Disclaimer: Firefly and all related elements, characters and indicia © Mutant Enemy Productions and 20th Century Fox Television, 2003. All Rights Reserved. All characters and situations—save those created by the authors for use solely on this website—are copyright Mutant Enemy Productions and 20th Century Fox Television.

Two Things
by BK the irregular

"Got a sec?" Kaylee asked, head poking in the infirmary.

Simon looked up, smiled, then winced as Kaylee put her hand on the door—wrapped in a kerchief, red with blood. "What happened?"

"The qingwa cào de liúmáng impeller dropped a brick is what happened," Kaylee spat. "Only had half an hour to change out the gorram driver coils or Wash'd miss the exit burn from the trade lane. Barked my knuckles trying to force a bolt, don't know how bad."

"Let's have a look," Simon said, stifling a wince when he realized he'd shifted into his formal doctor's tone.

Kaylee unwrapped the kerchief and winced as the cloth pulled scabs away from the bleeding knuckles, starting the flow of crimson anew. "Bad, huh?"

"Superficial. I'll weave the knuckles," he said, grabbing equipment to make word into deed. "You'll want to keep them clean for a week; wouldn't do to get them infected."

"Simon, you've seen the engine, right?" Kaylee teased as Simon quickly closed her wounds. "How's one keep clean in there and keep the engine working?"

He grabbed a box from a drawer, rooted around a moment, then sighed. "Last box," he muttered to himself, pulling blue gloves out of it one after another. "Wear two of these on your right hand when you're working on the engine. That should keep it clean enough, keep the grime out, and you shouldn't lose any sensitivity when you're working."

"That's only six gloves," Kaylee said.

"All I can spare," Simon sighed. "We're running out of gloves. And weaves. And sterile stuff. And pretty much everything else." Almost under his breath, he added, "If I'd been in residency, they would have thrown me out for keeping a medical space this close to barren."

"You miss it, don't you?" Kaylee asked. "Clean living, the best tools to do your work?" Her voice sharpened imperceptibly. "Hordes of women at your beck and call?"

Simon closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. "Most of those women... they weren't... real."

"So ya had a thing for bots? Holos?"

Simon laughed uneasily. "No, flesh-and-blood women, all right, but they were just... shallow. No, not shallow; hollow. Like everything about them was on the surface, like they didn't care to look deeper. No less than five of my classmates married women like that. They wanted the prestige of a name, they wanted the money that comes of doctoring... and while the husband was off pulling thirty-hour shifts, they found themselves paramours because they wanted better sex than the marriage provided for."

Kaylee clenched her hand, testing the knuckles. "You ever get close to falling for one of 'em?"

"No," Simon said with a faraway look in his eyes. "The only ones who interested me were the women in class with us. The ones who were trying to become doctors themselves."

"So why didn't you go after one of 'em?"

"I thought about it. Thought long and hard," Simon answered. "But they were too busy being professionals to have time at first, and I was too busy as well; and by the time I had my head out enough to know I needed a life, not just a profession, well..."

"River," Kaylee prompted, questioning.

"River," Simon sighed. "And ever since, I ask if there was anyone I knew who would have given up... for their flesh and blood..."

Kaylee said nothing, putting her bandaged hand on his.

"There's a joke they had about ships' doctors in Medacad. That they stayed with the ship because they were usually one jump ahead of a malpractice charge. And now that's me. Except it's not a malpractice charge."

"And if you hadn't done what you did, River'd still be in that place," Kaylee reminded him.

Simon closed his eyes. "I know. And if I had the same choices, from then until now, I'd do the same thing. River's the biggest reason why."

"Pretty much the only reason, huh?" Kaylee said sadly.

"Not the only reason," Simon said, gently closing his other hand over hers.

Kaylee smiled, and it all seemed worth it again.

Then she slipped her hand out of his. "I gotta go... gotta make sure that impeller's tuned for the burn."

She reached up and kissed him on the cheek; he did likewise for her, and lingered a moment, enjoying the feel of her cheek as it glided against his lips, her mouth as it pressed against his cheek.

Then, almost as though it had been inevitable, she met the corner of his mouth, and her other hand was behind his neck, and then her lips were pressing hard against his. He reached around her waist, pulled her closer, held her tight.

The universe trembled around them.

And with a gasp, Kaylee had broken the kiss. "Tamade impeller's out of tune!" she cursed, and then looked pleadingly at Simon.

"I'm gonna want to see that hand again," Simon said. He smiled. "Gotta make sure you're healing right."

Kaylee smiled broadly and ran out the door. Simon pursed his lips and breathed in, smelling the air she'd occupied.

Give up everything? The practice, the money, the sense of security?

"In a heartbeat," Simon muttered, and went to tidy up his workspace.

Translation Notes