By beduini
beduini@earthlink.net
 

Date: Sun, 31 Oct 1999

Category:  V, Mulder POV, M/S UST, MA, SA, DAL with a touch of MSR

Rating:  R for adult language and themes.

Archive:  If I sent it to you, then you can archive it.  Otherwise,
ask.

Disclaimer:  The X Files and its characters are the property of Fox
and its subsidiaries.  I'm not making any money from this.

Summary:  Shades of Monday, Shades of Drive, but not one spoiler.
Oh, well, Triangle, sort of.

Yes, this is a bit of a departure for me.

Big thanks to Kerri, Carolyn, Karooni and Marty for guinea pigging
and beta-ing.

Drive Thru
By Beduini
 

DAMN IT!

"Hang on, just hang on, help is on the way."

God, I hope help is on the way.  They must have heard the gunshot
outside.  Where is all of this blood coming from?  Jesus, exit wound!
Must have caught an artery on the way out.

And then some.

Scully.  What would Scully do?

"I'm going to try to stop the blood flow, okay?  You're gonna be
okay.  Um, I'm gonna swing your legs around so that you can lay
across this counter, alright?  I need you to stay calm."

Watch the microphones.  There.

Too much blood.

"Can you speak?  Good.  What's your name?  Carl?  My name is Mulder.
I'm going to apply pressure to the wound to slow down the flow of
blood, alright?"

I'm sure the last thing you thought about when you woke up this
morning was taking a bullet in the back.  Hell of a friend you have
there.

"Sorry buddy, you're not my type."

Yeah, the last place on earth I want to be getting off right now is
on the counter of some drive-thru bank in Mesa, Arizona with my hand
in your crotch.  Fucking homophobe.

"What?  Okay, none taken."

I should've shut the security door when I had a chance - I'll take my
chances with you over that partner of yours out there in the lobby
waving his gun around like some fucking lunatic.

I can't take pressure off of the artery or it will spurt like the
Trevi Fountain.  If I could, I'd take my gun back, too.

Okay, they heard it.  The SWAT megaphone is louder than I would have
thought in here.  Must be all the glass.  A drive-thru in a bank.
What a great idea.  I wish my bank at home had one of these.

Then again, maybe I don't.

To be honest, you don't look like an escapee from the county jail.

"I've been through something like this before, Carl.  You're going to
be alright."

Jesus, I hope you're going to be all right.

"How do I know?  I'm still here, aren't I?"

Yeah, a WORLD of difference between us.  We share the same physiology
that's about it.

"It's my last name, actually.  No, I'm not going to tell you my first
name, let's just leave it at Mulder, okay?"

Yeah, buddy, if you knew a guy named Fox had his hand in your crotch
you'd really lose it, wouldn't you?

"No, FBI."

You've already got my friggin' gun, you want my badge, too?

"No, not because of you.  Those guys in uniform outside are here
because of you.  Let's say I just stumbled into this one."

Stumbled, fell, happened upon, chanced by...I wonder what Scully'd
have to say about that.

You seem sane enough.  It's the other one who's out of his mind.
He's smart.  Get the cop, Fed, whatever, out of the way.  Personally,
I would have chosen the safe over the drive thru, but that's me.  I
wouldn't have shot my partner, though.

He's a loose cannon, standing guard over the customers and bank
employees, waving his weapon around in the air, shouting out orders.

He wants power, control.

From the looks of it, the local police and SWAT units have this place
sealed up pretty tight.  I don't think he can see that from where he
is.  Alive or dead, he won't be a free man for long.

How many others he plans on taking with him is the question now.

"Yeah, okay, if it will help keep your mind off of the pain.  That's
a good idea.  What do you want to talk about?"

I should have thought of that.  It must hurt like hell.

"No, I think it nicked an artery in your groin, but I'm pretty
certain your jewels are intact."

Yeah, I bet you're relieved.

"So how about them Yankees?"

Not a baseball fan, I take it.  I wonder if your partner can hear us.

"A girl?  Yeah.  No.  I don't know."

