The Anything But Routine Day
Author - Coll Rating - PG-13 to R, haven't decided how far I'm going to take this. Disclaimer - None of the characters are mine, except the ones that I make up, all rights to Joss Whedon, a.k.a. - God, and I think you all know the drill. Spoilers - Takes place after "Objects in Space." I'm also including the pilot, "Serenity."
Author's Note - Fox blows, Firefly forever!
Chapter 2 - 3:48 pm
It was a little unsettling, the thought that if Kaylee had gone straight to the engine room, like she was supposed to, instead of going to Inara's shuttle, that she could be dead. Or, badly hurt at the least.
Stuff kinda went into perspective after an instance like that, but her time on the ship has taught her that the feeling of live everyday as your last kinda passes. She's been shot, held by the Alliance, involved in a gunfight, and threatened by a baw lan jiao liu man.
She survived all those things and lived to see another day. Either that, or she was just too chicken to do what she really wanted to, what she said she would do after each of those things.
Inara disagreed, though. She told Kaylee this morning that what she wanted to do was a hard thing. Her advice for Kaylee though was to just get it over with, like ripping off a band-aid.
That's why Kaylee was right outside the infirmary, watching Simon stock up his drawers full of doctor-y things. She had started to enter the infirmary and stopped several times now, but on her seventh time Simon turned around and dropped whatever was in his hands due to the shock.
"Kaylee? Hi." He said after a second. Kaylee smiled then stopped and rushed forward to help Simon pick up whatever he had dropped. Realizing what she was doing, he too bent down.
Their faces were inches apart and the room, the universe, seemed to disappear. Simon always had that effect on her. "Sorry I made you drop all this.stuff." She whispered as soon as she remembered she had a tongue and vocal cords.
"No, I was startled," he corrected. "How are you? A little jumpy after the explosion?"
"You read my mind," Kaylee said as se hopped up on to the bed and swung her legs. "I'm getting used to close calls around here. Thins are getting easier, you know?"
Simon nodded as he went about his business. She noticed a slight limp on his left leg. "That's good," he responded. "We've all been a little bit worried about you. Early.he was a monster to you."
"To all of us," she corrected as she looked at his leg more closely. "How are you?"
Simon stopped and looked up at her with a raised eyebrow. "I'm fine, good actually. River's doing excellent and-"
"I actually meant." Kaylee interrupted as she pointed to his wounded leg.
He sighed and let a wince show on his face as he walked over and hopped up on to the bed next to Kaylee. "There's, ah, there's some pain," he admitted. "A lot, actually. It's just.the things that he said, the way he went about things.it still sticks with me, makes me think."
"Well, you were with him the most, you know?" Kaylee said as she placed her hand gently on his good leg. "He threatened you, he threatened River. That had to have been one of the scariest moments of your life." Kaylee watched him, and noticed that he was focused on her hand resting on his leg.
Then he did something she never expected: he put his hand over hers. "Early threatened you," Simon choked out. "He said that if.if I didn't help him find River, he would kill me then go back to the engine room and."
There was no more for him to say after that. Kaylee could put two and two together.
"Oh, well."
Nothing came to her mind as to what to say. "When he threatened you.I don't know, it's like everything rushed before me and things were clear through the fear."
Kaylee couldn't believe that this might be it. Simon and her, they've admitted to mutually liking each other, but Simon was really coming to and actually initiating something. It was like all the air was leaving the room.
Or it was, actually, all the air leaving the room. "What the hell?" Simon gasped. Kaylee began to cough and wanted to say something, but her urgency for air overruled that command.
Simon took charge and grabbed Kaylee's arm and ran out of the infirmary, but it wasn't good enough. Kaylee wasn't functioning well enough to run without oxygen. She only remembered parts of what happened before Simon ran them up to the bridge.
He had picked her up and ran like hell. When they got there, she heard Mal say something about a leak and Jayne taking care of it. Then everything went black and when she came to, Simon was pumping her chest.
She gasped when he headed for her mouth to give her more air. "Are you alright? Kaylee?" Simon said as he held her face gently in his strong hands. Kaylee's eyes scanned the room and she noticed they were alone.
"Wh-"
"There was a leak," he told her before she had a chance to ask the question. "Everyone's taking care of it. How do you feel? Weak? Dizzy?"
"A little weak." She said as she found herself lost in his eyes.
There was a nod of agreement on his side. Kaylee kinda hoped that the moment they started to share in the infirmary would continue. "You're, um, not breathing regularly, you know?" he said quietly.
