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“Vega!” Shepard barked. “Stop doing pull-ups and help Cortez. We’re on the clock on this one.”
“Okay Loco, no need to get snippy,” James grunted as he completed one more pull-up.
Miranda had been squaring her kit away in a locker when she overheard the quick exchange. “Loco?” she breathed quietly. “Is that … it can’t be.”
Two years Miranda had spent watching over her special project, funneling millions of credits into bringing the hero of the battle of the Citadel back to life.
Millions of credits, new advancements in medical and scientific technologies.
Hundreds of evaluations, time spent in the field-
-time spent in the Commander’s bed.
And after all that, she hadn’t bothered to learn more about Shepard’s past beyond a Systems Alliance record.
She watched as Shepard and the large slab of meat called Vega helped the pilot Cortez move pallets of supplies. It didn’t surprise her that Shepard had again created a unique bond with the new crew, or that Shepard got down and dirty with the crew for the most menial of tasks.
No, it only surprised her that she didn’t know Shepard’s first name.
“But Loco?” she repeated quietly, zoning out.
“What was that Miranda?” Shepard asked, making Lawson jump.
“Shepard! Uh, nothing. Sorry.”
Shepard took a step forward, getting right into Miranda’s personal bubble. “Don’t worry. We’ll stop Henry and get Oriana back again.”
Miranda was relieved that Shepard had misinterpreted her flustering. But since Shepard was this close, and the other two busy with unloading the cargo, it gave her an opportunity.
“I know … Loco. Thank you.”
Shepard raised an eyebrow. “Loco?”
Miranda cursed. This wasn’t going the way she expected it to. “Sorry Shepard, I obviously crossed a line, it won’t-”
“Do you want to know my actual first name? Not just a nickname from Muscles over there?” Shepard asked enticingly.
Her eyes were all the answer that Shepard needed, brushing her lips with a kiss. “My quarters in an hour.”
Then Shepard went back to unloading cargo, interjecting into an argument between Vega and Cortez. Miranda pulled herself together. She was losing her edge, relying on some marine for intel, like she was-
Loco.