Out Of The Blue In The Black

TITLE: Out Of The Blue In The Dark

AUTHOR: Midknight

CHAPTER: 1 of 2

FANDOM: Firefly

SHIP: Kaylee / Jayne

RATING: NC17

CATEGORY: Romance and Erotica

SPOILERS: If there are, I apologize.

SYNOPSIS: Partially inspired by Antilogicgirl's "Lights". When Simon hurts Kaylee, Jayne can't help but react and expose his feeling for her.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Firefly. None of these characters belong to me. They belong to Josh Wedon and the producers and writers of the show to whom I pay homage. I do not profit from writing this story in any way, means or form.

AUTHORS NOTE: I apologize before hand and hope you will forgive any errors or blatant discrepancies. Also I so don't speak Chinese so all that is just plain made up.

FEEDBACK: Yes Please - midknight_tales@yahoo.com

CHAPTER ONE

They were all sitting in the mess besides Jayne and Kaylee, simply relaxing and chatting after their evening meal. No one suspected a thing and no one had the time to react. Simon had just gotten up to get more coffee when Jayne entered. He hadn't looked angry and he'd even returned their greeting, so none of them were prepared when the tall mercenary's fist shot out and the crack of it connecting with the doctor's jaw reverberated through the room followed by Simon hitting the bulkhead next to the opposite door with a solid thud. Jayne just kept on walking while they were all frozen. He leaned down and peeled back one of Simon's eyelids as the doctor groaned. "Leave her alone you Gorram Ni Shi Shun." He growled at the dazed and bleeding young man. "He'll be fine in a couple of hours." He calmly informed the others and left through the hatch.

"What the Fuck?!?" Mal shouted after rangy merc, but Jayne never looked back as everyone suddenly sprang into action. River was the first of them to reach her brother's side, but couldn't quite help him to his feet. There was also a look of disapproval mixed in with the concern on the young girl's face that seemed to be directed at her brother and not Jayne. Mal hoisted the Simon to his feet. "You okay?" Mal enquired and the young doctor slurred an affirmative just as his legs buckled and Mal had to catch him. "Zoe, see to the doc while I go get me some Gorram answers." He commanded, holding Simon up by the convenience of pinning him to the bulkhead before he stalked off after Jayne. Mal didn't knock or ask permission, just simply opened the hatch to Jayne's quarters and slid down the ladder to confront him. Mal frowned as he found Jayne calmly sitting on his bunk, stripping and cleaning his beloved Vera. The room smelled of gun oil and tobacco.

"Care to explain?" Mal enquired, folding his arms in front of his chest. Jayne ran a brush through the gun barrel he held and then sighted Mal through it. "No, not particularly." Jayne responded. "Jayne, you damn near broke that boy's jaw. Granted I've wanted to do that a time or two myself, but I ain't so I'd appreciate it if you told me why you did, so that it doesn't escalate into something more... permanent than a bloody nose." Mal insisted, pointed looking at the assortment of guns and knives that adorned the wall above the bunk. "He deserved it." He explained simply. "Don't worry, Mal. I wouldn't waste a bullet or dirty a knife on that stupid Ni Shi Shun. Of course, if he decided to come at me, well... all bets are off." Jayne continued, his eyes on his captain even as he flawless reassembled the rifle, a crooked, speculative grin on his face.

"Jayne." Mal called the mercenary's name warningly. "You will refrain from hitting any member of my crew. If you have a problem with someone, you tell me first. And, that's an order." Mal proclaimed, using his hard, Malcolm Reynolds Captain of the Serenity voice. Jayne raised his eyebrow slightly. "Sure... So long's the doc done learned his lesson and don't misbehave no more." Jayne stipulated, cocking the slide and smoothly ejecting and catching a cartridge. "Misbehave?" Mal asked, but didn't wait for any answer as he turned to the ladder leading out of Jayne's quarters, muttering swearwords under his breath.

