Hello, all! I'm sorry it's taken so long for me to update- I had exams and shit to make up, so that kept me busy. Thanks for waiting and here is the next chapter!
Finn stood in front of Suite 506 with Rey's suitcase, waiting for someone to open the door. Rey had texted him, asking if he could bring her suitcase up, so Finn dispatched immediately, leaving his boyfriend to fend against the interns by himself.
The door opened and Kylo Ren stood in front of him, shirtless, and with messy hair. "Hey, Finn," he said, out of breath. Finn did not want to know the details.
"I brought Rey's suitcase. She's staying here, right?" he asked, handing the bag over to Ren. Kylo accepted the bag with a nod.
"Yeah, she is. Hey, I don't know if she told you that I-"
"That you work for First Order? Oh, we told her. And anyways, it's none of our business," Finn shrugged. "She likes you, man. I want my best friend to be happy."
Kylo nodded again, this time more slowly. "Are you going to threaten me?" he asked. "You know, 'don't hurt her, or we'll hurt you' stuff?" he asked. Finn frowned and rubbed his chin. He contemplated Kylo's question, wondering how he would respond to it. Would he really threaten Rey's boyfriend?
"You do realize Rey is a 3rd degree black belt, right?" Finn asked and Kylo blinked.
"She did tell me she was instructing Taekwondo," he said and Finn nodded.
"Rey is perfectly capable of capable of kicking your arse if she wants to. She doesn't need us to protect her and she never did. But, if you want to go old school… Don't mess with Rey or else she'll flip you onto your back and I'll be there to give her a ride back home," Finn said and Kylo nodded. He leaned forward, peering at Finn's face. Kylo knew he found him familiar.
"You used to work for First Order, didn't you? You were the one that quit, right?" Kylo asked, examining Finn's face. Finn stared back, defiant. He didn't like how Kylo merely thought of him as "the one that quit", but it seemed logical. Finn had been the only one to ever leave an internship at First Order and it had been a surprise to many.
"I'm against everything First Order stands for because I've seen your shit first hand," he snapped. Kylo remained passive, nodding slightly.
"I respect that," he said with a smirk. "I guess we'll be seeing each other more-"
"Kylo, it doesn't take fifteen minutes to accept my luggage," Rey appeared beside Kylo, reprimanding him. She looked at Finn and beamed, pushing Kylo away to hug her friend. "Thank you for bringing my bag," she said.
"No problem," Finn shrugged. He looked at Rey's too-large, black bathrobe that hung past her knees and chose to ignore the red marks on her throat. "We Brits have to look out for each other, don't we?"
Rey smiled and nodded. "We do. See you tomorrow?" she asked.
"Absolutely. Six AM, tomorrow morning. See you, Rey! Bye, Kylo." Finn waved before leaving, making his way towards the elevator. The door shut and Finn shook his head, chuckling at the couple.
The next morning, Poe dressed in a button down and slacks- something he had not done in quite a while- as well as a tie. The tie had taken up most of the time he had allotted for getting prepared, but it was Finn that saved the day.
Poe munched on a blueberry bagel smothered in cream cheese as he sat in on an early meeting with Lando, Leia, Han, and Chu Bacca. Finn sat beside him and Rey was sipping from a steaming paper cup to his left as Mr. Ackbar explained how First Order had situated its base of operations in the Marriott next door to the Hilton they were staying in.
"Poe, we need you to intercept Lee Hux and somehow stall him before he reaches Senator Biden and tries to convince him that deforestation is a good idea," Ackbar stated. Poe nodded, swallowing some coffee. "Finn, you're going to be taking care of Kylo Ren. We know that he's the only one Snoke trusts to deal with both of Alaska's senators. Keep him away from them or distract him." Poe met eyes with Finn and then looked at Rey who sipped her tea. "Rey, we're going to need you to follow Bacca-"
Chu Bacca growled something to Han who shook his head, "Yeah, Chewie says to call him Chu Bacca or else nothing at all."
"My apologies, sir," Ackbar tilted his head in the large man's direction. "Rey will go with Han and Chu Bacca and you three will be on news duty. If any news organizations want an interview, I'll send them to you, Rey. Han can talk his way out of any situation, so keep him on Bluetooth and Ba-Chu Bacca, excuse me, will be on foreign press. We want to make this as big as possible."
Hux glared at the pretty-boy that distracted Senator Biden from afar. In the marble floored, artistically domed Capitol building, his target was already being chatted up by a curly, dark haired, emerald eyed college kid with a suit that cost too much to have come from his own pocket. Poe Dameron was the itch in his mind that refused to go away.
Taking a few steps forward, he adjusted his composure and pasted a smile onto his face. "Mr. Biden!" he shouted, holding an arm up. Jogging forward, Hux maintained his false smile and went to shake the white haired man's hand. He wondered what Ren was doing.
