Title:     EGGNOG 
           Dreamed 12/28/03 Posted 1/14/04

Author:    FatCat (feedback to FatCat33047@yahoo.com)

Website:   Please visit the wonderful home Donnilee has created 
           to house my stories at her site http://donnilee.tripod.com.
           Just follow my name to find my stories.  While you are 
           there, take a peek at Donnilee's great stories and those of
           the other authors that she has at her site. Thank you Donni!

Rating:    NC17

Category:  MSR

Classification:  V, RST

Keywords:  First Time, Baby Fic, Desire, Fantasy, Reality

Spoilers:  No Requiem, Season 8 or Season 9 in this world, but 
you will find bits and pieces of the entire Mulder/Scully dynamic 
and a what if for Per Manum

Archive:  As you wish, but please keep my name and site address 
attached so I know where to visit.

Summary:  What if the IVF had worked?  How do you think our 
two heroes would have handled the pregnancy?

Disclaimer:  They aren't mine nor anyone's but CC, Fox, 1013. 
Mulder and Scully belong exclusively to DD & GA. These works 
are used without permission, no infringement intended.

Author's Notes:  And most of all, a big THANK YOU to Donni for 
her beta work and incredible support for my work.

XXXXX

DL's Country Store 
Cardinal Forest, MD 
December 31, 2000 
2:57 PM

The silence in the store has become overwhelming.  I look down at 
my partner and try to repress a sigh.  Dana Scully is no longer just 
my work partner and best friend; she is soon to be the mother of 
my child.  That's the problem.  Except for one sweet but 
passionless kiss on New Year's Eve last year, we've never been 
intimate.

'Not for lack of wanting,' I think.  At least on my part, the desire is 
there, and that is what's killing me.  Scully doesn't want me, or at 
least until today I didn't think she did.  Oh, I know she loves me.  
She wouldn't have asked me to be the sperm donor for the IVF if 
she didn't love me, as a friend.  Scully is a very loving woman.  
Contrary to her reputation, she feels things very passionately.  She 
is practically euphoric about the baby.  She has taken on this 
Madonna-like glow lately.  She's even more beautiful than before, 
and that's another problem.

She may be 'great with child', but that hasn't kept every man who 
comes in contact with her from being turned on by her beauty.  It's 
disgusting.  Even Skinner can barely keep his hands off her.  The 
Gunmen?  Pathetic!

What's really surprising is that most of our fellow agents are being 
very supportive.  They admire Scully, and now that she's chosen a 
path that makes her appear to be a little more emotionally 
accessible, they've rallied around in support.

However, the very worst part of this whole experience is that until 
today, no one except the doctor, Scully and I knew that this is my 
baby.  I'm supposed to stand back and smile at my partner but keep 
my hands to myself.  I can't beam and pass around the latest 
sonogram pictures; I can't stand at the water cooler and swap 
stories about cravings.  I can't even touch her belly unless we're at 
her apartment or at mine.  I can't show any feelings for her over 
and above those of a concerned partner, and it's killing me.

Then again, hey, maybe the guy holding the gun by the front door 
will put me out of my misery.  How the hell do we get into these 
situations, anyway?

XXXXX

Mulder is upset and I don't blame him.  I am furious myself.  If I 
hadn't given in to my latest craving, we would have been home by 
now instead of being held as hostages in a bungled robbery 
attempt.

I'm squirming on the itchy hay bale that I am using as a seat.  
Stupid, stupid, stupid!  Why did I leave my purse with my gun and 
cell phone in the car?

I peek up at Mulder again just in time to see him try to repress 
another sigh.  How in the hell are we going to get out of this one?  
I glance over to make sure that the other hostages are holding up 
all right, and see that the little girl in the corner with her father is in 
obvious distress.  She probably needs to go to the bathroom as 
badly as I do.

I decide to go for it.  "Hey, Santa!  We need to go to the 
bathroom."  I can see the relief in the eyes of the little girl's father.

"Shut up, Red, and stay where you are," the guy in the bad Santa 
suit responds.

"Sorry, but no can do.  Unless you've missed it, I'm pregnant and 
when I say I gotta go, I gotta GO!"  I raise my hand to Mulder, 
requesting a helping hand up and he pulls me to my feet.  He leans 
in to me and puts his arm around me to steady me before letting me 
go.

"I said, Sit Down!" the Santa wannabe bellows, pointing his gun at 
me.

"Hey, Earl," Mulder says in a placating voice.  "It is Earl, isn't it?  
Dana's nine months pregnant.  She's not joking about the 
bathroom.  Come on.  You can check it out for yourself.  There's 
no way out of the room except through the door."

"Yeah?  What about the window?" Earl responds to Mulder's easy 
tone and respectful words.

"That window is too small for a child to get through, let alone a 
woman in her condition, Earl.  What's she going to do?  Climb 
through and call for help?"  The last was said directly to me.

He is trying to tell me something, but I can't figure out what.  I 
look at him trying to communicate with my glance that I don't 
understand what he means but he just smiles.

"Maybe Dana can take little Cathy into the restroom too?" he asks 
reasonably.

Earl starts to say no, but Cathy whispers, "Pwease, Santa?"

'There must be some human part left in him,' I think as he motions 
with his gun for the two of us to follow his accomplice, Daryl, to 
the back of the store.

Daryl steps in and checks out the escape routes.  He comes out 
giggling.  "I ain't never been in a girls' bathroom before," he says 
with glee.  "All you got is a setter stall in there.  No room for us 
pointers."  He laughs uproariously at his own joke and then pushes 
me toward the door.  "I'll be right out here so don't try nothin'," he 
growls.

I let Cathy use the stall first, praying that I can hold off long 
enough to not embarrass myself.  I stare at my reflection in the 
mirror.  I look pretty good for a woman who is almost nine months 
pregnant.  The winter-white wool suit I rented for the party looks 
very festive.  The emerald, silk blouse beneath it is one of my few 
splurges on maternity wear.  I run my hands through my hair and 
then drop them to my sides.  My right hand comes in contact with 
something hard in my coat pocket.  I slide my hand into my pocket 
and grin.

Mulder!  When he helped me up, he slipped his cell phone into my 
pocket.  That's what he meant about 'calling for help'.  I wait until 
Cathy is done and help her wash her hands.  I tell her that she can 
go on back out with her father.  I watch from the doorway until she 
is safely in her father's arms and glare at Daryl.

"Get on out here," he growls.

"I'm not done," I say as I close the door in his face.

I wait to make sure he doesn't come in the room with me before I 
step into the stall and slide the lock into place.

I check the volume on the phone so that it won't alert Dumb, 
Dumber and Really Stupid about what I am doing.  I situate myself 
on the toilet and dial 911.  I quietly identify myself and ask to be 
patched through to the police outside the store.

I flush the toilet to disguise the sound of my voice and I give them 
the details of our situation, telling them that Mulder is a trained 
negotiator with the FBI.  I let them know that I will not be able to 
communicate with them further.  Captain Murray suggests that 
Mulder try to defuse the situation until the SWAT Team gets there 
and into position.

"Hey!  What's taking so long, Red?" Daryl yells as he pounds on 
the door and opens it a crack.

I quickly hide the phone and yell back the first thing that I think he 
can relate to, "Hemorrhoids!"

He slams the door and I retrieve the phone from my pocket, 
pressing it to my ear.  I flush the toilet again.  I can hear the 
Captain laughing, desperately trying to bring himself back under 
control.

"I'm sorry, Agent Scully.  I had a flashback to my wife's last 
pregnancy."

"I've got to go, Captain," I croak in embarrassment.

I hang up the phone and slide it back in my pocket.  I finish my 
original goal and peek outside the stall to make sure I am still 
alone.  I wash my hands and wrap the cell phone up in the paper I 
finished using.  I shove it down as far as I can in the trash 
receptacle and decide that I need to wash my hands again.

I step out of the bathroom and as I suspected, Daryl went in to 
check that I hadn't opened the window or found a way to 
communicate with the police.

I waddle back over towards Mulder and the ludicrousness of the 
situation makes me start to giggle.  Mulder is standing at the edge 
of a life-sized crèche.  D.L., the store owner, has put away the life 
size statues already, but the manger and the pseudo stable are still 
there.  When I sit back down it will look like we are a live nativity 
scene, Joseph and Mary, awaiting the arrival of Jesus.

This is all my brothers' fault.

XXXXX

The three stooges are getting antsy.  Their foiled robbery attempt is 
quickly degenerating into a Mexican Stand Off.  They brought 
sawed-off shotguns with them, but now they have my Sig Saur and 
I am terrified that they will shoot one of us accidentally.  My 
weapon has a hair-trigger, that's one of the reasons I never flip off 
the safety unless I'm prepared to shoot.  They are playing with it 
and flipping the safety off and on as if it's a toy.  One small 
squeeze could turn this idiocy into tragedy.

I watch Scully as she exits the restroom giving Daryl a glare.  Her 
gaze slides around the room, making sure of the position of the 
other two perps and then back to mine.  I am amazed as she starts 
to giggle as she walks towards me.  Her eyes sweep the area where 
we are being held and I realize what she is thinking.  We are in the 
corner across from the front door in a partially dismantled manger 
scene.  She looks like a modern-day Mary.  Does that make me 
Joseph?

She gives me a slight nod and I know that she has gotten through 
to the police.  It is time for me to try to talk these guys down and 
defuse this situation before it becomes deadly.

"Earl, can I call you Earl?" I ask.  The leader nods and I continue 
to talk about anything I could think of.  'Play by the rule book, 
Mulder,' I think.  'Your entire world is in this room.'

XXXXX

I settle on the bale of hay again and try to get comfortable.  The 
baby is so low that I am afraid I am going to have to go to the 
bathroom again before long.  My back is hurting, my feet ache, and 
my patience is running thin.  I try to think of something other than 
the physical discomfort I am in.

What were my brothers thinking?  Bill swore that he would behave 
himself if Mulder and I came to Mom's New Year's Eve Open 
House.  Tara was going to be there and Matty too, so I believed 
him.  I didn't think he would try anything with them there to keep 
him under control.  And Charlie!  I definitely will kill Charlie for 
encouraging Bill like he did.

