“I look like a gorram fool.”

Inara was lookin’ at him, her head tipped to the side. “You don’t.”

“’Ceptin’ that I do.” He pulled on the noose around his neck again and scowled.

“You don’t. And stop pulling at your tie.” She moved toward him, fussin’ at the gorram noose again. “You’ll only make it worse.” She grinned at him. Attemptin’ to soothe him with her womanly charms.

Jayne scowled even more.

“Well my goodness.”

Jayne looked in the mirror over Inara’s shoulder. Kaylee was standin’ in the doorway behind him, decked out in that fluffy pink cupcake Mal had gotten for her way back.

She was starin’ at him.

“Well. Don’t you clean up real shiny?” Her hand was at her neck, playin’ with her necklace. She was blushing and her eyes were real bright. Shiny in a way that made a body want ta kiss her.

Jayne rolled his shoulders. Gorram jacket was too tight.

“I din’ know ya even had somethin’ like that.”

Kaylee had moved behind him. He could just see her eyes over his shoulder.

“Jayne Cobb. In a suit. Who’da thought.”

Inara finally stopped worryin’ his tie and stepped back again.

Kaylee moved out from behind Jayne and went to stand next to Inara. She was standin’ too close to her, makin’ her skirt go skeewhompus.

Felt mighty uncomfortable to have them starin’ at him like that. He wouldn’ta minded, normally, but he felt damn near nekkid in this getup.

“Didja steal it?”

Jayne snorted and half-smiled in spite of himself.

“Bought an’ paid for. Mal got it fer me fer the weddin’.” He rolled his shoulders again and looked at himself in the mirror. “Second time Wash’s got me in a gorram suit.”

His face itched where he’d trimmed his beard.

He could feel Kaylee’s eyes on ‘im. He looked over at her. She was starin’ with those bright eyes. Bitin’ her lower lip.

Ai ya.

Inara cleared her throat and turned to Kaylee. “So!”

Kaylee looked away.

Jayne wasn’t sure how he felt about that.

“What do you want me to do with your hair?” She put her fingers in Kaylee’s hair and used them to steer her toward the mirror.

Jayne turned toward the door.

He felt Kaylee’s eyes burnin’ holes in his back as he went.

Inara made a noise with her tongue.

Jayne closed the door behind him.

***

River reached out a tentative hand and touched the mirror.

Her reflection did the same.

“I know.” Simon was straightening his tie in the mirror next to her. “I was thinking the same thing about you myself.”

He turned to her. Put his hands on her shoulders and turned her away from the mirror to look at him.

“Meimei.” He was smiling. Proud of her for something.

“I can’t remember when I turned my back long enough for you to grow up and get so… pretty.”

River blushed and looked down at her feet. They didn’t look like her feet. They were small and pretty in Inara’s shoes.

Simon put his arms around her and hugged her. She put her cheek on his shoulder, letting him rock her back and forth.

“Happy birthday, Meimei.”

River smiled against his shoulder. “You too.”

***

Jayne slumped in his chair, spinning his glass of punch between his fingers. Zoe and Mal was standin’ by Dallin and his wife, laughin’ at somethin’ Dallin was sayin’.

Part of Jayne wanted to join them.

Part of him just wanted to be left alone.

And part of him was afraid that if he was alone, he would start thinkin’ again.

He’d been thinkin’ too much lately. Wasn’t like him. It was starting to cause problems.

Like the fact that he’d just blown half his gorram pay on a gorram dress.

Ai ya.

He rubbed his eyes. They were sandy from havin’ got no sleep the night before. He let his hand slide down his face.

His fingers stopped at his mouth.

Because the dress had just walked in.

And it was worth every gorram bit.

***

River was smiling. She could feel it, breaking her face in half.

She couldn’t help it.

Tonight, she was walking in someone else’s skin. Tonight, she was a woman. Pretty.

That’s what the boy with the blue tie was thinking.

There were so many people here. People who never even knew Wash in person, but had heard his brother talk about him so often it was like they’d had.

People who didn’t know any of them.

People who didn’t know she was a little, broken girl.

So tonight, she wasn’t.

She broke away from Kaylee and Simon and wandered toward the center of the room.

She could feel Wash everywhere. There were captures of him in every corner. In one, he was a child, jumping up and down, shouting something she couldn’t hear.

In another, he was a teenager. Her age. Holding up a piece of paper and grinning.

In another, he was standing with his arm around Zoe’s waist. She was wearing white. He was looking at her with a look of such amazement that River wanted to laugh.

So she did.

The fourth corner, River remembered. It was taken on the bridge. She remembered standing behind Kaylee as she shot it. He was holding up two dinosaurs. They were engaged in an epic battle. With sound effects.

She heard Zoe’s laugh over the buzz music and talking. She had one hand on Dallin’s shoulder and the other on her chest, doubled over as Dallin gestured wildly with his hands.

She was wearing white.

“Excuse me.”

River turned. The boy with the blue tie was standing beside her.

She smiled just for him.

“I was wondering…” He smiled at her. His smile was crooked. “I was just wondering if you’d like to dance.”

River smiled even wider. “I would love to.”

So she did.

***

Jayne downed the rest of his drink in one shot.

A little kid came out of nowhere and refilled it. Jayne barely noticed him.

His ears were getting hot.

He felt like he was watchin’ somethin’ he shouldn’t be. But he couldn’t look away.

Took all the effort in him to keep from droolin’ all over himself when she first come in. He’d never seen her like that before.

Her hair was up off her neck. Twisted some way, with a few curls coming out so she looked like she’d just had someone muss it up a bit.

Jayne’s eyes had slid down her pretty neck, over the dress. Eying the way it fit her perfectly and made her skin so pale. Her hair so dark. His eyes had gone down to her feet. Back up again, lingering on the good spots.

He’d wanted to muss her hair up a bit more.

An’ now… now she was dancin’. Weren’t fair, how pretty she was when she smiled. How wild she was. How controlled. How her skirt swirled around her legs.

Her face was filled with a wild kind of joy that bounced off the walls and came smashin’ together again. It was like watchin’ a storm. Bein’ in it.

It was like watchin’ her fight. Beautiful an’ scary an’… an’….

Beautiful.

She was absolutely nekkid when she danced. The dress was still on ‘er, but you could see everythin’ in her face. It was like watchin’ her most intimate moment go on an’ on an’ on.

An’ wantin’ to watch. Wantin’ to be the cause of it.

Jayne shifted uncomfortable-like and downed his drink again.