Rogue One: Jyn & Cassian One-Shots

(8) High School

Sin ti no puede estar tan mal ~ Ximena Sariñana

Amor Completo ~ Mon Laferte

Hasta La Raíz ~ Natalia Lafourcade

^^^ These are amazing songs in Spanish(you'll know why I did this as you read on).

Setting: Jyn and Cassian in a high school AU.

-

Jyn had just gotten out of her therapy session. Things were looking up for her. She hadn't felt the loneliness that had attacked her during the previous months. She cowered at the thought of the dark days she was leaving behind her.

Looking forward, she walked out of the doors of the building only to crash into a boy with the door.

"Oh gosh, I'm sorry," she said hastily, standing awkwardly as he got himself up from the ground.

"It's fine," he said rather harshly, walking in through the other door and ignoring her.

She watched him head towards the waiting room and hoped he could find the same solace in his own world that she had found.

The next day at school, her gym teacher announced the presence of a new student. He stood against the wall with a hoodie and loose shorts on. Jyn immediately recognized him as the boy she had embarrassingly thrown to the ground with a door.

Cassian swiftly announced his name and the class warm-ups began.

Not having a partner herself, Jyn walked up to him, hoping to better his view of her.

"Ping pong?" she asked, gesturing towards the table.

He nodded.

Jyn decided to go easy on him and give the ball a nice bounce to it. He sent it back with speed that caught her off guard and made her miss.

She collected the tiny ball and locked eyes with him before playing a low ball that he narrowly hit back at her. She returned it with another swing that sent the ball towards the far left corner of the table. It barely hit the edge before falling onto the ground.

"Good one," he told her. The class then played dodgeball. Jyn dodged each ball with grace and never missed the target she aimed at. It was no surprise that everyone wanted her on their team. Jyn observed that when given the chance, Cassian could find a person's weak spot and time his attack with precision.

After class, Jyn invited Cassian to eat lunch with her friend Bodhi and Chirrut. He accepted and found himself walking through the busy lunch room filled with strangers, Jyn being the only one he knew. She made sure he didn't get lost in the crowd.

He sat quietly, looking around at the new faces while Jyn and Bodhi talked about an upcoming football game that their friend Baze was going to be in.

Cassian opened up his lunch bag and took out his plastic tupperware. As he opened it, Jyn looked over to see an interesting pile of food she had never seen before.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Oh," he replied, "They're chilaquiles. Let me pop them in the microwave and you can have a taste."

"Cool," Jyn said with a smile. He hadn't spoken enough words before now for her to realize he had an accent.

She liked it.

She took a small bite of the tortillas covered with delectable unknown toppings, feeling the mix of spice mixed with a nice crunch.

"What'd you say these were again?" she asked.

They didn't have any classes together until English, where Cassian quickly met up with Jyn and Bodhi in the back row. This was the class he was most nervous about: English had never been his strong suit.

"Is Mrs. Erso nice?" he asked Jyn.

She let out a laugh that confused him. "Of course, Cassian, she's my mum."

He let out a relieved laugh after that. Surely if Mrs. Erso was anything like Jyn, this class would surely be alright.

Weeks past and Jyn and Cassian found themselves growing closer everyday. He would make her listen to his favorite Spanish songs that she found quite catchy despite the language barrier. She would show him her favorite books that he would read for hours every night after rushing through his homework.

One afternoon in the library, Jyn plucked up the courage to ask Cassian why he was seeing a therapist.

"Only if you feel comfortable," she told him. "I go because my father passed away a few months ago. He worked as a detective and went undercover, but things went south fast and he couldn't get out."

He saw her pain resurfacing in the tears that flooded her eyes, but she gave him a reassuring nod. "My therapist got me through the worst, along with my mum. It's like learning to live life with a broken leg, you've got to get used to the limp and due time, it will heal... but the scar will always be there."

"I'm so sorry, Jyn," he said. "I know how it feels... to have your loved ones taken away from you."

She looked up at him with curiosity in her eyes.

Cassian took a moment to think things over. He straightened his back when he was ready and took a deep breathe. "Alright, don't make a big deal out of it, but my parents died when I was six. That wound has healed, but ever since then, I've been fighting this battle inside of me. My therapist is helping me find what exactly I'm fighting about."

She gave him multiple nods while processing this information. "You're stronger than you think, Cassian. And smarter. Whatever battle it is you're fighting in, you don't have to fight alone."

"I know that now," he replied.

A year would pass before they decided to start dating, though the feeling had been there long before.

They would skip prom to climb the biggest hill they could find and watch the sunset. Jyn created a special playlist to play that included the Spanish songs that she had learned to adore.

Cassian cooked them his favorite dishes, including the beloved chilaquiles.

-

I was super hesitant about posting this chapter so feel free to comment your opinions they matter very much to me. Also, sorry if this got a little deep, I'm that kind of person if you haven't noticed before.

Bonus: In college, Jyn would study anthropology with a minor in Spanish. Cassian, after lots of consideration, would chose to major in English.