Survivor

Chapter 27

Garrus
  Garrus sat beside Samantha's bed, tracing lazy circles on the back of her hand with his thumb as he gently held that hand.
  It hurt to see her like this again.
  Her injuries were accounted as minor scrapes and bruises, a through and through on her left arm which narrowly missed the bone, a graze wound above her ear, her gunshot wound in her waist reopened with a minor infection from the dirt packed in and her weak immune system, and a very mild case of pneumonia the doctors assured him would go away within the next three days.
  It was all overwhelming. He was on the brink of losing her, it seemed. Every day it seemed that way now.
  She couldn't change overnight from the warrior she learned to be, and yet she needed to learn to take it easy and let her body recover.
  Garrus just didn't know how to help her see that, and it frustrated the hell out of him.
  He heard the door to Samantha's hospital room open and turned to see a very displeased Miranda standing in the doorway.
  She crooked a finger at him to silently beckon him out into the hall. From the look in her eyes, this wasn't a request, though.
  Garrus kissed Samantha's hand softly before he laid it back on the bed and made his way out of her room.
  He shut the door behind him and faced Miranda with his arms folded and his face impassive.
  "She needs to go back home. Now, Garrus."
  "Where exactly is home for her? I never got to find that out, really."
  "Don't play coy with me. You know exactly where I mean. On the Citadel, settled back into your apartment and taking part in physical therapy to get her back into working order."
  Garrus leaned his torso back away from her. "What if she doesn't want to go, Miranda?"
  Miranda clenched her fists and jaw, her eyes challenging him. "Then make her. Earth is no place for her right now. Especially not with those rogues on the loose."
  Garrus shook his head. "I appreciate that you're concerned here, I really do. But you need to realize that things like this are for Samantha and I to work out and decide as a couple. I don't feel comfortable making decisions on her life for her."
  Miranda scoffed. "Come on, Garrus. Does she already have you whipped that badly? Be a man and take charge. Or I will. This isn't an option. It's about her safety and her life."
"If by 'whipped', you mean she's earned this respect for her, then yes. If you think otherwise your perfect genes must be dissolving. It's a low blow to try to use petty insults to make me try to control her."
  She held up a hand at him to keep him from talking anymore as she took a few steps to pace. Then she faced him. "If I need to be the one to talk to Shepard and make her see that she needs to be at the Citadel, then so be it. But one way or another, it's happening. She will not die at the hands of a traitor or from an infection or disease here on Earth."
  Garrus shut his eyes. "I'll talk to her. But after this, the commands end. We are going to live our lives on our terms once Samantha is healed. Not on a doctor's orders or yours."
  Miranda nodded slowly as Garrus opened his eyes. "I think I can respect that."
  Her voice and eyes softened a bit before she spoke again. "I really do mean the best when I do these things, Garrus. I owe her a debt for saving my sister and I. I don't take these things lightly, nor do I take the lives of friends lightly."
  Garrus snorted. "Didn't know you had any friends." The words were harsh, but the cruel force wasn't behind them.
  Miranda caught onto this and smiled. "Why do you think I go through hell to protect them?"
  Garrus chuckled. "Good point."
  They stood in awkward silence for a moment before Miranda turned to leave.
  "Wait."
  Both of them were surprised by Garrus stopping Miranda.
  "What," she answered, still facing away but stopped.
  "Um, Shepard... Samantha will want to know you were here."
  Miranda smiled over her shoulder. "I'll be back. I'll be the one escorting you guys back to the Normandy and to the Citadel."
  With that, she walked away, the usual air of confidence flowing around her trailing behind.
  Garrus shook his head, but a smile touched his lips.
  He had never really cared much for Miranda and her bossy ways and attitude, but he had to admit she was growing on him.
  She proved to be loyal to more than just a cause that gave her purpose and pay.
  She left that when Samantha made her choice to destroy the Collector base. It called for a sort of respect from Garrus.
  It wasn't easy to just pull up roots and start over, but she did it and somehow remained on her feet.
  Garrus entered Samantha's room and reclaimed his place by her bedside.
  "You've called for a lot of loyalty from those who have served under your command, Sam. I can't say how proud and amazed that makes me feel..."
  He brushed his talons across her cheek gently before he settled back down, getting comfortable to take a nap.
  There was work to be done that had been forwarded to him from C-Sec, but it could wait.
  He didn't want the moment she woke to be ruined by the distraction of work and him being tired.
  And he was definitely tired.
  It all took a toll on him, and he knew it took a toll on her.
  He just had to be patient, he decided. Patient with her and with their situation. If he could do that and remain understanding, he decided they could get through anything life threw at them.

((A/N: Hey guys! So this chapter was pretty short, I know and I'm sorry! I've been pretty busy, it's official that we're getting ready to move! Back to New Mexico! So excited! Gonna be pretty busy for the next three weeks but I fully intend to keep up with updates! Seriously, I'm trying to make time to write a few chapters ahead to ensure that you guys get your Sunday updates! As a heads up, depending on what's going on when we get down to New Mexico, I may be adding another update day to the Sunday update! Just an idea, it just depends on how busy I'll be since I'll probably be working at least part time!
Anyways, don't forget to leave a vote and comment if you guys liked this chapter! Thanks guys! I love you guys so much and I can't say how grateful I am to have you all reading this!))