A small but gentle smile forms across his dry lips. The sounds of birds chirping away from the nearby window and the wind blowing a slight breeze on the trees just outside of the building. Closing his eyes Kaidan concentrated on just those beautiful, calming sounds that gently rocked him to sleep after a hard days work.
Life couldn't get much more relaxing as this as his head rested in his arms as he heard he slight faint sound of the front door opening and closing a few seconds after. Total silence and bliss before he had the two grown up kids jumping all over him, shaking him away.
"Daddy! Daddy! Look what i did today!" Katherine shakes him again as she fights a little with her brother Ryan who would get his attention first. Both of them had just come running in from school while Kaidan sighed before he pulled them both on the bed and tickled them both as a mass amount of giggles erupted in the room.
"Now, what did you do today?" He asked a little out of breath bu he always somehow managed to have a smile on his face. As the years pased he slowly began to look his age and so did his body. Cracks in his bones and the smallest scrapes becoming bigger.. just like a days work back on the Normandy.
"I made a picture of us all back in art class. Look!" She muttered excitingly while holding up the picture to him. "Wow, that's great honey. It looks like were going to have a little artist in the family." He said as he leaned down and kissed her cheek as he got a smile from her. "Now what about you, young man?" He asked as he turned his attention to his son Ryan.
"I passed my next level on the guitar!" He roared as Kaidan smiled and placed a kiss on his cheek to. "See! with all that extra practice we've been putting in it's finally paid off. So, are you going to show your old man what you played?" He asked as Ryan jumped off the bed and ran up to his bedroom, grabbing the guitar that his father made for him by himself and took a seat next to his father while Katherine and Kaidan got comfortable as Ryan began to play. Even with the first two plucked strings Kaidan knew what he was about to play.
One night when Ryan was only a little lad he came down the stairs crying after he had a nightmare, looking for his mom or dad to talk to. The faint sound of a guitar being played was heard at the back balcony as he walked across the hallway and out towards where he heard the sound. He saw his father sitting there playing away at the strings, humming a little song with a smile on his face.
"Daddy?" He looked to his father as Kaidan turned and stopped playing after hearing his name being called. "Hey son, did i wake you?" He asked as he balanced the guitar next to him as Ryan walked towards him and got up on his lap.
"No i just had a nightmare and i came to find you or mommy. That's when i heard that noice and saw you sitting here. What is that, daddy?" He asked as Kaidan moved in the chair, trying to get a little more comfortable. "It's an instrument called a guitar. It was given to me by your granddad before he passed away. It's been in our family for a very long time."
"Oh,, so how do you use it?" He asked as Kaidan couldn't help but chuckle at his son. "You don't use it Ryan.. you play it. Here.." He reached down and placed it on his knee. "Give me your finger." He asked as Ryan held out his finger and felt the strings as his father plucked it with his hand.
"Wow.. i want to learn more! Will you teach me, daddy?" He asked with pleading eyes.
"Maybe one day when your a little older i will. I promise."
As he plucked the last note Ryan looked up to see his father crying a little. "I remembered it from when you played it that night when i had my nightmare. It felt special to me somehow and i decided to play it for my lesson." He smiled as he got up and hugged his father, knowing that he would have been proud of his son if he was there to see him play. Kaidan held him close as he smiled while the tears free flowed down his cheeks.
"That was beautiful, Ryan. I'm so proud of you.. and i know your mother will be as well." He said as Katheine joined in on the hug. The sound of the front door opening once again and the faint voice of Katerina echoing through the house brought yet another smile on his face as the kids ran to their mother, leaving their father thinking about how his two little babies were no longer little.. they were growing up.