They had a list.
It was Rey's idea and well, if Rey wanted it, she got it.
Next on said list were his parents.
Ben didn't understand why he couldn't just send them a text message. Wasn't How are you? By the way Rey and I are dating now sufficient? She didn't seem to think it was enough. Based on her teary eyes and emotional state when she returned from tea with her grandfather and father, coming clean about their relationship was a big deal for her.
To be clear, their relationship was huge for Ben—it was his everything, since Rey was his everything. But since he was such a private person, he really didn't care who knew and who didn't. His parents would find out eventually, whether from Old Man Kenobi or from the eventual mating mark on Rey's neck.
He really didn't care how or when it happened.
But evidently Rey did.
So, it was why they sat on the patio of some fancy new bistro in Coruscant, ready to share brunch with his parents. He was hoping the hour drive would deter them, but apparently his dad wanted an excuse to drive his newest purchase—a 1967 Pontiac Firebird—and his mother was more than happy to spend the afternoon in the shopping district as soon as they finished catching up.
His father hadn't even opened his menu before his mother was in hysterics.
"You're together!" She cried out, looking between Rey and Ben with wide eyes, "Oh, thank the heavens!" She glanced over to his father and elbowed him. "Han! Look at them! Smell them! They're clearly together."
Han just shrugged. "Is that a surprise? These kids were toast the minute she presented." He continued flipping through the menu, unperturbed. "Mhm, toast. Actually, a BLT sounds nice."
Leia rolled her eyes and looked back to Ben. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "I'm so happy. Tell me everything! I want to know every detail!"
His father snorted. "No, Princess, I promise you really don't."
Ben cleared his throat and squeezed his mother's hand before letting it go. "We just…we finally realized how deeply we both love each other." He explained, glancing over to Rey with a soft smile. "It took a little bit. It wasn't always easy, and at some points, it didn't feel like we'd figure it out. But we did."
Leia looked between them, her eyes welling with tears. "Well, isn't that beautiful." She sniffled and brought a napkin to her eyes, dabbing away some of the tears. She looked back to his father. "Reminds me of us."
"Really?" His face twisted up in disgust, "I sure hope not. I don't need to think about my kid that way."
Ben groaned and rubbed at his eyes. "Dad, come on. Really? You're being gross."
He shrugged. "I'm just saying, your mother remembers the soft stuff. I'm getting old. My memory is selective now."
Rey—beautiful, blessed Rey—saw this as a moment to change the conversation. "We're officially dating." She told Leia, her smile bright, "It's a dream come true for both of us."
His mother, in a duplicate reaction to mere moments earlier, grabbed Rey's hand in her own. She squeezed it and smiled, her eyes still teary. "Well, then. I'm excited to officially welcome you to the family."
Rey blushed and shook her head. "That's sweet Leia, but we're just dating. Taking it slow, I guess."
But his mother just grinned. "For now."
Ben sighed and wrapped a protective arm around Rey. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her with constant discussions about the future. This was part of the reason he was weary of telling his parents in person. He was lucky his mother wasn't discussing wedding venues yet.
Or worse—baby names.
"Mom. Come on." He began, keeping his voice calm, "Rey's right. We're taking this slow. And we know what we want down the line, but for now, we're going to date. We know how to be each other's best friends, but now, we need to learn how to be each other's significant others."
His mother just smiled fondly. "The best relationships always start as friendships."
"Friendships my ass, Princess," His dad piped in, finally abandoning his menu. "We definitely weren't friends first."
She rolled her eyes. "And that's exactly why your son is holding Rey close and you wouldn't even hold my hand when we walked in."
He held up his hands in defeat. "Hey, you always complain that I have motor oil on my hands or that they're cracking. I'm trying to spare you, Princess."
"They wouldn't crack if you used that specialty cream I bought you!"
"You know I hate the consistency of cream!"
Ben cleared his throat and leaned towards Rey, desperate to drown out his parents' bickering. "I hope she didn't make you uncomfortable." He whispered, tightening his arm around her, "That's the last thing I want."
