There's a First Time for Everything
Chapter 1
Madam Jocasta Nu, the kindly temple librarian bustled around behind the counter clicking her tongue in concentration as she assembled a pile of holobooks the linguistics professor had put on reserve. 18 year old Obi-Wan waited patiently. As usual, he was the first person from his class to visit the library in search of the materials he would need to complete his homework.
He had always been a contentious student by going above and beyond what was required. Almost having missed his chance for an apprenticeship at age 13 had made a great impression on him. Obi-Wan fully understood how fortunate he was to have finally been chosen as a padawan by Master Qui-Gon Jinn. Every day he thanked the Force he wasn't in the Agricultural Corps and he made a vow to himself to never take for granted the chance he had been given. Because of this, he worked harder than anyone in his age group at his studies and lightsaber training, and followed the Code to the letter.
Some of the other padawans thought he was trying to show off by making them look bad and disliked him for it, but Obi-Wan didn't care. He was too busy most of the time to notice. Even Qui-Gon would occasionally encourage him to lighten up and go enjoy himself. "There's more to life than you will find in books my young padawan. Take the night off and go experience the world around you." he would say. "Your studies will still be here when you return." He thought of this as he waited for his books. Tonight he intended to take that advice. Garen Muln, Bant Eerin, and Reeft were all at the temple without their Masters for once and a rare night out had been planned.
"Here they are! These should contain all the information you are looking for, but if you need anything else please come ask." Madam Jocasta said and smiled as she handed an enormous stack of holobooks across the counter. Obi-Wan's heart sank as any thoughts he had entertained of going out with his friends evaporated. This was going to take forever. He politely thanked the librarian and gathered his belongings before heading for a table in the back of the library to begin his research paper on the various dialects of Huttese.
A variety of knights, initiates, and padawans quietly came and went around him as Obi-Wan worked methodically through all of the source materials gathering information for his project. Once that was done, he logged on to one of the library computers and began typing up his paper. Soon he was so immersed in his work that he lost all sense of time while outside the windows of the library, the afternoon shadows grew long and twilight began to settle over Coruscant.
When he missed meeting the others at the appointed time, Garen Muln came looking for him. "There you are! We've been looking everywhere for you." his friend whispered as he sat down in the chair across from Obi-Wan. "It's time to go! Get your stuff and come on!"
"I'm sorry Garen," Obi-Wan whispered as he looked up at his friend. "I didn't realize it was so late. You all go on without me. I should stay. I've still got three more pages to write and and an advanced hyperspace calculations exam to study for."
Garen rolled his eyes. "You have the best grades in class Obi-Wan. You could ace that exam in your sleep and the linguistics paper isn't due for another week." he pleaded. "We're going to that new club on Level 2685. It's supposed to be great and I heard that the girls there are more beautiful than the angels of lego." Obi-Wan cocked an eyebrow at him. He didn't look convinced.
"Come on, man! The four of us haven't seen each other in over a year." Garen pleaded. "There's no telling when we'll get a chance to hang out again. You can study any time."
That hit home. Even though he thoroughly enjoyed his missions with Qui-Gon, he had missed his friends a lot. He looked down at his books a moment longer and decided the rest of the homework could wait. "Ok." he said as he saved his work and shut down the computer. "Let's go."
"Alright!" Garen broke out in a wide grin. "You won't regret it!"
…
While he was glad to spend time with his friends, Obi-Wan regretted coming into the club almost immediately. They found a table close to the bar and ordered some drinks. At first it had been fun. Garen and Bant told him about their latest missions and Obi-Wan listened with interest.
Loud music thumped and they watched as beings of all descriptions showed off their best moves on the dance floor. Everything had been great until they spotted Bruck Chun's friend Aalto at the bar. He was drinking with two beautiful girls that Obi-Wan didn't recognize. One was tall and slim with long black hair and the other was a gorgeous blue Twi'lek. Both wore skimpy outfits that left little to the imagination and now and then loud boisterous laughter punctuated their conversation. He wondered briefly what they saw in someone like Aalto.
"Is that Aalto?" Obi-Wan asked.
