Title: Moments
Rating: PG-13, for some sexual situations but nothing extremely graphic.
Length: 1,788
Summary: A series of 50 moments from the relationship of Jayne and River, following the Delta table at the LJ community 1sentence. Not in chronological order.

1. He took a sharp intake of air, his eyes fixed on the crazy girl who was currently flitting across the mess in nothing more than a t-shirt that barely covered her ass.

2. The lingering scent of apples hung in his bunk, the only evidence that she her appearance had been anything more than a waking dream.

3. In the beginning, she had been nothing more than a crazy little girl, but over the ensuing year she had developed into something more than a crazy AND dangerous young woman, something much more.

4. Her screams brought him running across the ship and wrenching open the door to her bunk, expecting to find something much bigger than a bug on the floor.

5. As his lips lingered over hers, he could still taste the hazelnut flavor of the coffee she had been drinking just minutes earlier.

6. He tended to favor whores with big breasts, platinum blonde hair, and bright blue eyes because they were as far from her perky breasts, dark locks, and big brown eyes he could get, not because those were his preferences.

7. The silent tears streaming down his face told more of his despair than the guarded look on his face would ever give away; she had been his entire 'verse and still he hadn't been able to save her.

8. She had slammed the door in his face, just moments before he had shoved it open and stalked after her, nearly wrenching the door off its hinges as he slammed it after him.

9. He took a long swig of his drink, his eyes never straying from the bit of a girl dancing across the bar, her movements making his fingers itch to touch her, to possess her and make her his own.

10. He followed a few steps behind her, watching her closely as she wove her way through the crowded streets; after all, making sure she was safe was his duty.

11. He sat at the table, silently cleaning his guns while she sat across from him prattling on and on about Earth-that-was, her voice lulling him into a peacefulness he couldn't remember feeling since he was a child in his Ma's house.

12. He swore he'd follow her to the ends of the 'verse if only he could bring the light, the sparkle of mischief, back into her now-lifeless and heart-broken eyes.

13. He knew he would fall hard, but it still surprised him when he fell as hard as he did, only to find how good it felt.

14. He covered her body with his, shielding her from the heat of the fire as they made their way quickly out of the burning warehouse and towards the ship.

15. His licked his dry lips, his mouth hanging open while he watched her stretch her extremely flexible body in the cargo bay.

16. He watched her from the doorway of the bridge, her eyes closed in peaceful thought as she flew the ship further into the Black.

17. He prodded the food on his plate suspiciously, watching her take a small, cautious bite of whatever her brother had managed to burn for them that evening.

18. He closed his eyes at the feel her bare foot on his calf, making its way up his leg and across his inner thigh to push and massage at the bulge in lap, praying that no one would notice he had stopped eating.

19. He knelt in front of her grave long after the others had left, the will to live slowly leaving his body the longer he spent without her.

20. Her green dress was always his favorite, making her sparkle like the dragonflies back home when she would skip and dance through the ship.

21. The first time she had placed her moist, hot mouth over the head of his cock, he was willing to go straight to that special hell Mal was always going on about, if only he could feel those sensations for the rest of his life.

22. He moved his mouth to the hollow of her throat, sucking and nipping at her pulse point, drawing soft mewls and moans from her.

23. Deep in sleep, her words continued to echo in his dreams, tormenting him throughout the night, "There is no honor amongst thieves."

24. Growing up on the Rim had taught him not to hope, because it would only lead to disappointment, but the look she had given him across the dinner table had made his heart leap at the thought there might be a small chance she felt the same way he did.

25. The fading light of day on Persephone shone off her dark tresses, like a beacon drawing him back towards the ship and away from the whorehouse he had planned to visit that night.

26. He stalked through the ship, checking all her favorite hiding places, because he knew damned well she wasn't lost like her paranoid brother believed her to be.

27. The contrast between the cool metal of the ship's hull against his bare back and the hot, moist mouth that was currently surrounding his cock was nearly enough to drive him over the edge.

