Every Once in a While

I sat at my kitchen nook, every once in a while I would peek through the blinds, as if I would get a glimpse of someone making their way to my room. It wasn't just me I was worried for, but it wasn't so easy to convince myself that Poe wouldn't get into any trouble for what he had done to Noa. I had been sitting around for almost an hour before I had heard a knock on my door. My hand hesitated over the door knob, I took a deep breath in and turned the knob downward. Poe was standing there, I couldn't read his facial expression so I didn't know whether or not he had gotten into any trouble. He walked in, his hand brushed against my waist lightly.

"What happened?" I asked slowly, I wasn't quite sure if I wanted to know the answer. Poe didn't say anything at first, he had grabbed my hand and tugged me along to the kitchen nook. I sat next to him, studying his features. Poe's demeanor was calm, which made me think nothing too drastic had happened.

"Did you get into any trouble?" I asked, making sure I was much louder now.

"No." He shook his head, "Well, General Organa wasn't upset with me, can't say the same for anyone else. " He leaned over to rest his elbows on the table. "You aren't in trouble, Isla. I tried to explain as much as I could to the General before leaving, couldn't stay and be a part of the council, seeing that I'm involved."

"Council?" I mumbled quietly, almost to myself.

"Don't worry about it, it just has to be discussed before any decisions are made." I was definitely worried, but I would just keep that to myself. The word council sounded so serious, I pictured the General and anyone else who was almost as important as her; sitting around and discussing Poe, Noa, and I. It wasn't a good feeling, all I could do was hope that their meeting would be over soon. I didn't want to sit around and worry for another hour.

"I'm just so tired." Poe snapped me out of my thoughts, he buried his face into his palms, letting a small groan, "Gotta go back to Jakku and see if..." He trailed off, dropping his hands and glancing over at me.

"And see if?" I repeated, I knew I shouldn't try and pry but I couldn't help it. I didn't know one thing about what had happened to Poe while he was gone, and now all I knew was that he had been on Jakku.

"It's probably gone," He mumbled, "My x-wing is probably gone."

I was silent for a moment, "Did you crash it?"

He scoffed, "No, but I'm sure The First Order made sure-"

"The First Order?" I interrupted, raising an eyebrow, "Poe...You weren't captured, right?" I wasn't as informed as Poe was about The First Order, I had heard stories from a couple people on the base and none of them were ever good. The First Order was ruthless, I had only ever heard of them storming planets and killing innocent people.

"Maybe." He shrugged.

"Poe, I'm being serious."

"I don't need you to get worked up about it," He looked away from me, "It's over now."

"What did they do to you?" There was no stopping me now, I needed to know. He shut his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose,

"I need to find BB-8 before they do," He took a deep breath in, "He tortured the information out of me, I didn't know what to do. If they find my droid...I don't know what'll happen." I almost felt guilty for pestering him about it, Poe's facial expression was strained. I shouldn't have pried, I could have gone without knowing that Poe was tortured. I was slightly horrified, even if it was over now. I couldn't imagine what Poe had been put through, and I had no clue about it.

"Oh..I'm so sorry." I wrapped my arms as tightly as I could, pulling him to me gently.

"Isla," He mumbled, "I'm fine."

"Weren't you scared?"

"A little." I hugged him even tighter, running my hands through his hair.

"Now I'm always going to think the worst when you leave." I said quietly, not quite sure if I wanted him to hear me. It sounded too forward, it sounded like something a girl would say to someone she had been with for a while. The truth was I could count how long Poe and I had been together just using my hands. I didn't feel as if I was moving too fast, but I couldn't deny how much I cared for Poe or how worried and lonely I was when he was gone.

"Don't," He pulled away, "It'll drive you crazy if you do." That sounded just about right, how was I supposed to let him leave again? I leaned over, pressing my lips against his. He pulled away, groaning.

"I'm sorry, " I smiled sheepishly, "I forgot." I brought my hand up to his cheek, tracing his bottom lip with my thumb. "Guess we should let your lip heal first."

"You can kiss me in other places." He winked at me playfully. I smiled at the sight of him, it was the first time since he came back that he was joking around.

