This is a story that I have no idea where it takes place. It's sometime after "The List." Mulder buys Scully a present. Well... it's a short but sweet story.. and hope you like it! *^ ^* V Big thanx go to my mom who suggested the idea to me when she saw "The List." DISCLAIMER: The characters in this story, Dana Scully, Fox Mulder, Agent Pendrell (red-haired kid who likes Scully), and (the mention of) Skinner are all part of Chris Carter & his greatest TV show on the earth. They also belong to Fox, and 1013. No copyright infringement intended. All other contents are copyrighted to the arthur. Also just from EMXC: The following is for the entertainment of EMXC members only. Any distribution without arthur's consent is voilation of federal law. "Imagine if you could take out 5 people who caused you to suffer, who would they be?" "I only get 5?" "I remembered your birthday this year, didn't I Scully?" --Mulder and Scully in "The List." written: 2/17/96 (in one day) =) THE BIRTHDAY PRESENT by: Ducovny at Ducovny@aol.com ************ A Hallmark store 6:33 p.m. Feb. 23 Mulder opened the door for a tall lady in her mid-40's and let himself in after her. He walked to his destination and stared, deciding which to pick up first. He made his first move and picked up a humorous Hallmark card, reading the cover. He then opened it, bursting into laughter. A couple of 'shhs..' were made clear to him to be quiet. This wasn't the card for Scully's birthday. It wasn't like her. After a few more selections of the humorous ones, and trying to hold laughter in, he moved to the friendship section. Not many to choose from. There were too many mushy, lovey-dovey, long-to-read cards that weren't worth the trouble. He found one that was like their relationship, but inside said "I love you, forever, friend." And that was a turn off. Those three words weren't exactly what Mulder had spent his afternoon looking for. In his third Hallmark store, Mulder had searched and searched for the perfect card to give to Scully. He wanted to make an impression this time, cause he had a present to go with it. He wanted something romantic, but not long, humorous, but not disgusting, cheerful, but not that cheerful. Mulder had never been so picky in his life. Maybe it was the fact that he had got Scully a gold watch. He had the back engraved "from Fox to Dana." He had accidently broke her other watch. She took it off to let him fix it, then he misplaced it, under the wheel of the car. So, he's making it up to her. ******************* Mulder's apartment Feb 23. 7:21 Scully sat in Mulder's chair, rocking back and fourth, listening to the leather squeak with every movement she made. She had her feet propped on his desk, admiring her brand new maroon leather shoes her mother got her today. Earlier, at work, Skinner had dropped off a small box for Scully. He simply said "Happy Birthday, Scully," then left. Inside the box was a salt-and-pepper shaker, in the form of a Dalmatian and a fire hydrant. Also a note saying "to Scully, from Skinner." Well. well. well. It wasn't regulation that directors give out gifts to the agents, but this was a shock to Scully. She thought it would be something like a gag, but the shakers threw her way off guard. Her mind began to wonder what Mulder got her. She also began to wonder why Mulder had said to meet her in his apartment at nightime? No one was in trouble, no one had any cases. Both Mulder and Scully had one night off, together, and they were going to spend it together. Scully had this thought brewing in her mind that Mulder would bring a basket full of wine, food, and goodies. She pictured a romantic evening. ******************** A fifth Hallmark store. Feb 23. 8:22 Mulder became aggravated. Scully's watch ticked away in his pocket and still no card. He searched and searched until he wanted to rip apart every single card in the store. Not even the women behind the counter could help him. The large make-it-yourself card machines didn't help either. He was looking for something special, specific, and precise. He wasn't finding it either. Mulder's arms flopped to his sides, going limp against him. He totally gave up in fusteration and defeat. The night had gone by too quickly. He didn't realize that it was almost 8:30. He promised to meet Scully at 8:00 p.m. The cards had conquered him. And Scully was going to kill him. Mulder walked outside, fumbling for his keys. After six pockets, he grabbed them, finally looking up. There were at least 12 cars in the parking lot, not one of them was his. His mouth dropped. He asked the nearest person if they'd seen anything, but no one did. Mulder stomped and raved, grabbed his hair and pulled it. He wasn't sure if he was worried about the car or how he was going to get to Scully. So, he decided to pull out his phone and call her. Scully