Chapter 2

Kylo Ren was about to slip into bed in his chambers when he felt the bond sizzle into place between him and Rey. She appeared before him in his bed, draped in an unfamiliar blanket on top of his sheets. Her pillow impossibly blended with his own. The light hit her at angles that made no sense for his own lighting, but it was clear she was in a similarly mostly dark room.

She immediately went tense, glaring at him with scorn and then quickly looking away. That's right, he was shirtless. He sighed. "You know I have as little control over the bond as you do."

"I don't want to see you," she said.

His heart ached. "I know." He felt that he should be angry at her, given how much she likely had deceived him, but he couldn't bring himself to turn his wrath against her. Just that once, after Crait, he had lost it, and the realization of how much he could have destroyed had haunted him ever since. Still, it was foolishness to repeat his usual pleas for a friendly resolution between them when they had failed every other time. Hux had made a fine point. He was a better leader without this obsession. He needed to end this. "I have something to say to you."

Rey didn't speak or acknowledge him. She just closed her eyes and squirmed deeper into her pillow. He wondered that she trusted him so much even though she despised him. She had to know he could hurt her easily in this bond, and she made no effort to protect herself. She knew he wanted her. Did she not understand what a man hungry with desire might do to a woman in this situation? Still, she was a powerful warrior, if not an outright proper Jedi. He was likely the only person who could harm her.

He would never harm her.

"I will no longer attempt to communicate with you through the bond. We cannot control it, and I realize that if it were up to you, it would be gone entirely." He chuckled darkly as he realized she likely resented him for the bond, even though he had no more power over it than she did. "After all, you never wanted to know me." Her eyes flashed towards him. "I will endeavor to follow the example you have set of ignoring it."

Even though he had told himself this must be done, he realized that he had not truly given up even then as some flicker of hope made him wait to see how she would respond. He wanted her to tell him to keep bothering her. He wanted her to acknowledge what he was saying. There was silence as she gazed at him a moment, and then she looked away from him.

He exhaled roughly as he accepted his defeat. "Before I enter silence, I want you to know that I will remain your…" He paused as he thought of what word to use. They were not friends. They weren't anything. "I will remain at your disposal should you need my assistance. For a time, you gave me more hope than I had ever dreamed possible, and that hope allowed me to free myself from Snoke's clutches. I am forever indebted to you." They both knew that he had limitations on how much he would help her. He would preserve her, but he would not outright betray the First Order.

He waited again to see if she would say something. Perhaps that tiny bit of hope would never be permanently extinguished. "That's everything," he said. The bond was still there, and he had meant to sleep right away. He was exhausted. Still, with her in his bed… "I'll sleep on the floor," he said after a moment. He made a mental note to have a sofa or cot installed so that he could sleep there if this situation arose again.

"What's wrong with your bed?" Rey asked. She was looking at him again. Her expression was carefully blank, as it usually was. The days when he could guess every thought without using the force were long gone.

Kylo Ren froze. Did she not know? Of course she didn't know. They could never see each other's surroundings. That time with the Falcon had been the only exception. He hesitated, but she may as well know the truth. "The force had you appear in my bed."

Her eyes widened briefly in surprise, and then she bit her lip with slightly furrowed brows. It was the most emotion he had seen on her in weeks, and he felt his pulse quicken at even that tiny reminder of the Rey he had fallen for. She cleared her face to neutral and looked up at him. "If you were to truly follow my example, you would sleep in your bed regardless."

Kylo Ren narrowed his eyes at her. "You can't want to share a bed with a monster."

"It's your bed, and it's just sleep. Is there room for you to get in without touching me?" she asked.

His bed on the Finalizer was a full-sized bed, and she was on the right side of it. He could fit without touching her, but he would not be comfortable. He had, of course, been allowed the option of a larger bed when he became Supreme Leader, but he preferred having extra space for practicing his fighting forms. He would have taken a twin bed if he thought he could fit on one comfortably.

"Not really," he finally admitted.

Rey was quiet a moment. "It doesn't matter. Get in bed. I'll adjust."

Kylo Ren hesitated. "You're sure?"

Rey rolled on her side, feeling out. "Is the near edge of your bed on my left or my right?"

"Your left, my right," he said.

Rey faced and scooted to her left until she was on the right edge of his bed. "Okay, I'm on the far edge of my bed now."

He slowly walked toward the bed, giving her plenty of time to object or change her mind, but she was still and quiet, looking away from him. He climbed in carefully, faced his left, and stayed on the edge opposite her. He felt his heart breaking as he realized that the little conversation deciding sleeping arrangements might be the last one between them. At least he was far enough away that he wasn't also tortured by the feel of her body heat.

He heard a slight shift and a small snort behind him. He sighed. He had just resolved not to speak to her again. Should he respond?

"Okay, I can't handle it. Come closer," she said. Her voice sounded strange, almost as if she were suppressing mirth, but that made no sense.

Kylo Ren turned over and raised an eyebrow at her. He must have misheard her, and yet she was smiling at him. Had he already fallen asleep and entered his dreams? Her smile was so beautiful. Had he seen her smile before?

"The bond… I can't see your bed. You look like you're floating in midair. It's ridiculous," she bit her lip and giggled again.

Kylo Ren shook his head. "I must be dreaming," he said. "I've never heard your laugh before." His chest felt heavy. "It's beautiful."

His words wiped the smile from Rey's face, and he felt the bond break a moment later. He gazed at the spot where she had just been and gripped his sheets tightly to keep himself from rolling into the same space to see if her warmth or smell remained on his sheets. She did not want him. Even if she had forgotten it for a moment to smile and laugh at him, she did not want him. She had stopped smiling the moment he said her laugh was beautiful, and she would likely hate him if she knew how desperately he desired her.

He forced himself out of his sheets and called for someone to change his sheets through the intercom. In the meantime, he went through his forms again. He would not return to that bed until any reminders of her had been removed and he had control of himself again.

He did not sleep.

Someone commented that they didn't see how this could be a slow burn... That might be right. I had in my head that this will probably get physical relatively quickly, but the actual meeting of minds and hearts will take a lot longer.

I think I'm going to keep this in Kylo's POV. I kinda like it.

Anyway, please review.