Title: The Sky is Falling

Author: J-Man

Rating: R - for m/m sexual contact and a little language (a kiss is just a kiss)

Pairing: M/K

Spoilers: None

Disclaimers: Written as fanfic, no copyright infringement intended.

Summary: Mulder ponders the meaning of life when the battle is over.

---

He sat staring out over the foamy surf as it crashed into the craggy shoreline below him. Legs crossed, elbows propped on his knees, Mulder sat thinking about the futility of it all. Years wasted warning the world of the coming apocalypse, only to be scoffed and laughed at... at every turn. Betrayed by friends, abandoned by enemies.

Or perhaps it was the opposite. Friends lost, enemies gained. In the end, none of it really mattered anyway.

Just like Biblical prophecy, two-thirds of the earth had been destroyed by fire... the fire not of a righteous and vengeful God, but the fury of an enemy who would not accept defeat.

So they took out as many human beings as possible before abandoning their quest for Planet Earth.

Mulder chuffed out a bitter laugh, the sound echoing hollow even in his own ears. "I was Chicken Little - screaming at the top of my lungs that the sky was falling. And no one would listen until it was too late."

"You're not thinking of jumping are you, Mulder?" a husky voice purred from behind him. "Because as I recall, suicide wasn't part of Chicken Little's fate."

Mulder groaned inwardly. "What're you doing following me now? It's all over, Krycek. Go off and celebrate your victory."

Krycek dropped down beside him on the edge of the cliff, staring at the Pacific Ocean. He remained silent, just gazing off at the horizon and absorbing the quiet tranquility around them.

"What are you doing here?" Mulder finally asked impatiently. "Or did you come to make sure I jump?"

"You've got your whole life ahead of you. No more conspiracies. No more lies. You've been vindicated," Krycek murmured. "That's got to mean something."

"It means nothing when there are more casualties than survivors."

"So this is about Scully..."

"Not just her," Mulder said, bitterness choking him like burning bile. "But having her turn on me when I needed her the most certainly didn't help matters much."

"You haven't had much luck - or insight, when it comes to choosing allies, Mulder. I'll agree with that much."

"So you're here to rub salt in my wounds..."

"Nope. No one could ever compete with you for punishment, Mulder. You beat yourself up better than anyone else ever could."

Mulder picked at a tuft of dry grass between them. "So... why are you here?"

Sighing, Krycek let his right hand fall to his side, scooping up Mulder's and lifting it to his lips. He kissed the back of it softly, waiting, expecting Mulder's outrage to kick in and throw him over the edge of the cliff.

Mulder did react - a gasp, a shudder, a rasped single word. "Alex..."

"I figured my only shot would be to find you before you did something drastic," Krycek went on. "Because if you were gonna kill yourself anyway, at least this way, I'd know that you at least got the truth from me one time before you leave all of this behind."

"What truth?" he whispered thickly, the words carried on the stiff ocean breeze.

Alex pinned him with a sober gaze. "That none of this meant a goddamn thing to me if you didn't survive. That the only reason I did anything and everything I could to stay in the game was because I have always believed in you. That if you jump today, I'm right behind you."

Mulder's eyes filled with moisture that he tried to convince himself was because of the strong breeze maybe blowing a bit of dirt in his eyes. But when the volume grew, spilled over onto his cheeks and dripped from his chin, his brief dance with denial ended. "Why, Alex?"

"Because I've loved you since before I knew you. Loved the promise of you... that out there somewhere was the light half of my black soul. The innately good to my innately evil. The yin to my yang - the..."

Mulder leaned in, capturing his lips, tasting the salty tang of sea mist and the mild memory of a cinnamon candy. It was bitter and sweet at the same time, sweet taste of the promise of something honest and pure, but bitter in the memory of years wasted fighting and lacking understanding.

Krycek threaded his fingers through Mulder's hair, pulling back a mere fraction of an inch to gaze into the emotionally revealing blue-green speckled eyes. "Fox..."

"It's not goodbye."

"I won't let you jump."

"Where were you when I needed someone to keep the sky from falling?" Mulder whispered. His eyes revealed the depth of remorse and guilt in his heart.

"I was right there behind you, doing what little I could to make sure people believed you. Some of them did, you know..."

"Not enough."

"I believed."

Mulder kissed him again, softer, deeper, with more aching for solace for his wounded spirit. "You always did believe, didn't you?" he finally murmured against Alex's soft lips.

"And I always will."

Mulder sighed. "Then I guess today isn't the day that I jump."

"Because?"

Mulder pulled him close, hugging him tightly. "Because it wasn't all in vain if even one person believed."
 

If you enjoyed this story, please send feedback to J-Man

	Home  ·  Quick Search  ·  Advanced Search  ·  Submissions  ·  F A Q  ·  Contact