picked up Mulder's phone. "Mulder, where are you?" "You won't believe me if I told you, Scully." Scully slapped her forehead. "Did you get involved in some wild UFO chase again?" "It's worse, Scully. I'm going to be a little late. I hope you can forgive me. I'll be there as soon as I can." Click. Scully blinked at the reciver. She then slammed it. "Creep," she grumbled. Mulder called a taxi and it came in ten minutes. While inside, he called to some people at the Bureau asking to trace where the car disappeared to. Some joker on the line asked if it was abducted by aliens. Mulder hung up. The cab stopped at a red light in front of a Hallmark store that Mulder had been in before. He sighed and told the cabbie to head to the store. Mulder walked inside, again, waving to the woman that helped him earlier. He walked to the card that said "I love you, forever, friend," and bought it. Finally feeling satisfied, he walked to the cab and got in. He signed the card "Happy Birthday, Scully. Love, Fox." He wasn't sure why he put down Fox on the card. He didn't want her to say his first name. So, why Fox? Mulder ignored his question and stuffed the card in his pocket. He sat back in the seat, enjoying the ride. **** In Mulder's apartment 8:44 Scully took off her maroon jacket, revealing a loose white blouse with rippled collars. She unbuttoned three buttons, and sat back again in the chair. She opened her shirt enough to show some cleavage, but not much. She even made sure that it wasn't too revealing for Mulder's taste. A knock at the door surprised her. She jumped from the chair and went to the door. She fiddled with her hair first, hoping it was fluffy enough to flatter. Then, she opened her shirt a little more, closing it a second time. She then flipped the collar like she'd been waiting and was expecting nothing. Scully opened the door. It wasn't Mulder. She slammed it quickly, then opened it again, closing the shirt with her hand. Her face recognized the one that stood before her. "Agent Pendrell? What are you doing here?" The red-haired pre-adult was shaking all over. He stared, with his mouth open. He wasn't expecting Scully to be at Mulder's apartment. He hid something behind his back. "Is Agent Mulder here?" he asked running fingers through his hair. "No, he's not here yet," she returned his favor, running a finger through her hair also. "Can I help you?" Pendrell sighed, heavy, licking his lips. He held out the small box wrapped in red paper to Scully. He didn't look at her. "This is for you. I asked Agent Mulder to give it to you himself, but... I was scared you wouldn't like it." "Thank you. That's so sweet of you." Scully took the package and let her shirt go. Pendrell took a quick look, breathed quickly, and tore his glare from Scully. Mulder turned the corner and quickly stopped when he saw the nervous agent Pendrell at his door. Scully opened the box and inside was a Micky Mouse watch. She laughed happily. "Um... I heard Agent Mulder ran over yours so.. I thought.. I'd..." "OH!" Scully squealed happily, throwing her arms around Pendrell. He gently touched her back, hugging her carefully. She was to tiny compared to him. He took in the smell of the perfume she had wanted to use on Mulder. Pendrell let go of Scully and stepped back and smiling. Scully listened to the watch play the Mickey Mouse song. "Thank you. This is really sweet of you." Mulder frowned. His watch was no good anymore. Spending over $100 on Scully was wasted. He'd have to return it to the store, after visiting at least 20 getting the right one. And now Agent Pendrell gave her, of all silly things, a Mickey Mouse watch. Pendrell left the door and walked right past Mulder. He was whistling happily, running his fingers through his hair, smiling a lot. Mulder walked to his door and heard the Mickey Mouse theme playing. He knew that Agent Pendrell wanted to give Scully a present, but a watch? Mulder growled silently and walked inside. His forced his face to brighten. "Scully, I'm here." "Mulder!" she exclaimed happily, bouncing to show off her watch. "Look. Agent Pendrell gave it to me. Isn't that the most cutest thing in the world? What a great gift." Mulder buried the watch so deep in his pocket, he hoped to never find it. Instead, he pulled out the card. "Here. For you." Scully took the card, read it, opened it, and smiled. "You like it?" Mulder asked, his eyes dark and dangerous. "Yeah. It's nice." Mulder frowned. Scully changed her attitude. "Thank you, Mulder. I love it." Scully turned her attention to the watch. They both stood in suspended animation. Mulder wanted to say something, but he couldn't. He had all these mean thoughts of taking a sledge hammer to that watch if he'd heard the Micky Mouse theme again. And Scully had images of how she could thank Agent Pendrell tomorrow