TITLE:      Spectacular (1/1)
AUTHOR:     Rafferty
FEEDBACK:   rafferty@highstream.net
RATING:     PG for snippets of language
CATEGORY:   S,V
SPOILERS:   None
KEYWORDS:   Mulder/Scully UST
ARCHIVE:    Please email me so I'll know where it's going.
DISCLAIMER: In my world, they're mine, and they go after it like
            bunnies.  Alas, in the real world, they are the
            property of people who don't know how to have any fun.
SUMMARY:    Scully and Mulder discuss Scully's old roommate's
            theories on sex and love.
TIMELINE:   Early season seven-ish.  Nothing after that ever
            happened.
NOTES:      This is a little bit of fluff, a little flirtation - 
            I'm declaring it a new category called FluffyFlirting.
            Readers who have come to expect smut from me will have
            to be satisfied this time with a little teasing.
            There's a reason CC left us dangling all those years.
THANKS:     To my wonderful beta, Tess, who is my combination
            teacher, therapist, and shoulder should I ever need
            one.  She really is a beautiful person.
FEEDBACK:   Glowing feedback feeds my soul, gently critical
            feedback makes me work harder and refines my skills.
            So, it's all good.  Bring it on.


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Spectacular (1/1)
By Rafferty


"So, are you going to tell me why you feel the need for company 
tonight?"

She had known Mulder would pry, but that hadn't stopped her from 
calling him earlier and arranging to spend the evening at his 
place.  Pizza and a movie were actually what she'd had in mind.  
They had ordered the pizza and were awaiting its delivery, but the 
movie was apparently not on the immediate agenda.

He sat next to her on his couch, legs crossed and angled toward 
her, one arm along the back cushions, the picture of relaxed 
patience.  She knew him too well, however, to buy the body 
language.  His eyes were trained on her like a hawk, and he was 
determined to ferret out whatever secret she was withholding.  It 
was just as well, because she felt the need to bounce her inner 
thoughts off someone anyway.

"I received a call from an old friend today.  My roommate in med 
school, Joan.  I've mentioned her before."

Mulder nodded.  "The one who makes a mean margarita and had a crush 
on Bill."

Scully smiled.  His ability to store countless tidbits of trivial 
details never ceased to amaze and amuse her.  "That would be the 
one.  We talk two or three times a year, but I haven't seen her in 
a few years.  She's a pediatrician in Schenectady."

"If you're about to tell me you're going into private practice in 
Schenectady, this conversation is going to get messy."  His eyes 
held a teasing gleam, but she could tell he was partially serious.

"Stop that, Mulder.  I'm not going anywhere.  Now do you want to 
hear this story or not?"

"I'm all atingle, Scully.  Give me the scoop on this medical 
margarita maven."

She bit back a grin.  "First, I need to give you some background 
information.  She's had a couple of long-term relationships, but 
for the most part, she doesn't date all that much.  I've never 
really understood why, because she's intelligent and giving, and I 
think she's beautiful."

"Sounds a lot like you."

Her train of thought went flying out the window.  One eyebrow rose 
of its own accord.  "Is that your way of telling me you think I'm 
beautiful?"

He tilted his head to the side and his shoulders bobbed in a 
semblance of a shrug.  "I believe you also mentioned intelligent 
and giving.  But, I interrupted again.  Please go on."

Oh sure.  He gave her a half-assed compliment like that, one she'd 
had to wait nearly seven years to receive, then acted as if they 
were discussing the weather.  God help him the next time he really 
needed something from her.

"The last time we spoke was just before Christmas, and at that 
time, she told me she had finally accepted the fact that she would 
probably be single the rest of her life.  We discussed how 
fulfilling her practice was, that she enjoyed having the freedom to 
do whatever she wanted whenever she wanted... that she had plenty 
of nieces and nephews to spoil without any of the responsibility.  
Then, today, she called to tell me she's met the man of her 
dreams."

Scully paused, knowing Mulder was itching to say something.  He 
remained silent, giving her an innocent look like hell would freeze 
over before he'd interrupt her again.  She made an internal bet 
with herself that he wouldn't last another sixty seconds.

She looked down at her hands, which were resting in her lap, and 
recalled the way she had felt when Joan had made her announcement.  
Scully had been so happy for her friend, but at the same time, 
she'd had to fight off a wave of self-pity which seemed determined 
to envelop her.

"She said he knows everything about her, even all of her faults, 
and he's still her biggest fan."

She grew quiet again, her earlier mood, the one that had prompted 
her to seek Mulder's company, was slowly settling over her.

"She's a lucky woman," Mulder offered quietly.  Scully looked up 
and met his eyes, which were no longer smiling.  His silence hadn't 
lasted sixty seconds, but she was grateful.  His low voice, coupled 
with the wealth of understanding in his expression, went a long way 
toward reminding her she wasn't completely alone in her world.

"Yeah, she is.  I'm really happy for her."

Mulder raised his hand off the back of the sofa to tuck her hair 
behind her ear.  She thanked him for the gesture with a smile, and 
if it didn't quite reach her eyes, she hoped he wouldn't notice.

Joan had told her something else, something she probably shouldn't 
be sharing with Mulder, but that she knew he would appreciate and 
it would probably lighten the mood.

"Joan said she knew it was love because, before they'd slept 
together, she realized she didn't care if the sex was great, or 
even good."

Mulder arched a brow and Scully felt a grin tug at the corners of 
her mouth.  She relished the sexual charge that had suddenly 
permeated the room.  This ultra-subtle flirting with Mulder never 
failed to perk up her mind, heighten her senses, and send a rush of 
adrenaline to the farthest and most secret reaches of her body.

"So... how was it?"

"I believe her word was - 'Spectacular'."

