Second Time Round

Author: PhileyX 
E-Mail: phileyxback@yahoo.com 
Web-site: https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx 
Rating: PG-R
Category: MSR, Will/Joyce UST.
Spoilers: Requiem
Prequels: Man Without A Face, The Matchbox, The Dinner Guest, A Nobody is Hard to Find, Time Out, Redhead, A Father is Hard To Find, Visions
Disclaimer: All the characters here do not belong to me. 
Author's note: The prequels to this story can be found at:
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Face.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Matchbox.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Dinner.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Nobody.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Timeout.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Redhead.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Father.html
https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx/Visions.html
Intro: This story takes place after the Requiem. Two years after his disappearance, a man appears claiming to be Mulder, with a catch; he just didn't have his face. Scully finds out he really is her ex-partner the unconventional way. Now the consortium is after their only son and she is forced to make the ultimate sacrifice; she gives them both up. Although intent on keeping herself away from her son, she is unable to stop herself from seeing Mulder. Will grows up without her and soon without his father too. Uncertain about his past, he struggles to understand the signs along his way, signs that would lead him to the truth and eventually his destiny.

XXXXXXXXXXX
Second Time Round

    Excerpts from the song 'Acoustic #3' by The Goo Goo Dolls. 

              No infringement of copyright intended.

<And she wonders where these dreams go
Cause the world got in her way
What's the point in never trying
Nothing's changing anyway>

Dole nuzzled against her playfully, his mouth tracked along her throat but she didn't seem to notice. Softly, he growled. "If you don't play attention in class Dana Scully, how do you expect to learn anything?"

She blinked for a moment and then smiled. "You mean you still have more to teach me?"

"One can never stop learning, you know." He smiled back, pulling her naked body closer to his. But soon her thoughts drifted off again and he tried to guess what was on her mind. "Bill was that pissed huh?"

"What? Oh the dinner. Well he wasn't exactly trilled that he had drove five hours down with his family to a dark empty house, no matter how hard I swore it wasn't my fault." He chuckled and her voice dropped to a whisper. "You were right."

"Of course I was." The sadness in her tone told him that she wasn't talking about her not paying attention or Bill being pissed. "Just out of curiosity though, what was I right about?"

Rolling her eyes and herself to face him, she gave him a warning look to be serious. "Jason Alexander."

She thought the glance worked but little did she know, it wasn't what made him stiffen abruptly. His voice dropped to a cautious whisper. "What do you mean?"

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. You were right, I should have kept him away from our world."

His heart skipped a beat, not knowing how to interpret her words. 'What had happened? Did someone try to hurt him? Was he taken away?' Questions immediately rambled through his brain. Thankfully he had the sense to clamp his mouth shut. He had been careful not to reveal who Jason was for this long and he wasn't about to blow it now. Instead, he waited for her to explain.

She did. "Remember I told you that I went to Maston's house? I didn't tell you why I did." Hesitatingly, she continued. "I didn't know that it wasn't alcohol that influenced Farns to attack Maston. Jason was the one who told me. He was also the one that insisted that Farns was about to harm Maston."

Dole almost sighed in relief hearing that none of his fears were true. "He was the doctor that examined Farns?"

"Yes but I don't think that's how he knew." She hesitatingly added.

He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"He came over to my place with the blood work results. Then suddenly, he had a seizure or some sort. When he came to, he told me that Maston was in danger."

Dole had stopped breathing but managed to blurt out. "A seizure?"

"Yes." 

His agitation increased. "What do you mean a seizure? What kind of seizure?"

She looked at him in surprise but admitted. "I don't know."

"How can you not know? You're a doctor!"

She blinked and quietened him down with an odd look. "Dole?"

Realizing he nearly blew Jason's cover, he quickly looked away. 'Okay, don't panic. Just calm down and think this out.' A seizure. Jason had never had a fit before in his entire life, well at least not to the best of his knowledge. She was still looking at him suspiciously but he ignored it. "So how do you think he knew? You think that the fit had something to do with it?"

Dana's brow cleared slightly, not understanding his unexplainable anxiety for the young intern he never met but deciding to let it go for the moment. Sighing, she shyly admitted. "Maybe I'm jumping to extreme conclusions. Maybe he just guessed from the blood work."

He shook his head and gently lifted her chin to face him. "No Scully. Tell me your gut feeling. Do you think that the seizure had something to do with how he knew?"

The intensity of his gaze unsettled her. And for a moment, she found herself wondering if there was something that Dole wasn't telling her. But she answered him truthfully. "Yes."

He nodded and looked away thoughtfully. Jason knew that Farns was about to attack Maston. 'How? Through a seizure? Or maybe it looked like a spasm of some sort but it wasn't. Maybe…… maybe he saw it in his mind. It wouldn't be impossible. He displayed psychic abilities when he was younger.' Then it suddenly struck him. 'In fact the last time he showed psychic abilities was in Scully's house. And being there again must have somehow triggered his dormant gift to life!' The pieces falling into place, he swiftly turned to face her, smiling. "Did you talk to him?"

Confused at his erratic mood, she frowned. "No, he escaped. The boy took the opportunity of slipping out while I wasn't looking." Then she sighed. "Maybe it's for the best."

"What do you mean?" He asked cautiously, not liking the tone of her voice.

She bit her lip and slowly tried to explain herself. "I should have not encouraged him. Look what happened? He's turning into an X-file!"

He smirked. "He's not an X-file…."

She interrupted. "He knew, Dole. And there was no way he could have guessed. He didn't know the full details of the case. As far as he was concerned, Farns was just a drunk who tried to get fresh with Maston. He had no idea Farns was a suspect in the X-file she and Landell were working on!"

"You are still going on guesswork, Scully! Interrogate! Ask him how he knew!"

"No!" She insisted, shaking her head. "Why should I? Farns is dead and Maston is safe. I should just close this case and never call Jason Alexander again. Besides, he obviously doesn't want to talk to me."

Dole was incredulous. "So you're just going to leave it hanging, without knowing what actually took place? What happened to seeking out the truth?"

"What for? So I could drag another boy into an X-file?" She argued and gave him a strange glare. "I don't get it! A few months ago, you told me to leave him alone."

"A few months ago he wasn't having seizures and seeing things!"

She frowned. "I never said he saw anything!"

"You implied it and I think you believe it but you're just too chicken to find out!"

Her cheeks flushed. "Damn it! This is not about me, this is about him!"

"That's right, Scully. This is not about you!" He took her hand in his firmly. "This boy needs you now. He's probably confused. I don't think this has ever happened to him before. If it has, he wouldn't be running away from you, would he? He would've acted as if seeing things, if he saw them, was the most natural thing in the world." Her gaze softened and he continued. "You can't leave it as it is. Not until you've tried."

She looked at him gravely. "What if he doesn't want to talk to me?"

Dole took a chance, hoping that his son had more sense than that. "Then you walk away. But you have to give him that option. Because I suspect you're probably the only person who will believe him." Then silently, he added. 'And probably the only person he can trust.' No matter how he looked at it, the boy needed his mother at this moment, consortium or no consortium.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"So Doctor Alex, how was your weekend?" One of the male nurses innocently asked him in the staff locker room.

"It was fine." He automatically answered. 

Several nurses shared a look and smiled mischievously. "Any action?"

