𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣 𝙨𝙠𝙮𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨

• my pain will never dull •

•••

You had spent your life being average, which you were okay with. You worked as a mechanic on Coruscant, and most of your days consisted of fixing up tie fighters with busted engines and scratched windows. It kept you busy, and your colleagues were pleasant, but you couldn't help but feel small.

All around you were Jedi masters and political leaders, some even members of royalty, and all of them with an important part to play in the galaxy. But you were just Y/N Y/L/N, a humble ship mechanic.

You didn't like feeling sorry for yourself, and you were better off than a lot of people, so instead you saw it as an honour to be fixing up such important people's ships.

One evening, you were assigned to clean the interior of Anakin Skywalker's ship, which excited you greatly. Although you had never flown in a ship before, even just standing in one was enough to make your heart race.

Your colleagues had left for the night, leaving you to clean it on your own. Although it would be a tough job, you were kinda glad that you'd get to roam around Skywalker's ship all alone.

As you entered it, you looked around at the impressive interior and made a beeline to the cockpit. You would never be allowed to fly one, so to sit in the piloting chair was the closest you'd get.

Once you entered the cockpit, however, you realised you weren't alone on the ship. Sitting there in the piloting seat was Anakin Skywalker himself, leaning his head on the control panel.

You gasped and held a hand to your chest, the sound of the door closing causing Anakin to immediately become alert. He suddenly stood up and held out his lightsaber, making you let out a slight squeal.

Holding up your hands, you couldn't take your eyes off of the bright light emitting from his saber. "I-I'm sorry, Master Skywalker, I didn't mean to startle you. I'm just here to clean your ship, I didn't know you were here."

He put down his lightsaber, the light disappearing as he placed it in the holder on his belt. "That's alright, miss..."

"Oh, I'm Y/N. Y/N Y/L/N. Were you about to go somewhere?" You asked with a slight frown. "I didn't know your ship was scheduled to leave today, I should've double checked-"

"No, I actually just got back," He said, cutting you off. "I had some unofficial business."

"Oh, I see," You said timidly with a nod. "I'm sorry again, I shouldn't have just barged onto your ship."

"Nonsense, you were doing your job," He said, and you noticed how upset he looked. "Stop apologising."

After a moment of silence, you stepped forward. "Are you alright, Master Skywalker?"

He looked slightly alarmed at your question before his face relaxed and he nodded, "I'm fine Miss Y/L/N."

"Are you sure?"

"I said I was fine, didn't I?" He yelled suddenly, making you jump.

Your eyes were trained on your shoes as your heartbeat quickened. "I'm sorry. I should go."

"No, wait," He called out just as you turned around. He waited for you to face him again before continuing. "I'm sorry for yelling; I... my mother just died."

Not only were you shocked at his news, but also the fact that he had opened up to you. "Oh, my... I'm so sorry, Master Skywalker."

"Please, call me Anakin," He insisted softly, his eyes downcast as he sat back down on his chair.

You didn't want to leave him alone at such a dark time, so you sat down in the co-pilot seat, taking him by surprise. "Well, Anakin, I know exactly how you're feeling right now. I lost my parents when I was younger, and it isn't an easy thing to deal with."

"How did they go?" He asked, before turning to face you. "You don't have to answer that."

"No, it's fine," You said, knowing that opening up about your own sadness may have made him feel less alone, and being able to make someone feel better after the death of a parent was worth the pain of recalling one of the darkest times in your life. "My father had an incurable disease, which slowly killed him. He spent his life bedridden, and finally died when I was 14 years old. A few days later, my mother... she killed herself. I found her body laying next to his."

Anakin's lips parted at your words, taking a few minutes to process them. "That sounds horrific. I'm so sorry you had to go through that."

"It's okay; that was all years ago and I've come to terms with it," You explained softly. "Granted, it still hurts. It always will. But it slowly alleviates, and now it's just a dull ache."

He looked out of the window, leaning his head back against the seat. "I feel like my pain will never dull."

Tears built up in his eyes and you felt an ache in your chest at the sight, wanting nothing more than to make him feel better. You stood up and engulfed him in a hug, pulling him into your chest. He was rigid at first, but then accepted your embrace, holding you tightly. His breathing became heavier, and you realised he was crying. You stroked his soft hair and swayed him slightly, just how your mother would when she comforted you.

Neither of you spoke, but there was nothing that needed to be said. You weren't sure how much time passed, whether it was a couple of minutes or an hour, as you stood there holding him tight and letting him cry out his sadness.

Once his breathing normalised, he pulled back and let out a sigh. "Thank you, Y/N."

"No, thank you," You said, sitting back down on the chair. "I mean, I got to stand in Anakin Skywalker's ship - I'm living my dream right now!"

He let out a laugh which was like music to your ears. "Oh, really?"

You nodded, "I've never flown one of these before, so all I can do is dust the buttons and steam the chairs and pretend I'm flying at lightspeed."

Anakin sat quietly for a few moments before speaking. "Why have you never flown before?"

"I don't know how to," You admitted sheepishly, letting out a laugh.

With a determined look on his face, Anakin gave you a slight smirk. "Wanna learn?"

•••