Three days had passed since we heard of the slaughter on Jakku, and still no word from Poe or BB-8.
If I wasn't in the wing or my room, I was in the meeting room, giving support to the commanding staff and Leia when needed. I'd usually tuck myself out of the way and take notes on my readings, always keeping my ears open for any message coming from the other planets. It was getting harder to focus. I never could have known that in such a short time, Poe would come to mean so much to me. I missed the annoying man. A lot.
Tash would come by and sit with me when she was off, reading with me or just chatting to keep my mind off things. Even Ezra had asked me if there was any word on my friend's whereabouts. Really the only silver lining about this situation is that I had plenty of time to figure out the testing of my capsules. I had a plan that Tash didn't even know the details of, and I didn't plan on sharing it until I was one hundred percent sure it worked. Leia would have to know, but now wasn't the time to brief her on it.
I walked back from the canteen with two teas in my hand. Walking up to the General, I placed one in her hands. The wise woman was looking tired with worry for her best pilot and the fate of the map leading to her hidden brother. Just as she went to thank me, Lieutenant Connix spoke loudly over the room.
"General! We are receiving a transmission from Jakku."
Teas forgotten, we both made our way to the middle of the room. A child-like voice in a language I didn't know came through the message. I watched Leia's face closely as the message continued and I could see the light coming through her eyes.
"They have Commander Dameron. He's injured, but doing fine and is safe. He's in an outpost on the far side of Jakku." She looked over to Tally, who had slipped into the room, already donning her bright orange suit. "Permission to fly. Bring him home." Tally wasted no time, running out to the hangar as a member of support staff yelled out the transmission coordinates to her. I reached over and grasped Leia's hand, giving it a tight squeeze which she returned. My heart was thumping wildly in my chest as relief flooded over the entire room.
"General, did it give any details on his injuries?" I asked over the lively chatter that had filled the space.
"No, but go ahead and get a room ready to examine him just in case."
I shot her a smile and quickly made my way to the med wing. Pushing the doors open, I called for Tash who had just turned a corner towards me. The woman pulled me into a strong hold as I recalled the message sent from Jakku. We both set off to get the room by my office ready for his return. Not knowing the extent of his injuries, we prepared for multiple different scenarios.
The next few hours crawled along as we waited for his return to the base. Changing into my usual uniform, I pulled my hair into a high bun out of my face before pulling on my med coat. My heels clicked along the hard floors as I made my way back to the meeting room.
"Dr. Dreis," I was greeted by Lt. Connix as soon as I made my way into the now almost empty space. "Perfect timing, they are making their descent now."
"Thank you!" I told the woman as I spun on my heel and headed out to the hangar, surprisingly giddy at the thought of laying my eyes on the pilot again. I wouldn't allow myself to fully believe he was okay until I saw him.
It seemed like the majority of the base was gathered around the ship as it landed, all awaiting his return. I stayed back as the ladder was let down and Tally dropped out of the star cruiser, followed by the dark haired man we were all waiting for. As he turned to face everyone, he had his signature, cocky grin on his face as if to say "See? I'm back." However, scanning him with a trained eye, I could see numerous injuries that littered the man's body.
The left side of his head near his temple was covered in old blood, causing his hair to mat against the side of his head. The cut under his right eye was small, but looked irritated. The faint stain of blood was down the side of his mouth near a busted lip that was a few days old. I continued to observe the man as he greeted his friends. To anyone else, I'm sure he looked fine other than the superficial marks that were visible. However, I saw how when Jo slapped his back in a brotherly embrace, Poe slightly grimaced before turning on a huge smile. Even as General Organa greeted him with a quick, soft hug to his torso, he flinched away at the touch on his left side.
As he pulled away from her, Poe said something to Leia that caused her to turn around and scan over the crowd before both of their eyes found me. She offered me a knowing smile as I pushed off the wall and made my way to the pilot. Poe squeezed the General's shoulders before stepping around her and picking up a light jog to me, which made me notice the slight limp from his left hip. I brought my eyes to his, a smile gracing my face. Even though he was roughed up, I couldn't get over how attractive he was with that bright smile. Once I was in arm's reach, Poe pulled me into him with force that I knew hurt him when my body met his. He held my head against his chest with a strong hand, and I felt him press his lips into my hair. I reached up to hold onto his arms, afraid to wrap my arms around his core. Closing my eyes, I relished in his touch, not quite realizing just how much I had missed him until this moment. I couldn't even be bothered with what the crowd behind him thought of our display.
"I'm so happy you're back." I whispered to him.
He released me and held me back from him, looking down to my face. "I'm happy to be here, doc. I hope you didn't miss me too much." I rolled my eyes at the man, forever amazed at his ability to give joking comments in any situation.