DO I have a girl?  That, my friend, is the $64,000 question.

A partner.  I have a partner.

No, more than that.  A friend.  A Scully.  I have a Scully.

"How about you, Carl?  You got a girl?"

Ah, I see.  Funny how a woman can turn your insides to jelly like
that.  Even a tough guy like you, Carl.

Blood, so much blood.  I gotta get him out of here or he's not gonna
make it.

Oh, Christ.  Why didn't I see her there before?  Can she see me?
She's looking right at me.  She doesn't see me.  Oh, the window is
mirrored on the outside.  Jesus, she looks worried.  Who is she
talking to?  Oh, headset.

"Redhead?"

You're pretty astute, Carl.  Or maybe I'm that obvious.  Talking
about Scully isn't a good idea.  If I talk, maybe you'll open up to
me, tell me about your partner, though.

"Yeah, that's her."

Yes, she is at that.  She's more than hot, she's - Jesus!

"What the Hell kind of question is that?"

I wouldn't give Frohike that information if he'd so much as dared to
ask, you pervert, and you think I'm going to tell you even if I did
have that information.

"She's my PARTNER."

I don't owe you any more explanations.

Right.  Fucking Sir Galahad.  What, me?  Oh, that's priceless.

"I'm not that noble, Carl.  I'm just...I don't know.  The feelings
aren't mutual."

Why am I telling you this?

Scully looks like she's had the wind knocked out of her.  No doubt
worried I was the one who got shot.

Where the hell are the paramedics?  I don't know how much longer he's
going to be able to take this.  His skin is cold and clammy, his eyes
are starting to look glassy.  I've got to keep his mind off of the
pain.

Wait.  The girl.  Ask about the girl.  The look in your eyes.  It's
more than just physical pain.  She doesn't love you back, is that it,
Carl?  I guess we're not so different after all, are we?

"What's her name?  Your girlfriend.  Lucy?  You wanna tell me about
her, Carl?"

So that explains why this place, of all Godforsaken places.  You
wanted the girl and your partner wanted the money.  You don't have it
in you to shoot anyone, do you, Carl?  That's why he sent you in here
holding my own gun to my head.  To get us both out of the way.  Who
knows, maybe he planned on shooting you all along.  Maybe he planned
on shooting me and pinning it on you.

Maybe he still will.

"Maybe today is her day off.  Did you consider that?  Maybe she saw
you on the news and she's at home waiting for you to call her."

Poor bastard.  I don't believe it, either.

"So you came here to find her."

Shit, his heartbeat is beginning to slow down.  That may keep the
blood from flowing out so fast...Christ, it's all over the front of
me now.  I'm gonna lose him.  Where the fuck are the paramedics?
Think!

"What about your partner over there?  What's his story?"

What is it about psychopaths named Ed?

"I know it's tough in there, Carl.  Maricopa County has a reputation
for being one of the hardest County Jails in the country.  But you
don't have to go back there right away.  First we've got to get you
to a hospital.  Maybe once you've recovered from this we can get you
transferred to another jail."

First I gotta get past Ed.

"You've got to talk to your partner, though, Carl.  He's got to let
the paramedics in when they arrive."

Whoa, you've got a sense of humor.  A pretty good one at that, unless
your brain isn't getting enough oxygen...

"Yeah, actually, she did shoot me once.  No, in the shoulder.  It was
for my own protection.  Yeah, it sounds fucked up, but it's true."

God, Scully, get back behind the barricade!  Pacing around on the
pavement like that - bulletproof glass or not, that vest doesn't
cover everything!  Jesus Christ, I hope that Ed doesn't come in here
and see her out there pacing around like that and decide to do a
little target practice.

I should stop looking at her.  Might as well paint a target on her
back.

Think.

"No, she's worried about me.  She doesn't know what's happening.  Of
course she cares.  We're friends."

More than that?  Is there something there that you see and I don't?
What do you see when you look at her?  A pretty face?  A nice ass?
Something else?  Am I too familiar with her to see the obvious, or
are you playing me, Carl?

