Private Breathe Me

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Corellia
Tag: Aiden Rennek

The sun had yet to rise as she gazed out into the inky vastness over a sleeping Corellia. White pinpricks of distant, pulsating stars, painting the sky, though her weary eyes hardly recognized their familiar glow. The galaxy teetered on the brink of another war—yet for Briana, the storm had already started.

In the quietude of early morning, between the subtle sound of the chronometers rhythmic tick, a multitude of heavy memories filled her mind of the last month. From Aiden's narrow escape from death in that alleyway — a moment she still pictured in both her sleeping and waking dreams, her Padawan violently whisked away by Mandalorian hands, her parents' merciless death at the hands of The New Way, and Brandyn's betrayal about the truth of their father. Her dual role as a member of Naboo's nobility and her position as a Jedi Knight made all of it a more difficult act to balance, often leaving her feeling submerged beneath an ever churning riptide, every heartbeat strained in the grasp of an invisible fist as she tried to soldier on. Focus on what came next.

Conceding defeat to her restless thoughts, Briana slid into her robe hanging near the edge of the bed, the spider-silk fabric shimmering faintly beneath the gentle kiss of starlight. Cautiously, she tiptoed across the room, allowing Aiden to peacefully continue slumbering as she made her way towards the refuge of the kitchen.

Gingerly, she opened the cooling unit, its pale blue light washing over her as she searched for various ingredients to concoct a humble meal for herself and Aiden. Cooking had never been her forte, but with the desire to take her mind elsewhere — even if only briefly — Briana determined to attempt this small act of love.

Putting the nuna eggs on the counter, and a few other items that she believed she'd once seen Aiden prepare...nerf bacon, maybe? Briana began to work — whisking the eggs, pouring in a little blue milk to thin them.

Hopefully, the end result would bear some resemblance to — what she considered, as someone who lacked any real cooking skills — one of Aiden's masterpieces.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Corellia

​

The hours ticked by but Aiden was afforded no rest. His eyes were closed, his mind shifted into what should have been sleep's warm embrace, but every second spent not awake just became another reminder of what had happened. Of how lucky he was to still be alive, and how fortunate he was to still be able to wake up next to her. Briana leaving the room hadn't escaped him - he was a soldier at heart and that meant getting up before the first rays of sunshine could enter the room.

But for once, he was too exhausted, and remained exactly where he was while he heard her entering the kitchen. On a normal day, it would have sparked a joke about her cooking skills, but he knew it was different today. She had gone through a lot - even more than he had - so this was something they both needed. The gentle reminders that they were still alive, that the sun would rise like any other day, and that they were still together.

"Good morning," Aiden said softly when he eventually made his way into the kitchen. He had quickly thrown on his jeans and a simple shirt, but he wasn't wearing any socks, and his hair was still a morning mess. But could he really be blamed for going to her first after everything? "Looks amazing" he then added, his gaze only briefly lingering on the food before he focused on her with a Corellian grin.

She really was beautiful.

Aiden's hands then gently settled on her waist, as he stepped closer to her. His chin rested atop her head, and his arms slowly began to snake their way around her for a hug. "How are you feeling, Bri? I know you didn't sleep well last night." Without realizing it, he was hugging her just a little tighter than he normally would. He had been so scared of losing her, but now that he had her close somewhere safe, he felt like je never wanted to let go again.

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location:
Tag: Aiden Rennek

Briana's eyes lifted at the sound of Aiden's voice, taking in his disheveled hair, the sockless feet.

No matter how he came to her, it was impossible to not find him irresistibly handsome. Yet, it was uncharacteristic for him to not be completely crisp and presentable in the mornings, part of that strict militaristic image he flawlessly maintained — though, she understood the reasons for that change now, all too well. It was the same reason why they both clung to each other a little tighter these days, why she would randomly grip his hand in broad daylight when they were out and the reason why she sometimes caught his eyes turning distant before blinking at her, as if not believing what was right in front of him could be real, rubbing that spot on his abdomen where the scar was like he was trying to ease a phantom ache.

"Good morning," she responded softly, placing a couple plates on the counter and portioning out fluffy green nuna eggs alongside the too-crisp nerf bacon. "Did I wake you?" she asked, managing a half-smile as she felt Aiden's hands on her waist, leaning into the increased tightness of his hug, one of the few rare places that could temporarily chase away the images that so often tried to tear through her mind. Her mother leaning over her wounded father, holding and comforting him, as she too braced for the end. The way that Aiden's face had looked that night, seeing the shallow rise and fall of his chest, feeling how the bond between them shuddered...

