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It was the fourth time today the man had stepped in front of the mirror, slightly correcting his makeup or shaking out his blond hair again. Din didn’t understand it, really. The young man was gorgeous. Thin, on the shorter side, well-built, blond with gorgeous blue eyes.
Seeing him was the only reason Din decided to look in the mirror on a daily basis. Of course, going to meetings with Grogu’s teacher or talking to someone important negated that and he spent a few minutes making himself look decent, but otherwise, mirrors made him uncomfortable. He wasn’t ashamed of how he made money, Grogu’s school was expensive and Din had to work somewhere, but most of the time his own face was too busted up to stand. Getting into the ring gave him adrenaline, made him not care about what happened to him. But the looks he got from people on the street made him anxious, worried. The only place he took off his kerchief was when he was with Grogu, in the ring, or when he was eating.
It made Luke increasingly sad each time the stranger walked away from a mirror. He was sure that the man thought he was crazy, some self-absorbed weirdo who spent all of his time in front of a mirror. And yes, while that was partially true, now he was making trips to the bathroom in an effort just to catch a glance at the other man. The cloth covering his face almost never came off and when it did, Luke found it difficult to look at him. It felt like an invasion of privacy, however strange that sounded. The other man had seen Luke countless times, but the blond found it difficult to lay his eyes upon more than a scruffy beard and a strong, hawk-like nose.
He was startled out of his thoughts by Han honking the horn of his old Jeep from outside. Luke grabbed his things and quickly locked the door behind him, putting on his jacket as he stepped down the few stairs leading to the street.
“Jesus it’s cold, Han,” he muttered, leaning to buckle his seatbelt and turn the heat up.
“Shouldn’t have worn that crop-top, kid. I don’t make the rules,” the brunet shrugged. Luke rolled his eyes with a smile as Han took the next left to wherever dingy place they were going. The two eventually pulled up to a sketchy-looking building with pounding music and a flickering light outside. Once they found their way in, Han haggled for seats near the front so that they could both see.
Luke was a bit lost in the atmosphere; the smell of sweat and cigar smoke, the soaked-with-sweat shirts and the dim, yellow lights. He registered Han talking to him at some point.
“I mean this guy has never lost a fight! Never shows his face neither, bet he’s a mean, ugly-looking bastard. But he always wins, so my money’s always on him.”
“Isn’t it illegal to bet on these fights?”
“Luke, even parts of my car are technically illegal. What sort of ex-con man would I be if I didn’t keep around some parts of the old way?”
“Leia wouldn’t be happy to hear that, Han.”
“What the princess doesn’t know can’t hurt her,” the brunet said as he sat back in his seat, watching the two men in the ring dance around each other.
Three suspicious drinks later, Luke found himself being shaken, Han’s excitement expressed through physical means.
“Look at him, kid!”
Han was pointing to a tan, dark-haired man with a silver kerchief tied around the lower half of his face. He wore a white tank top and a pair of shorts barely long enough to be considered appropriate.
“He’s totally your type,” Han smirked. Luke rolled his eyes as he realized that Han was completely right.
Mando, as he was called, looked his opponent up and down; a gangly and tall fellow called Greedo.
“Greedo is a cheat,” Han had told him on the way in. “Maybe Mando can knock him down a few pegs.”
Luke sat up straighter as the fight began, watching the two throw and dodge punches and fists. A few minutes, maybe five or seven, had passed and neither was on the ground yet. No lead had been made clear, although it looked like Mando was getting the upper hand before he looked out and made eye contact with Luke. Then he slipped up, stumbled. Luke vaguely heard Han swear from beside him. The young blond wasn’t sure what was wrong with him, what had happened, but a sort of haze fell over him. He decided to blame it on the drinks.
He couldn’t pay attention to the rest of the fight but he knew that Han was happy, so Mando had to have won. The brunet was still grumbling though, about how he hadn’t ever seen him stumble before. Somehow, Luke found himself in his home, in his bathroom. He was washing the alcohol, sweat, and smoke off of his small body before catching a glance of the man he always saw in the mirror. He leaned over, trying to see more of his familiar face, but was unsuccessful. Luke shook his head and continued rinsing out his hair.
It was only when he was lying in bed did he truly think about the night and the haze that had settled over his brain. He wasn’t entirely sure what to make of it, and he was too tired to think anymore. Luke set his alarm and quickly fell into a dreamless sleep.
The next night had been running smoothly. Sometimes the restaurant worked like oiled cogs, flowing from one task to another, each part doing their own task. It was common for Luke to lose himself in nights of work, lose himself in countless orders and plastered on smiles and hastily scrawled down orders. That night had been the same. Quiet really, until Luke caught a flash of dark hair, and then he’d stopped cold, staring helplessly.
