It's Enough
Chapter 2: Engine Love
'I see what your saying, but-' Zoe was nearly cut off again by Mal's incessant refusing. Wash stayed out of the way and observed when he wasn't voicing quips in the doctors' favour. The young Simon Tam would add certain level of respectability to their operation, with that core world look about him.
'Something Kaylee is definitely going to be needing is a doctor.' Zoe knew she'd made a fair point because Mal growled and slumped back against the wall. This was far from sorted. Zoe had been working him into a corner for the better part of an hour.
Cate watched from the table where she was eating her breakfast. The crew's habits had become quite apparent and unique for each of its bizarre members. The pilot, Wash, had a tendency to play with dinosaurs, which his wife seemed to find attractive?
Then there was River, on the run from the Alliance and somehow connected to a government experimentation operation. It wasn't Inara's department to be bothered about the Alliance. She headed up world side homicide investigation and that was enough for anyone's plate to be full beyond measure. The Alliance didn't tend to make good friends with planet based law enforcement operations; they always wanted to bring in their agenda.
If however it seemed imperative to the crew's safety she would bring River when it was time for her and Book to be collected. She was capable of helping out the other team, if the need arose, usually it just didn't. It was partly what found her here, aboard a ship in the black, far from home, sitting opposite an intimidating pair of brown eyes.
River could feel the thoughts of betrayal carrying over from Inara, could feel her ill feelings toward the Shepherd. She glanced around the room at the completely unaware masses, she wished they would just look and see. Her thoughts jumbled together in a knot of painful memories, some of them notably hers. She felt the danger inside her also, maybe her and Cate should both excuse themselves from the ship and into the cold black, but Simon would never forgive her.
'Simon, captain wants to see you,' Jayne hung down into the doctor's bunk, not at all deterred by social privacy, or any other laws of man, Simon thought. The ape vanished after a quick glare and Simon finished buttoning his waistcoat.
He climbed the ladder and bumped straight into the Captain. 'It's about time you were packing.' Mal said, face unreadable.
'Packing? What, why?' Simon needed to attend to Kaylee, needed this relatively safe place to keep River. Couldn't he have an easy day ever again?
'Seems you've run out of time,' Mal glanced down and clenched his jaw then met his eyes, 'Kaylee's dead.'
'Wha-' the atmosphere seemed to fall out from under him. He stumbled back and caught a corner to the back as he tried to breath in. He had to get to go to her it couldn't be true.
Each step was automatic until he was running through the ship and swinging into the infirmary. There she was, laughing at something Cate had said. His heart halted and continued all in some roiling cutting commotion. She was alive she looked well. He entered and went over to her, he felt cushioned by the sight of her.
Her smile faltered as she noticed him. 'Simon, what kind of pain meds have you got me on?' she wasn't completely coherent but she was becoming more aware. 'I can't feel very much?'
'They're to help with the pain, you had a pretty major surgery.' He pulled his chair to the bedside and thought about placing his hand over hers and then thought better of it. She was so real and animated, even in this sleepy state. His chest hammered still from the moments he had thought she were dead. Cate walked out of the room silently, aware that a that there were conversations to be had.
'Why can't I move?' her eyes met his with a heavy comprehension. The clouds had lifted.
'You had a complete break in your T10 vertebrae, I was able to operate and,' she grabbed his hand.
'Will I be able to walk?' a tear slipped out of her eye and trailed over her nose to join the other. 'Or like feel anything?' Her other hand was on her thigh, rubbing the side as if she could make the feeling come back.
Simon shook his head and rubbed his thumb over the back of her tight grip. No, echoed around the sterile room though it had not been spoken.
'But I'm alive right,' Kaylee's mouth turned up slightly at the edges but her tears increased in kind.
'Kaylee, I'm so sorry.' He wondered if the captain was right to have rid of him at the soonest juncture. He'd ruined her life.
The crew pissed themselves laughing when Mal finished his impression of Simon reaction to Kaylee's untimely 'death'. He stopped staggering and rubbed his aching stomach. When all the chuckles had stopped Zoe spoke up, 'So have you decided what we're going to do with the doc and his sister?'
'She's an odd one,' Jayne said carving into an apple with his knife with a wary look in his eye. 'Not all there.' He gesticulated circles at his head, 'if you know what I mean.'
'That may be the case,' Mal said straightening, 'but she is a child. And the Alliance have done something mighty wrong invading her brain. She doesn't seem 'specially dangerous.'
