Title: A Night To Remember
Author: Waddles 52
Summary: Mulder's big plans for Valentine's Day have
to be changed after a car accident lands him in the
hospital in California.
Rating: PG 13
Category: MT, MSR
Disclaimer: As if you didn't know by now. Just for
fun. Not for profit.
Archives: Written for VS10, Valentine's special.
After two weeks it can go just about anywhere as long
as you let me know.
Acknowledgements: As always to Vickie, who got me
started on this fun journey, and to Lisa for
listening to me rant and rave about life in general.
Feedback: I would love to hear from you at
Waddles52@wmconnect.com
"Have you got everything packed and ready to go?"
Mulder asked rather impatiently. "I don't want to
miss our flight."
"I'm just double-checking to be sure we have
everything," Scully answered, turning in a circle to
survey the motel room.
"Okay. I'm going to take the bags down to the
rental."
"We've got plenty of time, Mulder. Calm down!"
Scully laughed, used to seeing a much more laid-back
partner.
It was February 13th and they had been working a case
in California for the past two weeks. They were both
relieved that the case had wound up that morning
because they had big plans for Valentine's Day.
Mulder was being very secretive about the plans he'd
made, but Scully was sure it would be a night to
remember. With a last look around the room she
locked the door and headed for the car.
Thirty minutes later they were sitting in bumper-to-
bumper traffic. Mulder tapped the steering wheel and
kept looking at his watch, all the while cursing
under his breath.
"Mulder, if you don't relax you're going to have a
stroke," Scully chided him.
"I just want to get home," he sighed. "I have quite
a few things to do before tomorrow night."
"We'll get there. Look, the traffic is starting to
move," Scully pointed out.
"Hallelujah!" he exclaimed as he stepped on the gas
pedal.
The traffic jam seemed to disappear and the car was
soon traveling slightly above the speed limit.
"I would sure like to know what has gotten you so
uptight about tomorrow night," Scully stated as they
continued to move at a steady pace.
"It's a surprise, Scully, but trust me, you're going
to love it."
"Maybe I should be very afraid."
Mulder's expression changed to one of disappointment.
"Mulder, I'm just teasing you. All of your surprises
lately have been very nice," she purred, laying her
head on his shoulder.
"Let me assure you. This is going to be over the
top," he grinned.
"You're sure you won't give me a hint?"
"Nope."
"You're mean," she giggled, punching him on the
shoulder.
"Take it easy! You know how easily I bruise."
"Mulder, look out!" Scully screamed.
Mulder's attention was drawn to a tractor-trailer
that had jack knifed in the curve ahead. In the span
of just a few seconds they found themselves in the
middle of a massive pile-up.
"Shit!" he exclaimed before darkness claimed him.
"Mulder, wake up!" Scully pleaded. The cars had
stopped their demolition derby maneuvers and all was
quiet.
"What? Scully, you okay?"
"Some bumps and bruises, but I think I'm okay. What
about you? You took a pretty hard hit on your side."
"Hurts."
"Where, Mulder? What hurts?" she asked as she
unbuckled her seat belt and tried to move closer to
him.
"Everything. Left side. You okay?"
"I'm all right. Don't try to move, okay?"
"Hurts too much to move. Scully, you okay? What
happened?"
Scully sighed as she tried to open her door. At the
very least he had a concussion. They wouldn't be
leaving today for sure. She pushed the door open and
made her way over to Mulder's side.
She observed cars all around them, at odd angles and
in various states of destruction. A few people were
beginning to survey the damage and check on others.
With a little help from the man in the car behind
them, Scully was able to get the driver's side door
open. She knelt beside Mulder to check his injuries.
She looked him over and moaned, "Oh, Mulder."
Mulder was on a bumper car ride at the carnival.
Scully was sitting next to him as the car came to a
shuddering halt. He looked over and realized she was
gone. "Scully?"
"I'm here, Mulder," he heard her answer to his right.
He slowly pried his eyes open to find that he was in
a hospital bed instead of the ride.
"Where? What happened?"
"We managed to wind up in the middle of a 17 car
pile-up. How are you feeling?" Scully asked,
dreading the answer.
"Left side hurts. You okay?"
"I'm a little banged up, but it's not too bad. You
managed to get the worst of it."
"Gotta get up and catch our flight," Mulder
announced, making a move to sit up. Instead he was
overwhelmed by waves of pain and nausea as he quickly
sank back into the pillows.
"Mulder, take it easy. You'll be doing well if
you're out of here by my birthday."
"No, we have to be home by tomorrow," he insisted.
"I don't think so. Mulder, your left side is a mess.
