Kylo's Story, Part 14 - Family (Continued)

Rey isn't in her room or in the dining hall. I search the entire Base until the only place left to look is the amphitheater, the last place I feel like going.

I hear the excited voices before I even step outside. The air is warmer today, giving the distant chatter a festive feel, which only makes my mood darker. I squint into the bright light outside, making my way down to the amphitheater. The fog has lifted and the sun's rays bathe everything in shades of orange. 

I stop when I see all the people gathered, women and children, Resistance fighters and pilots, all talking and playing together. I step back. BB-8's beeps draw my attention and I see her zooming around people's feet as a little girl with the curliest hair I've ever seen chases after her. The little girl's ringlets bounce and she squeals as she runs after BB-8. 

Chewie is on the floor nearby with five kids climbing all over him. He doesn't seem to mind, although it's hard to tell either way. Then I spot Rey and Finn, sitting on the steps. Rey has a little boy on her lap who appears to be telling her a fascinating story, his arms swinging out wide, then he points up to the sky. Rey smiles and widens her eyes in amazement, likely exaggerating her wonder at his story for his benefit.

Finn has a little girl sitting beside him who looks like the twin of the bouncy haired girl chasing BB-8. She swings her feet and makes hand signals as sings. He joins in with the hand movements and she stops to correct him, then they continue singing together. I watch them from my spot at the edge of the amphitheater. Finn could give Rey a normal life, with kids and a family. She looks so happy with the little boy, it's almost painful to watch.

Something bumps my leg and I look down. It's BB-8. The little girl chasing him stops suddenly and looks up at me, then she runs off to go jump on Chewbacca.

"Ben," BB-8 beeps. "Can you please help me?"

It's hard to hear her over all the commotion so I crouch down. "Do you need to get away from all these kids?" I ask.

"I need to go to the Millennium Falcon."

"Why?"

"I have to get something for Rey."

I look over at Rey and Finn. He's now teaching the boy on Rey's lap a secret handshake as Rey laughs.

"Finn knows how to get to the Millennium Falcon," I say to BB-8. "You should ask him to take you."

Rey looks in my direction and waves. I stand and lift my hand in greeting but don't walk over. 

BB-8 zooms over to Finn and the little girl throws her arm around her in a hug. I stand there watching for a moment. Rey goes back to her conversation with the boy. 

I turn and head back inside.

* * *

I don't intend to sleep, but within minutes of laying down I begin to drift off.

"Having fun playing house?"

My eyes fly open. It's Hux. He's standing in the entrance way to my room.

"Makes it all the more enjoyable for me to watch them all die," he says with a smirk on his face, nodding towards the window. I run over to it and throw the curtain aside. A bright beam of red light streaks across the sky on it's way to Ahch-To, Still far off but moving closer fast.

"They can't evacuate," Hux says behind me. "The radiation from the crystals destroys all electronics and disables the shuttle pods and ships."

I turn to face Hux but he is no longer there. A little girl's screams rise above the other cries I hear from outside, piercing my very soul.

"!" she cries over and over. I run out of the room.

On the other side of the curtain a heat hits me and I'm blinded by the bright light of the sun. I cover my eyes with my arm. The girl's devastating pleas continue.

"Come back!" Her words are choked with sobs. "Let me go!"

I squint into the sun and see a large man dressed in all black, with a helmet like mine, but different. He's holding the arm of the little girl who's yelling. Her hair is in elastics just the way Rey wears her hair. She pulls against the Sith Lord's grasp, unable to free herself. I raise my hand and use the Force to make him let her go. He turns to look at me. The little girl is released and she runs out into the desert, waving her hands frantically in the air. "Come back!" she cries.

I run after her and glance up to where she's looking. A spacecraft is disappearing towards the sun.

"" she yells. "You forgot to take me!"

I reach out my hand and focus all my Force energies upwards to the departing spaceship. Sweat drips down my back in the heat. I pull the spacecraft back. My heart pounds, my eyes burn from the glare of the sun.

I clench my jaw and focus harder. The girl throws her arms around my waist and hugs me tight with her skinny little arms, crying uncontrollably. I try harder, but the propulsion of the spacecraft fights against me.

My body shakes with the effort but I refuse to let go. I'm just not strong enough...

I wake with a jolt, my chest clenching so tight that I think I'm going to have a heart attack.

"There you are." Rey comes into my room, then stops. I'm drenched in sweat and breathing heavily.

"Ben?"

"I'm sorry they left you Rey?" The words rush out of my mouth before I can stop them. "They shouldn't have left you behind."  I clench my fists. I don't want Rey to hurt, ever. She rushes over to me and hugs me. "Are you okay?"

"No," I say, hugging her back.

"Let's get out of this place."

I pull back and look at her.

"Let's go somewhere else," she says, her eyes full of expectation.

"Where?"

"I don't know..." Her face lights up. "How about Yavin_4? Just for a day or two. The visitors are here for a whole week and..."

"A week?" I frown, remembering Hux's threats in my dream. "I need to talk to my mom." I look into Rey's beautiful eyes. "Then we'll go. I promise."

"I want to be alone with you." Rey climbs onto my lap and pulls me close. "I have a gift for you," she whispers in my ear. "But I want us to be alone, away from here and from everyone, when I give it to you."

My muscles tense as she shifts in my lap. I clasp her hips in both hands. "I'll get changed and go talk to my Mom first. Then we'll go."

Rey climbs out of my lap but I don't stand up after her. I don't want her to notice that she's excited me a little too much by sitting on me.

"Okay," she says. "I'll go ask Finn if he will watch BB-8 for us while we're gone."

I nod and she turns and walks away with a smile on her face.