Archive of Our Own

Another day, another mundane routine for Kalail Alistair, one of the best starpilot the galaxy has ever seen. He didn’t just get the reputation on a whim, he earned it, after he allegedly outrun three fleets of Imperial fighters and sent them into their doom during a chase. An anonymous bypasser claimed that the passenger on his ship (who paid him a huge sum of money) was a surviving Jedi Master, linking him to the Rebel Alliance and the fleeting rumours of the hiding of Jedis and Padawans who survived Order 66, a mass-killing operation ordered by the Emperor.

Contrary to the popular belief, Kalail did not face any troubles in returning to his routine as a smuggler in the outskirts of the Outer Rim. He mainly transports illegal weapons and spare parts — sometimes even passengers on board — here and there across the galaxy for anyone who needs them, as long as they pay him handsomely. Rumour has it, once again, he smuggled food and water supplies to a suspected rebel base somewhere in the Inner Rim as well as energy supply for a high-ranking businessman linked to the Galactic Empire. Alas, these stories were never confirmed for no one ever dared to stand in the way of the young starpilot’s business, despite the circling rumors on his morally grey way of handling his source of income — but let’s be real here, aren’t all smugglers the same?

So there he is, sitting at his usual jazz bar after successfully finishing a transaction, whose payment could last him at least six months without having to take on any other heavy, life-threatening jobs. Three sips into his drink, a loud noise coming from his right distracted him from finishing the quiet, relaxing evening with a nice drink and the quartet playing in the background,

“What are they talking about?” he asked Azure, a name he gave to the droid bartender, nodding towards a couple of bounty hunters sitting near the entrance.

Azure whispers, clearly not wanting the bounty hunters to overhear their conversation, “You haven’t heard about the great chase, Sir? It is what everyone’s been talking about for the past month. Though, I am not surprised on why they are so fixated on it, I would say.”

“I just showed up here after three months, so what does it say about me not knowing about this great chase?” he chuckled playfully, before finishing his drink in a gulp, “One more of this, please, Azure.”

“Forgive me, sir. I just figured you never liked to talk about work.”

Kalail smiles, definitely intrigued, “You got me there. But, I am not a bounty hunter. Just a mere smuggler. So technically, if you answer my question, this does not count as work for me.”

The droid scans its surroundings and after confirming that the bar area is empty but Kalail, Azure carefully passes him a worn-out piece of parchment. A wanted poster, to be exact.

Right there, at that moment, Kalail stopped breathing.

Is the person drawn in the poster even real?

It was not an exact photograph of the bounty hunters’ most wanted target of the month. No one has ever seen him, allegedly. And if they did, they would probably be dead by now for no one lives to tell the story.

The picture was drawn by hand, Kalail is guessing that the one who drew it based it solely on the target’s description, when he was last seen by a shopkeeper, as per the wanted poster says.

But was the forensic artist supposed to draw someone, solely based on what he might look like, so strikingly beautiful?

With his piercing doe eyes, sharp nose, plump lips, and messy sun-kissed brunette hair — long enough to be tucked behind his ears — he looks majestic, almost ethereal. Hell, he looks as if the galaxies, moons, and stars have collided into each other for this illustrated picture of him alone makes the inner workings of his heart turn into a chaotic havoc. What’s even more mortifying is that Kalail did not even know his heart could do that.

“A popular target? What did he do? Stole one of The Hutt’s ships or something?” he smirked, trying his best to ignore the loud thumping of his heart.

Azure turns around, wiping some glasses while discreetly handing him the information, “It was suspected that the target was a young Padawan, sir. Although no one can confirm anything about it. An anonymous tip was given out about him, one thing for sure was he was last seen leaving Alderaan a year ago.”

Kalail carefully tucks the poster in his pocket, “That is a fucking huge sum for his capturing. Interesting. So whoever puts the price on his head must have been filthy rich or even in power. Say, the Empire, huh?”

“It has been three months and I have never heard any successful stories about even spotting the target, sir. They either disappear without a trace or come back here to complain about their progress. They might even start an alliance, at this point of the game,” Azure suspected.

He scoffs, half mockingly, “Bounty hunters and alliance? We know how it is going to end, we are all egoistic scums on this side of the galaxy.”

Azure blinks at him, twice, thrice, “You are not thinking of joining the Padawan hunt, are you, sir?”

Kalail pats the droid on the shoulder before leaving the bar area, “Azure, you know damn well that I won’t take any job if I’m not at least getting paid half in front. That’s a bounty hunter’s quest, not mine.”

“Touchée, sir.”

Being a smuggler for years, and a great one at it too, a not-so-surprising fact about Kalail is that he is indeed a damn good liar, even to a droid he had befriended from the first time he stepped into the bar nearly five years ago, because of course, he was interested in the hunt. 

“So, what do you know about this alleged Padawan chase?” he asked, as soon as he entered his ship.

