Long-winded AN:

So, um, you know how sometimes you're just sitting there and then a Shenko fluff idea smacks you in the face and you have to write it? Yeah, that's what happened.

Pre Mass Effect fluff, the year is 2179. Alexis Shepard and Kaidan Alenko end up choosing the same place for shore leave: Trident. Everything derails from there as two people's lives change forever. Rated M for minor swearing and uh, descriptive (yet tasteful) fluff.

Final warning: this piece is 100% fluff, no plot other than Shenko goodness. Last chance to move your cursor up to the right corner of the screen and click that little 'X' up there.

And finally, a big shout out to Kassandra Black, TheRev28, and iNf3ctioNZ for beta-reading this for me.

Enjoy!

~quantum

-A-

Day One

-A-

Second Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko rubbed his eyes blearily, datapad abandoned in his lap. So much for taking recommendations on reading material. He wasn't sure what the hell that had been, but one thing it definitely was not was enjoyable.

He checked the time on his omni-tool and stretched. The transport should have landed ten minutes ago. What was the hang up? He craned his neck over the edge of his seat...

… and came face to face with bluest eyes he'd ever seen, peering unexpectedly up at him. The owner of the eyes blinked, then grinned coyly when he continued to look at her.

"Hi," she said, and he flushed and grunted something back that might have been 'hi' before returning to a sitting position.

Reason number two for his vacation was to get away from a bad breakup. His buddies had warned him about dating civilians, but she'd seemed different. Then, at least. He wasn't sure if it was just the novelty of him being a biotic and approachable (though the uniform probably had something to do with it, too), but after a few months, she'd started complaining that he was always away on 'duty' and never spent any time with her.

Red flag number one: partner wants you to change careers so you can spend more time with them. He wasn't against the idea of spending more time with his girlfriend. He'd certainly missed her while he was away. He had thought she'd understood what it meant to date a career military man. Apparently not.

He didn't need the resounding replies of 'get out, now!' from his friends to know that staying with her would be a bad idea, and not necessarily because she was a bad person. They just had different needs, and he was unwilling to compromise on the military thing. Unfortunately, she hadn't taken the news quite as well as he'd hoped. A long night, a box of his stuff flung at him, and three beers later, he'd proclaimed himself officially single, if a little sad. Definitely a lot pissed, but not just at her (though she certainly factored into it).

That was just over a month ago.

Reason number one for the vacation was to just get somewhere quiet. Somewhere where he could just be and not have to do anything. Usually he cruised back to Earth and visited his parents in Vancouver. Not this time. The express purpose of this vacation was to give the galaxy the middle finger for three days and become a hermit.

What he didn't need was the newly acquired memory of piercing blue eyes haunting him.

He closed his in an attempt to shut them out. It didn't work.

A finger tapped him on the shoulder, and he peered up to find the owner of the blue eyes leaning over the back of the seat above him. "There's a storm, apparently."

Blue eyes smiled, and he mentally checked himself, opting to reply instead of staring at her with a deer-in-the-headlights sort of look that was bound to get him in trouble. "It's not supposed to be hurricane season yet."

She looked up as the Flight Attendant walked by. He discretely studied her features and noted with only minor surprise (if he was honest with himself, and his general rule of thumb was to always be honest) that he was attracted to her. It wasn't just the piercing blue of her eyes or the cute shape of her chin, nor was it the smattering of light freckles on her nose and cheeks. It was all of it and more. The way she held herself, the small dimple in the corner of her mouth as she smiled, the light in her eyes that said she was thoroughly enjoying herself...

… and the rosy tinge to her cheeks that he realized meant she was thinking along the same lines as him. Warmth flooded his face, but he couldn't tear his gaze away from her.

"It's not a hurricane, just a hell of a lot of rain."

He shrugged, pointedly maintaining eye contact and not scrutinizing her features. "Rain's not so bad."

She grinned down at him and he unconsciously tugged at the collar of his shirt. "I think you misunderstood. It's a fucking lot of rain."

He laughed. "As long as there aren't any waterspouts, I'm good."

"Attention passengers: the transport will be landing shortly. We apologize for the delay."

Blue eyes smiled at him once more before vanishing.

Nor was she kidding. When the transport finally landed and everyone was allowed to vacate, the rain was practically slamming into the cement. He hefted his small duffel onto his shoulder, silently thankful that the military had ingrained in him the necessity to pack light, and ran along the row of rentable aircars. He finally found one near the end and quickly swiped his chit through the machine, claiming this one as his own for the next three days. By the time he got the door open, he was completely soaked and thoroughly regretting his decision to not wear a jacket.

