She’s already asleep by the time he makes his way down to their bunk, but she’s left the little lamp on the edge of his desk on and it scatters pale yellow light across the floor. It’s bright enough to let him avoid the obstacles laid out but dim enough not to disturb her. She’s curled against the wall, palm splayed flat against Serenity and her breath falls out in rhythmic sighs in tune with the gentle hum of his ship.

He sits heavily in the faded chair in the corner that she insisted he drag down and pulls off his boots with a small, tired sigh. He watches the sharp line of her shoulders and pale slope of her neck as he slips his suspenders off and drops his shirt to the floor. He leaves his pants half unbutton, too tired to care but he keeps his socks on.

You have cold feet Captain.

When her voice slides through his head it makes him smile, makes him contemplate waking her with those cold feet just to hear her outraged squeal of surprise. You can’t see everything comin’ darlin he’d tell her and she’d just look at him crossly, trying to keep her lips from curving upward and letting her laughter spill out. He never thought it’d be so easy to draw a smile from her and he never realized how much it could warm him inside when he did.

The bed creaks and dips with his weight and he winces as he pulls the covers them both. She stirs and so he reaches out to pull her closer, to let the heat of her skin smother the coldness that’s settled inside him. Her hair is still damp from her shower, it smells like nothing in particular, just a clean and sharp smell that’s hers. He inhales deeply and she sighs in his arms, releasing Serenity in favor of him. When she turns to face him her fingers are cool from the metal as they slide across his chest.

Her eyes are still heavy with sleep and a lazy smile washes over her face when he kisses her, soft and gentle like. He smoothes an errant strand of hair away from her forehead and she presses her face against his neck. “Smell awful,” she murmurs and he laughs, a deep warm sound that reverberates in his chest and makes the bones of her jaw tingle.

They stay pressed close to one another, a quiet agreement of reassurance before River turns over again, back pressed firmly against his chest as his hand comes to rest on the swell of her hip. When she settles comfortably into the pillow and her breathing evens out again he can feel the gentle lull of the future and the promise of a chance at happiness.