Chapter Text
Rey had been working for Resist and Connect for about four months. It was a non-profit organization that curated educational outreach programs across the country. Rey's job consisted of creating curriculum and coordinating community projects.
She absolutely loved it.
Resist and Connect was small, but it operated under a massive parent company called First Order Enterprises.
It was the do-gooder tax write-off branch of the company.
So far Rey had been able to coordinate the construction of a community garden and an afterschool art program for inner city kids. She got to do all of the research and planning, get city permits signed, the websites up for enrollment, all the stuff that had to be done remotely.
It was a dream job.
She had been a teacher for the last few years, but the daily classroom and the bureaucracy of public school had worn her down quickly. She was happy to be in the nonprofit sector, and happy to be behind the scenes instead of on the front lines.
Rey had a cute little office, and it was private, not a cubical-- a real luxury in any office job. She liked almost everything about working for Resist and Connect.
Except her computer, because wow, what an actual piece of shit.
She was prohibited from using her own MacBook at the office. Everything had to be above board, and that meant she was stuck with this ancient piece of junk running Windows Vista.
Windows Vista.
Rey tried to get into her account with no luck.
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
“That's my fucking username, you stupid--”
“You okay?”
Rey spun around in her chair to find Finn Tucker, one of the other coordinators at R and C, leaning in her doorway and looking at her.
“Yeah! Sorry-- I just cannot get into the system this morning.”
“Yeah, it does that. Just use the built in messenger to get in touch with Ben; he does all our tech stuff. He can help.”
“Okay, thanks, Finn.”
Finn smiled and shut her office door behind him.
Rey went to the start menu and found the messaging application. It wasn't a program she was familiar with.
She logged in with her username (it worked here so why not on the main site?) and selected the only person online.
< ReyJay94 >
Hey there, this is Rey Johnson from Resist and Connect, I can't seem to get into the system.
< KyloRenTech >
Did you try turning the computer off and back on?
Rey blushed. It seemed really simple. She had not tried it.
< ReyJay94 >
Uhm no, let me try that.
Rey shut down the computer and waited for it to reboot. She almost hoped this wouldn't work; it was so simple it was embarrassing.
She tried to log in to the system. It worked.
< ReyJay94 >
Wow sorry yes that worked.
< KyloRenTech>
Just for the record I have important things I'm doing down here. Try not to ask me for help unless you really need it.
Rey blanched. How dare he? Her job involved a lot of menial shit also, but she didn't make it anyone else's problem.
< ReyJay94 >
Wow, good to know, asshole.
< KyloRenTech>
(…)
Rey closed out the app before he could respond.
She tried to focus on her work, but she has a bad taste in her mouth all day.
The next morning, when Rey tried to log in, the same thing happened.
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
Just great. At least she knew what to do this time. Rey turned her computer off and waited. It slowly rebooted.
She tried to log into the system again.
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
No. No, no no. She restarted the computer again. And again. No luck.
Fuck.
< ReyJay94 >
Okay I can't get in. Again.
< KyloRenTech >
And you restarted the computer this time, I'm assuming? Unless you really do think I'm an asshole, and you're just messing with me.
< ReyJay94 >
Obviously I restarted it. Like four times… I know you have important work to get to.
< ReyJay94 >
But I am sorry about the asshole comment.
< ReyJay94 >
Please help me.
< KyloRenTech>
Calm down, I'm looking into it.
Rey seethed. There was nothing in the world she liked less than being told to calm down, but if she wanted her computer to work she had to play nice. Or at least attempt to play nice.
< KyloRenTech >
I gotta screenshare, don't touch anything for a minute.
Rey just nodded, even though he couldn't see her, and suddenly her computer screen was moving and changing without her touching it.
Ben pulled up a little black box full of code and began typing. She watched the string of letters and numbers appear as if by magic.
It was kinda cool.
< KyloRenTech >
Okay try it now.
Rey did, and it worked.
< ReyJay94 >
It worked, thanks.
< KyloRenTech >
They literally pay me to do this, but you're welcome.
Who was this guy and why did he grate on her nerves? Just take the thanks and leave.
< ReyJay94 >
Okay …
She left the little message box open all day. But he never said anything else.
