Hey Readers,

I'm back! I know it's been a while and I'm very sorry. I'm finally back though, for now...

Now, dear readers, this new story was mostly for my own fun, I hope you all like it because it was super fun to write, if you don't then I am sorry to disappoint. Just a quick note, in this story there are no Mass Relays, no reliable space travel and no magic. Just assume that all the Mass Effect Races are on Earth, like the ones of Dragon Age. Obviously that means I've had to tweak a few back stories but I have tried to keep it relatively the same. Also, the Citadel is a store, not a space station, just so everyone knows.

The story may get confusing because it switches around perspectives but I'll try to make sure it's clear who's narrating

Enjoy!

Chapter 1: Shepard

I was being tugged along by Tali, her three fingers around my five.

"Come on! Hurry up!" Kasumi said, she was really impatient. I groaned.

"Why dress shopping? Why can't we go look for omni tool upgrades?" I complained.

"Because you need to look nice for the party! Th-" Tali was cut off by a jab in the ribs from Miranda.

"Hawke will be expecting you to look nice." She finished, her voice slightly higher. I groaned.

"Why can't I just go in my regular clothes?" I asked, knowing they would argue against it but I was grasping at straws, I didn't want to go shopping for dresses at all.

"Stop complaining Shepard. You are getting a dress." Miranda said. I sighed but followed them more willingly.

"Here!" Kasumi shouted."Citadel. It has everything. Come on." She said and grabbed my other hand, pulling me into the store.

She dragged me to the dresses and the other three girls split off, leaving me there. They each found a bunch of dresses and joined me again before dragging me off to the fitting rooms.

I tried them on, one by one. The last one I put on and almost didn't come out in it, of all of them it was the least my style. It was short, low cut, skin tight and sleeveless. It was all bad but I left the fitting room to show them and they immediately agreed that this was the one.

"No! Come on. I feel ridiculous in it. It's so low cut and short. I feel like a slut." I complained.

"One sec." Kasumi said before darting off. A few seconds later she returned with a necklace in her hand that was sort of triangular and sparkly. She fastened it around my neck and stood back.

"It's perfect!" She squealed. A movement caught my eye and I turned my head to see Thane. He stared at me for a second before regaining his composure.

"Jane." He said.

"Thane." I said back with a nod and a bit of a smile. My cheeks were heating up so I tried to distract myself.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"I'm buying a new suit for Hawke's party." He said.

"I'm buying a dress for it." I said. His eyes flicked over me once.

"I can see that." He said.

"I'll see you there." He added and then left, weaving out of sight between the racks of clothes. I turned back to my friends.

"Can I change now? Please?" I asked. My friends were practically jumping from excitement but I didn't know why.

"Yes. Then we have to buy it and go find shoes!" Kasumi said. I groaned again and ducked into the fitting rooms, my face was still burning. My friends had already bought their dresses a while ago so they didn't need to shop, it was just me. We bought the dress and then I allowed them to drag me to a shoe store where they found tall strappy heels that were "perfect" again.

They decided to take the bags to my house themselves because they knew I would probably throw them away. I decided to split ways and head to the bar to meet some guy friends who were there.

I entered the bar and saw a mix of races in large groups so spotting a turian, a krogan and a few humans would be a bit of trouble. I walked into the bar and looked around. After a bit I heard my name being called and looked in the direction to see my other friends trying to get my attention.

I walked over and sat down next to Garrus, I saw Jack raise an eyebrow but I didn't think much of it. Someone passed me a drink and that's when the fun started. I drank to forget the trip and the embarrassing moment of Thane seeing me in that dress. We all got really drunk so we did and said stupid things and then laughed about them. Jack told me to kiss Garrus at one point so I did then I told her to kiss Zaeed so she did. Grunt was laughing the whole time and Jacob kept saying that he loved us all.

Eventually I left and stumbled away. I made it out of the bar but I didn't get very far before I collapsed. I didn't hit the ground though, cool hands caught me under my arms.

Suddenly I was lifted up and carried, lying across someone's arms. I looked up and saw green.

"Thane?" I asked.

"It is me." He responded. I threw my arm around his shoulder, partly for support and partly to get closer to him and I snuggle into his chest.

"Please do not move too much, I don't want to drop you." He said. I giggled because I was ridiculously drunk.

"I trust you to not drop me. You are so strong and silent most of the time but when you do speak it's really quite something. I mean, you are obviously very attractive and that dark quiet sneaky mysterious vibe you've got going is a turn on, I've got to admit. You're so serious but you're also sensitive and when you actually talk about personal stuff it just makes my heart go out to you." I rambled, slurring my words together.