Your shoulder, knee and hip were dislocated. You're
probably going to need surgery on that knee, by the
way. You also have three broken ribs, a left tib-fib
fracture and a mild concussion. You're not going
anywhere."
"Maybe tomorrow?"
"Absolutely not."
"Damn, Scully. My surprise."
"Your surprise can be rescheduled. You need to stop
worrying about that and let yourself heal." Scully
took his right hand in hers. "You really gave me a
scare."
"I don't really remember much about it. Are you sure
you're all right?"
"Yes, Mulder. I've been checked out and they didn't
find anything more than a few scrapes and bruises.
You got most of the impact."
"Feels like it. Hurts."
"I know. After the doctors check your orientation
and responses they will probably let you have a
pretty strong pain killer."
"Hope so. Why don't you leave? You've got to be
tired. You look like you could use some rest."
"I'll find a motel in a bit. I want to stay with you
a while longer. Don't worry about me. Just close
your eyes and try to sleep."
Mulder finally convinced Scully to leave shortly
before midnight. The doctor had been in and decided
that he was sufficiently oriented to receive narcotic
painkillers. A hefty dose was administered and
Mulder slept for several hours.
The pain woke him with a vengeance. "Damn, why do
things always get so screwed up?" he thought. He had
made reservations at an exclusive restaurant with the
finest cuisine, service to match and strolling
musicians to add to the romantic atmosphere. He was
sure Scully would have loved it. After that he had
planned to drive to one of the most popular bed and
breakfasts in Maryland. To keep the romantic theme
going, he had reserved the honeymoon suite. Skinner
had even given them a few extra days off.
"Damn it! When will we ever catch a break?" he
sobbed. He tried to stop them, but the combination
of pain and frustration won out and the tears
continued to fall.
A nurse came in to check his vitals and IV. He
tried to brush the tears away but the nurse was very
observant and also very concerned. "Mr. Mulder, are
you having a lot of pain right now? I can get you
something for that."
"I'm okay," Mulder answered, rather shakily.
"You don't look okay to me. What's going on?"
Normally Mulder would have ignored her, but for some
reason he started to tell her about Scully and his
big plans that had been wrecked as surely as the car.
Patti Sims pulled up a chair and listened to her
patient pour his heart out.
Early Valentine's morning, Scully entered Mulder's
room expecting to see him in the same agitated
condition as the night before. Instead he was
sleeping peacefully, and was that a smile on his
face?
Mulder was in considerable pain throughout the day
and took the painkillers willingly. Whenever he was
awake his mood was very upbeat and he smiled a lot.
In fact, everyone on the staff seemed to be smiling a
lot. "Must be Valentine's happiness," she sighed.
Though she was puzzled by Mulder's mood shift, she
decided to embrace it. He was due for some more pain
medication around six and she thought that would be a
perfect time to get something to eat. To her
surprise, Mulder refused his medication and his
dinner, not that he would have been able to eat much
anyway.
"Mulder, you need to try to eat a little something,"
she coaxed. "And you know you'll be in agony without
your pain meds. What gives?"
"I don't like feeling so groggy and as far as
hospital food goes . . ." he left his comment in the
air.
A young nurse came in and checked Mulder's IV.
"Scully, this is Patti Sims. She's my night nurse
and she put up with my crappy mood last night."
"You have my sympathy," Scully responded.
"Oh, he's not that bad," Patti replied.
An aide entered, carrying a dozen long-stemmed roses.
"Dana Scully?" she inquired.
"That's me," Scully answered.
"I have a delivery for you."
Scully accepted them with a look of surprise on her
face. "Mom must have sent these," she thought as she
opened the card. She was shocked when she saw that
they were from Mulder. "Mulder, how?"
Before she could get an answer to her question,
another aide pushed a cart into the room. It was
covered with a white cloth but Scully could tell that
it was food. A wonderful aroma filled the room.
"Mulder, what have you been up to and when? I've
been with you all day."
Again, before her question could be answered a young
man wearing a tux entered the room. He was carrying
a guitar.
"Miss Scully," Patti began, "Mulder was so upset that
you had to miss out on your Valentine's plans that we
decided to help him out." She pulled the cover from
the cart, revealing a feast of surf and turf.
"I know it's not Antonio's," Mulder explained, "But
Patti assured me that Fredrico's would come in a
close second."
"You planned to take me to Antonio's?" Scully asked,
her face reflecting her astonishment.
"I had the reservations for three months."
The guitarist began to play softly.
"I'd planned on a violinist, but I think this will
do," Mulder smiled. "Dave comes highly recommended."
"He's my husband," Patti supplied.
