Author's Notes: It's a long-ish update, almost 3000 words and I hope you enjoy reading this chapter just as I enjoyed writing it :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of it characters

A few days passed by without much fanfare. Rey had taken to having lunch with Rose and Finn every day, liking them more and more as she got to know them. Poe would join them at times, though his attention would mostly be on Rey, talking to her as if Rose and Finn didn't exist. Sometimes, Rey would notice Kaydel in the background, glaring daggers her way but Poe had since told her not to mind, and Rey tried not to, albeit with some difficulty.

That day, Poe once again joined them for lunch but Rey's concentration was on her phone as she scrolled up to read the previous messages she had exchanged with Ben that morning. They had been swapping more text messages as of late, mostly exchanging pleasantries and asking after each other, though Rey did send the occasional selfie (Rose had taught her that word). In fact, just this morning, she had sent Ben a photo of her outfit for the day—a white, high-collared long-sleeved blouse underneath a blue sundress with pink vintage flower patterns. A pink ribbon wound its way around her slim waist, and on her feet she wore knee high socks and black Mary Jane's.

Ben
Why don't you wear a pink ribbon in your hair?

Rey
I don't know. Don't you think that would be a little much?

Ben
I think it will look better on you.

And that was all it took for Rey to add the pink ribbon, a delicate bow resting atop her head. She had quickly taken another selfie and sent it over.

Rey
There. Happy?

Ben
:)

Rey
Why don't you send me what you're wearing?

It had taken a while for Ben to reply, and when he did, it was a snapshot of himself in his usual suit and tie. He had several of course in various shades, though Rey noticed he had a preference for blacks and dark greys.

Ben
I wear practically the same thing to work every day. I don't know why you would want to see it.

Rey
It's only fair. I show you mine, you show me yours.

Ben hadn't replied after that, which Rey found strange because he usually replied immediately, and she wondered if she had texted something wrong. Perhaps he was just busy with work, she had reasoned, but that didn't stop her from pouring over her messages, trying to discern if she had indeed texted the wrong thing.

A sigh rang from beside her, and she looked up from her phone to see Poe with an exasperated look on his face. "I wish I were a smart phone. Maybe then somebody will notice me."

"What?" Rey's brows furrowed, and when she saw Rose and Finn stare at her with the same look of exasperation, she said, "What's wrong?"

"Rey, you've been looking at your phone since lunch started," Finn pointed out. "You barely even touched your food."

"Oh, sorry." Rey reluctantly put her phone on the table. "It's my stepfather. He usually texts back immediately. He hasn't since this morning. I'm worried I might have texted something wrong."

"Let me see." Rose grabbed her phone before she could protest. One look at the screen, and the girl's eyes widened in shock. After a moment, Rose quietly said, "Rey...you do know what your last message to him meant, right?"

"You mean 'I show you mine, you show me yours'?" Rey said, and instantly, Poe spit out his drink while Finn choked on his hamburger. "What? What did I say?"

"Seriously?" Poe sputtered, then looked at Rey in disbelief. "You don't know what it means? What kind of rock were you living under?"

"Oh, give her a break, Poe," Rose protested and handed Rey back her phone. "You already know she was homeschooled all her life. She's new to all this."

"Okay, sorry." Poe held up his hands as if it would keep Rose's anger at bay. "You want me to explain to her?"

"No, I'll do it." Rose straightened herself in her seat. "Rey... 'I show you mine, you show me yours' is a game kids play when they...show each other their private parts."

"You basically asked your stepfather to show you his penis," Poe chimed in, earning a screech from Rose.

"Poe!"

"What? I'm just saying."

Rose and Poe began to argue, but Rey could barely hear them. She was too mortified to concentrate on anything other than the fact that she may have just asked Ben for a photo of his...his...

"Oh my God," she finally cried out while frantically checking the settings of her phone. "I...I didn't mean to! I just wanted us to swap photos of what we're wearing. Is there a way to unsend a message?"

"Not unless you have a certain app, and even then you usually only have a limited time to unsend." Finn shook his head. "Sorry, Rey."

"What do I do?" Rey was growing more frantic. Oh, what would Ben think of her? "Do I apologize, or..."

"Sweetie, calm down." Rose put a gentle hand on hers. "These things happen. Why don't you take a deep breath?" Rey did as she was told. "That's it. Now, just relax and pretend you never texted him that."

"How can I pretend when it's right there?" Rey showed her phone, the offending message still glaring from the screen.

"If you pretend it didn't happen, maybe he will too," Rose explained, her brows rising in such a way that told Rey the girl had an idea. "I know. Why don't you send him a photo of what you're eating? Just to be casual about things? Don't mention your previous text. And say something cute."

"O-okay." Rey nodded and did as Rose had suggested, taking a photo of her salad and sending it to Ben with the message, 'eating grass like a cow'. She showed the message to Rose, who nodded in approval.

Rey almost dropped her phone when the message notification dinged. She immediately checked the text.

