A/N: Out of all the chapters I wrote, this is hands down my absolute FAVORITE. If for the only reason because of the dialogue I added in the middle of the chapter.

I'm not the best writer, I can't be descriptive to save my life. But I am a dialogue writer/coach by trade. I know how to write natural conversations and cheeky one liners. That's the only thing I'll ever brag about. Plus, I get paid to do it lol

Hartmannclan, this is the chapter with my funniest line. Well, maybe not funniest but it is my favorite ;)

~XXI. "Almost" Date~

"We can replace the cover and have it dry cleaned for you. But the cushion will need extra time for deep cleaning."

"How long will that take?"

"The best I can do is 3 PM tomorrow."

"No chance it could be sooner than that? I'll pay extra if you can finish it today."

"Sorry, sir. Even if we could it's almost an hour until we close, and we have so many tickets to fulfill already. But I promise you, it'll be ready and good as new by tomorrow."

"Alright. Thank you."

He was handed a slip and Ben walked out of the store.

Earlier that afternoon, Ben had a minor incident when he fortuitously spilled some grape juice on his heather grey couch. He immediately cleaned up the puddle on the floor, though one of the couch cushions had suffered a blow, absorbing a good amount of the staining liquid deep in its fibers. Nothing in his broom closet could save it, so he decided to take the cushion to a professional to get it washed before the end of the day. Unfortunately, the only cleaners that would take his item was in Mid-City, a very busy and very small shop he might add. He didn't arrive there until the late afternoon after checking out several other cleaners nearby who rejected his request for a full cleaning service.

When his soiled cushion was finally accepted and he was handed a return ticket, it was already past 5 PM. He decided that by the time he'd make it back to the loft it'd be pretty late, so he thought to pick up some dinner for him and Rey to take home. As luck would have it, he was walking past a tall green building when a group of people had stepped outside the door on his path and he recognized a familiar face.

"I think if we move the meeting from 8 to 8:30 AM tomorrow then that would give us enough time to plan for the end of quarter update with Lando."

"That works out pretty well, actually," a short woman replied. "Because he's got back-to-backs right after and we'd miss our chance to go over the numbers with him."

"Perfect. It's a plan then."

"That sounds good, boss. I'll update his calendar right away," said another person.

While the three women were in what looked to be a business discussion, Ben instantly lit up when he recognized the person he was just thinking about.

"Rey," Ben greeted a bit too cheerfully.

She turned around to see to who had called her.

"Ben? Hey," she said warmly.

They shared a moment, staring and smiling, ignoring the busy street around them. Not to mention the immediate company.

"Ahem," one of Rey's colleagues cleared her throat.

Rey promptly shook her head as if she were coming out of a spell and gestured to the ladies beside her.

"I'm sorry… Uh, Ben this is Jess and Jannah, we work together. Ladies, this is Ben."

"It's nice to meet you Ben," Jannah said politely, teasingly glaring at Rey.

"Hi there," he shook both of their hands.

"How do you two know each other?" Jess wondered aloud.

"We're…" she glanced at Ben and smirked. He was absolutely beaming at her. "…roommates."

Apparently to Jess and Jannah, that had to be an inside joke between them because the two couldn't stop laughing, further amusing Rey's coworkers.

"Roommates, huh?" Jannah stifled a laugh. "Girl, aren't you married now?"

"What, who told you?" Rey was surprised.

Jannah and Jess unfortunately couldn't stay at the resort overnight for the gala portion of their event because they both had to return to LA the same day. Thus, they never met Ben, and Rey never mentioned to anyone besides her boss that she was married. Then again, Lando found out on his own.

"Lando, who else," Jess chimed in. "The man gossips more than anyone in the office."

Rey, Jannah and Jess humorously agreed to that statement.

"Plus… hello? You've been wearing that shiny ring on your finger for months!" Jannah pointed out. "I mean we know you like to be coy but damn girl, when were you going to tell me and Jess already? I thought we were friends," she joked.

"I'm sorry," Rey apologized to the two ladies. "When I'm at the office you know how I go straight to work mode."

"Mhm," Jannah teased.

"Girl, you never mentioned you had a husband and a roommate. Wonder how the guy feels about that," Jess said.