Another piped in. "Yeah, FBI agents carry handcuffs too, don't they?"

'Great!' Jason groaned. They were ribbing him about Agent Scully again. Rumours around the hospital seemingly got worse when she publicly announced that they saw each other outside the hospital last Friday. Forcing himself to check his temper, he gave them a glare. "Don't you people have better things to do with your lives?" 

"Nope! Teasing the interns, it's what we live for."

He rolled his eyes. "Well I'm glad to be of service in your meaningless lives."

Candice, one of the nurses smiled indulgently. "We really can't help it, Doctor. We've been here for a long time and we've never seen her pay so much attention to any of the staff as she does to you."

"That's because you all think she's crazy."

"Spooky, not crazy." Candice persisted. "From what I hear, she was abducted by aliens once."

"And so was her gorgeous partner. And they never found him, the poor man!"

Sally who walked in a few seconds ago, caught up with the conversation and added her say. "Poor Agent Scully, you mean! She was utterly heartbroken."

Jason raised an eyebrow. "Her partner was abducted by aliens?" 

"That's what they say. Left her with a bun in the oven too. I wonder what happened to the child? Of course that was more than twenty years ago…." Sally trailed off while Jason's eyes widened.

"She has a kid?"

She nodded. "A son. A beautiful screaming baby boy as I recall. It's a shame she gave him up for adoption after two years. But being a single mother is hard enough, being Agent Scully and her frequent work-related accidents…. well, I suppose she was thinking about his best interests."

'So my vision in Agent Scully's house could be about her and her son. What about the man, who was he?' Jason thought with a slight twist of his lips.

A male nurse grunted from across the room. "All I can say is that woman is weird. Hot but totally weird. And her glare could shrivel a man in seconds. They should have laws that prevent her from glaring." The rest of the room laughed but agreed heartily.

The door to the room suddenly opened and a new nurse poked her head in, asking meekly for Doctor Alexander.

"Yes?"

"There's an Agent Scully to see you. She says it's an urgent official matter."

The room collectively looked at Jason and grinned suggestively. He rolled his eyes and slammed his locker shut. As he walked out, he growled, warning them not to say another word. "You heard her. It's an urgent official matter!" But the smug knowing looks he left behind told him that they weren't at all convinced.

Out in the hallway, he caught sight of Agent Scully leaning against the wall and looking at the floor impassively. Almost instantly he recalled his vision of her and his father. 'Oh God!' He thought and blushed, wondering if he would be able to look her in the eye. His anxiety grew and for a moment he almost slipped away towards the other direction. But she looked up and saw him. 'Damn! Too late!' He thought, grimaced and took a step to face the inevitable.

"Doctor." She greeted him softly.

"Agent Scully." He mumbled. His gaze locked on her only for a second before it darted away towards the wall behind her. 

She frowned, glanced behind and then back to face him again. "Are you all right?"

"Yes. I'm fine." He answered came out in short gasps.

'What was wrong with him?' She wondered. He was obviously nervous. That she anticipated considering he might be admitting a paranormal but blushing? Shaking her head, she decided to cut to the chase. "I suppose you know why I'm here."

"To kick my ass for slipping out last Friday?"

She smiled. "Now that you reminded me…"

He sighed and quickly explained himself. "I was confused. I needed some time alone, to think about things."

She nodded but asked. "What were you confused about?" He hesitated. While she waited for him to compose his next few words, she realized two things. One, he was still determined not to look at her and two, the staff locker room door kept bopping open without anyone really coming out of it. 

Clearing her throat, she spoke loudly, loud enough for whoever eavesdropping to hear. "Before you say anything, do you mind if we go somewhere private? Some where there's no one listening behind doors?"

Jason's head snapped up in surprise. Then swiftly turning around, he heard a loud muffled thump suspiciously coming from behind the swaying staff door before it finally settled peacefully. He groaned and turned to offer her a weak grin. "Immature idiots."

She gave him a wry grin. "Yeah. The FBI's full of them too."

He gestured her to follow him and led her to an empty trauma unit. Closing the door, he stared absentmindedly at Crash Cart while she waited for him to speak. When he didn't, she sighed and gave up. She just had to know. "Is there a reason why you refuse to look at me?"

"What?" He started and gave a half laugh. "I am looking at you." His eyes only proved his words for half a minute before it sought the refuge at the floor. 

She rolled his eyes, half irritated at his peculiar behavior and half amused that his flushed cheeks had deepened and now even his ears were bright red. Steeling herself to be patient, she called him softly. "Jason." Hearing her call him by his first name astounded him, enough for him to look into her eyes without qualms. She smiled gently and asked him. "How did you know that Farns would be at Agent Maston's place?"

He looked unsure for a second but her eyes gave him courage to answer. "I saw it."

She drew her head up slightly. "You saw it?"

He nodded. "In my mind. I even felt it. She was scared and he was crazy."

Dana didn't realize that she was holding her breath. Letting it go slowly, she cautiously asked. "Do you often see things?"

"No. I've never had these visions before."

"These visions? You mean there were others?"

He frowned and looked away. "Mrs. Lancaster was admitted yesterday for chest pains. This morning I was looking at her charts in reception area when I had a vision that she was having a heart attack. I ran to a room and sure enough, she was having one."

Dana bit her lip. 'Okay. This is going better than I expected.' She thought. It was funny that previously she was worried that he wouldn't share with her. Now that he was, she wasn't sure what to tell him. But one thing is for sure, Dole was right when he predicted that Jason was confused. The boy obviously had no clue how to deal with it. That is, if he was genuinely psychic. 

He misunderstood her look. "You don't believe me."

She carefully formed her next words. "Do you? Do you believe that you have this power?"

"I don't know." He answered falteringly. "But it's real. I may not be able to explain it but I see things." 

"Anything strange happen to you before you started having these visions? Burnt yourself, electric shock, fell on your head, a lobotomy?"

He gave her a disparaging look and shook his head. She smiled, bit her lip and drifted wordlessly in her own thoughts. While he waited, his vision of her and his father came to him again. Then steeling himself, he took a dangerous chance. "Are you seeing anyone?"

It was evidently the last thing she expected him to ask. Her jaw dropped slightly. "What? Uh… no."

His brow creased, surprised that she was more embarrassed than annoyed that he had asked her such a personal question. It gave him courage to persist. "Not dating anyone?"

The blue eyes narrowed and he knew that he had crossed the line. She retorted in between clenched teeth. "I don't date, Doctor."

He automatically took step back, as if distance would help protect him from her furious glare. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Then he hastily changed the subject before the intensity of her glare began to achieve physical damage. "I think I see the past too."

It worked, her was anger forgotten. "What do you mean?"

He knew that this would be another intrusion into her personal life but he needed confirmation that the vision was indeed real life. "My first vision was of you." Astonished, she told him to go on. "You were younger. Sitting on your couch with a man and baby." Then he waited for her to prompt him further, just in case she wanted him to stop.

Meanwhile, Dana's heart froze and she repeated in a daze. "On my couch?"

It was encouragement enough. "I didn't really get to see the man's face. But I saw you and the child. He was on the man's lap, wearing a white top and blue shorts. I believe it was a T-shirt with a purple dinosaur on it."

'Oh my God!' She thought as the memory came back to her. It was the night when Dole first saw Will.

