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Lifting yourself as gingerly as you possibly could from the cockpit of the X-Wing was proving to be a more difficult feat than you’d originally thought. You still managed to irritate a few of the battle wounds you’d received over the course of the mission on Aafa. The new rule of thumb for recruiting trips was that no amount of weapons was too many. Dismounting with a grunt through clenched teeth you couldn’t honestly say you were happy to see Snap Wexley, one of your closest friends and confidants bounding up to you.
“Now there’s a face I haven’t seen in a minute.” His grin was genuine and it almost made you regret how much you wished to be left alone. “Poe seriously hasn’t shut up about wondering how you were since you left. I’m happy you’re back even if it’s just for a little peace and quiet on my end of things.”
“I definitely owe you one, Wex.” You both chuckled, knowing he was only slightly joking because with him being second in command, he put up with more Poe ramblings than anyone should have to.
“But in all honesty, I’ve missed you around here. ‘M glad to have you back safe and-“ His sentiment was cut short as you pulled your rucksack from the storage compartment with a hiss of pain as your ribs protested. You heard his steps as he came closer to lightly examine the singe marks in your jacket. “Y/N how did-“
“It was just a graze Wex, I can hardly feel it.” You answered evenly but a glance at his face told you he was trained to realize when you were lying through your teeth.
“Why don’t we just take a walk to the medical bay and get a second opinion.” He was speaking as if you would snap and bite his head off at any moment. But then again with every moment you spent away from the comfort of your barracks your irritation was mounting. ”I’ll send Poe to see you once you get checked out.”
“Do not tell Poe about this.” Your whisper was harsh and you immediately regretted it seeing his stance deflate the smallest amount. You brought your hand to the side of his neck apologetically and softened your tone. “I promise I’ll go, okay? I just really need a shower and a little rest. Plus you know how Poe gets when it comes to this stuff. He’ll have General Organa ground me for a month.” That brought a laugh out of him and you were relieved.
“Alright, alright. I’m coming to check in on you later though.” You knew better than to argue so you settled for a nod and a mumbled agreement. Pressing a kiss to his forehead, you made your way back to your room thankfully without catching anyone’s eye. Madera, your roommate was working her usual shift at the infirmary and you were grateful to have the room to yourself at least for a little while. Yeah, you had made the excuse of needing a shower and rest to get out of a trip to medical but in reality you really did need to scrub and nap away the remnants of the mission.
The warm jets of the shower immediately worked to unknot your tense muscles. There was no ignoring how long the water ran red due to the blaster burn on your side and arm. Once you were confident there were no other traces of Aafa left on your skin, you cut off the water and slipped into your favorite ratty pair of sweatpants and a black sports bra that managed to not disturb any of the wounds. The less fabric-to-skin contact the better.
Now satisfyingly clean, you permitted yourself a glance at the mirror and what you saw made you flinch. Bruises sprawled across the expanse of the left side of your ribs. As far as blaster burns went, there was a graze on your shoulder and another angrier looking one just under your clavicle. You didn’t even want to see the burn on your back. You huffed out a sigh and gathered your clothes from the bathroom floor.
Exiting the bathroom with your flight suit and jacket in hand, you nearly leapt out of your skin at the sight of a figure seated on your bed.
“Jesus Christ, Poe!” You placed a hand over your heart in an attempt to slow your racing pulse. His head immediately snapped up and he flashed one of his infamous grins. The same one that managed to render everyone on base, male or female, a little weak at the knees.
Your relationship with the Resistance’s golden boy was hard to classify. On the flight deck you were simply comrades, but you’d formed some kind of bond when the others weren’t around. It wasn’t out of sorts for him to show up unannounced in your room, or spend the night for that matter. You’d made a strange routine of getting drunk when you were both on base. The night always ended with Poe’s lips tracing patterns on your neck and his fingers playing with strands of your hair. He’d seen you in this exact ensemble countless times before but in your current state you felt a chill of complete vulnerability go up your spine.
“I ran into Wisatha at the canteen and I knew she was on the same recruitment detail on Aafa so I figured I’d . . .” His voice trailed off as he stood and came towards you slowly. The smile faded as well, as his eyes slowly catalogued your injuries just as you had moments before. “ . . . swing by to see you.”
“Before you say anything, I’m fi-“ You cut yourself off when he raised a hand dismissively that immediately shut you up with a roll of your eyes.
“Lay down.” He finally looked up and you saw that his irises had gone black.
“You’re over reacting. I can’t even feel it. Really, Poe, I’m-“ Your words were cut off by pain rippling through your back as your brain’s natural tendency to fidget when anxious betrayed you and you backed right into the door jamb. Without thinking you teetered to his chest. Immediately his demeanor went from that of frustration to pure concern.
“Y/N? Jesus, shit, okay c’mere.” He gingerly supported your weight and guided you to the bed. “On your stomach.” His voice was distant and you heard him rummaging in the bathroom for supplies. The perks of rooming with a nurse. “I ran into Snap on the trip over. Never seen him more tight-lipped. I’m just gonna take a shot in the dark and say you already talked to him?” The color rising in your cheeks must have given him his answer because when you finally gathered the nerve to peek up at him he was smirking and shaking his head.
“Can you really blame me, Poe? Or would you rather Nurse Dameron?” Your tone was teasing and you heard him breathe out a laugh seconds before you felt weight shift on the bed and pressure on the backs of your knees. “What are you-“
“Shh shh, relax. I need to cover this before I get to the others.” He stopped your attempts to turn to look at him with a pleasantly warm hand to the small of your back. You relented with a sigh, resigned to leave him to straddling your legs, so long as the warmth of his touch never left your skin.