Poor Mulder.  I've been such a blind fool.  I've been so happy with 
the pregnancy, I've thought of nothing but myself for months.  I 
am carrying Mulder's baby.  I have been so wrapped up in my own 
thoughts and feelings that I have ignored the fact that this baby is a 
life-altering gift for him too.  One of my fondest wishes has come 
true.  If only Mulder could love the baby and me as much as I love 
him, but he doesn't.  He's been very supportive, but very proper 
and distant all during the pregnancy.  He occasionally will touch 
the baby when we're at one of our apartments, but usually, he's the 
perfect professional partner.

I didn't realize before today that all my posturing is a cover to 
protect me.  All I have thought about was me, me, me ... and of 
course the baby.

I tried to be professional during office hours.  I tried not to give 
into my feelings, but when some of my fellow agents began to 
warm up to me and started showing their support of my decision to 
have a child outside marriage, I became this huge walking 
hormone.  I laughed, I cried and I enjoyed every minute of it.  I 
didn't realize that Mulder felt left out.

We decided initially not to tell anyone that he is the other half of 
the equation so that we could keep working together as long as 
possible.  We had already discussed the entire scenario and I, well, 
we decided that I will not return to field agent status until the baby 
is at least three years old.

Consequently, there is a new agent assigned to X-Files.  Mulder's 
future partner is a tall, luscious blonde.  She looks more like one of 
the stars in his video collection than a veteran agent with the FBI.  
However, she is a good agent and her record proves it.  She's smart 
and has a great sense of humor.  I liked her right up until the first 
day that she made a pass at Mulder.   Mulder, the dog, threw it 
right back at her and since then they've been, if not friends, 
working associates.

I wanted to cry, and I did.  Alone, at night, in my lonely apartment.  
Maybe that's why Charlie went along with Bill.  He must have 
realized that I'd been crying the last time he called.  Who knows?  
Maybe the whole set-up was Charlie's idea.  Damn these 
hormones.  I can't concentrate worth a damn.  No wonder they 
assigned Mulder another partner.  Maybe she can keep him safe.  I 
rub my forehead.  My own thoughts are giving me a headache.

XXXXX

My thoughts are running rampant as I calmly talk to the robbers, 
trying to further defuse the situation.

Scully looks like she has a headache.  I reach down and massage 
the muscles in her neck.  I know it will help relieve the pain.

I wonder if she really loves me.

I wonder when this is going to be over.

I wonder if the baby will have her nose or mine.

This is all Bill Scully's fault.

So this guy actually likes watching the cooking channel?  Who 
would have guessed it?

XXXXX

Mulder is standing by my side now, rubbing my neck casually with 
one hand, and talking to the perp about Emeril LaGasse's show on 
the Food Network.  How does he do that?  Know when I need 
him?  He's been so distant throughout this entire pregnancy, and 
yet, notices a detail like the fact that I have a headache.  Yeah, 
distant to me, but he sure has warmed up to Ms. Perky Breasts, 
Special Agent Avery Denton.

I try to fight back the tears I feel swelling up in my eyes at the 
thought of Mulder and another woman, but I'm only partially 
successful.  One tear slides down my cheek and I know that 
Mulder sees it.  His hand lifts from my shoulder and grazes my 
cheek, brushing away the tear before it can fall on my silk blouse.  
My eyes lift up and catch him watching me.  I smile at him and he 
smiles back, reassuring me everything will be all right.  Maybe he 
did mean the things he told my brothers earlier.  Maybe he does 
love me.  Or was it just for show?

XXXXX

What the hell is the hold up with the SWAT Team?  I've got these 
guys as loose as they're going to get.  They need to contact them 
from outside and get them to surrender.

I glance down and see that Scully is fighting tears.  One has made 
its way down her cheek and I automatically catch it before it 
splashes on her silk blouse.  She's beautiful in this emerald green 
color.  I don't want anything to ruin it.

She's been distant and introspective since she found out that the 
IVF worked.  I know she's happy to be pregnant.  For both her and 
the baby's safety, I agreed not to reveal my participation.  I didn't 
realize how hard it would be to stick to our original plan.  I've tried 
not to let on how much it bothers me that it has to be a secret, but I 
wish she wouldn't cut herself off from me.  She's been opening up 
to others since she started showing.  Our agreement and her 
attitude have kept me at arms' length.  We don't talk, we don't 
hang out, we don't even banter any more.

Maybe that's why I was so pathetically happy when Avery started 
teasing me and flung the first of many innuendos at me.  It felt like 
old times with Scully, but she'll never replace Scully, not as a 
partner, and not as a friend.

I wonder if Scully really meant what she told her brothers.  I am 
the man that she loves?  How?  Like a brother?  A partner?  A ... 
lover?

Thank God!  There's the phone.  The negotiator must be on site.  
Let's get this show on the road.  Scully doesn't need this stress.

XXXXX

Despite the gentle rumble of Mulder's beautiful voice, my thoughts 
are a complete jumble.  Usually when he's talking, I can focus and 
center my thoughts.  Right now, I'm so upset I can't concentrate.  
Fears about Avery replacing me in Mulder's life mix with the fear 
that I am going to have to use the bathroom again.  Throw in a 
conversation about food that is making me nauseous and I am just 
about ready to go postal.  Wait, wrong branch of the Federal 
Government.

This isn't like me.  Not like Dana Scully at all.  It's absolutely 
nothing like Special Agent Doctor Dana Scully in the least.  I need 
to organize my thoughts.  I need to think about this whole day as if 
I were making a final report on an X-File for Skinner.

That's what I'll do.  As a last report before my maternity leave 
starts, I'll recap the entire debacle.

XXXXX

Last week I accepted my mother's invitation to her New Year's 
Eve Open House after receiving multiple assurances and 
invitations from Bill and Charlie.  They both said they would 
behave and treat Mulder with respect.  Ha!

Three days ago I made the mistake of inviting Mulder to go while 
at the office and little Ms. Size-five-and-can-still-see-her-feet 
Denton piped up and asked Mulder to a party she was invited to as 
an alternative.

Mulder said he would think about my invitation and dropped the 
subject.

Two days ago, Mulder agreed to go with me, for at least a short 
while, to Mom's.  He was sure that Billy was lying and that he and 
Charlie were going to 'make him disappear' sometime during the 
party.  I assured him that I would protect him.

Yesterday I overheard Avery Denton try to dare Mulder into 
attending the party her friends were having.  I have to give her 
credit.  She found his hot buttons right away and knew how to 
press them, but he declined her invitation and later confirmed the 
time to pick me up.

This morning, Mulder arrived at my place with bagels, cream 
cheese and dill pickles.  I had just run out of my favorite brand and 
knew I was going to have to have more before the day was over.  
How does he do that?  I wonder if the Gunmen have a camera in 
my refrigerator.

At noon we left for Mom's house.

At 1:00 PM we arrived.

At 1:30 PM I was ready to leave.

Mom was glad to see me, of course, and she had a huge pile of 
baby things she had picked up on her annual shopping spree on the 
day after Christmas.  I am surprised that she waited until three 
weeks before my due date to start shopping.

She was thrilled to see Mulder and made him feel right at home.  
For a while, I thought everything was going to be all right.

Charlie and family arrived right after we did and everything was 
still agreeable, if a little strained.

Bill and Tara arrived around 1:10 PM.  Matty has grown so much I 
didn't believe it was possible.  He wanted me to pick him up like I 
always do, but Mulder stepped in and swung him up in the air like 
an airplane, preventing a no-nap tantrum.

Right behind Billy stood a man I had never met before.  I didn't 
think much about it.  Mom has always opened her home to 
everyone that is alone during the holidays.  I call it her stray-puppy 
propensity.  I'm sure that's why she included Mulder for the first 
few years of our partnership.

By 1:15 PM I was in the middle of a knock-down, drag-out fight 
with William Andrew Scully, Jr. and his accomplice Charles 
Patrick Scully.  The poor sap they had talked into coming with 
them was so humiliated that he left.  My brothers, Bill and Charlie, 
had invited him to meet their pregnant, unmarried sister.  It seems 
that the man had casually mentioned to Charlie that he would 
never be able to have a family like him or Bill did because he had 
mumps when he was in his twenties.  They put one and one 
together and came up with three.

I was in the middle of a huge screaming match with Billy and 
Charlie when IT happened.  Mulder reentered the room with his 
coat on, and laid his hand gently on my shoulder.  I turned to tell 
him that I would only be a minute, when Bill's words stopped me 
in my tracks.

"Get the hell out of here, Mulder.  This is family business.  You 
don't belong here.  She's finally chosen to get away from you and 
your craziness.  Can't you leave her alone?"

If I hadn't been looking at Mulder at that very instant, I would 
have missed the pain that flashed across his face.  He closed his 
eyes and breathed in deeply.  I could tell he was trying to keep 
from saying something that would hurt me.  Even now, he was 
trying to protect me.

I turned back to Bill, ready to chew him a new one when Mulder's 
quiet words stopped me.

"I have tried to leave her alone, Bill, but I can't.  I love her and I 
love the child she's carrying.  I don't care that she doesn't love me, 
I will always be there for her."  He cleared his throat and looked 
back down at me as I turned to him.  "I'm going to leave, Scully.  I 
don't think all this stress is good for you or the baby."

He turned to say goodbye to my Mother and I spun back to glare at 
Charlie and Bill.  I could tell that they were surprised by his words.

"Wait, Mulder, I'm coming with you," I said over my shoulder.  I 
glared at my brothers again.  "I will never forget this," I spat.  "I 
might eventually forgive you, but I will never forget how you hurt 
the one man in this world that I love."  Tears had begun to fall 
down my cheeks.  I said, "Mulder is the father of my baby, and he 
has every right ..."

"What?" Bill bellowed.  "That asshole knocked you up and hasn't 
married you?"

