The burning sky

:

"Mulder, but do we really have to go there?" Scully made a face of a beaten dog and looked pleadingly at her partner.

"I didn't come up with the order from above. Skinner said we had to go to this training, let me quote him, to improve our communication and cooperation. I'd love to do something else myself, but as I said, it wasn't my idea and it's not my fault." He leaned toward Scully and gently patted her shoulder.

"Mulder, but you can think of something, anything. I don't know, a vampire attacking people, a Bigfoot in the middle of New York, maybe a spaceship landing on the roof of a white house. Whatever, I agree to everything, just let's not go there, please..." She looked at him again, as if he were her last resort. She smiled at him as sweetly and innocently as she could, then blinked like a little girl trying to convince her father.

"Scully won't help us." We have to go there. Besides, you should look at it from a slightly brighter perspective…" He winked at her and got up from the couch.

"What do you mean?

" "Scully, we're going to Miami – sun, beach, water. You'll finally get a tan, and so will I, you'll see, it'll be great, and on top of all that, we'll legally live in the same hotel room. We'll go dancing for a bit, have some fun, you'll need it because you've been acting strange lately; you seem overworked.

" "Mulder, have you seen the schedule for the weekend?

" "Yes, I did, and I'm perfectly happy with it. No sitting in the gym, just team games on the beach, a little competition, and the rest is free time for team bonding. So where's your suitcase?" he asked, looking around the living room. After a moment, he spotted a suitcase standing against the wall, walked over, and grabbed it.

"You packed a two-piece swimsuit, right? You're not planning on playing beach volleyball in one of your suits, are you?" "He asked, approaching the door and looking with joy in his eyes at his partner, who was reluctantly getting up from the couch.

"I don't plan on playing volleyball at all," he said, opening the door for Mulder.

"You're joking, right? You earn points for every competition. If the best ones are the best, I get a prize. Scully, you won't do that to me. Don't tell me now that you can't play volleyball, Scully, we can't give everyone the satisfaction. I can already hear the teasing and comments... Can you imagine that?" Scully gently punched him in the ribs.

"Yes, I know what they'll say, and I was only joking. We'll play. I won't give anyone the satisfaction," she said, and they left the apartment, closing the door behind them.

"But do you have a two-piece suit?" Mulder asked, getting into the car. To which Scully only smiled and said nothing.

They arrived at the airport a dozen or so minutes later. Mulder kept trying to cheer Scully up, who was constantly trying to think of something important enough to avoid the training. She tried even the most absurd explanations, but after a moment, she rejected them, noticing flaws in her plan. They dropped off their bags and went through all the security gates. They sat down in chairs and waited silently for their flight. Scully was getting increasingly angry, and Mulder had no idea what was going on. They heard their flight being called and everyone being asked to board the plane. Scully and Mulder got up from their seats and slowly began walking toward their terminal. Mulder kept trying to get Scully to talk, so he started walking in front of her, his back to the direction they were going, facing her. He tried to imitate her disappointed and worried expression, not paying attention to where he was going. It was a mistake. He tripped over a loose piece of carpet and landed on his butt with a loud thud. Everyone around them started smirking, and Scully giggled like a little girl. Mulder, on the other hand, blushed slightly and got up from the floor as quickly as he could and stood next to Scully. He leaned over her.

"You have no idea how much my butt hurts right now," he whispered in her ear. "I'll be completely disabled and sore there." He continued. "My back hurt, damn it. But you know what, I have an idea how to fix it." He looked at her meaningfully.

"Mulder won't rub your back, don't even dream of it," he said, and she smiled broadly at him.

"Maybe that's not what I meant," he replied, and he took a few steps away from her, leaving her to her own devices, completely stunned. Only after a moment did Scully draw in a breath and exhale. She looked toward Mulder, who was boarding the plane, shook her head, and started toward him. She couldn't believe he'd suggested such a thing. He'd always played games with her early on, everything was on edge, but just when he said something like that, he'd balanced on her and found himself with one foot on the other side. Dana slowly began walking toward the exit, walked through it, reached the plane, took her seat next to Mulder, and promised herself she wouldn't speak to him until he did. She did as she'd planned, and in fact, she made it difficult for Mulder to start any conversation, as she'd simply fallen asleep.

