(I own nothing.)
I scrubbed and cursed at the infirmary floor and the person who had set off the mini explosion.
"Six hours! Six hours I've been scrubbing at this floor! You think that the 'Stay out! Dangerous chemicals in use!' sign would have let Jayne know that entering the infirmary and knocking gunpowder into the mixture was a bad idea! But no, he had to nearly blow up the ship!"
I winced at the pain in my side. I had managed to pull Jayne out before the explosion but the blast had caught me full in the side sending me into a wall and now my left side was black and blue. I snarled, scrapping my sponge on a particularly nasty burn spot. I wanted off this moon and back to open sky. Great, now I sound like Mal. Speaking of which, they were supposed to be back an hour ago. I hope they didn't take River with them to go drinking after what happened last time. I shuddered at the memory. River had danced on the table, nearly taken off her shirt twice, knocked out the bartender when he cut her off, started four bar fights and then proceeded to throw up on Jayne and pass out. And her hangover the next day was made worse by Jayne whining about River and muttering something about a plot to destroy all his shirts.
"Simon?" I turned my attention to the door to find Kaylee standing there looking rather uncomfortable and a little worried.
"You okay? Jayne told me there was an accident."
"There was an explosion."
"Is that what shook the ship? Are you okay?" She looked even more worried.
"I'm fine, just cleaning up a little." Of course they were lies, I was indeed hurt and the cleaning had been anything but little, my blisters had blisters. I forced a smile and tried not to scream when Kaylee wrapped me in a loose and gentle hug. I think I may have cracked a rib… or six.
Finally time for dinner, I stumbled into the dining room and, after sending a glare in Jayne's direction, sat down.
"So I heard that there was some excitement while I was gone." Mal was staring at me across the table.
"Not really." I shrugged, the last thing I needed was Mal getting River concerned enough to go through my brain looking for answers, finding them and going after Jayne with a butcher knife again.
"That's not what Kaylee said, something about an explosion?" Mal asked arching an eye brow. I glared at Jayne, Mal noticing my glare and who it was directed at turned the eyebrow on Jayne.
"Simon, would you please get me some water?" River asked with her puppy eyes. I sighed and stood taking the glass and heading to the sink.
"There was a mild disturbance when some gunpowder from someone's shirt fell into a mixture that is highly explosive. Yes, no one was hurt and I cleaned everything up."
On my way back to my seat my loving, sweet, brat of a sister tripped me. Lucky for me Mal caught me, not so lucky was that one of his hands hit the bruise on my side. I screeched in pain, causing Mal and the rest of the crew to jump. I felt, rather than saw Mal lift my shirt, since my eyes were screwed shut in pain. The gasp of horror was from Kaylee.
"This is what you call no one getting hurt?" Mal snarled and I felt my body leaving the floor as two arms, one on my back and the other under my legs, wrapped around me careful not to touch my left side. Then the infirmary bed under my back and suddenly I wasn't wearing my shirt and then… nothing.
I blinked. I was lying on the infirmary bed looking for the moron who left the surgical lamp on. I shielded my eyes from the light as I groped for the off switch.
*Click*
The light went out and I looked for the person who had saved my eyes. I saw Mal standing in the doorway arms crossed looking none too happy.
"No one got hurt? What the hell were you thinking not telling anyone you were hurt! Were you going to wait till you keeled over dead?" Oh boy was he mad. He was stalking towards me like a predator on its prey. I had to defuse this fast.
"Well dead people can't talk." I said. Okay that was the wrong thing to say. Mal stalked over to the bed and I swear I thought he was going to eat me. He leaned over me, one hand holding both of my wrists immobile while the other stroked the skin where my shirt had ridden up.
"You. Will. Not. Do. Something. Like. That. Again." I was about to protest and I would have but his mouth was in the way. His mouth ravaged mine claiming it as his hand held me still. When he finally pulled away I sucked in a lungful of air, looking at the Captain.
"Wha…?"
"Do you understand me? Never do something like that again! Doug ma?" I nodded dumbly.
"Good." He kissed me once more before sweeping out of the infirmary. And all I could think was…
"What the hell just happened?"