28. In the shop, he ran his fingers lovingly over the smooth surface of the gun, internally debating about using his share of the profit to buy her a new weapon for her birthday.

29. Silently he handed her a brown paper bag, nervously watching as she pulled out his old handgun and held it gently, a smile crossing his face when he realized it fit perfectly into her tiny hands.

30. Curled into his side, she looked more at peace asleep in his bunk than he had ever seen her in the waking hours or her own room.

31. Kissing her gently, he knew he would never again have to worry about some whore poisoning him with a kiss; there was no one else he could ever imagine being with.

32. He had seen plenty of pretty women in his life, but none could compare to how beautiful she looked first thing in the morning with her messy hair and wearing nothing more than one of his t-shirts.

33. They ran through the rain laughing, her tiny hand held tightly in his giant one, quickly approaching the ship when he suddenly stopped to pull her body flush against his and kiss her senseless as the rain fell around them.

34. As he gently laid her in the skillfully-crafted box he had spent days working on, his one regret was he had never told her he loved her; she knew, of course, but he regretted never having had said the words aloud.

35. He was not a romantic, he did not know how to court a girl, but he knew he had done well when she walked onto the bridge on her birthday and saw the dozen red roses waiting for her.

36. They had kept their a relationship a secret from the crew because of his fear of their reactions; he never imagined it would be her brother who told the captain what was going on.

37. He looked intently into the cages, watching the snake strangle the life out of its prey, while feeling her arms slither around his middle and giving him a tight squeeze.

38. Her well-aimed snowball hit him in the back of the head, starting an all-out snowball fight between the pair in the picturesque landscape of New Yukon.

39. As she curled herself into his lap, he remembered what she had once told him about the solid-ness and size of his body grounding her and calming her mind, causing him to wrap his arms protectively around her small frame and keeping her close as long as she needed.

40. The day she had brought a bunch of spring wildflowers onto the ship was the first time he had wanted her to go away since Ariel, but he only wanted her far enough away so the pollen on her clothing wouldn't cause him to sneeze repeatedly.

41. He had never seen himself as able to provide stability for someone else, but the first time she had climbed into his lap, he had wanted nothing else than to protect her and give some stability to her turbulent young life.

42. The small town out on the Rim had seen a lot of strange things over the years, but none as strange as the young bit of a girl with the older, hulking mercenary draped over her small frame.

43. The heat of the summer was only part of what had pushed him to take off his shirt as he moved the cargo into the hold; the hitch in her breathing at the sight of his bare, sweaty chest had been the other reason.

44. The taboo of ever touching her broke the first time he had gripped her hips tightly, no longer caring if the captain tossed him out the airlock like he had been threatened if this ever happened.

45. She pulled the blanket tighter around her naked body, trying to hide her ugly scars, until he had pealed it back, gently lowering his mouth to trace over the marks on her body with his tongue and make her realize they were just as beautiful as the rest of her.

46. He may not have fought for the Independents, but standing on the bridge as they plummeted toward the Alliance army with a herd of Reavers hot on their tail, he knew he would fight a war single-handedly to protect her if he needed to.

47. Watching the water run down her naked body, he was overcome with the urge to catch the drop on her thigh with his tongue and trace the trail it had taken back to her shoulder.

48. He was not originally happy when she moved onto the ship, but he made up for it by giving her a warm welcome into his family by taking a week away from Serenity to show her around his home planet and introduce her to his family.

49. He held her close, her body curled up in his lap holding a steaming mug of tea, while the pair watched the winter blizzard through the windows on the bridge, both thankful for the time to relax while they waited for the storm to clear.

50. He woke from a pleasant dream to an even more pleasant situation, groaning as shots of pleasure shot throughout his body as she wiggled her bottom against his morning wood, before rolling her onto her back and showing her exactly what he had been dreaming about.