Rey began to regret ever hoping that Ben- Kylo would come out from hiding. It seemed that now she had interacted with him once, he was everywhere.
And he was loud.
He talked to her incessantly and he used this tone that just grated Rey's nerves. One moment he was a ghost in her apartment, and the next he was filling her quiet home with as much noise as possible.
He always needed something. It was always his food dish, his water bowl, or the litter box that he was yowling about.
Except the one day it wasn't.
"For Kriff's sake, cat," Rey groaned as the noise began. She pushed herself away from her desk and stomped around the apartment, checking the usual spots.
"Everything is just fine, Kylo," she huffed. "Your dishes are full and you box is clean, so what in the world are you going on about?"
Then Rey spotted him. Her brows furrowed in confusion. He was doing something… Strange.
She watched as he seemed to struggle with something on the top of his head. He went back and forth between reaching one of his front paws up and passing it over his ear and using his back leg to scratch at it. She watched as he struggled, making strange chattering noises. After a while he bolted over to the couch and began running his head against one of the edges.
Rey suddenly understood.
She made her way over to the still-struggling feline. She was hesitant, and rightfully so. Since the food dish incident that resulted in four stiches spanning over the fleshy part of her hand between her index finger and thumb, any and all subsequent attempts at any sort of petting had continued to be met with scrapes and cuts (and teeth marks).
This will be the last chance, Rey told herself. She had made up her mind. It was all or nothing.
Kylo paused his struggling to observe her approach. His eyes, as always, were weary. The distraction only lasted for a moment before the overwhelming itch forced him to continue rubbing his head against the edge of the couch.
Steeling her nerves, Rey reached out and placed her fingers behind Kylo's ears. She began to scratch.
He froze. Rey held her breath.
He didn't attack.
For one tense moment he seemed to contemplate it. His gaze had snapped back to her again, but Rey didn't stop.
Eventually, seemingly despite himself, Kylo's eyes closed and he ever-so-slightly pressed his head up into her hand.
Rey couldn't help but smile. She began to scratch around a bit more, moving from his ears to the side of his face and then under his chin. He accepted all of it.
Then, a miracle happened.
He began to purr.
Granted, it didn't last very long. Kylo hadn't been purring more than two seconds before his eyes snapped open. Rey had a strange sense that he had realized what he had begun to do.
He seemed to be embarrassed about it.
Just as soon as it had begun, the moment was over. Before Rey had so much as blinked, Kylo had vanished under the couch once again.
Still, she found herself smiling.
He had finally allowed her to touch him.
To celebrate, Rey popped the tab on an expensive brand of wet food for him and a nice bottle of whisky for herself.
Author's Note: Sorry this chapter took a little bit longer to post! I had a very busy end of the week and weekend. Thank you all again for enjoying! 3