A/N: I'm so happy The Rise of Skywalker is out on digital. Watched it twice already and I ended up writing another fic! LOL A plus side of social distancing for us ff readers/writers is catching up on stories!

~VI. The Morning After~

Rey woke up the next morning with the biggest migraine she had ever had in her life.

Oh bloody hell I hope I didn't throw up on anything, was her immediate thought.

Thankfully, one sniff of her breath, there were no traces of sourness – only a strong whiff of alcohol and a hint of morning breath. How much did she have to drink last night?

And those damn curtains. Why didn't she think to shut them? The blazing sun glimmering through her window was not helping with the excruciating thrashing in her head. She felt around and realized she was on a bed. Poe probably let her sleep in the room, so he was probably knocked out on the couch or had stayed out all night.

She was about to get up to get some water and aspirin to curb this nightmare of a morning when suddenly she realized something else. No, someone else. Twisting her head sluggishly, fearing for what she'd discover and feigning the pulsating ache in her temples, she found a head of black hair resting on the pillow right beside her. Oh no.

Discovering even more, she noticed this person was sans clothing… and yup, so was she under the bedsheets. Shit. Shit. Shit.

She propped up on her elbows slowly, trying to remember more and more of her blurred night as well as trying to figure out who this person was. As she lifted herself slightly, the covers on the man's body slid down and revealed a too good to be true toned back with rough red marks running all over this stranger. She knew that back. She knew that body. Ben.

Did she hook up with him last night and was too hungover to remember? You idiot.

Yes, she admitted to herself that she was being particularly flirty with him all night and yes, he was ungodly attractive, but she didn't expect to give her entire self into her craving and hook up with a man she just met. She had standards for crying out loud… well whatever was left of it.

Ben shuffled a bit in his sleep. She dared to stay still because she didn't know what she would say to him if he awoke. He flipped over to her side and swung his arm across her, letting it rest idly on her lower torso. That brief contact instantly brought some of Rey's memories back. Sort of… A sudden flash in her pounding head got her to believe that she may have dreamt of having mind-blowing, ear-shattering sex with Ben the night before - a fantasy she didn't think was real until grasping the truth after he touched her. It most certainly was not a dream. It happened. Oh boy did it happen.

Just for a moment she thought to herself that at least she hooked up with someone she somewhat knew and was attracted to. But then again, that was not the type of 'wild, off the books weekend' she was hoping for. She was a good girl, and good girls did not sleep with guys she barely knew for 24 hours. Keep telling yourself that, hon. It still doesn't change the fact that it happened.

She couldn't contain her mixed emotions anymore, bringing her hands up to mask her reddening face.

"Oh god," she whimpered a little too loud.

He stirred beside her and lazily groaned, most likely waking up with the same painful migraine as hers.

"Fuuuck," he winced from his budding aches, grabbing at his temples. He slowly opened his own eyes and was met with familiar stares of the woman in bed with him. "Oh…" he suddenly realized.

There was no reason to be shy around him now, Rey thought. She already slept with him, despite not fully remembering it all. What she remembered was enough though. Still, she wanted to crawl into a corner and be invisible.

"Hi," she mumbled.

"Hi," he didn't know what to say either.

They stared at each other and after a beat, both chuckled, trying to ease the tension.

"Is this… good or… bad or…?" he wasn't sure what she was thinking.

"Maybe… a little bit of both?" she said honestly.

"I'll take it," he smiled, trying to wake up with another yawn.

"I mean you and me, this…" she pointed between them.

"Pleasurable?" he hoped she would say.

"Oh yeah," she nodded a little too much, even adding a thumbs up with her hands like a total spaz. Now's not the time to be nervous, Rey. "But also…" she digressed.

"Unexpected?" he suggested.

"You could say that."

"When in Vegas, right?" he humored her.

"Yeah, when in Vegas," she heavily sighed in agreement.

"Do you want some breakfast?" he changed the subject.

Apparently, he didn't want to talk about it yet either as he was stalling just as much as she was. Thank god.

