General Hux sighed, face dull. "It is with great reluctance that I meet with you, today."

"Uh, yes, sir?" It wasn't as if you were jumping for joy at the chance to sit in his office. Though the view out of his window was pretty great--you had to admit. You wondered what star system you were in.

"It was my initial desire that you be jettisoned off the Finalizer to your new assignment, as was planned." Hux paused, holding you in his icy gaze. "However..."

Heart leaping, you sat up straighter, fingers bunching the fabric of your pants. "Yes, sir?"

He lifted an eyebrow, turning back toward the wall. "However, the skill you displayed during the collapse of Starkiller demonstrated that you may still be needed here." Another pause--you could hear the rush of blood behind your eardrums. "You will train the Chief Engineer on the shuttle until he reaches your competence level. Following this, he will train your replacement. When all is satisfactory, you will be moved to your new assignment."

"Oh." Your chest tightened, and you pulled your lips over your teeth, nodding. "Yes, sir. Understood."

"And one more thing." Hux faced you again. You felt like an insect under his gaze. "Ren's already aware--but under no circumstances are either of you to associate or communicate with one another, by decree of the Supreme Leader. Should you continue to prove a distraction for him, you will be eliminated." He glanced down at his desk. "You report to your assignment beginning today. Dismissed."

You blinked. "Uh, wait--eliminated--"

"Dismissed ." He hadn't even bothered to look at you.

Clearing your throat, you nodded, pushing off from your chair and stomping back onto the bridge, ignoring the eyes that followed you out of the hatch. You couldn't believe you'd waited three weeks just to be told how useless you were. Back to being the Command Shuttle's bitch, back to being expendable. An annoying voice in the rear of your mind chided you--of course you were expendable. What had Kylo Ren said to you, the very first time you had met?

Remember who it is that you work for. You are expendable. Understood?

At the rate you were grinding your teeth, you'd end up with nubs in a month. Not that you were still angry about Kylo Ren. Definitely not. In fact, you were certain you'd spent all the anger you'd had in the medbay two weeks ago. You were basically already over him, like, entirely. Two weeks was enough time for that. A couple more weeks, and you'd probably even stop thinking about him every ten minutes. No doubt. Yep.

You arrived at the docking bay, shadowed by the dark cloud of your demeanor. The Command Shuttle's diagnostic terminal was empty--how welcoming--and you stood, lost, unsure if you needed to start on the inspection or if you were expected to wait. Train the Chief Engineer? What did Jakar Saul need to learn from you? Though, you supposed that was a self-defeating line of thought. You knew that Jakar respected your input and your skill. Training him wouldn't be so bad.

A low, gruff voice called out your name--Jakar himself--and your head swiveled to face him. He was yards away, at the main terminal.

"Hey, Jakar," you replied, putting on your bravest face as you waved at him. You wondered how much he knew. "Good, uh, good to see you!"

Jakar waved back, beckoning you over to him. "Get over here! Got some news for ya!"

Raising an eyebrow, you trudged to the terminal. Jakar stood there, a wide, kind grin on his face, and you felt your defenses drop. If only you could have stayed on the Finalizer that first time. If only Kylo Ren hadn't decided to distract you from your assignment.

Not that you were mad. No. Still totally over the whole thing.

"What's up, Jakar?" You crossed your arms, leaning against the terminal. "Don't tell me this is another bad news-bad news situation."

He sighed. "Well..."

A groan left you. "Come on, dude."

"Okay, okay," he said. "The good news is, even with all of the refugees being eased in, you'll still be working with Loren and that Foster kid. They're out on their assignments now." He paused. "They seem to be getting along--"

"Got it, got it," you said, biting your tongue. Not mad. "The bad news?"

"With all of the refugees being eased in..." His mouth was a firm line. "I'm being asked to help out on another bay. You're gonna be working under someone else."

"Someone else?" Your heart sunk. Jakar had been the only reason you were tolerating this time-limited assignment. "Who?"