Rey lived alone in a small studio apartment. She liked Seattle well enough. She had grown up in Arizona, in the mountains, dry and hot. She had worried that the wet and cold would be a drag but she found she liked misty mornings, the long dragging days of summer and the disappearing sun in winter. She liked the giant trees, the snow capped mountains, the icy sea. Sometimes it almost felt like she was in Alaska.
The great white north. Nothing like the arid and hateful desert.
Rey wanted to put as much space between her past and her future as she possibly could.
She got to work with a cup of coffee and a few minutes to spare, only to find that the entire system was down.
“It's not just you,” Rose said, “no one on the entire floor can get online. It's a mess. Ben is coming to fix it when he gets in.”
Great. Just great. It was bad enough she had to deal with that asshole online-- now he was going to be puttering around her workspace.
She wondered what Ben the tech guy was like. Probably gross and pasty from all the basement dwelling. She shuddered.
“Can I do anything else in the meantime?” Rey asked.
“We can always go through and organize files, I was going to start on it and would love some help.”
Rose started going through paperwork, categorizing ideas and client files. Rey liked Rose: she had a dry sense of humor and didn't take any shit. She was the definition of spunky.
Twenty minutes into filing, Ben the tech guy showed up.
He was somehow exactly what Rey expected and also nothing like Rey expected.
He was big. Really big, and yet still kind of awkward. He was dressed in head to toe black. His posture wasn't great and he was somehow lanky, although he was far from skinny. He looked strong, even. He had a mess of black curls, thick and silky looking, that almost but not quite covered his too large ears. He was pasty, definitely too much basement dwelling, and he had large, dark framed glasses.
What a fucking dork.
His face was-- intriguing. Not ugly, actually kind of beautiful, in a terrible way. He wasn't cute but he was-- striking . Like one of those men who model for Vogue.
Not that what he looked like even mattered. If Rey had say in it, this would be the first and last time she ever saw him.
“Hey Rey, can you hand me that file on outdated playgrounds?”
“Oh uh-- sure,” Rey said, passing the file to Rose.
Ben's head snapped toward her.
“Wait-- you're Rey?” he said. His eyes were wide on her, lips parted in confusion. “The girl who didn't know how to restart a computer?”
Rey felt her face get hot.
“And you must be Ben, basement dwelling asshole.”
Ben's eyes narrowed at her.
“Huh,” he said, and he turned on his heel to face the mess of wires behind Holdo’s desk.
Rey was seething. She turned and walked into her office, slamming the door.
She couldn't really do any work, however, since her computer was down. She slumped into her chair and pulled out her phone.
It was only about fifteen minutes before her office door flew open.
“Don't you knock?” she snapped at Ben.
He looked a little sheepish.
“I just need-- I have to get on there.”
Rey sighed and backed away from the desk, keeping he chair and forcing Ben to crouch as he typed something into her computer.
“There,” he said, more to himself than her, and he walked out of her office.
When she tried her computer, everything was working.
Rey couldn't stop thinking about Ben. What was his fucking problem, anyway? Why did he somehow bring out the worst in her?
She hated looking less than professional, and she had acted like a brat in front of Rose. Great.
“Do you two like, have history or something?” Rose asked her over lunch.
Rey almost spit out her kombucha.
“Me and Ben? No way, that was the first time I've even seen him. He was just a dick about helping me fix my computer last week.”
“Yeah he can be a little intense sometimes but he's harmless. Mostly just hangs in his office coding. He's a genius, some kind of super hacker. He got in trouble when he was young for accessing government files. Kinda badass, if you think about it.”
Maybe that was a little cool. But still, he was a pasty dick.
“Whatever,” Rey said.
Rey tried not to think about Ben for the rest of the week. It shouldn't have been difficult, but he kept popping up in her thoughts against her will.
What kind of government files? What kind of work did he do now? Could he hack her stuff if he wanted to?
She shuddered.
Everything was fine for more than a week until.
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
“Oh, you've got to be shitting me.”
Rey seriously considered quitting as she restarted her computer.
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
Error
User Not Found
Invalid Entry
Fuck.
< ReyJay94 >
I promise I am not messing with you. I really can't get in.
< KyloRenTech >
Do you ever think maybe you're cursed?
Rey blinked at her screen
< ReyJay94 >
There was that old witch in the woods that traded me an apple for a lock of my hair, but that probably wasn't anything, right?