I looked at him as if he were a bug under my shoe.  "No, Bill, 
Mulder was the donor for an IVF.  He did it because I asked him 
to.  He was my choice, Bill.  My choice to be the father of my 
child, because I love and respect him, and I couldn't even think of 
anyone else I would want to ask.

"I asked for his sperm, not his hand in marriage.  Despite that, he's 
been here for me anyway, every step of the way.  WE agreed that 
we would not tell the world that he is the father in order to keep 
both me and the baby safe, AND so we could KEEP working 
together.  My choice again.  He did it for ME, Bill.

'Do you think you would have been man enough to make that kind 
of sacrifice for Tara or Matty?  I don't think so.  You're too busy 
playing with your ships and your guns and you, Charlie, with your 
submarines.  Macho shit heads, both of you.  He did it for me 
because he cares about me!  What the hell have you two done for 
me recently besides criticize Mulder for every choice I've made?  
You would have known they were MY choices if you'd ever 
bothered to ask, but you didn't, did you?  You both were told that I 
was diagnosed as barren after my cancer.  Yet, you two didn't care 
enough to even ask how I got pregnant, or with whom.  You were 
too concerned with how bad it looked for your little sister to be an 
unwed mother.  How could you two think so little of me?"

"Dana!  Dad would be so ashamed of you!  Choosing to get 
pregnant outside marriage and with that man ..." Bill sputtered.

"No, Bill.  Dad would be proud of both Mulder and me.  It's you 
two that he would be disappointed in for not supporting me and my 
choices.  Dad didn't always agree with my decisions, but he 
always had faith in me, something you two have never had.  
Mulder has ALWAYS had faith and respect for me.  You might 
want to try it sometime."  I turned and left the house.

"Dana, wait!"  My mother called to me as I entered Mulder's car.  
She handed me my coat and reached in to hug me.  "Dana, stay.  
We can work this out."

"No, Mom.  I'm sorry I caused a scene at your party, but I can't 
stay.  I need to go home with Mulder."

My mother's sad expression told me she understood and suddenly I 
had to ask.  "Mom?  Are you ashamed of me?"

"No, Dear.  I would never have chosen for you to have a baby 
without being in love and married first, but one out of two isn't 
bad.  Take care of her, Fox."  She turned and went back into the 
house.  Suddenly I didn't envy my brothers one bit.

Mulder silently turned the car around and headed back to 
Georgetown.  I was suddenly shy and couldn't think of anything to 
say except, "I'm sorry."

He just bobbed his head jerkily and concentrated on the road.

Neither of us said anything until we were half way home.

"Eggnog!" I shouted.

"What?"  Mulder jumped.

"Pull off here, Mulder.  I want some of the homemade eggnog that 
DL's sells.  It was one of the main reasons I agreed to go to Mom's 
today and I had to leave before I even got one cup."

"You put yourself and me through all that for eggnog?" he said 
incredulously as he maneuvered the car down the off ramp and into 
the drive of DL's Country Store.

"Well ... yeah," I replied.  "But I had no idea that Bill and Charlie 
would pull a fool trick like that with their buddy, Mulder.  They 
told me they would be nice to you and I foolishly believed them."  
I felt the tears welling up in my eyes again.

Mulder saw them and melted.  "All right, you wait right here and 
I'll go get the eggnog."

"No, that's fine, Mulder.  I know exactly what I want and a few 
minutes of walking will feel good right now."  That was my code 
for 'bathroom break'.

That's when we walked into the middle of a robbery in progress 
and here we've been ever since.

I feel Mulder's hand squeeze my shoulder and I automatically 
smile up at him.

XXXXX

It is almost over.  Earl and his two accomplices, Daryl and Darrell, 
were ready to give up.  They know they are going to do time, but I 
promised to testify for them.  I would.  These guys are too stupid to 
be criminals.  They need to be helped.  Hopefully, the system will 
find a way to do that without destroying what little good they still 
have in them.

Just a few more minutes of concentration on this situation and I 
can think about Scully and the baby and me.  Scully told her 
brothers that I'm the baby's father and that she loves me.  Maybe 
we've had some miscommunication going here.  Maybe she does 
want me to be part of their lives.  Maybe she hasn't been trying to 
shut me out.  We need to talk.

XXXXX

Dana Scully's Apartment Georgetown December 31, 2000 3:45 
PM

What a difference a couple of hours can make.  Two hours ago we 
were being held at gunpoint by three of the most inept criminals I 
have ever met.  They had only tried to rob the store for food, beer 
and enough money to rent a hotel room for the night.  They had 
lost everything in a car fire the day after Christmas.  They had 
stolen the clothes that they were wearing and were hungry.  How 
sad.

Mulder brought me home and while I took a short nap, he watched 
the football game and ordered Chinese food.  He even set dishes 
out at the table in the dining room.  Maybe we are just going to let 
the whole thing blow over again without talking.

I don't want that to happen.  We need to talk and we need to do it 
before I go into labor with this baby.

XXXXX

By the time we got home, Scully was exhausted.  I got her to lie 
down for a short nap and flipped between the ball game and the 
Sci-Fi channel for about an hour.  I had ordered Chinese food and 
decided to set the dishes out at the dining room table because she 
seems to be more comfortable in a straight back chair now.  I woke 
her up and she had just enough time to use the bathroom before it 
was delivered.

So here we are, done eating, and I'm sitting here waiting.  I'll 
probably be back to channel surfing in a few minutes if she doesn't 
kick me out.  She doesn't seem to want to talk about what 
happened today, but I can't let it go.  I need to know where I stand 
with her.  I need to let her know how much I want to be with her 
and the baby.

XXXXX

"Mulder," I said finally.  "When we were at the store today, I had a 
thought."

"Yeah?" he seems surprised by my opening statement.

"I was thinking that you and I probably looked like a modern-day 
Mary and Joseph in that crèche."

He smiles at me and replies, "I thought that's what you were 
smiling about when you came back from the bathroom.  Either that 
or you were really glad you got to go."  His teasing voice washes 
over me and gives me chills.

"Well, that too," I shot back.  "But really, Mulder, you do remind 
me of Joseph."

I now had his whole, incredulous attention.  "Continue."

"Well, Joseph believed Mary when she said she was given a child 
by God.  He loved her and believed her enough to stand by her at a 
time when virginity in a wife was imperative.  You believe, 
Mulder.  You believe in me and you are the most loving and giving 
person I've ever known.  Not many men would agree to an IVF if 
they weren't already involved with the woman romantically.   
You've given me one of the two things I've wanted most in my 
entire life."

"Only one?" he whispers.  He lifts his hand to touch my hair.

"Well, possibly two," I whisper back, suddenly feeling shy.

"What's the second thing that you want most in this world, 
Scully?"  His velvet growl is raising goose bumps on my entire 
body.

"Actually the baby is the second thing.  The first thing I want more 
than anything in the world is ..." I take a deep breath and catch his 
hand in both of mine.  His eyes become dreamy and unfocused.  
"The first thing is your love, Mulder.  I want you to be in love with 
me as much as I am in love with you.  Did you mean what you said 
at my mom's earlier?"

A long silence falls over the room.  He stares at me as if I have 
suddenly grown another head.  I can't stand it.  My hormones take 
over and I burst into tears.  With a speed I didn't know I still had, I 
jump up from the table, shoving my chair over on its side, and turn 
to run into my bedroom.  I've bared my heart to my partner, my 
best friend, and he didn't respond.

XXXXX

I've just had the most incredible waking dream.  I thought I heard 
Scully tell me that the one thing she wants most in the world is for 
me to be in love with her as much as she loves me.  I am basking in 
the glory of that particular fantasy when I feel her hand pull from 
mine at almost the same instant I hear her chair fall over.

Shit!  It's not a fantasy!  It's real and I didn't respond.

I snake my arm out and grab her before she can get past me.  I 
have to be careful.  I don't want to hurt the baby.

"Scully!  Wait!  Yes, I meant it, every word.  I love you too!  I 
thought I was dreaming again!  Scully, Baby, I love you so much."  
I pull her down on my lap sideways and wrap my arm around her 
back resting my hand on her hip.  Brushing the hair from her face, 
I lift her chin and look deeply into her eyes before I speak again.

"I love you, Dana Scully.  I love both of you."  I lower my hand to 
the swell of our child as she sits on my lap.  Her feet dangle inches 
above the floor and her shoes drop off her feet with a plop.

She stares at me for a moment, as if trying to read the truth in my 
eyes.  What she sees must appease her because she sinks down 
onto my chest and snuggles her nose into the crook of my neck.  I 
finally feel completely happy for the first time in my entire life.  I 
realize that I am stroking her from the top of her head, down her 
arm to her thigh as far down as I can reach and back.  She's still 
wearing most of the clothes she wore to the party, the emerald 
green silk blouse and the skirt to the suit.  As I bring my hand back 
up her body I realize three things.

Scully is making the most incredible sound, almost a purring noise 
as I caress her.

When I stroke back up her leg, my hand easily slips under her skirt 
and just before I decide that I have gone far enough, my fingers 
come in contact with a lacy band of elastic about mid-thigh.  
Scully is wearing stockings.

The third, and most damning realization of all, is that I've got a 
hard-on the size of the Washington Monument just from our words 
and feeling her here in my arms.

Of course, the mere hint of Scully in thigh-highs or, Fuck Me, a 
garter belt and stockings, and I'm shaking with need.  I'm one sick 
bastard.

XXXXX

'He called me Baby,' I think as I snuggle into his arms.  I am 
sitting on his lap, completely enclosed within his embrace.  I am 
enveloped in warmth that makes me feel completely safe and 
happy for the first time in a very long time.  I begin to hum in 
satisfaction as his hand strokes me.  Mulder loves me!

I smile against his shoulder as I feel his hand slide to a halt under 
my skirt.  His long, elegant fingers slide up and then across the top 
of my stocking until he touches the skin of my thigh.  He begins to 
move his fingertips in slow circles across the top of my stocking to 
my skin and then halting for a fraction of a second at the very 
beginning of the nylon, only to start the entire process again.

