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”Good morning Ach-to! It is Sunday, June 11th at eight-oh-five in the morning! As always, Mr. Plutt would like me to remind everyone that the shop does not purchase turnips on Sundays, so do not even attempt to try it ‘or else’, he states. I hope everyone had a good weekend! Rose, out!”
Ben has been Ach-to’s island manager for the past six years, ever since his dad had to retire and left Ben in charge of wrangling the islands’ residents into a semblance of order. The job was easy enough and Ben liked the routine of it all, the repetitiveness giving him a sense of calm, especially on days when he felt like pulling his hair out. He handles permits, relocation requests, and occasionally just answers the question So what should I do now? whenever someone on the island was feeling a little bored.
(His answers ranged from “go try to catch an oarfish” to “don’t you think the pond near the northeast cliff could use some more hyacinths?” to "I think Din could use some more butterflies for his collection" - there was only so much creativity he could muster on an island he’d been living on his whole life.)
“Morning, boss!” Rose calls from behind her desk as Ben walks in. She’s always there so much earlier than him in order to make the morning announcements. He had tried telling her when she started a few months ago that it wasn’t really necessary, especially since the island didn’t have much daily news to report. But the residents seemed to enjoy hearing it every morning, and as the island manager, Ben’s main priority was making sure everyone was happy.
“Good morning, Rose,” he replies, giving her a small smile as he slips off his coat to hang on the coat rack behind his desk. Rose is a nice addition to the office, definitely an improvement from his last co-worker, Hux, who was a spindly rat of a man. Sure, she talks too much sometimes and tries to pry into Ben’s personal life more than he’d like, but she’s sweet and gets her reports in on time, so he can’t really complain.
The doors for the resident services building swing open and Ben instantly feels his stomach drop at the sight of the woman walking in.
Rey has been a perpetual thorn in Ben’s side for the past four years - honestly, since they were kids, if he was being honest - ever since she decided to sell her wares on the shores of Ach-to and provide the island with some “much needed culture” (her words, not his). He has to admit that her art is impressive and would be even more so if it was actually legitimate , but try explaining that to Mr. Frik, who insisted that the Venus de Milo he purchased last month from Rey was the real deal. The man had paid close to nothing for it, maybe a few hundred dollars and refused to listen as Ben explained that, like most of the other art pieces Rey had sold to residents over the years, it was a fake.
They really needed to get a better school system set up on this island. Maybe he’d talk to his mom about it...
“Just came in to say hi to my favorite island manager,” Rey greets, eyes bright and shining as she makes eye contact with him, striding up to the front counter.
Ben can’t help himself, can’t resist the temptation to try to wipe that look of glee right off her face. “Didn’t you have a warrant out for your arrest?”
It works, because her eyes harden and she glares at him from across the counter. “That was a misunderstanding and it’s been handled. I’m here to let you know I’ll be docking for the week at the pier on the secret beach.”
“It’s not really a secret if everyone knows it’s there, you know.”
Rey glares even harder. “Well, either way, my boat and I will be there.”
“Do you even have the proper permits?” he asks.
“I always have the proper permits,” she replies with a huff.
Ben rolls his eyes. “Ones that aren’t forgeries, Rey.”
She grins at him, and despite his best effort, Ben feels his stomach do a treacherous swoop at the sight. No matter how many years it’s been, no matter how many times he tells himself it’s a terrible idea to find anything about Rey charming, his heart never seems to get the memo.
“I’m offended you would think so low of me, Ben,” she replies, but she plops her messenger bag onto the counter and rummages through it for a moment before pulling out a sheet of paper with a triumphant look on her face and waving it in front of him. “As you can see, it’s been signed by the proper authorities and you can even give them a call if you’d like to validate it.”
Ben looks down at the paper she’s handed him and sees the familiar signature of the island’s only deputy, Poe Dameron, scribbled on the bottom. God, that man’s handwriting was atrocious and though Rey was, admittedly, skilled , even she couldn’t duplicate that chicken scratch.
