Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars.
This Was Why
By Angel Kamiya

Leia hated waiting. The Millennium Falcon had been hiding in the giant asteroid for days now, hiding from the Imperial Fleet that was chasing after them. When they had escaped from the ice planet of Hoth, Leia had been shocked to see how determined the Empire was at capturing her. The Hyperdrive was broken which meant they needed to fix it before attempting any kind of escape. The worst part of it all was that she stuck there with Han Solo.

Han was impossible to get along with. It was obvious that he didn't respond well to authority. Leia understood that being a smuggler meant he was on his own most of the time, and that he was still trying to get used to being part of the Rebellion, but that didn't excuse the fact that he was so rude to her. They had more fights than times when they actually agreed on something. Leia was not looking forward to the next few days.

Sitting there in the pilot's chair, she spun the seat around a little. She was still wearing her white snowsuit and white jacket. When she had been forced to evacuate from the Rebel base, she hadn't been able to bring anything with her except for the clothes that she was wearing. What she hated most was how dark most of the ship was. As long as they were trapped there, Han had shut down the nonessential systems, so most of the lights on the ship were off. Only the lights in the areas that needed fixing were on. Leia looked up when she heard the sound of footsteps nearby.

Leia got up and left the cockpit, going into the corridors. When she saw Han, she quickened her steps. He was wearing a white shirt and a dark blue jacket.

"Captain Solo!" Leia said, following him.

"What is it, sweetheart?" Han commented.

Leia was about to tell him to stop calling her that, but she closed her mouth. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that the nicknames annoyed her. Shaking her head, she took a step forward.

"Where have you been all morning? I haven't seen you working on the Hyperdrive. You know how important it is that we get out of his asteroid field!"

"Something important came up."

"What? What are you talking about? What could be more important than our lives?" Leia replied, suspiciously.

"I can't talk about it."

"Han!"

"That's Captain Solo to you. As long as you are on this ship, I make the rules," Han answered, turning to leave. "I need to get going."

As Han left, Leia started to get furious at what happened. Han had ignored her and gone off to do his own thing again. The Princess turned to leave. As she walked through the corridor, she examined the area. The ship didn't look too bad, even if it didn't work half the time. Sometimes Leia wondered if Han loved his ship more than his life.

When she arrived back at the cockpit, she sat down and sighed. It was her job to watch the controls that day. It was very tedious work, but someone had to do it. Leia closed her eyes.

She fell asleep.

When she woke up again later that night, the first thing she did was look at the time. She had slept for six hours, her back was starting to hurt after sitting there for so long. Getting up she was ready to go to bed in her room. She left the cockpit. Along the way she noticed something strange. Everyone was gone.

Leia went into her room and the lights suddenly turned on by themselves. Han had been standing there waiting for her.

"Happy Birthday, Leia."

"What?" Leia said, stunned. "Today is my birthday?"

"I can't believe you forgot your own birthday!" Han replied, smirking.

Leia stared at the table at the plates of food. It looked like Han had taken the time to cook every dish and put it there for her to find. They were the type of foods that were served on Alderaan and Corellia. There was also a small cake. It make her a little speechless.

"This was why you weren't fixing the ship today," Leia said, finally understanding. "You were setting all this up."

"Threepio told me your birthday was coming. I made him keep his mouth shut until I could make this happen."

"I don't know what to say," Leia answered.

"Here is some real food, none of that horrible tasting rations. You shouldn't have to eat rations tonight. I think you should take it easy tomorrow too. Take the day off"

"Han, I can't do that. We all need to help each other fix the ship."

"Hey! Captain Solo remember? Since I'm the captain, you have to do what I say. No work tomorrow."

Leia couldn't help but smile. She nodded.

She leaned forward, and then kissed him on the cheek. Leia took a step back, surprised that she had done something like that. Looking away she wondered how long it had taken Han to plan all this. It had been sweet of him.

"Thank you, Han." Leia smiled. "I don't think I can eat all this on my own. Want to join me?"

Leia sat down by the table as Han went to get another chair. As she looked down at the plate, she realized something. Maybe being trapped on the Millennium Falcon with Han wasn't such a bad thing after all?

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A/N: I hope you liked this story. Please Review!