The suspense was killing him.
"Come on, come on," he muttered softly, keeping his eyes locked upon the leader board pole as he tapped the sides of his swoop bike with his slender fingers. After what seemed like an eternity, his name and time flashed at the top of the pole across the arena. 'Penn Thayer, Hidden Beks - 32.2s'.
Unable to control his excitement, Penn pumped his fist in victory. Despite having never touched a swoop bike in his life, he had completed a near perfect race. Throughout the race, he'd felt as if something was pulsing through him, guiding his hands as he steered the bike, but he shrugged it off as beginner's luck. What else could it be?
Fueled by his excitement, he jumped out of the bike and onto the nearby platform. "That makes two," Penn smirked at Brejik in defiance, who clenched his fists in anger. As leader of the Black Vulkars, one of Taris' most fearsome gangs, Brejik wasn't used to being disrespected, especially by some no-name Hidden Bek stand-in swoop racer.
With a sly smile firmly etched across his lips, Penn moved past the gangster. "Now, about my winnings," he looked to the race announcer, casually leaning against the circular counter. Behind the Ithorian announcer was a pile of goods ranging from modified weapons and armor, to swoop bike parts and stacks of credits, but that wasn't what Penn was after. Just behind the heap of material goods was a cage that held the true prize.
Bastila Shan.
As the Ithorian tallied his winnings, Penn took advantage of the lull to take a look at the brunette chained by the neck in the small, plasteel-barred cage. Since the neck chains seemed excessive, Penn wondered if the Black Vulkars had taken the extra precaution because they'd learned of her true identity as a Jedi.
The tight, brown leather outfit the Vulkars had forced Bastila to wear displayed all of her assets - she was fit and petite yet curvy in all the right places. Try as he might, Penn couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from her. As he admired her from afar, a Black Vulkar lackey began pawing at her through the bars of the cage. Instinctively, Penn reached for the vibroblade stowed in the holster on his hip to defend her, but quickly learned the woman could defend herself when she spit in the Vulkar's face, an act that made the swoop race champion chuckle. "Looks like you've got a bit of an edge to you," he whispered to himself with a smile.
His admiration of Bastila was quickly cut off by Brejik's voice booming over everyone else's. "He cheated!" the crime lord yelled. With narrowed eyes, Penn spun around and bounded toward Brejik. "He cheated and the Black Vulkars don't deal with cheats. We're pulling our prize from the lot."
If any of the other competitors had wailed about him cheating, Penn wouldn't have cared, but this was different. The whole reason he'd risked his life in the swoop race was to rescue Bastila from the gang by winning her - he refused to leave without her. "You know damn well I won without cheating, Brejik," Penn hissed as he inched closer to the thug, keeping his hand on the hilt of his vibroblade, ready to draw it at a moment's notice. "I'll be taking my winnings, including the girl."
The moment of mounting tension was interrupted by the loud clank of plasteel slamming onto the cracked durocrete floors. Much like everyone else, Penn turned around to see the source of the disturbance and was shocked by what he saw - Bastila had somehow broken free of her chains and pushed the cage's door to the floor. Before the Vulkar guarding her could react, Bastila choked him with the Force, snatched his rusted sword from his dirty hands and began moving about the room, striking down all the Vulkars in the premise.
Looking to assist the beautiful Jedi, Penn drew his vibroblade and engaged Brejik in combat while she handily took out the rest. The gang leader was a skilled swordsman, but so was Penn - the two battled for several minutes. Having killed all the other Vulkars, Bastila began running toward Brejik just as Penn gained the upper hand and sliced the gangster's neck.
Fully expecting Bastila to stop rushing for him, sword in hand, Penn eased up for a moment and flashed a crimson smile at the Jedi. Instead, she kept charging, a ferocity burning in her large eyes. Realizing she was getting ready to swing her sword at him, Penn raised his vibroblade in defense. A loud clanging noise echoed in the nearly empty hall as their blades met.
Now just inches apart, Penn looked deep into Bastila's grey eyes as she stared him down over their criss-crossed blades. Though he couldn't explain why, something about them seemed so familiar… "Have we - have we met before?" he asked, his brows furrowed.
After a moment, Bastila's heart-shaped face softened slightly before forming into a devilish smirk. "Was that your attempt at seduction?" she questioned Penn, still keeping her blade firmly against his.
The sound of her voice which Penn could only describe as attractive sent a heat into his chest, but he ignored it for the time being - she did just try to kill him after all."You think I'm hitting on you?" Penn raised his eyebrows in surprise, pushing the blades closer to her. "So you think I find you attractive?"
"Yes," Bastila quickly answered before wrinkling her nose. "I mean, no. Just-just-just get out of here," she sighed as she lowered her sword, ending the would-be assault.
