Chapter 2
After the ex-Cerberus Scientists Mission (in which Vega saves Kaidan's ass from the attack of a phantom as Kaidan had been busy repairing one of the AA guns, and later on Kaidan asks Shepard about an insight into Cerberus but does not get a satisfying answer)
Lieutenant James Vega had an edge about him. Edge might not be the right word, he was too evasive for that, but every time Kaidan talked to him, he got a vibe from him that was not exactly nervous but there was an energy to it that couldn't be excitement. Maybe it was anticipation or hostility; either way, the energy was too negative for Kaidan to ascribe some friendly quality to it. All he could say was that Vega did not like his company. That one time Kaidan went down to the Shuttle Bay to snoop around (EDI had told him Shepard was not in there, but she had also told him that he had been there earlier that day.), Vega hadn't even turned around to greet him. He kept playing with the weapons on his desk, giving his questions curt, dismissive replies. Kaidan remembered the look Vega had given him back on earth. 'Do you know the commander?', he had said. There had been that edge to him then. While Kaidan had kept his eyes on the retreating form of Shepard with a look of nostalgic longing about him, Vega had kept his on him the entire time. His edge had been especially sharp at that moment, cutting through Kaidan's reverie. When Kaidan had finally turned his head toward him, Vega had been slow to conceal the hostile expression on his face. 'Is there a problem, Lieutenant?' Vega had just shaken his head and walked off, and later Kaidan had come to the conclusion that he had probably imagined the hostility in his eyes.
But the edge was now present, as sharp as a krogan's teeth, around Vega's hazel eyes, like electric fences that keep away unwelcomed trespassers; the gaze was almost…accusing. Kaidan might not have been able to rationalize it, but he felt…
'Do you fancy the commander?', he felt like saying. He didn't. For one thing, Liara was with them in the Mess Hall, engrossed in a datapad as she played around with her food, but that didn't mean she wouldn't be hearing them. For another, Vega had just saved his ass earlier that day and throwing this in his face before getting even with him for the life debt did not feel right. Yet, uneasiness settled in his stomach and he couldn't help but return Vega's look with the same level of antagonism.
"Is there a problem, Lieutenant?"
His encounters with Vega were now nothing but rippling circles of déjà vu that expanded in the air until they faded into nothingness. It was a constancy, but one he could never get comfortable with. He was used to having people from varied species hate his guts (especially the turians; it was as if they caught on his apprehensiveness and then turned it into a full-on aggression directed at him), but the thought of having a partner that would stab him in the back unnerved him; not that Vega was exactly a back-stabber kind of guy, what with his utter failure at subtlety, but still…
Vega shrugged but his gaze did not soften. If he were a biotic, he would be sending off blue sparks right now.
"Maybe."
His answer surprised Kaidan. He was not expecting Vega to acknowledge the hostility between them. What changed?
Liara, sensing the bad air, politely excused herself from the table to give them some privacy. Vega's eyes followed her until she disappeared behind the curve that led to the elevator. Kaidan waited for him to speak first.
"You're an imbécil."
Kaidan raised one of his brows, slightly confused but mostly amused at the choice of words which had been said in a deliberate thick accent as if to emphasize its intensity. Exactly who was the imbecile here?
"What are you on about, Vega?", he kept his tone neutral just in case Vega was, for once, in a talking mood, and Kaidan could get something out of him.
"You would have known that by now, if you hadn't been an imbécil."
He left after that, and even though Kaidan was now dying to know what was going on, he had enough dignity so as not to shout after the bulky lieutenant for a clarification; especially when that said clarification was about his state of being an imbecile.
"It's like everybody knows something but you.", he said to his distorted reflection on the back of his shiny spoon.
"It's because you're an imbécil.", replied his reflection with a self-depreciating smirk.
Kaidan threw the spoon away and massaged his throbbing temple. A migraine was coming on.
