They retrieved their things from the training grounds and continued their trek down the mountain in much higher spirits.

The Falcon was shut up and empty when they arrived. Ben flicked on the auxiliary power switch, and the low-level lights came on with a hum. While Rey padded back to the fresher, he went to the cabin and poked around in search of food. He'd burned off his breakfast hours ago, and his stomach was starting to protest. He was sure Rey wouldn't mind eating, either; she usually didn't. He found a stash of protein packs that hadn't expired, and figured it would be enough to tide them over until the next meal. He took two, and ate his while he waited on her to finish cleaning up.

When she emerged, freshly washed with damp hair and clean clothes, he handed her the other ration pack and skirted around her to the fresher. He stripped, dumped his clothes into the laundry droid, then quickly scrubbed off the morning's sweat and grime. Dressed once again in his full ensemble, he collected her from the cabin and started the hike back to the village.

As they came around the first hut, they were intercepted by Luke. The Jedi Master raised a bushy brow as he regarded them.

"Have fun training?" he asked blandly, transferring his gaze from Rey to Ben.

Ben got the feeling his uncle knew something had happened and disapproved of it. But if Rey sensed the sudden tension in the air, she didn't show it. She nodded genially and described their weapons session to the Jedi Master. But Luke only seemed mildly interested in her story, and when she finished, he gestured for her to come with him for more theory training. With one last backward glance at Ben, Rey followed Luke into his hut.

Feeling a little displaced and not sure what to do with himself, Ben went back to their shared hut. Finn was out who-knew-where with Han and Chewie, so he hunkered down on his own and fell into meditation. At least it would occupy him for a while, and he knew he could use the re-centering.

When his focus ran out, he reached out to check on Rey. She was still with Luke.

Unable to sit still, he dug out a few of the Jedi texts and flipped to the passages on lightsaber fighting, wanting to review for his and Rey's upcoming training sessions. He read through the passages, noting a few things he wanted to mention to her that might prove useful to a beginner. He played through the forms and patterns in his head, weaving his fingers through the air as he mentally practiced them.

He reached out again. Rey was still with Luke.

Growing bored and restless, he stepped out of the hut to find that Finn, Han, and Chewie had returned, and were gathered in the common area. Apparently they'd gone off to scout the island, and were now debriefing amongst themselves, recounting where they'd been and what they'd seen. Ben took a seat next to Finn and listened quietly as Han and Chewie bickered about a run-in with the caretakers along the way, something about a wheelbarrow and blue milk that had apparently ended in unintelligible screaming.

Rey was still with Luke.

The sun was setting when the master and apprentice finally emerged from Luke's hut. The caretakers had come by to set out the dinner spread, carefully avoiding Han's eyes as they worked, and Chewie had started a fire in the pit as the shadows lengthened and the temperature dropped. Ben looked up at the sound of the door opening, and studied them as they joined the group.

Neither of them looked happy. Luke's brows were drawn into a scowl over flashing blue eyes, his lips pursed beneath his beard. Rey's jaw was firmly set, the muscle ticking every so often as she gritted her teeth. She strode away from Luke, but chose to settle on the other side of Finn.

Ben frowned, and tried not to let the distance bother him. It wasn't like she hadto adhere herself to his side. He glanced from Rey to Luke, and noted that his uncle was steadily avoiding his gaze, even as the old man glanced around and smiled tightly at the rest of the group.

A bad feeling sunk in the pit of Ben's stomach. Clearly Rey was discomfited about something, and Luke appeared to feel oddly guilty about it, or displeased at the least. Whatever it was, it just as clearly regarded Ben. What had happened during their session to upset Rey so badly? What had the old man said to her?

Tentatively, he reached out to Rey through the bond.

He was met with a wall of fog.

A chill feeling raised gooseflesh on his skin. She was blocking him out. How had she learned to do that? And why did she feel the need to employ it now?

The conversation moved on around him, everyone talking and eating and arguing and laughing. No one paid much mind to where he sat silently at the edge of the firelight, frowning at the flames as shadows flickered over his hunched frame and dread took foothold in his gut.

As Han and Chewie started on another story and the conversation swelled, he stood and retreated to the hut, unable to take the talking and laughter anymore. He started a small fire in the pit, then stretched out next to it, pillowing his head on his pack and staring at the domed ceiling in brooding silence.

