The quick sounds of her shiny black pumps hitting the ground filled the nearly vacant hallway. The bitter sound matched that of her voice, muttering curses in the back of her mind.

Lonely. The word repeated itself over and over again. The metal plate felt almost warm against her hand as she pushed the door open, marching crisply in to the bathroom. The florescent lighting made her hair a harsh red color, her eyes a cold icy apathetic blue as she stared at herself in the mirror. Maybe it wasn’t the lighting.

It had been so long, she thought, forcing a stray hair to conform to the smooth uniform curve that shone so relentlessly. So long since she had been touched. Her lips looked tired and rigid. Not even slight upward motion teased the corners. God, when did I become so...

Her thoughts were interrupted as a bright-eyed woman entered. "Hello, Agent Scully. How are you?"

"Fine, thanks." She looked down, pushing past the blonde woman to get to the door.

She closed the door, stepping in to the office. There he was, studying the contents from a manila envelope that lay on his desk. His glasses rested on the bridge of his nose, accentuating his intense, focused eyes. His hair was clean and neat, except for the cowlick that stood on the back of his head. He wore a starched white shirt with the top two buttons undone; the sleeves were too short. Seeing him there, looking so oblivious and innocent, made her smile slightly. She stood there for several minutes, just watching him read, soaking up his image.

Feeling her eyes on him, Mulder looked up. An inquisitive look raised his eyebrows. Her gaze softened. She felt like crying. Her neck tightened, her lips curved downward. Her eyes filled with the evidence that she hated her life.

Normally, she could just turn away from him, blink the tears back, hide them. But not today. A tear traced her cheek, cutting her cool image away.

"Scully, what’s wrong?" His eyes filled with concern.

She cried silently, not bothering to wipe the tears from her cheeks. She knew it would be useless to discard the still-falling tears until they stopped coming. She could no longer see anything except her pain, her anger, her frustration. She was trapped in herself.

She felt a familiar pair of arms close around her. She buried her face in his chest, breathing in the scent of him. Her body shook uncontrollably. She could feel his face in her hair, whispering. She felt a confused mix of comfort and fear in his arms. She lifted her face to study his. Kiss me, she thought. Kiss me, take me, make love to me all night. Just take me.

Mulder wiped her tears away with two gentle strokes. He brushed her copper hair behind her ear, cupping her face in his large hands. He slowly lowered his face to hers.

Scully pushed away. Out of his arms, ripping her gaze from him. Mindlessly, she began running. She ran quickly and she didn’t stop until she got to her car. She didn’t turn around when she heard her name being called, or when she heard shoes running behind her.

She fumbled with her keys, groping blankly for the door handle. She drove away, leaving Mulder standing in the middle of the parking lot, his arms outstretched and confused. She just couldn’t do it today.