A Reylo Ever After Story

The Arrival

Ben's POV

By now the house was in sight. It was a small cottage-like abode, with three stories. I had spent the past day fixing it up and trying to make it as livable as possible. Rey knew the dwelling existed, how I don't know, but it was my job to see if anyone or anything was here. Luckily it was empty when I found it, but it had obviously been abandoned in a rush. The place looked like a true home, with distinct rooms and furniture that had dust in all corners. It also seemed as if the place had been used by others from time to time as there were several open cabinets and trash thrown around the first floor. I cleaned the place up, starting with the first floor. I swept the area, ridding of all sand brought in by storms, people, creatures, and time. This floor had the kitchen, living space, and dining area on it. Next, I went upstairs and found three bedrooms, at least one was for a child. I cleaned that floor the quickest so I could move on with the rest of the home. The basement area was the largest space in the house. I saved it for last, partially because I didn't know it existed. I figured on Tatooine most homes would have underground space to avoid sand storms, but this house already had two floors above ground. So finding the staircase leading downstairs was completely unexpected. The basement area was an open space, with a few dividing walls. The space was mostly empty of furniture except for a few tables. Most of the space was taken up by scrape parts and assorted items. Any and everything from metal calibrators to dishes was in the space. I didn't have the time or energy to clean anything at the time, but I made sure nothing was moving in the room, so that's a start. Plus I figured that stuff would come in handy one day, and now that three droids are with us, I think it will.

Finn and I continued walking, talking all the way and getting to know one another better. His life was pretty interesting and I liked hearing the stories of his and Rey's travels. It was a long walk and after creating more distance between us and the others, we had even more time to talk. He is actually a funny guy, which I wasn't expecting. But it was nice to share a few laughs, and share some of my own experiences. All of the awkwardness between us had dissipated. By now Rey had already gone inside the house with the droids entering in behind her. I wonder what she would think of it. Finn and I continued our walk and were finally nearing the entrance. "This looks like a nice place I've got to say. How did you find it?" Finn asked me. "Well, actually Rey knew about it. I'm not sure how, but she knew there was a dwelling near Luke Skywalker's old home and here it is." I told him in reply. "Of course. That girl loves to keep her secrets," he said rolling his eyes but also smiling. It made me smile. I thought she told Finn everything, but I guess I really don't know everything about her.

We were finally in front of the house and entered through the front door. Finn looked surprised as he searched his surroundings. Sure enough, he gasped "Wow," as his eyes roamed around the room. I looked around as well; I hadn't been able to really step back and admire the home. I just put myself to work and waited for Rey to arrive. It felt like I was seeing the house for the first time too. I smiled at the furniture which had now been dusted off and put in their proper places. It was a true home. "This is amazing man," Finn told me. "Thanks. It is pretty nice," I smiled still taking in the now clean home. "Hey," Rey's voice pulled me back to reality. I looked down at her and felt my grin grow uncontrollably wider on my face. "Thanks for carrying in all the stuff you two. I really appreciate it," she said. "Yeah, of course, anything to help," Finn spoke, "Where would you like this all to go?" We both looked at Rey expectantly. "If you could just put it down in the main room that'd be great," Rey said in a pleasant tone. Finn and I both walked and put her belongings down. "I know you've probably seen everything Ben, but would you two like to tour the house around?" Rey spoke mostly to me for some reason, but Finn still answered. "Yeah, that'd be awesome!" "Well feel free to walk around wherever, I'm still not quite sure where everything is, so I'm not sure how much help I will be," Rey told Finn and laughed at her own words.

Finn walked around and found the staircase to the second floor. Rey and I followed him up the stairs and down the halls as Finn checked each room. With each step, Finn seemed to be more surprised and impressed by the home. Finn insisted on checking out every little detail and as he entered the second bedroom upstairs Rey stopped me. We were still in the hall and she checked to make sure he was out of earshot before she spoke. "What is it?" she whispered to me. "What?" I asked aloud, confused by her question. She shushed me and double-checked that Finn was still in the room before continuing. "You've been smiling ear to ear since you've been here. That's not like you. What's up?" she looked quizzically. "Since when did it become a crime to smile?" I slyly replied back to her. She seemed taken aback by that answer, but I noticed the corners of her mouth twitch up into a smile. "Hmmh," is all she said but she stared into my eyes, trying to search for the answer. Truthfully I don't know why I was smiling so much, but it was fun to see her so inquisitive. Finn's voice snapped us both into reality, but before she turned around, Rey whispered to me "Don't think you'll get away with this. I'll get to the bottom of it." She smiled at me and whipped around to meet Finn as he was exiting the room. "Sorry I didn't hear what you said," she told him. Wow, she was good at changing the subject - and at making me emotionally confused.

Finn finished looking at the rooms and soon we had walked through the rest of the house. Finn and Rey were in a deep conversation and I strolled behind the pair. We were heading outside, when Finn turned and spoke to both Rey and I "You two be good to those droids." I smiled at his words and Rey let out a laugh that lit up the room. Finn smiled as well, and the three of us walked out of the front door back onto the sands.  

Author's Note

Oof a short chapter.  That's a change for once.  Don't worry I have several updates coming soon and I think y'all will see why I made the chapters like this.  I hope y'all enjoyed this one though! I know my updating has been scattered, but with the start of a new semester, sometimes things get put off, so I am truly sorry for that.  Let me know what y'all think, and I'll be back with an update sooner rather than later.  <3