Disclaimer: Mass Effect doesn't belong to me, nor do I intend to profit from this work of fiction.
Kaidan wasn't quite sure what to make of Miranda now, her gratitude towards Shepard for helping her with her sister was almost warm and fuzzy. Almost.
And the assassin, well, he wasn't sure how he felt about the drell, Thane Krios. Shepard had been holed up in life support with him all evening, and Kaidan was not happy in the least about it. He was tempted to march in there and drag her away, kicking and screaming if necessary, but he knew that wouldn't win him any points, so he opted to sit in front of a console in the main battery, tearing it apart, despite the surly looks Garrus kept throwing his way.
Finally, after watching Kaidan take apart the same console four times, Garrus spoke. "She not interested in the drell, you know."
Kaidan grumbled, "So why has she been holed up with him all night?" he snapped at the turian.
Garrus chuckled, "You've got it bad, Alenko." He moved away from his console, and went to stand next to Kaidan, assisting him with his rebuilding, " Shepard has a need to 'fix' her crew's problems for us. She was the same way on the SR1. The drell says he's dying, she's going to get as much information out of him as she can." Garrus studied the human thoughtfully, of he hadn't have been a merc for most of his adult life, they could have been friends.
"So what about me, am I just a problem to be fixed?" he snarled, his anger snapping sharply in the air, a blue corona shimmering around him.
"Hey, calm down," Garrus said mildly, "No, you're different. You don't need fixing. You are relatively well adjusted, for a mercenary of nineteen years."
Kaidan ground his teeth together, forcing his aura to dissipate. "Yeah, I guess." He shrugged, "You don't live that life as long as I did without coming to terms with yourself."
Garrus rubbed his hand over his head, "Alenko, you don't seem like a bad guy, in general. But if you hurt her, I'll kill you myself, if she doesn't, that is."
Kaidan blinked at the turian, "You love her."
Garrus sputtered, "What! No! She's like a sister to me, my best friend."
"Right, keep telling yourself that," Kaidan chuckled, and snapped the last wire back into place. "I'm going to go find Shepard and screw her brains out," he informed the turian and could have sworn Garrus blushed as he sputtered in embarrassment.
Kaidan strolled out the door, and found Thane sitting at the table on the mess. "Have you seen Shepard?" he asked politely, not seeing her around.
"I have not seen her since she left me an hour ago," Thane replied, studying the merc standing beside him. "Perhaps ask the AI?"
"Kaidan, Shepard left the ship 55 minutes ago. She did not take an escort."
"Merde," he swore softly, "I know where she's going." He stopped by the crew quarters and picked up his pistol, just in case, before he headed out the airlock.
He found Shepard swaying drunkenly on a bar stool, picking at the Cerberus logo on her uniform. He sighed, so much for screwing her brains out tonight.
Her head picked up as he neared, feeling the familiar tingle of his biotics brushing against hers. "Oh. You found me."
"You didn't want to be found, cher?" he asked, sliding onto the stool next to her, a steadying hand at her back.
"No," she muttered into her almost empty glass. She signaled the asari bartender for another, and missed the signal Kaidan gave to cut her off. "I was talk'n to Thane, an' he made me realize some things 'bout myself. Not a good thing." She stared at the glass of fizzy water the bartender set in front of her and frowned.
"What things?" he asked curiously, and lifted her glass to her lips to encourage her to drink some water.
She frowned, "He was telling me 'bout his wife. And he's got a son, didcha know?" she slurred. Her blue eyes were glassy as she turned to face him, almost slipping off the stool, saved only by his strong hand at the small of her back. "Ya know, I n'ver found anyone, n'ver even been in love b'fore, didn't have the time."
His heart constricted at the confused and crestfallen expression on her face. "I thought I was once," he murmured, getting her attention. "Turns out, I had no idea what it really feels like."
She sighed, "I feel like I've been missing out on something," she said quietly, folded her hands in her lap, stared down at her hands. "I think it's you, Kaidan. I think it's always been you."
He grimaced and exhaled loudly, " Chérie, why tell me now?" he interlaced his fingers in hers. "You won't remember in the morning," he said, almost wistfully.
"I'm a champion drinker, silly. Drank a krogan under tha table once. Survived a poisoning attempt on Omega. Stupid batarian," she muttered. "I 'member everything." She teetered dangerously, her hand clutching at his arm, "Kaidan, I think I'm gonna pass out," she breathed, before toppling backwards. He caught her, swearing softly, gathering her up in his arms. He hailed the bartender, and paid her tab, before taking his sleeping burden back to the ship.
