Chapter Three

Jayne had sworn black and blue all the way back to the boat. He'd walked so quickly that River had had to jog to keep up. The cargo bay was a hive of activity when they got back, and River was able to lose herself in the bustle of preparations for take off. Jayne wasn't so lucky.

"Where the hell have you been Jayne?" Mal stormed. "We got cargo to finish loading, and you've been skiving off?"

"Sorry bout that Mal." Jayne's brain drew a blank. "I was ah-"

"It's warm outside," River came to Jayne's rescue. "Springtime. Birth of all things. Butterflies come out to play." She looked Jayne directly in the eye. "Wanted to stay."

"She was wandering about outside?" Mal asked him.

"Ah… yeah. I was saying goodbye to a girl from last night, and there she was." Jayne improvised. "Took a bit to rein her in, that's why I weren't back sooner."

"And what happened to your eye?"

Jayne grinned sheepishly. "Mighta said something to my friend from last night she took offense at."

Mal eyed him for a moment before accepting his explanation. "All right. Get to work then." He turned to River, but she had already wandered off again, though thankfully not off the boat.

Jayne started securing crates for take off, but for the most part ignoring everything that was going on around him. He was in a bit of a bind. Of all the girls he coulda married on a drunken night out it had to be their little knife wielding psychopath, and he couldn't even get the marriage annulled. What use was a wife you couldn't trust to watch your back while you slept. She was too young to do half the things that a wife should, and too crazy to do the rest. And no matter how much his body had reacted to her nakedness in his bunk, he'd never want a crazy little thing like that.

Jayne scowled to himself. Why'd this have to happen to him? He looked up and found River sitting on one of the crates, legs dangling over the side. "Get lost will ya," Jayne growled at her. "You tryin' to get me in trouble?"

"What trouble?" River asked. "Husband and wife should spend time together."

"We ain't married girl," Jayne hissed through clenched teeth.

"Yes we are." River hopped down from her crate and started digging around Jayne's back pocket, as the big man tried to squirm away from her. "Just look at the portrait if you forget," she exclaimed, pulling out their marriage certificate.

Jayne grabbed it from her and stuffed it back in his pocket, carefully looking around to make sure no one had seen. "Look girl I don't care what that piece of paper says. We. Ain't. Married! There's no way in hell I wanna be married to a feng le girl like you, so as far as I'm concerned, that bit of paper don't mean a damn thing." Jayne wanted to rip the certificate to shreds, but he had enough self preservation to know that if someone found any of the pieces there'd be hell to pay. Instead he stalked off from River to check that the mule had been secured on the other side of the cargo bay.

River watched him go with tears in her eyes. Jayne was denying their marriage. He was rejecting her. Well so be it. If he didn't want her, then she wouldn't want him either. They may be married, but he was no longer her husband, and she wouldn't be a wife to him. River could feel the thin trickles of liquid trail down her cheeks. She stormed out of the cargo bay, not wanting him to see her tears.

Jayne looked up as she streaked past him. Well and good, he thought. He didn't need someone like her trailing after him. The trouble she would bring just wouldn't be worth it. He wasn't gonna jeopardize his ten percent for a wee thing like that… even if he did want her… which he didn't.

"Good evening," Simon whispered in Kaylee's ear, coming up behind her and slipping his arms around her waist. No one else was in the kitchen at this time of day, just Kaylee starting work on dinner.

"Hey." She put the knife down and twisted in his arms, her own slipping around his neck. "Whatcha doin?"

"River's asleep, so I thought I'd come see if I could help you."

"Did ya now?" Kaylee grinned coyly. She stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his lips. "Seem to recall the last time you helped me with dinner you burned the chicken to a crisp."

"Well maybe I could try something simpler this time," Simon suggested.

"All right." Kaylee turned back towards the bench, and taking his hands from her waist she wrapped one around the knife and placed the other on the carrot. She leaned her body back into Simon's and tilted her eyes up to seek his. "You can help me with the salad," she purred.

Simon lowered his head to rest on her shoulder and together they chopped the carrots. It was the most fun Kaylee had ever had making dinner, some nights a wholly boring task. She breathed in his scent and every now and then he would nip at her earlobe making her shiver. Kaylee retaliated by nuzzling his neck, and licking a path along his exposed collar bone.

Unfortunately the newly chopped carrot got forgotten in their sensual exploration, and by the time Mal came in five minutes later it was the only thing ready for dinner. Tactfully, Mal cleared his throat to let the young lovers know they were no longer alone. Truthfully though, he was not surprised to find them making out in the kitchen, given the furtive glances at the breakfast table this morning.

"Captain!" Simon sprung away from Kaylee like a boy caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "W-w-we were just chopping some ah… chopping some carrots."

Kaylee looked at him in disgust. They weren't even doin' nothing, and he was worse than ever. It wasn't like they were having sex on the table or anything.

"It's all right. Just wanted to see how dinner was coming along." Mal decided to take the gentlemanly route, it looked like Kaylee was gonna give the Doc what for in any case.

"Simon was helping me chop the carrots," the mechanic began, before turning an acid glare on the young doctor. "But you know how bad he is in the kitchen, so I don't think I'll be needing his help anymore."

"Kaylee-"

"No. It's fine Simon. Not like you were hired for your cooking skills." Kaylee turned her back on him and got on with slicing up the tomatoes, trying to ignore the tears forming in her eyes and the stupid, stupid doctor behind her.

Simon hesitated for a moment, unsure what to do. But he knew that the apology he had to make couldn't be done in front of Mal. "I should go check on River." He used his standard exit line and retreated back below decks. He'd screwed things up with Kaylee once again, and he didn't know how he could make it up to her this time.

Translations
Fengle - Crazy