"I think he's ok with it," Ben decided to play along.

Rey looked at him, muffling a snort, hoping he wouldn't embarrass her too much.

"Honey, you are fine," Jannah said to Ben, to which he blushed. "I don't know of any man that would be ok with his wife living with a handsome guy like you. I sure as hell know my husband wouldn't like it!" she exclaimed.

"You guuuys," Rey said through gritted teeth, flushed in the cheeks and appalled at how this conversation was going.

"I agree with Jan. I mean by the looks of Rey's ring, he's probably not the type to share," Jess said. "Man's got good taste!"

Rey glanced at Ben and snickered. Ever since their Fourth of July weekend, and the whirlwind of a weekend in Catalina, the two had become more comfortable with each other than ever before, clowning around over the silliest things. She was glad that Ben accompanied her to the gala. She wouldn't have had nearly as much fun as she did without him.

"Ben," she tried to be serious but couldn't sound stern enough. "Come on," she giggled.

She couldn't contain the silence anymore. She pleaded him to just reveal the truth. He haughtily laughed at her and nodded, giving in to her request.

"First of all, thank you. I feel like I have some good taste too. And second, you're right. I don't like to share," he winked at Jannah.

Suddenly it dawned on them that Ben was both men. The two women grew bug-eyed and squealed.

"Oh my gawwwd, Rey you married this cutie?! Girrrl!" Jannah playfully slapped her arm. "You had us going for a minute there with the 'roommates' thing! Is that what they call it nowadays?"

"Sorry, Ben likes to goof around," Rey chuckled.

"Guilty," he laughed along with the ladies.

"Ben, you are such a match for our fearless leader. She needs a fun guy like you," Jess playfully nudged his arm.

"Mhm," Jannah agreed. "But then again, Rey's so secretive she's probably got a wild side that we don't know of. Huh, Ben?" Jannah asked him friskily.

"Well-" he started but she quickly shielded her hand over his mouth to stop him.

Jess and Jannah laughed at her actions, while Ben smirked behind his covered face, chuckling at Rey's flushed cheeks.

"Alright well we need to leave before all three of you embarrass me anymore. Goodnight ladies," she waved her friends off and dropped her hand from his mouth, pulling him towards another direction.

"Yeah, I'd shoo people away too if my husband looked like that," Jannah said not as discreetly to Jess.

"Have a good night you two," Jess winked at the couple, eliciting a roll of the eyes from Rey and a hearty laugh from Jannah and Ben.

When the two women disappeared in the opposite direction, Rey stopped in her tracks, turned to Ben and smacked his shoulder.

"Hey, ow!" he feigned hurt. As if Rey could actually hurt him. Although the first time they met she did intimate him for a second when she almost impaled him with a stick.

"You do know that they're going to gossip all morning about this, right?" she informed him.

"I'm flattered," he said smugly.

"I'm not usually one to talk about my personal life at work," she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Still flattered," he puffed his chest before she playfully slapped it.

"What are you doing here?" she curiously asked. "How'd you know where my office was anyway?"

"Honestly, I didn't know this was your office," he explained. "I was walking down this street and I just happened to run into you."

"What are you doing in Mid-City?"

"I had to stop by the cleaners… There was a grape juice incident."

She raised an inquisitive brow at him, though her snicker tossed away any seriousness in her demeanor.

"I spilled some on the couch cushion and I had to take it in to get cleaned," he admitted.

"Of course you did," she rolled her eyes.

"It took all day, but they're not done with it yet, so I got to pick it up tomorrow. It was just a couple blocks from here. Was going to text you and see if you wanted me to grab some food on the way home."

"Well we're out now, let's just grab a bite and head back after," she suggested.

"Sounds good," he smiled. "I know a great Mexican restaurant. It's just down the block."

"Perfect," she smiled back.

They arrived at a lively bar decorated in Spanish history. Just one whiff of the amazing smell from the kitchen, Rey was already praising Ben for choosing a great place for dinner. They were seated in the patio, where the live music played. Ben suggested some of the dishes he's had before and Rey chose a few that he liked, along with a new entrée for both of them to try. That was another new thing that had happened since earlier in July. They continued to share meals together, and by sharing, they ate off each other's plates. Personal boundaries... what personal boundaries?