She'd pulled away from him. Ordinarily he would've expected it, but… not from her. Never from her. What happened? She'd been so open with him earlier. She'd accepted him, called him a friend. But now…

Luke must have said something to Rey during their session. That was the only explanation for such a rapid change in her demeanor. Ben felt a rush of anger at the thought. His uncle, who he should've been able to trust… But his uncle had never trusted him. Luke had only ever seen him as a problem, keeping him at a distance, just waiting for him to turn to the Dark Side.

And now, Rey was pulling away from him, too.

The anger dulled into a deep, aching hurt. Perhaps he'd been a fool all along. Perhaps he'd only seen what he wanted to see in her open acceptance—

The grating sound of the door opening startled him, and he jerked up to see none other than Rey herself step inside. His breath froze in his lungs.

When their eyes met, she hesitated.

He felt as if a lead weight had plunged into his stomach. Yes, something had definitely happened. His shoulders fell as he let out a tired sigh. "What did he tell you?" he muttered, resigned.

Her gaze dropped to the floor. She closed the door, then went around the other side of the fire to settle in her spot, hugging her knees to her chin. "Not much," she admitted finally. "He told me to talk to you about it."

"About what?"

She remained silent. He folded his legs and braced his elbows on his knees, staring into the fire as he waited for her to speak.

When she did, her voice was quiet. "I talked to him about Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader. I used it as an example as to why I disagreed with the notion that Jedi shouldn't be allowed to feel emotion." She glanced at him before returning her gaze to the fire, and took a steadying breath. "He told me that you might have a different opinion, based on what you saw in your vision. About anger, and hate… and how it gets people hurt. He told me to ask you about it. He said there was much more to what happened than what you've told me." Her eyes flicked back up to his.

Ben scoffed softly. Damn the old man to the farthest reaches of the Unknown Regions. "Is that so?"

"Is it true?"

Her words struck him, and he realized it didn't matter whether Rey agreed or disagreed with Luke anymore. The seeds of doubt had already been sown.

His jaw worked. "Yes," he said tonelessly.

He felt her eyes boring into him, waiting expectantly. "Well?" she prompted. "Will you tell me?"

His shoulders tensed. No matter how much damage he knew it would cause, he couldn't tell her. He couldn't bear to watch the disgust bloom over her face when she looked through that window into his soul, the horror burning in her eyes at the things he'd done—that he was fully capable of committing still.

"No," he whispered, hating himself.

He could feel her pulling away as the air became charged and thick. To his dismay, the backs of his eyes started to burn. He didn't want this. He didn't want her to leave, not when he'd just started to think he had a chance. He risked a glance in her direction, but couldn't bring himself to meet her eyes. He swallowed.

"People… judge me… based on things that never happened," he mumbled haltingly, attempting to explain himself. And then, to his disgust, he heard himself whisper, "Please don't judge me like that."

"But how can I know what to believe if you won't let me in?"

Her words tore at him, rending their fragile friendship. His breath left him in an uneven sigh as his heart bottomed out.

That was it, then. She no longer trusted him.

It was over.

He pressed his lips together to stop them from trembling, and suddenly he was climbing to his feet. He couldn't stay here a moment longer.

"Ben—"

But he was already out the door. Everyone else was still around the fire pit; no one noticed as he skirted around the hut and ventured further away. He found an abandoned dwelling near the edge of the village and went inside, not bothering with a fire, and dropped against the cold stone wall, curling in on himself. He wrapped an arm around his stomach and pinched the bridge of his nose with his free hand, endeavoring to stem the flow of pathetic emotion trying to escape. He took a shaky breath and let it out slowly, willing that no one would find him.

He shouldn't have been so surprised. It always happened eventually. The people he cared about always ended up leaving, but it still hurt.

…

He made himself scarce after that, rising with the sun to go train on his own, and only returning at dusk to sit by the edge of the fire and eat before retiring to their shared hut with his back to the firepit. He was always so exhausted that he fell asleep before the others arrived, and by the next morning, he would be up and out before they awoke again.

Rey had taken to training with Luke. Ben checked on her periodically, only opening the bond enough to know she was with his uncle, then muting it again. She sat with the others at dinner and left him alone.

Her absence made him sick.

…

They'd been on Ahch-To a grand total of a standard week when Ben felt a disturbance ripple through the Force. He sheathed his saber and looked around the training grounds, but nothing seemed amiss. Frowning, he clipped his saber to his belt and headed back to the village, dismay building in the pit of his stomach.

When he arrived, nothing seemed amiss. Rey was seated next to Finn, their heads together as they talked quietly. Han and Chewie weren't there; presumably, they were down at the Falcon again.

