The next few days, or what I think are days, we travel through space. We have no real destination, other than to get the hell away from Vinsoth. We haven't gone into hyper space very much, so we're travelling pretty slow for space standards. My legs are starting to really ache being stuck in this ship this long.

"Are we stopping anywhere sometime soon? I need a shower," I complain to Mando.

"We should be there soon," he replies.

"What planet are we stopping at?" 

"Teth."

"Never heard of it."

"It's pretty far out there. Outside of the Hutt Space territory. I've been there before- should be pretty quiet."

"Good, I need some quiet." I smile at him through the mirror. I'm still in the same blood-caked clothes I was wearing back on Vinsoth. All I want is to be able to wash these clothes and comb my hair. I see why Mando goes with the metal exterior now. It's much easier to clean than fabric. 

*

Not too long later, Mando steers up toward a pinkish-purple planet. The atmosphere swirls with clouds below us. This is one of the prettiest planets I've seen yet. 

"A lot of jungle on this planet. There's a spot in the lower hemisphere that's never been occupied. We'll go there and recuperate for a few days," Mando announces as we start to enter the atmosphere. 

We dip below the cloud level to behold a tree canopy so thick, you couldn't see the ground if you tried. The trees are a rich green color, rustling in the breeze. There are small pink lakes and ponds strewn across the landscape. Plenty of water available for all of this flora.

We fly down near the surface, hovering around a larger lake with a river attached to it. Surrounding the lake is a large beach of light pink sand. The contrast between the pink water and beaches against the green plants and trees is very pleasing to the eye. 

Mando presses some more buttons on the dashboard as he circles the lake below. Then, he peers down over the landscape beneath us, presumably scanning for life forms. Once he's satisfied with his search, he starts the descent. 

He guides the ship down onto the beach, just where the tree line meets the sand. The ship smoothly touches down on the ground.

"We're here," he says. The hatch hisses open, and I'm on my feet immediately. Before Mando even has a chance to get up, I'm already climbing over him out the hatch of the ship. I leap down to the ground with a pleasurable groan.

Standing up feels so good. 

 I notice the humidity immediately. The air feels thick and heavy, leaving a sticky feeling on the skin. Mixed with the hot temperatures, I feel gross. This sweater and wool socks are intoxicatingly hot on my skin now. 

I walk over to the shore to inspect the water. It's a vibrant magenta color, coming from the sand and minerals underneath. It looks different from what I'm used to, but still good enough to wash and bathe in. 

I crouch down and start unlacing my boots. I pull the shoe laces from the tight knots they were tied in, then take each boot off one at a time. Then, I rip the socks off. My feet sink into the soft sand.

Then, I rip the sweater off of me. The air is just too hot and sticky, very different from the thin, cold air up in space. Just as I toss the sweater off to the side, I hear Mando hop down from the ship.

"The river over there has cleaner water for bathing in. And more privacy," he points to the right. Several yards to the right, there is a gentle river that deposits water into the lake. It's not very large, but it's big enough for me. 

"This place is beautiful," I remark to Mando. The colors of this planet are enough to write home about. Not to mention the incredible plants and flowers all over the place. "You've been here before?"

"A few times. It's very private. A good place for me to relax without the helmet on." Mando walks toward me slowly. I still forget how large this man is sometimes. The closer he gets, the taller he becomes. He towers over me crouched on the ground in front of him.

"I think I'm going to go try and clean up... myself and these clothes," I tell him. He nods and holds out a hand to me to help me up.

"I'll be here by the ship if you need anything. Stay within yelling distance," he gives me another reassuring nod. I pick up the clothes I tossed on the ground and start walking toward the river. 

Halfway to the river, I turn around. Mando has taken a seat on a large rock by the shore. He's removing his armor plates one by one, presumably, to wash them.

Once I'm at the river, I walk upstream to find a nice spot to use. The water dribbles calmly down the rocky cascade toward the lake. The rocks underneath the stream sparkle with pink minerals. I'm not sure what is is, but it's beautiful. 

I find a small pool in the river. The water is only about 2 feet deep here, but its calm and clear. There are some dense bushes and small trees close by, shielding me from unwanted eyes. Mando made sure there was nobody in the forest, so I feel safe. But you can never be too safe. 

I put my boots, socks and sweater on a large, flat, smooth rock next to the pool. Then, I start to strip myself of the remaining clothes I have on. I remove my pants, long-sleeve, underwear, and bralette. Even my undergarments have some drips of blood on them that soaked through my other clothes. 

I lay all of my clothes on the rock and dip my toes into the water. It's surprisingly warm for a moving body of water. Back home, my shower was just a hose and a curtain set up behind my house. Conventional showers aren't very popular where I'm from, so I'm used to the rugged shower/bath.

