Garrus was sitting in the crew lounge, grudgingly writing a mission report that he had put off for a few days. That was the worst part about being part of an Alliance crew; they questioned everything. Every bullet, every decision, every sneeze had to be reported. Thankfully Shepard was a Spectre, so they weren't scrutinized as highly as others, but still, those mission reports were tedious. Truth be told, Garrus wasn't really concentrating on what he was doing, and he was sure he wasn't being as thorough as he should be. He was just trying to focus on something other than Shepard, who had been on his mind a lot lately. They hadn't had a real conversation since before the Cerberus attack on the Citadel, and now that Kaidan was back, she had been even more elusive, though Garrus was sure he knew why that was. He wasn't blind – he knew that Kaidan and Shepard had been involved three years ago.

Not that Shepard played favourites. In fact, it was the opposite. Whenever they were all together as a team she practically ignored Kaidan, and whenever she asked both of them to accompany her on a mission she always made sure it was all business. But the way Kaidan looked at her when he thought nobody was watching, and the way Shepard's face lifted when he walked into the room made him think there was something there. Garrus never told anyone, of course, everybody knew anyway.

Then the Normandy went down, and everything changed. The news of Shepard's death had left everyone dazed and confused. The crew had tried to keep in touch, but inevitably drifted apart. A heavy feeling formed in Garrus' stomach every time he thought about those two years. He didn't like to think about that time, about Omega and the team he'd assembled. 'I tried to be like Shepard,' he thought bitterly, 'I tried to do what she would have done. Only Shepard wouldn't have gotten everyone killed.'

Shepard's return had caused such a sense of relief in Garrus that, even at that time, he questioned whether or not his interest in her was purely about friendship. She asked him to join her, to help her stop the Collectors, and Garrus accepted without a second thought. Those months had been full of long, sleepless nights for both Garrus and Shepard. That was when they had really gotten to know each other, when she would come to the main battery in the middle of the night when she knew he would be awake. They would talk for hours about everything, good and bad. Shepard told him her honest opinions of the crew, the mission, and how scared she really was. Garrus had confided in her things that he swore he would take to the grave. One day, she came to him and asked him how turians prepared for dangerous missions, and Garrus told her about his sparring matches – and other things. Then Shepard had said one of the most unexpected things ever, and it had turned his whole life around. Garrus could recall perfectly everything she'd said, everything he felt at that moment.

"We ended up holding a tie-breaking in her quarters. I had reach, but she had flexibility. More than one way to blow off stress, I guess." He didn't know why he had told her that.

Shepard stands, takes a few steps towards him, "it sounds like you're carrying some tension, maybe I could help you get rid of it."

"I didn't think you'd feel like sparring, Commander," he said, confused.

"What if we skip right to the tie-breaker? We could test your reach…and my flexibility." Her mouth curves into a half-smile.

Garrus is shocked, unsure of what to say. "Oh! I didn't…huh…never knew you had a weakness for men with scars." It was the best he could come up with. "Well," he adds, pacing around the room a little, "why the hell not. There's nobody in this galaxy I respect more than you, and if we can figure out a way to make it work, then, yeah. Definitely."

She doesn't say anything, just gives him that devious smile as she walks out of the room.

The sound of the door swishing open jarred him from his thoughts, and for a moment Garrus forgot where he was. He looked around to see who had entered. It was Shepard, as if she'd just walked straight out of his memory and into the room. Garrus' throat felt dry. Without a word, Shepard walked straight over to the couch and sat next to him.

"Busy?" Shepard asked

"Uh, no, not really," Garrus said, placing his datapad on the table next to him, "can't sleep?"

"Can I ever sleep?"

Garrus recognized that as a rhetorical question, a strange part of human speech. He didn't know what to say, so he gestured to the bar, "care for a drink?"

Shepard smiled, "yes, please."

Garrus got up and strode the few paces to the bar, not speaking while he measured and poured her a rum and coke, her favourite drink. He poured himself a glass of turian brandy, and sat down next to her again. He handed her the glass and leaned back against the cushions. 'So, Shep, what's on your mind?' he wanted to ask. But Garrus knew her too well to actually say it. Shepard would not be rushed. If she wanted to say something, she'd say it when she was good and ready. Garrus sipped his drink and watched her from the corner of his eye. The stress was starting to wear on her, he saw. Her eyes were dark and red-rimmed, and he wondered if she had been crying. He'd only seen Shepard cry twice in three years – once after Ashley had given her life on Ilos, and again after Horizon. The first time Kaidan had wrapped an arm around her shoulders and told her Ash would always be remembered for her bravery. The second time Kaidan had been the one making her cry, and Garrus found her in the cargo bay, her knees pulled into her chest and face hidden in her arms. Then, just like now, he had sat next to her silently until she was ready to talk.

Thankfully, this time the waiting was over much quicker. "How are you feeling?" she asked him.

That was one of those infuriating human questions. Turians don't talk about their feelings. But this was Shepard, so he answered honestly. "Worried," he said, "but I think we're progressing well. We're getting close, I can feel it."

Shepard nodded and took another sip of her drink, "me too." There was a brief pause, "I had lunch with Kaidan today."

"Is that so?" he said, in what he hoped was an uncaring tone.

