So, I'm what you call a very very very late newcomer. Only just got into Firefly/Serenity. Fell in love with it almost instantly, and its short live makes me super sad. So I decided to write stories. Zoe and Wash grabbed me almost instantly and now I love them dearly. This is inspired by what happened in War Stories. It's my first Firefly fic, but hopefully not my last.

Beta-ing credit goes to the lovely HanaDear. Who puts up with my crazy, flailing obsessions and cleans up my tenses. Love ya.

Disclaimer: Everything recognizable belongs to Joss Whedon and his crew. (And none for you, Fox, because you gave up this piece of beauty). Title comes from Brandi Carlile's "The Story", a song which I think fits nicely.

Zoe rolls over to face her husband who hasn't said anything in a long while. Wash is different from other men she's been with. Others they just get the job done and go to sleep, but Wash, he likes to talk. Took her a long time to get used to it, but now she can't imagine it any other way. She loves curling up next to him, their bodies fitting together perfectly, her head against his chest listening to him go on and on about flying or shopping or dinosaurs. Used to be a time when she couldn't stand that man, now she'd let him say just about anything for hours just to hear his voice.

"You okay?" she asks, placing her hand gently on his bare chest. His arms are behind his head and he's just staring at the ceiling.

"I'm thinking," he responds, his voice distant.

"Well, be careful," she jokes and waits for a response. Nothing. She sighs, and scoots a little closer, tucking her foot between his legs.

"What's wrong, Wash?"

He finally turns his head towards her and she see he's bothered, "Did you pick me because you thought I wasn't strong enough to make it through... whatever it is they did to him?"

"What, no-" She responds, instinctively. Mal was a tough one, sure, but Wash had shown her today how strong he could be.

"I mean, I know I'm a good pilot. I'm an excellent pilot. But you could probably find another."

She's actually a little hurt that he'd assume she'd put him being a pilot over him being a husband. "Wash, you're my husband."

"And Mal's your best friend. Army buddy. Whatever. You guys have history. You got a million stories that hold your lives together."

"Wash, will you stop?" She raises her voice a little. Not loud enough to be heard from outside, but he stops and turns back to face her, although his eyes aren't meeting hers.

"There's a lot of reasons I picked you," she continues. Her hand moves up from his chest to cup his cheek and force him to look at her. "But it woulda always been you, and you better start trusting that. Sure I got a whole heap of history with Mal. But I have a future with you. That's all I need."

His eyes soften immediately and he leans up and presses his lips to hers before wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her on top of him.

"I love you so much," he says breathlessly, capturing her lips again before she can say it back. So she puts it into the kiss. Because she was scared today. She hates to show it, but she was scared. She's tough, can hold her own anytime. Falling in love with Wash was a little like waking up. He's made her even stronger. This silly man with his dinosaurs and his moustache and his jokes and his gentle eyes. She's forgotten what it's like to not have him hold her at night. And some might see that as a weakness. But it sure as hell means that she's gonna fight a lot harder to keep him.

She runs her hands through his hair, breaking their kiss to look down at him. "You know what?" she asks.

"What?" He's looking at her like she's the most beautiful thing in the 'verse. He always has.

She smiles and leans down to his ear, his hand following her movement so she's tightly against him.

"Our stories are gonna be even better," she whispers, a smile unmovable from her lips.