El talked to Mike at least once a day, sometimes more, every day for the next month. One night in early March she called him and could hear other voices in the background.
"Did I interrupt something?" She asked.
"No, the guys are just in town and we're all hanging out. They get loud occasionally. Want me to call you later tonight?"
"If it's not too late you can. I don't work tomorrow since it's Saturday." El replied, not wanting him to forego his friends for her.
"I'll call you later." His voice got more quiet, maybe so his friends wouldn't hear him, "we can fall asleep."
El bit her lip to keep herself grounded. "Okay," was all she could muster.
When Mike hung up his phone he was inundated with questions from his friends.
"Who was that? Why do you look like a goof right now? Why are you smiling like a fool?" A chorus of queries hit him at once.
"Can you guys take turns? Jeez. I'll tell you all about El." Mike sat down and waited for the interrogation.
"El? Who is El?" Dustin asked first.
"I met her online on the Star Wars forum I moderate. She's so awesome. She has a badass collection but she is even cooler. She lives in Maine though." He frowned a bit.
"Do you like her? It looks like you do." Will's voice carried through the room as Mike thought about the physical distance between El and himself.
"Yeah, I do. I really do."
"Does she know you do? You know how you have a tendency to assume things and then get upset when you mess up because of miscommunication. Don't let that happen." Lucas, always the one with the no-nonsense approach to things.
"I haven't told her. We talk every day. She's coming to the Star Wars convention with me in June. I even bought her ticket, though she doesn't know what I spent on it."
"Sorry I can't make it this year, buddy. My schedule just doesn't line up for that week." Dustin apologized.
"Me too. The gallery is starting their biggest exhibit of the summer and I have to oversee everything, plus the pieces I'm restoring. I'll be lucky if I get to come visit once all summer." Will sighed.
"And I have a deadline to keep on that building I'm working on in Seattle. Things just didn't work out this year for me in the Star Wars department." Lucas added.
"You guys all have important things going on. I understand." Mike didn't want them to think he was too disappointed that they couldn't go.
"Besides, it seems like with us not being there you can devote all of your attention to El, and that's not a bad thing." Dustin said, smiling but not in a teasing manner. He hadn't seen Mike look so happy in a long time. "Wait, did you buy her the Jedi Master ticket? The one that's like $850?"
Mike looked at his feet. "Yeah."
"Shit, dude! That is some serious coin! Really though, if you're fine with spending that on her then you definitely need to make sure you're on the same page. Don't assume she knows anything about how you feel. She only knows what you tell her or what you do." Lucas reminded him.
"I think dropping close to a grand on a ticket for a glorified toy show says a lot." Dustin quipped.
"He needs to tell her. Mike, you need to tell her if you have feelings for her." Will stated, always the wise one.
"I'm working on it. What we've got now is nice and I don't want to ruin it. What if she doesn't feel the same way?" Mike looked to his friends for answers.
"You say you talk every day. Is that in the daytime or at night? If it's at night, are we talking early evening or bedtime?" Will asked.
"We talk a couple of times a day or more and I try to call her at bedtime as well if I can."
"And what do you talk about during these late night phone calls, Mike?" Dustin asked as he opened a can of soda.
"Everything. Nothing. I like to hear her voice and she says she likes to hear mine. Sometimes we fall asleep talking."
"You don't have to give a lot of detail, but does it ever get sexual at all?" Lucas asked, genuine concern written on his brow.
"We flirt but we haven't like, requested that the other do something or offered to do anything. I wouldn't want to make any move like that unless I was sure she wanted to."
"Do you want to?" Will asked.
Fuck yes.
"Yeah. I think about it all the time. I don't want to talk about what I think about though. That's kind of just for me."
"We understand, Mike. We're just trying to help you sort out your feelings." Dustin was empathetic as he sipped his soda.
They talked about their lives until close to 11:30 and then everyone said goodnight to Mike and went their own ways. Mike brushed his teeth and went into his bedroom. He crawled into bed and called El.
"You weren't asleep already were you?" Mike asked when she answered and sounded a little groggy.
"I'm up. I just dozed off for a minute." El said sleepily.
"I can let you go back to sleep."
"No, don't. I'd rather talk to you. How were your friends?" El asked, perking up a little.
"They're good. I think you'd like them. They're great guys. Usually they try to make the cons too but their jobs aren't being cooperative this year. So it will be just you and me." Mike explained.
"Just me and thee." El stated. Mike laughed.
"You're such a word nerd," he teased her.
"And you're rhyming." She was smiling.
"I guess so." Mike was thinking about what his friends had said and it was on the tip of his tongue to start that conversation but he was scared. So he changed the subject. "What do you think we should dress up as for the con?"
She thought for a moment. "I know what I'd like to be but I don't know if you'd want to. Were you wanting to be something with a mask?"
"That would be too hot to wear for a long period of time. I'd rather not have anything like that on my head."
