Chapter 7

Inara sat on the couch, a picture of elegance as Kaylee told her about her evening in more explicit detail than she ever truly expected. “’Nara, he’s not like nothin’ I’ve ever had before. He’s so swai and –“

“Yes, I remember that comment on Jiangyin.” Inara’s eyes danced. “How swai you thought he was. How you wanted to –“

“Kiss him all over,” Kaylee finished with a dreamy sigh.

Inara couldn’t suppress a girlish giggle. “So it was all you expected it to be?”

Kaylee sighed contentedly and hugged herself. “So much more.”

“Well, I’ll admit to being very surprised that you got him to move so fast.”

“Oh, ‘Nara,” Kaylee curled her legs beneath her and sighed. “As soon as I got through to him, he was so different.”

Inara nodded with a knowing smile. “That’s usually the case.”

“He’s just so – wow.” Kaylee’s voice had taken on a dream-like quality. “But he doesn’t want anyone to know. Not yet. Thinks the Capn’ll space ‘em.”

Inara laughed. “Oh, I doubt that very much.”

“’S what I said, but I gave in. We can sneak around for as long as he wants.”

Inara giggled very un Companion-like at the thought of the prim and proper doctor stalking through the walkways in any state of dress or undress. “Well, I’m glad it was all you wanted it to be.”

Kaylee nodded as a small, shy smile crept across her face. “Each and every time.”

Inara raised a curious eyebrow. “More than once, hmm?”

Kaylee held up five fingers.

“You two were busy last night.” Inara laughed, her sweet voice echoing around the shuttle. “Did you sleep at all?”

“A bit,” Kaylee admitted with a dreamy smile.

“Ahh, to be twenty-five again,” Inara laughed at a secret joke. “Make sure Mal never finds out. He’d probably be jealous and toss Simon into the airlock without benefit of a suit.”

Kaylee’s mouth twisted into a concerned smile. “Why?”

“Men tend to have performance issues and Mal is a good ten years older than –“

Kaylee was quick to defend her man. “Oh, Simon definitely doesn’t have that problem.”

Inara giggled and shook her head. “I would say not.”

~*~

After dinner, Kaylee checked the engine and slowly, quietly made her way to Simon’s room. After checking the infirmary, she wasn’t surprised to find that he wasn’t there. He was probably exhausted. She sure was. But, she didn’t want to go to bed without seeing him. Maybe he would invite her to stay. As sore as she was, she wanted to feel him inside her again and again.

The door slid open as she raised her hand to knock on the side panel and she smiled when he caught her hand and pulled her inside.

“It’s about time.” He kissed her swiftly and then indicted the large trunk on the floor. “We have a trunk of clothes to go through, remember?”

Boldly, she reached up and wrapped her fingers around his shirt, pulling him toward her. “I’d rather just remove all your clothes first.”

Simon covered her hands with his. “Here? With River and Book –“

“Afraid of someone overhearin’?”

Afraid he’d say the wrong thing, as he usually did, he hesitated before answering. “Uhm, well – yes.”

Before he’d realized it, she had slipped the first two buttons from their holes. “We’ll jus have ta be extra quiet then.”

“Kaylee – I –“ The protest died on his lips as she leaned forward and thrust her tongue into his mouth.

Any resistance fell away as he pulled her into his arms and returned her eager kiss.

Before too long, he was lying on his back on the narrow bed, Kaylee straddling his hips and grinding her own against him with passionate abandon. She winced with each thrust but when his fingers dipped between them and began to rub against her, she forgot all about the discomfort.

He switched out the lights so that no one would think he was still awake, Kaylee giggling at the fear in his eyes as he did so.

No words were necessary as they moved urgently against one another, panting heavily as they neared release.

Not caring who overheard, Kaylee would have cried out in ecstasy had Simon not covered her mouth with his at the right moment. She trembled, her body clenching hard around him. He grunted into her mouth as his cock pulsed and then exploded, filling her. Afterwards, they lay atop the rumpled bedding, hearts beating rapidly and lungs gasping for air.

