You'd been staring at the Harvester's dashboard for nearly twenty minutes now, the mind-boggling amount of buttons and switches numbing your brain to the thoughts that lingered.

You should've contacted him twenty minutes ago. All of your rehearsals and planning would go to waste unless you could will yourself to do what needed to be done. You needed to call for help. He was the only one you had, the only one who might care—and you were weighing everything on that little sliver of hope that he still did.

So you drew in a deep breath... and pressed the button to activate the communication system.

A few minutes after the ping had been sent, a hologram flickered into existence on the dashboard. Din Djarin turned to face you, void of any emotion as it was all hidden beneath his helmet of beskar. You could only wonder what he was thinking in that very moment. Would he even speak to you?

"Y/N." Your name rolled off his tongue like a familiar nickname as he greeted you, but there was no softness to his voice. "I didn't think I'd hear from you again."

You swallowed thickly, a tangle of emotions clogging up your throat. "I know." You murmured, gathering the courage to look into his visor, where you knew his eyes laid hidden from sight. "This wasn't how I wanted us to reconnect, but life has a funny way of bringing people together."

"What do you want?"

His tone stung you, though you knew he hadn't meant it that way. He almost always came off as more irritated than intended.

You pursed your lips together anxiously before speaking. "I need your help. I'm in over my head with this job I took. I needed the money and didn't consider the specifics before I accepted."

He tilted his head ever so slightly, as if he were actually considering it. "Don't you have friends you can ask? Or did that go bad too?" He inquired bitterly.

"I just need your help, okay?!" You snapped, desperation flashing in your eyes. When he didn't say anything in return, you buried your face in your hands with a soft groan. "Please, Din. You're all I've got. There's no one else who knows the ins and outs of this job like you do. Please."

Din was quiet for a few moments, his demeanor hardly changing. Then, a heavy sigh passed through his modulator as he leaned back in his chair.

"Fine." He said flatly. "But I want a cut of the pay."

You lifted your gaze to look at him, knowing he couldn't be more serious. Hope momentarily fluttered in your heart before you forced it down. "Sure, I-I can give you that. How soon can you get here?"

"Just give me the coordinates. I'll start heading that way once I'm finished doing business."

You searched him for any sort of hint, any sort of glimmer of hope that he missed you. All you found was a blank T-visor and gleaming beskar. You knew there was a man under there. An elusive one. He had tucked himself away behind the beskar, using it as a shield to protect his more vulnerable parts.

You knew there was a softer side to the otherwise ruthless Din Djarin.

You just needed to find it, if he allowed you to.

•••

The Razor Crest touched down in Pasore's spaceport in the early morning hours. Rays of dawn sunlight bathed its silver hull in a warm red glow as they peered over the treetops with the rising sun. Mechanisms within the landing gear hissed and released white clouds of steam into the frigid air.

You emerged from the Harvester soon after, freshly showered and clad head-to-toe in matte durasteel armor mixed with tan scraps of desert cloth that were draped around your neck. You carried a singular blaster pistol on your hip as well as a dagger that was strapped to your belt, among other small weapons meant to be kept out of sight.

As you approached the Crest, the boarding ramp began to lower with a dull whirring noise, revealing Din in his distinctive Mandalorian armor. For a moment, neither of you said a word. You were too anxious to speak now that he was no longer just an image flickering from a holo-projector.

"Let's go discuss the job." Din spoke first, straight to business as usual.

His boots thudded against the durasteel beneath them as he strode down the ramp of the Crest and once he reached you, he walked right by like you weren't even there.

You pursed your lip, trying your best to ignore the pang of hurt that pierced your heart. There were so many things you wished you could say. So many hidden confessions that you'd kept under lock and key desperately wishing to be freed. But words failed you in that moment, leaving you unable to do much more than tread silently behind him with your head hung low.

The marketplace was vacant aside from a few street vendors setting up their stands. Choosing to meet in the morning had been your idea, as you wanted to avoid the rowdy afternoon crowd that often occupied the cantina. From what you knew, Greysal was one of Pasore's sleepier settlements, reporting little to no disturbances aside from the occasional domestic dispute. You were hoping the relaxed atmosphere would help settle Din's nerves, though he already appeared to be irritated.

You sat down across from Din once you had entered the cantina, suppressing your anxiety as best you could. If you wanted him to take you seriously, you needed to get ahold of yourself. This was a business discussion, not a casual conversation between two friends. You weren't even sure if you could consider him a friend anymore, considering the complexities of your relationship. Right now, he was more of an acquaintance.

"So, what's the job? I want details." Din said, sitting with his arms folded over his chest.

You could feel his eyes on you despite being unable to see them through his visor. You inhaled deeply and sighed. "I have to impersonate a bounty hunter from the underworld and I need you to be my bodyguard. There's a target to be eliminated." You produced a bounty puck from a pouch on your belt and placed it on the table.

Din studied the hologram of the target before looking up at you. "You dragged me out here to be your bodyguard?"

"That's not the only reason." You huffed. "I know next to nothing about bounty hunting. I just smuggle supplies for refugees!" You ran a few fingers through your hair anxiously. "I can't screw this up, Din. They'll have my head if I don't eliminate the target. Plus, I... really need the credits."

"I guess the smuggling gig wasn't enough."

"No, it wasn't. It never was."

He leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. "But it was for a good cause. That's why you did it."

"Yes." You eyed him skeptically. "What are you getting at?"

"You helped them even though you knew you wouldn't get much out of it." His voice was deep and calm as it passed through his modulator. "I'm going to help you for that same reason."

A plume of anger arose in your heart, but it was quickly snuffed by a wave of relief that washed over you upon hearing his words. Part of you wanted to believe that he was only doing this to boost his ego, but another part of you knew he was better than that. Your Din wouldn't do such a thing. Your Din was kind and acted out of the purity of his heart when someone close to him was in need. He kept his word. You had to trust him.

You lowered your gaze, briefly overwhelmed by emotion. Then, you drew in a long breath through your nose and exhaled softly. "Thank you.." You murmured, looking up at him.

He simply nodded, allowing silence to occupy the air once more. If only you could see the turmoil that festered within him like a raging storm.

•••
Ahahaha—
Welcome to yet another fic with our beloved Din Djarin. I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter! Comment your thoughts, I'd like to hear them! :)