< KyloRenTech >
lol
< KyloRenTech >
Give me a second.
lol ? Seriously? Rey made a face at her computer.
< KyloRenTech >
Okay try it.
Rey entered her info into the system and got through.
< ReyJay94 >
Oh my god thank you, Ben.
< ReyJay94 >
And you know…sorry. For all the trouble and you know… the asshole comment.
< KyloRenTech >
Comments. Multiple.
< ReyJay94 >
Ya ya I'm the worst, cursed by a witch, etc…
< KyloRenTech >
Ah it could be worse.
< ReyJay94 >
Oh yeah? How's that .
< KyloRenTech >
You could be stuck down here with me.
Rey wondered why someone who was a literal computer genius worked in the basement of First Order. She didn't ask, though.
< ReyJay94 >
Very true, small mercies.
< KyloRenTech >
Lovely as this always is, I actually do have work I have to do. I don't feel like getting screamed at.
< ReyJay94 >
Same tbh. Thanks again Ben.
Rey exited the chat, but didn't log off.
Rey had less time to think about Ben over the coming week. She was saddled with a massive project that was, frankly, a little out of her wheelhouse.
She had to make an interactive website for all members of staff to post and comment project ideas.
Very cool in theory, but she had no idea how to actually do it so she was stuck at the office after hours watching YouTube tutorials and making slow, slow work of it.
Everyone else had gone home hours ago.
< KyloRenTech >
Why are you still here? Did you just forget to log out?
< ReyJay94 >
I wish. I'm stuck here because somehow I'm responsible for creating a website which isn't a thing I know how to do.
< KyloRenTech >
Yeah I can't think of anyone less qualified for that task tbh
< KyloRenTech >
Shit maybe you really are cursed…
< ReyJay94 >
Ha ha ha your v funny
< KyloRenTech >
You're prob the only one who thinks so
< ReyJay94 >
And I barely think so.
< KyloRenTech >
See you actually are funny
< ReyJay94 >
Again… barely
She watched Ben start typing and then stop. And then start again.
< KyloRenTech >
Do you need help?
< ReyJay94 >
I mean like… yes. Emotionally, financially, spiritually…
< KyloRenTech >
I meant with the website?
< ReyJay94 >
Oh lol uhhhh I mean. I have YouTube?
< KyloRenTech >
Honestly it's not a big deal. If you want I can help you.
Rey stared at her screen. Why was he offering to help her? Were they friends now? Was it a trap?
< ReyJay94 >
Is this a trap?
< KyloRenTech >
Jesus Rey, no. Look nevermind.
< ReyJay94 >
Wait !
< ReyJay94 >
Please help me.
< KyloRenTech >
Okay. Email me th project outline and I'll look at it, and I'll see how I can help. I don't wanna do it for you I wanna teach you how to do it. Tomorrow though, it's late.
Rey rolled her eyes.
< ReyJay94 >
Great sounds good. Thank you Ben seriously. I'm going home.
< ReyJay94 >
Night
She logged off before he could answer her. She wasn't sure why he was helping her, but she was thankful for it. Maybe Ben wasn't so bad after all.
When she got to work the next morning Ben messaged her right away.
< KyloRenTech >
I went over all the stuff you sent me and sent you back step by step instructions with code you can copy and paste. You should have a basic template up and running by lunch and then I'll show you how to edit, which is fun.
< ReyJay94 >
Wow you're amazing. I owe you big time.
< KyloRenTech >
Don't worry about it, this kind of thing is fun for me.
< ReyJay94 >
I'm not even gonna make fun of you right now, that how happy I am.
< KyloRenTech >
Aww. You're getting soft.
< ReyJay94 >
In your dreams, basement-dweller.
< KyloRenTech >
There she issss
< ReyJay94 >
:)
Ben’s code made everything so much easier. His instructions were simple and easy to follow and she felt an immense sense of accomplishment as things started to fall into place.
By lunch, she had the basic skeleton of a website.
< ReyJay94 >
You're a hero. Legit this would have taken me weeks.
< ReyJay94 >
Or like… forever lmao
< KykoRenTech >
Don't mention it. I'll check out your progress when I have a break and show you how to customize things.
< ReyJay94 >
How did you learn how to do all this stuff?