"That sounds perfect."

They scrambled awkwardly to get out of bed. Despite apparently sleeping together and seeing each other naked as the day they were born the night before, they were both too shy to be seen so exposed to one another that morning. She was in his room, she gathered, since her bag wasn't there. Her dress reeked of alcohol and she wasn't really ready to do the walk of shame in the outfit she had worn the night before; despite that it was just a simple path across the kitchen to the other side of the suite. He offered her a shirt to wear so she could be a bit more comfortable until she got to her room, while he quickly threw on sweatpants and a sweatshirt. Once clothed, they made their way to the bedroom door. It seemed quiet on the other side so they both assumed the coast was clear as everyone was probably still asleep. Slowly opening his door as to not make a creak, they tiptoed outside.

They were not ready for what ensued next.

EVERYONE was awake and present.

Phasma and Rose were in the kitchen making coffee. Finn and Hux were sprawled on the couch watching TV and Poe was sitting at the dining table happily reading the sports section of the newspaper and leaning back with his feet up on the countertop. To make things worse? They couldn't even fake it. Their friends would without question construe that the two had spent the night together.

"Well… good morning," Poe said a little too eagerly, setting his newspaper down and reveling at the two hungover beings.

This prompted everyone to direct their attention to the disheveled pair. One by one each person curled their lips, holding in smirks and muted gasps.

"Have a nice evening, I presume?" Poe was definitely milking it.

If there was ever a moment that either Rey or Ben wanted to just erase from their memories, this took the cake.

Rey immediately tried to process their options: they could try to talk their way out of embarrassment, or just get the confrontation over with. She hadn't moved or turned her body to look at Ben, but she could tell with his barely moving figure, he had no idea what to do either. Screw it, she thought, they'll pry one way or another.

"Poe, not now," Rey said between gritted teeth before timidly walking across the kitchen and living room to the other side of the suite to go to her room and change. She didn't dare to meet anyone else's stares. Once she shut her door, all eyes went to Ben.

"Ben," Phasma tried to calmly say, though it was getting hard for anyone not to be so expressive.

He looked at his friend briefly then immediately walked backwards to his room, shutting it tight. When the pair had left, everyone outside couldn't help but express their hysterics.

Rey scrubbed herself harshly in the shower. Although she would have loved to admit she got to hook up with Ben, all she could think of was the embarrassment of the whole situation. And to top it off, their friends obviously figured it out and were not making it easier on either of them. The worst part of it all was that Rey didn't even know what she thought of it, what she thought of Ben and most importantly, what Ben thought of it all.

After her shower Rey lingered on the bed, too nervous to make an appearance outside. She was thankful that Rose didn't knock on the door to try to talk to her. As much as she loved her, she didn't want to talk about any of this just yet. Not until she talked to Ben. A moment later she heard muffled yelling outside the door. It was Ben's voice.

"Out! All of you! Nosey fucks!" she heard him say. He was shooing everyone so he could talk to her. When she heard the door slam, she figured the coast was clear.

As she stepped out of her room, Ben was in the kitchen pouring himself a cup of coffee. She walked over to the table where Poe had been sitting and plopped down. He came back with a second cup and handed it to her. After a minute of drinking in silence, she decided that it was now or never.

"So…"

She looked up at him and he was half smiling. This eased her somehow and allowed her to confidently continue.

"Last night, huh?" she treaded lightly.

"Yeah, last night was…"

"Great," she blushed. He couldn't help but feel confident about her reaction.

"Yeah. You were a lot of fun. Really great… You're fun," he babbled. He meant it for sure but didn't know how else so say 'I had the best sex of my life last night with the most beautiful woman I've ever met' without sounding like a creep – or too endearing (especially if she wasn't interested).

"I am?" she asked in disbelief. Her shyness was adorable in Ben's eyes.

"Of course!" He said a little to energetically. He caught his own actions and settled down a bit, hoping she didn't notice his over-enthusiasm. "Seriously. Your ex was super wrong about you. That prick."

