"Skipping out on work again?"
Maz's raspy voice jolted Rey from her daydreams, causing to nearly knock over a full cup of coffee. The sounds of the crowded café suddenly surrounded her, and she tried to hide a blush from Maz's watchful eye. "No," she insisted, her voice thick from disuse. "I'm…musing."
"Hmmm." Maz raised a brow and peeked at the notebook on the table in front of Rey. "And I'm sure that VERY detailed drawing of Ben Solo in your journal has absolutely everything to do with your revision for the day." She tapped a finger over the sketch of his face with a knowing look.
Rey rolled her eyes and flipped the notebook over. Maz smirked and moved to another table, humming smugly. As much as she hated to admit it, Maz was right. Ever since their dinner, or date, or whatever it was, she hadn't been able to focus on the chapters she was supposed to be editing. Or much else, for that matter. All Rey could think about was that stupid, stupid kiss.
With a heavy sigh, she pulled her laptop from the messenger bag slung over the back of her chair and popped it open, resolving to at least finish a little bit of her work. Four lattes, two scones, and three glasses of water later, Rey glanced up from her screen to realize the sun was rapidly setting and only two other people sat in the café with her. She skimmed over her progress and found that she has managed to revise eight of the twelve chapters she had to work on. Surrounded by a golden haze of fading sunlight, she packed up her supplies and paid her bill, the bell above the door chiming with her departure.
_SW_
Ben stared at the case file in his hands, re-reading it for the third time. He was distracted, had been all day. Flashes of aureate* curls, glossy hazel eyes and smirking pink lips invaded his thoughts from the moment he woke to now, nearly at the end of his work shift. He dropped the stack of paper and rubbed his eyes, hoping to clear his mind of her.
It was useless.
He tossed the file into his briefcase and promised himself that he would work on it was soon as he got back to his apartment. He grabbed his coat off the hook, said goodbye to Phasma, and headed out into the brisk autumn air.
The chilled wind did nothing to free him from the fog that filled his brain. He felt like a hormonally-charged teenager with a silly crush on a pretty girl.
Tip-tapping along the dry concrete in his Italian leather dress shoes, Ben shook his shoulders to loosen them and pulled out his phone.
No new messages.
With a huff, he shoved the device back into his suit pocket as a flash of yellow caught his eye. A curbside vender was trying, and failing, to sell the last of her flowers for the season. Two bunches of sunflowers and one of pink roses idled sadly, already wrapped and ready to go. Without a moment's hesitation, Ben bought all three.
He finally made it to his car and programmed his GPS with Rey's address.
Damn, he thought to himself, his sleek black sedan cruising smoothly down the residential avenue, when did I become such a sap? Get one kiss on the cheek and suddenly I'm buying flowers for her out of the blue? He rolled to a stop in front of her house, hoping against hope that she was there so he wouldn't be left alone on the stoop like some sort of lovesick lost puppy.
His heart pounded in his chest as he rang the doorbell and waited. Each moment seemed to stretch past slowly, as if every second had to wade through thick molasses just to reach him. He took a deep breath as he saw the light inside flick on, and then heard footsteps down the hall.
If Ben could have snapped a picture of her expression when she saw him, he would doubt the camera's ability to fully capture it. Her eyes lit up as her cheeks flushed pink and she seemed torn between smiling and gaping. She pressed a hand to her chest and covered her mouth with the other, trying to find words.
"Oh, Ben!" Rey finally exclaimed. "Oh my gosh, this is so sweet of you! I'm actually crying. This is too cute." He stood there a moment, partially hidden behind the bouquet, grinning so hard his mouth hurt. "Here, come in, out of the cold. I'll see if I can find a vase for those…" She trailed off and disappeared back into her apartment, leaving the door open so he could follow.
He took one step inside, and it was like being transported to the interworking of Rey's mind. He was instantly met with the soft colors of blue and green, which coated the walls in the open-style kitchen/dining room and the living room. A vast array of plants situated in all sorts of pots were scattered throughout the room, with some even hanging from the ceiling. A huge picture window framed by lacy curtains offered a nice view of the towering oak and pines trees of the lot behind her, which were silhouetted by the golden light of the setting sun. A messy desk and worn floral-print couch occupied one side of the living room, the other lined with tall bookshelves filled with books and journals and loose-leaf papers. He sneaked a glance at one of the sheets on the top, and felt his whole face turn bright red. It was a pencil drawing of himself, with a crown of roses coiled atop his dark curls, which looked almost as real as the hair on his actual head. He felt like he was reading her diary, but he could hardly stop staring the hyper-realistic piece. Rey swore as she dropped something in the kitchen, and Ben instantly turned away from the drawing and moved toward the center of the room.
The wall dividing the kitchen and living room was jam-packed with framed pictures and drawings, as well as tacked-on ticket stubs to theater shows and movies. There were photos of Rey and her friend Poe, a couple more with dark-skinned man he had seen at Maz's but had never met, some Polaroids of a beautiful golden retriever. He felt his blush deepen as he caught sight of the pictures from their photo shoot nearly four months ago. Ben could hardly believe it had been so long since they had first met as he looked over the stills. One of him standing in front of a blooming rose bush, one with him leaning against a white wall ("White is the best background for headshots… are you sure you've never modeled before?"), and another he had snuck in of her, while she was talking on the phone and covered her face from the camera. The sun reflected off her phone case and lens glare that streaked across the corner of the photo, just above her head, seemingly framing her face in a halo of light.
He held back a contented sigh. It seemed just like yesterday that he had fallen for the girl who stole his heart in a crowded café.