Force Time

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A/N-thank you for reviewing this story!

Chapter Two-An Olive Branch

Rey's brain stuttered for a moment and her eyes roamed Ben's quarters, while every part of her paused while she waited for her thoughts to catch up and make sense of what had happened to her. His quarters were sparse, the lighting so dim and dark that it was stifling. How did he stand it? Rey craved light. A wash of cold rippled down her spine when Ben stepped out from the shadows. Whoever he had been yelling at was gone now. He looked tense, his already untamed hair in further disarray as he ran his fingers through it.

"Damn, Hux!" He cursed under his breath.

"What the hell just happened?" Rey demanded breathlessly as she confronted him.

"That pathetic womp rat Hux was listening at the door." Ben snarled angrily in response.

Rey swallowed down the anger that was like a fire-seed growing in her belly. "I don't care about that!" She fired at him. "I'm talking about this." She used her hand to gesture between them. "Me…being here. What did you do?"

Ben's knuckles turned white from clenching his fists too hard. God, she was infuriating! Even with her face red from suppressed rage he still found her captivating. He gritted his teeth, annoyed with himself at his loss of focus. How did she manage to get under his skin so easily? He took a deep breath and forced his irritation to simmer down.

"I saved your life. You should be grateful." He stated coldly.

"I wasn't in any danger." Rey tried to match his cold tone. She stared at him imperiously. "Send me back."

Ben huffed out an impatient breath. "I can't."

Rey's eyes narrowed at the taunting look she imagined in Ben's eyes. He may be tall and handsome, but a pretty face wasn't going to get him out of this. Not that she cared what he looked like! "Why not?"

A sneer formed on his smooth face and he leaned forward, dark eyes bearing straight into hers. "Because I don't know how!"

"Liar!" Rey felt her fingers twitch impatiently as they hovered over the hilt of the lightsaber hanging from her belt.

Ben stared into her angry eyes. He could see the pain and mistrust in them and it sent him reeling. It was the same look he'd seen over and over again during his lifetime. His own gaze turned rigid, cold and hard with disappointment. The tentative connection they'd made was shattered and once more they were enemies.

"Go on! Strike me down if that's what you want." He taunted her.

Rey drew in a sharp breath as she realized what her anger had almost made her do. Her fingers flexed and her hand dropped limply by her side at the deadness in his tone and in his eyes. "That's not what I want." She whispered brokenly.

Ben was taken aback by the desolation in her voice. He watched as Rey cast her eyes to the side, he could see the shape of her face like a silhouette. His curious gaze gracefully moved up and over her cheekbones then slanted sharply at her mouth. God, those lips! He became fixated on them, staring as they parted slightly when she breathed. Her pale skin gave her an almost ethereal quality.

"Ben."

Ben blinked, stunned to hear his true name falling from those delectable lips. What was she doing to him? He shook his head to clear it and instead focused his gaze somewhere above her head. "What?"

"We need to figure out what happened." Rey edged closer to him. Now that she was next to him it was far easier to observe him discreetly. He was so tall, north of six foot she would say. And he obviously followed a vigorous exercise regime to maintain his fitness. She toyed with the thought of asking him, before realizing how bizarre that sounded. His nearness seemed to be having a weird affect on her already frazzled brain. Irritated that she was focusing too much on his appearance, Rey took a step back and scowled up at him as if it was all his fault that she was obsessing over his looks.

Ben was getting whiplash from her changing mood. He wondered what was causing her to scowl at him like an angry cat. "I don't know what happened." He muttered, running his fingers through his inky black locks.

Rey was fascinated by the way his thick hair cascaded around his face and shoulders, fighting the urge to entwine her fingers through the black strands of hair like pools of the purest ink, the faint light from above making them reflect an indigo blue.

Ben wore a puzzled expression as he tried to figure out Rey's changing moods. Her scowl had softened to a dreamy half smile. She hadn't responded to his last question and it confused him. "This bond between us…" he began again.

Rey snapped back into the moment, her cheeks burning with embarrassment at being caught staring. She swallowed thickly, taking in another quiet breath as she fought to regain her composure. "I don't understand it." She cut in before he could continue. "It…it scares me." She admitted.

"In what way?" Ben asked softly.

Rey was doing everything she could to avoid his eyes. The low rumble of his voice was somehow soothing. She swallowed thickly, trying to understand her sudden attraction for this guy who was supposed to be her enemy. Their connection, this so-called bond that had opened up between them, frightened her in ways she couldn't explain. She wasn't scared because she thought he would hurt her; in fact, it was the complete opposite. His protectiveness was part of the reason she was drawn to him. They were on opposite sides of a war. He had killed Han-his own father. As often as she tried to remind herself of this, it did nothing to explain the way she gravitated toward him. She hated herself, and him, for making her feel this way.

"Rey?" He said in that same sultry voice. "Tell me."

Damn him! She thought.

"Because the more I get to know you, the harder it is to hate you." Rey exploded. "And I should hate you for what you've done."

"You don't think I already hate myself!" Ben demanded bitterly.

"I know you do." Rey sobbed. "And knowing that, feeling how much you do, it just makes it all worse. Ben, when we touched hands, I saw your future. Just the shape of it, but solid and clear."

"And I saw something, too." Ben captured her tremulous gaze and held it firmly with his own. "Just you."

In the beginning, Rey had regarded her bond with Ben as an unwelcome development due to the series of Force visions that she shared with him. As time had gone on, she was surprised to see that Ben, whose emotional state was further affected by their bond, no longer tried to hide his hurt and pain from her. It had allowed them to connect on a more intimate level, allowing her to sense his inner conflict and misery that caused him so much pain. Their connection was unprecedented in its raw power and gave Rey insights into Ben that he had allowed no one to ever see before. After failing to discover the identities of her own parents on Ahch-to, Ben had been the one she had reached out to confess her feelings of loneliness and despair. He had insisted she was not alone, he showed understanding and empathy. She had responded in kind, reaching out to him, trying to convince him it wasn't too late and trying to reach out to him, not just emotionally, but physically too, by holding out her hand.

Despite the vast distances that separated them they were both physically affected by the surroundings of one another. When she had held out her hand toward him, she never expected him to try and reach out, too. She thought that their hands would simply pass through each other. When their fingers actually touched, the contact had been shocking, and more intimate then either of the two loners were prepared for, until Luke had barreled in, discovering them holding hands and staring deeply into each other's eyes. His intrusion had been the catalyst for Ben reliving his past painful experiences with his maternal uncle, unleashing his fear that Luke would try and hurt Rey, like Luke had tried to hurt him.

"I was convinced he was going to hurt you." Ben's tone was bleak as he looked at Rey. "He feared my power just like he fears yours."

Ben's eyes were bewitching in their intensity. They reflected all the pain and misery he had ever felt. Rey drowned in them even as she tried to swim. "Ben." She said so softly, his name was like a quiet exhalation. "Its not too late."

"It is too late."

Once again, the jagged emotions turned his insides tight. He wanted to reach out to her, pleading, "Please, help me. Convince me again its not too late. Hold my hand and stop me from falling." But the words wouldn't leave his mouth, it was his eyes that had to speak for him.

Rey sensed all this and more. She shifted her eyes downward, thick black lashes casting shadows on her cheeks. Her hand drifted outward, hovering hesitantly above his momentarily, before she made the decision to take it. "It's not too late, Ben. Let me help you."

A/N-thanks for reading! Please review.