Could it be—
The man from the mirror. Yes, that was him. Luke was positive. No cloth covering his face, and he was shifting in his seat as if that fact made him uncomfortable. There was a woman with him that Luke didn’t recognize, but if he was honest, Luke barely saw her. He only saw the way the man’s hair curled slightly, the way he dragged a hand through it, the slight smile he gave when the woman across the table said something to him.
“Hello?” the woman in front of him asked, forcing Luke out of his thoughts to see her sitting at a nearby table snapping at him, foot tapping impatiently for extra measure. “Are you going to take my order or should I sit here all night?”
The table. Yes, he’d been going to her table. “I’m so sorry,” Luke said, snapping out of it and handing her and her date their menus. “I’m Luke, I’ll be-”
“I don’t need a menu. I come here all the time.”
Luke had certainly never seen her, but he gave her an apologetic smile nonetheless. “Alright, what can I get for you?” he asked, grabbing his notepad.
“I don’t like your attitude, young man,” she said, pursing her lips. “I want to speak with your manager.”
“Jan, we don’t need to do this,” the man next to her started, but she fixed her gaze on him and he fell quiet too.
“Of course,” Luke told her, “I’ll be right back.”
As he headed toward the back, his cheeks flushed with embarrassment. He’d never had a complaint before. Even now, he couldn’t get his man off the man he’d seen, though.
He was still distracted. Thousands of things floated around his mind, situations, exchanged words that might happen. They affected him so much that he crashed straight into Leia, who dropped the bottle of champagne she held. The glass hit the ground and shattered, flooding the floor with the liquid.
“Shit! Are you okay?” Luke exclaimed, cheeks burning.
“I’m fine,” Leia said, “You?”
“Yeah,” Luke replied, “Sorry, Leia.” Impulsively, he knelt down and tried to scoop the glass together, frantically trying to reduce the amount of mess he’d created.
“Wait, don’t do that!” Leia exclaimed, “You’re going to get hurt!”
Sure enough, as Luke stilled, blood began to drip from his hand. It wasn’t a very large cut, but it stung, and Luke winced as he closed his hand into a fist. Leia was still staring at him as if expecting an explanation for his behavior, but he couldn’t even explain to her why he’d done that. Even he really didn’t know. He couldn’t get his mind off of that man.
“Sorry,” he said again, and she pressed a napkin into his palm, giving him an apologetic look when he grimaced.
“You don’t need to be sorry,” she said, “It was an accident. Keep pressure on that cut, I’ll clean this up.”
“I owe you one,” Luke told her, but she shook her head, blowing a strand of hair out of her face.
“As if you haven’t helped me a million times,” she smiled. “Don’t worry about it, okay?”
“Okay,” Luke replied, giving her a nod then heading back to the manager’s office.
Giving a knock at the door, he heard Bail’s voice on the other side, telling him to come in.
Luke gingerly opened the door and saw Bail at the desk, going through some papers.
“Hi,” Luke said softly, not knowing where to start. At this, Bail looked up from his papers and gave him a smile.
“Luke?” Bail asked, expression faltering a bit as he saw Luke’s face. “What can I do for you?”
“Table 19 wants to see a manager,” Luke told him, and Bail gave a sigh, rising from the desk.
“People are testy tonight,” he said, giving Luke’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I’ll take care of it. Just check in on your other tables.”
“Oh, and Bail?” Luke stammered, hesitation flooding his voice. “Can I take table 23?”
Confusion spread across Bail’s face for a moment, but it melted away. “That’s Leia’s table,” he informed Luke. “You’ll have to ask her.”
“Alright,” Luke replied. “I will. Thank you.”
Bail stared at him for a moment, his gaze drifting down to Luke’s hand, where Leia’s napkin was still pressed tight. “Are you alright?” he asked, brow creasing in concern. “What happened?”
“I’m fine,” Luke assured him, clenching the napkin tighter. “It’s not very bad. I, uh, bumped into Leia and some Champagne got dropped. I was trying to clean it and I got cut by some of the glass. I’ll grab a band-aid.”
But Bail’s concern only increased. “Listen,” he said, “I know it’s been a long night. Get a band-aid on that cut, and then you can head home. We’ll be alright.”
“No!” Luke said quickly. “I mean—can I just finish up my tables? And table 23?”
“If you’re sure,” Bail said hesitantly, giving him a strange look, “Just… take care of yourself.”