But when Luke looked up and met his eyes, Ben knew something had happened.

"What is it?" His voice was rusty from disuse.

"Leia," Luke said by way of explanation. "The First Order just came out of hyperspace above Crait."

Ben's breath caught. "Then we have to go."

Luke nodded.

Noticing now that Rey, Finn, and Luke had their bags packed and ready, Ben ducked into the hut to get his things. He followed them down the mountain to the Falcon, where Chewie was finishing up the pre-flight checks. Ben promptly went to the cockpit, instead of the cabin where Rey and the others had gone.

Han glanced up at his entrance and frowned in surprise as Ben buckled in behind the captain's seat. "Nice to have you up here, kid," he said gruffly, turning back to the controls.

"I know where the hidden base is, remember?" Ben replied, delivering his half-baked excuse as calmly as possible.

The Falcon lifted off, leaving the rocky island far behind. When the ship broke through the atmosphere into the void of space, Han put in the coordinates and pointed a finger at Chewbacca, who reached over with a hairy paw to activate the hyperdrive.

Ben held his breath.

The hyperdrive engaged, and the ship rocketed into space, the stars streaking by the cockpit in streams of light. He leaned his head back against the seat and watched them pass by.

Han swiveled in his chair to face him. "You don't have to stay up here the whole time, you know."

"I know."

Han's eyes narrowed. "All right. What happened?"

Ben tore his gaze away from the stars and faced his father. He didn't like the man's sudden insight. But after a moment of silence, he looked down and said quietly, "Luke talked to Rey."

"He talked to her," Han repeated, a question in his tone.

"About me."

"About your vision?"

Ben nodded.

"What did he say?"

"According to her, not much. But it was enough to make her suspicious."

"Of you?"

"Of what I did."

Han frowned. "But it was a vision. A warning."

"I did terrible things," Ben whispered, looking at his father—at the man he'd slain in that previous life. All the lives he'd taken, the atrocities he was responsible for…

"You didn't actually do those things," Han said bluntly.

"But I'm capable of them."

He saw a frisson of wariness pass through his father's gaze, but it was quickly followed by regret, and then something softer. Ben looked away, unable to handle anything more than that.

Han stood. Pausing beside Ben's chair, he clapped his son on the shoulder, then left.

…

Ben remained in the cockpit for the duration of the flight, watching the stars fly by in silence. Time passed slowly. Chewie was a good riding partner; the Wookiee sat at the controls, quietly managing the ship and giving off a steady, solid presence. Chewie had been like an uncle to Ben during his childhood, and he'd dearly missed the Wookiee when he'd been sent away to train with Luke. Being in Chewie's presence gave Ben a childlike sense of comfort. While he wasn't able to calm his mind enough to meditate, he was at least able to still his body and watch the stars.

Several hours later, Han came striding back into the cockpit, rousing Ben from a troubled stupor, and buckled into the captain's seat once more.

"We're almost there," he announced, and reached for the hyperdrive switch.

The Falcon slowed out of hyperspace, and the mineral planet Crait came into view before them. On the far side of the planet, Ben could make out the telltale dagger shapes of numerous First Order vessels.

"Come around on this side of the planet and fly low," Ben said, getting out of his seat and bracing himself on the back of Han's chair. "There's a ground crew with ATs and a superlaser siege cannon and an aerial strike crew moving in." He straightened, thinking through the situation. "We need to take out the TIEs, and the cannon if possible. Otherwise, there isn't going to be a Resistance left."

"Go hop on the guns," Han barked, but Ben was already halfway out the door. Things were about to get interesting.

He passed through the cabin at a jog. "Finn, with me," he snapped.

The ex-trooper automatically jumped to his feet, and the two men ran to the gun turret. Ben headed up, Finn went down, and they climbed into the gun seats. Ben secured the headset and began the priming process.

"What are we up against?" Finn asked over the comm.

"Squadron of TIEs, ground crew, ATs, and a siege cannon," Ben replied shortly.

"A siege cannon?!"

"Just take out as many as you can!"

The Falcon entered the planet's atmosphere with an alarming jolt. Han brought the ship low and skimmed across the salted surface, flying beneath the level of enemy radar. Ben let out a slow breath and hovered his thumbs over the triggers.

"Get ready," came Han's voice.

The Falcon soared over the last rock formation and came upon a violent and horribly one-sided battle. Skimmer parts lay strewn across the red and white-streaked planet surface as the First Order laid waste to the old rebel base. TIEs dove at the trench of Resistance fighters, firing mercilessly down upon them. Across the plain, the dreaded siege cannon was almost warmed up. Above it hovered Hux's transport ship—his old transport ship.

