The spinning of the punching bag was the only sound in the room. Kaidan just stood there, mouth agape. When Shepard had told him she wanted to convince Asari High Command that they needed to start having as Joker had so eloquently put it "a few less dancers and a few more Commandos" he knew it was a long shot. When she had said she planned on getting Tevos to suggest the idea to the Asari governments he thought she had lost it.
Now he saw just why she had been agonizing over these meetings. He was not sure if he should feel honored about the recommendation or more like the sacrificial lamb out for slaughter. The fact that he had not been summoned to the meeting meant that all this was still up in the air, far from decided. Things like this took time to arrange, a commodity they were fast running out of.
Shepard was motionless. Looking at him while attempting to keep a look of composure, but he knew better. The worry line between her eyebrows and her actions belied her motives.
She doesn't want to lose you again.
The image of her from his hospital room video came to mind. The walls came down but only when she was alone.
"That's stupid. I'm not going." He said simply.
"What?!" She was obviously surprised. The great Commander Shepard who had orchestrated the Geth Quarrian alliance had not foreseen an Alliance Officer turning down the chance of getting their own ship.
"It's a stupid idea. Don't they know there is a war going on? "
"Isn't it what every Alliance officer wants? To eventually get their own command? "
"Maybe, and the idea of the crew being entirely female in tight fighting clothing isn't bad either but it still is not gonna happen." He countered.
In truth Alenko had thought about getting his own ship once or twice but that was prior to his quick promotions following the Eden Prime Wars, it had always seemed like something a long way off. Then Shepard had happened, and the SR- 1it was the last he had thought of it.
She was watching him now. Motionless and silent, she must have been arguing with herself internally. Image that he had managed to trip up the great Commander Shepard, he thought with a small bit of satisfaction. She had probably been down here working out contingency plans, new rotations and crew assignments while fighting against herself. And he had done was just to said no.
A smile spread across his face as Kaidan crossed his arms across himself. Finally she gives in.
"What?"
"You forgot the promise I made to you Commander" He puts just enough hitch in his tone to catch her attention.
"Which one would that be?"
"When I asked to join your crew. I promised you I had your back, no matter what."
He reaches forward and grabs her right hand bringing it to his lips softly. Gently rubbing his thumb across the split knuckles he looks deeply into her eyes and is relieved to see the worry line decrease ever so slightly.
You are getting kinda good at reading her Alenko.
Shepard doesn't say anything for a long moment but she turns toward him, her shoulders lowering from their defensive stance. And just like that he knew he had won. There had been no need for an argument, no need for her to push him away; he had managed to convince her that he trusted her even if she did not trust herself.
"I can get a salute from anyone on board. Can't you just give me a shoulder to lean?"
He remembered how pissed Shepard had been when the Council had taken her ship away; the very same Council she was now trying to save for the …third time was it? As he recalled her knuckles were not as bad as they were now but the locker sure had a few good dents in it. The scene was oddly similar now that he thought about it.
"Kay? What are you thinking; you got a weird look in your eye."
"Just a weird sense of déjà vu is all. Come on let's get you medi-gelled up unless you really want to scare the Asari into acquiescing. "
Tilting her head, pretending to consider this idea for a moment before grabbing her folded uniform with her left hand and heading toward the elevator.
At the door to the loft Shepard has her hands full. With her folded uniform and the wrapped lengths of cotton one in each hand (careful so never to touch one another) and shifting on her sore feet she looks at Kaidan expectantly.
"You know you can get in, so do it." She gives a slight smirk and tilts her head towards the door.
"Yes Mad'am."
With a hint of amusement he sidesteps Shepard who manages to not cringe while walking on the outsides of her feet. The image of her hobbling like a penguin was not supposed to be comical but he couldn't help it.
" .word." She threatens halfheartedly. She HAD to be aware how ridiculous she looked.
She scoots her behind up on the workstation to get a better look the soles of her feet. Grimacing she reaches into the box that Kaidan had noticed before and pulled out a small unmarked jar. Kaidan heads to the bathroom and pulls a tube of medigel out of the first aid box.
On his way out his nose is assaulted by the smell of something minty and slightly lemony. Looking over at Shepard he sees her slathering something on the bottoms of her feet and looking rather smug. Noticing him looking at her in confusion, her response is to wiggle her toes with a satisfied "ahhhhh."
Pushing over the remaining datapads and sitting beside her, he grabs the jar of the offending goop. Clear glass and no label why would he have thought otherwise?
"So what part of this all seemed like a good idea?" He gives an annoyed look at her hands, feet and even the mystery menthol crap.
"Never did have a chance to rebuild up the callouses." She gripped." Took me 15 years to get them good and Cerberus didn't bother to put them back." Making a grabbing motion for the jar.
"And what the heck is this? And dare I ask where it even came from?" He makes a face at the smell.
"Namman Muay and actually Omega." He reluctantly hands the jar back over and holds up the medi-gel.
"Well you can bitch all you want but I am still closing those up." He opens the tube and takes her hand to inspect her knuckles. One thing about Shepard she never did things by halves. The skin on her knuckles looked like hamburger ground.
"Just like the old days eh Alenko?" She puts her head on his shoulder. "Still the best field medic I know."
"That's only because you would never go to Chakwas !" He protested but chuckled in spite of himself.
"Let me think about that, have Karin queen of the cold hands nag me or have a sexy LT fuss over me and check me all over for entry wounds."
"You're kidding!" But he knew she wasn't. Her response is only a playful nip on his shoulder as he reaches for her left hand. Now looking back he would have of course noticed it if he hadn't been so busy noticing how well she filled out her armor.
"Next you're going to tell me that is why you never wore heavy armor either." Putting an edge of indignation in his voice that he really didn't feel.
"Hell no. I can't move in that crap. Remember how Ashley used to struggle in it? Surprised the heck out of me when I saw you on Horizon in medium and now in the Alliance S.I? I don't know how you manage to use your biotics at all. Must explain the new muscle tone." She runs her free hand across his stomach before wrapping her arm around his waist, the rest of her pressed nicely against his side.
"You are still a horrible tease Shep." He says releasing her hand to meet her gaze.
"Me?! What happened to "There are benefits to that happines." at Apollo?! " To her credit her impression of Kaidan's gravelly voice was almost as funny as it was out of place. "I'm still waiting Alenko!"
Kaidan laughs in spite of himself. "You're not gonna let that go are you?"
"Well you ARE still on shore leave. " Her raises her eyebrows and bites her lip wickedly.
"Tempting, tempting. "He admits. "But if you were ignoring me for three hours. Who else were you not getting messages from?" He reluctantly pulls her arms off his waist and goes to stand so Shep can get to the work station. As she sits down he could swear he heard her huff "spoilsport."
And this ladies and gentlemen is our savior of the galaxy. He grins to himself,f standing behind her at the desk. Reaching out he runs his fingers affectionately through her hair. Leaning into his touch, she begins to sign into the account which at once begins to beep.
A small shake of her head as if to tell him "see I told you so." She gives a small throaty chuckle as a message comes in to her private account. Not bothering to hide the screen from Kaidan's view Shepard looks at the time stamp and confirms it with the current time. The message was only one line and unsigned but it must have been what Shepard was waiting on.
I have arrived. Was all it said.
"Guess your shore leave just got cancelled Major." She looks up at him through the reflection of the blackened screen.