𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙀𝙍 𝙉𝙄𝙉𝙀
—𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴—

POE DEBATED WITH his conscience for a few minutes, pacing outside of Bexley's room. She had left the door unlocked, and sat in the corner next to her bed. The girl's head rested against the wall as she tried to calm herself. Poe knew that she would want some time alone, away from him for a while. But he didn't want to leave her when she needed him the most.

Bexley was in denial, to say the least. And because Dawn had all of the evidence, she knew she would have to face the truth sooner or later; that made it hurt even more. The blonde refused to believe anything at the moment, and decided that if she wanted to pass this flight school, she would have to focus on other things. So, for the time being, she would have to push all of this to the side.

Poe tapped twice on the door, slipping a hand to the doorknob when there was no response. Even if Bexley didn't want him there, he would stay. He would always stay.

Closing the door softly behind him, Poe met Bexley's dull eyes. She broke their gaze after a short moment, her attention turning to the ceiling. Her knees were pulled to her chest, her arms sitting firmly on top of them.

"We should probably get back to reading," she breaks the silence as he sits down across from her, his back placed against her bed. "The last thing I need right now is to fail the exam."

"I think you have other, more important problems at the moment," Poe interrupts. "And I think you know it, too."

"I can't think that way," Bexley shakes her head. "It's another distraction within itself, and I don't need that. I can deal with this afterward, and focus on my work now."

"Do you think that being miserable is going to help your performance ability?" He raises an eyebrow, leaning forward. "Bexley, I know everything is tough right now, but you can't sit back and act like everything is okay when it isn't."

Bexley's stomach churned, her body flooding with warmth at his closeness. But she couldn't focus on that- not at a time like this. Instead, she sunk farther into the floor, closing her eyes.

"You're right," the blonde shrugs, her eyes still closed. "I'm not okay. Nothing about this is okay- none of it. I'm just not sure how to deal with all of it at once."

"You tend to pressure yourself." Poe states, confident with his words. "You want to live up to expectations, and I understand that. But you're hurting yourself with all the stress, and it's not healthy."

"I don't know how to relax anymore," she says honestly, finally meeting his stare. "It's foreign to me."

"Well," Poe pauses, his expression going from concerned to soft. "We still have a few hours until your curfew."

"And?"

"I have something to show you," he stands, holding out his hand to her. "We need to hurry, though. Come with me."

Bexley didn't hesitate to place her small hand within his, feeling sparks radiate through her veins as she did so. Neither of them commented on the feeling, though, as they were out of the room in an instant.

---

Bexley could remember when she was five years old, her mother and father in the kitchen as they talked about their previous days at work. Her father had captured a wanted criminal, and had ranted about it after dinner. He described his encounter like a story she had read before, and Bexley had listened closely.

She had noticed that he did this quite oftenly; telling them about how eventful and full of life his day was. In fact, he had done it every day, and always had a new story to tell. Bexley realized that this was what she wanted to do, too. To be able to come home and brag to her parents, her friends, about what she had done that day. To tell them just how much fun she had during her time of being an assasin, even if it meant risking her life for others.

The girl wanted to be a part of something greater. And now, as she walked onto an outside balcony with Poe, she could feel that she was finally doing what she had been dreaming of since then. Bexley was accomplishing what her father had, no matter how rough her path was becoming. She was making a life; a future, for herself and for her parents. And she knew they would be proud if they could see her now.

As the two reached the end of the balcony, where the railing held them off, Bexley breathed in the fresh air. She missed the outside, whether she had known it or not. And now that she was here, the blonde didn't want to go back.

"What was it that you wanted to show me?" Bexley asks Poe, taking the time to look over to him.

Poe's eyes were facing ahead of them, into the pink sky in the distance. "Just watch."

She looked closer, trying to see what he was seeing. His glance was held deep in the setting sky, enrapted by the scene. She noticed the sun now; how it was dipping just below the horizon. The bottom half was closed off from view by the mountains ahead, while the top was exposed.

Poe had wanted to show her the sunset.

The colors were beautiful- pinks, and oranges, and yellows. The sky wasn't blue like it usually was. The white clouds had dispersed into little swirls that spread across everything else. They moved with the soft breeze, fading as everything else did. And above it all, the moon began to make an appearance, glowing white through the daylight.

Bexley braced her hands against the railing, leaning closer as the sun fell deeper into nothingness. It was disappearing beneath their noses, and the girl wanted to pull it back up to watch it fall again. She didn't want to see the stars, or the moon. She wanted the vibrant colors to light up the places around her that were going dark.

Poe was now staring right at Bexley, not able to pry his eyes away from the blonde. The way she marveled at the sunset made his heart thud in its place- something he had never felt with anyone before. He couldn't understand what she was making him feel, no matter how hard he tried. As the wind tousled the waves of Bexley's hair, he found that she was so much more beautiful than the sunset could ever be.

Nothing else around them seemed to matter anymore, it was him and her. He felt everything falling into place when she was by his side, it seemed right with Bexley. Poe wasn't going to let go of that feeling.

The sun was finally gone, fallen completely from the sky. All that was left was Bexley and Poe and the dulling sky around them. The moon was taking place in the sky, prepared to take over for the loss of the sun. It loomed in the distance, darkness overwhelming the clouds. And then, the stars appeared, too. One at a time, barely visible as they began to twinkle.

"When I couldn't sleep at night, my mother used to pull a blanket outside," Bexley begins, still staring at the place where the sun had left off. "And she'd spread it out on the grass. She'd pull me close, and tell me to count the stars. I never really got too far before I fell asleep, but it helped me relax."

"Count the stars," he instructs, moving to be closer by her side.

"I'll never get enough of them," she shakes her head, closing her eyes for a brief moment. "They always remind me of her."

Bexley could feel the hole in her heart- the one her mother left behind. But it wasn't a bad hole, it was one that reminded the girl that she was gone. It would never pry Bexley's memories away from her

"I'm sorry about today," Poe shakes his head with a sigh.

"There's nothing to be sorry about," Bexley says quietly. "I would've found out eventually. Maybe now I can get some closure, knowing that one day we could all find a way to destroy the First Order."

"We will." Poe states without a doubt, his eyes finding hers by the moonlight. "That's a promise I'll make to you."

"One can only hope," she says, her attention back on the stars.

Poe couldn't help but slip his fingers down her arm, before intertwining their fingers. They both felt the charge that rushed through them as Bexley held his hand close, not denying the moment. She layed her head on his shoulder, staring at the brightest star in particular.

Poe was always there when she needed him the most.

And Bexley was sure, that from somewhere in the sky, her mother knew it too.

_______