His mood didn't improve when he found Inara waiting for him in the hallway. "I don't suppose you know what all this is about?" he asked the Companion. "Not without a lot of unsubstantiated guess work, but it might have something to do with Kaylee. Apparently, Simon told her they could be no more than friends and she's taken it a bit hard, she was crying earlier. Why this would make Jayne to what he did, I can't say." Inara explained. Mal groaned. "Is Kaylee okay?" he asked. "Yes. She just needs some time on her own." Inara assured him. "And Simon?" he wondered. "He'll live. No broken bones, just a few lose teeth and a bloodied nose and he isn't going to win any beauty contests until the swelling and bruising subsides. It's a good thing we'll be in space for the next two weeks." She informed him. "Errrr erm... You'll keep an eye on Kaylee?" he asked gruffly, looking at his feet as he rubbed the toe of his boot over one of the bolts on the floor. "Of course, Mal." She told him with an indulgent smile that was both infuriating and endearing both at the same time. Mal clamped his mouth down on the ill-advised retort that sprang to his lips and abruptly turned and left.

A few days later...

Kaylee blew into her handkerchief, sniffled and wiped her nose before swinging her legs over the edge of her bunk and sitting up. "Enough... Enough now." She told herself and the empty room and raked her fingers through her hair. She sniffed her t-shirt. She needed a shower, the warm water would feel good against her skin. "If Simon wanted to be only friends, it was his loss." She told herself. She rested her hand on the bulkhead and could feel Serenity humming with life under her palm. "At least nothing went wrong with the ship while she had wallowed in her little pity party. She would thank Inara and Zoe for bringing her food and a few, short, quiet words of comfort, but otherwise leaving her alone to mourn that which she had never had to lose in the first place. She got up and stretched before making her way to the shower.

She was right, the shower felt great and she didn't even feel guilty when she used up all the hot water. She had lost track of time but her stomach told her it had to be near or just past mealtime with a less-than-subtle growl, so, not bothering with underwear, she slipped into a fresh t-shirt and overall, tying the arms of the overalls around her waist. She gathered her still damp hair and bound it into a loose ponytail and then headed to the mess. It was empty, but she could see Simon in the galley, his back to her. She contemplated simply slipping back out the hatch and waiting until he left, but she would have to see and deal with him sooner or later and she really was hungry.

He turned when he heard her walk into the mess proper and she gasped. Simon looked like a raccoon and a bulldog had mated and their offspring had then gotten into a fight with a bear and lost. "What the hell happened to you?" Kaylee asked in shock at his appearance. That shock caused by seeing his bruised and battered face sidelined her concerns about their awkward situation and dissolved the knot in her stomach that had nothing to do with hunger. "Nothing." He mumbled, averting his face. "There's fresh coffee and left over stew in the refridgerator." He told her over his shoulder and before she could answer or stop him he rushed out of the mess. She stared after him for a moment, wanting to follow, before her stomach reminded her of its plight.

She ate the stew with some bread and was just sitting back to finish her coffee when Inara walked in. "I see you're out of your cabin and feeling better, I hope?." the Companion greeted her and Kaylee raised her mug and smiled in acknowledgement and answer. "Would you like some coffee." Kaylee enquired, lifting the half full pot. "No. I was just passing through on the way to my shuttle when I saw you through the hatch." Inara declined. "What happened to Simon's face?" Kaylee asked as Inara settled into the chair next to hers at the table. "Jayne's fist." She replied. "What? Why?" Kaylee asked for clarification with a confused frown. "Jayne hit Simon. One punch that knocked him clear across the room into the bulkhead. As, to why, Jayne won't say and his been acting all nice and polite since. It's odd. Did he say anything to you?" Inara asked after her explanation. "No... I was crying when I left the engine room after Simon... you know... and I think I passed him on the way to my quarters, but I wasn't in a state to speak to anyone." Kaylee recounted. Inara made a speculative: "Hmmmmmmm" as she toyed with her full lower lip. "What?" Kaylee wondered, a little leery of the way her friend was looking at her.

"Maybe you should go speak to Jayne." Inara suggested, her voice thoughtful, her eyes still speculative, calculating for a moment before becoming warm and neutral once more. Kaylee didn't know, which look made her more nervous. "Why?" the mechanic asked abruptly. "I don't know, maybe he'll tell you why he punch Simon." Inara replied in a voice that was too poised, too assured for Kaylee's liking. "It's good to see you up and around, Kaylee." Inara told her in the form of a goodbye as she lithely unfolded from the chair and squeezing Kaylee's shoulder softly, left. Kaylee envied the Companion's grace as she swirled the last of her coffee around in the bottom of her mug, seeing her reflection distort in the dark liquid. "Why had Jayne punched Simon?" the question echoed in her mind. The two had never particularly warmed to each other, but it had never come to open hostility before. "Maybe Inara is right. Maybe I should go speak to Jayne. Find out just what the hell happened." She thought and had the sneaky suspicion she somehow been manipulated into the decision.

