TITLE: "Christmas Eve & Airports"
AUTHOR: Jen
EMAIL:JenR13@aol.com
RATING: PG
SPOILERS: Triangle, Emily(slight mention). I started this
story before "The Ghosts That Stole Christmas" so this is
a different take on the Mulder/Scully Christmas Eve.
CLASSIFICATION: S
KEYWORDS: Mulder/Scully UST (plenty of aws(it is Christmas)
but I think it is no-romo safe)
ARCHIVE: Sure, go ahead.
SUMMARY: A snowy Christmas Eve at an airport.
DISCLAIMER: ::whining:: Aw, do I have too! ::pouts:: Aww, ok.
Mulder and Scully are not mine. They belong to CC, Fox and
1013 productions.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Here's a little Christmas piece I started before
"The Ghosts That Stole Christmas" aired. No gifts in this one,
though, they kinda got lost in Mulder's storage area, better
known as his bedroom. J Merry Christmas everyone!!
Anyone who would like to view this story with a pretty snowflake
background and Christmas touch can read it at
http://members.tripod.com/Jen1121/christmas.html
"Christmas Eve & Airports"
By Jen
"Achoo!"
"Bless you," Dana Scully said for what seemed the thousandth
time. Her partner, Fox Mulder grabbed for a tissue. She stole
a glance at him before returning her gaze back to the road ahead
of her. He looked awful. Dark circles under his eyes that she
knew came from spending last night up coughing and sneezing. She
could hear him from the room next door. *Oh well, that's what you
get going out in December with no coat on* she thought.
"We'll be home soon, Mulder," she promised. "Lucky for you
we managed to get a flight back to D.C. on Christmas Eve. Which is
a good thing, Mulder, because if I had to spend a Christmas stranded
in Jersey because of one of your 'hunches'-"
"Achoo!"
Scully sighed and made the turn that led them to Newark
Airport. She pulled the car up to the rental area they had first
rented it from. Turning off the engine, she held the key in her
hand and sat for a minute.
Mulder had already begun to open the car door, tissues in
one hand, but stopped when he saw Scully wasn't moving.
"Scully, what's taking you so long?" He looked at her.
Scully shook her head and smiled. "I just realized I haven't
even wrapped my gifts yet. Guess it's going to be a 'presents-stuffed
-in-paper-bags' Christmas." She opened her door. "You owe me, Mulder."
Mulder sniffed and shut his door. "You'll forgive me
when you get your Christmas present," he said with a sly grin.
"Oh, will I? It better be nice."
"Scully, are you mocking my taste?" He coughed and Scully
sighed and smiled.
"Come on, let's go return this car and go home before you catch
pneumonia."
Newark Airport, NJ
Christmas Eve
4:45 p.m.
The airport was bustling with activity as Mulder and Scully
entered. People rushed in and out. Children whined as their parents
dragged them by.
"But I don't want to go to Grandma's for Christmas! It smells
there!"
"Jacob John Keates, you know how I feel about whining-"
Scully watched the mother drag her son away and sighed.
She _hated_ airports on Christmas. This was the last place she should
be. She couldn't help thinking as she gripped her bag and walked toward
the check-in station.
Meanwhile, Mulder was thinking the opposite. The busy airport
was a welcome change of pace compared to his usual Christmas Eve. The
Christmas Eve where his mother would call, and they would discover that
once again they had nothing to say to each other. Then he would fall into
a fitful sleep while watching all the "happy" Christmas programs on TV. Of
course Christmas was always just a gift-giving time for him, being Jewish.
He celebrated Chanukah as a kid, well kinda. Between the fights his
parents had, the atmosphere was never "right" for celebration. And after
Samantha disappeared it just got worse.
So here he was, 37 years old, and still dreading the holidays,
Christmas, Chanukah, or whatever. They were never his favorite time of year.
Of course, holidays were much worse before Scully came along. At
least now he had someone call him up and truly wish him a happy holiday.
And, if she was convincing enough, he was dragged to her mother's for a few
of the holidays. He remembered how she had roped him into Thanksgiving.
**"I'll be fine, Scully."
"Sure, lounging on your couch and watching your videos. At least if
you come with me you get food," she had said with a smile.
"I resent that, Scully. I will not be watching my videos. "It's a
Wonderful Life" is on TV."
"And you can watch as well from my mother's than you can from here.
And she has a better couch."**
And of course, Scully had won the argument, so Mulder had sat through
a Scully family Thanksgiving. And he survived, thanks to the fact Bill
was unable to make it home for Thanksgiving (maybe God did grant small
favors). It was a wonderful day, but he still felt out of place. He watched
Scully laugh with her mom, and chat with Tara. Mulder even tried to get into
the "family" spirit by playing with little Matthew. He saw Scully in her
element. He began to wonder why she was still working with him when she could
give it up to have a home life. He thought about it and then realized he was
probably just lucky. He had a beautiful partner, who was also his best friend
and….. Mulder remembered that was the first time he had openly thought as
Scully as his "beautiful" partner…..he never really used the adjective before.
He had wanted to but………he felt….strange.
