Once again, thank you so much to my beat hithelleth and thanks to everyone for reading!


Ben lost track of time as he helped his father out in the garage, holding the flashlight or trying to figure out exactly what tool or part his father needed next when he was waving his hands wildly about. Every so often Ben wished he had paid attention more as a child or come back to the garage as a teenager and picked up more useful skills. He didn't keep a car in the city, it was too expensive, but he didn't think he'd stay in the city forever and he would love to be able to fix his own car without relying on anyone else.

His mother would say it was his father's independent streak that Ben inherited, but his father would claim that Ben's stubbornness was directly inherited from his mother and then his parents would be off arguing about all of their faults, which always seemed to lead to either one walking out or makeup sex.

If Ben wanted to point out why he had trouble in relationships, he only had to look to his parents for the terrible example they had set for him. Both seemed to put work first, then each other, and Ben was left off on his own most of the time, which is why the times he did spend with father in the garage were some of his happiest memories.

However, for the first time in a long time, Ben couldn't get a girl out of his head. Rey had managed to entice him with one meeting and he found he was already lying to his parents to try to get back to her. His flight back was on Saturday, but he wanted to make sure he had some time between leaving his parents and arriving to New York. Well, if he happened to decide to spend the night in Jakku before going home, that would just be a bonus. If she was available, of course. There was no guarantee. Should he text her now? Should he invite her to dinner and then back to the hotel or just skip dinner and keep this incredibly casual? It had been a while since Ben had played these games and he wasn't sure what the protocol for a one night stand that seemed up for doing it again was.

He must have zoned out for a bit because the next thing he noticed was his father snapping his fingers to get Ben's attention. He shook his head and blinked his eyes to bring himself back to the garage. His stomach took that moment to rumble and he looked at his watch. Almost 2! They had been out here for hours and he hadn't realized that it was past lunch time.

"C'mon, I heard that. Your mother's still off in town so we can whip up something quick for lunch. You know she'll expect you to eat a lot tonight. The more you eat, the less you have to talk," Han said.

Ben smirked at that trick. His father would always time eating at just the right moment so that his mother couldn't get the answers to the questions she asked as instantly as she wanted.

"Has Mom's cooking improved since she moved here? Now that she has time to practice."

"Don't count on it. She hasn't burnt the house down yet, but you're just lucky she's going out to get the stuff for your favorite meal. Here," Han threw him an old rag, "you might want to hit the shower before dinner. Knobs are still a little finicky in your bathroom, give it a moment for hot water. Towels should be under the sink."

Feeling properly dismissed, Ben headed back to the house and up the stairs, with each step bringing him further back in the past and reminding him of the good and bad times in the house. It was like walking back in time and he really shouldn't have expected any different when he opened the door to his old bedroom, which he hadn't redecorated since high school. The walls were covered with band posters and he knew he wouldn't fit in any clothes in his room. He looked around the room again, and noticed that his mother probably came in regularly to vacuum and wash the sheets to keep the room smelling fresh.

After showering, Ben laid down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling the same way he did as a child, except now his legs hung further off the end of the bed. He fiddled with his phone for a bit; it was still a workday and he was responsible for checking his email periodically, but nothing came in that Hux or Phasma wouldn't be able to handle so he forwarded on the emails and ended up drifting off to sleep, not waking up until his mother called him down for dinner.

He went back slowly downstairs, not sure what to expect. Would the dinner be incredibly awkward? Who else would his mother manage to invite over? He was curious about where his uncle Luke was now, he always seemed to be on the move and Ben had lost track of his whereabouts years ago. As he approached the dining room, because of course his homecoming would warrant using the formal dining room and fine china, he heard Chewie's boisterous laugh. He hoped it would just be Chewie and his parents tonight, then he'd just have to get through two more days and he could be back to his solitary lifestyle in New York.

The food was set out on the table and Ben let out a sigh of relief when he saw only four places set out. His mother sat next to his father, with Chewie across from his father. That left the only free seat across from his mother. When Ben caught his father's eyes, Han just winked and mouthed "good luck."

"Beer or wine with dinner? Sit, sit. Eat up," his mother said, scooping food on to his plate.