"Go on and eat before it gets cold," Mulder
suggested.
Scully walked over to survey the cart loaded with
salads, shrimp cocktail, lobster, steak and assorted
vegetables and desserts.
"This is amazing, Mulder."
"Patti and the others really stepped up and pulled
this together."
"Thank you," Scully offered. "I don't know what to
say. I'm really overwhelmed."
"Why don't you fix that man of yours a plate?" Patti
suggested as she brought some battery-operated
candles from under the cart and placed them around
the room. After she placed the last candle she
strode to the door. "Miss Scully, you have a very
special man here."
"I agree. Thank you for helping Mulder with the
arrangements. This will be a night I will always
remember." She brought a plate to Mulder and kissed
him softly on the lips.
"Oh, I have one more thing for you." Patti pulled a
card from her pocket and handed it to Scully as Dave
finished one song and began to play another. "Take
good care of him," she smiled as Scully opened the
card. Patti and the aide left the room while Dave
continued to play in the background.
Scully offered Mulder a bite of the shrimp cocktail.
"Sorry babe. I don't think I can handle that right
now. I might try a little of the baked potato after
you read the card."
"Okay," she agreed, putting the plate down. She
opened the card and brushed a tear aside as she read
it. "The Beaufort Inn? Mulder, you really had this
planned out didn't you?"
"Only the best for my Scully. We'll just have to
arrange another trip, maybe the Bahamas or Jamaica?"
"Mulder, I love you," she smiled and hugged him very
gently. "And I'm not just saying it because you went
to all this trouble and expense."
"I know that, Scully. You put up with so much shit
from me that I just wanted to show you how special
you are, and like always my plans got screwed up."
"It wasn't your fault you know, and the fact that you
were able to pull all of this off from a hospital bed
makes it even more memorable." She gave him another
kiss.
Mulder shifted a bit so he could deepen the kiss.
Despite his efforts to conceal it, a cry of pain
escaped.
"Mulder, that's enough. You've got to have some pain
medication."
"I don't want to be groggy. I want to spend this
time with you."
"And I won't enjoy myself if you're in agony," she
countered.
"How about a compromise? Half a dose?" Mulder
ventured.
"No, you need the full effect of the medication."
"That's my final offer, Scully. Half or none at
all."
"All right, Mulder," Scully decided. "This is
against my better judgment, but I'll go along with it
for an hour, then you get the rest."
Mulder could tell by the set of her jaw that she
meant it, so he agreed.
After the medication was administered, Dave played
while Scully ate and fed Mulder a few bites of the
baked potato. When she offered him another bite he
held his hand up. "No more. I'm sorry, but I'm just
not hungry," he sighed.
"I figured as much. Whenever you're better we're
going to Antonio's, my treat."
Mulder started to protest.
"No, Mulder. This works both ways. Can't a woman do
something for the man she loves?"
"You do, Scully. Every time I'm in the same room
with you and I breathe the air that you breathe,
you're granting me a great privilege."
Dave sensed that he was no longer needed so he took
his guitar and quietly left. Neither Mulder nor
Scully noticed.
"Mulder, you're getting really sappy," Scully
giggled, "But I like it."
"I just can't help it when I'm around you," he
smiled, then winced.
"Mulder, that's it. I'm calling for the other half
of your pain medication now," she decided, reaching
for the call button.
"This time you'll get no argument from me. I'm sorry
to be a party-pooper, but I don't think I can hold
out much longer."
Patti came in with the 'magic needle' and deposited
the rest of Mulder's pain meds into his IV. "The
muscle relaxant that the doctor ordered is in this
too, so give her a quick kiss before you sail away."
"That fast, huh?" he questioned.
"Yep." She deposited the hypodermic in the sharps
container and left.
"Stay awhile?" he asked Scully.
"Wild horses couldn't drag me out of here," Scully
assured him.
"Lay with me?" Mulder asked, already feeling the
effects of the combined medications.
"Until they make me leave." She slipped out of her
shoes and lowered the rail. Mulder was asleep by the
time she carefully arranged herself beside him. She
put her arm across him, careful to avoid his injuries
and the various lines and monitors.
"Dana Scully, you are one lucky woman," she thought
as she snuggled into him as much as she could. A
special Valentine's surprise despite his painful
injuries and his love every day, every minute. Yes,
this truly was a night to remember. She whispered in
his ear. "Sleep well, Mulder. I love you."
A few minutes latter Patti looked in the door to
observe her patient. He and his love were sleeping
soundly. She closed the door and smiled. "That
worked out quite well."
She picked up the next chart and started down the
hall, glad that she had been a participant in their
night to remember.
End
