Notes: Heh, I screwed up royally last chapter with the kitchen/dining room thing. Oh well, pretend it's an alternate-universe ship blueprint. This chapter is short, and I'm taking huge liberties with Firefly timelines, but, I figure since Summer Glau is 21 or 22, it works... sorta.
..................
Kaylee waited in the infirmary and waited for Simon to return from dinner. She let out a quick breath. She wasn't quite sure how to broach the subject of seeing Jayne kissing Simon's little sister. Was Jayne taking advantage of River? But River seemed to be quite an active participant in the whole thing.
Kaylee sighed and leaned against the sick bed. How old was River? Kaylee didn't even know... Simon always acted like she was a little girl, but Kaylee knew she was older... but old enough to decide what to do with Jayne? She shook her head and paced.
When Simon finally came in, Kaylee let out a deep breath and decided to just jump on in. She wanted to protect her friend's privacy, but not if it meant allowing her to be taken advantage of.
"Hey, Simon!" Kaylee smiled nervously at the young doctor.
"Oh, hi, Kaylee." Simon was deeply preoccupied about other things. Mainly, his sister's and Jayne's ludicrous display after dinner.
"I was wondering, Simon," Kaylee began, "how old is River?"
Simon grimaced. "She was definitely acting like a child, wasn't she?"
"Oh, don't be embarrassed! She was just having fun!" Kaylee defended... then waited for Simon's answer. But he had become distracted by the list of inventory he had begun checking over.
"Simon?" She began again. "How old is River?"
"Oh, um... she was 14 when she entered the academy." Simon continued checking through the drawers and cabinets, searching for some odd end or another.
Kaylee pouted, "But how old is she now?"
Simon looked up, startled. He hadn't ever really realized that River had been getting older. He had always thought she was frozen in time from the moment she went away. He actually had to add up years to figure out her age.
"Huh. She was in the academy for two years... then I started receiving her odd letters... it took me another two years to get her out... I traveled around with her stuck in that box for almost another year... then we've been on Serenity for a year. So, she's..."
Simon mentally racked up the numbers. "She's...almost 21?" he asked himself.
He was stunned. He'd always just considered her to be the barely-adolescent girl he remembered. How old did that make him, then? 26? Yeesh.
Kaylee smiled at Simon's bewilderment. River was so much older than any of them treated her. Well, she leered inwardly, except for Jayne. With the new knowledge of River's age - and the not-unpleasant way River had been reacting to Jayne's affections - Kaylee decided to keep the information to herself and let River and Jayne have their moment. Of course, that didn't mean Kaylee couldn't smirk at everyone knowingly. She just loved secrets!
So she grinned at Simon, kissed his confused cheek and danced out of the infirmary to the engine room, humming love songs joyfully.
Simon stared after her, stunned by both her behavior and the kiss she planted on him. He debated whether or not to follow her, maybe kiss her back, but was too worried about the path that would lead him down.
So he continued working on his inventory, methodically placing syringes and weaves in the appropriate containers.
..................
Kaylee waited in the infirmary and waited for Simon to return from dinner. She let out a quick breath. She wasn't quite sure how to broach the subject of seeing Jayne kissing Simon's little sister. Was Jayne taking advantage of River? But River seemed to be quite an active participant in the whole thing.
Kaylee sighed and leaned against the sick bed. How old was River? Kaylee didn't even know... Simon always acted like she was a little girl, but Kaylee knew she was older... but old enough to decide what to do with Jayne? She shook her head and paced.
When Simon finally came in, Kaylee let out a deep breath and decided to just jump on in. She wanted to protect her friend's privacy, but not if it meant allowing her to be taken advantage of.
"Hey, Simon!" Kaylee smiled nervously at the young doctor.
"Oh, hi, Kaylee." Simon was deeply preoccupied about other things. Mainly, his sister's and Jayne's ludicrous display after dinner.
"I was wondering, Simon," Kaylee began, "how old is River?"
Simon grimaced. "She was definitely acting like a child, wasn't she?"
"Oh, don't be embarrassed! She was just having fun!" Kaylee defended... then waited for Simon's answer. But he had become distracted by the list of inventory he had begun checking over.
"Simon?" She began again. "How old is River?"
"Oh, um... she was 14 when she entered the academy." Simon continued checking through the drawers and cabinets, searching for some odd end or another.
Kaylee pouted, "But how old is she now?"
Simon looked up, startled. He hadn't ever really realized that River had been getting older. He had always thought she was frozen in time from the moment she went away. He actually had to add up years to figure out her age.
"Huh. She was in the academy for two years... then I started receiving her odd letters... it took me another two years to get her out... I traveled around with her stuck in that box for almost another year... then we've been on Serenity for a year. So, she's..."
Simon mentally racked up the numbers. "She's...almost 21?" he asked himself.
He was stunned. He'd always just considered her to be the barely-adolescent girl he remembered. How old did that make him, then? 26? Yeesh.
Kaylee smiled at Simon's bewilderment. River was so much older than any of them treated her. Well, she leered inwardly, except for Jayne. With the new knowledge of River's age - and the not-unpleasant way River had been reacting to Jayne's affections - Kaylee decided to keep the information to herself and let River and Jayne have their moment. Of course, that didn't mean Kaylee couldn't smirk at everyone knowingly. She just loved secrets!
So she grinned at Simon, kissed his confused cheek and danced out of the infirmary to the engine room, humming love songs joyfully.
Simon stared after her, stunned by both her behavior and the kiss she planted on him. He debated whether or not to follow her, maybe kiss her back, but was too worried about the path that would lead him down.
So he continued working on his inventory, methodically placing syringes and weaves in the appropriate containers.