Several days had passed since Mal and Inara's relationship had begun to change. They had kept up their usual bickering (it came naturally), so none of the crew were any the wiser, except River, of course. She didn't say anything, but every time she passed by one of them, a mysterious grin appeared on her face.
Inara was currently sitting alone in her shuttle, a cup of hot tea on the table in front of her. Wisps of steam carried the scent of it around the room – it was some kind of herbal tea. Inara took a sip of it before closing her eyes to reflect. She had just reached a deep-meditative state when the clanking of footsteps jerked her mind back to reality.
Like always, there was no knock. Mal walked straight in and stood a little awkwardly by the shuttle door.
"What brings you here today, Mal? Everything okay?" Inara watched him, a little concern creeping into her voice. Something wasn't right.
"Yeah, everything is great." Mal answered sarcastically. Without waiting for a reply, he continued, letting out his frustrations.
"We're taking a stop-over at Persephone for a few days. Apparently, there's something wrong with the engine and there's new parts being needed. Gonna blow a hole in our savings!"
Inara smiled at him, sympathetically.
"You don't have any appointments you need to be at, do you?"
"Oh, no. It's fine. I haven't gotten around to scheduling any yet."
"Good, good." Mal brushed his hair back, clearly stressing.
"I can help, you know. If you need a loan…" Inara watched as Mal sighed and felt a twinge of guilt at her offer and their differing incomes.
"No. Keep your money." Mal dropped into Inara's couch, like he had so many times before. His breathing slowed after awhile and his anger visibly left him.
"It's just that we haven't had a decent job in weeks. Getting low on funds for Serenity. And a crew's gotta eat…" Mal sighed.
"I'm sure something will come up soon." Inara moved over and sat next to him. Without thinking, she reached for Mal's hand and squeezed it gently.
Mal looked up at her and caught her eye.
"Thanks. For listening and all." He smiled grimly.
"Anytime." Inara moved a little closer to Mal. He let her rest her head on his shoulder and they sat there silently, taking comfort in each other's presence.