Poe and BB-8 own my heart in The Last Jedi

Like any good Star Wars movie, Star Wars: The Last Jedi is full of romance. I embrace it: Give me that good, sweet, intergalactic loving. And the love was spread all around in The Last Jedi, from humans to androids.

Tumblr says that fans are big into Rey and Kylo Ren, a pair that spends a considerable amount of time together throughout The Last Jedi. But it’s not unfair to think that “Reylo” is built upon a faulty premise, one that requires shippers to put aside the whole “Kylo Ren is a vicious, cruel, emotionally manipulative asshole” thing. If Reylo doesn’t strike you, there are some very good alternatives — and the best one is the beautiful love shared by Poe Dameron and BB-8, the galaxy’s most loyal droid.

Poe and BB-8 have always been close; the droid is the commander’s trusted partner. But while The Force Awakens also followed BB-8’s journey to reunite with his best friend, The Last Jedi repeats the plot while somehow making their relationship even more poignant.

BB-8 ships off to hang with Poe’s pal Finn and his new friend Rose for much of the film, rolling alongside them to help infiltrate the First Order’s base. Once Rey makes her way back to the Resistance, BB-8 gets to return to his best friend, Poe. And their reunion is absolutely precious: Poe exudes warmth and happiness to see BB-8 again, rubbing its spherical body and sharing a lovely forehead touch with it.

Poe and BB-8 have undeniable chemistry that is as pure as a friendship can be, and The Last Jedi reminds us of it. Relationship dynamics change often throughout the film, with characters breaking out into new and unique pairings this time around. There’s Rey and Kylo, while Finn spends a ton of time with Rose; Poe splits his screen time between hanging with Leia and Holdo, among others. But the ever-charming Poe shines brightest when he’s locking eyes with his adorable droid. It’s a gentle reminder that the most important relationships in life, the ones that are longest lasting and strongest, don’t have to always be between folks of the same species.

Forget that there’s a healthy Archive of Our Own tag for the pair; theirs is a romance that is familial, and nothing more. Think of it like this: If Poe is our new Han Solo, BB-8 is our new Chewbacca. No matter what happens over the course of the trilogy, or how things change, or who survives or dies or moves on, this team will always have each other’s backs. Over the course of just two films, this is the friendship I know that I can count on.

Finn and Poe’s status as the trilogy’s one true pairing is so 2015; everything is beautiful between Poe and BB-8, and nothing hurts. Other than all the issues the Resistance will be facing in Episode 9, that is.