Inevitable {Tech}

Chapter Twenty Eight: Shuldene

"I really like you guys too," she disclosed in all honesty.

"Especially that brainiac brother of mine," Hunter added as it was his turn to put on the teasing tone.

Cass rolled her eyes and bit down on her lip, avoiding looking into Hunter's smug face, especially when she could feel her cheeks growing hotter.

"Yes," she sighed. "Especially him."

Hunter felt her body raise in temperature as her blush became obvious and her heart quickened a bit. He and his brothers always made it a goal to tease Cass and Tech so he was pleased with her reaction.

He laughed again, and patted her good shoulder. "I never expected Tech to find himself in this situation with someone but...I'm glad that it's you."

Cass' face softened, her smile faltered into an acutely parted gape. Her eyes searched his as she fought back twenty different emotions and the tears that threatened to make an appearance.

And without another word or glance, Hunter exited the room and left Cass feeling swelled with emotion. She felt so much love in the air from his words, especially since they came from him...dark and broody.

Wrecker and Omega wore their hearts on their sleeves and Echo had comfortably known her for years. Tech was in another realm of its own but Hunter was never one for affectionate sentiments. And that made his expressions so much more potent to her heart.

She was taken from her natural family, stranded from her Jedi surrogates, and betrayed by her clone brothers.

But for the fourth time in her life, she felt like she belonged, loved again by a new makeshift family the galaxy created for her. And she had a feeling that this one was going to be the one that lasted.

She left the room with a heavy heart and sheepishly ambled towards the front of the ship. She passed Wrecker and Hunter sitting in the passenger seats and meandered towards Tech in the pilot's chair.

Tech kept his eyes on the dash, pushing buttons and steering the ship out of the atmosphere, but most of his focus went towards keeping his breath and hands steady with Cass beside him.

"Setting the course to Shuldene," he announced.

Omega tapped her feet excitedly between Tech and Echo, observing to her right as Echo activated the lightspeed lever and shot them towards her next adventure.

Once in the bright blur of hyperspace, Tech grabbed his data pad and began searching for information on the ice planet they were headed towards. The light of his screen caught Cass' attention and she leaned over. She rested one thigh on the arm rest and relaxed a hand on the back of Tech's neck for stability.

"You reading up on Shuldene?" she hummed and leaned into his body.

He gulped and nodded, tilting the screen her way to display it better. He shifted in his seat and shivered when her fingers absentmindedly scraped lightly through the hairs at the nape of his neck.

"I don't know too much on it, what does it say?" she mumbled as her hands slowly trailed up and down the back of his head.

"It um...it says it is the namesake of the Shuldene system and it...sits at the nexus of two hyperlanes," he fidgeted and his eyes were practically fluttering beneath his goggles.