In the morning, her omni-tool went off, waking both of them up. They were still entwined together.
"Mmm," Garrus leaned over and sniffed her.
"Is that a Turian thing?" she asked.
"Yea, didn't you find that out in your research?"
"No, I didn't do enough. I will, though, now that I've got a reason to."
"So will I. I don't want to hurt you, or do something rude without realizing it." He leaned back on her bed and looked up at the ceiling. "You weren't going to say anything to me, were you?"
She shook her head, "No."
He turned to look at her, "I'm glad you did, though. You know, you really are a beautiful woman."
She smiled, "Not put off by my pink fleshiness?"
"Nope. Looking forward to seeing more of it."
She laughed.
Garrus got up and started putting his boots on.
"You know you've got to walk out there past everyone in the mess hall." Shepard stood up and stretched.
"I hope Kaidan isn't still there pretending to work on that electrical panel." He grinned.
"You would love that. No, he stopped doing that after that night he came here and I rejected him."
Garrus walked over to her and said, "I don't care what anyone thinks. I care what you think. Let them all talk if they want to."
"I agree." She got closer to him and put her hands around his back, leaning in with her head against his chest.
"How about we go out on a date tonight?"
She pulled back, "Oh yeah?"
He nodded, "Sure. You know, get to know each other on a more personal level. We're docked at the Citadel. We're basically in limbo until you leave on your mission in a few days."
"Can't be many places here to go out with everything that's just happened."
He shrugged, "We need to get supplies, and further down from the Presidium the damage is minimal. We can go out to eat somewhere there."
She nodded, "Sounds great. I'd like that." She started to feel excited. This was really happening.
He gave her a squeeze. "Wonderful. I'm going to go over to my quarters and we'll come up with a time later, okay?"
She nodded. Her expression looked a little worried.
"What is it?" he asked her.
"I just – you're so important to me, Garrus. I don't want to screw this up."
"Of course you're going to screw this up. I will too, we'll both make mistakes because that's what happens when people are figuring each other out. Especially two different species, but that's okay. It doesn't have to be perfect to be successful. Don't put so much pressure on yourself. It's okay, we'll help each other out, and be understanding. Alright?"
She smiled and nodded, "Yes, alright."
"Good. I know you, you're not one to let fear control you. Don't start doing that now."
She realized he knew her better than she knew herself.
Garrus got dressed and chuckled to himself as he walked out of her quarters, glancing around the corner. As she'd said, Kaidan was no longer skulking around the control panel. Plenty of the crew were in the mess hall, and took notice of him leaving Shepard's quarters. He grinned as he walked around to the elevator and made his way down to the cargo hold.
He didn't have much work to do, now that there was no Mako to work on. He helped in engineering, making repairs from the fight against Sovereign. He showed up for a meeting that afternoon Shepard called for all the crew, knowing she was going to announce the Alliance taking over the Normandy and the mandate for all aliens to be off the ship in the next few days.
They all crowded in the mess hall, the only room large enough to hold most of the crew.
He only half paid attention as Shepard thanked the crew, went over their accomplishments over the past months. He watched her, thinking about how he'd been stroking her hair that morning. He couldn't wait to get her in his arms again. It was exciting, taking their relationship to an intimate level. He'd never thought about being with a human, but being with her was different, special. She'd chosen him, said she'd been attracted to him from the beginning. She'd rejected Kaidan's advances as well. Everyone, including he, had thought she would totally go for Kaidan as a mate. He smiled, thinking how of all the people in the galaxy, she'd chosen him. It wasn't conventional, to say the least, for the representative of human Alliance, the first Spectre, to be so confident in herself to pursue a relationship with a Turian. He was glad he'd been open-minded when she first shocked him when she'd confessed her feelings last night. The more he thought about it, thought about her, the more right it felt. He continued to watch her address the crew, and saw the frustration and disappointment underneath her professional calm. He heard Wrex mumble something about not enough time, and he came out of his own musings to pay more attention to the situation at hand.
"So, we'll be leaving tonight. Any questions or concerns, please come see me in my quarters, as I'll be preparing for our next mission." She nodded and turned to address a visibly upset Liara.
"Wait, did she say tonight?" Garrus stopped Pressley as he turned to walk past him.
"Yeah. All the Alien crew has to be off today. Don't see what the big rush is, but the Alliance doesn't ask us our opinion before they give orders." He gave him a wry smile and patted him on the shoulder, "It's been an honor serving with you, Officer Vakarian."