"Thank you," she said softly. She felt like she needed to thank him for something. Helping her with this breakup? A fun night out? Phenomenal sex? All of the above.

"I-it's my pleasure," he finally blushed. God, she loved that shade of pink on his skin.

"Ben," she started. "Can we just… I mean I don't want to forget what happened because it was so amazing, but can we just let that be and just go on with our weekend?"

He let out a huge breath that he was apparently holding in.

"Yes, I totally agree," he nodded. "I'd like that. I mean, you're great and all…" he trailed.

"Same," She offered to explain. "But I don't think neither of us are in the position to be in a relationship right now, am I right?"

"Yes," he certainly agreed. On another occasion in another time, Ben would've loved to try and woo Rey. But she was right that it wasn't the right timing. "I mean, if the circumstances were different, believe me I'd be thrilled to take you out," this earned blush from Rey. "But from what I can remember last night, we probably both need to be single for a while."

"Exactly," Rey wholeheartedly agreed.

"Good," he nodded.

"Good," she smiled.

Well, at least they were on the same page. Still, it was awkward.

"But you know that won't slide with our friends, right?" he mentioned to her.

Oh, she knew. Poe was such a gossip.

"Yeah well… they can piss off," she said jokingly.

"Hey look," he leaned in a bit. "I don't want you to think I was taking advantage of you or anything. You're a really great girl and I respect you a lot."

"Thanks," she did appreciate his sentiment. "Though I think I was the one taking advantage of you, letting off my breakup steam," she admitted. Again, this made him blush. Two for Two, Rey!

"Look, if you want, we can just be friends or acquaintances at the very least, since we both know Poe. I'm fine with that. And we'll not bring this up… ever," he opted.

"I think I can do with acquaintances," she agreed to his offer. "But I think I'm done with alcohol for the weekend."

"That's probably not a bad idea for me too," he chuckled.

She was happy that they found common ground; they both thought to just let this one-time thing happen and not dwell on it. A part of her kind of wanted to see where it would go, but the sensibility in Rey brought her back down to reality.

After a comfortable amount of time and a nice chat, they decided to head downstairs to meet up with their friends for breakfast. At least now that they were on the same page, they'll be ready to face their ridiculously curious group.

Without fail as the pair made it to the lobby, the questions immediately attacked them. Ben and Rey assured everyone countless times that nothing was going on between them. They had a fun night and that was that. They told their friends – more directed to Poe - to be adult about it as Ben and Rey were being mature and to just sweep any ideas of the two of them being a couple under the rug. After prying and not getting much information out of them, their friends eventually decided to let it die down.

While the pair of couples sat at a table together, Poe, Rey and Ben settled at another table and enjoyed their breakfast. Poe tried a bit more to see if they liked each other but they stood their ground, much to his dismay.

"I have to admit though, you two do look cute together," he winked at them. He had succeeded in making them blush. At least he got something!

"Nice try, Poe. But Ben and I are going to be mature about it. So you should too," Rey dismissed her friend's teasing and continued to snack on her fruit bowl.

"Oh you two are no fun," Poe tossed his sugar packets at them.

"You have all the fun for all of us anyway, Dameron," Ben kidded.

"You know it!"

Just then, the receptionist that assisted Poe and Ben from the day before walked up to them.

"Ah, good I found you guys! I was ringing your room but didn't get an answer," she said.

"Zorii, lovely to see you again," Poe grabbed at her waist as if boundaries meant nothing to them.

"Hey Poe," she giggled. Then she sat on his lap. "Thanks again for bringing me along for your friends' special night."

Poe, Ben and Rey were slightly confused.

"What are you talking about, beautiful?" he asked the woman.

"Oh silly, you remember last night with these two." She pointed between Ben and Rey.

"Uh… she's not my girlfriend," Ben tried to correct her. They were all not following.

"Well of course not anymore, sweetie," she nudged Ben's arm. "She's your wife. You're married now."

She's your wife.

You're married now.