“I will,” Luke confirmed, and with that, Bail was gone. Luke got himself gathered, cleaning out his cut and then putting a band-aid on it the best that he could, wrapping it in some tape so it didn’t immediately come off. Palms weren’t quite an ideal place for them.
“What’s with you tonight?” Cassian asked him, looking up from the dish he was making.
“What do you mean?” Luke asked distractedly, flexing his fingers to see if his hand would stay put.
“Something’s off about you,” Cassian elaborated, “You’re… somewhere else, you know?”
“I’m just tired,” Luke told him, and he let his exhaustion slip to his shoulders so it would look convincing. “It’s been a long night.”
Cassian didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t say anything more, just focused his attention back to the dish.
Luke, satisfied with his hand, headed back onto the floor, finding Leia on the floor.
“Hey, do you mind if I take table 23?” he asked, and he sounded much more desperate than he meant to.
“Why?” Leia asked, then shook her head. “You know what, I don’t care. You can have it. Haven’t gotten over to them yet, but they don’t seem very troublesome.”
“Thanks,” Luke told her, taking in a deep breath. His hands were shaking as he took out his notepad, but he willed himself to be calm as he headed toward the table.
“Hi, sorry for the wait,” Luke said, placing the menus at the table. “I’m Luke and I’ll be taking care of you two tonight.”
When the man looked up and met his eyes, he froze in place. The dark-haired woman with him gave Luke an understanding smile.
“It’s not a problem,” she said, and Luke barely managed to give her a nod of acknowledgement.
“Well,” Luke said, “Can I get you anything to drink?” He was having a great deal of trouble tearing his eyes away from the man, from the half-smile that played upon the man’s lips.
I don’t even know his name, Luke realized, then forced himself to look back to the girl.
“I’ll have whatever you have that’s… actually, you know what? What’s your strongest drink here?” she asked him, her eyes scanning over the drink menu.
“Chardonnay,” Luke said politely, trying not to let the impending smile break out over his face.
“Right,” the woman replied with a soft laugh. “I guess I’ll have that, then.”
“Right,” Luke said, scrawling it down. His hands were trembling so much that it was nearly incomprehensible, but he paid that no attention. He’d remember it anyway.
“And,” he started, letting his gaze drift back to the man from the mirror, “What can I get you?”
“Oh,” the man said suddenly, looking startled, “Well, I—I, uh…” He trailed off as his grin widened, eyes still fixed on Luke.
“Din,” the girl said pointedly, “What drink are you getting?”
Din, Luke thought breathlessly, that was his name. He was smiling so wide that his cheeks hurt.
The woman looked from Din to Luke, her expression completely bewildered. “I’m missing something here,” she said. “Do you know each other?”
“Well, I—” Luke started, abruptly stopping when he couldn’t find the words to finish the sentence.
“We’ve never met,” Din said, “I just…”
“Yeah,” Luke finished lamely, looking from the paper to Din. “Did you want anything to drink?”
“Water,” Din said, “I’ll just have water.”
“Make that another glass of chardonnay,” the girl said, and Din looked at her in surprise.
“I hate chardonnay, Cara,” he said. So that was her name.
“It’s for me,” Cara replied. “Now that there are two of you, I’ll need it.”
“I’ll add that on,” Luke said, blushing fiercely. “I’ll… I’ll be back.”
With that, he headed to the back and put in the order, feeling stunned beyond words. He wanted to sit and process his thoughts, think of what to say to Din, but his other tables needed attention too. Luckily, they weren’t bad—one only needed their check, and the other had already gotten their food and would be done soon. Luke checked in on them, then returned to the back to grab the order for table 23. Carefully taking the bottle of champagne and the water, he set the glasses down and then poured the chardonnay, thankfully not spilling any of it.
He was insane. He had no idea why he was feeling like this with a man he’d never met, but when Din gave him a smile, Luke’s stomach seemed to flutter, and his cheeks flushed.
“Do you know what you two want to eat?” he asked, positively beaming at Din.
“I'll get that scallop dish,” Cara said, and Luke managed to coax his hand into writing that down before he turned back to Din.
“What do you recommend?” Din asked, and Luke seemed to forget every dish he’d ever eaten.
“Oh, well, I… the filet mignon is good,” he managed, and Din seemed satisfied with that.
“I’ll get that, then,” he said. “I trust your opinion.”
“And how rare would you like it?” Luke asked, his years of being a waiter finally paying off through sheer muscle memory.
“Anything,” Din said. His eyes were warm, soft, crinkled at the edges. Luke took the sight of them in over and over again, trying to memorize them the best he could. It was true that he had seen this man in the mirror a countless number of times, but it was rare that he was ever allowed to look so openly, to take in all the details.
