Chapter Text
The ride to the hospital passed in a blur, rain splattering the windshield as Mulder drove quicker than was probably safe, but from the moment he’d gotten the phone call, he didn’t care. He’d been having a quiet Friday afternoon at home--TCM was playing one of his favorites--but when the hospital called saying Scully had been hurt, he didn’t even let them finish before saying he’d be right there.
He ran a hand over his face, trying to remind himself that he didn’t know what he was walking into, or for that matter, if upon arriving Scully would even welcome him. It had been months since they’d seen each other, although he knew from time to time she’d swing by the house to pick up things she needed or had forgotten. Things like shampoo and perfume were easily replaceable, but he’d come home a time or two to find a chair wasn’t exactly where he left it, and some of her favorite books and coffee mugs had suddenly disappeared weeks after she’d left. They talked on the phone at least once a week once the dust had settled, but sometimes he wondered if the time would come when he wouldn’t answer. He toyed with the idea each time she called, and every time he picked up, because he knew just as well as she did that whatever semblance of a relationship they had couldn’t be severed completely.
He parked the car, slamming the door shut and ignoring how the rain caused his clothes to stick to his skin and the chill that hit him upon entering the hospital. He scanned his surroundings, searching for a sign or someone who could point him in the right direction. “Excuse me,” he said, eager to catch the attention of a nurse sitting behind the central desk, not caring for the way she smiled apologetically, gesturing to the phone she was using. “Yes, I know. But if you could give me a moment, I need to find my wife. She was admitted a little while ago. She actually works here...Doctor Dana Scully, maybe you know her?”
Before the nurse could even respond, the sound of someone calling for him from the elevator bank caught his attention. “You’re here for Dana, aren’t you? Fox?”
“Just Mulder, but yes. Do you know where she is?” Mulder asked, struggling to hear himself over the sound of his pulse thrumming loudly in his ears. The woman, brown hair pulled back into a braid and face fixed into a look of concern should probably be somewhat familiar to him, given how in the earlier years he had made an attempt at attending hospital Christmas parties and faculty functions. But as he watched her press the up button on the elevator, he found his regrets lied not so much in not knowing her name as in the fact he couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen Scully get dressed up. The parties weren’t entirely her thing, but he remembered the year they’d snuck away to her office for a private celebration, and he vowed to never miss another one again. As the woman beckoned him inside the elevator, the regret of breaking said vow hit him harder than he’d like to admit.
“I was going to fetch a coffee, but come on. I’ll take you to her room.”
He closed his eyes, and drew in a deep breath to try and at least appear composed. Somewhere in the hospital, Scully was hurt, and the more time he spent trying to force communication with someone else, the longer it would take to get to her. “We’re going up? That’s gotta be a good sign, right?”
The woman furrowed her brow and pressed the button for the correct floor. “They didn’t tell you much information on the phone, did they? Doctor Scully was walking down a stairwell earlier this evening when she was involved in an altercation. Rather, she happened to be in the wrong place when a man who was trying to flee the hospital ran into her. As I understand it, the man was not in his correct frame of mind, and so when she tried to help him, he inadvertently pushed her backwards, causing--”
“Yeah, I get the picture,” Mulder replied, again closing his eyes. He didn’t want the image of Scully lying hurt in a stairwell, or to imagine how long she’d lain there before help arrived in his mind. He followed the woman from the elevator, turning down one hallway and then another before stopping at a closed door. “Is this it?”
The woman nodded, clearing her throat to speak before he had a chance to enter. “When I left the room a bit ago, she was...not entirely herself. The pain medication appears to have had some effect on her, although I suppose that’s a good thing.”
“Thank you…” Mulder trailed off, again trying to place the name of the woman he was certain he’d have met at one of the parties Scully had drug him to.
As if sensing his hesitation, she smiled. “Cait. Anyway, I really should be going. I’ll check back in later.”
Mulder watched her walk around the corner before heading into the room, unsure of just what he’d find. He spotted Scully sitting up in the bed, arm in a sling and foot carefully propped up, her eyes nearly closed until she caught the sight of him.
“Mulder, you didn’t have to come! I told them I was fine, that I was all fine. In fact, I feel--”
“Fine?” Mulder asked, tentatively stepping closer to the bed. He eyed her curiously, somewhat amused at the laughter that bubbled past her lips. Whatever horrific images his mind had conjured upon hearing she’d been hospitalized, this was not what he expected to find. “Scully, forgive me for saying this, but you’re lying in a hospital bed all banged up. To say you’re fine right now would be a gross overstatement.”
Scully shook her head, wincing as she did so. “Maybe that was a bad idea. Ow.”
“I suppose it would be in poor taste to ask how you’re feeling, considering the answer is fairly obvious,” Mulder replied. He watched as she focused her gaze on her free hand, picking at the cuticle of her thumb with her index finger. Her actions seemed slow and deliberate, and he found himself wondering what was running through her mind. “Do you remember what happened?”
Again Scully tried moving her head, realizing too late that doing so was perhaps a mistake. “The pain medication they have me taking may be dulling the physical aspects of what happened, but yes. I remember.”
