Kylo Ren stalked down the corridor, followed by Storm Troopers. Behind them, prisoners; rebel spies that had been caught, now to be taken to the prison hold for questioning.

Questioning… Kylo couldn't help but think that "suffering" would be a more accurate term for the occasion, considering what went on down in the dungeons.

Heading towards the elevator, he ran into someone. The last person he wanted to see, the only person he'd ever want to see.

Rey.

They locked eyes for the briefest moment- a blink of contact, a whisper of emotion… And then nothing. Rey and Kylo forced their eyes closed and continued walking, passing each other like strangers in the street.

Rey raised an eyebrow at the handcuffed prisoners behind Kylo. She paused. And then sneered. "Another successful mission, I see." Her voice was harder than ice, dripping in cynicism.

"Yes," Kylo replied sharply, turning around. It felt like he was lying. "… You have a problem?" he challenged.

Rey halted. If Kylo had been able to see her face he would've seen it twisted in conflict. But he didn't. Rey hid herself well. Kept her emotions caged inside her chest, where they belonged. It didn't matter that it hurt.

"… No," Rey finally whispered. "… No problem at all."

A few months ago, she would've been lying.

Not anymore.

Kylo Ren looked at Rey, but it was obvious that she wasn't planning on saying another word. So he forced his legs to continue walking, away from her and the surging guilt in his chest. He didn't look back.

Rey remained in the hallway, trapped in the dark.

Rey entered Kylo's room at night. Like a ghost, she slipped through the doorway and slithered over to his bed, dropping to the floor in a ball. She leaned her head against her knees and let out a long, shuddering breath. It all felt so desolate. It was all so broken.

A deep voice echoed from the shadows: "Rey."

The scavenger turned towards the figure waiting for her. It was dark but Rey and Ben saw each other well enough.

He reached for her; she reached back.

"… Ben."

They embraced like they were the last people alive.

Rey reaching from the floor and Kylo leaning down to meet her— it was an awkward position, but they managed. They always did, somehow.

"You're hurting," Ben commented, drowning in the feeling of Rey's steady, beating heart against his chest.

"Yes, I am," Rey replied softly. "… And so are you."

Kylo Ren bowed his head. His words were heavy, too heavy. "… Always."

Pain was something both of them shared— it was their bond. Pain was what kept them together, even when everything else was broken.

Rey pulled away to face Kylo. Her eyes held a thousand questions, but she only asked one.

"The prisoners… You're going to torture them, aren't you?"

"No," Ben whispered, a pained smile on his lips. "Not this time."

"Then who will?"

"… You."

In the darkness, Rey's face crumbled.

It was morning. Birds singing and the sun shining like there was no tomorrow— a perfect day for torture.

Ben descended the stairs into the prison hold. Every fiber in his body was screaming at him to stop, turn, run away. But the expectations weighing down on his shoulders forced him forwards, downwards, into the darkness.

One foot after the other, Kylo cascaded downstairs.

There was a door— the only thing standing between him and the prisoners— or what was left of them, at least.

Kylo shut his eyes, forced the bitter taste of guilt down his throat, and opened the door to darkness. He was met with Rey.

She was broken.