Song: Go to War by Nothing More

Chapter 10: Go to War

Ben knew that no one was going to believe them that they said they weren't together, but he wasn't expecting them to come up with names for their relationship. People couldn't seem to agree which one was the best, but there were multiple. Reylo seemed the most common, but it didn't make sense to him since he was no longer Kylo Ren, unless they were mixing her name with his last name. Other people said ReyBen, which some said sounded too much like Ray-Ban. Then there was Bey, in addition to multiple random ones that people with nothing better to do came up with. He just shook his head, "People are naming us as a couple."

Rey laughed, "I know, it's funny." She no longer panicked at the thought of people shipping them. In fact, she was taking it much better than Ben would have thought and it gave him hope that she was changing her mind. "But you should have seen Finn's reaction at the mere thought, it wasn't pretty."

"I'm sure it wasn't," he responded uncomfortably. He shifted in his seat, "but that's not really what I want to talk about right now." They were once again in his makeshift office, working on finishing writing Jedi's album. Ben was seated across from Rey, both of their notebooks spread out on the coffee table in front of them.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" she asked, worried that he was going to say no and break it off.

"I just need some time to get used to," he told her, "but I want to make this work." He saw the look on her face and moved to the couch she was sitting on, pulling her to his side, "I mean it." Ben tried to say it with conviction, but it still seemed difficult for her to believe.

"Promise?" she asked vulnerably.

"I promise," he pulled her in for a gentle, chaste kiss. "Are you still going to come over tonight after Finn's reaction?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," she smiled. Finn was not going to control their relationship, even if he somewhat controlled when they'd be going public about it.

"Paige reached out to my mom," Ben told her with a smile. "She's meeting with Cass and Jason this afternoon."

"That was fast!" Rey grinned, "They're going to love her, I know it!"

Ben smiled at how excited she was, but at the same time it worried him. He had no idea if Paige would fit in with the group, but he didn't want to disappoint her. It was the main reason he was not the one Paige would be seeing first. After the look Rey gave him, he knew there was no way he could say no if it were solely up to him. "I'm sure they will, but don't get too excited in case they don't," Ben bit his lip, hating the way her eyes dulled at his words. "I'm not saying she won't be a good fit, I just don't want you to get your hopes up too high in case she isn't. She at least realizes who I was, right?"

"You have to live under a rock not to know by now," Rey rolled her eyes. "But yes, I warned her when I suggested it to her."

"Good, now let's get to work so we can finish writing and get you guys into the studio," Ben smiled. He was more anxious than ever to get into the studio and, hopefully, have her friends warm up to him so they didn't have to lie to everyone.

"That ready to get rid of me, huh?" Rey teased.

"You caught me," he joked, giving her a quick kiss before grabbing his notebook off the table.

"Fine, I guess we can work, so long as we get to play later," she winked.

"Keep teasing and we're not going to be getting any work done," he warned.

"Well, maybe I don't want to work," she told him, biting her lip.

Ben just shook his head, "Don't you want to get your first album done and get your music out there? Start touring and all the shit that comes along with it."

"Honestly? I'm terrified at the idea. What if people hate us?" Rey was worried that she would remain nothing, just another rock band that never made it. She worried they would always be a band using a van to travel and playing small venues/bars for nothing. They were almost done with the writing process and moving to the next step scared her, for more reasons than she wanted to admit. Not only did moving on mean being closer to finishing the album, it also meant the rest of the band meeting Ben and possibly hating him.

"You're far to talented for that," he assured her.

"You're a little bias," she laughed. "I am sleeping with you after all," Rey pointed out with a smile.

"I thought you were talented even with you hated me," he admitted. "Far too good to be some underage kid pretending to be old enough to playing at a bar."

"See, if you could just be this sweet to everyone then people would like you more," she kissed him.

"Hm, do you really want me being this sweet to all of the women I meet?" he asked playfully. "I mean, you got jealous enough when I was trying to recruit Cass for my band."

Rey blushed, "I have no idea what you're talking about." She didn't want to admit that she wanted to punch the woman when she first met her because she had been irrationally jealous.

"It's okay, I'd be jealous too if I thought you wanted to be with someone else," he smiled. "Though you handled it a lot better than I probably would have."

"You knew I was jealous?" she asked, part of her wondering why he didn't make a move back then if he had already known she wanted him.

"I couldn't be sure, but I had my suspicions. I wasn't sure if it was because you were jealous or if I just wanted you to be." Ben shifted in his seat, always a little uncomfortable when it came to admitting his feelings.

"Alright, let's finish this so we can get in the studio," she smiled, "but don't you dare think you're getting rid of me once we're done."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Ben couldn't help but wonder how he'd gotten so lucky as he looked at Rey smiling back at him.

