Ben was out of the car impossibly fast, already striding around the front of the Prius as you struggled to unbuckle your belt. The expression on his face, part fear, part cold anger, made your breath catch in your throat.
As you stumbled your way out of the car, you became aware of another sound. Anakin was wailing pitifully from somewhere in the house, howling in that way you knew little ones only took up when they were well and truly heartbroken about something.
A tall man was standing on the steps of the house, his arms full with a box of toys. He turned to scrutinize Ben as he strode up to the house, and you immediately saw the resemblance. This must be Ben and Anakin's father.
"Obi-Wan." He said curtly.
"Why is Anakin crying?" Ben exploded. "What have you done?!"
"I could ask you the same thing." The older man said, his mouth setting in a firm line.
Ben moved to enter the house, but his father blocked the way.
"No, Obi-Wan. I forbid you to see him. Anakin needs to be with his parents now."
"He does, does he?" You could tell Ben was livid. His blue eyes were cold, and his tone was as sharp as glass.
"Yes. It's time he had a proper upbringing." Qui-Gon said.
Ben moved to enter the house again, but Qui-Gon prevented him.
"Qui-Gon, this is my house. You can't prevent me from entering it. And you can't do this to Anakin!" Ben objected, reaching for the box of toys and attempting to yank it out of his father's hands.
"I can and I will, Obi-Wan. This has gone on long enough." It took your shocked brain until this moment to realize that Ben was clearly short for Obi-Wan. He'd never shared with you that he had a unique full name before. But it matched his father's name somewhat, so it made some sense. You'd have to ask him about it later.
Ben stared up at his father, still clutching the box of toys between then, betrayal written all over his face.
"You want to raise him like you raised me?" Ben said quietly. "Pawned off on tutor after tutor, nanny after nanny, until I grew into an inevitable and utter disappointment?"
"Obi-Wan, you're projecting." His father interrupted.
"No, I don't think I am." Ben replied. "You've never been satisfied with anything I do, just add this to the list." With that, he shoved the box at his father, causing the taller man to stumble back slightly. Ben jumped down his porch steps and began walking away. It took you a moment to understand that he was crossing the street into your garden.
"Who are you?" Qui-Gon asked, and you belatedly came to the realization that he was addressing you. You stepped further into the porch light to respond to his inquiry.
"Um, sorry. Just a neighbor. I help out with Anakin sometimes." You replied.
"So, you've seen what things are like over here?" Qui-Gon asked.
"Yes, I think Ben is a very devoted Father. Anakin is his whole world." You answered truthfully. "I think you're making a mistake."
You had no idea if that was crossing a line or overstepping on your part, but you didn't really want to find out.
"Um, I'll keep Ben company while you pack." You said before jogging after Ben. Qui-Gon didn't say anything more, but you sensed his watching you as you ran across the street and into your front garden.
"Ben?" You called. He wasn't in front, but dewy footprints in the lawn led around the side of the house towards the back.
You called his name twice more, but he didn't reply. You tripped over a stray creeper vine and swore loudly, but when you regained your balance, you could see one of Ben's feet extending from the entrance of the little gazebo in your night garden.
"Ben?" You asked quietly. "Do you need anything, or do you want to be left alone?"
He didn't reply, so you carefully approached. Ben was sitting in your dusty gazebo, face in his hands and shoulder shaking slightly. Part of you wanted to give him privacy, but the other part wanted to pull him into your arms.
"You must think I'm a coward." Came Ben's ragged voice. He mopped his face and licked his lips, staring off into the dark garden with a hopeless expression on his face.
"What? No, I would never think that." You replied. You decided to come sit with him, brushing his knee with yours. "Your hands are tied."
Ben made a noncommittal noise in the back of his throat and looked away.
"I think it will blow over. Your father asked if I'd seen what your life is like with Anakin and I told him you were a great father."
"Gods, what did I do to deserve you?" Ben asked the gazebo ceiling. You blushed a little and leaned into his shoulder.
"I think I also told your father that he was making a mistake. I didn't really give him a chance to tell me if I was overstepping. Sorry if I was." You told him.
"I'm impressed, Flower. My Father certainly doesn't have people stand up to him like that."
"I got the sense that he was used to being in charge of the situation." You replied. "I reined myself in before I called him some choice words."
Ben laughed hollowly and threaded his hand into yours.
"I don't know what I'm going to do without him. He's been a part of my world for so long, he is my world, like you said."
"We'll get him back, Ben. Don't worry." You whispered, turning your head to kiss his shoulder. Ben sighed heavily.
"Oh, shit. Ben, can I borrow your keys? I left my stuff in the Prius." You said, realizing you'd be making a very awkward trip over to Ben's and you might not be able to avoid being noticed by Ben's father, who you'd just been very pert to.
"I'll get it, Flower. I should be there. I just..." Ben sighed.
"Let's put the kettle on and you come back when you've done what you need to do." You said. You stood and offered a hand to lead him up to the house.
"I'll go in the back and unlock the front for you." You said, breaking away and heading for the back porch.
"Okay." Ben replied before disappearing around the side of the house. You took a deep breath of the summer night air and then moved to go inside.
