A/N: So, I was trying really hard to wait to post this until tuesday, but, I caved. Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed and responded to this story! To say I'm shocked is an understatement. I really adore this fandom, but it's also a bit scary on here because people are fiercely loyal and generally dislike AUs. So, thank you again, readers! You're the BEST! This chapter is all Arya, but don't worry, Gendry and her reunite next chapter.
Arya jumped out of her car and practically ran into Sansa's apartment – she had started on and off staying there once they had moved in three years ago and hadn't really left since. Before that, Sansa had begun spending more and more time at her Sandor's place, bringing more and more of her belongings until he had finally took the hint her sister had been desperately trying to drop and suggested they actually move in together and get a place of their own. Arya had come not too long after that, jumping at the chance to get away from the full house that was their family home – annoying life lessons, cheesy montages and all. She always mentally flipped off Bob Saget when she got the chance.
Staying with them was actually one of the ways she had come to accept the Hound and his mildly inappropriate relationship with her sister – although, the two of them still held a private annoyance with one another, but they were all much closer now. Including Arya and Sandor.
Arya had been unofficially living with them since she graduated a year early last summer, spending what would have been her senior year of high school doing absolutely nothing. She didn't have a job, she deferred her college acceptance for a year, and she wasn't making any serious plans about her life. Sansa worried about her, Arya knew that. That's why Sansa was letting her live here without question, she was worried.
They had become very close, as shocking as it had been to everyone that had known them when they were younger. They use to hate each other, be at each others throats over everything – every stupid decision, every remark, every eye roll. After their parents died it had stayed the same for a while, they kept up with the only normalcy they had left in their life – which just happened to be hating each other. Slowly that wore away into pain and sadness, and Arya and Sansa leaned on one another in a way they never had before, in a way that she had only reserved for Jon. They became close friends after that.
Sansa had changed since she started dating Sandor – and usually when a girl changes for her boyfriend, it was a bad thing. This time though, it wasn't. Sansa used to be judgmental and prissy, tattle-tailing and being petty all the time. But, after their parents died and she had started to grow up, meeting Sandor in the process, and she changed. He was good for her, he calmed her, excited her, loved her. He made her a better person, and everyone saw it. Maybe that's why Arya had softened for him, she wasn't a child anymore, she saw the way the Hound made her sister smile. She got it.
Now, she wasn't sure what her life would be like if they weren't close, all three of them – probably boring.
She opened the front door to the sounds of moaning and slapping flesh, Arya pulled a disgusted face at the sound and slammed the door loud enough to hopefully make it fucking stop. This she did not miss. This she could certainly go back in time and live without. What had happened to Sansa? She had use to be so prim and proper. Arya snorted, remembering that Sansa hadn't even let Joffrey kiss her until they'd been actually dating for a whole month. Now here she was, living with her significantly older boyfriend and having storms of loud sex. Literally. They would straddle make-out during movies they were watching, fuck during all hours of the day, everywhere, all the time.
What the actual fuck?
And, Arya chose to live here. That's what Sandor would say when she groaned about their annoying sex-capades – she chose to be here. It was true, she did live here by choice and clearly was mental for doing so.
The noises stopped soon after she had slammed the door, alerting them to her presence in the apartment. Arya made her way out of the living room and down the hall to her own room – aka the big guest bedroom, that was totally only Arya's, because let's be honest – and was so happy that the two of them decided to be normal humans and have sex in their bedroom this time, instead of the various other rooms of the house that Arya had caught them in. Arya shuddered as she remembered walking in on her sister pinned to the kitchen counter as the Hound pounded into her. Nope, never again.
Sansa came out of her room not too long after and made her way down the hall into Arya's room, leaning against the doorway. "Hey."
Arya looked over to her sister and smirked. Sansa was wrapped in her dark silk robe, her long hair was mussed, and her chest heaving from labored breathing. "Hey." Arya sat down on the bed, staring at her sister and smirking. "Sorry for disturbing you two." Her dark brows furrowed then, "Wait, were you guys, like... finished, or whatever?"
Sansa gave her younger sister a secretive smile that Arya had often tried to replicate. "No."
Arya sighed, a smile still on her lips. "He's gonna throw a tantrum about me being a cockblock again, isn't he?"
Sansa let out a laugh, "I'll make it up to him later."
Arya just shook her head, "And I really don't want to know how."
Sansa just smirked, saying nothing on the subject. "So," She began. "How was your library time?" Her brows furrowed as she looked at the clock on Arya's beside table, "You're home early for someone who went late."