He shrugged. "Only met the guy a few times. Worked a solitary shift on one of the hangars. So, this'll be his first time supervising anybody. Or, working with anybody, really."

You cocked a brow. "And he's getting promoted to Chief Engineer because..."

"The guy's good at his job, I know that much." Jakar folded his arms. "Anyway. I just thought you'd wanna hear it from me before you got started. I heard you'd been having a rough go of it."

Blood burned your cheeks. "Uh, really," you said, averting your gaze. "What, uh, what did you hear?"

"Loren told me you'd been suspended again. Personal problems." His eyes crinkled in sympathy. "Don't worry, you don't have to explain it to me. We all got stuff."

"Do we?" you said, glancing at your feet. Somehow, you were certain most people hadn't been suspended for fucking Kylo Ren. "Guess so."

Jakar gave you a pat on the shoulder--something comforting in any other context, probably. "Listen, I gotta get going. New guy should be here within the hour. In the meantime, I'd just keep yourself busy on the shuttle, yeah?"

You nodded. "Got it. See ya, Jakar."

"Good luck." He shot you another grin before leaving you at the terminal.

Air filled and emptied out of your lungs while you made your way onto the shuttle. A new boss. Part of you wanted to stay positive, but the other part was ready to be as cantankerous and disagreeable as possible. Oh, sure, you'd teach the new guy. But you wouldn't make it easy on him. You might even just... accidentally teach him something incorrect. Accidentally.

The shuttle's interior had experienced little activity since landing three weeks ago. With Kylo Ren incapacitated and hundreds of former Starkiller officers to attend to, you supposed any concerns regarding the shuttle's repairs had fallen to the wayside. The panels in the cockpit were still disassembled, and one of the engines was still out of commission. Somehow worse than that, though, were the muddy bootprints tracked on the floor, leading to the bench where you'd watched them lay out Kylo Ren. You could see it, even from the cockpit--the blackened blot of blood, staining the seat. Bile curdled in your stomach.

No, you totally didn't care about him anymore. Really.

You continued to tell yourself this, even when you found your fingers pinching hard at the inflexible panels while you returned them to their appropriate locations. Even when you started slamming them down with more force than necessary. Even when you flung the engine hatch into the wall--your eardrums throbbing from the metal trill--did you tell yourself this. Because you weren't bothered. Not in the least.

There was more work to do than you'd remembered--you'd only just begun inspecting the engine from the interior access when you heard footfalls on the ramp. They weren't the quick, tripping steps of Minks Loren--nor were they the heavy, urgent strides of Kylo Ren. You pursed your lips, pulling your torso from the engine chamber and facing the ramp, waiting for the waster of your time to emerge.

He came up head first--a curly mop of russet hair, and a long, ovular face, green eyes, and a lopsided mouth, like someone had tugged on his cheek too many times as a child. He was tall, lanky--gangly, even--dressed in a chief's uniform that hung loose from his frame. Your new boss, you knew. Yet if you were being honest, he seemed far less comfortable with the idea than you did, judging from how wide his stare became when he met your gaze.

"Hey." He held out his hand, and you shook it, feeling the quick appraisal of his eyes over your figure. "You're, uh. You're the engineer? For the shuttle?"

Your brow furrowed. "Man, I hope all of your employees feel this welcome on their first day."

"Oh, shit--I mean, uh, shoot." He winced. "I mean--... Name's Dash Damarcus. They call me Double Dee, though."

"Double Dee?" you said, crossing your arms. "Do they, really?"

Dash looked crestfallen. "Well--no, not yet, but it was something I was hoping to, uh..."

This was going to be more difficult than you had anticipated. "Look, it's fine--Dee." You introduced yourself, holding your breath--who actually wanted to be called Double Dee ? "Yes, I'm the engineer on the shuttle. And I'm guessing you're the Chief Engineer I'm training."

He nodded, scratching the back of his head. "Uh, yeah. Hey, I'm sorry. I haven't done anything like this before--and then I wasn't really expecting a girl--"

"Wow."

