~months prior, on Onderon~
When the time came for Lux's friend's party, Ahsoka's injuries were almost completely healed, taking away an easy excuse to not go.
It had taken her a long time to get ready. She was wearing a short, sparkly skirt, and there were few things Ahsoka hated more than skirts. Lux had suggested a pair of platform heels, but she ended up wearing a pair on sandals instead. She had never worn body glitter before, and it itched like crazy.
She could hear the party before she saw it. As Lux stopped the speeder, Ahsoka gave the house a once-over. There were people everywhere. Drinks were strewn about the lawn, and the party-goers were dancing and screaming. The loud, thumping music made her lekku ring.
"Are you sure about this?" she asked Lux.
He nodded. "It'll be fun. Give it an hour, and we'll leave if you're hating it, okay?"
"If you say so," she muttered. She already got to say "I told you so" about ice skating, and she really hoped that this party wouldn't end similarly.
Lux led her through a crowd to the inside of the house. Thankfully, the obnoxious music was coming from outside, but it was still too loud for her taste. It reeked of alcohol, and the air was incredibly hot and sticky. There weren't as many bottles on the ground as there were outside, and the people seemed to be at least a little bit calmer. They first walked into the kitchen, which had turned into a bar. People stood in clumps, talking and drinking come concoctions Ahsoka wasn't familiar with.
"You want anything?" Lux asked.
"No thanks." She had no idea what she would say if she were drunk with Lux here, and she really didn't care to find out.
He shrugged. "Do you mind if I have a little?"
"No, go ahead."
He pushed his way through to the counter and poured himself something while Ahsoka explored the adjacent room. The dining room table had become a table for cup pong, with people shouting and chugging some green drink. Was this really what people did for fun? She shuddered. Disgusting.
Lux placed a hand on her shoulder. "Juma Juice," he said, offering her his cup. "Try some?"
She took the cup. "I thought that wasn't alcoholic?"
"Not usually. This has a little bit of kyrf mixed in. Nothing too strong, of course."
She took a sip. It wasn't often that she allowed herself to drink. As a Togruta, she had a higher tolerance for alcohol, but it was unprofessional when she was in uniform, which was most of the time. Plus, she didn't want to endure the wrath of Anakin Skywalker. The drink tasted fruity, but it wasn't something she was immediately familiar with. The taste lingered in her mouth as she gave the cup back to Lux. "That's actually not terrible," she said.
Lux took another sip as one of the guys playing cup pong fell on the table. Ahsoka winced as he hit his head on the back of a chair. Lux chuckled. "Shall we continue exploring?"
He led her past the stairs and into the living room. It was darker than the rest of the house, and there weren't as many people. In every corner, there was a couple kissing, and there was a group sitting and talking on the couch.
"Hey, Bonteri!" a voice said.
Lux turned, and his face lit up. "Hey, Chaz! Thanks for the invite!" So this was the friend Lux had been talking about.
"Yeah, man. Glad you could come." He glanced at Ahsoka. "This your girl?"
"Oh," he said, clearly not expecting that question. "She's..."
"A friend from off-world," she finished. "Just here for a visit."
Chaz raised an eyebrow.
"Not now, please," Lux said to him. "Ahsoka, this is Chaz. We went to the same school on Raxus."
"Pleasure to meet you, Chaz," Ahsoka said.
The girl sitting next to him gave Lux a once-over and smiled. "We're about to start a game. Wanna play?"
"No, I think we'll pass," Ahsoka said.
"Come on, it'll be fun," Chaz said. "I insist."
Lux and Ahsoka made eye contact. From what she could tell, he didn't want to play either, but Chaz wasn't really giving them much of a choice.
"Ok, fine. We'll play," Lux said.
They sat down on the floor across from the couch where Chaz sat. There were about seven other people playing as well, with everyone sitting in a circle.
"Me first," a guy said, sitting on the other side of Lux. He reached in the center and spun a clear glass bottle. It slowed and landed facing a girl on the other side of the circle.
"Truth or dare, Chrissa?" He asked.
"Dare."
"Take a shot," he said passing her a drink.
She downed it and smiled before spinning the bottle herself.
And so it went for the next couple of turns. Usually, the unlucky winner picked dare, and they had to take a shot. She had lost track of how much Lux had to drink, and she didn't really think more to drink was a good idea.
