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The meeting was quick and confusing. Finn’s eyes bounced back and forth from General Organa and Poe as they discussed some sort of plan. What the plan was about, Finn wasn’t quite sure. Since waking up in a bacta tank a few weeks prior, he hadn’t felt fully aware. Although his wounds were healed, it still felt like part of him was missing. It wasn’t easy to wake up on another planet, in another culture, and understand what was going on.
“That was intense.” He said as they exited the room. Poe rubbed a hand over his face.
“Yeah.”
Finn knew the pilot hadn’t been getting enough sleep since Starkiller. They shared quarters now, at Poe’s request. Finn didn’t know how to help with his tossing and turning, though. He had the same problem.
“Dameron!” General Organa called from the end of the hall.
Poe sighed and squeezed Finn’s shoulder. “I’ll be right back.”
He stood pressed against the cold stone wall of the corridor, watching as resistance members walked past. Finn hoped that they considered him to be a part of their ranks, but he wasn’t so sure. By the looks he’d been given by some, having a former stormtrooper around wasn’t that comfortable. Poe didn’t treat him like an outsider, though. He introduced Finn to his friends the second he felt well enough, and explained the different types of food at the cafeteria to him.
Suddenly, Poe was jogging back towards him. A grin lit up his face, and he slung an arm around Finn’s shoulders.
“I’ve got good news.” He said. “Organa is giving us a day off.”
“A day off?”
“Yeah, the rest of the day is free for whatever we want to do.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “I think the General just wanted to give us a break.”
“Okay,” Finn nodded. “Do you have any good ideas?”
“Oh, I’ve got a plan.” He grinned, showing off bright teeth. “I’ll meet you in our room in about half an hour. Can you find my swim shorts?”
“Sure,” He said, despite not really knowing what swim shorts were. It couldn’t be that hard to figure it out.
Finn made his way through the halls, only making a wrong turn once. He was getting better at navigating the confusing underground labyrinth that was the D’Qar base. The door to their quarters opened after scanning his fingerprints. Searching through Poe’s cabinet, he found a pair of white shorts made out of a strange type of fabric. He grabbed them, hoping they were what the man was looking for. There wasn’t a ton of space in their room, but it was an improvement from the First Order bunk rooms. Finn and Poe’s beds were separated by a small bedside table. On the opposite side of the room there were two cabinets, one for each of them. Poe’s was full, and even had stacks of papers on top of it. Finn’s was almost bare, with only a few items. Most of his clothes used to be Poe’s. The most important one to him, though, was the jacket. It had a large rip in the back, a souvenir of his fight with Kylo Ren. Poe offered to buy him a new one, but Finn turned it down. He wanted to find someone who could fix it one of these days, but there never seemed to be time.
“Look at what I got!” Poe exclaimed as he opened the door. He threw a piece of clothing to Finn, which he caught and inspected. The shorts were made out of the same material as Poe’s swim trunks. These ones were white and orange, with the resistance symbol at the hip. He set down the bags in his hands on his bed.
“Change into those,” He instructs Finn. “I still have to get a couple more things.”
Finn slipped into the bathroom. He looked down at the white short sleeve he was wearing. Like many things, Poe had given it to him. It definitely wasn’t new, but he appreciated it all the same. Poe always gave him so much already. Finn told him he felt guilty for it, a few days ago. Poe had said, “You saved my life, buddy. I think that makes us even.”
It left him feeling more relaxed. Now though, wearing a brand new pair of swim trunks, a little discomfort returned. He’d have to put a stop to Poe’s excessive generosity eventually.
“Those look great.” Poe nods when he returns. Finn was glad that his dark skin hid the heat in his cheeks.
“Can you tell me where we’re going now?”
Poe shook his head. He could tell the pilot was enjoying this teasing immensely. “You’ll see.” Once he finished packing a single bag, he picked it up again.
“Are you ready?”
“Maybe I should just stay here,” He shrugged. “You could be taking me to a volcano or something.”
He rolled his eyes at that. “Humor me, please?”
Finn let out an exaggerated sigh. “Fine.”
The sunlight made him squint when they left the main complex. Most of the D’Qar base was built underground to be more inconspicuous. No amount of safety could justify the lack of windows.” Poe had once said. Finn had lived on a ship for most of his life, where the windows only let in tiny pinpricks of light from far off stars. Still, he pretended as if he could relate. It was easier to pretend as if he understood the small things that everyone seemed to just get. He felt like a child sometimes, wondering what everyone else was talking about.
