Padmé heard the knock at the door and ran over to open it for him. She smiled as he entered her apartment. Her apron had come undone in her rush and he reached out to retie it for her.
"Thank you," she smiled as he wrapped his arms around her to pull the ties back in front and form them into a bow. "Dinner should be done shortly."
She moved back over to her kitchen, causing Obi-Wan to chuckle at the amount of things she had going. She never could do anything simple.
"Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked as he watched her sauté some vegetables in a pan while simultaneously stirring the pot next to it.
"There are some rainbow carrots over on the island that need to be peeled and shredded," she replied, smiling over her shoulder at him.
"Yes, Senator," Obi-Wan replied as he carefully went to peel the carrots. "What is for dinner?"
"It's a roast over pasta and vegetables. It's a recipe that's been passed down in the community I grew up in," she smiled, remembering all the times she'd seen people make it as a child.
"It smells delicious," Obi-Wan murmured, "Although, when you had the time to make all this, I'll never know."
"It's called a slow cooker, Obi-Wan. You set it on a delayed start and then its done by the time you get home," she chuckled as she took her pot of pasta off the stove.
Obi-Wan hummed in thought, "I've been debating on buying one of those, but with Anakin's luck, he'd either set it on fire or break it."
Padmé strained the pasta in the sink and turned back to rescue the things she was cooking in the frying pan. She allowed herself to gaze over at him, watching him work. He'd finished peeling the carrots and went on to shred them. He was going so fast that Padmé knew it wasn't going to end well. She watched almost as if in slow-motion as he shredded his knuckles across the grater.
"Kriff," he hissed, pulling back in reaction.
"Quick, wash off the blood," she told him, turning on the sink. "I'll go get the first aid kit."
Swiftly, she went off to fetch her kit from her bathroom closet. She came back, pulling her frying pan off the heat before going to tend to his wounds. Gently, she took his hand in hers. She thought about how strong his hands were as she held it in hers. She dressed his cuts and kissed it better on instinct by pulling his hand up to graze her lips along his knuckles. He awkwardly cleared his throat and her eyes flicked up to his. Hastily, she dropped his hand from her grip. Padmé swallowed, thinking back to their earlier conversation. Boundaries were needed. She couldn't let herself fall back into old patterns. He needed a friend right now, not a lover. She turned away from him and started to put the dishes together, finishing them off with a dusting of bread crumbs.
"Well, it should be ready. Would you like some wine to go with it?" she asked.
"That would be lovely," Obi-Wan said with a sad smile. Where they had once felt comfort, they now felt an awkward muddle that they were trying to work through. She sighed as she pulled out a bottle of Zifandel and placed it on the table. Padmé wanted to be patient with him, she really did, but it was hard. She opened up a side drawer in the island to fish out the bottle opener and uncorked the wine before pouring them each a glass.
"Padmé, out of curiosity, were you planning on asking me to dinner this whole time? Its just... this seems like a lot of trouble to go through for just one person," Obi-Wan asked as he settled on his seat.
She could lie. She could tell him that she liked to have leftovers. But, that wasn't who she was. She may want to be a politician someday, but she could never lie to Obi-Wan. "I was hoping to invite you this morning. I figured it would be nice to have a celebration dinner to mark the start of your internship, and that it would be nice for you not to have to cook," she said sheepishly.
Obi-Wan's eyes softened as he looked at her. Great, she thought in frustration, Now, I'm making him feel guilty about this morning. She suppressed the urge to sigh. She knew why he wanted to forget the kiss, but she still didn't know why he kissed her. To make matters worse, she'd been thinking about that kiss all night. It was the best kiss of her life. Padmé didn't want to push him into anything, so she respected his request, but that didn't mean she didn't have the urge to pin him against her counter and kiss him again to see where it went. No, that wasn't who she was, though. Instead, she slid into her seat and started to cut up her dinner. She watched out of the corner of her eye as he started to take the first bite.
"This is delicious," he replied with wide eyes. "You'll have to give me the recipe."
"Oh? So you can make it and enjoy it without me?" She smirked, "Not a chance. My recipe and I are a package deal."
He chuckled, "What if I gave you a recipe of equal value?"
"Are you negotiating with me, Obi-Wan?" she asked with an amused look on her face. This was more like it. It felt like normal.
"Well, my dear, I suppose I am," he smiled warmly. "Is it working?"
"Not a bit," she chuckled as she held up her wine glass, "A toast. To new adventures and finding ourselves along the way."
Obi-Wan clinked his glass against hers. "I'll drink to that."
Padmé took a sip of her wine. She just hoped that in finding himself, they didn't drift apart.
"So, did you see Master Yoda today?" she asked to make conversation.
"Yes, actually. I stopped by the Temple after class. He knew about Qui-Gon," he replied with a blush.
That was odd, she thought. Why would thinking about Master Yoda make him blush?
"Did he offer you any sage words of wisdom?" she asked as she started to eat.
