The Dr. Tam Journals – Part 1 - Serenity

Shortly after their marriage and while they were still living on Serenity, Kaylee found Simon’s journal. It wasn’t like she was looking for it and in fact she didn’t even know he kept a journal but there it was still the same. That he did keep a journal was not a big surprise to her because she knew her man was the intellectual and analytical type. Despite his less than perfect skills at wooing the female of the species, which Kaylee had suffered through for many months until he finally expressed his desire for her, Simon was acknowledge as an extremely bright doctor and was quite knowledgeable in many other areas, such as science, history, literature, and philosophy. Keeping a diary seemed normal for him.

She had awoken in the passenger dorm room they shared and reached out for him but he wasn’t there. She opened a sleepy eye and saw him at the desk they had set up, slumped over an open notebook bound in red leather. He was dressed in just a t-shirt and his pajama pants, no socks or shoes. His soft snoring made her smile. He had refused to believe he snored until she recorded him one night and then played it in front of everyone at breakfast, much to his chagrin and everyone else’s amusement. Simon was still the butt of many jokes on the ship, despite his almost universal acceptance as one of the crew members. He was just too darn straight laced and was always such an easy mark.

Kaylee slipped out of the narrow bed, clad only in her purple Oriental pattern silk night dress, and quietly approached him. The desk was covered in his notes, charts, and computer scans of River’s brain activity. Despite her improvement since the events on Miranda and at Mr. Universe’s complex, River was still a troubled teen. Sometimes, Simon despaired that he would ever find a way to help his sister and that she would need medication all her life to prevent her from having psychotic episodes. Kaylee and River had grown much closer in recent months, with River acting as apprentice to Ka