Post exams; post vacation to Guam; post death of my dog, here I am, updating a chapter of the story I just can't seem to update. Cliffhanger chapter and I might go on hiatus (as if I'm not already posting at the rate of a snail) due to the massive amounts of stress that have piled on top of each other. Thanks for understanding (or not; it's your life, man).
The day of the hearing arrived and Poe sat in court, staring at Lee Hux's shit eating grin. The redheaded man wore a black suit that matched Poe's and his bright hair was styled with enough product to keep his hair from flying away should a hurricane decide to strike. Poe wondered if he could evade incarceration via his father's connections if he punched Hux in his stupid, smirking face. They were only a few meters away from each other and Hux was busy smirking at a folder, his fingers drumming against the table before him as he read.
Finn had seemed well at ease that morning. They had woken up to flurries of February snow and a cloudy sky. Poe thought it was ominous, but Finn thought it was just the weather. Not only was the weather a surprise, but both Finn and Poe were shocked to see Rey stepping out of her bedroom in a pencil skirt and blouse, adjusting the pins in her hair.
They had breakfast together, and Rey had driven off without a word, kissing Finn's cheek and wishing him good luck.
Now, Poe sat, staring at the back of Finn's head and glaring at Hux. Lee Hux, the bane of his existence, was busy reading over a clipboard that had been passed to him. He signed the papers on the board with a gold plated fountain pen that shone in the flourescent lights of the courtroom. Poe was eighty percent sure that Hux had been named after the Confederate General, Robert E. Lee.
They had been sitting in a crowded courtroom, waiting for an hour. The judge was shooting glares at both sides of the argument, the people called in for jury duty were texting or chatting amongst each other, and lawyers added to the clamor, their lowered voices merging into one drone. Two witnesses and testimonials had yet to arrive. Rey and Kylo Ren were nowhere to be found and Chu Bacca was also absent from the court session. Poe looked at a worried Leia who was whispering to Lando and Han.
He tapped his foot, the tan colored, Prada Oxford clicking against the polished linoleum and blowing a Tootsie Roll wrapper away. Poe looked at his watch before reaching over and nudging Finn on the shoulder, "Hey, I'm going to make a phone call. I'll be back in a bit," he said. Finn nodded his head and adjusted the collar of his shirt.
Stepping out of the courtroom and into a bustling hallway, Poe walked past lawyers and attorneys running around, hoping to glimpse Rey or Ren. He slipped a hand into his pocket and withdrew his phone, pressing the center button and speaking, "Call Rey."
Calling Rey Kryze, the phone responded.
He listened to dial tone after dial tone, shaking his leg and looking around in search of his friend. His tie was constricting and Poe blamed the stylist his father sent to measure him for clothing for choosing the blue strip of silk that was currently making him sweat more than he had to. Rey hated late people. She was never late unless someone had died or a medical emergency had come up. Poe knew there had to be a good reason as to why Rey was late. Kylo, he didn't care as much, but Poe had a strange feeling that the two were late because they were doing something together.
The call went to voicemail, so Poe ended the call and tried again. Most of the people milling around the marble atrium of the courthouse were those from sessions in recess. Others were lawyers discussing notes and cases over cups of coffee, and a select few were distraught families looking for justice. Poe wondered if justice would be fair for Finn.
His second call went to voicemail and Poe swore, eliciting offended glances from two men that passed by. Poe merely waited for Rey's voicemail message to end so he could leave a message.
-Hi, it's Rey. Sorry I'm not at my phone right now, but if you leave a message, I'll try to get back to you as soon as I can!- Her cool, British accent did little to make Poe calm down, but he forced himself to remain level-headed. There was a good reason Rey was late- he was sure of it, so he decided to leave her a message.
"Rey, where are you?" Poe demanded. He attracted frowns from people passing by and Poe looked away, lowering his voice. "Court hasn't begun because you and Kylo aren't here yet and First Order refuses to begin without him. The judge is angry and it's been an hour- hurry the fuck up or we're going to have to reschedule and replan! Call me!"
