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“How ya doin’ buddy?”
“Honestly, kind of nervous.”
Poe clapped Finn on the shoulder as they marched together down the corridor of the Millenium Falcon. They were about to embark on their first mission since boarding the Falcon and reuniting with Rey, and adrenaline and nerves were in the air.
Poe chuckled, half in an effort to hide his own nerves. “Yeah, that never really gets better. But hey!” he added, seeing Finn’s eyes widen even more frightfully, “You’ll have me! It’ll be a blast!”
Finn didn’t seem comforted by this. “Now I’m just worrying about you, too,” he mumbled.
They walked on together in silence, weaving through the long, metallic hallways. The monotony of the old ship was allowing Finn to get even more caught up in his thoughts. He needed a distraction. “Can you teach me a lesson?” Poe had been teaching him about the aspects of society he had never been exposed to during his years as a stormtrooper.
Poe grinned. “‘Course, pal. What about?” Finn deliberated. Before he had time to answer, Jessica Pava passed them going in the other direction.
“Don’t get yourself killed, Dameron,” she said playfully, brushing shoulders with Poe, who retorted,
“I’ll let Hux know you’re single!” Jessica flipped him off without looking behind her, and Poe yelled between chuckles, “Love you!” tauntingly at her back.
Finn’s eyes lit up as Poe turned back to him. “That.”
“What?”
“Love. Teach me about love. I always heard about it but never really understood what it was or how it worked.”
“Well,” Poe paused. “Well I guess there are different kinds. Like me and Jess: we love each other but we aren’t in love.”
“What’s the difference?”
Poe paused again. “You love your friends. You love your family. It’s like… you know space waffles?” Finn nodded. “Ok. You like space waffles, right?” Finn nodded again. “Well loving someone is like that but… way stronger. Like, you’d do anything for them.”
Finn nodded again, thoughtfully. “So I love Rey?”
“Yeah, exactly!”
Finn thought for another moment. “I love you.”
Poe missed a step and tripped slightly before resuming his place next to Finn. He didn’t say anything for a moment, but was visibly blushing. He cleared his throat before agreeing, “Yeah, I guess so. I guess,” he cleared his throat again, “I guess I love you, too.” Finn smiled.
“Okay, so how is that different from being in love?”
Poe paused for a third, and longer, time. “It’s like… well, it’s like love, but… more. Like, you love them, but as more than a friend; you also want to kiss them sometimes and do… other stuff with them.” He was blushing again.
“What other stu-”
“Nothing. Doesn’t matter. All that matters is that you care about them more than anything, and you think they’re amazing, and even despite their flaws they’re still perfect to you, and…” he trailed off. “It’s kinda hard to put into words.”
“I think I get it, sort of.”
“You kind of have to experience it to really get what I mean.”
Finn looked at him. “Have you ever been in love?”
Poe didn’t say anything. He walked on with a furrowed brow and a bitten lip for another several yards. They were nearing the end of their walk.
“Poe?”
“Once.” Poe kept his eyes trained ahead.
Finn was a bit taken aback by the abrupt answer. Nevertheless, his curiosity persisted, and he asked, “How did it end?” Poe was silent again. He pondered the question as they turned the final corner and walked toward the room in which they were to be briefed. His answer took so long that it was the last thing either of them said before crossing the threshold, and it left Finn more confused than he had been before.
“It hasn’t.”