"I did until the moment you said that, Dameron." I replied with a flat tone, causing him to laugh but then cringe and reflexively reach to his side. "Poe, you need to come to the med wing with me. I know you're hurt worse than you're letting on." I could tell he was about to argue with me, and I stood back with crossed arms and a challenging glare at the man. From behind him, Leia was making her way over to us. Just in time.
"I'm fine Sienna, just a little sore from my... travels." He lamely tried to get out of it before the General stopped right by him.
"You will go to the medical wing to be evaluated, commander. That's an order." Her voice was stern with authority and didn't leave any room for question. A smug smile made its way to my face, happy to have her on my side. Poe held his hands up in surrender before gesturing for me to lead the way. I shot Leia an appreciative look before heading to the wing, a stubborn pilot in tow.
"I don't know why you're both so insistent on this. A shower is all I need and I'll be good as new." Poe continued to make his defense as we approached the wing entrance. Before we entered, I spun around to face him.
"Poe, a shower isn't going to fix your back, side or hip which I can tell are clearly bothering you. So shut up and let me do my job, okay?"
His eyes widened slightly as he regarded me with a curious look. "How can you tell that those are my ailments?"
I shot a quick smile at him before going into the wing. "That would be part of my job, commander. Now follow me."
I led him into the quiet hall and turned into the small exam room Tash and I had readied hours earlier. I instructed him to sit down as I slipped on my gloves. "Okay, I'll start with these superficial wounds. Just sit still while I clean them up. Sorry for any stinging." He did as he was told, closing his eyes while allowing me to wipe away the dried blood. Both of his main head wounds were shallow- the one under his eye was just irritated by bits of sand. I wiped his lip gently, cleaning away any of the translucent scarlet stains. Leaning in, I closely observed his features for any other small signs of trauma. His face was clear of the blood, letting me take in his tan skin that was darkened by the harsh Jakku sun and the stubble that went along his jaw and chin. Before doing something that a doctor should not be doing to their patient, I stood up straight again. "Poe, I'll need you to remove your shirt so I can see what the extent of the damage is."
He opened his eyes and let out a sigh. He was clearly uncomfortable with being in such a vulnerable state, but grabbed the hem of his shirt, slowly pulling it over his head. I took a quick breath through my nose as his injuries became visible.
His left side was purple and red, the edges of the large bruise slightly green. From his side and going into the waistline of his pants was an open road rash kind of wound that looked borderline infected. Walking around the bed, his back had the same colorful palette that his side did. I reached out and just barely ran the tips of my fingers under his scapula, causing him to pull forward away from me.
"Sorry." We both said at the same time. I walked to stand in front of him and took one of his hands as I sat with him. "Tell me what happened."
I couldn't tell you how long we sat there. Poe recalled every detail of his journey with me: from landing on Jakku, getting the map, getting captured by the First Order. His recollection of Kylo Ren using the force to tear into his mind made him visibly angry. I kept a tight hold on his hand, rubbing my thumb on the back of it like he had done to soothe me. I never interrupted him, even during my surprise when a stormtrooper was who helped him escape before they crashed back onto Jakku. "Once I woke up from the crash, it was night and nothing was around me, not even the fighter. I guess I landed on my left side when deploying from the ship."
"Looks like it. Let me feel around your ribs and see if any feel broken, okay?" I stood up and used my trained hands to press around his torso, noticing a few misplaced ribs along the way. I walked over and grabbed the larger x-ray machine. "Lie back on the bed and I'm going to use this to confirm what I believe are a few broken ribs."
As I waited for the screen to kick on, I asked him "So Ren knows that BB-8 has the map?"
Anger flashed through Poe's eyes before he answered. "He does. So I'm hoping BB-8 finds a safe place to hide until he can send us a transmission. The Order can't get their hands on him."
"And they won't. BB-8 will keep himself safe." I said with determination. That droid was smart, and I had no doubt he knew how to keep himself out of big trouble.
Poe gazed at me with an uneasy look on his face. "Sienna... how many people here know about your bacta supplement research?"
"You, Tash, Ezra and Leia. Why?"
"Ren took a particular interest in what he saw in your notes. Thankfully you only showed me a portion of everything so he didn't see much, but enough to peak his interest in what you've been looking into."
I caught Poe's insinuation. The First Order had some knowledge of my work that could give them a huge leg up in this war. Thank the stars I hadn't shared any of my new progressions with anyone yet. "Don't worry about that. They would be sorely disappointed that there hasn't been much happening on that front." I rolled the machine away and scribbled some notes down. "You have two fractured ribs, but you are a lucky man, Dameron. That could've been much worse than it is, but you'll still need to take it easy for a few days. However, this" I pointed at his hip "isn't looking great."
"Yeah this actually hurts more than anything else. I tried to wash it out, but I didn't want to use all of my water for it."
"That was probably a smart idea. It looks a little infected, but a good cleaning and antibiotic ointment will clear it right up." I glanced at his face with a smirk. "I'm going to need you to undo your pants and pull that side down so I can see all of it." He wiggled his eyebrows at me as he pushed his waistband down on his left side, causing me to laugh and shake my head.