A guy sitting a couple of people down from Ahsoka spun the bottle, and it landed on the girl that had been interested in Lux.
"Truth or dare?" He said to her.
She didn't have to think. "Dare. Duh."
"I dare you to make out with him," the guy said, pointing to Lux.
She smirked at Ahsoka. "What, no drink for me?" She said jokingly as she and Lux stood up.
Ahsoka turned her head away as they kissed. Even though she and Lux weren't together and never could be, it pained her to see him with someone else. Purpose had to come before feelings, and her purpose was to protect him from Separatist assassination. He was perfectly welcome to kiss whoever he wanted to.
After what felt like years, they sat back down.
"Sorry, 'Soka. Dare's a dare, you know?" He whispered to her.
"Yeah, I know," she said bitterly.
A couple more turns went by until the bottle landed on Ahsoka. She sighed, dreading what came next.
"Truth or dare?" Chaz asked her.
She could only imagine what they would ask for truth, and so far, the worst dares had been shots. And that girl kissing Lux, but that was only bad because it was Lux.
"Dare," she said.
He paused a moment, looking back and forth between her and Lux. His eyes darted to something in the room behind her.
"You see that closet back there?" He said, pointing to it. "You and Bonteri. I don't want to see you for seven minutes."
What was that supposed to mean? Clearly she was missing something here.
"Come on, 'Soka." Lux stood up. She stood up and followed him inside. He closed the door behind them and looked for a light switch.
"There's not a switch. The light must be out," he said. There wasn't enough space for both of them to stand comfortably. She could feel his body pressed against hers, and she could smell the alcohol in his breath. Thank goodness Anakin wasn't there; she'd be in trouble for who knows how long.
"What exactly are we doing in here?" She asked him, trying to keep her voice from shaking.
"Well, if we were normal people, we'd make out and do other stuff. But you're..." he paused, looking for the right word, "...you, so we're talking instead."
"Oh." He was definitely drunk than she thought he was.
They stood in silence for a few minutes. Ahsoka couldn't help but think about the way his body felt up against hers. She did her best to keep her breath even, but it was hard when they were so close. Just one small tilt of her head and maybe...
"Sorry about that girl in there," Lux said. "She was kinda pretty though. But you're prettier, obviously." It was a good thing it was dark so he couldn't see her blush. "I dreamed 'bout you last night. Good dream," he slurred. He slipped his hand up her thigh to rest under the hem of her skirt.
"Um, okay, we're leaving after this." What was he thinking? Clearly he wasn't thinking anything.
"No, 'Soka, I don't wanna go. We didn't get to go swimming in the pool or go outside and dance," he pouted.
She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I know, Lux. And I think if you were sober you'd be perfectly okay with that."
"Will you go skinny dipping with me at home then?"
He would be absolutely horrified if he could hear himself right now. "You know what, sure, if that means we can leave after this."
"Okay. Deal." She felt him lace his fingers in hers. "We've held hands before, but it was because you were rescuing me. I need rescuing a lot."
Ahsoka laughed. "Yeah, you got that one right."
"It's a shame you couldn't rescue Steela, though. She was pretty, too."
Steela's death was in the back of her mind every day. She could've tried harder or been more aware of her surroundings. Then, maybe Steela would still be alive. It was her fault Steela had died, and it haunted her still.
"It wasn't your fault, 'Soka. You can't always save everyone."
"I appreciate that, Lux. But it was my fault."
"No. She knew she could die from the beginning. I should say sorry. I liked Steela, but I was doing it to make you sad. I was a bad friend. I'm sorry. I'd rather kiss you than her, anyway."
What was that supposed to mean? Of course she would've rather he kissed her too, but she's a Jedi. He knows that she's off limits. At this point, though, why did it matter? He wasn't going to remember any of this, anyway. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze and lightly kissed his cheek. "I forgive you."
Even though it was dark, she could faintly see the stupid, giddy grin plastered across his face. "You should do that again, but for real," he said.
Why the kriff not? She inched her face closer to his, hesitating a moment. Just as she was about to close the distance, there was a knock at the door, snapping Ahsoka back to reality.
"You guys decent?" Chaz said from the other side.