Briana's hands balled into the fabric of his shirt, ear pressed against his chest, soaking in the comforting rhythmic sound of his steady heartbeat and allowing herself to feel secure, if only for an instant.

"How are you feeling, Bri? I know you didn't sleep well last night."

How was she feeling? Her smile waned at the question.

"I'm... managing." she told him, pulling back slightly to reach up and cup his cheek, thumb grazing over the morning stubble. "It's just been..." Briana paused, her brows softly pulling down in a furrow as she tried to find the right words without alarming him. She knew it was important for them to share their burdens — but it was still difficult to expose those vulnerabilities, especially when it came to that slow building desire that'd been steadily growing inside her, that want to make someone pay, despite her knowing Aiden was one of the few who understood. "More difficult than I thought it would be. But being here, with you... it helps." Her hand fell and came to rest on the curve between his neck and shoulder, adding softly, "More than anything else has."

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Corellia

​

"No, I haven't been able to sleep either."

Aiden smiled weakly but he wasn't going to try and hide how he really felt. His eyes held a fear similar to his first deployment after the Maw ambush that killed so many of his friends. He couldn't stop checking in on his new squadmates and constantly lived in panic about their well-being. Now he had almost lost the one person he loved, not once but... he shook his head. He didn't want to think about how many times it had gotten too close.

He wanted it to stop getting so close. It had to.

Briana's hands then clenched into his shirt, and his own began to shift up, until one settled at the back of her head to gently keep her close. His chin fell, and for just a moment, he kept his face buried in her hair to remind himself that she was really there with him, and that it wasn't just a dream. But after an embrace that felt much shorter than it really was, she pulled back and he reluctantly let her, so his gaze could meet her own.

While Briana's hand reached up to cup his cheek, Aiden was purely focused on her eyes now. He couldn't sense emotions the way she could, but he knew her longer than today. He could tell she was struggling in a battle between fear, loss and a desire to do something about the way she felt. He understood, he really did, but it was the last part that frightened him the most. She had never been one to sit still and just let bad things happen to her. He respected that but for once, he didn't want her to do anything, even though he knew it was a selfish thought.

"It helps me too, Bri. We've just... come too close to being separated and it's starting to take a toll on both of us," he said, as he brought up his hands to take both of hers. He held them between them around waist-level and gently squeezed, while his thumbs ran along the top of her hands. "We don't often have much time together and when we do, it's because one of us almost died and we need time to recover." He let out a heavy sigh, but quickly tried to smile away the defeated look in his eyes.

"I want that to change. I want to spend more time to you and be closer."

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

I

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Corellia
Tag: Aiden Rennek

So, he hadn't been asleep either.

That rogue smile she’d come to love, tugged at the edge of his lips — trying to lighten the delivery of his words and still be honest, but even without reaching through the Force, Briana could see and feel the heaviness he was carrying with him. She wished she could chase the shadows away for the both of them, the same way she’d done the night she pulled him from the ditch, but somehow this felt much different. More complicated.

Standing close now, she noticed when his weight shifted as he appeared to be working towards something, his fingers threading between hers and squeezing gently. A gesture Briana returned, enjoying that warming sensation that'd nearly been lost to her. Every word he spoke was tinged with a level of visceral earnestness, his face taught with emotion as he put forth his desires — Aiden was not a man who was afraid to be honest with her, and she’d always appreciated that about him… but if he was asking her to step back…

Briana rolled her tongue over her teeth, catching it between them for a tick before deciding to speak.

“You know that I want that too,” Briana told him, feeling an immediate tinge of guilt shooting through her at the words, the rejection of what she believed he was asking. After everything they’d both been through, why didn’t they deserve to try and steal a piece of that dream for themselves? That bit of happiness he spoke of? Coveted love. “but as much as I wish I could pause everything and focus on us, you know that we can’t stop. Not when war with the Mandalorian’s is coming and The New Way is still out there.”

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Corellia

​

"You know that I want that too,"

Even though it meant her desires were the same, he couldn't help but notice the but that was lingering in her tone. He felt his chest tighten as a result, and his breath got stuck in his throat. His heart began to pound, and for just a moment, he worried that she wanted to keep things the way they were. But when she spoke again, Aiden's eyes widened a tad, and he realized that his vagueness had painted the wrong picture.

He'd never ask her to give up on being a Jedi.

"No, Bri, that's... not what I meant," he smiled sheepishly and didn't even realize his thumbs were nervously drawing circles over the palm of her hand. "I'd never ask you to stop being who you are, and the Jedi need someone like you to stop the Mandalorians. What I want is to spend the time we do have away from war and duty closer together." He composed himself again in that moment, and brought his left hand up to gently settle against the side of her cheek.