As soon as the salve made contact with the raw skin of your back, your body tensed up and you were biting back a pained whine. Trying to even out your breathing, Poe’s question was so quiet that you questioned whether or not he’d said anything at all.
“How did this happen?” If you hadn’t known any better, from the sound of his voice you would have guessed he was the one in pain. The touch of his fingers was still feather light as he made soothing circles on the skin surrounding the wound.
“We landed and it didn’t take long for word to, ah, t-travel that we weren’t the only… the only ones recruiting.” Poe’s hands stilled for a moment before resuming the task of taping down the gauze to cover the area.
“Sympathizers.” It wasn’t a question as his breath came out in a harsh rush.
“You know they s-supply them with Electrostaffs now?” There was a moment of tense silence and then warmth at the base of your neck that registered as Poe’s lips. Almost immediately the anxiety that had pooled in your stomach at reliving the ordeal diminished. His voice was quieter than usual as he mumbled for you to rollover seeing as he had finished with the work on your back. He lifted himself and allowed you to shift onto your back with a hiss. His normally sun-kissed skin had gone a little ashen hearing just how easily this mission could've gone south.
You ghosted your fingers over the deep worry lines in his forehead, not missing how the sympathetic smile he shot you never reached his eyes. "Nevermind that now, I'm home and I'm alright and we have thirty-four new recruits entering the screening process." Still he didn't look relieved or convinced that you were ok as he zeroed in on the blaster burns. You decided on a different approach. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for Snap to withhold information I just know how worried you get when it comes to me even going out on mission." At this he let out a mirthless scoff turning his attention back to spraying the blaster burns on your shoulder with antiseptic. When you let out a particularly harsh groan he apologized under his breath. “You can't say I’m wrong about that Dameron. Remember when you were overseeing combat training and i lost my balance and ended up with a sprained ankle? You told the general to put me on bed rest for two weeks-"
"You could've done more damage if you kept insisting on walking on it." He defended and you shot him an incredulous look.
"And the fact that the person I’d been sparring with ended up grounded for a month had nothing to do with that of course." You teased as color rose in his cheeks again and he laughed nervously. Genuinely but nervously nonetheless.
“Forgot about that." He said finishing his work on your shoulder and moving on to your clavicle. “I still stand by my judgment that G’nafa wasn't ready for real-world encounters after that.”
“Poe, you’re missing the point! Sometimes I'm an idiot! I get myself into situations and, I get it, nine-times-out-of-ten the wrong outcome could possibly get me killed, but I need to learn to make these mistakes on my own. “ His warm breath against your collarbone had your thoughts going a little fuzzy. He worked in silence for the next handful of minutes and you spent that time studying the warring emotions that played across his face. When the last patch of gauze was in place he was on his feet and for a moment you feared he was leaving and your heart sank.
You closed your eyes and waited for the tell-tale sound of the metal door clanging shut but it never came. Instead you saw the lights go off through the thin veil of your eyelids and the gradual dip of the mattress as he lay down beside you. The gentle swirl of his fingers resumed and you let out a breath you didn’t know you’d been holding. Finally opening your eyes you watched the focus in his eyes as he went about tracing the outline of the large purple splotch that spread across your midsection.
“Hey,” you brought your hand up under his chin and he finally looked up. ”Come back to me.” He sighed and the warmth hit your lips in the close proximity. “I know you’re mad-“
“ ‘M not mad at you, Y/N. I’m not mad that you didn’t tell me you were back. I’m not mad that you got to Snap. Hell, I’m not mad that you went on a recruitment detail without telling me.”
“I was going to I swear I-“ For the second time that night he raised a hand to stop you.
“Just-“ He was frustrated, the right words weren’t coming to him as they usually did. “I just- Y/N I just don’t want to be on a mission where you brush off something that ends up taking you away from me.” Poe’s words were hurried and he was once again avoiding eye contact. This time he focused on tracing the square of gauze just inches away from where your heart was thundering in your chest. You knew he could feel it as well by the way the corner of his mouth quirked up.
“That’s not going to happen. I promise you that isn’t going to happen.” He looked up at you once again and you realized that for the first time since you’d met he looked scared. Poe Dameron was down-right terrified at the thought of living in a world without you in it. Seeing the sincerity in your eyes he gave a short nod before his lips pressed a chaste kiss to the corner of your mouth. He hadn’t even backed away before your hand found it’s natural spot at the back of his neck and pulled him back to you.
Poe’s lips were warm and firm. There wasn’t anywhere in the galaxy you’d have rather been at that moment. His hold on the side of your face was desperate but not painful, as if he feared you would slip right through his fingers and be lost.
When you parted to pull in ragged breaths, Poe rested his forehead on yours and you were relieved to see that his earlier apprehension had gone.
“I promise you.”
True to his word, Snap Wexley eased the barrack door open as quietly as he possibly could and poked his head in. Intending to find you on the verge of exsanguination what he saw was enough to stop him in his tracks. Fast asleep and completely wrapped around each other on the single bed were Y/N and Poe Dameron. Well, what he could see of Poe. With the amount of full body contact they had going on, all he could see of him was his black curls tucked into the crook of her neck. The dim lamplight illuminated them and his eyes settled on the clean white bandages covering a large portion of Y/N’s back.
Satisfied and more than a little shocked with what he saw, he eased the door shut only to come face to face with Y/N’s room mate.
“Jesus, Madera!” He put a hand to his racing heart and she quirked an eyebrow. “I was just-“
“Dameron with her again?” She sounded jaded and he nodded, mouth agape. She knew? “I’ll come back later.” She started back on the way to the medical bay muttering something about leave a note on the door like a normal couple before she turned the corner. Turning to head to his own room he shook his head in disbelief.
“Everyone owes me about eight years worth of explanations I swear to god.”