Chapter Text
When it came to appearances, Brendol Hux accepted nothing less than absolute perfection.
He stood before a full length mirror, making last minute adjustments to the grey tie secured smartly around his neck, accented by the sharp and crisp edges of his bright white shirt. Tugging lightly on his black, well tailored jacket sleeves, ringed by two grey stripes, he then brushed invisible dust from his well ironed trousers and stepped back to take in the entire look. A stray hair lightly brushed high cheek bones, and was swiftly brushed back into place in the ginger, well styled mane. The look was perfect from head to well polished shoes, and with a last light touch to the silver wings pinned to his jacket pocket, he turned away from the mirror.
He was ready.
“Behave while I’m gone, Millie.” He murmured softly and, with a quick kiss to the top of the orange tabby perched on the couch, and a short note to the neighbor entrusted with Millie’s care in his absence, the red haired man grabbed his black rolling suitcase, strolling out of the apartment.
Hux was in the flight attendant crew room, meticulously cutting out his trip information so it was small enough to fit in the pocket of his jacket with minimal fuss. A warm puff of air on the back of his neck alerted him to the presence of his crew mate Phasma, and without turning he sighed, "Isn't there a new hire you could be terrorizing?"
"Oh no, General, that is your job," Her deep, throaty chuckle made him turn and glower at her. She was immaculately dressed in the black company uniform dress that fit her tall and regal form perfectly, accentuating her long legs and expertly tied neck scarf setting off her short blond hair.
It took a great deal of self control, not to mention years of practice, not to react to Phasma’s pet name for him, simply smoothing his jacket to ensure his pocket wasn’t bulging in the slightest, “I’m not the one who scared a new hire so badly, he transferred airlines.”
“It is not my fault if a new hire can’t live up to our expectations, that little traitor…” Phasma shrugged, brushing an imaginary speck of lint from her shoulder, "But you know they tell stories about you in the training center now. New hires graduate with a fear of the General’s perfection already installed." Her blue eyes sparkled with mirth as his glower intensified.
"Are you coming to get coffee or not?" Not waiting for her answer, he grabbed his bag and started walking for the elevator that would take them to the concourse. She didn't answer, but he could hear the click of her heels come up until she was walking beside him.
It wasn’t until they were both in the elevator that Phasma spoke, “So did you hear about the new hire they got to replace the traitor?”
“Really, Phasma? You can’t even call him by name?” Hux smirked, shaking his head, “As for the new hire, all I have is that his name is Ian Thanisson, and he is, obviously, a new hire. I expect you know more about him than I do.”
“Oh, and why is that?”
“Because you’re a damn gossip.” Hux replied, though there was no fire to his words, “So let’s hear it, what did you find out?”
Phasma only paused long enough to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, “Well, he’s baby faced.”
“Are you saying that as means of expression, or--”
“He doesn’t even look old enough to drink.” Phasma continued. They stepped out of the elevator and on to the busy concourse. Men and women dressed in business clothes and pulling almost the same black suitcases were punctuated by families in their street clothes, often with a collection of backpacks and duffle bags that only saw the light of day for trips to grandma’s.
“He is, in case you’re wondering. Old enough to drink.”
"Oh excellent, probably fresh out of college. He couldn't at least have the decency to have been a server in college?" Hux earnestly hoped.
Phasma shook her head smugly, doing her best (and failing) to hide a grin. “And they decided to stick him with us from Newark to West Palm Beach for his first flight. Either he pissed someone off at scheduling, or he has the worst luck.”
While Hux didn’t doubt that there were some vindictive souls lurking in the bowels of First Order Airlines, he also held a great deal of confidence in the airline’s professionalism. No doubt Thanisson had simply landed in a bit of bad luck to be flying the ERW/PBI route for his first flight on staff. It certainly wasn’t the longest flight route the airlines offered, but it was certainly a special sort of hell catering to a plane filled with demanding retirees on their way to escape the frigid cold of New Jersey to their winter condos on the Florida beach.
Hux shook his head, “Did you hear anything about his temperament?”
“One word: Nice.”
