Anakin points, not quite accusingly, at the pair of you. “So is yours and Obi-Wan’s whole plan just to seduce the entire galaxy into submission?”
You shrug innocently. “Hey, I work with what I’ve got, and that’s usually sleep deprivation and like five contingency plans. If you want to seduce the guards and lift their keycards next time you’re totally welcome to.”
Anakin is momentarily stumped, which you pride yourself in for approximately half a second before Obi-Wan pipes up as well.
“If you could refrain from making my top commanders a blushing mess as well in the process it would be much appreciated.”
“Not to worry, Kenobi. There’s only one I’m after anyways.” Your eyes are locked on Rex’s so intently that he chokes, then coughs in an attempt to cover it up.
If you were a betting person, you would wager anything his face was bright red under that helmet. A real shame he was still wearing it.
“Uh- me? I-“ he makes an aborted reach to run a hand through his hair, realizing his bucket is still on, and snapping too formally back to attention.
Your grin widens. “So shy all of a sudden?”
Kenobi sighs deeply, pinching his forehead as presumably another stress migraine comes on.
Summary: A few members of the 501st play Truth or Dare and they may or may not get closer to uncovering a secret you and their Captain have been hiding
Warnings: Mention of sex, probably inaccurate Togruta anatomy (let’s just pretend their ears are where human ear are, ok?), reader is said to be younger than Anakin (I imagine him to be around 21/22 in this, so reader is still of age)
Check out more of my work here
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“Did you steal my lightsabers?”, Ahsoka asked, her arms crossed over her chest and a stern expression on her face. Just a couple of days ago she had spent hours looking for her lightsabers, and trying to hide the fact that she had no idea where they were from her Master, only to find them in the barracks.
“I did not steal your lightsabers”, Fives said, though his voice was too innocent for anyone to believe him. “But I may have borrowed them recently”, he finally begrudgingly added. He looked at the Padawan, sure she would lash out or at least give him an earful, but Ahsoka only smiled sweetly.
“You know, since we said you’re not allowed to pick truth two times in a row you’ll have to pick dare when it’s your turn again”, she said. Fives’ eyes shifted over to Echo, hoping for some help from his brother, but he just nodded. “Those are the rules.”
With a sigh Fives admitted defeat. How bad could the upcoming dare really be?
“Captain”, he started, looking at Rex, who sat on the other side of their small circle. “Truth or Dare?”
If there was one thing Rex has learned the few times he had agreed to participate in the troopers’ games it was that Fives’ dares should be avoided at all costs, so he did the only thing he felt he could and choose truth.
“You’re no fun”, his brother complained with a pout.
Laughter rang through the room, a sound that made the blond clone smile. Not only because he relished seeing his brothers happy in these trying times but also because he could hear the sound of your laugh next to him, clear and full of warmth. He could swear that sound alone could chase away bad dreams and inner demons, to him it was the sound of all that was good in the world and it took all his selfrestaint not to look at you, not to reach out to you.
“Alright, alright”, Fives grumbled, trying to get everyone to calm down, which they eventually did. “Tell us, dear Captain, when was the last time you got lai-”
Rex knew where this question was headed and apparently so did Anakin, because he pulled Ahsoka, who was sitting next to him, closer and covered both her ears with his hands.
“Stop it, there’s a child present!” The expression on the Jedi’s face was both shocked and protective, he had gone into something you liked to call his Big Brother Mode, which he often used on Ahsoka and sometimes on you as well.
While the clones seemed amused by their General’s actions you could practically feel embarrassment rolling off Ahsoka, who was now pushing her Master away from her.
“I’m older than most of the others here”, she complained.
“That doesn’t count, you know clones age different”, Anakin argued.
Ahsoka, who had finally managed to remove his hands from her ears, just rolled her eyes. “You need to stop treating me like a little child.”
“I’m responsible for you, Snips, and as long as you’re a Padawan it is my right to treat you like a child”, Anakin continued.
By now everyone else had tuned out of their argument. It wasn’t an unusual discussion and though the topic was brought up constantly, it never really led anywhere.
Finally Rex decided that it might be best to continue the game. “Echo, Truth or Dare?”, he asked.
He had been hoping that out of all of his brothers Echo would be the least persistent and might ignore the fact that Rex hadn’t answered his question yet. But it didn’t seem to be his lucky day, because Echo wasted no time pointing that little fact out.
The Captain glanced at Anakin, hoping he might prevent him from answering any suggestive questions while Ahsoka was near, but the two Jedi were too busy bickering to pay attention to the game.
“It wasn’t that long ago”, Rex finally said. He counted the days back in his head, knowing Fives would be expecting a precise answer. “Four days.”
Rex didn’t dare to look at you, knowing the loving expression on both of your faces when thinking back to the time the two of you had spent in your small apartment before you left Coruscant a couple of days ago would give you away instantly.