< KyloRenTech >
A childhood of isolation and social anxiety
< ReyJay94 >
Haha. But really.
< KyloRenTech >
I always liked it, it made sense to me, there's something meditative about coding. Math is a universal language. It's the same wherever you go.
< ReyJay94 >
That's… actually really beautiful
< KyloRenTech >
In theory lol. In reality it meant being a creepy kid without many friends.
Rey desperately wanted to ask about the hacking of government files, but she didn't want to scare him off. She really liked talking to Ben, which wa surprising. He was funny and without him she would be screwed with this project.
< ReyJay94 >
I didn't have any friends growing up either.
< KyloRenTech >
I find that hard to believe.
Rey debated how much she wanted to tell him. She didn't really know him…
< ReyJay94 >
I was bounced around a lot, foster homes. Never really stayed anywhere long enough to make friends.
This was the part where people either freaked out or looked at her with pity. Shit.
< KyloRenTech >
That must have been lonely
< ReyJay94 >
It was. But it made me who I am so… it's whatever.
< KyloRenTech >
Yeah that's true, that's a good way to look at it. Sometimes I get so angry at my past and the people in it, it's hard to focus on the good.
< ReyJay94 >
Yeah I have to stay positive. It was always stay positive or go insane.
< KyloRenTech >
Well you seem pretty well adjusted to me.
< ReyJay94 >
Ya but for all you know I could have like, a murder room in my basement.
< KyloRenTech >
Not gonna lie I'd be kinda impressed.
< ReyJay94 >
Right up until the moment I murdered you ;)
< KyloRenTech >
Ya but you'd have to get me out of my basement and into yours…
< ReyJay94>
I have my ways…
< KyloRenTech >
I bet you do.
Rey blushed.
< ReyJay94 >
Okay computer genius… show me how to make this shit pretty .
He did.
By the end of the day Rey had a decent-looking website up and running. She was blown away, and more importantly so was Holdo.
Rey went home that night thinking about Ben. She tried to remember exactly what he looked like, but her memory was tainted by her intense dislike for him at the time. Tall. Big. Soft looking hair. Bad posture. The details all kind of blurred.
He wasn't cute, but he had been… striking.
She thought about Ben as she made dinner, and as she watched Netflix and as she crawled into bed. She thought about little Ben, so lonely.
That night she dreamt she was chasing Ben across the stars in a spaceship, desperate to find him. When she woke up, she couldn't remember what she had dreamt, only that he had been in it.
The next day at work, the computers were down again.
“I swear, I'm ready to relocate this entire office to a place with functioning wifi,” Holdo said. “Rose, get Ben up here, we need him to look at this.”
Rey’s stomach did a little flip at her boss’s words.
“Sure, I'll message him right now.”
Rey didn't know why her heart rate picked up. She went into her office and tried to be normal. Twenty minutes later Ben showed up.
She heard him in the main office and waited a few more minute before casually strolling out.
“Oh, hey,” she said.
Ben turned to look at her and… wow.
The reality of Ben was nothing like her memory of him. How had she not noticed how beautiful he was? His features were large and kind of crooked and maybe it shouldn't have worked but… it worked . His eyes were dark and soulful and his lips were soft and plump and yeah okay maybe he didn't have the best posture but he was so big, even hunched. Why did someone who spent all their time in a basement have arms like that? His biceps were straining against the short sleeves of his shirt and the skin on his arms and his face and neck was dotted with little moles that Rey badly wanted to touch.
“Uh, hi,” Ben said, blinking at her, and then he turned his back on her to fumble with a mess of wires.
Rey felt her face flush. He had been so friendly online, but hardly seemed able to make eye contact with her.
Maybe he didn't want to look unprofessional?
Rey pretended to do work, slinking around and looking through files, causally letting her eyes track Ben.
“Okay, I think that should fix it. Rose, can you see if you're able to get in?”
“Sure,” Rose said, typing quickly. “Yep, we’re good, thanks Ben.”
“Actually, my computer is acting weird, can you look at it for me?”
The words were out of Rey’s mouth before she could think about saying them. Her computer was fine. She had just sort of-- panicked at the idea of Ben leaving without talking to him.
Ben was staring at her. He nodded, swallowing with his throat and his jaw. He pushed his glasses up on his nose and followed her. Rey closed the office door behind them.