"Of course, thin skinned and baby faced." Hux just scowled and finally made it to the coffee shop by their gate. “They’ll eat him alive.”
“Should be fun to watch,” Phasma agreed. “But not before coffee, of course.”
At least they were lucky enough on that particular day that their gate was close to their favorite artisan coffee shop, instead of across the concourse. Of course, even if the gate was clear across the concourse, Hux wouldn’t stoop to going to Starbucks, just because it was closer. Between the long lines and tacky music, that over-priced, bitter tar wasn't worth the price of the cup they put it in.
The barista must have seen Hux coming, as his Americano was waiting for him when he got to the counter and he simply smirked at Phasma and paid the clerk with an extra dollar in the tip jar before stepping out of line to wait for her to order and receive her double shot mocha.
The first sip of coffee in the morning was always the most satisfying, and not to be wasted on a cheap (whether by price or by flavor) brew. In all honesty, there had been numerous days in which the earthy pungency of the small shop’s Ethiopian brew had been the only thing that had gotten Hux through his flights out of Newark. Especially when he was destined for West Palm Beach.
Phasma soon joined Hux, taking a long sip of her own drink, before letting loose a quiet sigh of relief, “That’s the stuff.”
“I don't know how you can stand to ruin perfectly good coffee with chocolate and milk, Phasma.” Hux shook his head slowly.
Phasma snorted, “I know you didn’t just use the words “chocolate” and “ruin” in the same sentence, Hux. I don’t want to hurt you.”
Hux simply rolled his eyes, “Shall we catch our flight? We wouldn’t want leave Mitaka alone with the new hire for too long.”
“Oh of course not, Mitaka might give the poor boy the...wrong idea.” Phasma chuckled, stepping out of the shop.
Armed with their coffee, the two began the short walk to their gate. Out of the corner of his eye, Hux could see one of the airports many bookstores, using the over illuminated lighting and bright colors in order to entice various travelers into buying various gossip magazines and overpriced paperbacks.
The bookstore in and of itself was not that interesting, but the small display of paperbacks in the back corner had caught his attention. Honestly, the books weren’t all that impressive to look at, any other passerby would have taken one glance at the glossy depictions of silver spaceships and blue moons and written it off as just another science fiction pulp. But Hux already knew that the white embossed text stretched over the top of the cover read Peregrine Chronicles: Moonrise on Eston, he simply hoped that Phasma wouldn’t--
“Looks like the newest adventure of Captain Peregrine is out on the shelves, General.” He wasn’t sure when Phasma had leaned in close to his ear, only that her hot breath on his neck made him twitch.
Hux made it a point to not look at the bookshop, “I told you not to call me that when we’re out in public…”
Phasma only grinned, her red lips only serving to make her teeth stand out all the more in contrast, “Oh come on, Hux. This is the only weakness of yours I know about, so you better believe I’m going to use it to my advantage.”
Of course she was.
Oddly enough, Hux’s descent into the world of science fiction had started off innocently enough, three years previously, during one of the most god-awful delays of Hux’s career. A sandstorm of all things turned what was supposed to be a simple hour layover in Phoenix before continuing on to San Diego into a four hour delay. Not enough time to leave the airport for any reason, but an awful long time to spend in a mind numbingly boring airport without any sort of entertainment.
Hux had intended to go to the bookstore for a historical war novel, he always knew there were plenty of those in any given bookshop, and pick up a magazine for Phasma. But in the distracted process of selecting a magazine Phasma might actually read, Hux hadn’t realized he had grabbed a misshelved book until he was back with Phasma, and she commented on the neon green cover in his hand, complete with characters with lazer guns in their hands.
He had never been a science fiction reader, prefering his fiction being more based on fact than whatever delusions of grandeur an author might be prone to. But Hux had just spent sixteen dollars on the damn thing, so he was going to read it. Even if it had a title like Betrayed in Hyperspace (Peregrine Chronicles: book 1). And so, Hux read.