At least the rain was warm. There was just a lot of it.

He threw his duffel into the back and slid into the seat and was just about to shut the door when his attention was drawn to blue eyes, running along the length of aircars, holding her bag over head (which was as effective as using a cocktail umbrella). She stopped when she reached the end and peered around. He did, too.

There were no more aircars. Most were already gone, their occupants quickly ferreting away to their residences of choice.

His chivalrous streak reared its head, and he clambered out and shouted out to her. She ran over once he waved and motioned at his car, relief flooding her face.

"God, I thought I was gonna be stuck here until more aircars were relocated," she hollered when she was within ten feet. He relieved her of her duffel and tossed it in the back next to his, noting that it was the same Alliance standard gear he sported. If he checked, he knew he'd find the Alliance insignia embroidered on the flap.

"Where are you headed?" he asked as she jumped into the seat. He followed suit and punched the button to shut the door.

Her dark-hair clung to her cheeks as she twisted to look at him. Rivulets of water glided down her skin, and he unconsciously shifted closer to her. Her blue eyes were deep and open. Innocent. "Do you have a hotel lined up?"

"Yeah, a resort on the edge of the ocean. About fifteen kilometers from here."

She grinned and tapped the dashboard. "That'll do!"

He arched an eyebrow and powered up the car. "You didn't reserve a room?"

He maneuvered the car towards the flow of traffic. The woman slid out of her coat. She was wearing a small, Alliance blue tank-top. He'd never found Alliance blue more alluring than he did now. "Didn't know I was coming here till... seven hours ago?"

"What, did you throw a dart at a board and let it pick?"

She smiled. "Something like that."

After a few minutes silence where he navigated the aircar into the throng of traffic, he asked, "How long's your shore leave?" He saw her give him a strange look out of the corner of his eye.

"Three days," she replied. "Yours?"

"Same."

"Grab the days where the Alliance will let you, eh?"

"Something like that," he flashed her a grin, and steered along the path the auto-navigation directed him to take in order to get to the resort. Handy, that.

"Running to or from?"

It was his turn to give her an odd look before answering. "From. You?"

"Both. But your 'from' sounds heavier."

He shifted in his seat. "Maybe."

"That bad, eh?"

He looked at her... and found her smiling at him. Not a coy smile, promising all sorts of hidden pleasures. Just a simple, genuine smile. Odd that he should find that more attractive than the other.

"Civilian."

"Ooh," she sucked in a breath. "Decidedly not."

He decided to have some fun. "That bad, eh?" He winked at her.

"A one night marathon session of 'Star Trek' and copious amounts of hot chocolate bad."

"'Next Generation' or 'Deep Space Nine'?" he asked, offering only his two favorites. If he had to pick, he'd choose 'Next Generation.'

"'Next Generation'," she replied, delight suffusing her voice.

"Shit, I should have thought of that."

"Don't guys have some sort of bro code? Like 'Avengers assemble!'"

"You did not just call it that."

She laughed. "What, is it like 'Fight Club,' and you're not supposed to talk about it?"

Kaidan set the cruise control and twisted to mock glare at her. "What's the first rule of Fight Club?"

Her mouth dropped open as she realized she was caught out. "Damn." He shook his head at her as if he was disappointed. "I'm not getting out of this one, am I?"

"Short of ritual suicide, I think you're screwed." He turned off the cruise control and slowed the aircar as he pulled into a parking spot in front of the resort.

"You know-" she started to say as he opened the door and rain slammed into them anew, cutting her off abruptly. She gasped at the sudden shock of water and he reached around and retrieved her jacket from where she'd tossed it and plopped it over her head. The gesture was just as startling and she lifted the edge and peered at him from beneath it. "Thanks!"

Rain continued to pelt him as they both climbed out of the aircar and grabbed their bags. He was glad that the seats were faux leather and sealed, 'cause otherwise this aircar would be out of commission for at least a day while it dried out.

Suddenly the onslaught of water diminished as a warm body pressed up against him, the small jacket now sheltering both of them. "My mom always said it was rude to not share," she grinned.

She was close. Really close. Her arm was wrapped around his neck, holding the other side of the jacket as she stood on her tippy-toes to provide the necessary reach. He swung the strap of his duffel over his shoulder (noting she had already done that with hers) and reached up with his newly freed hand to relieve her of holding his side of the makeshift umbrella. He closed his hand around hers, expecting it to slip free.