He went on. "There were cards on the table. Not playing cards, but with pictures. Like….." He trailed off, trying to find the right description.

"Reading cards." She supplied, now looking blankly over his shoulder, at nothing in particular.

"Yes, that's it." He looked at her worriedly. She was as white as sheet. "Agent Scully, are you all right?"

She started slightly and looked at him, shaking her head a little. "Yes, I'm fine." He remained silent, watching her slowly recover. When she finally did, she softly stated. "So you see the past, present and future."

"Maybe." Her words seemed to confirm that his vision was correct. 'But what about the hot and wild one?' He wondered when her next question almost choked him.

"Can you control your visions? Have you tried willing yourself to see something?" She asked.

Coughing violently, he soon straightened himself. 'Nah, she probably didn't want to hear the result of his disastrous experiment.' He thought and lied. "I've never really tried."

"Maybe you should."

"Maybe I shouldn't." He countered back with a shudder. After seeing his worst nightmare, he had learnt his lesson to let the visions come to him instead. 

She looked at him in surprise. "Most people would kill to have this power."

He shrugged. "The grass the always greener on the other side. All I always wanted was to be normal. Being a genius can be a pain in the ass."

Smiling, she insisted. "Most people would kill to be a genius too."

Shaking his head, he muttered. "Maybe it's because of my father. He always wanted me to blend in, to be normal. To be just a kid even though I knew more than any of the teachers in my school. And I loved it. I had a childhood." 

"He sounds like a great father."

She didn't miss the twitch in his eyes although he quietly agreed with nod. Then he hastily changed the subject. "So what do you think?"

Hesitant, she took a step towards him. "I think that we shouldn't rush to conclusions. Give yourself time. Let me look into a few case files and I'll get back to you."

He studied her guarded expression and told her sincerely. "I never wanted this, Agent Scully. So I'm not trying to convince you or anything. All I'm trying to do is to figure out why I'm seeing these things."

"I understand." She gave him a slight smile. "And it's not that I don't believe you or I'm discrediting your visions. I too am trying to find out why after all this time you're seeing things you shouldn't see. There have been cases of psychic ability after extreme circumstances, like an electric shock or a lightning blot…." She trailed off and licked her lips unconsciously. "But this is the first time I've come across someone who's seeing things after twenty years of being perfectly …well unpsychic. Are you sure that nothing particular happened to you last week?"

"I'm sure."

Looking pensive, she contemplated what to do next. "Then I suggest that we take our time and discover why."

She was right, he realized and nodded his head. Suddenly his beeper went off. He checked it and looked at her. "I have to go."

"Okay."

He walked to the door and was about to push it open when he turned. "Thank you."

She smiled. "You're welcome. Who knows Doctor, you might turn out to be normal yet?"

He grinned then impulsive thought made him frown. "Agent Scully?" Taking a deep breath, he quickly voiced out his question before he lost the nerve. "Are you sure you're not seeing anyone?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"Tall guy, hazel eyes, dark…." He stopped abruptly when her gaze began dangerously resemble a glare. "Uh… Never mind." Quickly, he escaped through the door.

Meanwhile Dana stood glaring at the door suspiciously. 'Tall guy, hazel eyes, dark… hair?' Her head snapped up when she realized that Jason might have just described Dole. He didn't see him in the vision with the cards so it would mean that he had another vision of him with her. It then occurred to her for the first time, if it was a good idea helping Jason out at all. If his powers were as he claimed, he may find out more truths about her life than she would ever want him, or anyone else to know. 

Or maybe there was more to Jason Alexander than meets the eye? And Dana decided to find out.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"Agent Scully!" Byers greeted her with a smile.

"Hey Byers. Had your dinner?" Dana smiled back and held up the pot in her arms.

He took it from her and led her in. Langly looked up from his keyboard and waved a quick hello to her. "It's been a while, Agent Scully."

"Yeah, been busy." She replied and sank into their couch nearby. The Lone Gunmen's quarters hadn't changed much, except for the missing Frohike. Passing away a year ago of a heart attack, things were quite different without him around. Perhaps, she missed his lame come-ons. Quietly, Dana said a silent prayer for the little man's soul. 

Meanwhile Byers was obviously hungry, studying the dish she brought over. "Turkey?"

She lifted her eyes. "Don't get too excited. A three day old leftover."

He raised an eyebrow. "Leftover? It's a whole turkey."

She shot him a grimace. "Don't ask. But it's good as new, straight from the oven to the freezer, back to the oven and now here." He shrugged and dug in. She suddenly recalled something. "Oh guys, since I'm here, I need a favour."

"What can we do for you?" Langly asked without turning around.

"I need some information about a Doctor Jason Alexander, an intern in DC County Hospital."

Langly nodded and typed it in his computer. "Jason Alexander." He clinked around the screen and quietly read the windows that popped up. "Interesting guy. A genius with an IQ of 155, basketball team in high school, graduated top in the state with SAT scores among the country's top ten, his father went missing, finished med school in record time…"

Dana interrupted him. "Back up a little. His father went missing?"

"Yup. It's stated here that Jason Alexander filed a missing person's report on him and the case is still open."

She frowned. "When?"

His curiosity alerted, Byers abandoned the turkey and walked over to stand beside Langly, reading over his shoulder. "Two years ago this September 26th. Check out his father Vincent Alexander, Langly." Byers prodded further.

"Right." Langly obeyed then cursed when the screen suddenly turned blurry. "Damn! This graphic card is driving me crazy!"

Byers calmly told him. "Print it out then." And he watched patiently as the print out appeared backwards from the printer. His eyes caught something and he peered closer.

"Oh good! It's back to normal." Langly sighed in relief as the screen returned to focus. 

Dana moved to join them at the table. "What else?"

"According to the police report, his father cleaned up pretty good before disappearing, like he meant to vanish. Closed his accounts and sold the house. And he's a part-time writer too so no strings attached to any establishment."

She frowned. "Two years ago meant that Vincent Alexander vanished when Jason was in college. How did he pay for it then?"

"He was under scholarship."

"But not for his living."

"Maybe he had savings?" But before Langly could bring up the bank statement, the monitor suddenly went off. "What the…?"

"The graphic card must have blown." Byers innocently suggested. 

"That's impossible!" Langly replied and ducked under the table to look at the wiring. 

Byers shot the slightly irritated Agent Scully an apologetic look. "Sorry, technical problems. I'd better take a look too." She rolled her eyes and he dropped to join Langly. 

Meanwhile Langly had already discovered what was wrong. Someone had disconnected the monitor power supply from the PC. Although bewildered he automatically reached out to reconnect it when Byer's hand clamped tightly on his wrist. He looked up in surprise. The former held out a sheet of paper, the print out of Vincent Alexander's Birth Certificate and pointed at the top right hand corner. The tiny, usually ignored and irrelevant serial number read 53704556 00097579. 

"So?" Langly asked, taking the sheet from him but not understanding.

Byers slapped his forehead with one hand and grimaced. His fears were founded as Scully heard Langly's question and asked. "Everything okay down there?"

"Yeah." Byers replied quickly and glared at his partner to shut up. The latter was still confused but obeyed. Then Byers grabbed the sheet from his hand, turned it upside down and pointed furiously at the serial number again. 