This restaurant was as authentic as it got in the west end, with merchants walking table to table offering small trinkets to sell. An elderly woman walked up to their table shortly after they placed their orders.

"Flowers for your lady?" she asked Ben.

"Oh, um-"

"Yes, I'll take a red one please," Ben chimed in.

"Ben, you don't have to," Rey blushed.

"I want to," he said. "Besides, can't a guy - who apparently has impeccable taste I might add - take his wife out and buy her flowers?" he winked. He was still in the jokey mood from their earlier antics.

The older lady gurgled at his remark and exchanged a long-stemmed red rose for his cash. "You've got a keeper," she said to Rey and walked off.

The remark made them both flush. At least Rey was able to hide her face while sniffing her beautiful flower.

Suddenly it grew awkward between them. Another semi-new thing. This was a good awkward though.

After their weekend in Catalina, their dynamic had progressed significantly. They fell into a much closer comfortable routine – sharing meals and eating off each other's plates, sitting together almost every chance they got, and many nights Rey falling asleep next to him on the couch only to have Ben carrying her to the room. Sometimes they'd both end up napping together on the couch in the daytime too. Rey's tutoring with Ben always consisted of them laughing over something unrelated to his work, losing concentration most of the time thus requiring more time to study together. Neither of course minded. Since Rey was done with her gala planning, she didn't have any work to bring home for overtime. Meaning she spent more time at home with Ben. Just like earlier, they started joking around with one another more openly – an outsider would say they were almost flirting all the time.

Of course, none of their friends knew of their new level of comfort, and neither Ben nor Rey knew what it meant either. Maybe they did, but they were sure as hell avoiding their feelings. Which was why sometimes they'd have awkward moments between them. The logical reason would obviously be that they're thinking about their feelings for one another. Nevertheless, that moment would pass and they'd fall back to oblivion, laughing and smiling and enjoying one another's company. Almost like an actual married couple.

Only this time, this awkward air seemed to linger. They couldn't even make eye contact, which they had been doing more of lately with ease. Rey was staring at her long stem red rose, contemplating if it meant anything to him when he bought it. Surely he would know the basic meaning behind buying a woman a rose, right? Let alone a long stemmed red rose! Ben on the other hand was stumbling to make any kind of next move. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to, but he felt the need to want to make a move. If only he could. Oi, they were hopeless.

"I'm going to go wash my hands really quick, alright?" she said.

"Yeah, sure," he nodded.

When she walked off, he sighed in relief, then immediately went back to panic mode. He dug into his jeans and pulled out his cell phone, dialing for assistance.

"Hellooo."

"Hux! I need your help."

"Hey Ben. What's going on?"

"I think I'm on a date right now. With Rey."

"You 'think'?" Hux laughed. "I mean, I knows it's been a while, but you do remember how dates work, right?"

"Ugh you're not helping. Where's Phas?!"

"Hang on, I'll put you on speaker… Babe, Ben needs us. He 'thinks' he's on a date right now," he heard his best friend snicker.

"What do you mean 'think'?" Phasma's voice chimed in. "Ben what's he talking about?"

"Long story short. Ran into Rey when she got off work and we're having dinner at a Mexican restaurant right now."

"Sounds like a date to me," Phasma said.

"I wasn't even thinking about it being one until just now. The whole evening's been so casual."

"Then why are you freaking out all of a sudden?" Hux asked.

"Well… I kind of bought her flowers."

"Aww," Phasma cooed. "Oh yeah, this is totally a date."

"Well then help me please! She's in the restroom and can come back any second."

"I don't know what's so difficult, man. You're on a date with Rey. Don't you like her?" Hux asked him.

"Yeah, that's why I need help."

"Ah so you do like her?" Phasma pointed out.

"Finally, he admits it!" Hux shouted.

"One problem at a time, you guys!" Ben grumbled. "What do I do?!"

"Enjoy your date, duh," his friends laughed.

"What if she wants me to kiss her? I don't know, what happens at the end of the night?"