Note his surprise when she didn't. Instead, she flashed him another dazzling grin as they stood there stupidly in the rain.

He'd never been closer to kissing a stranger than he was now.

Cold fingers wrapped around his and she tugged him, breaking him out of his revery.

"As I was saying before the rain interrupted me, sometimes I think dating military is the only way to go."

The sudden shift struck him momentarily dumb as he absorbed her words. "Yeah?"

She rolled her eyes dramatically. "Civilians only bitch about you being away all the time."

He pensively tapped his chin, bringing her hand along for the ride. "I think you're right about that one."

They stood there like that for a moment, lingering on the brink of closing the gap, fingers intertwined and resting against his chest where he'd let them fall. She leaned in conspiratorially and he found himself bending down closer to her. She whispered exaggeratedly, "Plus, they freak out about the headjack."

Now this was new. Her hair was down, so of course he'd missed the one obvious indicator that she was a biotic. She'd undoubtedly noticed his. It wasn't exactly hidden to begin with because the Alliance had pretty strict standards on what constituted acceptable hair for men. And since he was an L2, the headjack was slightly larger, if flatter, than the L3's. Flush with his skin at the base of his skull, instead of protruding ever so slightly.

Unbidden thoughts of what it would be like to be unrestrained floated into the forefront of his mind, and all attempts to shut them down fell on figurative deaf ears. Sometimes, in the throes of passion it was hard to suppress the biotic flare as his nervous system exploded and reacted to the sensations flooding his body.

Blue eyes cleared her throat. "Uh, we should get inside." Her voice was breathier than it had been earlier.

"Right," he said huskily and guided them to the lobby.

The door swished open automatically before them, and the pair rushed in with a wave of water cascading around them. The sudden shift to a dry climate was startling, and blue eyes dropped the jacket from over their heads, though her hand remained firmly in his.

The lobby was devoid of people. The only sounds were the drops of water hitting the floor in a rapidly growing puddle around them, their heavy breathing from the quick run over (though part of his brain recognized the fact that his wasn't entirely due to the run and she was, to some extent, responsible for his current state), and the atmospheric music lightly playing in the background. He shared a confused glance with blue eyes before moving towards the front-desk.

An asari rushed out through a door once he was within five feet, an apologetic smile plastered on her face as she sat down in front of the terminal. "Welcome to the Trident Ocean-Side Resort, my name is Tel'sea." The asari frowned slightly at the trail of water the two had left behind them, but quickly replaced it with an indulgent smile. "Room for two?"

His heart stopped in his chest. Room for two. In the first second, he processed the meaning of the words. Even if Tel'sea hadn't noticed their hand-holding, the sheer fact that they'd arrived together was grounds enough to assume that they might be a couple. A notion that startled him, because rationally speaking he knew he wasn't ready for a relationship, and honestly, he wasn't sure he wanted to be in one right now. And it wasn't because he didn't find blue eyes attractive, because he most certainly did. Under any other circumstances, he might have considered asking her out on a date. Scratch that, he definitely would.

In the second second, he realized he was still holding her hand, and could feel the soft inner side of her wrist. Her pulse had doubled as soon as Tel'sea had said those three words: room for two. But she hadn't let go. Well, wasn't that something?

Alenko wasn't usually the adventurous sort. Always taking things slow, cautious. Always in control.

But she had done something to him that made him want to throw caution to the wind.

So as the third second was dangerously close to passing and pushing their silence into the realm of awkwardness, he opened his mouth and said, "Yes."

To hell with his reservation. He wasn't itching to buy anything any time soon.

Her hand tightened around his, and relief swelled through him that his reading on the situation hadn't been presumptuous. Bold, but not presumptuous.

"Excellent, I just need a credit chit to process you." He handed her his chit with his free hand. "Do you prefer a view of the ocean or land?"

"Ocean," blue eyes responded. Her pulse was still heightened, and he adjusted his grip so that their fingers were intertwined.

He couldn't believe what he was doing. Tel'sea scanned his chit, handed it back to him, then gave them each room keys. "We serve a continental breakfast in the mornings in the lobby until mid-day. There's also room service available at all hours, though over night the menu is limited. On the far side of the resort, we have a restaurant that's open until midnight, and a cafe open all hours. If you have any questions or need anything, feel free to activate the comm located by the door in your room." She eyed their small duffels hanging wetly off their shoulders. "Would you like someone to move your luggage to your room?"