“Fine,” he replies shortly, grabbing the paper and handing it over to Rose who’s watching the exchange with an intensity she usually reserves for her soap operas. The sudden paper in her face seems to snap her out of whatever trance she was in - Rose takes the permit from him, clearing her throat awkwardly as she flashes him a quick smile before retreating to her desk.
Ben thinks that’s it, that Rey is going to turn around and walk right out of resident services like she always does, to go back to her death trap that she calls a ship to try to sell wares to the unsuspecting residents of the island who should really know better by now and leave Ben alone for the next week. However, she’s still lingering in front of the counter and Ben looks up.
“Did you need something else?” he asks, the annoyance evident in his voice.
She looks at him from under her lashes, running her finger along the countertop. She seems almost shy. “You know, the boat is always open for visitors.”
“I know it is, how else do you expect to sell your overpriced fakes,” he counters, focusing his eyes back on the paperwork in front of him.
She lets out a huff. “They are not fakes. They are priceless pieces of art.”
He can’t help the laugh that escapes him. “Sure, they are.”
“I’m choosing to ignore your doubt to save us both the headache,” she tells him, pointing an accusatory finger in his face, but there’s a hint of a smile at the corner of her mouth. “All I‘m saying is that maybe you could stop by sometime.”
Ben does not blush. “And why would I want to do that?”
She shrugs. “I don’t know, maybe for old times’ sake.”
Ben doesn’t think about how old times’ sake involves a lot of stolen money and unkept promises. He doesn’t think about how it involves a younger Ben who was much more naive and a lot more stupid. He doesn’t think about how it involves heartache and betrayal and a good ol’ fashion backstabbing.
He doesn’t think about any of that.
At all.
“I’d rather not.” His answer is sharp and he can’t ignore the disappointment he sees on her face, but she does a pretty good job of quickly masking it up with her usual air of indifference. Ben should really not be jealous of how easily she does that.
“Well, if you change your mind, you know where to find me.” And then, with a wink, she’s gone the way she came, the resident services doors slamming behind her.
Ben glares at them. He’s seen her for the past four years at least every other month and Ben still doesn’t understand why he hasn’t gotten used to being around her. She’s a merchant, just like any of the other ones that grace their humble little island - like Kaydel with her shoes and bags or Mr. Yoda with his shrubs and seeds - and not one of those other people get Ben’s heart racing, make him feel like he’s on the edge of something with their mere presence.
Like he usually does after she leaves, he wonders if he could get away with having a stiff drink from the safety of the back room while still on the clock.
“Uh, boss?”
Ben blinks. He had honestly forgotten that Rose was still here and he turns to find her looking up at him from her desk with a curious look on her face. “What,” he grinds out.
“I’m sure I already know the answer to this question, but are you okay?”
He jerkily nods, turning his attention back to the permit request papers he was looking at for a possible museum expansion that Din was considering. Of course it’s an art expansion, of course it is. “I’m fine.”
“You know, every time Rey comes in, you seem to get a little bothered, boss,” Rose continues, shuffling some papers on her desk as she looks for her favorite pen that is constantly getting lost in the hurricane that was the top of her desk. Ben’s pretty sure that if Rose wasn’t such a competent residential service advisor, he would have fired her a long time ago for the sheer fact that the mess of her desk makes him want to break out in hives.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” And she doesn’t . Rose has only been on Ach-to for a few months. Ben hasn’t spoken to anyone about his whole issue with Rey in what feels like years, and he’s pretty sure the only person that might know a hint of the story is Phasma down at the tailor shop, and that’s only because he got wasted one New Year’s Eve and cried on her shoulder about it.
“Okay,” she drawls. “Can I just ask one question?”
Ben takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, a technique he usually implements when Finn decides he wants to move his house to the top of a cliff at two in the morning and shows up at resident services in his pajamas. “What’s your question?”
“I’ve only been on the island for six months, so I’m not sure if it’s common knowledge, but how do you and Rey know each other?” she questions. “Besides the obvious.”
Ben can just lie and say that he only knows Rey because of her business on the island, but it feels almost like a disservice to himself.