And three pages in, he was entranced. He was fascinated by the plight of the novel’s protagonist, General William Braeda, a decorated war hero and loyal officer in the Intergalactic Order, betrayed by his men and left for dead on a backwater planet in the far reaches of space. As the General’s luck would have it, he would cross paths with the charismatic and mysterious Peregrine and his crew of mercenaries, who seem share the General’s thirst for revenge against the Intergalactic Order.
Hux had been mildly surprised that he finished the book by the time it was time for him to report for duty. He had been more than a little embarrassed that he bought the second book of the series in San Diego, and soon became a devoted reader of author Kylo Ren.
After that, Phasma had taken to calling him “General,” after the straight-laced character of William Braeda. And while Hux didn’t like the nickname, he did feel a kinship to the character in question. He could appreciate the General’s situation: a man of order and high standards, thrown into a life of chaos with the eclectic crew of mercenaries. Sure, Hux didn’t deal with mercenaries, but he sure dealt with some characters, and some days, it felt like he was the only one who appreciated rules and regulations.
Phasma only stopped smiling long enough to take a sip of her sugary coffee, “So did you buy the new book yet?”
Hux didn’t answer her, though his silence already told Phasma everything she needed to know about the paperback that lurked in his bag, waiting to be read. Well, one of two paperbacks. He always kept that first book with him, dogeared and spine-broken as it was, so that he could always relive that first adventure.
And damn it all if Phasma didn’t know about that as well, smirking all the way as they walked to the gate and the customer service agent, who let them down onto the plane.
Mitaka was already at the back galley when Hux and Phasma stepped onto the plane, and by the hushed whispers he was speaking to the young blond with him, it sounded like he was trying to warn Thanisson about the two of them before they arrived.
Damn, Phasma was right, Thanisson was baby faced.
"...she's nice enough,” Mitaka spoke quickly to Thanisson, “but Hux will death glare you until you do everything just right, he demands nothing short of perfection. Just do exactly what they taught you in training and stay out of their way, and you'll be just fine."
Thanisson appeared to be soaking up Mitaka’s words as gospel, nodding quickly, “Is it true what they said at training? About Hux and Phasma causing a new hire to have a nervous breakdown and switch to--”
“Shh!” Mitaka quickly cut off the new hire, “If you want to survive this flight, Ian, you need to remember that Rule 1 is never mention a traitor.”
“Actually, Mitaka, Rule 1 is “Never date a pilot.” You may need to take note of that, you two, since the pilots love the cute ones,” Phasma chuckled as Mitaka jumped at the sound of her voice, “As for “Never mention a traitor,” that’s Rule 2.”
"Mitaka," Hux smiled, allowing himself the guilty pleasure of watching the two younger men stand up just a little bit straighter in his presence, "briefing the new hire? Imparting your wisdom since you're no longer the most junior crew member?"
Mitaka laughed nervously, “Oh, you know, just trying to tell him the things I wish someone would have told me…” Instead of meeting Hux’s iron gaze, Mitaka took a quick sip of his coffee.
Hux allowed his eyes to flick to the tell tale green logo on Mitaka’s cup before looking at Phasma. The two hadn’t told Mitaka about their go to coffee places, though Mitaka was going on a year with flying with them. They were getting close to sharing some of their secrets with the younger man, they were just...waiting for his metaphorical balls to drop, as Phasma would say.
Though Hux could forgive Mitaka for drinking an inferior cup of coffee, he was more intrigued by the lack of cup in Thanisson’s hand, “Is your coffee with your bag, Thanisson?”
Thanisson smiled (though Hux could easily see the nervous tells--they would have to work on that), shaking his head quickly, “Oh no, I don’t drink coffee.”
The other three crew members froze, Mitaka mid-sip, at Thanisson’s words. As Mitaka swallowed his coffee a bit louder than he should have, Phasma and Hux shared a look.
“He says he doesn’t drink coffee.” Phasma drawled.
“That’s adorable.” Hux chuckled, taking a long sip of his own coffee, “Well, I’m sure Mitaka has already prepped your galley to regulation, We’ll leave you two to prepare for boarding.”
