Author's Note: Hello! Because I can't leave one-shots as one-shots, here's a definitive happy ending to our story because why the hell not? Again, not historically accurate. Thank you for reading.
Chapter 2
"Rose, would you like to attend the World's Fair in Philadelphia with me this weekend?" Kaydel asked her guest politely after taking a prim sip of tea. Her china teacup was decorated with bamboo stalks of bright white and deep china blue. The entire set was comprised of Bodley pottery, the height of fashion this year. Rose was almost afraid to touch her own cup, let alone drink the expensive sugared green tea out of it.
After marrying the pomade mogul Giles Akbar, Mrs. Kaydel Connix Akbar quickly rose from a lowly factory girl to an acclaimed hostess at the top of Pennsylvanian society and now dressed the part. She greeted Rose for afternoon tea in a brand new polonaise princess dress of gingham and stripes in shades of blue and white that matched her tea set.
"Unfortunately, I will be busy this weekend," Rose responded. She shifted in her yellow gown, feeling three years outdated and a bit ugly while stealing another sugar cookie.
"That is a pity, with it being the centennial and all this year," Kaydel sighed and rested her cheek in her hand. "I've been trying to find someone who I can stand for more than ten minutes to accompany me for an all-expenses paid trip there. It is difficult, especially now that all of our friends are being wed."
Rose felt a pang of grief in the hollow of her chest. She'd loved someone once. Someone she hoped would tell her that he returned the affections of this sailor's daughter. A boy who would promise to put a ring on her finger, no matter what the law and society said about their union. Instead, he enlisted for the North and disappeared. No matter where she looked and who she asked, she could find no trace of him.
Kaydel continued her thought after no response from Rose. "What will you be doing instead?"
"Rey's wedding is this weekend."
Kaydel nearly spit out her tea. "Our Ms. Rey Johnson is getting married?"
Rose nodded.
"To whom?"
"Benjamin Solo."
Kaydel scoffed and put down her teacup. "The Benjamin Solo?"
"None other."
"Giles works with Mr. Solo on a near monthly basis. With him being a bachelor for such a long time, Giles and I thought he was—" she waved the thought away as if to tell Rose to ignore it.
Rey managed to keep the entire courtship of Benjamin Solo a secret from the entire factory until Rose caught her a year ago. The shamelessly bold woman she was in her jeans, Rose observed Rey sneaking a kiss to the corner of one of their wealthiest customers' mouth after she helped him procure a tiny mechanical part for an allegedly broken lace-making machine.
When Rose confronted Rey about it the next day during their lunchbreak, Rey immediately told her everything in confidence: her first marriage, the looting, the mercy killings, and then Ben…and their reunion ten years later. Rose was then sworn to silence about the whole ordeal. Now that Rey was tying the knot with Ben, she gave Rose permission to finally indulge some information to their mutual friends, though it was restricted to her romance with him.
"Well, apparently at least one woman caught Mr. Solo's attention. He courted Rey for nearly two years and proposed to her three months ago." Rose couldn't conceal a twinkle in her eye.
"Why Rey?"
"She reclaimed a great deal of land that was unjustly seized from her during the war. She's not the starving young woman that she was when we first met her, Kaydel."
"I know, I know," Kaydel sighed in frustration and took to pouring herself a new cup of tea. "Just how is it that I am suddenly now learning about their wedding from you?"
"They wanted a small ceremony. Rey chose me as her bridesmaid."
"Ah. Well, do you think Rey is aware of the rumor?"
"Of what?"
"That Mr. Solo can no longer…satisfy a woman due to his war injuries."
Rose suppressed a cackle while pretending to chew thoughtfully on a bite of sugar cookie. While drunk off of expensive red wine one evening several months ago, Rey went into sinful detail about Ben's ability to pleasure a woman with his mouth and how, injured though he may be, was still plenty functional below the belt.
"She loves him. I am sure they will figure out an arrangement that works for both of them."