Langly stared at it and soon he began to make out the word formed by the first eight numbers. When turned upside-down the calculator font decimal numbers 53704556 spelled out ASSHOLES. It was Frohike's trademark! The Birth Certificate was not only fake, it was also the creation of the Lone Gunmen!

They stared at each other for a moment. Then the both of them mouthed the name that seemed to fit Vincent Alexander's profile. "Mulder!"

Dana impatiently tapped her feet on the floor, wondering what on earth was taking the two men so long. "Are you guys having a private party or can I come down there too?"

They reluctantly came out from under the table. Dana noted that they were a little nervous. Langly began first. "Sorry Agent Scully, nothing we can do about it at the moment. Why don't leave this to us, we'll check it out and call you."

She sighed. "Oh all right. Thanks guys!" Then she moved to leave.

"Agent Scully?" Byers called out.

"Hmm?"

"What did Jason Alexander do?"

"Nothing… yet." She hesitated then continued. "He needed some help and I wanted to make sure he wasn't flaky or anything."

"What did he need help on?"

She bit her lip as if unsure if she should say. "He has visions, of the past, present and future. He never had them before until recently."

The two men looked at each other and then back at her. "Visions?"

"Yes." She smirked and remarked almost sadly. "And I thought he was just a normal kid."

The two men looked at her uncomfortably, not knowing what to say. Realizing that she had said too much, Dana gave them a suppressed nod and walked out, towards the door.

When she had left and Langly had safely turned all the locks, he looked at the very thoughtful Byers. "You think Mulder knows the boy has met his mother?"

"He knows." Byers was confident.

"How can you tell?"

"A hunch."

"What do we do?"

"We drag our feet on providing the info, wait for a couple of weeks and then we transfer Jason Alexander out of the state."

"She'll find out eventually. We can't keep this from her forever!"

"No. But that's the way it's got to be. He needs her now. She'll be able to help him deal with the psychic ability, no doubt that's Mulder intent of letting the relationship continue. But when she finds out and all hell breaks loose, I only wonder if the distance will be enough to keep her away from him."

Langly sighed. Then a thought made him chuckle. "One thing though, I'd give anything to watch Agent Scully kick Mulder's ass for abandoning her precious son while he was in college."

Byers looked at him and grinned at the thought too.

XXXXXXXXXXX

It was her turn to visit him. Thankfully this time he managed to get some time off to spend with her. They were sitting in his room, on his bed. Joyce pulled her knees up and hugged them tightly while listening to him talk. When he finished, she asked him. "So how did you do in the tests?"

"Exercises." He corrected and then answered. "Pretty well. I have learnt how to channel my energy and thoughts. I also have learnt how to tell when an unrequested vision is about to happen and to suppress it."

She raised an eyebrow. "Should I be proud?"

Grinning, he told her in a low hoarse voice. "You should be afraid. Be very afraid." She laughed but sobered when he added. "Like Agent Scully."

"What do you mean?"

"She's different now. Colder, more reserved. It's like she thinks before she talks now, as if double checking if she should be saying the words to me at all." Jason explained, frowning.

"I think you're imagining things."

He shook his head. "Even the nurses noticed it Joyce, so it can't be just my imagination. For some reason, Agent Scully is keeping me at arm's length."

She suggested. "Maybe it's because you had visions of her. If I were her, I would be wary too if I had known a complete stranger had the slide shows of my personal life."

"But I've learnt how to control the visions. I've refused to see the ones that come to me and never will myself to see anything besides what's required in the Psyche Center exercises. She knows this."

"Maybe she doesn't believe that you can resist the temptation." She rolled her eyes. "Actually neither can I. You could do so much with this power, Jace."

He groaned as he thought of his lack of appetite for the past few weeks. "Oh believe me, I've learnt my lesson well. Do you know how difficult it is for me to look at Agent Scully with a straight face?"

Chuckling, Joyce confided. "Do you know how many times I've burst out laughing during work just thinking about the incident? My colleagues either think I'm crazy or on the brink of it. By the way, did you ask her about it?"

"Well, not directly." 

"Why not?"

"I can't just ask her if she's sleeping with my father! You haven't met this woman before." He grimaced. "She's … she's…. Well, she's like you."

"And what does that mean?"

"That means if I piss her off, she'll kick my ass." Joyce's mouth rounded to form the letter 'O' and he continued. "I did ask her if she was dating."

"I hope she told you it was at least the third date."

"She doesn't date."

"My role model!" Joyce gushed playfully.

He ignored her. "I daren't ask her anymore after that. But I've ruled it out."

"But that's what you saw in your vision." She protested.

"And who says everything I see in my visions are true? We don't know that for sure. Maybe it was just a mistake, you know like a bad reception." She gave him a blank look and he shrugged. "I'd rather believe that than what my vision provided." 

She rolled her eyes. "What I can't figure out is why you?"

"Same question here." He sighed. "We've been looking through all possibilities of a good reason. Even came to the matter of religious intervention. I believe Catholics call visions as one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit?" When she raised an eyebrow, he explained. "Agent Scully's Catholic too."

"No offence but I doubt the Holy Spirit would pick you to receive this gift."

"None taken, I think you're right." He looked thoughtful. "Have you ever received any of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, Joyce?"

She frowned. "When I was fifteen, Confirmation Day, remember?"

He blinked. "The gift of tongues."

"Yeah, scared the hell out of you, didn't I?"

"Yeah." He smiled at the memory of her sprouting fluent Russian to him once. "What happened to it?"

She shrugged. "If you don't practice or use it, you lose it."

"Hmm." Looking thoughtful, he muttered teasingly. "And not that missing Mass these days helped either."

Punching him in the arm, she retorted. "You know for an atheist, you're unbelievably self-righteous and condescending! You're worse than my mom!"

"Only because you don't tell your mom you how many times you skipped church." He shot back.

"The last time I missed Mass was two months ago. In fact, I've been squeezing in daily Masses at lunchtime these days." She told him casually.

He gave her an odd look. "What's the catch?"

"There has to be a catch? The church is nearby the office and I have an hour for lunch. I pop in for the half an hour Mass, grab a sandwich, coffee and head back to the office to feast." Unfortunately, he didn't buy it and persisted in his glare. She gave in, grimacing. "Okay fine. The new priest is incredibly cute."

He looked horrified. "You're seducing a priest?"

"I am not seducing a priest!" She gave him a look of utter disgust. "I admire from afar, that's all I do." Then muttering under her breath, she added. "Actually it's all I can do."

"Joyce…" He growled warningly.

"Relax. I promise you I am not that desperate to make moves on a man of the cloth. Not to mention the Catholic Church will excommunicate me, my parents will disown me and my ancestors will turn in their graves." She sighed. "He's just so hunky so I just look. No harm done." 

"Except for the fact that you're drooling over a man of God in a church." 

"I do not drool. Besides, I'm not the only one. The ratings have gone up since Father Chris's arrival to St. Mary's, especially the number of young women." Jason snorted in disgust and she defended herself. "Oh come on, I've stopped dating. Let me have some fun!"

He raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know Darrell had that much impact on you."

"He didn't. I've just decided to take a healthy break from dating. Now I just have to figure out how to say no to my nosy friends and their attempts to hook me up with every single guy they meet and I'd be all set enjoying single hood for a while." 

He grinned. "You wouldn't last a week!"

