The Beginning of The End Chapter Six

"Damn it."

Garrus grumbled when he felt his shoulder burn, and the warm sensation of blood run down his under armor. He never would've guessed that the damn mercs would ever get a shot at him. All of the top merc gangs were after him. He'd been running around Omega for two years. It was tiring, but he got it done and was taking them out one merc at a time. Shepard was declared dead the day he had left the Citadel. A Memorial ceremony was held on Mindoir five months later, of course he had gone to it. He had been dumbstruck, sad, angry, and confused. He still hadn't excepted her death. He had heard a small rumor buzzing around on Omega. That Shepard, Eve, was alive.

He didn't believe it of course, there were too many crazy people on Omega to believe any one of them. Story spinning was on of the many devious talents that the Omega people had.

He reached for the medi gel and splattered some on his shoulder. He didn't have time to bandage it when the mercs were trying to get in. This time it was a rampage. He had no idea what had gotten Jaroth, the freelancers, and the rest of the leaders so anxious.

He looked over the window he was crouched behind and scoped in on a merc.

~Bang, one, bang, two, bang, three...~

Garrus' line of thought paused as his scope landed on a dark haired human.

Female and in N7 armor. The armor was primarily black and had a dark red secondary finish. What he identified as a Kuwashii visor covering her right eye.

It couldn't be...

She turned her head away so he couldn't get a good look at her.

He shot passed her ear and her shields went down. Her head whipped at him and his heart nearly skipped a beat for a second time when he realized...it was her.

Her eyes were a too familiar dark sea blue, and her facial features were tense and determined...

She ducked behind cover and poked her head out every once in a while to shoot.

It was... His heart skipped a beat and suddenly saw something about her he'd never seen before...

Dark glowing scars covered her left cheek and one that crossed down her lips and left eyebrow. He never remembered those.

He ducked back down and closed his eyes.

"Spirits, please let it be her."

He whispered to himself as he cocked his rifle and popped back up to see that there were no more mercs.

Except a freelancer cowering behind a pillar. He'd get that one later.

He heard gun fire in the building and knew someone was trying to hack the door. He knew she'd get there before he had to stop them.

The pain in his shoulder somewhat subsided, but the adrenaline had kicked in and had caused the numbness.

Soon enough he heard the bang of another gun shot and a body hit the door.

Another hacker was hacking into the door. He knew it was her so he ignored it. Maybe, he'd get him now, and propped himself on the window sill and scoped out the lancer. He heard the door open and the sound of footfalls echoed in the room.

"Archangel."

The familiar voice seemed to echo in his head.

His mandibles tightened to his face under his helmet and he put up a hand as a 'one minute' signal.

He scoped the freelancer's head right as it popped out and shot.

A single bang rang in the small room and Garrus heaved himself up and ignored the pain in his shoulder as he got up. He walked casually over to a crate and takes off his helmet. Placing his gun beside him and speaking solemnly,

"Shepard, I thought you were dead."

For a second he thought her eyes were watering. As if she was about to cry, but her face was soft and almost like she'd been slapped.

"Garrus?"

He suddenly felt guilty. He shouldn't have given her that tone...he resisted the urge to get up walk over and hug her.

He still wasn't sure if it was really her. She was...different, almost. He lifted his eyes and looked into her's.

"Yeah, Eve. Yeah, it's me, but the question is, is it you?"

She nodded and slowly stepped toward him and he immediately stumbled up.

A clash of armor followed and he was engulfed in her smell and the feel of her. It was a little uncomfortable, but neither minded. He listened to her heart speed up.

"Spirits, it's good to see you."

He heard her sigh and they pulled away. Shepard rubbed the back of her neck as she stepped back.

The wide mouthed human female and a smug faced Salarian, still stood by the door. Obviously waiting for Shepard's orders. The human was gaping until Shepard looked at her and her mouth quickly closed.

The Salarian was now fiddling with his omni-tool.

"What are you doing here? Why Omega?"

"The red tape and politics were too much for me on the Citadel...after you died I left. I came here to..release some built up anger."

"For two years?"

"Yeah, it was quite a ride. I did have men..helping me they thought I was fighting for a good cause and then...Well, that can wait too."