Mulder slowly reached across the bed for her hand, lacing their fingers together. It was the closest they’d come since she’d decided to leave him. He felt a little guilty, almost as if he were taking advantage of the situation, but he needed the physical proof she was okay. “When the nurse called me...you have to know I was worried, Scully. I wasn’t sure what happened to you, or--”
“About that,” Scully said, tongue darting out to moisten her parched lips. “I haven’t had reason or opportunity to alter my emergency contact in my personnel file. I’m sorry they bothered you, Mulder, but really, I’ll be okay.”
”Okay? Scully, you were pushed down a flight of stairs, albeit on accident, but none the less it happened. Your arm is in a sling, and by the look of it, your leg isn’t in great shape either. I’d hardly say that qualifies you as okay.”
Scully closed her eyes against the anger in his voice and made an effort to pull her hand away, but wasn’t able to pull free from his grasp. The warmth of his touch had been something she missed more than she cared to admit, and while she tried telling herself the medication had something to do with it, she was relieved upon feeling his thumb start tracing circles against the back of her hand. She’d missed the intimacy of quiet moments with him, but also knew it wasn’t enough to sustain their fragile relationship. She cleared her throat, prepared to suggest he go, before the sound of the door opening caught both of their attention.
“Doctor Scully, you seem to be in better spirits than when I saw you a few hours ago,” the grey haired doctor said, walking into the room and adjusting the lapel of his labcoat with one hand while clutching a computer tablet in the other. “I’m sure you’re tired of the question at this point, but how are you feeling?”
Scully laughed, and despite the pain medication weakening her senses, she knew there was no use in trying to lie. “I feel sore. It hurts. I’ve survived worse though, you know,” she said, giggling to herself and giving Mulder’s hand a squeeze. She knew the man sitting beside her had full knowledge of just how true that statement was.
The doctor tapped at his tablet screen for a few moments before looking back up at her. “I know I shouldn’t have to tell you that recovery from injuries such as the ones you’ve suffered can at times be hard. It’s important that you take it easy. However, I see no reason we need to keep you overnight. You’ll need to have someone close by for the next day or two to monitor your improvement, but aside from that, I’m prepared to sign your discharge paperwork.”
“I can call my mother, I’m sure it wouldn’t be a problem for me to stay the weekend,” Scully replied, only for a thought to occur a few moments later. She pulled her hand free from Mulder’s, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Wait, I can’t do that. She flew out west to help Tara recover from surgery. I can’t ask her to fly back early because of me.”
“It’s okay, doctor,” Mulder said, piping up before she had a chance to refuse the offer. He was focused on her doctor, but he could feel her eyes honing in on him. If he were to look her way, he knew there would be at least a hint of panic evident in her features. “I’ll make sure she’s taken care of. Now, about those release papers?”
The next few minutes were filled with the doctor explaining the terms of her release before telling them the nurse would be back in as soon as said papers were signed. When he left the room, Scully began to refuse Mulder’s offer, just as he suspected she would. The last thing she wanted was to burden him with having to take care of her, but aside from that, she wasn’t entirely certain of how she’d react to being alone in the same house with him again. Having him focus all his attention on her, making sure she was comfortable and, as the doctor had said, eating and taking her medications properly, seemed an impossible task. She’d moved out for a reason, and while their weekly phone conversations suggested he was making improvements, Scully was afraid of what putting them under the same roof for an extended period of time would do.
Mulder wasn’t going to take no for an answer however, and so a short while later he’d happily helped her into the car. He’d tried to hide his amusement at the way she almost instantly curled against the car door, head leaning against the window as she quietly nodded off to sleep. He would never admit it out loud, but he was glad to see that her ability to fall asleep basically anywhere had never changed. The drive to the house had been uneventful as she’d slept the whole time, but as he parked the car he realized he’d have to risk waking her up in order to get her inside. He studied her sleeping form for a few minutes, guiltily drinking in the peaceful expression on her face and her parted lips, before hastily unbuckling his seat belt and moving around to her side of the car.
Scully was woken up by the soft feeling of his fingers tracing her cheek. Feeling warm in the coat he’d offered her as a blanket before sleep claimed her, she burrowed further into her seat, not yet fully awake. “Feels good.”
At that he took a step back, looking up at the clouds that loomed above. “Come on, we’d better get inside before the rain starts up again.”
Her eyes snapped open, reality settling in like a fog around her. She looked past him, trying to make sense of the house she’d called home for so many years being where she’d be spending the next few days.
“Look, I can take you to your apartment if you’d be more comfortable. I should’ve asked anyway, but I figured things would be easier here. I’m sorry,” he said, reaching up to massage the back of his neck.
Regardless of whatever uncertainty remained between them, she knew there was no way she could ask him to get back in and drive her in the direction they’d come from. Truth be told, the idea of nestling into the couch cushions and returning to the nap she’d been having moments before sounded entirely appealing. “You don’t have to be,” she said, shifting in her seat. She grabbed his arm, intent on using it as leverage to help her stand. “Come on, Mulder. Help me get inside.”