AN: I don't own Star Wars; I just own my OCs. This fic takes place in my "Heart of a Princess" universe in which Ben didn't turn to the dark side and grew up to become a doctor. His wife Ara is only mentioned in passing in that fic, so I decided it was finally time to develop her. Here's a look at how Ben's happier ending started.

"Unexpected Love"

By EsmeAmelia

Chapter 1

Dr. Ben Solo didn't usually swear, but when his speeder engine conked out on the way to the hospital, that would be cause for an exception. Fortunately, the combination of his flying skills and Force-sensitivity meant he could skid to a stop without hurting himself or anyone else, but he was still stuck on the street with a busted speeder when he was supposed to be at work. Even though he commed the hospital to let them know he'd be late, he could still sense his coworkers' frustration when they got the call.

At least there was a mechanic shop nearby, but having to push his speeder there with the Force got more than a few stares from the crowd. He tried not to think about all those times when his father tried to teach him how to fix the Falcon and he hadn't paid much attention. It wasn't his fault that he didn't inherit Han's love of mechanics.

He eased the speeder into the shop using the Force, doing his best to ignore the stares and the amused thoughts coming from the passerby.

"Be right with you," a high female voice called from somewhere within the shop.

"All right," Ben called back, his stomach tightening a little. If his father found out about this, he'd never hear the end of it.

In only took a few minutes before the mechanic came sauntering up to the counter, her goggles resting on top of her head, tangled in her curly black hair. "Ara Greer, at your service," she said, bowing her head and giving him a toothy grin. "What's the trouble, Mr. Solo?"

Ben couldn't keep himself from flinching. Of course she'd recognize the son of the famous Leia Organa and Han Solo, but that didn't make it any less humiliating.

"Oh, I'm sorry," said the mechanic – Ara – leaning forward on the counter. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. Your face is just so, you know, familiar."

"I know," mumbled Ben, feeling his cheeks heating up. "I've gotten that ever since I was a kid."

She was still smiling at him, but now it was a gentler smile than the fangirly grin she'd had before. "Must've been rough, having such famous parents and all."

"Rough" didn't even begin to cover his childhood, but that didn't have so much to do with his famous parents as with his own powers. "You have no idea," he muttered.

The mechanic licked her lips, glancing down at the counter. "Well anyway, what's the problem?"

"Something with my speeder," said Ben. "That's all I know."

He expected her to make some joke about how the son of Han Solo didn't know what was wrong with his own speeder, but instead she just shrugged. "Well, let's take a look at it. I'll get it on the lift." With that, she went skipping up to Ben's speeder, her black curls bouncing on her shoulders. He thought she might ask for his help moving it, but instead she attached what looked like a homing beacon to the speeder and then pulled a small remote out of her pocket.

"This'll connect its energy to the speeder and nudge it to the lift," said Ara, pushing one of the buttons on the remote, which, to Ben's amazement, made the speeder hover over to the center of the garage and rest itself on the lift, which was currently set a few feet off the floor. "Don't get any ideas that it can drive the speeder for you, though," Ara added as she put the remote back in her pocket. "It's only good for nudging, that's it."

"That's . . . pretty neat," said Ben, unable to think of anything else to say.

"Thank you," said Ara, flashing him that grin again and making his stomach flip. Ben wondered if this happened to his mother when his father flashed that crooked grin at her.

"Of course," the mechanic continued, "I'm sure you could have done it with the Force, but those of us who don't have it need to make due with other means."

Ben found himself swallowing. "I . . . hope this won't take too much time."

"Oh, don't you worry," said Ara as she opened the speeder's hood. "You'll be able to go save lives in no time." She leaned over the machinery that Ben knew next to nothing about, humming a playful-sounding tune as she examined it. Several awkward-feeling minutes passed, during which Ben wondered if the woman was expecting him to start a conversation.

"Well, problem's not here," Ara finally said as she closed the hood. "It's probably in your engines." She leaned over the hood, cocking her head at Ben. "By the by, is it true that you can heal people with the Force?"

Ben desperately hoped he wasn't blushing. "It's . . . a bit more complicated than that. I can't, say, perform a surgery using only the Force, but the Force can assist me through the process. The Force also helps me with diagnosing patients."

"Sounds interesting," she said, giving him that smile again. "Maybe sometime you can tell me more." He's so cute.

With her stray thought slipping in to Ben's mind, he felt his cheeks rapidly heating up. He desperately hoped she didn't notice the redness as she pulled her goggles over her eyes and made her way to the speeder's engines – though he usually tried to keep his telepathy in check, he couldn't always block out people's thoughts. What a conversation that would be if she asked about it. "Hey, why are you blushing?" "Oh, I just overheard you thinking that I'm cute." "Wait, you READ MY MIND? You creep!"

He took several deep inhales as she examined the engines, letting the Force clam him. "So," he said in an awkward voice, "is this your shop?"

She snickered. "I wish. No, I just work here and I'm the only one on morning shift today. Most customers, you know, they stop in after work." She started humming that tune again. Nice guy. Maybe I should ask him out.

Upon sensing that thought, Ben's mouth and throat went dry. Calm, calm, stay calm, let the Force flow through you, he kept repeating to himself. It was a passing thought, no more, she probably wouldn't follow through with it.

But what would he do if she did?

No, no, don't clutter your mind with uncertainties . . .

"Yup, yup," she said. "Your right engine's been overworn – it'll have to be replaced. You can come pick your speeder up this evening."

"This evening?" Ben exclaimed.

"Yeah," said Ara, removing her goggles and making her way back to him. "Do you need airbus fare to get to work? I could lend you some."

"No, no," said Ben. "Thanks for offering, though." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, how much will it cost?"

"I'll give you an estimate after the job's done, but it shouldn't be much. Basically, it's the cost of a new engine plus the simple process of installing it."

"Well . . . then I guess I'll see you tonight?"

"Yes," said Ara. "It was nice meeting you, Ben."

"It was nice meeting you too." Ben stood there for a few seconds, wondering if she was going to say anything else – particularly if she was going to actually do what she had been thinking of.

She was gulping, glancing at her boots. "So . . . would you happen to be doing anything after you picked your speeder up?"

"What do you mean?" Calm. Stay calm. Trust the Force. Ben could almost hear his uncle's voice repeating the instructions he'd given so many times.

She shifted her weight from foot to foot, her gloved hands sliding behind her back. "Well . . . I'd like to get to know you a little better, and I was thinking."

Ben had to concentrate on not revealing that he already knew what she had been thinking. "Yes?"

Ara let out a long exhale, making her lips purse out rather cutely. "I'm trying to ask you out, okay? Go ahead, say no. I'm sure you're all busy as a doctor and all and even if you weren't, you probably wouldn't want to go out with a mechanic you just met today."

"I'd love to." The words came out of his mouth almost without him deciding to say them, but once they were out, he felt as if a burden had been relieved. He'd never been asked out – in fact, he'd never been on a date, not even as a teenager. Of course, he'd spent most of his teenage years training with his uncle, but even at Luke's school there had been plenty of flirting among his peers, but at the time he'd been too nervous to ever participate in the flirting.

Ara, however, he felt himself drawn to her. She was nice – genuinely nice, Ben could sense, not merely putting on a front to attract customers. Even if nothing came from this, he could imagine enjoying a dinner with her.

Meanwhile, she was giving a grin that rivaled Han's in wideness. "Great! So, you can come pick up your speeder tonight and we can go out to eat. I know this great restaurant – not too fancy, but not too casual."

Ben smiled back. "That sounds good."

AN: This fic will be a two-parter – Chapter 2 will be their date.