"Yeah, you kind of have that effect." She admitted as Simon, who was now sitting on the ground, scooted a little closer.
This was it; Kaylee had a feeling about the moment and the two of them as she leaned forward towards Simon. Instead of meeting her though, he scooted back. Kaylee sighed and watched as Simon pushed himself to his feet and relocate to the other side of the room.
"You're not gonna let anything happen between us, are you Simon?" Kaylee asked in an irritated and exhausted tone.
"Listen, maybe I should tell you something," Simon said slowly, but he didn't continue. He looked up and past her. Kaylee turned and followed his gaze.
"There was a hole." River whispered.
Like clockwork, Simon rushed across the room to scold River for, most likely, breakin out of her room after he's locked her in. "Why did you leave your room when I told you to stay until this whole.thing is sorted out?"
"The hole, it was getting bigger." River responded in her cryptic and creepy sort of way.
"That it did," The Captain announced as he stepped on to the bridge. "But we patched it up."
"Is that what happened? The asteroid that clipped us ruptured our oxygen supply?" Simon asked as he placed his hands on River's shoulders.
Mal nodded. "It's a hard thing to spot," he told them as he looked down at Kaylee. "How you doin, little Kaylee?" Mal held his hand out, waiting for Kaylee to take it.
In fact, Simon and River were also watching her. "Oh, little Kaylee is doing just fine." She muttered as she pushed herself up off the floor and out of the command post.
The whole situation was so frustrating, and she hated how close she kept getting with Simon then something stopping it. Kaylee reached her room, and was about to head down when someone grabbed on to her arm.
"There is something goin on with you," Mal said quietly. "And you are not going down there until you tell me what it is, you understand?"
Kaylee sighed and looked up at the bridge, watching as Simon led River away. "I do understand, Cap'n, but I don't really wanna talk about it, so.I'm sorry," she told Mal. "I just need to be alone and able to think about a few things."
She knew it was dramatic and somewhat immature, but Kaylee was so frustrated with this thing with Simon not working out. Did she have to spell it out for him?
Mal was still looking down into her room as she pounded the button and closed her door. Kaylee just needed a minute, or two, or until they reached Avalon, before she could face Simon.
To be continued, keep flying!
Thanks again to all those who reviewed, keep it up cause I love hearin what you guys think!
Author - Coll Rating - PG-13 to R, haven't decided how far I'm going to take this. Disclaimer - None of the characters are mine, except the ones that I make up, all rights to Joss Whedon, a.k.a. - God, and I think you all know the drill. Spoilers - Takes place after "Objects in Space." I'm also including the pilot, "Serenity."
Author's Note - Fox blows, Firefly forever!
Chapter 2 - 3:48 pm
It was a little unsettling, the thought that if Kaylee had gone straight to the engine room, like she was supposed to, instead of going to Inara's shuttle, that she could be dead. Or, badly hurt at the least.
Stuff kinda went into perspective after an instance like that, but her time on the ship has taught her that the feeling of live everyday as your last kinda passes. She's been shot, held by the Alliance, involved in a gunfight, and threatened by a baw lan jiao liu man.
She survived all those things and lived to see another day. Either that, or she was just too chicken to do what she really wanted to, what she said she would do after each of those things.
Inara disagreed, though. She told Kaylee this morning that what she wanted to do was a hard thing. Her advice for Kaylee though was to just get it over with, like ripping off a band-aid.
That's why Kaylee was right outside the infirmary, watching Simon stock up his drawers full of doctor-y things. She had started to enter the infirmary and stopped several times now, but on her seventh time Simon turned around and dropped whatever was in his hands due to the shock.
"Kaylee? Hi." He said after a second. Kaylee smiled then stopped and rushed forward to help Simon pick up whatever he had dropped. Realizing what she was doing, he too bent down.
Their faces were inches apart and the room, the universe, seemed to disappear. Simon always had that effect on her. "Sorry I made you drop all this.stuff." She whispered as soon as she remembered she had a tongue and vocal cords.
"No, I was startled," he corrected. "How are you? A little jumpy after the explosion?"
"You read my mind," Kaylee said as se hopped up on to the bed and swung her legs. "I'm getting used to close calls around here. Thins are getting easier, you know?"
Simon nodded as he went about his business. She noticed a slight limp on his left leg. "That's good," he responded. "We've all been a little bit worried about you. Early.he was a monster to you."
"To all of us," she corrected as she looked at his leg more closely. "How are you?"
