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Permission Slip

Chapter 3

Notes:

Hello! The first week of the semester was killer but I'm (tentatively) back and updating! I hope you enjoy!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Logan's ideas of schemes were different from Poe's. He had to hand it to the kid-- he was creative, suggesting ways to get his dad and Miss Kenobi in the same room again, be it by misbehaving and requiring a parent-teacher meeting, or something more direct, like pushing them into a closet and not letting them out unless they kiss.

 

Logan also had drawn up said plan with his extra nice colored pencils, carefully scribbling as the bus had rumbled on, sitting by the window, his godfather blocking any outside eyes from so much as peeking. While Poe appreciated the thoroughness, he also knew that these drawings would definitely never make it on the fridge, because this mission was too secret.

 

In the end, Poe had decided to take a more direct approach-- open communication. Logan had scoffed at him, asked where the fun was in that, before scooting out of the bus seat to join his class again.

 

Maybe it wasn't as daring, wasn't as bold, but Poe knew what would work and what wouldn't. Locking a parent and a co-teacher in the janitorial closet would be hilarious, but really only effective in pissing two close friends off and possibly resulting in him losing his job.

 

So, yes, Poe decided to be safe, bide his time, wait for things to settle. The time came now, Ben kicked back on the couch, nursing a beer and looking very much like someone about to be ambushed.

 

“So, you survived your first field trip. How you feeling, papa?” Poe grinned at Ben, plopping on the couch beside him, the other man sighing and clinking his beer bottle against his, a weary cheers. 

 

The bus ride back to school had been more than a few hours ago, but Poe-- Mr. D, as his students called him-- still buzzed with excitement. It had been a good field trip, with only one kid having to be put in a time out (Jimmy, who couldn’t seem to keep his damn tongue to himself). He always enjoyed sharing science with his kids, and to do it with extra resources and hands on experiences...well, nothing could compare.

 

It always felt this way after a field trip, and Poe wondered if the adrenaline high he was coming down from was similar to that of athletes after the big game or performers after the big show.

 

Still, he couldn’t shake off the rush of nerves that had been building up since his silent agreement with Logan. He cast a sidelong look to Ben, his longest and best friend in the world, and tried to work up the courage to push the man to make a risk.

 

Ben had been there for Poe at every major turn of his life-- college, coming out, becoming a teacher, marrying the love of his life. Hell, Logan had been around for the last one, serving as ring-bearer as best man Ben had pushed him down the aisle. So it felt right for it to be Poe to usher the Solo boys into the newest adventure-- dating as a single parent.

 

Logan had tossed his godfather a look when he asked Finn to do storytime tonight, and even though the kid wasn’t quite nine-years-old yet, Poe had to admit that he was too smart for his own good. It was a rather good time to broach the topic of a certain co-teacher of his, the evening sun having finished setting in the distance, a pizza dinner cleaned up and put away.

 

Better yet, Ben was hosting, and Poe was banking on that. A man couldn’t exactly walk away from a conversation in his own home, with his son tucked in bed a few rooms away. 

 

Ben still hadn’t answered Poe’s question, but he didn’t mind: it was the guy’s first time chaperoning a field trip, an event that felt like the Boston marathon and a last-minute school presentation rolled into one. The fact that he wasn’t guzzling his beer down, trying to drink to forget, was already a good sign.

 

Ben wiped his lips, grimaced, “I think my back is fucked up from those damn seats. I don’t remember buses being so small.”

 

“Well, yeah, bud. You make the rest of us look like hobbits.” Poe grinned, shrugging off the sour look he was being treated to now. “Still, you can’t beat some quality time with your kid as he discovers the wonders of education.”

 

“I guess you’re right.” They clinked their bottles again, lapsed into comfortable silence, though it was clear that there was something hanging in the air. 

 

A thought? A question? A confession? Poe wasn’t sure, but he did know that, whatever it was, it had to be coaxed from Ben. He had gotten better since Logan’s birth, but sometimes, feelings were a foreign territory to Solo. Unknown terrain, even though he felt so damn much. 

 

Poe would know. He had seen the man go through at least three break-ups while living together. Ben Solo having feelings wasn’t always a pleasant picture.

 

It was Finn who broke the silence, his partner emerging from Logan’s room and padding down the hallway, his voice just quiet enough to not be shushed by the dad or teacher. “Have you asked him about Rey yet?”

 

Poe wasn’t quite sure who the question was addressed to, only that Ben’s eyes bugged out for a moment and his own jaw was currently sweeping the floor. His husband, to his credit, seemed unperturbed, passing them on his way to the refrigerator, a beer on his mind, feelings and complications be damned.

 

They were still aghast, staring at Finn when he returned, Heineken in hand. He raised an eyebrow at them, his question innocent enough as he popped the top off. “What?”

 

Ben recovered first, his head shake frantic. “There’s nothing with Miss Kenobi.”

 

“Bullshit.” The word was out of Poe’s mouth before he knew what to do with it, and he ignored his friend’s frown. “Anyone could see that you like her.”

 

He jerked a thumb over to Finn, who was settling himself in the la-Z-boy recliner, sighing with satisfaction. “Finn had his hands full with mini-Hannibal and could still see that you were trying to eyefuck Rey.”

 

“With no regard for the children,” Finn commented wryly, taking a gulp of his beer, even as Ben glared at them both. 

