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We'd won! The Resistance had won! We'd managed to take down the Final Order fleet and Palpatine in the nick of time.
That's great. All good.
Sadly, life doesn't suddenly stop simply because you win the war.
As the rest of the base slept off their hangovers/started day drinking in continued celebration, you sat at your console in the empty main command centre. You were in the process of going over supply runs, inventory and other important yet dull tasks necessary to keep the base afloat. It didn't matter that the majority of personnel were consuming alcohol and nothing else. Even that would run out eventually.
You made it through most of the day, getting through the 'essential for survival' task list and starting on the 'urgent but could do tomorrow' list, before you were disturbed. At least, disturbed by more than the celebratory ruckus outside the building.
"Colonel Y/L/N"
You sigh quietly to yourself. And it had been going so well.
"Can I help you General?"
You don't look up as you respond. You've spent enough time with Poe Dameron to know his voice anywhere. Plus, eye contact only encouraged him. And distracted you if you were honest, but that involved crawling out of that deep pit of denial you were currently living in so you weren't going to do that.
“Well, I don’t know if you noticed,” he drawled, propping himself lazily up against the workstation next to you, “but we won the war yesterday. Could you maybe, I don’t know, chill out and stop working for 10 seconds?”
You scoff quietly to yourself. You understood why Leia had made him General. Despite his bluster and cocky flyboy attitude, he was a calculating strategist whose tactics snatched victory from the jaws of defeat time and again. As a professional with advanced military training though, you had occasionally doubted that he had it in him to deal with the day-to-day aspects of commanding the Resistance. (Was it still the Resistance if the enemy was destroyed? Hmm, pin that thought for later. There might be a full rebrand on the horizon.) At least, he might not be able to manage without support. Good job he had you really.
“I was aware, yes” you respond, continuing to draft a message to the Senate, “bit hard to miss with the sheer volume at the moment”.
That makes Poe laugh. Mirth lights up his eyes and he gets that intolerably cheeky grin upon his handsome face.
"What do I have to do to drag you away from your console?"
"Let me finish my work? Or, you know, since you're here, maybe you could help"
With a fond shake of his head he moves behind you, wraps his arms around you and drags your chair away from the console. You squeak with indignation.
"Unhand me you beast!" You laugh, trying to be stern. It's not very successful.
"Nope. Not a chance. You're coming with me. That's an order."
You grumble under your breath as he stands you up and drags you out of the command centre. You're not convincing anyone that you're not exactly where you want to be though, and eventually allow yourself to be tucked under his arm and led towards the celebrations.
‐------
You're a little overwhelmed by the celebration. Poe had led you straight outside to the bonfire and as soon you had stepped into the clearing, you'd been spotted. You turn yourself into Poe slightly to try and hide yourself. He wasn't having it though, pressing a quick kiss to your forehead before dragging you into the ruckus.
You were immediately accosted by your overly cheerful (and slightly drunk) friends. All of them take a moment to thank you for keeping everything together. It was all very overwhelming, it's not like you felt that you had done anything particularly special.
"Ladies, gentlemen, non-binary individuals and droids of the Resistance" came Poe's voice. You look over to him where he stands on a nearby table. Finn stood relaxed at his side, a bright blue drink in hand.
"We have been through a very difficult time these last few weeks and we have lost many people." Poe pauses for a moment, taking a steadying breath. "Losing General Organa could have been the end for us, even with myself and Finn taking over her role".
A somber silence has overtaken the crowd but many of them are nodding gently or holding onto their neighbours for support. The fire crackles in the background as Finn takes over.
"Generals are only as good as their team, and there is one specific person who has held our efforts together." Finn waves his arm in your direction as he continues. "Colonel Y/N has been an absolute rock, no aspect of this extraordinary success would have been possible without their impressive and dedicated work behind the scenes".
You straighten your spine, keeping yourself tall as all eyes fall on you. You, however, keep yours trained on Poe as he gestures you up onto the table.
"In the coming weeks, we will have a proper ceremony to celebrate all of those who have gone above and beyond. But we felt that we should take a moment to celebrate the backbone of the resistance."
Poe takes back over from his co-General as he notes that "We would have done this earlier but they were busy organising resupplying the alcohol". The crowd laughs at that and Poe turns his sparkling grin toward you. Gosh, he is handsome. All cheekbones and curly brown hair. It's rude, quite frankly.
He wraps his arm around you as he calls out to the crowd. "Let's hear it for Colonel Y/N!"
The crowd erupts and you can't control the grin, leaning into Poe slightly for support. Your entire career you've been in the background, this sudden recognition is a bit much.
Everyone cheers, lifting their drinks in salute.
You take a moment to soak it in, before swiftly climbing down and attempting to blend into the background. Your attempt is dashed by Poe though as he grabs you again, gently tugging you towards the makeshift dance floor.
The music, which had paused momentarily for the Generals’ impromptu speech, had recommenced and there was currently a Nabooian love song drifting across the party. It was an interesting contrast to the boisterous conversations surrounding the clearing.
When you arrive at your destination you once again find yourself in Poe’s arms, this time slowly swaying to the beat. He’s such an affectionate man that it is sometimes really difficult to remember that you’re not together. That he’s not interested in you. You’d met Zorii in her brief visit after the battle and had heard enough from Ray to bring your insecurities to the fore.
You rest your head against Poe’s chest, tucking yourself into him and quietly sighing to yourself. You’re a Colonel of the Resistance, this pining nonsense is not helpful and you really need to get over him. He obviously hears you though and pulls back a little, aiming a questioning glance your way.
You shake your head slightly, smiling to try and deflect but now, with the war basically finished, he seems to have decided you have the time to unpack this.
“You can tell me you know?” he whispers.
You smile a self-deprecating smile and choose not to respond, but he isn’t having it.
“You’re the bravest person I know. You can say it”
You move to pull away but he doesn’t let you. Instead, he pulls you closer and for the first time, you see the way he looks at you.
It’s all it takes to break your self-restraint as you push yourself up onto your tiptoes and press your lips against his. He immediately deepens the kiss, holding you close before slowing the pace and breaking away. He doesn’t go far, resting his forehead against yours.
As first kisses go, it’s the best you’ve ever had.
It’s as you try to return your breathing to normal that you tune back into the rest of the world. You hear the whooping and what sounds like Finn shouting “finally” at the top of his voice. It’s the only warning you get before the other General crashes into you both, wrapping you in a bone-crushing hug.
BB-8 starts beeping wildly as he zooms around you in circles and, in the centre of all the people you love, you whisper gently against his lips, "I love you".
His answering smile is blinding as he repeats the sentiment before your best friend dips you and snogs the life out of you.
And on the evening after the final battle, in the firelight and surrounded by the celebrating members of the resistance, you wonder, as you wrap your arms around Poe, if life gets any better than this.
You doubt it.