“The how come you still have a stick up -”, Jesse started before Rex rudely interrupted him.
“Kix, Truth or Dare?”
-------
The game lasted for a couple more rounds, in which Anakin had to make a prank call, Echo admitted to sometimes sneaking sweets on long missions and Jesse tried a couple of moves with Ahsoka’s lightsaber, before it was finally your turn.
“Truth or Dare, (Y/N)?”, Ahsoka asked.
The only reason you decided to choose dare was that Ahsoka was one of your best friends, you trusted her not to make you do anything too bad, other than maybe Fives or even Echo, who had proven himself to be quite deviant throughout the game, if you were forced to fulfill one of their dares.
“I dare you to kiss your favourite person in this room”, she said with a smug smirk.
It was that smirk that told you that she knew she was on to something. Though there was no way Ahsoka knew about your relationship with Rex, she had to have guessed that you liked someone, maybe even that you were seeing someone, and given your few social contacts she must have a feeling that it had to be one of the men in this very room.
“That’s unfair, ‘Soka, you know you’re my favourite person in any room”, you tried to joke. “But I’m afraid if I went anywhere near you, Anakin would have my head.”
Low chuckles were heard around the room before every pair of eyes turned to you. While you were certain Ahsoka knew that you had feelings for one of the clones, you didn’t know how close she actually was to uncovering your secret relationship, or whether any of the others had any idea. So there were two ways you could approach this; you could kiss someone else, knowing Rex would be totally fine with it if it meant covering up your relationship, or you could kiss Rex and hope for the best.
And even though you knew the first option was a lot safer, the thought of finally showing Rex off, of getting to express your feelings in public, even if just for a spare second, was thrilling.
You turned to Rex, who was still sitting right next to you. Just like everyone else in the room, he was staring at you, awaiting your next move. But unlike everyone else there was a hint of longing, as well as anxiety, in his eyes. You leaned a bit closer, until your noses were nearly touching, and placed both your hands on the floor on either side of his hips to steady yourself.
“Are you okay with this?”, you whispered. You could only hope that Rex understood what you were really asking. Was he okay with you kissing him once more, even though he had never denied you? Was he okay with you kissing him as part of the game? Was he okay with you kissing him in front of his brothers, his General and his Commander?
Rex simply nodded and it was that small gesture that made you close the gap.
It wasn’t much of a kiss, more a small peck, a brushing of lips. But when you pulled away after just a fraction of a second it had your heart beating faster, your lips tingling and left you wanting more.
“You call that a kiss? I’m sure you can do better than that, Captain”, Anakin, who was sitting on Rex’s other side, said. He put a hand on the clones shoulder and pushed him a bit closer to you, which made the others holler and laugh.
“Ahsoka said a kiss, not making out”, you tried to defend both Rex and yourself.
“But that’s not what I had in mind. You could have kissed anyone like that, not just your favourite.”
You glanced at Rex, who was now sitting even closer to you than earlier. His mouth was pressed into a thin line, which usually meant he was either annoyed or deep in thought, but the expression in his eyes was unfamiliar. At least until they flickered to your lips and then up to your eyes.
All it took was one small nod from you for Rex to pull you close, closer than you had been earlier, and press his lips to yours.
At first the kiss wasn’t that different from the first one, but then he placed one of his hands on the back of your head to pull you even closer. You reacted by swiping your tongue across his bottom lip, which caused Rex to moan and open his mouth to you. Now it was your turn to pull him even closer. You put one hand on his hip and reached for his shoulder with the other, only to realise that it was too far, so without disconnecting your lips, you climbed into his lap. In your new position and with your tongues battling for dominance, there was no space between the two of you and nothing existed other than your lips, your tongues, your hands.
Only when you couldn’t breath anymore did you pull away a few centimetres, just enough to rest your forehead against Rex’s and smile down at him from your position in his lap.
“You think we gave them enough of a show?”, your boyfriend chuckled.
“I think you scared my poor Padawan for life!”, Anakin chimed in with wide eyes. Though one look at Ahsoka told you she was more smug than anything.
“You practically devoured each other”, Kix agreed with a small smirk.
“Who knew you had it in you, Captain?”, Fives grinned.
You felt a blush creeping up and it took everything you had to get off of Rex’s lap instead of hiding your reddening face in the comfy space between his neck and shoulder. You could feel his hands still lingering on your body and how reluctant he was to let you go, but you both knew that you had to act as if the kiss didn’t bother you in the slightest if you wanted to keep your secret.
“There really is no pleasing you guys. First the kiss too innocent, then it’s too heated”, you scoffed, hoping your pretended annoyance would cover the fact that you were still blushing and Rex hand was almost touching yours where it sat on the floor.
