Shepard slept in late the following morning. It was unusual for Vega to wake and find her still sleeping, but he was glad of it. Nobody needed a long, restful night more than Commander Shepard. So he delayed making his coffee and breakfast so as not to disturb her, and instead stayed in his room. He showered, dressed, and perched himself in front of the computer to check the latest news headlines.
More infuriating lies about Shepard. More batarian unrest. There was nothing new and nothing interesting. Vega browsed the extranet out of boredom, not really looking for anything in particular. As he was scrolling through pages of time-wasting options, his gaze shifted away from the screen and fell upon the data module that was still in the port. His hand stopped over the holographic interface. He chewed his lip thoughtfully. After a moment, he sat forward in the chair and activated the keyboard, typing in: "Kaidan Alenko".
The screen filled with data, news items, links to vids, photos, quotes and more. Words such as "hero" and "courageous" littered the display, along with mention of promotions, accolades and praise from other Alliance officers. At first glance it was clear that Major Alenko was somebody he should have already heard of. Vega immediately selected a thumbnail of the Major's face and brought it up to full size, the curiosity searing through him like a blade. He just had to see the face of the man who had earned Shepard's love and admiration – and who had been stupid enough to break her heart.
The image he found staring back at him was more gut-wrenching than he had imagined. Alenko was extremely attractive, with film-star good looks and deep brown eyes. He was older than Vega, and the age suited him. Hints of lines upon his skin and a whisper of silver through his thick, glossy hair did nothing to detract from his appearance. He was practically perfect. The bastard didn't even have a scar on his pretty face. Moving on to another image, Vega found the Major dressed formally for one of his many medal presentations. He was tall, broad-shouldered, poised, muscular… He made Vega sick.
He didn't want to know more about the picture-perfect officer, but somehow he could not stop himself. He read through Alenko's biography and public Alliance profile, skimmed through pages and pages of fan drivel, viewed galleries and news interviews, and ploughed through the list of the Major's career highlights. On the vids Alenko spoke with a calm and distinguished voice, eloquent, polite. He was humble, even self-deprecating, and was visibly embarrassed when people praised him. He spoke often of Commander Shepard. The man revered her publicly, redirecting all of his success toward her whenever he was commended. Vega learned that he had served under Shepard as Staff Lieutenant aboard the first Normandy, and had been part of the ground team on some of the most epic missions in Alliance history. He was by her side when she saved Eden Prime from Saren and the geth. He was with her on Virmire, storming Saren's base and nuking the facility at great risk to his own life. He was there when she faced the turian Spectre in a last stand on the Citadel, there to see the fall of the mighty Reaper, Sovereign. He was a survivor of the destruction of the Normandy SR-1 in which Shepard had lost her life.
So this was the man to whom her heart belonged. Vega had known all along that a woman as amazing as Shepard could not love just a normal man, no more than a goddess could love a mortal. Now he knew how true that was. Kaidan Alenko was like a mythical white knight, benevolent and flawless. He was so far above Vega in every way that there could simply be no contest.
Why are you getting so riled up about it, pendejo? He accused himself bitterly. It's not like you were falling for her. It's not like you ever had intentions. Nothing's changed.
But something had changed. Vega didn't understand what it was exactly, but it was there. A tight knot deep down inside him, an ache beyond his ribs, a nagging whisper at the back of his mind. Recently he had felt… different. And seeing the perfect war-hero of a man with whom Shepard had shared herself so intimately, that indescribable and merciless feeling was permanently cemented.
He was so wrapped up in self-pity that he didn't even notice that Shepard was up and about. He didn't hear her until she appeared in the doorway of his room. Vega panicked when he saw her. He frantically erased everything on his computer screen, praying she did not catch a glimpse of what he was looking at. She leaned against the door frame, rubbing her tired eyes, dressed in her sports-style sleepwear with bare feet. She had not noticed the screen at all.
'Commander,' he yelped, a nervous hand going to the back of his neck. 'You're up.'
Shepard yawned and stretched out, seemingly still half-asleep. 'I overslept,' she said.
'Yeah, uh… Well, it's not like you've got any appointments to keep or anything.'
'Mmm, I guess not.' She passed her groggy eyes over the computer. 'Oh, James, while you're on there,' she said suddenly, 'can you erase the security footage from last week? That… thing that happened?'
