Chapter Text
"COVER THEM UP SLUT"
Rey giggled at her comment before tossing her phone to the side. She wasn't sure why she did it. Maybe it was the seven wine coolers combined with the bottle of Corellian whiskey she'd taken from her foster father Unkar's not so secret stash. Maybe it was the fact she was half awake at two in the morning on a school night studying for a test. Or maybe it was because she walked in on her boyfriend Colby in bed with someone else. Or maybe it was because the guy in the TikTok video she commented on was what she considered a fuckboy just like her now ex boyfriend.
Fuckboys were all the same - good looking, well connected, seemingly perfect, but also selfish and arrogant womanizers who spent most of the time thinking with the head not attached to their neck. Whatever the reason or combination of reasons, Rey left her first comment on one of Kylo Ren's videos after following him in silence for almost two years. Even with a mind clouded by heartbreak, alcohol and sleep deprivation, Rey knew she'd later regret it. But not enough to delete the comment. It wouldn't have been a big deal had she not known Kylo Ren in real life. And in real life, he was king of their elite private school Mirrorbright Prep.
She discovered Kylo's TikTok account by accident sophomore year when one of his many thirst trap videos showed up on her For You Page. Unsurprisingly, all of his content was the same. He hardly ever wore a shirt and found ways in every single video to show off his well defined body while standing in a dimly lit room with red lights running around the ceiling. Rey hated knowing how he really looked underneath their school uniform. It made it difficult to think straight when he was anywhere nearby. He wasn't involved in any sports, but obviously spent a lot of his free time working out.
Kylo towered over everyone in school and was the epitome of tall, dark and handsome. His ears and one eyebrow were pierced. His nails were always painted black and he wore layers of bracelets as well as several rings. His nose and ears were maybe a little too big for his angular face, but that only added to his odd attractiveness. His hands and feet were also massive which made Rey curious about another part of him. The part that she could sometimes see the outline of through the tight black joggers or the loose basketball shorts he wore in his many videos. And she hated how much she wanted to run her fingers through his shaggy dark hair that always looked so soft.
Sure, they were in the same grade and participated in the same school activities. Sure, they shared a handful of mutual friends (including Colby) and went to the same parties. But despite all that, they weren't close. The few times they had interacted, she could tell he would rather be anywhere else talking to anyone else. But Rey didn't care. Not really. She knew everything she needed to know about him. Her assumptions came from her own observations at school and parties, his TikTok content and whatever rumors were going around that she was too lazy to verify. It was obvious he knew how attractive he was and used it to his advantage.
Rey absolutely could not stand Kylo Ren.
It was several hours past her alarm when Rey finally woke up. She had a massive headache and the bright sunlight coming in through the window wasn't helping. She found her phone tangled up in her sheets on low battery. After plugging it in to charge, she checked the notifications. There were a couple missed calls and voicemails from Mirrorbright's principal and guidance counselor which she promptly ignored. Her friends Tallie and Rose also tried calling and texted their concern when she didn't answer. The last missed text was Unkar saying he would be out of town for a few days and had taken their shared clunker of a car with him.
Rey was both happy and annoyed to have the house to herself for a few days. Not that Unkar was all that nosey, but anytime he was around she felt like she had to walk on eggshells. She was annoyed, because him being out of town with their only car meant she'd have to use the subway to get around or walk. Their neighborhood was about seven blocks away from the nearest subway and the bus that could take her to school was ten blocks away. But worrying about how she was going to get around would be a problem for later. For now, she wanted more sleep. As soon as her eyes closed, her phone started ringing.
"What?" she groaned.
"Finally! Oh my god!" Rose sounded exasperated. "Why the hell haven't you been answering your phone or at least texting us back??"
"And why the hell aren't you at school?" added Tallie.
Rey heard a lot of background noise and quickly deduced they were calling from between classes. "Sorry it's...I'm just now waking up."