Garrus frowned, "Yes, for me as well." He spotted Shepard talking still to Liara and made his way over to her.
She turned to see him and instantly grabbed his arm. "I'm sorry, I just got word ten minutes before the meeting. We're leaving tonight," she looked down and shook her head, "I guess we'll have to reschedule our date."
He nodded, "Will we have some time alone before you go?"
She nodded vigorously, "Yes, definitely. Wrap things up, and come to my quarters. I'll meet you there." She brought up her omni-tool and gave him the override code.
She watched as he made his way back through the crowd and felt intense regret for having to split up her crew. For an instant she'd thought about taking the Normandy anyway, crew intact, but knew that she wouldn't get far before her actions would catch up to her. Going after Saren had been one thing, taking the ship as her own personal craft was an entirely different one, and one that would not be supported by the rest of the crew. She may be a Spectre, but she was Alliance first. She turned and talked to Tali and Wrex, talking to them personally about how much she valued their contributions, their friendship, and making plans to stay in touch. They all knew this was not over, was just the beginning, and that even if they weren't on the same ship, they all still shared the same mission – to fight the Reapers.
After completing her duties as quickly as she could, she went back to her quarters and was relieved to see Garrus waiting for her.
He stood up as she walked in and took her in a tight embrace.
"This really sucks." She said.
He laughed, "I love the personal side of you I get to see." He pulled back and looked down at her face. "Hey, I'll be training on the Citadel the first 6 months, so anytime you dock for supplies, or to meet with the Council, we can spend time together. You can contact me anytime as well, leave a message or a vid, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."
She nodded. She pulled back in for a hug. "I just wish I'd said something sooner to you, that we could have spent more time together."
"Who knows how things would have gone? I would probably have tried to get you to resign your commission and stay with me."
"And I would have been tempted."
"See? We've got to do what's right," he brushed a strand of hair off her face. He leaned down and put his forehead to hers. She let out a little gasp and tightened her grip on him.
"Wow, that was amazing," she said, surprised.
He grinned as he pulled back, "That's a Turian kiss."
She put her hand to her forehead, "I felt that rush down my whole body."
"Glad you liked it. We've got more to look forward too."
Sooner than they both liked, she was at the docking bay, saying goodbye to them. Liara first, who's emotions overtook her. Tali next, who was grateful for the geth data she'd been able to secure for her. Shepard was touched by her enthusiasm for completing her pilgrimage so successfully. Garrus was next, she couldn't really talk, and neither could he. They'd already said their personal goodbyes in her cabin. She turned and Wrex was next, gruffly shaking her hand and slapping her on the back so hard she nearly doubled over.
"Hey, watch the shoulder. Dr. Chakwas worked hard on that," she admonished.
He guffawed, "Been great working with you, Shepard," he pointed at her, "Anything you need, you call on me."
"Thanks, Wrex," she stood in the doorway watching as they walked out towards the airlock. The crew was crowded behind her. Many of them had voiced their strong opinions about them not being forced to leave, but it fell on deaf ears. As they waved and Shepard started to turn, she heard Garrus' voice.
"Wait, wait," he pushed his way past Wrex and came back on the ship.
Shepard turned just in time to face him as he grabbed her and gave her a tight hug. She returned it.
"I'll see you soon, Jane." He whispered in her ear.
She nodded, unable to speak as she felt tears welling up in her eyes. He let go and looked down at her, "None of that, okay?" as he brushed the tears away from her face with the back of his finger.
"Okay," she barely whispered and he let go, picking up his duffle bag and walking briskly out to join the rest of the group waiting at the elevator.
She took a deep breath and turned to see Dr. Chakwas standing beside her, giving her an impulsive hug.
"I understand, dear." She said.
Shepard hated letting her personal feelings be so on display to the rest of the crew, and quickly wiped the tears away and put her hands on her hips, "Well, I've got to go prepare for our next destination." She walked towards the cockpit to talk to Joker.
The rest of the crew were murmuring about her and Garrus, the body language between them confirming what the ship gossip had been that morning about him staying the night with her. A few of them looked pityingly at Kaidan, thinking he had been dumped for Garrus. Kaidan watched the scene with disbelief. He'd thought she'd been too stressed about the mission, bound by Alliance regulations to consider a romance with him. Now he'd seen for himself the rumors about her and Garrus, that he'd dismissed as ridiculous before, were actually true. Her distraught at him leaving had been palpable. Kaidan sighed and turned to go back to work. He didn't know what he couldn't offer her, but she'd made her choice clear, and he would have to live with it.