"Shepard you are very drunk, you won't remember this in the morning but I will so be careful what you say." He cautioned. I giggled again.

"Why do you say that? Are you just talking for the sake of talking because I said I liked your voice?" I slurred.

"No. I'm saying you should save your thoughts for when you are sober, that way I can believe them." He said.

"Oh you can believe what I'm saying, don't worry. Kasumi tells me that I tell all my thoughts when I'm drunk. Apparently I just talk and talk. She's probably somewhere near by watching us because she knows that I think you're attractive and her and Miri and Tali have been trying to get us together for a while. I don't know why. I think they think I need help with my love life. It's probably because you make me kind of nervous so I stumble over my words and blush a lot when I'm with you. They think I need help." I rambled.

"You are a really chatty drunk." Thane said.

"I know! I just say everything. I've only ever told one other person other than you that they're attractive though. Usually I'm pretty good at just not saying that." I said. The whole time I had been talking to him I had felt the steady rhythm of him walking but now he stopped.

"We're at your house. Can you manage from here?" He asked. I nodded.

"Oh ya. I can. This is the easy part." I said. He put me down on my feet and I took two steps and stumbled and fell. I heard him sigh behind me.

"Is your house unlocked or will I need to unlock it?" Thane asked.

"It should be unlocked because Tali and Kasumi and Miranda would have put that horrible dress in our house and they always forget to lock up." I responded. I was lying on the ground on my back looking up at him. He walked around me and went to try the door. It swung open for him. He came back over to me and picked me up again, he carried me inside and closed the door behind him. I giggled.

"It's like we're getting married, you carried me over the threshold." I said. He sighed.

"Where is your room?" He asked.

"Upstairs. Right across from the stairs actually. The first door in front of you when you go up the stairs." I said. He carried me up the stairs, opened my door without letting go of me and then put me down gently on my bed. He crouched beside me and whispered.

"The dress isn't horrible. You look very beautiful in it." I felt his cheek brush mine and his lips moving against my ear and then his warmth was gone. He stood up and left. I heard the door close downstairs and knew he was gone. The last thing I heard before falling asleep was the sound of girls giggling.

I woke up with a fierce head ache. I squinted and groaned at the bright light, and rolled over, stuffing my face into the pillow, trying to block it out. I tried to remember last night but all I remembered was a warmth against my cheek and lips on my ear. I figured it was a dream so I pushed it from my mind and dragged myself out of bed.

I made it downstairs, still in my clothes from last night, and found the coffee maker. There was fresh coffee inside which I quickly poured into a mug and drank. Kasumi walked in.

"How was your night last night?" She asked with a grin that meant she knew something that I didn't.

"What did I do?" I asked.

"Well, as far as I can tell from asking Jack you went to the bar and got ridiculously drunk, you kissed Garrus and then you stumbled out. Jack stayed at the table and didn't see you collapse but apparently Thane did and he carried you home. He put you in bed and left you. Right after whispering that he thought you looked really good in your dress." She said, her grin widening while she spoke.

I now knew that the memory of his cheek against mine and his lips on my ear weren't a dream and I couldn't help a shiver run through me but I was still upset with myself. I groaned again.

"You were invisible in my room, weren't you?" I asked.

"Actually I might have been invisible following you to and from the bar. Maybe I didn't even ask Jack." She giggled.

"Oh of course. Great. Jack wouldn't have told you that." I said. Kasumi started giggling.

"I heard everything that you told both him and Garrus. You were dangerously close to telling Thane that you found Garrus attractive as well but you managed to keep that a secret." She said in between giggles. I groaned again.

"Couldn't you have carried me and spared me the embarrassment of telling Thane everything? You know I'm a chatty drunk!" I said.

"No. It was so much funnier this way." She said."And I wanted to see his reaction. I wouldn't have known that he liked the dress if I had carried you home. Plus you are too heavy for me." I sighed.

"You are a terrible person." I said.

"I know!" She responded happily and left. I thought about what I had done last night and it slowly came back to me. I decided to never get drunk again. Ever.

I had told Garrus that I found him attractive but that I liked him as a friend. Then I had kissed him because I was dared to. Then I had told Thane he was attractive after collapsing in front of him. I decided I would never show my face outside again. Ever.

Not long after I decided that Tali and Miranda came into the kitchen where I was looking for pain killers.