"Rey, what the hell?" Tallie exclaimed. "We had a test in Zoology that's worth like a third of our final grade! Why are you still asleep? It's almost noon!"
"I just had a long night."
"Clearly."
"I was studying for that test and didn't go to bed until like two."
"Miss Kanata will let you make it up," said Rose, confidently. "You're her favorite student after all."
The shrill sound of the bell in the background made Rey cringe. Both Rose and Tallie let out annoyed sighs.
"Well shit. Now I'm late," Rose muttered. "First time ever this year."
"You guys wanna meet for dinner at Murray's?" Tallie asked.
Rose groaned. "I wish, but Poe scheduled a mandatory student council thing for dinner. We're trying to iron out last minute details for the charity gala happening next month, but you two go ahead."
"Rey?" said Tallie. "Are you in?"
"Sure. Why not."
"By the way, in case you couldn't tell, I'm so jealous and annoyed you skipped school and didn't tell me sooner! I could've also taken a fake sick day so we could go kick it at the mall!"
"Tallie, I need my phone!" Rose said.
"Oh right. Sorry Rose. See you later, Rey!"
Rey was seated in their usual booth near the back of Murray's Deli by the time Tallie came bursting through the door with a huge smile on her face. She hurried over and slid into the seat across from Rey.
"I already ordered for us since you're boring and always get the same damn thing," said Rey by way of greeting.
"Oh okay!" Tallie nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! Great! That's...really great!"
"What's got you so happy?" Rey frowned.
"I'm surprised you're so calm!"
"Is there a reason I shouldn't be calm?"
Tallie's look of excitement turned into a frown. “Rey, when was the last time you checked TikTok?”
“Sometime last night,” Rey shrugged. “Why?”
Tallie slid her cellphone across the table with the TikTok app open. Rey's eyes widened. “Oh my god...”
“Uhhh yeah. You’re telling me,” Tallie nodded, as Rey stared and stared at a close up of Kylo’s very wide, very naked chest.
It was taken from an angle that amplified just how gloriously fit he was. One eyebrow was raised and there was a slight smirk on his face. A wordless song was playing in the background. And the entire reason for this post? It was in response to the comment kinda drunk and half awake Rey had posted much earlier that morning.
“He never responds to anyone ever,” Tallie continued. “He doesn’t even like comments, but he liked and responded to yours.”
Rey wasn’t sure what else to say so she kept on staring with her mouth hanging open.
“Oh and check out some of the top comments," Tallie said. "You'll recognize some of the names."
Of course with several hundred thousand followers to her several thousand, Rey knew the likelihood of her and Kylo having mutual followers was high. But to see people who religiously followed, liked and commented on her content also commenting on his was new.
"Who the fuck is Scavenger.Nobody and why the hell is Kylo responding to her?"
"Wait what? WHAT??! DO THEY KNOW EACH OTHER???"
"Ironic she calls herself Scavenger Nobody. She really is a loser."
“OH MT GOD DO YOU KNOW HER, KYLO??!!”
“LMAOOO she called him a slut just because he looks amazing shirtless and knows it. What a bitch.”
“He never responds to any comments, but he responds to that??!!WTF??”
“Pspspspspspa @Scavenger.Nobody, your boy responded!"
"Kylo doing charity work like the awesome dude he is."
“SHIPSHIPSHIP”
Rey groaned and put her head in her hands. “I can't believe he saw that stupid comment. That video already had thousands by the time I posted mine. And there's no way he has his notifications turned on or his phone would crash! Not to mention I posted that at like two this morning when he should've been getting his rich boy beauty sleep."
Tallie shrugged. "Maybe he had a hard time sleeping and just happened to be online right when you commented?"
"But you said he never likes or responds to comments, so why would he like and respond to mine?"
"Hell if I know. Maybe you should ask him at school tomorrow."
"No, because then he'd know I was Scavenger Nobody."
"Is that really such a bad thing?"