As Phasma and Hux made their way back up the aisle towards the front galley, Hux couldn’t help but look back over his shoulder at the two junior crew members, “Oh, and Thanisson?”
Thanisson quickly met Hux’s gaze, “Yes sir, I mean, Hux?”
Hux smirked, “Good luck.” He turned forward again so Thannison wouldn’t hear his muttered, “You’ll need it.”
Boarding began precisely on time, and went as smoothly as it could with five wheelchairs to start off the process. Each of the elderly passengers had to be told where to go, despite the plane having a single aisle. Thank goodness only one had a larger bag with her, and it was easily stowed in the overhead bin. Thanisson, of course, got a light pat on the cheek for his help, and he walked back to the front of coach with a slightly bewildered look on his face.
Hux settled into the easy rhythm he and Phasma had developed over the years of flying together. After first class had mostly boarded, he made his first of the three required announcements, then went into the first class aisle, and charmed his guests while taking their pre departure drink orders. Giving the orders to Phasma to prepare, he made another announcement then went into the aisle to start closing overhead bins.
It wasn’t long before Thanisson had gotten in over his head, trying to help a family with three children that had been seated separately. The young man shot Hux a desperately pleading look and the red headed man swooped in.
“Where are your seats?” He asked the mother, his face an ironclad mask of professionalism.
The mother, however, paid no mind to Hux’s pleasant demeanor, “I don't understand what happened. Doesn't the reservation tell you we need to sit together? They're too young to sit alone.” She whined, waving an exasperated hand towards two of her children.
Hux looked at the children in question, who had to be between the ages of ten to twelve, and had to keep the single eyebrow from rising in incredulity. So many things he could say… Instead he took the boarding passes from the soccer mother’s hand and looked through them, his mind flicking through its various problem solving scenarios.
“Why don't you sit with the youngest in these two seats,” he handed her the two tickets that were already together, “and if we ask this nice gentleman,” he said loudly enough to catch the attention of the man sitting in the window seat next to the two older children. When the darker red haired man looked at him with slightly sleep fuddled eyes, Hux gave him his Flight Attendant smile, “if he’d be willing to switch into this aisle seat instead for a drink on the house. That way the rest of you can sit in this row behind the other two.”
He said it firmly enough, and the woman didn't have a chance to argue, as the gentleman had already collected his briefcase from under the seat and stood. Thanisson had watched the whole exchange with hawklike attention, hopefully learning for the future, and Hux spoke to him softly. “Please remember 25D gets a drink of his choice during the service please?”
The new hire nodded quickly and Hux made his way back to the front. As Phasma had passed out his drinks for him in his absence, Hux made his final announcement, then turned to her.
“Thank you.”
“Saw you helping the new hire. Don't tell me you're going soft?”
Hux scoffed at the suggestion, “Hardly. I merely want to get this flight over with as quickly as possible.” Her smug look told him she didn't believe him, but he ignored her in favor of telling the agent he was good to close the door for departure.
When he finally looked back at Phasma, still smirking at him smugly, he sighed in exasperation, “If I was soft on him, it was out of pity, nothing more.” He shook his head slowly, “The fool doesn’t drink coffee…”
“True…” Phasma nodded slowly, “No coffee on the ERW/PBI flight...baby boy is going to get eaten alive.”
“Indeed he is…” Hux resisted the urge to laugh at the junior crew member’s expense. It would be unprofessional to do so in front of passengers.
Phasma smirked, looking down the aisle at Mitaka and Thanisson, “Round of drinks says he cries.”
Hux couldn’t help but quirk a curious eyebrow, “Taking bets already, Phasma?” He followed the blonde’s gaze to watch their newest crew member. After a few moments, he shook his head, “I don’t think you’re giving him enough credit.”
It was Phasma’s turn to raise an eyebrow, “You think so?”
“Yeah…” Hux paused, considering for a moment before he continued, “I think he’ll be hiding in the lavatory before final approach.”
Even after years of flying, take off was still Hux’s favorite part of every flight. Sitting in his jump seat and looking out the window, watching the world drop away as they lifted into the sky was always an amazing experience. It was in this quiet moment between the chaos of boarding and the fluidity of the service, where Hux could just sit in silence and just enjoy the miracle of flight.
