He picks up the other half of the bagel and takes a bite before he answers, having long since grown comfortable with companionable silence. He could spend all day watching Scully think things through - smartphone, eat your heart out. And for a moment, when she's about to speak, he thinks she'll ask the inevitable questions, all the followup he's hinted at. He can keep the mystery going for a while longer, dance around the central premise until one of them can't help but prod at just what kind of company he's had over the years.

It's the opposite of the way they used to talk, champing at the bit to spill everything he knows about a given mystery. At the same time, it's as familiar as breathing; neither of them have ever been raging successes when it comes to talking about the things that matter most.

"That depends on you," he answers, when her question comes. "We can go classic and hit up a department store, or we can figure out where the kids get their clothes. Forever 21, maybe? Or - Hot Topic, that's where they shop."