"Yeah well, it's not my fault that Bran took ten hundred years in the shower this morning and then another five for him to get ready so I could drop him off. I mean, really, who is that monkey trying to impess?" Sansa laughed at her portrayal of their younger brother and Arya kept going. "I did have an encounter today."
Sansa's eyes lit up, "Oh! You did? Tell me." She came and sat down beside Arya on the bed, excited about the girl talk that was about to commence. It wasn't often that this happened – or that Arya allowed it to happen was a more accurate statement – and Sansa was going to lap it up while she could.
"I did. So, you know nameless boy, right?"
"Correct, I do."
"Okay, well, I made contact today."
Sansa gave a yelp of excitement, smothering the chuckle at the way Arya spoke of him like he was an alien. "I thought you were waiting for him to make a move? Did he finally make one?"
Arya shook her head, "No, not exactly. He seemed extra angsty today – which was super hot – and he was steadfastly ignoring my existence, as always, and something just clicked. I went and made the move, got his name and everything."
Sansa squealed again, causing Arya to make an annoyed face, which Sansa promptly ingored. "What is it?"
"Gendry."
"Wow, it sounds dashing."
Arya leaned back on the bed, throwing her arms over her face, groaning. "Fuck, he's so hot, Sans. Like, so nerdy and hot, I just want to throw him against a bookshelf and fuck him."
Sansa laughed at that, shaking her head at her sister. She had basically no doubt that Arya would certainly do just that if she really wanted to. "So, you made contact, got a name," Sansa glanced down at her outfit. "Looked super cute and fantastic while doing it. Anything else?"
"I definitely flirted, real hard. I think he almost had a heart attack. He was blushing and stumbling over his words, it was adorable. You would've died, Sans."
"Oh, god, what I would give to have nerdy virgins blushing all over me." Sansa stated, a dreamy look coming to her eyes as she fanned herself at the thought.
Arya rolled her eyes and scoffed, "They do. Every time we walk into the record store or the coffee shop, they all immediately start sweating and think of every geek fantasy they have, putting you in them."
Sansa swatted Arya's arm, "They're looking at you too, you goon." She pushed Arya once again for good measure, trying to implant it into her brain that she was beautiful and sultry and everybody's fantasy girl. "Tell me more about, Gendry." Arya ignored the way she purred his name.
"Well, I did the only thing I could think of." She smirked. "I asked him to help me find a book."
Her sister smirked as well, knowing it was totally something Sansa would do or had done in high school. "What book?"
"An erotic book. A book with a lot of sex happening in it."
"Good girl."
"He got it for me and then I may or may not have casually mentioned that I would be reading in the bath later."
Sansa laughed whole-heartedly at that, the peels of laughter making Arya laugh as well. "I can't believe you said that! Oh, we've trained you well." She sloppily pushed away tears from her laughing fit. "Ygritte will be so proud."
Arya rolled her eyes and chuckled at the mention of Jon's intense girlfriend. She would indeed be very proud when Arya told her about this, probably take her out for a drink to celebrate, or something equally as Ygritte. "Yeah, but now what do I do? What do I talk to him about when I see him next? I don't want him to think I'm some sex fiend who has multiple hook ups on the daily."
"He's not going to think that. Just find out more about him, ask him questions." Her blue eyes lit up, a wide smile on her face. "Wait, give me your phone."
Arya pulled the phone out of her pocket and handed it to her sister. "What? What's happening right now?" Sansa took the phone and started typing something into it. "Sansa, what are you doing?"
"I'm looking him up on Instagram. Everyone has an Instagram, Facebook is so over. And, I mean really, how many people are named, Gendry?" Arya scooted closer to Sansa to get a look at her phone over her sister's slim shoulder. "Aha! Look, one Gendry in all of the Instagrams."
The username was GWB and the name beneath it was simply, Gendry. Sansa clicked on it, and groaned when it came up as private. She snuck a glance to an also disappointed Arya and quickly hit the follow button.
"Sansa!" Arya pushed her sister and made to grab the phone from her. "Why did you do that?"
Sansa just laughed and used her height as an advantage over Arya, "Who cares, he's going to accept as soon as he sees you followed him."
"He will not! He's going to think I'm some creepy sex-fiend stalker girl and never speak to me again!"
Sansa rolled her eyes, "Oh my god, Arya, that it so not true. He's going to see that you made the effort to find him and be thoroughly excited that you did."
"You know nothing, Sansa Marie!"
"Stop imitating, Ygritte. You know how she hates that."
"Give me the phone."