It is the most intimate moment we had ever shared.  In light of the 
fact that I am now 37 weeks along with his baby, that is a pitiful 
statement to make.  Even though his fingertips are touching a part 
of my thigh that I've probably exposed to him and the entire world 
before when I wore shorts or a short skirt, I am aroused by his 
touch.  I am wiggling a little, trying to ease the tingling I am 
beginning to feel between my legs, when I feel 'IT'.  His erection 
is long and hard and definitely standing at attention.

He wants me!

XXXXX

Scully stops humming when she moves over on my lap far enough 
to feel my hard-on.  Shit!  Now she is going to get up and I still 
haven't kissed her.

She pulls back to look in my eyes and I can see both fear and 
arousal warring there.  She wants me too!

We both lean in and our lips meet for our first romantic kiss.

XXXXX

As soon as we begin kissing, the real world falls away.  I know 
Mulder is a good kisser.  Our New Year's Eve kiss last year had 
been wonderful, even if it was more platonic than passionate.  
Now, though, I am in heaven.  He kisses and nibbles and sucks and 
teases and drinks from my lips and I do my best to return the 
pleasure.

We are involved in an especially passionate tongue duel when I 
realize that I am getting light-headed.  I need oxygen.

I pull away and stare into his eyes, gasping for breath.  My breasts 
are aching.  I want him to touch them.  Hell, I want him to latch 
onto them and kiss them with all the intensity and passion he has 
been lavishing on my lips and tongue.

I suddenly realize that I am now straddling his lap.  My sex is 
straining towards his erection, but our child isn't cooperating.

"Mulder!" I groan.  This isn't going to work.  I am huge.  How can 
I let him see me like this for the very first time we are going to be 
together?

XXXXX

Scully just kissed the very life out of me.  I am starting to pass out 
when I realize that we both need to back off and breathe.

I run my tongue over her lips and give her one quick kiss as I lean 
back.  We sit here panting and staring at one another.

She is beautiful.  Her face is rosy and the flush of sexual 
excitement that flows from her neck down and disappears at the 
neckline of her blouse intrigues me.  I want to lay her blouse open 
and let my lips follow the trail of her blush.  I want to slip the silk 
down her arms and look at her for a year before I unhook her bra 
and slowly slide her it off her and worship her breasts.

Her breasts have changed.  I knew they were larger, but I had no 
idea how much they had grown.  Scully's breasts were always 
perfect for her small frame, round and full and perky.  Now they're 
... lush.  I've seen women on my tapes with breasts this exciting, 
but I don't think any of them were real.  Scully is real.  She's 
beautiful.  My hands itch to touch her there.  My mouth waters in 
anticipation of kissing and licking and suckling her beautifully 
enhanced breasts.

Somehow she has moved to straddle my legs.  I have fantasized 
about sex with Scully in a chair.  Ever since the baby began to 
show, I've wanted to take Scully on my lap and slide my cock into 
her.  That way I could see her eyes and kiss her lips, and cup her 
breasts and stroke the swell of our unborn child as I made love to 
her.

"Mulder," she groans in dismay.

I have to laugh.  She is rubbing against my thighs and I know that 
she wants the same thing I want, but our child sits between us and 
there is no way we can connect.

"Scully?" I growl.  "Bedroom."

She gasps and stares at me like a deer caught in headlights.  I pull 
her close enough to touch my forehead to hers.

"Do you want to continue this in the bedroom?"  I am amazed that 
I am able to put an entire sentence together.  I can see that she is 
worried about her body.  I smile at her, hoping that she will 
understand my desire for her just as she is.

It must work because she whispers, "Yes."

Scully is woman of few words at times and I am delighted to hear 
the one word that I long for.  'Yes.'  Yes, she wants to make love 
with me.  Yes, she loves me.  Yes, she wants to go to the bedroom.  
Yes, she's depending on me to make it happen.

Suddenly I am energized.  I am holding the woman I love and she 
wants me.  "Hold on, Baby."  I clasp my hands under her ass and 
rise from the chair.  She wraps her legs around my waist as best as 
she can as I am heading for the bedroom.  She cannot clasp her 
hands around my neck with the bulk of the baby between us.  She 
clings to my upper arms and I groan when I feel her moan of 
approval as the muscles in my upper body and arms flex.  Thank 
God all that time I've spent at the gym working out instead of 
hanging around my apartment brooding and jacking off, is finally 
going to pay off.

XXXXX

Mulder just carried me into my bedroom and set me down as if I 
were as light as a feather.  I've been feeling particularly large 
lately, elephantine actually.  I'd snapped at my mother the other 
day when she suggested a very cute wallpaper border with baby 
animals and their mothers marching along it.  I said something 
awful like not wanting to decorate his/her room with fat-bearing 
mammal pictures just before I burst into tears.  My mother laughed 
and we decided to make up over a lovely piece of pie.  The feeling 
has not gone away until now.  I am huge and fearful that I will 
never again regain my previous figure.

His manly display of physical prowess makes me feel feminine and 
dainty and treasured, and oh so loved.

Obviously he wants me, too.  The bulge in his slacks is huge.  It's 
leaning towards the left, but I swear, if it were straight up and 
down, it would be long enough to touch his belt.  My mouth is 
watering and I know what to do about it.

XXXXX

I am staring at Scully as she looks me up and down from her seat 
on the edge of the bed.  I know she likes what she sees.  She smiles 
up at me with a devilish gleam in her eyes and I feel my cock 
twitch.

"Take your clothes off Mulder," she orders.

I don't have to hear it twice.  I strip off my shirt and undershirt, 
kick off my shoes and socks and make quick work of unbuckling 
my belt and loosing my pants.  I am standing in front of her in the 
pair of silk boxers that Marty from Accounting gave me for 
Christmas.  They are almost tasteful in their Playboy Bunny print, 
confetti and ribbons splashed around a huge red Happy New Year 
with the tuxedoed rabbit leaning against it emblazoned across the 
ass.  I am embarrassed by her giggling perusal of my shorts.  I can 
feel my erection deflating slightly.

"Where ...?"  She clears her throat before beginning again.  
"Where did you get those boxers, Mulder?"

I grin and shrug, wondering if I should tell her the truth.  I decide 
to go for it.  "I got them from Marty in Accounting," I said.

"Ooooohhhh!  An admirer?" she teases and then starts to frown.  
"Marty?  The short, cute blonde?  Martha something?" she says 
and glares at me.

"No.  Marty Gregg, the tall, linebacker-looking guy with the 
perpetual five o'clock shadow," I say smirking.

"Do I have to have a talk with him after the holidays?" she says 
half seriously.  She stares at them long enough for my cock to 
begin feeling the heat again.  "C'mere," she says as she slides up 
on her knees on the bed.

I step forward immediately.  I'll do anything to get her hands back 
on me as quickly as possible.

She places her hands on my shoulders before sliding them down 
my chest, my abs, and lingering on my waistband.  She smiles up 
at me with the most angelic look on her face, just before she 
unbuttons the front tab and rips the shorts right off my body with 
her strong, doctor's hands.  They wind up in shreds on the floor.

I am shocked by the violence of her act.  "Scully?"  I swallow hard 
as I catch the feral gleam in her eyes.

"I don't care who got them for you, Mulder.  You are mine and I 
don't want you accepting gifts from other admirers.  Do you 
understand?"

I understand how she feels.  I'd been having the same feelings ever 
since she started showing.  I hate watching other men touch her, 
open doors for her, steady her when she stands up with a hand to 
her elbow.  I want to rip them away, knock them to the ground and 
tell them that she is mine.  Mine.  My woman.  My child.  MINE!

"That goes both ways, Scully," I growl.  We stare at each other for 
a few seconds and she nods.  We are in complete accord, once 
again.  I think I have regained control of the situation until her 
hand snakes out and grasps my cock.  She pushes me back a little, 
guiding me with pressure on my rod as she reaches over and grabs 
two pillows, throwing them on the floor.  I think she wants me to 
kneel on them but she slides from the bed and places them under 
her knees as she settles in front of me.

"Come closer, Mulder," she purrs.

"Scully!" I groan as her lips close over the tip of my cock.  I didn't 
expect this!  "Scully, isn't it uncomfortable for you down there?" I 
babble.

She lets my cock slip from her lips with a resounding, pop.  "No, 
actually, this is quite comfortable," she says, smiling up at me and 
then resumes the best blowjob I've ever had.

Her tongue flicks the tip of my cock as she moves back again.  
"But, I'll let you know when I need to stand up," she says cheekily.

"Uh, sure," I respond, and feel a laugh bubble up in my chest.  
God, Scully wants to fellatate me.  What was I complaining about?  
I spread my legs a little more to stabilize my position and threw 
back my head, reveling in the sheer pleasure of her warm, loving 
mouth on my cock.

Fantasies that had haunted me for the prior nine months flashed 
through my mind; Scully wearing nothing but a garter belt and 
stockings, on her knees at the edge of the bed, her laughing eyes 
teasing and taunting me to make her my own, her breasts and baby 
belly waiting for my touch.  That was at the top of the list.  After 
that, the one on my couch took over with me on my back with 
Scully riding me.  Our child nestled in her ever expanding womb, 
her beautiful breasts rising and falling with the rhythm of our 
lovemaking, my hands cupping them, thumbs stroking over her 
enlarged nipples as she tells me she loves me, was another one.  
One after another they flash across the canvas of my mind while 
Scully's hands and lips and sweet, sweet mouth make love to me.


That thought brings me to a halt, at least mentally.  I don't think I 
could lose this erection if both Scully brothers and the entire 
Halleluiah Chorus were to burst into the room.  Scully is making 
love to me, but what was I doing for Scully?

As much as I love the feeling of her mouth on me and, like any 
guy, dream of it often, I want to make love WITH her.  She still 
has all her clothes on, and I suddenly realize what is happening 
here.  My Scully is worried that I won't find her body ... sexy.  
Holy Shit!  I have to stop her before she sucks all my brains out 
through my cock.

XXXXX

Mmmmm.  Mulder smells so good.  He tastes good.  His cock is 
long and thick and as much as it pleases me to be worshiping it this 
way, I can't help thinking how wonderful it would have been to 
have sex with him before I started feeling like a ... well, a beached 
whale.