As expected, an earful nagging can be heard from the other side of the call, “Didn’t you just finish a transaction? Aren’t you just lucky to be alive and not being hunted down right now?”

He tilts his head cockily, “It’s not luck when I’m good at what I’m doing, Ky,” Kalail snapped back.

Kyan continues on rambling, “Didn’t you say you are not taking any jobs for at least six months? It was in the Imperial’s jurisdiction, For God’s sake, they must’ve paid you a large sum.”

Kalail nods, “Yeah, I was thinking of taking some time to upgrade my ship. The pay was good. Marvelous, even.”

“Okay, so explain to me why are you trying to mark this suspected Padawan again? You are not a bounty hunter, hell, there may even be a bounty hunter out there after your head. I cannot keep covering up for your ass from here, you know,” Kyan grumbled in distress.

“You know I could always outrun them like I would always outrun you,” he cheekily answered.

His older brother frowns, “Kalail, I’m serious. You deserve a break. Why are you joining a hunt that is not even part of your usual quest?”

“Didn’t you see how grand the pay is for his capture? Capturing, not killing. Whoever wants him clearly wants the target alive. That rarely happens. Isn’t it intriguing?”

Kalail could hear a teasing undertone from Kyan’s response after a long pause, “Anything else besides for the sake of your mere curiosity?”

He sighs in frustration as the conversation is going in circles, “Like I said, the pay is grand. It doesn’t even come close to half of my pay from the last. I could actually take a year off after this. Hell, make it two years and an upgraded ship.”

“So, pure curiosity and money?” his older brother checked again.

Kalail chuckles, “What else drives me in life?”

Upon hearing that, Kyan laughs teasingly, “I’ve known you since you were born, Kalail. You thought he was cute.”

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, “Who?”

“The target, you dummy,” Kyan answered in a that’s-so-obvious-duh tone.

Although it has been years since he left, Kalail hates it when his brother is planets and planets away from him and yet, could still easily read him like an open book, “Would you just shut up and tell me what you know?”

He could faintly hear the sound of Kyan typing on his computer (well, at least he is providing him the information he needs), “All that I can tell you, besides that he was last seen leaving Alderaan a year ago, is that apparently a bounty hunter was last seen marking him in and around the Dagobah system last month. But, he never came back with the prize. Killed already, presumably.”

Kalail grunts, “But you blew up Alderaan a while ago, right? Must be hard tracing him without any bystanding evidence of where he was last seen, allegedly.”

“Language, Kalail. You know that mother and father weren’t involved in that decision,” Kyan warned him, referring to the Death Star that was successfully destroyed by the Rebel Alliance a year ago.

“Right, sorry,” he apologised before continuing, “So if those who came close were all dead, he might actually be a Padawan, don’t you think?” Kalail asked, quickly changing the topic upon the mentioning about his parents.

He could faintly hear his father calling on his brother through the call, “Nah, not my problem to gamble on that. I gotta go. I have another thing in my hand. Update me, Khail. At least let me know if you’re still alive,” Kyan whispered before ending the call.

Kalail smiles, “You too, Kyan. Stay safe.”

In the Depths of Jundland Wastes, Tatooine

Five months have passed and there has been no successful attempt on catching the alleged young Padawan. Kalail has been trying to track him down — he has flown to the Dagobah system countless times already now, yet no sight of the target although his scanner had positively picked up signs of life-forms on the planet (he blamed it on the stinky swamp).

Another time, he thought he had caught a glimpse of the target in the Forest Moon of Endor, resulting in him spending almost three weeks in the forest as well as going back and forth to the system for the fifth time already. And even after marking him solely based on the tracks he left behind, yet nothing. The alleged young Padawan keeps disappearing as if he was a silver mist haunting the towering trees and seas of green, making Kalail more and more intrigued into the hunt.

To be fair, seeing how slow the progress he was making, Kalail wanted to give up and follow up on his brother’s advice to take a break. That was until he stumbled upon a sleep-deprived bounty hunter in a dimly lit bar in Cloud City, drunkenly complaining on how she marked the target getting close to Tatooine but she was too frustrated to continue the cat and mouse chase.

Kalail, being the cunning young man he is, decides to trail down the bounty hunter’s ship the next day, following her to the abyss of Jundland Wastes in Tatooine.

His eyes squinted as the wind blows, the sand is getting into his eyes, yet he prevails as he quietly follows every movement from behind, trying to maintain a careful distance from the bounty hunter that he has been following. He tries his best to stay hidden, for he has noticed the presence of a couple of other bounty hunters that shared the same idea as him, gathering quite a crowd in the depths of the deserted canyon.

The bounty hunter herself seems to have absolutely no clue that she was being followed, since everyone trailing her stayed behind in the shadows. Kalail took a deep breath as he tried to sense how many of them that he was up against — but luck was not on his side this time. As he counted up to three, his eyes jolted open upon hearing the echoing zap sound of blasters, looks like everyone has decided to join the game altogether.