“We grew up together,” he answers shortly.
“On the island?”
“That’s technically another question, but yes, on the island.”
Rose peers at him, the scrunch between her brows the only thing that gives away that she’s considering calling him out on his bullshit answer. But there must be something on his face, some sort of emotion that he’s unable to repress that gives him away because she just sighs.
“Okay, boss,” she tells him, turning the little radio up on her desk and going back to redesigning the island’s flag for the fifth time this month.
And that’s that.
”Good morning, Ach-to! The island's favorite art connoisseur has returned for the week, so please check it out and maybe get some new pieces for that blank wall in your bathroom! Or any room, really. I know some people have said her boat is really shady looking and kind of dirty, but Rey has assured me that it’s just part of her aesthetic. Have a great day!”
The weather is abysmal the next morning, the rain coming down in sheets against Ben's window when he gets up. He couldn’t sleep very well, mostly due to the fact that every time he attempted to, his mind just kept drifting to Rey’s stupid ship parked at the stupid secret beach. And then when he did manage to sleep, his dreams didn’t fare all that much better. He angrily eats his oatmeal for breakfast while cursing the fact that Rey can still manage to get under his skin the way she does all these years later. It's annoyingly frustrating how easily she's able to do so just by being in his presence, and he hates how flustered he gets. As he slides his coat on, he silently thanks the fact that it's only one week every month that he has to deal with her - he's not sure if he can handle much longer than that.
On his walk into work, he doesn’t dare look over to the side of the island where he’s sure he would see the small plume of smoke coming from Rey’s ship (she really needed to get it smog tested or whatever the boat equivalent was to doing that). He gets to work earlier than expected, but it's fine, since he's pretty sure there's a pile of papers waiting on his desk waiting for the signature.
The morning flies by pretty quickly, but Ben can’t seem to focus. He keeps finding himself zoning out of conversations and he messes up the paperwork for a new flower garden three times before he realizes it. Rose must notice something is off, because she mostly leaves him alone and takes it upon herself to help the few folks that come in. It’s a couple hours later when he tells Rose he’s going to take a break in the back office, feigning a headache caused by the fluorescent lighting. Rose looks like she doesn’t fully believe him, but she’s also too sweet to call him out on it.
Five minutes and two bites into his cucumber sandwich, he hears the main door to residential services open.
“Hey, Rose!” he hears, immediately clocking Dameron’s voice and being relieved that he doesn’t have to deal with him. Ben’s known the guy for forever and he can never seem to leave any conversation with him without feeling like he was being teased about something. “Is Solo here? I gotta have him look at something.”
“He just went on his lunch break,” Rose responds, “If you want to come back later in the afternoon, I can tell him you stopped by!”
“Nah, it’s fine, I don’t mind hanging around until he comes back.”
Of course he doesn’t, Ben thinks and goes back to eating his lunch.
There’s a brief moment of silence before - “Hey, Poe, you’ve lived on Ach-to for a long time, right?”
“Since I was two!”
“Do you know the story of what happened between Mr. Solo and Rey?” If Ben had to guess, Rose was doing her best to whisper and failing miserably. These walls were a lot thinner than Ben would have liked.
“Of course I do,” Poe answers confidently, as if he can’t believe Rose is asking such a question. Ben feels his breath catch in his throat. “Everyone knows the story.”
No, no, no.
“Really?”
“Yeah, it’s like part of the island’s history at this point.”
Phasma, you little -
“Would you…” Ben hears Rose hesitate, as if she’s wondering if she should continue this line of questioning, but her curiosity must get the best of her because - “...tell me the story? Mr. Solo isn’t the most...forthcoming.”
Poe laughs. “That guy’s like a statue when it comes to talking about himself. I only know when his birthday is because his mom always decorates the front of his house with balloons.”
“Oh, that’s nice!”
“ Anyways ,” the other man continues, and Ben forgot how much of a gossip monger Poe was, despite his role as the island’s deputy, “Rey moved to Ach-to when she was nine, I think? You know Maz, the fortune teller? That’s Rey’s adoptive mom. Before that she was in foster care, got bounced around a bunch before Maz took her in.