I want to give him pleasure and maybe it will be enough until after 
the baby is born.

XXXXX

"Scully, stop."  I touch her hair to get her attention.  Then, when 
she looks up, I slide my hands under her arms and lift her to her 
feet.  I wrap my arms around her and hug her as tight as I can.

"I love you Scully.  I love what you were doing," I say, and then 
hesitate.

"But?  I hear a 'but' in there.  What is it, Mulder?  Do you want to 
wait until the baby is born?  Until after I can have sex again?"  She 
has the saddest look in her eyes I have ever seen.

"No, Scully.  Wait.  There is a 'but' coming, but not the one you're 
thinking about."  I run my hand through my hair in frustration as 
her face seems to crumble before me.  I do NOT want to make my 
Scully cry.

"Baby, I want to make love to you, with you.  Not just let you 
make love to me.  I want to be inside you.  I love what you were 
doing with your mouth, but I ... I need to connect with you."  I 
stop to see if she understands what I mean.

A small smile begins to grace her lips.  "You want me?"

"God, Yes!" I say with relief.  "I want to see you, all of you.  I ... 
want to touch you all over."  I kiss her with all the built up passion 
I have felt over the last few months.  "I know we have to be 
gentle," I say against her lips.

I draw back and look down at her.  She is standing there with her 
eyes shut and her beautiful lips still slightly pursed from our kiss.  I 
brush my lips over hers again and ask, "May I undress you?"

Her eyes pop open and the look of unease is back.  'Scully, Scully, 
Scully,' I think sadly.

"Scully, I love you," I say as I pop open the button on the skirt of 
her suit.  "I want you," I continue, as I slide it and the half-slip she 
is wearing down her body.  She is wearing stockings, but they are 
thigh-highs.  No garter belt, no sexy thong, just some silky bikini 
panties.  She is watching my face carefully as I undress her.  I can 
feel her stare.  I glance into her eyes and smile.  "I've wanted to do 
this for so long ... so long," I murmur.

"Mulder, I ..."

"Shhhh," I urge as I sit down on the bed and draw her panties 
down, my eyes never leaving hers, then I pull her over to sit down 
next to me.

"I have fantasized about this for months," I admit.  I slide a button 
open on her shirt and kiss her neck.  "You are so beautiful, Scully, 
but you've become almost incandescent lately.  It has hurt to watch 
you blossom and not be able to touch you."  I suckle on her earlobe 
for a few seconds until I feel her shiver.

"I've read all the books," I tell her, as I flip open another button 
and expose the fine bones of her clavicle.  I let my tongue and lips 
worship there for a several minutes.

"I've watched our child grow inside you and burned with the need 
to touch you," I continue.  I pop open another button and the lacy 
top of her bra is now exposed.  I let my fingers slide across her 
velvet skin, delving into the small gap at the center and back up 
and across the top of her bra.  I lean down and place a long kiss on 
the swell of each of her breasts.  I can feel her heart beat increase 
under my lips.

"I even rented several videos and watched how women change 
during pregnancy."  I flip the front fastener of her bra open and 
press my lips to the red marks left by the fabric on her snowy white 
skin.

"I bought one."  I grin up at her.  She gives me one of her Scully-
stares as her eyebrow rises to new heights.  I lower my glance to 
my hands as they peel her bra back.

"It was from the Discovery Channel, Scully," I assure her as I stare 
at the parts of her breasts that are exposed.  They are much larger 
than I expected.  The pink of the nipples are bigger than a silver 
dollar and a dark rose color.

I have seen Scully's breasts before, more than once.  We were 
forced to shower together, once, by Diana.  I never did get to thank 
her for the opportunity, though, I know she did it for spite.

She was naked when I peeled her out of the pod in the ship in the 
Antarctic.  Though we were in a life and death situation, I'm still a 
guy with an eidetic memory.  Her perfect breasts and the red of her 
pubic hair registered both times and were filed away to enjoy at a 
later time, when we weren't about to die.

I slide the last two buttons open.  Her belly comes into view and I 
kiss down it as far as I can without getting off the bed.  
"Beautiful," I whisper.

I lift her right hand and unbutton the cuff of her shirt.  "I bought 
the video because one of the women was a small redhead."  I kiss 
the inside of her wrist and set her hand back down on the swell of 
her stomach.

"I watched her as she went through each of the stages of her 
pregnancy and pretended it was you."  I smile at her as she lifts her 
other hand up so that I can reach it easily.  I slip the button through 
the hole, kissing her again, right over her pulse point.  Her 
heartbeat is racing now.

I slide off the bed and kneel in front of her.  She leans back, using 
her arms to support her back.  Her shirt and bra are still blocking 
my view of most of her body.

"Her husband was a tall man with brown hair," I say as I smile up 
at her again.  "Remind you of anyone?"

I lean forward and kiss her belly button.  It used to be an inny, but 
is now an outie.  She sucks in her breath and holds it.  "I dreamt of 
you, Scully.  Both of you and of our child that you carry."

I rise up on my knees and smirk when I realize that I am almost as 
tall as she is sitting down.  "I would watch you all day, every time 
you weren't looking and I would check off the difference in your 
appearance from day to day."

I lean forward and push her shirt from her shoulders, catching her 
bra straps and pulling them down as I slide her shirt off her arms.  
She is now completely bare before me.  "But nothing I read, 
nothing I watched, nothing I could imagine, approaches the reality 
of being here with you."

I reach a shaking hand out to touch her.  Her sharp intake of breath 
startles me and I snatch my hand back.  I look into her eyes, 
grinning foolishly.  "Can I touch you?" I whisper.

"Yes," she whispers back.

"Does it, will it h ... hurt?" I stammer.

She smiles and reaches out for my hand.  "It will feel good if you 
touch me.  Just don't get too rough."

"Scully!  I'd never ..." I begin before catching the gleam in her 
eye.  My fingers twitch just before they come in contact with her 
breast.

XXXXX

Mulder has got to be the sexiest man alive.  He has seduced me 
with only his voice and his words and a few well-placed kisses.  If 
he touches my clit, I know that I will have an orgasm.  However, 
none of this stops me from teasing him.

I have to admit, I am a little uncomfortable about undressing in 
front of him.  Okay, not uncomfortable, scared.  Let's face it, the 
thought of baring my body to this gorgeous man for the very first 
time while doing my best impression of a cross between a pregnant 
zebra and a hippopotamus is not only scary, it's terrifying.  I am 
certain that he will ultimately be repulsed by my current shape, 
until I hear his words.

This is Mulder's baby and he obviously has made an effort to 
research exactly what's been happening for the entire nine months.  
I feel like a fool for not including him all along.  After all, I went 
through about five months of hell, so horny that I thought I would 
die if I didn't have his hands on me.  I don't know how many times 
I almost attacked him right there in our office.  I wanted to throw 
him down on his desk and ride him like the stud that I dreamed he 
was.  Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, my sense of decorum 
prevailed.

Now, Mulder is going to touch our child and my breasts with his 
hands as he has touched my heart with his words.  We are going to 
make love.  Is it wise?  No.  Even if we were an old married 
couple, sex at this point in my pregnancy would probably be over.  
I've read the literature.  Do I want it?   Oh, yes!  Are we going to 
do it?  Hell, yeah!  With that thought, I completely turn off my 
brain and let my body take over.  I want Mulder and I'm going to 
have him.  After his soliloquy and the way he's been touching me, 
there is no way I am willing to stop.

No one better interrupt us now, not for any esoteric excuse or for a 
valid reason.  I am an armed agent of the Federal Government, and 
I know how to use a gun.

My last rational thought before I allow myself to slide into the 
sensuality of Mulder's touch is a reckless, 'Bring it on, Baby!'

XXXXX

"Gorgeous," I whisper.  "God, Scully, you are so beautiful."  My 
hands reach for her on their own accord.  I need to touch her like I 
need my next breath.

Her normally alabaster skin is lined with pink stretch marks.  I read 
about them.  The skin is unable to cope with the rapid expansion 
and thus the marks.  I have also read that they will go away, but 
never completely.  She will always be marked with slivers of 
silver, evidence that my child was there in her body.

I know she feels fearful that these pink and red lines make her less 
attractive, but she doesn't understand.  "You have stretch marks," I 
say as I let my fingers slide down and across her stomach.

"Mulder, I ..."

"Shhhh," I say as I place my fingertips on her lips.  "I read about 
them and some of the women in the video I have had them."  I lean 
forward and kiss the ones that I had previously touched.  "I didn't 
know if you would get them, didn't know if your skin type was one 
that would get them."  I kiss every one I can reach on her stomach 
and then move up to the ones on the sides of her breasts.  Her 
breathing is erratic.  I don't know if she is going to cry or pass out 
from lack of oxygen.

"Breathe, Scully," I tease.

She blushes and nods.

"They are beautiful, like the rest of you," I reassure her as my lips 
and tongue trace them towards her navel.

She growls deep in her throat, shakes her head and cries out, 
"Mulder!  Don't lie to me.  I know they look hideous."  She moves 
to get up.

I look up at her quickly, placing my hand on her knee to stop her 
from rising.  She really does think the stretch marks on her 
stomach make her ugly.  "Well, while your skin is no longer like a 
polished piece of alabaster, I don't think they're ugly."  I am 
sincere and she seems willing to listen to me at least.  "They just 
are," I try to explain.  "They are part of you, like your freckles or 
your scars or your dimples."  I reach up and kiss her belly again as 
I see our child surge under her skin.

"Honestly," I say and then hesitate.  Telling her this is a risk.  
She's going to think I am lying to her, but it's the truth.  "Scully, 
when I tried to imagine you as your body grew and our child 
developed, one of the things I wondered about was the stretch 
marks.  One of the women in the video said that she wore her 
stretch marks like a red badge of courage.  I didn't understand that 
statement until later on in the show."