Simon stopped and looked up at her with a raised eyebrow. "I'm fine, good actually. River's doing excellent and-"
"I actually meant." Kaylee interrupted as she pointed to his wounded leg.
He sighed and let a wince show on his face as he walked over and hopped up on to the bed next to Kaylee. "There's, ah, there's some pain," he admitted. "A lot, actually. It's just.the things that he said, the way he went about things.it still sticks with me, makes me think."
"Well, you were with him the most, you know?" Kaylee said as she placed her hand gently on his good leg. "He threatened you, he threatened River. That had to have been one of the scariest moments of your life." Kaylee watched him, and noticed that he was focused on her hand resting on his leg.
Then he did something she never expected: he put his hand over hers. "Early threatened you," Simon choked out. "He said that if.if I didn't help him find River, he would kill me then go back to the engine room and."
There was no more for him to say after that. Kaylee could put two and two together.
"Oh, well."
Nothing came to her mind as to what to say. "When he threatened you.I don't know, it's like everything rushed before me and things were clear through the fear."
Kaylee couldn't believe that this might be it. Simon and her, they've admitted to mutually liking each other, but Simon was really coming to and actually initiating something. It was like all the air was leaving the room.
Or it was, actually, all the air leaving the room. "What the hell?" Simon gasped. Kaylee began to cough and wanted to say something, but her urgency for air overruled that command.
Simon took charge and grabbed Kaylee's arm and ran out of the infirmary, but it wasn't good enough. Kaylee wasn't functioning well enough to run without oxygen. She only remembered parts of what happened before Simon ran them up to the bridge.
He had picked her up and ran like hell. When they got there, she heard Mal say something about a leak and Jayne taking care of it. Then everything went black and when she came to, Simon was pumping her chest.
She gasped when he headed for her mouth to give her more air. "Are you alright? Kaylee?" Simon said as he held her face gently in his strong hands. Kaylee's eyes scanned the room and she noticed they were alone.
"Wh-"
"There was a leak," he told her before she had a chance to ask the question. "Everyone's taking care of it. How do you feel? Weak? Dizzy?"
"A little weak." She said as she found herself lost in his eyes.
There was a nod of agreement on his side. Kaylee kinda hoped that the moment they started to share in the infirmary would continue. "You're, um, not breathing regularly, you know?" he said quietly.
"Yeah, you kind of have that effect." She admitted as Simon, who was now sitting on the ground, scooted a little closer.
This was it; Kaylee had a feeling about the moment and the two of them as she leaned forward towards Simon. Instead of meeting her though, he scooted back. Kaylee sighed and watched as Simon pushed himself to his feet and relocate to the other side of the room.
"You're not gonna let anything happen between us, are you Simon?" Kaylee asked in an irritated and exhausted tone.
"Listen, maybe I should tell you something," Simon said slowly, but he didn't continue. He looked up and past her. Kaylee turned and followed his gaze.
"There was a hole." River whispered.
Like clockwork, Simon rushed across the room to scold River for, most likely, breakin out of her room after he's locked her in. "Why did you leave your room when I told you to stay until this whole.thing is sorted out?"
"The hole, it was getting bigger." River responded in her cryptic and creepy sort of way.
"That it did," The Captain announced as he stepped on to the bridge. "But we patched it up."
"Is that what happened? The asteroid that clipped us ruptured our oxygen supply?" Simon asked as he placed his hands on River's shoulders.
Mal nodded. "It's a hard thing to spot," he told them as he looked down at Kaylee. "How you doin, little Kaylee?" Mal held his hand out, waiting for Kaylee to take it.
In fact, Simon and River were also watching her. "Oh, little Kaylee is doing just fine." She muttered as she pushed herself up off the floor and out of the command post.
The whole situation was so frustrating, and she hated how close she kept getting with Simon then something stopping it. Kaylee reached her room, and was about to head down when someone grabbed on to her arm.
"There is something goin on with you," Mal said quietly. "And you are not going down there until you tell me what it is, you understand?"
Kaylee sighed and looked up at the bridge, watching as Simon led River away. "I do understand, Cap'n, but I don't really wanna talk about it, so.I'm sorry," she told Mal. "I just need to be alone and able to think about a few things."
She knew it was dramatic and somewhat immature, but Kaylee was so frustrated with this thing with Simon not working out. Did she have to spell it out for him?
Mal was still looking down into her room as she pounded the button and closed her door. Kaylee just needed a minute, or two, or until they reached Avalon, before she could face Simon.
To be continued, keep flying!
Thanks again to all those who reviewed, keep it up cause I love hearin what you guys think!