Kalail held his breath, as if oxygen had decided to escape his lungs. His body froze in place. He covered his face with a shawl as his gaze stayed fixated on the fight happening before him — he finally saw him, the strikingly pretty target, in all his glory. Yet, no lightsaber in sight as he saw him shooting two bounty hunters in a row with his DL-44 blaster pistol.

What puzzles Kalail even more was his hair. There is no sight of braid that has been associated with a Padawan’s identity for as long as the Jedi Order was around, before they were terminated by the Empire.

Did he cut it off? That would’ve made sense, if he was indeed a Padawan, since he was in hiding and he would definitely hide his true identity for his safety.

Or did he already become a Jedi Knight? Especially when more than a year has passed after an anonymous tip was spread across the galaxy about him. Hold up, Kalail thought, Wouldn’t that make him an ever more dangerous target? No wonder that the bounty hunters who marked and trailed him before never came back with their prizes and the target got their heads instead. They wouldn’t stand a chance in surviving if the target was a Jedi Knight, even a Wookie can understand that logic.

Trying his absolute best not to crack up a smile, he carefully withdraws his own E-11 riffle blaster, “Gotcha,” he muttered.

Before he managed to join the crowd, a loud thud was heard. Another bounty hunter dropped dead, with a clear shot on his head.

Whether it is true or not that the target is associated with the Jedi Order, one thing for sure is that he is a damn great shooter.

The pretty target is down to two bounty hunters left now, with the other three laying lifelessly on the sand. His gaze follows the alleged young Padawan when he successfully cornered the bounty hunter that Kalail trailed before, until a hasty blast brushed him on the shoulder.

He shrieked in agony, before turning his sight and started choking the shooter in return. He choked him until he was out of breath and dropped unconscious, resulting with a gun on his head right after.

He just choked him without moving from where he stood. Kalail may not be the brightest back in his days in the academy, but he was sure quick on grasping things in a critical situation. “Shit,” he breathed out.

Whatever he is, whether it be a Padawan or a Jedi Knight, it doesn’t truly matter. He just used The Force to knock his opponent unconscious and proceeded to shoot him dead.

Next thing he knew, the pretty target had pinned the other bounty hunter up against the canyon’s wall, with a blaster on her throat, “I’d let you go if you ask nicely, Miss,” he chuckled.

The cockiness might have outrun him from his luck a bit, for the bounty hunter tackles him and proceeds to take out her knife — until a laser blast whizzes past from behind. Her body instantly crumpled to the ground with a shot landed perfectly on her neck.

It was Kalail. Kalail shot her.

The alleged young Padawan seemed to be startled at his action as Kalail is surprised with himself, “Apologies for jumping in. Judging from her stance, she would’ve stabbed you pretty deep there,” he managed to let out a smug comment.

The pretty target rolls his eyes, smoke coming out of his blaster pistol, “Actually, I’m quite sure if I hadn’t backed away in time, you would’ve blown my brains off.”

He cocks his head sideways, mockingly, “Maybe I should have. They put a pretty price on your pretty head, you know, though they still want you alive when I take you to them to collect my prize.”

Closing their distance, the alleged young Padawan marches towards Kalail until they are face-to-face, “Liar,” he hissed.

“Don’t get too cocky, pretty boy,” Kalail hissed back, not breaking eye contact with him.

Instead of feeling threatened or even intimidated, the doe-eyed boy standing in front of him stares at him curiously, caressing his own blaster slowly across Kalail’s left cheek, “Huh. You’re not one of them, are you?” he mutters after he finished examining him.

His breath hitches, “And what makes you so confident?”

At this rate, Kalail’s heart might as well burst into oblivion just by looking at him straight in the eyes, their faces only inches apart. With his delicate features and messy-looking brunette hair, it takes a lot of self-control in him not to ask the beautiful boy before him permission to kiss him, right here, at this exact moment.

Honestly, if not for the blaster pistol still resting on Kalail’s cheek and the cocky smirk painted on that ethereal looking face of his, Kalail would definitely grab him by the collar and close the distance between them.

“Strange. The Force is strong with you,” the alleged young Padawan said after a minute of silence.

Kalail’s mind instantly runs back upon hearing his words. His tape of memories rewinds back to the night he last saw his older brother Kyan years and years ago, when he told Kalail to fly away from their home, as far and fast as he can, before the Empire could even sense something about him — oh, shit, that fucking Padawan is in his head now — “Enough with your Jedi bullshit,” he scoffs at him, “Stop lurking or I will strike you down.”

The alleged young Padawan just smiled at him, “Sorry, Kalail. Or is it Khail? But the Force also tells me that you’re not gonna do it.”

Kalail is not surprised that he managed to acquire his name, even down to his childhood nickname already — stupid Jedi mind trick and their stupid way with The Force, “Do what?”