Ben remembers when Rey had finally told him about her parents abandoning her at an airport when she was three, voice still shaking as she recounted the hope she had clung to for so long that they were going to some day return for her.
“I didn’t really get it at the time, honestly, I still don’t get it, but her and Solo became really close. They were like best friends, but multiplied by like, a million . Rey was the only person who could put up with his moodiness and it was no secret that Solo was...nicer when she was around. Anyways, Rey swears they were never anything more than friends but…”
He trails off and Ben finds himself holding his breath, wondering where this train of thought could be going.
“But?” Rose prompts, sounding eager.
“Everyone knew that they were in love with each other, it was obvious ,” Poe continues and Ben thinks his heart is going to explode out of his chest. “Finn told me that the two of them had this plan to sail away on the boat Rey had inherited from Maz. They were going to travel the world and see everything it had to offer. But the night they were supposed to leave, Ben never showed up. Rey waited all night and he just never came. She was heartbroken, of course, and decided to set out on her own.”
“Oh, that’s…that’s so sad.”
“Yeah,” Poe states. “Kind of explains why they’re both such dicks to each other, like, all the time.”
If the ground could open up and swallow him whole at this moment, Ben would thank whatever entity out there exists. He feels frozen where he sits, sandwich abandoned in front of him, and he’s not sure how he’s supposed to go back out there and pretend that he didn’t just hear everything that was said. Apparently everyone on this stupid island knew about the whole thing with him and Rey and have just been… gossiping about it behind his back this whole time.
Ben feels a little like throwing up.
He texts Rose that he doesn’t feel well and that he’s going to head home, already halfway out the back door to the office. She texts him back way too many emojis, but assures that she can handle everything for the rest of the day and that she hopes he feels better. Ben plans to spend the rest of the day hiding in bed and wondering where he went wrong in life to end up where he’s at right now.
“Good afternoon, Ach-to! Special afternoon announcement today - if you need any permits or paperwork signed today, there will be a delay in getting them back to you! Also, if anyone makes a good soup, particularly chicken noodle, I’m sure Mr. Solo would appreciate receiving it today!”
The rest of Ben’s day doesn’t seem to get any better.
Despite every intention he had to crawl into his bed and pretend like this whole day didn’t even happen, the rest of the island seemed to have other ideas. Due to Rose’s hospitality, his doorstep had been bombarded with various tupperware dishes and consistent doorbell rings all afternoon, no matter the weather, as more and more were dropped off.
At least he wouldn’t have to worry about lunch for the week.
He had felt restless, annoyed, and just done with everything after a few hours of dealing with trying to play nice with everyone. Ben couldn’t remember the last time he had had visitors over - he’s pretty sure most of them were just trying to get a peek inside his house, the nosey lot of them. Before he knew it, he was shoving his feet into his boots, throwing on his raincoat, and grabbing his umbrella and heading out the door.
The rain had let up a bit, mostly coming down in a steady drizzle. He wasn’t sure where he was heading, didn’t really care all that much, as long as it saved him from having to look at another bowl of cream of mushroom.
It was how he found himself standing on the edge of the secret beach at nine o’clock at night, staring at Rey’s boat.
Ben had never been on the thing - well, hasn’t been on the thing since Rey revamped it to be her floating sham of a business, has never even really come to this side of the island since everything happened. He remembers what it was like before, back when he was a teenager and Maz was still at the helm. It was a gaudy sight, all bright and covered in hanging baubles, and Ben remembers thinking how fitting it was for the odd little fortune teller and her giant eyes that seemed to look into your soul.
Now, Ben is pretty sure it’s as far from that image as possible. Rose wasn’t kidding when she had told Ben it was a little run down looking when she described it to him once. All the pink and purple paint has been covered in a dark green, the little flag flying in the wind has a couple holes, and the door to the main cabin seems to be nothing more than a flimsy tarp.
