reborn § cal kestis

16

Sadira felt better than ever when she returned to the headquarters. It had been cleaned up even more than before, and although people were mournful, there was an energy that everyone shared. Whether it was because of their win or because of their motivation to get things done, Sadira didn't know. She did know, however, that she felt it too.

  Sadira scanned the base as she arrived. Sitting on a small workbench close to the crashed TIE fighter was Cal. He held a tool in his hand as he worked on BD-1, sticking his tongue out in concentration. She didn't think before jogging towards him.

  "Hey." She dragged a chair from a nearby desk and placed it next to him.

  Cal looked up, narrowing his eyes. "Why are you sitting on your chair backwards?"

  A lopsided grin made it's way onto Sadira's face. She looked down at her position, then shrugged. "It makes me look cool."

  BD-1 beeped something that Sadira didn't understand. Cal laughed shyly. "That's mean, BD."

  Sadira raised her brows. "What did he say?"

  "Nothing," Cal chuckled. "He's just kidding."

  "Better be," Sadira said, frowning. As Cal returned to his work, she decided to change the subject. "What are you doing?"

  Not answering for a moment, Cal bit his lip. "Just trying to rewire. If I can do this correctly..." He squinted as he moved the tool around BD-1's wiring. "...then he'll be able to help me pilot an X-wing." Cal pulled the tool away triumphantly, grinning. There was a loud pop and a burst of sparks. BD-1 jumped away, beeping frantically. "Sorry, BD."

  A few puffs of smoke left BD-1. "What happened?"

"I can never get the wire in the right place," Cal sighed. "It's too fiddly."

Sadira laughed. "You're never going to be able to see anything with bad lighting." She leaned across the table and switched on a lamp, pulling it so that the beam shone into the side of BD-1. "And you're never going to do it with those big hands of yours."

Cal glanced down at his hands. "Wow, thanks."

"Trust me." Sadira grabbed at the tool in Cal's hand. He gripped onto it defiantly for a second. She shot him a look, and he let go. "It's not that difficult, you just have to make sure that you don't rush."

Sadira shuffled her chair closer to Cal so she could see BD-1's wiring better. Cal fidgeted in his seat. "Sorry for the intrusion."

"No." Cal shook his head and swallowed. "It's fine."

Sadira set to work. She squinted as to see better, and glanced back and forth at the manual Cal had been using. Cal had been right; the work was definitely fiddly, but with time and patience, she would manage. "Did Aari tell you about the memorial service?"

"No, not yet. When is it?"

"In an hour, I think," Cal replied. "All of us are gathering outside to pay respects to those who died yesterday."

"Isn't that a waste of time? People die—so what?"

"I almost died."

Sadira paused, he hands stilling. The thought hadn't occurred to her. If Cal had died, then I would have been there, grieving with everyone else. What makes this different?

"Yeah, sorry. You're right," Sadira apologised. "I just-" She sighed, glancing away from her work and forcing herself to look Cal in the eyes. "I'm just bad at emotions. Sorry."