TITLE:   Remembering You 
AUTHOR:  xphilernj 
E-MAIL:  xphilernj@aol.com 
RATING:  G 
DISCLAIMER:  Not mine.

Summary: She closes her eyes and remembers.

Acknowledgements: Thank you sweet Sallie.  You are a goddess 
and an angel of mercy.  Forever hugs and kisses.

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She slowly and carefully gets up, slips on her robe and makes her 
way to the kitchen.  The nightly ritual of hot tea has become all too 
familiar.  Long nights have been spent in worry and heartache; 
worrying where he has run off too and if he is all right;  wondering 
if he will live or die.

Now she stands before the picture window staring out at the 
moonless night.  The stars are shining bright.  She closes her eyes 
and remembers.  Memories have a way of seeping in when she 
least expects them, along with a tidal wave of emotions.

She remembers:  Aggravation -- sweeping empty sunflower seed 
hulls off her desk;  Appreciation -- a half-peeled orange laying on 
her desk waiting for her  (He had left it there knowing she had 
missed lunch once again); Fascination -- watching him toss one 
pencil after another toward the ceiling on a slow and lazy day; 
Elation -- the first touch of his lips, the first time they made love; 
Adoration -- finding the single rose on her pillow.

She closes her eyes as the teardrops gently slide down her cheek.  
She rubs her swollen belly as the baby inside her begins to move.

"Shhhh, little one.  Settle down.  It won't be long.  A few more 
weeks and  we will finally meet," she whispers into the stillness of 
the night.   "I wish with all my heart that your daddy could be here; 
be here to meet you when you decide to come into this world.  Oh 
God! How I wish that for you.  And me."

A little smile crosses her lips as she sips her tea, remembering the 
day she found out she was pregnant.

"You know little one, you're gonna have three very strange guys 
upset with you for causing your mommy to pass out.  You scared 
them to death.  I thought I was gonna have to take them to the 
hospital instead of them taking me," she chuckles as she runs her 
hand across her stomach.  "But, you know even though they seem 
strange, they're gonna love you and very protective you."  As she 
speaks, she feels the baby kick, and laughs.  "I know little one, but 
that's just the way they are.

She sighs wistfully, and closes her eyes, thinking of him as the 
tears start to fall.  Shuddering, her heart starts to race when the 
merest whisper of a touch glances across her cheek and brows.  
Her eyes blink open just as the early morning light shining through 
the window casts shadows across the room.  Her breath catches in 
her throat.  She can't move.

"Mulder?" she whispers.  His translucent form appears in the 
shadows for a moment and quickly disappears.

The shrill ring of the phone makes her jump, and she grabs it 
quickly.

"Scully...Which hospital?  I'm on my way."

She begins to smile; she begins to breathe.  She begins to move, 
grabbing her keys and running out the door.

THE END.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Author Notes: Answer to a Brevity II Challenge. Robin's 
Challenge Elements: a "falling star" (literal or figurative), a half-
peeled orange, a due date (work or personal), a blackout (not 
necessarily electrical), a finger

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