the generic sound of an alarm blared through his phone’s speakers from the end table next to his bed, and ben scrambled to shut it off just in case his guest from last night was still there. it was doubtful, he knew; that type of girl didn’t really stay the night, let alone still be there in the morning, and he wasn’t really the type to tell them to stay for breakfast, either. but still, if, for some odd reason, she had, he at least didn’t want her waking up to an alarm that had no business going off in the first place. it was a sunday morning, it wasn’t as though he’d be expected at the first order’s headquarters. these were his days to do with as he pleased; being higher up in the ranks had its benefits. along with being tacked on to snoke’s expense account, he was also allowed to come and go as he pleased, as long as he showed up for work once in a while and did as he was told on special occasions.
as he turned towards the other side of the bed, he found it vacant, as he’d expected, so he took his time getting out of bed and getting ready for the day. without even bothering to dress, he moved into his en suite bathroom, starting steaming hot water before stepping under the stream to quickly clean himself. it was a habit of his, to be in and out within a few moments, and since he’d taken care of shaving his face the night before, all he had to do was quickly wash himself and his dark, curly locks, and he was stepping back out to dry himself off with a plush towel. wrapping it around his waist, he stepped back out into his room, dressing casually in dark jeans and a black t-shirt (it was unlikely he’d even leave the apartment, let alone see anyone, so it really didn’t matter) before pulling his hair back into a small ponytail to keep it away from his face.
moving into the kitchen, he started a pot of coffee and put an english muffin into the toaster, taking his breakfast to the living room where he planned to watch the news before deciding what he’d do with his day. however, a note on the television caught his eye, and he chuckled to himself; the girl must have had just as much fun as it seemed she had, she’d probably left him her number. after finishing his food and another mug of coffee, he pulled the piece of paper off of the flat surface of the screen, smile fading as he scanned the words. there was no phone number. it wasn’t signed from her. it was the resistance, or at least, lackeys that claimed to work with it.
glaring, ben shoved on some shoes and his jacket, clipping his gun’s holster to his belt and slipping his phone in his pocket. quickly, he sent a message to phasma, another official in the first order; if he was expected in that day, he wouldn’t be arriving, and he knew she’d approve of him taking care of this himself. the girl had been an asset of one of their clubs, after all, so even if he was questioned about it, he’d say that he was simply protecting the first order’s best interests. they wouldn’t need to know that he was also looking out for hers as well.
the flashy sports car that snoke had gifted him with pulled up to the curb of the warehouse they’d advised to bring the ransom money to, but ben didn’t show up with anywhere near the amount they’d requested. oh, no, they weren’t going to get what they wanted easily, they were going to get a fight. ducking into the wide open building, ben scanned the area quickly, though he couldn’t see or hear anything out of the ordinary. if this was an ambush, the resistance was going to get it ten times worse than he was, that was for sure; phasma knew exactly where he was and would be sending backup if he didn’t respond to any of her messages. “rey? rey?” he called out, making sure he wasn’t leaving any blind spots in case the kidnappers tried to attack him.