"Very well. I will send a wedding gift to Mr. Solo's residence shortly. Please tell future Mrs. Solo that I expect her to come suitably dressed to a society debut party that I will throw for her in August. I have many more questions to ask her."
Ben's mother allowed Ben and Rey to host their lovely wedding in her sweeping rose garden. Maids rushed about to make last minute preparations before the appearance of the fifteen or so guests that the couple chose to witness their union. Rose arrived early and snuck up to the room where Rey told her that she was getting ready.
She was greeted with a gasp of "Oh, Rose!" as soon as she opened the door to Mrs. Leia Solo's private parlor. Rey, with her hair already pinned up and veil thrown back, jumped up from where the stately Leia Solo herself was preening over her and rushed over to Rose.
Rose took Rey's gloved hands in hers. "Rey, you look positively stunning."
"Really?" Rey beamed and twirled around in her Parisian wedding dress of ivory grosgrain straight from Magasin Des Demoiselles, looking like the sheer fashionable envy of Pennsylvanian society. Despite this tiny wedding being the union of an older bachelor and a mysterious widowed mechanic ten years his junior, Ben's mother insisted that her soon-to-be daughter in law look like a shining diamond in a custom-made dress for the occasion.
"Absolutely." Rose again felt plain and unfashionable in the same yellow dress that she wore to all of her fancy occasions.
"Thank you," Rey's joy gave away to a pained smile with shiny eyes. "You look like a dream too."
"…What's wrong?"
"I wish that my grandfather could be here." She stiffened her wobbly lip but failed to keep a few tears from falling. "He would be so happy to see me marry a man like Ben. A man that I want to spend the rest of my life with."
"I am sure he is looking down from the sky above and blessing us with a clear sky and cool breeze for your big day."
"Do you think so?" Rey gave a full bellied laugh and squeezed Rose's hands in hers. "I guess that is my hope too."
The ceremony went on without a hitch. Ben's unadulterated joy lit up his scarred face as he watched Rey walk down the aisle under the five multicolored arches of fresh roses. He failed to conceal a smile when Rey said her vows to him. When he was told that he could kiss the bride, Ben gathered his new wife in his arms and kissed her passionately and probably for a little too long at a wedding ceremony. Rose would be lying if she didn't feel a little hot and bothered witnessing this raw display of affection.
While newly Mr. and Mrs. Solo greeted and exchanged words with their other guests during the beginning portion of their reception, Rose slipped away for a spell to the balcony to sip on some red wine and study the emerging bright stars in the clear evening sky above. In response to the heat, she removed her gloves to savor the cool wine glass in her hand.
In mid-sip, she was caught unprepared by a strange man's voice behind her. "A lovely little ceremony, but not enough bourbon at the reception."
Rose managed to swallow but ended up coughing loudly and impolitely when some of the wine managed to get into her nose. She turned and found the brilliantly red-haired and bearded man who stood beside Ben at the ceremony to now be idling up to her with a squat glass of amber liquor in this hand. He wore no gold band on his finger and was dressed lavishly in a deep blue, almost black material.
"Many pardons, you took me by surprise," she finally uttered.
"My apologies for scaring you." He had striking pale green eyes that she had never seen on a person before.
"Your apology accepted."
"I do not mean to be too forward, but—" the man hesitated to find the right words, "but the band is preparing to play some numbers inside. I was wondering—do you waltz?"
"I do not know, but I am a quick leaner," Rose smiled.
"Would you like to learn?"
"Only if I have the name of my dancing partner beforehand."
"Hux—Armitage Hux, miss."
"And I am Rose Tico. Mr. Hux," Rose sunk into a curtsy, "please grant me the pleasure of your tutelage and partnership for waltzing."
"Gladly, Miss Tico. Follow me." Armitage accepted her offered hand with a flourish and her heart unexpectedly jumped at his ungloved touch against her fingers that she forgot to reglove.
He pulled her back inside to where Ben and Rey, stark black pressed against warm ivory under the crystal chandelier, were already lost in their own little world on the dance floor.
