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NAPA VALLEY, CALIFORNIA
THE LONG VINE MOTEL
HIGHWAY 29
CHRISTMAS DAY 1996
One immense privilege of growing up as a Navy brat was that of living all over the world. Scully had mostly experienced Christmas abroad in that part of her life because she didn’t really do too much growing up in America for a good long while. But this year marked a new experience altogether. Christmas with Mulder. Location? The Golden State itself.
An X-File had brought them here. Now solved, the partners had until the next evening before the SuperShuttle was due to bring them to the airport for their flight back home again. For now? They were stranded at The Long Vine Motel. But hope wasn’t lost.
Calling from her own room, Scully said, “Mulder? Can you please come here for a second?”
Swiftly coming to stand in the connecting doorway between his room and hers, Mulder asked her, “What’s up?”
Scully closed the distance between them to show Mulder a voucher in one hand now. “Hey. I found this on my table. Did you get one?”
Holding up his own identical voucher advertising a free breakfast at the on-site eatery, Mulder said, “Yep. I also got one. But I even found vouchers of the same variety for a free lunch and a free dinner. What about you?”
“Uh-huh.” Scully checked the time on her watch. “Look at that. Noon on the nose. Want to go get lunch?”
“Okay.” said Mulder. “I’ll meet you outside in a second.”
Giving a nod of agreement, Scully retreated back into her motel room again. Mulder followed suit. The walk wasn’t far. But the rain was cold.
Still, as he locked his door behind him and waited for Scully in the exterior hallway, Mulder allowed himself a smile. They had exchanged presents already. She’d given him a new book she knew he’d been interested in. Even a nice travel-size puzzle. He’d quite unintentionally given her the same kinds of gifts. Great minds thought alike. Both partners came out from the situation feeling pleased–now they had ways to kill the time later on. But first? A meal.
The partners’ rooms were on the ground floor of the property. And the fastest way to get to their new destination was to cut through the main check-in office. The lobby hosted an entrance to it. For being in the middle of nowhere at all, The Long Vine Motel did at least have one solid thing that kept them grounded to civilization. An attached restaurant. Denny’s. Mulder and Scully were also the only ones there.
A young woman dressed in the restaurant uniform (although bedecked in Christmas flair) greeted them. “Good afternoon! Are you two here for lunch?”
Scully said, “Yes. Both of us are staying at the motel until tomorrow.”
Mulder tacked on, “We also would like to redeem our vouchers for a free lunch.”
“Okay. I will handle those when you are done.” said the server. “Both of you are the only ones here. And certainly the first couple we’ve had in some time.”
Bailing Scully out, Mulder said cheerfully, “The two of us are not a couple.”
Blushing, the hostess turned. “Oh. I beg your pardon. My apologies.”
“Hey. Don’t worry about it.” Mulder said. “It happens all the time.”
“Definitely true.” confirmed Scully. “Where to from here?”
She and Mulder were soon situated together in a booth by the main window. Its view offered one of the parking lot a stone’s throw away. But it was becoming obscured by the increasing rain. Mulder and Scully only felt content. Even a random roadside Napa Valley Denny’s was a step up from their usual motel accommodations.
“You know, Mulder,” Scully began after they’d been left to their own devices. “A lot of people really do mistake us for a married couple…”
“Yeah.” Mulder agreed. “That’s definitely true.”
“I guess it also makes total sense, what with all we’ve been through over the years.” reflected Scully.
“Mhm. We are definitely bonded.” mused Mulder. “Have you ever been married?”
Immediately wondering where that question had even come from, Scully asked, “Have you ever been married before?”
Laughing nervously, Mulder said, “Remember Phoebe?”
Startled and astonished, Scully bleated, “Get out! You and Phoebe…?”
“The two of us were engaged. Momentarily.” Mulder admitted. “But it ended when we were offered two very different job tracks. Now? Everything’s ancient history.”
“Oh.” Scully acknowledged. “I guess that explains a lot.”
