scully: "what time is it?"
she's not even surprised to have him there waking her up. what time is it? so . . . what if this is a thing that happens sometimes? a thing that happens a lot when they're away on cases? a thing that even happens at home? scully is a sound sleeper most nights. and she loves the snooze button. and work is always too early, who even invented that??
it is not the reason mulder has a key to her apartment, it is not the only reason they like having adjoining motel rooms, but those things do come in handy. more than once mulder has let himself into her apartment in the morning, or into her room on cases. he even brings coffee. stands next to her bed, watching her sleep for a moment; she's beautiful and he's so afraid sometimes of giving too much away when he looks at her, but on those mornings, he's allowed. and it's okay, she's okay with him waking her like this - he asked and she said yes. she would never admit it, but she likes his face being the first thing she sees in the morning.
some nights she stays on the phone with him, stays in his motel room until he falls asleep, because going to sleep is hard for him. but the mornings are his time to take care of her. "what time is it?" having him there is not a surprise. it's something they do. something that makes her happy when she thinks about it, even if she's not ready to admit it just yet.