Poe lead him to the edge of the large expanse of asphalt, waving to various people along the way. After only a couple steps into the forest, you could forget the base existed at all. Finn was fascinated at the foliage around them. Every plant seemed so wildly different. The trees shot up from a tangle of vines and bushes, each reaching desperately for the light above. They kept to a narrow path that the greenery seemed to form a tunnel around. The tense stance he never seemed to change finally relaxed.
“We’re almost there.” Poe said, breaking the silence. The path continued to twist and turn in no definitive direction. Finally, the trees began to filter away into bushes. The ground under his shoes slowly became sandy.
Poe grinned as they finally left the forest. “Here we are.” Finn stared at the soft sand and large expanse of water in front of them. The blue water lapped the shore softly, slowly pushing and pulling. Poe kicked off his shoes and dropped the bag, running towards the sea. He seemed endearingly childlike as he stomped into the water.
“This is lake Prim!” He called out, knee deep in the waves. Finn squinted at the horizon, barely able to see the shore on the other side. This seemed too impossibly huge to be a lake. The reminder that there were oceans that were somehow bigger made him dizzy. There must be millions of them, trillions, too many to count all around the galaxy.
The universe was full of sunshine and lakes and trees, and he had spent most of his life up to that point in a prison made of metal and wore a suit of plastoid.
“Stars,” He whispered, closing his eyes. There was so much to know, and the only things the First Order taught was how to follow instructions and how to kill.
“Are you alright, pal?” Poe said. Finn’s eyes flew open. The pilot was standing in front of him now, a concerned look on his usually cheery face.
“Yeah, I’m good. Great, actually. How’d you get over here so fast?” He said, trying to change the subject.
“The training for pilots is rigorous.” Poe smiled, relieved that Finn seemed fine. He simply shook his head in response. He paused for a moment, his eyes on the man in front of him. Then he was grabbing Finn’s arm and pulling him down the sand. He stumbled after him, and only realized what was happening when the warm water surprised his senses. Wet sand squished between his toes.
“It’s nice, right?” Poe said, up to his waist in the lake now.
“This is…” He trailed off, trying to find the right word. “Unbelievable.” He was met with another strange look, leaving him on edge. Finn watched as Poe let himself sink into the water, finally dunking his head under the surface.
“Force, I’m an idiot.” He said after rising back up from the water. Poe trudged towards the shore. His shirt was sticking to his body, showing off toned muscles. Finn had seen plenty of naked people in his life. Stormtroopers didn’t have much privacy. Still, he felt his eyes glued to Poe as he took off his shirt and threw it onto the sand. Water droplets rolled off of his tan shoulders and dripped down his back. When the man saw him beginning to turn back around, Finn quickly looked away. He tried to focus more on the soothing water around him, and less on the shimmering body of his friend.
“You should do the same, you know.” Poe said. “Don’t make the same mistake as me.” Finn shrugged his shoulders and pulled the shirt off, throwing it onto the sand like Poe. He watched as Poe splashed over to him.
“I feel so stupid that I didn’t ask this,” Poe said, running a hand through his damp hair. “But do you know how to swim?”
“It can’t be that hard, right?”
Poe paused for a second, his eyes wide. Finn felt like running out of the water in embarrassment.
“Nope, it’s pretty easy.” Poe said. “I learned when I was five, I think.”
That wasn’t really helping the shame in the pit of his stomach, but he smiled anyways.
“Alright, where do I start?”
Poe was a good teacher. He showed Finn how to move kick his legs and do a simple stroke in the shallow water, with his toes still touching the muddy sand. Slowly, they moved into deeper water.
“You’ve got it!” Poe beamed. Finn laughed as he kicked into the water. He was staying afloat, the water completely surrounding him. When he finally held his breath and dipped his head under the water, it felt like he was floating in space.
Poe said, “Try opening your eyes.” when Finn broke through the surface again. “It stings a little at first, but it’s beautiful.”
He dived back down once again. Finn opened his eyes just a sliver, then opened them wide. At first, he could only see dark blue. Then the underwater landscape began to fill in. The sandy bottom of the lake sloped down into darkness. After looking up, he stared at the sunlight slicing through the water. It seemed to make the sand seem to sparkle. The man didn’t realize the pain in his lungs until air began to bubble out of his mouth, tickling his nose.