“Capture and hand me over to the Empire, pretty boy,” he sneers, returning the nickname to him, “Well, trying to capture me, at least. You know you are attempting to do that horribly since you cannot stop glancing at my lips?” he chuckles as Kalail’s cheeks are visibly getting warmer. He swore that it must’ve been Tatooine’s hot desert weather doing.

Pretty and cocky, just like how Kalail likes it, “And what do you have in mind to offer in return? You must know you’re the most heavily rewarded target in the galaxy by now, you Padawan or whatever you are.”

“I know. But I can always outrun them just like I managed to always outrun you. Well, weren’t you supposed to be a damn good starpilot, Kalail?” he asked, half sarcastically and half endearingly (but still, the intention was to mock him).

“You…”

His pretty target chuckles as he slides his blaster back into his back pocket, “I know you’ve been marking me for three months already. I saw you in Endor and I’ve been keeping my eyes on you ever since.”

Kalail smirks, “Is that so?”

He just shrugs, a confident smile painted on his face, “Honestly, it is a shame we are meeting like this. If I had run into you somewhere, I don’t know, at a pod-race or maybe at a moonlit bar on one of the nicer systems, I would’ve simply asked for your name, you know?”

His breath hitches yet again, he thinks that it is safe to say he just died a little bit right there, “You knew that I was trailing you for that long?” was all Kalail managed to say as a response.

The alleged young Padawan sheepishly smiled, carefully tidying the shawl Kalail wore that had been doing a poor job on covering his face, “It is a shame that we have to meet under these circumstances. But at least, finally seeing you up close like this could soothe down my disappointment a bit.”

Kalail took a step back, he was clearly not prepared for this, “What are you doing…..”

His pretty target shortens the distance between them again, “Alaska. My name is Alaska Kamari. Bet that wanted poster of yours couldn’t even tell you my name.”

This is dangerous. Kalail truly did not expect something like this to escalate, the moment he finally laid his eyes on him, “What are you trying to do, Alaska?” he whispers as they are staring, too close, at each other again.

“Sealing a deal with a smuggler, duh,” he snickers sarcastically before going on his tiptoes to whisper on Kalail’s red-as-a-tomato ear, “Here is my offer to you for not handing me over to the Empire. If it’s money that you want, then it is money that you will get. You have my word,” he pauses before continuing, “Or is it me that you want? I could give that to you too.”

That was the moment.

That was the exact moment Kalail decided to close the crucial inches of distance in between them and crashed his lips onto him (he could feel Alaska smiling as he kissed him back).

Next thing he knew, Kalail woke up sometime around midnight with a stinging headache. He looks around at his surroundings, fluorescent fairy lights dangling on the ceiling. Okay, he thought, at least I know that this place is my room and I’m in my own bed.

The one thing that Kalail did not expect (or even mentally prepared for) was the presence of a figure beside him, sleeping mindlessly with his curly brunette locks covering his face.

Kalail leans back towards the bed frame, savouring the view before him. Is this real? He wonders in disbelief as he gently strokes the hair of the person sleeping peacefully next to him. He lets out a heavy sigh, trying to recall the events happening a few hours ago,

They had moved from the deserted canyon to Kalail’s ship. How did they even get here? For starters, their lips never stopped chasing one another after the smug comment escaped from Alaska’s pretty lips.

His back clashed with the metal wall behind him as Alaska threw his hand over Kalail’s shoulder, tugging lightly on his hair, and proceeded to kiss him deeply, as if he’s savouring him alive.

Taken aback by how hasty the kiss had gotten, he pulled away, letting out a soft chuckle, “Slow down, Jedi sir. I’m not going anywh — ”, was the last thing he managed to say before the pretty being before him decided to shut him up with his lips yet again.

Alaska deepened the kiss as he lightly bit on Kalail’s lower lips and pressed him harder against the wall, resulting in accidentally bumping his head pretty hard over the low ceiling, “Ow!” he shrieked.

The alleged young Padawan broke the kiss and stroked the back of Kalail’s head apologetically, “I’m sorry… Was I too rough?” he asked with those Goddamn puppy eyes of his.

He swore he could feel his heart dropped to his knees as Alaska gently tidied his messy hair — a mess that Alaska made — before tidying his own. A mess that Kalail made also.

“No worries. Just… wow,” he sighed in utter disbelief.

“Yeah. Wow,” Alaska laughs, before planting a soft peck on Kalail’s lips, “Sorry, it’s just with all the bounty hunters happening this past year, I didn’t get much sleep. I get jumpy when I lose my sleep.”

“Alaska,” he sings his name.

“Hm?”

He nods towards the window, the sun is setting already, “It’s getting dark soon. Are you still in a hurry to hop around between systems?”

Alaska shakes his head, “No. I’m planning to stay here for a while, but it’s still pretty far away.”

“Do you want to sleep here tonight? Looks like a sandstorm’s coming,” he offered as he fidgeted nervously with his fingers.

