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Every time Rey looked up from the table, he was staring at her. Uncomfortable with the intensity of his gaze, she’d quickly look away. However, she was unable to resist looking up for long, and sure enough, each time she did so, he was still staring. This last time, from across the table, Kylo gave her a little smirk.
“And what are your thoughts on Tatooine, Kylo?”
Jolted, Kylo looked up and turned to the moderator. “Um, I’m sorry. Can you repeat the question?” he asked.
The moderator threw him a stern look. “My understanding is that you’ve spent considerable time on Tatooine. Do you have any thoughts on transitioning the government on Tatooine from the Hutts to something more civilized?”
If Rey wasn’t imagining things, a faint blush had crossed his face. “Um, yes, although that was a long time ago. In an any case, I think that we can all agree that transitioning the citizens of Tatooine out from under Hutt rule can only be a positive thing.”
Rey snorted in amusement at the way Kylo had so obviously been caught off-guard, attracting the moderator’s attention. “Miss Rey? Do you disagree?”
Now it was her turn to be embarrassed. Rey shook her head. “No, no, I don’t disagree. I mean, I’ve never been to Tatooine, but…”
“Very well, then.” In an irritated voice, the moderator added, “It seems like we’re starting to lose people here.” He looked directly at Rey and then at Kylo. “Let’s all take a short break and then reconvene in fifteen minutes.”
Rey briefly caught Kylo’s eye, then stood up and exited the conference room. The negotiations were being held in a posh hotel on Coruscant--the old capital of a past version of the Republic. Feeling as if she needed fresh air, she headed down the hallway to the open-air deck that doubled as a reception area for hotel-hosted functions. She placed her forearms on the railing and leaned forward, watching the speeders and other vehicles pass through the city airspace just below her. She felt his presence before she saw him.
“You don’t have to avoid me in front of your friends now, you know.” Kylo joined her at the railing.
Continuing to watch the air traffic below, she replied, “I do if I don’t want to catch a bunch of grief from them.”
“They’ll have to get over it at some point. We’re going to be seeing a lot of each other from now on.”
“Oh are we?” She turned to look at him. “That seems a little presumptuous.”
“Is it? Are you planning to go back on our promise to Luke? Because I know that I’m not. Also, don’t forget that I promised my mother that I would act as her delegate in these negotiations before she...”
Out of instinct, Rey placed her hand on his arm. “I know. I’m so sorry.” She paused. “You know, she meant a lot to me, too.”
“What’s he doing here?”
Rey and Kylo wheeled around as Poe, current leader of the Resistance, had joined them on the balcony.
“Good afternoon to you, too,” Kylo muttered.
“Hey Poe. What’s up?” Rey tried to greet him with as neutral of a tone as possible.
“Just stretching my legs during the break and thought I’d get some fresh air,” Poe replied.
“We were just doing the same thing,” Rey offered.
Poe started to turn around to leave and then stopped. “Do you have any plans for tonight? A few of us were going to go out and hit a few clubs in the Entertainment District.”
Rey frowned. “I’m not really much of a club person.”
“Come on, it’ll be fun. More fun than you’d have hanging around here, anyway.”
Rey wasn’t sure about that. She couldn’t hold her alcohol very well, and she’d likely be the only one in their group without a date. Without realizing it, she’d looked to the tall man standing next to her.
Kylo cleared his throat. “She’s having dinner with me tonight. We have some Force-related things go over. She can meet up with you later, if she’d like.”
“Oh, that’s right!” Rey turned to Kylo. “I’d forgotten that we were supposed to discuss our plans for…” she paused briefly before improvising an answer, “...preserving the content in the Journal of the Whills.”
Poe looked skeptical. “Sounds like... fun,” he replied dryly. “Well,” he shrugged, “when you’re done with that, ping my commlink, and I’ll let you know where to meet up with us.”
“That sounds good. Thank you.”
Standing in place, Poe awkwardly stared at Rey and Kylo for a minute, then finally addressed Kylo. “You can come too, if you want, I guess.”
Kylo shook his head. “Look, I know you guys don’t want me around, and I can’t imagine anything more unappealing than sweating in a Coruscant dance club.”
“Suit yourself,” Poe mumbled. “See you back inside.”
Rey watched Poe turn around and leave. She turned to Kylo. “Thank you,” she said with a smile. “You didn’t have to bail me out.”
“I know,” he smirked. “But I will need you to return the favor.”
“Oh you will?” she smirked back. “What, will I have to polish your lightsaber or something?”
Kylo raised an eyebrow. “Only if you want to.”
Rey blushed, realizing too late how her response had sounded. “Um, I mean, what favor do you want in return?”
“Have dinner with me tonight.”