Mulder nodded. “Mhm. Now it’s your turn. ‘Fess up.”
“Fine.” Scully laughed. “The summer before I started college in Maryland, I won a scholarship to a very junior pre-med program at Stanford. Even took the train across the country because I thought it’d be fun.”
“Was it?” Mulder asked.
“Yeah. I'll tell you the story over games, hot chocolate, and whatever Chrismtas movie we find playing on the television. Okay?” Scully touched the tabletop. “Anyway… Long story short? I wasn’t at all buttoned-up as a teenager. I’m still not. My favorite hobby was ‘toeing the line’ because I still always applied myself enough to make decent grades on the whole. But honestly? I was a total scofflaw in high school.”
Chuckling, Mulder asked, “Is that so?”
“Absolutely.” Scully confirmed. “Ask my mother some time. She’d get a kick out of telling you. But I still made good marks during my Stanford summer… Even when I met Butser Hill.”
“Dare I ask, ‘What is a Buster Hill?’ Come on.” Mulder sat up straighter. “I am all ears.”
“He was cool, tall, and so handsome. But he was there on a sport-related scholarship for one of those programs. We met at lunch one day. And the rest became history.” explained Scully. “However… Stanford is only eight hours-and-change from Las Vegas…”
“You didn’t.” Mulder said in surprise when he connected the dots.
“Uh-huh.” Scully chuckled. “I swear up and down that for most of one very whirlwind weekend, I was Dana Katheirne Hill.”
“So…” Mulder spoke after a moment of processing this information. “What happened?”
“We came to our senses.” answered Scully. “I realized first that we had enough money to eat, and get a divorce done and processed, all before catching a Greyhound bus back to California.”
“Incredible.” Mulder shook his head in amazement. “Wow. Never would’ve guessed.”
Scully shrugged. “Just as people at work seem to only take you at face-value because of your ‘oddball reputation’ we both know that you have, so too do people take me at face-value because I’m a young academic. It’s a little sad. But you're the only person at work who likes to learn about me. So I’m happy to share.”
“And I’m happy to learn.” Mulder said sincerely. “Does it bother you that people sometimes mistake us as married?”
Scully opened her mouth to reply but just as fast became disrupted by the arrival of their food. So both she and Mulder talked about other things while they worked through their Christmas lunch of hot sandwiches, french fries, lemonade, and salad. The rain outside continued to pour. Best of all? They remained the only customers.
After they’d fully-redeemed their vouchers at the end of the meal, Mulder and Scully left a generous tip for their hostess. She had been pleasant. And it was Christmas. Being a Scrooge did not sound fun.
Thinking of their cozy rooms not far away as they walked together under the motel’s overhang, Scully’s mood was pleasant until…
CREAK! WOOSH!
And Scully cried, “What the hell?!”
She had stopped to fix one sneaker when she’d noticed a loose lace. The heavens even decided to blow rather a gust in her direction. Unfortunately, it was enough so that a rain gutter attached to the overhang loosened up… and poured an excessive amount of chilly rainwater directly into her jacket. Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Mulder pulled her away. Fast.
“Oh, that’s bad luck.” he sympathized. “Come on. It isn’t much further. Alright? Where’s your key?”
The cold already setting in, Scully handed it over. Even her trust. So Mulder steered her inside her motel room when they reached it. Scully let him. By now, her wet clothes were sticking to her in a very comical way. She needed help to move. But Mulder closed the door behind her after they’d entered Room 1013. From there, he found spare towels in her linen closet. And handed them over.
“Okay. There you go.” he held Scully steady while she shucked off her wet socks and shoes. “By the way… I did also see an option for food from the restaurant to be delivered to the rooms. Yay or nay?”
With all the dignity she could muster, Scully replied, “Yay.”
Mulder turned Scully’s room thermostat higher for her as he said, “Roger that. Also… Even my clothes could stand some drying out. The laundry room’s just around the corner. Why don’t we change into dry things? Okay? Then I’ll go put the wet stuff in the dryer.”