The human female now looked annoyed as she glared at the Salarian beside her.

Shepard shifted her weight on her hip and placed a hand on her waist.

"How did you manage to piss off all of the top merc organizations on Omega?"

"I had to work really hard at it. Though, I think it paid off."

Her eyes went up and down him scanning him and her eyes stopped, and her face went a little softer.

"Garrus, your bleeding!"

He chuckled and nodded.

"Nothing I can't handle Shepard."

"Are you sure?"

"Shepard, I'm fine!"

"Mordin, can you please take look at him."

The Salarian nodded and scanned Garrus with his omni-tool.

"So?"

He saw Eve getting anxious. She was tapping her foot and the sound sent more echoes.

"Left shoulder holding up. Bullet never got passed muscle. Will be infected in three days if not treated right away. Immune system doing it's job. Hurts?"

Mordin looked up and watched him expectantly.

"Uh, yeah. A little, but it can wait."

Shepard sighed and stood still, muttering under her breath.

"Well, what's our plan? We're in, now how do we get out?"

Garrus thought for a moment before answering.

"That bridge has kept me alive long enough. They'll slaughter us if we try to get out that way."

"So?"

"So, we wait for a crack in their defenses. Find a hole and run through it. More than one idea could work I guess."

"No, I like it. We'll hold this position."

"But first lets see what they're up to."

Garrus put his scope to his eyes and spotted more than just mercs.

"Take a look."

He handed her the rifle and she looked through it, scanning the bridge until she stopped.

She stood up and handed him his rifle.

"That's more than just scouts, mercs, and freelancers. Those are mechs."

"Hmm, this is going to be one hell of a fight. Just like old times."

OoOoO oOoOo

"Well, Jaroth and Garm are dead. Now what?"

Shepard was panting and looking at the three dead Krogan on the floor.

"Blue Suns are left."

Garrus patted Shepard's shoulder and Garrus was walking away when she grabbed his arm.

He turned to her and he saw the look of confusion in her eyes.

"What happened, Garrus?"

A silence fell on them and Garrus hesitated to tell her.

"I'll tell you on your ship. Remember we're not done yet."

"ARCHANGEL."

Garrus and Shepard turned. With a mighty shove, Garrus yelled as he pushed Shepard out of the way.

"Shepard, get down!"

She scrambled behind the couch and covered her head as bullets flew everywhere.

"Think you can screw with the Blue Suns?"

Tarak boomed as she watched Garrus try to get to her, but was cut off by a missile and an explosion that Shepard covered her face from.

After the explosion subsided, she immediately looked for her crew.

"Miranda, Mordin, Garrus! You guys okay?"

Her eyes scanned the room 'till they hit a spot of blood on the floor. She crawled to the end of the couch and saw Garrus in a pool of his own blood. She gasped to yell,

"Garrus!"

OoOoO oOoOo

The gunship started to swerve and exploded right before her eyes. She checked if it was clear and quickly ran to Garrus' side.

'Oh, God no...please. I just got him back...he just got me back, don't let me lose him!'

She silently prayed.

Garrus was surrounded by his own blood. There was no way you could touch near him without touching blood. She turned him over so he was facing the ceiling. His face and side wasn't looking good. Blood was still running and it had to stop. She pulled her gloves off and ran her hands over his armor. A couple seconds of running her hands over his side and shoulders, she found an area where it was bleeding.

"MORDIN, GET YOUR AMPHIBIOUS ASS OVER HERE!"

Mordin had been playing with a plant when she looked over, but he saw what was going on and rushed over.

Miranda was slowly chick walking behind him.

Shep ran her fingers over him to find more bleeding spots when a gasp startled her.

She had felt his chest expand and she looked at his face, and saw his eyes open.

"Garrus, don't move! You're going to be okay, alright?"

"Heart rate, low. Losing a lot of blood, Shepard. Need to get him to the Normandy. Any chance of survival is there."

"Radio the Normandy."

She turned her head slightly toward Miranda and she sat there like she was in candyland.

"NOW, MIRANDA!"

Miranda stood up and was on the radio with Joker.