When they arrived, Mulder rolled up the newspaper he'd been reading and gently slapped Scully on the knee with it. It wasn't the most pleasant way to wake up Dana could imagine, and what's more, Mulder had interrupted her incredibly pleasant sleep. She glanced at Mulder, and a flush immediately appeared on her cheeks. She quickly turned her face away so Mulder wouldn't accidentally notice, but it was too late. Fox leaned close to her ear...

"Why is Agent Scully blushing like a teenager?" he whispered, which made the color in Scully's cheeks burn even hotter. The plane landed, and luckily for Scully, they had to leave their seats. They got off the plane, collected their luggage, and both went to rent a car. Mulder chose a black Ford, and they both went to the car. They got in and began the drive to the hotel. Neither of them said a word, and with each passing minute, the atmosphere in the car grew heavier. Fortunately, they reached the hotel and were able to get out of the car and get away from each other for a moment. They went to the front desk and asked for the room they had reserved. Only then did they remember that they would have to live together for two days. They both began to plan the conversation they should have, but neither had a clue how to begin it. They grabbed their key and slowly walked to their room. When they got there, they were a little surprised. The room was huge, of course, with a bathroom, balcony, and every imaginable gadget, but what they lacked was the most prosaic thing in the world… There was only one bed in the room, but it was a huge one. They looked at each other, and both had the same look of doubt on their faces. However, after a moment, a broad smile spread across Mulder's face, he took the luggage from Scully's hands, and set it by the wardrobe.

"Are you going to stand there all evening? Get changed, and we'll go to dinner, and we'll see later. Don't worry about the bed; we can finally officially sleep together," he said before he understood what Scully might have inferred. He looked at her sheepishly, but she surprised him once again. She went to her bag, grabbed a few things, and headed for the bathroom, completely ignoring his comment. She emerged fifteen minutes later, dressed rather oddly for her. She wore light-colored, tight jeans that clung loosely to her hips. She wore a black tank top and sandals, so she was a few centimeters shorter. Mulder stared at her, amazed that he hadn't noticed how pretty she was until now. She looked much younger than she did in her suits and pantsuits, and he had to admit that the moment she entered the room, the temperature in it instantly rose. He got out of bed and walked over to her. Luckily, he had already changed, because he probably wouldn't have been able to tear his eyes away from her and go to the bathroom to change. Something like that could kill him… He put his arm around her and started toward the door.

"So where are we going?" he asked as they left the room.

"Let's go eat first and then we'll see," she said, smiling at him. They went downstairs to the restaurant. Besides them, there were a dozen or so FBI agents there for training. They exchanged only brief hellos with some and took one of the empty booths. Mulder watched the men's hungry glances at Scully, and he envied himself knowing that half of them genuinely hated him for being able to spend their daily lives with such a beautiful woman. He was proud of himself. He leaned over the table…

"You look nice," he said to her quietly and smiled. Scully smiled at him.

"Thank you," she replied, blushing slightly. After a moment, a waiter approached them, they placed their orders, and patiently waited for their meals to arrive. The tension that had arisen between them vanished like a stone, and they chatted freely. They ate dinner, recalling certain things. Every time Mulder looked around, he saw the envious glances of the other agents… After dinner, they ordered a drink, followed by another, and another. After a few shots of tequila, Mulder tried to dissuade Scully from drinking any more. He knew it was already too much for her, but what he feared most happened – Dana lost her common sense and restraint… Finally, deciding that enough was enough, he rose from his seat and approached her. He knew that news of a drunk Dana Scully, the Ice Queen, would spread like wildfire among the agents, and he didn't want to give them the satisfaction… "Scully,

that's enough, let's go back to the room, you should go to sleep…" he said in her ear, practically shouting as the music drowned everything out. She shook her head, but she rose from her chair anyway, or rather, Mulder helped her do it. Unfortunately, when she finally stood, the fast, loud music was replaced by a calm and melodic ballad. Scully stood on her tiptoes to get a little closer to Mulder's ears.

