this was just a little something that came to mind, and i needed to get it out of my head. i don't own Star Wars, nor am i an expert on the 'verse. i'm a simple fan looking to have fun in this sandbox. i hope you enjoy!

edited to add (12/24): thanks to the stunning response i've gotten (and a little inspiration that came from nowhere) i've decided to continue this story! the next part is currently being written and i'll have it up as soon as possible. thank you to everyone who's read it and followed/favorited, and especially to those who've reviewed. you're all amazing!

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EFFERVESCENCE
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CHAPTER ONE

She noticed him immediately when he poked his head into her lab. She always noticed him. It was like she had a special sense, a knack for knowing where he was even when she couldn't see him. And why not? They were practically best friends, weren't they? That was her story and she was sticking to it. She might have had a crush on one Poe Dameron, but that didn't mean she obsessed over him and his whereabouts at all times.

She kept her head down, kept her hands working, twisting the delicate screw of the droid she was fixing up. She didn't even know if she could call it a droid, truly, given that when it was finished, it would be small enough to fit in the palm of her hand. A pocket droid, she'd dubbed it. Because why make real live friends when you can literally create robotic ones, right?

"Thought I'd find you in here, Novan." His voice was bright and full of life as ever. Another pilot had once described him as 'effervescent.' Besides being a fun word to say, it was fitting.

Keylara looked up and pretended that the sight of him surprised her, smiling slightly. "Where else would I be?"

"Certainly not celebrating with the rest of us, right?"

"I was out there for a little bit."

"Yeah, I think I saw you for about a second — and it was just as you were darting out of the room."

Keylara huffed out a little laugh and dropped her gaze, but even not looking at him, she knew the smirk that Poe was wearing. In her peripheral, she watched as he sauntered into the room, looking around like it was the first time he'd ever been there. It was her special corner of the base, a place where she could work on any machinery she felt was needed — weapons, cybernetics, communication devices — and she wouldn't have called it messy, but….

Organized chaos. That was the term Poe had used. That had been a while ago, back when she was constructing BB-8 and he'd been hanging around to watch. She'd barely known him then.

Poe trailed a hand over the skeletal remains of an outdated blaster that Keylara hadn't yet gotten around to repairing. Her mouth curved into another smile at the way his fingers just barely ghosted against the metal, his touch gentle because he knew how she felt about her tech.

"I meant to tell you, BB-8 really pulled through. For all of us."

"So I heard," she replied. She set her screwdriver down and stood, her legs cracking from how long she'd been sitting. "I was a little worried."

Poe laughed. "About him? What about me?"

"Well, I knew you could handle yourself, Commander."

"Are you trying to butter me up for something?"

Heat crawled up Keylara's neck, but she forced out a snort of laughter and looked away, shaking her head. "Don't flatter yourself."

Wearing that boyish grin that had infatuated her at the very beginning, he turned to look back at the blaster. As she moved around her workbench to stretch out her limbs (and maybe bring herself nearer to him), he seemed to think about his words carefully. Probably going to ask about the blaster and when it'll be ready for him to use, she thought, amused.

Instead, he swiveled back and said, "I thought about you. Up there."

Her heart fluttered. "Really?"

"That time I took you flying and had to land within like, what? A minute? So you could throw up?"

Her heart dropped. Her face grew hot again. "Oh."

"The things you can create and you're afraid of being up in the air like that," he teased. She wished she could find it annoying. Instead, it just endeared her all the more to him.

"I'm not afraid of being up in the air, I just — don't like… seeing it when I'm up there," she said and he laughed. The thing about Poe, though, was that even when he was laughing at you, it never felt like it. It wasn't hard to smile at him through her embarrassment. "It was one time. Let me live."

"We're going again, then."

"When?" she asked cautiously.

"It'll be a surprise. I'll spring it on you when you least expect it," he said. His dark eyes flickered to the workbench and filled with excitement, and before she could stop him, he was moving towards the pocket droid. "What's this?"

"It's not finished!" she said quickly.

And despite the fact that she knew he'd be careful, she lurched towards him to try and stop him from touching it. Her eagerness to stop him only made him want to do it more, and he flashed her that grin again as his fingers probed the cylindrical body.

"What's wrong?" he asked playfully.

"I told you already — it's not finished."

"I'm just looking."

The droid came to life with a shrill beep, drawing their attention. Its single eye lit up and focused on them before it beeped again, this time in greeting, and Keylara laughed, pleased to see it working even though she wasn't quite done with it.

"Well, isn't he cute?" Poe said.

She glanced up at him and realized just how close she was standing. Not only that, but her hands were on his wrists — as far as she'd gotten in her attempt to pull him away from her work. He'd let go of the droid — as she hadn't finished, it could do nothing but sit in its place, stationary — but he made no move to get away, and Keylara could have cursed at herself.

Letting go of him like the touch physically burned her, she murmured out a flustered apology and straightened her jumpsuit. It was stupid to get so worked up over her things like that. "I didn't really think you'd hurt it or anything," she said. "I know you're always careful with this stuff."

"Sure. It's important to you." He shrugged. "It's just funny to see how ruffled you can get about it."

She rolled her eyes and his grin returned. There was a brief silence, the kind that signified a conversation coming to a close, and desperate to have him around for as long as she could, she said, "So where is BB-8? Has anyone checked on it? Made sure it's running right and healthy?"

"He's fine," Poe said. "Probably needs some 'me' time after all that adventure. And that old R2 unit finally woke up, did you hear?"

"Really?"

"Don't get all excited on me, Novan — he's gone."

"Gone? Gone where?"

"I don't know." The way he said it told Keylara that he did know but he was keeping it confidential. She may have been with the Resistance, but she was nowhere near on the same level as he was.

She nodded. "Well… I'm glad you made it back in one piece, Poe."

"More glad that your precious BB unit made it back?"

"My precious BB unit doesn't insist on fiddling with my things," she said, making him laugh again. He was nearing the doorway, their time together was ending, and Keylara knew there was no way to keep him here longer. He'd be back though, of course. They were practically best friends, right? "I mean it though."

"Hmm?"

"I'm glad you made it back."

He paused for the shortest of seconds to consider his reply — a barely noticeable nanosecond, even — and he grinned. With a wink, he said, "Me too."

And then he was gone.

And all Keylara could think was: what did that wink mean? It was friendly, wasn't it? Completely platonic. No way had Poe figured out she had a stupid, juvenile crush on him and was trying to reciprocate it. That would have been absurd. And had she mentioned juvenile? She wasn't a hopelessly romantic teenager anymore — she was an adult. And adults didn't react the way she was reacting.

A few shrill beeps came from her workbench. You're overthinking it, they said.

"Oh, shut up, you."