk, but the thought of Scully erased any apprehensions. He never second guessed his feelings for her, and knew that this was what he needed to move their relationship further, nothing holding him back now.
SCULLY'S APARTMENT
She arrived to her apartment after a long day, and had already called Mulder to let him know she was on her way home. She was exhausted, mentally and physically, but was looking forward to spending her evening with him. She got herself comfortable, in a sweater that was slightly lower cut than she preferred, but smiled to herself thinking about Mulder's reaction.
The knock came to her door, and she strolled to answer it. She looked through the peephole, already knowing it was Mulder, and smiled at the sight before her.
"As much as I appreciate flowers, I told you to bring chocolate." She said with a smirk, as she let him in and inhaled the smell of her gift.
"Your lack of faith in me hurts, Scully. I would never disappoint." He said as he pulled a to-go box from behind his back. He opened it, and the heavenly aroma of the chocolate fudge cake filled her senses.
"This looks sinful, you are forgiven for whatever you were making up for originally." She said as she took the box from his hands, and situated herself on the couch.
"It's good to know you can be so easily bribed with chocolate, Scully." He teased as he grabbed a fork for himself.
"Nuh uh, there were no discussions about sharing." She said with her eyebrow raised, challenging him. "Where did you get this slice of heaven anyway? It's delicious."
"Oh, uh, I went back to talk to Valentina, and got that before I left." He said deadpanned, hoping to avoid this conversation. He clearly didn't think this through before bringing her the dessert, not that he was trying to hide it from her. He noticed that she slowed her chewing, and pondered over his words.
"It's great, they really do have a nice little place there." She said, forcing a smile.
"Scully, she just needed closure. I know I didn't even really owe her that, but it was good, for the both of us. I think I needed it more than I thought." He said quietly.
"It's okay, Mulder. I understand, I'm glad you were able to talk." She said nervously. She didn't want to know what they talked about, but hoped that she could take his word on her putting her worries to rest.
"I'm glad, too." He said, leaning over her on the couch. "And if you're not going to share the cake, I'm just going to have to find another way to taste it." He said in a sultry tone, lingering just above her lips. She smiled mischievously at him, and her eyebrow twitched.
"And how do you plan to do that?" She said in a low whisper, tilting her head up towards his.
He enclosed his lips on hers, savoring in her taste. She slowly opened her mouth to him, allowing access, and his tongue thrusted into her mouth. Their tongues dueled for control, both began breathing heavily. He lightly removed the dessert from her hands, and smiled as he broke away from their kiss. He leaned back to a seated position with a sly grin, and took a bite.
"Mulder! You sneak! I can't believe you just tricked me like that." She said, still composing herself from their kiss.
"I was actually really impressed with that one, Scully." He said with a proud smile. She just chuckled and shook her head at him.
"Hey, you have something, on the side of your mouth." She said in a smooth voice, as she crawled cat like over his body towards him on the couch. She stopped herself, letting her lips linger just before his. His breath caught in his throat, and she could see the arousal in his eyes. She sneakily reached up, and used her finger to wipe away the chocolate. She smiled as she licked off her finger, and sat back in her spot, with a gleam in her eyes.
"That wasn't nice, Scully." He nearly growled, trying to control his breathing.
"Turnabout is fair play, Mulder." She said with a smirk and a modest chuckle.
"Well, as much as I would love to keep playing this game with you, I should head home. I have an early morning meeting with my publisher about the second book." He groaned at the thought.
"That good a meeting, huh?" She teased.
"I can't wait for it." He said sarcastically, as he rolled his eyes and got up from the couch to gather his things.
She walked him to the door, and they shared a parting kiss. He turned abruptly, and pulled her into his body, closing the space between them. He smiled down at her, and she looked at him puzzled by the sly grin on his face.
"Don't forget to pick out a dress for the ball next weekend." He said in a sultry voice, matching his earlier tone.
"Mulder..." She said, exasperated with him. He chuckled and placed a small kiss on her lips before making his final exit.
She stood in the doorway, still gathering herself from the way that he made her feel. She sauntered back into her apartment, smiling to herself, and letting her doubts about their moving relationship disappear. She was nervous about going to the FBI Annual Ball, but with Mulder by her side, she might be able to fully move on from her own past that haunted her.