As the last embers of the Rebellion begin to fade, Kylo Ren (Ben Solo) and the brave, budding Jedi Rey continue to wrestle with their mysterious connection. Rey remains disgusted by Kylo Ren's murder and darkness, but holds hope that Ben Solo will e...
Ben and Rey picked through the x-wing for the necessary parts. They were able to find them all, but it would be a few days of consistent sunshine, extraction, and cleaning before they were ready to be tested in the shuttle.
While Rey was tying to dislodge a barnacle obstructing an important latch, Ben happened upon a metal chest tucked behind the seat in the cockpit. Rey noticed his fascinated expression.
"What's in there?"
Ben pulled a few wads of fabric from the chest, and then a belt. The fabric turned out to be a tunic, a yellowing thermal shirt, long, blue pants, and a black vest with large utility pockets.
"Extra clothes," said Ben, sizing them against his body. "Old ones."
"Not from his days on Tatooine, I hope," said Rey, largely focused on the barnacle. "I'm surprised I can't smell them from here."
When Ben discovered the pants reached all the way from his waist to his ankles, he removed his boots. A little part of him lit up with delight. Partially because the clothes may fit better than Luke's robes, but mostly because it looked very much like something his father would have worn. It would be years before Ben would be able to think of his father again without turmoil or admit the nostalgia for anything Han had touched. The murder of his father would always be a thorn in his heart.
Rey casually glanced over to see Ben shirtless and about to remove his trousers. She took in a startled breath and averted her eyes. But a moment later, it occurred to her that Ben wasn't seeking privacy in the slightest. Something bold stirred in Rey, and she turned to face him.
Ben kept his eyes on the task at hand, though clearly aware of his nudity and the fact that she was observing him. He pulled up the found pants and fastened the fly. It was then he looked at Rey, plunged his hands into the pockets of the pants and said,
"These are much better, don't you think?"
Rey could only continue to stare in silence as he dressed, stunned by his utter cheek and the arousal she was feeling. Ben brushed the grass and pebbles from his feet and replaced his boots. Though the day was becoming unusually warm, he donned both the shirt and the vest. He smiled and shrugged his shoulders, then leaned against the spacecraft, waiting for words of approval.
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Dressed in what were likely Han's clothes, Ben finally looked like some kind of version of an authentic self, if indeed there was anything like that left in him. Rey noted that in many ways he was still like a child; playful, innocent, reckless. She admired these qualities, but also knew he would have to finish transcending them.
"I approve," she said. But she wanted to say, you look like your father. Because he did, especially with that impetuous grin. But she wouldn't dare. It tore at her own heart too much, and knew to say so would be cruel.
Long past midday, incessant sunlight baked the island. Although perfect weather for harvesting parts, the heat made outdoor labor a sweaty pursuit for Rey and Ben. No longer adapted to the intense heat of the desert, and not at all fond of the thick humidity, Rey had reduced her clothing to pants, bare arms, and the scant, utilitarian bodice she wore beneath everything.
Ben had gleefully removed his shirt, and Rey was not complaining. She occasionally drifted her eyes to take a look at the way his muscles flexed and released as he pulled levers and removed panels. It had been years since she'd had the chance to focus on such things.
She reached out her feelings to find out if spirits were watching, and she got the impression that she had been left alone with him. Here she was, on the island she'd dreamed of, surrounded entirely by water and all the fish she could ever dream to eat, with a man who still bore the faint, brown remains of bruises she had inflicted on his broad chest only a while ago. In spite of herself, Rey swooned inside.
After the third time, Ben caught her staring. He sauntered over behind her and reached his arms around, mingling his tools with hers. Rey smiled a little, because though this could have been disruptive, the extra hands were actually helping. After a minute or two, Ben moved his head just so, to barely graze her ear with his lips twice.
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"Why did you kiss me?" he said. Rey's smile grew wider, and she refused to answer.