“I’ll put that into the kitchens,” Luke said, and Din and Cara both nodded.
“Thank you,” Cara told him, looking very much done with Din’s behavior.
“Okay,” Luke said, then headed back to the kitchens. He felt like he was floating—he could barely feel the ground underneath him. It was so rare for him to ever have a connection, but with this man, it had happened immediately, and it was stronger than anything Luke had ever felt.
He finished up his other tables, trying his best not to stare at Din. The few occasions he lost the battle, he’d find that Din was looking at him too, shifting when their eyes met. Luke always smiled a little at him, and Din returned an uneasy grin, looking uncomfortable with being so open. When their food finally came up, Luke delivered it down to them, asking if they needed anything else, and Din just stared.
“We’re fine,” Cara said pointedly, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” Luke said automatically, but his gaze was still fixed on Din, who’d looked as though something was on the tip of his tongue. Luke hovered there for a bit, hoping for something he wasn’t even sure of, then caught himself.
“Enjoy,” he said, then beelined toward the back again. This was going to be the longest wait of Luke’s life. There were only so many times he could go check on them without being too obvious, though perhaps that was a moot point. The staring at Din would have given him away much easier than that.
Din. Luke didn’t think he could bear it if Din left tonight and they weren’t able to talk. It was sudden and something that Luke had never done before, but he grabbed a blank piece of paper and wrote his number down on it. Unlike everything else he’d written tonight, he made sure that it was printed neatly, entirely legible. Then he wrote a smiley face next to it, as if that would somehow make this entire situation less awkward.
The wait was agony. Luke couldn’t focus on anything at all, nothing but the fact that Din would be done at some point, and that until then he’d have to sit patiently. Once it seemed they were mostly done, Luke shot to his feet and tried not to walk to the table too fast.
“How is everything?” he asked, voice sounding a bit breathless from anticipation.
“Amazing,” Cara answered, “Thank you.”
Din only nodded, mouth full. Luke couldn’t give him the paper yet, it wasn’t the right time. But he wanted to. Wanted to so badly that it was nearly impossible to tear himself away, to return to his seat in the back as he waited, waited, waited. Then he returned to ask them if they wanted dessert, which they thankfully declined. Luke was half sure that if he’d had to wait any longer, he’d have gone insane. Instead, he cleared their dishes and handed them the check, sliding the paper with his number over to Din.
His hands were shaking like mad, and Din gave him a surprised look. Luke couldn’t find it in himself to say anything—he just gave Din a weak smile and left, heart pounding almost painfully in his chest.
Grabbing his things, he clocked out after talking to Bail a bit more. As he grabbed his phone from his bag, he saw that there was already a text. Luke opened it, feeling as though he couldn’t breathe.
“This is Din, from the mirror,” it read, “Can we get breakfast tomorrow? I want to talk to you about… all this.”
Luke typed back a message as soon as his fingers would allow: “Breakfast is good :)”
It only took a couple of seconds for his phone to vibrate again, this time Din asking him where he wanted to meet. Luke suggested a place, then forced himself to put his phone down and drive home. When he got there, he found another reply waiting for him, confirming their… well, their date, Luke supposed. Nothing too serious, he told himself.
Getting himself ready for bed, he tried to calm himself down, take deep breaths. Then proceeded to lie down and stare at the ceiling, eventually being coaxed into a restless sleep.
The next morning, Luke snapped awake at the sound of his alarm going off. Din. The restaurant. Their date. It was excruciating and euphoric at the same time, imagining what would happen. Knowing that in not too long, he’d finally be able to talk to the man in the mirror, ask him all the questions he’d so desperately wanted to.
Getting ready was almost a trance, floating through the movements without his brain really processing what he was doing. He could have been wearing something awful for all he knew. Doing a double-take of himself, he found that he was actually satisfied with the outfit he’d chosen. Then he got in his car, sitting down and staring at the clock until it was finally an acceptable time to leave and he started the engine.
It was cold when he got there. The sort of chill that sunk through one until it hits bone, until it deems all its victims to feel as if they were made of ice. Luke was shivering despite his coat, but as Din was there, he couldn’t find it in him to care.
Din had gotten there early, and he was waiting for Luke near the entrance.
“Hi,” he said softly, his breath fogging up in the frigid air.
“Hi,” Luke breathed, trying to keep his teeth from chattering.
“Let’s get inside,” Din told him, nodding over to the restaurant and leading his way in.
It was much warmer in there, and Luke gave a soft sigh of relief as they sat down at a booth.
Din seemed just as shy and hesitant as he had the night before, but Luke was guilty of that too, searching for words but coming up blank over and over.
“This is… crazy,” Din said, and Luke nodded his agreement.