If he was being honest, it looks like a death trap.
There’s a small sign posted at the bottom of the ramp, REAL ART, DEFINITELY REAL! proclaimed in capital letters. Ben has the resist the sudden urge he has to laugh, but a small chuckle escapes him before he can stop it. He doesn’t think it’s that loud, but suddenly the tarp is being pulled back and there’s Rey.
He didn’t mean for this to happen, doesn’t know why he let himself linger here for so damn long. Rey’s holding a lantern in one hand, her other one clutched at her chest where it’s holding up the blanket she has wrapped around herself. She’s looking at him like he grew an extra head.
“Ben?” she asks, brow furrowed. “What are you doing here?”
He looks around for an answer, not knowing what to say before he blurts out, “I, um - you said the boat was always open, right?”
She nods slowly, relaxing every so slightly. “Yeah, I just wasn’t actually expecting you to take me up on the offer.”
“I can leave -” He’s already backing up.
“No! No, stay,” she nearly shouts and then softer - “Please.”
He hesitates, umbrella clutched in his hands. He could just leave and avoid this whole conversation that he’s been dreading for the past six years, but Rey is looking at him with such optimism, that he can’t help but nod.
She smiles at him and it’s like the goddamn sun.
He follows her into the boat, ducking his head, and down the steps. It’s dark, but Ben still looks around as he walks, trying to take in as much as he can. He notices the pieces on display at the bottom of the stairs, large frames and even larger statues with little sale signs in front of them. Ben’s honestly surprised that the boat can still float with such weight on it.
Rey leads him into a room hidden behind a thick curtain. He has to squint at the sudden brightness of it all, a harsh difference to the rest of what he’s seen so far. As his eyes adjust, Ben realizes that he’s in the main cabin of the ship where Rey must spend most of her time when she isn't with customers. It’s a modestly sized space, a queen bed shoved in one corner and a small kitchenette in the other. There are string lights strung up all over, casting the room in a warm glow, and he notices the sheer amount of trinkets that Rey has scattered all over every surface. Souvenirs, he thinks, from all her travels.
“Would you like some tea?”
Ben blinks, eyes snapping to where Rey’s holding up a dinky looking kettle. He nods before sitting down at the small dining booth built into one of the walls.
“So, all that,” he gestures behind him, “is for show?”
“Yeah, the damp and dark makes it more mysterious for the buyers,” she explains, handing him a mug filled with hot tea as she sits across from him. It warms his hands. “Sets a mood, you know?”
He doesn’t, since he’s never bothered to come here, but he nods all the same. He takes a sip from his cup and is surprised to find that Rey still remembers how he takes it.
Huh.
“It makes it seem exclusive,” she continues. “Most of these people have been on this island for their whole lives, so the idea of owning a piece of art that wasn’t painted by Chewie goes a long way. Also, the majority of my clients remember me from when I was a kid, so, the trust is already there.”
“That you then take advantage of,” he mumbles, unable to help himself.
She smirks over the rim of her mug. “I’m a good business woman, Ben.”
Rey doesn’t call him by his name very often, not since they had their falling out, so it always catches him off guard when she does. “Why did you invite me to visit?” he asks suddenly.
Rey blinks at him, thrown off by his tone. “I told you, for old time -“
“Don’t give me that bullshit, Rey.”
“I just wanted to talk,” she reiterates.
“ Now you want to talk? Six years later?” He has to stop himself from laughing at the absurdity of it all.
“You haven’t exactly been Mr. Conversation these past few years,” she bites out.
He bristles a bit, suddenly annoyed that he allowed himself to be here - to be in this stupid boat with this stupid mug, surrounded by all these reminders of what could have been if he had allowed things to go differently that night so many moons ago, sitting across from a woman he was pretty sure hated his guts up until now.
Ben shakes his head, making his way to stand up from the awkward angle of the bench seating. “I don’t have any reason to talk to you.”
“That’s not true,” she argues, standing up as well and placing herself in front of him despite the fact that Ben has a good few feet on her. He could easily just pick her up and move her out of the way. Not that he would, but still.