Ben's nostrils flared. "You son of a—"

The Falcon's dorsal cannons let out a barrage of blaster fire in a wide arc, raining down upon the surprised TIEs as the ship flew past them. The ventral cannons joined in, and together, they took out a dozen TIEs in one pass. The enemy fighters blew apart and plummeted to the salty ground.

Han brought the Falcon back around. "Focus on that cannon!" Ben shouted into the comm.

With a stream of second-wave TIEs chasing after them, they sped toward the cannon. Finn unloaded on it with a roar. Above him, Ben opened fire on the ATs, taking out their viewports and several cannons. He saw Hux screaming orders aboard the hovering transport, and swiftly redirected his guns at the enemy ship. Hux dove for cover just in time.

Below him, Finn whooped. "She's smokin'!" he shouted.

Ben looked back. Sure enough, the siege cannon was powering down as a thick plume of smoke belched from the engine compartment. He silently fist-pumped the air.

There were still several TIE fighters tailing them. Han was doing a phenomenal job of outmaneuvering them, but the Falcon's shields could only take so many stray shots before they sputtered and gave out. Knowing the Falcon, Ben mused darkly, that could be at any moment.

As one, he and Finn turned the guns to the rear of the ship and opened fire. A few more enemy fighters went down, and the rest scattered out of the way. They picked off a few more as Han directed the Falcon away from the battlefield, drawing the rest of the TIEs away from the remains of the fight.

The TIEs reformed and streaked after them. The Falcon took off through the red rock formations, navigating with precision through the mountains and beneath the arches. Ben watched the rocks fly by his viewport with uncomfortable closeness, then gripped the gun handles for dear life as the Falcon made an abrupt turn and spiraled down into a cave, the sunlight suddenly going dark as they dove underground. The TIEs followed.

The small enemy fighters were renowned for their speed and agility, but not for the benefit of their anatomical design. Eventually, one of them clipped a stalactite, wrenching the top half of the wing off, and went skittering out of control. It took out another fighter, and they both exploded in twin balls of flame. The Falcon was able to out-fly the others, while Finn and Ben rained down fire on them until none of the TIEs were left.

"We're clear!" Ben said into the comm, then tugged off the headset and clambered down the ladder.

As he jogged back into the cockpit, Han glanced at him over his shoulder. "Nice shooting, kid. Where to now?"

Ben reached out with the Force. "Over there," he said, pointing. "There's a back way out of the base."

With Ben guiding him, Han directed the Falcon to a flat outcropping and landed. He, Ben, and Chewie looked out the viewport.

"I don't see a back way out…" Han started.

"It's there," Ben insisted, and headed for the exit ramp.

He punched the switch and strode down the ramp, ducking his head as he stepped onto terra firma. He trotted down the rocky embankment, skidding at times as he lost his footing on the loose rocks, searching urgently for the back entrance. He knew it was here; he'd seen it in the vision, when Rey had shut the door of the Falcon in his face. But as he spun, looking in every direction, he didn't see it now. Just steep rock faces, piles of jagged boulders, and a gulley leading out. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair.

"The rocks…" Rey's voice came from just behind him. "There must've been a cave in."

He hadn't heard her approaching. She came to stand beside him. He frowned down at her in confusion, but she wasn't paying attention to him; her gaze was fixed on the boulders before them.

She smiled softly. "Lifting rocks," she said to herself, and stretched out her hand.

He heard a groan and a clatter, and turned with wide eyes to see the boulders give a collective shudder. A few shifted, then rocked a bit, and then… they began to lift. One by one, they floated into the air as if they weighed nothing, and began to drift apart, spreading further and further until the gulley was filled with them—a constellation of rocks and stones and dust, in an incredible display of raw power and focus. Ben regarded it all with a sense of amazement, finally looking back down at the slight woman beside him. Rey gave the rocks a little push, and they moved to either side before falling heavily to the ground.

People started to appear at the mouth of the collapsed passage. Their dirt-streaked faces peered out of the cave, wondering at what they'd just witnessed. And then Poe emerged from the passage, running straight for Rey, and swooped her up in a tight hug. She wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him as he spun her around. Rose ran to Finn and embraced him; he scooped her off her feet and held her close, burying his face in her shoulder. Leia came over to Han, wearing a tired smile, and he draped an arm around her shoulders and dropped a kiss onto her dusty hair. A few others came out too, clasping their rescuers' hands and looking around in awe.