The pretty boy smirks, “Are you just offering because a sandstorm is coming?” he laughed at how confident Kalail sounded yet his action showed otherwise.

“That and I still want to kiss you again,” he finally confessed.

The alleged young Padawan lets out a smile, the kind of smile that he would fly across the entire galaxy for, before interlocking their fingers, “That works too.”

And the rest was a blur.

Alaska slowly opened his eyes. The moonlight seeped through the window, highlighting the tall figure sitting beside him, head resting on the bed frame and fingers still dancing in his brunette hair. “What are you thinking about?” he murmured.

The young starpilot jumped, pulling his fingers away before Alaska managed to hold his hand, “Sorry, did I wake you up?”

He shakes his head in response, shifting his position so that he sits upright and rests his head on Kalail’s shoulder, “That was the best sleep I’ve had in a year.”

Kalail lets out a small, tired laugh, “It’s been a long day.”

“So…. What are you thinking about, starpilot sir? I can handle all of your questions now,” Alaska asked again.

“I’m just wondering, so you saw me in Endor already?”

The alleged young Padawan smiles at him from ear-to-ear, “I first saw you through the trees.”

“Huh?”

“The reason why you never managed to find me was because I was hiding up in the trees and I made some friends there too. No one ever explored the Forest that far. They were really nice for allowing me to lay low with them for sometime. You should meet them someday! They may appear cute but they are definitely vicious if you trespassed through their territory. Learned that the hard way. Have you ever heard or seen of Ewoks?” he babbled enthusiastically.

Kalail laughs, finding his talkativeness pretty darn cute, “They sound great.”

“They sure are. Anyway, I spotted your ship coming in and decided to have a look at the Goddamn ship who manages to follow me around for months — ”

“Sorry,” he gives him an apologetic look before Alaska continues, “ — I decided to pull out my binoculars to see who was flying it and that was when I saw you.”

“And?”

“And I thought you were too cute to be a bounty hunter, maybe that’s why I was curious about you. I was determined that we should meet eventually. But it turns out you are no bounty hunter at all,” he answered shamelessly, a smug smirk painted on his face.

Kalail blinks at him, twice, thrice. The sentence you were too cute to be a bounty hunter keeps ringing in his ear, “And what do you think of me now? Knowing that I’m no bounty hunter?”

He kisses his left check, as if he’s underlining a point, “I still think that you are too cute to be a starpilot, a smuggler, or just anything it is that you do, really.”

The young starpilot rolls his eyes at him, “Can I ask you one more question?”. Alaska nodded before he continues, “What are you, really?”

He grins, “Well, what do you think I am?”

“A pretty boy sitting beside me in my bed?” Kalail cockily answered, earning a light smack on his arm.

“Whatever it is in your mind, that’s the truth,” Alaska finally answered.

Kalail lets out a small gasp, “Holy shit — so the wanted poster was wrong? And you’re actually a Jedi?” he murmurs in disbelief. Yup, that made total sense on why every bounty hunter failed and never came back alive, he thought.

“It’s not entirely wrong. I passed the trials just a few days before it happened. I was sent by my master on a mission alone at that time, so when I learned what had happened, on how disturbed the Force was that day, after escaping from their attempt to terminate me too, I went into hiding ever since. Cut my braid already,” his voice went quieter upon mentioning the massacre of the Jedi Order by the Empire years ago.

Seeing how shaky the tone of his voice had gotten, Kalail held his hand, stroking it gently, “We don’t have to talk about it if you’re uncomfortable, you know.”

The pretty (who turned out to be) young Jedi turned his sight to him, “Then, what should we talk about?”

He shrugs, “I don’t know, just sitting here next to you is nice already.”

Kalail felt a shift of weight in his bed as he saw how Alaska slowly, yet carefully laid down, resting his head on his lap, “Actually, I’ve been meaning to ask….”

He hums in response, fingers playing in between his curly locks.

“I’m really sorry I peeked into your mind earlier, but, your parents work for them, don’t they? How are you… I don’t know, why are you here instead?” Alaska asked, unsure on whether he crossed a line or not.

He laughs, what line was there to cross when they already kissed the hell out of each other before?, “No worries. How much did you manage to peek?”

“Not much. The mind trick only works on the weak minded. But yours was wobbly earlier so I could get through a bit, but that’s that.”

“What did you see?”

Alaska looks up, their eyes meet, “I saw you. Just younger by a few years. You just hopped off from a speeder. I also saw your older brother. Telling you to run before they found out.”

He nods in recognition, “Ah, that must’ve been the family residence in Coruscant.”

His eyes widened, “Your family owns a place? In Coruscant?”

“Most of the time, my brother and I stayed at our home planet. But we have been going back and forth to Coruscant since the Empire was established — moreover during our time in the Imperial academy,” Kalail explained.

Alaska grinned at his story, “That’s where you learned to fly.”

