First Love

River scampered above his head, barely seeming to touch the branches. Her bare legs were dirt-streaked as always but he could see flashes of startling white skin under the skirt of her faded cotton dress. (You really wouldn't know she was Core-bred by the way she dressed.)

Even factoring in her skinniness, she had this ability to climb much farther than Jayne could. Which annoyed him. He reminded himself it was because he was so much bigger'n her so the higher branches couldn't take his weight (okay, not so much, only a coupla inches taller and he'd yet to fill out like his brothers, but still, bigger was bigger).

Feeling the need to prove his manliness, he tested the strength of the limb under his feet then stepped off it. He grabbed at the branch as he fell, closing his hands tight, so that he was hanging suspended above the ground, then allowed himself to drop. It was high enough that the impact sent a jar up his legs; he covered his slight stumble, trying to appear unconcerned.

River's giggle floated down from on high. Gorram it.

Supporting her weight with one arm, she made her way back down the tree, almost seeming to float as she moved from branch to branch; she waited until she was a little closer to the ground than he had been before dropping the last stretch, landing with perfect grace and triumphant smile.

She was such a brat.

"Wanna go swimmin'?" he asked, with studied casualness. He was a much better swimmer than River.

She gave him a look like she knew why he'd suggested it. She had a habit of doing that. Sometimes, she seemed to know exactly what he was thinking. (Though he'd tested this once or twice with random words and been relieved when it became clear she didn't.)

"Better not. Last time I came home wet, Mother was not pleased, and there is not enough sun left to dry me. Bù huá suàn."

River's Ma apparently had a very large stick up her pì gu. Always bitchin' and hollerin' about somethin'. River said she'd even started complainin' that her language had gone downhill. As ruttin' if! River spoke like someone on an Alliance broadwave. (Well, how they sounded when the ancient Coretex in town didn't soup 'em to sound like chipmunks).

He flopped down in the long grass, dry from weeks without rain, and started tearing hanks out, shredding them to pieces. River joined him but settled for gently running her hand through the blades. They were turning golden with the approaching fall. "Well, what d'you wanna do, then?" he asked.

River's head tilted like a bird. Uh-oh. Clearly, she had somethin' particular in mind.

This usually led to both bliss and bother. Like the time they'd swiped the cherry pie cooling on the Abeworths' window sill. She'd distracted Mrs Abeworth whilst he'd done the snatchin'; they'd both eaten the pie but it was Jayne who'd been given a paddlin' hard enough to change the colour of his cheeks for a few days. River had gotten away with it - 'parently her brother had covered for her when a reamin' angry Abeworth came callin'.

He'd been so mad at her for that, he hadn't spoken to her for several days. Then she'd left a gift outside his bedroom window (a perfectly intact mouse skeleton she'd found during one of their scouting expeditions), and he'd had to forgive her.

"Simon has a new girlfriend," she announced, as if this answered his question.

He stared at her like she'd gone fēng le. "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeah?"

"I saw them kissing."

Jayne pulled a face. Blech. "So?"

Her head tilted again. "I think we should try it."

Jayne froze. "Huh?"

"I want to try kissing," she said, like it was the most casual thing in the 'Verse.

What? "Uh-uh. No way!" He shook his head violently. "Jayne Cobb doesn't kiss!"

"You let your mother kiss you."

That was different! His Ma was special. 'Sides, no one 'let' Althea Cobb do anything - you did what you were told 'less you fancied a whuppin'.

"Ma kisses me on the cheek, or forehead, and that's only on special occasions! Jayne Cobb don't kiss on the mouth."

"Why not?"

He stuck his jaw out, trying to make his voice all gruff like his Pa, with limited success. "'Cos it's for sissies!"

River widened her eyes at him, and he found himself staring, transfixed. He'd always been fascinated by her eyes. He didn't know no-one with ones so big, nor lashes so long. It beat him how she didn't tangle 'em up.

They'd been one of the first things he'd noticed about her, a few months after the Tams moved to town.

Not that they lived in the same part as the Cobbs, of course, and she certainly didn't come to his school. But he'd seen her at a distance. He'd found out later she had snooty-patootie tutors at home. It had taken much longer to realise just how snooty-patootie her family was.

He might never have met her... if she hadn't started following him around.

Not that he'd realised right away that was what she was doing. River moved quiet as a dream when she wanted to.

And that didn't help his temper none - that she seemed to instinctively move as silently as he did, when he had had to work so damn hard to learn.