From where he'd retreated near the foot of the rocky embankment, Ben watched the reunions with a mixture of relief and deep sadness. This was all that was left of them. In the time since they'd fled D'Qar, the Resistance's numbers had dwindled drastically. He was glad they'd been able to make it in time to rescue these last few, brave fighters, but as he watched them embrace and laugh and cry and kiss, he felt extraordinarily alone.

And at the sight of Rey with Poe…

He felt a hairy paw come to rest on his shoulder, and looked up at Chewie. The Wookiee was studying him astutely, and gave him a little gurgling moan. Ben smiled gratefully. Maybe not entirely alone, then.

Han and Leia came over to them, and suddenly, all Ben wanted was to embrace his mother. She seemed to sense it as her gaze landed on him. He stepped forward to meet her and fell into her open arms. He had to bend over to hug her, petite as she was compared to his towering frame, but when her arms squeezed around his middle, he felt small and protected. He closed his eyes and sank into her embrace, hugging her tightly. Han came to his side and clapped him on the shoulder.

"I knew you would come," Leia murmured in his ear.

"Glad you're safe," he replied softly. Straightening, he looked at both his parents, and realized with a start just how much they'd aged, and how much he'd missed them. They'd made mistakes—they all had. But in that moment, he wanted nothing more than to protect them from the horrors headed their way.

"We have to get out of here," he told them in an undertone. "The First Order will be back with more fighters; they'll scour these hills until they find and destroy the rest of the Resistance."

"We oughta be able to fit everyone on the Falcon," Han surmised, skimming a glance over the remaining people. "Where to, General?"

"Ajan Kloss," Leia said, and gave him the coordinates. "I'll get everyone on board."

Ben followed Han and Chewie back to the cockpit while Leia went to round up the survivors. They had the Falcon prepped for flight by the time the last Resistance member climbed onboard. As Han fired up the engines, Leia joined them in the cockpit and buckled into the remaining seat. Han put a hand to the controls, and the Falcon lifted off.

Once they'd jetted into hyperspace, Leia leaned across the aisle to Ben. "What happens now?" she asked.

With everything that had happened recently, Ben had nearly forgotten about the timeline and the mission. He thought back on the most recent events and shook his head.

"The timeline is completely off," he reported tiredly. "By this time in the vision, we had destroyed Starkiller Base. After escaping from the First Order on Crait, we received the signal from Palpatine, threatening retribution. But seeing as Starkiller Base is still operational, Palpatine may feel secure enough not to proceed with his ultimate plan just yet. Or maybe he will." He shrugged helplessly. "I don't know how much time we have before he deploys, but I do know this: We're on the run. We don't have a fleet. We don't have enough people to storm Starkiller Base. We don't have any allies—do we?"

Leia shook her head. "I hailed them, but no one answered my call."

"So, no allies." He sighed. "Our only option left, as I see it, is to send in the tactical team by itself. But the chances of us being successful and surviving long enough to escape are slim to none. And I still have no idea how we're supposed to get on-planet."

"We can't afford to lose any more people," Leia argued softly.

"How long will the rest of us survive if we don't do something? How long before Starkiller Base turns its eye on another innocent planet?"

She pursed her lips unhappily as she studied him. "Let me think it over."

He nodded, equally unhappy. "I'll go speak with the team and see if they've thought of anything else," he said, and stood.

Stepping out of the cockpit, Ben was met with the dull roar of many voices speaking at once. The cabin was packed from wall to wall with people. Everyone was huddled in pairs or groups, conversing closely together or shouting across the cabin over one another in an effort to be heard.

Although he stood almost a head taller than most of the people here, Ben didn't see anyone from the team. He began to weave his way through the crowd, carefully steering his tall frame in an effort not to jostle too many people. Surely in a space this confined, it wouldn't be so difficult to find them…

He caught a glimpse of brown hair secured back in a series of buns, and headed in that direction—then lurched to a halt at the sight before him as the crowd parted.

The team was seated around the dejarik table, to all appearances a cozy, close-knit group finally reunited. A group he clearly didn't belong to. Rose was snuggled up to Finn, and Poe had his arm slung over Rey's shoulders, holding her comfortably against his side. She grinned up at him as he said something, and the others laughed.

Ben felt like he might vomit.

He should've anticipated this. He knew this mission was bigger than his personal feelings, knew he should put his roiling emotions aside and go to them, but he just couldn't do it. He couldn't make his feet walk the rest of the way to the table, not when they looked so at ease without him there. Not when she was so close to him.

