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The first time someone had asked Finn if Poe was his boyfriend, he had snorted so hard that he had almost opened the wound on his back again. This had resulted in him swearing profusely, finding somewhere to sit down and wondering with mild hysteria if this really was his life.
The person in question, a Rodian weapons acquisition officer, had looked suitably confused by the reaction before shrugging, as though clearly not believing a word he said and changing the subject to ask if Finn wanted more clips for his blaster instead (and he did, which inevitably lead to the most awkward transaction in existence).
At the time, Finn had considered this ‘boyfriend’ line of questioning an understandable one-off. After all, he and Poe shared a room, spent most of their downtime together and partnered for most of their recent practice sessions, too. Finn also happened to have a compulsion for wearing Poe’s clothing more than he wore his own, so it made sense that the occasional person might read more into it.
However, when the lady in the mess hall, two of Poe’s fellow pilots and even the medical droid charged with Finn’s physical therapy had asked the same question a week later (the latter doing so with such clinically detailed questions about Finn’s sexual history that he still felt a little violated), Finn didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. This was especially true when the pilots loomed over him, clearly suggesting that the arrangement of his face was in very real danger.
“Are you guys being serious right now?” Finn had asked them weakly, wondering if he had just stepped into an alternate universe. “You’re threatening me not to break the heart of someone I’m not even dating?”
Snap Wexley looked at Jessika Pava for a moment, looking a little confused himself before turning back to Finn and scowling.
“ 'You guys want to keep it under wraps? Fine. But I’ve known Poe since we were kids and I’ve never seen him like this so you,” and here Snap jabbed a large, angry finger in his face, “you better watch yourself, buddy.” He then clapped Finn hard on the shoulder a second later, beamed and said, “Oh, and congratulations. Never thought anyone could get the old boy to settle down. You’re a miracle worker, kid. We should all go out for a drink together, you and the rest of the squad.”
“Definitely, our shout,” Jessika said amiably, which was such an incredible transformation from the ball-busting expression she had given him a second ago that Finn was still unconsciously shielding his private parts away from her.
Pilots, he had decided, were bantha-shit crazy.
Finn agreed to the drink, however, which had turned out to be a fun night, even if it did end with Snap throwing a punch at a particularly drunk Ewok with a potty mouth. Finn ignored most of that, however, to sit flush against Poe, who casually draped an arm across the back of Finn’s chair and smiled at him a lot.
So maybe Finn could see why people thought they were together.
Unfortunately, the idea of him and Poe being a couple was depressingly laughable.
Not because it wasn’t agreeable of course -- because hot damn would Finn agree to that all night long if he could -- but the notion that someone like Poe would go for someone like him was so beyond the realm of plausibility that he had had to laugh.
And try not to cry a little on the inside while he did.
Poe was a legend in his own right, especially within the resistance.
He put Finn to mind of one of the holovids his fellow stormtroopers used to illegally sneak into the barracks, the ones with a dashing hero who would save the day and sweep the ladies off their feet, all while maintaining the perfect hairdo.
Not only did Poe have great hair but he was practically a celebrity on base.
The younger recruits would go as far as to ask Poe for autographs, something Poe would graciously provide with a wide grin and an apologetic shrug at Finn, like a man who was clearly used to the adoration.
One time, a mechanic had quite literally thrown herself at Poe while he and Finn had been on their way to a briefing with the General, which had lead to Poe catching her in bemusement, the girl fainting and General Organa trying not to look as amused by the situation as she clearly was.
It honestly boggled Finn’s mind a little, who was still trying to work out exactly who he was outside of the First Order. And there was Poe with half the base in love with him, confident, cocky and completely sure of both himself and his purpose. He was, quite literally, the ‘big deal’ Finn had been trying to impersonate all this time. Finn envied him for it.
It was also pretty hot watching him do his thing but Finn tried not to say that part out loud.
Rey being Rey, however, took one look at him during their daily holocall and said,
“You’ve got it bad, my friend.”
Finn had opened his mouth to deny it but Rey merely quirked an eyebrow and he knew, even through a fuzzy screen, he would lose that argument without her needing to speak another word. Having a force-sensitive best friend really was annoying sometimes.
“Are you using your Jedi mind tricks on me, girl?” Finn demanded because that was clearly cheating.
Rey laughed, still as beautiful as ever even tens of galaxies away and on a screen with terrible reception. Finn's heart panged from missing her.
“I’m using my eyes, you nerfherder,” she said, amused. “Although even a blind man could tell you were pining, Finn. It’s embarrassing. I’m embarrassed for you.”
“Well, that’s just rude,” Finn pointed out, which only made her grin wider. "Is Chewie there? Can I talk to him instead? At least he's nice to me."
A series of Wookiee howls sounded in the air from a distance away. Finn narrowed his eyes.
"What did he say?" he asked suspiciously.
"That even Luke Skywalker thinks you need to get your arse in gear." Rey translated smugly.
"Luke Skywalker does not!" Finn had exclaimed because the most powerful Jedi in the universe knowing about his sex life – especially his lack of one – was nothing short of mortifying. Rey just grinned even wider, amused by his behaviour before her smile soon turned into something a little gentler.
“Seriously, you really should tell him, you know. Not only is this turning you into a brooding grump but it’s obvious he feels the same way.”