“That’s where I learned to fly,” Kalail laughs back before continuing, “Back when it was still the Republic, my home planet was ruled by monarchs and a senator. My father was the elected senator and my mother came from the royal family — he is technically still in charge right now. And about them working under the Empire, well, yes. More or less. Since the planet is now under the Imperial’s jurisdiction. Father said he did that to protect us,” he scoffed in disbelief.

They grew silent for a couple of minutes before Alaska lets out a reassuring smile, “Seeing how they blew up Alderaan, that might be the right move. Morally wrong, but he did protect you all.”

He nods, “That’s the thing. I knew that he didn’t make the right decision, but it was necessary for our survival. It’s just, I was so fed up with how the Empire runs things and seeing how my father succumbed to the system, even working directly under them, in order to survive and make sure that we stay alive, it just hurts me even more.”

“So you ran,” the pretty young Jedi concluded.

“So I ran,” he sighed, “I only stayed because I promised my brother I would graduate from the academy first. Went back home, stayed in Coruscant with him, then I just had enough of it.”

“Kalail.”

“Yes, Alaska?”

Alaska held his hand, stroking his thumb across the back of Kalail’s hand, “I feel like there’s something more to your story. Something you’re not letting me pass through.”

“…”

“But you don’t have to continue if you don’t want to.”

Kalail was not one to be vulnerable. To be raw. To be stripped bare. To present himself as he truly is, not to mention towards someone he had just known for less than 24 hours.

Being on his own for years, far away from home, far away from his parents, and far away from his older brother Kyan whom he is very close with, has made Kalail a very closeted person. He just shuts down. Adding his line of work on top of that, hiding who he really was from the tiny part of the galaxy where he roamed around and not letting people in, was not a choice he made on a whim or out of anger. It was necessary.

He was used to lying. He hid his true expression during the ceremony when the Empire seized power in his home planet. He lied to his parents when he told them he understood their decision to follow the Empire’s rule so that they would be safe. He lied about his last name, where he is from, why did he leave his home planet, where did he learn to fly, where did he get such a nice ship, where did he get all of his information from, why did the Empire didn’t bother to track him down when he took on a risky job within their jurisdiction — he was used to it.

So, when the ethereal looking young Jedi whose head resting peacefully on his lap — as if that is where he truly belonged — asked him more on his story, more on the real reason he was told to leave, more on the truth, it is natural for him to dodge the question.

However, staring at the endearing force of a person before him, weirdly enough, he decided to try, “And why is that?”

“Because, the Force is strong with you.”

Seeing how Kalail froze at his abrupt statement, Alaska goes on, “The reason why I always know your whereabouts when you were trailing me and the reason why you managed to track me this far, because you just sensed it, didn’t you? You used The Force to find me.”

The young starpilot hums, as if sending him a signal that it is okay to continue.

“You’ve been using it since forever, maybe that is also why you’re a great starpilot. Or even in dealing with your business as a smuggler, no matter how risky and dangerous the job was. You trusted The Force to guide you, not just because you’re damn good at flying and doing your job or sheer dumb luck. I also know that you tried to count how many bounty hunters in hiding were there, back in the canyon, before your concentration suddenly broke off.”

Alaska turns his sight on him again, “That is also why your brother told you to run, right? Before they found out about you.”

Kalail realised there is no need to hide anymore, to lie anymore. What’s there to lose? He had come this far and it is not like the person he was about to tell the whole picture to, would terminate him immediately after he found out and learned the truth about him.

Staring at the pretty young Jedi whose head resting peacefully on his lap — as if that is where he truly belonged — he decided to try harder.

Alaska is not them, he reminds himself, In a way, he’s like me. He is just like me.

Slowly, he tore down his walls, brick by brick. He started by telling him about his childhood days back in home planet, during the days of the Republic, when he was still a snobbish, entitled little kid. Youngest son of the Senator.

He told him how he got into a fight that morning. He got so mad at his friend that he accidentally gave him a concussion, after pushing him down the stairs — without even laying his hands on him. I didn’t mean to, Kalail told him, I just got so mad and I imagined it in my head, what if he just fell down the stairs and shut up already. Next thing I know, I yelled my thoughts out loud and he actually did and I’m the one who caused it.

He told him how his parents were worried that this ability of his would someday lose control and get out of hand. He told him when his father decided to ask his friend to come over to their residence. It was a Jedi Master, Kalail added. He told him how his dad’s friend offered to take him to the Jedi Order, seeking their permission to train him as a Padawan. He told him how his Father disagreed with his training to eventually become a Jedi Knight — way too young, away from his family, not knowing when he would ever return home. His place is here with his people, his father stated, Maybe someday he could rule alongside his brother too.

He told him that he got the hang of it better as he grew older and how he decided to seek his father’s friend again once he was old enough to leave home. He told him that the Republic fell apart and the Empire entered the scene when his older brother just graduated from the academy. He told him how his parents came to a decision that it would be best for them to succumb to the Empire’s rule, to work under them — not against them, especially after his father learned that the Emperor planned to terminate the Jedi Order for good.

