I KNOW PLACES ➶ STAR WARS

Part V // Lonely

Three days later, she was confirmed to be stable and was discharged from the medical center. Obi-Wan had stayed the entire time, sleeping on the cold, hard benches outside of her room. The travel back to her apartment shared by Obi-Wan and Padmé was more silent than the outer rim of the galaxy.

"Master Yoda appointed me to look after you until two weeks after your child arrives. Then, I'm afraid, I must leave you," he said to Padmé as the ship made contact with the balcony floor. Padmé paid no attention as she exited the ship and practically flew across the apartment and into her chamber, locking the tall doors. Obi-Wan sighed, knowing he was going to have to get used to the non-talkative version of his friend.

Walking in, he decided to leave her be for the time being. He was going to have to fix them both something to eat, though he had almost no idea how to cook. He flipped through the pages of a modern cookbook he'd found until he decided on something simple.

Eventually, Padmé poked her head out of the door at the smell of dinner. She crossed the kitchen silently. "Careful, or that's going to burn," she remarked quietly as she peeked over his shoulder.

Obi-Wan jumped a little. "I apologize, Senator. I wasn't expecting you to come out so soon."

"Wait, is that omáhm?" Padmé asked about the vegetable he was sautéeing.

"I believe so," Obi-Wan answered, still unsure of his cooking skills.

"I'm allergic to omáhm."

He looked over at her in disbelief. "You are? I- I apologize, milady. I didn't know-" Obi-Wan scrambled to get the vegetable out of the pan.

Padmé stopped his efforts, smiling weakly. "I was just kidding."

Obi-Wan closed his eyes briefly, half out of relief, half out of faked frustration. He returned the pan and the yellow vegetable back to the stove. "You scared me to death. I thought I was going to have to fly you back to the medical center." He sent her a small, playful smile.

"You wouldn't enjoy that?" She asked, innocently batting her eyelashes.

For the next hour, Padmé hovered around him, helping him cook and giving him tips.

As they sat at the elongated table in the dining room, the two joked with one other, both glad to have the other around.

"I was afraid you were going to be extra moody tonight," he said, amusement lingering in his blue eyes.

"And I thought you were going to be nice," she laughed. She put her eating utensil down and looked over at him. "Thank you for this. I apologize for being so hard to deal with. I know I don't make things easy."

"It gives me something to do."

They cleaned up together, then washed themselves up to go to bed. She set up a quiet space in the small guest bedroom for him, which he accepted humbly. Then she excused herself so he could meditate alone.

After two hours of tossing and turning, tortured by the familiar scent Anakin left, Padmé stood and went to the guest bedroom with a rather serious request.

"You're lonely," Obi-Wan sensed, sitting up in his bed. He had also been awake the whole time.

She nodded. "Will you... hold me?" She asked sheepishly.

Right away, Obi-Wan nodded wordlessly. She walked up to the bed, climbed in slowly, and got under the sheets, her back to his chest. With no experience, he was completely unsure of how holding someone might work, and he paled at the thought of her thinking that he was clueless. He worked out what he thought was right and laid one arm over her hip, allowing his hand to rest just below her stomach. His other arm rested just behind her back, with his hand on her shoulder closest to the pillow. He smiled softly when he felt another movement, one so minuscule he thought he imagined it. He let his nose take in the clean scent of her hair and wished all of her problems away. Though he felt a little too comfortable for a Jedi, he was thankful for her company.

Slightly uncomfortable, since the bed was not her own, she slowly settled into his presence. She could feel his hot steady breaths on her neck. She could feel his heart beat wildly through his tunic. She could feel his hands tense whenever her baby moved inside of her; she couldn't help but smile. She was glad he had come to watch over her. With luck, she thought, every night can be like this.