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I pause outside the door to her cabin, trying to psych myself up. Come on Vega, you can do this! I tilt my head side to side and roll my shoulders, stretching as if I'm headed for the boxing ring. Of course, after talking to Shepard I usually feel like I've been sparring.

I have a crush on Lola. There, I admit it. Those flashing eyes, easy smile, and wicked tongue have me hooked. The way she moves, the way she fights, the way those tendrils of hair escape her ponytail and curl beside her face... okay, it might be a bit more than a crush. But am I anything more than a buddy to her? I think I might have been until today. I bite back a groan and let my head drop back, staring at the ceiling. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

I was down in the refugees' docking bay, getting inked. I'd finally decided to accept the invitation to the N7 program and thought that deserved some fanfare. It looks great by the way, a giant "N7" across my back. Anyway, I was sitting there with a batarian working on my back when my thoughts strayed, as they often do, to Lola. Does she have any ink? Maybe hidden somewhere her uniforms cover? I bet she'd look fantastic with a tattoo, something dark and bold against that creamy tan skin. Maybe James on her hip... The thought of it made my heart race and my breathing turn shallow. Stop it, I admonished myself. She's your commander for God's sake. And then, as if my thoughts had summoned her, she was standing in front of me with a smile playing at the edges of her lips.

"James," she said in greeting.

"Commander," I replied, trying not to stumble over my words. "What brings you down here?" I was momentarily grateful for the pain caused by the batarian's needles, it gave me something to focus on besides Shepard.

"I was about to ask you that," she said, gesturing to my back.

"Right, well, after our talk I decided to, ow, to join the N7 program." She looked confused.

"And you're celebrating by getting a tattoo?" she asked. I chuckled.

"Sort of. There are no official channels to go through right now, so this is my way of making it official."

"You do realize you're just a recruit, right?" she said, trying to trace the lines of my biceps with her eyes without me noticing. I bit back a grin. Fair is fair, since I've lost track of how many times I've meticulously studied her curves in the last ten months.

"Yeah, well, with the great Commander Shepard as my training officer, how could I go wrong?" I asked with a cocky grin. She rolled her eyes. "Look, I know it seems like I don't take things seriously, but when I commit to something, I fully commit," I continued earnestly.

"Clearly," she said, flicking those big blue eyes towards the batarian and back. "You know, that's going to sting for a few days, you going to be ready for duty?"

"Always," I told her. I paused a moment before adding, "Hey, maybe we should get matching." She crossed her arms over her chest and gave me an amused look.

"You want me to get an N7 tattoo?" A wicked idea entered my head, a chance to tell her my fantasy without actually revealing anything.

"N7, sure. Or, you could get my name done, somewhere special." Like your hip. She laughed.

"You're such a tease, Vega. Are you ever going to make good on all this flirting?" I have been flirting with Shepard since the moment I was assigned to her security ten months ago, I'm fairly certain I'm at least halfway in love with her at this point, but when my chance finally came I panicked. Badly.

"Uh... I was just... I didn't mean to... You're my commander and..." She gave a light chuckle.

"That's what I thought. Later Lieutenant," she said, turning away quickly. But not so quickly that I didn't see her face fall for a split second.

"Later," I managed to get out before she was out of earshot. Was it possible that she felt the same way about me? That I was more than a buddy, more than just part of the crew?

"Ow!" I said as the needles dug deeper.

"Suck it up, soldier," replied the batarian.

So here I am, pacing outside of Lola's cabin and hoping I can fix this. Before I lose all my nerve I press the buzzer next to her door.

"Come in!" comes her voice almost instantly. I take a deep breath and open the door.

"James," she says, seeming surprised. She puts down the datapad she was studying and turns her full attention to me. "What can I do for you?" She's so matter of fact, so right down to business that it throws me for a moment.

"I, uh, I just came by the show you the new ink," I say, pulling my shirt up over my head. Her eyes trail over my pecs, down to my abs, then back up again and I've never been happier that I spend so much time on my workouts. She reaches my face and raises her eyebrows.

"Isn't it on your back?"

"Oh, shit, right," I say, quickly turning around so she won't catch my blush. "What do you think?" I hear her walking towards me to take a closer look and freeze when I feel her soft hand tracing the outline.

"It looks great. How did you get it to heal up so fast?" she asks, leaning in to examine it. I feel her warm breath on my back and can't contain a shiver.

"I, uh, I went by the medbay earlier. Chakwas has a great gel for it." I feel her take a step back and turn to face her.