“That was amazing.” Kaylee snuggled into his arms and rested her cheek against his damp chest.

“You are amazing, Kaylee.” Simon slid his hands into her hair pulled her close. “Thank you for waiting for my stupid brain to –”

“You’re worth waitin’ for, Simon.”

A smile touched his lips as he tilted her head so that he could press his mouth to hers. They drifted off to sleep and didn’t wake until the next morning when River’s horrified screams brought everyone to the passenger dorms in a sleepy rush.

~*~

Simon, clad in only a pair of loose fitting sweatpants, held River while she screamed, and rocked her as she cried.

Kaylee slipped out of his room while everyone was peering in on the hysterical River and stood toward the back, arms wrapped around her shoulders. Tears welled in her eyes as an annoyed Jayne cursed and stomped back toward his bunk. She wanted to scream at him for his insensitivity.

Inara draped a comforting arm around Kaylee’s shoulders and hugged her close. Peering back into Simon’s bunk, she noticed the clothing littering the floor and reached out to slide the door closed so that no one would look in and wonder.

No one else gave Kaylee’s state of dress – wearing the clothes she’d had on the previous night – a second glance as they all made their way back to bed.

After a short time, only Book, Inara and Kaylee remained in the hallway while Simon whispered soothingly to his sister.

“Is there anything I can do, son?” Book asked when he stepped into River’s room.

Simon didn’t even look up. “No. Thank you.”

Book gave the two women standing outside the room a sad smile as he made his way back to his own room.

River muttered incoherently as Simon held her, a defeated look in his eyes when he finally glanced up to find Inara and Kaylee still standing just outside the door.

“Can we do anything?” Inara asked quietly, not wanting to disturb Book a few doors down.

Simon heaved a huge, shaky breath, his eyes betraying the hurt at seeing his beloved little sister going through so much pain. “Nothing much to be done.”

Kaylee hadn’t yet said anything and Inara squeezed her shoulders. “I’ll help Kaylee make up the room next to yours so she can be nearby to help you.” She didn’t want to give away that she already knew about their relationship, but wanted Simon to have someone nearby to whom he could turn for emotional support.

Simon simply nodded as Inara and Kaylee left to make up the room and by the time he had calmed River down enough to feel comfortable leaving her side, he was so emotionally and physically drained, he simply curled onto his side and fell asleep, holding the troubled girl in his arms.

~*~

The next morning, people tiptoed around the hallway, wondering at the quiet that seemed to permeate the passenger dorms. Book smiled at Kaylee as they exited their respective rooms at the same time, both casting glances at Simon and River’s closed doors.

Kaylee hesitated for a moment, wanting to go to Simon’s room, but Book was already closer. “Why don’t you check on River and I’ll check on Simon?”

Kaylee nodded reluctantly as Book knocked gently on the door. When he heard no movement within, he opened it slowly.

Kaylee had just reached River’s door when Book turned around. “He’s not there.” If he noticed the room’s mess, he didn’t speak of it.

A brief moment of panic flooded every nerve in Kaylee’s body until she opened the door to River’s room and found the two siblings sound asleep on the narrow bed. Tears filled her eyes at the comfortable and content looks on their faces. When she looked up at Book, who had just put a gentle hand on her shoulder, one lone tear slipped down her cheek.

She lingered for a moment in the doorway before sliding it shut, hoping they would sleep for a good long while before anyone woke them.

~*~

The rest of the morning was spent with half the crew getting ready to finish a job, with Simon in the infirmary with River and Kaylee working on some portion of the ship that needed immediate repairs.

As she walked along the catwalk toward the Infirmary to check on Simon, she heard Jayne mutter rather loudly after dropping the end of a crate, “Well, I wouldn’t be so clumsy if I’d actually gotten any sleep last night! Damn moonbrain girl screamin’ what’s left of her bloody brains out.”

Anger welled in Kaylee’s heart and she gripped the nearest rail so tightly her knuckles turned white. As she opened her mouth to yell down at Jayne, Inara appeared at her side, a delicate hand on her shoulder. “Don’t let him get to you. Or Simon.”