OoOoOoO oOoOoOo

Garrus could barely see the silhouettes of Mordin and Shepard.

"Shepard, what the hell is going- on?"

He had stumbled on some words,and Garrus saw the blood on her hands as she reached up to scratch her nose. She had left blue marks on her nose from scratching it and then noticed that her hands were covered in it.

He felt numb from head to toe. He watched her facial expressions.

Her face was scarred, but recognizable. Her hair was different, but her voice was the same. The harsh, soft, sweet, deep, loving, and pained when upset voice made his chest swell. He just needed to here her laugh. Just one more time.

He thought if this was his last time he was going to see her he might as well confess.

"Eve."

Her head turned from Mordin to him faster than he could blink.

"Yeah, Garrus? Stay with me just look at me okay? Can you handle this?"

He chuckled and tried to smile, but his whole body hurt and even trying to smile hurt.

"No," He coughed a couple of times before he continued.

"I guess I'll need more than just some medi-gel. Why are you always so stubborn?"

There it is. That flashy smile he was looking for. It quickly faded, but a small grin stayed on her face. She looked away as the woman named Miranda was talking in a comm.

"Eve,"

With all his strength he placed a hand on hers. Her head turned to look at him. His eyes were like weights. He fought to keep them open, but he was only able to keep them open half way.

"You're going to be fine, Garrus!"

She snapped at him and she looked away, but he saw her lip quivering from the side. He cupped her chin and turned her head to look at him. He felt like all of the air flew out of him when he saw her wet and teary eyes.

"I-I missed you."

Her eyes got even more glossier and she squeezed his wrist gently as his hand fell from her face.

"You're gonna make it, Garrus. I know you can-"

He heard Shepard yell, but couldn't make it out as his eyes slowly closed and everything went black.

OoOoO oOoOo

Eve paced back and forth and around in circles after Chakwas and Mordin kicked her out of the Med bay.

She was getting just a bit antsy. She had no idea what time it was and she was still clad in her sweaty and blood stained armor. She had a couple of cuts and bruises, but she knew they could wait.

She lifted her omni-tool to check the time. It was 0100 hours and still no sign of Chakwas or Solus.

Then she realized she has been down here for nearly nine hours. Sitting, standing, and pacing.

She rubbed her hands together and looked down at them. Her gloves were still in one of her belt compartments and her bare hands were stained. She had been waiting to see Garrus, but Chakwas still hadn't come out of the Med bay. Mordin hasn't even come out of there yet to go to his lab. She felt something touch her and she was so startled and paranoid that she grabbed the hand and twisted it behind the person's back before you could say, "Ow."

"Okay, I'm sorry. You can let go of me now!"

She let go of his arm and shivered. She watched the dark man slowly stand up. His face looked pale even for him.

"Sorry, Taylor. I didn't see you. I think you almost gave me a heart attack."

"I'm sorry! Getting a little paranoid? I think you need to shower and get some rest, Commander. I'll inform you when Garrus is awake alright?"

She couldn't refuse. She could almost feel the bags weighing her eyes and her legs were getting a bit wobbly.

Nodding she turned on the ball of her foot and stalked toward the elevator with Taylor not far behind.

The ride to the CIC was short, but felt long in the silence. The shivering of her body told her she needed sleep, or to sit down. The ride to her cabin was even more so. She leaned against the elevator wall thinking about his last words. 'I missed you.' Had he really missed her? After all she was just another squishy, pink human soldier. Then again she had taught him about everything she knew, except his personality. She had never been in control of that or him for that matter. He could have left her in the hunt for Saren, but he didn't. He never turned his back on her. He went back to C-sec because he wanted to...right? He went back because he liked it? Or did he just go back for the hell of it. All of these questions were tiring her even more. She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She knew her face was probably bloodied too.

"I'm a mess."

OoOoO oOoOo

When she was in her room she sloppily undressed and threw her armor and under armor over the desk or it fell on the floor. She was way too tired to clean it or even put it down nicely. Her body felt like jelly and as she stepped under the hot water. She nearly melted. She washed her hair and body then grabbed a towel and wrapped herself in it. She knew if she stepped out of the bathroom that it was going to be a little cooler than in here so she wiped herself down first. Her hair was still dripping when she stepped in front of the sink. She brushed her teeth and hair. Now it was time to get into a loose tank and a pair of panties and slip into bed, wet hair or not she felt like she was going to drop.