morning. She thought that the hug wasn't enough. Scully looked up at Mulder. She could see the fire boiling in his eyes and knew automically something was wrong. It wasn't everyday that Mulder stood so still that it was like he was on pause. "Mulder?" "Mmmm..?" he didn't move. "Are you okay?" "Yep," he was plain, simple, and to the point. Hell, Scully knew better than anybody that something was pissing him off. "Did you set this up?" THAT got Mulder's attention. He looked at her. "What?" "Did you set this up? This meeting at your apartment. Did you bribe Agent Pendrell to give me this watch?" Mulder shook his head while talking, "No. I told him to give me his present, that I would give it to you. He was nervous that you wouldn't like it." Scully blinked in disappointment. "Why did you call me here then?" "I wanted to give you the card." She lifted her eyebrows. "That's it?" "Yeah," he lied. "Then, there's nothing more to give me?" "No," he lied again. "Then, I better go. Got a big day tomorrow." Before Scully could move, she felt Mulder's finger's grab her wrist. His fingers were cold and sweaty. She looked at him with question. He put in her hand the box. "Happy birthday," he said with no emotion. Scully opened the box and held her breath. The gold shimmered all over; even the Roman numerals were gold. The band was calfskin leather. She stared at the watch for a long moment. She then reached to pull it from the box, but stopped. "It's beautiful Mulder." Mulder, with a grim look on his face, found his way to the couch, pulling off his trenchcoat, his jacket, shoes, and tie. Scully didn't know what to do at first. She wanted to leave since Mulder was being such a jealous baby over the watch thing; but then again, she wanted to stay because of the gold watch he'd given her. He hadn't bought anything that expensive for Scully before. She had to give the guy some credit. Scully sat beside Mulder. She sat so close to him that he could smell that perfume, even the strawberry scent of shampoo in her hair. He bocked her off by crossing his leg. Scully leaned to Mulder, holding her arms out for a hug. Mulder didn't budge. She repositioned herself on her knees, reaching her arms around his neck. She then took his head and leaned it against her chest. He finally moved his arms around her waist, hugging her back. He heard her let out a comforting, sweet moan, like she was hugging a child. "Thank you for the watch, Mulder," he heard her say. Mulder uncrossed his leg and hugged Scully more. She quickly pulled out of his embrace when she knew it was going too far. Mulder tried to meet Scully's eyes. "You're welcome." Scully tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear, looking at the two watches on the coffeetable. "Which one should I wear?" Mulder shrugged. "It's up to you. They're yours." Scully turned to him and his eyes lit up. He smiled, grinned, softly laughing. Scully began to laugh also; that faded when Mulder pressed his head against hers. Their faces were so close. She stared directly into the hazel eyes she admired --and hated-- in many ways. Mulder pouched his lips to Scully's. She turned her head a slight, and he kissed the corner of her mouth. She felt his fingers rise to her jawbone and held her head still. He then covered his mouth in hers, kissing gently and resisting aggression. When it was over, Scully's lips tingled. She looked again into the eyes of Mulder, watching him draw slowly away from her. "I'm sorry." Scully blinked, looking at her fingers. "It's okay." Mulder seemed satisfied; Scully looked like she would break if she moved. This had been the first time that Mulder and Scully had shared more than touch. It was unusual, really. Usually, the touch of Mulder's hand against Scully's was an act of hope, or forgiveness, or help. He never made it more than that and admired his actions. He'd never hoped to take and play with Scully like a useless rag. She was his partner. His friend, forever. And he wasn't going to break that. Scully felt basically the same way. She had wanted nothing more but that gentle kiss. Mulder was cooperative, sweet, and wonderful. He'd given Scully what she wanted--what they both wanted. And it was now over. Her hand fell from Mulder's hair to the back of his neck and the other to her tummy. She relaxed against his chest as he turned on the TV. "What do you want to watch?" Mulder asked. "I don't know," she sighed. Mulder flicked channels. He kissed Scully's forehead and snuggled her for a moment. She smiled and leaned her head on Mulder's shoulder. "It's been a great night, Fox." "Yes. It has." Together, somewhere in the middle of the night, they fell asleep on the couch, with the TV on. ****END****** Well? what-do-you-think? E-mail me at Ducovny@aol.com I'd love to hear what you've got to say about this! =)