"Is it your stepfather?" Rose asked eagerly, leaning forward to try and see. "What did he say?"

Rey's shoulders relaxed. "He just sent me a photo of his steak. He says 'eating cow like a human being'." She laughed then, part from relief, part from genuinely finding the text funny. She didn't realize Ben had such a sense of humor.

She looked at the picture again and paused. It was shot in such a way that told Rey that Ben was trying to be discreet. He didn't hover the phone over his food to take the picture, but it was taken at an angle, showing everything in the background including the person dining with Ben—a rather attractive woman with platinum blonde hair and wearing the reddest lipstick Rey had ever seen.

She felt her teeth clench together, and she fired back a message.

Rey
Who's that with you?

Ben
Denise Phasma, a good friend.

"Rey? What's wrong this time?" Finn looked at her quizzically. "Why are you pouting like that?"

"Hmm?" Rey looked up at Finn for a moment before staring at her phone again. "It's nothing. My stepfather's having lunch with Denise Phasma."

"Denise Phasma?!" Rose squealed and grabbed Rey's phone again, her jaw dropping when she saw the picture. "Oh my God, it is her!"

"Who is she?" Rey tried to keep her voice casual.

"She's the COO of Hux & Son Technologies," Rose informed, excitement clear in her voice. "She was in Forbes once too."

"Didn't she used to be a model?" Poe recalled.

Rose nodded. "She was in Vogue, yes. She's so beautiful! Hey, Rey, do you think your stepfather's dating her?"

"I...don't know..." Rey swallowed as she took the phone from Rose and stared at the photo again. It looked like they were in some fancy restaurant, and Phasma was certainly dressed to kill in a glittering silver dress.

Then, an idea wormed its way into her head. Something told her it was a bad idea, but it had latched on to her and wouldn't let go.

Turning to Poe, she said, "Hey, Poe. How about taking a selfie with me?"

"Huh? Really?" Poe's tanned cheeks colored, a smile quickly forming on his lips. "Uh, sure, Rey."

Rey turned so she was shoulder to shoulder with Poe, her head close to his cheek. She held out her phone to prepare for the photo, smiling as she did when Poe suddenly put his arm around her just as she snapped a shot. Awkwardly, she extricated herself from him, gave him a small 'thanks' before sending the photo to Ben.

Rey
Having lunch with Poe Dameron.

With a self-satisfied smile on her face, Rey put her phone down and began digging in to her salad in earnest.

It wasn't long before she received a reply.

Ben
Rey, I thought we agreed no boys.

Rey stopped eating and composed her response.

Rey
You said no boys in my room. We're not in my room. We're in the cafeteria.

Ben
It doesn't matter. I don't want you dating at your age.

Rey
Poe and I are not dating.

Ben
Then why did you let him put his arm around you? That's not how proper little girls are supposed to behave.

Something seemed to snap inside Rey, and she began typing furiously on her phone.

Rey
I'm not a little girl anymore, Ben. I'm almost fourteen.

Ben's reply was swift.

Ben
Are you talking back to me, young lady?

He was angry. She could tell. But so was she, and it overrode any semblance of reason she still had.

Rey
Stop calling me that. I'm not a child.

Ben
Then stop acting like one.

It was a curt reply, and Rey found herself shaking with a sudden bout of rage.

Rey
You want me to stop acting like a child? Fine, I will.

Ben
Fine.

Rey practically slammed her phone down the table. She was angry—a feeling so foreign to her, she wasn't sure what to do with herself.

"You okay, Rey?" Finn asked. He looked more than a little troubled. "You seem really pissed."

Rey didn't answer. She couldn't. Not when she was still seething. She had never been angry with Ben before, and for some reason, she grew even more furious when she remembered his photo with Denise Phasma.

"You look cute when you're angry," Poe remarked, and Rey turned to glare at him. It only made his smile widen even more.

"I'm not cute," she said with a growl.

"No, you're not," Poe agreed, then rested his jaw on his palm and added, "Cute isn't enough to describe you. You're gorgeous, Rey."

That gave Rey a pause. Poe didn't sound like he was mocking her. In fact, he sounded serious. Almost dreamy even, and she felt her fiery anger dissipate into a shy warmth as she looked away.

"Eww," Finn stated.

"Barf," Rose followed before turning to Rey again. "So, what was that all about?"

Rey sighed deeply. She wasn't sure how to explain the text exchange she had with Ben, so she decided to put it simply. "My stepfather treats me like a child and I...I want to show him I'm not."

"You can start by doing a wardrobe makeover," Poe suggested, and everyone in the table including Rey turned towards him. "It's a start isn't it?"

"I actually think that's a good idea." Rose nodded in agreement, then put her finger and her thumb against her chin as she eyed Rey's clothes. "You dress your age and maybe he will look at you differently."

"What's wrong with the way I dress?" Rey asked, even though she already knew the answer.

"Nothing. If you live in like 1910," Rose said, not unkindly. "Rey, you know I love your wardrobe. I even want them for myself, but you really should wear more age-appropriate clothes."