The door opened and the lights were extremely bright which hurt her eyes.

"EDI, dim the lights, please."

She said and the lights slowly dimmed. Her heart jumped when she heard a throat clearing behind her.

Out of reflex she grabbed for a gun that wasn't there and turned. Her heart skipped a beat and slowly started to speed up.

"Garrus."

He was leaning against the side of the tank and he backed away from it when she turned. He was in his civilian clothing which she had never seen until now.

"Yeah, I-"

"What are you doing up here? You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry, Shepard. I wanted to come up here to make sure you knew I was okay. Someone told me you were still up and I didn't want you to be sleep deprived from worry in the morning."

She scoffed.

"Pfft, me worried? Sleep deprived? No, way!"

She turned and went to her closet to pull out a tank.

"Shepard, we both know that you worry too much."

She turned around to see him about five feet away from her.

"Garrus, I'm sorry."

"For what?"

He sounded confused, as she read his expression she swear she thought she saw confusion.

"For almost getting you killed!"

"Eve, it wouldn't be like old times if you weren't trying to get me killed."

She sighed as she turned her back to him and scooted the towel down to her waist and slid on her tank top.

"If you had died back there...I don't think I'd ever forgive myself."

She heard him shift on his feet.

"Eve."

She didn't turn her head and kept her back to him, but she heard him sigh through his nose and stalk over to her.

She felt a warm talon grip her chin from behind and turn her head. His eyes were easy to spot even in the dark, made her weak in the knees and her heart started beating like a jackrabbit. Why was she so weak and vulnerable around him? She noticed the bandage on his right side of his face and partly down his neck.

She'd never felt this way before. Then she felt her cheeks get hot.

~Oh, shit.~

"I'm here right? Or am I invisible? I didn't die, Eve. I'm right here. I came up here to make sure you get some sleep."

She nodded in his hand and he let go of her chin. He almost seemed nervous as he stepped back toward the door.

"Well, I need to check the main battery systems and get some rest. I'll let you get to bed."

He turned and started walking toward the door before turning around.

"Oh, and thanks for grabbing my stuff. We have a lot to talk about, but I think that can wait 'till the morning."

"Right, thanks Garrus."

He nodded as the door closed behind him.

Damn, she just realized how much she had missed that Turian...

OoOoOo OoOoOoO

_Shepard_

FIVE_WEEKS_LATER____

Protheans, Saren, beacons, reapers, collectors, and husks.

All of that flashed in her mind as she turned in her sleep. There was never at least one night of peaceful rest after she was rebuilt. Nothing good had come out of the "Lazarus Project" other than she was alive.

Everywhere she went people pointed out that she was 'dead', and she had never felt the way she used to. Her memory was fully intact and she was grateful for that. Her personality had changed a bit. Now she was mad for no reason and it made her even more enraged. The Lazarus Project to her was a success except some huge details she can tell that are different. Like the way she tasted things.

Her favorite fruit used to be apples, but now she hated them and loved peaches. She was grateful that she still loved cucumbers though. She would have ripped Miranda's head off if she had hated the tasty, watery, green vegetable, but there were some other things that made her uneasy.

She opened her eyes to the sound of Joker over the comm.

"Wakey, Wakey eggs and bakey. Rise and shine we've got a big day ahead of us! The temperature in the cockpit is now 65 degrees Fahrenheit and starry. The weather outside right now is gorgeous of a 311 degrees Celsius. Better get breakfast before Grunt or all of the food'll be gone."

She shifted in bed and propped herself on one elbow to check the time.

~Damn it, it's 9:10am. I'm missing my rounds around the ship!~

She stumbled out of bed and quickly slid on her N7 sweatshirt and sweatpants, brushed her teeth and left her room in a quick scramble.

The first stop was the CIC to check on Jacob, Mordin, Joker, the Yeoman, and the rest of the crew down there. Then she'd hit Engineering and work her way up as usual.

