Parallax

A/N: Here's chapter two! Thank you all for reading! I do wish there were more reviews, but oh well... at least I know there are hits.

The first thing Kaidan became aware of was his head throbbing with a ferocity he had never before felt. His eyes opened slowly as nausea hit him full force. Apparently, he was in the infirmary of the Normandy. How in the seven hells he had gotten there was a mystery to him. All he knew was that if he moved quickly, he was sure to throw up.

It took him all his effort to not wince too hard when the infirmary doors opened to reveal a hung over Shepard, her face covered in small red blotches and her hair matted to her head. Their eyes met and she let out a grunt, signaling hello. He gently closed his eyes as she walked over to the med station, each step sounding like it was made by an army of Krogan. Her subsequent rummaging through the drawers forced him into speaking.

“What are you looking for?” came from his raw throat. Kaidan found himself able to slowly roll over to face her.

“Whatever that stuff is that Chakwas gives you,” she replied and continued to rummage.

“Top left, fifty milligrams,” his eyes closed again as the noise she made became near unbearable.

A sigh escaped his lips when she finally stopped and found what she was looking for. After a little bit of silence, Kaidan opened his eyes. Shepard stood over him with a drug-filled syringe, a serious look etched into her features. Had his condition permitted it, he would have laughed. Instead, the solemn Lieutenant looked his Commander in the eyes to express his thanks as she injected the strong painkiller into his arm.

“Puppy eyes,” she cooed, her laugh reverberating through her hand that was still latched onto his bicep. They had always been like this. At times they’d flirt and each would go their separate way, both needing to take a cold shower afterward. On the other hand, they’d bicker like a brother and sister and play ruthless pranks on each other. At the same time, they were inseparable warriors; in battle they moved as one, their teamwork getting the task at hand done quickly and efficiently. Their bizarre friendship was truly unlike any other.

Kaidan slowly sat up as he felt the powerful drug start to take effect and heal his migraine. The stuff was working much quicker than it usually did. But, it was no matter. Right now, a huge glass of water and a shower was his priority.

“This stuff is amazing,” Shepard marveled as she began to dispose of the needles.

“Well,” Kaidan replied, “it is highly restricted. But I don’t see that it should be a problem since you’re the CO.”

“Hah!” Shepard barked, the sound piercing the serenity of the Normandy’s dark hull. “I’ll have you know that your CO doesn’t know shit about medical anything.” She put her hands on her hips as she awaited his response.

“You seemed to know what you were doing with those needles,” he said as he narrowed his eyes in disbelief.

“I was in a gang and lived in the slums,” she rolled her eyes. “Like I wouldn’t have some experience with needles.”

His response was nothing more than a quiet, “oh”. Once again, the Lieutenant managed to say something awkward. He turned his head to the side in shame. Shepard’s hand came down to gently squeeze his shoulder, telling him it was alright. He looked up when her grip tightened considerably.

“Ma’am?” his brows knit in concern.

“Holy shit,” she continued to increase her grip on her Lieutenant’s shoulder as her eyes widened. “How much did you say we were supposed to have?”

“Fifty milligrams, why?” his expression became even more concerned.

“Oh,” Shepard’s expression mellowed out into a lazy smile. “Have fun then”.

“Shepard! How much did you…” his question trailed off as his body began to tingle. “Hell”.

“Just,” Shepard hesitated for a second, “go with it”. She swayed on her feet. “I think it’s shower time now. I feel gross,” the Commander mused out loud, turning to walk toward the door as she spoke.

Kaidan shrugged it off and followed suit. A shower was a good idea after all.

__________________________________________


After a long shower in her personal quarters, Shepard decided to check her messages. She sighed as she logged in to her account. Here she was, many years after learning how to live sober, tripping balls after a night of binge drinking.

“Some fucking hero,” she laughed to herself.

Shepard groaned when she read the only message in her inbox. Apparently Councilman Anderson wanted to speak with her and Alenko in private about something immediately. Of course, this meeting was non-negotiable. Her arms collapsed onto the desk, her head following with a plunk and a curse. There was no getting out of this. Resignedly, Shepard pushed off from her desk and left her quarters to find the Lieutenant. She didn’t have to look far.

He was at the mess table, presumably clean, eating at an alarming rate. His head popped up when she coughed to get his attention.

“Anderson wants to speak with the two of us,” Shepard paused and sighed, “immediately”.

“Shit,” he cursed around his mouthful of food and swallowed. “What the hell are we going to do? Holy shit!” He looked at her with wide eyes.

Shepard laughed. “You’ve never been high before, have you Alenko?”

His response was a headshake “no”. It was cute how his cheeks colored in embarrassment. It wasn’t the first time Shepard saw the man blush, and she was sure it wouldn’t be the last.

“Just let me do all the talking,” she smirked. “I’m pretty good at having to act sober while under the influence. It’s a trick I picked up long ago. Never thought I’d have to do it ever again though”.

He simply nodded, already employing the rules Shepard set forth. After another gigantic mouthful of food, he stood and walked up to her, his eyes pleading. Shepard sighed and pulled him in for a hug.

“You’ll be fine,” she assured him. “I’ll take care of everything”. Shepard hugged the Lieutenant tighter in a further attempt to ease his paranoia. Her eyes widened when she felt something poking into her lower abdomen. “That is your pistol, isn’t it?”

She was met with silence.

“You know, just forget that I asked,” Shepard blushed and mumbled under her breath. “Fuckin’ awkward”.