"We've been together for a while now and I'd like to take the next step with you. How would you feel about moving in together? I don't care if it's a small apartment on Corellia or a mansion on Naboo. I just want you to be there with me." He smiled a little to himself, knowing how cheesy all of it might sound, and he wasn't always the type for that. But this came straight from the heart and she'd never miss that.

"How do you feel about it?"

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location:
Tag: Aiden Rennek

"How do I feel about it?" Briana echoed, feeling her core warming at the thought of what he proposed. Each heartbeat grew stronger and stronger, shedding off the protective layers of ice that she'd encased herself in over the last few weeks, managing to take a kernel of the darkness that'd been chasing at her heels, with it.

Her hand reached up, fingers brushing back that beautiful golden hair, studying his face. "I feel that I love you," She breathed, trembling slightly at the admission of the words she hadn't been brave enough to tell him out loud; afraid that saying them would invite another tragedy - another irreplaceable loss. One that she didn't know if she could recover from.

But there wasn't any other way to fully describe what she was feeling in that moment. Even love nearly felt too weak. "These last few weeks have been so…" painful, devastating, Galaxy shaking. "Difficult… but every time I look at you, that weight feels a little easier to carry. Like I can outrun it a little while longer." Her arms slid around his broad shoulders, pushing up on her toes until the tips of their noses practically touched. "So yes, Aiden," her trembling lips tenderly grazed over his in a form of silent affirmation before retreating to rest her forehead against his. "There is nothing I'd want more than to take that journey with you."

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Corellia

​

"I feel that I love you,"

For a moment, Aiden could swear that his heart would pound its way out of his chest while he looked her in the eyes. The words kept repeating in his mind over and over again, but it's the way she looked at him that really brought the warmth of that message directly into his heart. His own lips trembled as a result, before they pulled up into a loving smile. His hand settled gently in her neck, right behind the ear, while his thumb brushed over her cheek.

"I love you too, Briana," he said softly, his hands now shifting down to her waist while her own settled around his shoulders. She pushed her way up and Aiden lowered himself to lean into the kiss. While it wasn't their first, this one felt so much different than the others. Their unspoken feelings for each other had finally been shared more openly, and the affection he felt for her spiked as a result.

She loved him, and he loved her with all of his heart.

"I'm very happy to hear it, Bri," he added as his forehead rested against her. "It's going to take time to plan out and I'm sure it'll have its own challenges, but... it'll be so worth it." His smile widened and his hands looked to take hold of hers, so he could gently squeeze them.

"I love you so much," He chuckled and grinned, as he felt a surge of heat pass through his body. It felt so good to tell her that, and now he couldn't imagine a Galaxy anymore where he didn't say it out loud. The energy it gave him brought his hands down, just to lift her off the ground without warning and bring her eyes level with his own. The loving smile turned into the Corellian grin, and he was quick to add a wink on top.

"Maybe there's something better than breakfast right now."

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Corellia
Tag: Aiden Rennek

Though Aiden wouldn't notice it, Briana felt their bond growing clearer and brighter in that moment, forging itself together like an unbreakable chain. An undimmable ray of light. She was his, and he was hers. Beginning, middle, and end.

I love you too, Briana.

She drank up those words as if they were the oasis she'd been deprived of, her body going flush against his, leaning into that gentle kiss. A kiss that seemed to encapsulate the love that'd grown between them over the many years they'd known one another, a love that dared to stand in defiance of everything they had lost — and everything they still stood to lose.

They would endure, they could endure, but they wouldn't do it alone anymore.

The last thing she wanted was for that closeness to end, but when it did, a wide smile broke across her visage like a rare glint of sunlight on Umbara, cerulean eyes glimmering with unshed tears.

"I'm very happy to hear it, Bri," Aiden told her as his forehead rested against her. "It's going to take time to plan out and I'm sure it'll have its own challenges, but... it'll be so worth it."

"Facing challenges and overcoming obstacles is sort of our thing, isn't it?" she whispered in the breath shared between them, letting out a soft laugh and squeal when he said those words again, sweeping her from the ground with the ease of a titan and into the massive cradle of his embrace.

"Aiden Rennek." Briana began, her tone taking on one of feigned offense as she pushed one hand against the hard plane of his chest. "Are you insinuating that there's something more appetizing than the culinary master piece I've prepared for us?" She raised a manicured brow, her cerulean eyes sparkling with a teasing glint, taking on the challenge that laid between them.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Corellia

​

Facing challenges and overcoming obstacles is sort of our thing, isn't it?"