"Well, you see Ben, when two people are attracted to one other, they share a special 'hug' that grownups do and-"

"Not funny Hux!"

His friend cackled in the background.

"Sorry, but what's the problem man, seriously?"

"You guys know it's complicated with me and Rey. If this is in fact a date, how do I do this? I don't want to mess it up."

"Ben, there's no real protocol on two people who go on a first date after they get married. Really there's no wrong thing you can do. If you feel like kissing her then go for it. I mean, you've already slept together," Phasma explained.

"I know but I don't know how I'm supposed to act," he sighed.

"What do you mean? Just act normal," Phasma said.

"What if that's not enough?"

Laughter aside, his friends understood what was at stake.

"Look, Ben. If you really care about her, which you obviously do, then just be yourself. That's more than enough."

"Yeah. You got this, buddy."

~.~.~.~

Rey frantically made her way to the ladies' room and parked it in front of the sink, splashing cool water on her burning cheeks.

Are she and Ben on a date?! What did the rose mean?! More importantly, did he have feelings for her?! With all these thoughts racing in her head, she was starting to get overwhelmed. She fished out her cell phone from her purse to seek help. She was about ready to dial Rose's number when she remembered her friend mentioning that she was helping Poe with a computer problem for his bar's point of sales system, so she couldn't bother either of them. Finn was usually at the gym around this time, but he was her only lifeline, so she tried calling him anyway.

"Hey Peanut! What's up?"

"Finn, thank goodness you picked up!"

"Whoa what's wrong? You sound panicked."

"I don't know what to do," she heaved.

"Okay you're freaking me out. Where are you? I'm at the gym but I'll head out."

"No, no. I'm fine. I think. Augh. I'm just confused."

"Okay? You got to give me some more details, Peanut."

"I think I'm on a date with Ben right now."

"Rey, how do you not know if you're on a date with someone?" Finn chuckled. "Has it really been that long since Hobbie took you out?"

"Fiiiinnn!"

"Okay, okay. Well, that's good right? You two hanging out."

"I guess so. But that's just hanging out. This is different. This feels…"

"Weird?"

"No…"

"Good?"

"I don't know..."

"Well what is it? Do you not want to be on a date with him?"

"It's complicated, you know that."

"Peanut, it couldn't be any clearer. You two like each other. Why can't you just admit that?"

"We're comfortable with each other, that doesn't necessarily mean 'like'," she pointed.

"Rey come on, it's me. I'm your best friend. You can tell me anything. I won't judge."

Rey heavily sighed.

"I guess deep down I do want this to be a date…"

"See, that wasn't so hard to admit, was it?" Finn said. "About damn time too," he chuckled.

"I just don't want to get hurt, Finn."

"What makes you think he's going to hurt you? Ben's not Hobbie. He cares about you. If he didn't, he'd have made it a living hell for you from the start."

"He's just being nice."

"Aren't you the one who always wants to find the good in people? What makes Ben so different?"

She paused for a moment, deciding how to put her deepest thought into words.

"I'm afraid to let myself feel something because this time between us has an expiration date. Everyone keeps teasing us but no one else remembers that this is all finite. Even if on the slightest chance we reciprocate these feelings, I'm scared to find out if we were only fabricating emotions because of the situation and once it's all over we'll lose interest in one another… And pretty soon we'll be done with all this."

"That's only if you want it to be done."

"I don't know what I want, Finn... I don't even know what Ben wants."

"Then maybe you should go out there and find out, Peanut."

~.~.~.~

After Ben ended his call, Rey returned shortly after. Thankfully they didn't need to jump into conversation right away as their meals arrived around the same time. They fell into a comfortable ease, sharing their food and talking like they had been the past few weeks. The awkward air had disappeared – as expected – and they enjoyed their time together, date or not. All the while, Rey had been thinking about what Finn said. That if she wanted to know what her future would be after all this she'd have to talk to Ben. Though in moments like these, she chose to let herself be unwittingly happy, even though it had an expiration date.