“So what's wrong with your computer?” Ben asked.
“Oh uh-- nothing actually. I just wanted to thank you, and I didn't want Holdo to hear.”
“Oh,” Ben said, eyes flicking over to the shut door. He was so awkward like this, Rey almost wanted to laugh.
“So you know, thanks,” she said. “Maybe I can make it up to you somehow.”
“Oh no, don't worry about it,” Ben said quickly.
Rey blinked at him.
“Yeah alright-- uhm-- I should let you get back to work?”
“Yeah,” Ben said, shifting from one foot to the other. “Okay, bye,” he said, and he rushed out of Rey’s office.
Rey was a little stunned, and she found herself grinning in disbelief. Did Ben seriously just run away from her? It was almost comical.
She let out a shaky little breath and sank back into her seat.
Rey tried to work on the website, but without Ben it was slow. She wanted to message him but this morning had been so-- awkward.
She sighed and looked at his username, the little online icon glowing green.
She almost jumped when the text box appeared.
< KyloRenTech >
How's the website?
Relief flooded her. This was casual. She could do casual.
< ReyJay94 >
Slow tbh. When you show me how to do it, it seems so easy, but it's hard to do by myself :/
< KyloRenTech >
It's not intuitive, kind of like learning guitar. It feels wrong at first but it becomes muscle memory.
< ReyJay94>
Do you play guitar?
< KyloRenTech >
A little. Not well.
< ReyJay94>
Were you secretly an emo kid? Can you play any Three Days Grace songs?
< KyloRenTech >
Oh my god...
< ReyJy94 >
Oh shiiiit you can.
< KyloRenTech >
I totally can.
< ReyJay94 >
Wowwww okay I would love to see that.
< KyloRenTech >
Yeah I don't think that's gonna happen.
< ReyJay94 >
Why's that? Your girlfriend won't let you serenade another chick in early 2000s emo ballads?
Yes, okay, that was such bait. But the way he had run from her… Maybe he had a girlfriend she didn't know about.
< KyloRenTech >
Ha no. I don't date.
< ReyJay94 >
Oh?
What did that mean? Maybe he was ace?
< KyloRenTech >
Well , people don't date me might be the more accurate statement.
Noted .
< ReyJay94 >
So what's stopping you from busting out that guitar, then?
< KyloRenTech >
Self preservation.
< ReyJay94 >
Lmao fair enough.
< KyloRenTech >
If you let me screenshare I can help with the website?
< ReyJay94 >
My hero.
Rey watched as her mouse moved across the screen without her touching it. Ben began coding. She was amazed with how fast his fingers must be moving. She thought about his hands, big, big hands, twitching across the keys. She felt herself blush.
Calm down girl.
She watched as the website shifted, margins moving and font changing and colors shifting. It almost looked like magic.
< KyloRenTech >
Okay, how's that? If you want to change color or font I will send you a little tutorial, but it's definitely functional enough to give to Holdo.
Rey was blown away. She had already offered to do something for Ben to say thanks and he had seemed adamant about not wanting that but… this was above and beyond.
< ReyJay94 >
Ben I can't thank you enough.
< KyloRenTech >
Don't worry about it. Like I said, it's been fun.
< ReyJay94 >
Honestly seeing you code like that… Ben you're amazing. Why do you work here? It seems like you could be doing anything.
Ben started typing, then stopped, then started again.
< KyloRenTech >
Well… it's complicated. I got in trouble when I was younger. I was super into uh-- all kinds of hacking. Group hacks, teaming up with kids on 4chan, this was pre-Reddit and pre-incels, it was a purer time.
< ReyJay94 >
Naturally.
< KyloRenTech >
Well I ended up hacking into some sensitive shit, Bush era files, I'm not supposed to talk about specifics but they banned me from the internet for a while.
< ReyJay94 >
Like… the government banned you? From the entire internet?
< KyloRenTech >
Yaaaaa. But it was only about six months before government agencies were trying to recruit me, and I didn't feel like I had much choice. Until Snoke offered me a spot at First Order. It was private sector or government and I've never been a huge fan of the US government so… I started working here when I was like 19.
< ReyJay94 >
So you really are a genius.