"Yes. I also meditated a bit on it, but I don't think I had any epiphanies," he sighed.
"Take things slow. It's a marathon, not a sprint," she said softly, placing her hand on top of his out of habit. He gently took her hand in his and ran his thumb over the back of her hand.
"I know. I've been thinking... I have to meet this informant this week. Would you maybe... like to come? I wouldn't want you to be seen with the informant, but maybe you could just be nearby?"
"Of course! I'll work my schedule around it. Mayor Palpatine is announcing his bid for Governor this week, so the office is in a bit of chaos. He asked me to come in for extra shifts," she explained.
"Oh, I wouldn't want you to take you away from work-"
"Obi-Wan, if its important to you, then its important to me," she said pointedly, leaving no room for discussion.
He nodded. "Of course, darling. You're a good friend."
Friend. Now she knew how Anakin felt. She suppressed a grimace and continued with her dinner. The rest of their talk was light. Well, light by their standards. They discussed what they were learning in their various law classes, which turned into a discussion of the current political climate and how that would effect the current laws that the Senate was trying to pass. Padmé was impressed by how much Obi-Wan knew, but then decided that she really shouldn't be surprised since he was studying law.
After dinner, Obi-Wan went back home to retrieve his books and glasses. They retired to the couch in her living room to work on their homework. This time, the silence was more comfortable. She spared a couple of glances in his direction every once in a while. He was handsome, even as his glasses slipped down the bridge of his nose as he read his copy of Black's law dictionary for his test later this week. She turned her attention back to her legal history homework with a little reluctance.
They worked through their respective assignments until Padmé rubbed her eyes as she put her laptop on the table.
"I need a break," she chuckled.
"We could get a coffee from downstairs?" Obi-Wan suggested.
Padmé checked the time. "It's almost eight."
"I may or may not buy you decaf, but the placebo effect could make you think you're energized," he replied.
She sighed. "Fine. We probably won't see each other a lot this week anyway. I want to make the most of it."
Obi-Wan smiled. "My treat."
Padmé rolled her eyes. This man spoiled her and treated her like a queen. Sometimes she felt like she didn't deserve such treatment. Still, she shrugged on a sweater and some slip on shoes and went with him down to the coffee shop below.
The bell chimed as they entered.
"Back again?" Ahsoka smirked. "I see you brought a friend this time."
Obi-Wan chuckled. "We're taking a study break."
Ahsoka checked the time and raised a brow at him. "The usual or the 'study break' usual?"
"The latter," Obi-Wan replied.
"This one's not on the house, I'm afraid. Rex said I can only give out one free cup a day," Ahsoka sighed.
"No worries," Obi-Wan replied as he paid.
"So, what exactly is the 'study break' usual?" Padmé asked curiously as she picked up her cup.
"That's for me to know and you to not find out until you try to sleep tonight," Obi-Wan winked.
Decaf, Padmé realized. "Well, as long as it tastes okay, that's fine with me."
They took their coffees back upstairs, feeling refreshed for round two. Soon enough, they'd conquered all they had to do and just sat next to each other, relaxing in each other's presence.
"I'm going to miss you," Padmé said finally, breaking the silence.
"I'm not going anywhere," Obi-Wan replied in confusion.
"I know, but we're both going to be so busy now that we may not have as much time for each other," she sighed, looking straight ahead.
Obi-Wan shocked her by hooking his finger under her chin and turning it towards him. "Darling, you're my star."
Padmé's brow furrowed in confusion. "Your star?"
"I don't have to see you or feel your warmth to know you're there," he smiled softly. "Master Yoda used to always say: 'Luminous beings are we.' I never quite understood what that meant until I met you."
Her heart skipped a beat, and her eyes involuntarily flicked down to his lips and back up. How could he just say things like that? Didn't he know how it would affect her? Didn't he know he was causing her to fall more and more in love with him? He was making things so hard for her, and he probably didn't even realize it. She looked down as she blushed.
"You shouldn't say such things," she murmured.
Obi-Wan let his hand drop as he sighed. "It's getting late. I should head back home."
Padmé nodded. "You need your rest."
She swallowed the lump in her throat as she watched him pack up his belongings. She followed him over to her door to walk him out.
"Good night, Padmé," he smiled as they stood in front of her door.
"Good night, Obi-Wan," she replied.
They stood there for a moment, not sure what to do with themselves before she let out a frustrated sigh and hugged him.
"I'm sorry," he murmured against her hair, hugging her tighter. "I've made things awkward between us, haven't I?"
"We'll get through it," she responded, melting into him.
"Thank you again for dinner. I'll keep you informed about the meeting," he sighed, letting go a little. He still held her in his arms, just a bit loosely.
She reached up and cupped his face. "If you need anything, reach out. You'll do great with this internship. I believe in you."
His eyes softened and he nodded, fully releasing her. "Good night, darling."
Padmé waved goodbye as he left. The door closed behind him and she allowed herself to deflate a bit.
"I love you," she murmured, staring at the door.