Jarred shielded his eyes against the sun, watching Thanikah, Amira, Tristan and Edison play a two on two game of beach volleyball. The scent of roasted pork and beef came wafting from behind him, and he looked back to see James and Kaidan around the fire, laughing with their beers in hand at Garrus' and Wrex's jokes, while Grunt's gaze remained transfixed at the meat. He smiled to himself. It was a really good day to get some shore leave for the others.

"Tristan!" Amira yelled from the sand, waving an arm at him. Since Surin Island was pretty much pollution free, she and Tali had removed their masks and suits, revealing to be beautiful women underneath all that cloth, leather and helmets. Tali had borrowed a summer dress from Jane, which fitted her quite well, and her jet black hair curled down her shoulders. Amira was wearing a tank top and some swimming shorts, which fitted her slim frame.

"When are you going to join us, Jarred?" Thanikah said, who was wearing a one-piece blue-green bathing suit, "We're owning these boys, you know?! Maybe they'd win if you were a player for them."

"Owning?!" Edison said, who was wearing beach shorts like Jarred and Tristan, "You guys aren't playing fair! Thanikah's using her biotics!"

"Alright, alright. Settle down." Tristan said, "Come on, Jarred. Let's play!"

"Hey! Wait for me! Three against two isn't fair you know?!"

Jarred recognized Meiou's voice, but not at what she was wearing. Meiou bounded out the door, her hair braided down her back, clad in a violet bikini top and mini-shorts, exposing her midriff, legs and a part of her cleavage. Jarred swallowed at the sight of her, and she turned back to him, smiling. "Let's go, Jarred!"

Tristan and Edison came over and dragged him towards the court, and Thanikah laughed. "Boys versus girls? Oh you guys are on!"

"Losers treat winners!" Amira cried out, her lips smiling as her pure blue eyes sparkled with mirth, "I want Tristan to treat me to a movie!"

At this Tristan grinned, "I got a better idea. If you girls win, then we are your slaves for the day. If we guys win…" He smirked as he looked at Amira, "You'll be forced to date us for a night."

The three women seem to stop, their mouths opening in shock, and Meiou's face turned pink again. At this Edison laughed, "No way am I going to agree to that! What kind of date am I supposed to do with Thanikah?"

Thanikah's eyes glinted with fury, as Tristan and Jarred laughed, "Oh, you are so dead, Flight Lieutenant!" She ran and jumped, serving the ball on their side of the court.

Because the boys were too busy laughing, the ball fell into their court. Jarred let out a frustrated scream, "Hey! We weren't ready!"

Nicholas chuckled from the side lines, "Females ready for game. Men are not. Strange considering men proposed consequences. Still, recommend caution. Female garments very distracting. Remind to focus on game. Stakes very high."

At this reminder, Jarred looked at Meiou again, and like Nicholas said, became distracted from the way her suit clung to her body, and from the sheen of sweat on her skin. He was too busy staring, that he hadn't realized that Amira had served the ball, and it hit him on his carapaced forehead.

"Eyes on the ball, Jarred!" Tristan said, and from behind him he heard James shout, "Hey, Jarred! I know she's muy caliente, but eyes on the ball, chico!"

Jarred shook his head, and looked at Meiou, who was smirking as she bent and got ready for the serve. He stopped looking at her, and focused on the ball. She jumped and hit it, aiming directly for Jarred. He smirked and hit it back above the net.

For the next thirty minutes, the kids played volleyball, and pretty soon the adults started watching them, with the men cheering on the boys and the females cheering on Meiou and the girls. Jarred had to admit, despite being frozen for so long, Meiou played excellently. Perhaps it was because of Jack's training, because her body had gained more flexibility and strength. Pretty soon, the two teams were tired, and from the way that the table was set down by the house, and the fact that the sun was setting, it was nearing dinner.

The six players were panting already, and the game was now tied. Jarred was holding the ball getting ready to serve, and he looked at the three women. They were all panting, and Amira was looking like she's giving up, while Meiou and Thanikah still looked determined. He smirked, calculating their part of the court, before jumping up and hitting the ball.

Thanikah went after it, shouting "Meiou!" as she hit it, and the human jumped and spiked the ball into the men's court. Edison dived and caught the ball, and Jarred hit it again and launched it to the air, "Tristan!" he cried out, and for a split second, the two men met each other's gaze, and Jarred looked at Amira. Tristan immediately understood, and spiked the ball, and it headed towards the women's side, several inches from Amira.

Amira dived, trying to save the ball, but it hit an inch away from her hand, and she fell into the sand. Nicholas called it, "Men's team wins!"

The men in the audience cheered, and the women shook their heads, but they laughed and cheered nonetheless. Thanikah and Meiou helped Amira up, and they walked towards the middle of the court to shake hands with the men. Tristan smirked as he shook Amira's hand, but he suddenly dragged her to his side. "Pick your dates, boys!"

Jarred immediately pulled at Meiou's hand, since she was about to shake hands with him, and his mandibles flared as he smiled when he saw his mother nod approvingly. Thanikah and Edison looked at each other, scowling, before Edison threw up his hands. "Okay, okay. I'll take Thanikah."

