Disclaimer: Characters contained within do not belong to me.

Notes: Bit of fluff before the next chapter...enjoy!

Little Star

by Kristen Elizabeth

"Happiness is holding someone in your arms and knowing you hold the whole world."

-Orhan Pamuk

Deep in the trance of meditation, there was no sound. No temperature. No scents. Everything was dark and still. Free of earthly ties.

And Rey was weightless.

"Rey?"

Frowning as she was jerked back down to reality, the woman in question refused to open her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she reached for that place again, where there were no sensations or restrictions.

"Rey, where are you?" Poe's voice shattered through the little peace she'd managed to find again. "Are you hungry?"

At this, Rey cracked one eye open, just in time to see her husband enter the bedroom.

"There you are," he declared.

Having just come from the space yard where he was tasked with keeping order and ensuring that departing vessels kept to a schedule and incoming ones didn't pose any threat to the colony, Poe was a bit scruffy, but it suited him. His dark curls were mussed, his clothes were a bit dusty and he smelled like fuel and clean sweat-all the things Rey loved about her husband when he came straight from work.

"Honey, what are you doing?"

Rey followed his eyes and looked down at her body. In her meditation, she had crossed her legs, but she could barely see them over the protruding mound of her belly. She looked a bit like a round spider who had gotten its legs tangled up underneath itself.

"Meditating," she replied, looking back up at him. "You're home early."

"Slow day," he replied. "Rey, sweetheart...we talked about this. We said when we got to the seventh month..."

She cut him off with a sigh. "That I'd only meditate if you or BB-8 were in the house, yeah, yeah."

Poe ran his hand through his hair in frustration. "You go so deep under," he reminded her. "What if something happened?"

Rey challenged him, "Like what?"

"Like..." He searched for an answer. "Like if you fell off the bed."

She stared at him for a second. "Really? That's the best you could do?"

"Rey..."

"It just sort of happened," Rey defended herself. "I was trying to see if could make a connection with the baby..."

Poe frowned and immediately sat down on the bed next to her. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, just not a lot of movement today. I was worried something was wrong, though, so I reached out and then, when I did..." She sighed. "It was just really great, Poe. Nothing hurt or ached...my back, my feet, my chest...I felt like I didn't weigh a thing."

Putting his hand to her lower back, at the place he knew ached the most, he gently rubbed and murmured, "I'm sorry."

She shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. I did promise." A few moments passed before Rey spoke again, her voice small. "Poe?

"What's wrong?"

"I think I'm stuck."

It took a few seconds of gentle hauling, but eventually Poe was able to get her back onto her feet. "Better?" he said, cupping her cheek and stroking it with his thumb.

Rey nodded, shaking the pins and needles out of her bare feet. "Did you say something about food?"

"I asked if you were hungry," Poe said. "I take it that's a yes?" Off Rey's look, he chuckled. "Can I shower first?"

Rey answered him with a long kiss, not an easy feat considering how her expanded stomach kept them from getting as close as they would have liked. "I'll go figure out what the baby wants," she told him.

In the kitchen, Rey pulled out everything that looked good from the stasis unit. Pickled bilo roots that Chewie had brought back from Lothal, flonut butter (which, when applied to the pickled roots, made Poe gag), micromite pate, and leftover kodari rice. Seeing everything spread out in front of her made Rey's stomach growl loudly.

Having decided on an omelet of eggs and rice, Rey made her way to the bath to tell Poe. The door was cracked open a bit and steam escaped into the hallway. Without bothering to knock, Rey slid the door open a bit further and peeked inside.

The shower had been built for two, a decision they had made together; there were no curtains or glass enclosures around the gentle depression in the smooth, rock floor that kept the water from the duel showerheads at bay.

So there was nothing obstructing the very inviting view of her husband, naked and wet, as he scrubbed the body she adored.

Sensing her presence, Poe looked up and slowly grinned. "I thought you were hungry."

Rey crossed her arms over her belly, pulling off her loose shirt. "I am."

As she made her way to the shower, she shed the rest of her clothes, loosened her hair from its bun and joined him under the hot spray. Poe watched her, appreciating every new curve that pregnancy had given her. Her body had grown lush as the baby grew; he especially appreciated the new fullness of her breasts and proved this by reaching for them with soapy hands.

She drew in a sharp breath when his thumbs glanced over her nipples. "Poe..."

Apologizing, he knelt down to soothe them with soft kisses. Running her fingers through his wet hair, Rey tilted her head back in pleasure.

Kneeling in front of her, Poe dropped a trail of kisses over her rounded belly. Laying his cheek against the firm mound, he waited for a moment until he felt movement.

"That's still amazing," Poe said, grinning. "You are so strong," he told the baby. "I can't wait to meet you." When he stood up, there were tears in Rey's eyes. "Hey, what's wrong?"

She shook her head. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing." Her eyes closed as Poe pulled her against his body, kissing her so thoroughly that all she could do was moan and give in to the feeling. She was powerless when it came to wanting Poe-she could never turn him down and, as her pregnancy progressed, could never get enough of him.

Much later, propped up against all the pillows on their bed, Rey dug into a fluffy rice omelet with relish. Poe watched her as he ate his own dinner, smiling at her obvious enjoyment. It was only when she reached for the flonut butter jar that she'd insisted on taking from the kitchen and started to spread it over her omelet that he was forced to set his plate aside.

"What?" she said, innocently. "It tastes good!"

Poe's look of pure disgust made her laugh. After she polished off her omelet, she stacked her empty plate under his half-full one on the beside table and settled herself against his body, her cheek on his shoulder. Without hesitation, Poe's arm encircled her, surrounding her with warmth.

"Poe?" Rey eventually whispered.

Poe combed his fingers through her damp hair. "Hmm?"

"Are you scared?" He shifted in order to look down at her, but she continued before he could ask her to clarify. "About the baby?"

He was quiet, trying to find the right words. "Yeah," he finally answered, deciding to tell her the truth. "I'm scared of what you're going to have to go through. I'm scared of something happening to you, to both of you." Poe swallowed. "I'm scared I won't be the kind of parent our kid deserves."

"So am I," she confessed.

"You will be a great mother," he assured her.

Rey reached up to touch his face. "And you will be an amazing father."

"Yeah?" He smiled. "How do you know?"

Remembering the conversation with Leia the night she'd realized she was pregnant, Rey just lifted her shoulder. "I have it on good authority."

"It's so close now," Poe said softly. "Eight weeks to go."

Rey spread her hands over her belly. "And I'm still expanding!"

"I like you this way," he said, covering her hands with his. "I like you any way you are, but you take my breath away like this."

They held each for a long time, enjoying the closeness, the silence of the house with BB-8 powered down for the evening.

A loud growl from Rey's stomach shattered the moment.

Poe was on his feet before she could even ask the question. "Pickled bilo root?"

Rey reached for the flonut butter jar, dissolving into laughter as he left the room, shaking his head in revulsion.

TBC