"Scully…?"

Suddenly, I remember. It's Mulder. I built them to protect myself from Fox Mulder. Why would I do such a thing? He's my best friend… "Scully!?" I know why. It's because… because… because I-I can't. A single tear rolls down my cheek. I feel a terrible ache in my heart. Why can't I even admit it to myself? Finally I look up into the face of the man who caused me to build these walls. To build these walls because I was afraid. Because I was afraid… afraid to love him. I release a huge sigh of relief and take a few deep breaths before I stand up. I think I'm ready… "Scully, what's wrong?" His voice is filled with so much love and concern that it makes my heart ache even more.

"I'm sorry, Mulder," I announce in a shaky voice. "Sorry for what?" He presses his hands against the wall, which is unfortunately the closest he can get to me. I take a couple of steps forward and stop in the middle of the room. "For… for this," "What are you talking about?" I don't know what to say. I don't know how to explain. I wish he knew how much I love him… Once again I feel the walls silently move forward and come to an abrupt stop. I hold my breath and hope to God they won't move again. Then it becomes clear to me. I know what I have to do to make things right and get us out of here. I have to tell him the truth. Someone once told me that those in search of truth shall find love, and those in search of love shall find truth. I think it's about time I test that theory. Mulder's voice echoes in my mind as I remember the night I was in the hospital sick with cancer. I told him that I'd never give up and he said that the truth would save me, that it would save us both. I've been living in denial and fear. I've been living in these walls for too long. I think that maybe the truth is the only thing that can save me now. "Mulder…"

I walk over to the connecting wall and place my hands on his. His warmth gives me the last bit of strength that I needed to go on. "Mulder, I…" I feel the walls are closing in on me again and fear moves me to respond quickly. "I built these walls!" I blurt out. I take my hands off of his and slide down onto the floor, tears streaming freely down my face. For a moment Mulder just stands there, his hands in fists at his sides and determination burning in his eyes like fire. At last, he kneels down by me. "Scully?" he says softly. "Scully, it wasn't just you." I look up at him and wipe my tears with the back of my hand. "I built my own walls too." He points a finger at the walls around him. "Did you find the gold letters, too?" he asks me. I nod.