 

He ran a hand through his hair, huffed, glared for a moment longer before his shoulders slumped. He chuckled, defeated, “Yeah, it was pretty obvious, wasn’t it?”

 

“So obvious. The last time I saw you act like such a fool, we were in high school and you were about to risk your braces for the chance to make out with head cheerleader Kelly O’Mara,” Poe joked, Finn wrinkling his nose at his husband.

 

“Hey, in Ben’s defense, I bet Rey is prettier than the head cheerleader, any day of the week.”

 

“She is,” they agreed in tandem, Ben’s ears pinking with the admission.

 

“So what’s the plan, big guy? Will we be seeing you at after-school pick up a lot more often?” Ben was already shaking his head at him, just like Poe knew he would, and he rolled his eyes. “C’mon, buddy. Even Logan is on board. What’s stopping you?”

 

“Well, gee, Poe, let me list the reasons,” Ben snarked, long fingers peeling at his beer label anxiously. “For one thing, she’s teaching my son, so it’s totally unprofessional. For another, I only met her today. Not exactly enough time to really know someone.”

 

“Sure it is. You felt the click, didn’t you?” Poe asked, feeling Finn lean forward in his seat with anticipation. Ben, for not being good with feelings, was a romantic at his core. If you got him drunk enough (which Poe had, many a time, in college), he would rant and rave about soulmates, about just knowing when you found your person.

 

Poe had played devil’s advocate several times, but that had come to an end after he met Finn. The click was real. And as he watched his friend’s brow furrow, his mouth crumple slightly, he knew, even if Ben denied it, that he had. 

 

“I don’t know, guys. I just met her,” he protested weakly.

 

“Well, there’s only one way to fix that. You have to meet her again.” Poe nodded along with his husband, adding now, “And we’re going to help you.”

 

He knew that that statement would get him in trouble later-- he could practically hear Finn chide him, remind him that we’re not matchmakers -- but when you know, you know.

 

Poe was a great teacher because he went with the flow and went with his gut. And right now, he had a really good feeling about this.

 


 

Rose Hux-Tico considers herself quite the expert on certain matters in her life. 

 

For instance, she can look at any child in her nurse’s office at Chandrila Elementary and tell if they’re faking a cough to get out of fourth hour science or if they’re patient zero for the next cold outbreak. 

 

She could tell that the uptight, usually frowning Armitage Hux who taught fourth grade across the hall from her office had a nice smile before he so much as looked at her and she made sure to mention that, frequently, to him to make him blush. (For the record, she also knew when he was going to propose finally, without anyone but herself spoiling the surprise. Not that she’d tell him that-- Armie still was under the impression he had pulled off the greatest grand gesture of love since Mr. Darcy’s second proposal.)

 

And finally, Rose Hux-Tico knew when her best friend and Armie’s third-grade counterpart, Rey Kenobi, had a little bit of a crush. In fairness to her friend, Rey had little to no poker face after a second glass of wine, and seeing that it was a Friday night after a field trip? Well, she was four glasses in, which Rose was quite alright with.

 

After all, it made it much easier to grill her about a certain rumor that Armitage had brought home from school, which was simply: “There was a hot dad on Rey’s field trip today.”

 

For self-professed expert Rose, that was enough. 

 

So yes, she invited Rey over for dinner. Yes, she made sure her friend’s wineglass was topped off at all times (she certainly wasn’t drinking-- not with a baby on the way, which was a surprise she was definitely keeping a secret better than Armie had with his proposal). And of course she waited for Armitage to do the dishes so he wouldn’t be in the living room to block her from interrogating the light of their lives. 

 

“If you wanted a sleepover, Rose, you could have just asked,” Rey teased, her eyes twinkling as she sipped her wine. Her cheeks were flushed just a shade darker than the rose in her cup, and Rose had to keep her smile from becoming a smirk.

 

Operation Get the Deets was a go.

 

“Well, I didn’t know how worn out you’d be after the field trip,” she soothed, Rey beaming at her before raising her cup to her lips again.

 

It was a gamble, assuming Rey’s feelings on the situation-- Armitage had only said that the dad was hot, not that he was single or that Rey was interested. However, Rey was like a little sister to Armitage, had been his best man at their wedding (Rose is still sore about losing that round of rock-paper-scissors, but if all goes to plan, maybe Rey will ask her to be her maid of honor and even it out). Armie, as much as he’d insist he’s staying out of Rey’s love life, also had her best intentions at heart, and only would have mentioned it if Rey had gone out of her way to tell him.

 

So for that reason-- her husband’s endorsement, though he’d deny it forever and a day-- Rose pushed on, clearing her throat and murmuring, “Especially since a little birdie said there was a dad that caught your eye?”

 

The result was instantaneous, Rey whipping her head away to spit wine across the carpet, looking to Rose now dumbfounded, embarrassed, befuddled. Most of all though, she looked caught, her cheeks flushing darker, her eyes seeming to glaze over for a second in thought, surely on the mystery man.

 

 Rose glanced at the damage, thanked the gods of planning and romantic interventions that it wasn’t a Merlot, and sipped her water, pleased.

 

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

Notes:

More of Rose and Rey next chapter, but I definitely wanted to introduce Rose to the mix! (Especially since a certain director and screenwriter decided to sideline KMT...but we don't have time to unpack all that.)

Thanks for reading, and hope to see you soon!

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