"We'll go if you dance with me..." she shouted at him. He had no choice, they headed to the dance floor and began dancing as one of the few couples. Mulder felt many people's eyes on him and wasn't surprised that they were watching them... In fact, he knew that if he were in their shoes, he would do the same. They had a reason for it... It wasn't often you saw the two most famous people in the FBI in such a situation... Scully nestled into her partner like a teenager in love with her boyfriend at prom... Mulder held both hands just above her buttocks and rested his head on her hair... Dana felt so safe in his arms, she was sure no one would hurt her... Then a few thoughts ran through her mind... What if we switched from a purely professional to a more friendly relationship... They slowly moved to the music, perfectly in tune with each other and the melody... Anyone who looked at them could tell they were a perfect match and must have complemented each other perfectly. A short, petite red-haired woman and a tall, very handsome man… They envied their peace, envied them because they looked as if nothing outside their own world mattered to them… The melody ended, and they continued dancing… Mulder woke up first. He looked at Scully, and she at him. She looked so beautiful in the darkened room… He wanted to kiss her, slowly moving his face closer to hers… Their lips were centimeters apart, their breaths almost entwined, their eyelids drooping… but fortunately, Mulder realized at the last moment what was happening. He took a deep breath and looked at Scully, who had just opened her eyes and looked at him hopefully.

“Come on, we should both go to bed,” he said, and slowly began walking toward the exit and then to their room… They entered the room. Without thinking, Scully unbuttoned her pants and kicked them off, then climbed under the covers in just her T-shirt and panties. The moment her head hit the pillow, she fell asleep… Mulder glanced at her, "This is going to be a long night," he thought, and undressed himself and climbed into bed. At first, he was tempted to move closer to Scully and snuggle up against her warm body, but he dismissed the idea. They hadn't even discussed sleeping in the same bed, and he didn't want to risk a fight first thing in the morning. He was terribly tired and managed to fall asleep quickly… for the first time in weeks…

In the morning, Scully woke up first. She opened her eyes but immediately closed them again, not only because her head hurt terribly but because the light was blinding her. "Well, I must have had a wild time last night," she thought, and then realized there was someone else in bed with her. If he'd only been sleeping next to her, there wouldn't have been a problem, but he was practically on top of her. One of his hands was on her hips, the other resting on her stomach. She tried hard to remember everything that had happened the night before, but the closest memory was the moment Mulder was about to kiss her. At that memory, Scully immediately jumped out of bed, waking Mulder in the process. Fox rubbed his eyes and looked at her. He realized her legs weren't as short as he'd thought. He slowly and carefully scanned their entire length. Scully realized she was in her underwear and a T-shirt, so he got back under the covers as quickly as he could. She pulled them up to her chin and looked at her clearly satisfied partner.

"Mulder, what happened here?" She pointed to the bed.

"Nothing happened." He replied curtly and got up to go to the bathroom and take a shower. Before he reached the door, he heard Scully's soft voice.

"You're not lying to me, are you?" Fox turned around and sat down next to her on the bed.

"Of course you don't know me. I would never lie to you," he said, and quickly walked into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. The rest of the morning passed relatively peacefully, apart from a few quips and comments from a few people who had seen them at dinner the previous night. Mulder wanted to punch a few people, but luckily he always stopped himself at the last minute. It wouldn't look good if he punched everyone in the face who said anything about him or Scully. After breakfast, they attended an hour-long lecture on the most important attribute of an FBI agent: a partner, and how to talk to them. The lecture was so boring that both Mulder and Scully slept through it. Luckily, they woke up just before the end and assumed an expression as if they'd listened carefully. After the lecture, they had a moment to change, as the volleyball tournament they were participating in was about to begin. They agreed to meet on the beach. As usual, Scully arrived early and still had plenty of time to soak up some sun. She spread a towel on the sand and lay down. She closed her eyes and savored the moment of peace… unfortunately, it was rudely interrupted.