"Hello, sir," Hux said, shaking the man's hand. "My name is Lee Hux and I'm here on behalf of First Order Incorporate to see how you would feel about giving your vote in favor of logging and mining for oil in Alaska," he said.
"Well, like I just told this young man, I have made my decision and will keep my decision quiet until it is time to vote. Thank you for taking the time to speak to me, though," Biden patted Hux on the shoulder and it took every ounce of Hux's willpower not to growl. He could tell why Kylo destroyed his office so often. There were fewer legal implications in attacking a desk than attacking a senator.
"That's fine by us, sir. We at First Order know that you will make the right choice based on the needs of your constituents. Have a good day." Hux's smile was slipping and he needed an out. Turning around, he felt the back of his coat hit his thigh and marched away from the other men. Hux hated company and going out and recruiting supporters. He was much more comfortable ordering interns around making them do the dirty work for him.
Hux envied Ren. Kylo was assigned to two senators and then he would be stuck in an office for the majority of the day. Hux wanted to be inside the quiet of an office, calling for Pauline Hasma (or Phasma as Kylo and Hux had taken to calling her) to send groups of interns on missions in his stead.
Hux, Kylo, and Phasma had a strange relationship. Hux had attended law school with Phasma and two years into their term at Harvard, were joined by none other than Kylo Ren himself- an engineering drop out.
They lost contact after graduating and while Phasma and Hux were recruited by Alder Snoke in the beginnings of his company, Kylo went to co-own his own law firm, Ren and Associates. The firm lasted six months before Kylo sold his associates out and merged his company with First Order, a large corporation in need of good lawyers.
The three friends were reunited and all was well. They fit with each other. Now that both Phasma and Kylo had significant others, Hux was happy being the only single one. He was also extremely pleased that no one was nagging him to date; living with his cat was enough.
Sitting at a restaurant, Hux waited for Phasma and Kylo to arrive. He had ordered a glass of water and it sat on the table- still full- with drops of water sliding down the sides.
"Have you ordered yet?" Hux looked up from the condensation on his plastic cup to see Phasma sitting down in front of him, her short blonde hair and makeup perfect- as always. She wore a silver jumpsuit and red blazer. Ever so fashionable, Hux thought to himself. He wondered if it was a British thing. Phasma needed to be on top of everything in order to control the vast number of interns and workers that First Order employed around the world.
"No, I was waiting for you and Ren- who is late," Hux reached for a menu and handed it to Phasma; he already knew what he wanted.
She accepted the slip of thick cardstock and examined it, tapping her glossy nails against the table. "So, what's this I hear about our dear Emo having a girlfriend? Is she a distant relative on his grandfather's side? A robot? Or perhaps another World War II fanatic?" Hux could see her eyes skimming over the menu, searching for the right lunch.
"None of the above," Hux looked up at the sound of a deep voice to see Kylo standing beside him, his dark suit casting a shadow on the table.
"Sit down, you're blocking my light," Phasma snapped. "So, your girlfriend isn't a psycho like you. Is she an actual human?"
"Hux should know; he walked in on us having sex," Kylo stared pointedly at his friend and Hux shrugged.
"I have a key to your room so that I can get work done. There's nothing else to it." The menu in Phasma's hand dropped and she raised an eyebrow.
"So she's real? What's she like?"
Hux looked at Kylo and raised an eyebrow.
"Her name is Rey Kryze and she's a senior at Jakku Uni-"
"A university kid?" Phasma asked. She looked at Hux who merely shrugged his shoulders and nodded. "Well, at least she's of legal age. So, tell us more."
At that moment, a waitress dropped by and the three placed their orders. A Reuben for Kylo, a BLT for Phasma, and a grilled cheese with tomato soup for Hux.
"You're so picky," Kylo said as Hux wiped the water that pooled around his cup off of the table.
"My Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is what keeps our entire division running," Hux replied dryly. "Continue with your story. Let's hear about your Alliance girlfriend."
Phasma raised her eyebrows in shock. "She works for…" leaving the sentence open, she waited for Kylo to respond. "Kylo, you know that Snoke sees all. He's not going to let you off easily if he knows you could be giving her information."
Kylo fiddled with the straw in his Pepsi and heaved a sigh. "I know what the consequences are, but I think Rey is worth it. She's smart, dedicated, is an engineer, and is also a third degree black belt."
"You're lovesick and she can kick your arse," Phasma grinned. "I like her already."
Hux looked at the multiple TVs lined against the walls of the restaurant and turned his head towards the one that aired CNN. "There she is," he pointed towards the young woman being interviewed on screen. "That's her."
Kylo turned and grinned when he saw Rey. She was speaking to a reporter about the importance of blocking deforestation and he thought she was damn good at what she did. He could not wait to see her for dinner.
"She's an eloquent speaker, I'll give her that," Phasma's voice was distant as Kylo focused on Rey. "And a fellow Brit. I think she's perfect for you, Emo."