"Monday"

Trauma-rama!  Mondays just can't get any worse.

Every day is essentially the same: Mulder gets up, discovers his waterbed has sprung a leak and, as a result, his clock radio has shorted out, his cel phone has bit the dust, and he is late for a meeting by several hours.  The water has leaked to the floor below him, meaning that he has to pay the landlord both the damages for his apartment and his neighbour's.  Unfortunately, when he finally arrives at work, he realizes his cheque is going to bounce because his pay has been mailed to him rather than deposited.

One way or another, he ends up at the bank on 8th and E Street, as does Scully, whether Scully has gone to deposit his cheque for him so that he can make the meeting or whether he goes and Scully goes looking for him.  It always happens the same.  Every time, a man named Bernard, who is desperately trying to make some sort of a future for himself and his girlfriend, Pam, has come into the bank to try to rob it.  He is strapped with explosives under his vest and at roughly the same time each day, he declares that he is robbing the bank, and everyone gets down in a panic.

The twist is that only Pam knows that this day is repeating over and over.  Mulder and Scully are the variables - they are the ones that determine whether Bernard will flick the switch and kill everyone in the bank or not, but they don't know that.  Day after day, Pam tries to stop it all in any way she can.  She drugs Bernard's coffee, steals his car keys, tries to warn Skinner at the scene, Scully in the building, Mulder on the street.  Nothing is working.  She is in a living hell.

We see this played out roughly five times, each time a little bit different (but the ending's always the same).  First, we see Scully kneeling on the floor, applying pressure to Mulder's gunshot wound and trying to rationalize with Bernard.  Obviously scared, she strokes the side of Mulder's face reassuringly.  The SWAT team doesn't know that Bernard has a bomb, so when they burst in, he pulls the switch and everyone dies.

The second time, Mulder arrives in the office, thinking he's missed the meeting.  When Scully tells him he hasn't but he's extraordinarily late for it, he explains about his waterbed leaking, yadda yadda.

Scully: When did you get a waterbed, Mulder?

Mulder: (ignores the question) The bank's just down the street.  I'll...I'll be back in ten.  Cover for me, will ya?

Scully: When do I not?

Everything would have gone fine in the bank with the robbery, except that Scully went looking for Mulder and, trying to protect Scully as he sees her entering, Mulder ends up getting shot as he draws his gun.  Scully, nursing his wound carefully, tries to convince Bernard to show the men outside that he has a bomb so that they don't come charging in.  Bernard figures that it's a trap and refuses.  Panicking and nearly in tears as her partner slowly slips away, Scully strokes Mulder's face and looks into his eyes.  

Scully: I just want everybody to live, that's all.

The SWAT team moves in and Scully screams "NO!" as Bernard once again blows up the whole bank. 

Other notable Mondays were when Scully agreed to deposit his cheque.  Mulder bursts in, pointing his gun at Bernard as Bernard and Scully stand, their guns aimed at each other.

Mulder: Drop your weapon!

Scully: Drop it!

Bernard: I ain't dropping nothin'!  You put yours down!  I'll shoot her!!!

Mulder: What do you think I'll do then?

Well, he'd obviously blow his brains out, as we all know.  Mulder finally resorts to shooting Bernard at which point Bernard opens his vest, reveals the bomb, and moves to pull the trigger. Mulder repeats, "He's got a bomb," over and over again to try and allow himself tomorrow to remember this.  He screams, "NO!" and runs in vain to try to protect Scully.  

After all these fruitless efforts, Mulder is finally starting to get a sense of deja-vu.

Quote of the Week:

Mulder: I mean, I woke up, I opened my eyes, I was soaking wet....  It's a long story, but, uh, I had the distinct sensation that I had lived that moment before. Scully: Well, you may have.  Did you do a lot of drinking in college?

Touching her shoulder lightly before he leaves, Mulder tells Scully he's running to the bank and will be back soon.  On the way, he sees Pam and something clicks.  While in the bank, Bernard catches his eye and he begins to repeat, "He's got a bomb...he's got a bomb," over and over like he did the day before.  Mulder phones Scully to get her to help.

Mulder then approaches Bernard and hands him his gun, telling him that he can stop this and just walk out.  Bernard tells him no, and begins to get agitated, drawing his gun on the bank.  Scully enters with Pam, and draws her gun.  Convincing her that it's the only way, Scully puts down her gun and Pam tells Bernard that they should leave.  Things look like they're going to turn out when they all hear sirens approaching.  "You sonofabitch!" Bernard yells, firing his gun straight at Mulder.  Pam dives in between, catching the bullet in the neck and ending this Monday for good.  Looking at Mulder in pain as Scully calls for an ambulance, Pam whispers, "This never happened before."

The paper hits Mulder's front door as it had every time before, but we realize that he has been sleeping on his couch (ooh, what a shock) and as he picks up his watch, we see the date as TUE.  Scully phones to tell him that Skinner wants their report and asks if he's feeling alright.  He tells her that he'll be there in an hour.

This episode really brings up how difficult it would be for either of them to see the other in pain.  Mulder only shot Bernard because he thought Scully's life might be in danger, and the two times Mulder got shot, Scully stroked his face and tried not to cry as she attempted to stop the bleeding.  This just reminds us all how great Scully and Mulder angst can be!  They leave an extremely important meeting to check up on the other, and their banter without fail turns quickly into flirting.  I can't wait for next week when we see them as a married couple in Arcadia.  It's gonna be great...I can feel it.

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