Work Text:
Rey set the down the.... She didn't want to call this pieced together, smuggled out abomination of a piece a script. She rubbed her temples and inhaled deeply. The script's god awful tonal changes and lack of depth had left her with vertigo even in word form.
She glanced up at the pale mess of a man in front of her. "I need a moment," she muttered and stood up. Rey picked up her glass of chardonnay and focused on the poster of her last movie, a whodunit that had won her four Isaac Awards nominations and and critical acclaim. Next to it, was the poster for the "The Last Mage" and a signed copy of Professor Yoda's "The Heroic Cycle," a gift from the story-group. Personally, it was her favorite thing in the office and the one that caused her the most pain.
Rey drained her glass and turned back to look at the man sitting across from her. He was a wreck; pale and miserable and his arm bound in a stiff cast.
"Okay," she said slowly, deciding she would have to be the calm one in this situation going by the dark circles underneath his eyes that had nothing to do with the mountain biking accident he had just been in. "Okay, just answer one question for me: WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK IS SNOKE AND PALPATINE THINKING? This is garbage! Nooooo, garbage can be turned into compost and is good, but this?!"
Rey grabbed the bottle of wine on her desk and poured a hefty serving into her glass before offering the bottle to Ben. He took accepted and drained it to the halfway point. Ben had presence, as an actor and as a man, there was no denying it. But here in her office, Ben looked defeated and small. Rey's heart ached at the site, in spite of herself. "Don't touch him," she told herself sternly. "Don't let this be anything but business." Yes, that was a good boundary to set.
"They're thinking about the bottom line, about not pissing off anyone off." he said bitterly. "And Snoke doesn't want to be uncomfortable and endings make him uncomfortable." He took another swig from the bottle, finishing it. Rey reached into her desk drawer and pulled out a bottle of red. She had this particular vintage saved for those days when her writer's block acted up, but this was dire enough to warrant breaking out the big guns.
Rey tore off the wrapper and nearly screamed when she saw the cork. Ben reached over and took the bottle from her. Even with one arm, he easily pushed the cork down with the butt of his pocket knife. Rey felt a shiver pass down her spine, before remembering why they were here in the first place.
Rey took a swig and scowled. "I knew they would do this," she said softly. "After all the whining and bitching the fanboys did, I knew Palpatine would do something like this. And Snoke! That fucker fought Holdo tooth and nail on everything."
Ben nodded and took the bottle back. "Whats in that script isn't even the half of it. The shit Rose has had to put up with from Snoke is unbelievable. She's done her best to salvage Kira's character but there's only so much one person can do. Its not even her fucking job to be an actor and a writer."
At that, the tears Rey had been holding back pushed their way to the surface and fell freely. When Rey had signed on to direct the eighth episode of the Galaxy Wars Saga, Rose had been the first call her up and offer congratulations. And over the course of filming, Rey had given her silent thanks to whatever deity was listening that she got to work with an actor as experienced, professional, and talented as Rose Tico. It was a miracle she had even been cast in the first place and that was thanks to Holdo, the head of Yoda's Films Group.
And during filming, Rey had wondered what she had done to deserve the opportunity of directing her favorite story. And working....falling in love with Ben during that time. Rey shoved that memory away with ferocity she had saved for dealing with the internet trolls who made her life a living hell after the premier.
But poor Rose; if they had had been angry with Rey for raping their childhood's, they positively loathed Rose for existing. And now the powers that be had decided to let every vile and racist complaint come true in this next film.
Rey dug her palms into eyes and tried to stop the tears. After a moment, she looked up at Ben. "Why are you telling me all this?" she asked, tired. "We haven't spoken since we called it quits and now you're telling me all this? What do you think i can even do about it?"
Ben flushed and rubbed his broken arm. "I don't know." he finally said. "I just... I needed someone outside of it to listen. Filming has stopped because of this," he raised his arm and Rey could see Rose and Finn's signatures as well as a crude doodle underneath Finn's name. "And Holdo has been in non-stop meetings ever since; I was able to buy her at least a little time to turn this around."
What?
When Rey had heard the filming on episode IX had halted because Ben had broken his arm in mountain biking accident, she had been surprised. Ben was probably the most athletic person she knew and could easily take on trails in the rockiest and remote areas. Once, in the middle of filming episode VIII, the Cave scene had left Ben so tense and in his head he had taken off and cycled around the entire island of Ach-To. Rey hadn't seen him for a day and when he had returned, he was back in his head and ready to work. The crash had happened in Chandrilla, which wasn't exactly known for its mountains.
"Your arm," she said softly. "That was on purpose; you never spill." Ben said nothing; his eyes said everything.
"I love this story as much as you do." he continued. "But Snoke loves nostalgia and Palpatine loves the market. I should have seen this coming in the first film but then you came along and I got my hopes up. After everything you did, I thought they would have to continue to push things, to grow." He paused and looked so miserable it broke the last of her restraint. Rey reached over and took his hand in hers and pulled him in close.
Ben wrapped his arms around her and held on tight. He always did give the best hugs, Rey thought and pressed her face against his chest.
"I wish things had gone differently with us," Ben whispered hoarsely and Rey sighed. "Things went so fast,'' she replied. "Too fast in hindsight and I pushed it to be that way. I shouldn't have..there are things I said and did I really wish I could take back, Ben." He sighed into the top of her head and his hold became even tighter.
"So do I. Galaxy Wars... you know how much it means to me and how it helped me when I was at the boarding school; and I let those online fuckers and their campaign of terror get inside my head. I knew better but it got so loud I couldn't hear you or Rose anymore. I'm sorry; I am so, so, sorry."
It felt like bandage that had been left on for to long had been ripped off and the wound beneath could finally breathe and finish healing. Rey let out a small sob and tightened her grip around Ben. They stayed like that, entwined in each other's arms for a long time. Finally, Rey came back to herself and the problems looming on the horizon.
"Ben," she began. "I mean it; I don't know how to stop this thing. If the heads of the company are determined to go through with that script...' she trailed off, afraid.
Rey loved Galaxy Wars, wouldn't know where she would be if she hadn't found it as young teen in foster care and the community that came with it. It had led her to the Professor Yoda's works and inspired her to drop out of her engineering program to pick up film making full time and helped her find her way through "The Cave" again when she had been thinking about leaving film altogether when the opportunity to direct VIII had been dropped into her lap.
Ben sighed. "I don't know either. And if if the only thing I can do is go through with it, Kylo's death and all, then I guess I have to. the only thing I care about is you. That you know I'm sorry. Everything else, we can figure it out together."
"Together," Rey echoed. She took a deep breath and pushed Ben back. She went over to the far side of office where the giant whiteboard had been mounted and began erasing all the ideas for her next film away.
"C'mon, lets brainstorm this." she ordered Ben. "You bought us some time but not a lot. And by the way," she paused and glared at Ben. "That was stupid, like really stupid you could've wound up with a head injury. But, also kinda of brave."
Ben grinned. "You're gonna sign it, right?" he asked and Rey rolled her eyes. "Duh! But first, brainstorming." She pulled two markers off the board and held one out to Ben and he took it with a smirk.
"They won't know what hit'em."
Rey nodded in agreement and together, they turned to face the white expanse together. They had time, Rey thought. Who knew? Maybe they would get lucky and God would send a a pandemic or something equally disastrous to buy them another year. One could hope.