I lean back to make sure she is looking directly into my eyes as I 
tell her the next part.  "I think you, all women, are the stronger of 
the two sexes.  I don't think I could voluntarily seek out something 
that was sure to bring me the kind of discomfort you've gone 
through for the past several months.  The nausea and vomiting at 
first were enough to put me off.  You sought this out, knowing that 
at the end of this road is pain, not just discomfort, but hours of 
unimaginable pain.  You've accepted it so easily, Scully.  You 
deserve your hash marks for signing up for this one."  Her smile 
eases my terror at revealing the next part.

"But more importantly, these," I say, sliding my fingers down the 
pink and red pathways forever imprinted on her skin.  "These 
prove you chose me to have this child with.  I know, I know," I say 
to hurry and stop her from speaking.  "I know that we didn't make 
this child in the old-fashioned way.  I never got to make love to 
you.  But when I couldn't sleep at night, the thought that part of me 
was inside you and that our child is the result of it would soothe 
me."  Tears stream down her face now and she grasps my hand in 
one of hers as she places the palm of her other hand against my 
cheek.

"They prove that you loved me enough to ask for my help making 
our child, and I was inside you, that you were mine in some small 
way for at least a short time," I conclude.  Shit, now I had tears in 
my eyes.

XXXXX

"Oh, Mulder.  I've been such a fool," I sob.  "From the first 
moment I began contemplating becoming pregnant, I needed you 
near me, but I closed you out.  I fooled myself into believing that 
you were only helping me as a favor to a friend, but I was wrong.  I 
love you, Mulder, and there have been days I thought I wouldn't, I 
couldn't survive, days I berated myself for getting into this alone.  
I see now that I wasn't strong when I masked my need for you.  I 
was foolish and cruel.  I didn't think I would ever hurt you like the 
other women in your life, but I did.  Didn't I?"  I can't go on.  I am 
crying so hard that I've got the hiccups and have to stop.

Mulder jumps to his feet and runs to get me a bottle of water.  He 
has been buying me pure glacier water from the Arctic since we 
found out that the baby was a reality.

I take a drink and try to calm down.  The hiccups make the baby 
wake up and decide to go for a spin in his/her cramped quarters.  
My back begins to ache and I press against the middle of it with 
my free hand.

"I've tried to keep you at a distance so that I wouldn't depend on 
you too much.  But I do, Mulder.  I do.  Your strength, your 
humor, your commitment, everything that you so freely give has 
supported me and kept me strong.

"Pregnancy is a major undertaking and you are right.  It does hurt.  
It will hurt.  It will hurt like hell, but I'd do it for another nine, 
well, three months, if I was assured that I would get a strong, 
healthy baby out of it."  My tears have slowed by this time, but the 
ache in my back and in my heart is still there.

"I love you.  Make love to me, Mulder."

XXXXX

I stand there gaping at her for a moment.  She has finally, finally 
dropped her defenses and told me that she loves me and needs me 
as much as I do her.  She said so before, but until now, I still had 
my doubts.  She is offering her heart and soul and body to me and I 
am almost afraid to accept.

She holds out her hand to me and I realize that I am as big a fool as 
she says she is.  If I had gone to her at anytime in the last few 
months, chances are that she would have accepted my love and we 
would have been together during the entire time of her pregnancy.

"Scully," I groan as I crawl up on the bed behind her, stopping for 
a long, satisfying kiss on the way there.  I stack up the pillows 
against the headboard and help her move to lay down propped up 
on her side so that I can massage her back while I finish telling her 
how I feel.

"I've done a lot of talking and very little loving tonight, Scully," I 
continue as I massage the tight muscles of her back.  "I've had a 
lot of words build up during the last few months.  I've missed you, 
missed my best friend."  She groans in pleasure as I work the final 
kink out of her back, at least for now.

She rolls over and scoots up slightly on the pile of pillows.  Her 
lovely, full breasts beckon, so I lower my lips to them and begin to 
fulfill every fantasy I've had for years.  I have been given 
permission to kiss and lick and suckle the very luscious breasts of 
my Scully.  I don't think it can get better until I feel her hands on 
my body.  No matter how good my imagination is when I think 
about everything I want to do to her, I wasn't able to  imagine the 
feel of her strong but soft hands on my body.

Scully is not one to 'lie back and think of England'.  She's 
touching me everywhere she can reach.  Her hands stroke through 
my hair and her nails scrape my scalp lightly, just the way I like it.  
She stretches down and kisses every part of me she can reach and I 
groan.  Holy hell, she's going to make me come before I even get 
to taste her, let alone actually get inside her.

XXXXX

Mulder is quiet for a few minutes; well, at least he's not talking.  
His vocalizations are all softly moaned versions of my name.  He 
alternates between kissing my breasts and kissing my lips.  I can't 
believe what a good kisser he is.

His beautiful lips that have spewed some of the most insane 
theories I have ever heard in my life are now pressed against my 
belly as he's telling our child how much he loves me and how 
lucky he/she is.  His hands are stroking my belly and breasts and 
on down towards my sex.  'God?  Don't take me now,' I pray 
silently.  'Not yet, not before I make love to Mulder.'  As he 
moves down my body and begins to make love to me with his 
mouth and hands, I know that my prayer is worthless.  How can I 
ever leave this earth as long as this man is here, willing to love 
me?

'Lord, let me live forever with this man,' I plead as I spiral away, 
little pieces of my body and soul spinning away, out of control.  I 
have to look down to make sure I am really here in one piece, that 
Mulder is really there between my thighs.  As I meet his eyes, he 
smiles the most beatific smile I have ever seen on his face.  It's not 
his teasing grin, or his goofy smile of pleasure.  It transforms his 
face from the handsome man that I have called friend and partner 
for years to the face of a man who has achieved his heart's desire.

'I'll have to see about raising the bar just a little, Mulder,' I think 
as I pull him up to kiss me again.

XXXXX

I am making love to Scully.

I am making love to Dana Scully.

I am making love to my Dana Scully.

My Scully.

I've always been a man that loves oral sex.  Most men will tell you 
that they enjoy a receiving a blow job, many will even admit that 
they enjoy giving it occasionally.  I guess my oral fixation has led 
me to my opinion.  I have enjoyed cunnilingus in the past, but I 
have now reached the pinnacle of happiness.  My nirvana is 
between Dana Scully's legs.

All the time I am licking and stroking and touching and kissing, 
Scully is making the most exotic, soft little noises.  Little moans 
and grunts, dainty and sexy as hell, increase my pleasure to the 
point that I find myself rubbing against the sheets in an 
unconscious effort to release the exquisite pressure in my cock.

I clench the muscles in my gut and fight against my orgasm.  I still 
my hips and concentrate on Scully's pleasure.  Her sighs of 
pleasure escalate but even when she comes, she is quiet.  Small 
sobs and gasps accompany the quaking in her vaginal walls.  I 
would think that it was not a satisfying experience if it hadn't 
lasted so long.  Strong waves of pleasure continued for at least a 
minute.  I continue to gently lick and suckle her, hoping to extend 
her pleasure.  Only her small moans and the pressure of her foot 
pushing against me stops me.

I crawl up the bed to wrap my body around hers.  I rest my head on 
the pillow next to her.  She turns to me and opens her eyes, and I 
see ... heaven.

The love shining from her eyes makes me want to jump up and 
shout, throw the window open and scream to the world that I have 
made Dana Scully happy.  I made my beautiful Scully come!  She 
loves me and wants me.  At the same time that part of me that is 
screaming to the masses (read that: all the men in the world), the 
rest of me is trying to accept that the love in her eyes is for me, 
Fox Mulder, poster boy for the dysfunctional relationship.

She must see the doubt and pain in my eyes because she turns 
towards me, propping her belly on my chest and wrapping her 
arms around me.  She pulls my head down to her breast and says 
something I will never forget.

XXXXX

Mulder has just given me the very best orgasm of my life.  Now 
he's wrapped around me, and I can see that he is torn by the 
experience.  Oh, don't get me wrong.  I can tell he's happy, almost 
bursting at the seams with sheer male pride and possessiveness.  I 
can feel the alpha male vibes rolling off him.

At the same time, I can see his insecurities trying to take over, 
trying to ruin my orgasmic high, trying to undermine our love 
before we have a chance to enjoy it.  I must nip this in the bud.  I 
pull his head down to my breast.

"Mulder," I say.  "I mean this in the best way possible."  I pull 
back so that I can look into his upturned eyes.

"STOP IT!" I roar.

He jumps and tries to pull back, obviously thinking that his head is 
too heavy on my breast, but I hold him in place.

"Stop thinking.  I can see all the doubts and fears trying to take 
over.  I know that we are a product of all our past experiences and 
relationships, but for this once, I want you to forget it.

"What you and I have is beyond anything either one of us has 
experienced before.  Everything previous to us was a dress 
rehearsal, a try out of sorts.  Those relationships didn't work.  This 
one will.  We'll make it work."

The apprehension in his eyes fades.  "You think we can do this, 
Scully?" he asks.

"Yeah, I do, Mulder," I confirm.

"Why?  Why do you think I can keep from destroying this 
relationship like I have all the others before?"  He frowns.

"Mulder, I said stop it and I mean it.  Those other relationships 
failed because they weren't us.  They weren't with the right 
person.  I couldn't commit to Daniel or Jack or Ethan because they 
weren't you.  Things happened, words were said that wouldn't 
have been, hell, haven't been said to you.  I'm sure if you think 
back through all your past relationships, you'll find the same thing 
is true."

He snuggles against my breast, sliding his hand from my belly up 
to cup my other breast.  "I've never had a relationship with a 
woman like you, Scully.  I think you're right.  The dynamics of my 
previous relationships were totally different."  He looks back up at 
me.  "But I'm still me, Scully.  I'm not perfect."

I snort and begin to laugh.  He looks affronted for a moment and 
then starts laughing with me.  "Okay, I guess that wasn't exactly 
earth-shaking news, but you know what I mean."

"Yes, I do, Mulder," I respond.  "And you know that I'm not the 
easiest person in the world to know.  We need to work on our 
relationship and we don't have years or even months to do it before 
we'll have a baby to throw into the mix.  I think our years of 
partnership will help us get through this."