It was about an hour into their writing session and they were on a roll, mainly going over and tweaking songs that were already written to get them studio ready. They had basically written the album, maybe needing one or two more songs written before they could get into the studio. Ben's phone went off with a text alert, pulling them out of their focus. 'Pretty sure Paige isn't going to work out,' Jason had text him.

Ben frowned at the message before responding, 'Why?'

'Let's just say her and Cass aren't playing nice,' it wasn't necessarily surprising to Ben. He hadn't been sure how Cass would respond to another woman in the band. 'You should come see for yourself,' Jason's suggestion made Ben curious enough to stop the session and see what was going on. Part of it was curiosity, the other part was out of hope he could get the women to play nice.

"So, do you want to see a cat fight?" he asked as he put away his phone. "I guess Cass and Paige did not get off to a good start," he explained when Rey gave him a confused look in response.

"That's impossible, everyone likes Paige," Rey was shocked to hear that they weren't getting along.

"You've met Cass, right?" Ben chuckled, knowing the woman could be a little much at first, but once someone got to know her she wasn't so bad. It helped that she was a kickass drummer and that Ben and Jason had learned to deal with difficult personalities a long time ago. "I'm going to go see what's going on."

Rey nodded, getting up to follow him. It was disappointing to her to think that Paige wouldn't be a good fit for the band. She was hoping to have an ally that would see the good side of Ben and talk him up to her band. Unfortunately, it looked like that wasn't going to happen and Ben still wouldn't have a bassist.

The room they had commandeered to meet Paige wasn't very far from Ben's writing room and a few minutes later they were walking in to find Paige and Cass arguing. "So, what's going on here?" Ben interrupted, his deep voice carrying above the two women's argument.

"For starters she was late," Cass snapped in response.

"It's not my fault there was an accident on the freeway," Paige snapped back, her arms crossed in a defensive stance.

Ben looked at her and understood why Cass probably didn't like her. It wasn't as if the girl was unattractive, she just put no effort into her appearance. While Cass wouldn't care if the woman were dolled up, she didn't like the ripped jeans, old faded hoodie, and ratty Converse as a first impression. Her dark hair was pulled back into a messy ponytail, showcasing her lack of make-up. It wasn't as if the woman needed make-up, but it wasn't helping her cause in Cass' eyes when it came to her believing the woman had no care about first impressions. If that was how she showed up for what was basically and interview, what would she wear for an interview on television?

In reality, Paige had always had more important things to worry about than her appearance and so she never put much thought into it. Growing up she had to take care of her sister from a young age when their parents unexpectedly were murdered in an armed robbery. At the age of eighteen she was forced to be her sister's caregiver, taking on odd jobs to support them. Needless to say, her appearance had taken back seat to making sure that they were fed and taken care of.

Ben sighed; this was the exact situation that he had not wanted to be put into. "I know you're not just pissed because she was late, what else is going on?" he asked as he walked further into the room, sitting down in one of the empty chairs. Rey followed suit, sitting next to him, equally as curious as to what happened, if not more.

"She has no fucking idea why she wants to be in this band! It makes me wonder if this is just some kind of stepping stone for her to start a career," Cass hissed, glaring at Paige.

"To be fair you wanted nothing to do with us at first," Jason pointed out, causing Cass' glare to shift to him. "Just saying," he mumbled.

"Isn't that what everyone is looking for when they first join a band? A way to break into the music industry, it's not like we all grew up together and are close friends. We have no idea if this band is going to work out or if we'll crash and burn and end up going our separate ways," Ben frowned, but he knew it was true. The future was no guarantee and at any point someone could decide they are done and leave, at which point the rest of them would just have to find someone else. It happened, especially when a band was just thrown together and had no prior connections. "But if you're not going to be able to work together then I'm sorry Paige, but it's not going to work out. Cass became part of this band first," he told her.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Jason chimed in. "We haven't even heard her play," he told Ben. "If she's amazing we can't pass up having a bassist."

"You realize I'm still in the room, right?" Paige asked. "If she's going to treat me like this, then I want nothing to do with this band and good luck finding someone that will," she refused to be treated as if she were trash.

Ben felt a headache coming on; he had not wanted to spend his day calming down two women. "Cass, are you going to be able to play nice or are we just wasting time?" he asked, expecting an honest answer.

"I can play nice," she wasn't very convincing, but Ben knew she was just being stubborn. He remembered when they first met and knew Cass just needed to respect someone before accepting them with open arms. If Paige could play then he knew Cass would come around, but he wasn't sure about Paige.

"What about you?" he turned to Paige. "If she plays nice, will you?"