Brightening, Scully said, “Thanks! And I can give you quarters because it’s always a coin laundry system in a place like this one…”
Mulder waved a hand of dismissal. “Mm-mm. This one’s on me. I think you have had enough excitement for now.”
Resisting the impulse to kiss him in thanks for his kindness to her just then, Scully cleared her throat. “Okay. Thanks again. You are a kind man, and I’ll always be so happy that we’re friends. Right now? I’ll be right back.”
Each went their separate ways for a few minutes to change into ‘in-between clothes.’ They’d make do. And for the sake of convenience, Mulder carried their things there in a trash bag from a roll that Scully had found in her bathroom. But he ditched it in the laundry room trash bin once he’d started the process of having their clothes dry.
And then Mulder looked around. It so happened that the laundry room had everything one would require to handle this type of business. Including a dispenser for laundry aids that even carried sturdy disposable bags for carrying the laundry. Mulder would use these items later. In the meantime, something else caught his attention. So he zeroed in on it. This would prove a fun time.
Scully was feeling amused by the time she heard Mulder arrive. She had blown her hair dry after her shower. But it had assumed its natural-most state of total frizziness. Her amusement grew as it then occurred to her that Mulder had never seen this version of her. Not once. Ever. What a Christmas this was turning out to be. And Scully treasured it.
Concerning Mulder’s laundry room discovery, he had noticed one vending machine full of snacks. And a second one carrying soft drinks. Mulder bought items in both categories immediately. Half the loot was for him. The other? For Scully. It’d brighten her mood even further.
Standing in the joint doorway, Scully said to Mulder, “What are the new treasures about?”
Mulder lit up at the eye contact. “Hey. I thought I’d get a few more things to make our situation cheerful.”
Grinning, Scully told him, “It’s worked.”
“Excellent.” Mulder spoke a little faster so he didn’t grow entirely weak-kneed from her smile. “Uh… If it still stands, I’m totally down for the hot chocolate offer from before.”
“As am I.” Scully promised. “I’ve been looking forward to it.”
Perking up even more, Mulder said, “Okay. Cool. Then we can save these things to pull out during dinner later. Or after… Or… Something like that.”
But now Scully was at her most amused yet. Mulder had taken in the sight of her frizzy hair. And he even liked it. Now the man was just trying to keep his cool so he didn’t accidentally put his foot in his mouth. It had happened over a compliment in a domestic-adjacent situation once before. So Scully bailed him out again. Did she mind? No. She found it endearing.
Now Scully emptied out a nearby decorative basket of its ugly red-and-white-colored poinsettia faux bouquet and joined Mulder in his room. “Here. I’ll carry those treats and you can bring over whatever you should like. Okay?”
“Alright.” agreed Mulder. “One second…”
Scully watched him deposit the vending machine treasures into the basket. Sunflower seeds for him, a Snickers bar, and a bottle of Coca-Cola for Mulder. Scully smiled when she saw the next bit. Her partner had procured her favorites for her. A bag of pretzels, a bag of Skittles, and even a bottle of Country Time lemonade. Mulder knew her extremely well.
Returning her gaze to Mulder, Scully said, “This is all very amazing.”
“I’m glad you think so.” Mulder offered her a kind smile. “Hey. I will meet you in a second.”
So Scully went back to her own room again.
Before it slipped her mind, Scully made swift work of putting the drinks in the mini fridge near the room sink. Then she moved to the counter beside it. Here could be seen a fast-acting electrical kettle, a coffee maker, a bucket for ice from the machine outside, even a separate supply county for creating hot drinks. And so Scully went about preparing what they’d just discussed.
Mulder joined her when he’d collected his new puzzle. It depicted a surfing turtle in a tropical setting. He also collected a travel version of the Scrabble board game. His mother had given it to him as a present just before he’d left for this case. Playing with Scully would be fun. Or so he hoped.