"I mean--dammit." He groaned, neck craning back onto his shoulders. "Can you just--show me. Maybe. What you're doing now? And then we can call it a day."

You rolled your eyes. "Sure." As you reached into the engine access, you stopped yourself and looked at him. "You know what. I have to finish up these repairs. I'd rather just teach you everything from the beginning. Do you think you could... come back tomorrow, and we'll start there?"

"Oh." Dash's gaze flitted around the shuttle. He seemed torn between respecting your request and ignoring any order from an inferior officer. The unfamiliarity with his position was plain on his face. You imagined the impatience in your eyes convinced him to leave. "Oookay. You're right. I've done enough for today." Nodding to himself, he turned and started down the ramp. His confidence seemed to return once he was out of sight, and he called up into the shuttle, "Report, uh, at o-six-hundred, officer."

0600 was pretty damn early. But he was the boss, now. "Yes, sir." You sighed. He didn't seem like the worst . Maybe you could even try and be positive about the whole thing.

Surprising yourself, you'd been able to finish coordinating the repairs for the Command Shuttle and make it to the mess hall without having to stay even an hour past your shift time. You'd intended to sit alone, run through the day again--Hux, Jakar, Dash, Kylo Ren--there were far too many men making your life difficult.

And, as if on cue, Sam and Minks took seats across from you, far too cheerful and bubbly for their own good. You hadn't yet forgotten what Sam had done to you, nor had your heart forgotten how he once made it flutter--but it'd been over a month, now. The only option left to you was to move on.

"Hey, guys," you said, twirling your utensil in your food. "How's it going."

"I saw that you're back on duty!" Minks' smile took up half of her face, as usual. "It's about time!"

She and Sam had already been back for a week. "Yeah, well." You looked between them, shrugging. "It's only temporary."

"Temporary?" she asked.

"Yeah," you said. "After I finish training that new Chief Engineer, I get to oversee him training my replacement. Then I'm off to whatever deserted planet Hux has in store for me."

"Oh," Minks said, frowning. A short pause.

"So!" Sam clapped his hands together. "What did you think of him? The new boss?"

You set your jaw in thought, chewing a bite as you gathered your words. "I don't know. He seemed pretty awkward. Kind of rude, to be honest."

"Huh," Minks said, looking to Sam. "We thought he seemed cool."

He nodded. "Yeah. Friendly. Clearly knows his stuff."

You cocked a brow. "Are we talking about the same person? Dash Damarcus? Double Dee?"

Minks exploded into giggles. "Double Dee ?" she said, covering her face with her hands. "Is that your nickname for him!"

"What?" You held up your palms, cheeks red. "No, no! He told me to call him that! He didn't--he didn't ask you--"

"No!" she replied. Sam's gaze flipped between you and her, lips twitching in amusement, and Minks caught her breath. "You're blushing! Do you have a crush on him, or something!"

You scowled, face on fire. "Wow, Minks. Low blow, there."

Her laughter died, jaw dropping as the cold realization washed over her. Even Sam's skin was pink.

"Oh, no," she said. "That's--that's not what I meant at all, I promise, I--"

"No, no." You dropped your utensil on your plate, staring tunnels into your food before meeting her gaze. "It's fine. I get it. Obviously, I just want to sleep with any man who gives me orders, right?"

Minks' face crumbled, eyes welling with water. "Hey, no, I--" Her shoulders slumped to the floor. "You know that's not what I meant."

Glancing between her and the food, your chest released a long, deep sigh. Logically, of course, you knew that she had just been trying to tease you, that she hadn't even thought about your connections with Sam, or Kylo Ren. Emotionally, though, you were hurt--terrified, even--that this was already your reputation. Part of you wondered if you'd have been better off being tossed into space like Hux had wanted. What was the point of a career if everyone figured you'd slept your way into it?

"Yeah." You nodded, giving her a half-smile. "I know. It's okay." Exhaling, you grabbed your plate. "I should get going, though. Damarcus wants me to be there at o-six-hundred tomorrow."

