Part Two

Tala never went to the infirmary to get her hand bandaged, even though she was fully aware she should have. She didn’t feel like chancing a run-in with Mal again, and Jayne had been giving her looks that made her uncomfortable. She started walking to her bunk, after wandering around the ship some.

“Hey! Cargo!” She literally bit her tongue, trying not to lash out. She’s a guest on the ship, she kept reminding herself. She couldn’t let them have any reason to kick her off at the next Alliance port. She took a deep breath, and slowly turned around. Jayne was walking toward her, wiping down one of the largest guns Tala had ever seen. Her hand touched the metal of her own weapon, and she relaxed some.

“I have a name.” She snapped at him. She couldn’t help it.

“Oh, yeah?” Jayne thought on this a minute. “Well…what is’t?”

“Tala.” She sighed. Kaylee had warned her Jayne was slow. She didn’t realize how slow. “Did you need something, because I would really rather be asleep right now.” She told him flatly. His attention piqued, and she crossed her arms across her chest, setting a boundary.

“You can sleep in my bunk.” He suggested, trying for a flirty grin. The hungry look in his eyes made her uncomfortable- it was the same look he had been giving her the entire time. He was actually kind of cute, but the look bothered her. She had to create a fence. He had to know she wouldn’t throw herself at him. So, she decided to throw herself at him. She approached him slowly, making sure to swing her hips to keep his attention. She ran her finger down his chest.

“You…”She said, in a whispy voice. He was struggling not to move. “You…”

“Yea?” He asked, and she could feel him shudder. She loved this. It was too much fun to play with his little mind. She leaned in toward his ear and whispered.

“You…WISH!” Confusion crossed his face, seemingly naturally at home there, and she shoved him away, turning around and walking toward the bunks.

“But…wait! What about my bunk?” He asked.