A/N: I'm sorry about the delay. Hopefully things will slow down enough that I can get back to regular updates. Thank you for the reviews and follows. It really helps me keep going through everything.
The Birthday
"Mom, can I invite my friend over for my birthday?"
The petite woman poked her head around the corner of the small kitchenette, the mixer whirring loudly. She was in the middle of making a cake from scratch, the one birthday tradition she vowed to maintain no matter what. The boy realized he had not spoken loud enough to be heard over the din. He started to get up when he heard the mixer shut off.
"I'm sorry, did you say something? I couldn't hear you over the mixer."
"I asked if I can invite my friend over for my birthday."
The boy fidgeted slightly in the big recliner, his face slightly flushed. He never asked to have a friend over before. Heck, he never had one to invite. His mother grinned at the request, which only made him more nervous.
"Of course! There will be plenty of cake, and I can order an extra meal."
"And there will still be enough for dad, too, right? 'Cause I don't want dad to not have any cake."
The young mother's eyes tightened at the mention of the boy's father, but she didn't let her smile falter. She had plenty of practice in that now, and the boy pretended not to notice. He had plenty of practice too. That one small quiver told him all he needed to know: it was going to be another birthday without his father.
"I promise there will be enough cake for everyone. Do you have an address or number so I can contact his parents?"
"Um, no, I don't have that. And she's a girl. The one from the docks, remember?"
"I see. Yes, I remember her. Well, I guess we can look her up. What's her name?"
"I don't know."
"What do you mean you don't know? Did you forget?"
"I forgot to ask."
"I'm sorry, Cookie. I can't find her if I don't have anything to go on." She placed a hand lightly on his. "I tell you what. We will invite her over next time you see her, and I will even make another cake. How does that sound?"
The boy nodded mutely, not looking up so his mother wouldn't see how disappointed he was. She didn't remember what it was like to be a kid - most parents forget at some point. Kids don't put much importance on introductions. He wanted to kick himself for not asking for her name, but it never came up. They just started playing like they had always known one another, and then she was suddenly being led away by her mother.
He brooded in his chair for several minutes before an idea struck him: he could search for her on the landing manifests. He remembered the exact day her ship landed, so it would be easy to find. Getting through the security would be the tricky part. The mixer sprung back to life in the other room, so he knew he had time before his mother was done. He just had to be quick and careful.
Fifteen minutes later, the boy was frustrated nearly to tears. He had been trying to hack into the system but couldn't break through the security. The clanging of dishes in the next room told him his mother was almost finished cleaning up, so he backed out of everything before his mother could catch him. He was shutting down his monitor when there was a sharp rap at the door. The sounds in the kitchenette drowned out the knocks, so he decided to get up and answer it himself.
A tall soldier filled the doorway, a small N7 just visible on the upper right hand side of his chest. The soldier's brown-grey eyes focused on the small boy before he spoke.
"Are you Jeff Moreau?"
The little boy fell back onto his bottom as his legs tried to scramble away faster than the VI controlled braces could follow. He let out a small cry on impact and immediately started begging.
"I'm so sorry, sir, I didn't mean to do anything wrong. I tried... security..." His words jumbled into unintelligible sobs, panic clearly taking over.
The soldier's face softened. He paused to set something down in the hall before he bent to gently help the boy up. The boy's mother came running in when she heard the thump and cries. Her eyes widened when she saw a uniformed soldier hoist her son upright.
"What the hell is going on here?" Her fierce voice was enough to make the battle-hardened soldier jump slightly.
"Lieutenant Anderson, ma'am," the soldier extended a hand as he introduced himself. "I was looking for young Mr. Moreau, and it seems I have found him."
"And what, exactly, do you want with my son?"
There was a dangerous edge to his mother's voice the boy had never heard before. The boy froze in terror, unsure how to tell his mother about the attempted hacking and terrified of what was going to happen to him. Oh no, I am going to spend my birthday in jail. I might never get out. That is if mom doesn't kill me first he thought bitterly. It scared him enough that he vowed to never cross her again if he survived. His mouth opened and closed several times, tear-filled eyes on his mother.
"I apologize for scaring him, and you for that matter. I am merely here as a courier." The soldier winked at the dumbfounded child as he bent to retrieve something just outside the doorway. A brightly wrapped package peaked from his large hand as he stood, and he handed it to the boy. The mother swooped down and snatched it away.
"We don't take gifts from strangers." The boy wasn't sure if his mother was talking to him or the soldier, but he was disappointed just the same.
"This isn't from me, ma'am." A bemused smile danced on the young soldier's face as he continued. "I promised a very persistent little red headed girl that I would deliver it. She wanted to do so herself, but she is under doctor's orders not to leave her bed. It took most of my skills as an N7 just to get out the door without her. As battle-hardened as I may appear, I don't want to face her wrath if I fail."
"That's her mom! That is my friend. Can I open the present? Please? She is kinda scary, and I don't want the nice man to get hurt." Jeff started dancing in place, tears barely starting to dry on his cheeks.
"Well, I don't want to be responsible for an injured soldier..." she said with a small smile. The rest of her answer was lost behind the boy's loud yell of excitement.
He tore open the present in a blur; colorful scraps of paper flew in every direction. A remote-controlled model Alliance fighter ship lay in the box atop a small hand-written note.
I thought you would like to be able to watch one take off and land whenever you wanted to. Try it, it really works! I bet you are really good at it. I want to play with it with you when I am all better. I get to go first since you will get all the turns before then. I hope you have a good birthday. I bet you are surprised I remembered, aren't you?
R.L. Shepard