'So they're staying?' Wash perked up and glanced at Zoe, she read Mal better than the rest of them. She was tense though, eyes still trained in anticipation.
'I don't care for being wrong, but Zoe made a fair point. Kaylee will be in need of a doctor. There are a hundred and one things I wouldn't know how to help her with that he's likely been trained for his whole privileged life.'
Wash and Zoe smiled approvingly, Jayne just sighed roughly and shook his head.
'Don't mean I like the doctor or approve of his being on my ship, but till Kaylee feels capable on her own, he stays.' Mal pushed away from the controls and left the bridge. He liked to make things seem final, but they all knew he had a flare for the dramatic.
A few weeks later Kaylee broached the subject of being allowed out of bed. It was getting to her, being cooped up in the infirmary all day long, no matter how many well meaning visitors came by to entertain her. River had become a good friend, playing little games and telling Kaylee everything that was going on aboard.
'It's not a good idea for you to be out of bed too soon,' Simon said finishing the notes he'd been making on her progress. Her whole face fell and she turned toward the wall.
'It's driving me stir crazy just lying here.'
'I know, soon, okay?' He wasn't known for his bedside manner, but for her he was trying not to trip over his tongue every time he took a breath.
He headed to the kitchen to make some food for them. He'd been eating in the infirmary so that she didn't have to eat alone. Most nights Cate joined them, seemed the companion had taken a shine to Kaylee.
However when he returned with steaming bowls the infirmary was empty, no sign of Kaylee anywhere. Simon turned to River, 'have you seen Kaylee?'
'She needed to look after her baby,' River said twirling her hair around her finger and walking in complex patterns.
Her baby? Right, the engine! Simon picked up his medical bag and walked briskly down to find her. Sure enough there were a pair of feet sticking out from behind the spinning mass of things Simon didn't understand.
'Kaylee?' he shouted over the noise.
'Simon?' Kaylee's voice was guilty. He walked round and knelt down beside her.
'I didn't 'spect anyone would notice so soon.' She blushed and rubbed her grubby hands on her pyjamas to dislodge the dirt she'd already picked up.
Simon smiled, 'I wasn't gone that long. Get carried away?' he asked looking at the parts she had laid out and wondering what she was making. Kaylee loved this engine with a passion he admired.
She nodded. 'You know how it is when you love something. Nothing in the 'verse could keep you from looking after it. Only thing is,' she pointed up at how high the top of the engine was. 'I can't reach nothing no more. Got no way of getting up there.'
Simon turned a critical eye on the spinning cylindrical mass of metal now and saw her point. This was going to be a big thing to tackle.
'Could you lift me?' Kaylee said biting her lip in an adorable way that Simon would have obeyed for anything.
Bending back down he reached under her legs and she wrapped her arms around his neck, and up to his full height they both went. Kaylee tried not to stare at his strong arms that were holding her all manly like and looked into the top of Serenity's engine. She unlocked her arms from around his neck and reached in for something that didn't look right. Serenity needed a lot of servicing after her Mother being gone so long.
Simon counterbalanced her leaning by wrapping his arm further round her waist. The whole thing caused him to turn a very dark shade of red, but the sweet engineer was transfixed with her tools deep in Serenity's heart, so she didn't notice. Thank God for small mercies.
A little while after he couldn't have held her any longer he grunted and her head popped up out of the engine. 'Oh, I'm sorry,' she leaned back toward him quickly and he staggered a bit. Bending his knees he sat on the floor and let her slide into his lap. She had her lips pressed together in an awkward expression that said she didn't like having to rely on him like this and make him do stuff for her.
'We'll make this work.' He let it hang there.
She nodded minutely and looked at her nonresponsive legs. She didn't want to give up working on Serenity but her body wasn't working for her like it used to.
'Come on, I'll take you back to bed. Unless you'd like to eat here?' he said gesturing at the slightly suspect engine room floor.
'Here? Yeah that'd be nice.' She put a hand up against Serenity's warm belly and smiled a little. She hadn't smiled that much in the last few weeks, he was glad she hadn't listened to him when he'd told her to stay in bed.
Pulling some blankets down off a shelf he propped them up around her back to keep her comfortable and warm. Hypothermia was a real danger if she wasn't careful; regulating temperature wasn't simple when you couldn't feel half your body. Her shy smile followed his oblivious head as he went to reheat their food.
AN: I've never written Simon/Kaylee before, but he can be quite charming by accident. Don't you think?