Between the two of them, Anakin had always been the more logical, straightforward one. He excelled at critical problem solving, whereas Ahsoka was more emotionally intelligent, the 'heart over logic' type.
Despite his past leaving him illiterate, Anakin learned fast, excelling in mathematics and the sciences. He had, after all, built two droids by the age of nine. So it came as no surprise to Ahsoka when the moment as soon as they entered high school, advanced math and science were his favourite subjects.
And of course, he excelled at them. Algebra and physics in particular.
Where other students found certain homework assignments or tests difficult, Anakin breezed through them. It simply seemed effortless on his part, and he also rarely ever had trouble with finals.
So when he stepped out of the advanced physics exam hall with ragged, shaky breaths, Ahsoka's heart lurched. Anakin didn't lose his cool easily; what had happened in there?
"Skyguy?"
He didn't even meet her eyes, answering instead with a nearly imperceptible shake of his head and walked away in the direction of their dorm rooms.
She followed suit, struggling to keep up with his large strides.
When they finally reached his dorm, he wordlessly produced the key from his jeans pocket and shoved the door open, hardly caring about the banging sound reverberating in the hall. He didn't bother shooing Ahsoka away either.
The moment the door clicked shut, Anakin let his solemn facade shatter. His quiet cries were the only thing one could hear in the otherwise silent room. He tried to take deep breaths to steady himself, but with each gasp for air, his shoulders just shook even more.
"Skyguy?" his companion asked again, softly, after a moment, "do you wanna talk about it?"
"Twenty-five, Snips. Twenty-five."
"I don't understand-"
"Out of sixty questions. I didn't know how to do TWENTY-FIVE of them. That's almost fifty percent of the questions left unfinished, which, of course, won't get full marks. I'll be lucky to even get partial marks! then on top of that, I guessed at least another five which makes exactly half."
Helplessly, Ahsoka waatched as Anakin continued to rant about the exam, sinking deeper and deeper into his self-deprecation with every sentence. Her heart ached for him. She knew just how much being able to even attend school meant to him, and how important getting top grades were.
How else was he supposed to make his mum proud? His beloved mum, who stayed back to let him move forward?
Aside from setting a comforting hand on his shoulder, there was nothing else she could do at the moment to console him.
But there comes a moment when even the strongest of people break. Anakin began to tire, anger turning into resignation. His shoulders slumped as he slid down the wall, landing in a sitting position. He hid his tear-stained eyes in his hands, quiet sobs still managing to escape. Ahsoka approached her best friend, sliding down to sit beside him and looped her arms around his shoulders.
He looked so defeated. So vulnerable.
"I made a promise, Ahsoka. I swore I would work hard and get my mom out of there." His voice cracked. "And look at me," he said, voice barely above a whisper, "I can't even pass a final exam. She would be so disappointed in me."
"Look at me, Ani."
Anakin's head snapped up to meet his best friend's gaze, surprised. She never called him that. It was always Skyguy, or Anakin. Not Ani. Yet it didn't feel intrusive at all, coming from her mouth. In this context, it felt right.
"I firmly believe that the opposite of what you said is true," Ahsoka said in reply. "Look at how far you've come. Look at how well you're doing in each of your classes. Your mother would be so proud of you, Anakin."
"But that final-"
"-absolutely does not define who you are as a person, nor as a student." After some time, she spoke again. "You tried your best, and that's what matters. It's not your fault the exam was hard, and if you thought it was difficult, everyone else would definitely have struggled with it too, even more so than you. As much as 15% seems like a lot, it won't change that much in the long run."
Ahsoka somehow always knew what to say. Anakin's overactive thoughts finally began to die down. Finally, some well-deserved peace of mind.
"What would I do without you?" he muttered, head dropping onto her shoulder.
"You wouldn't be able to survive a day without me," she joked back, to which he conceded. It was true, actually; she'd been looking out for him since the day they'd met. Maybe that was why they got along so well. They completed the missing pieces of each other's puzzle.
The two of them stayed like that for a while, basking in the comfortable silence, just enjoying each other's presence and the comfort it brought.
Peering over, judging by the slow rise and fall of his chest, Ahsoka knew he'd fallen asleep. It wasn't long, before she, too, drifted off.
About an hour later, that was exactly how Anakin's roommate, Obi-Wan, discovered them: backs against the wall, heads leaning against each other and fast asleep. "Sweet dreams, you two."
***
a/n: so... hi! after i-don't-even-know-how-many-years of hiatus this fic has been on, im so glad to be back. i think i'll be writing more regularly again, so if y'all have any requests or smth, please dm me or comment! i'd love to write it! aNYWays, storytime: my mom reopened disney+ at around xmas and down the star wars rabbit hole i went, again. not that im complaining LOLOL.
i do realize this is kINd of depressing...?? especially for a first chapter back, in like, years... but hey, yall got some fluff at the end :D
hope you enjoyed! as always, votes and comments are always appreciated, and see y'all next time ^^
- jazzy