A/N: Although I'm sure no one noticed too much, yes, this chapter is pretty late. My schedule out in the "real world" is getting a whole lot more compressed, so some chapters might--might--come out later than the once a week schedule I've been trying to adhere to. That said: Behold, my "legions" of "fans" "!"

Book One – Chapter Eight

Jayne hadn’t slept in two weeks. It wasn’t so bad; he had gone longer without rest before. Back in the day, if someone caught him asleep, it probably meant that he wasn’t going to be waking up. So he trained himself to live without sleep. That’s how he knew how to hide it from the others. Not that they’d care. Or do anything to try and help him. But then, that was the corner he had built himself into, so wasn’t going to complain, not even to himself.

From his bunk, he could hear the sound of the cabins shaking and the buffer panels compressing against the change of scenery outside. They were breaking through the atmo of Neo Sombra. That was strange. He usually woke up before landings. He had overslept. Well, over-not-slept.

River knew. That girl always knew what she shouldn’t. The things that were supposed to be his alone. He had gotten used to it, though. He shouldn’t have, but he did. No one should have to learn to be intruded. But he wouldn’t complain. She kept her lips tight and didn’t look him in the eye. That he could count on.

He managed to put on a shirt in the dim gaslight. He felt the air-conditioning going all screwy due to the heat of the friction outside. It got real cold in his bunk. It was always cold. The whole ship was.

Jayne should have left Serenity more than a year ago. They wouldn’t even miss him. Hell, they’d probably be better off. Safer. Then he wouldn’t have to worry anymore. Maybe he’d get to sleep again.

He should have left a while ago, but he stayed anyway. Mal even gave him a way out after they left Three Hills, but Jayne, true to his form, turned it down out of instinct rather