Angrily stabbing his thumb onto the red button that would end the connection, Poe stowed his phone into the front pocket of his blazer and adjusted his tie before it strangled him to death. He looked out of the large glass panes that displayed a soft trail and water fountain that burbled in the cloudy light of the sun. A woman in a gray suit and blood red shirt sat on one of the benches that overlooked the fountain, her long legs crossed and her cropped, blonde hair fluttering in the breeze. Pauline Hasma seemed less interested in the hour long recess that was caused by the absence of her colleague and more interested in flipping coins into the fountain.
Her aim was perfect and soon, a small stack of coins grew on the top tier of the fountain, disturbing the flow, and creating a rift in the otherwise smooth direction of the water.
Someone walked past him, bumping his shoulder. The force of the blow was not hard enough to send him down, but not soft enough to seem like an accidental brush. Poe turned, but there was no apology- only red hair and a black suit walking by. Hux.
Dumbfounded by the man's audacity, Poe found himself immobilized. He watched as Hux walked away, offering no condolences or even telling Poe to get out of the way. The older man merely reached into his pocket and withdrew a box of cigarettes before walking out of the courthouse and onto the outside trail.
Lee sat down beside Phasma and withdrew a cigarette from the full carton before stowing the box back into his pocket. Holding the white stick between his lips, he accepted the lighter Phasma had brought from her car and flicked the ring that would ignite the release of fuel.
The little flame was enough to light up and Lee inhaled a draft of nicotine laced carbon monoxide, feeling his hatred for Poe Dameron, his annoyance toward Kylo Ren, and his ever growing weariness of Rey Kryze fade into the billow of white smoke he exhaled into the atmosphere. Let him pollute it just a little more.
"Where is the emo bastard?" he asked Phasma. She had walked out of the courtroom as soon as the recess had been called. Hux thought she would be working from her car and making phone calls, but he did not expect her to be tossing coins into a fountain and uncirculating currency.
"I've called the office and the interns say he's not there," she sighed, tossing another coin onto the stack. It landed with a satisfying plop onto the second tier of the fountain where a new stack was beginning to rise from the water. "He's not responding to his house phone," plop, "and his cell phone is going to voicemail." Phasma looked into her Chanel wallet and sighed before looking at Hux. "Do you have change? I have nothing better to do than toss coins into a fountain."
Hux blew smoke out before scoffing. "I haven't touched physical currency in seven years," he deadpanned. Reaching for his wallet, Lee opened it to reveal two slides of plastic cards organized by shade. "If you want to toss my credit card into the fountain, I'll make a phone call and allow you to do it."
Phasma gave him a look of annoyance before leaning back against the bench and sighing. "Do you think he's ever been this late before?"
"I'm sure his girlfriend had to have a hand in this meaningless delay," Hux dropped his finished cigarette onto the ground before stomping on it with the heel of his shoe. He withdrew a new stick after deciding one was not enough to make his hatred subside. "I will be sure to report this to Mr. Snoke. If he didn't already know about Rey, I think it's time to either remove her or remove Ren." Phasma seemed visibly altered by his remark.
"I didn't know you hated her so much," she scoffed.
Hux shook his head. "I don't hate Rey. I respect her for subduing Kylo; we haven't had a destroyed office in weeks. However, I believe she's making him complacent. He's losing his tact and from First Order's most ruthless lawyer, I can't have that happening."
Poe returned to the courtroom without confronting Hux. He could not jeopardize Finn's case with his stupidity.
Sitting back down in his spot, Poe sighed and rested a Hand against Finn's tense shoulder. He rubbed the hard muscles and closed his eyes, listening to the din caused by angry lawyers and an annoyed jury.
An echoing bang silenced the room as the doors to the courtroom were flung open. Poe's eyes burst open and he turned to see Chu Bacca sprinting into the room, two police officers trying to tail him. Poe's eyes widened when the large man ran over to Han and began speaking rapidly in bursts of roaring Korean.
Han's eyes widened and he shook his head. "They did what?! And you're just now telling- my phone was off because I was in court!"
"What's going on?" Leia asked and Han bit his bottom lip, sliding his arms into his coat before whispering to the workers of Alliance, "Rey and Ben got into a car crash. They're at the hospital."