"Yeah, it is." answered Reeft. "He was sent him back to the Temple a few months ago. I heard he was disrespectful to his Master." the Dressellian slurped his drink. "I don't mean to sound greedy, but may I have the rest of your fried crisps?" he looked hopefully at the two rolls left on Obi-Wan's plate. Obi-Wan smiled and obligingly pushed them towards his friend. He really had missed Reeft.
"Really? I heard it was for inappropriate use of the Force." Bant added. "He was always doing things he shouldn't when we were younger."
"Rumor has it he's going to be expelled from the Order when his Master gets back." Garen said. He's been in a lot of trouble lately. Can you imagine being sent home from a mission? Whatever he did, it must have been pretty bad."
Obi-Wan listened to his friends and nodded in agreement. He had never liked Aalto. The boy was a bully who had taken great pleasure in tormenting him when Qui-Gon had turned him down as a padawan. Hearing that he had been reprimanded for disrespectful behavior was not surprising in the least. He was shocked that Aalto had managed to find a Master at all.
Just then a girl about Obi-Wan's age walked over to the table. Her interest in him was obvious and he could feel her arousal through the Force. She was pretty, but it was plain to see that she was extremely drunk. He cringed inwardly.
"Hi there." she slurred looking at Obi-Wan with bleary eyes. "Want to buy me a drink?" she asked a little too loudly before stumbling on her high heels.
Obi-Wan was on his feet in an instant and caught her before she fell. "Much as I would enjoy that, I think you've had enough to drink for one evening. May I call you a taxi instead?"
The girl had obviously gotten the wrong idea and wrapped her arms around him. "Don't want a taxi. I want you. Come on, baby. Buy me a drink." she buried her face in the front of his tabard and inhaled deeply. "Mmmm…You smell good!" She leaned against him and inadvertently pressed against his lightsaber which was hanging from his belt. "Oooo…" she purred suggestively and grabbed his backside pulling him closer. "Somebody's excited!"
Obi-Wan's face flushed red with embarrassment. She was making quite a scene and people were beginning to stare. He turned to his friends for help but all of them were looking at the table trying hard not to laugh. Not knowing what else to do he subtly waved his hand before her face. "You don't want me to buy you a drink." he said quietly. "You want to go directly home and sleep this off."
"I want to go home and sleep this off." she repeated dreamily before returning her focus to him. "I want to go home and sleep this off…but I want you to come with me!"
Kriff. He'd have to work harder with Qui-Gon on this particular skill. Oh, well he though. Close enough. "Alright then, let's go." he said as he led her out the door where he waved down a taxi. Thankfully one stopped quickly.
"What's the matter with her?" the Ithorian driver asked. Obi-Wan could tell by a quick scan of his Force signature that he was honest and trustworthy and was truly concerned about the girl's wellbeing.
"She's had a bit too much to drink I'm afraid. Could you please take her home?" Obi-Wan asked politely.
By now the girl was practically asleep again his shoulder. He shook her slightly and she woke up enough to set her blurry focus on Obi-Wan and giggle drunkenly. "Hey, baby…mmmwanna go home."
The driver gave Obi-Wan a disgusted look and then agreed to take her. "Alright, lover boy. I'll take her home, but this is no way to treat a lady. You should be ashamed of yourself!" he chided. "Where does she live?"
The accusation stung. Obi-Wan always tried to do the right thing by helping others and he would never take advantage of a girl on a date. At least he wouldn't if he ever went on dates. For a moment he considered telling the driver what had really happened but decided against it. It wasn't worth the trouble. As gently as possible, he searched the girl's mind for an address which he gave to the taxi driver and carefully helped her into the cab. He paid for the trip and gave the driver some extra credits to make sure she made it into the house safely. After they left he reentered the club thinking to himself that no good deed goes unpunished. Unfortunately the evening was about to get worse. As soon as he reached the table and sat down again, Aalto came over.
"Oafy? Oafy-Wan Kenobi?" he laughed. "I thought that was you!"
"Hello Aalto." Obi-Wan replied. He tried not to let the goading bother him, but he still hated that nickname.