"No."
"Sansa, give me the fucking phone!"
"No!"
Arya climbed on top of her sister, straddling her and attempting to extract the phone from her hands. They struggled and yelled, flipping positions more than once. They stopped when they heard the deep sigh from the doorway. Arya looked over her shoulder from where she was straddling her sister, who was on her stomach, facing the opposite wall. Sandor stood in the doorway, arms crossed over his bare chest, his eyes narrowed as he watched his girlfriend being mounted by her younger sister.
Sansa looked over shoulder sheepishly, "Hi, honey."
"What is this shit?"
Arya smiled innocently at the Hound, knowing that he hated the way she imitated Sansa and looked up through her lashes at him. "Yeah, hi, honey." Her tone held a sarcastic mocking but had no malice, he just glared at her from his spot by the door.
"You left me in the middle of sex to girl talk with your sister and fucking wrestle each other?"
Sansa rolled herself over onto her back, sitting up with Arya still planted on her thighs. She smiled over at Sandor, that perfect secret smile that Arya wanted so much to replicate. "Sorry, San, I'll be back in a minute."
Sandor just sighed deeply again, glaring at the two of them for another whole minute. Taking in the sight of Sansa and Arya tangled together, Sansa's robe disheveled and falling slightly open. He shook his head and narrowed his eyes at the sisters who were smiling back at him apologetically and saucily at the same time.
Arya noticed his line of sight had went to the open part of Sansa's robe, revealing one of her breasts. Arya turned back and pinched Sansa's nipple, causing her to cry out in pain. Sansa pushed Arya off her and Arya then grabbed the phone out of her hand as Sansa massaged her throbbing appendage.
"Ow! Arya Louise, that hurt!"
Sandor just rolled his eyes and shook his head, walking away from the room and leaving the two of them. Sansa reached down into Arya's shirt and pinched her nipple for revenge, Arya yelled and pushed Sansa away from her, laughing.
"Sans, Sansa, stop!" She pushed her annoyed sister away again, still laughing. "Stop! Okay, okay, I'm sorry! Just, stop!"
Sansa sat back down on the bed, stopping the assault on her younger sister. "No more titty-twisters, you promised."
Arya, still laughing, "I know, I'm sorry. Never again."
Sansa fixed her robe and looked back at Arya eagerly. "Well, go on, check your phone."
Arya scoffed, it had been like five minutes, she doubted he had even checked his phone in that time. "Sans, I really don't think – " She cut herself off as she opened the Instagram app and checked the notification she had, seeing that two minutes after she followed him, he accepted and followed her back. "Holy shit, you were right."
Sansa tackled Arya onto the bed in a loving sister wrestle-embrace. She straddled Arya and started to tickle her, "See! Never doubt me again!"
Arya was laughing and trying to push her older sister off her, "I'll never doubt you again, Sans. Promise. Now get the fuck off me."
"Good." Sansa stopped tickling her and grabbed the cell phone back from Arya. She looked through the pictures and smiled. "Oooo, he's super cute, Arya."
"I know, thanks." She said, trying to reach for the phone.
"Definitely a virgin." She scoffed and flipped the phone over so Arya could see a picture. "I mean, look, he's posting pictures of books and art, and not in an ironic, hipster way. He's genuinely into this. So nerdy."
"Yeah, I told you that."
She grabbed the cell phone from Sansa's hands and went back to view all the pictures. There were some of random books and coffee, a couple of video games or comics, artwork that hung in hallways or on a canvas, cars he seemed to be working on, his greasy hands after working on said cars. And there were a few of just him – although she wasn't sure if he took them or someone else had. His hair varied in them, the older ones showed his hair a little shorter than it was now, the newer ones showed his dark hair falling over his forehead. His eyes looked so blue, so light and bright, she was sure they didn't have any effects on them, she had seem them in real life today, they were really that blue.
Why hadn't she thought of this before? Why hadn't she thought of looking him up?
Oh, yeah, because she hadn't known his name until right now.
Two years she had spent looking at him through bookshelves, thinking about him, making up scenarios about him, wondering what his name was or his favorite book, his favorite movie, how often he masturbated and if he thought about her as he did it. And now, in one day, she had learned his name and found his Instagram, finding out more and more about him as she scrolled through his pictures.
She put the phone down when she saw Sansa smirk down at her from where she was still placed on top of Arya. "You know, if we keep laying on top of each other like this, the Hound is probably going to get some pretty gnarly ideas."
Sansa smirked again, "He already has."