“Maybe, but I’m sure you were quite pleasing to the Captain, at least judging by the noises he made”, Jesse continued to tease.
Thankfully it only took one sharp glare from Rex to shut everyone up, though you could feel Ahsoka’s eyes on you for the remainder of the night.
-------
It wasn’t until late at night that Rex managed to sneak into your private quarters. Though you were tired you had managed to stay awake until your boyfriend lifted the covers and joined you in bed.
“You should get some rest, mesh’la”, he whispered as he pressed a soft kiss to the crown of your head.
Instead of replying you simply shifted closer to him until you felt his chest against your back and could intertwine your legs with his.
“We might need to be a bit more careful the next couple of days”, you sighed, sleep slowly beginning to overtake you now that you were in Rex’s arms. “At least until everyone forgets about the kiss.”
You could feel him nod and grumble a sleepy affirmation.
“We should probably tell the Commander though, she’s getting too smart to fool”, he added after a few moments.
You nodded as you yawned and snuggled even closer to him.
“You’re right. Plus Ahsoka might be the only one who’ll manage to actually keep our secret.”
Rex nuzzled his nose against your neck, breathing in the familiar scent. Though he knew it was safer this way, he hated keeping your relationship a secret. If it were up to him he would tell the whole galaxy that he was yours and you were his, but as long as he and his brothers were considered little more than property by most he’d make the most of the little stolen moments between the two of you.
“I love you”, you whispered between two yawns.
Rex pressed a soft kiss to your neck.
“I love you too, cyare. Now sleep, we both have a long day ahead of us.”
And without another word both of you fell into a deep sleep, knowing you were safe in the arms of your secret lover.
-------
I had so much fun writing the playful relationships between everyone, and especially Ahsoka! Can we all agree that she is everyone’s little sister and yet the cleverest member of the 501st?
Let me know what you think, if you’d like <3
Imagine Rex stealing food at the hospital for you when you have to have your appendix removed.
You sat in your room, a day after your surgery and preparing to leave as soon as possible when Charlie stopped by. He’d brought you a bouquet of your favourite flowers and to your surprise, Rex was allowed in as well. You were so distracted by trying to convince your friend you were okay to leave that neither of you noticed his partner wander off.
It wasn’t until you heard small grunts and a nurse cursing in the hallway did you look to the doorway. Rex’s tail came into view, then his hind legs, his shoulders, and finally his head.
“Rex what’re you—come on buddy, no, don’t—“. Charlie tried to stop his partner, but it was far too late. Rex pulled on the cloth of a food cart, hauling it into the room in small thrusts.
“Rex,” you said with a laugh.
Charlie chuckled as Rex brought the cart to you and then turned, hoping up onto your bed. You winced but waved a hand at Charlie, assuring him you were fine.
“Guess I’m not the only one that thinks you could use one more day of recovery.” Charlie scratched behind Rex’s left ear as he rested his head on your thighs.
i’m gonna just apologize bc this might not be the best ah ha ha.
i finally got inspiration for this and so i’m sorryyy it took so long. i hope you like it!
—————
there’s a field on Naboo. it’s just a regular field, nothing special about it, except for the memories created there. many lovers from many time lines have walked, ran, stomped their way through those fields. a dear friend had told you about those fields once, explaining how it’s said if you go there with your love, it is surely going to last until the Heavens fall.
if you look up into the sky at night, you can even see the lovers, still dancing together. the stars twinkle and push them on to continue their show of love. many things die in a lifetime but love, true love, is not one of those things. all your life you’ve heard of how true love survives all and how once you find your true love everything else pales in comparison.
right now, you’re sleeping while the sky shifts above you. the stars continue their dancing even when no one else is around. you’re alone in your bed tonight but hopefully not for long. as the tale has it, your true love always returns. for right now, you remain sleeping peacefully awaiting the arrival of a Captain.
the gentle creaking of wood is all the noise that breaks the silence. the wind outside causes the house to shift. the silence is deafening to those awake. luckily, everyone is right where they need to be. well, almost everyone. a certain Captain is still missing from your little house.
Rex is sitting outside on the porch taking in all the sights and smells of Naboo at midnight. a slight chill rushes through him as another blow of wind passes him and he lets out a shiver. Captain Rex of the 501st has seen a lot. he has been through hell and back but he always returns to you.
Rex makes sure he returns to you. the last thing he would want is for you to suffer the loss of another. war trudges on and tragedy spikes. he knows that, as do you, and yet you both have found something beautiful in the midst. he knows it’s against regulations and that it could cause trouble if ever found out but the way you look at him makes it worth it.
he takes one last deep breath of the fresh air and stands from his seat. he glances over the landscape, scoping for danger, before heading back in. even if it’s just you two out here, Rex still locks the door. he wouldn’t be able to survive if anything happened to you because of him. he pads slowly and softly to the bedroom before stopping and taking in your sleeping figure.
you’re reached out, almost looking for him, but the small snores indicate you’re still unconscious. Rex lets out a quiet chuckle before walking to the bed and pulling the covers back. he lifts your arm, gently, as to not wake you before he’s sliding between the sheets. in your sleep you let out a hum at having his warmth back.
