"How was your day?" Krycek asked, coming out of the bedroom.
Mulder scowled at him. "I've had better. What've you been up to all day?"
"Oh, the usual. Steal a secret here, kill an enemy there, go to the store."
He smiled, expecting a good-natured retort from his lover, but only received
another dirty look. "Fox, are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Just because the person closest to me forgot something kind of
important is no reason for me to be upset."
"Uh oh. What did Scully do now?" Krycek asked, walking into the kitchen.
Mulder's jaw dropped and he followed Krycek into the other room. "What
makes
you think I'm talking about Scully?"
Krycek shrugged. "Well, I haven't forgotten anything, so..." He stopped
when he noticed the sour expression on Mulder's face. "Okay, what did I do?"
"Nothing. You did absolutely nothing." Mulder knew he was acting like a
spoiled child about to throw a temper tantrum, and resented Krycek even
more
for making him feel that way.
"Then why the hell are you so pissed off?"
Mulder bit his lip and shook his head. "It's nothing. I'm being ridiculous."
Krycek frowned and closed the space between them. Reaching up gingerly,
he
stroked the side of Mulder's face.
"Tell me what's bothering you. It's more than you having a bad day."
The loving way Krycek was looking at him made Mulder feel like an ass, and he
didn't want to say anything that would sound childish and selfish. He
placed his hand over Krycek's and leaned in to kiss him on the cheek.
"Don't worry about it. I'll feel better after a shower."
"That's a good idea." Krycek turned away and started to fix the two of them
drinks. "Oh, don't go into the bedroom. I just sprayed in there for bugs."
"What?" Mulder let out an exasperated sigh. He tried not to feel angry, but
the fact that he wouldn't be able to go into his own bedroom for hours
because his lover had decided to play at being the Orkin Man was too much.
"Dammit, Alex! I have a fucked day, come home and I can't even go into my
own goddamn bedroom? Why the hell couldn't you wait for another day? Any
other day?"
"Why?" Krycek asked, looking puzzled. "It had to be done, Fox. What's so
special about today?"
Mulder shook his head, glaring at Krycek. "It's my fucking birthday,
asshole." He turned around and stormed into the bathroom before Krycek
could say anything in response.
Feeling like an idiot, Mulder angrily got undressed in the small room and
turned on the shower. He knew Krycek had so much on his mind it was
understandable that a birthday wouldn't be high on his list of things to
remember, but it still hurt. It hurt because he wondered just how important
he was in Krycek's life and now he knew.
"Oh, just stop it," he muttered to himself as he stepped under the water.
He showered and dried off quickly, wanting to apologize to Krycek for his
outburst. Wrapping a towel around his waist, he walked hesitantly out of the
bathroom expecting to find Krycek in the living room, but there was no trace
of him anywhere. In all likelihood, he'd probably gone for a walk to cool
off, and Mulder felt even worse for what he'd said.
He was about to turn on the television when he heard a thump from the
bedroom.
"That must be some bug," he said to himself as he approached his bedroom
door. Bracing himself for a wave of chemicals to hit him, he opened it.
At first he couldn't believe what he was seeing. The bedroom was bathed in
candlelight, every available surface covered in tapers and votives. When his
eyes had adjusted to the dimness of the warm glow, he saw that the bed was
covered in rose petals and that a bottle of champagne was chilling in an ice
bucket on the nightstand. There was a small gift-wrapped box next to the
bucket along with a bowl of strawberries.
He didn't hear Krycek leave his place behind the door and walk toward him, so
he jumped at the feeling of hands on his shoulders.
"Surprise. Happy birthday, darling." Krycek's breath was warm against
Mulder's ear as he spoke.
Mulder turned around and was immediately pulled into a tight embrace.
"Alex...when did you do this?"
"Right before you got home, but I'd been planning it for weeks." He smiled
and kissed Mulder softly before continuing. "I didn't mean to upset you. I
just thought the surprise would be kind of nice."
"It's great. I'm sorry for..."
Krycek placed a finger to Mulder's lips. "Don't be sorry. Just know how
much you mean to me, okay?"
Mulder nodded and Krycek could see the tears that were forming in his eyes
glistening in the soft light of the room. He kissed Mulder's forehead before
stepping back and taking his hand, leading him to the bed.
"What's that?" Mulder asked, indicating the small box on the nightstand.
"That's for later. I have something else for you now."
He gently pushed Mulder onto the bed and knelt between his legs. Before he
could remove the towel, Mulder stopped him.
"Thank you for everything, Alex."
Krycek grinned, the wicked look in his eyes magnified by the flickering light
of the candles.
"You're welcome, but you haven't gotten everything yet."
Mulder smiled. "I'm serious. You don't know how much you've given me. I
love you."
Raising himself up, Krycek took a seat next to Mulder. "I love you, too. I
know you wonder sometimes, but don't. Ever. You're the best thing that's
ever happened to me." He kissed him deeply, ignoring the soft whimper when
he pulled away. "Do you believe me?"
"Yeah, I do." Mulder began stroking Krycek's hair, grateful for the love he
saw in his eyes. "Now," he said quietly, reaching down and unwrapping his
towel, "about that present..."
The End
January Birthday Snippet
by Frankie
Fox Mulder walked into his apartment and slammed the door behind him. He
had
been in a foul mood all day. It all started that morning when he had woken
up expecting an enthusiastic birthday fuck from his lover, but had gotten
nothing, not even an acknowledgment that it was his birthday. Things had
gotten worse when he'd gone to work and been assigned to do background
checks
all day. Scully had wished him a brief happy birthday then proceeded to nag
him about a case on which they'd been working. When his work day ended, he
faced the worst traffic jam he could remember, but finally made it home only
to be accosted in the elevator by his elderly neighbor who kept insisting on
setting him up with her granddaughter.