"Did you know that I can sew? I taught myself in high school when I needed some sewing done and I didn't have a mom to help me and I couldn't afford to have it professionally done. I could probably make us anything as long as I have enough time."
"I'd like to see you in the bikini from Return of the Jedi but I wouldn't want to share that vision with the world." Mike snickered.
"Stop! I wouldn't wear that in public. But just so you know, I would rock the shit out of that."
Mike gulped. "I'm sure you would." His words came out as a whisper.
El noticed his sudden inability to control his volume so she continued, "I like the outfit Leia wears when they're on Bespin, the maroonish thing with the grayish robe? I think I could get my hair to do that without too much trouble too."
"That would be so cool!" Mike had found his voice again. "Who would you want me to be?"
"You would let me choose? Even after buying my ticket and giving me a room?" El was surprised.
"Sure. We could take some great costume pictures together."
"Would you be Bespin Han? I could make your costume. It would be worth it for the pictures." El sounded hopeful.
"Would you have enough time? Because of course I'd be that but I wouldn't want you to stress out over the costumes. You'd have two to do if you did mine."
"Maybe I've already started on mine and maybe it's almost finished." El said playfully.
"You've got to let me see. Will you send me a picture of it some time? You don't even have to wear it. Just lay it on your bed and snap." Mike was picturing in his mind what she would look like in the costume but he wasn't going to be a douche and ask her to send a pic of herself.
"Hmm, we'll see." She said seductively. It was killing Mike a little bit, the way her tone would inflect.
They talked into the night, both wanting to say things and holding back, changing the subject when things got a little too close to where they really wanted them to go, neither of them confident enough to tell the other how they were feeling.
March became April and as April headed for May, Mike and El had continued to speak to each other as often as possible. When he was working and couldn't talk on his phone he would send her funny memes or links to songs he liked or wanted her to hear. She liked that he seemed to always be thinking about her, because she knew she was always thinking about him. El still hadn't told him she had developed feelings for him that were growing stronger every day.
She had almost finished his costume and remembered that he had once asked to see a picture of hers. She thought she'd do that when she was finished with his so he could see both. He had sent her his measurements back in March and she hoped it would fit him, though she planned to take a small sewing kit with her to the con to alter it if not. All she had to complete on Mike's part was sewing the stripes on the pants and adding the pocket flaps to the jacket. She had just finished the pants when Max came home from a cooking class she was taking.
"Wow, that's really looking good, El. Lucasfilm should hire you." Max admired the pants as El started on the pocket flaps of the jacket.
"I just want it to be as close to perfect as it can be. I want Mike to like it." El said, holding a pin in her mouth as she threaded her needle.
"I think he'll like anything you make, my dear. I think he really likes you and I've never even spoken to the boy."
"Then how would you know?" El asked, genuinely wanting to know.
"Do you guys just talk when you're lying in bed at night? Because he keeps calling you and if you're not doing anything other than talking then that makes me think he's really into you. If it had only been going on for a week or so I'd say he was just trying to bide his time but this has been going on for months now so I think he is definitely into you."
El considered this. She knew if an opportunity presented itself she would engage but she didn't want to be the one to initiate things. They definitely got flirty a lot but maybe that was just the type of relationship they had. Or maybe she was misreading the whole thing and he really did share her feelings.
"Is it too late for me to tell him how I feel? Have I let it go on for too long?" El worried aloud.
"It's never too late to be honest, El. You should call him tomorrow and talk to him about it."
It was then that El's phone buzzed. It was a text from Mike. He'd sent a picture.
Look at these boots! Aren't they perfect Han boots?! I'm totally getting them right now!
El looked at the picture. The photo was of what she assumed was Mike's lower leg. He was wearing the boots and had his pants stuffed into the tops of them. They did look just like Han's boots. She was instantly as happy as he seemed to be in his text. She replied.
Those are bitchin'! I'm almost finished with your costume so your timing couldn't be more perfect.
"You've got to tell him, El." Max said again. "It might be the best thing you've ever done."
El stayed up late that night until she had put the finishing touches on the costumes. She was actually proud of herself as she looked at both of them hanging on her closet door side by side. She was excited to see Mike in his. She took a picture but decided to send it to Mike tomorrow. She was tired. She would usually call him if he didn't call her at night but she knew that he had to assist in a surgery really early the next morning and when he talked to her at night he tended to let Nighttime Mike make decisions that Daytime Mike might not appreciate.
The next morning El woke up with a sore throat. Her head was also hurting so she called in to work. Working at a University, she constantly heard not to go in if there was sickness because with all of the students also being there the faculty didn't need extra germs floating around. She found a throat lozenge in the drawer in the bathroom, made some hot tea, and went back to bed. A little before noon she remembered to text Mike the picture of the costumes.
I think it looks good enough for a scruffy looking nerfherder. ;-) I'm not feeling well today. Sore throat. I'm going back to bed.
Then she went back to sleep. She was asleep still when Mike replied to her.
