They had just left the Citadel, and a slightly surprised Shepard was making her way to the Starboard Cargo Area, a wrapped package in her hands.
Attempting to be as polite as possible, she knocked on the door and heard Zaeed's voice grumble "come in".
The mercenary was leaning casually against a wall in the back of the room, glancing over a datapad with disinterest. "Zaeed, I received a package for you on the Citadel from a Megan Massani."
He looked up at her quickly, his interest clearly peaked. "Mum?" He approached her and took the package from her hands, his gaze unusually tender.
"It was my birthday just after we left Omega. She... remembered." His voice was softer than she had ever heard it before.
"Well, open it!"
Not wanting to disrupt even the paper, he carefully removed each piece of omni-tape and made sure to open the box without damaging it. He pushed apart packing peanuts to reveal two gifts: a set of wooly socks and a charm in the shape of a fox. Shepard didn't understand the significance of the trinkets, but she saw Zaeed's eyes become red and moist.
"Oh, mum..." he muttered. "Someone's cutting... guddamn onions..." He turned away from Shepard. "I need to check the surveillance videos. See you around, Shepard?"
A faint smile touched her lips at the sight of the hard-as-nails mercenary going soft. "Yeah Zaeed, see you around."