Chapter Text
“Come on, there has to be another flight!” Rey begged. The woman working the airline desk didn’t even look up as she kept typing away. “Please tell me there’s another flight today.”
“Miss, I’m checking,” the woman reassured her in the most bored sounding voice Rey could imagine.
Rey bit her lip. She was getting slightly desperate and, well, desperate times called for desperate measures. “You will put me on the next flight to Ithaca,” she said firmly.
She watched the woman’s eyes gloss over. Her fingers flew across the keyboard. “You’re on the five thirty flight, Miss Niima,” the woman said in a slightly distant voice.
“And you’ll give me food vouchers,” she said confidently.
“Here’s fifty dollars in vouchers.” Rey’s eyes went wide; she’d meant for it to be a little less than that but she wasn’t going to argue.
“Thanks,” she said taking her new ticket and vouchers.
She quickly found a seat away from the desk, facing the window. She pulled out her phone and called the most recent number. She waited two rings and almost hoped she could just leave a message until he picked up. “Hi,” she said nervously, “it’s Rey.”
“Rey?” he asked.
She put her head in her hand. “Your granddaughter.”
“Of course, I just was wondering how you were calling from the air.”
“I missed that flight,” she clarified. “My flight from Albuquerque was delayed. I thought I could still make it but we taxied for twenty minutes. I have a flight tonight.” She gave him the information and waited for him to confirm it back. “I’m sorry you have to pick me up later.”
“It’s no problem at all, I’m glad you’re coming.” Rey bit her lip at the hopeful sound of his voice. She hadn’t even know her grandfather existed until two years ago when her caseworker mentioned him. Now she was going to live with Ben Kenobi for the summer before she started college at the insistence of her foster mother, Maz.
“Me too. See you tonight.” She let her phone drop into her lap after she pressed the end button.
She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, just wanting the day to be over. The next time she had to fly across most of the country she’d opt not to take an early morning flight. She felt her seat shift slightly to the left as someone sat next to her.
“Hi,” a deep voice said. Rey pried her eyes open to glare at whoever was talking to her. The voice belonged to a smiling man about her age with dark skin and eyes that she would describe as kind.
“Yes?” she asked, trying very hard to keep the irritation out of her voice.
“You got a food voucher,” he said.
She tried very hard not to look surprised. “I did,” she said cautiously.
“How did you manage that? I argued with that woman for like twenty minutes trying to get one because this is the third flight I’ve been put on.” Rey hesitated, she hated when people noticed what she could do.
“It’s just,” she shrugged, “it’s just a thing that sometimes happens to me.”
“Well, that was one of the best things I’ve seen all day. I’m Finn, by the way.” He held out his hand.
She took his hand cautiously and said “I’m Rey.” She looked down at the vouchers in her lap. “Look, she gave me fifty dollars for food, and I don’t think I’ll need that much, so do you want one?”
“Uh, sure.” He took the voucher she offered. “Look, why don’t we get food together.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s about noon and the flight is at 5:30, so that’s about another five hours at least until we have to board, and conversation makes time pass.”
“So does Netflix,” she countered.
“The wifi is crap and keeps dropping.”
She sighed. “Fine, but I get to pick the food.”
~*~*~
“So really, how did you do that?” Finn asked as he dipped a fry in ketchup. They were sitting in the back of the train that ran the length of Terminal A, having staked out the space as their own after returning to the waiting area for their flight and finding it full.
“Do what?” Rey asked before taking another bit of her hamburger. She’d dragged him to Fuddruckers for food and considered it one of the best decisions she made all day.
“Make the woman give you exactly what you wanted.”
Rey almost choked on her food. “I don’t--”
“I heard you. Look, I just think it’s cool and want to know if you can teach me how to do it.”
Rey shook her head. “It’s something I’ve been able to do all my life. I can’t really explain it but if I really want to I can make people do what I want. I don’t do it often,” she said defensively.
“Honestly, if I could do that I’d use it on professors to get them to give us take home exams.”
“You’re in college?” Rey asked before taking a sip of her milkshake.
Finn nodded. “Yeah, heading back for the summer semester after a short visit to my parents. Why are you going to Ithaca?”
“I’m moving there.”
“For school? Say Cornell, I can show you around.”
“Yes and no, just with moving in with my grandfather right now,” she shrugged, “but I am starting at Cornell in the fall.”
“Why did you move so early?”
“I needed a new start I guess, there wasn’t really anything for me in New Mexico.”
“Well, I’ll help you with your new start. First the friendship of an amazing person which we’ve got covered,” she grinned, “and next a job! Trust me, I know the best places to work.”
“Sounds like a plan. And stop stealing my onion rings!”