He nods and kisses me.  "I agree."

"You are my best friend, Mulder, and I love you.  Now, make love 
to me."

"Scully, I thought that's what we just did."

"Well, for foreplay, that was an exceptional beginning, but I need 
you inside me, Mulder.  I don't want to have our child before we 
even experience intercourse."

XXXXX

Scully wants me to make love to her.  My mind shuffles through 
all the literature I read to find the best way to go about this as my 
body responds to her invitation.  My cock is hard again and my 
fingers itch to touch her, everywhere.  My mind wants to keep 
talking, but she has other ideas.

She has removed several of the pillows under her and used a 
couple to prop her baby belly as she lays on her side, away from 
me.  She is pushing her beautiful, heart shaped ass into my crotch 
and my cock becomes inexplicably harder.  How can she do this to 
me at almost 40?

"Tell what you want, Scully," I say as I caress her derriere.

"I want you to touch me, love me just like this."

"This is okay for the baby and you?"  My left hand slides under her 
neck and down to cup her breast.

"Yes," she hisses as I gently pinch her nipple.

"Too much?" I ask.

"No, just a surprise."

"Damn, I love you, Scully."

"And I, you, Mulder."

Those are the last words we say for a long time.  Our joining is not 
a lurid, hot, passionate marathon as I have previously fantasized.  It 
is slow and emotional, intensely satisfying.  We can save the 
sexual gymnastics for about two months from now, that is if either 
one of us is capable of doing anything but taking care of our new 
baby and sleeping.

Scully's wet, tight vagina is everything I have ever imagined it to 
be.  What I haven't taken into consideration is the emotional 
impact of our lovemaking.  That is what it is, lovemaking.  It isn't 
hot monkey sex, it isn't even especially erotic to anyone outside the 
two of us.

To Scully and me, however, it is everything.  It is our first kiss, our 
first date, our first petting session, our first time and it is the 
culmination of every moment of our relationship.  Everything has 
led to this moment, this beautiful moment, when Scully and I are 
making love to each other for the first time.

As my hips rock into her and she pushes back into me, my hands 
and lips explore her body.  I am touching every inch of her skin 
that I can reach, as if trying to claim it somehow or mark it as 
mine.  I linger the most over our child.  He/she is quiet for the 
moment.  It feels as if he/she is watching and approving our 
actions.

"I love you, love you, love you," I groan as I feel her walls begin 
to quake and clench against my cock.  I stroke into her several 
more times, harder, faster and then join her in release.

It is gentle, it is sweet, and it is totally satisfying.  It is perfect.  I 
find myself crying into her hair as I caress her and worship her 
body.  Every muscle in my body feels weak and incapable of 
movement for several moments.  She holds my hand between her 
breasts and every few moments, she kisses it.  The gentle contact 
of her lips tells me more about the depth of her love than a full-
page advertisement in the Washington Post could have.

XXXXX

As soon as I am done basking in the afterglow of our love making, 
I'm going to be really upset.  I have been a fool.  I am a woman 
who has had several lovers, at least three of whom I considered 
marrying.  I've had hotter sex before.  I've even had hot sex with 
someone I thought I loved.

But I have never experienced anything that compares to the earth-
shaking occurrence I just shared with Mulder.  Every notion I've 
ever had about making love has been shattered.  What we just had 
was more than sex, more than lovemaking.  It was a melding of our 
very souls.  Yet, even as I think these thoughts, I know that they 
are inadequate to describe what has happened.

Did our souls meld, or were they always that way and we just blew 
away the curtain of fate and revealed that fact to ourselves?

I am tired of thinking.  I want to feel.  I want to feel Mulder next to 
me, behind me, and in me for the rest of my life.  I don't ever want 
to leave this bed and this man again.  I'll make that my life's goal, 
right after I go to the bathroom again.

XXXXX

She turns and gives me a kiss on the lips before she pushes herself 
up into a sitting position, preparing to get up.

"Scully, don't get up!  What can I get you?"  I ask as I try to sit up 
and stop her.

"Mulder, I don't think you can provide what I need right now."

I know I must look dejected because she laughs and explains, "I 
need to use the bathroom, okay?"

I grin foolishly.  I knew that.

"Do you want a drink of water while I'm up?" she asks.

"No thanks, I'm good," I mumble.  I turn over to wait for her.

Moments later I rouse as I feel a warm, wet cloth skim over my 
cock and balls and wipe through my pubic hair.  Unwelcome, 
unexpected tears flood my eyes.  I have never been loved so 
thoroughly in my entire life.  I start to roll over to face her but she 
stops me.

"Don't move, Mulder.  I want to snuggle up to your back."

"Scully?"  I know I sound incredulous as I try to picture Scully 
getting close to me right now.

"All right, smarty.  Get comfortable in the middle of the bed."

"Don't you want to stay up to watch the new century begin?"

"No, I don't think I could stay up that late.  Just move over."

"Anything for you, pumpkin," I taunt, as I grin at her.

"You're damn straight, poopy head," she retorts.

I move back to the middle and settle down on my side with my 
back to Scully.  She wiggles and squirms, and scoots until she is 
comfortable.  She has wrapped her body around mine, her baby 
belly propped against my mid-back.  She has her cheek against the 
top of my head and her arm and leg are thrown over me.  I have 
never felt so enveloped in love in my life.

Just before I fall asleep I hear her say, "I want to marry you, 
Mulder."

For once, my insecurities don't rear up and try to take over.  I am 
loved and I love.  Marriage sounds like a very good idea.  What a 
way to start a new century.  My last words before I fall asleep are, 
"Hell, yes!"

XXXXX

Dana Scully's Apartment 
Georgetown, D.C.
December 31, 2000 
8:25 PM

This has to be the very best dream I have ever had.  How do I 
know I'm dreaming?  Because I am on my honeymoon and Scully 
is standing before me naked, under a waterfall in Hawaii.  I've 
never been to Hawaii.  I've never stood naked under a waterfall 
with Scully before.  Hell, I've not even showered with her.  Well, 
okay, that one time in the decontamination showers.  However, 
even sleeping I know that Scully and I have never and probably 
never will make love under a waterfall in Hawaii.  The feel of the 
warm water against my back is so realistic that it rouses me from 
my dream.

I struggle to stay asleep, knowing that I'm never going to get this 
opportunity again, but reality wins.

I'm awake, but the damned feeling of being soaking wet all over 
the back of me remains.  I try to pull away from Scully but she 
holds me tightly.  I manage to push my hand around my side and 
my fingers come in contact with moisture between our bodies.

Houston, we have a problem.

XXXXX

Mulder trying to squirm away from me, wakes me up.  I hold 
tighter to him, I don't want him to move.  I am comfortable for the 
first time since I began to show.  The incessant ache in my back is 
actually at an acceptable level in this position, but he is insistent.  
Finally, his movements bring me up to the level of awareness I was 
fighting against.

Two thoughts hit me consecutively.

I want to spend the rest of my life sleeping with Fox Mulder.

I am almost 37 years old and I just wet the bed.

This last thought wipes any lingering vestiges of sleep from my 
mind and I roll away from Mulder enough to confirm my 
suspicions.

Yes, we are wet, and yes, it is from me.

"Scully?"  Mulder's voice is a little shaky.  "Tell me that's not 
what I think it is."

"What do you think it is?" I ask, smiling against his back.

"Well, as gross as it sounds, I'm kinda hoping that you're a lot 
kinkier than I expected and that this is some sort of sex play that 
involves golden showers," he says in a deadpan voice.

I suppress a giggle and ask in a serious voice, "And if that's not 
it?"

"Scully?" he gulps.  "Did your water just break?"

A mild cramping in my uterus gives way to a full-blown 
contraction.  I am surprised by the strength of it.  I have my hand 
on Mulder's upper arm and as the pain builds, I gasp, 
"Mmmmnnn."

"Ow, Scully, ow.  I'll take that as a yes."  He jumps up quickly, 
throws back the covers, and turns on the lights.

The bed is wet and there are small streaks of blood smeared on the 
sheets.

"Oh, my God!  You're bleeding!"  He is now wearing his panic 
face.

"Mulder," I am finally able to say as the contraction eases.  "What 
time is it?"

"Time?  I don't know."  He rushes over to my side of the bed to 
help me as I try to roll to my feet.  "It's 10:10.  Careful, Scully!  
Should you be on your feet?" he asks.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Scully!"  He looks as if I have slapped his face.

I stand up and put my arms around him as best I can.  "I'm really 
fine, Mulder.  My membrane did rupture and I did have a 
contraction.  The blood is probably from my mucus plug.  It's 
nothing I haven't been looking forward to for months now."

He holds me tightly.  I can feel his body quiver with fear for a 
moment and then it is as if he is a different man.  He stands taller 
and clears his throat.  "I'm sorry, Scully.  It just scared me for a 
moment.  What do you want me to do?"  His panic face is gone.

I smile up at him and realize that he is going to be okay.  We both 
are.

My next contraction is at 10:17 PM.  This child is impatient, like 
his/her father.  I decide to call my doctor, Mary McBride, and ask 
her opinion on what we should do.  We have been walking around 
the bedroom naked for the entire seven minutes and this 
contraction is significantly stronger than the first.  Mary has known 
me since medical school and after I describe my stats, agrees with 
me that I am probably in actual labor and should get to the hospital 
right away.

XXXXX

I never thought that the first time I showered with Scully was 
going to be the day she delivered our child.  She insists on a 
shower before she goes to the hospital and I insist that she not try it 
alone.  We actually are in there for several contractions.  The 
combination of standing up with her arms around my neck and the 
warm water hitting her on her back greatly eases the pain she feels 
with each contraction.

I finally insist that we get out when her contractions are down to 
five minutes apart.  The hospital is not far away, but I don't want to 
take any chances.  After all, it is New Year's Eve and you can't tell 
how bad the roads are going to be.

XXXXX

Georgetown Hospital December 31, 2000 11:05 PM

We are taken right into a birthing suite and I am asked to leave 
while they settled Scully in.  I try to talk them out of it, but finally 
Scully asks me to go out and call everyone on the list that she has 
prepared.  That's my Scully.  Her bag was packed, a list made and 
here it is only three weeks early.

