Hi guys! So this is my terrible attempt at a Mass Effect 3 post firing of the crucible (destroy option). I played the game and to be honest that ending broke me a little bit. I refuse to acknowledge it so have decided to make one of my own and it shall more or less be my own head canon from now on.

Brief summary is this takes place right after the ending. John survived the blast, the blast wave only targeted reapers so it didn't destroy EDI or the Geth. John is found and there is a reunion scene between John Shepard and Kaiden (M-Shep/Kaiden 4Life) It isn't a very long fic however I didn't want this one to be a long one either. Just a short one to help me cope :P I do hope others enjoy this.

Fire...heat...pain... these are all he registers. He's gotta keep moving. Keep moving. One step after another, move forward. He remembers an explosion and heat rolling over him. Being knocked back by the blast wave. What happened? He destroyed something...it was important. What was it...falling. Falling. Falling. Impact. Sudden cold. Wet all around. Where is he...water... the Commons. Gotta get to the surface... light! He breaks the surface of the water channel with a deep breath. It hurts. Everything hurts so much. Must get to the shore. Gotta keep moving. Keep fighting. C'mon Shepherd... just a bit further... you can do it. Land. He reached the shore... come on Shepard. Don't give up now. Get up. He pulls himself out of the water. Heaves himself up onto the shore. Crawls forward. Pain too much. Can't go further. He needs help. His Omnitool. Locator beacon. He activates it. Smiles. The smile fades as darkness overtakes him.

''Is that...Shepard?!'' Dimly he registers a female voice. It sounds familiar. Where has he heard it before?

''I FOUND HIM! MEDIC! OVER HERE!" He feels hands gently turning him over onto his back, he opens his eyes, not really understanding what is going on. Is this death?

"Shepard can you hear me? Sir?'' He closes his eyes against a harsh beam of light being shined into them with a groan

"Mildy responsive! Where's that fucking medic!? Shepard if you can hear me you're going to be all right. Help is here. We got you'' He smiles at that. Help is here. He is saved. He blacks out at the feel of multiple pairs of hands picking him up. The pain is too much.

Beep...Beep...Beep... ''You son of a bitch'' he registers a voice murmuring. ''I thought you were dead. We all did. But you did it again. You pulled through Shepard. Come back to me baby...'' the voice breaks off with a small sob ''I need you John. I need you to come back to me. I don't think I can do this without you. So you gotta fight for me. You gotta fight to come back to me John. Don't leave me behind''. Kaiden...

He doesn't know how long it is when he finally wakes up and registers his surroundings. He opens his eyes with a small whimper, a sharp intake of breath to his left draws his attention. He is lying in a medbay and has so many wires attached to him. He takes note of his surroundings. ICU of the hospital on the citadel. He recognises this room. The man to his left now staring at him with tears in his eyes was in this very bed at one point. ''John...'' Kaiden breathes. Kaiden rises out of his seat and takes an unsteady step towards him with tears in his eyes and a huge smile on his face. ''You did it...'' Kaiden is holding his hand gently now. Placing a soft kiss on his lips. Shepard tries to return the kiss but it hurts. Everything hurts. ''Shhhh it's ok John...'' Kaiden places his palm against his face, just resting it there and presses his forehead to Sheppherd's, kissing him again. ''I'm so proud of you baby. You did it. You destroyed the Reapers!'' Kaiden finishes breathlessly. ''Can you hear me John?'' Kaiden inquires. Shepard wants to answer him but he can't seem to get the words to leave his mouth. He looks to Kaiden helplessly and nods despite the sharp pain that sends straight up his neck to his brain. ''Ok don't move. You've been through hell Shepard. I'm going to get the doctor I promise i'll be right back ok?'' Kaiden murmurs softly, voice washing over Sheppherd. He thought he would never get to hear this man's voice again. He is so relieved that he made it.

Kaiden takes a step back after gently squeezing Shepard's hand one last time and then turns around and quickly exits the room. He can hear Kaiden calling for a doctor to come quickly but he feels the darkness overtake him again and succumbs to it's blissful silence.