“Yeah,” he said. “It really is.” There was a moment as they stared at each other before Din cleared his throat, his eyes shifting down to the floor.
A waiter came to save them, taking both of their orders. Then they were left alone again, with the uncomfortable silence. Luke couldn’t remember anything he’d wanted to ask Din. In fact, he couldn’t think of a single thing to talk about, no matter how much he wanted to.
“So,” Din started, “I guess we should properly introduce ourselves. I’m Din Djarin.”
“Luke Skywalker.”
And then, as they looked at each other, for an unexplainable reason, they began to laugh. Luke wasn’t sure if it had been so awkward for both of them that their bodies had simply taken over, but neither of them could stop. It bubbled up in both of them until it got to the point where Din was wiping tears from his eyes, trying to stop his remaining chuckles from erupting again.
“I haven’t laughed like that in I don’t know how long,” Luke told him, and Din sighed.
“Me neither,” he said. Then after a moment of hesitation, he added, “I saw you at the fight the other night.”
Something in Luke clicked. The fighter—Mando, as Han had called him, the one who had stumbled as soon as he’d made eye contact with Luke. Suddenly it was all adding up.
“That was you!” Luke exclaimed. “I don’t know how I didn’t recognize you!”
“Well, my face was covered,” Din volunteered up, but Luke only shook his head, wondering how on earth he’d not immediately put the two together.
“You were amazing,” Luke told him sincerely, leaning toward him. “It was… almost like a dance. My friend Han had never seen you stumble before.”
“Well,” Din said, leaning back in his seat, “You’re to blame for that. I wasn’t expecting to see you there. Caught me off guard, honestly.”
“Sorry,” Luke said, but Din only smiled and took a drink from the glass of water in front of him.
“I looked for you afterwards,” Din confessed, his fingers wringing together in front of him.
“I was with my friend,” Luke told him, “I didn’t even think to-”
“It’s fine, really,” Din said quickly. “I’m just glad I saw you again.”
“Me too,” Luke replied, running a hand through his hair. “I honestly thought I might be going insane, seeing you in the mirror all the time.”
“You’re not the only one,” Din assured him, “I was tempted to go get my eyes checked.”
They stared at each other for a moment, and they began to talk. They talked about almost everything Luke could think of—books, the weather, careers. Conversation with Din came easily in a way that Luke couldn’t describe. It was easy and natural, and it only made clear to Luke that there was a deeper connection to the two of them besides just seeing each other in the mirror.
They talked so much that the food they’d ordered went largely untouched, and they only found themselves eating when the waiter came by to check on them. After that, Luke found himself scarfing down bites of food as Din talked, chiming in whenever he could.
When they finally came to a break in a conversation, Luke gulped down some water then tried to relax, his gaze wandering down to Din’s shirt, a worn t-shirt for a band from the ’80s.
“I like your shirt,” Luke told him.
Din immediately looked down, as if he’d forgotten what shirt he had put on that morning. “Thank you,” he said. “One of my favorite bands.”
“Really?” Luke asked. “I think my favorite song of theirs has to be-”
“I have a kid,” Din blurted out, cutting Luke off and rendering him speechless.
Luke blinked, processing what Din had just said. “What?” he said, half in shock.
“I… I have a kid,” Din repeated, “He just turned four. He’s in preschool.”
A certain fondness flooded Luke, seeing just how anxious Din was about this.
“I love kids,” Luke said softly, smiling at him.
Din returned his smile, looking relieved to hear that. “His name is Grogu. Well, actually Gerardo, but when he used to say his name as a baby, it sounded like Grogu, and it caught on. He actually… insists we call him that, now.”
Luke laughed. “Grogu,” he said, “I love it.”
Din hesitant for a moment, his gaze dropping to the table before it returned to Luke. “I’d like you to meet him,” he confessed.
Luke’s smile was so wide that it hurt his cheeks now. “I’d love that,” he told Din.
The next day, Luke found himself waiting on a corner for Din again, but this time, he was waiting for Grogu too. And sure enough, when Din came into view, he was holding hands with a dark-eyed toddler, who seemed to be hopping over the cracks in the sidewalk.
Din gave Luke an apologetic look, but Luke was completely endeared to the child already. He had his father’s messy hair, and his nose, too. His eyes were framed by dark lashes, and he was clinging onto Din’s hand as if it were a lifeline.
“Grogu, I have someone I want you to meet,” Din told him, and Grogu stared up at Luke.
“This is Luke,” Din told him, “He's a… a good friend.”
For a moment, Grogu hid behind Din’s legs, and Luke squatted down to match his height.