"I found them while you were sleeping. I didn't realize what they meant until now though," he says. "Why did you built them?" ask softly, hoping he'll give me that same answer I gave myself. "Well, why did you build your walls, Scully?" he asks back. I lean my forehead on the glass and close my eyes. There's just no way I can tell him. "Because you love me," he says for me. "I love you too, Scully." He presses his forehead against mine and puts his palms up on the glass. I place my hands on his. "Thank you," I whisper, "thank you…" I'm crying openly now and my tears are falling on the glass. And then the most amazing thing happens as my tears slide down the smooth glass. Wherever my tears touch, the glass 'dissolves' and disappears. "Oh, my God… Mulder, look!" He looks at the small cracks forming in the glass and then stares at me in wide-eyed wonder. The glass walls that couldn't be scratched by a bullet were being broken down by nothing more than my tears.

~~~~~~{The Ninth Hour Within the Walls: Love}~~~~~~

Mulder and I stare at the wall in disbelief until my tears reach the floor. Then we look at each other speechlessly. "How…?" His voice trails off as he watches me wipe the remainder of my tears off my cheeks with my hands. I take a deep breath and extend a trembling hand toward the wall. I stop when I'm half an inch away from the glass and take other deep breath before touching it with the tears at my fingertips. We watch as two more tears make their way down the wall, leaving gaps where solid, unbreakable glass was once was. I chuckle. "Duh. Why didn't I think of *this* before?" Mulder smiles at me and then we just kind of sit there staring at the glass, uncertain as to what to do next. I understand everything now. It all makes perfect sense. I built my walls because I was afraid to love Mulder and he built his walls because he was afraid to love me. The walls allow me to see him, to hear him and to feel him, but at the same time they won't allow me to get close enough to love him. They won't let me hug him or take care of him when he's hurt and needs me. But what about all the times that I *have* been able to hold him or tend for him? I bring my fingers up to the gaps in the glass. Mulder watches as I try to slip my fingers through. But the glass is sharp and I cut myself. "Ow!" "Are you okay, Scully?" "Yeah…" I watch as blood oozes out of my cut and down my hand. I wipe the blood off on my blouse and look at the bright red stain on my white shirt. "Great…" "Here, use this," says Mulder as he tries to pass me his handkerchief through one of the gaps in the glass. I look at him. "It's clean. I promise." I smile and tug his hanky through the glass. I thank him and carefully wrap it around my bleeding finger. Just then, I notice a single drop of blood making its way down the wall. Amazingly, its doing the same thing the tears did to the glass. "Oh, my God, Mulder… did you see…?" Now I know why sometimes I'm able to get past the walls and close to Mulder. Tears and blood are often symbols of love for another person. You would only cry for someone you love and you would only shed your blood for someone you love. They allow me to tear down the walls occasionally... What about when I saw my reflection? I only saw it once, right after I got mad at Mulder because he wouldn't tell me what had happened. I think about this for a moment. Selfishness allows us to see only ourselves and not others. Maybe when we're selfish, our reflections become visible on the glass because we're only thinking about ourselves.

But why do the walls move? This is a tough one. I can't think of anything. Wait… what if…? I think I know why now. But first maybe I should test my theory. I look up at Mulder. He seems to be lost in deep thought. Perfect, I think to myself. He won't notice that I'm staring at him. I look at his face, trying to decide what I like best about him. His eyes, definitely… or is it his lips? Hmm… I've gazed into his beautiful hazel eyes more times than I care to remember. And every time he looks at me with those eyes I just melt inside. But his lips are more mysterious since I've never had the pleasure to kiss them. I lick my lips hungrily. If only I could… And the walls move. I almost burst out laughing. I've figured out what causes them to move. Every time I think of something that the walls won't allow me to have, they move in on me, trying to crush me. Well, I've pretty much figured everything out. Everything except how to get out of here. I think of Mulder again. Maybe I should let the walls crush me. Or maybe… I look up at him again. This time he's looking at me with those eyes that make melt inside. I look at his lips. What if I kiss him?

Surely that would have some effect on the wall. I look into his eyes. I know he's thinking the same thing I am. Time seems to slow down as we gaze at each other. I lick my lips and lean closer to the wall. My eyes slip shut as my lips touch the glass. Half a second later I feel Mulder's lips against mine. I feel a bubble of joy form in my chest and rise high above me and I know we're about to get out of here. Suddenly the connecting wall shatters into a million little pieces that shower harmlessly on us like rain. We pull away from each other and watch as the pieces fall onto the glass floor producing a melodious clinking sound, like the sound of wind chimes in the wind. Mulder stares at where the wall once was and extends his hand out to feel if it's still there. His hand finds that there's nothing separating him from me and he grins. Tears fill his eyes as he brings his hand closer to me and touches my cheek gently. He laughs, grabs my hands and pulls me into his arms. I wrap my arms tightly around him, glad to be able to hold him so close again. "I love you, Mulder. I love you, I love you…"

We slowly pull away from each other and he holds my face in his hands. He leans in slowly and places his lips over mine. Our kiss only lasts a fraction of a second though because just then a brilliant, white light shines upon us and we are blinded. I feel myself flying through the air and then landing roughly on a hard, flat surface. Though every muscle in my body aches, I force my eyes open and attempt to lift myself up. But when I do, the world swirls and fades, and the darkness swallows me whole.

~~~~~~{Within the Shattered Walls}~~~~~~

"Scully?" I groan and open my eyes. At first all I see is a blur, but when my eyes finally focus, I realize that I'm laying in the middle of the street with Mulder hovering over me. With much effort, I sit up and rub my forehead. "What happened, Mulder?" "I'm… not sure," he replies hesitantly. For a moment we stare at each other, wondering if maybe we dreamed the whole thing up. I look down at my hands, trying to decide whether I should ask him if he remembers the walls and everything that happened within them. And that's when I notice Mulder's bloodstained hanky still wrapped around my finger. I hold my hand up for Mulder to see. "It really happened, didn't it?"