And then the meditation was broken as Phasma slipped her trashy magazine under his nose. "Look, your author is doing his first book tour."
Placing his hand on the glossy pages, he brought the magazine to a more reasonable distance. And sure enough there was a little blurb about the Peregrine Chronicles and author Kylo Ren, and, honestly, Hux was surprised by how attractive the author was. During the years Hux had been a fan, he'd always pictured the man as an older gentleman who was probably writing these books in his retirement. But the man pictured was decidedly not old, or retired. In fact he was attractive.
Very attractive if Hux was being honest with himself. A bigger hawklike nose featured prominently but complimented the lush lips and doe brown eyes, not to mentioned framed by the man’s dark hair as it fell in thick romantic waves. The man sported a soft scowl that did nothing to detract from his attractiveness, though did make him look a bit like a petulant child.
"It said he's starting his tour in Chicago tomorrow. Interesting hm?" Phasma's red lips curled into a smug smirk. Hux knew she was hinting at the fact that they had a late start the next day which gave him time to go to the signing.
If he had any desire to do so. Which he didn't. Truly.
"Yes, interesting." He didn't give her a chance to retort and stood to put on his apron and begin the service.
Drink service started routinely enough: “Can I get you something to drink?” “Yes, can I get --?” jot down the drink and seat number, smile, “thank you, I'll get that started for you soon.”
Lather, rinse, repeat for all the seats in the section.
And, from what Hux observed, Thanisson was textbook on that front (though really, if the new hire had struggled with writing orders, Hux would have to have...words with him). He even saw the blond stop by 25D and point out their drink menu, so it seemed Thanisson had remembered the favor owed to the passenger.
Hux didn’t pay much mind to Thanisson after that, focusing on his own passengers’ drink orders (and never missing a beat when he was asked to repeat himself for the umpteenth time to the blue haired woman in 6B who was adamant that she didn’t need to use her hearing aid--she did). Honestly, at this point in Hux’s career, he could practically run a drink service on autopilot (no airline humor intended).
Mitaka used to think that drink service was a nightmare. Not that it wasn’t, but he had learned how to deal with the the massive influx of drink requests: taking orders, measuring the proper amount of ice, pouring the perfect amount from the soda cans, making sure to pass the cups with the napkin and never touching the rim of the cup as he passed it to the passenger. All with a smile and a kind word.
It was muscle memory at this point, really.
In hindsight, he probably should have been watching Ian a bit more closely, but the junior crew member had been doing so well, he had quite honestly forgotten about him.
At least until Mitaka heard Ian’s startled yelp, the tell-tale splash of liquid hitting fabric, and a rather harsh sounding expletive.
“Oh my goodness! I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry!”
Mitaka knew a spill on a passenger wasn't the end of the world; sure, they were awful, but everyone had them (except Hux, he suspected, but the crew leader didn't count as everyone). That being said, he couldn’t help but feel bad for Ian: having a spill on his first flight. Not a good time.
Though, as Mitaka looked up from his cart, he realized Ian’s situation had gone from bad to worse.
25D’s complimentary beer, it seemed, had taken a surprise detour from the cup in Ian’s hand directly into the man’s lap. Beer was an awful thing to spill, it was sticky, and hard to clean. Not that Ian wasn’t trying to clean up the mess he had made, frantically dabbing and wiping the spilled beer with a handful of napkins. Which, normally, would have been a good response. However, given the fact that beverage had been spilled in a...more private location, Ian’s ministrations were serving the disastrous effect of making the man blush as red as his hair (not to mention the recognizable bulge that was beginning to form).
“Ian…” Mitaka murmured as lowly as he could, hoping to gather the junior crew member’s attention without making a spectacle. Already, he could feel Hux’s cold eyes staring into the back of his skull, which wasn’t helping situations. “Ian, I think you should stop…for the love of God, stop...”