"She started it," Paige mumbled, to which Rey gave her a disappointed look. "Yes, I can play nice," she said louder.

"Good, now let's hear you play," Ben suggested, knowing if she were shit then it wouldn't even matter. He signaled for her to pick up the guitar, "I'm assuming you have something prepared. Did you write it yourself or are you doing something from another band?" the question was more to get a feel as to if she were capable of writing her own rifts and would be able to tell him what she was comfortable with and if she would provide insight as to if she thought there was something she thought would sound better.

"Wrote it myself," she told him as she picked up her bass. Cass tried to appear unimpressed by Paige's playing, but she was impressed and it annoyed her. Jason just smiled, always happy to show his feelings, so opposite from Ben and Cass. He was the light they needed in the band that kept them positive. Ben was trying to remain neutral until he heard what Jason and Cass thought.

When she finished playing Ben broke the silence, "I think we need to talk as a band for a moment." Paige and Rey nodded before heading out of the room.

Paige was nervously pacing outside of the room, "Do you think they liked me? I mean I know Cass is kind of a bitch, but this is a great opportunity."

"Cass is an acquired taste," Rey told her, knowing she hated her at first but the woman was a hell of a drummer. "I'm sure they loved you, you're amazing," she assured her, hoping that she was right.

Before Paige could say anything Jason opened the door, "Okay, come on in."

Rey and Paige walked in silently, not knowing what to expect. "I don't mean to be rude," Cass started.

"Cass," Ben said in a warning tone, causing the woman to huff.

"I said I don't mean to be rude," she argued. "Anyway, as I was saying, I don't mean to be rude, but if you're going to be in this band we're going to need some kind of make over," she told Paige. "Nothing huge, just clothing that doesn't look ten years old and taking a brush to your hair."

"Way to not be rude," Ben said sarcastically. "What Cass is trying to say is, you're an amazing bassist, but we're going to have to talk about first impressions. As much as we don't want to have to give a shit about how we look, it is part of the industry and we don't want you to be ripped apart and judged based solely on how you dress," he explained, trying to be a little more delicate about it.

"One other thing you need to know, we have a strict no drug policy," Jason told her. "And when I mean strict, it is in the contract and if you break it you will have two choices; either you can get clean or you can leave the band. It is in all of our contracts and nonnegotiable," he informed her.

"That won't be a problem," she assured them. "Does that mean I have the job?"

"If you want it," Cass confirmed. "But as Ben said, we have to play nice, so I guess we'll have to call a truce," she offered her hand to shake.

"Sounds like a deal," Paige took her hand.

"Good, you can meet with Leia tomorrow. While I know and trust what's in the contract, I suggest you look it over with a lawyer because there are very specific terms and if you can't agree to them then don't bother," he told her.

"What else besides the drugs? Is there a no dating a band member?" she joked.

"I couldn't give a fuck if you date a band member so long as you don't cause drama or break up the band because of it," Ben told her, though he was looking at Cass and Jason when he said it. "If you don't have a drug issue then you should be fine, but that includes associating with people that do or sell drugs," he informed her. "Just read it over and if you agree to the terms once you sign it we can start talking music," he said. "But understand, I am working on a project with Jedi right now and nothing will be recorded until that is done, so this won't be a jump into the studio kind of thing."

"Understood," she smiled as she looked at Rey. "I fully support Jedi, you won't have to worry about that being a problem."

"I figured," Ben nodded. "Anyway, you guys interrupted a very productive writing session, so we're going to get back to it," he motioned for Rey to follow him as he got up. "After all, we can't start our album until this one is done," he said.

"He just wants to get it done and get rid of me," Rey joked before following Ben out of the room happily. "I suggest you two get to know each other better, you might have more in common than you think," she called to Paige and Cass before leaving the room completely.

As Ben and Rey walked back to the other room, Rey decided to hop on Twitter again to find a barrage of notifications. It wasn't surprising, ever since people had started shipping them as a couple she had more notifications a day than she could keep track of, but the main one caused her to stop in her tracks. "That asshole," she growled.

"What's wrong?" Ben asked, concerned as to why she stopped. Rey didn't answer, she just showed him the phone.

Hux

Can we stop with this Reylo BS? Isn't obvious that ReyofSunshine and Jedi are just using BenSolo to get attention? Ben is just a phase, once the hype is gone and his career is done again she'll be gone too.

Ben saw red as he read the post, quickly getting his phone out to respond.

BenSolo replying to Hux

Well, if anyone knows anything about using me it would be you considering you used me for a decade. You want a war? Fine, but leave ReyofSunshine and Jedi out of this.

Rey looked at Ben's response, "You don't have to get into a Twitter war with him over me."