“Hey, there,” he said softly, “Your dad’s told me a lot about you, you know. Like… that you love frogs. Is that true?”
Grogu hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
“Then I have something for you,” Luke told him, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a stuffed frog. He held it out to Grogu, who gasped, then looked to his dad for permission.
“Go ahead,” Din encouraged, watching Grogu cautiously take a step forward and take the frog from Luke. A smile suddenly breaking over his face, he squeezed it to his chest and hugged it.
“I love it!” Grogu exclaimed, leaping forward to hug Luke. “Thank you!”
Luke laughed, hugging Grogu back. “I’m glad!”
After Grogu had let Luke go, he solemnly looked at Din and said, “What should I name him?”
“Anything you want, kiddo,” Din told him, rustling his hair.
“Sonic,” Grogu declared, drawing a laugh from both Din and Luke.
“Sonic?” Din asked, trying to keep his face as serious as Grogu’s.
“Sonic the frog,” Grogu confirmed.
“Great choice,” Luke told him, “He’ll be the fastest frog ever.”
Grogu beamed at him, then held Sonic up toward Din. “Safe,” he said simply, and Din knelt down next to him, unzipping the small backpack that was on Grogu’s back and placing the frog inside. Once he’d zipped it back up, he stood and took Grogu’s hand.
“There,” Din said, “All safe.”
To Luke’s surprise, Grogu let go of Din’s hand and walked over to Luke, holding his hands up. “Up?” he asked, and Luke looked to Din for permission.
Seeing Din nod, Luke carefully hoisted Grogu up into his arms, balancing him on his hip. “All right, ready for the zoo?” he asked, and Grogu nodded.
The hours at the zoo passed quickly. Luke and Din got along as well as they had before, and Grogu made it clear that he adored Luke, insisting on either being in Luke’s arms or holding his hand as he gazed at all the animals.
The penguins were his favorite, followed closely by the tiger. Din bought Grogu a little penguin plush, tucking it into his backpack with Sonic. It was absolutely clear that Din adored his son, with everything he did. He was an amazing father.
As the day wore on, Grogu got tired and Luke sound found himself with a sleeping child in his arms. Din apologized for that, but Luke had never minded anything less.
“I’ve never seen him like this with anyone,” Din told him as they left the zoo. “He doesn’t usually take to people well—he hides.”
Luke didn’t know what to say to that. He could only feel tremendously touched at hearing that.
“Here, I’ll take him now,” Din offered, and Luke carefully transferred Grogu into his arms.
Stirring, Grogu made a soft noise and looked around. “Luke?” he said, reaching his arms out for Luke again.
“Luke has to go now, buddy,” Din told him. “But we’ll be seeing him again soon.”
Seeming content at that, Grogu plopped his head down again.
As much as they both wanted to see each other over the next few days, the world seemed to be against them, as other things continuously got in the way. For Luke, it was either work or obligations to his friends and family, and for Din it was preparing for his next fight as well as wrestling with the paperwork for Grogu’s upcoming school application. All in all, they didn’t end up seeing each other for another four days. For Din, it turned out, this was exactly enough time to come to a decision about what he wanted from their relationship.
The last few days had been absolute hell, not just because school applications were entirely evil—although they definitely were—but because Din had found both Grogu and himself to be grumpier than usual since Luke’s departure. The strange connection that Din had with Luke had tipped him off to the fact that they would likely come to be very important to each other one day, but he hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly. And he definitely hadn’t expected his son to already be missing Luke as much as he himself was.
Oh well, there was no point in wondering how they had become so dependent on Luke so quickly when it was undeniable that that was exactly what had happened. All that was left to do now was take action to ensure that the three of them wouldn’t have to be apart more than necessary. Din knew how he felt, and he also knew Grogu’s opinion on the matter. Now, he thought, as he made his way to the diner where he was meeting Luke for lunch, he just had to see if Luke felt the same way.
The doorbell chimed as Din pushed open the door to the quaint little diner. He was a little early, but a familiar mop of blond hair peeking out from one of the booths told him he wasn’t the only one. Relief settled into his bones as he slid into the seat opposite Luke. It was incredible to Din how he could be so altered by someone he’d known for such a brief time, that four short days apart felt like an eternity.
Din quashed the beginnings of guilt that threatened to rise over leaving Grogu with Cara for today. He knew Grogu wanted to see Luke as much as he did, but he knew that Luke might not be on board with the admittedly somewhat crazy plan he was about to suggest. It was Luke’s right to say no, of course, and Din would understand if he preferred to move a bit slower. But to a child, such a reaction might feel a lot like rejection, which was why he hadn’t felt comfortable sharing his scheme with Grogu. He didn’t want Grogu to be sad if Luke said no, and he definitely didn’t want Luke to feel pressured into saying yes to keep from disappointing Grogu. Grogu might be upset with him for missing the chance to see Luke today, but all in all, it was for the best that he sat this one out.
