This one is for Chazzer and Leiasky, 'cause the former made me get my butt in gear and the latter is owed a fic. Hope ya'll enjoy!

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VI. Hearts Can't Be Fixed With a Band-Aid: Simon Tam

Kaylee knows that she's wasted half the night drumming up the courage to find Simon and talk to him, but she never wagered that just when she was ready to get face to face with the doc, he'd be nowhere to be found.

She's looked in the med-bay, the kitchen, the sitting area, his bunk, and hell--even the engine room, in hopes that maybe Simon had come lookin' for her sometime in the night. But no such luck. Simon's just noplace that Kaylee can find, and she feels a flash of apprehension at it, wondering where exactly he could be.

Maybe it's all this talk of lovin' and losin', but Kaylee's sorta scared of all the ways her relationship with Simon could end before it even properly begins.

It wouldn't do to shout the whole ship down, though, and Kaylee's already too agitated to think much clearly. She takes a deep breath and tells herself that there's a reason everyone seemed to be around when she needed them most tonight. She's just gotta calm herself down and take their advice, take everything as it comes. When Simon is ready to show, he'll show. Till then, alls she can do is wait. No use in crowding him, especially since she's the one who took so long to figure out her own heart.

Kaylee smiles. Seems it's always been that way with her and her doc--one of 'em comprehending and the other all manners of confused.

It's with that thought in mind that Kaylee heads towards her own bunk, letting her fingers trace along Serenity's metal skin, her mind jumbled with thoughts. She's still a little hesitant, truth be told, 'bout what's to be said when she and Simon finally sit down to chat. Despite everyone's kindness tonight, she's still got butterflies only Simon can chase away, and a part of her is worried she's misunderstood and he don't like her like that at all anymore.

Well, what could w