Mulder's hand rose to his face, the pads of his fingertips stroking 
his lips.  She knew she shouldn't, but she allowed herself the 
indulgence of watching the movements of his long, elegant fingers 
slowly caressing what had to be the world's most kissable mouth.

"Gotta love 'spectacular' sex," he mumbled behind his fingertips.

Her eyes rose to meet his again, and for once, she didn't censure 
the first suggestive comment that popped into her head.  "I know I 
do."

Mulder's hand immediately stilled, and he swallowed.  Scully could 
physically feel her nerve endings humming, practically screaming 
for him to throw caution to the wind and just touch her, anywhere.  
She could now understand how a mere glimpse of an ankle could 
arouse a man during previous eras.  Nothing like an abundance of 
deprivation to skew a person's perspective.

Mulder lowered his formerly restless hand to its original location 
on the back of the sofa.  "So, according to Joan's theory, if I 
want to have sex with you, and I don't care how it turns out, I 
must be in love with you."

Time, and her heart, came to an abrupt halt.  This conversation had 
suddenly gotten interesting... and very dangerous.

His expression was serious, matching hers.

"Are you saying you want to have sex with me, Mulder?"

He took his damn time answering, probably knowing she couldn't 
breathe and purposely torturing her.  God knew he was the King of 
Tease.

He trapped a lock of her hair between the thumb and finger of the 
hand resting on the back of the sofa.  He rubbed the strands 
slowly, causing a shiver to spread from the nape of her neck to her 
ankles.

"I want to do a lot of things with you, Scully."

Jesus.  She didn't know whether to climb onto his lap, or strangle 
him.  Would it kill him to give her a straight answer?

All manner of retorts flashed through her mind, and she had just 
parted her lips to speak when they heard a sharp knock at the door.  
They both remained still, Scully lamenting the intrusion and 
willing her muscles to come down from their high.  She assumed 
Mulder was doing the same.

There was another knock, louder and more impatient this time.  
Mulder ran a hand over his face and expelled a sigh, then rose to 
answer the door.  Scully stood and headed for the kitchen, her 
brain still in a fog as she gathered paper towels and a couple of 
bottled waters from the fridge.  When she returned to the living 
room, Mulder was clearing space on the coffee table for the pizza 
box.

She hadn't noticed how quiet his apartment was before, but she took 
note of it now.  No television, no phone ringing, no one knocking 
at the door - there was only the rhythmic gurgling of the aquarium 
and the soft sounds of a cardboard box being opened.

She sat the bottles and napkins down on the coffee table, fully 
aware that Mulder was watching her every movement, but for some 
reason, she wasn't quite ready to meet his discerning gaze.

He sat back down in the spot on the sofa he had occupied minutes 
earlier and she did the same, finally looking at him.  It was like 
touching the tip of her tongue to a live battery - shocking, 
electric, with enough of a hint of danger to keep her senses fully 
alert.

"Hungry?" he asked with meaning.

"Yes, I am."

"We'll have to see what we can do about that."  He picked up a 
slice of pizza and handed it to her.  He then picked up the remote 
and turned on the television and cued the VCR.

"I believe you requested a movie.  'The Green Mile' sound okay?"

Scully realized the window of opportunity had passed, much as it 
had repeatedly for nearly seven years.  But this time was 
different.  She had a feeling that a line had been crossed, that 
they'd kicked the stakes up a notch.  If they kept going at this 
rate, they might actually become involved in another decade or so.

"That sounds fine."  She settled back into the sofa and took a bite 
of pizza.  If this was as good as it gets, it wasn't so bad.  
Mulder knew her better than anyone, and she suspected he was her 
biggest fan.  She knew she was his biggest fan.  Worst case 
scenario, she'd wait until they were in their seventies, then take 
advantage of his weakened state and seduce him.

Best case scenario, this time next year she'd be calling her friend 
Joan and announcing that she'd finally bagged the man of her 
dreams.

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Later That Night
Scully's Apartment


Scully had just settled into bed and turned off the lamp when the 
phone rang.  There was no doubt in her mind that it was Mulder.

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me."  Mmmm.  His intimate tone settled over her skin 
like a warm, soft blanket.

"Already miss me, Mulder?"

She could hear the smile in his voice.  "Always.  But, I'm calling 
because I realized I never answered your question earlier."

The smile fell from her face.  She'd only asked one question 
earlier that he hadn't really answered, and that was whether he 
wanted to have sex with her.  Surely he wasn't about to give her a 
straight answer.

"The answer is 'yes', Scully."

Oh God.  All the air in her lungs rushed out in a sharp puff.

"And I don't really care if it's great, or even good.  I'm sure, 
when it happens, we'll have a few awkward moments..."

You mean like this one, she thought, struggling to comprehend they 
were actually having this conversation.

"But, once we get past those, I'm willing to bet it's going to 
be... spectacular."

Just the thought of such an intimate act with Mulder had her 
feeling nervous and excited and aroused beyond belief.

"Are you there, Scully?"

She cleared her throat.  "I'm here.  I was just thinking that it 
already is spectacular."

He was quiet for the space of several of her rapid heartbeats.  
"Either invite me over, Scully, or say goodnight."

Hmm.  So tempting.  But it was one o'clock in the morning.  He'd 
waited nearly seven years; he could wait at least one more night.

"Goodnight, Mulder," she replied with an indulgent, teasing tone.

She heard him sigh.  "Tell Joan I agree with her theory.  And 
goodnight, Scully."

She had a dreamy smile on her face when she placed the receiver on 
its cradle and settled down into bed.  She had a feeling she would 
be making a phone call to an old friend very soon, telling Joan she 
had found the man of her dreams, that he was her biggest fan... and 
that it was spectacular.

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End - Spectacular by Rafferty