You couldn't hide your nerves and confusion from anyone, not even Xian. So, that evening, you confined yourself to your room instead of going down to the casino as you usually did. Ever since the first run in with this masked stranger, you were unsure of what to do. It was a miracle you even knew who he was, considering you had been living on Canto Bight for so long.

Word about the Resistance and the First Order never really spread. The only news that was welcome here was gossip that had been twisted and changed fifty times over. No one who lived here really cared about those problems. They would rather continue living their lives thinking that everything was perfect. It was their own little galaxy and sometimes it felt as though Canto was cut off from the rest of the universe. The only people who knew of these things were regulars and the workers, whose only real jobs were to keep clients in their own naive worlds.

Canto Bight was full of dark secrets and mysterious happenings. This wasn't surprising since it was constantly overflowing with new people. You had been around long enough to know things that many didn't. Meeting so many men and women because of your work was not uncommon and each person was different than the last. Many of them were dealers, spice-runners, or smugglers of some sort. Some only dealt with drugs, bounty-hunting, or credits. Others dealt with... heavier problems. Illegal weapons trading for the First Order, work for crime syndicates, trafficking, slavery, and other things that made your hair stand on end. Everything on this planet was just a facade for its dark past and present.

But this... this was a new level of threat. If the commander of the First Order found out where you lived, you were sure he would flatten the entire planet to get to you. He had a reputation for being a cold-blooded murderer. Kylo Ren hunted down all known Force-Users in order to ensure that no more Jedi could attempt to stop him. It felt strange knowing you were one of the last ones to ever exist. No, you remind yourself silently, I left that all behind the day Ben- you swallow -died. And I left everything behind me. It's all gone now.

You remembered it all vividly. Master Skywalker had come to you the morning after the incident. He had explained everything in detail, including Ben's death. You remembered bursting into tears and taking a ship to get away from that island. You remembered ripping the kyber crystal from your lightsaber and crushing it to dust. The empty hilt was now lying somewhere at the bottom of the ocean. It was then that you realized you were better off abandoning all of your previous beliefs. It would be better to forget your training and move on. You vowed never to look back on the Jedi again. Yes, the Force still flowed through your body. You were always strong when it came down to using it, but you hadn't really given thought to it since you stopped drinking and wasting your tears on grief.

A shudder travels through your body as you think back to the sound of Kylo Ren's voice from inside of his helmet. You imagined the most vile, disgusting being to be underneath that black and silver mask. You could already picture the wispy gray hair and saggy facial features. Horrible scars twisting all over his body and sunken eyes that glowed with anger. He probably smelled of decay and blood beneath his robes. He must have been the most horrible, hideous creature in the galaxy. You fold your arms tightly over your chest and bite your lip. You didn't want to picture what he would do to you. If you didn't comply, he would kill everyone you cared for, before finally torturing you or frying your brain. Then his lightsaber would slice you in half or take your head clean off your shoulders. At least it would be a quick death, you think miserably.

You jump when you hear a knock on your door. You slowly stand up from the edge of your bed, shaking your head at your foolishness.

"I don't think Kylo Ren would knock," you mutter to yourself.

Without an invitation, the door swings open and Xian dashes inside. He was clutching a fist full of colorful flyers in one hand and a glass of alcohol in the other.

"You really have to stop leaving me without saying anything." He chuckles, planting a kiss on your lips. He tasted of alcohol. "I won't ask about your problems this time, don't worry. I'm just here to show you how ridiculous these flyers are getting. I found seven shoved under my door today. Seven! Three more in the bathrooms and a bunch scattered over the ground outside. They're really desperate to advertise their little party, huh?"

You glance at your nightstand. Earlier you had scooped one off of your floor, but you hadn't really looked at it. You pick up the bright red pamphlet and stare at the massive words scrawled across the top.

"What's so special about this party?" You frown. "They don't stop partying here. Ever."

"150th annual celebration! 150 years of this casino deserves to be celebrated, don't you think? It's tomorrow, which means we don't have to work. What do you say? Go to the party with me?" Xian raises his eyebrows and staggers towards you, his drink sloshing in his glass.

"Alright, alright," you chuckle as you brace your palms on his chest to keep him at bay. You figured this would be a good distraction. "I'll go with you. Only if you sober up by the time it rolls around. Then you can get wasted again."

He grins. "Deal! Now, why don't we continue where we left off last night? When you left me here I was sporting a massive bon-"

You clasp your hand over his mouth. "I don't want to fuck you when you're drunk, Xian. That's not how I want this to be."

Xian sighs and pouts, but he drunkenly complies and staggers toward the door. "See you tomorrow, doll!"

You run a hand through your hair and sigh, sitting back down on the edge of your bed. Sometimes, you didn't know what to do with him. Your relationship was... strange, to say the least. All you did was sleep with each other and neither of you acted on it yet. There were no romantic dates or dinners. It was easy to think that he was just using you for sex, but you knew Xian wasn't the type of guy to do that. At least you would get to go to this party together and hopefully you could establish some things there. Besides, it would be a good distraction from Kylo Ren and the awakening in the Force. You just had to hope you didn't connect with him again.