As she began to walk away, Penn called out as he slid his bloodied vibroblade into its sheath. "Actually, you're coming with me, Bastila. I did just win you after all."
Snorting as she turned, Bastila bounded toward Penn, stopping just a pace away from him. "You honestly think I'm just some silly prize?" she sneered as she looked him up and down in disgust. "You have much to learn."
Undeterred, Penn returned her fierce gaze as he crossed his arms. "Actually, I came here to rescue you, babe. I was sent by -"
"Rescue me?" Bastila interrupted in disbelief. "You call this a rescue mission?" she laughed in exasperation as she motioned to the room of dead Vulkars. "I was doing just fine without you. I had the whole thing figured out. I was about to make my escape when you walked in, demanding your -"
Bastila's tirade was cut short by Penn's finger pressed against her soft lips. "Are you finished? Because I wasn't quite done explaining myself." Once confident she would remain silent and listen to his explanation, Penn removed his finger from an incensed Bastila's lips. "What I was trying to say was that I was sent by Carth Onasi," he stated, taking note of the way Bastila's eyes lit up at the mention of the commander's name. "But, of course, if you've got this whole thing figured out, I can just leave."
Mentally counting down how long it would take for her to stop him, Penn began walking away when Bastila called out. "Carth Onasi?" Quickly wiping away his smirk of satisfaction, Penn turned and nodded. "Will you take me to him?" Penn nodded once more as he extended his hand to Bastila. Instead of taking it as he'd hoped, she walked past it, almost as if she hadn't seen it at all. "Lead the way," she called over her shoulder, her tone aloof.
"Oh, you're going to be a handful," he muttered beneath his breath, shaking his head in annoyance as he began jogging to catch up with the Jedi.
oo-oo
By the time the two walked back to the apartment Penn and his small group of companions had been using as a base of operations, night had fallen upon the bustling planet of Taris. As he reached for the security lock Mission, a young Twi'lek girl who'd joined their team had rigged, he looked to Bastila, uttering the first words either had spoken since the rescue. "Everyone in there is probably asleep by now, so you'll have to wait until morning to talk to Carth," Penn said softly before turning his focus to the lock.
"I'll speak with him now," Bastila insisted. With a deep breath, Penn stopped working the lock to look at her. Even in the dim light of the apartment's causeway, Bastila's large grey eyes seemed to shine. Despite her surly attitude, Penn mentally admitted he found her somewhat attractive, but quickly recovered from the moment of weakness, promising himself he'd never admit that fact to the pompous Jedi.
"Look, Bastila," he started, trying to keep his tone steady and firm yet friendly. "This whole 'rescue the Jedi mission' has taken up quite a bit of our time and resources. I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I almost got myself killed in a swoop race today. The least you can do is let everyone get a good night's rest." Satisfied he'd put the Jedi in her place, Penn turned his attention back to the lock when Bastila grabbed his arm, turning him to look at her.
"I know you," she said softly, her head tilted slightly. "You were on the Endar Spire."
"Yeah," Penn nodded, glad to know he really had met her sometime in the past, just as he'd thought. "How do you think I met Carth?"
"So you serve the Republic?" Bastila asked.
"Well, that's where things get a bit sketchy for me," Penn said quietly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I think I must've hit my head on the escape pod or something, because I can't quite remember." Though he knew how ridiculous he must sound, Penn couldn't quite read Bastila's expression, so he continued on. "Anyways, not like it matters. The important thing is that we found you and you're safe. By the way, I don't think I ever introduced myself. I'm Penn Thayer," he extended his hand to Bastila, only to be ignored.
Snorting at her incredibly rude behavior, he turned once again to work the lock, a light click informing him he'd succeeded in opening the door. Matters of security seemed to come naturally to Penn - he imagined that was part of his scout training coming into play. As Bastila moved to push the door open, Penn blocked it by extending his long arm across it. "One last thing," he said in a low voice, not to wake the others just behind the door. "There are only two beds left. One by the door, the other three beds over. I'll take the one closest to the door." Nodding she understood, the two tiptoed into the dark room.
Arriving at his sleeping place the moment they stepped inside, Penn began stripping away his shirt to climb into bed when he felt a small hand touch his back before quickly pulling away. "Why aren't you clothed?" Bastila quietly hissed.
"Calm down, babe," he whispered, doing little to hide his aggravation as he turned to face Bastila. "It's just my shirt. And I'm getting ready for bed - I didn't think you were going to try feeling me up."
"I thought you said there would be a bed I could use. And stop calling me 'babe'."
Annoyed and suddenly confused, Penn craned his neck to where an available bed should have been, sighing deeply when he saw the problem. Zaalbar, Mission's wookiee companion, had laid his massive, hairy body across his bed and the one he'd just promised to Bastila. A quick scan around the dark room revealed there were no other available beds. Only his. "Take mine," he conceded. Penn may not have liked Bastila but since she was a lady, he wanted to be polite.