"Beer is fine," he replied. Leia scurried off to the kitchen to grab him a bottle and no one dared to speak with her not in the room.

When she returned, the tension was so thick it could be cut with a knife. Ben didn't want to be the one to start talking, he didn't even know where to begin. He knew the first question would be "why now?" and that's exactly where his mother started.

"Not that we aren't happy to see you, but why now?"

Ben didn't know how to answer that. How could he face both of his parents and tell them that his father just looked more desperate to see him home this last time? Or that he didn't have any friends in New York, just colleagues, because he was a workaholic. His greatest fear at this point was dying alone and no one noticing him missing. Of course, he couldn't tell this to them, not yet at least. He didn't want them to become overprotective parents. They weren't there for him growing up and he only wanted them mildly in his life now. He took a deep breath and decided to go with a more diplomatic answer.

"It was time. I don't want to live with any more regrets. I know both of you didn't have the best relationships with your parents and I guess I finally grew up," he said. It was partly true and enough to satisfy his mother. Or so he hoped.

From there, dinner proceeded much more smoothly, with his parents gossiping about the neighbors and allowing Ben to think about what he wanted to say next.

"How is Uncle Luke?"

"Oh," Leia's face dropped and she took a large gulp of wine. "Luke went to live off the grid in California about two years ago. Haven't heard from him since. At least this time he decided to stay in United States. As far as we know, he's still out there, but he honestly could have moved on since."

Hearing this about his uncle didn't surprise him in the slightest. He always knew his uncle was a little eccentric and had a tendency to take off and explore, losing all track of time. This made for some interesting stories, such as his backpacking adventures through Europe in the 1970s or all of the beautiful sites he had chosen visit like the Taj Mahal, Machu Picchu or Angkor Wat. His uncle was a bit of a nomad and since he never really kept to one place long, his parents always kept a spare room open to him. Much like Ben's room was covered in posters, his uncle's room was covered with pictures he had taken over the years. As a child, Ben had spent many hours staring at the pictures and dreaming of one day traveling to all of them.

Now that he was finally old enough to travel, he wondered why he hadn't. Yes, he was a workaholic, but was all the work worth anything? He supposed he was a little old to be going through a quarter life crisis but a little young for his mid-life crisis. Maybe this was another factor in his decision to come home, but he wasn't about to explain any of this to his parents. He mentally made a vow that he would reevaluate his priorities when he got back to New York.

After dinner, they all moved in to the living room, with Han grabbing beers for everyone but Leia. They settled in to watch Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune and whatever comedies were on TV, continuing with only small talk. Ben said good night to everyone and headed upstairs to be left to his thoughts. This trip may have done more good for him than he'd expected as it made him think about what else he wanted out of his life.

He had spent so much time earning money in New York, but not really having anyone to spend it on, only spending enough to live on for himself. Even though his parents were not always in the best spot in their relationship, they always knew they could come back to each other and that they had each other when it counted. Who was he left with?

The next day passed in much the same way, he spent the day with his father and Chewie in the garage, listening to them banter back and forth and only catching parts of the conversation, since Chewie was speaking half in Russian and half in English. He made a mental note to practice what he had forgotten. He kept quiet most of the day, instead just reveling in being the silent observer, lost in thought.

Friday morning started out in a somber atmosphere in the Solo household. His mother seemed unsure of how to act and Ben figured it was mostly his fault. He saw how she hesitated with everything, not sure how long it would be before she would see him again. Now that he had broken the unspoken rule of not visiting, he'd had to reassure her that he was not walking away again.

"Mom, I'll come back and visit. Or at least call," he started before she walked across the kitchen to pull him into another death grip hug. Maybe because he wasn't a parent, he couldn't quite understand a parent's love for a child. He looked down at the tears flowing from his mother's eyes and moved to wipe them away, which only caused more.

"You know, you and Dad can come visit me in the city. I don't have the room to host you, but I can always find a hotel for you and treat you to all the sites."

"That sounds lovely, Ben. You're always welcome here and don't you forget it!" His mother said, not releasing her grip on him, which is how his father found them when he walked in from the garage. Uncle Chewie was right behind him and Ben was grateful he was able to say good bye to everyone.