He frowned, confused. 'Security footage?'
'Yeah. Your console records surveillance from the other room, right?'
He had not really thought about it. The feed was displayed on a program running in the background of the computer, but Vega had always assumed it was simply a live view. It had never occurred to him that the footage was being recorded and stored. But now it seemed obvious.
His eyes widened. 'You think anybody else sees this?' he panicked. 'You think they can access the recordings?'
'I have no idea. But I think it's probably a good idea if we cut out the part where I sexually assaulted the guard assigned to me…'
Vega's fingers raced across the controls in a rush to locate the incriminating video footage. Shepard came up behind him and watched over his shoulder. He called up the surveillance program. Selecting an option to review previous days' recordings, he was presented with a collection of folders listing dates and times.
'When was it?' he said to Shepard, drawing a blank.
'Wednesday,' she replied promptly. 'Around sixteen-hundred hours.'
He was surprised she knew that. He found the folder of the day in question and opened it. Scrolling down to sixteen-hundred hours, he came across a video screen thumbnail that showed him carrying Shepard into the apartment. He selected it. The video started to run.
'Don't play it!' Shepard hissed, slapping Vega across the back of the head. 'Get rid of it!'
He cancelled the playback just as he saw an image of Shepard pulling him down onto the sofa. His heart was beating rapidly. He hit delete and watched the file vanish from the folder. Shepard sagged with relief.
'Do you realise if anybody had seen that,' she sighed, 'you would have been re-assigned in a second? The last thing I want is you getting shipped off somewhere.'
Vega felt a smile pull at his face. 'You'd miss me, I know.'
'No, I'd just hate to get stuck with some hard-ass guard who wouldn't let me walk all over him.' She smirked at him.
'I'm pretty sure you could walk all over anybody, Commander.'
'Oh, I know I could,' she said with a grin. 'But it's more fun when it's with you.'
It was the first friendly exchange they had shared since the awkward incident. Vega knew it must have something to do with what happened last night. It was as if him seeing her at her most vulnerable and accepting it wordlessly had made Shepard feel comfortable with him again. He had shown her that she need not be afraid to let her guard down with him. For somebody as private and proud as Shepard, that must mean something. He imagined that she had very few friends with whom she could do that. The thought was encouraging. He had done something right for a change.
Shepard spun away from him with a smile and tiptoed towards the door. Vega watched her go. As she was about to disappear, she popped her head back inside and said:
'I feel like having a lazy day. How does movies and beer sound to you?'
Vega stared. 'At eight in the morning?'
'No, later, of course.' She gave him a conspiratory sidewards glance. 'Right now, I'm going to do something I haven't done for a long time: sleep all morning…'
Vega shook his head in bafflement as the Commander vanished into the next room. She wasn't back to normal; she had passed normal and was now in another category altogether. What was this current strange mood? She was a continual source of bewilderment to Vega. If he had thought it difficult to understand women before this, now he knew it was impossible.
He swivelled his chair back to face the computer. The surveillance records were still open. A thought came to him and he glanced guiltily at the door. Shepard was in bed – he could see her on the minimised display in the corner of the screen. He had some time to himself. And the sight of their brief passionate liaison captured on camera was stirring in his mind. He swallowed hard. Then quietly, slowly, he stood up and crept over to the door, carefully closed it, and returned to his seat. He brought up the task list and hovered over the "Undo Delete" option. He touched it.
Like a criminal in the secret corner of his lair, he restored the erased video and hunched over to watch it. He ignored the accusatory voice in his head, focusing on the screen before him. He saw himself place Shepard down on the sofa and start to draw back. He saw her face flushed with what he had previously mistaken for indignation, and her eyes lock onto him like a huntress sighting her prey. He watched without breathing as the lusty woman snatched him off of his feet and began to devour him. All of the desire and euphoria came flooding back to Vega as he relived those intense, fleeting seconds. He raised the audio volume as high as he dared, aching to hear the words that she had gasped into his ear one more time.
His hands strayed south as he lost himself in the video. His need silently cried out. His body responded. He plunged into dizzying pleasure and let all of his untended want rush forth, sating the fire that had scorched his soul. For now.