Radio Silence: A Poe Dameron Series

Chapter Six: Over and Out

Poe wakes up early. He stares at the ceiling for a second, mulling over the rush in his head. Something is telling him to get up, to go check the command center for any updates, but he lets his eyes flicker shut once more. Y/N arrived back at the base three days ago, he doesn't have to worry anymore. She's safe, he's safe, they're as good as they're going to get in the fight against the First Order.

After he had kissed Y/N, he had made time for his apologies and explanations. Y/N had smiled, saying that she was just glad to be back. Maybe that was true, but Poe still felt like he's missing something, like he had to do something else to make it up to her. If they aren't back to normal again, he'll feel the guilt lacing his movements every time he passes her in the corridors of the base and sees hurt flaring up in her eyes at the sight of him. So, they make amends, and Poe promises himself that they'll stay like this. Good, even in the middle of a battle.

Even though he knows Y/N is safe, Poe still feels like he can't go back to sleep. He's used to the constant gnawing of nerves at his temples, and besides, it's too late now for him to fall asleep before duties around the base start up again. The pale light of dawn is just beginning to thread across the base when Poe steps outside, wincing slightly at the crisp air. He's tugged a jacket around his shoulders, but it's still not warm enough to go without at least one layer.

Poe walks around the outskirts of the base until he reaches the outer boundaries of the encampment. The base itself is situated around rolling, grassy hills with buildings constructed around them. Poe wanders towards a taller one, climbing up the side and sitting down on the very top. He takes in the stalks of grass waving around him, the distant figures of Resistance workers ferrying supplies out to the hanger. It's quiet, peaceful. A new morning.

Poe's only been there for fifteen minutes or so when he hears someone walking up behind him. He turns his head in time to see Y/N crouching down to sit next to him. She swings her legs around, stretching out across the grassy hillock. "Figured I'd find you here." She says, and Poe frowns. "How'd you know?" She shrugs absentmindedly. "You mentioned one time that you liked to walk around in the mornings. It was a month or so in, you were trying to assuage my worries that doing recon work in the mornings around town looked strange."

Poe chuckles. "I'm impressed you still remembered." A light smile crosses Y/N's lips as she remembers the moment. "I remembered a lot. Those calls were more important than you know, actually. I was terrified that I'd mess up and I'd bring the entire First Order down on my head, but I always managed to come out of the reporting sessions with a smile. I don't know how you did it." Poe glances over at her. "I never knew you were that worried. You always seemed so confident, like it was just a vacation instead of an assignment. Honestly, I figured you didn't need me at all. Any droid with a datapad could have been a receiver."

Y/N grins. "Any droid with a datapad wouldn't have been able to make me laugh so hard I thought I'd alert the stormtroopers. No, I needed you, Poe. I needed some hotshot flyboy who would tell me how to fix power couplings and break me out of a First Order detention block even though he hated me." Poe holds up his hands in defense. "Hey, I didn't know that was you. Besides, I think your first words to me were insults, so it's not like I was entirely to blame."

Y/N rolls her eyes, but her smile doesn't drop for a second. "I was locked away in a prison cell, getting tortured by the hour, and you waltzed in like you were the Resistance's golden boy. I didn't think you could be the Bravo who looked out for me on the comms for a second." Poe looks down. "I was a wreck when I found out you were captured. You have no idea. That's the reason I even found you in the first place, actually. Finn was sick of me moping around and he talked me into leaving the base on a mission."

Y/N leans forward, pressing a kiss to his cheek. When Poe looks up, the wind is gently blowing her hair away from her face. "At any rate, I'm glad you came. I'm glad you worried over me, and I'm glad you were there when I was on my latest mission." She sighs suddenly, looking out over the grassy hills. "I was terrified on that ship. We barely made it off the planet, and then when the TIE fighters showed up I thought we were done for. We were missing an engine, and nothing was working. I thought I was going to die."

Y/N fiddles with the edge of her jacket. "I was actually preparing myself to die, and then you came on the comms. I knew from the second I heard your voice that I was going to be alright. It was like the radio days of old, and I could feel myself starting to relax. I just kept thinking over and over that I wasn't going to die without talking to you again and making things right, and then you showed up."

Poe feels the familiar knife of guilt starting to prick at his insides. "I never should have yelled at you, Y/N. I know that. Especially not before a mission like that." Y/N holds up a hand. "You had no way of knowing that I was going on a mission in the first place, and I should have told you that I was Acer after all. I guess I was just worried that you would be disappointed to find out that I was her all along."

Poe shakes his head. "I could never be disappointed in you. We've got each other, right? We'll see each other in the fall." Y/N smiles at that. "In the fall. I guess we didn't need that after all. The war isn't over, but we still got to meet." Poe places a hand under Y/N's chin, gently guiding her lips to his. "That's the best part of all of this."

They stay out on the grassy hills for a while longer, finally retreating indoors when they're able to escape the call of their Resistance duties no longer. Poe knows that the fight still isn't over, and it likely won't be over for a while. He will be called away to pilot dangerous straits in First Order territory, Y/N will be sent on recon missions even more dangerous than before. There is no rest, no retreat. But Poe doesn't need a lull in the fighting, not right now. He has Acer back beside him, he has Y/N for the first time. She is just within reach, a step away and a smile across the room. He can finally rest now, knowing that they will be together for the years to come. No matter what the war brings, they'd still be by each other's side. Until the fall, until the war ends. That's how it will always be.