< KyloRenTech >
Eh
< ReyJay94 >
Not gonna lie, that's pretty badass.
< KyloRenTech >
It sounds cooler than it is, trust me.
< ReyJay94 >
Mhm sure. So could you like, hack my computer? Use my webcam to spy on me?
< KyloRenTech >
What! Rey I would never do that, I'm not that kind of guy I promise.
< ReyJay94 >
I know that, I'm just saying ~could~ you?
< KyloRenTech >
I mean-- hypothetically? I don't know.
< ReyJay94 >
You so could lol
< KyloRenTech >
Yeah I could lol
< KyloRenTech >
But again-- I won't. Because I'm not a mega creep
< ReyJay94 >
Mhmmm. Good to know ;)
Despite Ben adamantly insisting Rey not do something nice for him, she couldn't help it.
When she headed into work the next morning she brought two cups of coffee and some homemade cookies.
She had never been in Ben’s office, didn't even know where it was. She had to ask the front desk.
“Ben? Which Ben?” the receptionist asked.
“Uhm. IT Ben?” Rey said with a shrug.
“Ben Solo, yeah he's downstairs in B23.”
“Great, thanks,” Rey said.
Solo. Ben Solo.
She found his office and knocked on the door. She was weirdly nervous. Ben had been so awkward around her yesterday.
She had even dressed up a little, knowing she was coming down here. She had on a sundress and little cardigan and more makeup than she usually wore. Her hair was still pulled back in a messy bun.
Casual .
She heard a chair scraping against the floor and then the door opened. Ben hadn't gotten out of his chair, just scooted to the door to open it. She looked down at him. He was so tall that even sitting he was nearly eye level with her.
“Rey?”
“Hi, yeah so, I know you said don't worry about it but I really wanted to thank you so-- I made cookies.”
Ben just stared at her. His hair looked so soft, curls coming to rest just above his ears which were way too big and which she was dying to touch.
“Can I come in?” she asked.
“Oh-- yeah okay,” Ben said, rolling away from the door and back over to the desk.
His workspace was small. There were no windows, but he had the office to himself. There was a bookshelf with coding manuals and other odd things, a few comic books, a book on mushrooms, and some kind of book about aeronautics.
His desk was surprisingly clean, no clutter at all.
Ben moved the chair back to sit in front of his computer, which looked like a Frankenstein setup, multiple screens all connected.
Rey, feeling bold, sat down on Ben’s desk.
She watched him swallow, his Adam’s apple sticking out almost as far as his nose as he did. His gaze dropped down to her legs, bare and dangling over the edge of his desk. His hand was just a few inches away from her thigh.
“I made cookies,” she said, holding the plate up.
Ben’s eyes cut away from the exposed skin of her legs and found her eyes. His cheeks were pink-- so were his ears. She could see his chest rising and falling and quickly.
“Thank you,” Ben said, taking a cookie from Rey.
They each took a bite in silence. Rey swung her legs a little and Ben’s gaze dropped again.
“So what are you working on?” Rey asked.
“Boring stuff,” Ben said to Rey’s hip.
“Mmm, sure. No plans to overthrow the government today? I mean this administration is particularly vile--”
Ben moved his eyes back to her face. He looked utterly flustered, as if he couldn't believe Rey was real and sitting on his desk. He was so pretty , cheekbones sharp in the low light, eyes wide and dark behind his glasses. He had a mole on his neck that she wanted to lick.
“Uh-- no, nothing so glamorous today. Just revamping security systems for certain software programs.”
“Riveting,” Rey said with a smile.
“Truly the stuff of dreams,” Ben replied.
Rey laughed and jumped down from the desk. Ben stood and suddenly he was close enough to her that her heart switched places with her stomach.
“I gotta get upstairs but thank you, Ben really, I couldn't have done this without you.”
“No worries,” Ben said, shrugging. “It was definitely worth it for cookies. If you need help with the finishing touches just let me know.”
Rey smiled, ducking her head shyly. When she looked back up Ben was even closer. She pressed a hand to his chest and before she could think about it too much, she inched up on her toes and pressed her lips against his.
The kiss was soft, and she tasted cookies and underneath that, Ben .
The kiss was soft and then, suddenly, it was over. Ben had pushed her away .
Rey staggered back.