She made her way to the cockpit as the elevator doors opened and the Yeoman was at her station as usual. Kelly nodded at the Commander and she told her she had a new message at her private terminal yadda yadda yadda. Joker was in his chair as usual and she heard him arguing with the blue sphere to his left.

"Why'd you delete those? I didn't mean those!"

"You requested that I delete all of the files, Jeff."

"Yes, I mean no, but not those!"

"You did say-"

"I know what I said EDI, and I didn't mean 'THOSE' regional files. It'll take forever to get those back."

"I apologize-"

"Don't, your right it was my fault...Sorry, EDI."

Shepard grinned when she overheard the quarrel. In her usual position behind his chair she sunk into a hip and planted a hand on it.

"Getting along up here?"

"Nah, AIs were never really a favorite."

"Jeff, yesterday you said I was your favorite AI in the galaxy. Lying to the Commander will only get you in trouble."

"Oh, can it EDI."

Joker growled while he waved a hand in dismissal.

"You know she can hear you talking to yourself."

"Yeah, I just figured that out. So, why are you up so late? Your usually the early bird."

"Dreams kept me asleep."

"I thought dreams were suppose to keep you awake."

Shepard chuckled as she fiddled with the zipper of her sweater.

"Most of the time, but these were different."

"Your so-"

"Don't say it and get back to flying."

"Aye Aye, Ma'am."

"Oh, and Joker?"

"Yeah, Commander?"

She hesitated, but felt like asking was a good idea. He did fly the ship after all, and sat there all day and some nights. It was just a small favor.

"Do you need breakfast? I'm heading down to the crew deck to grab some grub anyway."

"You're too sweet, Commander. But I already ate thanks for the offer. You could bring me a power bar."

"I can do that."

"Thanks, Ev."

After she strode down to Jacob's armory she stopped to chat with the Yeoman and read her message. Then she stalked to Mordin's lab which she found was empty. An empty Mordin's lab was not a good sign. The elevator halted at the crew quarters where she saw Grunt sitting in a chair around one of the tables. A large plater in front of him that looked like a mess of meats and mush.

"Shepard."

He had noticed her walking toward Gardner. She turned and saw him looking at her.

"Hey, Grunt. How's breakfast?"

"It's appetizing."

She chuckled and waved a hand at Grunt.

"I'll talk to you later."

She walked toward Gardner who greeted her warmly.

"Ah, Commander. I was starting to wonder where you were."

"Slept in. Not purposely. Peach for now please and a power bar."

He bent down and came up with the fruit and a bar that she stuck in her pocket and tossed the peach to her. She caught it and waved to Gardner as she stepped toward Miranda's office.

She bit into her peach as the door to the office opened. Miranda looked up and back down at her terminal.

"So, what's new?"

Eveline asked as she stood in front of the desk.

"I suggest we go for Jack next. He's a criminal, but he should be useful. The Blue Sun
Purgatory he's being kept at allowed us to dock."

"Perfect, I'll get Joker to head there."

"Already on it."

Joker's voice said over the comm.

"Damn you, Joker. Quit eavesdropping."

She heard a chuckle and EDI's voice.

"Alright, thanks Miranda. Let me know if there's anything I should know."

Shepard turned to leave when Miranda said,

"Of course. Oh, and Commander you might want to check the Med bay, Chakwas wanted to see you about some pills."

"Thanks."

"Always."

Shepard walked toward the Med bay and the doors opened reviling Mordin hunched over his omni-tool and Chakwas at her usual desk.

"Ah, Commander. Those pills I gave you were the wrong ones. You haven't taken any of them have you?"

She sounded panicked as she stood, and Mordin looked up from his work.

"Um, no I haven't touched them."

Chakwas sighed a breath that Shepard hadn't noticed she was holding in.

"Thank goodness. Mordin warned me that I gave you the wrong ones and that you could get very ill if you took them. He might have just saved you and some med bay time."

Mordin blinked proudly with a broad smile.

"Yes, noticed that they didn't look like allergy pills. Have had a lot of that happen in my clinic. Not pretty."

"Thanks, Mordin. I'm really glad you're here to help. How's Garrus?"