At this, the drell scowled, "You're the last being I'd ever want to date too, Edison." And she stomped off towards the house to change before dinner.

Edison sat down by his father, "Don't worry, son. All females say that. Just give her time and she'll warm up to you." Joker said, ruffling his boy's hair. EDI smiled as she fixed her son's hair again, because his father ruffled it out of order.

The adults laughed as they settled all around the table, passing out food to their friends and children. A few minutes later, Thanikah came out, fully clothed, and joined up in eating, but she was still glaring at Edison. A few minutes later, after being full of food, the crew dispersed, forming into several groups.

Tristan, Amira, Nicholas, Edison and Thanikah sat around a small fire, roasting what looked like marshmallows on sticks. James, Joker, Kaidan, Garrus, Wrex and Grunt sat around the roasting pit again, drinking heavily and laughing out loudly, sharing what seemed to be bawdy songs from different cultures. Jack, EDI and Samara sat under a tree, and it looked like the asari was teaching the both the robot and the biotic meditation. Liara, Tali and Jane sat on lounge chairs, sipping on red wine (and quarian cocktails) as they chatted. Jarred looked around, trying to find Meiou, but he couldn't find her. As he looked into the water, he noticed something white floating in the shallows. He walked near it, only to see Meiou floating in the water, her eyes wide open, looking at the stars above her. She saw Jarred standing above her and she smiled. "Hi, Jarred."

"Hey, what are you doing?" Jarred said as he sat down, the cool water waving to his waist.

"I used to do this all the time, whenever my parents and I would visit the beach." She said, still floating in the water. "It feels like I'm floating through space… without the whole exploding body parts thing, at least."

Jarred chuckled, "Yeah. I know what you mean."

Meiou smiled peacefully above her, before raising herself up and scooting beside Jarred. He watched as the water in her hair trickled down her back, and he gulped. He felt like he wanted to dry her with his hands. "I never dreamed that I would travel the stars. When I was younger, I've always thought that I'd stay on Earth." She looked down, "And now, it's in danger."

Jarred placed a hand on hers, the waves lapping on their entwined fingers, "Don't worry, I'm pretty sure that you could save it."

Meiou smiled at him and looked up the stars again. "Can I tell you my secret, Jarred?"

He nodded, "Sure. You can tell me anything, Meiou."

"When I met your mother, I was a little… envious." She said, "She… married someone she loved, even though he was another race. It made me think about my past. Fifty two years ago, no man never really came to love me. They probably thought I was a freak, being an Albino. People… avoided me. But when I looked at her and your father, hearing about their stories and how they fought to make sure both of them survived… how your mother fought hard to come back to your father, it gave me hope… that someone out there could fall in love with me."

Jarred closed his eyes for a minute, before looking at her, the lump on his throat rising again. But he took a deep breath and whispered, "Why look for somebody out there… when he's already right here?"

Meiou looked at him now, her eyes glistening, but she smiled shyly, "Actually… I was hoping it would be you."

Jarred blinked, the lump on his throat disappearing, but was soon replaced with what felt like butterflies in his stomach. He leaned closer to Meiou, his hand cupping her face, and her violet eyes rose to meet his green-eyed gaze. He lowered his lips, his mandibles flaring, and shyly, placed them on her lips.

She was soft, and she smelled like the ocean. Jarred opened his lips a little, taking a tentative taste, only to realize that she tasted sweet, like caramel on his tongue. He felt her hand on his mandible, shyly pulling him closer, and her tongue shyly explored his lips as well.

The sensation of her tongue on his lips made him lose a bit of his control, and he pulled her closer to him. Her hand rose to his chest, gripping on his shoulder, similarly pulling him as he opened his mouth more and kissed her deeper.

But Meiou gasped a little, and pulled herself away, gazing at him shyly. And Jarred felt a little disappointed.

"Uhm…" Meiou said, pulling away a little, "I… don't think this is the right place, Jarred."

Jarred blinked, and he looked over his shoulder, seeing that the others were still busy, but his mother saw him, and winked at him. He felt a little embarrassed.

"You're right. Sorry about that." He pulled away from her a little, but still he kept his hand on hers.

She giggled, but she stayed close to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. A warm breeze wafted from the ocean, and her hair fluttered in the wind. Jarred looked down at her, watching her smile peacefully. He pulled out his hand from hers, and put his arm around her. She settled on his shoulder again, laying her hand on his chest. She giggled, "I guess this means… you're my boyfriend now?"

Jarred blinked, and he laughed. But still, hearing the fact he was "hers" now, made him happy. "I guess so… yeah. Definitely."

"And you're okay with having a relationship with a… what, sixty year old woman?"

At this both Jarred and Meiou laughed out loud, tears almost falling off their eyes in mirth. But Jarred grinned down at her, "Since you are… as James said, muy caliente, I do not mind at ALL."

Meiou grinned back, before settling back on his shoulder again. Jarred sighed, both from happiness and contentment, before his brows furrowed. He knew that after their shore leave, they're going to have to go back to the fire… literally.

But seeing Meiou so peaceful beside him, he realized that he was willing to take his time with her. And make the best of it.