Aiden smirked, "It is, but I do hope those obstacles involve less of me getting stabbed in the future." From being stabbed and thrown into the gutter to being nearly killed by a Vampire, his luck had really been terrible. But at least, every time he did find himself in danger like that, he had someone who would be there for him. Aiden appreciated it and loved her for it, but now he hoped that he could do something for her in return.

Even though he knows that's not something she needs from him at all. She'd risk her life for him every time, and never expect him to repay her for it. For now, he didn't really want to think more about it and lifted her off the ground, which sparked a reaction he had been expecting.

But he knew she loved it.

"Oh there is," Aiden said with that naturally deep voice of his, before slowly leaning in closer to whisper into her ear, "And I'm looking at her right now." He shifted, making it seem as if he was about to pull her into another kiss, but he stopped just shy of her lips and grinned wide. His eyes made contact with her own as he denied her what he knew she'd want, just to make sure she knew that despite her teasing, he was in charge right now.

And he was going to make her squeal.

"Come on, let's have some fun, babe." He kept his eyes locked with her a moment longer, flashed his grin, and carried her off to the bedroom.

...
"Yeah, your eggs aren't beating that," he joked with a deep chuckle, as he rested on his back with his hands behind his head. A content sigh then escaped his lips, before he glanced over and reached out to wrap an arm around her. These were the moments he'd cherish the most, and a part of him wished they could last forever.

"We could go grab lunch somewhere though, if you're still hungry?"

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location:
Tag: Aiden Rennek

Briana couldn't say how long they'd laid there, as if they did indeed have all the time in the world. Her face was still slightly damp, hair a splayed mess, and her legs tangled up between the mess of sheets and strewn bed clothes, nuzzling in tightly to the crook of his arm as she drew lazy circles across his chest and abdomen. Content to lay there quietly with him and listen to the sound of his heartbeat against her ear, eyes closed with a lightly blissful and contented smile on her face.

When his baritone voice finally broke the silence, it felt as though she were being pulled from a dream, lashes fluttering open to take in their surroundings as if she'd only just realized that whatever had remained of the early morning when they started, had been swallowed up by the sun — buttery-gold rays filtering through the small cracks of their closed curtains. With a reluctant groan she flipped onto her stomach and propped herself up onto her elbows, her gaze slowly panning up to his face...

And swallowing, her blood warming all over again. How does he look even more handsome with bed hair?

"Well, we both know that cooking has never been my strong suit, so I'll give you that... this time." a half fiendish grin spread across her lips, leaning up to kiss his exposed neck before proceeding to gently poke his side, "lunch does sound tempting," she admitted, "Think we can have lunch and not leave this room?" But before the thought and its implications could be fully considered, her stomach gave an embarrassingly audible gurgle of protest. "Ooorr... maybe my stomach has other ideas about which hunger is more important." Briana conceded, feigning a look of mild annoyance. "What about that new place down by the Golden Beaches," with practiced grace she rose from the bed in one fluid motion, silken sheets slipping to the floor as she reached for her robe and draped it back over her slender shoulders. "They do those sabacc tournaments, I think?"

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Corellia

​

"You want seconds already?" Aiden teased with a wide grin, but the sound of her stomach growling shifted his entire expression into a deep laugh. As fun as it was to have breakfast here, he did actually need some proper food too, or it was going to be hard to keep up with her. So he made the motion to sit up in bed himself, only to stop when she rolled over and got out of bed. Shamelessly, he watched her with a smile, and got up right after her to put on some casual clothes.

Jeans, a clean white shirt and some shoes to fit the look.

"I don't think I've heard of that new place before, but sounds good to me. I'm sure it'll be better than the bars that I used to get lunch at." And, well, beer in the morning, afternoon and evening, but he was going to leave that part out. She already knew anyway, given the fact she found him drunk and stabbed in a gutter once.

"They do those sabacc tournaments, I think?"

Aiden turned to watch her change into her choice of clothes and grinned, "Let me guess, you want to play a game against me? The Master of Sabacc," he said, purely to issue the challenge and get her fired up about it. "As long as you keep those Jedi mind tricks to yourself, I'd be down to play."

Aiden then walked over, stopped right behind her and settled his hands on her waist, He leaned in close, and lowered his deep voice into a whisper, "Don't forget to fix up your hair. It's pretty obvious what happened to it now." He winked, stood up straight again and headed into the living room.

Knowing Briana, it could take at least 30 minutes before she was ready. But when she'd inevitably step through the doors again, he knew he'd be blown away by her.