“For real?”
“For real, especially since I now know that you don’t have any other plans for tonight, unless you want to join Flyboy and your friends at a club. It’ll be nice to get to know each other a little better, especially since we’ll probably be working fairly close together for a while.”
“Okay, sure. Why not?” she smiled.
“It’s a plan, then.”
“It’s a plan.”
***
When Rey and Kylo returned to the conference room, several of the other attendees had shifted seats, leaving only two seats open, which just happened to be right next to each other. Rey and Kylo exchanged quick glances and then took their two new seats.
Although he’d always made her feel somewhat unsettled, now knowing that she’d be spending several hours alone with Kylo tonight made Rey feel uncharacteristically nervous. At one point, as she quietly observed Poe and General Hux arguing back and forth, Kylo’s leg brushed hers. She nearly jumped at the tingly feeling that ran through her body. Why was she feeling this way? She’d spent plenty of time with him in the past, but it had at first been as enemies, and then even when he’d defected from the First Order, they had been focused entirely on fighting the First Order. There was something weird about planning to voluntarily spend time with him when there was no war involved.
Eventually, the afternoon’s proceedings wrapped up, and the moderator dismissed the attendees for the day. Poe reminded Rey to comm him when she and Kylo were finished with dinner, and Rey followed Kylo out of the room.
“What room are you staying in?” he asked.
“Room 1138.”
“I’ll stop by and get you around 7, does that sound okay?”
Rey nodded. “Sounds great. See you then.” She was about to head back to her room and then stopped. “Um, Kylo? Do you have any idea where we’ll be going? I know that a lot of the restaurants around here are pretty fancy, and I don’t really have any fancy clothes.”
“Hmmm…” He ran his hand through his hair. “Well, I was planning to take us somewhere fairly nice, but I’m sure it won’t be a big deal if you’re not particularly dressed up.
“Are you going to dress up?”
“I was, but I don’t have to.”
“Can we just go somewhere casual? Let’s not make a big deal out of this.”
A look of recognition crossed Kylo’s face, followed by a slight grin. “You’re right--that gives me an idea. We’ll keep it casual. Just wear whatever you feel comfortable in.” He looked over the tunic and leggings that she’d worn to the meeting. “You don’t even need to change your clothes if you don’t want to.”
“Thanks.” Rey instantly felt relieved. This wasn’t going to be a big deal; she didn’t know what she was making herself so nervous about earlier. “Still see you at 7?”
“See you at 7,” Kylo nodded.
***
After showering, Rey sighed as she pulled various clothing pieces from her travel bag. She had no idea what she should wear to this “thing” tonight. It wasn’t a date, she reminded herself; she wouldn’t be on a “date” with Kylo Ren. So, in theory, the comfortable “conference casual” pants and tunics that she’d packed for this trip should be just fine. She didn’t care about how she looked in front of Finn or Poe, so why was she caring so much about her appearance in front of Kylo? Finally, Rey reminded herself that she hadn’t ruled out meeting up with Finn, Poe, and their girlfriends (they were dating two sisters they’d met in the Resistance) later on, so she should wear something that would be appropriate for dancing.
With new resolve, she settled on an emerald green skater-style dress that she had brought solely because she had known that it was highly likely that Finn and Poe would probably want to go out clubbing at some point during their stay on Coruscant. She twirled in front of her room’s full-length mirror and watched her skirt flare out. This dress would be perfect for dancing, and it wouldn’t look like she was trying too hard for her dinner with Kylo, which was important because she wasn’t trying for anything, as she reminded herself.
Rey brushed her hair, opting to wear it down, and put on a minimum amount of makeup. The dress would look silly if she wasn’t wearing any makeup, wouldn’t it? She’d just put on her shoes--a pair of stylish but comfortable sandals (perfect for dancing) when she heard a knock at her door.
“Hi,” Rey greeted Kylo as she opened the door.
“Hi.” Kylo returned the greeting. His eyes roamed over her body, and a slight grin appeared on his face. “So you did decide to change clothes after all?”
“I just figured that I hadn’t entirely ruled out meeting up with Finn and Poe later on, so I threw on something that would be appropriate to wear dancing.” Rey averted her eyes from Kylo’s.
“Oh. Did you still want to get dinner? Because if you really want to go out with your friends, you should go.”
Rey looked up at him, seeing the disappointment on his face. “I didn’t mean it like that. I just wanted to wear something like this in case I change my mind about meeting them afterwards.”
“Got it.” Kylo offered her his hand. “Shall we, then?”
Tentatively, Rey took his hand and stepped out into the hotel hallway. “Let’s go.”
