A/N: See part one for disclaimers etc. Also, there are some indications of slash in this chapter but nothing more than that.

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Part two: where Simon looks after Mal, Inara makes an announcement and Kaylee doesn’t take it well

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Mal blinked slowly against the bright neon light shining overhead. It told him he was in the infirmary, a conclusion that was quickly confirmed when he carefully turned his head to the right and saw Simon sitting in the chair next to the stretcher, dozing.

“Ow,” Mal muttered when the movement caused a sharp burning pain to shoot from his gut up and down his spine like a lightning bolt.

“You’re awake,” Simon said, instantly up and reaching for the monitors next to Mal’s sickbed so he could check his vitals. “I was getting concerned; you’ve been out for sixteen hours straight.”

“What went down? I get shot again?” the captain asked drowsily and in a slightly slurred voice.

“Yes I’m afraid so, but you’ll be just fine,” Simon answered him with a little smile.

“Fine, huh? Is that why you’re sitting next to my bed like a watchdog?” Mal replied dryly. He smiled inwardly. He’d never admit it but he had taken a liking to the good doctor.

Simon looked at the monitors and smiled. “Well, I figured you wouldn’t want to be alone when you woke up.” For a moment, Mal thought he saw the doctor blush a little, but then Simon looked up and went on in that matter-of-factly tone he only seemed to have while he was mending folk. “Jayne, Kaylee and the Shepherd are trying their best to fix the leak. The others…” Simon hesitated for a second. “Well, we ran into an Alliance Cruiser a short while ago.”

Mal noticed that the doctor was looking even paler than usual; the young man was nervous as hell about being found by the Alliance. “Wash, Zoe and Inara are on the bridge right now… We’ve been hailed, so they’re doing what they can to negotiate…” Simon said reluctantly.

As Simon had expected, Mal immediately sta