"I know." Rey let out a deep breath. "I told Ben that, but he said it won't matter anyway since we'll be wearing uniforms soon."

"You're still going home on weekends, right?" Rose's eyes were sparkling mischievously. "Wouldn't it be great if you came home wearing new clothes? I bet it'll shock him into finally seeing you as a young adult."

Rey thought about it for a moment. She was liking the idea more and more, but there was a problem. "How do I get new clothes? I mean, Ben gave me a credit card to use on extra school expenses, but the school isn't selling casual clothes as far as I'm aware."

"We could go to the mall," Finn suggested. "Our classes end at 3:30. The mall is less than 15 minutes away. We could go there and have you back in your dorm room before your curfew."

"Yes, but we're not allowed off school grounds on weekdays," Rose reminded him. "And we need to get Rey those new clothes before Friday."

"I can get you off school grounds."

Once again, everyone turned to Poe, who had a sly look on his face. "I've done it before. Other students do it all the time. You guys in?

Rey exchanged glances with Rose and Finn. This could be dangerous, she thought. They could get in trouble. But as she thought back to Ben's text messages, only two words came to mind.

"We're in."

"Benjamin?"

"Hmm?" Ben looked up from his phone, half-surprised to find Denise Phasma sitting across from him. He had been so lost in his own thoughts that he had almost forgotten she was there. "I'm sorry. You were saying?"

Phasma's red lips tightened a little but she appeared too poised to show annoyance. "I was just telling you about the time Hux's cat bit my leg. It's a funny story, actually. There I was, going in to report, when suddenly, this ball of orange fur came running towards me and..."

Phasma's words went in one ear and out the other. Ben just kept nodding even though his mind was elsewhere, in particular to that one image attachment in his message inbox.

Rey, smiling, as Poe Dameron put his arm around her.

He felt his teeth clench again in much the same way it did when he first saw the image, his thoughts so focused on it that he actually forgot Rey's earlier embarrassing misstep of a text message.

He should have known this, should have anticipated that boys would take notice of her, but he didn't expect it to happen this soon.

Most of all, he didn't anticipate how he himself would react—the darkening of his vision, the curling of his fingers into fists, the gnashing of his teeth.

Phasma continued to talk, and he continued his pretense of listening.

Dameron. That name had nagged at him ever since Rey mentioned it but now he wouldn't be able to forget it. How close were they? Had she already allowed him to kiss her? Touch her the way he had all those many nights ago?

His face instantly reddened at the memories he thought he had long since buried. Events that had directly led to his sending Rey to a boarding school, and now to her being with that boy. It had all been his fault. He had touched her. Led her to explore herself. Sent her away. And most foolish of all, he had opened a line of communication between them and allowed her into his life despite all his plans to stay far away.

In the end, he couldn't stay away...

"Benjamin, did you hear me?" Phasma's voice finally broke through the haze of his thoughts.

"Oh, forgive me, Denise, I..." he tried to think back to the conversation at hand and managed to glean a few details. "...yes, Hux's cat. Did you manage to get your shots?"

Phasma only stared at him, and it took a few beats before she spoke again. "Benjamin...you really haven't listened to a word I said."

"I'm sorry," Ben apologized again, eyeing his phone, almost willing it to chime but it didn't. "It's just my stepdaughter. She's acting out. What was it you were saying again?"

Phasma's lips tightened into a fine line. "I said, this isn't working out, you and I."

Ben leaned back in his seat, staring as Phasma began to gather her purse. "But...but why? I thought we've been having a wonderful time together."

"The past few days have been wonderful," Phasma affirmed before adding, "Unless of course you count the times when you brood and talk about your stepdaughter and her boarding school shenanigans, which is like all the time." Then, her hard features slowly softened. "Look. I appreciate your efforts in trying to rekindle our romance, but a lot has changed in five years. You have changed. You have a lot more responsibilities now and I'm looking for someone more carefree."

Slowly and gracefully, Phasma stood up from her chair. "I wish you all the best, Benjamin. And I do hope that you're able to sort things out with your stepdaughter. Farewell."

And with that, Phasma left the restaurant, finally leaving Ben alone with his ever darkening thoughts.

If Ben felt anything about her departure, it was a strange mixture of both regret and relief. Phasma was a good woman. They had parted amicably five years ago, and he thought that maybe, just maybe he could start anew with her, just as Rey seemed to be starting fresh with her own life.

And yet...

Grabbing his phone again, he scrolled up the messages and enlarged Rey and Poe's picture, feeling as if a knife was twisting at his heart. It was not unlike what he had felt when he witnessed Annabelle's betrayal...only, he had no right to feel betrayed.

No right at all...

Author's Notes: So, we've got a little friction between Ben and Rey now. Will they be able to resolve it? We're going to have to wait to find out. Please do read and review, or if you're too shy, send me a private message. This fic is also available in AO3 if you're more comfortable with that platform.

Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of it characters