What She's Worth (Reylo)

Chapter 4

"Right over middle, then left over middle, then alternate."

"Got it, got it."

She really didn't get it, Ben thought with amusement as he watched his little friend—Rey as he now called her—struggle to turn a section of his hair into a padawan braid, pink tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth. He was probably going to need to redo his braid later. She wasn't very good at it but she had been so determined to do it, her small, chubby face scrunched up in a pout that he had been unable to resist.

Oh, who was he kidding? He was unable to resist anything the kid asked.

With a grin, he reached out to continue twisting her delicate baby hair into a padawan braid. He needed to redo hers after he saw how haphazardly she had done it for herself. She had then insisted on returning the favour, which resulted in them spending the late afternoon sitting face to face and braiding each other's hair beneath the purple flowering tree—their favourite spot in the academy's garden.

In the weeks following their encounter in this very clearing, Ben had not only gone back to the routine he had started with Rey, he had actually found himself spending more and more time with her, especially since he had taken it upon himself to teach her to read and write, as well as understand binary. She had even carried a full conversation with R2-D2 earlier that morning. The girl's mind was like a sponge, he thought. A highly absorbent one.

He finished tying her braid with a band almost the same time she did. He didn't have to look to know she hadn't done a good job with his, though he wasn't going to tell her that.

She pulled at her braid, looked at it admiringly before glancing up at him again. "Where did you learn to braid so well?"

"From my mom," he answered and lay back on the grass, hands clasped behind his head, his gaze moving beyond the tree's branches and blossoms and to the orange skies. There was a distinct feeling in his chest as his thoughts floated towards happier times. "I would often sit on my parents' bed and watch her style her hair. Sometimes, she'd braid my hair. Dad hated it when she did."

He could taste something bitter in his mouth. He swallowed.

"Why did he hate it?" Rey crawled up beside him and mimicked his position. She seemed to really like imitating him, Ben noticed.

"Because he thought it made me look like a girl." He did his best to dull the edge in his voice. He was beginning to get agitated and he didn't like it. "He wanted me to be more like him. Wanted me to become a pilot, maybe even take over his shipping business one day. Well, good luck with that. In the end, I was always disappointing him."

He paused and blinked rapidly. Why was he even discussing something so serious with a small child? He made a mental note to filter out the things they talked about next time.

He was about to change the subject when she spoke first. "You don't like your daddy very much, do you?"

He bit his lower lip until it almost broke skin. So much for switching topics. "Let's just say...we disagree on a lot of things."

"And your mommy?"

"Oh, she's nice. You would like her," he murmured, his voice trailing off. He bit his lower lip again, softly this time.

"You sound sad."

He turned his head towards her. Rey was lying on her side, facing him now, eyes looking questioningly at him.

He tore his gaze away from hers, all the tension in his body making way for a sudden bout of weakness. "She was...always working. I mean, I understand, since she's a senator and all—"