"That's why I'm focusing on men I can't get. Safer that way." And she began interrogating him instead. "So, what about you? How's Linda coming along?"

"Fantastic. We're getting along great. Thankfully she's just as busy as me so I'm not the only one letting her down, breaking dates."

"Aw… you're taking turns standing each other up!" She gushed sarcastically. "That's so sweet!"

"Funny." He drawled and continued. "We're fine. Okay so we don't see each other so much these days but we have a blast every time we do."

"You mean if the both of you manage to make it at the same time."

He glared at her annoyingly. "You just jealous because this relationship has lasted longer than any of yours have."

She smiled amiably. "All right, Mr. Commitment. What did she say about your psychic ability?"

She had him there and she knew it. Disgusted, he tried diverting her. "Did you know that Agent Scully has a son?"

"Jace?" She led him back to the topic. "You haven't told her, have you?"

He sighed. "No."

"Don't you think that this is something you tell your girlfriend?"

"It's not exactly a bad habit, you know? I have visions. That's spooky."

"She'll live, just tell her!" He sighed and as she studied his thoughtful face, she wondered something else. "And I suppose you didn't tell her about your father either?" He grimaced and squirmed, causing her to whine. "Oh Jace! You promised me you'd tell her."

"I tried but it just didn't want to come out."

"Are you sure you're having a relationship with this woman?"

"I just don't know where do I start."

"At the beginning, of course."

"And where is that?" He demanded to know.

She bit her lip, knowing that it was impossible to say when Vincent Alexander began lying to his son. "I don't know."

"See?" He emphasized his point.

She made him see hers too. "Jace, if you were in her position. Wouldn't you want to know?"

He admitted softly. "Yeah."

"So tell her."

Sighing, he finally decided. "Okay, maybe this Christmas."

"Christmas?" 

"Yeah." He blinked suddenly realizing that he hadn't told her about the change of plans for the holidays yet. "I forgot tell you. I kinda promised Linda I'll going to her parents' for Christmas."

She was clearly stunned. "Wow! That's a big step for you."

"Yeah." He smirked. "I guess it is, huh?"

"Yeah." She echoed and her shoulders sagged. Frowning, she tried hard to figure out why she suddenly felt so drained with his news. It shouldn't bother her that he decided to spend Christmas with his girlfriend. After all, hadn't she been the one encouraging him to let Linda into his life? So why did it feel so wrong?

He saw the mix of emotions play on her face and felt his heart constrict. Evidently she was counting on her to spend Christmas with her. After all, it was tradition. "I'm sorry Joyce. I'm sorry I can't spend Christmas with you this year."

She drew her head up and caught his worried look. Taking control of herself, she gave a small laugh in an attempt to lighten the air between them. "Hey, it's all right. It's… it's just that we'll miss you, that's all."

"Yeah." He bit his lip and wished he never made that stupid promise to Linda. "I'll miss being home too."

She sucked in a short breath. Hearing him call her home his was just too much for her. Hastily, she forced herself to smile. "You know, this is good. Really. It's about time you … moved on." 

The last two words seemed softer and Jason found himself breathing a bit harder. For a moment, they both looked awkwardly at each other. And he felt a ridiculous urge to pull her into his arms. But she got up and moved slowly towards the door. "It's late, I should go back to my room."

He needed to read what was in her eyes. He had to know what she was thinking, but discovered that he was too afraid to ask. So he just nodded, watched her disappear behind the door and slunk deeper into his bed.

Out of the mess of jumbled feelings in his heart, he recognized one that clearly stood out, guilt. Closing his eyes tightly, he wondered two things. Why did he feel as if he was the biggest jerk in the world and why did he feel as if he was abandoning her?

Unable to figure it out, he punched his pillow violently, switched the lights off and decided to sleep on it. If he could sleep, that is.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Dana Scully watched the young intern finish up his instructions with Agent Maston and Agent Landell and accompanied him out of the room. When the door closed behind them, she asked him. "How is he, really?"

He raised an eyebrow in mock surprise. "The brilliant Dr Dana Scully asking me, a brash, lowly intern?" She shot him a warning look and he quickly obeyed her wishes. "He'll live. Just needs plenty of rest and so does Agent Maston. She's been at his bedside since last night. You really should tell her to go home to rest."

She rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath. "Fat lot of good that would do."

He grinned and glanced towards the room that held the pair. "They're absolutely clueless, aren't they?" She raised an eyebrow innocently and he gave her a look. "Oh come on, you know exactly what I'm talking about."

Slowly walking down the corridor as he followed by her side, she sighed. "It's complicated. They're partners."

"What's so complicated about it? Just put them in separate departments and let them get on with it already. If the sexual tension between them doesn't drive them together soon, it'll kill us! It's like watching a nerve-racking episode of the Young and the Restless every time they walk in here."

Dana frowned and wondered if Mulder and her created the same effect during their time. Based on the rumours that went around the FBI, she was certain it was close. Then, thinking of her partnership with Mulder that withstood seven years of sexual tension, she smirked. "In any case, I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you."

He almost spluttered out. "You're not about to tell me that you believe that their relationship is purely platonic?"

She shrugged. "It's not my place to judge or encourage, for that matter. But I believe that platonic relationships between a man and a woman do exist despite theories that oppose it."

"I do too but those two are definitely beyond the platonic stage. My best friend is a woman, Agent Scully and I don't look at her the way he looks at Agent Maston."

She smirked. "Are you sure?"

"What do you mean?"

"It usually begins with friendship. You trust her and think highly of her. And yet, perhaps, you may hardly be aware yourself how highly it is. The extent of your admiration may take you by surprise some day or other."

His brow creased. "Jane Austen's Emma." 

"You know your classics." She nodded.

"I don't understand. I thought you believed in platonic relationships?"

"I also believe that a good relationship can exist without physical intimacy."

"Okay, I'll buy that." He agreed, thinking of Joyce but added cheekily. "But it's not much fun, is it?"

She laughed. "You'll be surprised how fun it can be. Sometimes it's the little things that count the most; an innocent brush of the hand, a light touch on the shoulder, the small of the back….." 

Slightly taken aback with her easy manner, he asked cautiously. "Speaking from experience?" 

Her face clouded and he could sense her retreating from him again. "I think we've gossiped enough for one day, Doctor."

Taking a chance, he asked quickly. "Was he your partner?" Her head snapped up and she stared at him. He hastily explained. "Word gets around."

She shook her head in disgust. "Even after twenty years?"

"Well, you… interest them." He answered sheepishly. 

She had to smile. It was thoroughly amazing that she was allowing this conversation to go on. If he were any other man, she would have issued her best glare and stalked off. But this young man stood up to her gazes like Dole did and he intrigued her. 

Still waiting for the Gunmen's report on Jason and Vincent Alexander, she had to resort to her own investigations. All of which came to nothing. The boy's father obviously didn't want to be found. Biting her lip, she decided to pry back. She told him. "Well, you interest me too."

He stopped breathing, unsure if he had heard right and if he did, understood her meaning right. "In what way?"

"What happened to your father, Jason?"

He stiffened. "You checked me out?"

"No offence." She quickly comforted him. "I check out everyone I meet. Call it a hobby."

Shaking his head, he smirked irritably. "You thought I was a nut, didn't you?"

