▸ Column · The smuggler's galaxy — a two-year flying partner wants to share a berth aboard a long-haul hauler
HAN SOLO replies.
Replied to by Han Solo, with a rebuttal from Jabba the Hutt.
The letter
Two standard years I've been running with Esi — good pilot, better company. Last docking cycle, over caf, she slides a datapad across the galley showing a two-cabin hauler with a long-term berth at the orbital station. Says the berth contract starts next cycle. I love her. I can see the long haul with her. But I've only ever bunked solo — my whole life is one cockpit, my own cargo manifest, nobody rearranging my ration crates. The thought of merging holds in six weeks makes my chest go tight. She's already told her old crewmate she's shipping out, keeps pinging me bulkhead paint colors. Every cycle I don't say "yes" feels like I'm quietly saying "no." When I told her I need more time, she went silent and asked if I was stalling because I don't see us going the distance — which is dead wrong. How do I tell her I'm in, just not on this clock, without her hearing "rejected"?
Han Solo replies
Look, first thing — quit grading the speech you're gonna give her and look at what you're actually doing. You went quiet. She went quiet. Now you're sweating the wording. The wording's not the problem, kid. So let's sort the one thing that matters: is "I need more time" smart, or is it scared wearing a flight suit? 'Cause I know that tightening in the chest. I lived on the Falcon my whole life — just me and a Wookiee who reorganizes my cargo whether I like it or not, and believe me, you adjust. Six weeks IS fast. That's real, not cowardice. You're allowed to say so. But here's the trap: every cycle you stay silent, she's out there telling crewmates she's leaving and picking paint, building a future solo while you "process." That's the part that'll cut her — not the timeline, the radio silence. Don't make her guess. Tell her plainly: you're in, the date's the only thing on the table, name one that doesn't choke you. This isn't a suicide run. It's a long haul worth taking. Don't fly it with your comm switched off.
— Han Solo
Jabba the Hutt weighs in
Listen to me instead, my friend. She has already told her crewmate. She has already chosen the paint. She has spent her leverage — publicly, irreversibly. And you? You hold the only signature that matters. Do not rush to give it away. Urgency is the discount you hand the eager party, and right now that party is not you. Sit. Indulge. Let her wait at YOUR berth, on YOUR clock. The one who is owed never has to look good. He simply waits at the center of the web, and they come to him with better terms.
— Jabba the Hutt
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