Curious Jealousy- a F!Shenko Fic

Chapter Forty-Seven: Never Forget

When Shepard stepped out of the bathroom, she was unsurprised to see Kaidan leaning against the wall next to the bathroom door. She lowered the towel from her head and smiled over at him. A part of her was glad that she had had the foresight to, at least, grab a pair of sweats and a shirt.

Then, another part, hated that she was glad for that. They were, technically, exclusive.

Meaning: together.

And it wasn't like he had never seen her naked.

"Hey, Kaidan," she greeted as she walked over to the bed and sat down tiredly.

Kaidan watched her silently, his face completely blank. Without thinking, she rubbed the tender spot on her side as she silently cursed fish tank floors. His eyes glanced to the spot and then back to her. "Are you okay?" Kaidan finally asked.

She gave him the same look she had had on her face when he had asked that question over the comm. She found it more effective in that moment for the simple fact that he could now see the expression. "Besides plummeting down at least a dozen floors and getting shot at while in civvies?" she asked, her tone considerably more gentle than a few hours prior.

It was wonderful what a shower could do for stress.

When Kaidan didn't speak- or even move-, she sighed, "Well, I didn't die- so that's always a plus. I've had worse days." She flinched (and she was pretty sure that she saw a small flinch from him as well) when she realized just how flippant she had said that.

It wasn't really funny considering what had happened.

Still with a blank expression, he walked over to her and knelt down right in front of her so that they were both at eyelevel. Shepard was unsure whether she should be nervous or not. Kaidan had never before been so expressionless- especially after enemy contact.

"Kaidan-"

He held up his hand and silenced her. He moved his hand over to her hairline behind her right ear and moved the hair away. It took Kaidan a moment to look away from her eyes and to that small section behind her ear.

His eyes were glued to the skin that was marked.

He laid on his back on the bed with her head resting in the crook of his shoulder and her fingers drawing shapes on his chest. There was no other place that he could imagine being better.

If there was actually a heaven, he was pretty sure that it'd be something like that.

A beautiful woman in his arms while they laid in comfortable silence.

Perfection.

As it was, they were basking in the post-sex glow.

In that one act, she had confirmed that she was interested in him as well (from the look in her eyes while in the act, he couldn't classify it as a meaning nothing to her). All the flirtation meant nothing- like he said, battle field flirtation was one thing.

He hoped that it meant the same to her as it did to him.

"What're you thinking about?" she whispered into his ear, causing a small shiver to go down his spine. "You're awfully quiet."

He thought about telling her exactly what he was thinking- that he was pretty sure that he loved her-, but that seemed like a little too soon and a little too clichéd- they hadjust slept together.

There would be plenty of time.

"Your tattoo," he murmured, pulling out a question that he had wondered about- not so much at the time since he had been…ahem…otherwise occupied-, "why a cat?"