Wow, I finally have wrote one where Poe is a good friend. Amazing. Slight ooc but it works. This is for you, Howlets Wing. You guessed what the next chapter was going to be.

Ben was beginning to regret coming to Poe for help. He really was. Maybe he should have asked Finn instead, or maybe even Rose. Hell, even his mother would have been better.

"Hey!" Poe shouted. "Are you even listening to me?"

No. "Yes."

Poe raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest. "Really? Then tell me what I was just talking about."

Ben paled slightly and fumbled for an answer. "Uh, advice?"

"What kind of advice?"

"...The kind I need?"

Poe sighed. "Okay, perhaps we need to take a step back. Ben, what did you need me for?"

"...Advice."

"Advice for what?" he prompted.

"Advice… on Rey," Ben mumbled, cheeks slightly turning pink.

"Exactly. So now that you remember why you're here, why don't you start, oh, I don't know, listening to me?"

Ben swallowed. "I can do that."

"Can you, Ben? Can you really?"

"...Yes."

Poe narrowed his eyes and looked Ben up and down before nodding. "Alright, good." A grin settled on his features. "Now then, let me ask you this. What do you know about Rey? Force, do you even know anything about her?"

"I know plenty!" Ben defended. "I know her height, weight, shoe, and clothing size-"

"Woah, let me stop you right there," Poe cut in. "You sound like a creep, to the point where I'm kind of considering leaving right now. So let me ask this in a different way. Are you obsessed with her, or do you really like her? Love her?" He saw Ben tense. "Tell me all the things you've learned - things you've noticed about Rey."

There was a long pause, then Ben started to speak, slowly at first, then faster and faster. "...I noticed that she's still not quite used to the cold, and chooses to bundle up in blankets whenever she can. I noticed that when something is really funny, she doesn't just laugh, she puts her hands to her face like her smile is about to explode. I noticed that her eyes brighten whenever we train, or when she successfully translates something from the Jedi Texts on her own. I noticed that she always puts her friends first, but she'll never hesitate to tell them when they are wrong, because making sure they are safe is her main priority. I noticed that she always wants to try new things, and she'll learn different battle formations or card games, and while she might never be the best, she very quickly gets good enough to put up a fight. I noticed that she pays attention to the outcasts, and that she can make anyone smile or laugh. I noticed that she doesn't like to grow her fingernails long, and I think it's because they get in her way whenever she's trying to make repairs to a ship. I noticed that she feels so much, even for people she just met. I noticed that she forgives easily." Ben took a deep breath. "And it's very uncomfortable for me to be noticing all of these things, because I'm used to treating pretty much everyone like they aren't important. But all of a sudden, that changed. Everyone else doesn't matter… but somehow, she does."

Poe's eyes were wide open as he gaped at Ben's admission. "Well," he muttered, clearing his throat, "why don't you tell her everything you just told me?"

"Oh no," Ben gasped, "she can't know about any of that!"

"Why not? Why don't you want to tell her that you paid attention to her and actually showed some emotion?"

Ben didn't answer, but Poe figured it out anyway. "Ah, it's that nasty word, isn't it? Emotion. It's easier to keep it all inside than to feel things."

"Well," Ben stuttered, "yes! It's a lot easier and a lot less scary."

Poe reached out and laid a hand on Ben's shoulder. "But in the end, not as worthwhile." He lowered his arm back to his side. "Listen, I can't tell or force you to do anything. Maker, I wouldn't even if I could. But what I can do is give you my opinion. And my opinion is that you should tell Rey exactly what you feel, because what that is, my friend, is what I would call love. If anyone deserves to have that, it's you and Rey." His lips pulled upwards slightly. "Do you understand?"

"Yeah," Ben replied sheepishly after a moment. "I do."

Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to go Poe for help after all.