“Rey, the last time we tried to have a ‘talk’, you disappeared the next day and stole six thousand bells from me.” It still stings to think about, figuring out that Rey had left and then discovering that the stash of bells that he kept hidden under the floorboard in his room had suddenly gone missing. The betrayal was never something that he thought he would ever experience at her hand, and yet, there he was.
“You were supposed to come with me!” she shouts, pulling him from his thoughts.
“Oh yeah, because that would have been such a smart idea.”
“That was the plan! It had always been the plan and you left me.”
“Because I had responsibilities, Rey, I still do!” he yells and he wants to shake her, wants her to just understand. “We all don’t have the luxury of just getting up and leaving whenever we want to!”
Rey shoves a finger in his chest. “No one was forcing you to stay here.”
He’s rolling his eyes again. ”Oh, please.”
“It’s true!”
“My dad was sick, Rey,” he explains, throwing a hand up in frustration. “I had to help run the whole island in his place!”
But she’s already shaking her head halfway through his explanation. “They would have found someone else, you know they would have.”
“Not on such short notice, not someone who already knew the job like I did.”
Another finger shove. “You always have excuses, Ben.”
“They’re not excuses if they are valid points, Rey.”
“Just admit that you were scared, that you didn’t want to come with me because you were afraid of what was happening between us,” Rey argued, eyes hard as she glared up at him. If Ben didn’t know better, he would think there might be tears in the corner of her eyes.
And her statement hit a little too close to the truth then he would ever be willing to admit to anyone. Why did she always have to get under his skin? Why did he give her the opportunities to do so? Why did she make him want to rip all his hair out of his head? Why was she such a pain in his ass all the time?
And Ben knew the answer to all of these questions, but he was too worked up to let his mind wander that direction, too incensed.
“What are you talking about? You left me, Rey!”
She crosses her arms and turns her nose up at him, the nerve. “You didn’t come to the boat that night, Ben, I had no choice.”
“Yes, you did,” he replies. “You could have stayed here. With me.”
She lets out a harsh laugh, arms crossed in front of her chest. “I had to get out! See that there’s more to the world than Ach-to!”
“So, you decided to steal money from me to fund your adventure as what? Revenge?”
“It was going to be for both of us, but you didn’t - I was going to pay you back!” Rey explains, frustration evident in her voice.
“And yet, here we are, six years later.”
“I can pay you back, I have the fucking money, okay? I’ve had the money. For years.”
Ben stares at her, confused. If he was being honest, Ben didn’t care all that much about the money anymore and had long since gotten over the idea that he was ever going to get it back. That’s what investing in the turnip market was for. “Then why haven’t you?”
“Because…because if I do, there’s nothing keeping me here,” she replies, shoulders hunched and suddenly looking so small. If he was hesitant before, there is no doubt that there’s a small stream of tears across her cheeks. “There’s no reason to keep coming back.”
He can’t - can’t - think about how much the thought of never seeing her face again makes his heart clench and his soul hurt. Softly, he replies, “I would think you’d be glad to be rid of this place.”
She rubs at her face with the sleeve of her shirt..“Not really talking about the island here, Ben.”
And Ben feels his heart explode in his chest.
“When you didn’t show up that night, I was devastated,” she continues, eyes fixed on a spot on his shoulder. “But more importantly, I was pissed. We had been planning this whole thing for years and when it really mattered, you just abandoned me. That’s why I left with your bells and that’s why I didn’t come back for two years. I wanted you to miss me and the life we could have had together. I wanted you to realize what a terrible mistake you had made in choosing this place over me.
“And then when I finally came back -” her eyes meet his and Ben feels rooted to the spot, “- it was different. You were different.”
“I’m still the same person, Rey,” he states, hating a little how his voice breaks at the end. “And I did miss you. I still miss you. Everyday. You know how hard it’s been these past few years to see your boat docked at the pier and not come and see you? Do you know how much I think about that day and wonder what my life would be like if I had gone with you? How much happier I’d be with you in my life?”