“Rey,” Ben said softly, and he almost sounded hurt. “Why did you do that?
“What? I-- Ben--” Rey didn't know what to say. “I'm sorry-- oh my god I don't know what I was thinking.”
“What were you thinking?” Ben asked, his voice pitched and strangled.
“I guess I wasn't-- I just thought maybe-- I'm so sorry I don't know how I got that so wrong,” Rey said, mortified. “I have to go, I'm sorry,” she said, turning and rushing from Ben’s office.
Rey was late to work because she stopped in the bathroom to cry. It was more from embarrassment than sadness, although it was a little of that too. Had she really misread the situation?
He had seemed so friendly online, but he had told her he didn't want her to make it up to him. She had tried to flirt with him about him playing guitar for her, and he’d shut that down too.
She was way off base. She just figured because she was cute she could slide in and get his attention and-- god maybe he didn't even like her as a friend? She had called him an asshole when they first met.
Rey felt like shit all day.
She couldn't focus; she kept messing up her work. She skipped lunch with Rose to cry in her car. She couldn't quite pull it together.
Why does it even matter? He's just some computer dork. Jump on tinder and forget about it.
Rey was so behind on her work, she ended up having to stay late… again.
The office emptied out and Rey made a cup of tea and put on music and hunkered down, trying desperately to get some sort of curriculum together. She had a deadline that didn't care about her shame.
Rey was trying so hard to focus, she didn't even hear her door open.
A sudden movement made her jump up.
“Ben! What are you doing here?”
Ben was standing in her doorway, looking wrecked.
“ Rey -- I just-- I fucked up so badly this morning, I wasn't trying to push you away, that's like-- the last thing I would ever want. I just-- I was surprised. And I mean, I don't get it?”
“You-- you don't get it? Rey said, and her heart was hammering in her throat.
“Y--you're beautiful , and funny and smart and I cannot figure out why you kissed me.”
Ben’s chest was heaving as if he was out of breath.
Rey stepped closer to him, face softening as she took in Ben’s appearance. He was disheveled, curls sticking up and his ears were red along with his cheeks. He had missed a little spot while shaving. Rey's heart melted.
“Ben… I kissed you because I like you.”
“Why?” Ben asked.
“I don't know-- because you're smart and you're funny and you helped me even though I was kind of shitty to you. And you're like-- very cute, with the puppy dog eyes and the lips and-- I wanna touch your hair so badly.”
Ben looked absolutely distraught, as if he was fighting with himself and losing. Then, so suddenly, he was in her space, his mouth against hers, and he was kissing her for real.
His hands slid along the soft material of her dress as he opened her mouth with his tongue, fingers digging into her hips as he lifted her clean off her feet and deposited her down on her desk.
He was strong , and his hands were big and so hot against her.
Rey angled her face to catch his lips again, nipping at him gently and moving to kiss the side of his mouth.
“Ben,” she whimpered.
Both of his hands came up to grip her face and he began kissing her jaw, down her neck, biting softly.
Rey felt her want for him burst into liquid heat, pooling in her stomach and then lower.
She pulled back to look at him, running her hand through his hair, finally. It was even softer than she imagined.
“You're shaking,” she said.
“Sorry,” he whispered, “I don't-- I don't do this a lot.”
“Don't be sorry,” Rey said, moving her mouth back to his neck, trailing kisses down, down, down.
She jumped off the desk, turned around and locked her office door.
“Just in case,” she shrugged, and then she dropped to her knees in front of Ben.
“Rey--” Ben choked, as Rey reached for the button of his jeans.
“Please?” she said, looking up at Ben from the floor, her best puppy dog eyes in place.
“Holy shit,” Ben said, and he leaned back against her desk as she unzipped his fly.
Rey stopped for a moment, slipping her cardigan off and undoing the first few buttons of her dress so that when Ben looked down, he could see right down to her tits.
“Fuck, Rey, you're unbelievable,” he grunted, as Rey pushed his pants and his briefs down, off his hips, to pool around his ankles.
Ben Solo had a very pretty dick.
Rey leaned down and kissed it, letting her lips flutter along his shaft and up to the head where her tongue darted out to catch the precum beading there.
“You taste good,” she said, hand gripping Ben’s thigh, which had begun to shake. She dipped her head and took him halfway down in one stroke, bobbing her head up before pushing back down, taking even more of him.