"Hey Shep. We're going to go for a walk." Tali said.

"Have fun." I responded.

"No. You are coming with us." Miranda said.

"Come on! I have a pounding headache and a terrible hangover. Don't make me do this." I complained.

"It will be good for you. Come on." Tali said and grabbed my arm, she started to pull me towards the door.

"Can't I at least get changed first?" I asked. "And have a cold shower?"

"Fine but hurry. Don't think that you are getting out of this." Miranda responded. I groaned and hurried up the stairs. I had a quick cold shower which woke me up and I got dressed reasonably quickly. I hurried back downstairs to where Tali and Miranda were.

"Wow I expected you to drag your heels and go much slower!" Tali commented.

"And have you guys yell at me while I have a terrible headache? No thanks." I grumbled. I snatched a hair elastic from the table and quickly put my hair up in a bun so I didn't have to brush it.

"Let's go." I said. Tali opened the door and Miranda exited. I followed and Tali shut the door behind her as she left.

"Remember to lock it." I said. Tali quickly turned around and locked it. I heard two clicks though so I knew she unlocked it after. I didn't question though because I figured they had some scheme that involved me and I didn't want to ask and just have them not tell me.

"So why did you guys want me to go for a walk?" I asked. Miranda and Tali looked at each other before both of them looked at me.

"Because we knew you wouldn't leave the house ever if we didn't drag you out." Miranda said.

"Come on Miri, I know that isn't the real reason." I responded.

"Let's just go." Tali said, grabbing my hand and dragging me away down the street.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"For a walk around the block." Tali responded. I sighed.

"Fine. Be secretive, but if this has something to do with last night or my love life I will be very angry. I'm perfectly capable of handling my own love life." I said. Miranda snorted and Tali started laughing.

"Oh please. You can't even talk to Thane and you talk to Garrus like he is your friend." Miranda said.

"Garrus is my friend! And I can talk to Thane when you aren't there." I said.

"According to Kasumi you can't." Tali responded.

"What?!" I shouted. Miranda shushed me.

"No. I will not be quiet. Kasumi is listening in on all my conversations with him?" I asked.

"Shut up Shep. He's right there!" Miranda said, pointing ahead of us. Thane was leaving a house and locking it behind him. He turned and started walking towards the road. I stopped walking and started to back up. I didn't want to face him after last night.

Tali pulled me forward and I tried to resist, hoping he wouldn't see us. It was too late though, he looked over and spotted us so I walked forward like I wasn't trying to get away from him.

"You guys planned this didn't you?" I hissed at Tali and Miranda. My answer was a wide grin on Miranda's face.

"I hate you." I whispered. Thane walked towards us.

"Let me go. Please." I whispered to Tali. She let go of my hand. We reached Thane and immediately both Miranda and Tali made excuses of why they had to go but they'd talk to me later.

"Hey." I said lamely to Thane. He nodded at me.

"Are you feeling alright? You were very intoxicated last night." He asked with a bit of concern.

"I'm alright. Er... I'm sorry about last night. I'm a chatty drunk. And I just talk." I said.

"I don't know what I told you but I'm sorry for what I might have said." I lied.

"You didn't say anything bad." He responded.

"I... uh... I have a guess about what I said. It could be bad... not mean, but bad." I said, staring at the ground

"It wasn't bad." He responded. I looked up at him and smiled a little.

"Depending on what I told you, you have an idea of... well..." I didn't finish the sentence. I was kicking myself inwardly at how awkward I was.

"Of how you feel?" He supplied.

"Yes." I responded. He was so much better than me at this. So calm. I took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry if that was too forward. If I actually said what I thought." I said.

"I didn't mind it. That was the second time anyone has called me attractive, and it was even better to hear from your lips Siha." He said. I blushed and smiled.

"Siha?" I asked. "What does that mean?"

"I'll tell you one day, but now is not the time. I need to go now, I am sorry. I wish I had more time." He said. I nodded."And you don't need to be nervous around me, I would never hurt you." He said. He stepped closer and lightly kissed my forehead.

"I will see you at Hawke's party." He said and then left. I stood still for a few seconds before mouthing the word Siha. I smiled. I started walking again but I was unsure of where I should go.

I headed for home, my headache forgotten as I thought about Thane. I reached my home and whooped and jumped in the air. I went up to my room, lay down on the bed and went over the conversation in my head, smiling at my ceiling.

Let me know your thoughts :)

-Lindsay