Who Ben is Now

Gone

I sat there in the interrogation room, alone and scared, for what must have been hours and hours. My body was sore and in pain, my stomach begged for food, and my lips were desperate for water. Despite all of those things, I couldn't muster up the courage or the strength for an attempt at leaving.

For a while, I simply thought long and hard about the morning's events. I was so horribly embarrassed at everything that had happened, and so ashamed of myself for being broken so easily. The bruises that had formed on my wrists and ankles were a sad reminder of how little it had taken to make me give in. All of those years spent in hiding, all of the pain I'd gone through attempting to push the force down, and it had all seemingly been for nothing.

The sound of footsteps approaching had caused me to bolt up, my body protesting at the sudden movement. Within seconds, a small group of Stormtroopers had appeared in the doorway, slowly peaking in to see what awaited them.

I wasn't sure whether to feel scared, angry, or to just be apathetic.

The four troopers slowly made their way inside the cabin and approached me. I shrunk back into the corner slightly, remembering what Hux's group of troopers had done to me earlier.

"Miss," began the trooper in front. "We have been requested to escort you to room 22104."

I felt like running away. Had Kylo sent a group of Stormtroopers to take me right back to the room that I'd been previously dragged out of against my will? There was no way that I was going back there.

I gazed down. "Did Kylo Ren give you those orders?"

"Miss, if you'd please just come with us-"

"Do you think he'd kill you if I didn't go?"

Silence.

At that time, there were so many thoughts buzzing around in my head. The anger and hurt from earlier had left me with no energy left to protest. Deciding that I didn't want the lives of any young men resting on my shoulders, I agreed to go.

I was afraid that Kylo would be waiting for me upon my return. Instead, when the soldiers dropped me off at room 22104, I found myself hauntingly alone. There was a new platter of food in the corner of the room, but I didn't dare touch it. Instead, I headed straight for the bathroom and began to run hot water in the bathtub.

I locked myself in the bathroom and vowed not to come out for as long as I could. Instead, I sat patiently by the side of the tub, staring into the water as it slowly filled. For a moment, my reflection stared solemnly back at me, but a quick brush at the surface caused the image to slither away.

After the tub had been filled up, I stripped away my clothing and slowly immersed myself in the hot water. At first, the temperature was unbearably hot. However, after I had managed to sit still for a few minutes, the water began to feel rather nice. I slowly relaxed, sinking in as far as I could and resting my head on the tub's side.

As I sat there, allowing the sensation of the hot water to distract me, I found my mind wandering to my childhood memories.

Kylo Ren . . . Ben Solo had not been a bad person when we were children. Although I had only known him when we were both very small, he had never been anything but kind and accepting towards me.

I remembered the last few weeks before he had been sent away for Jedi training. I remembered how reluctant he had been to go; how unsure of himself he was. It was then, during the small window of time before his parents had shipped him away to train with his uncle, that Ben had suffered the most.