The evening continued to develop when they stopped by a food truck just outside of the restaurant to purchase deep fried desserts. They were laughing and joking about how unhealthy Ben ate and the massive amount of food Rey consumed. At one point in the night, Ben grabbed her messenger bag and held it for her, knowing she'd had a long day and the least he could do was shed some weight off her shoulders. By this time, they had been walking all around downtown that they opted to forgo calling an Uber and walk the rest of the way to their loft together. Coincidentally, it was an unusually breezy summer night, so Ben - being the gentleman he was - shed his button up flannel shirt to offer Rey a tiny bit of warmth, while he sported his black undershirt the rest of the way home. Boldly, Rey decided to wrap herself around one of his arms, to 'keep him warm' while they continued their walk home. It surprised Ben as much as it surprised her that she did such a thing, though neither of them complained of course and they enjoyed this even newer territory of shared personal space. They could totally get used to this.

If wondering if their dinner was in fact a date was a struggle, their biggest challenge welcomed them when they arrived back at the loft.

They stood in front of the couch, eyeing said problem.

"You said the cushion won't be ready until tomorrow?" Rey asked.

"It was the best they could do," Ben answered.

Another beat had past, them both still gaping at the empty space on the couch.

"Well… I could take the couch tonight and you could take the bed."

"What, no way Rey. That's not going to be comfortable at all!"

"Sure it will, I'm small. I can fit."

"I've been sleeping on this couch for five months; while it's actually pretty cozy, you won't get comfy on half the sofa. And if you don't want me to be uncomfortable I sure as hell don't want you to suffer. Take the bed. I'll manage."

"Where are you going to sleep?"

"I've got a sleeping bag in storage somewhere. I'll take the floor."

"No, Ben. I'd feel terrible."

"It's all good. I've gone camping with my dad and uncle so many times."

"Ben," she was insistent.

"Rey," he playfully mimicked her. "It's okay. It's my fault anyway since I spilled the juice," he laughed.

He was about to head to the storage closet when she spoke softly.

"Or… we can both sleep on the bed?"

He stopped in his tracks. Did he hear that right? Ben turned around to face her. Rey was wearing an expression that wasn't suggestive. She almost seemed anxious… but in a good way.

Suddenly, the nervous cloud returned.

"O-okay," he nodded.

He followed her into the bedroom without another word. To start, they simply stepped into their normal routine before bed. One more new thing - they started brushing their teeth together some time after the Catalina weekend. Tonight, it consisted of stolen glances and awkward chuckles. Rey changed in the bathroom while Ben undressed in the room to a pair of basketball shorts and a sleeveless tank. When she emerged in her night shirt, they stood opposite sides of the bed, staring at the mattress between them.

This is silly, Rey thought. She only suggested they share a bed. She wasn't asking to have sex! Why were they being weird about it?

Okay Ben be cool, Ben thought. Date or no date, you still need to be a gentleman. Damn, does she have to show her bare legs right now?! Gawwwd.

Hoping neither had heard each other's thoughts, they broke the silence with slight chuckles and light shrugs. They were thinking too much of it. It was perfectly normal, this situation. They'd napped on the couch together before. This was just like it.

With that, they crawled into their respective sides and settled into comfortable positions, each facing separate walls. Their 'almost' date, while incited new emotions they each had to figure out separately, was simply perfect. They didn't want to ruin it by deciphering the current situation. That would be saved for another day. Tonight, they'd sleep peacefully. On the same bed. As roommates. As husband and wife.

Rey slept comfortably that night, despite her initial qualms with their sleeping arrangements. Nothing came of it though. Not much of a surprise there. They said their goodnights and one by one fell into a deep slumber. She awoke with a renewed energy, ready to start her day on a good note. Probably because the stress of the night before went away after a good night's sleep. Or probably because the evening had been a nice one with Ben and she had appreciated it, whatever it was.

Or maybe her day was deemed good already with it being only 7 AM. Because when she flickered her eyes open, she had found herself nestled into Ben's chest, with his arm wrapped protectively around her waist, sleeping blissfully, with a faint smile on his lips.

A/N: Preview of next chapter: Hard Work Pays Off

"What are you going to do when you get your license?"

"I definitely want to fly somewhere new. Do something fun before I look for work."

"If I were you, I'd just travel everywhere. It'd be amazing to just travel the world."

"Then let's do it, Rey. When I get my pilot's license, let's travel the world."