The shivering had become almost painful. Han was lying on his side on the cold floor, his legs curled up as close as he could get them to his chest in a futile attempt to keep warm while his empty stomach growled at him. He'd tried lying on his back, but with his arms bound behind him, he couldn't get comfortable.

In an effort to distract himself from the cold, he tried thinking of the times in his life when he was warmest. The first to come to mind was his own bed. Preferably with Leia lying next to him, wrapped in his arms under the blankets. If he closed his eyes tight enough and ignored his chattering teeth it seemed he could almost feel the heat of her skin pressed against his. He knew she'd been distracted lately, but usually once she finally came to bed he found at least some comfort in holding her while she slept, and she hadn't seemed to mind. He desperately longed for the warmth and comfort she provided, maybe even the feel of her heated breath against his chest.

Then of course there were warm, real water showers. The kind where you turn the water up so hot that it almost starts to burn. He and Leia were fortunate enough to have multiple shower heads in the bathroom they shared, so every inch of skin would be covered with soothing, warm water. Even better was that the shower was big enough for two, a feature they'd utilized on more than one occasion.

The same could be said for their vast, whirlpool tub. Han had never been much for baths until he learned how much more fun they could be when you weren't in the tub alone. For a moment he even thought about bathing the children in that tub, the bubbles overflowing and the laughter as they played with their toys and splashed their dad. And afterward when he'd shown them how to draw pictures on the steam-covered mirrors with their fingers

Of course there was Tatooine. Waiting to be executed on the sand skiff while the twin suns blazed down on his skin.

No, afterward, when they'd managed to escape and he was finally reunited with Leia. Wrapping her small body in his arms and realizing that she'd been forced to wear a slave girl costume. He'd covered her with his shirt, and the entire trip back to the Falcon he hadn't let her escape from the protective circle of his embrace, and she was entirely willing to remain.

She'd come for him then. She'd risked her life for him then. It was the first time in his life he realized that anyone could possibly care about him that much. She'd done the same thing too many times since, as he had for her. He tried to remember what had happened between then and now. Perhaps his luck had simply run out. Or maybe Leia had just realized that Han had nothing left to offer her.

He still loved her desperately, and he wanted to believe that in spite of the distractions, she felt the same way about him. But she hadn't given him much of a reason lately to believe that was the case.

Snap out of it, Solo. The cold is making you crazy. Leia still cares about you. Come on, sweetheart. You've just been overwhelmed lately. You still love me, don't you?

He was snapped from his contemplation when he heard the noise of a door opening and the briefest hint of warm air. Lifting his head toward the sound, he found he was still unable to see. He felt a merciless hand grab the hair on the back of his head and yank him up to a seated position on the floor, his back against the cold wall behind him.

Then he heard Nesla's voice. "How do you like this, Solo?" She asked before removing his blindfold and revealing the irate woman in front of him.

He took a quick glance at his makeshift prison and it appeared that he was in some sort of cooling unit. There were boxes of rations and thick metal walls that surely wouldn't have let any sound out.

"L-l-listen, Nesla. I don't know what you're trying to prove, b-but why don't you just let me go and we can w-work something out? I can help you find some good, honest work. You can make a better life for y-yourself. Please, let me help y-you."

"It's too late for that, Solo. You have no idea what my life has been like since you last saw me. There's no way they'd let me live the way you do. Married a princess, did you? Does she know where you came from? Does she know you used to steal for a living?"

"Nesla, I was a kid, then. So w-were you. We didn't have a choice. Besides, Leia knows what my life was like growing up. In fact, she's the one who made me see that it wasn't something I should be ashamed of. She knows it wasn't my f-fault. Just like what you did w-wasn't your fault."

She punched him hard across his left cheek, sending the right side of his face slamming against the duracrete floor. The pain was immediate and he could tell that this was not the first time this woman had thrown a punch like that.

"You don't get it, do you?" He could see her breath in the cold air as she spoke close to his face. "In my entire life from the time the Empire killed my parents, you're the only one who ever told me you'd help me. And you let me down, Han. I don't care how old you were. I never forgot that. Nobody knew where to find me. Nobody was there to save me. I promised myself if I ever saw you again I'd make sure you got to know what it's like."

It pained Han greatly to know that his old friend had lived through such terrible things. He didn't want to be angry with her, he only wanted to help her, but he didn't know what else to say.

"There's a p-problem with that, you know. I'm n-not an abandoned orphan anymore. People are going to be looking for m- me."

She arched her eyebrow skeptically. "That so, Solo? I've had you down here for two days. Did you know that? I haven't heard a word on the holonews about the New Republic's precious general and Princess Leia's loving husband going missing."

Han's face fell, although the news wasn't necessarily surprising. With the way he'd stormed out, there was no reason for Leia to think that he was still gone for any other reason than he chose to be. He didn't even want to know how angry she must've been with him at that moment. He'd only intended to be gone for a few hours, just long enough to have a drink or two and calm down. He wished she knew that he'd never leave for so long without an explanation. Then again, maybe she was glad that he did.

He felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, then Nesla backed away from him toward the door and he had a sudden fear that she might be the last person he'd ever see.

"Don't do this, Nesla. I've got three young kids at home and they deserve to have a father. Let me give them what we never had. Come on, you're not the kind of person who would take away some kids' dad. You know how that feels, don't put my kids through it."

He pleaded with his eyes, and for a moment he thought he might be getting through to her.

She looked away from him and squeezed her eyes shut, then stomped her black, knee-length boot hard on the ground. "Don't tell me what kind of person I am. The girl you knew is dead, Solo, and it's because of you. Your kids are too young to realize what kind of a man you really are. I'm sure I'm doing your wife a favor, too. I don't know how you tricked her into marrying a low-life like you, but by now surely she's realized her mistake."

Looking at her with his face still pressed against the ice-cold floor, he felt more helpless than he had in a long time, and he began to wonder if she was right. "So, what are you going to do with me now?"

She looked at him and flashed an evil grin. "Easy. I'm going to leave you here. Just let this be a lesson to you, Han. Never make a promise you can't keep. My condolences to your wife and kids. Although with the degree of alarm at your disappearance, I'd say it won't take them too long to get over it."

"Nesla, wait!"

The door slammed behind him, leaving him in the dark once again and quickly taking away any of the warm air that had seeped in. The cold was almost unbearable, but not nearly as unbearable as the thought of dying there alone and the possibility that nobody would ever find him.