"Yes," Shepard said, "he…he wants to get back together."

'I know,' he thought. Aloud he said, "Yeah? How do you feel about that?"

Shepard stood up so suddenly that for half a second Garrus thought they were under attack. "Angry," she said, and began pacing. "I feel angry. What gives him the right to just…just come back and put me in that position? Am I supposed to just forget that he abandoned me? What was he thinking?"

'Why is she telling me this?' Garrus wondered. 'Am I supposed to get jealous, tell her she's mine?' Garrus didn't know how humans usually acted in these situations, so he took a long swig of his drink and said, "heh, I really don't know, Shep."

"I won't do it," Shepard said, turning to face him again, "I won't. He can say whatever he wants; apologize until he's blue in the face. I'm not going to let him hurt me like that again, no matter how much he says he loves me."

Garrus must have looked surprised or something, because Shepard stopped suddenly and sat down again. She took a deep breath, "I'm sorry. I didn't come here to complain about Kaidan."

Garrus responded by taking another swig of brandy.

"I came to talk about us," she said quietly.

Garrus turned his head towards her slowly, "what about us?"

"Are we still…us?"

"I don't know," Garrus said, and before Shepard could speak, added, "I don't see how we could be. Since you recruited me on Palaven you've hardly spoken to me outside of missions, and since Kaidan got back it's been even worse. If you're ever out of your cabin, you're buried in some mountain of paperwork. Liara or Tali pass along your messages. I have more of a relationship with Joker than I do with you."

Shepard was quiet for a moment. Garrus could see her eyes searching his face, trying to read him. He knew that humans showed a lot of emotion through their facial expressions, and right now Shepard's was showing a lot of hurt and anger. "I'm sorry," he said, "that came out a lot harsher than I meant it."

Shepard shook her head, "no, you're right. I guess I have been avoiding you. Please understand that I didn't mean to. Everything has just been so crazy, I'm trying to do everything I can, and I don't know if it's good enough. I don't know if I'm good enough." She dropped her head into her hands. Garrus reached out and put a hand on her back in what he hoped was a gesture of understanding and comfort.

"I miss you," Shepard said, "I never meant to push you away."

"Listen," Garrus said as he leaned forward to her, "I know the status. I know how bad things are. You don't have time for petty jealousy and egos. But you should know that I," he paused, "I care about you. I have been with you since the very beginning, and will be with you until the very end, no matter what happens."

Shepard lifted her head and gave him a smile, "I care about you, too. I can't tell you how much it means to have you around."

Garrus moved towards her and pressed his mouth to hers lightly. She responded immediately, closing her eyes as she leaned into him. Kissing wasn't something turians generally did, so Garrus still found it a little awkward. Still, he wrapped his arms around Shepard's waist and pulled her closer. After a moment, Shepard pulled away from him. Her eyes met his, and she raised one hand to gently caress the scarred side of his face. Garrus closed his eyes and leaned into her touch.

"You should stay with me tonight," Shepard whispered, her face only millimetres from his.

Garrus opened his eyes, "are you sure?"

Shepard smirked at him, "yes."

When Garrus woke up, it took him a few seconds to remember where he was. The bed was too soft, and the room was too quiet. He was accustomed to the loud drone of the engines and guns. Slowly he became aware of another body next to him, and realized with sudden clarity that it was Shepard. Garrus grinned slightly and turned onto his side to face her. She was still asleep and looked very beautiful with her hair loose around her face. Garrus stroked her cheek lightly, enjoying the peace of the moment.

Shepard stirred at his touch, and let out a low groan. "What time is it?" she asked sleepily.

"Don't worry," Garrus said as he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close, "Just go back to sleep."

Shepard returned the embrace and nestled her head under his chin. The sweet smell of her shampoo filled his nose, and Garrus felt more at peace than he had in a long time. Shepard was quiet for a while, and Garrus thought she had fallen back asleep, but then she opened her eyes and looked up at him.

"I forgot how much I liked waking up with you next to me," she said.

"I didn't," he said.

Shepard smiled shyly and covered her face with her hands, "I must look terrible."

"That's not possible," Garrus said.

Shepard took her hands away from her face and kissed him quickly before standing up. Garrus' eyes travelled over her body, enjoying the way her shirt accentuated her curves. He watched her get dressed and begin applying her 'makeup', another human behaviour he just didn't understand.

"There," Shepard said when she was done, "much better, right?"

Garrus finally got up from the bed and donned his armor. "I don't see a difference," he said honestly. Then seeing the look on Shepard's face, added, "I mean you always look good…you're…you don't need that stuff."

Shepard laughed then tossed him his visor that had been discarded onto the floor, "well, thanks, I guess." She looked down at her hands for a second, and back up at him, "So, does this make us official?"

Garrus took a breath, unsure of how he wanted to answer. Of course he wanted to be with her, but was that really the best thing for her right now? There was so much going on, and he didn't want to be another burden in her life. "I think we should just keep it quiet for now," he said, "you know how I feel. Let's just do whatever is natural…uhm…I mean as natural as a turian-human couple can be."

"I agree," Shepard said, and took a few steps towards him. "And Garrus," she gave him a devious smile and squeezed one of his hands between hers, "those new moves…I approve."