I make it through the calls.  Thank God I don't have to call Bill and 
Charlie.  They are still at Maggie's house.  Maggie assures me that 
she will be right there.  I am glad and sorry at the same time.  If 
Maggie is coming, can Bill and Charlie be far behind?

One of the big surprises on her list is the names of the Gunmen and 
Skinner.  I call and leave a message on Skinner's phone.  Who 
would have figured he'd be out on a date on New Year's Eve?  All 
of the guys are shocked to hear that Scully is in labor early.  
Frohike hints that it is probably all my fault, but I am in no mood 
to fight.  I want to get back to Scully.

XXXXX

The time that Mulder is gone is the hardest of my pregnancy.  
When we were together, the contractions were hard, but 
manageable.  Without him, I feel like I am in freefall and they take 
over and completely consume me.  I need to focus.

By the time he gets back into the room, I am almost eight 
centimeters dilated and deeply into transition.  My doctor, Mary 
McBride, is here already and the room teems with other hospital 
personnel.  Mulder is the only one I want near me.

"Where the hell have you been?" I pant as he walks in the door.

"I was calling people like you told me to do."

"Mulder," I whimper.  "It hurts."

"Oh, Baby, it's okay.  You have to breathe through it.  Did you 
intend to use Lamaze?"

I give him a glare, ready to snap his head off like a twig and realize 
that he didn't know the answer to that because I have excluded him 
from the entire process until now.  Tears well up in my eyes.  He 
thinks it is the beginning of another contraction and moves closer, 
picking up my hand to give me his support.

"Yes, I am, and I'm so sorry.  I wanted you to be my coach, but we 
were so far apart when it was time to pick someone and it's all my 
fault I didn't ask you to be there.  
IknowyouwantedmetobutIwassoscared ... "  I gasp this last out all 
together as another contraction begins.

"Breathe, Scully.  Cleansing breath!  And breathe!"

Suddenly everything is all right.  Mulder knows what to do.  He is 
so sweet.  He must have read up on Lamaze as well.  He's got my 
back, as always.

Minutes pass, and we work the contractions together.  With Mulder 
here, my concentration focuses and I am now on top of the pain.  I 
am amazed at how much easier everything is just because we're 
together.

I hear my mother at the door and motion for her to come in.  I am 
her only daughter left and I am not going to exclude her from this 
birth, even if I do now have Mulder.

I can tell mom is upset because the baby is early.  I hear her asking 
Mary if this is a serious complication, or just an impatient child.  I 
hold my breath and pray that she does not tell my mother why my 
labor began when it did.  I have my suspicions and it isn't 
something that I want my old friend Mary to discuss with my 
mother, let alone Mulder or my brothers.

"Maggie, this is not uncommon in pregnancies for women of 
Dana's age," she begins.

I can see my mother relax as her words sink in.  She has known 
Mary almost as long as I have and feels confident that she 
wouldn't lie to her.

"Many sexually active women go into premature labor especially 
when they are either an older or a very young woman."

My mother nods as she talks until the words 'sexually active 
women' actually sinks in.  I can feel her stare and my blush as 
Mary warms to the subject and continues discussing her research 
on oxytocin.  Mary was as big a geek in school as I was and still 
has the same passion for research that she displayed before.

"Really?" my mother urges.  "So, you are saying that having sex 
really can initiate early labor and delivery?"

I look at Mulder and see that he is as white as a ghost.

"Oh, yes.  It's not just an old wives' tale any longer, Maggie.  Both 
the prostaglandin in the sperm and penetration, act upon the cervix 
independently to stimulate dilation and uterine contractions."

"How fascinating."  My mother is almost bursting with laughter at 
the sight of Mulder's face.

XXXXX

"Scully," he whispers.  "I did this to you?"

Another contraction hits and I have to work my way through it 
before I can answer.

"We did this, Mulder.  We started this together and we're finishing 
this together.  Don't worry.  I think I was already having 
contractions and thought that they were a back ache."

With my words, he finally begins to breathe naturally.  I squeeze 
his hand and lift my chin to beckon him closer.  When he is near 
enough, I raise my lips and kiss him, just as the hardest contraction 
of all hits.

XXXXX

Time is no longer a constant.  For inordinately long periods of 
time, the pain holds Scully in its thrall as a horrific contraction 
wracks her body. Then it speeds up to only a heart beat before the 
next one starts.  She is amazingly calm through all this.  My hand 
is a little worse for wear; her grip is strong at times.  But most 
times, she clings to my hand and uses our interlocked fingers as 
her focal point, pushing as directed by Mary.

She refuses all pain medication as an anathema.  She protects our 
child with all the quiet strength of a lioness.  God, I love this 
woman.  She is so brave.  She is so strong.  I know I couldn't do 
this.

Time does its little dance again and suddenly someone is asking 
me if I want to cut the cord and we are holding our baby boy, 
William Fox Mulder.  I try to talk her out of the Fox part, but she 
insists.  In light of her Herculean effort through these last hours of 
incredible pain and effort, I can't say no to anything she asks.  I am 
absurdly grateful to Bill and Charlie.  If they hadn't pushed Scully 
into acknowledging our love, my son's name wouldn't have been 
Mulder until I scraped up the courage to approach her myself.

Mrs. Scully has been with us for the entire birth.  I am thankful that 
she was able to be here.  I am surprised that she accepts my 
presence so readily, and she did, in fact, give me as much loving 
support as she gave Scully even though she was supposed to be 
Scully's coach.  She has gone out of the room to talk to the friends 
and family waiting for news about the baby.  I am holding my 
future in my arms.  Our tears of joy mingle and christen the top of 
William's head.

XXXXX

Mulder and I are sitting on the bed together.  The baby is nursing 
at my breast and Mulder is holding us both.  I am tired but elated.  
I did it.  We did it.  Mulder was with me all the way through the 
labor and I'm not worried about raising this little boy without a 
father anymore.  No one knows that Mulder is the father of my 
child except for my immediate family and Mary.  We need to take 
our time and discuss what we're going to do.  I have tears of joy 
falling on top of William's head and I realize that Mulder is crying 
too.  I look up at him and he looks at me with all the love in his 
heart written all over his face.

Suddenly, a camera flash goes off and we realize that there is a 
stranger standing in the doorway of our room, taking pictures.  
Mulder jumps up and tries to push the photographer out of the 
room.  However, when he opens the door farther, there is a horde 
of strangers standing there, poised to push into our room.  They are 
yelling questions so fast and loud that I can't make out what 
they're talking about.  Cameras flash pictures randomly over the 
heads of the crowd.

Mulder manages to push them back through the door and gets it 
shut as the nurses descend to clear the area.  I can hear Walter 
Skinner's commanding voice take control and the noise subsides as 
it moves back down the hall.

Mulder comes back with a stunned look on his face.

XXXXX

I push the photographer towards the door and as I open it I am 
shocked to see the crowd of strangers standing there.  They shout 
questions and flash pictures indiscriminately.  My one thought is to 
get them out of the room and away from the door before they scare 
the baby.  I push forward enough to close the door behind me and 
they start screaming questions at me again and finally I am able to 
make out what they were saying.

William Fox Mulder was the very first baby born in the new 
millennium in the entire country and apparently they want our 
pictures to be spread on the front page of every major newspaper in 
the world.  So much for keeping a low profile while we work 
things out.

Eventually, Walter Skinner and hospital security gets all the 
reporters out of the hall into the waiting room.  I return to the room 
and Scully giggles at the stunned look on my face.  Scully and I are 
now free to deal with her family and the Gunmen.  Maggie Scully 
must still run a tight ship.  Both Bill and Charlie arrive and 
congratulate their sister, shaking my hand before they go.  They 
both fall head-over-heals in love with William at first sight and 
that proves that they're not all bad in my book.

The Gunmen are a mixed bag of emotions.  Both Byers and Langly 
are scared stiff of the small bundle in Scully's arms.  Frohike, 
however, swoops in and surprises us all.  He is an old hand with 
babies and our son is his newest conquest.  William snuggles in as 
Frohike holds him easily.  I can't help feeling a little jealous at his 
casual skill.

For some mysterious reason, an inebriated Avery Denton is here 
and is acting like she is the scorned wife and I have been unfaithful 
to her.  This doesn't help Bill and Charlie's attitude, nor does it 
endear me to A.D. Skinner, apparently. I now have strict orders to 
report to him in two weeks to finalize selection of my new partner.  
Apparently Avery has requested a transfer.  Good.  Next time, I 
want a short, bald man as a partner, someone who makes Frohike 
look like a prince.

Georgetown Hospital is a great place to have a baby.  The birthing 
rooms are huge so that they can accommodate both a hospital 
bed/delivery table and a regular queen sized bed with room for the 
isolette, too.  That way, new fathers like me can spend the night 
with their new family.

The delivery bed/table has been removed and Scully has been up 
and taken another shower.  We have fed the baby twice already.  
Now, we are snuggling together after undressing him and checking 
out all his parts.  Our son weighed in at six pounds ten ounces and 
is 19 inches long.  He has Scully's blue eyes, but she tells me that 
they may change colors later on.  He is the ideal blend of Scully 
and me.  All I care about is that he is healthy, and that he has her 
nose.  We put the baby back in the isolette next to the bed, 
deciding that he is, indeed, perfect.

We have been talking and kissing and watching our son sleep.  
Now, we are ready to join him.

Scully is tired and sore from all the work of labor, but nothing is 
bothering her too much.  I once again have feeling in my fingers on 
my left hand.  I am drowsy, happy, and ready to join my family in 
sleep when I hear Scully muttering.

"What?  Scully?  What did you say?"

" ... didn't get any."

"What, Baby?  What didn't you get?"

"Eggnog.  I still didn't get any Eggnog.  What's a New Year's Eve 
without eggnog?" she mumbles.

"I'll buy you a gallon tomorrow," I promise.

"'So'k.  Get the priest and the rabbi too."

THE END.