Phoenix groaned as she rolled over onto her front. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she felt the pounding in her temple. The hangover the Naboo wine caused was hitting her like a truck and she hated it. She hated the fact that she'd been drinking so much, it was ridiculous really. She shouldn't have drank that much but she just wanted to forget about Obi-Wan. It didn't work and he was the very reason she was up right now.

     Her mind was clearly too occupied with thoughts to allow her to sleep peacefully so she was now awake, hungover and wanting to do something instead of think. So, after a few minutes of rolling around in her bed in a desperate attempt to fall back to sleep which all failed. Instead, she got up and looked over at the bag, thinking for a moment.

     Painting. That's what she wanted to do. She loved painting and she hadn't done it yet. So with a soft smile on her face, she grabbed the bag from the side and walked into the study. The window had been patched up from what she remembered Obi-Wan saying as they walked home to the bar.

     So she set up the easel, dumping her tub of paint tubes onto the desk as she grabbed the paint brushes and easel. Nipping into the living space again, she stole a glass and filled it with water before she went back to the study.

     Now that the easel was set up, she realised what she wanted to paint. The Coruscant nightscape. It was beautiful and something about the night shades always gave her inspiration to paint. So she grabbed a pencil and flicked on another light before she began to draw the scape out onto the canvas.

     The canvas wasn't a large one, it was relatively small since it had to fit with her stuff that she brought but it was still enough for her to be happy. She hated painting landscapes on small canvases but that was not the case in that moment. And once she was done with the sketch she looked over at the paints.

     Then she grabbed the palette and began to squirt the blobs of paint onto it, picking the paintbrush she wanted. It wasn't long before she had completely immersed herself into the painting. The varying blue shades and dark colours reminding her of Obi-Wan. The blues reminded her of his eyes and she just couldn't help herself. Everything reminded her of him. It made her angry while simultaneously happy.

     Jax had completely escaped her now. The thoughts of him had walked out that door right by his side. They had broken up, he had left of his own choice and she was glad so she just allowed the thoughts, the guilt to slide away. She was too occupied with the anxiety over Obi-Wan to even think about him right now.

     And Obi-Wan knew she was thinking about him. He had heard her clattering about and he wanted to check in on her so he had walked into the room. By the time he got to the door she was already immersed in the painting and he didn't want to disturb her. He didn't want to make her feel bad especially after how he'd been acting the past day.

     He loved her more than he had ever loved anything and she made him feel so safe and like what they were doing was right. But there was just that voice in his head. The voice that was winning and telling him that what he was doing was wrong and that he shouldn't be with her. That he needed to stay away from her even if the Force was pulling them together.

     Phoenix felt like someone was watching but she didn't bother to look back. She had dismissed Obi-Wan's presence as just her paranoid thoughts and she hadn't even considered someone was watching her. So she acted as normal and just kept work on the painting. A content sigh escaping her lips.

     Even though Obi-Wan tried not to, he could hear her thoughts. They were loud and he knew that she was thinking about him. Even if she didn't want to be, he knew exactly how she felt because neither of them could get the other off their mind. Obi-Wan only ended up watching her for an hour or so before deciding that maybe watching her paint was a little creepy and he would only scare her if she turned around.

     So he ended up moving out back to the hallway away from her. He shouldn't even be watching her. It was weird and he was just going to confuse her and make her feel worse all over again which was really the opposite of what he wanted to do. So he went back to his duty before he then had to switch out not a few hours later.

     Phoenix continued to stay up for the rest of the night, spending her time painting and by the time the sun rose and she had to get ready for her day in the Senate, the painting was at least half finished. She still had a lot of details and things to add in but she was content with it for now. It was as good as it was going to get until she came back the next night.

     So she got ready for her day in the Senate. She was ready pretty quickly, dressed up in her gown. It was a lot more regal that day. She felt like bantha crap internally so aimed to at look fancy and the part externally. The bags under her eyes were hard to disguise whatever she wore, so decided to instead wear them proudly. Her tiredness wasn't going to affect her Senate duties or her effectiveness as a speaker. It would eventually but she'd had a few hours and that was enough for her to be able to function decently.