"Don't tempt me, Commander." I laughed softly. "I'm glad you're home, and in one piece..Considering everything you just told me."

"I shouldn't have told you." He sighed deeply, resting his hands on my shoulders.

"Maybe not," I shrugged, "But I'm glad you did." It definitely got my mind off of being the topic of discussion at the council meeting. We fell silent, I scooted over so that I could rest my head on Poe's shoulder. I couldn't say I was as tired as Poe, but a couple hours of sleep would certainly do me some good. I had started to doze off, so I wasn't sure if I was imagining the knocking. Poe nudged me a couple times,

"Isla, get up." I groaned in response, scooting away from him, standing up reluctantly. I rubbed at my eyes quickly, before running my fingers through my hair. Poe reached over to open the door, pushing me in front of the door way just in time.

"Miss Malek, may I speak to you?" The General glanced over at Poe, "Privately." I also took a turn at looking over at Poe. He gave me a reassuring smile, he cocked his head towards The General.

"I'll wait here for you."

Half of me expected her to have a word with me right outside my door, but I was wrong. I followed behind The General as she made her way towards commanding quarters. That made me uneasy, it came across much more serious now. The atmosphere was exactly how I remembered it, but this time I wasn't being called in to use my medical knowledge, I was meant to discuss what had happened between Noa and I. Thinking about it was hard enough, having to go into detail was even harder. She lead me into a a quiet room, shutting the door behind her. I glanced around quickly, I made my way to sit on the steel chair opposite the glass table. The General didn't sit, she leaned against the frame of the table, crossing her arms over her chest.

The General wasn't usually intimidating, but that didn't apply today. Her features were hard, eyes glaring slightly, her mouth formed into a tight line, and her brows were furrowed. I could only compare it to a face a parental figure might make when they were disappointed in something you had done. I was sitting, fidgeting slightly, I was hoping the 'disappointed' face wasn't reserved for me.

"Isla," She had leaned over, reaching down to take hold of my hand. I glanced at her hand for a moment before looking back up, "I'm deeply and truly sorry for what happened to you, I hope you find it in yourself to forgive my lack of better judgment."

"Sorry, I don't.." I shook my head slowly.

"I would never hire someone who would put any of my employees at risk, if I knew then what I do now, that man would have never stepped foot on this base." She gave my hand a soft squeeze before retreating back to lean against the table.

"I'm not in trouble?" I was dumbfounded, I tried to replay her words in my head.

"No." She shook her head, "Poe brought it to my attention that you assumed that you would have to be relocated. Even after I had assured him that no such thing would happen, he made it clear that he would disappointed in me if I let it happen."

"Can he speak to you that way?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. That didn't sound like Poe. She laughed softly,

"No," She waved a dismissive hand, "I'll let it slide this time. I just wanted to apologize face to face."

"Poe isn't in any trouble either?" I asked, "Have you seen Noa? I'm sure he doesn't look very good."

"Not yet," General Organa cleared her throat, " I will, after we get done here. Poe isn't in any trouble, I made sure of it. Wasn't a smart move on his part, but I understand where he was coming from." It was quiet for a moment, and I took the time to rack my mind on the appropriate response.

"The Commander is quite fond you, he made that very clear today." I bit my lip to stop myself from smiling.

"Thank you. I thought I would have to leave-"

"Don't thank me, Miss Malek. Not yet." She gave me a half smile, " I'll only accept it once I get him off the base."

I tried to make the walk back to my room as short as possible, I was basically jogging. I unlocked my door and pounced on Poe.

"I don't have to leave." I mumbled into his shoulder.

He laughed, letting his hand trace small patterns on my back, "If you did, I wouldn't be very happy." His grip tightened around me, "What about Noa?"

"General Organa is probably dealing with him as we speak."

"Good." He pressed a kiss to my forehead, "Dammit." He mumbled, pulling away and pressing his fingers onto the cut on his lip.

"Leave it alone." I protested.

"Why don't you make me?" He challenged, his eyebrows quirked.

"What's gotten into you?" I feigned a shocked expression.

"I've missed you, that's all." He smiled my favorite smile, the one that reached his eyes.