TITLE: The Blessing AUTHOR: Erin M. Blair E-MAIL: eblair@sonic.net / erinmblair@gmail.com FEEDBACK: Yes, please. DISTRIBUTION: OK to Gossamer, Ephemeral, MSR Fanfic Cheerleaders. All others: please ask me first. RATING: PG CATEGORIES: SRA -- Story, Romance, Angst. KEYWORDS: Mulder/Scully Romance. AU. SPOILERS: Requiem. DISCLAIMER: Mulder and Scully belongs to Chris Carter. SUMMARY: What if Mulder wasn't abducted? NOTES: Thank you to Cetan for beta reading. This story is dedicated to Vickie Moseley on her birthday and for being an inspiration. I love your stories, Vickie. :) + + + + + + + + + + + + + + He stood in the doorway of her hospital room and walked toward the chair by the bed. Pulling it as close to the bed as possible, he sat gingerly on the chair's edge, then gently held her hand in his. "I came as soon they called me. I didn't want to waste any time. I knew you needed me, Scully." Dana Scully looked squarely at Fox Mulder, noticing the worry that etched his face. "There's um, something you need to know. Something I need to tell you..." He took a deep breath, nearly paralyzed, but managed to ask. "It's not the cancer, is it?" She smiled. "No, I'm perfectly fine." "But you fainted at the office!" he insisted. Scully was sitting up, wearing the brightest smile on her face. "Mulder, I'm pregnant." Mulder sat stunned for a moment, certain he had misunderstood her words. This was *not* possible. "You're what?!" he asked. She had had a feeling he would react this way and decided to talk slowly. "I. Am. Pregnant. With. Our. Baby." She paused. "It's unbelievable news -- I know. The odds against me having this baby," she said, patting her tummy with her free hand, "were approximately a million to one, if not moreso." "I, uh, am a loss to even think of how or why." Mulder could only blink at her. Not enough time had passed for him to process this new information. "Let's not borrow trouble, Mulder." "I know. But... y-you're pregnant...?" He could only stutter at this point. She nodded. "The doctors ran the pregnancy test several times, but the symptoms are definitely there." She took in his reaction. "You looked shocked." "Wow, I am, Scully... I'm so...stunned. I always believed that we'd be blessed with a child, maybe even through adoption, but this... this changes everything." He moved from the chair to sit close to her on the bed and took both of her hands in his, gently squeezing her fingers. "For the better," she said tentatively. He nodded enthusiastically, letting her know just how okay he was with her news. "This baby is our miracle, Scully. I guess all those times we made love in the basement office really paid off!" "Mulder!" Scully blushed... and glowed, he noted with pride. Mulder grinned a goofy, happy grin. "You know, Scully, I'm really happy for you... for us." He leaned over and warmly kissed her on the forehead and then, finally, on her lips. He sat back and admired the new rosy glow of her complexion. "I'm looking forward to the day when you give birth to our child." He lay a hand on her tummy and rubbed softly in small circles, making her spine tingle. Mulder looked up at her, hazel eyes meeting deep blue, recognizing their legacy. "This is our blessing, Mulder," Scully whispered. Mulder simply nodded and kissed her for all he was worth. And they were each other's blessings. ~~~ The End