The characters do not belong to me - thanks Joss for letting me borrow them for fun. A very special thanks to TZEGHA for her invaluable input and support. She trully deserves a lot of credit for this one.

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“Stay” – PART I

So it was over.

He painfully realized this as Serenity carried them to their next destination. The hum of the engine was the one thing he could always count on to relax and unwind. The spots of silver light that flashed in the distance were all that could be discerned amongst the utter and complete blackness outside—cold and lonely as he stared out the cockpit window. The steady vibration allowed his brain to concentrate, assigning his emotions backstage pass.

Space, this vast stretch of nothingness not unlike the void his heart felt at that precise moment.

He drew in a deep breath, closing his eyes, and held it until his lungs started to protest, then exhaled slowly—the lump in his chest seemed to ease for now. He shifted uncomfortably in the pilot’s chair. His muscles were stiff from lack of movement, so he stood up to stretch his long legs rubbing his neck as he walked around the helm.

How long had he been hiding here? He impatiently checked the navigation route for the twentieth time that night, anxious to get to their destination and to put this whole thing behind him.

He could hear the voices echoing through the insides of Serenity, from the kitchen all the way to the helm. The laughter, excitement and quiet conversations of his crew could be heard as they shared this moment, lost in their own little celebration. The echoes bouncing off the metal frames of the ship were carried by a ghostly hand and made his ears ring with an anxiety that could not be relieved. He could much less show the others.

Refusing to be a part of it, he cowardly retreated to this safe haven to be alone. No matter how many people came into his life or shared his experiences, the constant irony was that loneliness would always