"Mulder, are you looking for anything in particular?" Scully flipped
through the CDs in front of her, not really looking at the labels, focused
instead on the tall man standing beside her.

"I'll know it when I see it," he said enigmatically.

She shrugged. Who knew Fox Mulder could be such a voracious
shopper? She had barely been able to get any of her own Christmas
shopping done, he was so busy dragging her from store to store in the
huge mall in Georgetown. The ironic thing was that he had hardly anyone
to shop for -- he had purchased perfume for his mother, some goofy gag
gifts for The Lone Gunmen, and a beautiful crystal vase for Scully's mom.
She had even caught him surreptitiously eyeing a few items he was
obviously considering as gifts for her. And now he was perusing the record s
tore's entire CD collection, browsing like a pro. And he was smiling. Smiling!

"What are you so happy about today, anyway?" she asked. Personally,
she was being driven crazy by the horde of shoppers, and was looking
forward to a quiet evening at home recuperating.

"I'm just in a good mood. Is that so bizarre?"

"Quite frankly, yes."

"I'm just...having a good time. I've never been Christmas shopping with
someone before. I've never had fun doing this, until today. It's like a
completely new experience for me."

She smiled at him, feeling a warm glow spread through her at the sight of
the happiness on his face. "Fox Mulder in the Christmas spirit. I never
thought I'd see the day."

"Must you mock me?" he asked, grinning. "Seriously, Scully, thanks for
today. It's been...great." She looked so cute to him, bundled up in her big
green parka, and smiling at him gleefully, that without thinking he reached
out to smooth a strand of her fiery red hair away from her face. She tensed
suddenly, lips parted in shock, and he pulled his hand away.

"You're welcome," she said quietly, averting her eyes and blushing.

He stood there like an idiot, staring at her, until he noticed the song that
had begun to play over the store's sound system. "Hey." Mulder cocked
his head at the familiar strains of Harry Connick Jr.'s "It Had to Be You."
He extended a hand to her mischievously. "Dance with me, Scully."

"Huh?" Oh, graceful response, Dana. "Here?"

"Come on." He pulled her to him, grasping her hand firmly with his own
and placing his other hand on her waist. She started giggling, she couldn't
help it, and he grinned from ear to ear as he moved her through the steps
of the dance, singing along softly.

"It had to be you...wonderful you...make me feel glad, just to be sad,
thinking of you..."

Out of the corner of her eye, Scully noticed they were attracting a small
crowd, and she could imagine how ridiculous they looked, him so tall, her
so short, both of them bundled up in their heaviest parkas, dancing like
fools in the Alternative Rock aisle. He pulled her closer, and her giggles
stopped abruptly as she looked into his eyes. There was happiness and
humor there, yes, but there was also the unmistakable glow of desire
looking out at her. She was suddenly acutely aware of his hand on her
waist wandering slightly, trying to caress her through the thick coat.

"Ready for the big finale?" he murmured. Without warning, he dipped
her as the song ended in a flourish of trumpets. He bent over her, lifting
her back up a little, but not completely, and she found her face inches
from his. Applause exploded around them, accompanied by raucous
shouts of "Kiss her! Kiss her!"

"Well, Scully?" he whispered. "It's not very polite of us to keep these
nice people waiting."

"Mulder...I, I can't. Not like this, not now." She silently pleaded with
him to understand.

Disappointment flickered in his eyes, but he quickly forced a smile.
"Okay, Scully. Not like this. Not now," he conceded, leaving volumes
unsaid. He pulled her to her feet and placed a tender kiss on her cheek,
then on her forehead. A surge of desire swept through her, but then
he was gone, moving away from her, and a chorus of groans sounded
from the gathered crowd.

"Aww, get sex lives of your own!" Mulder yelled playfully, waving his
arms at them.

Scully blushed for the second time that afternoon, noting wryly that
Mulder's statement implied that the two of them did indeed have sex
lives of their own. There was a joke if she ever heard one. As they
beat a hasty retreat out of the store, Mulder's hand resting comfortably
on the small of her back, she hoped fervently that one day it would no
longer be a joke, for either of them.

End.