"So you look at her a few seconds and you think you know everything,
is that it?"

Now there's a brilliant idea.

"I tried to tell her once and I didn't do a very good job of it."

Oh, another brilliant idea.  Like I never thought of that, either.

"I've kissed her.  Sort of."

So it's not the Spice Channel.  It's all I can give you.

It's all I've got.

Nice?  It was incredible.

"Yeah, it was real nice."

If I told you that the idea of kissing Scully was better than any
fantasy you could have about burying it deep inside Pamela Anderson
would you believe me?  Probably not.  But then again, maybe you
would.  You look like you believe me.

Oh, Christ!

"Carl!  Stay with me Carl!  Tell me about her.  Tell me about Lucy.
What does she look like?"

Goddamn microphones in the way.  I can't move him.  Maybe if
I...there.  Blood all over the counter.  Where the hell are the
paramedics?

"Is that right?  Same color?"

So that's why you noticed.  She'd be hard to miss, anyway.

"Yeah, Carl, redheads are on the top of my list, too.  Green?  No,
her eyes are blue.  Yeah, the color changes with her mood.  What
about Lucy?  You gotta watch that temper, Carl.  A couple of times.
Yeah, but I deserved it.  No, that's not why she shot me."

Oh, Jesus.  Speaking of getting shot...nothing like the feeling of
the barrel of a gun between your shoulder blades.  I should do this
more often.

"Nothing.  We're just talking.  Look, Ed...that's your name, right?
Ed?  Carl here needs to get to a hospital, he's in pain and he's lost
a lot of blood."

Fucking bastard.

"What do you mean you don't give a fuck about him?  He's your
partner, isn't he?"

Sirens.  More police.  No, paramedics.  Thank God.  Now, if Ed would
let them inside...

"The paramedics are here, Ed.  Let them take Carl to the hospital.
Okay, okay, take it easy.  You're in charge Ed.  You don't really
want to see your buddy die here, do you?  Let the paramedics take him
to the hospital, okay, Ed?"

Oh, God.

OhGodohGodnononono...don'tlookather...Scullygetbehindthebarricade...
do something!  Think!  A diversion.

Control.  It's all about the control.

"ED!  You can't do this to him!  You have to let them in, Ed.  Let
the paramedics in."

"SHIT!"

Christ, that hurts!  God!  I don't think it's broken.  Hurts like
hell, but it's not broken.  There goes my free rhinoplasty, courtesy
of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

There goes my gun.

Maybe I won't be needing that rhinoplasty, anyway.

Well, at least he's not looking at her anymore.  Stop staring at the
window and get behind the barricade, Scully!  If I didn't know
better, I'd think you heard.  Good thing you didn't.  If the preview
is any indication of things to come, you wouldn't want to stick
around for the next show.

Have to do something.

"I'm sorry, Ed?  Okay?  I'm sorry.  I don't know anything.  Nobody,
Ed, I'm nobody.  No, whatever you say.  You're the boss.  Tell me
what you want.  No, that's fair.  Thinking about it is fair."

Okay.  Okay.

"Carl?  Carl, I think he's gonna let the paramedics come in.  He said
he'd think about it.  You gotta hang on.  No, he's gone back in the
other room."

Time is running out.  He's going to die.  He's going to die and I
can't do a goddamn thing to help him.

"What was that, Carl?"

He knows.  God, I hate this!

"Can you speak a little louder?"

I HATE THIS!

"Her name is Scully.  Yeah, kind of like Mulder.  No, it's Dana.
Yeah, very pretty.  I don't know, we just always - what?  Can you
speak louder?"

Come on, Carl, hang on!

"Yeah, I do, Carl.  More than anything."

Love hardly even begins to cover it.  But I think you already know
that, don't you, Carl.

Something's...jeez!  Scully, what are you doing?  Get away from the
window.  Can you see me in here, Scully?

"Can you see me?"

No?  How...

"What, headseat?  No.  Ears?  You can hear me?"

This glass is supposed to be bulletproof.  How is that possible?

