Steady On.

Chapter 14.

That night, Rey struggled to sleep, hot and feeling out of sorts.

Her mind did not cease it's torment, a terrible battle of good versus evil. She couldn't make sense of it, and it frustrated her to no end. She was able to get one hour of sleep after tossing and turning, the torment continuing, but now as she tuned into the force, she was able to quiet it down, only just a little.

Laying on her back, she stared up at the ceiling, sleep begging to be met, but her mind refusing it.

Rey closed her eyes, trying to focus on her breathing. She cast aside Sano, and the crystal, which she could swear still hummed to her hungrily. She cast away Poe, and the Resistance, and along with it went her parents, and the Falcon.

All that remained was Kylo.

'Ben...' her heart whispered, and as it did, so did her mouth.

"I told you, stop calling me that."

Eyes flying open, Rey quickly sat up to see Ben sitting on the edge of her bed, facing her. Gasping, she quickly tried to cover herself with her sheet, feeling self conscience that she was only wearing a small, beige tank top and loose undergarments.

She blushed as his eyes scanned her from the tips of her toes to the hair atop her head, as if he was able to see through the sheet itself. Rey felt her heart skip a beat and was sure he could pick up on that with the way she was breathing.

"What are you... Well, nevermind. Were you able to control this connection?" Rey asked, breathless.

Watching her, his face blank, Kylo said "No. Not this one."

They both stayed quiet, studying one another.

She noticed he seemed more relaxed, dressed down into a long sleeve tunic and baggy pants, sticking to his color of all black. She had never thought about him wearing anything other than his usual garb, always dressed to command, always dressed to rule.

His hair was the normal wavy mess, his skin pale. Rey's eyes followed the scar from his brow, and slowly down to his neck, disappearing beneath the tunic.

She had given that to him. She was the one that marked him.

Her stomach clenched, pooling with warmth.

She remembered feeling this way before, about this same scar... She shifted at the unexpected feeling as her cheeks warmed, kicking up the heat she felt under Kylo's gaze.

He watched her squirm, finding a delight that she responded to the mark she branded him with in their first battle. This, was not what Kylo expected tonight as he prepared for bed, the first time in days.

General Hux was continuing his secretive plan, and Kylo was extremely eager to catch him in the middle of this trap he was attempting to lay, however the general knew exactly what Kylo was trying to do, and in turn, blocked himself even further. Hux stuck to his troops side at all times, not chancing Kylo to catch him off guard and force the truth out.

Hux knew what he was up to , and Kylo couldn't wait for the challenge term to be over, so that he would finally be able to kill Hux himself without any warrant from the fleet.

Trying to catch him, however, exhausted Kylo, who barely ate and rarely took any time to catch up on sleep. He was absolutely depleted, and when he felt the bond connect, it was the easiest and quiet it had ever been, not having to push through any clutter from his mind to Rey's.

He could only guess that she was clearing her mind as well, or at least, attempting to, because when he arrived, he felt that she was not in tune with the bond, not even noticing he was there. And when she whispered the name he rid himself of...