"Well, it looks amazing," says Lola, the smile on her face just a touch too wide. There's an awkward pause that I don't try to fill. "Is there anything else?" she asks.

"Yes, there is," I say. I pull her to me and kiss her soundly. She makes a surprised sound in the back of her throat and puts her hands on my shoulders, though whether to pull me closer or push me away I'm not sure. I pull back and place my forehead against hers, breathing heavily.

"I've been wanting to do that for the last ten months," I say. For a moment I think Lola is going to return my embrace, but then she pushes against my shoulders and takes a step back. I let her go, albeit begrudgingly.

"This isn't going to work, James," she says with a shake of her head. My heart falls to my stomach. Surely I couldn't have messed up that badly, could I?

"Why not?" I demand.

"I'm not a one night stand kind of girl, Vega." I take a step towards her and wrap an arm around her waist.

"Lola, I told you, when I commit to something, I fully commit." She gives a bitter laugh.

"Where have I head that line before?" By the brief flash of pain in her eyes I can tell she's thinking about Jacob. Damn him. Jacob Taylor was a Cerberus operative that helped Shepard defeat the collectors. He told her he loved her, then promptly knocked up some other woman while Lola was on house arrest for six months. The bastard.

"Lola," I say, raising her chin so I can meet her eyes, "I'm nothing like him." The look she gives me says she doesn't believe me. "What can I do to prove myself to you?" She studies me intently for a moment.

"For starters, you can stop hitting on anything female that moves, especially Ashley." I nod my head slowly.

"I can do that." She eyes me suspiciously.

"You should also know you won't be spending the night in my cabin anytime soon." I chuckle.

"Lola I've been waiting for you for ten months. I think I can wait a bit longer. Anything else?" She sighs.

"I don't know, James. I just don't know." I press my lips softly, sweetly against hers.

"Well I do. Trust me Lola, we're going to be great together." This time her soft laugh holds no trace of bitterness.

"Has anyone ever told you you're cocky, Vega?"

"I prefer confident," I tell her with a smile. "You should get some sleep, Lola. I'll talk to you tomorrow." I kiss her forehead and take a step back, pulling on my shirt and heading for the door.

"Goodnight, James," she calls after me. I smile at her over my shoulder.

"Night, Lola." I let myself out of her cabin and whistle while I wait for the elevator. See Vega? I told you you could do it.

Description
I pause outside the door to her cabin, trying to psych myself up. Come on Vega, you can do this! I tilt my head side to side and roll my shoulders, stretching as if I'm headed for the boxing ring. Of course, after talking to Shepard I usually feel like I've been sparring.

I have a crush on Lola. There, I admit it. Those flashing eyes, easy smile, and wicked tongue have me hooked. The way she moves, the way she fights, the way those tendrils of hair escape her ponytail and curl beside her face... okay, it might be a bit more than a crush. But am I anything more than a buddy to her? I think I might have been until today. I bite back a groan and let my head drop back, staring at the ceiling. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

I was down in the refugees' docking bay, getting inked. I'd finally decided to accept the invitation to the N7 program and thought that deserved some fanfare. It looks great by the way, a giant "N7" across my back. Anyway, I was sitting there with a batarian working on my back when my thoughts strayed, as they often do, to Lola. Does she have any ink? Maybe hidden somewhere her uniforms cover? I bet she'd look fantastic with a tattoo, something dark and bold against that creamy tan skin. Maybe James on her hip... The thought of it made my heart race and my breathing turn shallow. Stop it, I admonished myself. She's your commander for God's sake. And then, as if my thoughts had summoned her, she was standing in front of me with a smile playing at the edges of her lips.

"James," she said in greeting.

"Commander," I replied, trying not to stumble over my words. "What brings you down here?" I was momentarily grateful for the pain caused by the batarian's needles, it gave me something to focus on besides Shepard.

"I was about to ask you that," she said, gesturing to my back.

"Right, well, after our talk I decided to, ow, to join the N7 program." She looked confused.

"And you're celebrating by getting a tattoo?" she asked. I chuckled.

"Sort of. There are no official channels to go through right now, so this is my way of making it official."

"You do realize you're just a recruit, right?" she said, trying to trace the lines of my biceps with her eyes without me noticing. I bit back a grin. Fair is fair, since I've lost track of how many times I've meticulously studied her curves in the last ten months.

"Yeah, well, with the great Commander Shepard as my training officer, how could I go wrong?" I asked with a cocky grin. She rolled her eyes. "Look, I know it seems like I don't take things seriously, but when I commit to something, I fully commit," I continued earnestly.

