Fourth of July by Susan Proto (STPteach@aol.com) Disclaimers in Part 1 Part 3/3 I wake up and find not one, but four Scully women in my hospital room. Dana, Karen, Tara, and Mom are all sitting in those horrible, blue plastic molded waiting room chairs. I feel sorry for them, because I know they've probably endured the discomfort for quite some time waiting for me to wake up. I look around and see they're all still asleep, and since I haven't a clue as to the time or how long we've been here, I don't have the heart to wake them up. I take a surveillance of myself to see what damage I wreaked this time. Okay, I've got IV's up the wah-zoo. That's nothing new. I quickly reach down under the cover to check for __. Damn it! They had to insert the damned Foley, didn't they. They couldn't just let me use the urinal. God damn it. Then I realize it's entirely possible they didn't have a choice. Shit. How long have I been out? I have a funny feeling I might be surprised by the answer. And then I realize I had yet to check the reason I was here in the first place. My leg. Oh God, please just let it be there. I lift the cover to see if I'm still, relatively, in one piece. I don't realize I have my eyes closed as I lift the cover. "Oh c'mon, Mulder, there's nothing down there that unique and awe-inspiring!" Scully says with a chuckle. I startle and replace the sheet before I have a good enough look at my leg, or what's left of it. I still don't know. I'm not sure I even want to know at this point. "Hey," I rasp. Whoa. Where'd my voice go? Scully reads my mind, of course, and brings me a glass of water to sip. "Easy, G-Man. We don't want you upchucking it out as soon as you take it in," she says. When I have my fill of the water, I say what's most important on my mind at the moment. "Foley. Out." I hear Scully laugh at that. I guess she figures if I'm complaining and making unreasonable demands, I mustn't be that hurt. Right? I must not be that seriously injured. I guess I'm a little afraid to address that issue. "What time?" I ask, sidestepping the important questions for now. "Oh, it's about five o'clock," she responds. "Night?" "I should be so lucky. No, Mulder, it's the A.M. But you'll be happy to know you've been in La La Land for the last seventy-two hours.'' "Oh." So, there was a reason for the catheter. I know I should ask about the leg. I really need to know about the leg. "The baby? Is Matthew okay?" I ask instead. "Oh, Mulder, he's fine. You protected him totally. He was frightened by the noise and the commotion, but he's fine. He calmed down immediately after Tara took him into her arms." "That's good." I look over to where Tara is sitting and notice she, along with the rest of the Scully clan, are awake. "Hi," I greet. "Sorry, didn't mean to wake you up." "Don't be silly. Nice to see you've finally decided to join the land of the living," says Karen. I like Karen. She doesn't treat me like bone china. She treats me as if I were___, normal. "How are you feeling, Fox," asks Mrs. Scully. "A little woozy, but I think I'm okay." I don't dare say I'm scared to death that my leg is missing and wonder what the hell I'm going to do for the rest of my life if I can't be a field agent. "We've been worried about you. You do like your beauty sleep, young man," Mrs. Scully admonishes. "Sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to worry you," I say, and I mean it. The last thing I want to do is cause this wonderful woman concern. "Mulder?" I hear Tara tentatively ask. "Hey. How's Matthew?" I ask earnestly. "Fine," she answers quickly. "He's perfectly fine__. Thanks to you." "Tara, you don't have__," I begin, but she cuts me off immediately. "__Don't even think it much less say that, Fox Mulder. I do have to thank you. If you hadn't dove over there, I don't even want to think about what could have happened. You saved my son's life, Mulder, and I need to know you'll accept, as meager as it is, my thanks for that. "Fox Mulder, you are a hero. You're Matthew's and my hero. Thank you. Thank you so much," she says, but she's crying now, and I feel really badly for her. I don't want her to cry. "Tara, I'm just glad I was able to do something." I hold my hands out toward her, and though she's unsure at first, she rushes to me for a hug. I'm glad I can offer her some comfort. I really don't want her feeling guilty over a decision I made of my own free will. "Well, it looks like our hero has finally decided to join the party. Well, Dr. Scully did warn me of your tendency to react unusually to