As soon as she was onboard again, Zoe headed for the infirmary. She didn’t have any particular need to go there, but it was becoming a habit. When she arrived, Simon was speaking with Kaylee. Zoe wondered why she would be there alone, she and Jayne were rarely seen without each other. Kaylee stormed out of the infirmary, shaking her head, barely noticing the mate.

Zoe forgot about all these things as she walked into the infirmary. Simon looked irritated and was completely distracted. “Doc?” Simon looked up at her. He smiled immediately. “Oh, Zoe. How are you?” the smile faltered. “Are you alright?” Zoe smiled. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Simon was nervous. “Well…you’re here…in the infirmary…so I just assumed that…” he looked up at her blushing. “Why else would you be here?” Zoe just kept on smiling. That gorram doctor put his foot in his mouth about every other sentence. But that was fine. Just meant…well it just meant he put his foot in his mouth.

“Care to join me in the galley, doctor? I’m making curry ice cream soup.” Simon laughed. “I’ll have to take you up on that offer.”

***** Mal was unsure of what to say to Inara. He’d been practicing for weeks on his whole little speech about the way he felt and what a bastard he’d been to her. And now here he was, standing in front of her having said the wrong thing again. He’d been furious to learn that she’d been planning to take clients from the shuttle again. “Well if you think I’m such a saohuo then maybe I should return to Sihnon!” Inara was enraged. This man, this ridiculous man whom she had foolishly let herself fall in love with had once again insulted her to the point of utter contempt. She just wished she could leave again. But she’d realized that she was beset by the most hideous complication of all: she didn’t want to.

***** Kaylee was so mad she could spit. That gorram doctor holding out on her with his little insults, like she was less than or something! Maybe he hadn’t meant for her to take it personally but she was pregnant gorramit and she could take things as personally as she liked! When she’d told Jayne she’d been near terrified ‘o’ what he’d say to her. But he’d just been surprised, then pretty damn pleased with himself, if you asked her, but happy even. Jayne had told her to talk to Simon about it while he told Mal. He figured there was no point keeping it from him, Mal would find out anyway. Kaylee’d gone and told Simon who said something like “That figures, the two of you damn near never stop sexing!” God, as if she and him had never mended the fence! She’d been to angry to talk to him after that. Kaylee walked up to the bridge, hoping Jayne had had more luck then her.

***** “Pregnant?” Mal looked at Jayne somewhere between fury, disbelief and annoyance. “What the hell do you mean? As in my mechanic is carrying a baby, that’s yours? That kind of pregnant?” Mal asked. “Yeah.” Jayne said. He paused. “What other kind of pregnant is there?” “Well there’s my kind of pregnant where the baby has a father that’s not part ape.” Zoe stood in the doorway to the bridge. She was smiling, looking the happiest any of them had seen in months. Her stomach swelling beneath her shirt she looked every part the ancient mother goddess. “Gone and knocked up your girl, what ever are you gonna do now?” she said, breaking the illusion.

“What the hell do you think I’m gonna do Zoe?” Jayne was getting angry. “Personally? I think you’ll jump ship faster then anyone can notice you’re gone, leaving that little girl all alone out in the black with you’re misbegotten offspring.” Zoe looked him right in the face. “Well, I ain’t! And don’t talk about me that way! Or my baby!” he yelled back. “Then what are you going to do Jayne?” Mal was looking at him squarely, waiting for an answer. Jayne looked from him, to Zoe and back.

“I’ll do what ever she wants to do. If she doesn’t want it, if she does, if she wants me to leave her the hell alone, if she wants me to marry her…fine. Taikong suoyou de xingqiu saijin wo de pigu, I am not that bad of a man that I would ditch Kaylee of all people just cause she’s in the family way.”

Kaylee tapped Zoe on the back. She was standing on the stairs behind the first mate. “Are they fighting?” “Well, little one, I would say we’re all fighting, but only cause we were worried about you. And by the way congratulations.” Zoe smiled. Kaylee looked shyly down at her shoes. She wasn’t used to talking with Zoe so much after Wash had died. The woman almost seemed like a stranger. “Well, I ain’t even sure I’m gonna have it. Or her.” Zoe looked at her surprised. She didn’t know the sex of her own baby, there was no way the doc could tell. From behind them, Mal and Jayne continued there shouting match. It had reached the point where all they were doing was trading insults.

“Well you ain’t fit to raise a ruttin cactus plant let alone a whole baby!” Mal shouted. “Oh yeah? Well…well at least I didn’t…” Jayne stopped. “What Jayne? I didn’t what?” “I didn’t get a bunch of people killed for a lost cause!” And suddenly there it was, out in the open the thought they had both been dancing around for months. “Jayne, I didn’t mean for your family to get-” “Don’t. Don’t even bring it up Mal.” Jayne turned to leave. “And we’re going to have the baby if she wants to. Hell, we’ll get off if it bothers you so much. Just don’t mention that ever again.”