“Oh hell no, it totally is not,” Finn scoffed, clearly throwing his dignity out of the proverbial window to address it head on. “We’re friends. Anyway, have you even seen the guy? I’d have a chance if I looked like you.”
“You had a chance with me by looking like you, idiot,” Rey said, rolling her eyes. “You’re brave, funny and brilliant. I mean, your eyesight’s clearly terrible because you can’t see what’s looking back at you from a mirror but everyone has a flaw.” Rey then paused. “You also couldn’t pilot a ship if your life depended on it.”
“Now that’s totally untrue,” Finn lied categorically.
Rey’s eyes glittered impishly.
“Don’t worry, I hear you might know a guy who is good at that sort of thing. Some say the best. He could even fly you out on a date if you ever decide to stop hiding in this room with me and ask him out.” Rey then let out a soft, affectionate look that Finn couldn’t stop himself returning. “Seriously, you deserve this. Now stop whining about it and do something, Finn.”
And to Finn’s surprise, a few hours later, he did. Later on, he would question if the force had been involved in some way but both Rey and Luke were evasive and promptly changed the subject whenever he brought it up.
All Finn knew, however, was that he squared his shoulders with a bravery he didn’t know he had, lifted his chin, walked straight into his and Poe’s room and announced,
“I like you.”
Poe had been hanging up his uniform and zipping it up almost lovingly when Finn’s words made him turn to face him. Smiling a little quizzically, as though he had no idea what this was about but was happy to run with it anyway, Poe shifted his helmet under his arm.
“I like you, too, buddy,” he said genuinely.
“No, but I really like you,” Finn explained, stepping forward determinedly as his nerves did a frantic sort of rain-dance inside him. He wished they would cut it out.
“Uh-huh,” Poe nodded, clearly looking at Finn like he was a little slow but he liked him regardless of this fact. “I do as well.”
“No, Poe, listen,” Finn said with some exasperation, finally throwing caution to the wind to grab his friend firmly by the arms. “I like like you, okay? Like, I think we should go on dates and totally kiss all the damned time and even hold hands if you’re a hand holder because I’m great at it. Just ask Rey. I mean, she’s lousy at hand holding but me? I’ve got some skills in that department and… and is this weird for you to hear? This is weird, right? Shit, I knew it. Look, Poe, fuck, I’m sorry. This was obviously a mistake. I’m going to go now and throw myself off the nearest cliff I find but I won’t bother you again and I’ll find somewhere else to stay if it makes you uncomfortable and-”
“Wait, whoa there, partner!” Poe said with a laugh, grabbing a babbling Finn’s arm before he melted in a puddle of pure humiliation. “Just… don’t you even know?”
“Know? Know what?” Finn said with dread. There was a girlfriend. There had to be. Or a boyfriend. Or something else entirely. If it was BB-8, Finn might have physically cried.
Poe shook his head as he watched the emotions run across Finn’s face, his expression so soft and fond that even Finn, with his talent for constructing the worst situations in his head (that BB-8 thought being a prime example), couldn’t deny what that look meant.
“We’re already a couple, hot shot,” Poe insisted, taking Finn’s hands in his and looking at him so warmly it made Finn literally heat up inside. “Although I gotta be honest here, I thought we’d been together for weeks already.”
“Wait, what? We have?” Finn said, feeling like he had definitely skipped a few chapters here.
“I mean, I’ve uh, kind of been telling everyone we’re together,” Poe said, rubbing a hand sheepishly across the back of his neck. “I didn’t think you’d mind.”
“Everyone?” Finn gaped, thinking about General Organa’s smirk and Threepio’s excessive congratulations and even Admiral Ackbar’s pleased gill flapping. It all suddenly made sense. Finn then paused and looked to the side. Trust him to be the last person to know. “Huh. That explains a lot,” Finn said aloud before groaning, "Man, next time, you gotta let me know this stuff ahead of time."
"Yes, sir, general sir," Poe replied with a mock salute, looking terribly charming. His playfulness soon faded away, however, to be replaced by a decidedly un-Poe expression. "You're okay about it though?" he asked with quiet hopefulness, biting his lip in a way that was genuinely distracting as all hell. "Honestly?"
It took a moment for Finn to realise what that expression on his face was but when he identified it as uncertainty, it felt so wrong to see it on Poe of all people that Finn immediately grabbed the pilot by the hand and boldly tugged him into his arms.
“Are you kidding me?" Finn asked, snaking his arms around his waist. “Why wouldn’t I be okay? I’m dating the best damn pilot in the galaxy.”
The smile Poe let out could have lit a hundred suns.
“Damn right you are, kid,” he murmured against his mouth, back to cocky in a heartbeat. “Now, c’mere.”
So Finn did. And carried on coming a significant amount after that.
“You know,” Finn said breathlessly sometime later, sans clothing as Poe flopped bonelessly on top of him and pressed his lips into his sweaty collarbone. “If you did that to me earlier, I would have figured it out sooner.”
Slowly lifting his head from Finn’s damp throat, Poe let out a smile that was positively sinful.
“Then allow me to make up for lost time, boyfriend,” he purred against his mouth, before claiming Finn's lips again in another searing, dizzying sort of kiss, their fingers tangled together on top of the rumpled bedsheets and looking incapable of letting go anytime soon.
Unable to stop himself from grinning, Finn lay back, held the hands in his a little tighter and happily let his Big Deal do his thing.
Finis