Addicted

Chapter 2: The Back Story

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: If I said I owned them, I lied.

Author's Note: Reviews Please! 3

"You never mentioned a wife." Simon said as they walked back to Serenity.

"That's because most of us already knew." Kaylee told him. Once she spotted Serenity, a bright smile graced Nivia's face. "I forgot she was so... big." She said.

"Serenity was kinda our vision." Mal explained. "We started everything. But then..." He stopped. Nivia dropped her head. "Maybe I should just go back to the house."

"No... Come see her." Mal said, leading her onto the ship. Simon and Kaylee stayed behind.

"Could you please explain all this to me?" He asked. Kaylee sighed.

"Mal and Nivia married before the war. After words, they found Serenity. Nivia had always wanted to be up there, in Space. She loved it. So, they got us all together, and got ready to go. But then..." She trailed off.

"It was bad, wasn't it?" Simon inferred.

"Nivia was pregnant. But then..." Simon looked at her in surprise. Mal as a husband was weird enough, but a father? "On night... there's no proof, but... the Alliance blew up her mother's house. All her family, her mom, sisters, brothers, all dead. Niv got hurt real bad, lost the baby. She's lucky she's alive. And it was a few weeks before we left, too. She said that she needed some time alone to deal with it. So we left. That was almost five years ago."

"So, that's why Mal never mentioned her, when he ended up married to Saffron," Simon inferred. "Because it's still a sour part for him, something he'd rather not talk about." Kaylee nodded.

"I know he's got feelins for Inara, but I can still see how much he still cares about Nivia. Like when he spaces out, I know where his mind goes."

"I can't believe you still live in this dump." Mal said as they walked up the path to Nivia's house.

"You weren't callin it a dump when you insisted we buy it. 'A workin progress' you said." They laughed. "Do you wanna come in?" She asked.

"Better not." He said. She nodded, then asked, "How long you stayin?"

"Don't know, really. This was just supposed to be a drop off. Wasn't really plannin on stayin."

"So you were gonna leave without so much as a 'hello'?" She joked. She smiled and he lost his train of thought.

"You should come by tomorrow. We can catch up." He said after a few minuets of silence. She smiled again. "That would be great. But, it won't be 'till after dark, if that's okay. I have to help Alexandra with something." Mal smiled at that name. Alexandra was one of Nivia's best friend's; she was like a sister to both of them. "How is Alex?"

"She's good. The only family I got left."

"Hay," Mal said, his hand brushing her arm and sending shivers up her spine. "You got me."

Another smile. "You have no idea how good it is to hear you say that. Good night." And then she walked inside. Mal waited a few beats, then walked back to Serenity.