Author's Note: Hello everyone. I hope you've all been enjoying the holidays. I have some news that has also been featured in the author's note of my other story. Some of you might be following along that story, Necessary Repairs, or may have read my one-shot, but in the foreseeable future I plan to begin writing a new fanfiction featuring a different OC that will end up having some Poe/OC action as well as themes from my one-shot, which should be fun. That story will be a lot longer than this one and Necessary Repairs, not really in terms of chapter length, but in terms of how many chapters it will be. These are my warm up fics preparing me to write the new one lol. I also have a poll on my profile for you to help me choose a name for my OC. Anyways, leave a review if you'd like to and I hope you enjoy this chapter. Thanks for your support and may the Force be with you. :)
Poe never returned to the medical ward to get the cut on his jaw checked on. Two weeks had passed since the conflict between Petra and Poe and in that time things around the Resistance base had grown even more busy than before. The calm before the storm had ended and the unrest between the First Order and the Resistance began to pick up speed once more.
Petra walked down the hallway toward the medical ward, still a bit drowsy from the few hours of sleep she'd gotten. It was early morning and she hadn't expected to find many people up and walking the halls. A warm drink was clasped in her hands. The steam seeped into the air and left a sticky heat on her face. It didn't really bother her though. In fact, it felt sort of nice. It felt nice to feel anything.
An immense guilt was on her heart. She was still bitter about what had happened and still had a great deal of disdain for Poe Dameron, but guilt weighed her down. She was part of the Resistance. She'd chosen this path for herself and she'd known the risks before she began her work. It was wrong of her to go against a comrade so violently like she had.
Jett wouldn't have wanted her to be acting this way. Petra let out a long sigh, her footsteps the only sound as she continued through the grey halls of cement floors and walls, bright lights lining the ceiling. They'd met in the medical ward. He, like Poe, had had an injury. Jett's had been worse. He'd had a broken arm and had spent much more time in the ward. Petra had taken care of him. The whole ordeal seemed so long ago to her now. It had been long ago, but not as long ago as it felt. It seemed like just yesterday he'd taken her in his arm and waltz with her outside in the moonlight. He'd asked her to marry him and she'd said yes.
The sound of footsteps heavier than her own jolted Petra from her reverie. Someone was coming up behind her.
Poe Dameron had decided to go for an early morning jaunt with BB-8 in his X-Wing. In the mornings there were very few people awake aside from those stationed in the command center. Most of the pilots were asleep and he could go out with ease for a while and come back refreshed for the day. He'd needed a lot of refreshing lately. He needed to stay focused and sharp. He was a leader.
When he saw the long, brown braid swishing back and forth up ahead he instantly knew who it was. She was dressed in tan pants and a burgundy shirt, sleeves long and buttoned at the end. For a moment he wanted to turn the opposite direction. He certainly hadn't forgotten what had happened between them, but he wasn't looking forward to having another conflict, especially not so early in the morning.
Poe's decision was made for him when BB-8 hurried ahead of him, beeping and whirling and calling him a coward for slowing down.
"BB-8 get back here!" he called through gritted teeth, his voice echoing even though he wasn't speaking very loudly.
Usually with many voices all speaking at once, the halls didn't reverberate the sound nearly as well as they did when only one person was talking. Poe silently cursed himself for saying anything at all.
Petra stopped and turned when she heard the familiar voice and her eyes caught sight of BB-8. The little droid rolled up to her and looked from her to Poe, then back again.
"Hello." Petra spoke softly, the traces of a smile on her lips. She didn't care for his master, but there was no use being spiteful towards the droid. BB-8 had done no wrong.
Poe jogged up the girl and the droid, helmet under his arm.
"Uh, sorry if he disturbed-"
"It's ok. He didn't." Petra interjected before Poe could form a complete sentence. Her eyes were still fixed upon BB-8.
Jett's BB unit hadn't made it through the crash. Perhaps if it had survived it would've softened the blow slightly. Watching BB-8 made her miss them both so much.
When Petra finally summoned the courage to look up at Poe, her eyes were a bit misty.
"Well, we should probably go…" he said, giving a stern look to BB-8, who shook his head at his master.
"Oh, of course. Sorry." Petra replied, lifting the cup in her hands to her mouth for a moment to take a sip of the drink before allowing her dark eyes to flick upward to meet his. His eyes didn't keep her attention for very long though because she noticed the cut across his jaw. It was red.
Poe felt her gaze upon him and realized what she was staring at. "Oh! I never came back. I got busy I'm sorry."
BB-8 gave a noise resembling a snort and Poe scowled at his friend.
"You could come back now if you're not busy. It doesn't look very good." Petra replied calmly. If there was one thing that bothered her most it was someone with a problem she could fix.
Poe Dameron's eyes widened at her suggestion and he nodded. "Yeah, sure, if you don't mind."
Petra took one hand from her cup to wave for him to follow her.
"I feel like I should apologize." Poe stated abruptly as they began walking.
"Can we have this conversation later?" Petra asked, her voice quick and cold, but when she looked over at him he didn't see a look of anger, but one of desperation and he understood.
"Did you go out flying this morning?" she asked him. The question had an obvious answer considering the way he was dressed, but he answered politely anyway.
"Yeah, BB-8 and I went out for a spin. Keeps us both on top of things." he explained with a shrug.
The two turned the corner and Poe hesitated when they reached the doors of the medical ward before following Petra inside. It was quiet and JO-2 was organizing in the corner. Poe found himself sitting down on the same bed that he had the other time Petra had helped him and she took his helmet again and placed it in the same spot next to him.
This time, unlike the last, Poe remained silent, eyes following the woman's nimble hands as she pulled out another antiseptic wipe.
"This might hurt."
"I'm fine."
Petra reached forward to wipe the cut and she felt Poe jump slightly under her touch. It wasn't her fault. He was the one who never came back for further treatment.
BB-8 stayed nearby, watching the two humans intently.
"My past visits me some times to remind me that I'm not ok. It reminds me I'm still hurting." Petra said softly, putting down the wipe and reaching for some ointment. "I shouldn't have lashed out at you that way." she added, shaking her head as if to clear the bad thoughts away.
Poe's eyes never strayed from her and he smiled gently. "No, it's ok. Sometimes I think I could use a bit of a lashing."
Petra couldn't help but snicker a bit at his response and seeing her laugh made Poe feel a bit better. Petra used her finger to apply the ointment to the cut and stepped back before heading to the sink nearby to wash her hands.
Something felt lighter inside Petra now. Talking to him wasn't as bad as she'd thought. She just dreaded the idea of speaking about what had happened with him. She wasn't ready to forgive and she didn't think she'd ever forget.
