Rey took a deep breath, holding her phone in shaking hands. "You got this," she assured herself, nodding along with her own words. "You totally got this." She opened up the text window, and then chucked the cell halfway across the room as if it had burned her. "Yeah, nope. Can't do this." She collapsed back onto her bed, a heavy sigh escaping. Staring at her ceiling, she felt frustration rise up in her chest and she punched at a fuzzy pillow. "Ugh! Why can't I do this?" she tapped her fingertips together, hating the nervous energy that bounced around her body.
A knock sounded at her front door and she shot up, sliding across the polished hardwood floor, barely able to stop herself from crashing into the walls. She yanked at the knob and found herself staring at an old man with graying hair and deep-set eyes, his hand poised to knock again. Rey tried to hide the fact that she was out of breath and failed.
"Hi," Her landlord, Luke, greeted her curtly, not in an unfriendly way, that was just how he spoke. He ignored her red face and heaving breaths and went straight into business. "I wanted to inform you that an electrician will be coming over in a few hours to check the fuse box in the basement, so you will be without any power for a while." He waited for her to nod her understanding, and then turned to leave.
"Wait!" The words spilled out of her mouth of their own will, and she wished she could reach out and stuff them into a box. And then take the box and throw it into hell, so it would burn and be destroyed. Luke paused, casting a glance at her over his shoulder. "I was just—I need help with something." Her face flushed bright red, and she knew she was in too deep to try to back out now. "I know you probably don't care, but you seem like the type of guy with a lot of life experience, so I just have to ask."
He raised his brows in surprise, and then shifted to face her. "I've got all day," he said, leaning against the doorframe and crossing his arms.
"Ah, this is so stupid," Rey clutched her head in her hands and cleared her throat before speaking. "I kinda sorta maybe really like this guy and I don't know how to tell him and we haven't known each other for very long and I doubt he feels the same way and I just—I don't know what to do. I'm so stressed about it I can't even sleep." The words escaped in a rush, and she wondered if he could comprehend any of it. "What do you think I should do?"
"Hmm, quite the pickle you have yourself in, huh?" Luke stroked his beard for a moment, deep in thought, before raising and wagging a finger at her, a smile spreading across his face. "Ask if you can go out to dinner or something like that. Say you have no power at your apartment and can't cook anything, and another meal of McDonald's will make you sick." She opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off with a wave of his hand. "I've seen you walk in with a bag of that garbage six times in the past two weeks. Trust me, one of these days all those cheeseburgers will catch up with you."
She rolled her eyes, unable to deny his statement. "That's pretty good, I guess," she admitted, pursing her lips. "Should I call or text him?"
"Call. It shows you care."
Rey couldn't help but marvel at his advice. "Have you ever thought about doing this professionally?" she asked, only half-joking.
He shrugged and pushed off the wall, starting to walk away. "My nephew is the same as you. Hopelessly in love with a girl he fears will never want him. I've been getting pretty good at handing out 'kinda-sorta-maybe' date ideas. All I'm good for nowadays."
"Oh, hush." She swatted at him, but he was too far out of reach. She closed her door, feeling dread settle in her stomach. Blowing out a breath, she rubbed her eyes and groaned, "Why does this all have to be so hard?"
_SW_
Ben had just finished reviewing a divorce case when his phone rang. He glanced at his watch, confused. He hadn't been expecting a call, and his secretary, Phasma, didn't inform him of one over the intercom. Picking up the receiver, he held studied the number displayed on the small screen of the base. "Hello, this is Ben Solo of Snoke and Sons Law Firm. How can I help you?" he rubbed his forehead, unaccustomed to the introduction. Usually Phasma did all of this.
"Ben?" a woman's voice bubbled over the line, and he straightened subconsciously, instantly recognizing the speaker. "Hey, it's me, Rey. I'm sorry to call you at work but—"
"No, no! You're all good," he glanced over at the door to make sure it was still locked (a precaution to keep Hux from barging in whenever he wanted) and lowered his voice. "Honestly, today has been mind-numbingly boring. I'm glad for the interruption."
He could sense her smile as she spoke. "Oh, well, I'm glad I'm so good at interrupting. Anyway…" she paused, and Ben felt his heart skip a beat. He couldn't bear any more bad news. Work was already depressing enough. "I was wondering if you would like to go out to dinner tonight. My treat. As a sort-of thank you for helping me with my book. And also the power's out at my flat and I can't use the stove."
Ben pressed the phone to his shoulder and whispered, "Yes!" while pumping his fist in the air. Clearing his throat, he said at a normal volume, "Yeah, that sounds great! Did you have anywhere in mind?" he spun around in his chair, fighting back a silly grin.
"Actually, yeah! There's this really funky restaurant called Flyboy that my friend Poe runs. It's a cool mix between, like, a fifties-styled diner and a five-star gourmet place. And I get a discount when I eat there, so that's what usually seals the deal for me. What do you think?"
He remembered Hux and Phasma making fun of some weird airplane-centric joint on the other side of town, calling it a "cesspool of freaks and geeks." "I'm in."
"Awesome! Do you wanna meet there, or I could pick you up, or…?"
"How about I pick you up?" he suggested, trying his best to sound nonchalant, when really he was pinching himself to make sure it wasn't just a dream.
"Sounds great!" she rattled off her address almost quicker than he could write it down, and then added, "Oh, and wear a suit. Tie and everything. Bye!" Rey hung up abruptly, and he found himself staring at the phone, a huge grin spreading across his face.
"Yes! Yes yes yes!" he stood and danced around his desk, humming a nonsense beat and still smiling like a dope, unaware that Hux and Phasma were crouched outside his door, their ears pressed to the wood.
They exchanged baffled glances. "He's in a better mood than usual," the secretary commented, rising and moving back to the filing cabinets to resume her sorting.
"Yeah, I hope he just closed that stupid case about the man suing his brother," Hux sneered, strolling back to his own office. "It's a waste of our company's time." He slammed his door shut with as much flourish as possible.
Phasma smiled to herself as she tucked folders into their place. "Only one thing makes a man that happy," she rolled her eyes, sighing. "and that's a girl."