Then Mulder stopped to watch Scully as he sat on the edge of the room’s one bed. This woman had really come out of her shell over the years. But he’d never seen her in so casual a mode before. It was a nice change of pace.
Remarking on one aspect in particular, Mulder said to Scully, “Didn’t know before that your hair could turn out so frizzy. But you know, Scully? I really like it a lot.”
“Thank you, Mulder. It gets more wild when I’m someplace humid.” Scully then turned wistful. “Man… I have stories for days about growing up in England…”
“What?” Mulder blurted.
“You are not the only one in the room educated across the pond.” Scully laughed. “I think you can guess why…?”
“Oh.” Mulder pulled himself together. “That’s right. Your father was in the Navy.”
“Mhm.” Scully also took a seat. “Mulder, I’ve lived in all kinds of places because of that.”
“England was your favorite?” guessed Mulder.
Nodding, Scully said, “Yes. I’m from Annapolis. But according to family lore, we left when I was practically brand-new.”
“Oh?” Mulder now saw only Scully. “Where’d the family land first?”
“Spain, believe it or not.” Scully picked up her hairbrush from the bedside table and began the process of taming her wild locks. “But we were there for less than a year. So there’s no possible way I could remember it.”
“Yeah. That’s understandable.” reflected Mulder. “Where’d everyone end up after that? England?”
“Mm-mm. Japan. We were there until I was five. Do I remember things from that era? I do. But my mother can recall them with far better accuracy. And more.” Scully laughed. “My father had a long assignment in England. Life there meant experiencing unearthly humidity during the corresponding weather. Much of my childhood saw me looking like I had a lion mane. Dear Melissa had the same experience. And we both kept our hair quite long in those days.”
Mulder murmured, “Wild…”
“That’s one word for it.” Scully checked the time on her alarm clock. “Mulder? How long was the dryer supposed to take?”
Also taking stock of the time, he said, “They should be done by now. Guess I’ll be right back.”
Scully turned on the television before she went back to combing out her hair. “I’m so not going anywhere until that rain lets up again. But the hot chocolate will be at a non-scalding temperature by the time you get back.”
Indeed…
Her guess was accurate. Plus, by the time they’d finished sorting out their laundry and putting things away, the hot chocolate was just right. Mulder was pleased. The rain outside continued to fall hard. And swiftly. Travel seemed ill-advised. Being at an airport? Well… It sounded like a nightmare. The Long Vine Motel now seemed extra cozy to him.
Gesturing to the Scrabble game, Scully asked, “Where did this come from? Santa’s toy bag?”
Mulder chuckled. “Not quite. My mother gave it to me before you and I left for this trip.”
“Oh. That was nice of her.” Scully furrowed her eyebrow. “Then… Have you had it in your bag since we left from D.C.?”
“Uh-huh. We exchanged presents the night before because she always goes traveling at the time of year.” explained Mulder. “Would you like to play while we watch television and chat?”
“Sure. But,” Scully winked. “Be prepared to get absolutely trounced.”
“Okay.” Mulder agreed. “Then you’re on.”
Moving a table from the far corner of the room to the generous amount of space between Scully’s bed and the dresser atop which the television sat, both partners worked together even more to set up shop. It was nice. Even far better than a team-building seminar, the latest of which they’d been made to ‘accidentally’ skip out on because of this trip. Each agent remained amused over the fact. So did Skinner.
Once they’d settled in their seats and on choosing to watch White Christmas because it was just beginning, Mulder said, “Anything to propose before we go on?”
Scully set aside her hairbrush and pushed her now-tamed locks back with a thick headband she’d had in one pocket. But she took a little bit longer than she’d meant. Why? Because her heart had skipped a beat at Mulder’s use of that particular ‘p’ word.
Speaking again, Scully answered, “Just that we call over to the restaurant after this first round. I think we should get an idea on what’s what about deliverable items.”
Mulder quickly jotted a reminder to himself about it in a piece of hotel stationery. “That’s a good idea.”
