Chapter 9: Revolution

On the ninety-fifth day after Carrivar, Ben was stony-faced and distant during their training, barely even grunting an acknowledgement when she bid him good morning. Rey didn't push it. Her mind was sharper now that she had alleviated some of her sexual frustration, but she was dismayed that her pulse still quickened at the sight of him. After completing her weight training exercises, while awaiting her turn for instruction, Rey watched Ben work with Luke.

While Master Luke always moved with surprising grace for a man his age, it was Ben's growing power in the Force that entranced her today, the way he anticipated every move so expertly, deflected every strike with just flick of his wrist, his brows cinched in concentration. He tended to bite his lip, too, when he was really exerting himself, and Rey couldn't help thinking about everything else that mouth could be used for.

During her own time with Luke, Ben didn't observe as he usually did, choosing instead to run through forms facing away from them. Forms were his least favorite part of training, and Rey was affronted by the implication of this, so affronted that Luke managed to land at least three blows. Even her barks of pain were not enough to turn Ben's head. She did not like this version of Ben that was indifferent to her.

When they broke for lunch, Rey tried to engage him in conversation again, but he answered in shrugs and monosyllables. Only once was she able to coax any semblance of a smile out of him. Ben seemed to be channeling Kylo's grim temperament from those early days on Dagobah and these echoes of their past were no comfort at all. In fact, Rey felt disquieted by the likeness and her gut twisted in reproach.

Although she was still inexperienced in friendship, Rey knew this change was in some way her doing, knew that it couldn't have been a simple coincidence that Ben was acting this way the day after she had allowed him to overhear her self-pleasure. Yet it seemed ridiculous to her that he could be so affected by it, especially when lewd noises could be overheard in the barracks nearly every night. Often from the direction of Finn and Poe's room, if she was being honest, although Rey certainly did not want to think about that the next time she watched a holo on their bed.

After stewing in silence until training resumed, Rey decided that what most annoyed her was the fact that Ben was behaving like this after she had been suffering for the last month without complaint. And now, just when she finally felt like she could be near him again without embarrassing herself, Ben had to have the exact opposite idea. It wasn't fair at all.

At the end of the afternoon, Master Luke announced that today's sparring would be hand-to-hand combat and Ben managed to look even unhappier than he had seemed that morning. They were both in their ready stances, knees bent and fists up, when Luke suddenly jerked his head to the side, eyes unfocused.

"Leia needs me in the command center," he said, after a moment. "You can finish without me. Don't break anything while I'm gone."

They both pulled faces behind Luke's back, and Ben almost grinned before apparently remembering that he was supposed to be miserable. Before Rey could comment, he threw the first punch and they were off.

She evaded his attacks quite easily, but he blocked her kicks with just as little effort. A jab toward his solar plexus glanced off as Ben dodged away, and he used the momentum against her, a well-placed foot sending Rey tumbling toward the corner of the room. She recovered with a somersault, springing up and dodging away before he could trap her. They circled one another slowly, and Rey couldn't help herself.

"Come on, Ben. I know you can do better than that."

He smirked and Rey felt the Force coming even before her legs went out from under her. She allowed herself to fall this time, landing on her side.

"That's cheating!" But she was chuckling, already propped up on her elbow. Ben had a real smile on, now, and stepped forward to offer her a hand up. She reached for it and pulled.

He fell on top of her, arms and knees catching his weight on either side of her body. Their faces were aligned and he was looking down at her in surprise. Rey felt the ends of his hair tickling her forehead.

"Now who's cheating?" His voice was gruff, raspy, just a caress on the side of her mouth. But his eyes told her everything.

Ben wanted her.

Whatever fulfilment Rey had attained the night before faded completely and her desire bloomed like a bruise across her skin. Her hands drifted up to curl around his biceps, to pull him closer.

Ben tensed, searching her face for answers. "What game are you playing, Rey?" She swallowed hard and leapt into a new world.

"Aren't I allowed to find you attractive?"

His cheeks pinked and Rey watched in wonder as the flush grew, spreading out toward his ears and down his neck into his shirt. She wanted to follow it with her touch.

"A Jedi doesn't act on attraction."

Rey rolled Ben onto his back and straddled him, pinning his shoulders down.

"Who said I wanted to be a Jedi, Ben?" His eyes were dark, locked on her lips. "What about you? Are you planning to become a Jedi?"

He dragged his gaze back up to hers. "It's looking less and less appealing." This earned a smile from her.

"Are you going to touch me?" she asked, emboldened. His throat bobbed and Rey followed the movement with her eyes hungrily.

"Would you like me to?"

She released his shoulders, shifting her weight toward his pelvis. Slowly, she lifted his left hand to her breast. Ben palmed it, watching her carefully as his thumb brushed over her nipple. His other hand was on her thigh, massaging gently and then sliding up to cup her ass. The softness of his touch was driving her crazy.

On an instinct, she moved herself down his body and there, yes, he was hard for her. A choked noise escaped the man beneath her and she rolled her hips to draw it from him again. His hands roamed bolder now, and Rey made sure to reward him with a little sound in the back of her throat.

They both froze at the distant buzz of a cleaning droid down the hallway. A split second later, the door to the training room slammed shut, the strength of their combined Force push causing the walls around them to shudder. They glanced at each other in astonishment and then they were laughing, Ben's head thrown back, his hands spanning Rey's waist. She sank into him, felt his mirth vibrating through her, and let herself relax against the breadth of his chest. Then he looked at her intently, suddenly serious, and she realized that they had still not kissed.

Ben touched her cheek, trailed the back of his fingers along her jaw, and she leaned into it, drawing even closer to him. His lips met hers so faintly that she almost mistook it for a breath. They both pulled back slightly to regard each other once more. Something tightened in Rey's ribcage at the sight of the birthmarks scattered like a constellation across his skin and she tilted forward to kiss him properly, hands cradling his face. Her bottom lip fit perfectly above his.

Ben's fingers were simultaneously tangled in the hair at the nape of her neck and splayed across her lower back, holding her to him. He opened up to her with a soft exhale and she responded in kind, letting her teeth sink lightly into the tender flesh of his mouth, eliciting a muffled groan that made her thighs clench. Rey pressed more deeply against him, their tongues delving and tasting. She never wanted to stop kissing him.

Unfortunately, Rey's stomach had other plans and decided to voice this opinion quite audibly.

"Somebody ready for dinner?" Ben asked, eyebrows raised and clearly resisting a smirk. Rey shut her eyes in embarrassment. "It's fine, really. We can always pick up where we left off after meditation. If you can last that long."

"If I can last that long?" She ground against him to punctuate her point. He bucked his hips involuntarily.

"Such a cheater, Rey," he gritted out, but his hands kept her there, connected to him.

Her fingers skimmed the smooth ridge of his clavicle. "Are you admitting defeat?"

Ben grinned. "Never."