"You just Jedi mind-tricked that girl to get her to go home didn't you?" he brayed with laughter. "You're really something, you know that? A hot, willing piece of ass comes on to you and YOU send her home?" he scoffed. "Still the same old Oafy." Aalto shook his head. "It's just as well I guess. You wouldn't have known what to do with a girl like that anyway." he mocked before turning his attention to the others at the table. "Still hanging out with these losers I see. I bet you're all over here stoking each other off to stories about whose Master is the greatest."
Obi-Wan's anger flared. He knew he shouldn't have said it, but somehow he couldn't help himself. "At least we have Masters which is more than you'll be able to say after they expel you from the Order."
Aalto's laughter stopped and his face twisted into an angry scowl. "That's none of your kriffing business Kenobi." he growled before quickly regaining his composure. "Besides, who cares? Unlike you, my whole life doesn't revolve around the Jedi. Even if I do get expelled, I'll find plenty to do with my time." he turned and waved at the two girls who were waiting for him by the bar. They giggled and waved back. "I guess you wouldn't know anything about that though would you?"
Obi-Wan's cheeks burned as he looked at the floor. He had no response. He'd never even kissed a girl, much less done what Aalto was suggesting. "I didn't think so. "Bye, Oafy!"
…
Later that night the four friends walked back to the Temple. Reeft and Bant lived in a different wing so they parted ways at the Great Hall leaving Garen and Obi-Wan on their own.
"What a night." Garen sighed.
"Yes. It was quite an experience." Obi-Wan nodded in agreement. They walked on in companionable silence for a while.
"Is anything wrong?" Garen asked. "You seemed pretty quiet on the way home and I can sense that you're upset."
Obi-Wan sighed. "No. Well…maybe. I don't know."
"What is it?"
"It's what Aalto said. It's been bothering me." he stuck his hands in his pockets.
Garen's eyebrows drew together. "Which part?"
"That I wouldn't know what to do with a girl if I had one." Obi-Wan looked at the ground.
"Oh, that." Garen brushed the topic away carelessly. "Don't pay any attention to him. What does he know anyway?"
"I know. It's just…" Obi-Wan struggled to put his thoughts into words. "Well…have you ever, you know…with a girl?"
Garen looked a little sheepish and shrugged. "Well, yeah." he answered slowly. "Haven't you?"
Obi-Wan shook his head and looked away. "No. Not yet."
Garen stared at him for a few seconds with a look of surprise clear on his face. "No?" he finally asked. "Really?"
"Yes, really. I want to. Sometime I feel like it's all I ever think about, but he's right. I've never done anything."
"Wow! I always just assumed that you must have by now. It's not forbidden, you know. Why are you waiting?"
"I don't know. I suppose I'm just afraid that it might lead to attachment and I try very hard to follow the Code. I don't want to do anything that might lead me down the wrong path."
Garen thought about it for a few minutes before responding. "I can understand that. Following the Code is a noble goal to be sure, but sex and attachment don't have to go hand in hand. You can have one without the other. There are a lot of girls out there who get off on the whole idea of being with a Jedi. They know you can't become involved and they don't care."
"I suppose." Obi-Wan replied. "But it just seems wrong somehow to use someone to satisfy my own needs when I can't offer anything more in return."
"But as long as everyone is clear from the beginning about their expectations, where's the harm?"
Obi-Wan had no answer so he shrugged. "I don't know. So far I just can't bring myself to do that, but it's getting harder and harder to concentrate on anything else."
"You know what, Obi-Wan…what you do or don't do is nobody's business but your own. You certainly don't have to justify your decision to me or anyone else. Sex is a basic human need though and you're only human. My advice is to find someone who you find attractive and just get it out of your system. You'll feel a whole lot better!"
By now, they had reached Qui-Gon's apartment. Obi-Wan said goodnight to Garen and let himself in. He headed for his room with a lot to think about.
*Welcome to my latest story! I hope you will enjoy it. Please let me know what you think if you feel inspired to do so. I respond to all reviews and appreciate all your comments and criticisms as long as they are expressed constructively. My goal is to update at least once a week. May the Force Be With You!
As always, all Star Wars characters are the property of Disney and George Lucas. I am writing this for fun and nothing more.