From: Irie81983 Date: Mon, 19 Jan 1998 14:40:20 EST Subject: author: chase buckingham description: scully/mulder romance summary: while driving home, mulder decides to tell scully how he really feels this is one of many scenes i've written- if you like it, or even it you don't, you can email me at Irie81983 and i'll send you some more. also look for others by me in later editions of gossamer. :) ~~At Last~~ The blue sedan trundled down the country road, which seemed to have no end. Scully and Mulder were on their way from rural Virginia back to D.C. after a grueling case. The trunk of the car had a large dent in it, and both agents looked like they'd been run over by a Mack truck. Scully was the worst for the wear- there was a large cut running from her left temple, down her cheek and along her neck and collar bone. She had a black eye and several other wounds; her clothes were torn and her hair was a frizzy red mop thrown carelessly onto her head. She'd had a fist fight with two large men- they had knives, and she'd left her weapon elsewhere. The men, however, were now much worse off than she. One had been killed and the other was lying in a hospital bed somewhere, in a deep coma. Mulder, on the other hand, had only a few bruises on his face, but his mind was in a state of chaos. More than anything he was concerned about his partner. Even through her injuries, Scully had gone into one of her ultra-independent, "Mulder-I'm-fine" modes, and had insisted on driving back. His emotions, too, were in a whirl, and as he looked at Scully's scarred but determined face, an overwhelming wave of grief came over him. He sighed deeply, breaking Scully's concentration. "What?" she asked, more cruelly than she'd intended. Mulder took no offense; the weight of what he was about to do was so immense that he'd barely heard her. "Stop the car, Scully." She shot him a confused look. "What's up?" "Just stop the car." A look of concern swept over her face as she pulled over onto the grass at the side of the road. She took off her seatbelt and turned towards Mulder. He did the same, but both were silent. For a few long moments they stared into each other's eyes, not speaking, each trying to read the other's thoughts. Scully suddenly became visibly uncomfortable and faced forward again. "What is it, Mulder?" she asked in an exasperated tone. When he said nothing, she glanced at him, and there was pain and anxiety in his eyes. She was immediately sorry for being angry with him, though she did not let it show. "Scully, I..." His voice broke, and fearing he was crying, Scully whipped around to face him. "Mulder?" He smiled, relieved. "Scully, for the past few days I've felt like I've had to be with you at all times. I was worried about you. I thought it was because of the case, but-" "Mulder, I-" He put a finger to his lips and smiled. "Shh. I thought it was because of the case, but I still have that feeling now." He twirled a lock of her hair between his fingers. "Scully- Dana - I... well, Dana, I love you." He closed his eyes and squeezed her shoulder, still holding her hair. He said, softly, "I love you." A tiny sob escaped Scully's mouth as a tear rolled down her battered cheek. She held his hand in both of hers and whispered, "Fox..." as she kissed it. After a moment they looked up to see each other's faces. Both had tears running unchecked down their cheeks. She dried his tears, and he reached over and held her chin in his hands, pulling her towards him. The kiss was long and lingering as Scully ran her hands through his hair...