The Night Shift Series - Part 4 After the Shift by Mulderslady DISCLAIMER: They don't belong to me, wish they did. RATING: P.G.-13 later stories maybe P.G.-13 to mild R CLASSIFICATION: S, Alternative Universe, X-file KEYWORDS: UST/MSR, Minor Mulder and Scully angst, AU SPOILERS: From All seasons URL: http:/ /www.geocities.com/Area51/Capsule/5160/Nightshift.html FEEDBACK: Please!!! at damacia@home.com ARCHIVE: Oh yeah, anywhere!! SUMMARY: Off-Kilter veteran Paramedic Fox Mulder meets the new Medical Examiner for Georgetown Medical Center, Dr. Dana Scully. A deep friendship instantly develops as they have numerous X-file like adventures on the night shift. Fourth part of the Night Shift series. 4:30 am Same thing, same everything, that was fun. If only we could have caught the killer though, now that would have been the ultimate fun. She walked into her office quietly, and saw a slumbering Mulder stretched across the couch. Probably the first good hours sleep he's had today. She saw something glint off Mulder's belt, and she examined it closer. A gun? EMT's carry guns? What kind? She slowly disarmed Mulder. Beretta, nice chrome plated, nice weight, loaded too. Mulder turned a little and let out a sigh, still asleep, Scully returned his gun to it's holster and started typing up her reports. 6 a.m. Scully walked over to the couch where Mulder was still sleeping. She ran her fingers through his hair, it was just as soft and silky as it looked. Then she let her fingers travel down his face, tracing all his features, learning them. Mulder let out a sigh and leaned into her hand and opened his eyes. He jerked away when he saw Scully and blushed slightly "How long have I been asleep?" "About 2 and a half hours." "Good, ready for some breakfast?" "Sure, where do you usually go after work?" "Depends on my mood. IHOP, Aunt Sarah's, Cracker Barrel, Waffle house." He said stretching and walking to the bathroom. "What do you want?" Scully thought about it as Mulder cleaned up. "I feel like waffles and bacon, who has the best?" "Waffle house." "Waffle house it is then." She linked her arm in his and grabbed her briefcase off the desk. Outside "I'll drive Mulder." "What you don't want to ride in the Spooky mobile?" "They let you take the ambulance home?" Mulder laughed "No I have to leave it here. I usually ride the metro in to work." Scully smiled and unlocked her car. "So which way, I'm not too comfortable around town yet." "Don't worry, hang with me you'll know DC better than yourself." Waffle house "Large OJ, your waffle platter and bacon, lots and lots of bacon." The waitress turned to Mulder and asked "Your usual hon?" "Yeah and add some regular coffee to that please." "Sure thing cute stuff." The waitress said winking at Mulder before leaving with the orders. Scully giggled and Mulder blushed "Come here often?" "I used to hang here waiting for calls." "Oh now you have my morgue to hang huh?" "Yeah, the last examiner was such a pain, thought he was god's gift." "What happened to him?" "Who knows, he was a bit of a coke head, so he's probably in a gutter some where." Scully giggled again. Mulder liked how her face lit up when she smiled or laughed. He hadn't smiled or laughed so much in years. She filled a void in his life, a good friend who wouldn't judge him or try and change him. "Where do you live Mulder?" "Alexandria." "Nice area." The food came and Mulder received another suggestive look from the waitress "You busy this weekend?" Mulder asked suddenly "Huh?" Scully said a mouth full of waffle and bacon. Mulder laughed and reached across the table and wiped some syrup off her chin. "Busy this weekend?" "No, why?" "I got tickets to Bush Gardens down in Virginia but it's never as much fun alone." "Sure no problem, you driving or me?" "Well um I'll drive. You don't mind motorcycles though, do you?" Scully's ears perked up. "What kind?" "Harley." "Oh yeah! I don't mind at all, god I love Harleys! What time do we need to hit the road?" Sunday 3 p.m. A drowsy Scully answered her phone reluctantly "Scully." "Hey sleepyhead, going to sleep all day?" "Mulder, hey, yep if this phone would stop ringing." "Just unplug it." "If I did that the police would be breaking down my door in no time saying my parents reported me missing. I'm getting a cellphone and pager next week as part of my contract, maybe they won't worry so much." "Ah, your there baby girl they got nothing better to do than worry. Enjoy it, I would." "Uh Mulder?" "What?" "Why'd you call?" "Oh just wanted to say hey and wondering what you're doing for dinner." "I hadn't thought about it. Why?" "Well they opened a new all you can eat buffet down the street from the monument, thought maybe we could go check it out." Scully shook her head. It was good to have a friend in town and though she found Mulder attractive, extremely attractive, she didn't want a relationship at the moment with him. All yesterday they bonded, talked and laughed. She relaxed so much that by the middle of the day they were holding hands. What bothered her wasn't the closeness but hoping she could keep her hormones in check so she wouldn't ruin the deep friendship that was developing with Mulder. She told him things yesterday that she had never uttered to a soul. Her first kiss, her first cigarette, first love, how she got hooked on computer games, even why she loves Wolverine and Spiderman. He did the same with her, telling her about publishing books, his search for his sister, his studies in the occult and mystical arts, aliens and abduction scenarios. More about his father and mother, why they hardly speak. They fit, they fit together perfectly. They are the same in so many ways and vastly different in others but she felt at home with Mulder, she felt free, she was content. She did not want to risk romance getting in the way, clouding the issue, so she kept in her heart the same thing Mulder kept in his, the knowledge that they were soulmates and one day they would be together, but now was not the time. "Sure what time for dinner 7 or 8?" "Make it 8, I'm going to shoot some hoops, it's a good day to be outside." "It's 35 degrees outside Mulder." "Your point? See you later, I'll come by and pick you up."