anesthesia," says a new voice entering the room. "Hello, Mr. Mulder. I'm Dr. Jacobs, and I'm the guy who put your leg back together." I realize I've just let out a sigh of relief that could be heard >from coast to coast. "Your leg will be fine, Mr. Mulder," he confirms, sensing my anxiety. "Of course, you realize you're going to see some serious rehab time, but you will regain full mobility of the leg. I happen to do good work," Dr. Jacobs said with a chuckle. "Thank you," I say sincerely. So what if the man hasn't an ounce of humility. If he fixed my leg up, he doesn't need it. "How long?" "Oh, with some seriously hard work, I'd say you should be hundred per cent in about six months," he says. "Six months?" I croak out. "That long?" I say, not even bothering to hide my disappointment. "I didn't say you'd be disabled for six months, I merely indicated it would take that long to get back to one hundred per cent motility. You'll be able to see desk duty well before that," he explains. "Oh, well that's something, at least," I respond. "I'd say you'll be able to return to your office in about six weeks," he declares. "Six weeks?" I respond with dismay. "Mulder," Scully interjects, "don't push your luck here. I look at Dr. Jacobs and see him nod in agreement. I keep my mouth shout, which only causes Scully and the doctor to chuckle out loud. They exchange these, 'I told you so' glances and Dr. Jacobs says he'll check in on me later. "Dana, you'll need to stop by Fox's apartment and pack a suitcase for him," says Mrs. Scully. "Huh?" I'm confused. I'll need a change of underwear and clean pair of socks. Oh, I guess a clean pair of shorts and tee-shirt would be in order too. But a suitcase? "Fox, you'll be in no condition to be on your own when you're released from the hospital in a couple of days. And it would make so much more sense for you to continue your treatments in Maryland, but there's no way you'll be able to drive with your right leg being hurt, so, of course, you'll stay with me. That's all right with you dear, isn't it?" Mrs. Scully asks as she looks at me with those soft, maternal, eyes. Now, like I'm going to say no to this woman. And what's worse is, she _knows_ I'm not going to say no to her. And what's worse than that, is she and Scully probably _planned_ this whole scenario the moment I got out of the operating room. And what's more__! I'm loving every second of it. I definitely can get used to this family stuff. I look at all of the Scully women present, and then look back at Mrs. Scully and say, "It's fine by me. Thank you, Mom." She smiles and I am content. In pain, but content. It's only now that I realize the leg that is still reattached is now causing me to see stars. I involuntarily groan out loud. "It must be time for your pain medication. I'll go check with the nurse," says Scully. I nod gratefully to her and watch her leave. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ They must have shot me up with the really good stuff, cause I wake up feeling as if I'd slept for days. Of course, with my sleep patterns, who knows? The room is dark and empty, and it's dark outside as well. Good. Hopefully Scully and Mrs. Scully have gone home to take a break. I feel a little guilty their lives seem to have come to a halt because of me. I really want Mrs. Scully to spend the time with her kids and grandchildren, not with me. Just then I hear a knock on the door. I call out, "Come in," and see a tall, slender figure in the shadows. I realize it's Charlie. "Hey, Charlie, come on in," I say. "Hey Mulder, how the hell are you feeling?" he asks with genuine concern. "Well, at the moment I'm feeling only mild discomfort, but they apparently have me on the really good stuff when things get rough, so I haven't felt any really bad pain at all." "That's good to hear. Listen, I just want to say__, I mean about what you did for my nephew__." I cut him off right there. I tell him Tara's already said thanks and we don't need me getting a swelled head. I smile to let him know I appreciate his good words, but I don't really need them. I'm okay with everything. "Has Billy been by?" he asks. "Umm, he might have come by while I was asleep, but I haven't seen him," I say. "Damn asshole. You just about save his kid's life, and all because of his own stupidity, and he doesn't have the decency to come by and see how you're doing? Say thank you? Jeeze, sometimes I can't believe Dana and I are related to him. "You know, Mulder," he continues, "the sad thing is, he's normally an okay guy. I don't know