"What?  Microphone?"

Ah.  Carl is lying on the button for the microphones.

"Scully, Ed's in the lobby.  Last I saw he had the hostages face down
on the floor on the west wall.  He's armed - he got the security
guard's weapon and he's got mine.  I've got a man in here who's badly
injured, losing blood.  He needs medical attention ASAP."

That's it, Scully.  Take charge.  You'd have made one hell of a
commander if you'd gone into the Navy like the rest of your family.

Thank God you didn't.

"Carl?  Can you hear me?  We'll be out of here soon, just hang on,
okay?"

There they go.  Good job, Scully.  Ed can't see them from his
position.  Wait, Scully, what are you doing?  Get back...

"Get back behind the barricade, Scully.  What?  I'll be fine.  Just
get behind the barricade, Scully, and have the paramedics ready.  No,
I'm FINE!  Just get behind the barricade!"
 
 

Now I see the advantage behind all of those big four-wheel drives
I've seen on the roads here.  The local boys are having a field day
with this one.  A little too Hollywood for my taste, but effective
nonetheless.

Jesus.  Glad I'm in here, out of the way.

They've got him.  They destroyed the entire front of the bank, but
they got him.

"Carl, we're gonna get you out of here, okay?  Carl?  Carl, can you
hear me?  Carl..."

"Mulder."

Scully.  Thank God.

"Scully, he's not responding.  We have to get him out of here.  Get
the paramedics over here, NOW!"

"Mulder..."

"Jeez!  He's not breathing!"

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten.

"Scully, help me!"

"Mulder..."

"Scully, get the paramedics!"

Okay, one, two, three, four, five, six...

"Mulder, he's gone."

No.  He's not gone.  He was just...one, two, three...

"Mulder."

...six, seven...

"Mulder, stop."

"DAMN it!"

Not again.  Not this time.  Not...shit!  Why?

"Scully."

I did what I thought you would have done.  I tried to save him,
Scully.

"I know, Mulder.  I know.  I heard the whole thing.  You did
everything you could.  He lost too much blood."

God, Scully.

"I should have gotten him out of here sooner.  I should
have...applied more pressure to the wound."

"No.  Mulder, no.  You did everything exactly right."

You always know how to get through to me, don't you, Scully?  God,
I'm glad you're alright.  I was so afraid if he saw you out there
he'd...

"Mulder, let's get you cleaned up, okay?  C'mon, let the locals do
their job."

"They're gonna need a statement."

"Yes, you can give them a statement later.  We'll schedule something
for tomorrow morning.  Right now let's just go, alright?  Let's go,
Mulder."

The entire police force must be out here.  Christ, they blew half of
his head off.  Fucking bastard.  I wish I could say I was sorry.  His
life for the lives of...two, four, six...ten others.  They all made
it.

Except for Carl.  He just wanted to see his girlfriend.

Oh, shit.

"Scully..."

Shit, shit, shit.

"What, Mulder?"

"You said you heard everything?"

"Yeah Mulder.  I heard everything."

Now how am I gonna...what, you find this amusing?  I bared my soul
and you think it's amusing...

OH.

Scully.  So does this mean you approve?

"I think we're due for a talk, Mulder."

Oh, Scully, if I weren't standing in the middle of a demolished bank
right now, surrounded by cops and covered in blood...

"Yes, Scully, we need to talk.  Soon."

What's this?  Blanket - oh, cover some of the gore, anyway.  Can't
save the suit, though.

"Did he hit you in the nose, Mulder, or did that happen before?"

Thanks for reminding me.

"I don't think he broke it.  OW!"

"No, it's not broken, but let's get some ice on it before the
swelling gets too bad.  You're gonna have some bruising underneath
your eyes, I'm afraid."

Bruising.  But I'm still alive.  I can't say the same for Carl over
there, surrounded by paramedics fifteen minutes too late.

"Mulder?"

"Yeah?"

"Ten innocent people are still alive because of you."

Ah, Scully...you know me so well.

"C'mon.  Let's go."
 

Fin

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