"That would be awesome," blue eyes answered again, and Alenko shifted his gaze questioningly to her. Their duffels weren't exactly heavy. Not that he was eager to move things to the bedroom, as it were, and he wasn't even sure if that's exactly what he had planned at all. Hell, he was just winging it, and he realized that he was winging it terribly, because he was so used to thinking ahead that his impulsive actions had thrown his brain for a loop.

Other parts of him agreed wholeheartedly that what he was doing was awesome and he should stay the course. If blue eyes wanted their bags taken up, then she must be winging it herself, and he should just, for once, go with it.

Tel'sea called in a valet, who promptly relieved them of their belongings, including the jacket they'd used as a makeshift umbrella. They were unphased by the sheer dampness of the luggage, and soon their stuff was gone, on its way to their room.

Alenko had started to follow the valet, but blue eyes had a different idea. She tugged on his hand in the opposite direction, leading him to the patio that wrapped around the resort. She wasn't content to just stand near the ocean, however, instead running off (and pulling him along with her) to the pier that connected to the patio.

Waves crashed up and over the deck, pouring over their feet despite the added height the pier provided. His dark blue undershirt was clearly visible beneath his button-up light-blue flannel. Not that it surprised him, when he really thought about it, because the base of the shirt was white, and the fabric was a moderately thin linen. A light drizzle would have rendered it decently transparent. He'd already considered and discarded the notion of rolling the sleeves down. At this point, it wouldn't do any good. At least jeans weren't see through, he noted as he stole a glance at her rear, realizing for the first time just how toned it was. Considering she was military, that wasn't too surprising, either. But the fact that it was exceedingly well-toned was enough for him to immediately feel his arousal.

She stopped once she reached the end, but instead of standing still she immediately climbed onto the railing and sat down, feet hanging over the edge. She peered over her shoulder at him, motioning for him to come up and join her. Thankfully, the design was such that 'railing' was almost a misnomer, because the surface was approximately 2 feet wide. Plenty of room for moderately safe sitting.

"You're insane," he said as he plopped himself down next to her. She simply grinned, grasped his hand in hers, and rested her head on his shoulder.

After a few moments where he sat there, his cheek pressed against her damp hair and eyes closed, she turned to him. Her eyes were deep and serious. He could lose himself in them. "I'm glad I chose Trident."

His heart skipped a beat. Neither noticed that they moved closer together. "I'm glad we're not on the same posting."

This time both noticed their proximity. His lips were only inches from hers. He could feel her breath dancing against his skin. "I'm glad we're both single," she murmured.

He closed the gap in a rush of adrenaline, pressing his lips tentatively against hers. The kiss was soft at first, curious. After a moment of exploration where they both decided that it was good - no, great - it became altogether something else. He deepened the kiss and pulled her closer to him.

Her free hand slid up his forearm then moved to his waist. He voiced his pleasure into her mouth, and leaned into her as she grabbed a handful of his soaking shirt. It felt warm against the cool, wet fabric. He released her hand and slid his around her waist, sending shivers up her spine that he felt through the thin fabric of her tank top. Her flesh erupted in goosebumps.

The part of his brain that might normally protest under such rash actions had stalled, failing to shift gear properly when this new, impulsive side had suddenly sped off.

When he finally pulled away, his breath came out in ragged bursts. "We're both crazy."

His slid his hand around her neck and pressed his forehead against hers. She sighed contentedly. "Yeah," she breathed and shivers slid up his spine as her lips brushed delicately against his. "We are."

His impulsive streak took the lead. The cautious, controlled side of his brain absent-mindedly filed away the fact that, for a beginner, this new side was doing remarkably well given the circumstances. "We should really check out that room."

"Mmm," she agreed, lips pressing against his as she spoke, "Make sure it's properly set up, has a good view."

Delicious shivers cascaded through him as her lips teased his for the barest second. He sighed huskily, "Oh, it'll have a good view."

He had one second to register her eyes as they darkened mysteriously, before he was flung backwards in a haze of blue. The fact that she'd thrown him biotically, then adjusted his position with a delicate pull to keep him from falling before her lips crashed into his, hands splayed on either side of his head, had him reeling. God, she was amazing.

If this was what giving the galaxy the middle finger for three days constituted, he should do it more often.