He snapped out of his thoughts and allowed his eyes to roam over Luke’s form across the booth. Luke had looked good every time they’d met of course, but Din thought there was something especially breathtaking about his smile, and about having it directed specifically at himself. It felt a bit like stepping outside and finding the sun shining only for him, leaving everything else in semi-shadow.
Now, that sunshine-smile widened and turned into a melodic laugh. Din’s ears warmed as he realised he hadn’t yet said a word, instead just sat down in the booth and proceeded to stare at Luke in silence. Luke didn’t seem to mind though, so he forced himself to raise his gaze from where he’d glued it to the tabletop and gave an answering chuckle of his own.
“So, uh… hi,” he said stupidly. His ears warmed further, although he couldn’t quite find it in himself to care when his words elicited another bright smile from Luke.
“Hi,” said Luke, just as stupidly, but pulling it off significantly better than Din—if you asked Din, at least.
He cleared his throat, attempting to summon whatever dormant coolness he may possess. “Thank you for meeting me,” he said.
“I’m just glad we could find a time that worked,” Luke answered. “It’s been so crazy, I was beginning to worry we’d never see each other again. Well, outside the mirror anyway.” He laughed.
“It’s been that busy, huh?”
“Yeah, two of our servers decided to elope to Paris together.”
“That’s… spontaneous,” Din said, raising an eyebrow.
“Mhm, I would have thought it was romantic if they hadn’t completely ignored giving their two weeks’ notice. The rest of us have had to pick up a lot of extra shifts to make up for it.”
Din winced. “Damn, that’s tough. But, uh… so you generally consider spontaneity romantic, then?” he asked, trying to seem suave instead of extremely suspicious.
“Yeah, I’d say so. Why, do you wanna go to Paris? Cause while that sounds dreamy, it would be a real jerk move right now,” Luke laughed.
Din couldn’t help but smile at that, despite his disappointment at his own lack of subtlety. “That does sound lovely, but it’s not exactly what I had in mind”
“Oh,” said Luke, intrigued. “What did you have in mind, then?”
“Well,” Din began. “So Grogu’s really missed you.”
If Luke was fazed by the abrupt change of subject, he didn’t show it. “Aw,” he said. “I’ve missed him too!”
Din braced himself. “Well, I was thinking it might be nice if we could all see each other more often.”
“Yeah, I think that would be great! My manager just hired two new servers to replace the ones who quit, so work should get a lot less hectic for me starting next week. Maybe we can start planning some more regular dates.”
“Yes,” said Din. “That is something we can do.”
“That’s great!” smiled Luke.
“Or…”
Luke frowned. “Or?”
Din cleared his throat again. “Oryoucouldmoveinwithme…”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that.”
“Um, I said that, alternatively, you could move in with me.”
Luke began to open his mouth to speak, but then closed it again, evidently speechless.
“I know it’s soon, but…”
“We met each other less than a week ago.”
“Yeah.”
“You want me to move in with you?”
“Yeah…”
Luke nodded in consideration for a second before his face lit up again. “I would love to!” he exclaimed.
“Oh, wait, really?”
“Yeah! Look, I know it’s quick, but I can’t help but feel like it’s the right thing. I’m sure I sound crazy but I think maybe this mirror thing means something. Like it’s a sign, you know?”
Din nodded along. “Yeah, I know what you mean. I mean, it’s not just that, but it does feel a bit like destiny, as corny as that sounds.”
Luke’s smile turned soft. “You know, I think I kinda like corny.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Din ducked his head as a seemingly unstoppable smile grew. Eventually he recovered, and as they both leaned closer over the table, they spoke in low tones about their plans, and then about Grogu. When they ran out of useful things to speak of, they spoke of useless ones instead, content to just sit in each other’s presence and listen to each other’s voices.
Luke cursed under his breath as he struggled with the cardboard box he was trying to assemble. He kept trying to get it to stay box-shaped, and it, stubbornly, kept collapsing in on itself, no matter how much tape and anger he used.
“Just stay… stupid goddamn… least favourite box ever!” he exclaimed in frustration as the box not only folded flat again, but also slipped out of his hands and fell to the floor.
Luke stared disappointedly at the box. Finally, he decided it was time to admit defeat. He picked up the traitorous box and grumpily shuffled into the living room. On the couch, Leia was sat, scrolling through her phone, while Han wandered aimlessly around the room, trying to look like he wasn’t nervously pacing. It wasn’t very convincing.