"In my line, there's a fine line." She sighed. "But after what we've been through the past few weeks, I have to admit you're the real McCoy. You're scientifically unexplainable." She gave him a smile. "But I'd appreciate the discretion. Acknowledging anything is scientifically unexplainable will totally ruin my reputation."

He studied her face for a while. "Have you found out anything about my father?"

"Not really." She answered softly, watching his pained look. "He covered his tracks well."

"Even for the FBI?"

She was beginning to realize that he had absolutely no part in his father's disappearance. "You have no idea why he left?"

"No." He hesitated. "I had thought of asking you to check it out. But then, I figured he may be in trouble."

"And you didn't want to attract attention, in case he was?"

"Yeah." He answered softly.

Her heart immediately went out for the young man. "Would you want me to keep trying?" Looking up, his face registered hesitance. She assured him. "Off the record, of course."

He smiled. "Are you doing this for me or are you just personally challenged that my visions should be the only unsolved mystery in the world?"

She almost grinned. "Do you have a picture of your father?"

"No. He was extremely camera shy. Never understood it until now. But Joyce insists I have his features."

"Joyce?"

"Joyce Callahan, my best friend."

Dana blinked. 'Joyce? Wasn't that Will's best friend's name too? And Callahan, so that would mean she's Irish.' She frowned and for a moment her mind wildly wondered what the odds were that she was also a redhead and Catholic. But the insanity soon passed. 'Talk about being paranoid.' There was no way Jason Alexander could be Will. Firstly, Dole would never allow him to be in the same state and secondly, he would never walk out on him like Vincent Alexander did. No way in hell. 

Shaking her head, she told him instead. "Well considering the circumstances, I'll need all the help I can get. I'll arrange a composite artist to work with you. Next week?"

"Sure."

XXXXXXXXXXX

It was Christmas morning and yet it didn't feel like it. Standing in the middle of her front lawn, her ankles deep in snow, Joyce closed her eyes and enjoyed the feel of fresh wisps of ice melting on her warm face. She must look crazy, rooted in the same spot so early in the morning, face towards the sky. But she didn't care. It was tradition, well almost.

Usually she would be cold and wet by now, all thanks to Jason and his unforgiving snow bombing attacks. Not that she was one to surrender easily but she did better throwing him onto the ground with a karate toss than with balls of snow. Finally totally breathless and tired out, they would lie flat out on the snow covered ground and watch the crystallized ice fall, followed closely by her mom's bellow to get out of the shivering cold at once. Joyce smiled. 'Now that was Christmas.' She thought. 

A cold blast of ice hitting her at the back of her head suddenly took her breath away. Looking at the direction from which it came, she saw no one there. Glaring at nothing, she yelled, thinking it was the deed of the neighbour's mischievous boy. "Very funny, Kyle. But if I catch you, you're dead." She began walking towards the wooden picket fence, expecting to see a boy appear from behind it and beg for forgiveness. She never expected a much larger grinning boy to spring up and throw another power packed ball of ice straight onto her upper torso.

"Whoops sorry!" Jason laughingly mocked her. "That can't be good for your already flat chest!"

When she recovered from the shock of actually seeing him, she muttered an enraged curse and lunged forward. But he held her back with a tirade of snowballs, ultimately forcing her to her knees. "Jace, you bloody idiot! Wait till I get my hands on you…."

"Hah! Only if you catch me." He tormented her and attacked her with more icy cold missiles. 

She faced her back towards him to block off the assault and looked about for a way to retaliate. When she spotted the garden hose nearby, she grinned an evil grin. With a burst of adrenaline from the glimpse of sweet revenge, she leapt for her weapon and turned the water fully on. 

"Joyce, no!" He saw and protested, his hand holding a snowball in mid air. But she only smiled sweetly and let him have it.

He shouted a loud curse when the bitter cold water hit him squarely on the face and seep into his clothes. The longer he stood still, the number his body began to feel. So he threw his backpack over the fence, jumped over himself and strode determinately towards her. 

She only retreated slightly when he clamped his hand on her wrist. "You never play fair, Joyce. Why can't you use snowballs like nor….." She interrupted him by grabbing his arm, twisting it around and using her body to flip him ungraciously onto the snow. He blinked and cursed again. "Why you dirty little…." 

'Uh oh!' She thought and tried to run but his long limps had caught her legs in time and pulled her down. "Jace, let me go!" Screaming, she struggled but he was too strong for her and pinned her hands and legs down with his own.

"For God's sakes Joyce, shut up! You wouldn't want Mrs. Cronula to come out here and find us in such a compromising situation, do you?"

"What compromising situation? Now get off me, you moron!"

He pushed her back firmly, using the weight of his thighs to hold down her legs. "No, it's supposed to be a snowball fight. You always use your kick ass flips to cheat!"

"Only because you're such a big hulk of beef, cow brain! There's no way I can beat you with snow!"

He glared at her. "How do you know? You've never tried."

"Only because you never give me the chance!" She screamed back. "And don't be such a wussy! My grandmother is more a man than you a…."

Jason growled. "Will you shut up before you wake the whole neighbourhood?"

"Then get off me, you ….."

Whatever she was about to call him next was silenced by his mouth descending on hers. Joyce never knew what hit her. Although her head told her to fight, to kick, bite, make him pay with all the limited means at her disposal, her logic melted as his branding kiss dared her to try. It made her gasp; conveniently allowing him to slide his tongue against hers. She soon stopped thinking completely.

When he finally lifted up his head, they were both breathing hard. She was speechless and Jason grinningly took it as a compliment. "Well well, I finally found a way to shut you up."

Despite her inhalation troubles, a resemblance of a glare immediately appeared on her face. "Don't flatter yourself, you Perv! And just what the hell are you doing here anyway?"

"Didn't you hear about the terrorist bomb that went off in DC? I was at the airport with Linda when they called all staff back to the hospital. Been on my feet for two days, non-stop. We just finished last night. There were no more flights to Denver so I decided to come home instead, borrowing a car and driving like hell. So here I am, stinking with two days worth of my sweat and other people's blood, smell it?" He waggled his eyebrows and leaned closer for effect.

"Ugh! Get away from me!" She growled with all her might as he laughed.

"Jason?" A muffled sleepy voice called out from a window above them, from the second floor of the house.

Slightly afraid Joyce's mother would be horrified of the sight of her daughter being pinned down, he quickly looked up. Thankfully, the fogged and stuck window was in his favour. "Yeah Mrs. Callahan, it's me!"

"I thought it might be you. Will you both stop cursing each other on top of your lungs this early in the morning? What will the neighbours think of us?"

"It's all Joyce's fault, Mrs. Callahan. She soaked me with the hose."

Joyce's face turned scarlet red. "Why you rotten tell tale!" She hissed and defended herself. "Well Jace started it Mom!"

They both heard a groan. "I don't care who started it. Either you be nice to each other or don't play at all!" Then they heard a chuckle of laughter. Obviously, the mother had just realized that she had automatically chastised two adults with the very same words as when they were three.

Jason grinned but Joyce was determined to hold hers. "Hear that. Be nice." 

"Last time Jace!" She warned. "Get off me!"

"Or what?" He shot back confidently.

She emitted a tight smile. "Or I'll tell Linda you kissed me."

That wiped the smug look off his face as a look of panic settled on his face. "You wouldn't!"