what it is about you that turns him into this crazy person none of us recognize," he says. "I guess he's right." I don't mean to say it aloud, but I do. "Right about what?" "Bad things happen when I'm around." "Mulder, you really don't believe that crap, do you?" he asks incredulously. "I don't know what to believe anymore, Charlie. All I know is, I love your sister, but I'm afraid to become more a part of her life. Bad things do happen to people I care about. People I love." "Don't you think you owe my sister the opportunity to be a part of that decision? Surely you're not going to let something Bill says deter you from going forward with a relationship with Dana. God, Mulder! I don't know which one she'd draw the gun on first, Billy or you!" I look at him and note the twinkle in his eye, but I also realize what he says has a great deal of merit to it. "Okay, I say. I won't decide anything without first discussing it with Scully first. Happy?" I ask with a bit of a twinkle in my eye too. Of course, that's probably just the last remnants of the pain killer showing in my eyes too. Now where is that nurse when I need her. Charlie notices I'm grimacing and reaches over for the buzzer. He presses it and says, "They'll be here soon with something to help." I whisper my thanks, close my eyes, and concentrate on getting rid of the pain. When the door finally opens I breathe a sigh of relief, but then I hear a voice say, "Oh, I didn't know you were going to be here." I open my eyes to see Billy Scully looming over me. I don't really think I want to deal with this now. My leg is killing me, and I suddenly feel like my head is going to explode too. I guess this is what you might call tension headache, # 38. I don't speak. I figure no matter what I say, Billy would somehow manage to twist it around into something negative, something bad. And I just don't have the strength to deal with his shit at the moment. I mean, I don't mind saving his baby, but I'll be damned if I'm gonna let him walk all over me because I did it. So I lay quietly and wait for him to make the first move. "I just came by to see how you're doing," he says tensely. His teeth are practically locked together as he speaks. God, this is really painful for him. Good. "I hurt. I get pain killers. I sleep. I wake up. I hurt. I get pain killers. I sleep. I wake up. I hurt. I could go on, if you'd like, but there's a definite pattern here." He winces at my words, and I'm not quite sure where the malice in my voice is coming from, but damn him. He has no right to make me feel like shit for loving his sister or his mother, or his entire family for that matter. He has no right to make me feel I don't deserve their love. I remain quiet now. I figure if he has anything to say, he'll say it. I know I don't have anything to say to him. He's already made it abundantly clear to me he doesn't want my input on anything. "Tara here?" he asks. Now, I'm really not sure what he means by this, and at this point I really don't care. The nurse still hasn't answered Charlie's initial call, so I press the button again. When I ignore his question, he addresses it to Charlie. "Tara here?" "She was here earlier, but left to spend time with Mom and Matthew. Karen, the kids, and Dana are over there too. Dana's coming back to relieve me in about an hour," he explains. "Oh." That's it. That's all he says. And now he behaves as though he's totally mute. I'm not sure what has me so wound up at this point. The nerve of this guy to come in and do me the honor of gracing me with his presence, or the pain I'm feeling. "Oh God," I groan. Well, that was an easy enough conundrum to figure out. Where the hell is the nurse? Finally, I can't bear it anymore and I plea, "Charlie? Please. Would you go find someone. It's really starting to get to me." Charlie agrees quickly and leaves the room to just me and Mr. Congeniality. Funny thing is, I get the feeling he wants to talk, but doesn't know how to begin. Maybe, at any other given moment, I'd consider helping him out, but I'm about ready to chew my leg off, and I just don't have any excess sympathy for him. Finally, he saves me the trouble. "Look, I'm sorry you got hurt. I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt," he says to me. "Billy, do me a favor?" He looks at me curiously. "Next time, when Charlie says to forego something as dangerous and stupid as fireworks, would ya please listen to him? I mean, I know he's the baby brother, but he's got a lot of common sense. Okay?" I've just given this little speech