Kylo led her down the hall into the elevator. To Rey’s surprise, rather than pressing the button for the lobby, he pressed the button for one of the floors near the top of the hotel. “Does this hotel have a rooftop restaurant or something?” she asked.
“You’ll see,” Kylo replied. He gave her a quick wink.
They stopped at a door at the end of the hall; it looked like an ordinary hotel room door. Puzzled, Rey turned to Kylo. “This is a restaurant?”
“Not exactly.” Kylo removed a keycard from his pocket and scanned it, unlocking and opening the door. “Come on in,” he gestured for Rey to follow him inside.
Rey stepped through the door and surveyed her surroundings. They were in an ordinary hotel room. Well, not “ordinary”, given that it was the fanciest hotel room that Rey had ever seen. A huge bed sat in the middle of the room, and a table and chairs sat near the sliding glass door, beyond which Rey could see a rather large outdoor deck. “What is this?” she asked.
“Welcome to your dining accommodations for the evening, m’lady,” Kylo smiled nervously and took a slight bow. “Is this okay?” he quickly added.
“Is this your room?” Rey openly gawked as she looked around.
Kylo nodded. “It is. Is that a problem? We can go somewhere else, if you’d prefer, but when you’d mentioned that you hadn’t brought any fancy clothing, I thought that this might be a nice way to enjoy a nice dinner without having to get dressed up at all.”
Without thinking, Rey blurted out, “Is the Resistance paying for this?”
Kylo snorted. “Of course not. I’m paying for this out of my own credits. It’s been a very long time since I’ve been able to experience any sort of luxury.”
Rey looked at the floor, clearly embarrassed. Immediately realizing how his words must have sounded to the former scavenger, Kylo mumbled. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.” Tentatively, he took a step closer to Rey. “Can I get you something to drink, at least? Unless I just acted like such an ass that you want to leave right now?”
She looked up at him. “Oh, um sure. I’ll have something to drink.”
Rey watched as Kylo walked over to the table next to the sliding glass door that opened out onto the deck. She’d always found his appearance striking (even when she hadn’t wanted to), but tonight he looked particularly handsome in a pair of black pants and a gray tunic, his wavy hair still damp from the shower.
A metal ice bucket sat on the table with several bottles sitting in it. Kylo pulled out one bottle and commented, “I wasn’t sure what sort of wine you liked, but this particular one was one of my mother’s favorite before-dinner choices.”
“I don’t really know anything about wine, but that sounds nice.”
Kylo poured the straw-yellow liquid into one of the empty glasses that had been sitting on the table and handed it to Rey. “Thank you.” She took both the glass and one of the seats at the bistro-sized table.
Following her lead, Kylo took the other chair and poured himself a glass of wine. They each steal a glance at each other before being overcome by an awkward silence.
Rey spoke first to break the tension. “So, have you already ordered dinner?”
Kylo nodded. “I did. I hope that was okay. I hope I don’t sound like an ass again, but I figured that I was probably more familiar with the types of food that they serve here than you would be."
She smiled at him in response. “Thank you--that’s fine with me. And you’re right--I probably wouldn’t even know where to start with the menu here.”
Turning around in his chair, Kylo produced a covered platter that had been sitting on a small cart behind him. He removed the cover and sat the platter down on the table between them. Rey leaned forward to view the platter’s contents, which appeared to be a small sliced loaf of bread, several small pots of what appeared to be some sort of chunky sauces, and various sliced and cubed cheeses.
Without being prompted, Kylo explained, “It’s a selection of artisan cheeses and tapenades that I thought you might like.”
“What’s this?” Rey pointed to one of the little pots containing a purple substance.
“That’s a tapenade made from olives grown on Lothal. Here, try some.” He spread a small amount of the chunky sauce onto a little piece of bread and handed it to Rey.
She popped it into her mouth, and her eyes immediately widened at the divine salty, savory taste. “Oh my gods, that’s so good!”
Kylo grinned and spread some tapenade on a piece of bread for himself. “It is good, isn’t it?”
Rey swallowed and immediately popped a cube of cheese in her mouth. “Mmmmm…” she murmured.
“That’s actually an aged bantha cheese from Tatooine,” Kylo explained.
Taking a sip from her wine glass, Rey tried to savor the taste and grinned. “Well, this certainly beats trying to trying to capture each other or maim each other with lightsabers.”
“I agree.” Kylo picked up his wine glass and offered it to Rey. “Cheers. To new beginnings.”
“Cheers. To new beginnings.” Rey clinked her glass against Kylo’s.
***
A few hours later, Rey found herself seated and leaning against Kylo on the sofa in his suite, his arm draped behind her neck while she rested her head against his shoulder. They had moved over to the sitting area after dessert to continue their conversation and watch an old holovid that Rey had expressed an interest in.