His last birthday, his grandpa had finally decided he was old enough to start 'learnin' the craft'. He'd excelled at foraging and tracking, and a few days before their encounter, Grampy had rewarded him with his very own shiny slingshot.

He'd snuck off to the forest to use it without his brothers on hand to tease or mock his efforts.

He started by testing its strength, flinging pebbles as fast and far as he could. Once sure he'd got the hang of it, he started looking round for targets, imagining the expression on his brothers' faces when he brought home fresh meat.

Sadly, no helpful elk chose that moment to pass by, so he lowered his sights... or rather raised them.

He'd aimed at a passing bird, pulled back the elastic far as it could go, then nearly browned his britches when a voice unexpectedly addressed him from behind.

"You cannot take down a bird on the wing. Your angle is all wrong and you do not have the required tensile force."

"What the hell d'you think you're doin'?" he shouted. "Don't you know no better than to sneak up on an armed man?" She'd stood before him, cheerfully unconcerned, ruthlessly brushed hair turning wild at the edges, high-necked red dress unbuttoned at the throat, and bare feet placed lightly on rough forest floor.

He glared at her and bared his teeth, fully expecting her to run off crying, like the girls at school. In his experience, girls in dresses always ran off crying.

Her head tilted, big brown eyes half-closing beneath long-lashed lids. "A weapon is only as good as its wielder." There was a smile in her voice.

Jayne only understood about half of what this guài girl said, but he understood a challenge just fine.

Spotting another bird overhead, he quickly took aim and tried to release the elastic. In his haste, he released both ends and watched in horror as the slingshot sailed high into the air, lodging itself at the top of a birch tree where the branches were thin as a whisper.

He'd looked at his prize possession, stuck so high he'd need wings to reach it, and stuck his fist in his mouth to keep from crying. His brothers weren't here to see and trounce him for it, but still, he weren't no pansy, and he certainly weren't gonna cry in front of this girl.

But River had patted his arm anyway. "Don't cry."

He glared at her. "I ain't cryin'!"

"You are crying inside." And she looked around, picked up a stone, narrowed her eyes - all the while mutterin' somethin' fierce about 'velossitee' and 'trajecktree' - then lobbed it. Somehow it hit the slingshot at just the right angle, and it came flying back to earth.

After that, Jayne stopped trying to drive River away.

He even found himself showing her all his secret spots, like the meadow, and the best creek to bathe in on hot, dusty days. He taught her what roots and berries in the forest were edible and the plants that helped with fever or pain.

In return for his secrets she showed him how to stay so still rabbits would come right near you - and just the right moment to release your slingshot. The Cobbs were practically drownin' in coneys after that, and his brothers stopped teasin' him so hard about his playmate.

Jayne Cobb did not waste time on stupid girls. But... River weren't like no girl he'd ever met. 'Sides, he'd always wanted a dog: way River had started followin' him round, she was almost as good as one. So he told himself it was okay to make an exception.

And making an exception for her had become a habit.

So, it wasn't really a huge surprise when he found himself caving to her request.

"Ugh. Fine!" He leapt to his feet. "Fine! You can kiss me - on the cheek! If you make it quick and don't tell no-one."

The sadness vanished as if by magic. She beamed at him and got up.

Wasting no time, she leant in towards him, long hair falling forward so he couldn't help but breathe in the smell.

It reminded him of when they lay in the meadow, surrounded by wildflowers. Even though she rolled around in the dirt just as much as he did, she always smelled kinda sweet underneath.

He swallowed and closed his eyes, waiting for the brush of lips on skin, wondering if it would be like when his Ma did it. (The sudden crashing of his heart suggested probably not.)

He shoulda known better than to trust her.

At the last second, she turned her head and captured his lips. One, two, three seconds went by before she pulled back.

Her cheeks were pink, her eyes even bigger'n usual. She smiled shyly at him, then bolted.

Jayne stared fixedly ahead, mouth gaping like a guppy.

After a few minutes, he remembered how his legs worked and started stumbling home.

If his brothers had come along at that point they would have teased him mercilessly. But he didn't meet his brothers, and he was blissfully unaware of the foolish smile currently curling his lips.

Alright. Maybe she was better than a dog.

fin

Glossary:

bù huá suàn - it's not worth the cost

fēng le - crazy

guài - odd, bewildering

pì gu - a**

A/N This was my first attempt at an AU Rayne fic. I found myself thinking about the kiss in the movie My Girl, and then the whole thing kinda spiralled from there...I like the idea of exploring them both before tragedy and life got in the way. Hope you enjoyed :)