Ahsoka opened the door and felt a rush of air. It had been too hot in that closet. "Yeah, we're fine. I think it's time we go, though."
As if it were planned, Lux bent over and vomited all over Ahsoka's boots.
She sighed. Perfect.
"Yeah, okay, that's probably a good idea," Chaz said. "I'll go grab you a pair of my sister's slippers. You should probably take him to the 'fresher before he pukes again."
"Right," Ahsoka mumbled. "The 'fresher."
She helped Lux to the nearest 'fresher, and after kicking out a couple that had been making out in the bathtub, she closed the door, locked it, and helped Lux sit down.
"This was a terrible idea," he said before throwing up into the toilet.
Ahsoka rubbed his back as he continued to vomit. "I know, Lux. I know. We're going to go home soon, and you'll wake up and be good as new in the morning." Well, that wasn't entirely true; he'd definitely be hung over.
"Thanks for saving me again."
She smiled softly. "Of course. That's what I'm here for."
"You know, I would kiss you right now if I weren't puking my guts out."
She laughed. "I appreciate the gesture, but please don't."
When they got home, she helped him clean up and change into some fresh clothes. After he was in bed, Ahsoka grabbed the blanket from her room and slept on the couch at the end of Lux's bed, just in case.
It was early afternoon before Lux woke up. As Ahsoka came back inside from doing some of her lightsaber training exercises, Lux walked into the kitchen and started making caf for himself.
"Good afternoon, sleepyhead," Ahsoka joked.
"Hey, 'Soka."
"How are you feeling?" She asked.
"My head is killing me." He rubbed his temples. "How much did I drink?"
"I'm not entirely sure. I should've kept better track."
"No, it's okay. It's my own fault." He took a sip of his caf. "How bad was I?"
"Pretty bad," she said, pouring herself a glass of water. "Do you want details?"
"Do I?" He asked skeptically.
"Well, you made out with some girl and threw up on my boots. I think my favorite part, though, was your disappointment that we didn't go skinny dipping in the pool in the backyard."
His face turned bright red. "Holy kriff, I'm so sorry. I'll buy you new shoes, and there's no way we're going skinny dipping. Who did I make out with?"
"I forget her name, but I think she was one of Chaz's friends."
"Really? I could've sworn it was..." He took another sip of caf. "Never mind. Unimportant. I can't remember the last time I was that drunk. Sorry you had to deal with me like that."
"Hey," she said, placing a hand on his shoulder, "that's what friends are for, right?"
"Yeah." He was silent for a few seconds. "Did I say anything... weird?"
Weird wasn't exactly the word Ahsoka would use. "You definitely said some things you never would've said sober, like the whole skinny dipping thing." And that he thought Ahsoka was pretty. And he wanted to kiss her.
"Okay, that's good."
"How much do you remember?" She got some painkillers out of the cabinet and handed them to him.
"I remember getting there and some bits of dialogue. We were in Chaz's living room for a little bit, and then somewhere dark and hot, then bright and cold."
"That would be the closet and the 'fresher."
"The 'fresher I get, but what the kriff was I doing in a closet?"
She sighed. "A dare. I think it was called seven minutes in heaven."
His face went pale. "Oh, I swear, I'm gonna kill Chaz for that. Who was with me?"
"Me," she said matter-of-factly.
He was suddenly very interested in his cup of caf. "And we didn't, you know..."
She resisted the urge to laugh. He was cute when he was worried. "No, we didn't do anything. We just talked."
"About anything in particular?"
There was no way she was going to tell him what he said. She wasn't sure he meant it in the first place, and if he did, she had no idea what she would do. "The only reason you agreed to come home was because I said we could go skinny dipping in the lake here instead of at the pool there. You seemed to think it was a good idea."
He shook his head. "I was really that drunk?"
She shrugged. "I could be persuaded to go for a swim when you're feeling up to it, if you want. I haven't been swimming in ages."
"I don't really think–"
"Come on, don't tell me I went out and bought a bathing suit this morning for nothing." She put her hands on her hips and smiled. "It'll be fun!"
He shook his head, chucking. "Okay, you win. I'm going to go watch a show on the holonet until my headache goes away and then I'd love to. Deal?"
She nodded. "Deal."