Leaving the incident behind them, the Commander and Lieutenant walked toward the airlock. Hopefully, they would be able to get to Anderson’s office undetected. They had no such luck. Khalisah Al-Jilani was waiting for them, her camera bot floating beside her.

“Commander Shepard!” her ignorant voice echoed throughout the docking area as if she and the Commander were friends, “would I be able to have an interview with you and Lieutenant Alenko?”

Shepard paused for a moment, wondering why Al-Jilani would want to talk to Kaidan as well. She shrugged it off; Shepard felt particularly charitable at that moment and nodded her consent. The camera bot lit up, signaling the beginning of the interview.

“Thank you for your time,” Al-Jilani oozed. “Now, how long have you two been together?”

“Since Eden Prime,” Shepard recalled, thinking that the question was odd.

“Oh, wow,” the reporter was genuinely surprised. “That is quite a while. Do you have any nicknames for Lieutenant Alenko?”

“Yeah,” Shepard rolled her eyes at the dumb question, “when he pleases me, I call him Koko. If he’s been a naughty boy, I call him Boo-boo. And, if he has a headache, I whisper softly in his ear”. By this point Shepard was holding her sides from laughing so hard. Kaidan tried his hardest to not crack up, but ultimately failed. The whole thing was so damn ridiculous, and Al-Jilani didn’t seem to get the joke. Shepard was once again trying to make an ass out of the reporter.

“Um, that’s very interesting,” the reporter wasn’t sure if the Commander was being serious. She decided to continue the interview. “In the light of what happened last evening and the rumors that have been circulating, are you afraid the Alliance will separate you two?”

“What?!!” Shepard’s laughter cut off abruptly as she became immediately enraged by the question. “That won’t happen. We are a team, and I’ll be damned if the Alliance wants to take my man away from me. This interview is over. I don’t have time for such ridiculous questions”. Shepard’s glare was enough to make the brazen reporter not bother to insist on further questioning.

The Commander grabbed Kaidan by the crook of the elbow and hauled him over to the elevator. The subsequent ride up and walk to the Councilman’s office was filled with Shepard’s mumbled curses about stupid reporters and Kaidan’s long, pouty sighs of embarrassment. He wondered why the painkillers hadn’t mellowed out the high-strung Commander.

Kaidan was brought out of his musings by the office doors opening. He followed Shepard in, only to see Anderson sitting at his desk, his head in his hands. When the Councilman lifted his gaze, Kaidan was struck by his appearance. The man looked tired beyond belief.

“Both of you, sit,” Anderson’s voice floated witheringly across the empty space of the oversized office. “I’m sure you two have seen the news reports and know why you’re here”.

“I don’t believe either of us has had the time to look at the news, sir,” Shepard replied as she sat down across from the weary ex-captain.

“Then you’d better watch this,” he said as he pressed a few buttons to load a video on a nearby screen.

Shepard started chuckling as she watched the footage of her and Alenko dancing in the elevator and falling on each other. She burst out laughing when she heard what was said and saw them stumble to the Normandy. Kaidan was much less impressed than Shepard. In fact, he was downright mortified.

“Oh my God!” the Lieutenant burst out, “I had no idea we were that drunk in public! I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean it! I didn’t!”

His eyes were impossibly huge as he began to spew profuse apologies at Councilman Anderson. Shepard put her head in her hands. What was that part of “do not talk” did Alenko not get? And he was staring Anderson right in the eyes!

“Lieutenant,” Anderson narrowed his eyes, “are you high?”

Kaidan’s mouth snapped shut with an audible click.

“It’s my fault, sir,” Shepard sighed as she took the blame for Kaidan’s state. “We both had hangovers this morning, and I accidentally overdosed us on some meds from the infirmary. I promise you, it will never happen again”.

Anderson’s mouth twisted into a sad smile. He’d known Shepard for years, and never once had he heard her take the blame for anything. The ruthless Commander usually threw everyone she could under the bus to protect herself; this was a wonderful new development to this bizarre story. Anderson had thought about this debacle for hours and Shepard had just given him proof that his decision was correct.

“Look,” Anderson’s voice cut through the tension, “Shepard, I’ve known you since you enlisted, and I’ve always felt like something of a mentor to you, and at other times, I feel like you’re the daughter I never had. You’re very lucky that the rest of the Council and the Alliance have allowed me to deal solely in this matter. Most people in my position would feel compelled to punish you for your actions, but I see the impact the Lieutenant has had on you. I wish you two the best, but I have one request: don’t let your fraternization cloud your judgment on your missions”.

Silence pervaded the room as Shepard and Kaidan traded horrified looks. Anderson waited patiently for their response. It certainly wasn’t what he expected; Shepard burst out in nervous laughter, her face turning red with each passing second.

“I assure you,” Shepard’s voice was tense, “there is nothing of that nature going on between me and the Lieutenant. We were just drunkenly dancing in the elevator”. Kaidan fervently nodded in agreement.

“You two should make it easier on yourselves and just admit it,” Councilman Anderson replied. “It’s okay. You don’t have to hide it anymore; I’ve made sure that there won’t be any repercussions”.

“But!” they replied in unison.

“No buts,” Anderson was suddenly very serious, “you can’t hide love like that, and I won’t let either of you two suffer while trying to do so. Now, I have a very busy day ahead of me and I need to ask you both to leave. I’m sorry we can’t discuss this further”. He gently ushered the confused “couple” out of his office.

They looked at each other, both wearing the same confused look. Shepard linked arms with the stunned Lieutenant and smiled sheepishly.

“So, drinks again tonight?”