Han and Chewie followed him out to the car and Ben rolled down the window once he was settled in the car.

"Call your mother. She worries, you know that. I'll see you next time I'm up North, maybe bring Chewie this time," Han said. Ben noticed that his father always talked about his mother worrying, but it was unspoken that his father worried just as much.

He set off down the road with the goal of reaching Jakku in time for lunch, texting Rey and then spending the afternoon catching up on work. He didn't want to seem too eager, so he thought he would ask Rey to dinner and then see where it led from there. When he arrived in Jakku, the first thing he did was text her.

In Jakku again. Up for dinner tonight? – Ben

He waited a few minutes for her response and when he didn't get an immediate response, he assumed she was busy and settled in to his own routine, pulling headphones on to distract him while he worked on the laptop, trying to solve whatever crises arose that Hux and Phasma couldn't seem to solve on their own. He ended up getting lost in work and suddenly realized it had been two hours and that his phone was blinking.

Sure. 7 ok? Same bar? – Rey

He texted her back that it was fine and now he wondered what he would do until then. He was almost done with work so he settled back and flipped through the TV, hoping some movie would be on. As it got closer to 7, he took a shower and got ready, trying to achieve the perfect casual look that said he was interested, but not trying too hard. They were just meeting at a bar, he reasoned.

Ben arrived right at 7, not wanting to be late and spotted Rey walking towards the door at that exact moment. He held the door open for her, trying to be a gentleman, but she laughed.

"I could probably bench press more than you, no need to hold the door open."

"Let me treat you right tonight," Ben said as she headed to a table towards the back.

If there was one thing his father had instilled in him, it was that if you want a woman, treat her right. His father always seemed to be wistful and would mutter under his breath while giving Ben this advice, but Ben knew his father was a charmer and his mother loved his father's charisma.

When the waitress came to take their drink order, Ben ordered himself a rum and coke, but Rey only ordered a water. She must have noticed his quizzical look because she leaned in.

"Can't drink alcohol tonight. Bartenders don't card me on most nights, but I know better than to try tonight."

Ben leaned back, surprised by this. He knew she was young, but he assumed she was at least 21 because he had seen her drinking the night before and mostly keeping up with him. He knew she was still studying for a degree but he had learned not to judge someone's age based on where they were with their career goals. He knew not everyone was quite as ambitious as him, nor given the same opportunities he had been given.

This revelation definitely changed how he thought the rest of the night would go. He made the assumption that they would both drink a bit, maybe play darts and he was hoping that they would end up back in his hotel room. He took a deep breath.

"How old are you then?"

"Just turned 19." She smiled and that smile melted him.

Ben didn't want to admit how old he was, but knew he wouldn't lie to her if she asked. Luckily she didn't press the issue and the waitress returned with their drink to take their order at that moment. As much as he had tried to fight it, he had ended up being just like his father, who was several years older than his mother. He tried to think of what to do this evening, now that she wasn't going to be drinking and he was. He then asked why she stayed in Jakku if all she wanted to do was see the world.

"My family left me here when I was a child. If they're going to find me again, I want to be here for them. I remember them telling me they would come back, so until then, I'm going to stay here. Don't get me wrong, I have plans to go off and finish my degree but then come back here."

He felt for the poor girl, being abandoned by her own family in this awful place. He understood her reasoning for wanting to stay and was slightly sorry for bringing up her painful past. When he said this to her, she just waved it off and gave another cheerful smile. This right here was what he was falling in love with. Her resilience and the way she seemed to smile through anything.

Their food arrived quickly and Ben asked her more questions, trying to leave out details about why he was here but when she stared up at him, he broke and explained that he was finally coming home to see his parents after years of not seeing his mother and seeing his father on seldom occasions. She nodded with understanding. When they were done eating, Rey challenged him to another game of darts, but Ben had other ideas. He leaned down to whisper in her ear, "How about Netflix and chill? We can stop and pick up beer or whatever."

"Sounds like a plan to me," she smiled again and leaned up to kiss him on the cheek before dragging him out of the bar.


Chapter Title from the song "My Old Man's Son" by Eli Young Band