"We cleaned him of bullets and blood, but I think you should ask him that yourself. He wouldn't admit how he really felt. He would say he's fine or good, but I could tell that that was not the case."

Chakwas handed her a pill bottle and went back to her chair to fiddled with her keyboard.

"Thanks ,Chakwas, Mordin."

"Our pleasure."

Mordin looked back down at his omni-tool as she left.

She chuckled to herself.

That Salarian hadn't put down his omni-tool since he got here.

She bit into her peach and savored the juices. Peaches never tasted like this before. She put the pills in her pocket and her feet took her to the Main Battery. She stopped in front of the door.

'What if he's in a bad mood? What if he's sleeping? AH, enough what ifs go the hell in Shepard.'

She tapped and she heard EDI's voice on the other side of the door and Eve scratched her nose.

She bit into her peach when the door opened. Garrus was in his armor and standing in front of the lone terminal in the middle of the room.

"Don't get me wrong. Cerberus knows how to make a ship, but they suck at making a big gun."

_Garrus_

He heard her footsteps and a small tap outside the door. EDI's blue orb light lit the corner of the room and blipped,

"Archangel, the Commander wishes to enter."

"EDI, you can call me by my name you know...Garrus? Vakarian? "

Silence fell in the room, he sighed.

"Just let her in."

He heard the door open and her step in. He thought he was imagining things, but he thought he heard her sigh through her nose.

"Don't get me wrong. Cerberus knows how to make a ship, but they suck at making a big gun."

He heard her chuckle which warmed his chest a little more than it should.

"Why were you asking to come in anyway? You can come in whenever you feel like it."

He looked up and saw her leaning against the railing beside him. A round what looked like a fruit that had bite marks in it was in her hand. Her hair was longer than he remembered and thats probably why it was in a messy ponytail.

The long red-black locks hung loosely around her ears. Her eyes were almost glistening in the lights above them. Why was he observing her so closely 'now'? Something hit him, her hair was different. Her soft and cute little facial features were still there. It was the hair that was different... Wait- CUTE? She shrugged.

"I didn't want to walk in on you sleeping or something. If you came up to my quarters and you wanted to come in, you would've asked first."

He grumbled as the last update finished fixing the main gun's heater. He had been at it for a few hours and new it was going to be a very stubborn piece of metal. He felt his eyes go on her again. For some reason it was hard to pull them away. He hadn't been so fixed on something like this in- never.

Especially on her, so why now? What was so interesting about her that he couldn't stop looking at her...

It HAD to be her hair there was nothing else that he found an 'abnormality.', but if he put her and the hair together something just made his breath get caught in his throat.

It's too familiar.

"Garrus?"

She had been flicking her fingers in front of his eyes. He stood up straight and she sighed.

"Thank goodness I though you had gone into some sort of state. I was worried I'd have to get Chakwas or worse, Mordin."

"What? Oh, I uh- Sorry I was thinking."

She laughed and bit her fruit that let out a sweet smell as she bit into it.

"So you stared into a daydream?"

"What? No!"

His eyes lingered away for a moment until they were glued on her again.

"What do you mean, no? You sat there and stared at me like- well- it was creepy!"

"Sorry."

The apology was embedded in his sub-harmonics.

"It's fine," she said smiling. "I was just teasing."

"Right..."

He watched her shift and bite into the fruit again.

"What are you eating? Oh, wait now that you have it in your mouth you can't really tell me. Cause' I actually don't want to know!"

She swallowed and laughed.

"It's just a peach. It grows on trees on earth mostly, but my uncle planted peach trees and lemon trees and all sorts of fruit trees on his farm. You can plant a fruit and make more fruit with it. It's confusing at first, but you catch on."

He just looked at her and waited for her to take another bite.

"So he planted what your eating to make more of them?"

She sat there chewing. The annoyed expression on her face made him laugh out loud. She finished and spoke,

"Well, no. My uncle planted the seeds that are inside the fruit. When I was little he made us throw the seeds in separate bins to tell which seed belonged to which fruit. My cousin and I had fun mixing them up. My uncle would plant a lemon tree, but it'd come up as an orange or apple tree."

She was smiling and she took another bite.