“Hey.” Scully then said after another moment had passed. “Regarding your question from earlier…”
“Hm?” said Mulder, having genuinely forgotten.
“You asked me earlier,” Scully reminded him. “If it bothers me when people mistake us for married.”
“Oh.” Mulder quickly used a fresh piece of stationery to make a game scorecard. “I remember now.”
Scully went on, “Does it bother you? Like I can ignore that it happens a lot. Or that we’ve always been super protective of each other.”
“It doesn’t bother me at all. Everything about what we have just makes total sense to me at this point.” Mulder answered thoughtfully. “But we also skipped a few major ‘getting to know you’ steps on our first case.”
Easily remembering the events of Bellefleur and wishing to never go back again, Scully sighed, “Mhm. Too true. And you know? It really doesn’t bother me when people mistake us for married because it really does make sense at this point. I agree with you. The things we’ve undergone over the years…”
Mulder mused, “It’s all well more than a lot.”
“Exactly.” said Scully. “To that end, I believe that we’ve been bonded since our first case. But there was an uptick… or… something… after Skyland. No? I well and truly enjoy it. Do you?”
Falling even more in love with her than he already was, Mulder answered, “Yes. I do. And I’d never change it for anything. Ever.”
“Nor would I. And… What if…” Scully exhaled noisily as she felt butterflies pop up in her stomach. “What if someday when we’re older and retired, we just got a nice place in the countryside? Hm? I’ll do my thing. And you can do yours. But we’ll at least keep each other company. Mulder, what do you think?”
“I think it sounds like fun. Total perfection, too.” said Mulder. “You have yourself a deal.”
Falling in love even more because he’d agreed so sincerely, Scully shook Mulder’s outstretched hand as she said, “Excellent.“
Changing tracks as they then began setting up their game tiles, Mulder began, “Regarding the matter at hand…”
Scully guessed in amusement, “Why did I become ‘Dana Hill’ to begin with?”
“Yeah.” Mulder confirmed. “But may I also ask the actual name of your ex-husband?”
Playfully flipping Mulder off when she realized he was relishing the moment gleefully, Scully answered, “I will have you know that his name is Archibald.”
Taken aback, Mulder cried, “What?!”
“Hand to God,” Scully laughed. “My ex really is called Archibald. He was even a fourth. ‘Buster’ came about because he was fast. And shockingly strong.”
Mulder asked, “What sport did he do? Track and field?”
Scully shook her head. “Mm-mm. Buster did wrestling.”
“Then the nickname really worked out.” observed Mulder. “Did you ever do a sport?”
“Each of us did.” Scully confirmed. “My big brother played cricket. Even Charlie joined a junior league when he was first old enough to qualify.”
“Okay.” Mulder acknowledged. “What about you and your sister?”
“Much to our parents’ dismay,” Scully laughed again. “We chose badminton.”
More surprised than ever, Mulder murmured, “Wow. But here I was with an insanely long record of basketball under my belt...”
Scully briefly, and not even for the first time, what all he had under his belt.
Then she just as quickly dashed the thought so her thoughts didn’t wander. “Easy, tiger. But anyway… Would you like to hear about my short marriage? Or about mine and Melissa’s badminton adventures?”
“Both.” Mulder decided. “Please?”
Scully laid out her first word on the gameboard. “Okay. Pay attention.”
Mulder quickly realized she meant it in more ways than one. Her opening Scrabble word: ‘maximize.’ How her.
“I’m paying attention.” Mulder promised Scully. “And look.”
Scully’s amusement grew. Mulder had spelled ‘converge.’ Right to the point.
“Nicely done.” Scully said. “Now, going from the top, me meeting Archibald ‘Buster’ Hill goes like this…”
Mulder listened to Scully’s every word. The rain continued pouring outside and showed no signs of stopping. But inside Room 1013, It’s A Wonderful Life played merrily on the television. The agents also had each other for company, their many treasures of the day, the hot chocolate, the warmth of the room, and the board game. This Christmas was perfect. Even all the way out there in Wine Country.