Chapter 5 - You call to me

The anticipation was making Rey incredibly nervous. What was he waiting for? She tilted her chin up and glanced from his lips to his eyes and back again. He must have registered the hint because he partially smirked and proceeded to bring his mouth closer to hers. She could feel her heart pounding against her ribcage, the sound thumping in her ears. She caught her breath, his lips hovered above hers. Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, as their lips lightly touched. She sealed her eyelids and felt his free arm snake around her waist, pulling her body close to him.

The heavy atmosphere that was surrounding them shifted and was replaced by the cooling of recycled air. The sudden change in temperature caused a shiver to shoot down the back of her neck. The pressure of his lips became firmer. He smoothly guided her back to a surface that bumped into her backside. Their lips breaking apart slightly. He used the hand that was cupping the side of her face, to lift her up onto his desk. They brought their mouths back together more hungrily and as they went to deepen the kiss, a buzzer sounded within his office. The disruption made their lips lose contact, forcing them to catch their breath. Their foreheads falling to rest against each other.

"I guess that's my cue to leave," Rey whispered.

Kylo desperately murmured back. "No, please don't go."

Rey reluctantly pulled her head away from him and nodded.

A grin danced across his features. He gripped her hips and slid her from the middle of his desk to the side and took a seat on his chair.

She stifled a giggle. Her legs dangled in the air facing towards him with her back to the door.

"Don't go anywhere," he sternly warned her with a smile.

She shyly looked away from him taking notice of the cabinet behind his desk that was dented. She wondered what had happened to it.

"Enter," Kylo commanded, as he put up an apathetic mask and leaned back into his chair.

Hux marched into his office with a sour expression. He took in Kylo's relaxed demeanour.

Kylo grunted. "What brings you here General?"

"Emperor Ren. I'm curious... have you received my request?" he asked with a firmness to his voice. "We need to dispatch more officers to search for the Resistance."

Rey clutched the side of the desk.

Kylo noticed the tense shift in her posture in his periphery. He badly wanted to reach out to touch her and reassure her that everything was alright. He clasped the edge of the desk next to her fingers, without touching them. The warmth radiating between the two of them.

He maintained his glare at Hux. "I have," he declared. "I was about to send you a response." He paused for effect. "Your request is denied."

"Denied?" Hux spat in disbelief.

Kylo crossed his arms over his chest. "I don't need to look for them when I already know where they are."

Rey was rigid. New questions were swirling around her mind.

Hux was just as perplexed. "You found them?"

"Of course, I know where they are." Kylo didn't want to elaborate. "It's of no concern to you."

"No concern to me? I'm the General." Hux's words were coated in disdain. "It's my job to know."

"Not this time. My reliable source has revealed their whereabouts to me," he replied with a smirk. "I can assure you, now is not the time to act."

"Source? Are you saying that we have someone on the inside?"

"Just leave the Resistance to me." He glanced quickly at Rey. "I will handle them."

"You don't have a source at all, do you? You're doing this for the girl." Hux raised his eyebrows. "The rumours are true, aren't they?"

"Rumours?" Rey queried.

Kylo brushed off the accusation. "I didn't take you to believe idle gossip."

Hux was clenching his fists. "It's not gossip if it's rooted in fact."

"Which rumour are you referring to?" Kylo used his fingers to count. "The one that says she spared me out of compassion, or the second that says I've gone soft due to my love for her?"

Hux relaxed his hands. "You don't deny it?"

"What is there to deny?" Kylo shook his head. "My relationship with her is of no consequence to you."

"No consequence?" he sputtered. "Do you hear yourself? You're allowing your personal feelings to get in the way of all we've accomplished."

"General, there is more at play than you realise." Kylo tilted his head. "I don't need to explain myself to you."

"You're letting some pretty little scavenger, get under your skin." Hux grit his teeth. "She's manipulating you and you're letting her."

Rey bit her lip. "He thinks I'm pretty?"

Kylo was doing his best to not lose his composure in front of Rey. It was taking everything not to choke Hux into submission. "I'm growing tired of your allegations. I will reveal my plans for the Resistance in due course," he growled. "We will strike out against them, and you'll be the man to lead the assault." He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "But... if you continue to question me, I will have you replaced," he replied through gritted teeth. "Do I make myself clear?"

Hux cleared his throat. "Yes, of course, Emperor." He wearily bowed his head. He didn't like being kept in the dark. Although he knew if they continued arguing, it might lead to his demise. "I will wait for your instruction." He turned on his heels and made a hasty exit.

Kylo stood up and moved in front of Rey taking hold of her armbands. "I'm sorry about that," he said with sincerity. "The General likes to question my methods at every opportunity." He shook his head. "I promise I don't want to strike out at you... or the Resistance."

Rey was pondering the conversation she had just heard. "Do you really know where I am?" she asked.

He nodded his head. "Yes, I do."

"But how?" she furrowed her brows. "For how long?"

"I think you've forgotten that I'm the son of rebellion heroes." He released his next breath slowly. "I grew up on their stories and that included certain details about Rebel bases." He looked over her shoulder briefly and lowered his voice before continuing. "The First Order has no idea of my origins and I plan to keep it that way," he smirked. "I like knowing much more than I let on."

Rey became confused. "But that doesn't explain how you know exactly where I am."

"I've put the pieces together from our force bond. It was easy to figure out our similar day cycles," he explained. "When I saw the mess hall, it confirmed that you're on a base." He tilted his head. "It narrowed down the locations you could be occupying." He took another breath. "It wasn't until you took me outside, that I realised you're on Rori. There is only one base in the Mid Rim built on a swampy world," he concluded.