Sam frowned. "Pretty dang early."

"I know, right?" You shrugged. "Oh well. See you guys tomorrow. Probably."

After bidding them farewell, you tossed your leftovers in the garbage and began the walk back to your cot. You'd given up on hoping for a real bed--you were sure that eventually, your back would grow used to the strain. After all, your assignment on the Finalizer had an end-point, now. An unwelcome memory of Kylo Ren's bed flashed through your mind. If only you were sleeping there, instead.

No. No. You didn't want to do that. You didn't care to do that. Because you were done with Kylo Ren. You hated him, in fact, and--

Loud. Very loud. Piercing through your eardrums into your brain. Ringing. A pressure on your cranium. All of it so familiar, too familiar, and you crumpled against the wall, grimacing, gripping your head, pulse pounding at your skull. Your teeth grinding once again, you tucked your chin into your chest, rubbing your temples, sucking in breath through your clenched jaw. After what seemed like minutes--but what you knew to be seconds--the pain receded, and your lids opened.

You'd been expecting him, sure, but that hadn't abated your shock. He looked--different. His mask. Somehow the same, somehow entirely new. There were portions of it that didn't align in your memory. But you supposed that only made sense--you hadn't seen him carry the old one onto the shuttle. You weren't sure how long you'd gawked, open-mouthed, waiting for him to speak--but the moment never came. After holding you in his gaze for an eternity, he turned, marching away.

A shaky breath rattled your lungs while you watched him. He was walking again. That was good. Well, actually. Who cared. Whatever. You'd taught him his lesson. Fuck him .

Meters down the hall, Kylo Ren stopped, as if he'd been jerked by a leash, and then turned, stalking back over to you with such speed that you'd only had time to straighten your back before he pounced, hands slamming the wall inches from your head. Everything in your line of sight was black, heaving, and tense.

"As loud as ever." The vocoder hadn't changed much.

Trembling. Your entire body was trembling, but you didn't want him to know. You didn't want to acknowledge it, either. Because you didn't care about him--right?

Glaring holes into his visor, you drew in a slow breath. "You could get me killed, talking to me."

"Then let's not talk."

Kylo's fingers went to the sides of his helmet, and you heard the snap and hiss of its release--but he exposed only his nose and chin, holding it up with one hand while the other snagged your jaw. You were helpless as he angled his head to press his soft lips onto your own, the sound of air rushing into his nostrils even louder than the quiet moan he breathed into your mouth. Against your will, your lids closed, warmth rushing over you, and you collapsed back into the wall, Kylo's massive frame almost stumbling to follow you.

His kiss was wet and desperate, scorching your body with forgotten heat, your thighs pressing together while he moved his mouth over yours. Then his hand left your chin and jammed its way down the front of your pants, long leather fingers immediately brushing and teasing your clit. You bucked into his touch and groaned--half-surprise, half-need--but before you could thrust your tongue into his mouth, he pulled away, shoving his helmet back down and locking it.

Lips quivering, you could only stare. He'd ripped you open, leaving your body raw, sore, and aching--aching for him, for his touch. Kylo's shoulders were swelling to match your own, the thread of forbidden desire taut between your bodies. Every bit of your faux-apathy had melted in front of him. You'd been proven right--Kylo Ren wanted you--and you didn't know whether to feel victorious or terrified.

Adjusting your pants, you gazed at your feet. "Well, I should really get going--"

"My quarters," he said. "Two hours."

You gulped, heart stalling. This was a mistake. "Commander, if I'm caught--"

"Then don't get caught." His chest fell in a huff. "I'll be expecting you."

Kylo Ren spun on his heel and strode back down the hall, fists furling. Hux's words echoed like an alarm in your head. You will be eliminated.And yet despite them, here you were, somehow considering intentionally disobeying his orders. One half of you was chanting, wringing its hands: what if we get caught? What if we get caught?

But the other half--dark, scheming, devilish--needed only a whisper, ghosting over your ear with liquid lust:

What if we don't?