"Tallie -"
"I know, I know. You want to keep your online life separate from your real life or whatever. But at some point, the two will crossover."
"Honestly, I was thinking about quitting once I graduated if not sooner."
Tallie's mouth dropped open. "Why the hell would you do that? You've been raking in some serious cash you'd be hard pressed to earn working anywhere else especially since you're only a senior in high school."
"And I've earned enough to finally get myself the hell out of this city and never look back," said Rey. "That's always been my dream. Don't get me wrong. I love creating content, but recently it's just gotten a little tiring trying to meet everyone's requests and expectations. I never meant for it to become such a big deal."
Before Tallie could argue more, their food arrived and Rey was thankful the subject switched to what she missed in school which wasn't much.
Rey created her TikTok account the summer before sophomore year. It was the same summer she was offered a full ride scholarship to Mirrorbright Prep based on her work ethic and perfect GPA. At her previous schools, Rey stood out from the crowd not only for how smart she was, but also because of her unique fashion sense. Before Rey realized she could monetize her efforts online, she made money under the table working for Unkar at his shady garage downtown during her free time. It wasn't a lot, but it was enough to purchase the things she liked off sale and clearance racks. Sometimes, she even scored a few high end things from the thrift stores on the wealthier side of the city.
When she started gaining popularity online, people started asking where they could send her money to help expand her wardrobe. They loved the way she put outfits together, posed for pictures and did almost every dance challenge TikTok had going on. Eventually, she started getting requests to wear certain outfits and even cat ears. The requests for various looks or even cosplays weren't as weird to Rey as the cat ears, but it didn't take long for her to get into it.
She used to only wear neutral colored wigs, but started wearing pastel and neon colors. One thing that never changed was how she wore lots of make up, taking extra care to cover up her freckles. Even when Rey first started her account, she never wanted anyone from her real life to recognize her.
Since Mirrorbright required uniforms and had a strict dress code, it was difficult for Rey to express herself during school hours. So at school, she wore her school uniform to code. Her knee length skirt was never rolled up and there were never too many buttons on her shirt left undone like some other girls did. Her preferred school hairstyle was three buns going in a line down the back of her head. She also didn't wear any make up aside from neutral colored lipgloss. But once she got home, she became Scavenger.Nobody. A smiley energetic girl who lived her life in pastels.
Along with the colored wigs, she sometimes wore colored contacts. She loved to watch make up artists and get ideas for her own looks. Almost everyday, she took pictures in silly or cute poses and recorded different videos so she'd have plenty of content in drafts to eventually post. Her animal ear collection grew rapidly and eventually she had to start buying large storage bins to keep everything in. Unkar hardly ever came into her bedroom and didn't ask questions when she requested he get a PO Box so that she could receive fanmail and online orders.
When she started dating Colby, Rey quickly realized he was very critical of anyone who used TikTok especially the girls who made money by posing or dancing around in cute sometimes suggestive outfits. She was afraid he'd find out her secret and break up with her. Thankfully, he never wanted to go to her house since it was "on the wrong side of the city" so he never saw her room. They always hung out at his house. He was constantly telling her how to do her hair (he hated the three buns she sometimes wore), what clothes to wear and insisted she wear make up, because she was "too fucking plain" and had "too many damn freckles".
Looking back now, Rey realized the majority of their relationship was Colby criticizing her and trying to change her. She was generally no pushover, but he was the first boy to ever show an interest in her. So she just let him say whatever he wanted in exchange for making her feel like someone cared about her. She'd felt an ache and loneliness deep down inside for so long. Having someone to spend time with even if he was cheating on her or trying to control her, was better than nothing. It was better than feeling unloved and alone.
The next day, Rey got to school early so she could talk to her zoology teacher Miss Kanata about a make up test. Her request was granted, but she'd have to stay after school on Friday since Miss Kanata's schedule was full until then. That meant Rey would probably miss even the late bus home since Unkar would most likely still be out of town, but she didn't argue. She needed to maintain her near perfect GPA in order to keep her scholarship. And she needed to keep her scholarship, because having "Graduated from Mirrorbright Prep" on her college application would skyrocket her chances of getting accepted into her dream university overseas.