But Rey just smiled, back to her cheery self. "Ben, I've known your mom for practically forever. Believe me, nothing she said was surprising."
He took a deep breath, relieved to hear his mother hadn't scared Rey off only mere days after he finally earned the right to call her his. "Good. But I can't promise she won't start talking about my Grandma Padme's engagement ring. Or her wedding dress. Or baby names. So, I apologize if it starts."
Rey just blushed and shrugged. "I don't mind, honestly." She looked down, suddenly bashful. "I kind of like it. Gets me excited for the future if I'm being honest."
Ben swallowed. That was news to him. "Rey—"
"I do want to take this slowly," She interrupted, meeting his eyes with a smile, "Really. We need to do this normally. Dating and all of that. But that doesn't mean I don't imagine what this looks like down the line." She swallowed and shrugged. "Because you're it for me, Ben. I want you to be my Alpha."
It was the most perfect thing he had ever heard. He could die a happy man.
"Good. Because you're it for me. I want you to be my Omega."
When Rey smiled and kissed him, he was certain he died and was ascending to heaven.
Until he heard the sound of a phone camera going off. In record time, he pulled away and looked to his parents. Unsurprisingly, his mother was taking photos of their intimate embrace. Surprisingly, so was his father.
"Mom! Dad!" He cried out, waving his hand at their phones, "What the hell?"
His mom grinned and tucked her phone away. "Luke's going to want proof that you and Rey are dating."
"Lando, too. He wants to hear all about it." His father explained, tapping away on his phone, "Don't be surprised if he texts you later."
Ben didn't want to hear about his Uncle or his Godfather. He also didn't want photos taken of him. He was ready to say as much, until he felt Rey's soft hand take his. He glanced at their hands and then to her smiling eyes.
Bright hazel stole his breath away.
It was an easy reminder that none of this mattered. The photos, his parents, his acerbic Uncle or his flamboyant Godfather.
All that mattered was Rey.
That was more than enough for Ben.
-x-x-x-
Three days later, they made it to the next item on their list. His parents were annoying, but thankfully easy to please. He didn't, however, think the next two people would be as forgiving or lenient on details.
Finn and Poe would want a detailed inquiry.
Ben wasn't ready.
Not at all.
Especially not with two sets of unimpressed eyes looking between him and Rey.
They were set up at Poe and Finn's place, a large spread of food in front of them. But the minute the food was set down and they abandoned their small talk about work and the weather, Finn and Poe jumped in headfirst.
"So." Poe began, bringing his hands together as he studied them. He looked ready to run a business meeting rather than having a nice dinner with friends. "Ben. Rey."
Finn rolled his eyes and leaned forward, a finger jutting out to point at both of them. Unlike Poe, he looked ready to put them on trial. "Spit it out. How long? When did it finally happen?"
From beside him, Rey grabbed Ben's hand and blushed. "About a week and a half ago."
"A WEEK AND A HALF AGO?!" Poe and Finn's identical shrieks had both he and Rey nearly jumping out of their seats.
"You two have been together for—" Finn started…
…and Poe finished. "A week and a half and haven't said anything?"
Ben cleared his throat and squeezed Rey's hand. "We needed to figure things out between ourselves before we went and told everyone."
Poe scoffed and crossed his arms. "I mean, I get it but like…"
"We've been instrumental in this." Finn jumped in. "The heats, the ruts, the whining, the pining…"
Poe looked like a bobble head with the way he nodded. "It's like our relationship."
"If we were annoying heterosexuals." Finn clarified, before popping a bottle of wine. "Thank god you two finally figured it out."
Rey rolled her eyes. "You two are so melodramatic. We're thankful, honestly. You two have been amazing. Taking care of me during my heat—"
"I still have nightmares about that—"
"Poe, shut up. As I was saying, thank you. For everything." Rey frowned and looked at Ben, before back to Finn. "You knocked some sense into me and for that, I'm forever thankful."
Finn just smiled and filled up her glass. "That's what friends are for, Peanut." He looked at Ben, his gaze serious. "But if you hurt her, I'll kick your ass."