Rex settles in and turns toward you to hold you against his chest. he slides into unconsciousness quickly.
——
it’s still dark out.
you wake up because the sheet isn’t covering you anymore. your foggy brain takes a while to register your surroundings but it finally settles on the fact that Rex has taken the covers. he is coccuned in the covers and curled in on himself. you make your way towards his body and urge him to relax slightly. you’re freezing here, for Maker’s sake!
Rex relaxes enough to where you can squeeze your body between his and the sheets. his arm instantly goes to your waist and pulls you tight to him. you sleepily smile at the fact he can’t seem to get close enough. placing a quick kiss on his left pec, you slip right back to sleep.
——-
the sunshine is what wakes you again. groaning, you turn to try and block it out. the thing you place your head on rumbles, signaling to you that it’s not a thing, but a person. you open your eyes after a few more seconds and blearily look up. Rex is already staring down at you with a lovesick smile on his face.
“good morning, Cyar’ika.” the vibrations his voice sends through your body has you breaking out into a smile.
instead of replying to him you press your lips against his. Rex hums into the kiss and let’s out a sigh. he wishes he could kiss you every waking hour. when you two part he rubs his nose against your cheek. you grab his face and give him one last peck on the lips before moving away from him.
Rex lets out a groan which you laugh at.
“Cyar’ika, what’s the big deal. come back to bed” he all but whines. you throw him a smile over your shoulder before you move to start getting ready.
“come on, Cyare. we have plans today. you gotta get up and dress or you’ll miss it!” Rex raises an eyebrow at your revelation. he smirks at you before asking simply, “and what are our plans today?”
you give him another smile before replying, “we’re going to a field today.”
Rex doesn’t make any move to get up forcing you to walk over and try to get him up yourself. what you didn’t expect, was that the closer you got, the easier it was for him to reach out for you. once you stopped beside him, he looked up at you and then circled his arms around your waist. he pulled you back to the bed and began tickling you.
“i just needed to remind you that i’m still the Tickle Champ.” he says while you’re screaming-laughing.
he relents his attack and hovers his face over yours. he presses a quick kiss to your lips before muttering, “Maker, i love you so much.”
you pull him back down into another kiss.
that day, two lovers were once again written in the stars. and when they stayed past sundown? they saw their constellations dancing together, as they had always predicted would happen.
short little thing introducing Verse and Reader’s friendship, takes place before The Next Time, In Vino Veritas
“I hear the Captain’s quite a looker. Is it true?”
You stop shuffling through the flimsi files on your desk for a moment. On a rare occasion, you’d decided to actually sit down for dinner, but you refused to stop working. Thankfully, it was enough to satisfy the Mech who sat across from you in the tent you called your office, a mock attempt at privacy while out in the field.
“Verse!”
Her name comes out strangled as you choke on a bit of rehydrated veg meat.
“Oh please, don’t be such a prude. I saw you looking at Commander Ponds the other day.”
Warmth rises to your cheeks with her reminder. Ever since your arrival on Ryloth, Verse had yet to shut up about the idea of setting you up with the Commander. The telltale heat off your face is less of a result because of an interest in the attractive Commander and more so because of Verse’s constant insinuations.
“Stop, that is not what’s going on.”
A truth that you weren’t glad to admit. Recently, you’d been unfortunately plagued with constant thoughts of a different clone trooper. One who was much less amiable and much less charming than Commander Ponds who, on the other hand, sought any opportunity to speak with you.
“Really? If it’s any consolation he was looking at you when you weren’t looking too.”
“I- when?”
As if just asking the question would let you invest emotionally in someone who had merited your attention.
“Not until you answer my question first.”
“Fine, what do you want to know?”
“The Boys in Blue, are they as good looking as they say? A nurse on Coruscant told me about these two new ARC troopers—”
“And?”
“Her exact words were “If I could climb them both at the same I would.’”
You let out a snort at that imagining the cocky grin that would spread across Fives’ face and the blush that would grow on Echo’s cheeks if they heard those words.
“Well?”
Verse pushes the topic again, desperate for a response.
“They’re alright. Echo’s sweet and so is Fives, I guess.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“Verse, they’re clones.”
You’re hesitant to answer the question the way she wants. Certainly, both boys were good looking, but thinking about them was hard when all you could picture was Rex’s face. It always seemed to linger somewhere in your mind and frequently resulted in you wondering about where the hell you went wrong.