The floor of the pool is made of smooth rocks, so I'm comfortable getting in and sitting directly in the pool. The soft current of the stream flows past my body, bringing in fresh water constantly. This feel divine. 

I certainly don't smell very nice after the last week or so of my life as a nomad. I've not quite mastered the no-shower lifestyle yet, so this is quite necessary. I wonder how Mando deals with his own stink. I've never noticed him smelling bad... what's his secret?

Sat down and slightly hunched, the water comes up to just below my shoulders. I lean my head back and let my head touch the water behind me, soaking my hair. My hair has grown quite long, which has contributed to the high level of knots I've been getting. I wish I had some shampoo.

I run my fingers through my hair to release the knots. Some are stubborn, but most are easily combed out. My hair almost matches the pink minerals in the rocks below. All of the pink around me really brings out the strawberry in my strawberry blonde/auburn. 

I lay back in the water to float a little. It feels weightless and incredibly peaceful. The sound of the trickling water almost puts me in a trance. I haven't felt this level of tranquility in a very long time. The sun peeking through the trees feels like warm honey on my skin. 

I grab a smooth, round rock from below and use it to scrub my body. There is still caked, dried blood on my hands from Vinsoth, which I'd love to get rid of. There seems to be a bit of blood on everything I own. I rub the smooth rock on my arms, legs, and torso, scrubbing away the dirt, blood, and dry skin all over me. 

After what feels like a very long time of relaxation, I decide it might be time to get back to Mando. I grab my dirty clothes and dunk them in the water with me to try to clean them. The water turns a brownish-red color for a second before the stream washes it down to the lake. I don't have any soap or cleaner fluid, so this will have to do. 

I wring out each piece of clothing and toss them back onto the flat rock. I stand up in the pool to dry off. 

shit

I forgot to bring clean clothes. Or anything to dry off with. I can't put the wet clothes back on. And I can't walk to the ship completely naked. I don't know what to do.

I mean, I could...

No.

"MANDO!" I scream as I sit back down in the water. I hear running down by the beach coming toward the river.

"What's wrong?!" he screams in my direction.

"I forgot to bring my clean clothes!"

"Dank... farrik, Koda," I hear him huff to himself and stomp back to the ship. A minute later I hear him approaching my river pool. He's just wearing regular clothes and his helmet, no armor. 

"Don't scream like that. I thought something happened," he reprimands me. He walks up to the pool with my brown bag in hand. He looks down at me and quickly turns his head away.

Everything shoulders and down is submerged in the water crystal clear water. I didn't think. My breasts are on full display beneath the surface of the water.

I throw my arms over my chest and turn around swiftly. He drops the bag on the flat rock and quickly turns to speed-walk away. 

Maker, what did I just do?

I float over to the flat rock and half-stand up to peer over the edge. Mando has one hand on his forehead and the other hand adjusting something down below as he walks away. 

Did I just...?

After he disappears from sight, I stand up to dress myself. I dig around in the brown bag looking for something comfortable. I pull out a fresh pair of underwear and throw those on. I grab a matching black bralette and put that on as well.

I pull out a baggy pair of dark grey shorts. They go to about mid-thigh, and they're slightly high-waisted. They used to be black, but I've had these for so many years now. They fit well and they're very comfy, so why would I ever get rid of them? 

My shirt options are limited. I have, like, eight long-sleeve shirts now, but it's way too hot for those. I have some short-sleeve shirts, but the fabric is quite thick. I have a low-cut tank top, but after what just happened, I don't know if I want to have everything on display...

Or maybe I do.

I put the tank top on. It's a sage green v-neck cropped tank top. This is usually what I'd wear when I was training back at home. It's very breezy without being restrictive or too baggy and in the way. 

I slip on some black socks and my boots over top. The wet clothes have sufficiently dripped off any excess water, and they're started to dry a bit from how warm the rock is. I throw my bag over my shoulder and pick up the wet clothes. 

I start walking downstream toward the ship. This is going to be awkward, I think to myself. I didn't mean to expose myself to Mando, but I'm also not mad about it. If you know what I mean. Over the last few days in the ship I've gotten to know him a little more. He told me about Grogu, his childhood, being a Mandalorian... stuff like that. He's opened up a lot. 

And I may have developed a crush on him. 

I reach the sand and I see Mando. He's setting up a tent on the sand. He still has no armor on. I've never seen him without the armor on until today. He's wearing just the brown clothes he normally has on under the metal. It shows off his figure.

The closer I get, the more I admire him. The shirt especially is a little tight and shows off his biceps and forearms. Every time he lifts something I can see his muscles bulge a little. It makes my heart flutter a little each time. 

"Your turn," I call to him to break the ice. He turns around to acknowledge me, but says nothing. He seems mad. He walks over to the ship and pulls out a clean change of clothes. He turns and starts toward the river.

"Do not come anywhere near me when I'm up there," he warns aggressively, then turns and storms into the forest.