Hissing back between clenched teeth, she punctuated her words slowly. "Try me!"

Clear blue eyes stared into hers, unwavering and unfathomable. For a moment, she was slightly breathless, wondering if he was really mad at her. But a hard squeeze of his grip made her grimace and suddenly he was on his feet.

"Bitch!" He called out but not angrily. 

"Asshole!" She automatically replied. 

"I'd better say hello to your parents." He muttered, grabbing his knapsack and walking to the house.

Hearing the door slam close, she let out a sigh. Still lying on the ground, she blinked as the snow fell on her eyelids. Amidst their playful tumble, she hadn't realized that it was falling faster now. She spread out her arms and scooped two handfuls of snow on her palms. The iciness made her shudder and she smiled. It was weird. Although she was cold, wet, tired and hungry. It just didn't matter because now it felt like Christmas. 

The door suddenly opened and Jason's voice called out to her. "Hey tiny tits! Your mom wants you to get in the house before you freeze your nipples off!"

She rolled her eyes and held out her third finger. "Oh go screw yourself, Jace!"

"Sure. I'll get right on it in the shower." He happily replied and then gaily called out louder in the direction of next door. "Oh hi, Mrs. Cronula. Merry Christmas!"

Joyce instantly froze and grimaced. 'Oh no….!' She turned her head directly. Sure enough there was the elderly lady standing at her front door, looking horrified. Obviously she caught every single word of the crude exchange. 

"Um… Merry Christmas, Mrs. Cronula." Joyce managed to utter sheepishly. Mrs. Cronula only replied with a hasty nod and almost ran into her house as if standing out with Joyce in her presence would pollute her being. Joyce groaned and immediately plotted her revenge. 

Ten minutes later, while Mrs. Callahan was in the kitchen sipping her coffee, she heard a flush of the toilet upstairs. Almost instantaneously, it was followed by a loud string of colourful and varied expletives. Knowing that flushing affected the shower, she figured Joyce must be irritating Jason again. Rolling her eyes, she yelled on top of her voice in annoyance. "Joyce! Jason! Don't make me come up there!"

XXXXXXXXXXX

Dana Scully squirmed slightly in the tiny room. The musky smell of old documents brought back memories of the basement too much. She almost could see Mulder's face from beyond the dust….. or rather, Mrs. Evens, the retired Grand Ville clerk. She held out two files and blew the dust off them, causing the other to cough. 

"More than ten years old." Mrs. Evens then declared loudly. I suppose you're wondering why they're not in computer disks or something. Dana nodded and she snapped back in disgust. "Because I didn't trust them, that's why!"

"I see." Dana nodded comfortingly. "I really appreciate you coming to find the files for me."

The elderly woman snorted. "Don't worry your head about it, Agent. The headmaster has got me coming in all the time to find files for him. I've taught them the filing system thrice but they're just not used to getting off their hides and looking for it. These days they expect the information to miraculously appear with a click of the mouse. Huh!" She snorted loudly again.

Dana contained a smile and took the files from her. "Two files?"

"I thought you might want Joyce Callahan's too. Those two were peas in a pod. So what's he done now?" Mrs. Evens demanded to know.

"Nothing." But when Dana received the incredulous glare as if she had wasted her time for nothing, she hastily added. "He's a brilliant doctor. I just needed some details of his progress in school, that's all."

"Brilliant?" She smirked. "That boy was trouble with legs. If the little redhead didn't keep him in check, he would have been expelled."

"Redhead?" Dana couldn't help but echo in astonishment. So Joyce Callahan had beaten the odds.

"Yes, hair like yours. She was a talker, that one! A lawyer now, I bet."

"I don't really know." Dana admitted and flipped through the file. Jason's academic reports were excellent but his attitude in class was much to be desired. But they improved as years went by.

Mrs. Evens clucked her tongue and grumbled again. "You should read the essay he sent in and won in the state essay writing competition in junior high. He was supposed to write about the person he admired the most. The boy wrote about the girl, with all her best and worst habits. When the essay was printed out in the school magazine that year, the poor girl refused to talk to him for over a month. Who could blame her? He even mentioned her current crush in his work."

Despite herself, Dana grinned at the anecdote. Jason Alexander and Joyce Callahan certainly made an impression if the school clerk could remember them to this day. "Have you met Jason's father?"

"I can't really remember. All parents looked alike to me. I know he came a couple of times to talk to the principle, you know about Jason's smarty-pants mouth but things improved after he started going for extra classes at a nearby University."

"Extra classes?"

"Well, apparently his disruptive behaviour was analyzed as a result of Jason being too bright for the system. It was suggested that he attend classed for gifted children. His father refused but arranged for the boy to sit in a couple of university lectures; Astronomy, Greek Mythology, English Literature, Criminology and several others. A variety of subjects as I recall, he sometimes rambled on about them to me while he was waiting for his turn to see the principle."

Dana raised an eyebrow. "And he could follow them?"

"God knows! All that mattered was that he was less annoying in school. I certainly saw less of him when he started on it."

"I see." Dana shook her head in amazement. Then looking at her watch, she realized that she was very late. If she stayed a minute longer, she might miss her flight. Turning to the elderly lady, Dana shook her hand. "Thank so much for taking the time to help me, Mrs. Evens."

"You're welcome, Agent." She graciously replied. "Oh and if you see that young scamp and his lady friend, would you tell them to stay out of trouble?"

Dana grinned, imagining Jason's face as she passed the message. "Of course. I will do just that, Mrs. Evens." She promised and bade her goodbye.

She walked to her rented car and started her long journey back. She wasn't really sure what she expected to find in Jason's hometown. And she wished she had more time to check it out. But she could only afford a couple of hours in between her meeting and her flight out. 

What irritated her the most was the fact that neither Byers nor Langly had gotten back to her. Instinct told her that it wasn't a good sign. And her suspicion grew when they had resorted to not returning her calls.

By the time, her place touched down in DC, she was mentally and physically drained. And it didn't help that she found herself stuck in traffic on the way home either. To prevent her eyes from closing, she decided to go through Jason's school files. Flipping through it, she found nothing particularly useful but found the essay Mrs. Evens was talking about. She was just about to read it when her cell phone rang.

"Scully."

"Agent Scully, it's Jason." Jason's voice called out.

Dana suppressed a grin. "Merry Christmas, Doctor. Just the man I was reading about."

"I'm sorry?" He sounded confused. 

"I paid a visit to your old school. Mrs. Evens sends her warmest warnings."

He croaked in surprise. "The old bat remembers me?"

"Oh I believe you made quite an impression on her."

She could almost hear him grin. "Yeah, she used to groan loudly every time I sauntered into the office. There was once she paid me to get lost, saying that she had better things to do than to update my list of treacheries and would tell the teacher that I had already saw the principle."

Dana smiled and then her smirk widened as the traffic suddenly cleared up. Putting his essay on the passenger seat beside her, she told him. "She also recommended a little light reading, your state award winning essay?"

He groaned. "I've been trying to bury that mistake from ever resurfacing! Joyce made my life a living hell for months!" 

She grinned and glanced at the printed copy of his essay. Suddenly two words in the first paragraph caught her attention. Stunned, she uttered it out aloud. "Captain Zaboo…."

Jason grinned, thinking she had already read it. "Yeah, it's how we met. For a tiny thing, she had a really strong grip."

