Rey looked approvingly at the puffy white clouds, slightly turned pink by the first rays of twilight. It was shaping up to be a nice night, no rain, less humidity. The ideal night to work. They'd had a slow start today, the rain stretching until mid-morning, the sun dissipating the thick fog around noon, its high position in the sky making the hull blistering hot in a manner of minutes. They'd hidden in the shade, unable to do anything substantial with the ship, instead taking the time to hunt and harvest some local fruits.

The bond, instead of plateauing, was strengthening at an alarming rate. It linked their minds shamelessly; random thoughts and feelings now roaming between them against both their will. Some nights, she would be laying down, eyes closed, and be plagued by images and ideas she knew didn't belong to her. It was so confusing. She knew it went both ways, because she would cut herself working and he would be the one to cry out, warning her to be careful. She could even feel the darkness tugging at the seams of his mind, like a nasty parasite she wished she could obliviate.

On top of it all, there was a restlessness to his behavior that perplexed her. His looks bore into her boldly, and their quiet conversations left her with the elusive stranded afterthought: 'does she know?' Do I know what? She pondered again. She could sense it wasn't something dangerous or malevolent; it was something rather intimate he indubitably wanted to keep to himself. As it should, she repeated inwardly, but she was dying to figure it out anyway.

She hiked to the stream, thinking he'd been there for a really long time, desperate for her turn. She was also curious, wondering what he did over there for so long. His solo trips had become lengthy and she could feel a certain peace emanating from him when he was up there, contrasting with his usual sulkiness.

She neared the clearing and stopped, trying to see through the leaves. He was swimming up and down the water. His body was sliding effortlessly against it, his rhythm steady. She spied on him for a moment, a bit envious.

She couldn't swim, never learned how. She could manage to stand in the water, wash herself and come back up but nothing more. At this instant, she longed for him to teach her, thinking how heavenly it must feel to fly across the water like that.

He stopped his movements, but not because he spotted her. He was standing in the shallows, the water hugging his mid stomach, and he brushed his wet raven hair away from his face with both hands. She felt criminal for invading his privacy like that, a bit of a paradox since she intruded on his thoughts all the time.

She wetted her lips, thinking despite herself that he was really handsome. The relentlessly annoying inner voice —a voice that had gradually become impossible to ignore— asked what harm it would do if she was to ask him to teach her to swim? It imposed a mental image of her in the water, with him. Her mind slipped dangerously at the notion.

What are you doing? He glanced towards her quizzically through the vegetation, a tingling on his skin telling him he was being watched.

His low husky voice broke her out of her reverie.

Are you spying on me? He arched his eyebrows at her incredulously.

Fuck. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come, I‒", she stammered, her heart suddenly hammering in her chest. The stupidly tantalizing voice, she'd let it fester for too long. Inner voices are usually not a problem, even when you can't shut them up. They are typically private, and you never have to act upon them. Rey was acutely aware this rule didn't apply to Ren and her, not with the gaping hole between their consciences. What if he'd heard it? How mortifying it would be, how dangerous? She couldn't have those thoughts around him, not even for a second. All he'd wanted to do from the start was corrupt her. Had he finally succeeded? Was this voice all her, or was it planted there by him somehow? Can I even trust my own thoughts anymore?

Rey?

Their gaze met. She looked positively terrified, and he didn't have a clue as to why. He wished he could just pry into her thoughts, but she had become too good at shutting him out. He yanked a bit on the bond but she desperately resisted him. What was she protecting so fiercely?

She felt him trying to enter her mind, looking for an explanation to her weird behavior, and her throat constricted. He couldn't be responsible for her unwanted musings, because he was unaware of them. For now.

Without warning, she turned around and started running away like she'd been stung.

What the fuck? He stormed out of the water, calling after her: "Rey?" I swear I'll never understand this woman. He hurried to put his pants and shirt back on and chased after her, not really knowing why he just had to.

She was almost back at camp when a particularly strong earthquake shook the ground. She lost her footing, tangling her foot in a bunch of sneaky branches hidden by the moss and falling flat on her ass. Damn, she cursed. She tugged on her foot but it was stuck. She reached for her ankle, trying to liberate it swiftly.

When she heard the loud crack thundering through the air, it was already too late. A huge decayed tree had just ripped his old roots from the earth and was falling directly on her.

She was frozen in place, her instincts telling her to stop the tree instead of trying to run, that she would never make it. Her hands raised towards it and at once she knew she'd been foolish, she would never manage to stop that tree. It would crush her.

At the last possible second his mind joined her own. She welcomed the intrusion and the tree froze in the air, inches away from her. From the corner of her eyes, she saw him walk towards her. It was taking her all her might not to let the tree fall, she couldn't move an inch, sweat gathering on her forehead at the tremendous effort. He walked to her slowly, shaking under the weight of the load. When he was close enough, he reached for her hand. She did the same, her fingers clawing around his and the Force sparked around them.

Their minds in perfect unison, they pushed the gigantic tree up, up and aside and dropped it safely away from them. It fell to the ground, shaking the earth. The atmosphere was charged with electricity, their breathing ragged from the effort, the Force flowing between them freely.

The rush of power was potent and exhilarating, making her feel heady and she jumped to her feet.

He was staring intently at their still joined hands, the force of the surge dizzying him. He could see a halo of light surrounding her, so powerful and unyielding.

Absolute.

Hypnotic.

He wasn't entirely in control when his arm yanked her towards him. Their gaze met for a second before he swallowed her gasp of surprise into a searing kiss. She tasted heavenly, his own forbidden fruit. Her lips were warm and soft against his, and he was drowning.

It lasted only a second before she tore herself away from him violently, breaking the connection and the entire forest held its breath.

"What the fuck?" She screamed, bringing her hand to her lips like she had been burned. She took a few steps back.

Rey? He asked in confusion as he took a step toward her. She wanted it too, he was sure of it, felt a rustling in the Force, telling him to do it. It had to be her, right?

"Don't you dare make another step!" She cried out as she crouched into a defensive stance.

He could have sworn…

"This is insane, don't you get it? This isn't okay with me, you disgust me. You're a murderer."

The harsh words cut through the night surrounding them as sharply as they cut through his heart.

Angry tears appearing in her eyes, she turned around and started running again. He would make her pay for that, she was sure. She ran faster than she'd ever run before. She ran until her feet were raw and her lungs burned. She ran until she realized he wasn't coming after her.

She crashed in the dirt roughly, letting her adrenaline subside.

Harsh, stinging guilt built in her chest until the tears prickled so painfully at her eyes, she began to sob uncontrollably, knowing what a hypocrite she was.

She was acutely aware she wasn't his prisoner anymore. That scared her to the core. Before, she would write off their connection as something evil she had no control over. He was calling the shots, she had no free will. But now, she was being choked by guilt. Guilt for not hating him anymore, as she really should. Guilt for looking at him as a man instead of a monster. Guilt for wishing he would stop pretending he hadn't changed. Guilt for secretly hoping he would dare to let the darkness go and let her in. Guilt for rejecting him hideously when he tried. Guilt for feelings that had grown beyond her control. How could this be real? It's rooted in darkness. It's a sickness, that's what it is. The comforting denial no longer sounded true to her, the feverish feeling tearing her apart.

I fear the fever
Deep in my bones
It runs electric
It draws me home
It knows the weakness
Deep in my soul
It keeps me hostage
I'm never alone

Fear the Fever – Digital Daggers

So? A kiss! What did you guys think? Elmo13