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Corellia
Tag: Aiden Rennek

Briana raised an eyebrow at his self proclaimed title, unable to repress the mischievous smirk that followed. "Master of Sabacc, huh?" She loved riling up that competitive side of him, and when his nature collided with her own equally bold spirit, the resulting storm that followed was often a very potent force to be reckoned with. "Guess we'll just have to see about that, won't we? Just don't be too upset when you're eating your words later — along with your lunch." She added smugly, an involuntary shiver skittering up her spine as his hands landed on her waist, "And don't worry, for this, I don't need Jedi mind tricks to win."

A soft blush dusted over her skin from the mentioning of her tousled hair, the warmth of his breath against her ear intensifying the sensation. "Maybe I should make you fix it, since you're the one who's responsible for the mess it's in." she countered, stubbornly striving to keep her expression schooled so as not to give him the satisfaction of knowing just how effortlessly he could make her melt.

When he left the room to allow her to get ready, Briana turned to her side of the closet. The variety of clothing she kept at Aiden's apartment was less than a fraction of her entire wardrobe, the major wealth of it back on Naboo — an arrangement that'd soon be changing.

With that last thought in mind, she began shuffling through her dresses. Many items she kept on Corellia had been worn on multiple occasions; however, there was one particular piece she'd acquired during her last visit with her cousin Ajinar on Hapes that she'd been waiting for the right moment to unveil, and moving in together seemed like a fitting event. Reaching towards the back, Briana extracted a sleek black bag containing that special garment, and gently bit her lip, immediately setting off to get ready.

A hair-tick before an hour fully passed, Briana emerged, clad in a form-fitting white dress that highlighted the curve of her hips to waist ratio, paired with a daring V-neck that was only partially obscured by the cascade of curls of she'd decided to leave loose for once. "Well?" she asked, raising a brow at him as a small smirk twitched up on the side of her lips. "Ready whenever you are."

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Corellia

​

"Master of Sabacc, huh?"

"You heard me," Aiden said with a smug grin, purely to poke at her competitive side some more. She could try all she wanted to rile him up, and to an extent it worked, but he knew he'd win at least this battle. Very few people were more competitive than Briana Sal-Soren, after all.

He loved that part about her.

After making his way over to tease her some more about her hair, he flashed another grin from the doorway, "You invited my trouble, so it's really your fault, babe." He waggled his eyebrows and left her alone to get dressed and ready for a day out. It... would take some time, but Aiden wasn't really in a rush. Having to wait and look at the clock for once whilst being around her was a welcomed change of pace.

It sure beat looking at the clock to see when he'd finally be able to see her again.

Soon enough, Aiden's gaze was pulled up as he heard the door open, and as quickly as he could, he pretended to be looking down at his watch. "Ah, that took you long enou-" he stopped mid sentence as his eyes fell on her, and whatever teasing comment was about to follow got lost somewhere along the path from his brain to his tongue. He cleared his throat, stood up and walked over to her, just to get a closer look.

"Damn," he said rather bluntly, and as hard as he tried to resist, he felt his eyes dropping down from her gaze to her chest. He blinked, shook his head to snap out of it, and looked back up to meet the smirk on her face with his own, "You look amazing, but I know what you're doing."

"You're not beating me at Sabacc, babe." His grin widened and gently, he took her hand to squeeze it. "But let's go, before I drag you back into the bedroom again."

Briana Sal-Soren ​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo
Equipment: Lightsaber
Location: Corellia
Tag: Aiden Rennek

"Damn,"

His words sounded as rough and unpolished as the universe itself, the corners of her lips quirking upwards, just barely, observing his eyes momentarily lose orbit before regaining their disciplined trajectory, snapping back from the intended gravitational pull of her dress with the efficiency of a starfighter escaping a tractor beam. "You look amazing, but I know what you're doing."

The implicated accusation was correct, of course, but Briana surprisingly managed to keep an impassive expression, innocently batting her kohl-stained lashes up at him. "I'm not sure what you mean, I simply wanted to look my best."

"You're not beating me at Sabacc, babe. But let's go, before I drag you back into the bedroom again."

At that, Briana couldn't help but laugh, latching on to the challenge as she followed him out the door and onto the bustling streets of Corellia, her fingers laced lovingly between his. "So you're really that confident, hm? How about we make things a bit more interesting with a friendly little wager then?" The ease of their banter, the normalcy of this moment — it made Briana's heart surge, kept her a float. The earlier darkness that'd consumed her waking thoughts were almost entirely banished to the nether, replaced by a growing warmth that spread from her heart to her toes.

While part of her wished the decision to move in together hadn't been made against the backdrop of so much tragedy, Briana could more clearly see the light of the future with him.

In an ideal Galaxy, she'd stretch this liminal moment of joy forever.