The way she moved against him was too much for him to handle. In another display of rash action, he picked her up, swung his legs over the railing, shoved off, and threw her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. He had no idea where their room was, but that wasn't about to stop him from having fun. He set off at a quick trot...

...and nearly tripped when a hand slipped his shirt up and the other slipped beneath his belt-line.

"Mmmm," she voiced her approval as her hand slid from side to the other, his muscles flexing with each step. He could feel his cheeks burning, and welcomed every drop of rain that cooled their rapidly increasing temperature.

He used his biotics to open the door to the lobby, not wanting to stop even for a second in his quest to find the room. He blitzed through and quickly entered the elevator, checking the info on the room key before selecting the third floor. Suite 342.

She slid out of his grip and plopped onto the ground in front of him as soon as the doors closed and pushed him against the wall. She kissed him again, and he was stunned by how right it felt, having her pressed against him, his arms wrapped firmly around her.

Or rather, they would be if she weren't currently pinning him against the cool metal surface. She rolled her hips against him, and murmured in pleasure as she felt him firmly against her. He was officially at maximum arousal, and there was nothing he could do to hide it. As long as she remained where she was, even if he tried to calculate pi out to fifty decimal points, he'd still be as aroused as he was now. And from then on, he'd probably have very awkward erections whenever someone mentioned the number.

The elevator beeped all too soon, and he signed regretfully as she pulled away. But before she could fully get away, he tossed her back over his shoulder, one hand slipping up her inner thigh in what he would argue up to his final breath was simply for support, and had nothing to do with him returning the favor. Certainly his light kneading was just an added layer of support as he skimmed the panel in front of him, distracted enough that it took him three tries to understand that his room was to the left.

He fumbled at the door when he finally reached it as blue eyes took that moment to roll her hips in a rather delicious fashion that almost had him on his knees. He stumbled through and had barely shut the door before she slid down and wrapped her legs around his waist, her lips meeting his roughly, her need just as hot as his. He captured her wrists and pinned them above her head with his hands, intertwining his fingers with hers as he pressed her against the wall. She arched into him, and slid ever so slightly lower, and he groaned at the slight increase of pressure.

"I don't-" he continued kissing her, darting his tongue into her warm mouth, "even know-" she returned the gesture deliciously, "your name."

Her legs unwrapped from his waist and warm hands slid beneath his shirt, pulling the wet garment off. "You can call me Alexis."

"Just Alexis?" He breathed against her. He slid the strap of her tank-top off her shoulder.

She shivered. "Just Alexis."

Her lips crashed into his and she spun him against the wall. Raindrops beat against the window. "We should establish... mmm... ground rules."

His hands acted of their own volition and tore her shirt off her, revealing a pale blue bra. "No full names," she replied. His hands slid behind her and undid the clasp. "Keep it a fling."

"My first name's pretty unique," he answered huskily. Her small breasts broke free, and he felt warmth pool in the center of his belly, responding to the absolutely alluring site she presented.

She undid the buckle to his pants. "Guess we'll have to make one up."

He nuzzled her neck as she slid up his body. Her breasts teased against his chest. "Just you and me," he whispered into her ear. "No one else for three days."

She shivered as his hand grazed over her nipple. "Deal."

She removed his pants completely and he stepped out of them. "I'm not really looking for a relationship."

She shimmied out of her pants. She looked gorgeous, pale skin softly reflecting the waning light. "Neither am I."

"We're agreed then," he groaned and pulled Alexis close against him.

"This ends once shore leave ends," she breathed against his lips. Her hand dipped into his boxers.

"No strings attached." His fingers slipped beneath the waistband of her petite panties and slid them over her curves. He could feel her pulse quicken against his chest.

"You still need a name." His boxers fell against his feet. "You ever watch Battlestar Galactica?"

His arousal peaked to new levels and he crushed his lips against hers. She moaned and melted into his arms as his tongue darted out and sought hers. Strong arms enveloped her, pulling her impossibly closer.

"I'll take that as a yes," she breathed once he released her and he grinned. A wicked smile danced at the corner of her lips. "You can be my Captain Apollo."

His world exploded in pleasure, senses overloading in blinding light when he finally pressed her firmly against the wall and she rolled onto him. For the first time, he let himself simply respond instead of controlling, and his body flared in tune with hers as they reached their first crescendo together, their biotic energy rippling along their limbs. He kissed her deeply as they peaked, light streaking across his vision, and lost himself in her.

He felt like he'd died and was brought back to life, blue eyes guiding him back to the precipice anew.