So for the next couple days until Friday, Rey sat through all her classes making sure to catch up on whatever notes and assignments she'd missed. Rose and Tallie were keeping busy outside of school with their extracurriculars and jobs. By the time Friday rolled around, everyone seemed to have weekend plans except for Rey. Rose was visiting her sister who was away at college and Tallie was working at the library all weekend, which left Rey alone since she didn't have a job or family to visit. Unkar also finally texted again just to say he wouldn't be back until sometime next week.
After she'd taken her make up test for Zoology, Rey wandered the quiet empty halls of the school. She could've asked Miss Kanata for a ride home, but didn't feel comfortable enough so she resigned herself to walking. It was around five o'clock and there were clouds in the sky and thunder rumbled in the distance. It was a warning of the coming storm. Because of course it would be rainy the day Rey stayed late after school, didn't have a car and missed the bus. With a defeated sigh, she started walking the eleven mile trek home. A few blocks away from school, she was so lost in thought she didn't notice the black car slowing down beside her.
“Niima.”
Rey stopped walking and was surprised to find none other than TikTok thirst trap superstar Kylo Ren idling by the curb in his black Batmobile looking Lotus.
“Kylo...” Rey responded, tightening her grip on the straps of her backpack and pointedly not looking at his chest which was currently (thankfully?…disappointingly?) covered by their school uniform polo shirt.
“You always walk home from school?”
“Not usually, but I missed the bus since I stayed late to take a make up test and Plutt’s out of town for a few days with our one car so this is my only other option.”
“It’s not,” he shook his head, put the car in park then leaned over to open the passenger’s side door. “Hop in.”
“No thanks.”
“It looks like it’s going to rain,” Kylo looked up at the sky that had darkened significantly.
“Rain never hurt anyone, Kylo."
He frowned a little and worked his jaw. “How far do you live?”
“Not far,” Rey lied.
She still had about nine miles to go, but he didn’t know that nor was she going to tell him.
“If you’re sure…” he said doubtfully.
“Yep. Positive,” Rey nodded, as she continued walking.
She expected him to do a u turn and drive off towards the rich part of the city, but he continued to drive slowly beside her with the door still hanging open. He was lucky this wasn't a busy street or he'd be pissing a lot of people off. Rey stopped walking and turned to him. “Was there something else you wanted?”
Kylo looked down and bit the inside of his cheek. "No. I mean...maybe. I mean...yes?"
"Are you asking me if you had something else or are you telling me you do?"
"Sorry. I just...wanted to see how you were doing," he said. "You know after the whole...Colby and Bazine thing."
Rey bristled at the mention of Bazine Netal. Queen Bee of Mirrorbright Prep. One of Kylo's (probably many) bedwarmers over the years. The same girl Rey caught Colby fucking.
"Sorry I brought it up," Kylo said, running a hand through his hair. "It's just...I haven't talked to you since you found out and -"
"We don't really talk that much to begin with, Kylo."
"Well I know, but -"
"I really should get going so I don't get rained on."
"I thought you said rain never hurt anyone," he smiled big enough to remind her that he had dimples which made the butterflies in Rey's stomach flutter.
"I know what I said," Rey frowned. "But that doesn't mean I want to get rained on. Besides, there are a few places along the way I can duck into if it does start raining before I get home. But standing here isn't going to do me any favors."
She started walking again and was annoyed when Kylo continued to follow.
"If you want me to punch Colby the next time I see him, I will."
Rey stopped walking and looked over at him questioningly. "What? Why would you do that? Aren't you best friends?"