Her words echoed in their ears like the piercing buzz of tinnitus. Ben and Rey grew wide-eyed. Was this woman telling the truth?!

Poe couldn't help but snort in disbelief. "Wait, wait. What?" He asked Zorii.

"Oh my god, hello? Last night I met up with you three after my shift and we went to the chapel to see these two get hitched," she said as if it was the most normal thing to tell people. "Oh! I almost forgot," she added as she remembered why she had approached them in the first place. "Here are your photos. They're complimentary courtesy of the honeymooner's package. Again congratulations! You two are so adorable together!" she squealed.

Zorii handed the envelope to Ben and kissed Poe intensely before leaving, begging him to call her before he left to 'hang out' again for one more night.

After Poe finished flirting with his lady friend, he turned his attention to the two ghosted faces in front of him. He couldn't contain his amusement.

"That Zorii is crazy. Can you guys believe she thinks you're married?"

Ben turned to Rey and together they opened the envelope. He pulled out a small stack of photos. The first one was all they needed to confirm what Poe's friend had said. It was a portrait of Ben in a black blazer above the clothes he wore the night before and Rey wearing a veil on her head wearing her dress from the night before as well. The two were grinning a little too much and hugging each other like Poe and Zorii, disregarding any personal boundaries. They were most likely drunk in the photo seeing as their eyes were so glassy. On the bottom it captioned, 'Mr. and Mrs. Solo'.

Poe was flummoxed at his friends' sudden silence. Curious, he grabbed the photos from Ben's hands, grew wide-eyed for just one moment, then wickedly grinned.

"YOU GUYS GOT MARRIED LAST NIGHT?!"

Clearly, Poe said this loud enough so their other friends could hear the commotion.

"WHAT?!" was the consensus response as the others crowded around Poe to look at their photos.

That sudden outburst snapped Ben and Rey from their shock and sent wave of panic in both their eyes.

"No we didn't, did we?" She desperately asked him.

"Of course not. We couldn't have," he tried to believe himself.

"I mean, we didn't have that much to drink last night, right?" Though she knew they probably did.

"I don't even remember going to a chapel," Ben panicked.

"Oh Rey, what a pretty ring," Phasma said as their friends looked at another picture.

Rey grabbed the photo that Phasma was referring to and sure enough a ring was tucked onto her left hand. She wasn't presently wearing a ring however but had noticed that a small red denture lightly grazing the top of her ring finger. It definitely looked like something was worn on that finger last night. Then a sudden thought had surfaced. That morning when she and Ben got up, she could have sworn that she stepped on something cold pricking her feet and jumped, feeling jittery as she already was while shuffling to put on a shirt.

She looked at Ben. The panic in her eyes was enough for him to comprehend her thoughts. They ran back up to the penthouse and straight to his room, searching frivolously for said ring. They scoured the sheets, he flipped the mattress, she opened every drawer, they checked his bag and even the bathroom, but couldn't find the damn thing.

They sat defeated on his bed, sighing in frustration.

"Maybe Poe's friend was just messing with us. I mean, those photos could have been photoshopped," Ben suggested. "Knowing Poe, he might be the one messing with us just for the hell of it."

"True. Plus, it didn't really look like we were dressed up, more like wearing props to a fun little photo shoot. You know?" Rey added. "I'm sure lots of clubs have those type of gimmicks."

They momentarily let that thought linger.

Rey had relaxed a bit as the two agreed that Poe's friend was just pulling their arms. They'd have to confront her and give her props for it. Though, as Rey's eyes wandered around and looked down at her feet, a shiny little sparkle caught the corner of her eye. She reached down under the leg of the nightstand and pulled out the object that they feared to find. It was a shiny gold band with diamonds encrusted around the top half. It was the ring in the picture.

They were married.

A/N: Preview of next chapter: Aftermath (The Truth Comes Out; Relaxing On The Balcony; Music Doesn't Lie)

"Hold on," Zorii gathered. "You mean you guys don't remember any of that?"

"Can you please tell us what you know?"

"Of course. Let's see..."