I look up from the doodles I'd been creating on my holo all afternoon at a knock on the door.

"I'll be a second." I call, throwing the stylus down on my desk and choosing to ignore the sound of it rolling over the side and clattering to the floor. I bound out of my chair and slip on the fingerless gloves I had left waiting at the foot of my bed, catching a glimpse at my body in training apparel in the mirror across the room. Too much black, I think as I stare the clothing down, puffing out my cheeks.

Brunette roots have begun to make themselves known, signifying in my otherwise artificial platinum curls just how long I've been here. Dark purple circles, harsh as bruises, have formed underneath my dull sage eyes, a stark contrast to my unnaturally pale face.

I look like a ghost.

I clear my throat and blink twice, regathering my bearings.

After clipping on a thick leather saber belt, which had appeared at my doorstep moments after I woke this morning, I raise my hand to open the door before I reach it. Kylo is waiting as expected, sporting his usual thick black tunic, mask covering his damaged face.

"What took you so long?" He growls as I push past him. I pause in the middle of the corridor to give him the chance to begin leading me toward our destination, which he thankfully takes.

I don't indulge his rude question with an answer. I stare straight ahead as we fall into step, taking notice of the way that each passerby gives us a wide berth, and I have a sneaking suspicion that the looks they give Kylo as he marches by are nothing short of terrified. The back of my neck prickles with discomfort, even when I'm not the one they're terrified of.

Why would someone ever want that?

As my eyes wander over the various sets of masks and faces we pass, I catch just one who is the opposite of intimidated, and that I recognize- the officer I had met days ago, the spy. Lieutenant Avalon.

Her tightly wound cerulean hair shines under her cap, her pale face set into a permanent mix between a blank grimace and a sneer. A look I recognize from my dealings with Hux.

She masks herself well.

While the officer she's having a hushed conversation with turns their head away nervously while Kylo and I pass, she locks eyes with me and nods once, the movement so small I almost miss it. I purse my lips in acknowledgment.

Once she's passed, I risk another glance at Kylo, only to realize with a jolt that he is already peering down at me through his mask, and I wonder how much of the exchange he had caught. I suddenly feel queasy, terrified that I had already stupidly given half of Leia's spies away, knowing what that could mean for the both of us.

I swallow as I imagine the trooper firing squad.

But as we slow to a halt outside our destination and he has said nothing, I decide that I'm in the clear.

Kylo removes his glove and presses his palm to the security pad outside yet another room. After scanning, the pad flashes green and the door hisses open. He lets me inside first, immediately following.

I take in the room, much larger than any I had been in on this ship. Several dummies rest against one padded wall, the floor otherwise absent of things. The opposite wall is almost entirely mirrors, and I let my glance slip over myself, catching on Kylo's form as he watches me for less than a second. There is a ledge at the end of the room, the floor raised higher there, with stairs leading up to it. The same artificial lighting blinks overhead.

I turn to look at him, over my shoulder.

"If we're going to spar, I'll need something to do it with." I hint, trying to sound as nonchalant as I can. I purposely don't imply how desperately I want to feel the cool metal of my lightsaber again on my sweaty palm, missing the familiarity of it.

He utters a sigh through his modifier and reaches back to click the mask off, his curls falling annoyingly perfect over his shoulders as soon as they're free. He furrows his eyebrows, dark eyes focused intently on the floor as he begins to unfasten his tunic, slipping it over his head once it has come loose.

As soon as his bare, muscled shoulders come into view, fresh, angry red lightsaber scars disappearing under the hem of his tight, thin black tank top, which hugs his carefully sculpted torso all comes into view, my breath hitches in my throat.

"What are you doing?" I ask, unable to understand why he had just started undressing himself. My cheeks burn traitorously, but I can't tear my eyes away.

"It's easier to move without the tunic on." He answers as if I'd just asked the dumbest question in the world. "And to breathe." He adds.

Then why do you always insist on wearing it? I think to myself, resisting the urge to roll my eyes.

He pretends not to hear my thought, his only reaction a slight crinkling of his nose. Kylo steps forward. "Here." He says, revealing my lightsaber, which had been clipped to his belt near his own. I practically snatch it, excitement rushing through my veins at having the weapon in my grasp once again. I rub my thumb over it, the corners of my mouth upturning.

Kylo clears his throat.

When I look up, there's an amused gleam in his eye. Then, he adjusts his feet into proper stance and ignites his lightsaber, the cherry red light crackling and flashing chaotically in the previously quiet room. I take that as my cue to ignite my own, the blue glow steadier, the hum comforting.

I take a deep breath in, then out. Then, I charge.

The beams slam into each other, screaming at contact. Kylo and I grunt with effort as we hold each other off. I spin away, catching his attack as I once again face him.

Impact after impact, we take out our frustrations with each hissing contact, each blow and counter. We dance around the room, taking turns pushing at each other and backing away, growing equally tired with each passing second.

His fighting style has changed quite a bit since we had sparred together at the Temple, but it isn't entirely different. He's incorporated fighting styles he'd learned from both of his teachers- the aggression of the dark side, contrasted with the grace of a jedi- and he had made it his own.

At some point I begin to breathe heavier, and he does the same. Sweat beads on my temples, wispy pieces of hair sticking to the sides of my face. I can see Kylo's shoulders shining with moisture, his chest rising and falling heavily. I can hear his heartbeat pounding at the back of my mind.

He slams his red saber into my own and holds, his face dangerously close to mine. He exerts force over my small, tired body, and while I know he is stronger than I am, I hold him back with every ounce of my strength. His dark eyes search my face, and I don't miss the way they soften over the scar near my eye that he had made with his blue saber in training.

When our gazes meet, the wildest fire ignites in my chest.

With an unspoken word we simultaneously switch our weapons off, never looking away. I barely hear the clatter as I let mine fall to the floor, out of my loosened grasp, the sound of blood rushing through my ears almost deafening.

Then my hands find his face, careful to avoid his stitches, fingers caught in his mess of curls. I'm enraptured in his comfortably familiar scent, the faint hint of caf pulling on my heartstrings as I hungrily crash my lips into his, reveling in the feeling of his rough, calloused fingers cupping my cheek, his other arm hooking my body in place which has collapsed into the warmth of his own.

-

SURPRISE BITCH IDK IF ANYONE SAW THAT COMING

im giving u guys this chapter bc i was too excited to wait a week to post it

don't forget to VOTE, COMMENT and SHARE

-kait