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Mulder had never seen his partner so wound up. She was always so calm, so steadfast, so unflappable. Seeing her overcome with fear was almost a relief, in a way. He felt bad about it, of course, but he also breathed a bit easier knowing she was capable of being irrational every once in awhile. Maybe that wasn’t fair. there were microscopic, shadow-hating, human-sized cocoon-weaving bugs infiltrating the cabin, so her fear wasn’t exactly irrational. For once, he just wasn’t as worried about it as she was.
Somewhere in the back of his brain, he knew he should be worried, but someone had to think clearly and be dependable. It almost made him laugh. Irrational and Unreliable could’ve been his two middle names. When Scully had nearly broken the only lightbulb they had to get them through the night though, his responsible side kicked in. It was then that he noticed she was actually shaking. She wasn’t just afraid, she was trembling.
“Come on,” Mulder said, slipping his arm around her shoulders and sitting her back down on her cot. Moore was still holding the cord of the lightbulb to keep it from swaying. “Remember, everything will be fine if we just stay in the light.”
“I can feel them,” she whispered, running her fingers over her arms like claws. “We’re not safe.”
“We just need to stay in the light.” He pulled both her hands off her arms and rubbed her wrists. “Come on, Scully, we’ve seen worse, right?”
Scully closed her eyes, but almost as soon as she'd shut them, they popped back open and she shivered violently. Conscious of Moore shuffling to the cot across the room and his scrutiny of them, Mulder dropped Scully’s wrists and hugged her close, bringing her against his chest and holding her head to his neck.
“If you want, I'll sing,” Mulder whispered in her ear.
“What?” she said, her breath coming in soft, broken pants. He could feel her heart rate increasing now that he held her so tightly. She suddenly slumped into him and he could swear he heard her whimper. He had a flashback to a dark hotel room and mosquito bites. Damn, she really hated the bugs. In the future he’d have to be cautious about taking bug cases. He wasn’t a fan himself, really, but now wasn’t the time to bring up the praying mantis incident.
Scully shivered.
“I'll sing,” Mulder repeated. “Maybe it'll help.”
“How could singing help?”
“I could try a lullaby and put you to sleep.”
She shook her head. “I don't want to sleep.”
“I could sing some heavy metal and keep you awake.”
“Is heavy metal something you sing?”
“I don't know. I don't actually know any heavy metal. Do you?”
“Don't be ridiculous.”
He liked the way she scoffed at him. It felt more like the Scully he knew than the shivering woman in his arms. Maybe if he could keep her exasperated at him, he could keep her calm. “I read that singing decreases your blood pressure,” he said.
“You never read that.”
“Sure I did.”
“Where?”
“I don’t know, Karaoke Monthly or Scientific American.”
“Mulder.”
“Scully.”
“You don’t have any proof.”
“Neither do you. I sing all the tim. Why do you think I’m so laid back and even keeled?”
“I’ve never heard you sing.”
“I’ve been waiting for the right time to regale you with my dulcet tones.”
Scully sighed. It grew eerily quiet for the next few moments. Mulder took a glance at Moore and unconsciously reached up to brush Scully’s hair back behind her ear. She jumped and smacked his hand as she tried to wrench herself away from him.
“It was just me, just me,” he said, holding her firmly and tightly. “I’m sorry. Just me.”
“Mulder!” she breathed.
“Just me.”
“I can’t take this.”
“Tell me about the first thing you’ll do when get home.”
“If we get home.”
“ When ,” he said, firmly. “Tell me.”
“I want a hot bath.”
“One of those super girly hot baths with mud masks, candles, and wine?”
“What would you know about it?”
“Plenty.”
“No, just a hot bath.”
“What else?”
“That’s it.”
“You just picture yourself in a hot bath then and I’ll picture myself with a nice, fat hamburger.”
“I could go for a hamburger, actually.”
Mulder leaned away from Scully a little to look down at her. “I’ll buy you the greasiest burger ever made as soon as we get home, okay?”
Scully lifted her eyes up to meet his, but it was obvious she didn’t believe him. He could see it in the wrinkling of her forehead that she didn’t think they were getting out. He really didn’t like being the rational one in the partnership. He made sure she saw his hand this time before he touched her face.
“Only a few hours until daybreak,” he said. “Just have to stay in the light and then we’ll get out of here.”
“Sure.” She usually humored him with a little more enthusiasm.
Mulder hugged her a little tighter. He looked over at Moore, who was laying on his cot with his arms crossed over his chest. He looked up at the lightbulb, the tiny source of their survival. He glanced at the corner, where the mites gathered in wait. He tried to think of a song to sing, but apparently rational people didn’t sing under duress. He would just have to serenade her later, when they got those burgers. If they got out of here. When . When they got out of here.
The End