Chapter 21
Apparently, Banto's idea of a stocked ship included liquor. Kylo Ren stared at the murky brown bottle hidden in the galley cabinets. His entire life had been about control. Skywalker and Snoke had both strictly forbade alcohol just as they had both forbade intimacy. Even in kissing Rey earlier, he had been afraid that something bad would happen if he let loose. She had been the one to take things further, and it had been nothing short of amazing. He smiled and poured himself a drink from the bottle. He was ready to lose control.
Rey came in just as he took his first sip. It was disgusting, but he forced his face to remain expressionless.
"Is this your personal ship? I didn't see any insignia on it," Rey asked. She looked around the small galley and squeezed behind him to check out the contents of the cabinets. She picked up the bottle he had left on the counter and read the label. "Corellian Liquor? I didn't think you were the type to drink."
Kylo Ren took another sip. "This might be my first time," he admitted. "Would you like some?"
Rey wrinkled her nose. "According to you, I was sold to pay for my parents' drinking habits. I think I'll pass."
Kylo immediately moved to pour the glass out, but the liquid stopped mid-pour as Rey saw what he was doing. "No, I didn't mean for you to… I'm sure drinking just once won't make you a drunk, and I know you would never abandon me. Here," Rey said, taking his wrist in her hands and righting it so the liquor would stay in the glass without the help of the force. "Enjoy it if that's what you want to do. I mean it. It's okay."
She smiled up at him as she let go of his wrist. His skin there tingled from her touch, and he gazed at her as he slowly took another sip. "It tastes awful," he confided.
"It smells awful," Rey said and grinned big. "I admit I'm curious what you would be like a little drunk. Would you laugh?"
Kylo gazed at her and took another deep sip. He would probably make a fool of himself somehow-his father always had when drunk. However, Kylo was curious, and he trusted Rey to see him like this. He finished off the glass while maintaining eye contact with her.
"How do you feel?" Rey asked. She leaned back with her elbows on the counter behind her and smiled up at him. Her smile was beautiful.
He felt strange, and he wanted to kiss her. Maybe this time he would do a better job without her help. Maybe this time he would be the one to lead her in exploring something new. He stepped forward and placed his hands on the counter around her, leaving the glass. He braced himself and leaned down to pause just shy of meeting her lips.
Her shields were up, and so he could not read her desire, but he could sense her heart racing from his proximity. "Would you like to know how I feel?" he asked, his breath husky as their lips brushed slightly with the movement from speaking.
"Yes," Rey whispered, and he closed the gap, kissing her and stepping forward so that their bodies were flush together. This time he did not hesitate to open his mouth to explore her and invite her in, and he cradled her head in one hand while wrapping the other tightly around her back as he deepened the kiss.
The angle was awkward for his neck though, and without processing what he was doing, he moved the hand that had cradled her head to support her butt as he lifted her onto the counter. Rey broke the kiss and stared at him with wide eyes, and Kylo realized he still had his hand on her butt. "Um…" he said and started to remove it, but he felt the force pull his hand back firmly in place. He gazed in wonder as Rey smiled shyly and bit her lip.
You surprised me. That's all. He heard Rey say through the force. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tugged him down, and kissed his cheek. Don't you want to know how I feel too? Kylo blushed to his core, but he stroked her butt cheek and squeezed it.
She licked his jawline in response, nipping and licking her way down his neck to his collarbone. She stopped just above it on his right side and gently nursed the spot, alternating between sucking, licking, and nibbling it with her teeth. Kylo moaned and moved his other hand to join the first in exploring her tight posterior. He felt his blood pool and harden him, and he gasped. It wasn't that he didn't know it could happen, but it had been a very long time since he had allowed his body to feel that sort of arousal while awake.
"Rey," he said, suddenly fearing that too much was happening too quickly. Was there a line that should be drawn? "Maybe we should continue this later, after we're in hyperspace on the way to Ilum."
Rey let go of his neck and gazed up at him. He carefully removed his hands from her butt and stepped back, giving her space to hop down. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "And after we get our stuff from the room." She froze. "I just realized that I left that door in pieces… I hope Growlie didn't escape," she said.
Kylo's eyes widened in shock, and he reached out with the force to sense where Growlie might be, but there were too many wild little creatures on Coruscant, and Growlie wasn't sentient enough for his signature to stand out in the force. "I'm going to go look," he said. "You'll come with me?" he asked, glancing back at Rey.
Rey hopped down from the counter. "Of course," she said, and they raced out the ship to towards their hotel.
The starport was still plenty crowded, but Kylo had no trouble clearing a path again with a projection of fear. He wondered briefly what Rey thought of his technique, but she said nothing as she ran closely behind him.
The door to their room was still broken and in pieces when they arrived. A quick search inside revealed no porgs, so Kylo did a quick sweep through the force to look for Growlie again in the nearby area. This time, he sensed a form that was likely Growlie in Poe's lap in Poe's room. Kylo let out a sigh of relief.
"Poe's got him in their room," he said to Rey.