"Clearly," she said, flicking those big blue eyes towards the batarian and back. "You know, that's going to sting for a few days, you going to be ready for duty?"

"Always," I told her. I paused a moment before adding, "Hey, maybe we should get matching." She crossed her arms over her chest and gave me an amused look.

"You want me to get an N7 tattoo?" A wicked idea entered my head, a chance to tell her my fantasy without actually revealing anything.

"N7, sure. Or, you could get my name done, somewhere special." Like your hip. She laughed.

"You're such a tease, Vega. Are you ever going to make good on all this flirting?" I have been flirting with Shepard since the moment I was assigned to her security ten months ago, I'm fairly certain I'm at least halfway in love with her at this point, but when my chance finally came I panicked. Badly.

"Uh... I was just... I didn't mean to... You're my commander and..." She gave a light chuckle.

"That's what I thought. Later Lieutenant," she said, turning away quickly. But not so quickly that I didn't see her face fall for a split second.

"Later," I managed to get out before she was out of earshot. Was it possible that she felt the same way about me? That I was more than a buddy, more than just part of the crew?

"Ow!" I said as the needles dug deeper.

"Suck it up, soldier," replied the batarian.

So here I am, pacing outside of Lola's cabin and hoping I can fix this. Before I lose all my nerve I press the buzzer next to her door.

"Come in!" comes her voice almost instantly. I take a deep breath and open the door.

"James," she says, seeming surprised. She puts down the datapad she was studying and turns her full attention to me. "What can I do for you?" She's so matter of fact, so right down to business that it throws me for a moment.

"I, uh, I just came by the show you the new ink," I say, pulling my shirt up over my head. Her eyes trail over my pecs, down to my abs, then back up again and I've never been happier that I spend so much time on my workouts. She reaches my face and raises her eyebrows.

"Isn't it on your back?"

"Oh, shit, right," I say, quickly turning around so she won't catch my blush. "What do you think?" I hear her walking towards me to take a closer look and freeze when I feel her soft hand tracing the outline.

"It looks great. How did you get it to heal up so fast?" she asks, leaning in to examine it. I feel her warm breath on my back and can't contain a shiver.

"I, uh, I went by the medbay earlier. Chakwas has a great gel for it." I feel her take a step back and turn to face her.

"Well, it looks amazing," says Lola, the smile on her face just a touch too wide. There's an awkward pause that I don't try to fill. "Is there anything else?" she asks.

"Yes, there is," I say. I pull her to me and kiss her soundly. She makes a surprised sound in the back of her throat and puts her hands on my shoulders, though whether to pull me closer or push me away I'm not sure. I pull back and place my forehead against hers, breathing heavily.

"I've been wanting to do that for the last ten months," I say. For a moment I think Lola is going to return my embrace, but then she pushes against my shoulders and takes a step back. I let her go, albeit begrudgingly.

"This isn't going to work, James," she says with a shake of her head. My heart falls to my stomach. Surely I couldn't have messed up that badly, could I?

"Why not?" I demand.

"I'm not a one night stand kind of girl, Vega." I take a step towards her and wrap an arm around her waist.

"Lola, I told you, when I commit to something, I fully commit." She gives a bitter laugh.

"Where have I head that line before?" By the brief flash of pain in her eyes I can tell she's thinking about Jacob. Damn him. Jacob Taylor was a Cerberus operative that helped Shepard defeat the collectors. He told her he loved her, then promptly knocked up some other woman while Lola was on house arrest for six months. The bastard.

"Lola," I say, raising her chin so I can meet her eyes, "I'm nothing like him." The look she gives me says she doesn't believe me. "What can I do to prove myself to you?" She studies me intently for a moment.

"For starters, you can stop hitting on anything female that moves, especially Ashley." I nod my head slowly.

"I can do that." She eyes me suspiciously.

"You should also know you won't be spending the night in my cabin anytime soon." I chuckle.

"Lola I've been waiting for you for ten months. I think I can wait a bit longer. Anything else?" She sighs.

"I don't know, James. I just don't know." I press my lips softly, sweetly against hers.

"Well I do. Trust me Lola, we're going to be great together." This time her soft laugh holds no trace of bitterness.

"Has anyone ever told you you're cocky, Vega?"

"I prefer confident," I tell her with a smile. "You should get some sleep, Lola. I'll talk to you tomorrow." I kiss her forehead and take a step back, pulling on my shirt and heading for the door.

"Goodnight, James," she calls after me. I smile at her over my shoulder.

"Night, Lola." I let myself out of her cabin and whistle while I wait for the elevator. See Vega? I told you you could do it.