She used her free hand to work the base of his cock, hollowing out her cheeks as she slid back up, tongue flat against the vein on the underside of his dick.
Rey relaxed her throat as best she could and moved both hands to Ben’s hips, urging him to fuck down into her.
“Jesus Christ,” Ben sobbed, and his hips began to push, gently at first, and then quicker.
Ben's hand was tight in Rey’s hair as he fucked her throat, the fat head of his cock catching as he pulled out.
Rey moaned around him and then pulled off.
Ben was glassy eyed, his mouth parted in protest but Rey stood on her toes to kiss him, his dick hard and wet in her hand, and said, “Please fuck me?”
Ben squeezed his eyes shut and Rey felt his cock twitch and then he was lifting her again. She landed with a soft thud on her desk and Ben’s hands were under her dress, tugging her panties down.
He bit her bottom lip as he pushed two fingers against her sopping sex.
“Hng-- fuck Rey,” he said, his voice reverent as he tested her, fingers slipping inside with little resistance.
Rey gasped at the feeling, mouth going slack against Ben’s.
“Fuck, that's good,” she groaned, thinking about Ben typing so fast and how his fingers were indeed dexterous.
She whimpered as he fucked her with his hand.
“Need to feel you,” she said, licking his pulse point.
Ben brought a hand down to slide the straps of Rey's dress off of her shoulders.
He dropped his mouth to her chest, licking across her tits and taking one pebbled nipple into his mouth. Rey jerked in his arms. She reached down and began to pump his cock, letting him rock into her hand.
“Please Ben,” she begged.
Ben took his dick in his own hand and lined up against her, teasing her with the thick head.
Rey felt a shiver go down her spine, her eyes nearly rolled back in her head at the skin to skin contact.
“In-- in me--” she panted.
Ben angled his hips and pushed just as Rey arched her back just so and suddenly he was buried to the hilt. Rey grunted at the sensation, breath ripped from her lungs as her body shifted itself around inside to make room for him.
He was big .
He started to move, hips pistoning sharply as he rutted into her.
“Oh fuck,” he said, one hand gripping her hip and the other coming up to hold her neck. His thumb gently braced across her windpipe. Rey leaned her head black, baring her throat to him. She nodded.
Ben moved his hand to grip her throat, fingers tight on the side of her neck.
“Do it,” she whispered.
Ben groaned and on the next stroke he squeezed .
Rey felt her air supply cut off, her vision swimming as Ben’s free hand came down to roughly work her clit.
Ben let her go, leaning in to kiss her.
“Do it again,” she begged, and he groaned.
“Fuck, you're perfect,” he said, and he fucked up into her harder, choking her again.
Rey's legs kicked out and then tightened around Ben’s hips as he thrust.
The combination of sensations was euphoric. His thick cock stretching her, the rough pad of his finger on her clit, his hand on her throat.
Her vision swam and then she was coming, body twitching as she gushed onto Ben’s dick and her desk. Rey let out a sob as her orgasm tore through her.
“So fucking beautiful,” Ben whimpered, and his hips were moving erratically, body shaking as he fucked her, rougher than he had been. Rey held on to his shoulders, as he let out a strangled sob and bit into the skin of her neck. She held him as he shook, relishing in the feel of him spilling inside of her.
They stayed like that for a little bit, Ben catching his breath against her neck.
Rey carded her fingers through his hair, thumb coming down to trace the shell of his ear and he shivered, kissing her neck with lazy, open mouthed kisses.
“Holy shit,” she whispered.
“Yeah-- Rey that was-- I don't even have words for what that was.”
“I know,” Rey said with a little giggle. She brought her hand down between her legs as Ben pulled out of her, some of his come leaking out to mix with hers on her desk. She trailed her fingers through it and Ben groaned.
“Do you wanna have dinner? I can cook for you, if you want to-- to come over-- I mean-- if you want?”
“I want,” Rey said, angling up for another kiss.
Ben caught her mouth, one hand tangling her hair, the other coming down to stroke her tender cunt. He pushed his cum back inside of her with trembling fingers.
Fuck her deadline. Rey had more important things to do.
She jumped down off the desk and fixed her dress, and she and Ben walked out of the office hand in hand.