It felt like an eternity before you heard the soft sounds of Ben entering the front door. You poked your head out of the kitchen and noticed with a pang that he looked haggard and tired.
"They're gone." He said. He entered the kitchen and laid your cardigan and purse on the table for you.
"Oh, Ben." You said softly. You held out your arms and he gratefully embraced you, pulling you close and settling a hand on the back of your head. If it hadn't been such a somber occasion, your stomach would have done happy flops of joy at being hugged so well.
"Do you want to stay here tonight?" You asked quietly.
"I... Don't know. I don't know what I need right now, Flower. Just don't let me go for a moment." Ben replied.
You held him until the kettle started to whistle, at which point he let his hands fall and you went to fetch water for the mugs you'd already laid out.
"I made this tea from things in the garden." You told him as you poured. The dim kitchen came alive with the smell of summer flowers and herbs.
"It smells luxurious." Ben said softly, accepting a mug from you. It was too hot to drink right away, so you held the cup close. You weren't really sure what else to say or do, comforting people was much more difficult when they weren't toddlers like Anakin.
Anakin... He would be going to bed somewhere strange tonight. He'd be with his parents, who from what you'd heard from Ben were practically strangers. It made your heart hurt with worry. You couldn't imagine what must be going through Ben's mind, it had to be a hundred times worse.
"Ordinarily, a night to myself would be a blessing." Ben said quietly, sipping his tea. "I would jump at the first chance I could get to spend time like this alone with you. But-"
"Hush. There will be other chances." You replied. You set your mug down and took his hands between yours, cradling his tea in both your hands.
"I've said it before, but you're too good, Flower." Ben said. He reeled you in to him and tilted his face to kiss your lips. It was sweet, and soft, and it made a pang of yearning rise up in your chest. And gods, how you wanted him.
"I know I've made a lot of promises to you recently, and kept very few of them. But when I get this mess straightened out, you and I will get the time together we deserve."
"Okay." You whispered back. You took a deep breath and then kept talking. "I've been waiting my whole life to feel like this. I can wait a little longer."
Ben groaned and buried his nose in your hair. Warmth seeped into your chest, and at first you thought it was just the manifestation of your feelings for the man in front of you, but then you realized the mug of tea crushed between you was dripping onto your chest.
"Um, Ben. Your tea." You laughed in spite of yourself and pulled away from him. The front of your blue sundress was soaked through. The warm drink was cooling rapidly, and your nipples were pebbling against the wet fabric.
"I'm so sorry, Flower, your dress..." Ben grabbed a rag from the counter next to him and began to dab at the stain on your chest. Then he seemed to realize what he was doing.
"It's fine, I'll just change." You said, blushing. You escaped from the kitchen and fled to your bedroom, eager to tamp down the tense feelings that seemed to continually be bubbling under the surface whenever you were around Ben.
You quickly changed into dark comfortable pants and a white tank top, checking to see that you were decent in the mirror before you rejoined Ben in the kitchen.
"I'm truly sorry, I hope that dress wasn't damaged. I do like it." Ben said upon noticing your return.
"No harm done." You replied.
"The tea is excellent as well." Ben complimented. "I would love to have a jar of my own for home if you decide to make more."
"Of course." You replied, surprised at his warm response to your tea blend.
"Have you thought about selling it at your market stall?" Ben asked.
"Um, no. I guess I haven't." You replied. You took your own mug from where you'd abandoned it on the counter and took a deep drink. It was good. Maybe good enough to sell, you'd have to see about getting some materials to package it up with.
The kitchen lapsed back into silence as you both worked through your thoughts.
"I think I'll take the day off tomorrow, clean up the house and get some things in order." Ben said, staring into the void somewhere cross the room.
"Good idea." You replied. His house was probably in utter disarray after Anakin's possessions were moved out of it. He'd have to make some serious adjustments to make it feel like his home again.
Ben sagged into himself again as he seemed to come to the same conclusion that you did. Your heart squeezed as you saw him try to hide the distress he was feeling.
"I should be going, I think prolonging the inevitable will only make it harder." Ben finally said. He set his empty tea mug on the counter and sighed heavily.
"Here, take the rest of the tea home so you can have more if you need it." You pressed the mason jar of tea into his hands. You were at a loss for how else to offer comfort, it really wasn't your strength.
"Thank you, Flower. I'll call you if I need anything." Ben said softly. He reached out an arm, and you hugged him once again, breathing in his now familiar scent.
"What a day." You said with a halfhearted chuckle as you walked Ben to the door.
"I'm beginning to think the universe has designs against us." He grumbled. "Crushed cookies, Quillan, Satine, Cody, Qui-Gon, all in one day? It must be a sign."
"I prefer to think, or maybe just hope, that the universe has plans for us. Instead of nefarious designs." You said.
"I think you missed your calling writing perfect greeting cards, Flower." Ben teased. He tucked a lock of hair behind your ear, then leaned in and kissed your forehead. You sighed into his touch.
"Soon." Ben whispered into your hair. Before you could ask what he was promising, he was gone, leaving just the smell of his cologne and your blend of flower tea in the air.