Chapter 12 – Among Other Things
Traversing through the dock's holding area was gradually becoming a depressing sight. The crowds continued to grow as more and more became refugees from the Reaper invasion. The photographs on the Memorial Wall piled atop each other, stained with the tears of their successors. Nevada disliked venturing through this level of the Citadel. It served as a painful reminder that she could be doing more, fighting harder and finding ways to bring this war to an end sooner.
Coming across the first make-shift room, she stumbled upon her shirtless Lieutenant. With his back towards a batarian tattooist, he appeared to be enjoying himself. He caught the familiar silhouette of his endearing Commander from the corner of his eyes and immediately began glowing.
"So you finally decided to show up," he smiled, rocking in his seat excitedly, "I was worried you wouldn't come."
"Don't move," the batarian snarled.
"Right," James relaxed his body and allowed the tattooist to return to his work.
Shepard propped her back up against the crate directly in front of him and crossed her arms, getting a perfect view of her Lieutenant. Her clean Alliance uniform stood out among the grungy bunch dwelling in the holding area. The bitter sounds of people mourning their loved once echoed upon the metal bins, resonating repeatedly into her ear.
Trying to tune out the vocal annoyances, she caught a group of batarians glaring at her viciously. Judging by their facial expressions, they appeared to still hold a grudge from her actions in the Bahak System and wanted justice for the lives she sacrificed. She knew there was nothing she could do to appease them so she ignored their piercing eyes and directed her attention elsewhere… towards her partially nude subordinate. She surveyed Vega's toned chest and enjoyed the sight of his firm muscles twitching every time the needle etched another line.
"You like what you see?"
"You could say that."
"If you got here sooner, I would have put on a little show when I took off my shirt," the Lieutenant grinned.
"Then I'm glad I took my time."
"Oh come on, Lola. You know you would have enjoyed it."
Running her fingers delicately through her long hair, she revealed her mischievous smile as she curled the stray strands behind her ear. "Maybe I'll make you perform your little show a little later."
"Sounds good but it wouldn't be the same appeal… I was hoping to make you blush in front of everyone here."
"You wish, Lieutenant. I would never do such a thing in public," Shepard noted, feeling the batarian's eyes burning into her flesh, "Keep that up and I'll be sure to take even longer to arrive to our get-togethers."
"Alright, point taken," Vega held up his hands in protest, "Speaking of which… what took you so long to get here?"
"I didn't mean to. I just…" she quickly found herself at a loss for words, "I got caught up with something…"
"Like what?"
"I was having lunch."
"With the Major?"
Nevada froze. Her deep brown eyes widened as she slowly returned to face him, curiously questioning, "How did you know?"
"He told me… I think it was yesterday or the day prior. He said he wanted a moment to discuss something with you in private. Didn't say what it was though but I knew it was something important… possibly something that was coming from the heart. He has a way of saying things without using words. I guess he wanted me to know just in case I saw you two having a moment together," Vega mentioned as he stretched his back muscles while the tattooist took a brief break.
The Commander knew this was going to take a while and crouched down onto the dusty floor, taking a seat with her back against the shipping crate. The humming of the crowded hallways outside the makeshift room seemed dulled down from this new position. Finding solace in this quieter ambience, Nevada felt the world around her disappear… leaving only the habitants within the crated area.
All she could hear now was the soft buzzing sound coming from the tattooist's gun while he continued to ink the Lieutenant's flesh. As the needle carved another line into his sensitive skin, James drowned out the pain by focusing his full attention on the beautiful soldier sitting before him. Still trying to understand her late arrival, he asked, "So… how was your lunch with him?"
After taking a moment to bask in his enamored gaze, she pursed her lips together and teased, "Do I detect a bit of jealousy in your voice?"
"Not at all."
"Really?" she pursued with one eyebrow raised.
"Yeah… okay, just a little," he surrendered, holding up his fingers to measure an inch.
Enjoying her obscure victory, she shifted her legs to a more comfortable position before explaining, "Well, we met up at Apollo's Café and discussed a few things. We talked about the past and the future, we talked about Earth, and… you were right, he did have some things coming straight from the heart. He wanted to make sure things were cleared up between us. With the mess that happened back on Horizon and on Mars, with the tension happening on the Normandy, with all the disagreements we had about my loyalties… he wanted to know where he stood."
"And what did you say?"
"I told him that we were good… as long as we should kept things professional. I'm hoping things can stay on positive terms. Now more than ever since Udina has invited him to become a Spectre."
"Wow," James paused, taking a moment dwell on this new information, "That's big. No wonder he wanted to talk to you privately."
"Yeah…"
"Do you think he's ready for that responsibility?"
"I know he is. He'll make them proud. He's much more predictable than me… and the Council needs reliability at the moment. Not some renegade agent with bigger matters on her plate than the Council's safety," she muttered, staring idly at her fidgeting hands.
"It'll be interesting having two Spectres onboard."
"Actually, Kaidan won't be with us anymore. He's decided to stay behind on the Citadel after his ceremony because," she twiddled her fingers, unsure if she should reveal the Major's reason, "well, there was something more."