“I, come on, please. I need to know! If rumors circling are right, we’ll be on leave soon.”
“So?”
“What if I meet them? The more I know, the better.”
“Better for who, exactly?”
“Me, obviously, and whichever ARC trooper I meet first.”
There’s a teasing smile on her face as speaks. Maker help whichever ARC trooper she meets first. You release a sigh, your resolve having worn down. Verse had made proper preparations for the conversation, having planned her questions and responses well.
“Fine, Echo and Fives are batchmates. Echo’s a bit more quiet at first and Five’s is a little shit, I say that lovingly.”
“And?”
“They’re both very attractive.”
For a moment, there’s silence. Forgotten piles of flimsi still resting in disarray and the small of tray food resting on the corner of your desk. It makes you think that just for a few seconds, the Mech is satisfied with your response. Until her eyebrows raise expectantly. There’s something else now.
“What else?”
You pose the question before she has another chance to attack your person.
heyy could i request a steamy one shot with the prompt ‘make me’ for rex pls?? bc sheesh your account rly got me in my feels
notes: this sat in my requests for far too long and im soooo sorry, also i’m not sure how good my proofreading was so sorry in advance
rex can’t deal with his jealousy and worries. it means making out is the only to way to make up when you’ve decided to give up
Rex has to remind himself that it’s part of the mission.
You’re undercover.
A word or complaint from him over the comms could mean your death. But any thoughts of keeping his lips shut are near impossible given the way you lean onto the cantina counter and how you swirl the drink in your right hand. The difficulty of the situation increased by the very fact that your job is currently to attract the wrong kind of attention while he’s stuck in the small room of a nearby building staring at the live footage with Cody next to him.
When General Skywalker had suggested you to be the operative working the arms deal, Rex thought nothing of it. Not realizing exactly which lower levels of Coruscant that the slimeball you were supposed to meet with worked on. And all Rex can offer is the occasional piece of added intel. Anything more and the frequency of the comms they were using might be picked up.
It’s a precarious situation with far too many fine details, something that Rex is slowly losing his patience for as he sees you toss your head back in laughter. The bartender of the cantina having probably made some clever joke.
“Rex, calm down. Everything’s fine.”
Rex hasn’t said or done anything to prove he might be worried, but that’s just how well his ori’vod, Cody, knows him.
The Captain doesn’t deem the comment worthy of a response. Instead he focuses more intently on the movement of bartender’s lips in an attempt to read them. He’s made uncomfortable by his body language, leaning closer to you.
On the other hand, all is well on your end.
Intel retrieval and undercover operations had be become a specialty of sorts. You’d now spent much of your life living under various false identities and it wasn’t until you joined the GAR that you’d made a permanent one. One that you could actually come back to after weeks of work under false pseudonyms.
“Could I get you another one of those twisters, on the house?”
The bartender, your target, is also now leaning on the bar. Forearms resting against the counter a hint of a smirk dressed upon his face. You wonder if he knows that he’s being made a fool of right now. You’d imagine not, especially if he lived up to his moniker given to him throughout the dealings he’d made in certain networks.
You plaster a sweet smile on your lips making sure to laugh a little harder than necessary. You were sure that by posing as some ditzy socialite in search of adventure, you were actually losing braincells.
“I- I’m flattered, thank you.”
The bartender responds in kind, his smirk growing wider.
“It’s no problem, just trying to look after the clientele. Wouldn’t want you going thirsty.”
A wink added to punctuate his ‘veiled’ meaning.
“I, well, maybe not another drink.”
“Something else then?”
Well timed questions about his plans for the week and some portrayal of false interest do the job. It only takes a bit more flirting and some suggestive looks. You even go as far as touching his arm when he leans closer to converse, ensuring that you’ll get information you need without him figuring you out. And just like that, you have everything you need in ten minutes.
Implementing your exit strategy is no great feat. The seconds he’s turned around restocking supplies you're able to leave and make your way to the rendezvous point. Proud of the information you’ve received, there’s a grin on your face as you meet Rex and Cody.
“He spilled everything.”
For a second, Cody matches your energy offering a congratulations on your success. But the moment is short lived the moment you both take notice of his kih’vod who stands stiff. Your victory slowly turning sour, unsure as to what could have provoked such a reaction out of your Captain.
Cody is no help, he lets out what you think is a cough.
“I’ll start heading over to the base, I trust both of you can take care of the tech we’ve got.”
He’s leaving you behind with Rex before either of you even have a chance to argue. What follows is a tense moment, neither of you unwilling to break the silence. Until, finally, Rex cracks.
“We ought to head out now.”
You ignore the comment. Your focus on figuring out what’s going on..
“Not until you me what’s wrong.”
He still doesn’t bother to look in your direction. It fuels you to push the subject.
“You don’t get to do that!”
“Do what?”