"Oh my god, no!" She pushed Sansa off of her and rolled over on the bed. Sansa laughing at her sister's horrified expression as she laid back, next to Arya. "That's horrific, tell me you're joking."
"Nope." She shook her head, trying to calm her laughing. "Come on, Arya, he's a guy, living with two incredibly attractive sisters. I'm not at all offended."
"I feel violated."
Sansa swatted Arya's arm, "Don't ever tell him I told you."
Arya rolled her eyes and pulled a disgusted face. "Why in the seven hells would I ever bring up the fact that he has a super gross fantasy threesome with us? I like living here, I don't want the Hound to kick me out."
"He would never. He loves you, Arya."
She rolled her eyes playfully, knowing it to be true. "Yeah, yeah, I know."
Sansa sat up, "I should probably go back in there before he gets annoyed."
Arya scoffed, "I'm pretty sure he's already annoyed."
"Maybe slightly." Sansa stood from the bed and turned to face her sister. "Talk to him tomorrow. Feel him out, ask to hang out with him."
"Isn't that a little forward?"
Sansa gave Arya a pointed look, "You're the most forward person I have ever met, in my life. You'll figure it out."
With that, Sansa left the room and left Arya sitting on the bed, phone in hand, wondering what she was to do. Arya sat up with a sigh and looked down at her bag on the floor, now was a good a time as any. She reached down into the bag to grab the book out, she stood from her bed and pulled her bathrobe off the back of her door and made her way down the hall and into the bathroom, about to make true on her words to Gendry.
She filled the tub with warm water and began to shed her clothes, she grabbed a towel and placed it on the ground, her book and phone rested on it. Arya tested the water before climbing in, it soothed her muscles and instantly relaxed her. She slunk down into the water and sighed.
Her thoughts turned to nameless boy – to Gendry. His name was, Gendry. Her heart speed up at bit, and a low tingle formed in her belly. Gendry. Tall, handsome, Gendry. Who liked books, and comics, and was so quiet and shy. She thought of the blush that started from his neck up, she wondered if he blushed red everywhere. He seemed sweet, noble in a way. Unlike the boys that had surrounded her in high school, that used to gather around Sansa, he was different.
She looked over at the book on the floor beside her, she had a wicked idea. She picked up the book and her phone, messing around with her hair briefly to make sure she looked good. She snapped a picture of herself holding the book, making it clear that she was in a bathtub, a smirky-smile on the lip she was biting at. She put the book back down on the floor and looked at the picture she had just taken, her breasts were clearly visible in the wider framed shot. She quickly cropped it so that only the top part of her chest was seen, the swell of her cleavage visible and that was all. She was classy, afterall.
She smirked to herself as she uploaded it to Instagram, knowing that he would see it. She placed her cell phone back on the ground and instead picked back up the book, deciding to give it a go. And hoping that it would drone out the sound of Sansa's moaning.
The book was a lot dirtier than she expected, not really her jam, but whatever, it gave her something to do while she sat in the warm water. She'd probably end up giving it to Sansa later, reading the other book she'd checked out, it seemed way more her sister's speed. Eventually she stopped reading, not able to concentrate on the words in front of her. She laid back in the tub, closing her eyes and drifted off.
She wasn't sure how long she had napped it out for, but the water had grown cold around her, she sat up and stretched out before standing and draining the water out of the tub. She wrapped her robe around herself, gathering her things from the floor and headed back to her room. She could hear Sansa and Sandor down the hall, in the kitchen laughing about something as the microwave went off. It had to be around dinner time, she felt her stomach grumble loudly in conformation.
She went into her room and dressed in pajamas, even though it was still early, getting cosy. She was about to go back out into the kitchen to eat dinner with her sister and the Hound, dirty book in hand, when her phone lit up, she reached for it and clicked on the notification. He had liked her picture. She felt her heart beat faster in her chest, he had liked her picture.
Arya let the smile break out over her face, the small bubble of weird laughter spill out. She did a little excited jump, still smiling. She put her phone down, leaving it and her unabashed girly reaction with it, exiting her room and making her way down the hall into the kitchen.
She gave one last thought to the now named boy, Gendry. Thought about his otherworldly eyes, his tall frame, his awkward demeanor. Let her mind graze over how he looked today as he stared down at her, the nice rumble of his voice, his shifty, uncomfortable shyness. She would take Sansa's advice, she would talk to him, really talk to him, when she saw him next. He would be hers, it was only a matter of time until he also figured that out.
A/N: TELL ME THE STORY OF YOUR LIFE. (or, your thoughts on this chapter.)
