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Rey nearly barreled into the Lars homestead after being away for a week's time. She’d returned to Coruscant, where the Resistance had recently relocated to start to work on the finer details of rebuilding their government. The planet itself would likely be a temporary location, as many of the representatives from the nearby systems hadn’t quite the nostalgia for its hustle and bustle, only bad memories of the empire. But it would do for now. It had the facilities for large groups and that is what they needed, and they needed to act quickly.
“Just because the world thinks you are dead doesn’t mean you can be dead to the world,” Rey groaned as she approached a dark lump in the corner of the room, facing away from her on a large cot. It groaned at being addressed.
“I haven’t slept for thirty years, I’m using 'dead-cation' to my advantage,” the lump turned to face Rey, still groggy with his black hair plastered to his long face. And despite Rey’s protests, he did look better than he ever had. The dark circles under his eyes, the ones Rey once thought were permanent, were faded and there was an absence of gray in his skin that was pleasant.
Without wasting another second, she dove next to him. Nuzzling into his side the moment he opened his arms to welcome her back. He adjusted the blankets that buried him to cover her too, as the desert was cold in the mornings, and she smiled into the warmth of his sweater.
“How was your week?” She asked, a bit mumbled, as she pressed against him.
“Oh you know, riveting. Being ‘dead’ in the middle of a desert is full of excitement.”
“Ben-“ Rey warned, even though she knew he must have been bored without her. She knew it may be likely that no one would recognize him in Mos Eisley, very few people knew what Kylo Ren had looked like, and those who did would know of the scar that split his face. But it was a risk she was unwilling to take. He had a chance to start a new life with her, and even though she wasn't sure how they would manage it, they had a better chance of figuring it out without a galaxy-wide hunt to find him. A brief flash of the man whom she had scarred crossed her mind, but he was nearly unrecognizable now.
For it was a scar he no longer had. Without thinking, she traced the line of where it used and be and Ben quirked his brow.
“Missing the scar?” he said, with a soft laugh. Rey shook her head.
“No, just thinking that it might be alright for us to go into town sometime soon.”
He shrugged. “I don’t mind being cooped up in here, I just get a little stir crazy when you're gone. It makes me think I am actually dead. That Tatooine is some strange place within the Force too.”
“Have you tried contacting your mother?” Rey asked, knowing it was still a sore subject.
Ben chewed his lip. “I’ve thought about it.” His voice trailed off before he lightly pushed her shoulder so she was against her back and he was partway above her. He grinned. “I don’t want to talk about them right now, I want to welcome you home.”
Rey felt a sudden heat in her neck as a blush quickly consumed her face. Ben only continued to smile before leaning down to lightly pressing his lips to her own. Something that still took her breath away each time he did it. She nearly had to gasp for air when he backed away an inch.
“How was Coruscant?” he said, a bit of teasing in his voice as Rey couldn't help but audibly swallow as she gazed at his lips.
“You’ve been there. It’s a maze. I don’t know how anyone gets around there without being hit by a speeder or falling into one of the lower levels.”
“You’ve managed a world between worlds. I’m sure you can handle a city just fine.” He tucked a wisp of hair behind her ears.
“You may be surprised,” she said, gazing back into his eyes. So real and near. So entirely part of her in a way she still couldn’t put words too. Then she wove her fingers into his hair, pulling him back down to her. Every second to follow she would have to remind herself this was real, and they finally had a chance to be what they were meant to be.