His playing stupid won’t help the situation.
“Pull away when things get hard or when I have to do my job.”
He scoffs.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Rex is only three steps away, but you feel as if there’s some cavern between the two of you. It only grows with his denial and your continued attacks, a seeming reoccurrence as of late.
“You’re doing it right now.”
The words are as effective as a pebble tossed at his plastoid, hardly leaving a mark and bouncing right off.
“No, I’m not.”
His tone is firm leaving no room for argument.
But you’re not one to give up so easily.
“Kriffing hell, Rex. Look me in the eye at least when you decide to lie.”
Anyone else might be intimidated by the silence that radiates after your words. A deadly combination when paired with the slow move of his head towards you, even if all you see is the darkness of the T-shaped visor. Rex again is first to break the silence after a few seconds.
“Happy.”
He takes a step closer, his form now looming over you. Perhaps an attempt to scare you into submission.
“I don’t think you’re in a position to be making demands, cyare.”
There’s a bite to the usually endearing phrase. His tone irritates you beyond belief.
“Forget it, I’m leaving.”
Tired of the fighting, you resolve to walk away. Turning to walk out and following Cody’s example.
“Haar’chak!”
You barely manage to hear the expletive before you hear the steps behind you. In a swift motion that you’re unable to resist, Rex is turning you, pressing you against the wall. His told against your upper arm is tight and his leg between yours does not give you a chance to move.
“Let me go.”
“No.”
You shove yourself forward in hopes that it might throw him off. It doesn’t. All you manage to do is slam yourself against the hard plastoid of his chest. In retaliation Rex pushes further against you and the dress you're in has you at a disadvantage.
“Stop. Just- we need to stop doing this Rex.”
“Stop what.”
“Hurting each other.”
His free hand reaches up to his helmet, releasing the air seal before taking it off. The treatment of the bucket might be considered sacrilege as he unceremoniously tosses it somewhere behind him.
“Say that again.”
“Rex, ple—”
“No, say it again.”
His arm has loosened its grip around your arm and instead is placed under your jaw, tilting your head up so that you can maintain eye contact. Looking him in the eyes makes you falter, your certainty waning with the sight of warm eyes.
“Rex, we need to stop this.”
Your voice has lost its conviction, no longer sure of what it is that you want. He’s leaning in to you now, lips closer to yours. But he stops centimeters before contact.
“If you want me to stop, make me.”
There’s a pause, a split second when you make your decision.
You reach your arm around his neck pulling him down against you, his lips slotting against yours. There’s no patience in the way that he takes you. His hands reaching down, tapping your side in a gesture for you to jump. As soon as you do, his hands grip your thighs and you're pushed impossibly closer to the wall.
It’s when his lips trail down to your neck that you know you’ve lost any and all resolve. He’s leaving marks along the base of your throat, leaving you whimpering. A hand reaching up to his hair tugging at the bleached cropped hair making him release a moan against your skin.
“Fuck, cyare.”
The puff of air that escapes his lips with the words spur you further, you pull him back to your lips. Hands roaming trying to find anything that might ground you in the midst of your hazy rush. He’s caught you off guar and for some reason it makes the situation all the more enjoyable.
Eventually, you're both forced both pull away, panting still at the unexpected moment of intimacy.
“How much time do you think we have before debrief?”
The question pulls you out of your lustful haze, bringing a genuine laugh from your lips.
let me know if you’d like to be tagged in future parts!
taglist: @000ayfh @starflyer-104 @pinkiemme
By evening, everything is packed and the Mech has managed to find a new ribbon for her hair.
This time it’s white, with blue lace trim (something Jesse had gotten for her after he had lost a bet). Enough for her hair to be sectioned into two braids rather than just the typical one.
After lunch, she’d returned to her workspace. Thinking it best to clear her mind by sinking into the habit of tinkering and restoring what little things could be done. It works, steering her mind from focusing too hard on the prospect of disappointing Rex and retaining information from her friends.
She loses herself in the mechanics of a DC-15A carbine, recalibrating the grappling function after some locking issues with the spring. If she remembers correctly, it had been Hardcase who had last used it. Its malfunction was not his fault, but it did lead to the precarious situation where he was forced to hold onto Tup after being unable to climb the face of a canyon wall on his own.
There shouldn’t be a repeat of that situation assuming that the pin she’s using to reset the mechanism doesn’t dislodge any other parts. The work had taken longer than expected. But she’s sure that she’s just about got it, the upcoming flick of her wrist important to making sure the locking mechanism operates as it should. The pin in her hand faces tension, just as it should. Just one final movement and… click.
“Hell yes! Finally!”
The small success setting a triumphant grin on her lips. She sets the carbine back down on the worktable before jumping up from her stool ready to continue her celebration. Words surge from her mouth as she continues her gleeful declaration fueled by the rush of victory.