She'd wanted to get back to Poe this whole time, hadn't she? She'd asked about him over the comm that first night on Ahch-To. He'd been the first one out of the collapsed passage, had run straight to her, and she'd embraced him. And she looked awfully cozy with him now.

Ben took a blind step backward. He'd been such a fool to hope. Even after the events on Ahch-To, a small, stupid part of him had thought that maybe, just maybe… But this timeline was different. He'd admitted it himself. It was so far off now that it hardly bore any resemblance to the vision he'd seen. Even so, nothing said Rey had to end up with him. She hadn't ended up with him in the first timeline. Maybe she didn't end up with him this time, either. Maybe she did end up with Poe.

His breath was coming in harsh puffs. Try as he might, he couldn't perish the thought, couldn't get the sight out of his mind. What had happened on Ahch-To probably meant nothing to her. The realization of their dyad meant nothing. It was simply a convenient way of no longer being completely isolated. She'd been alone all her life; of course she would be happy to learn she wasn't. In the pool, she'd literally almost drowned; she'd only clung that tightly to him to keep from sinking beneath the water. Their conversations in the hut had meant nothing—except, of course, for the last conversation. That one had meant everything.

His heart pounded painfully in his chest, thumping loudly in his ears. He had to get out of there.

Turning away from the group at the dejarik table, he beat a hasty retreat back to the cockpit, not bothering to excuse himself when he bumped into people. He found the cockpit empty, and was eternally grateful that Han, Leia, and Chewie had stepped out as he sank into his father's chair. At least this way, he could exist under the guise of keeping an eye on the controls while he tried not to break apart.

Emotions indeed, he mused. Perhaps the ancient Jedi had the right of it. Emotions were painful, dangerous things. He wished he couldn't feel them right now. But it didn't matter what he felt for her, because she didn't trust him anyway. Even if he'd stood a chance with her before, he didn't any more. He'd ruined it.

She believed Luke. And she preferred Poe.

He sucked in an unsteady breath, willing himself not to throw up all over the console. He had no right to feel this way. He had no right to her. But kriff it all, he loved her, and he'd been almost certain she had loved him—

But that had been in the vision. Which hadn't happened.

None of it was real.

He shoved his fingers into his hair, gripping it by the roots.

Ben…

He took another breath and forced himself to let it out slowly. And another. And another. He leaned his head back against the chair and looked up at the stars streaking by above him.

He just had to make it through this mission. Make sure the Resistance was safe. Correct his mistakes. Then he could go off on his own. Get away for a while, go find some remote planet to hide on, and let everything calm down. Forget about her. Forget about everything.

Minutes passed, with only the sound of his breathing and the steady hum of the engines breaking the silence. As he breathed, the initial pain finally began to ebb, and was replaced with a deeper ache. This, he could handle. He didn't like it, but he could handle it.

He could do this.

The cockpit door slid open and closed behind him. He was a little surprised Han was back so soon, when—he leaned over to look at the readout—there were still a few hours of flight time left. He'd hoped to have a little while longer in solitude before his father returned.

"Ben?"

His heart seized painfully. That wasn't Han.

"Why didn't you come over?" Rey asked softly, coming to stand beside the captain's chair.

He wasn't sure what he was going to say until he was saying it. "Someone has to keep an eye on this trash heap," he bluffed, inwardly wondering at how calm he sounded. He leaned back in the chair and looked out the viewport.

"We're in hyperspace. I'm sure the Falcon will be fine."

He didn't say anything.

"Now that the team is back together, don't you think we should discuss the mission?"

He scoffed under his breath at the irony of her words. "Has Poe come up with any bright ideas to get us on-planet like I asked him to?" he bit out, more harshly than he'd intended.

She fell silent. "Ben, what's wrong?" she finally asked.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Nothing. Go back to your friends, Rey."

"Ben—"

His hand slammed down on the console, and he saw her jump out of his peripheral vision. "Get. Out," he whispered tightly.

Silence rang. Immediately, he knew he'd gone too far, and he wished he could take it back, keep control over his emotions and bite his tongue. But then he heard her footsteps retreat, and the cockpit door closed behind her.

He breathed out a shaky sigh. He wasn't relieved in the least; he felt worse, actually. Everything he'd ever wanted in the whole galaxy had just walked out that door. Now more than ever, he knew he didn't stand a snowball's chance in atmosphere reentry of having her, but he supposed at least now they knew where they stood.