He gasped for air, his arms flailing. A strong hand grabbed onto his arm and held on as he coughed and sputtered.
“Are you alright, buddy?” Poe asked. Finn nodded as he tried to calm himself down. “You’re a quick learner.”
“Not really.” Finn noticed that the pilot was still holding him tight. He didn’t mention it.
“Yes, really. I shouldn’t be surprised, though. When we escaped, you learned how to use the laser cannons in no time.”
“You never even flew a TIE fighter before then!”
Poe shook his head. “I’m a pilot, though. You had only used blasters before.”
“You’re not one to be humble, Poe. Why are you changing now?”
“Shut up.” Poe grinned. His eyes seemed to shine like the water. The hand on his bicep disappeared, and he kicked harder to stay above the surface. Poe disappeared under the waves without another word. Finn let out a strangled cry as something gripped his ankle. He waved his arms frantically and attempted to kick out of the creature’s grip until he felt something tickle his leg.
“Poe!” He laughed before diving down. The grip on his leg loosened, and he kicked away. He returned to the surface for a quick breath.
The man’s brown curls floated around his face, framing his features. He stuck his tongue out and blew bubbles out of his nose, making a funny face. Finn waited as Poe swam up for air and returned. He was closer now, his eyes wide and seeming to inspect his face. He wanted to reach out and touch his hair, wondering if the texture was different underwater. Still, he kept his arms pushing to keep him in place.
Poe circled his hand around Finn’s wrist. He pushed off of the ground, forcing him above the waves.
“You keep forgetting to get air.” Poe laughed. “I think that’s the only thing you need to work on.”
“Now it’s your turn to shut up.”
“So now you’re turning on your teacher?”
“Are we going to battle to see who’s the better swimmer?”
Finn shook his head. “No, master Dameron. I apologize for my immaturity. You’re obviously the king of water.”
“Damn right.” Poe said, flicking droplets of water in Finn’s direction.
Finn didn’t know how long it took for them to be washed up, quite literally, onto the shore of lake Prim. He did know that he’d never felt this exhausted and fulfilled in his life.
The wet sand felt soothing on his back as he stared up at the sky. The sun had already begun sinking below the trees, and the sky was painted orange. Pink clouds streaked across the work of art.
“We’re going to have to get up at some point.” Poe said, his voice thick with sleep. Finn turned on his side to face the pilot.
“I don’t want to, though.”
Poe laughed. “We all have to do things we don’t want to.”
“Let’s just sleep here.”
“Are you feeling alright?” He placed his hand on Finn’s forehead. “Have you gotten sunstroke?”
Finn closed his eyes. “Maybe.” He felt as the man ran his calloused fingertips down his face to cup his cheek.
“You have long eyelashes.”
“Is that a good thing?”
“Yeah, buddy, it is.” Poe smiled. He hummed and let his eyelids flutter shut again. They stayed like that, Finn relishing the warm touch.
“I want to kiss you,” Poe murmured. “Can I kiss you?”
Finn sucked in a breath, held it. He felt frozen in place while his blood thrummed with energy.
Poe winced, lifting his hand away from Finn. “I’m sorry. That was… my bad, pal. Just forget I said that.”
“No, no, no,” Finn sat up. “No, yeah. I would like that. Let’s do that.”
Poe sat up too, his eyes sparkling with laughter. “Yeah?”
He nodded vigorously. “Yes.” He rested his hands on the other man’s shoulders and closed his eyes, waiting. A thumb traced over his cheekbone and drew a line down to his chin.
Poe said. “Lean forward a little bit.” He did as he was told. With a slow movement, he tilted Finn’s head to the side.
“Give me a second,” He whispered. “I’m just trying to take a mental picture of this, because this.” He paused to let out a small sigh. “This is like a dream.”
“You’re dramatic.” He replied.
“Yeah.”
Finn was surprised by warm lips against his own. The touch was soft and slow, causing him a shocked intake of breath. His nose grazed Poe’s stubble, and he moved his hands to the back of the man’s neck. They broke away for a second, foreheads touching.
“You’re learning this fast, too.” Poe said.
“I think I need more practice, though." Finn bit his bottom lip.
“Oh, you’re good.” Poe leaned back in.