Chapter 10
"How long is this going to take?" Anya asked, trying not to sound like she was whining.
Garrus jumped in before Dr. Chakwas could. "As long as it takes to make sure you don't have any cracked ribs."
"I'm fine."
"You got in a three separate fist fights with a yahg in the middle of a firefight, then proceeded to tell me that your everything hurt."
"I'm just sore," she groused.
"Which is why you should be making this exam as easy for me as possible, Commander. Unless you want it to take all night for me to poke and prod you?" Dr. Chakwas asked, eyebrow cocked and amusement in her voice.
"Fine." Anya took a breath and tried not to pout. "Garrus got hit by the yahg, too. When's it his turn?"
"Right after you," he offered, crossing his arms. "I'm pretty sure I don't have a concussion, but it would honestly make going down that fast less embarrassing."
"Arms up while I'm scanning, Commander." Dr. Chakwas had her omni-tool ready. Anya obeyed, linking her hands behind her head.
"You got hit in the face. It was mostly body shots with me, plus that shield probably dispersed the force a little. I wouldn't worry. I wasn't planning on telling people you got hurt early on."
"Yeah, but I know, Shep."
Anya snorted. "You're still very manly, don't worry."
"Well, that's a relief," he said drily, shaking his head with a half-smile. "Now if you can convince my ego, we can call it a day."
"I do still…" Anya stopped, remembering where she was. Garrus looked at her questioningly, and she made sure to look him up and down slowly, biting her lip when her gaze met his. He seemed to understand her meaning, and immediately seemed flustered. She teased him, saying, "You okay, big guy?"
He had to clear his throat. "I, uh...ego's good now."
"Good." She finally looked away, blushing a little. She wasn't used to putting herself on the spot, but it had worked well in terms of reassuring him, and she had to admit, it was nice to see him thrown for a loop.
"So, does this mean.. spirits, I…" He fumbled over his words, glancing at Dr. Chakwas.
Anya sighed. "Just say it, Garrus. I don't care if you don't."
He still hesitated. "I just don't want you to regret-"
"I won't."
"If the two of you are wondering, I am already aware. Ms. Goto is quite the romantic, and apparently she and Tali talk."
"Oh. Well, I didn't realize that Tali would say anything," Garrus muttered, looking guilty.
"Wait, you told Tali?"
"Yes. I mean, she knew I had a thing for you two years ago. She was easy to talk to when she came on this time, and I guess...it sort of slipped."
Anya laughed. "No wonder she was egging me on about telling you."
"Wait, Tali knew you had a thing for me before I did?"
"Yeah, it was a girl talk thing. I was trying to get the details on her and Kal and it sort of slipped?" She sounded apologetic.
"When did this happen?"
"The night I asked for booze for her."
"Right! That was…"
"...just before Sidonis." Anya finished the statement.
"And you still liked me after all that?"
"I did, and still do."
"Even after our talk earlier?" He seemed worried.
"Why wouldn't I?"
"I just... I was worried that I had left you under the impression that I didn't want to try."
"You made it clear that it was just nerves. I'm fine. We're fine," she reassured him. He seemed to perk up a little at that.
"Good, I...good. I keep worrying about messing this up."
"Just don't pop my heat sink, we'll be fine."
He chuckled. "I knew that was going to come back on me eventually."
"Don't feel bad."
"Not when I'm talking to the queen of reach and flexibility, of course not," he joked.
"Oof," she groaned, clapping her hand to her chest as if wounded.
"Commander," Dr. Chakwas chastised.
"Sorry," Anya muttered, resuming her previous position.
"So, did Tali throw you the idea for that line?"
"No. The painfully obvious pick up line idea came from Jack, actually."
"Jack? Our Jack?"
"Yeah."
"Spirits, I feel oblivious now."
"That's how I felt!"
Garrus chuckled. "What is it that your people say? Better late than never?"
"Yeah. What about your people?"
"Eh, closest I can think of right now would have to be, 'The last recruit in formation ought to be perfect or absent.' It's not great."
"You know, I've heard worse."
Garrus snorted and Anya smiled. Silence fell between them for a moment and a dark thought crossed her mind again. He noticed her change in mood. "What is it? Turian idioms that bad after all?"
"No, I'm just worried. This whole Shadow Broker thing, I just… Do you think Liara is going to be okay?"
"I do. I think it might take a little time, but... I really do think she's going to be fine. She's smart, and she learned a lot about taking care of herself from you. She was doing a decent job taking care of herself on Illium."
"But what if something like Nyxeris happens again?"
"Liara could have handled it on her own. Us being there was just convenient, and I'm sure she was glad to have an excuse to have you around. We all missed you, Shep." Garrus watched her as his voice gentled.
"He's not wrong," Dr. Chakwas murmured.
Anya felt a lump in her throat. "I know, I just…"
"You can't help worrying, because you care," he said, sounding sure.
"Yeah," she said quietly.
"Why don't you invite her onto the Normandy? It might put your mind at ease, and give the two of you a chance to talk a bit."
"That's not going to be a problem?"
"Why would Liara being here be a problem?"
"She was pretty obvious about having a crush on me back on the first Normandy, I just…"
"Anya, it's fine. I have no reason not to trust you."
"You're right."
"If you know that I'm right, why are you so anxious about me?"
"It's not...you. I just...I've been worrying about messing this up, too."
"There is very little you can do to mess this up. Blow up Palaven, maybe. Colluding with the Reapers would do it."
She laughed. "You've made your point. Please no more examples."
"Damn, I had some good ones."
"Later, maybe."
"Alright, Commander, looks like no broken bones, just bruised ones. I wouldn't recommend getting swatted by any more yahg, though."
"You know, in retrospect, I don't think I should have tried it the first time."