Mulder glanced at Scully now, and watched her check her bags, then
reach for his. Maybe his cold was blinding his senses, but he couldn't
think of another time that she looked more beautiful. *Whoah, what was
that for?* his mind told him, and he looked away from Scully,
afraid she would see him blush.
"Mulder?"
He must has zoned out for a minute, because Scully was calling
him. He turned and meet her blue eyes. A look of concern passed through
them. They stood there, their eyes locked for a minute.
"Your bag, Mulder. You need to check your bag." She reached
her hand out to his and Mulder got a chill when her hand connected
with his.
*What the hell is wrong with you Mulder?? What are you acting like a
teenager now?? Scully's your partner, she's never been your….*
When Mulder didn't respond, Scully took his bag from him and dropped
it to be tagged. Then she turned back to him, with her best "doctor's eye,"
Mulder turned away, but Scully caught his chin and turned his face back to
her. She frowned and lifted her hand to his forehead.
"I think you're running a temperature. I have some Tylenol…"
*Figures.* Mulder tuned her out. He learned to turn her out during her
"medical rants" a long time ago. He sighed. *But with your luck it
always is.* Scully had finished her little "speech" and was now pulling him
toward some plastic chairs.
"Mulder, sit." She pushed him down by the shoulders, a task not easily
done by a five-foot-two woman to a six-foot man. She took the chair beside
him.
"Our flight is running late. By at least 45 minutes. I checked with
the desk." She routed through her purse as she spoke, and frowned when she
came up empty-handed.
"45 minutes?" Mulder repeated, still recovering from his earlier
thoughts.
Scully sighed and dropped her purse, looking at Mulder. "Yes,
apparently there's a storm coming. D.C. may actually see snow this year. See you
theories about the government's plan for global warning could be
wrong," she teased with a smile.
"I'm never said that, Scully," he defended but was interrupted by
another sneeze and a long round of coughing.
"That's it. You stay put, I'm going to get you some cold medicine."
"But, Scully, I'm fine," he started, but it was no use. She had waved
him off and was steadily walking toward the airport shop. Mulder sighed
let his head rest in his hands. His closed his eyes to the noise that was
going to result in a major headache. He must has dozed off (even in such a weird
position), because next thing he knew, Scully was shaking him.
"Mulder?" She sounded worried. He slowly lifted his head and met her
concerned gaze.
"Yeah?" She frowned at him and lifted her hand once again to his
forehead. Her frown deepened as she moved her hand down to his cheek. She turned
to the plastic bag she had in her hands from the store. She reached into it
and pulled out a bottle of Extra Strength Tylenol along with another item
Mulder didn't recognize until the glass hit the light. Damn it. A
thermometer.
"Scully, you better not be thinking of using that thing," he started,
and Scully sat down next to him and began to open the bottle of pills.
"Well, Mulder, that all depends on you." She shook two pills out of
the bottle and produced some orange juice from her bag. "I really would
like to get a temperature, but if you take these pills like a good boy, I'll
hold off for awhile." She smiled and Mulder suddenly got a warm feeling all
over. He knew it could be from his fever, but he knew Scully's smile was enough
to give him that feeling, sick or not.
Scully dropped the pills into his hand and handed him the juice.
Mulder sighed, and not really wanting to have Scully take his temperature in
front of a whole airport viewing audience, reluctantly swallowed both pills and
forced down half the orange juice. But it was worth it when he got another
smile from Scully. He smiled himself, inwardly laughing at the fact he felt
like a little boy trying to please his mother.
Pills aside, Mulder sighed and leaned back against the chair.
"So, is the flight still 45 minutes late?" he asked. The crowded
airport he relished only fifteen minutes before was suddenly becoming annoying.
Whining kids, arguing couples, happy Christmas memories in the making…….he
began to wish for his couch and "It's a Wonderful Life." At least then he could
fall asleep and get rid of the headache that seemed to be getting larger
every minute…..
Scully sensed his discomfort and patted his knee encouragingly. "As
far as I know. But I'll go check." She narrowed her eyes in her perfected
"doctor" look. "You _stay_ put." Mulder watched Scully walk toward the
information desk, suddenly very interested in watching her walk. Smooth steps. He
noticed how well she carried herself, and how much that made up for her
height. *No wonder she can always talk me into everything….* he
thought with a smile. Maybe it was the fever, but he kept noticing the small little
things Scully did now.
Her smile. Of course he had always noticed her smile. How pretty it
was. But he never realized how much he relied on it. How much it could
brighten a bad situation. But most of all how much he loved it when she smiled.
He realized that she hadn't been doing to much of it, except maybe for the
smile he got after his "trip" to Bermuda. Of course the lecture came along
with it, but it was the smile he concentrated on. Of course he had blurted out
the last thing he thought he would blurt out: "I love you."
And what was her reaction? "Oh brother." But her smile was enough
for him to know everything was okay. Nothing had changed for them. But had he
wanted it to?
He watched Scully, talking to the person at the information desk, and
only one thought came into his head: yes. Did he want things to change for
them? Yes. But would it happen? Had he meant it when he said "I love you"?
Scully had reminded him he had a blow to the head, as well as plenty of drugs
inhabiting his bloodstream, so at the time, he had dismissed it. But
deep down he knew. He knew it in her smile. He knew.
Continued in part 2/2
Go to part 2
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