Ben hummed and grabbed his wine glass. "That's kind, Finn. But don't worry. I'll take great care of my Omega." His gaze drifted to Rey. Her cheeks had turned a delightful shade of pink, one that sent Ben thinking about what their evening would be like, their dinner be damned.
But his pleasant thoughts were ruined by Poe's childish gagging.
"GROSS!" Poe cried as he pinched his nose shut. "God, now I have to smell you two getting hot and bothered? Just kill me!"
Ben literally growled. "Fuck off, Poe. I've been dealing with you and Finn going gaga over each other for years!" He was ready to descend into a rant about privacy and couth, but the squeeze of Rey's tiny hand reminded him that none of that mattered.
His friends were allowed to be annoying. They were teasing. They did it because they loved them.
He took a deep breath. "What I mean is, thank you. For everything."
Finn and Poe shared a look before glancing back to Rey and Ben. They nodded, their smiles identical. "You're welcome." Finn said cheerily, before finishing off their wine glasses, "Now, do we get details?"
"Spare nothing." Poe reminded him, before taking a gulp from his own glass, "I want to hear everything."
Ben glanced at Rey, his cheeks red. He wasn't good at talking about his life or sharing personal details, even after his time pining over Rey. But she just smiled and nodded.
"Ben's confession was the most romantic thing ever," Rey began, her voice soft and wistful, "Straight out of a movie or something. It all started when—"
There was nothing he could do but watch and listen. Rey captivated his every thought.
She was perfect.
-x-x-x-
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"
"NO FREAKING WAY! If you're lying, I'm going to smack that beautiful face!"
"This is insane! It's like a movie!"
"Forget a movie! It's like a romance novel!"
"OH MY GOD!"
Ben stood in the kitchen, eyes wide as he watched the interaction. No amount of coffee in his favorite mug would prepare him for the next hour of screaming and yelling and giggling. He should be used to it, after the years he spent around the girls, but it was never enough.
When Rey, Jessika, and Kaydel were in the same room, they usually descended into screaming and shouting. The girls were excitable.
At least now, they had something to be excited about.
Rey blushed and hugged her knees to her chest. "Oh, shut up guys. You're embarrassing me. And you're going to traumatize Ben." She glanced over to Ben and bit her lip. "Be nice. You know he's shy."
Jessika scoffed. "Ben? Shy? Please! Remember when he went streaking with Mitaka sophomore year?"
With a grumble, Ben set his mug down. "That was a dare, ok? I won a thousand bucks. I would have been stupid not to take it."
"Come on. Leave him out of this. Otherwise he'll turn all red." Rey winked at her boyfriend and looked back to the girls. "I'll tell you guys all about it but you have to stop screaming."
Kaydel crossed her arms. "You can't tell us literally the biggest news ever and expect us not to scream."
"Agreed!" Jessika cried, before collapsing against the sofa. "This is too insane!"
Rey looked to Ben, desperate for help. But he just smirked and blew her a kiss.
"Have fun girls." With a wave, he disappeared into his bedroom—their bedroom—intent on getting some work done. This time, when the screaming resumed, he smiled.
At least their friends were as excited as they were.
"HE CRIED? OH MY GOD THAT'S SO ROMANTIC!"
"Why aren't the Alphas I date ever romantic? This isn't fair!"
"You two need a couple name!"
"OH MY GOD! Yes! How about Beney?"
"Isn't that a donut?"
"No. That's a beignet."
"How about Reylo? Like, Rey and Solo?"
"OH MY GOSH. It's like a combination of her future name."
"Ugh, that's perfect if you ever want to become a pop star."
Well, he smiled at first. Then he put his earbuds on. He could be happy and in love while also not listening to his two college friends gush about their relationship.
-x-x-x-
"Are we done now?" Ben mumbled, his lips taking permanent residence by her mating gland. She blushed and ran a hand through his hair, thinking back to the illicit scenting he did when she first presented. She liked it then and she most certainly liked it now.