She poured herself a little more coffee and left the mess. Instead of going in search of Jayne, she first went and checked on Serenity's engines, running quick diagnostics on all the systems. It felt good to be in the humming, whirring, comforting noise of the engine room as she made a few minor adjustments to smooth out kinks that had developed during her absence, humming softly to herself. She nearly had a heart attack and almost spilled her coffee when she turned from the console to find River standing silently behind her. "River is a strange girl and like a ghost, she almost never made a sound and she just seemed to appear out of thin air where you least expected her. I wonder if Mal would let me tie a bell around her neck so that we can hear her coming?" Kaylee speculated as she regained her composure.

"Sorry if I startled you, Kaylee." The willowy girl apologized. "I just wanted to say that I am sorry my brother is a Gorram Ni Shi Shun." River explained, the harsh expletive seeming even harsher coming from so innocent a looking girl. "Where did you learn that term?" Kaylee asked curiously. "Jayne called Simon that after he hit him. Jayne was very angry that Simon had hurt you and made you cry." River replied just as the console beeped for Kaylee's attention. She turned and confirmed the computers calculations as correct. "How do you know that." She asked turning back, only to find herself alone. "I really need to go see Jayne." She told herself. She confirmed the last setting on the console and then headed for his cabin.

The halls of the Serenity were quiet and empty. She didn't meet any of the other crewmembers as she made her way from the engine room to Jayne's quarters and she realized it was relatively quite late. She hit the buzzer at his door, activating the intercom. "Jayne? It's Kaylee. Can I come in?" she asked after identifying herself. She didn't receive an answer from him, but the hatch slid open and she made her way carefully down the ladder. "Hey Kaylee. It's good to see you up and around again." He greeted her a smile lighting his eyes for a moment before his expression returned to his usual semi-scowl. He was sitting on edge of his bunk, bare chest, wearing only a pair of threadbare sweatpants. Kaylee was a little taken a back at the lean hardness of his body as well as the scars that told the tale of his life as a mercenary, the raised circles of bullet wounds on his shoulder and under his ribs and a smattering of ragged lines she assumed had been made by knives.

"Sorry. Did I wake you?" she fretted. "Nah. What can I do you for?" he enquired raking his hand through his hair. "I saw Simon. Why did you punch him?" she asked, getting straight to the point. "I wanted to. It felt good." He answered with a shrug. "That ain't no answer, Jayne Cobb." She informed him, crossing her arms under her chest, cocking her head to the side and raising an eyebrow in a silent repetition of her question. He stared at her without answering and then stood up and stepped closer to her. Kaylee steeled her spine, fighting the urge to flinch back as the room suddenly got a lot smaller with his large frame looming over her. His proximity also meant she could now smell the subtle masculine scent of industrial soap, leather and tobacco wafting off him. She found herself inhaling deeply trying to get more of the strangely pleasing aroma, but puzzled at her reaction while she stared up at him defiantly.

"Awwww, Kaylee, he deserved it. Ain't that good enough of a reason." He told her softly. Kaylee's eyes flicked down to his sides, drawn by the movement of his hands flexing into fists and then relaxing and then she shook her head. "Gorram it, girl!" he growled and she almost flinched again when he made to reach for her, leaning even closer, but stopped. "It weren't right for him to hurt you like that, fool that he is. It weren't right for him to let you moon over him all these months neither while there was... Never mind." He explained, but then abruptly seemed to cut himself off and change what he intended to. "While there was what?" she asked, frowning at his reticence which was so unlike his usual caustic and gruff straightforwardness. "Just... Just leave it be, Kaylee." He implored her wearily, this time raking both his hands through his hair and lacing his fingers behind his neck shifting back away from her.

"Jayne?" she asked, perplexed at his reaction. Her confusion only deepened when he did flinch away with a haunted look clouding his eyes, as she lightly touched his chest. She let her hand drop to her sides, looking at him incredulously. Kaylee felt her eyes widen and her jaw drop as she suddenly came to a very unexpected conclusion. "Noi sha grin." She swore softly under her breath. "You can't be sweet on me, Jayne. You don't even like me." She voiced her suspicion. He snorted and then chuckled, both sounds raw and cynical as he settled back onto the edge of his bunk, resting his elbow on his knees and hold his face in his hands so that he looked up at her. "Of course I can't. What with you being so ugly and dumb; bad smellin' and you bray like a mule when you laugh. Yeah... I can't be sweet on you, Kaylee. That would be ridiculous." He told her, lifting his head and staring her right in the eye and she could see the lie and bitter sarcasm in them. "But..." she started, but he shook his head and then let it fall into his hands, causing her to fall silent.

