Missing Piece

12. Jerk face

  I had just come out of Hux his office. I had to show my updated blueprints, which I didn't have.
  Luckily he was in a good mood, he understood my situation and gave me another chance.
  The General had insisted on me being escorted by a stormtrooper to the engineers and technicians office.
  So that's where I was going, until the stormtrooper did something very dumb.
  "Waddup, Matt?"
  I hadn't noticed that the technician working on something was Matt, but the stormtrooper did.
  He kicked Matt's wrench away.
  "Hey! You kicked my wrench!"
  The stormtrooper ignored him and continued walking.
Matt muttered agitatedly, "jerk face."
  But I didn't allow this, that jerk didn't get to bully my friend! I stopped the stormtrooper.
  Even Matt looked up at our direction.
  I pointed my finger at the stormtrooper's chest "How dare you distract a technician from their work?!"
  The stormtrooper slapped my hand away. "Calm down, feisty one."
  I shook my head. "Have you thought about the consequences?"
   Blank silence.
  "I thought so. Did you know that if he isn't able to work, you could get hurt? What if he's trying to fix a gas leak? Imagine that you're asleep and wake up surrounded by poisonous gas... Not even your helmet can save you."
  I wasn't done.
  "Oh, and this specific radar technician is befriended with the fearsome and powerful Kylo Ren. I'd think twice before bothering him..."
  The stormtrooper took a step closer. "Is that a threat?"
  I copied his action, our faces just centimeters apart. "Of course that's a threat, you dumb ass. You bullied my friend." My tone sounded deathly calm. "No one gets to bully my friend."
  "I'll show you your place." The stormtrooper pulled his arm back, but the hit never came.
  Matt had taken his arm and turned it behind his back. "Don't you dare touch my friend," Matt hissed close to his ear.
  The stormtrooper turned around and retracted his arm from his hold.
  Matt and the stormtrooper stood chest to chest, Matt was both taller and built broader.
  Before anything could happen, General Hux appeared from around the corner. "What's happening here?"
  Neither responded.
  "Head Technician?" Hux turned to me.
  "Ehm nothing, they're old friends who haven't seen each other for a while. They were about to give each other a hug." I would have slapped myself if Hux hadn't been there.
  Old friends? Hugging? Is that the best I could come up with? Might want to work on that.
  "Well gentlemen, don't stop because of me. Give each other that wanted hug."
  I didn't know if I heard it well, but Hux sounded very, very amused.
  Matt doubted, but the stormtrooper didn't, he knew what was at stake. The trooper embraced Matt, and Matt had to hug back.
  I felt the tension between them, sharp as a blade.
  Matt sent the stormtrooper a last glare before heading back to work.
  "HR 6380." Hux addressed the trooper without bothering to turn his gaze. "You are dismissed."
  The soldier walked as fast as possible, away from the capricious General.
  "Let me escort you to the office, where you can work on your blueprints." Hux's gaze slid to Ren. "Unbothered."
  I nodded and walked beside to the General.
  "How is your bond with that particular radar technician?"
  I had to suppress my eyebrow from rising. "Sorry, sir?" The formality slipped in, his name being preserved for private conversations.
Hux began walking closer to me. "Your connection with the radar technician. Don't deny it, please." He read my mind.
I shrugged. What's the worst that could happen? "We're friends, I guess."
  Hux and I stopped in front of the technicians office.
  My hand was on its way to the door-button when Hux grabbed it.
  I looked at him, questioning.
  "I wish to warn you, I don't want anything to happen to one of my best... engineers."
  I didn't know how to react, warn me for what? "If you say so, sir."
  Hux made a sharp turn and walked away.
  With my thoughts still on what just happened, I went back to work.

  Finally done and on my way to Hux's office to deliver the finished blueprints, I saw him.
  A familiar stormtrooper sat against a wall. Stormtroopers don't usually sit half-dead against walls so I rushed towards him, having put my blueprints in my pocket.
  I took his helmet off and checked his pulse. It was there, but very, very weak.
  "Someone help!!"
  Of all people that could show up, it was, of course, Matt.
  "We need to take him to the infirmary. Help me support him." I supported one side of the trooper as Matt did the other.
  "Do you know this stormtrooper?"
  I raised my eyebrow. "We both know this stormtrooper. It's the one that kicked your wrench today." I motioned the trooper with a nod. "Look at his right boot, it still has a scratch on it."
  Once we finally arrived, a nursing droid took over.
  After we placed the unconscious stormtrooper on the bed, the droid lifted the man's eyelids.
  His eyes were red and puffy.
  "What's made him like this?" I asked the nursing droid.
  "He has been choked, my lady. But the matter that is off, is the fact there aren't any tracks of it."
  The droid pulled the man's collar down and showed his unharmed neck.
  We stayed there for hours, but the stormtrooper didn't make it.

  Matt and I walked through the halls, on our way to dinner.
  He hadn't spoken a word since we had brought the stormtrooper to the infirmary.
He's probably upset. It's hard to see someone like that.
  In reality, Kylo was rethinking his actions. There was something happening to him, he knew it. It made him impulsive.
  But the regret of taking the life of one of his own men was small in comparison to the regret of letting him walk and bring (Y/n) in danger.
  I'll try to take his mind off of it.
  "Hey Matt, what where you doing before you helped me with the trooper?"
  Matt's composure tensioned. "I ehm, just technician stuff. You know. I don't know how it's called." He was aware of the gaps in his explanation. "You know me."
I placed my hand on his shoulder, blaming it on the traumatic experience.
"Don't worry Matt, we did all we could for the trooper. The droid did all it could do. He was beyond saving. Try to get some distraction, I know it can be hard, as a technician you usually don't get to see this kind of violence."
Matt's shoulders relaxed. He was saved. "You're right."
I send him a calming smile. But then I remembered what I was doing before I encountered the stormtrooper.
"I'm sorry, but I can't eat dinner with you. I still have to bring the final blueprints to the General." I took the slightly wrinkled blueprints out of my pocket.
Matt nodded, seemingly forced. "See you around."