     Once she was ready for the day, she heard a knock on the door. Obi-Wan had come to collect her for her first meeting. She enjoyed him coming to her but she also wanted nothing more than to never see him again. She knew that it was probably cruel to say that but he had made her feel odd, strange. Like she shouldn't love him which she arguably shouldn't but he had kissed her, loved her in return. It left her confused and disorientated.

     "You're really becoming an insomniac, Phoenix. It's not good for you," Obi-Wan commented as he looked over at her. She cocked an eyebrow at him and took a sip of her caf. How did he know that she had been up all night? The bags surely aren't that noticeable. She was praying that they weren't but suddenly she felt self-conscious. "And you really shouldn't paint all night." He added, trying to soothe the anxiety he felt spike. Phoenix gently shook her head at him and took a sip of her caf again. He hadn't assumed, he'd seen.

     "I like to paint. It helps me feel better and I fell asleep for a few hours either way. I'm not being completely unhealthy," Phoenix responded, a soft smile on her lips. Obi-Wan shook his head disapprovingly as he gestured to the door, meaning for her to go forward. So, she did so.

     Phoenix went into the corridor, keeping a hold of her caf and her speeches. The neutral expression spreading across her face. She couldn't be seen enjoying his company that much when she was in public. It would not be seen as proper especially considering she just broke up with her fiance. She arguably should be distraught but she wasn't distraught at all. She was relieved more than anything. She was free from the marriage that she knew she would have never been happy in.

     "How is your head?" He commented as they began to walk down the corridor together. The concern evident in his eyes. Phoenix looked back at him and shrugged. She felt fine generally but she knew that that probably wouldn't continue to be the case. The headache had subsided for now but was likely to come back even worse than before. The painkillers wouldn't work forever.

     "Okay for now. The hangovers have been a lot worse, trust me," She chuckled softly. A small smile appeared on her lips but she didn't let it grow too much. She didn't want to bring herself too much hope that they could go back to normal because this was Obi-Wan Kenobi. He had more mood swings than she did. He would probably go back to being a true Jedi in a few hours, "And why were you watching me paint?" She asked before she took another sip of caf. The caffeine slowly hitting her and she began to feel more awake. The pleasant buzz that usually came with caf was appearing too.

     Obi-Wan shrugged in response to her question and as she watched his face. She could tell he was trying to come up with an answer. His face scrunched up a little in concentration. A smile appeared on her face as she gently shook her head at him. She couldn't help but just find him adorable. However, she kept the thoughts and the smile to herself as she took a sip of caf to prevent herself from smiling any wider.

     "I heard you clattering about and since the last time I saw you, you couldn't walk, I thought it was best to make sure you weren't hurt or anything," Obi-Wan responded, content with his own answer. He didn't want to sound too creepy or too concerned. He felt like he was walking on a thin tightrope and he didn't want to fall off either way. Phoenix nodded at that.

     "Well, I wasn't. It was nice of you to check up on me but just speak to me next time, I thought I was going crazy when I felt someone watching me," She chuckled softly. Trying to play off her paranoid thoughts. He nodded in response.

     Then they continued on their journey towards the Senate room. Phoenix had deals to make and she was hoping to close one of the trade deals today and actually secure something for her people. She wanted to feel accomplished and prove to Jax and his family that she was the perfect Senator for the job. She would also need evidence that she was a good Senator for her reelection campaign in a few years' time though she was trying not to worry about that. It was a few years away and the people seemed to trust her and like her.

     Once they got to the meeting, the pair went inside together and as always, Obi-Wan stood back. He guarded her and kept her safe from anyone in the room that could pose a threat. He needed to keep her safe and he felt more obligated than ever now he realised that he was still very much in love with her and he didn't know what to do about it anymore.

***

𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 ! okay so got some more obi and phoenix interaction since these two lowkey give me lifeee, like i'm loving it and i've tried to put emphasise on phoenix's hobbies and like role in this book (it's particularly noticeable in this chapter) since i want her to be more than just the love interest. i hope it's coming across that way?? that's what i'm aiming for honestly but either way i hope you enjoyed!