He told him how his father asked him to not seek out his friend who came to see him many years ago anymore. He told him how his mother warned him to not use his ability from that moment on. Press it down, don’t feel it, Khail, she warned him. Coincidentally, Kalail never heard about his father’s old friend ever again.

He told him that after two years of graduating from the academy and living at the family residence in Coruscant with his brother Kyan, a fleeting rumour went around about him. The youngest son of the senator from the House of Alistair has something to do with the old Force way, they said.

He told him how his brother urgently asked him to leave, that exact night, in order to keep him safe, to keep the family safe, to keep their home planet safe. Run, Khail, Kyan whispered to him, Go to the Outer Rim. The Empire has no jurisdiction over there. Run and stay hidden, little brother. I swore on my life that I will never let them get to you. I’ll be in touch soon. Run — and that was the last time he ever saw his brother.

“They surrendered to the Empire’s rule, our planet, our home, our people, because of me. So I would stay hidden. So I would be safe,” Kalail breathed out, guilt creeping under his skin.

Alaska fell silent upon hearing his story, “Are you still in touch with your brother?” he whispered after a while.

He nods, “Yeah. He basically backed me up with my whole business being a smuggler, so I don’t get into trouble or anyone trailing my ass. One time there was a bounty hunter sent for me but Kyan took care of it.”

Kalail stole a glance at him, expecting a judgemental stare on how much of an egoistic scum he has been living with his family’s doings revolves around him, “I … never really tell anyone about that.”

His expectations are proven to be wrong as Alaska smiles gently at him, “You’re safe with me, Kalail,” he squeezes his hand in reassurance, “And, no, it is not your fault. You didn’t ask to be born as someone Force-sensitive, that is a feeling that I am familiar with myself. God, I left home when I was 4 to start my training. I even forgot what home looks like. But, you see, none of their decisions that lead up to this point is your fault. They did it out of love, because they love you. That is exactly what families do, no?”

He lifts his head up and meets his gaze this time, “Alaska.”

“Hm?”

“Isn’t it freakishly weird how I have practically known you for less than a day, yet I feel nothing but at ease around you, as if we’ve known each other since forever?” he confessed to him.

Alaska smiles at him again, the kind of smile he’d gladly chase after the entire galaxy for, “It’s not weird at all,” he answered before deciding to change his position and sitting upright in front of him.

“Maybe, in a way, that is what The Force is trying to tell us,” he chuckles as he tucks Kalail’s hair behind his ear, “You have been flying around the galaxy, running away for simply being who you are. On the other hand, I have been hiding from the galaxy since the massacre happened, for simply existing as who I am ….”

Kalail lets out a small laugh at his analogy (apparently they are more alike than he thought).

“It is a marvelously enormous galaxy out there. Yet, The Force guided you to me as it lured me to you. So, no, I don’t think it’s weird at all for I feel the same way,” Alaska sheepishly smiled before caressing Kalail’s cheeks and pulling him into a kiss.

It was a slow kiss this time. Nothing hasty, nothing rushed. It was as if they were taking their sweet time, as if every second their lips touched one another was a moment worth savouring for, worth staying alive for, worth going through every bounty hunter chase for, worth tracking down for, even worth flying across the entire galaxy for.

Kalail can feel the young Jedi cracking up a smile in between their kiss, as he was thinking to himself that maybe, just maybe, this is what falling for someone feels like. Or is it too soon to tell? He doesn’t have all the answers, but one thing that he is certain of is that he would love to see his smile — smiling at him — for a very long time.

It was Alaska who first broke the kiss, their foreheads touching each other, “Hey, do you want to come with me?”

“Where?” he asked back, although knowing himself, he would definitely say yes in a heartbeat.

“There is a rebel base here. I was expected to arrive yesterday, until I got ambushed by bounty hunters yet again.”

“Sorry,” he muttered apologetically.

Alaska chuckles, caressing both of Kalail’s warm cheeks (for blushing too hard), “Why do you keep saying that? I told you before, from the moment I saw you in Endor, you already had me wrapped in between those pretty little fingers of yours.”

Little did Alaska know that Kalail had been yearning for him before even knowing his name as well.

It took a minute for Kalail to respond, “You can’t just say that out of the blue.”

The young Jedi smirks at him cockily, “Say what?”

He lets his head fall on Alaska’s shoulder, “Say things like that and expect me to not physically combust and do the next crazy thing after impulsively trying to track you down for months.”

He could hear his intoxicating laugh, with his hand softly caressing his back, “And what is the next crazy thing you gonna do, exactly, pretty boy?”

Kalail rolls his eyes at the nickname, before deciding to succumb into his true feelings, “I’ll just fly anywhere you go.”

In a swift motion, Alaska gently holds his chin and bends down to plant a light kiss on Kalail’s lips, “That works too.”

