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It was 2 in the morning on SSV Normandy, and most of the ship's crew was long asleep. This wasn't the case for Shepard, as he laid wide awake in his quarters. The Commander tried doing everything to fall asleep, from reading, counting sheep, and even watching a holovid to tire himself; none of which worked. After few hours of trying he finally gave up on sleeping and decided to get up and see what the rest of the crew was up to. Hopefully, one of them was up to keep him company.
Shepard got up from his bed and picked up the pair of trousers he folded onto his chair and put an N7 tank top over his torso. As the ship's commander, he had his own private quarters, which made him more comfortable leaving a messier environment, after several years of sharing the barracks with the rest of his platoon.
He walked outside the room, and headed upstairs to Normandy's Command Deck. The area was mostly empty, as most of the crew was asleep at this hour. However, there were still a few people working the night shift.
"Good morning, Commander." one of the navigators spoke to Shepard.
"Good morning." He replied. "How's the search for the Asari scientist going?"
"We managed to narrow down the search to northern part of the cluster with the help of our long-range scanners." She replied to the Commander. "Flight Lieutenant is currently moving us closer to Athens and Knossos systems. We'll most likely have her location by 0700."
Clark raised his eyebrow. "Joker's also awake?"
"Yes, Commander."
"Very well, I'll go check on him too." Shepard replied to the navigator "Carry on the good work, soldier."
The Commander started walking towards the bridge, slowly making the pilot's seat. Joker immediately turned around as he saw the Commander approach.
"Oh, hey Commander."
"Joker." He crossed his hands. "Why are you up this late?"
“Couldn’t sleep.” The Flight Lieutenant replied “I couldn’t sleep so I decided to stay on post. Then the navigators asked me to help them with search and rescue, so I did.”
“You also have insomnia?”
“Nah.” He replied, “I just took a nap earlier today and can’t sleep now.”
Shepard frowned. "Don't you think that's a little irresponsible?"
"Well yeah," He replied "but I had a rough morning, so Doc gave me some pain pills and told me to take a nap." Joker defended himself "I told her I could handle it, but she insisted. For the crew's safety and all."
"Oh." The Commander awkwardly replied, for he had genuinely forgotten about Joker's disability for a moment. "I'm sorry for coming off like that." Vrolik syndrome wasn't an easy thing to live with, and Shepard didn't want to cause Jeff to feel bad for having it. "I didn't take your condition into consideration."
"Yeah, it's alright, Commander." He turned his chair around, now facing the steering console in the cockpit "As long as you still know I'm the best Alliance has, we're good." He smiled to himself. "Anyway, Commander, why are you up this late?"
The Commander spotted the empty chair, reserved for a co-pilot, next to Joker. He walked towards it, and sat down before replying "Couldn't sleep. Can't get used to the new room."
"Aww, is the bed too soft, Commander?" The pilot joked
Clark sat in silence, resisting the urge to reply yes. "It’s not that soft."
"I mean, hey, I'd love to swap rooms with you." He replied. "Those bunk beds are getting boring."
Shepard chuckled. "I'll consider it." He paused for a second. "Mind if I keep you company?"
“Not at all, Commander.” The pilot said, working on his terminal still. He enjoyed the Commander company whenever he would drop by the cockpit just to check on him, it made the pilot feel appreciated and a little less lonely on an isolated part of the cruiser. "You know, Commander, I always wanted to ask you something."
"Go ahead." Shepard turned towards the pilot, curious about what he had on his mind "What's on your mind?"
"I was talking to Doc the other day, and she told you've got a bachelor's in engineering."
"Yeah, I finished the top of my class."
"Yeah, but why did you join Alliance?" Joker stopped his work for a second, turning towards Shepard.
"I was in a rough position." Shepard awkwardly scratched the behind of his head "I needed to pay off my student loans, and Alliance pays well."
"But Commander, you've been serving for like ten years now and reached one of the highest ranks in the Alliance. Isn't that enough to pay your student loans?"
"It was, but I feel in love with the adventuring, and not like my engineering skills don't come use." The Commander was one of the best combat engineers in the entire Alliance, a title that doesn't come easy. "Plus, I always wanted to be like Captain Kirk growing up."
Joker's face lit up as he heard Clark say it "Shut up." He let out a chortle "No way you're a trekkie."
"It’s my favorite show, I watch it to this day." Commander raised his eyebrow at the pilot. "Why? Is there going to be a problem?"
"Umm, only if being super cool and badass is an issue." Joker exclaimed. It was rare to find someone with admiration for the two century old vids. "I love the show."
Joker has been fascinated with the 20th and 21st century pop culture. He would frequently watch vids of old movies and TV shows, as well as read comic books from long dead franchises. The pilot even had his own personal collection of merchandise and collectables in his home.
"Really?" Shepard smiled. No one in the Alliance he talked to ever even heard of Star Trek, let alone be massive fan. It’s rare to find more people that appreciate my geeky interests."
"C'mon, Commander. I love my geeky stuff." Joker pulled a book from under his seat. It was a hardcover of Batman Hush: The 150th Anniversary Edition, one of the classics from Detective Comics. "I've been reading this on my breaks."
Shepard took the book in his hand. "I know this one, it's great." He flipped through pages, making sure not to lose Jeff's spot. The Commander slowly remembering the plot of it from glancing at the pictures, after which he handed Joker his book back. "Have you read any of the alien comic books?"
"Nah, I've been wanting to," The pilot put the book under his seat again. "but you know me, I love my classics."
Commander brought up his omni-tool, scrolling through the folder of his personal belonging, specifically a folder for all the digital comic books he was currently reading. Clark loaded up a comic book published by a Citadel publisher. "I recommend this one." He pointed the omni-tool towards Jeff "It’s about a crime fighting Asari that can read minds." The comic in question, simply titled The Mind Reader, was one of Astonishing Adventures’ classics. The series went on for 60 years now and is one of the most recognizable ones among the alien civilization.
"Nice..." Joker scrolled through the pages, distracted by the drawn Asari's perfect hourglass shape "Can you send me this one?"
"Sure." The Commander pressed the share button on his omni-tool, instantly sending it to the pilot's device.
"Thanks, Commander." Joker was excited about digging into a new comic book later today. “I was just waiting for a right one to get into these.”
“No problem, Joker.” Commander got off his chair. “I should go check on the rest of the crew too. It was fun talking to you.”
“Of course.” Joker tipped the brim of his cap "Hit me up next time we're on the Citadel. I’m treating you a beer, Commander.”
Shepard smiled at Joker’s suggestion, feeling like he became good friends with the pilot. "It’s a date then."
As the Commander walked away, Joker stared at him with a raised eyebrow. It wasn’t what he had on mind when he offered drinks. Regardless, still nice to get out of the ship every once in a while.