As the full implications of the discovery hit her like a ton of bricks, Dana paled and stopped breathing. 'No!' Her first thought screamed in her mind. 'It can't be!'

"Agent Scully, actually I called to ask if you received the composite sketch your friend Tony drew up before the holidays? You were so busy that I left it with your secretary."

Dana blinked as hope rose again. 'It had to be a coincidence. Millions of kids had Captain Zaboo swords. The stupid red superhero was a world wide fad at that time!' She told herself firmly. And the sketch would prove it.

Balancing the phone between her shoulder and ear, holding the wheel with one hand, she cautiously lifted out the envelope she hadn't time to open from her bag on the seat. Then removing the piece of drawing paper from it, she stared at the portrait in utter shock. All hope had now died. The man in the drawing was definitely John Dole. And that meant Jason Alexander was her son!

Frowning, Jason waited for a reply. "Agent Scully?" Still nothing. Then suddenly he felt a slight prick of his senses, a sign that he was about to have a vision. He was just about to suppress it when the ferocity of the feelings that came with it took him by surprise. 

<<

Shock.

Agent Scully white as sheet at the wheel.

The lights of the traffic lights turned green. A blue car dashes out from the left, speeding towards her car.

She sees it, she blinks.

>>

"Agent Scully!" He yelled into the mouthpiece when he recovered. Dana started at his shout. "Step on your brakes!"

"Wh…..?" She frowned as his words refused to register but his repeated shouts became louder and soon it sank in. Unconsciously, she obeyed him but it was too late. She saw a blue Volvo coming towards her left at a frightening speed. The next thing knew, she felt a violent jerk and everything went black.

Jason heard a sickening crash on the other end of the line and held his breath. "Agent Scully?" He called out again and again but there was no answer. By this time all the occupants of the ER waiting room was staring at him curiously. "Damn!" He cursed aloud. Then hanging up, he yelled at the desk clerk to send a unit to the accident scene. 

The latter looked at him in astonishment. "Where is it?"

Jason blinked. He had absolutely no idea.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Sally drew the curtains open and Dana squinted at the sudden brightness of the room. The senior nurse came by her side and rearranged the flowers by her bedside. "Are you sure you want the curtains drawn? The sun comes in too much in this room."

The federal agent closed her eyes for a moment to will her head to stop throbbing and then looked at her with a slight smile. "I'm fine. Thank you."

Sally nodded. "We're transferring you to a better room as soon as there is space. The bomb really maximized the facilities of this hospital. I'm really sorry you had to be put in one of the ER units."

"Don't worry. They all look the same to me." Dana assured her.

Sally laughed. "Yeah, I suppose you're no stranger to hospitals, especially this one." 

Dana only offered a light smile. Her mind was more preoccupied with other pressing matters. And as her mind wandered off, the nurse coughed a little as if asking for attention. She looked at her. 

"I know you asked not to be disturbed, Agent Scully. But Doctor Alexander has been asking to see you for some time now. Would you like to see him?"

Sighing, Dana wished she didn't have to answer her. She was still in the middle of the waging battle within her. Part of her wanted to see him; another wished she could avoid him until she was more composed. Then again, she had to face him sooner or later. It was just a matter of time. Deciding that she had kept the nurse and Jason waiting long enough, she softly told her. "Yes, I'll see him."

Sally frowned at her sad composure but did not dare say a word. Instead, she just nodded and walked out of the room to page the young doctor. Meanwhile Dana waited and her pulse steadily rose in anticipation of the inevitable.

He walked in softly five minutes later and Dana stopped breathing entirely. It was different looking at him now. This time she was seeing him from the eyes of a mother and knowing fully that the man in front of her was her very own son. Her eyes burned with unshed tears and she hastily concentrated on holding them.

Oblivious to her troubles, he asked quietly. "How are you feeling, Agent Scully?"

She swallowed a lump in her throat and answered. "I'll live."

He smiled and for a moment she saw Dole looking back at her. With an effort, she dragged her gaze from him and stared at the light blue covers in front of her. "Thank you."

Jason frowned. "For what?"

"For saving my life." She sighed. "If I hadn't braked when you told me to, the Volvo would have smashed right into my door and into me."

He nodded and looked a little disconcerted. "To think I almost suppressed it…."

She looked at him in surprise; the boy certainly had his father's habit of beating himself up for nothing. "But you didn't."

He smiled. "I'm glad I didn't." Taking a step closer to the bed, he gently muttered under his breath. "You're one of the few people I trust right now. So I'm glad you're okay."

Hearing his words, Dana closed her eyes as a mixture of maternal pride and guilt seared through her. After twenty years of being absent, she had finally been there for him. And just when he had learnt to trust and count on her, she was already prepared to abandon him. 'Oh God! He will hate me so much when I do!'

Then taking a deep breath, she steeled herself for courage. 'It was the right thing to do.' She told herself firmly, thinking of the dire consequences if she didn't. They had been lucky so far, to remain unsuspected. It was an additional blessing in disguise that Jason had wanted the psychic exercises to be discreet and she had abused her authority to make it happen. But ultimately, the longer they kept in contact, the more attention they would draw upon themselves. She had to say her goodbyes, as soon as possible. 

The finality of her dilemma made her cringe slightly. And she lifted her chin to meet his gaze, studying him with a poignant look. Jason soon began to squirm uncomfortably, not understanding the intense gaze she kept upon him and yet too polite to ask. She surprised him further when she impulsively held out her hand towards him. Mechanically, he put his hand in hers. 

"Do you remember your childhood?" Her eyes were unreadable when she asked.

Confused at the sudden switch in topics, he nodded numbly.

"Your father loved you, Jason. You must believe that." She proceeded to squeeze his hand gently and whispered. "All you need to do is look back. All the evidences are there."

He blinked for a moment. Although his suspicious nature made him wonder what possessed her to suddenly bring his father up, her words still managed to hit home. And his vision blurred with unexpected tears. He took a deep breath to control them. 

She caught his melancholiness and was glad that he had caught her point. Letting his hand go, she added softly, her voice barely in control. "I don't know why he left you. But believe me, it's not easy giving up your own flesh and blood. Usually there's a pretty damn good reason attached to it."

He almost asked how could she know but realization struck him. 'She must be thinking of her own son.' He thought and before he could stop himself, he had uttered the first thing that came to his mind. "What was yours?"

He regretted his impetuosity as colour immediately drained from her face. A moment later, she regained her composure. "You've been listening to rumours."

Although sorry, he persisted. "But are they true?"

Her brow creased but she didn't say anything. Instead, she closed her eyes tightly and her breathing became more relaxed against the hospital bed. Jason was in the midst of wondering if she had fallen unconscious when she suddenly declared quietly. "I'm tired."

Jason recognized the hint. He muttered softly although reluctantly. "I'd better let you rest."

She nodded, her eyes still shut. He watched her for a while before heading for the door. When she heard it close behind him, Dana's control slipped and the tears finally streamed down her cheeks. 

She had done it, she had let him go. And the second time round was definitely much harder.

XXXXXXXXXXX
End of Second Time Round

Author: PhileyX 
E-Mail: phileyxback@yahoo.com 
Web-site: https://www.angelfire.com/id/phileyx 
Feedback would be inspirational.