"Thank the stars," Rey said. "Let's go ahead and pack up, and then we'll check on the others and collect Growlie. You can say your farewells that way too." She grabbed her copy of Kylo's helmet and started shoving the clothes back into a large duffel bag without ceremony, crushing and wrinkling several fine dresses in the process.
Kylo started to nod and froze, thinking back on his last interactions with Finn and Rose, who were also in the room with Poe. "Maybe I should stay in here while you get Growlie," he said. "Finn thinks I betrayed you."
Rey shrugged. "He'll get over it. You saved Rose's life." She finished picking things up and threw the large bag over her shoulder. Kylo was surprised. He had half-expected her to hand it to him, but this was Rey. She wasn't one to ask for help.
Or to wait for a plan. She had already stepped around him and was knocking on the door for Finn and Poe's room. "It's me, Rey," she said. He could sense them getting up to let her in.
Kylo stepped back. "I shouldn't. I really don't want to have to block blaster bolts right now."
Rey raised an eyebrow and smiled at him. "Then I'll block them for you."
The door opened and Rey went in. He heard Rose say, "Rey! You're back! I didn't think we would see you again before you left!"
"Rey, you can't go with him. You just can't!" Finn said.
"Nice to see you too, Finn," Rey said dryly. "Poe, thanks so much for looking after Growlie for us. Ben was so terrified Growlie escaped that he ran the entire way here, right Ben? Ben?"
Rey poked her head back into the hallway and gestured for him to come in. Kylo stood firmly in place. He didn't belong in there. Rey rolled her eyes and pulled with the force, summoning his body across the hallway and into the other room before the door shut behind him. The others were shocked silent, perhaps noting that he had not arrived under his own power.
Not fair. He said to Rey through the force, as he gazed at the others in the room. Poe sat on one bed with Growlie nestled in his hair. Rose was stretched out on the other with her injured ankle propped up on Finn's lap.
Don't be a baby. Rey said in response.
"Ben!" Poe exclaimed, leaping off the bed and offering a handshake. Kylo took it. "I'm so glad I got to see you again before you left. Listen, I took notes on our conversations, and I think I might have some ideas for a peace treaty between the Resistance and the First Order, and-"
"Poe, you can't do that! He just betrayed us again!" Finn cried.
Rose used her good foot to gently kick Finn in the side. "He saved my life, Finn."
Rey smiled at Ben encouragingly, and he gazed back at her, losing himself to her even with the chaos of the others' debating his character. Poe let go of the handshake, and Ben turned to look at the others again. He was speechless. This whole encounter was off any script he had imagined.
Rey spoke up. "Poe, we're going to Ilum so I can find a Kyber crystal to build my own lightsaber. Why don't you work on cleaning up your treaty notes with Kaydel while we're gone?"
"Rey, I can't let you go with him alone," Finn said. "It's too dangerous!"
"Ilum is dangerous," Kylo said, finally finding something he felt comfortable speaking on. "It's a planet covered in ice that was half-destroyed in the Empire's search for Kyber crystals. Much of the planet is ripped open so that molten lava and unpredictable eruptions exist side-by-side with the ice caves where the crystals grow. I will go with her. You could not protect her there, nor could you protect her against me if I were to turn on her. You would only be in the way."
Finn gaped at this, and Rey stepped forward. "He's right, Finn. Look, you're one of my best friends, and you're an excellent fighter, but this is different. Please, stay with the Resistance. They need you."
"And you don't," Finn said with a dark expression. "Fine. I get it. Just go. But don't expect me to hold back from saying I told you so when he breaks your heart. Oww!" He turned to Rose, who had kicked him again, harder this time. "Would you quit that?"
Kylo looked sharply at Rey, who was struggling not to cry beside him. He glared at Finn, but knew anything he wanted to do to Finn would only make things worse. Instead, he put a hand on Rey's shoulder and tugged her gently into his embrace. He looked at his helmet in her hands and took it from her, giving it to Poe. "The same tracer is found on all my helmets. Use this one to identify the signal. I have another aboard the ship we're taking. It will enable you to find us."
"Won't it also let us find the First Order?" Poe asked, taking the helmet.
"Yes. There will be a cluster of the signals with them from my back-up masks. However, I recommend avoiding them."
"Thank you," Poe said. "You were not what I expected. I'm glad to have had the opportunity to know you better."
"It's mutual," Kylo said. They shook hands again, and Poe handed Growlie to Kylo, who tucked Growlie in a pocket after doing a force sleep on the little bird. Kylo waved to Rose and Finn and stepped out of the room. Behind him, he heard Rey tell Rose to keep Finn out of trouble, and then Rey joined him and closed the door behind her.
"That could have been much worse," she said.
Through the door, they heard Rose exclaim, "Did you see the hickey on his neck?"
Kylo raised an eyebrow at Rey, and she blushed. Kylo smiled at the sight and took her hand as they walked back to the ship with Growlie in his pocket.
Posted a little later than I meant to. Happy (late) Valentine's Day! Please review. :)