"Ah, so you farmed. We have a similar um, way of getting food, but Palaven's sun was too hot to plant nonnative fruits or vegetables."

She finished chewing. Her eyebrows were raised, but her eyes were still narrowed.

"Hhmm, well, Garrus I really came down here to ask how you were. How are you feeling?"

He tensed at the question that he was expecting. He had been feeling pretty rough the past couple of hours, but he wasn't sure how to tell her without making her worry.

"I'm fine I guess. Just need to get used to being on a ship again."

She sighed through her nose and stepped away from the railing.

"Garrus, I think both of us know that's not true."

Damn, he knew this wasn't going to work, not with her.

He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Shepard, you have enough to worry about. Really, you don't need me to tell you how I'm feeling. I think you already know what I'm going to say."

She nodded and stepped closer to him. He could smell her now. Something was almost too familiar.

A small quirked smile on her face, her eyes were looking right into his. Her gentle voice was going to make his mandibles twitch.

"I know, I know, but I think if you let it all out to someone. You'll feel a lot better."

He felt his own heart beat quicken, but he shook it off and sighed again.

"I'm not good. I just got word from Chellick that the Pallin was assassinated and he took charge. Over that he sent me a message from my father. My "father" went on to say how disappointed he was of me for leaving C-sec and helping you. He also said my mom's condition was getting worse."

He grabbed the railing and sunk his head.

"My sister has done everything to keep her in good shape, but nothing has made it better."

Everything swished from his head out of his mouth.

"Everything from illness to reapers and collectors to going into hell again. I can't get my head in the game. I'm always distracted or focusing on-"

He stopped when he realized he was about to say "you", but caught himself in red tape.

She wouldn't understand if he told her anyway.

"Things, but just being back here on the new Normandy with you and Joker and people I have no taste for. But all of that comes to a halt when I realize I'm not in great health myself. I didn't get much sleep last night when I thought about-"

There it was again. The damn "you" that was threatening to come out of his mouth.

He let a sigh escape though. He looked up and saw she was propped next to him with soft eyes.

"Don't worry. We're in this together. Remember that, Garrus."

There was a long moment where none of them spoke they just sat there and looked into each others eyes. It was almost like they were trying to read each other's minds.

She straightened, her face was still soft as she spoke.

"So, what were you doing on Omega?"

"Like I said, I was sick of the political crap and the red tape."

He stood there and knew instantly that she wasn't buying it.

"I know that's not it, Garrus. Were you yelled at by the Pallin?"

"No, it's not-"

"Were you fired?"

"No-"

He pushed away from the railing. She was taking this too casually. Shep was leaning on the side of the terminal just looking at him.

"Did your dad confront you?"

"No!-"

"Garrus,"

"I was upset that you died, okay?"

He looked at her after wondering his eyes and saw the almost shocked look on her face.

"Damn it."

He slammed a fist down on the rail and went back to leaning over it.

"I- I couldn't take it. No one told me until I turned on the news vids. I hate finding things that I should already know on VIDS. Out of everything it had to be a VID. After I found out I went to the Pallin's office it was late and he was still working. I found Joker in there and showed the vid to them. I was so angry I just left. I needed to kill something and I knew I'd find that on Omega."

He felt a warm sensation on his fist and realized that she had placed her hand over it.

"I wanted to make you proud. I even had a team, but were killed in the worst of it."

"Garrus, I'm sorry. I wish- I wish-"

He heard her stutter. He released his fist and turned his palm up to meet hers.

He heard her heart beat slightly faster and he gripped her hand like a lifeline.

"Don't be sorry, Eve. It wasn't your fault you died. You saved good people in my opinion it was worth it. Well, not for you to die, I'm proud of you for putting them before you. Even in situations like that."

She laughed and hung her head.

"Thanks, but I'm more proud of you. You put your heart in it. You didn't give up."

There was a long and awkward silence between the two and she lifted her hand off his quickly and cleared her throat. She looked nervous as she backed away.

"Well, I'll let you get back to work. Thanks for the talk."

She said as she backed into the door.

"Hhhmhh, I'll uh- talk to you later."

"Right,"

The door closed behind her. He was suddenly dumbfounded.

~What the hell just happened?~