“Leia,” Luke whined and held out the box to her. “Help me.”
She slowly looked up at him and blinked once. “No.”
“Oh, come on! This box is evil.”
She went back to her phone. “I am making a statement and therefore cannot help you,” she said calmly. “Ask Han.”
Luke turned to Han and wordlessly held out the box.
“Me?” Han asked in a high pitch. “No, don’t bring me into it. This whole conflict is between the two of you. I’m just caught in the middle of it.”
Luke pouted. Leia scrolled on her phone.
“I mean, I don’t care,” Han continued and turned to Leia. “If the kid wants to be stupid that’s fine by me. He’s free to ruin his life if that’s his idea of a good time. You’re the one getting in a hissy fit over it!”
She blinked at him.
“I’m not ruining my life,” insisted Luke.
Han spluttered. “You’re moving in with someone you’ve known for a few weeks! He could be a total psycho! And if he gets the sudden urge to murder you, oh goody, he’s a professional fighter so he knows how to do it!”
“He’s not a psycho,” Luke said, rolling his eyes. “He has a kid, you know.”
Leia looked up from her phone to fix him with an icy glare. “Luke. Are you really saying that having kids automatically makes someone trustworthy? Because you of all people should know better than that.”
“Oh, Leia, he’s nothing like dad,” Luke said sincerely. Although he’d done his best to find peace with the fact that their father had been a criminal and had done horrible things in his life, he knew it was still a sore spot for Leia.
“Your daddy issues suggest differently,” deadpanned Han.
Luke whipped around to glare at him. “I do not have daddy issues,” he bit out.
“Oh yeah?” said Han. “Then why are you dating a guy who has a kid, huh?”
Luke gave him an incredulous look. “Lots of people have kids, Han.”
“Well, that doesn’t mean that you should date them all!”
“What? That doesn’t even—”
“You’re being so—”
“Oh, would you stop it!” Leia exclaimed, finally having had enough of their bickering. “Luke, Han and I are both concerned that you may be making a rash decision. You haven’t known this man for very long and moving in with him seems premature.”
Luke sighed. “I know this seems fast, but… honestly it’s not like that.”
“What, the two of you are special? It’s love at first sight or something like that?” Han asked.
“No, or, well, maybe,” Luke began. “Ugh, it’s hard to explain!”
“Well, would you try?” Leia asked. “It would help us a lot if we could understand where you’re coming from with this.”
“Yeah, yeah of course. It’s just… well it’s gonna sound crazy. You have to promise to hear me out at least.”
Leia nodded seriously. “Of course we will.”
“Okay,” Luke began and braced himself for their reactions. “So even though we only met a few weeks ago, we’ve been seeing each other since before then.”
“You’ve been dating?” Han asked. “What, like long distance or something?”
“Uh, no,” said Luke. “It’s… okay, I’m just gonna say it: sometimes I see him in the mirror.”
At this, Leia visibly relaxed and Han seemed to make a complete one eighty from anxious to excited.
“Well, why didn’t you say so right away?” Han asked. “I can’t believe it. My brother in law is soulmates with Mando. That’s amazing!”
“What?” Luke said.
“Luke,” Leia said and smiled softly at him. “Why didn’t you just tell us you were soulmates? Do you know how worried we were, thinking you were just moving in with some guy?”
“Uh,” Luke said. “Wait, soulmates?”
“Yeah,” Han said. “You said you see each other in the mirror, right?”
“So you’ve heard of that happening before?” Luke asked, intrigued.
Leia exhaled sharply and closed her eyes. “You do know what soulmates are, don’t you?”
Luke stared innocently at her before minutely shaking his head. Han was frozen with incredulity for a moment before he burst out laughing.
“What are soulmates?” Luke asked Leia, ignoring Han’s cackling.
“Well,” she said, looking a bit like she couldn’t believe she was having this conversation with her adult brother. “When people who are soulmates are both looking into a mirror at the same time, no matter where they are in the world, or how far apart, they see each other. It basically means that the two of you are meant to be together.”
“Why have I never heard about this before?” Luke asked plaintively.
“Literally everyone knows about this!” exclaimed Han between fits of laughter.
“Wait, so do you two see each other when you look in the mirror?”
“Yeah, of course, we do!” exclaimed Han while Leia only nodded patiently.
Luke pouted for a second before being struck by a realisation. “Oh my god, I have to go!”
“Where are you going?” asked Leia.
He dropped the box and snatched up his cellphone from the table. “I need to call Din!” he shouted before darting off to his room.
Han shrieked.