Rachel woke up to the sound of soft snores. She kept her eyes closed, trying to stay in this moment for just a bit longer; last night had been a night out of time. No submarines, no viruses, no uniforms, no test tubes – just two people watching a movie. The movie, though amusing, was quickly forgotten as they talked. They talked about things that were so mundane that they became important; the act of discussing trivial things at length was something neither of them had had a chance to do in months.

And, as they talked, their hands were constantly, if chastely, exploring. She'd traced scars and asked for the stories behind them, learning about the man who had joined the navy to spite his father and the boy who attempted to fly out of a treehouse. He'd held her and stroked her hair as they talked, finding the spot behind her ear that tickled. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so safe and relaxed. They had shared several cautious kisses, mindful of his injuries – Rachel lay on his good side – and Tom swore to repay her patience once he was fully healed. Eventually, both had drifted off to sleep still entangled on his bed.

It had been a magical night, and she didn't want to wake up. But now her bladder was forcing the issue, and she opened her eyes. She saw the rise and fall of his chest from her perch on his shoulder, and the clock on the nightstand read four am. Good, another couple of hours. She very slowly began to extricate herself from his arms, hearing him murmur objections as he drowsily pulled her back.

"Tom, I'll be right back. Promise." She said, kissing his cheek. He made a noise that sounded something vaguely like assent, and let her pull away.

When she came back, his eyes were slitted against the light from the head, and he reached for her as she pulled back the covers. He pulled her on top of him so that she was lying askew on his good side, and kissed her, so fiercely she couldn't help but respond. It wasn't until he started pulling up her shirt that he disengaged long enough for her to even think about getting a word out.

"Tom". He blinked at her tone. "Tom, we can't. Not yet. I would never forgive myself if I hurt you."

"Oh." He said, shaking his head, eyes focusing.

"Awake now, are we?"

"Yeah. Sorry. I don't usually start things I can't finish."

"Well, I'll let it slide this time." She said lightly. "If nothing else, it was a hell of a compliment. In the meantime, we've got a while longer to ourselves. So settle down and go back to sleep. Big day today."

"Yes, ma'am." He said, letting her move to a more comfortable position without letting her go.

. . . . . . . .

She became aware of the man making his way towards her; he seemed determined to reach her, specifically, passing up other sailors who were spreading the cure, even though the low turnout in Vicksburg meant some sailors were unoccupied. He wasn't the only one who seemed to want it 'straight from the source', as it were, but he moved towards her like she was the best option. When he arrived, he paused, suddenly nervous, before addressing her.

"So, uh, my friend says that a kiss is the surest way to get the cure."

She looked at him, amused. His approach was less than subtle, but his hesitant delivery was still sort of charming. She gave him a gentle shake of the head.

"It is one of the more effective ways. But sharing a water bottle is just as effective."

"Aww." She raised an eyebrow at him. "I heard the cute doctor was giving out kisses. My friend said he got one."

"Unless your friend is under the age of ten, I'm pretty sure he's lying to you."

"Pretty sure?"

"I've kissed exactly one man today…this morning, aboard the Nathan James." And one hell of a kiss it was she remembered, coloring slightly. "So unless your friend is the naval officer standing about five meters behind me, your friend is lying."

She watched with amusement as he peered around her to look at Tom. His eyes went wide in shock.

"Is that… the captain?" She simply smiled in reply. The man looked suddenly sheepish. "My apologies. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go kill my friend before I commit hari-kari."

"No need for all that. You were a gentleman about it."

"Can I still kill my friend?"

"I would prefer if you didn't. We went to a lot of trouble to cure him."

"Fair point. I'll think of something. Thank you for the cure."