"I guess…" he says, looking down at his hand with the broken finger. He sighs, stands up and holds out a hand to help me up. I take his hand and he pulls me to my feet. We turn to face our car, which is sitting quietly a few yards away and slowly walk toward it. My head is spinning. Everything seems so unreal, like I'm dreaming. We get into the car and Mulder starts the ignition. Soon we're back on our way to the motel we'd been staying in. I glance at the car's clock and then at my watch. It's 11:30, which means we lost nine minutes. It all really happened, I realize all of a sudden. We really were within the walls we had built and we really tore them down. We said we loved each other. We kissed. And now what? What does it mean? Do we forget about it? Deny it? I'm torn out of my thoughts when Mulder suddenly hits the brakes and the car comes to an abrupt stop. "Mul-"

He's out of the car before I can even finish saying his name. I watch him as he walks a few feet in front of our car and stands there, staring up at the night sky. He gazes at the stars for a moment and then hangs his head low, looking at the pavement. I open my door and step out. It's colder now than it was before and I shiver as I walk toward him. "Mulder?"

He turns around to face me. "Don't you see what's happening, Scully?" I stare at him blankly. "We're rebuilding the walls. We're denying anything ever happened and pretending we were never there. Rebuilding the walls." I know he's right. I know I should do something. But I don't know what, so I look away. "Scully, I *love* you." I bite my lip nervously, unable to look at him. "Hey," he says, lifting my chin up with his hand. Our eyes meet. "I love you," he repeats. I take a deep breath. "I love you, too," I say softly without ever taking my eyes away from his. He smiles. "Close your eyes, Scully," he instructs me. I obey and shut my eyes. "Tell me what you feel…" I look deep within my heart and try to decipher my feelings. Just then, I know what I feel and speak without thinking about it first. "I feel a huge, overwhelming urge to just…"

I suddenly find myself unable to finish my sentence. Not so much because finishing it would be too revealing, but because Mulder had placed his lips over mine. I'm quite shocked at first, but I quickly adapt to the idea, wrap my arms around his neck and join him in the kiss. It starts out slow and gentle as we tentatively move our lips against one another's. Gradually, we deepen the kiss and it becomes hungry and passionate as we desperately savor the feel of each other's mouths over one another's. I feel Mulder's hands move from my hair down my back, to my waist and back up again. It's like they're everywhere all at once. I release a small involuntary groan from deep within. Every repressed emotion and fantasy suddenly becomes alive and real. I've waited six years for this kiss and now that it's happening, I still can barely believe it. This kiss is more amazing than I ever thought or hoped it would be. Just when I feel I might pass out from the lack of oxygen in my lungs, Mulder gently pulls away, holding my face in his hands. My heart is pounding wildly in my chest and my vision is slightly blurred. It takes me a few deep breaths before I'm able to speak. "…kiss you," I say, finishing the sentence I'd started before Mulder's surprise kiss. I touch my lips with my fingertips and smile shyly at him. He's still out of breath, I notice. "I love it when you do that," I tell him, referring to his little mind reading game. He chuckles and pulls me into a warm embrace, resting his chin on top of my head. "It was a lucky guess," he whispers.

I imagine him grinning happily as I listen to his heart beating steadily in his chest. There's no turning back now. Not that I'd want to anyway. I think back to all the events that occurred within the walls. It may have seemed as though we destroyed them. But in reality all we did was build the foundation for our love to grow. I watch the stars sparkle tirelessly in the sky and wonder how many of them have been shining on us since the day we met. Suddenly I remember the first time we experienced lost time and think of the nine minutes we just lost tonight. We may have lost those nine minutes, but what we gained in return is bound to last us the rest of our lives.

The End.

~~~ Thank You!
I'd like to thank the following people who in some way helped me with my story: Katie a.k.a. Pixie, my good friend and official editor of the story- Thank you for all your positive input and support… and for correcting all my grammatical errors:) I couldn't have done it without you! Rachel- Thanks for all your encouraging comments. You gave me that final boost of confidence I needed:) Rose- Thank you for putting my story up on your site. It's an honor to have it there! And finally thanks to all of you who took the time to read my story. After all, the only reason I wrote it was so I could share it with all of you! ~~~