Allegiance | Kylo Ren

LXI

I awoke the next morning wrapped comfortably in Mason's satiny sheets. He was still asleep next to me, his lips slightly parted and his eyelashes fluttering softly. I smiled to myself as I watched him. Something about sleep exposed everyone's utmost innocence.

I waited quietly for him to wake, filling the time by redoing my braids—I had grown so accustomed to doing my hair without a mirror that it seemed to take no time at all.

When at last he shifted and his eyes opened, I gave him a soft smile. "Good morning."

He squinted as his eyes adjusted to the light, and his voice was still rusty with sleep. "You should stay over more often. Waking up isn't nearly as bad when you're the first thing I see in the morning."

I felt my cheeks burn, and I smiled shyly. He pressed a quick kiss to my forehead before standing up and rustling through his drawers for the day's clothes.

"Do you need to borrow clothes again?"

I shook my head, holding up a small pile of folded laundry that I had left on the bedside table. "I planned ahead this time." I eyed the shirt he was holding—it was my favorite soft gray one. "But I might take that off your hands anyway."

He rolled his eyes playfully and tossed the shirt at my face. I caught it with a grin and hugged it to my chest, my skin singing with delight at its velvety touch. We quickly got changed. I tucked his extra shirt into the back pocket of my pants, saving it for later.

I interlaced my fingers with his, as had become customary, and together we made our way to the hospital. As we walked, I remembered something.

"Mason?"

"Calia?"

"I had an idea."

"Please share."

"I would, if you would stop interrupting me." I teased, and he pressed his lips together, fighting a smile. "About the trooper rule changes—what if you talked to somebody higher up the ladder and volunteered to start doing more serious injury repair? If they started bringing back more severely-injured troopers, and you fixed them like you fixed me. That would help stabilize our numbers, and it might even convince them to repeal the rule changes."

He blinked thoughtfully. "That might actually work."

"So you'll do it?" I watched him hopefully.

Mason nodded slowly. "I'll see what I can do. I can't make any promises, though." He flashed me a sideways glance, looking worried for a moment. "I don't want you to be disappointed if I can't make it happen."

I shook my head. "I'm not asking you to make it happen. I only need you to volunteer the hospital for more serious work—the rest is up to them."

We had reached the hospital wing. He stopped in front of the doors and pulled me to where I stood in front of him, pressing a kiss to my nose.

"I'll do what I can." He promised.

I pulled him in for a tight hug. "Thank you. This means a lot to me."

He smiled softly. "Hey, if it means I have to treat less kids for injuries, I'll do whatever it takes."

I grabbed the front of his shirt in my fist and pulled him in for a kiss. "I love you."

His smile grew. "I love you more."

I watched him disappear through the doors of the hospital with a small and hopeful smile still etched across my face.

My stomach emitted a muffled roar, snapping me out of my daze and reminding me that it was time to eat. With a small sigh I made my way to the cafeteria, settling down with my tray of food at my usual table in the corner. A second tray slapped down on the table across from me, and I looked up to meet Malia's cheerful smile.

"Hello!" She grinned.

I glanced over to her table of friends. There was a gap in their ranks, clearly recently vacated. I frowned at Malia.

"Did you abandon your friends just to come sit with me?"

She shrugged. "I would have invited you to come sit with us, but I think we both already know the answer to that offer."

I laughed lightly. "You don't have to worry about me. I'm fine alone."

"Yeah, but you don't have to be just fine. You can be better than fine." She began picking at her food, and I felt a rush of affection for the younger girl. She popped a piece of food in her mouth and eyed me for a moment before speaking. "You haven't been sleeping in the barracks lately."

I rolled my eyes and groaned. "Malia, I swear to—"

She raised her hands defensively. "I wasn't going to ask! I can make assumptions on my own."

I glared at her, unable to be fully annoyed at her wide-eyed expression. "Then what were you going to say?"

"I wanted to know if you were going on the mission tomorrow. I didn't know if you had heard about it, since you haven't really been around lately."

"Of course I'm going. Are you?"

"Yep!" Malia wiggled happily. "This will be our first complete mission together! Unless, you know, you get kidnapped again."

I stared at her with disbelief across my face, unable to keep from laughing. "You're horrible."

"I'm just teasing." She giggled. "It'll be fun. Maybe we'll be on the same ship again."

"Maybe." I chewed thoughtfully.

Malia continued to babble about something, but her words became a muted buzz as my thoughts swirled about my head. I still hadn't talked to Kylo about what I had learned from my conversation with Hux. Maybe he would be able to provide more insight, or maybe he knew more than Hux let on. I needed to visit him, but I felt a prick of anxiety as I remembered why talking to him last time had been so difficult.

No, I needed to talk to him. And as long as I stayed focused and on topic, it would be fine.