Work Text:
"I know I have been taking you everywhere else but I just don‘t think going down there is particularly safe for you”. Shepard is leaning onto Garrus’ workbench. “There are still a lot of people down there who want to kill you and I would very much not like for you to die if I can avoid it.”
“I’m not going to die, though.”, Garrus retorts “If they didn’t manage to kill me back then, they wont manage it now.
“But what if…”
“Shepard. I will be fine.”
She folds in the end. Shepard tells herself that she is probably just overreacting, all of them are in constant danger anyway and it’s not like she has something critical to do down there, just some shopping.
Once they land on Omega and step onto the station however, Shepard can’t quite shake the feeling that something is wrong. EDI confirms her suspicions a few minutes later when she chimes in over comm. “Shepard, it appears you are being followed.”
“A bit more information please.”
“Your pursuers seem to be focused on Mr. Vakarian. They have not identified you.”
“What are their intentions?”
“Unclear. It is safe to assume violence.”
“Fuck”, Shepard turns towards Garrus. “You got that?”
He nods. “Yeah, I did.”
“Anything you want to say?”
“You were right.”
“Thanks”, she shoots him a quick grin “EDI. Any ideas on how to shake them?”
“A quick return to the Normandy would be preferable, however there are several dark allies suitable for hiding in your proximity.”
“Perfect. Mark them on my map.”
“I would also suggest, trying to appear as a couple to keep you from being identified.”
Shepard’s heart skips a beat. “Excuse me?”
“Mr. Moreau seems highly amused by the suggestion. It was, however, in earnest.”
“Of course he is”, Shepard mumbles to herself before looking Garrus. “What do you think?”
Garrus shrugs. “Seems like a good idea.” He sounds a bit nervous.
Shepard hooks her arm through his and leans into him, guiding him towards the marked point on her map. She can hear the people following them now, they are getting closer.
“Shepard.”, EDI comes in again. “The street you are hiding in is not sufficiently dark. However, stepping back onto main street now would put you right in front of your pursuers and likely lead to violence. I suggest instead covering your face to avoid civilian casualties and property damage.”
Garrus tilts his head. “How exactly…”
Shepard makes a split second decision to pull him down and kiss him, turning the scarred side of his face to the street and hopefully obscuring the rest of it. Garrus makes a noise of surprise at first but then leans into the kiss, pressing Shepard to the wall behind her. She wraps her arms around his waist, pulling him on top of her. He tastes like smoke. Shepard opens her mouth to…
“Your pursuers have passed.” EDI’s cool voice breaks through.
Shepard immediately lets go of Garrus and he takes a step a back. Both of them are gasping for breath. “We should get back to the Normandy before they notice.”
“Right, Normandy, right.” Garrus sounds just as flustered as Shepard feels.
They make their way back to the ship in silence. They are almost out of the docking tube when Garrus speaks. “I...ah...thank you.”
“It wasn’t...no problem”, for what feels like the first time in her life, Shepard is at a loss for words. “Just glad we...uh...got rid of them.”
“Right, right.”
“I’ll...uh...see you...debriefing.”
“Yes.”
They walk off into different directions. Garrus walks toward the CIC so Shepard has no choice but to duck into the cockpit and sink into Joker’s co-pilot chair. He is grinning at her. “You okay Commander?”
“Yup. Yes. Fine.”, she curls up into the chair. A big smile creeps onto her face, she can still taste smoke. “Really fucking good, actually.”