Kylo laughed a little and shook his head. "We may have grown up together, but I wouldn't call us best friends. It's more like...we grew up attending the same boring etiquette classes and stuffy private schools. We were forced to go to the same charity events in the same stupid tuxedos. We're members of the same stupid country club and live in the same stupid neighborhood. But that's about all we have in common. Well...other than our taste in girls."
Rey saw the way Kylo's cheeks turned red. He looked away from her and cleared his throat.
"He...hooked up with my girlfriend last year," Kylo frowned at the steering wheel. "We aren't together anymore now though thanks to him. She doesn't go to our school. We met over the summer at the club pool, but hardly ever hung out except for parties. My cousin Kaydel caught her and Colby together. She took pictures for proof and sent them to me, but I really wish she hadn't. She could've just told me and I would've believed her. Kay wouldn't lie about shit like that."
This was news to Rey. Not that Kylo had an ex girlfriend or a cousin, but that Colby had cheated on her with more than one person.
"Last year? But I was dating Colby last year. I thought...I thought Bazine was the only one he cheated on me with," Rey's heart plummeted and tears started forming.
Kylo shook his head and had the decency to looked pained while telling her all this. "She wasn't. And neither was my ex. Colby...had a bad habit of fucking basically anyone who showed even a minor interest in him."
Rey wasn't sure what to think or say anymore. She wanted to yell, to throw things, to hit something. But instead she stood there, hands balled into fists trying to keep her tears from falling. As much as it was good to finally be free of Colby in her life, it still hurt more than she cared to admit.
"Rey?" Kylo said gently. When she looked at him through her tears, he motioned to the open door. "You sure you don't want that ride home?"
The drive to her house was only a few minutes, but it felt like years. Neither of them spoke. Kylo didn't even have the radio on. It did start raining shortly after Rey finally got into his car so the only sound was the rain and windshield wipers. She quietly told him what street to turn on and cringed a little when she pointed out which rundown home was hers. But Kylo didn't look disgusted like she assumed he would. He even pulled into the driveway and parked instead of leaving her at the curb and speeding off.
"You gonna be okay?" he asked, turning to face her.
"That's hard to say. I just found out my boyfriend of nearly two years was cheating on me probably for the entirety of our relationship," Rey sank back against the soft leather seat and stared out at the rain. "Just my luck. My first and only boyfriend is a total asshat. I should've known better."
"Honestly, when you guys started dating I couldn't believe it."
Rey laughed bitterly and prepared herself for whatever insults he was about to hurl at her. Colby probably sent him to finish her off. She should've known better than to trust Kylo Ren.
"Why?" Rey said, readying herself for a fight. "Because I'm nothing? Just some poor little charity case? A nobody from nowhere who's only able to attend Mirrorbright because of a scholarship?"
"No," Kylo shook his head. "It's because Colby didn't deserve you. You two were never a good fit and that's entirely his fault. He's always put himself first for as long as I've known him. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner about how he really is. I just never felt like we were close enough."
"Well a word of warning would've been nice anyway," Rey snapped. She saw Kylo shrink away from her. It was a little funny considering he was taking up almost half the vehicle due to how large he was and how small the car was. She sighed and looked over at him. "But at the end of the day, it was still my stupid ass decision to date him. That being said, I don't want to talk about him anymore right now. Or ever again probably."
"Fair enough," Kylo smiled.
"Anyway, I should get the hell out of your car so you can get going. I'm sure you have better things to do like your girlfriend or whatever macho thing it is that you do after school."
Kylo laughed, making those damn dimples appear again. Rey could feel her cheeks turning red, so she cleared her throat and opened the door to finally leave. "Sorry. I'm...not great at good byes."
"Neither am I," said Kylo. "And I don't want you getting rained on so..."
He dug around in his backpack and pulled out a black hoodie. "Here. To shield you a little. It's not going to work as well as an umbrella, but I don't keep one of those in my car since it doesn't rain often so this hoodie is the best I've got."
"I'm not taking your hoodie, Kylo. I'll be fine. My house is just right there."
