Part 2- Writer's Tag: Milagro Alternate Ending "The Stranger Freed Her and Himself"
Teamed up with my girl @tofuttim to do Tag team writing. She wrote part 1- What was the car ride after Padgett said "Agent Scully is already in love." Check it out here on AO3: Link
I wrote Part 2, what happens next. Here's Mine, but suggest you do read hers first! AO3: Link
They returned to Mulderās apartment; a surveillance trap set for Padgett.
She glanced at the coffee table and saw the Milagro charm Padgett had sent to her. She picked it up and twirled it through her fingers; reminding her of how she twirled a rose petal between her fingers the last time an impulsive decision had led her heart astray;Ā JerseĀ .
Her heart belonged to Mulder then as much as it does at this very minute; but she could never get an indication as to what possessed his heart.
Certainly, he loved her; she knew he did, but in what way? In the way which directs him to care for and protect her; the behavior he demonstrates for her over and over again?
Or did he love her in the way she loved him; yearning for intimacy, a way that she never saw from him. Unless she was supposed to interpret his hand on her back as sexual desire and emotional need.
Scully sighed as she heard the seconds tick by on Mulderās kitchen clock.
Why did she have to go to Padgettās apartment?Ā She wondered, knowing easily that the answer was genuine curiosity and a desire for attention that she never got with her heart anchored to Mulderās.
Her brain still stuck around the words Padgett had said,Ā Agent Scully is already in loveĀ . Little good did his admission do. The car ride had been silent and despite holding his hand briefly, Mulder seemed no closer; his heart was always just out of her reach; her desires never fulfilled.
She sighed, slumping into his couch, and closing her eyes. She fell asleep for a moment maybe, awakened by the clack of Padgettās typewriter through their surveillance feed.
āWhatās he up to now?ā Mulder asked her as he joined her on the couch.
āHe just started typing again,ā she replied, listening to the earphones as the typewriter continued to clack. Then the machine stopped as Padgett collected his papers and stood.
They heard a door slam and suddenly a folded paper slid under Mulderās front door.
Scully sat motionless as Mulder grabbed the note and opened the door. She heard him talking to Padgett in the hall.
āWhat is this?ā Mulder said, angrily.
Scully rose to her feet and tiptoed towards Mulderās doorway so she could hear the conversation.
āItās a note to you both. An apology for any inconvenience Iāve caused. You wonāt be hearing from me again. Iāve decided to destroy my book and Iām leaving,ā Padgett said, calmly.
Scully peeked out into the hallway just to see Padgett turning into the stairwell, his unfinished book in his hands.
Mulder turned and handed the note to Scully as he re-entered the apartment.
āI really donāt understand what you saw in him, Scully,ā he said, with an air of judgment that she was sure he was trying to hide but that she felt heavily on her soul.
She stared at him for a moment, no words to say. She couldnāt explain rationally her choice to go into Padgettās apartment. Would she have kissed him, or perhaps more if Mulder hadnāt stormed in? I guess sheād never know. She knew her heart belonged in this apartment, to this man and not the other way around, but she couldnāt wait for him forever, and she certainly couldnāt allow herself to be judged by him.
She sighed and shook her head. Exhausted. She turned to his kitchen and stood against the counter, opening Padgettās letter.
The Stranger apologized for intruding; for attempting to prevent the inevitable direction in which her heart was bound. Because if the stranger knew anything about life, he knew two hearts in love were to be protected; the magnificent worth of their shared desire must be cultivated. To go against this would be to go against the tides of the ocean, the winds on the plains. To go against this would be to curse his own heart to a life of loneliness. And so, by allowing her to seek the love of her partner, the stranger freed her and himself.
Scully gasped, dropping the note to the floor. Maybe Padgett did have some sort of psychic ability. It didnāt matter now; her feelings laid bare on the page.
Mulder scooped the letter off the ground and read it; she immediately stormed out of the kitchen, grabbing her keys, and heading for the elevator.
She heard footsteps and turned to see him chasing her down, āScully, waitā¦ā he said as the elevator closed. She took a deep breath as tears filled her eyes. She couldnāt see him right now, not with her heart exposed;Ā open like the psychic surgeon was pulling it from her chestĀ .
As the elevator opened to the lobby, she fled towards her car and as she unlocked it and got in, Mulder was entering through the passenger door.
āScully, pleaseā¦donāt leave. Talk to me,ā he said.
āI canāt talk,ā she cried. āI need to breathe, I need to go, Mulder.ā
āWhere are you going?ā he asked, desperately concerned.
āHome,ā she whispered. She couldnāt look at him. She stared into her lap, worrying her fingers.
āIāll ride with you, okay? You donāt have to talk. Just let me be here; next to you.ā
She turned the ignition and put the car in drive. He kept his promise, not saying another word. She barely heard him breathe; he was trying so hard to be silent.Ā She cried a bit more. She was sure he thought she was mad at him; she wasnāt. She was incredibly frustrated at the inevitable push and pull of their relationship. That she was to spend her life next to a man that she loved more than anyone and that seemingly would never be hers, felt like lifeās cruelest joke.
She pulled into her parking space and turned the ignition off. She exited the car without looking at him, but she knew he was following her inside. She opened the door to her apartment and held it for him. He went to her couch, still holding Padgettās note and looked off in the distance.Ā Heās just waiting for meĀ ;Ā how long will he just wait for me to say something?Ā she thought.
She stepped towards her kitchen to get a glass of water, she grabbed one for him too and sat next to him on the couch, slumping back again and closing her eyes. Minutes passed; he stayed stoic. Finally, after having followed her up and down the stairs of two apartments and across town without saying a word, he handed her Padgettās note and uttered two words.
She breathed deeply and looked at him, he looked like a shell of the beautiful confident man that she was working next to a week ago. This case had shaken him too, in a different way sure, but he looked tired and confused and hurt and yet somehow hopeful.
She hadnāt responded and he didnāt wait, his patience seeming to have dissipated from the earlier exercise in silence. āItās meā¦and itās you.ā This time he said it as a statement of fact not a question.
She chewed on her lower lip and thought of how to respond. Padgett had accurately called out her love for Mulder, but was he as astute about Mulderās supposed feelings for her?
āPlease tell me itās me, Scully,ā he said, his voice shaking; unsure.
āItās you,ā she whispered. āIs he rightā¦about us?ā she asked, closing her eyes to wait for an answer.
An answer didnāt come, instead she felt a shift in the sofa and a soft, warmth faintly touching her lips; a gentle kiss.
She opened her eyes and found Mulder inches from her face, with a sweetness in his eyes he rarely shot in her direction. āHeās right.ā
They sat and stared at each other for a beat; too tired for words.
āYou look exhausted, Mulder,ā she said softly, stroking his cheek.
āI am,ā he admitted. āBut this,ā he paused and smiled, āthis is good.ā He said, pulling her closer to him. He laid down and gently dragged her with him.
He sighed and wrapped his arm around her; she pressed her back against his chest devouring every ounce of physical pressure he was offering her.
āSo, love.ā he stated.
āYeah, me too,ā he said, stroking her hip now with his fingers, āfor too long, and I donāt know how we got this far without accepting it from each other. I guess I was scared to have you get too close; worried you would get hurt.ā
āI have been hurt by not having what I want; what I need from you.ā
āScully...ā he gulped, his voice choked with remorse.
āIt Doesnāt matter anymore. Weāre here now,ā she said, closing her eyes, pulling his arms tighter around her.
āWe are here now; itās loveā¦ā he whispered, before she felt exhaustion take them both under.
