Title: The Sign
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Fox Mulder
Fandom: Doctor Who/The X-Files
Rating: PG-13
Table: 5, sound_of_drums
Prompt: 29, Hope
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the Tenth Doctor or Fox Mulder, unfortunately. Please do not sue.

***

The Doctor looked up from studying the Tardis console as Mulder came into the control room, obviously fresh from the shower. His breath caught in his throat as he studied his companion, words failing him as his eyes took in the other man from head to toe.

It had probably been a mistake to take a companion who was so attractive. He'd thought that Mulder was an incredibly good-looking man since the first day they'd met, but his fascination with the human had only grown during the time they'd been together.

How many nights had he spent tossing and turning in bed, wishing that Mulder was there beside him? Too many to count, he told himself with an inward sigh. And there would probably be many, many more of those nights to come.

This man had given him no encouragement whatsoever; it seemed that Mulder had no idea of how the Doctor felt about him. The Time Lord wasn't entirely sure himself of how he felt; was this just some kind of infatuation that would die quickly, or was there a deeper emotion?

He didn't really want to say -- at least, not without some sort of hint that Mulder might be interested in pursuing something more between them than the friendship they shared at the moment. He wasn't going to risk having his hearts trampled.

That hadn't happened many times in the past -- mainly because he'd never let himself get that close to anyone, especially a companion. If he'd been interested, he'd managed to keep it to himself, and keep the relationship on a merely friendly footing.

But then, he hadn't felt this way about any companion from his past. The only companion who'd become his lover was Jack, and that had turned out to be a disaster. The time they'd spent together had been wonderful, but the ending had been messy and heartbreaking.

Was that why he was so hesitant to tell Fox -- Mulder, he corrected himself, remembering that the other man hated to be referred to by his first name -- how he felt? Was he afraid that this man would leave him too, rejecting him in the same way that Jack had?

Of course, Jack had spent time with him first; they'd been together for quite a while. But in the end, he'd chosen to leave -- just as all of his companions did. No one ever wanted to stay, not even the one man who could have given him the forever he craved.

Mulder couldn't give him that, the Time Lord reminded himself. Even if they did have a relationship that went beyond being friends, this man was human. He would eventually age and die -- and he would be left alone again, just like always.

It didn't really matter, did it? Having even what to him would be a short amount of time with someone he cared about would be better than having nothing. It was one of the drawbacks to being who and what he was, the fact that he couldn't be with someone for his entire life.

The problem was finding out if Mulder felt the same -- or if he was even attracted in any way. He'd tried to turn their conversations to that subject more than once, but he'd found that Mulder was very good at sidestepping questions -- or answering them with questions of his own.

He was an enigmatic man who obviously didn't feel comfortable with talking about himself or his feelings -- which meant that the two of them had much more in common than either of them would want to admit. And that only made him all the more interesting to the Doctor.

Fox Mulder was one of the most fascinating men he'd ever met -- and also one of the most attractive. If he was honest with himself, in his eyes, Jack Harkness was far less attractive than the man who was now making his way across the control room to his side.

He wanted a future with this man. He wanted to mean something to Fox Mulder other than just being a friend who was taking him on an exciting adventure into the stars, traveling through time and space. Just being a friend wasn't enough.

Maybe it should be, but his feelings had progressed much further than that. He hoped that Mulder felt the same way, but it was impossible to tell. He wasn't going to pry into Mulder's mind, and the other man hadn't given the smallest sign of what he might feel.

"Hi, Doctor," Mulder said with a smile, leaning over the console to peer at the viewscreen. "Any special place we're headed for today? Or did you just want to pick a place and go sightseeing? Either one would be good with me."

The Doctor shook his head, a smile curving his lips at Mulder's words. "I hadn't planned on going to any specific place today, no," he murmured, unsure of how to bring up the subject that was foremost in his mind at the moment. "Was there anywhere you'd like to see?"

"Lots of places. And lots of times," Mulder answered promptly, leaning against the console and crossing his arms over his chest as he studied the Time Lord. "There are so many places in Earth's history I'd like to go back to. But that's up to you."

The Doctor blinked, feeling surprised by Mulder's words. He'd thought that this man would have a long list of places he wanted to see -- and that he'd demand to be taken there. One thing he'd already learned about his companion was that Mulder was used to getting what he wanted.

Why did he have to stand there looking so utterly, devastatingly handsome? And how in the world could any man make jeans and a black t-shirt look so tempting? Even Jack hadn't had the ability to make his hearts skip a few beats as they were doing now.

Finally finding his voice, laughed softly and shook his head. "I've seen nearly every time and place you could possibly think of. Though we could always go to some random place and explore it -- though I can't assure you that we'll end up going somewhere on Earth."

Mulder shrugged, leaning against the console and fixing his gaze on the Doctor. "We could do that if you wanted to," he said, sounding nonchalant. "Or we could find something to do here in the Tardis. I'm leaning towards the second option."

"Oh?" the Doctor asked, trying to sound just as nonchalant as the other man did. His hearts had begun to speed up; he could literally feel them pounding against his chest so loudly that he was sure Mulder could hear them as well. "And what would you want to do?"

"Oh, I don't know." Mulder's voice had dropped to a soft, husky tone; each word was almost like a caress. The Time Lord almost shivered at the sound of that voice; he felt as if he could melt into a puddle on the floor. "But I have a few ideas."

"So do I," the Doctor said, his voice breathless, the words coming out in a rush. "Whatever you have in mind, I'm sure I wouldn't mind it." There. He was leaving the door wide open for Mulder to make any sort of suggestion he had in mind.

"I'm sure we can work something out between the two of us," Mulder said, his gaze still fixed on the Doctor. He moved closer to the Time Lord, so close that the Doctor could feel the heat of his body, his hand moving along the console to nearly touch the Gallifreyan's.

He didn't want to reach out and take Mulder's hand; he hoped that the other man would make that gesture. But it seemed that was exactly what Mulder had in mind; the Doctor was almost surprised when the other man's hand covered his.

Was this the beginning of something that he'd wanted to happen from the moment he'd first met this man? The Doctor could feel hope growing within him; this was obviously the sign he'd hoped for. The sign that made the flame of hope within him burn higher.

Judging from that look, his hope was entirely justified. That smile held a promise, a hope for the future that he almost didn't dare to contemplate. But he was going to hold on to that hope with all his might, and believe that it would lead them to a place where they both wanted to be.

***