Seeing no other course of action, Mitaka reached out and grabbed the young man’s shoulder, squeezing it in a vice grip. The painful grasp was enough to pull Thanisson’s attention away from his task to look at Mitaka, “What?”
“I think that’s enough…” Mitaka trailed off as he looked pointedly at the soaked (and slightly tented) denim of poor 25D’s groin.
Mitaka could see the horrifying realization dawn on Ian’s face as he paused in his movements, his eyes widening at the sight of the bulging denim before he looked up at 25D’s flushed face, only to find their noses were mere inches from one another. Ian jerked his hand away as if he had been burned.
“I’m so...so sorry… I didn’t...” Ian trailed off, unable to finish his sentence as he made a hasty retreat to the back of the plane.
“And there he goes, into the lavatory.” Hux murmured from his position at the front galley. As Phasma returned from her own trip down the aisle, silver serving tray in hand, he shot her a knowing look.
Phasma rolled her eyes, “Don’t look at me like that, I can’t stand the look of your face when you’re smug.”
“I’m not smug, I’m...satisfied in knowing there’s a martini waiting for me in the near future.” Hux nodded, his face schooled in a perfectly formed mask of calm.
“Yeah yeah, sure you are.” Phasma shook her head, looking back towards the back lavatory, “Do you want to start the clock, or should I?”
“Oh, I wouldn’t dare intrude on your favorite pastime.”
Phasma smirked, “Five minutes, on the clock.”
“Ian...Ian you need to come out of there…” Mitaka spoke softly, leaning his forehead against the lavatory door, “It’s alright, Ian…”
“I practically gave a passenger a handjob, don't tell me it's alright!” Despite the junior crew member's hushed voice, Mitaka could hear the strained tone in his words. Not that he blamed him, of course.
“Ok, yeah, you had a spill and it got awkward… really, really awkward…” This wasn't helping, Mitaka reminded himself as he switched tactics, “But you're not the only one who's had a spill. I remember I once spilled a Bloody Mary on a woman's lap, and she was wearing white pants.”
Ian didn't answer, though Mitaka could hear the gentle thud of the younger man banging his head against the wall.
“We all have spills, Ian. Well, not Hux, but he doesn’t--oh crap, Hux…” Mitaka sent a quick glance towards the front galley, where both Hux and Phasma were watching, “Ian, you have got to come out, Hux and Phasma are watching us…” When there was no further sound from inside the lavatory, Mitaka sighed and tried one last tactic. “Ian, remember why you wanted this job? What kept you going through the six weeks of training, especially when evacuation training kept you up at night worrying?” Mitaka remembered his own experience, he’d done so poorly on the trial run he’d practiced late into the night with anyone who would run it with him. “Just remember what that thing is, you can do this.”
A few moments passed and then the metallic sound of the latch unlocking had him stepping away from the door and Thanisson stepped out, still looking down at the floor.
“If you take care of 25D for the rest of the flight, I’ll do everything else, including picking up trash for the rest of the trip,” he cocked his head sideways and looked up at Mitaka through his blond lashes, “Deal?”
Mitaka smiled and clapped his shoulder once, “Deal.”
Phasma looked down at her watch and gave it an impressed look, “Three minutes and forty eight seconds, not bad. Mitaka was almost to five minutes before you got him out.” She lowered her arm and smiled down the aisle at the two junior crew members, “Looks like he’s going to be just fine.”
Hux nodded and took the silver tray from her hand, going out to collect all the empty glasses in first. Yes, it did seem they had a good crew after all. Babyface and all.
True to his word, Mitaka went back to 25D and offered him anything he could think of to make up for Thanisson’s accident. The man was extremely understanding, and declined another beer, but took the oversized bag of gummie bears to placate the dark haired flight attendant. Satisfied that the issue was taken care of Mitaka left the passenger in peace. Phasma however, had her own brand of repaying the man. While Mitaka had been mothering Thanisson in the lavatory, Phasma had been watching 25D. Yes, the man had been flustered by the event, and was wholly unprepared for the aftermath, he never seemed disgusted or angry. Curious, Phasma continued to keep an eye on the man. The red head seemed to watch Thanisson throughout the rest of the flight, and seemed slightly disappointed when the blond never spoke to him again.