Rey clenched her jaw. "What are you going to do with that information?"

Kylo could see her concern. "I can use it to help you," he gently stated. "I will try to stop the First Order from discovering your location, but if you stay, I don't know if I'll be able to protect you." He was staring intently into her eyes. "You'll probably get hurt."

His words calmed her. "I know," she sighed. "But at the moment I'm less concerned about our discovery and more worried about our lack of supplies." She threw her hands up in frustration. "Our food stores are running low, and it's becoming more difficult to come across intel about the First Order." A smile pulled at the edges of her mouth. "You seem to be running quite a tight ship."

He smirked. "Tell me what you need and it's yours."

"You would do that?" Rey inhaled. "Help the Resistance?"

"Yes, but I won't do it for them," he proclaimed. "I'll do it for you."

She raised her eyebrows. "So, you're saying... you would help a pack of murders, traitors and thieves... for me?"

"I'd do anything for you," he announced. "You should know that by now."

She swallowed and gestured to his bloody hand to change the subject. "Are we going to talk about your hand and why it's covered in blood?"

He stated the obvious. "My knuckles met with that cabinet over there." He used his thumb, to point over his shoulder.

"What did the cabinet, do to you?" she playfully spoke. "Did it make you mad?"

"It was you actually," he answered.

"Me?" she exclaimed. "What did I do?"

"It was your emotions," he explained. "Somehow, I tapped into your anger, and that was the result."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She timidly considered his hand. She went to grab it and he shifted it out of her reach. "Come on. Don't be a baby," she tutted. "Let me have a look."

The open wounds on his knuckles were still dripping down his fingertips. He looked down at his hand and back at her. She put her palm out to him facing up. "I promise I won't bite."

He couldn't help but grin as he walked over to the bookshelf and collected a small medical case before bringing it over to her. He parked himself on the desk, placing the kit down and forming a bridge between their laps. He placed his injured hand in her extended one, and she softly curled her fingers around it. She thoroughly cleaned the wounds and proceeded to cover them with disinfectant.

He was watching her intently, never looking away from her face even when his injury stung. He was enjoying the subtle changes in her expression as she concentrated, wanting to memorise every feature of her beautiful face.

She had finished tucking in the edge of the bandage that now encased most of his hand.

Her eyes unpredictably glazed over, and the scenery before her changed. She was gazing at Kylo, who sat on a throne similar to the one Snoke had occupied across a large room. He smiled at her as he pushed himself up to stand, walking down a couple of steps, and waiting at the top of the aisle. A thin red carpet ran through the middle of the black floor, connecting him to her. As she stepped forward, she heard Kylo address the gathered crowd: "All kneel before your Empress."

She blinked and found herself back in Kylo's office. "Did you see that?" she asked him, as his concerned eyes met hers.

Kylo frowned. "See what?"

She released his hand. "Nothing," she forcefully chuckled. "I clearly need to get more sleep."

"It didn't seem like nothing." His gaze was examining her. "What did you see? Was it about us?"

She stared back at him, her mind deliberating a way to answer. She didn't want to lie, but she wasn't ready to tell him what she saw either. "Kind of."

"Well, that's vague." He looked down to inspect the hand that she had just finished bandaging. "Thank-you, this is actually quite good." He flexed his hand, opening and closing his fingers. "Where did you learn how to dress a wound so well?"

She automatically responded. "I watched other scavengers as a child. It was important on Jakku to treat your wounds properly," she explained. "It could mean the difference between life and death." Her attention began straying back to the vision.

Her revelation saddened Kylo. He sometimes forgot how hard her life was growing up. Part of him wanted to learn more, but he knew she was already uneasy and he didn't want to push her any further. A silence had formed between them, they were both deep in thought. Rey abruptly sprung down off the desk. "Kylo, I need to go."

"Kylo?" He was puzzled by the name she addressed him with. "You normally always call me Ben," he said with confusion. "Are you alright?"

Her eyes snapped up to his face. "It suddenly occurred to me that I never actually asked you," she said. "Do you have a preference?"

He knew she was only deflecting his question, but he played along. She had seen something that spooked her, and she obviously needed time to process it. "Ben is fine, but only when we're alone. I like the idea that you're the only person in the galaxy who gets to call me that."

She was barely paying attention and immediately retorted. "Okay, I'll talk to you later."

Before he had a chance to respond, she was gone. Her absence left a slight ache in his heart. Things had gone so well between them, and he hoped he hadn't done something wrong. He sighed. He wanted to follow her, but he knew that wasn't a good idea. He needed to allow her the opportunity to reach out to him first. Kylo wasn't a patient man, but he was willing to wait for her, no matter how long it took.

Rey opened her eyes and found herself back on Rori. She felt burdened, not just by the heavy air, but also by her recent encounter with Kylo. She had seen the shape of her future, it was solid and clear. She would join the First Order and rule at his side. She was distracted by this new epiphany.

Maybe this would be her place in all this? Maybe this was her destiny?

She instinctively shivered despite the humid atmosphere and proceeded to hug herself. Her hand grasped a moist section on her left arm. When she looked at her palm, she saw the red sheen of Kylo's blood.

How symbolic? If she fought against the vision, is this what would happen? Could that mean Kylo's blood would be on her hands?

She clenched her fist, feeling the pull of darkness. In that moment, she was willing to pay any price to prevent Kylo from falling, even if it meant she had to allow her dark side to rise.