He wakes again to the steady beep of the heart rate monitor. As he wakes up he finds himself taking note once more of his surroundings and stock of his body. He is aching all over but the pain is lessened. That is good. His cybernetics must be working overdrive. He feels the pain at the edges of his senses but it is dampened. Painkillers? Glancing down at his arm he sees the Iv line connected to a bag above him. Briefly he wonders what the fluid is. Moving his eyes around the room he notes he is still inside the IC room. He finds himself smiling softly at the sight of Kaiden to his left again, sleeping in the chair. Kaiden is still dressed in his combat suit. How long has it been since he arrived? Has Kaiden even left at all? He looks like he hasn't even changed. John frowns at this. Looking to the table beside him he notices a couple of data pad pens. Smiling wider he reaches out and picks one up, gently gripping it, testing his strength in his hands. He feels sluggish and weaker than normal but he supposes that is to be expected. Glancing again at Kaiden he takes aim and throws the pen at the man, watches as it flies through the air as if in slow motion and hitting Kaiden on the forehead. Kaiden wakes with a start as the pen clatters to the floor loudly.

"Wh...what? John? John you're awake!'' Kaiden gets out of the chair quickly and rushes to his side again, reaching out hesitantly as John watches him with steady eyes and a small smile.

"Hey Kay...'' he manages to speak. His voice sounds like crunching gravel and throat feels like it is tearing up at the words but he manages them all the same. The smile on Kaiden's face is worth the pain of talking. He would do anything just to see Kaiden smiling at him like that.

''How are you feeling John?'' Kaiden manages to blurt out after a few moments of silence. His eyes rove over his body, taking note of everything at once.

''Like shit. Get me some water will you?''

"Sure'' Kaiden quickly turns to the pitcher of water on the bedside table and with hands that shake slightly, he manages to fill the small plastic cup and brings it to John's lips. John takes small sips, groaning softly as the cool water rushes down his parched throat, soothing the sore channel.

Once John had emptied the cup he pulled his head back slightly and Kaiden placed the now empty cup back on the table before turning to his lover, tears in the corners of his eyes.

''All right. What happened. Is everyone ok? How long was I out? Did we get all the Reapers?'' John asked, voice coming out smooth and steady, a bit of his old rich tone coming through again.

Kaiden shook his head with a his quirky smile that John loved so much on his face. ''Figures...you save the galaxy and go through hell yet you're still concerned for everyone first. You did it John. You fired the crucible and destroyed the Reapers. They're all dead. Whatever that blast was it managed to get them all. It fired from the citadel to the relays and spread out across the entire galaxy, massive shock waves. Every single reaper is dead as far as we can tell. Blasted to pieces. We're going to have a hell of a clean up. The Normandy crash landed on a planet a few clicks outside the Sol system. No one was hurt other than a few bumps and scrapes here and there. EDI and Joker worked tirelessly to get the systems back online and we made it back as fast as we could. From what I was told when we got here you were found down in the Presidium Commons along the shoreline. You were barely responsive and in critical condition but they managed to get you to a temporary hospital while they cleared out the citadel to make it habitable again. You've been out for two weeks John.'' Kaiden finished with a small sob and reached out to grab John's hand again, gripping it gently in his own and giving it a squeeze. ''I thought the worst when the explosions went off. I thought you left me...''

John stares silently for a few minutes processing what he was just told. It was a lot. He worked so hard to wipe out the Reapers and to be told it had actually happened. He didn't dream it... the Reapers were dead...it was a lot. Looking fondly at his lover he reached up and pulled the man's face towards his with what little strength he had in his arms, drawing Kaiden into a kiss. It was soft and unhurried. Just a gentle touch of lips together but it was so much more than that. It was reaffirmation. It was John letting Kaiden know he was ok, he was here and that they would be fine. Kaiden groaned into the kiss but kept it soft, all his relief and happiness pouring into John as their lips met. Letting John know how glad he was. How worried he was. His relief at seeing his love alive again and his happiness at being able to touch him once more.

It was hell these past two weeks for Kaiden, watching over John every moment he could. He refused to give up hope while he was on the planet they'd crashed on and he refused to give up hope as they made their way back to Earth. It only took them two Earth days but those days were hell. When they arrived and he received the message from Admiral Hackett that they had located John his heart felt like it broke right there. Then to be told John was alive but in critical condition had spurred Kaiden back into action. He joined the efforts on the citadel to clear the most important areas first, Hospital, Living Quarters, Power systems. There were bodies everywhere and it was like being on the set of a horror vid clip but he kept himself going with the single thought of John. What John would want him to do. He refused to stop until they were able to clear out the hospital and get John into the IC ward. Seeing John again lying on the bed, with a ventilator and so many wires coming out of him, looking so frail and broken hurt Kaiden more than he ever imagined. But he kept himself going with the thought that John would be fine. He would recover and wake up and he was alive. That is all that mattered. And now John was awake. He was awake and kissing so sweetly that Kaiden felt like crying again. He wasn't sure what the future would hold for them but for now they had each other and Kaiden swore to himself that he would never leave John's side again.

End