James took a deep sigh, "I had a hunch that there was something more."
"There always is with Kaidan. He's been trying to get with me ever since we first served on the SR-1."
"So he tried to take you away from me?"
"Tried and failed… he proceeded to ask me if you make me happy and I didn't have to say anything. My actions expressed whom my heart belongs to," her deep brown eyes locked onto his and shared how deeply she admired her Lieutenant.
"I…" he started but couldn't find the right words to fully express his feelings.
She pulled away from his endearing gaze as she continued, "But I'm left with this aching feeling. This time when he told me how much I meant to him and how he was hoping I felt the same way in return, even in the slightest… it felt different than any other of his previous attempts. This time felt like it was going to be the last time he would ever have the chance to say something. And it… it really makes me wonder how close to the end we really are."
The Lieutenant couldn't conjure up a response as he watched his Commander slowly rubbing her hands together. Deeply submersed in the thoughts about her recent encounter, her back slouched against the worn down crate. The sight of Nevada at the mercy of her mind left Vega questioning what the future held for them. What began as playful teasing and rousing midnight escapades, quickly developed to something deeper. He couldn't distinguish if it was Shepard's unwavering devotion on the battlefield being carried into her personal affairs or if it was the effects of the war around them forcing them to speed things up. Somehow their relationship was blossoming into something greater. The only qualm was how much longer they would have together.
Shepard knew precisely what was awaiting her… and the very thought left her dreadfully remembering the haunting experience of her death. With planets falling silent to the Reaper invasion and the list of casualties rapidly increasing, an end was inevitable. It was becoming more and more apparent… everywhere she looked there were reminders of this war. The number of refugees growing, the surplus of supplies becoming progressively scarce, and the sounds of despair raining outside of their crated enclosure was proof enough.
Before she could dwell on the thought much longer, James tuned in, "We may be closing in on the end of this war but what we have between us is just beginning… and I am not giving you up that easily."
His tone resonated towards the silent woman, immediately reigniting the life back into her eyes. She picked herself up from the ground and dusted the seat of her pants. A strange twinkle sparked from her gaze as she tugged the bottom of her officer's jacket down. The wicked curl of her lip crawled back on her long face, triggering the recessed memories of her bold wits. The reclaimed confidence beaconed from her voice, "You're right. It's too early for this Commander to give in."
"Damn straight," Vega rooted as the tattooist finished the final line of the design and began bandaging his fresh ink, "And think of it this way… with the Major gone it works in your advantage. While he's taking care of the Council, you can concentrate on more important issues."
"Good point… like finding a way to stop these damned Reapers."
"Actually, I was talking about our training," he grinned.
She rolled her eyes playfully, "This again?"
"Whether you like it or not, you are my direct superior."
"Among other things," Shepard bluntly interrupted.
"Yes, among other things… but I take my lead from you. And you know… I'll take whatever advice you've got when it comes to being an N7."
"Really?"
"Sure… the good advice," he joked as he stood up, grabbed his shirt, and carefully put it on, "So we better get started on that training, Commander."
"You know that's going to sting for a few days. Are you sure you're going to be ready for duty?"
"I'm not looking forward to slapping my armor back on... but I'm always ready."
"Oh really, Lieutenant?"
"That's affirmative," he prowled towards Nevada and wrapped his burly arms around her. Pulling her tightly against his chest, he could feel her heart beating loudly. A warming sensation overwhelmed him as a single thought crossed his mind -"My actions expressed whom my heart belongs to." Remembering her every word, he leaned down and softly planted a kiss on her forehead.
Shepard glanced up at her captor's eyes, slightly mesmerized by his affectionate actions. She rested her cheek against his as she rubbed her hands along his back. Her fingers came across the outline of the gauze covering his fresh ink. A devious grin quickly appeared as she noticed her opportunity. With one swift movement, she pulled her hand back and slapped the sensitive area.
"Ow! What was that for?" James called out as he pulled away.
"I thought you said you were ready for duty," she sharply replied.
"I am but that's hardly what I would define as duty."
"Shouldn't matter what the definition is. You knew this was coming, I even warned you. I distinctively remember telling you that I was going to slap your tattoo."
"I thought you were joking." he protested, "Still… it doesn't mean you should."
"Are you defying your commanding officer, Lieutenant?" she playfully asked, leaning in and eying her subordinate carefully.
"Among other things… you said so yourself."
"You have no idea what you signed yourself up for when you made me your mentor," she purred as she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him near.
"You really are going to put me through my paces, aren't you?"
"You'll just have to wait and see."
"When do we start?"
"I expect you to be in my quarters as soon as we board for your first training session."
"Is that before or after I put on a little show?"
"That depends," she lipped, leaning in with her mouth dangerously closing in on his, "Do you really want to postpone your training for one silly little strip down? Or do you want to jump straight into testing your endurance?"
"Are you going to show up considerably late this time too?" he jokingly asked.
"Gah!" she growled, forcing him towards the exit.