Rey stares up at him for a moment, face screwed up in…anger? Frustration? Sadness?
“You’re an idiot, Ben Solo.”
And then she’s kissing him.
They had only kissed once before, back when they were barely teenagers. It had been Rey’s idea one day after school when they were bored and had climbed up to the top of the island’s lighthouse. We can get it over with, she had said, that way when we really kiss someone we like, we’ll know what we’re doing. Ben was pretty sure he’d never kiss anyone else in his life at that point, too obsessed with the girl in front of him who had barged her way into his life in a flurry of kindness and freckles. It had been awkward and stiff, both of them turning redder than his mom’s prized tulips, and they both agreed to never speak about it ever again.
This, though - this was the exact opposite of everything that first kiss had been.
It’s rougher, to start with, since Rey practically cracks her forehead against his in her effort to pull his face down to her level. She presses her lips against his like she’s angry at him and Ben cannot help how much he does not mind. He’s caught off guard, the sudden weight of Rey hanging off of him causing him to stumble a bit, his arms finding their way around Rey’s waist to both anchor himself and pull her closer to him.
Rey licks into his mouth, tongue curling around his and Ben is nearly positive that this is going to get embarrassing really quickly if he doesn’t pull away soon. But she’s warm, so very warm, pressed against the front of his raincoat and he can’t even remember why they haven’t been doing this since he first stepped on this damn boat. She makes a small noise that he swears is a moan and, yeah, all the blood in his body is currently traveling very quickly south.
He's debating the merits of grabbing her by the back of her thighs and throwing her on to her own bed when Rey pulls apart from him with a gasp to look up at him. It’s quiet all around them, the only noise being the gentle waves bumping against the outside of the boat and the occasional twinkling from the wind chime Rey has hung up in the little porthole by the stove.
"I've thought about doing that," she whispers, "a lot."
Ben clears his throat, arms still wrapped tightly around her waist. "Yeah," he croaks. "Me too."
And then she's pressing her forehead against his chest and shaking with laughter, and Ben's positive that he will never get over the sound of her laugh. “We’re real idiots, aren’t we?” she asks, voice muffled against his jacket.
He nods, smile wide on his face. “More or less.”
“I’m still going to have to leave at the end of the week, you know,” she tells him, looking up at him with wide eyes, “I have a business to run and bells to make.”
“You mean swindle people out of.”
“Hey!" she exclaims with a grin, flicking his ear. "People are more than able to do their own research, I just let the art speak for itself.”
“I still have to manage the island,” he states, eyes drifting over to where there's a small calendar hanging from the wall by the door. “But I do have a lot of vacation time saved up.”
She winds her arms around his neck, giving him a slow smile. “A bit presumptuous of you, Solo.”
“I was thinking more along the lines of hopeful optimism," he quietly admits.
She could tell him no right now and while he'd be devastated, he'd also understand. There's a lot of that they haven't said, a lot of things that they haven't touched on - it's not easy to go from what they were to what they seem to be trying to be, and he knows that they're going to have to sit down and really talk about all of this sometime down the line. He doesn't want to let stuff fester for any longer, not now that they finally seem to be on the same page after six years.
(Also, he'd really have to work out this whole vacation thing with Rose and his mom, which was going to be a headache.)
Rey raises up on her tiptoes to smack a kiss on his cheek. “I guess I could use a first mate, someone to do all the dirty work around here.”
“You’re unbelievable," he mutters, giving her a smile as he feels his chest warm at the thought that she wants to try to give them another chance.
“And yet, you love me anyways.”
Again, heart explosion.
“You still owe me that money, Rey," he teases.
“Yeah, yeah, you’ll get your bells eventually, Solo.”
And then she kisses him again and he forgets all about it.
“Good morning, Ach-to! It’s seven twenty-five on Wednesday, June 17th and I have an important announcement! Our own resident island manager is taking a much needed sea-faring vacation for the next month. However, worry not! He has left me in charge and I will do my best to fill his shoes. Though he does have very large feet and I’m only a size five…”