through clenched teeth. At this point I'm ready to jump out the window, and Billy finally notices I'm in a little discomfort here. "Umm, anything I can do for you?" he asks quietly. "Please, find someone to help me," I cry out. "Oh God, Billy, it hurts so much!" Well, for some reason, this last little plea on my part causes BillyBoy to spring into action. He marches to the door, swings it open and in his gruffest, toughest, seaman's voice, commands, "This patient needs help now. Somebody, get in here on the double!" Well, I'll be damned, but the man gets results. Within minutes, there are two nurses, one intern, and one resident in my room, along with Charlie and Billy. "We buzzed you about fifteen minutes ago, folks. Where've you been?" asks Charlie politely. "We were attending to another patient," replies one of the nurses. "All of you?" questions Billy tersely. "This man is in extreme pain. I suggest you do something about it. Now. And see to it he's not left in pain for that long of a period again. Do I make myself clear?" "Yes, Sir," responds the other nurse. "We'll do our best." Charlie leans over to whisper in my ear and says, "See? I told you the man has his good points." I nod weakly. All I want at this point is for the pain in my leg to go away. The doctor prepares a hypodermic and shoots its contents into the IV. I hear him murmur something about how I should feel better in just a few minutes, but I'm asleep before he can even finish the sentence. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The next time I wake up, the room is full to capacity again. Scully, Karen, Tara, Charlie, Billy, Mrs. Scully and the three Scully kids are here. Wasn't there a rule about the number of visitors in a room? How the hell did they sneak all of these people in here? "Well, it's 'bout time you woke up, Mulder! We were just about to pour a bucket of water on you," says Karen. "What's going on?" I ask. "We've come to say good-bye. We've already extended our little vacations a few days. The boss ain't gonna tolerate anymore shore leave for this old sailor," explains Charlie. "Yes, and the kids wanted to say good-bye to their Uncle Mulder," adds Karen. I look at Briana and Daniel, and wonder if they're okay with all of this. I'm still hooked up to a million and one tubes. I try to smile, and pray it's not coming out like a grimace, and extend my arms to them both. They both clamor aboard the side of my good leg, and are surprisingly gentle and careful not to jostle the affected one. I'm on the receiving end of a dozen or so hugs and kisses, and I think I'm enjoying this little bit of domestic bliss a little too much. It makes me think about wanting kids of my own. Uh oh. Don't go there, Mulder. Scully and I are still at the hand holding, necking on the couch stage. But maybe__. "Okay you guys, off. Someone else wants to say goodbye," says Billy, a little more gruffly then he perhaps intended, but the kids don't seem to notice. As the older children scramble off the bed, I see Billy take Matthew from Tara's arms. He carries the baby over to me and says with just the slightest hint of a tremor in his voice, "And someone wants to say thank you to you too." Billy lays the baby gently on my chest, and, of course, I wait for the kid to burst into tears. I stare at his beautiful Scully blue eyes and he stares back at me. All of sudden, scrunches up his face. I hold my breath and wait for the inevitable. He burps. Loudly. And then he gurgles and laughs. And I say the only thing that comes to mind. "You're very welcomed, Matthew." I look around as the rest of the family cracks up laughing. My eyes rest on each of them; on Scully and I think how much I love her and how I'm going to enjoy loving her more and more each day. And then I look at Mrs. Scully, and think how grateful I am this woman is so willing to give of herself to me. And then I look at the kids and Charlie, Karen and Tara, and I think of how lucky I am that I've been welcomed into this close-knit clan. Matthew has now crawled up to my face and has made himself right at home. He's poking and prodding, and for the first time, doesn't cry while in my arms. I look at his father and realize this is the closest thing to a thank you or an apology I will receive from him. And that's okay. I accept that. Why? Cause that's what family does for family. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ End of 3/3 Please send comments and feedback to STPteach@aol.com Thanks folks! Happy July Fourth, and may it be a happy, and safe one for you all!