"Too bad this isn't under different circumstances, huh doc?" He said in a smooth voice.
"Poe, quit trying to distract me please." I rolled my eyes as I grabbed some more pads and disinfectant as a low chuckle came from his throat. The raw area spread down to the top of his hip bone and around towards his glute, like his body was turning as he slid across the rough surface. I sat by his side and soaked the pad before taking the corner of it and gently wiped the edge of his wound, working to carefully clean it. My mind was focused on the task at hand as I worked in silence. I snuck a glance at his face, smiling when I saw his head tilted back and his eyes closed. His breaths were long and slow, indicating that he was asleep.
I let him rest as I continued to work, silently laughing periodically when a soft snore would come from his parted lips. As I finished up, there was a soft knock on the door. I removed my gloves and walked over to open the door instead of yelling for them to come in. Tash was there with a smile.
"Keeping him all to yourself I see!" She said jokingly as she pushed past me, stopping short when she noticed the state the pilot was in.
"Shh! He's been asleep for the last half hour." I said to her quietly.
She walked over to his bed, observing his wounds before turning to me. "Damn, he's been through it, hasn't he?"
I nodded. "He has. It's a miracle he wasn't hurt any worse, but you should've seen that before I cleaned it." I gestured to his hip. Tash's eyes took on a devilish glint as she looked up at me. "Tash... quit looking at me like that."
"So how many times have you thought about jumping him?" She raised both of her brows at me.
"Will you shut up? No, I haven't thought about jumping my patient, you contarious freak."
She opened her mouth to retort, but didn't get the chance.
"It's not a bad idea, doc." The pilot spoke up, surprising the blue-haired woman as she jumped away from the man with wide eyes and a shriek. I couldn't help but laugh at her terror, clutching my stomach as I bent forward.
"Stars, Dameron. You scared the shit out of me! If you weren't hurt I'd sock you in that sharp jawline of yours."
Poe was trying to control his laugh to not hurt his ribs. "I know you would, Tash. Sorry," he said with a large smile.
"Yeah you sound sorry alright." She grumbled under her breath, looking at me as I wiped a stray tear from my face. She pointed a finger in my direction. "That wasn't funny, Si."
"That was pretty funny, Tash. Serves you right, too." I said with a shrug. She let out a loud scoff, throwing her hair back off of her shoulder and standing up tall.
"Well, I'll be back when you both decide to grow up and my heart stops beating out of my chest from fright." She made her way to the door, making a show of it.
I stood by Poe's side, giving him a smile as I rolled my eyes. "Such a hypocrite, isn't she?"
Tash spun around and looked at me with narrowed eyes, but I could tell she was trying to keep a straight face. "You two deserve each other!" With that, she left the room with a huff. I had no doubt she would be back within the hour.
We both laughed at the woman as he slowly sat up and watched as I threw away all of the dirty supplies. I turned around and he was staring at me with a sideways grin.
"You know what I was thinking about when Finn and I were trying to escape?" He asked as he slid off the bed, walking towards me with his pants still hanging low on his hips. I didn't answer him as he stopped right in front of me, causing me to look up to him. "I was thinking that I hoped we could get BB-8 and bring that TIE fighter back here, because I wanted you to be able to fly one. You'd think it was a hell of a ship."
A small laugh left my lips. "That's what you were thinking about, Dameron?"
"Well, that and this." He reached up and cupped my face, bringing his lips down to meet mine. The kiss was soft, gentle. Different than the first we shared in the hangar. It was shorter too, with us pulling away from each other with small smiles.
"We should, uh... I need to wrap your torso." I went to grab a large bandage as he laughed at me stumbling over my words. "Put your arms out to the side, this will be a little uncomfortable on your bruising, but it will keep your ribs protected." I spun the bandage around him, keeping it snug before pinning it into place.
"Feels great, but a gentle kiss would make it better." The pilot said, emphasizing the word gentle so I didn't smack him again. Not that I would with him in this condition.
"You're being insufferable. Again." I told him as I made my way behind him. He went to speak before I cut him off. "But, I'll entertain you." I reached my hand up to his right shoulder, lightly dragging my fingers across his back until they hit the bandage. I stepped against the man, with my lips lining up perfectly with the discoloration on his left shoulder blade. I felt his breath hitch and then release in a sigh as I brought my lips forward and softly pressed them against his skin, leaving them there for a few seconds before stepping back.
He turned to me before holding his arms out, looking down at the bandage and back up to me. "I have a few more places that could use that treatment, doc."
A laugh escaped him as I huffed out my reply. "Don't push your luck, pilot."
***
Hello all. I wanted to take a second to wish you all well during this tense time in our world. I hope my small series can remove you from the troubles surrounding us, even if for just a few minutes of your day. If you have been affected, heart is with you.