“Take that you karking piece of shit.”
“Everything alright?”
Kriff, what ever happened to privacy?
The Mech is quick to turn around and face the intruder. Her face burns hot and the palms of her hand grow clammy. Thank the Maker she wasn’t holding the carbine anymore with her luck she’d drop it and somehow activate the recently fixed grappling hook. Hands move straight for her hair, forgetting it was recently braided. The action results in awkward patting motion if making sure he hair was still intact. As if it couldn’t get more embarrassing.
“Captain Rex. Yes, erm, yes. Just fixed up a mal- a malfunction with this weapon.”
He’s standing at the entrance of the workshop, bucket tucked underneath his arm. There’s a second of silence. The Mech isn’t quite sure what else to say and it looks like the Captain is thinking.
Eventually, he just lightly nods his head and clears his throat.
“Rex.”
There’s no further prompting with the word. He looks her in the eye as he says it and it confuses her.
“I, um, I’m sorry?”
She’s raises an eyebrow in confusion. Clearly, that was his name. But, what of it?
“Rex, you can um-, just call me Rex.”
The small gesture shocks her a bit. A combination of his stutter and nervous manner makes her wonder what could have caused the Good Captain to falter.
“Of course, Captain. Shit, sorry um… of course, Rex.”
Rex smiles a bit at the Mech’s mistake. And she’s glad for it. The expression eases something in her chest, dislodging some of the compressed emotions she’d been hiding. Granting her a bit of space in her heart, letting her at least give a snort at her own slip.
“You can call me Caramè. Or, I mean, you should probably start calling me that.”
The name rolling off her tongue feels odd. Like it was a word she once knew, but hadn’t heard it in so long that she’s forgotten how to pronounce it.
“Caramè. That’s not your name.”
Her name moves languidly off the tip of his tongue. As if he too were struggling with it.
“Depends on who you ask.”
The Mech’s not trying to play coy, she’s telling the truth in a certain respect. And the Captain knows the history of the name, but the answer leaves him dissatisfied anyways.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“The people who knew me ten years ago knew me by that name. It’s the name I signed on fake documents and it’s how I managed to make a living. It’s how I survived”
She’s not sure why she’s telling him all this as if he hadn’t been in the same tent hours earlier.
“When I joined the GAR, maybe they were desperate enough to not find out more about what I’d done under all those other names. It was like… like a new opportunity.”
Rex understands her point, confirming it with a subtle nod. But it’s as if he’s expecting to hear more information. And so the Mech swallows what nerves are left and gives it to him.
“The name you know me by now, it’s the name I chose. It’s who I am. And every other name has been who people thought I was. And maybe some of them were right, but never completely. You know?”
She looks up at him once finished with her rambling, expecting something other than the blank look on Rex’s face. It’s as if he’s staring off into the distance and for a moment she’s not sure if he’s even heard her.
Rex’s presented neutrality is only the product of his ruminations. The realization, that for once, he isn’t at a complete loss with the Mech because there’s something about her words that he understands. She’d chosen her name as part of a new identity, a new life in service of the Republic, and she’d become one of their own.
“Yeah, I do.”
The Mech has never heard Rex be so soft spoken and she’s not sure how to make up for the change in atmosphere. It’s not an uncomfortable moment, no part of her feels the need to find reassurance by giving in to her typical anxious habits. No part of her is taken with the notion of breaking the silence or getting back to work. Rex however has other thoughts, feelings as if he has invaded for far too long and he is the first to break away.
Having regained some focus he looks at her when speaking.
“I’ll let you get back to work. Just remember to meet at 1900.”
She had less than two hours to finish up whatever else she could and say her goodbyes.
let me know if you’d like to be tagged on this series!
soft rex makes it all better and cody is a big brother
Your ankle was indeed fractured.
At least that’s what Kix tells you as he finishes wrapping it up in a temporary splint. He’s much more concerned about the mottled bruising developing on your left shoulder and back. The limited motion of your arm makes him think that you might have torn or dislocated something.
It’s no news to you.
You're sat atop a crate in a nearly empty (you and Kix the only ones left inside) makeshift medtent as the medic kneels in front of you. Double-checking his work and searching again for any unresolved medical issues.
“You worry too much, Kix. Just hand me some stims and a bit of bacta.”
Your right hand rests over the DC-15 you’d kept at your side since leaving the gunship. Fingers grazing over the grooves of marked tallies scratched into the barrel. Committing the feeling of the uneven scores to memory.
It was the fifth time you’d tried to convince Kix you were fine. More so for your sake than his.
“You’ll be headed off with the General Mundi and General Kenobi. Want to make sure that arm is properly looked at.”
You raise your right arm in mock salute, but Kix doesn’t make a move to leave.
A second of silence transpires.
“How do you feel?”
