THE TRUTH DISCOVERED: A Wedding Band Fanfiction (1/1) by GMD614@aol.com Disclaimer: The characters of M & S do not belong to me. They are property of CC, FOX, 1013, ETC... Rating: PG for one objectionable word. Spoilers: Nothing specific Summary: One fanfic author's explanation of the wedding band seen on Mulder's finger recently.... THE TRUTH DISCOVERED I know that I shouldn't have snooped. I betrayed Mulder by going through his things, even if I try to convince myself that I was just packing an overnight bag for him. I know that I regret what I've found, and this pit in my stomach is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. I also know that I cannot just let it go...that I'll have to ask him about the wedding band I found in his drawer. His sock drawer. Fox Mulder has a sock drawer in his dresser, and there is a gold wedding band in there under the socks. Under the thin, nylon, dress socks - not the gym socks. It sits there. The inscription on the inside of the ring says simply, "F.M.~ To a bright and happy future. ~K.D." Now, as he showers in my bathroom, just released from the hospital due to a nice bump on the head courtesy of our latest case, I have to build up the courage to admit that I'm a snoop - and hear the most sickening words I never thought I'd hear. Mulder had a wife. Then, I'll have to figure out exactly why this is making me positively nauseous. "You know, Scully, this lavender body scrub smells fabulous on you, but I think my masculinity is being compromised," Mulder smiled as he flopped down on the couch. "Are you hungry? I can order a pizza," I said, trying to hold it together. "Why don't you slip into something more comfortable," Mulder suggested while waggling his eyebrows. "I'll make the call while you change. Pepperoni and mushrooms ok with you?" x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x "Scully! Pizza's here! C'mon out." I have to face him. One quick glance in the mirror and I'm on my way to face the truth. It's out there, in my living room apparently. "Hurry before it gets cold." "Thanks," I said taking the slice from him. "You seem quiet. Everything all right, Scully?" I nod with a mouth full of hot cheese and sauce. Then, I immediately regret that fib. "Actually, Mulder. I have to ask you something...tell you something." "Uh-oh. Serious?" "That depends." Taking a deep breath, I dove in. "Mulder, when I was at your apartment packing your bag, I found something." "If it was wrapped in plain brown paper, it belongs to Frohike." "It was in a small black velvet box. In your sock drawer. I dug in a little too deeply, and I apologize. I'm sorry for invading your privacy, Mulder. Really I am....Mulder! Why are you laughing at me?" "I'm sorry. You just look so pathetic, Scully. Apology accepted. You can snoop around my apartment any time. There's nothing I wouldn't share with you. You know that." "Nothing? A wedding band with your initials inscribed inside is a pretty big thing to omit after 5 years of partnership, don't you think?" "Well, you never told me about the locket in *your* dresser drawer, engraved with a special message from J.W." "I told you about *Jack* - what he gave me doesn't matter. How'd you know about that anyway?" "I guess you aren't the only snoop around here, Scully." "You're getting away from the point." "I was never married, Scully. Never even engaged." "What's with the ring?" "It was a joke from a friend of mine in the academy. Kelly Daniels was ranked #2 in our class. We were referred to as 'The One-Two Punch', before I became 'Spooky'. I guess back then I received a lot of attention from the FBI's hottest honeys. You know...tall, dark, and brooding always gets the girl." "Wipe that grin off your face and get to the point, please." "I had no interest in a relationship or sexual entanglements at the time, especially after the whole Phoebe fiasco a year or so earlier, so the buzz started among the men. I started hearing J.Edgar cross-dressing jokes. It got ugly, Scully. " I have to admit that the more Mulder spoke, the more his animation and easy humor calmed my nervousness. And that stupid, lop-sided grin! What a jerk! I laughed. "Another slice?" "Please, Mulder. Thanks." "Kelly and I were fairly close. She was the only woman in the class who saw past my GQ exterior into the warped and wounded psychosis that is Fox Mulder, and knew I was too fucked up to get involved. She gave me the wedding band as a graduation gift." "Why a wedding band?" "The wedding band was symbolic, she said, because I was married to my work. And, not only was it meaningful, but functional as well. It kept the women at bay, and stopped the men from talking. No questions asked." "Clever. Where's Kelly now?" "She was killed in the line of duty in Portland, Oregon about 3 months before you were assigned to the X-files. That's when I stopped wearing it. It's been in the drawer ever since." "I'm sorry." "Me, too. She was quite an agent." "And on a more personal level?" "We were friends. She laughed at my stupid jokes, went to movies and bar- hopped with me, offerred insight into particularly hard cases..." "Oh." "But Kelly never had a key to my apartment, Scully. She never fed my fish when I was away. She never lied for me at a Senate hearing. She never held my hand and made everything bearable after I turned a gun on myself and my partner at the will of a madman. She never had the strengths of my beliefs, Scully. And she never, ever, would have kissed me - even if she thought, if she *knew*, it would be the single most important thing in this world to me." "More important than finding the truth?" "It would be a truth discovered," he whispered. As I leaned in to Mulder and felt his lips against mine, a certainty settled where butterflies once danced inside me. No secrets...only the truth. THE END comments please! GMD614@aol.com