Chapter Text
i. my name is noah and the sea is my home, oh and this small wooden boat will be my throne
“Look at him, he’s adorable.”
She’s adorable, he thinks, sitting on the floor with a small wriggling creature in her arms. The dog is cute, he’ll admit, but the look of unfiltered joy on her face takes up most of his attention.
“He’s too big for the apartment.” Kaidan chuckles, watching the excited thing try to escape her hold.
“He’s a puppy!” She scoffs.
“He’ll get bigger.”
“Not that much bigger.”
“They literally just told us he could weigh as much as you.”
She waves him off, shaking her head as if to dismiss that crucial bit of information. She returns her attention to the puppy, and Kaidan knows he’s not dissuading her, but they don’t have room for a high-energy dog, not right now. They’ve been looking for a property, somewhere private and quiet – somewhere they can live without the galaxy watching. So far, their search has been less than fruitful.
“The apartment.” He states again, hoping they can maybe push back the puppy purchase.
“Well we won’t be in the apartment forever.” She retaliates, and really, he should have known better. He sighs, glancing down to the little mastiff mix only to find the brightest pair of blue eyes staring back at him. Now they’re teaming up on him. It’s not fair, really – he’s had years to learn how to say ‘no’ to Shepard. He doesn’t have the same luxury with this tiny ball of black fur.
“Shepard – ”
“We made a deal.”
And that really is the end of the discussion.
She names him Brutus, because it’s ‘cute’. It takes Kaidan a total of thirty seven minutes to fall absolutely in love with him.
The plot is little more than a makeshift driveway and a dock, but it’s the best fit they’ve found so far. He’s standing on the beach, his toes in the water, looking out at the ocean as he tries to envision a finished home. Big windows, light colours – he wants all the natural light he can get. They’ve spent so much time on starships – hell, Shepard grew up with artificial day cycles. He wants her to experience the sun, their sun, shining through their window in the morning. He wants to sit on the dock with her, to teach her to sail, to give her the life she deserves after everything she’s given up.
He laughs now, at the notion of giving her anything less than everything.
“What do you think?” He asks, turning to her as she leans down to pull something from the sand. Brutus noses his way in, trying to get at whatever she’s reaching for.
“It’s perfect,” She says with a smile, pushing the puppy away playfully as she pockets her treasure. “Quiet, but close enough to the city. Plenty of space. Perfect.”
He swears he smiles so wide his cheeks hurt.
“Then it’s ours.” He sends a quick message to their agent; it should be a straightforward deal. Shepard comes to stand next to him, kicking her shoes off and wiggling her toes into the sand as the waves lap over them. Brutus barks hesitantly, but his desire to be close to her outweighs his fear. He treads carefully into the water, uneasy until the first gentle wave washes over his feet. Then he starts growling, and Shepard laughs, genuinely and wholeheartedly, as the tiny thing tries to bite the water.
“He’s fighting the ocean.” She whispers with a mix of awe and pride.
“We’ll get him started on thresher maws next week.” Kaidan snorts, earning a smack on the arm. They’re quiet for a moment, enjoying the breeze and cool water. She looks almost like she’s in a daze, mesmerized by the waves.
“I’ve never been barefoot on a beach before.” She says suddenly, and Kaidan can’t help the pang of sadness that stutters in his chest. “The sand is weird.”
“Ever been on a boat?”
“In training.” She confirms, but she knows that’s not what he meant.
“My dad taught me to sail. Maybe we’ll get a little one; go fishing.”
“I don’t think I have the patience for fishing.” She confesses.
“You definitely don’t.” Kaidan nods with a smile, and Shepard rolls her eyes. Brutus runs by, kicking water at them as he goes.
“House first,” Shepard says, smiling at the puppy as a particularly large wave takes him by surprise. “Then you can drag me to the middle of the ocean just to hold a stick with a worm on it.”
“Alright,” Kaidan smirks, watching as Brutus recovers enough to lunge back into the water in a flurry of legs. “House first.” He looks over to the patch of land where their house will be, and the thought flutters excitedly in his chest. Their house. “There’s only one thing I really want.”
“A beer fridge.” Shepard guesses quickly, but he waves her off with a laugh.
“Smartass.” He accuses. She simply shrugs with an affirming nod. “No, I want to be able to watch the sun rise and set from our bed.” Windows, big ones – he knows what he’s asking. He thinks of her cabin on the Normandy, of the shutters permanently closed. She’d said it was different down here, but he’s still uncertain. He hopes it’s not too much. He wants her to see the world she saved.
“You plan on spending an entire day in bed, Major?” She teases as Brutus barks again, abandoning his valiant pursuit to stand between Shepard’s legs as though she might protect him from the ocean.
“More than one.” Kaidan confirms, and she smiles that smile. The smile that twists him into knots, that ties his tongue and scrambles his brain – the smile that’s brighter than the damn sun he’s so desperate to see. She smiles at him like he’s the only thing worth smiling at.
“Big windows, huh?” She says, pulling something from her pocket. A small pink shell sits in her palm as she peers out at the sea, a familiar tune on the tip of her tongue. “I think I like the sound of that.”