Feeling happily buzzed from the three glasses of wine that she’d consumed over the course of dinner and dessert, Rey sighed in contentment. “Well, I guess I’m definitely not going out to meet Finn and Poe tonight.”
Kylo rubbed her arm. “You can stay here as late as you’d like.” Without thinking, he pressed a kiss to the top of Rey’s head.
Instead of reacting in any sort of negative way; however, Rey simply nuzzled in closer. “I know that things are different now, and that Luke has encouraged me to find my own way, but I also know that he wasn’t always like that.”
“No, no, he wasn’t always like that. You were a good influence on him--like you are on a lot of people,” he mused.
Rey continued, “So, knowing that,” she turned to look up at the man next to her, “why did you ever want to be a Jedi? Knowing you, I can’t see that ever appealing to you. I mean, you’re like one of the most passionate people I’ve ever met.”
Kylo laughed, “I got sent to Luke as a punishment. You never heard that story?”
Rey shook her head. “No. What happened?”
Still gripping her arm, Kylo leaned back and shook his head. “When I was fifteen, I used the Force to hotwire a speeder and took it for a joyride.”
“Oh my gods,” Rey chuckled. “You got sent away for that?”
He raised his eyebrows. “Well, it wasn’t exactly a first offense, but it was the straw that broke my mother’s back, so to speak. She didn’t know what else to do, and it was clear at that point that without some guidance, my Force usage was going to continue to get me into trouble. Unfortunately, she didn’t know anyone else who knew how to use the Force, other than her brother. Trust me, I had no desire to become a Jedi.”
They sat quietly for a minute before Kylo added quietly, “I didn’t want to become what I ended up becoming, though, either.”
With some hesitation, Rey reached up and lightly traced the scar that bisected his face with her finger, then settled her hand on his cheek. “Well, you’ve changed from that, too. You’re not the same man that I first met a year ago.”
“The monster?”
“The monster...nor the broken man who showed up on Ahch-To in a last-ditch effort to try to be something he wasn’t.”
He placed his hand on her cheek. “I have you to thank for helping me to accept that. Thank you. Again.”
Rey allowed herself to be lost in Kylo’s eyes for a moment. Gone was the cocky, joking attitude from earlier in the day or the almost-trying-too-hard earnestness from earlier in their evening. Before she realized what was happening, Kylo began to lean in towards her face. Rey closed her eyes and let it happen.
His lips were unbelievably soft against hers. Instinctively, she opened her mouth, allowing her tongue to mingle with Kylo’s. They kissed tenderly at first, but then Kylo deepened the kiss, pressing his lips to hers with more pressure. She felt his hands raking over her back, and her own hand flew to his hair, where she carded through his soft waves. Gently, Kylo began to guide her backwards so that she was laying on her back on the sofa with him positioning himself between her legs.
Finally, he broke the kiss. “Stay with me tonight.”
Rey placed her hands on his chest. “I shouldn’t.”
What had just happened? A kiss was bad enough, but if she slept with Kylo, that would definitely be a point of no return.
“Why?” he asked softly. As if to press his point, he began to lightly suck her neck.
“We shouldn’t. I--”
“We’re on the same side now, Rey,” Kylo paused, giving her a look that she thought might burn into her soul. “I understood before. I really did, as much as I disliked it. The attraction between us, let alone our connection through the Force...none of that is going away anytime soon. This isn’t just physical; I care for you immensely.”
“But what if it doesn’t work out? We’re supposed to be defining and building a new order of Force users together for the foreseeable future.”
Kylo laughed, “Is that your way of telling me that you don’t want to ruin our friendship?” He turned his attention back to lightly sucking her neck.
“I guess so, no, I mean no. I just--”
“You’re afraid.”
Rey nodded slowly.
“Don’t be afraid, I feel it too,” he reassured her with a tender tone.
Grabbing the back of his head, Rey directed his mouth back to hers again. She found herself rubbing the inside of her calf up his leg. Kylo was right; she was afraid. She had been with other men before, but she’d held no illusions that any of those flings would develop into anything serious. Crossing this line with Kylo, though, both thrilled and terrified her. Everything between them would change overnight, and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that.
As if reading her thoughts, Kylo offered, “Just stay with me tonight. Let me hold you. We don’t have to do anything else.”
Kylo’s mouth returned to hers, clouding her thoughts. Rey doubted that if she spent the night with Kylo, they would just end up snuggling on the sofa. On the other hand, there was something very appealing about waking up next to a man who did truly care for her--Rey didn’t doubt his sincerity about that.
Rey broke the kiss, grasped his cheeks and smiled warmly. “Okay.”