"I knew it was coming, the guy is an asshat, it was only a matter of time before he started trying to attack the people around me. He wants a war then he's got one. Trust me, you're worth it," Ben said, wishing in that moment they weren't in a hallway and he could kiss her.

It wasn't even a minute later that Hux's response came.

Hux replying to BenSolo

I never used your drugged ass StarKiller is better without you in it

Ben just laughed at the post, knowing he was getting under the other man's skin. He knew he shouldn't stoop to his level, but he couldn't help it.

BenSolo replying to Hux

That's great I must have missed where the last StarKiller album went platinum…oh wait, it didn't even go gold

That was how Ben Solo broke Twitter with one post. The ridiculous number of retweets and replies as to Hux getting "burned" or how Star Killer hadn't had a top-selling album since Ben left. His favorite was people telling Hux just how shitty the last Star Killer albums have been since Ben left and how if anyone was getting washed up and looking for attention it was Hux, not Rey and Ben. However the most ruthless fans were the Reylo shippers, who just about tore Hux to shreds. There were a few people to defend Hux, they were far outweighed by Ben's supporters.

"Looks like I don't need to fight, other people are doing it for me," Ben told her. "How about instead of writing we go back to my place," he suggested, "remind you why you should stick around after we're done working together."

"That sounds amazing," she smiled back. "I could use a reminder, maybe a few reminders actually," she winked at him.

He moved closer to her, though no one else was around he lowered his voice so only she could hear it, "Well, I guess we better go before I remind you right here where anyone could find us."

Rey's heartbeat sped up, his words made her wetter than she expected. "Take me home, now," she demanded with lust filled eyes. He didn't need to be told twice as they practically ran to his car.

Rey was sure that Ben broke every speed limit to get to his house in record time. It didn't help that she had been teasing him the whole ride home, her hand slowly moving up and down his thigh as he drove. It took everything in him to concentrate on driving and not pulling over to take her on the side of the busy street. They barely made it in the door before he was pushing her up against the wall. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to keep my hands off you?" he asked, grinding into her as he kissed down her neck. She moaned as he palmed her breast through her shirt, "It's torture not being able to make sure everyone knows you're mine."

Rey wasn't sure how to respond so she just pulled him back for a kiss, making him moan as she rolled her hips against his. She let out a little squeak as he picked her up and headed for the bedroom. They both decided no other words needed to be exchanged; they just wanted each other in that moment.

As he deposited her on his bed he couldn't help but think how perfect she looked in that moment. He wanted to mark her and show the rest of the world she was his, but he knew he couldn't. Instead he climbed on top of her, supporting his weight on his forearms as he roughly kissed her. Normally they would start off slower, taking their time with each other as he worshipped her body. However, it was not one of those nights. That night was almost primal as they practically ripped the clothes off, not caring where they land. He still made sure she came first, but there was nothing slow and tender about it.

The sex was rough and Rey couldn't help but be turned on. While it was nice when they took their time, there was something sexy about the way he took her and pounded into her. His pace was fast and the look on his face showed that in that moment he had lost control. Knowing she had done that, that she had caused him to have such pent up sexual frustration was an ego boost. It made her feel powerful in a way that she had such an effect on him.

Rey could tell he was close when he started rubbing her clit, making sure she climaxed one more time before he did. She moaned his name as she came again, clenching around him and causing his orgasm shortly thereafter. Ben caught his breath for a moment before pulling out and collapsing next to her before taking off the condom and throwing it in the trashcan next to the bed.

"I need to get you frustrated more often," she told him, also catching her breath. "Don't get me wrong, sex is always great and I love when you go down on me, but this side of you is hot."

"I'll keep that in mind," he smirked. "Maybe next time I'll have to tie you up and teach you a lesson."

She had never thought about bondage, but those words coming out of his mouth mad her wonder what it would be like to have no control. "Maybe you should," she surprised him by saying as she rolled over so she was lying on top of him. "But not tonight," she added. "I think you've worn me out."

"Are you staying the night?" he asked, hoping the answer would be yes.

"After that performance? How could I not?" she replied, not wanting to leave the comfort of his arms. She knew that she'd have to make up an excuse in the morning to tell her roommates, but that was a problem for tomorrow. Tonight, she was going to enjoy being with him as she drifted off to sleep.

TBC…

Also, I'm thinking about doing a series of one-shots that are related to this story. Mostly it would be like prequels to the story to show life before the story started, like the disaster of when they first meet and the initial aftermath of Ben leaving Star Killer. But also some that would so the in between moments between Rey and Ben that might seem like fillers if they were in the story but would be fluffy one-shots outside of the story. Let me know what you think.