As if she didn't recognize his kind gesture, Bastila folded her arms across her chest. "I'm not sharing that tiny bed with you," she replied coolly.
"And I wasn't asking you to, princess," Penn crossed his arms in return, feeling his blood begin to boil as he explained himself. "I'm offering you the bed. As in I'll sleep on the floor."
Subtly rolling his eyes, Penn moved to sit on the floor between where Bastila would sleep and where Carth already lay, when the Jedi grabbed his arm. "Don't call me 'princess'," she shook her head.
"Babe, princess, it doesn't matter, just go to bed," he pleaded as he freed himself from her grip and lowered himself to the cool floor. After loosening his hair from its tie, Penn closed his eyes and began to drift into a well-earned slumber when he felt a pointed foot poking at his leg. "What?" he groaned, not even bothering to open his eyes as he already knew who it was.
"I need something to sleep in," Bastila whispered.
With a deep breath, Penn sat up, glancing around the room for something suitable for her to wear. Nothing. Trying to maintain his standing as a gentleman, Penn reached back and picked up his balled up shirt he'd planned to use as a pillow. "Here, take this," Penn offered.
After unraveling the bunch and holding it in front of her, Bastila frowned, glancing at Penn from over the shirt. "Your shirt?" she questioned skeptically.
Trying to remain calm, Penn pinched the bridge of his long, chiseled nose in frustration. "Yes," he answered coolly. "Unless of course you'd like to sleep in the nude, which would make for all sorts of interesting conversation in the morning. Your call."
"Fine," she huffed. "Don't look."
"Wasn't planning on it," Penn muttered as he laid down and turned on his side. Once he finally found a comfortable position, his attempts at sleep were interrupted by the sound of Bastila struggling to get out of her Black Vulkar issued ensemble. Cracking one eye open, Penn watched her wiggling, desperately fighting to break free of the impossibly tight outfit. Seeing as she seemed to be getting louder, Penn rose from the floor to help so she wouldn't wake everyone. "I can help," he offered.
"I don't need your help," she turned in anger, moving her hands at lightning fast speeds to slap his hands away from her before they arrived.
"Fine," Penn replied with a nonchalant shrug. "Struggle for the rest of the night. I'd be quiet if I were you though," he narrowed his eyes as he took on a mocking tone. "I've heard wookiees aren't exactly pleasant if you wake them from a deep sleep."
The two glared at one another for several moments before Bastila curled her lips inward, signaling retreat. "Fine," she rolled her eyes as she turned her back to him. "But don't look," she ordered as she lifted her toned arms above her head.
Far too annoyed to be excited at the fact he was undressing an attractive woman, Penn struggled with the top, trying to pull it over her head to no avail. After several minutes of little to no progress, Penn knew he had to employ a different strategy. Pulling a dagger out of his pocket, he moved his lips close to Bastila's ear. "Don't move," he whispered, inadvertently brushing his lips against her. Ever so carefully, he slid the dagger beneath a strap he concluded was holding the top so tightly against her skin. With an upward motion, he sliced it.
The top slipped off Bastila before she could hold it in place. Shocked and embarrassed, Bastila gasped as she covered her breasts with her arm. "I told you not to look," she whispered as loudly as she could, searching for the leather garment along the floor. In the faint light provided by neon signs streaming through the window, Penn could see her bare back - it was smooth, toned and blemish free, and, simply put, sexy. Before he could move his eyes to any other part of her body, Bastila shot up and slapped him across the face. "You're looking," she hissed.
"Not like there's much to see," he quipped, though the statement couldn't have been further from the truth. Seeing her expression change to one of rage, Penn readied himself for another slap as he looked directly into her eyes. Sensing her free hand moving to strike his face once more, he stopped it, grabbing her wrist just inches from his cheek. "Go to bed," he commanded quietly before releasing her wiggling wrist and sitting down on the floor again.
With an oddly feminine grunt of frustration, Bastila finally succeeded in stripping away the equally tight pants. She fumbled in the dark for a few moments trying to find Penn's shirt before she slipped it on and laid down on the bed. "Do you have to lay there?" she complained, inching her face to the edge of the bed nearest Penn.
Having had enough frustration for one evening, Penn was at his wit's end. "Look," Penn quickly rolled his body to face her. "I -" The moment he saw the close proximity of their faces, Penn stopped himself from giving her a piece of his mind. The two were a breath apart, looking directly into the other's eyes.
Both gazed at each other in silence, searching for some sort of explanation for the seemingly unexplainable heat between them. Wanting to be free of the moment and the knot in his stomach, Penn shook his head as he turned his back to Bastila and laid down. "I'm laying here and I'm not moving."
"Fine," Bastila sighed as she rolled her back to face Penn. "Lay there."