Grabbing a serving napkin, Phasma wrote out a quick note and walked sedately down the aisle to drop the napkin in 25D’s lap while the others were preoccupied. The man watched her walk back to the forward galley with confusion, before opening the note.
“Relax, it’s not my number. His name is Ian, and his number is..” The man snapped the napkin closed and looked up to see Phasma smirking at him. He looked down again, then tried to look behind him to sneak a look at the blond crew member in the back. Oh yes, she was good.
Hux caught up to her then, eying her warily, “What are you smirking at?”
She waved her hand breezily, “Oh, nothing.”
It was obvious from the suspicious look on Hux’s face that he didn’t believe a word she was saying. Then again, Hux did know her far too well…
“What did you do?” Hux drawled when they were both back in the safety of their front galley.
“Nothing you wouldn’t have done.” Phasma chuckled, taking a sip of her mocha. It was starting to get cold, but at least a mocha was still good cold… “Don’t you have a Spaceship Captain to fantasize about?”
Now Phasma knew that it probably wasn’t fair, teasing Hux for his fixation on the cheesy sci-fi series. But the unexpected weakness in Hux’s normally impenetrable professionalism was the one constant amusement Phasma had. And, to be honest, Hux brought it upon himself. And because Phasma was never going to be able to forget the one time she made the mistake of looking at Hux’s phone to see what he was reading (and really, the fact that Hux even read fanfiction was shocking enough, let alone smutty man on man action), she loved teasing Hux about finding his “Captain.”
And seeing the small blush on Hux’s face was always a plus.
“We need to get back to work…” Hux muttered, though it was lacking his usual force.
Oh yeah, Phasma loved her job, and driving her coworkers crazy.
Hux knew that, despite overcoming his embarrassment with 25D, Thanisson was not going to survive the next flight, no matter how low maintenance, unless the ginger took matters into his own hands.
“Phasma, get me a cup of coffee from the pot.” Hux muttered lowly, keeping his eye on the two younger crew members. He could already see Thanisson doing his best (and failing) to stifle a yawn. It was worse than he thought…
There wasn’t much left in the coffeepot, perhaps enough for a small cup, and what coffee was left had been brewing, steaming, and burning for the duration of the three and a half hour flight. And, if the liquid was slightly more viscous than it normally should have been, Phasma knew better than to say anything.
Once the coffee was in his hand, he gave Phasma a look and motioned at the young blond crew member at the back of the plane.
The tall woman smirked and nodded and walked back to the aft galley where Mitaka was lightly rubbing Thanisson's shoulders and encouraging him in low, soft tones. When she entered the galley, only Mitaka looked up, Thanisson still a little distracted between his earlier spill and his early morning catching up with him. When Mitaka noticed Hux right behind Phasma, he gave a bit of a sigh and stepped away from the new hire. Thanisson looked up in surprise but the two senior crew didn't give him a chance to respond before they pounced.
Phasma had angled in behind him, and grabbed his shoulders while Hux made his move, shoving the airplane coffee under the boy's nose and crowding him,
"You will drink this,” Hux began quietly, so as not to attract the attention of any passengers, “I’m not saying you have to like it right now, but I refuse to have you nodding off on our next flight. So you will drink it, or I will plug your nose and pour it down your throat. Your choice."
Eyes wide like a deer in headlights, Thanisson took only a moment to think before taking the paper cup and downing the black coffee in one go, making a face at the bitterness when he finished off the cup.
Hux gave a small smile and stepped away, clapping the young man on the shoulder, "Good lad. We'll make a proper coffee drinker out of you yet. And one day you'll thank me for it."
Phasma rubbed her hands along Ian's arms before letting him go, but said nothing, just smiling at him and slipping out of the galley after Hux.
“Think he’ll be alright?” She finally asked Hux as they returned to their own domain in first class.
Hux spared only a single glance back at Thanisson before continuing, “He’ll be fine...once we fix the coffee problem.”