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Mulder reacts to Scully's new do.



RATING: PG-13
CLASSIFICATION: V
SPOILERS: Season 7


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Mulder was at the filing cabinet, his back to the door, when he heard the click of heels echo down the hall and enter the doorway.

"Morning, Scully," he threw over his shoulder, never turning around.

The shoes stopped, and there was a pause. "How did you know it was me?"

"I'm clairvoyant," he said. But he didn't need psychic powers to know that was her. It was simply a process of elimination--no one else ever came down to the basement.

Mulder turned then, about to continue the conversation, but what came out of his mouth was, "Holy sh--"

"Mulder, what is it? What's wrong?"

Scully looked alarmed. At least, he thought that was Scully. Only, the last time he had seen his partner, she had beautiful hair, long enough to curl at the ends. Not this hatchet job that was glued to this woman's head like the pelt of a dead fox.

After recovering from his initial shock, he tried to approach the situation more tactfully. "Did you have an incident? Maybe something involving gum?"

"What are you talking about?"

He still vividly remembered the time he had stuck chewing gum in Samantha's hair as a joke. The only way his mother had been able to get it out was with scissors. Sam ended up with a bob, sobbing the whole time while her long, beautiful locks were chopped off to even out with the part that had been cut to remove the gum. Mulder was grounded for a week, but that was nothing compared to the year it took for Sam to grow her hair long again. This was the only explanation Mulder could come up with for why Scully would hack off all her hair.

Through intuition that she claimed she didn't have, Scully seemed to finally pick up on what he meant. Her confused look turned rueful. Self-consciously, she stroked a hand over her head. "I didn't expect it to end up this short. My regular stylist was out of town, so they had someone else cut my hair."

"Scully, please promise me you'll never, ever let that woman touch your hair again."

"Man, actually. Roberto--or Fernando. Something like that." She paused, then asked, "Is it really that bad?"

"It'll grow out."

"That's not what I asked."

Mulder sighed. He never should've said anything. Just like he never says anything when her shirt's a little too low-cut and he can see straight down her cleavage, or when her heels are a little higher than usual and he worries that if they end up chasing a suspect she'll twist an ankle.

He walked over to her, wanting to check out the cut from a different angle. Specifically, from the top, since that's the view he usually had when he was next to her. Maybe it wouldn't look so short if he was looking directly down.

Scully stood still, watching curiously and waiting for his verdict. He came up next to her, only inches away, and looked straight down. She looked up at him, her arms folded and her eyes questioning.

This angle didn't make the cut look any better, but it did change his perspective. Somehow, she looked more kissable. No, maybe not kissable. More like she needed to be kissed. He wasn't sure how a haircut--an ugly haircut--could do that.

Mulder stood there for a moment pondering this question.

"Mulder?" she finally asked.

"Shh. I'm thinking."

She frowned. It was clear her patience was wearing thin. But she didn't move yet.

As the moment stretched on, Scully pursed her lips, which of course only made her look even more kissable. He resisted the strong urge to grab her face, thread his fingers through her hair, and delve into her mouth.

That thought brought a revelation. Now he understood. The haircut made her look too severe, not all soft and relaxed like the longer waves she had just yesterday. Her hair was begging to be messed up, just like when someone runs their fingers through your hair when kissing you well and good. And he wanted to be that someone.

Mulder couldn't help but smile at his realization.

Scully looked suspicious. "What?"

There was no way he could tell her what he was really thinking. But making her wonder was even better.

"Oh, nothing." He turned away and strode over to his desk. "Nice haircut, by the way."

"Mulder," she said in frustration. But she let it go and got to work.

Mulder, however, was too distracted to work. All he could think about was running his fingers through those red-gold strands pressed neatly to her scalp, mussing them in all sorts of wonderful ways while he accepted the invitation of her pursed lips.

He shifted uncomfortably in his chair and glanced over at his partner, hoping she hadn't noticed his fidgeting. She hadn't. She was busy typing on the computer, biting her lip like she does sometimes when she's concentrating. That only added more fuel to his inflamed thoughts--now he was thinking about nibbling on her bottom lip while he ran his fingers through her hair.

Mulder closed his eyes and took a deep breath. It wasn't like he needed anything else about her to distract him. How long does it take for a haircut to grow out?

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Notes: I was watching Sein und Zeit today. This is my reaction every time I see that short, short, flat (and in my opinion, totally unflattering) haircut Scully had during Season 7--somebody needs to mess her hair up! And by somebody, I mean Mulder. And by mess up, I mean run their fingers through it, which seems to go along with a kiss. I really loved how Scully's hair looked in Hungry and The Goldberg Variation, and I really wish they never would've cut it. But haircuts do grow out.

For more haircut fic, check out Unscrupulous by Narida Law. That one's about Mulder's haircut, but my fic idea made me think of that story.


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