"We are." Rey assured him, her fingers twirling the soft brown locks. His hair was softer than hers. It never made any sense to her, but she was happy it was the case, especially as she ran her fingers through it.
Ben grumbled and pressed a kiss to her gland. "That felt like it went on forever. Your list never seemed to end."
"That's because we have a lot of people in our lives who care about us," Rey explained, thinking fondly to the list. The day after they officially became a couple, she jotted down the names of every person she wanted to tell.
Ben was her forever, so a quick text message about their new status didn't feel right. Besides, since so many people had been instrumental in them getting together, she felt telling people separately was a must.
And they did, starting with her father and grandfather. Next were Han and Leia—and by default Luke and Lando—followed closely behind by Finn and Poe. Then Rey had her other close friends, mainly Rose, Jessika, and Kaydel.
Seeing the positive responses from all the people she loved and cared about warmed her heart. In all her life, she had never felt so happy.
She had never felt so sure of anything.
It was a nice alternative to the crushing anxiety and fear she had about well, everything only weeks ago. She still wasn't fully comfortable with her designation—she had plenty to learn—but there was a learning curve.
She was a late bloomer. She had a decade or more of learning about herself to catch up on. But that was ok. With Ben by her side, it wasn't nearly as scary of a task.
Besides, she did the hard part—she already had her Alpha
Most Omegas went through life desperately searching for their perfect Alpha, and unfortunately, some never found their soul mates. Rey was a lucky one. She was barely months into her designation and her soul mate was laying beside her at that very moment, lapping away at her mating gland like a parched animal.
"God, I'm never going to get sick of that," He muttered into her neck, his tongue still tracing her reddened skin, "You taste so fucking good. Like honey and sugar and everything right in the world."
Rey blushed and snuggled into his body. She knew the feeling. She knew what he was describing. She felt similarly about tasting his gland. She tried not to do it too often—it often left her lightheaded and well…
Dripping slick.
Then again, she dripped slick when Ben licked at her too, so it was hard to avoid really. It meant glands were off limits when they had plans. But when they were at home, just lounging about?
Well, that was a different story.
Rey curled into him and whimpered. "You need to stop." She whispered, her body heating up every minute he was on her, "I need to leave in the next fifteen minutes."
Ben grunted and kissed down her neck until he reached her bare chest. "That's enough time."
Rey snorted. "With your knot?"
That seemed to knock some sense into him. Ben groaned and pulled away. "Alright. Fine. You're probably right, anyway. I don't really want to send you off to see your dad smelling like—"
"Your cum is dripping out of me?" Rey smirked and sat up, enjoying the way his ears reddened, "Ahuh. Exactly. When I'm back."
Ben grunted and kissed her shoulder. "Is that a promise?"
Rey hummed and nodded. "It most definitely is, Solo. As long as you do what I asked."
He groaned and pulled his hair. "Do I have to?"
"Yes."
"But—"
She stood up and slipped into her dress. She glanced at the clock and cursed. She was grabbing dinner with her dad ten blocks away, and at the rate she was going, she would be late. With a quick comb through of her hair, she poked at Ben's exposed chest.
"Don't but me. If your godfather wants to chat, talk to him. Ok?" She slipped into her shoes and gave him a warning look. "They're your family, Ben."
He sat up and watched her. "It's not just Lando, though. He's with my parents! And Luke! I can't survive a video call with all four of them!"
Rey grabbed her purse and gave him a look. "Oh? You can't survive?"
"No. I can't."
"Then I guess you can't knot me tonight."
His eyes darkened. "Omega."
Rey gave him a knowing look. "Alpha."
Ben grumbled and rubbed at his eyes. "Fine. You win. Have fun with your dad."
She grinned and blew him a kiss. "I will. Tell everyone I say hello."
With a wave, Rey skipped out, unable to keep her excitement to herself. Her boyfriend was connecting with his family. She was about to have a yummy dinner with her father.
And best of all?
She'd be fucked and knotted so hard that she probably wouldn't be able to walk the following morning.
Life was good.
AN: The next chapter will be the epilogue :) thanks for reading!