Those look so amazing, El! You are such as badass! I hope to be home before 5:00. Call me later? I wish I could make you feel better.
When El woke up it was almost 6:00. She was surprised she'd slept so much. She was feeling a bit better but her voice sounded weird to her now, more throaty. She saw that Mike had texted her back earlier in the day. His words made her smile. I wish you could make me feel better, too.
She was lying in bed when she called Mike. It took him three rings to answer. She hoped she hadn't caught him at a bad time.
"Is now an okay time to call you?" El asked. Mike sounded slightly out of breath, like he'd been working out.
"Um, yeah, Now is okay. How are you feeling? Any better?"
"I feel better but I sound weird. Do you think I sound weird?" El asked. Mike was breathing funny.
"I think you sound kind of sexy. Will you talk to me?" He asked. His voice was low and if anything El thought Mike was the one who sounded sexy.
"What do you want me to talk about? What are you doing?"
"You can talk about anything. I've just had a long day and I'd like to relax and listen to you. Would that be okay?" El couldn't say no to him when he sounded like that. It was causing a physical reaction in her and she kind of liked it. Maybe she really liked it.
"Okay. I got the costumes all finished and I can't wait to see how they look on us. I used the measurements you sent. I hope everything fits you." El could hear him breathing. She finally realized what he was doing, but he hadn't come out and said it so she was going to act like she didn't know. She wanted to see what kind of reaction she would get.
"My costume definitely fits. It's tight around my waist and I won't wear a bra since she didn't wear one in the movie..."
El heard Mike stifle a groan. She tried not to giggle.
"The fabric is really soft though so I worry if the air conditioner is too cold that I might have some trouble with my nipples getting, you know, hard. I guess the robe I made might hide them if that happens..."
Mike's breath hitched. "Jesus, El." He whispered.
"Anyway, so I'm thinking that since it will be June and might be kind of hot I might not wear underwear at all. The dress is long. No one would know. It would be a fun secret."
"You'd be walking around totally naked under your costume." Mike said, more of a statement than a question. He was muttering.
"Yeah. You'd probably hate that, right? You wouldn't want your friend to be walking around naked under her costume, only a thin layer of fabric separating my body from the world at large." El was enjoying herself.
"Mmmm. I might not hate it. It's not like they'd know. Only I'd know." His breathing was getting heavier.
"That's right. Only you would know. And me. It would be our secret." El was smiling, she could hear him gasp as she set the scene for him.
"You know we'll have to get dressed together in the hotel room." Mike was saying, his breathing still staggered.
"I know. Would that be a problem? If the bathroom is small we might have to share getting ready at the same time in the room. But we're friends. I'm sure we can handle it if we see something we weren't expecting. I'm sure you've seen a woman's naked body before."
"Oh, shit, El." Mike could barely whisper.
"I do have a zipper in the back of my dress that I'll need help with and if I don't wear any underwear it won't matter if I change in the bathroom or not because you'll still see when you zip me up."
She heard him release his breath sharply and then he took a few deep breaths in. It sounded like he had just run up ten flights of stairs.
"Are you okay?" El asked when his breathing had returned to somewhat normal.
"I'm fantastic." He was smiling, she could tell by the way he sounded.
"Feel better?" Her tone implied that she knew what had just happened.
"What? Oh, I..um. Aw, damn."
El laughed, which made Mike feel better. "It's okay, Mike. Really. I promise."
"I didn't mean for that to happen. I mean, I totally meant for that to happen but I was already doing it when you called and I just wanted to hear you and I thought I could do it without you knowing. You knew? Why did you keep going?"
"I just felt like it. I wanted to hear you too." El admitted.
"I feel kind of embarrassed now." Mike sounded guilty.
"Mike, don't be. You had a long day, your job can be stressful, I called in the middle. It's really okay. Once I realized what was happening I wanted to help you. Did I?" She asked, she still sounded so sexy to him.
"You were awesome. I didn't even know that you were doing that on purpose. I thought you were just talking. I'm sorry, El, but you are so super sexy. You have no idea. I just want you to know."
'Thanks, Mike." She whispered, her voice low and still clouded with hoarseness, making her sound more sultry than normal.
"Were you serious about your costume? About the underwear? Or was that just talk?" Mike wondered aloud.
"I was serious about that. So we'll definitely have a secret when we're there." El replied. She actually hadn't thought about it until then but once she'd said it she knew that's how she wanted it to be.
"And what about the zipper thing?" Mike asked.
"I'll need your help on that. I'll need you to unzip it too when I'm ready to take it off."
Holy fuck, she's going to kill me with hotness. Mike exhaled as he thought about his fingers pulling the zipper of her dress slowly down her back, revealing her bare body.
"I'll do whatever you want, El."
A/N: I have to go out of town for the weekend but I will update as soon as I can next week. I already know what will happen in the next chapter, just have to write it. It will be most definitely rated M. As always, thanks for reading and for reviews. May the Force be with you.