"Please?" he held the hoodie closer to her and Rey rolled her eyes with a sigh.
"Alright. Fine. Thank you."
She pulled it on and Kylo started laughing at the way it swallowed her.
"Oh my god, Kylo. I knew you were abnormally large, but this??"
The sleeves went over her hands by several inches and she was sure when she stood up, the bottom would be around her knees.
"It's my favorite hoodie," Kylo said. "So just be sure to give it back sometime."
"Not a chance. It's soft like a damn cloud," Rey said, gathering up all the excess material and wrapping it tighter around herself. "It's mine now."
"It does look good on you."
Rey didn't respond to that as she quickly got out of the car. "Oh and uhm...thanks for the ride."
"You're welcome," Kylo smiled genuinely, as he rolled his window down to keep talking. "And anytime you need a ride anywhere, just let me know."
"How am I supposed to let you know? Smoke signals? Carrier pigeon? Mental telepathy?" Rey meant it as a joke, but Kylo shook his head with a serious look on his face.
"Got your phone on you?" he asked. Nodding, Rey pulled it out of her backpack and handed it to him. He added his number then handed it back. "There. Now you have my number. Just text or call me. Whatever. Even if Unkar is in town. I don't mind."
"Thanks, but I'll be ok. Unkar's coming home next week and doesn't mind using the subway to get around so I'll have that shitty piece of metal to drive myself again," Rey chuckled then she looked up at the sky and frowned. "Oh. It's not raining anymore so I can go ahead and give this back."
She started to remove the hoodie, but he stopped her.
"No. It's fine," Kylo blurted. "You keep it. For the next time it rains."
"Are you sure? You said it's your favorite hoodie."
"I have others."
Rey raised an eyebrow. "You have multiple favorite hoodies?"
"Yeah, doesn't everyone?"
"I guess so," Rey shrugged, as she walked up the steps to the front porch. "Well good bye!"
She fumbled with her keys, willing her heart to stop racing and the butterflies in her stomach to calm the fuck down already. What the hell was he still doing here? He should've driven off by now.
"Rey?"
She looked back at him curiously.
"Next time you want me to put a shirt on, just be a good girl and ask nicely," he smirked, as he started slowly backing out of the driveway.
It took a few seconds for Rey to realize what he was referring to then she frowned. "Wait. How did -"
"And you're not nothing. Not to me," he winked. "See you later Scavenger!"
He waved and drove off before Rey had a chance to respond. She stood there staring down the street until long after his car had disappeared from view. How the hell did he figure it out? She was so careful with her posts. It was the reason she wore wigs, colored contacts and layers of make up enough to cover up her freckles. She even made sure there was nothing in the background that would give away what city she lived in or where she went to school. But that was another problem for another day. She couldn't let Kylo Ren take up anymore of her time.
Her heart was racing right along with her thoughts as she went through the motions of ordering Chinese food for dinner and trying to decide which corny chick flick to watch. She knew she should call or text her friends to update them, but also didn't want to bother them. Besides, she needed time to process everything that had happened. This was the most she and Kylo had talked since Colby introduced them her sophomore year. And he seemed so genuinely concerned about how she felt. She also didn't realize he was capable of smiling or laughing as much as he did when they were together.
Later that night as she she laid down to sleep, she got a text from Tallie."Go look at TikTok right tf now bish!!!" followed quickly by a text from Rose. "OMFG Tallie told me everything and holy shit Rey! Kylo Ren? Really?? When I get back, we're gonna have a long discussion over milkshakes and fries!!!"
She had half a mind to ignore their texts and get some sleep, but curiosity over what Tallie was freaking out about won. Kylo posted something new and tagged her in the caption: "Look @Scavenger.Nobody, I covered up this time ;)". Him "covering up" was wearing black arm guards and a cropped black sleeveless shirt that showed off his abs. Rey laughed and rolled her eyes before commenting "fuk u lol <3"