Kaylee was stunned. She hadn't had the slightest clue as to Jayne's feeling for her. She had never considered him in that light and it was suddenly as if she were seeing him through complete different eyes. He was handsome, in a rugged kind of way, not pretty like Simon, but not hard on the eye. And, unlike Simon he came from the same background as she did, being raised on the outer rim. Jayne was rough and tough and often behaved like the abrasive, shaved ape Simon accused him of being, but as she thought about it, and him she came to the conclusion it was all a giant front, an act he had perfected growing up hard and living harder. It had been easier for her to accept that act than to contemplate the inconsistencies the little glimpses of his better nature she had witnessed over the years would raise. "I need to stop thinking of Jayne in comparison to Simon. Simon's history... Jayne might be a future." She commanded to herself.

She stepped forward and placed her hand gently on his head between his hands. She felt him tense and then relax as she ran her fingers through his hair, lightly massaging his scalp. "Why didn't you say anything?" she asked softly. "Cause, a nice, decent gal like you wouldn't have nothin' to do with the likes of me and I doesn't particularly like to get laughed at." He mumbled without looking up. "Am I laughing?" she asked seriously, taking her hand from his hair and reaching under his chin to lift his head so that she could look into his eyes. She saw his eyes narrow and the side of his mouth twitch. "No, you ain't." he answered, almost petulantly, as if his answer angered him or she suspected, scared him. "And, Jayne, I ain't that nice or decent either." She informed him and with his chin firmly held in her hand she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his.

Kaylee wasn't quite sure why she did it. They should be talking this out, figuring all the angles, but to kiss him just sudden felt like the right thing to do. He froze, for just a fraction of a moment when her lips touched his and then he kissed her back, their heads shifting, angling to cement their kiss, lips parting, sucking and sliding together while tongues dueled and teeth nipped. She could taste the faint flavor of whiskey in his mouth and idly wondered where he kept his bottle of flask. The passion of their kiss sparked heated desire in her, a desire that she had kept restrained, pent up and unsatisfied with the foolish hope of sharing it with Simon, apparently in exclusion to all else. She surely hadn't seen Jayne coming, but she found she wanted to find out where he might lead her. She gasped in surprise when he sudden rose, gathering her in his arms and sweeping her off her feet, her body pressed hard against his.

The reaction of her body told her this would not end with kissing. Her nipples scraped along the material of her t-shirt as they rapidly swelled and hardened, pressing back into her breasts, which were flattened against his chest as he plundered her lips. Her nethers, flexed and twisted against itself and she felt herself flood hot and moist with sex grease and a sweet tickling tension start to build in the pit of her stomach. Her skin took on that tight, itchy hotness of excitement that made her clothes feel uncomfortable and made her flush as she wrapped her arms around his neck and returned his kiss with equal force. Kaylee could feel his reaction to their kiss, hard and throbbing against her belly, its heat hardly dampened by his sweats and her tee. She didn't even know they were moving until her back came up against the ladder leading up to the hatch, the metal of the rungs impossibly cool across her back through her t-shirt. His hand tugged at the tie that held her ponytail in place and pulled it free, letting her dark hair cascade over his forearm and her shoulders as his fingers dug into the wealth of curls to cradle the back of her head

She luxuriated in his kiss and the feel of his hard, lean body pressing firmly against hers for a few moments and then freed her hands from his neck and head and wormed them between their bodies until she could push him away and part their hungry mouths. "Wait... Stop... This is wrong." She panted, licking her kiss-swollen lower lip. She saw the light dim in his eyes and his body going stiff and still against hers. "I'm sorry. You're right, too fast; too much and too soon. I got carried away. I'm sorry." He apologized in a rush, his expression frantic and anguished. "No... That's not it. You've taken me the wrong way. Your bunks back that way, you Big Lug." She told him, pointing over his shoulder, seeing his eyes blaze back to life with renewed passion and grin broadly before reinitiating their kiss and wrapping her legs and arms around his solid form.

TO BE CONTINUED