Kalail did exactly what he said he would, on the first night they spent together — that he would fly anywhere he went. He followed him to the rebel base in Tatooine the next day, even helping the Rebel Alliance's starfighter pilots to form a strategy for a surprise attack.

“You should quit being a smuggler and just join us already,” Alaska joked, upon seeing how fascinated he was with the whole operation.

The admiral who was having the discussion with Kalail laughed in unison, “Aren’t you a great starpilot yourself, boy? I’ve heard stories about you here on the Outer Rim. Kamari here might just make an excellent point.”

“He graduated on top of his class from the academy. Not to mention he managed to trail me non-stop for months. Surely he’s one of the best starpilots in the galaxy,” he added in which Kalail responded sheepishly, “Shut up, you Jedi.”

They remained there for a week before flying to an underground rebel base somewhere in one of the nicer systems in the Inner Rim — and they have been staying there ever since.

To his surprise, when they first landed here, Kalail saw a familiar face amongst the crowd and immediately sprinted towards the figure as he yelled his name, “Kyan!”

It was his older brother, Kyan, having a chat with one of the generals in the control room. Upon hearing his name, the oldest son of the House of Alistair turned around in disbelief, before pulling him into a tight hug, “Hi, Khail.”

Alaska smiled at the warm reunion before him as their gaze met. Kyan smiled at him in recognition and punched his younger brother on the shoulder, “So, you did find him after all?” he teased.

“Oh, did he mention me before?” Alaska laughed as he saw Kalail’s cheeks grew red.

Kyan threw his arm over Kalail’s shoulder, grinning widely, “Oh, he was determined to find you, Jedi sir. I told him that he was being crazy since it was a bounty hunter’s quest and I’m tired of covering his ass when he runs into trouble. But, then again, you can never stop someone who has been smitten since he saw a sketch of you in those wanted pos — ”

Kalail quickly cuts him off, “This is our first time seeing each other in years and that’s what we’re gonna talk about?”

“Can’t help it, Khail. Hi, I’m Kyan. Glad that he did actually find you,” he introduced himself as he shook Alaska’s hand.

“Hi, Kalail told me so much about you. I’m Alaska and yeah, glad that he found me too,” the young Jedi chuckled as he saw Kalail covering his face out of embarrassment.

Billions of questions began to pile up in Kalail’s head, why is his older brother here in a rebel base? Wasn’t he supposed to be in Coruscant? Does father and mother know about his current whereabouts? What about their home planet’s ties with the Empire?

“Wait, this is the other thing in your hand that you told me about? Why didn’t you tell me?” Kalail asked.

He sighs, “Believe me, I wanted to. But, it was too risky to talk about over the radio. Father doesn’t want to risk it. We were planning to contact you as soon as possible, but you’ve been off the radar since you joined the alleged Padawan chase, Khail. No offence.”

Alaska laughs, “None taken.”

“Are they….”

Kyan nods, “They’re doing just fine, Khail. And, since this is a fairly new partnership, they stay home, still going back and forth to Coruscant though. The Empire still thinks we are one of their most loyal allies, so we got to use that cover as our advantage. While I stay here and report things back. I haven’t been home ever since, to tell you the truth,” he explained.

One of the generals who were having a chat with his brother earlier added, “The House of Alistair have officially joined the Rebel Alliance as one of our biggest donors, Sir. From our ships, weapons, even supplies — ”, he stopped mid-sentence as he recognised his face, “You are Kalail, aren’t you? Didn’t you help us smuggle food and energy supplies a few years ago? In our old base in Dantooine?”

Kyan’s eyes widened in shock, “I didn’t know you also took jobs for them before. Well, yes, this is my little brother I’ve been telling you all about,” he smiled, introducing Kalail to the whole room as Alaska watched the whole thing happening giddily, happy that Kalail is finally reunited with his older brother whom he told him so much about.

“The one with The Force?”

“The one with The Force.”

Kalail rolls his eyes, “Can we stop with the whole Force thing already, Ky?”

His older brother scoffs, “But, it’s true! That’s why we ordered you to go into hiding, no? Say, Alaska, is it too late for my brother to receive proper training?”

“He has no desire to become a Jedi. But I taught him some things, here and there, just for him to be mindful so he could control it better, it is a major x factor in his flying. He’s a fast learner,” he answered back.

Kyan smiles, “Touchée. I’m glad we’re on the same page.”

Kalail turns his gaze at him, “So, you’re here to report things back to Father and Mother about the operation?”

“That and I’ve been flying with them too. Have you seen my X Fighter? Alaska, let me borrow your boyfriend for a bit!” his older brother excitedly yelped as he dragged him to the hangar.

Alaska laughed his heart out after faintly hearing Kalail’s protest for Kyan’s constant teasing ever since they arrived.

Boyfriend, huh, that has a nice ring to it, he thought to himself — before someone called him from behind to talk about the operation’s preparation progress for the past month.