"Scully, don't you think we should at least warm up a bit before the match? We're playing first, you know?" She glanced at her partner and saw a dangerous glint in his eye. Reluctantly, she rose from the sand and stood opposite her partner.

"Ladies first," Mulder said, and Scully headed toward the unfortunate field. Meanwhile, Mulder admired her in her modest swimsuit. He examined every inch of her body and decided it was simply perfect. He also felt he couldn't stand another night next to her... They warmed up and bounced the ball back and forth. Fox commented that Scully, despite her height, was very good at those blocks... Other agents began to arrive... They could hear their muffled conversations. At one point, "I see the Ice Queen is starting to melt. I wonder if it's because of the sun or Agent Mulder?" The comment enraged Fox. He realized who had said it, ran up to him, and simply punched him in the face. But not lightly, but so hard that his opponent found himself lying on the sand, struggling to catch his breath. Mulder leaned over him and grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer...

"Don't you ever dare talk about her like that again." He hissed, released the agent, and returned to the shocked Scully. He looked at her. "Are you okay?" His gaze asked. Scully nodded, indicating yes. Fifteen minutes later, the first match began. Mulder and Scully won easily. The next match also proved easy, and that's how they reached the final. It was to be played after lunch, so they had time to rest. They returned to the beach and began a gentle warm-up.

"Scully, if we win, I'll take you out to dinner and then for a walk on the beach.

" "Agreed, but if we lose?" she asked.

"Then you'll lose the opportunity to spend time with me alone." He said, winking at her. They began the match. The first set went smoothly. They had some trouble with the second and ultimately lost, and the third was also a loss... Their only chance was to win two sets in a row. During the break between the third and fourth, Mulder approached Scully and leaned over her.

"Dinner, you remember, but only if we win," he whispered in her ear. Scully smiled at him and he returned to the field.

"Then start playing," she said to him as he stood beside her... And so they began the fourth set. Things were going well at first, and they were winning. They finished it with a three-point lead and breathed a sigh of relief. They were down to the fifth set. They played point for point with their opponents. Mulder began cursing violently whenever something didn't go his way. Scully noticed that he cared more about this dinner than she did, and she smiled to herself. She decided they had to win, because she wanted to find out what Mulder could have possibly been up to, and why he was so desperate for it. They won. After a fierce battle, they were both exhausted but happy. Mulder ran to Scully and pulled her close. He was out of control and completely unconcerned about what others thought of his behavior. He placed one hand on her hip, the other on the nape of her neck. He leaned over her and kissed her passionately. He didn't let her catch her breath… Scully kissed him back, but they stopped when they heard applause from the audience.

"So, what about dinner?" Scully asked.

"Maybe we should just go for a walk?" Mulder asked. Scully nodded in agreement. They returned to the hotel for a moment, changed, and left.

They walked along the ocean shore. The waves lapped at their feet. They felt the coolness, which simultaneously quenched their desire and allowed them to continue their walk. They didn't talk, letting the waves speak for them. They both tried to calm down and consider the pros and cons of what was about to happen. The sun was slowly beginning to sink below the horizon, turning the world a hot orange. The ocean looked as if it were filled with blood instead of water. The wind ruffled her hair and caused the white cotton dress she wore to flutter merrily in the breeze. Mulder put his arm around Dana and gently pulled her closer. He stopped and let her snuggle into his chest. He kissed her hair and gently began to stroke her back. He slowly moved his lap up and down, sending waves of cold and heat through her body. He looked at him, and she allowed him to kiss her. It was a long, passionate kiss. They both expressed everything they felt for the other. Scully's hands began to pull Fox's shirt off, but he didn't let them finish. He broke the kiss and grabbed her wrists. He brought them to his lips and placed a gentle kiss on each of them. "It's

not time yet. We don't have to rush. That's not the most important thing," he whispered. He gently brushed her hair back from her forehead. It looked like it was on fire. He kissed her forehead and took her hand. They slowly began to walk further. A short and petite woman, a tall and handsome man walking slowly away towards the setting sun… Two dark silhouettes against the blazing sky…