You look into the visor of his bucket. Reassurance found in the fact that you’re not looking him directly in the eyes. Even so, you detect his worry through the modulated words.
“You said it yourself. Fractured ankle and some bruising, at least.”
The response is blunt, matter-of-fact.
“That’s not what I meant.”
You hum in acknowledgment, but continue to feign ignorance. Making sure to keep contact with his t-shaped visor as you work through your next lie.
“Don’t know what you mean.”
“Boil said —”
He’s stops short as if electing the best way to bring up the topic.
“Well, Boil mention—”
He doesn’t get the chance.
“Kix, Coric needs an extra hand at the gunships.”
Kix stands before responding, his head doesn’t turn away from you as he responds.
“Yes, Captain. I’ll go find him.”
He gives your right shoulder a squeeze mumbling a “feel better” before walking out. Rex waits exactly ten seconds after Kix to take any action. His first step being removing his helmet, the release of the air seal the only noise in the tent. He holds it under his arm. Avoiding eye contact would be obvious, it means you’re forced to look at him once he speaks.
“Heard you had quite a fall.”
It’s an attempt at humor, supposed to make you feel better, it doesn’t. But you’re too kind to refrain from responding.
“Something like that.”
Your tone is dry, tired. And with every right, you’re covered head to toe in red dirt and the pain medication from hours earlier was beginning to wear off. Pain at your nerve endings prickling the first signs that any adrenaline was long gone. There’s a tear at the knee of your combat pants and you’ve lost the blaster usually strapped to your thigh. And if you’re asked one more time how you are feeling, you might scream.
Another beat of silence.
You shift your weight along the crate, careful not to jostle your arm too much in its sling. One more of Kix’s brilliant ideas to protect your injured body (you know you should be thankful, but all you are is bitter).
“Want me to take care of that rifle?”
Rex gestures towards DC-15 (stepping closer at the same time) resting under your right hand, knowing that it wasn’t your standard weapon. After all he’d never seen you out in the field without a DC-17 strapped to your leg that played back up to a modified carbine with white stripes.
You know Rex means well, but the idea of parting with the rifle is enough to return that ache around the edges of your heart. Something not even Kix’s medkit could get rid of. Quiet desperation once more clawing at the walls of your chest.
“No.”
The response a reflex, fingers clutching protectively at the weapon below. Still looking at Rex, you see how his gaze flickers to the placement of your hand. Understanding seems to sprout in his expression as he moves towards you. The tone of empathy that follows a key feature to the side of Rex you have yet to see.
“Wanna talk about it?”
He’s one step away.
“No.”
Your voice splitting as the word has to be shoved out of your mouth.
Words are not spoken when he sets his bucket beside you. Nor when he lifts your hand from the rifle, holding it in his own. And nothing is said when the first sob racks your frame and he closes the distance between you, letting you rest your head in the crook of his neck as tears steam from your eyes. Your fingers intertwining with his when his other hand moves to carress the back of your head.
You stay like that. Even after your cries have turned to soft sobs shared with the shudders that run down your spine as you try to regain a steady breathing pattern. His hold tightening even after you’ve calmed yourself down and the only sound that leaves is an occasional sniffle.
You stay like that until Cody comes looking for you booth. He lingers at the tent entrance for a few minutes not wanting to interrupt but also so he can gather the evidence needed to prove he’s won a bet amongst the other commanding officers. He takes a holovid of you and his kih’vod. Its existence a reminder that in the midst of war the clones were human.
It’s only when Cody’s comm lights up with a message asking about yours and Rex’s whereabouts that he gathers the spirit to speak up.
“Tay’haai your ship is waiting for you.”
Cody’s voice startles you both. Though it draws no urgency as you and the Captain detangle yourselves from one another, the movement slow and drawn out.
Even with his bucket on, the Commander’s self-satisfied attitude radiates throughout the tent. You and Rex do your best to ignore it.
When Rex offers his help to lower you down, you take it. Both arms move to your hips in order to to pull you forward. One arm incapacitated and the other reaching for the rifle on the crate. Cody still lingers at the entrance, waiting for the opportunity to open his mouth and make a snippy comment (truly a big brother at heart).
And he sees his opportunity once your feet have settled on the floor and Rex is ready to escort you himself.
“Rex, I can take it from here. Your General has been looking for you, preparations for the next phase. Very important.”
Cody couldn’t be more obvious, but orders are orders.
Rex is forced to walk you to Cody by the entrance and watch as you leave with him towards the gunships. Once your out of sight he returns to the crate for his helmet. He takes a moment to stand there. His heart clenching at the realization that that had been the first moment of true intimacy you’d shared.
He takes a breath to clear his thoughts, preventing any overthinking, before he tucks his bucket under his arm and goes off to find the rest of his squadron and General.
