Crawling Home

Chapter 27 - Nova's POV

"I-I want you to touch me Din. Please? I need you" I beg him, my voice sounding soft and needy to my own ears. I look at him and the warm brown of his eyes is almost completely gone. I feel as one of his hands makes its way up my back into my hair and pulls. I let out a breathy moan as he angles me for better access to my neck. I feel his lips on me as his other hand moves to graze my nipple.

He moves my tank top to the side and begins kissing a trail but before he can reach my chest, a knock on the ramp of the Crest has us jumping and scrambling to fix my shirt. He looks at me, a smile on his face before he bursts out into laughter. I laugh with him as I untangle myself from his lap and get up. I smooth my clothes over one last time before looking over at Din, "I guess we should go before they knock again" I tell him, still smiling.

He nods his head, "Yeah most definitely" he responds as he stands and reaches for my hand. He pulls me along to the ladder and once we've reached the bunks, he drops my hand to grab his helmet and gloves. I watch him as he put his gloves on, "You're going to wear your helmet? Won't you get hot in your armor?" I ask curiously. He shakes his head, "I'm used to it. Plus, I'd feel more comfortable wearing it at least until we got into the resort" he responds.

I nod along, "Would you like me to change into mine?" I ask him. He shakes his head once again, "Of course not. You're still not fully used to wearing it in different weather so I don't want you to overheat. Plus I'd much rather look at your legs in those shorts. Now go put on shoes so we can go" he answers back. I nod excitedly and go grab a pair of boots he'd gotten me a while back, I hadn't worn them for a while since I didn't want to ruin them. I still remembered the day as if it were yesterday.

*Flashback* - *5 months ago*

I watched as Mando finished getting Grogu ready for us to drop him off at the school so we could meet with Greef Karga at the cantina. I pulled on my tattered boots over my socks and laced them up tightly. Once I was done, I stood and was met with Mando's visor watching me, "You need new boots mesh'la. Why hadn't you told me?" he asked, his tone slightly exasperated.

I looked up at the dark visor, "My boots are perfectly fine Mando. They still have a lot of uses left in them. Plus, we hadn't stopped on a planet with a decent market, but now that we're here, I'll buy new ones to have as a spare for when these give out" I respond back, my tone matter of factly.

He stares at me for a moment, "We're stopping at the market after we drop off Grogu. You need to change those boots immediately. If you walk over something slippery, you'll fall. What if you're holding Grogu and you fall? You could both be hurt" he answers as he steps closer to me. He's standing so close; I can feel the coldness of his beskar as it clings to my skin.

We stare at each other for a long moment before the silence is broken, "Fa? Uhh?" we hear Grogu say. We jump away from each other slightly and I go around Mando to pick up Grogu, "Sorry kid. Your buir was just reminding me that I have to get new boots. Let's go!" I tell him as I stroke his ear. He nuzzles into my chest and screams happily.

I hear Mando chuckle behind me, "The Mando'a word for little one is ad'ika if you'd like to call him that. I know I've been teaching you some of it but sometimes I forget to give you translations" he tells me.

"Elek! I'd very much would like to call him that. Thank you!" I answer back eagerly. His head tilts, "Where did you learn elek from? I haven't taught you that one yet, or did I?" he questions me. I chuckle and shake my head, "Grogu taught me that one yesterday during our training session. He seems to think a lot of what he wants to say in Mando'a but when he's showing me, he translates it into basic" I respond as we make our way out of the ship.

He stays quiet for a moment, "How many languages do you speak Nova?" he asks as we continue our way to the school to drop off Grogu. "Well, I speak basic obviously, but I also speak Jawaese, Huttese and Tusken. The main languages spoken on Tatooine. Although, I guess Huttese isn't needed anymore since Jabba is gone and there's a new Daimyo" I answer. He nods, "Yes, I'm aware there is a new Daimyo. He's a personal friend of mine actually. I helped secure his place some time ago. I've spent a lot of time on Tatooine. I'm sure knowing so many languages has been an advantage" he replies earnestly.