Kaylee pouted at Inara and sighed sadly. “Simon is wound so tight, ‘Nara. I’m scared he’ll snap.”

Inara wrapped her arm around Kaylee and led her toward the infirmary, her eyes twinkling. “Didn’t he snap a few days ago? In your arms as I recall?”

Kaylee smiled as she remembered how it felt to hold him, so warm and alive and passionate in her arms. But today, the one time she’d seen him, his eyes held no spark of what had been between them. They simply held a sad resignation that nothing in his life would ever be easy – not anymore.

When Kaylee didn’t answer, Inara continued. “He’s worried about River, honey. He feels responsible and he –“

“I know. I jus wanna help ‘em.”

They were close to the infirmary now and through the windows could see Simon comforting an agitated River. “I think you help him more than you realize by just being there for him.”

~*~

Oddly, their first of three jobs they’d picked up at the ball went smoothly. They delivered the goods and earned the gratitude – and the money – of those receiving the cargo. By that evening, they all sat around the dinner table, talking, laughing and grousing about the next delivery they needed to make.

River and Simon were mostly silent through dinner, with Simon only speaking when he was spoken to. Kaylee sat on one side of him, and River the other, but he spent most of the time attending to the troubled girl.

They’d nearly made it through dinner until something in River’s brain snapped and she sent her mostly full plate sailing toward the wall.

Simon’s hands covered his sister’s in an instant and amidst the scowls and Jayne’s litany of swears, he led her away, his arms cradling her against his side more to keep her from flailing wildly than to comfort her tirade.

Kaylee exchanged a concerned look with Inara who had paused with her fork halfway to her mouth.

“Well, yet another broken dish. Who’s cleanin’ it up this time?”

Kaylee stood and went to the kitchen to grab a rag. “I will.”

“Tired of that moonbrain’s –“

“She’s clearly troubled about something.” Zoe picked at her food, disconcerted by River’s odd behavior after so many good days.

Mal took another bite of food. “I’ll talk to Simon.”

“He’s tryin’ Cap’n,” Kaylee scraped the broken dish and the food off the floor. “She’s been so good since the ball.”

“Somethin’ musta changed between then and now. Simon’s gotta keep better control over her.”

Kaylee deposited her load into the trash receptacle.

“Where you goin’? Jayne asked as Kaylee moved away from the kitchen and toward the hallway. He eyed her half-eaten dinner with a hungry gleam.

“To check on Simon.”

“What about your dinner?” Mal called as she entered the hallway.

“Not hungry no more.”

~*~

River was still agitated when Serenity’s running lights were dimmed for the night.

Simon tucked her into bed, still muttering incoherently, a syringe filled with a common sedative tucked between his lips.

Simon knew River’s constant breakdowns were damaging to the crew but short of taking her off a ship she so obviously loved, there was nothing else he could do except continue to search for the right medicinal combination to combat her hysteria.

After injecting the sedative, Simon sat on the bed and smoothed her hair until she fell into a medicated slumber. Heaving a heavy sigh, he slid off the bed and leaned his back against the wall. He pulled his legs up and rested his arm around them, lowering his head onto his arms and closing his eyes.

That is how Kaylee found him, hours later, when she’d worried about how River’s newly agitated condition was affecting him. She knelt next to him and rested her hand on his head, smiling at the way his silken hair slipped between her fingers.

The lightest touch would have woken him and his head shot up, startling Kaylee enough to snatch her hand away.

“I’m sorry,” Simon took her hand and held it tenderly. “You startled me.”

“Was worried.”

Simon smiled slightly and pulled her into his arms, tension flowing out of him as he held on to her soft, sweet body. He inhaled the fresh scent of her hair and closed his eyes.

“Come ta bed,” Kaylee whispered, pushing her hand through his hair. “She’ll be okay.”

Simon glanced at River one last time before acquiescing to Kaylee’s gentle tug of his hand.

TBC