A/N: I think everyone will be particularly happy by the end of this chapter, if I do say so myself. It's the longest chapter I've written so far, and the amount of pride I'm feeling right now is unbelievable. I hope you guys tell me what you think of this one, because I basically threw up all 5k+ words right after posting chapter nine in like four hours and spent the next day editing it all and then I posted it. It's a huge chapter in this story, so I really hope you guys leave a comment and review.
Her mother kept asking her why she hadn't gone out with Edric Dayne yet, and Arya had no reasonable response.
Sansa kept telling her she needed to bury this stupid rumor about her and Gendry once and for all, and Arya knew it was the truth.
Edric Dayne came by her house earlier this week and asked her to go out with him, and Arya couldn't say no without sounding like a complete and total bitch.
So it was with a heavy heart and much annoyance that Arya got dressed that Friday, throwing a casual glance at her calendar. September 3rd. Her brother's wedding was soon, and she still didn't have a date. Maybe Edric would be hers for the night, though she shuddered at the thought. And Jeyne's bachelorette party was in a week, which she'd been invited to, and as the future sister-in-law, it was mandatory for her to go. Instead of pondering on what would happen in the next week, Arya focused on the task at hand, which was getting an outfit for her date tonight. New York's weather seemed to be forgiving tonight, and it was still rather hot, so Arya decided to stick with a pair of white shorts she loved despite the frayed hem, and a blue tank top with a black leather jacket over it. She didn't want to be too dressy tonight and give Edric the impression that she was trying to impress him and make him fall in love with her tonight. God, that sounded desperate.
As soon as she finished sliding a white headband in her black hair, she heard Cat calling her from downstairs.
Mentally preparing herself with a deep breath and a single nod to herself in the mirror, she walked downstairs.
Edric was standing in her doorway wearing a nice button down shirt and a pair of jeans. Thank God she hadn't overdressed.
"Hey, Arya."
"Edric."
He offered his arm to her and Arya, at the sight of Catelyn giving her a stern yet subtle look that clearly stated Do it, took his arm in hers and closed the door behind her. There was no discussion of curfews or playful warnings of keeping an eye on her that were obviously serious. They just let her go, just like that. Arya internally rolled her eyes at her mother's behavior. She might as well have worn a t-shirt that said I AM DESPERATE TO HAVE MY CHILDREN MARRIED OFF AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF WHATEVER YOU LIKE, IT'S FOR FREE. By the time they exited the elevator and entered the lobby of their building, Arya was seething on the inside.
"You look nice," Edric complimented her once they got in his car.
"Thanks. You're not so bad yourself." Why did it come out so flirty when she had literally no interest in him?
"Thank you." He obviously took it the wrong way because he had a smile on his face for the rest of the car ride.
Arrogant bastard.
When Edric pulled up to the restaurant, the first thing Arya noticed was that it would be very expensive. Just from looking at the outside, she saw it: The flawless white paint job done on the outside, the elegant stairs that led up to the large glass double doors, and the big cursive letters that spelled out the name of the restaurant. All she saw were a bunch of r's, all of which probably required a lot of tongue rolling. She was already getting annoyed with the turn the night had taken, and they hadn't even been seated yet.
There was a line a mile long of people waiting for a table to be seated at, but Edric simply strode past them and gave them a winning smile. "Reservations for Dayne, party of two," he said confidently.
The maître d' smiled at him familiarly. "Welcome back, Mr. Dayne. Shall I take your coat?" he asked, already reaching out his hands. Edric handed over his jacket, but Arya held onto hers protectively. This was her outfit.
As they sat down at the small table for two in the center of the busy room, Arya couldn't help but suspect that this was a perfect spot for people to see her and start spreading rumors. She could just picture it: ARYA STARK CHEATING ON HER TORTURED AND POOR BOYFRIEND WITH SOCIALITE EDRIC DAYNE. She wrinkled her nose at the thought and picked up her menu, scanning the items. The thought of a good steak made her mouth water, but it was incredibly expensive. She cast a glance at Edric sitting across from her, looking at his own menu carelessly, as if the thought of money didn't bother him in the slightest. Of course, it didn't bother her, either, not when she was Eddard Stark's daughter, but she still liked to have a budget.
"How'd you find this place?" she asked casually.
"My family owns it."
"Really?"
A distant little piece of knowledge tugged at her brain. The Daynes were a family that had been investing and creating elite hotels, upscale nightclubs, and five-star restaurants for years. She blushed as she remembered this, feeling ashamed for some reason. He probably knew everything about her family, like all Upper East Side families knew everything about each other, and she hadn't even been bothered to find anything out about him. Or any other family, for that matter. She had never been interested enough to care.
Edric ordered a bottle of white wine for their table, along with a small plate of bread, caviar, and olive spread as they continued to order. He eventually decided on a Caesar salad and lobster.
"What'll you have, Miss Stark?" the waiter asked her politely as he refilled her glass of wine.
Arya cocked her head to the side as she eyed the menu. "I'll have the steak."
. . .
By the end of the night, when Edric was finishing off the last of his slice of cherry cheesecake and Arya cleared off her bowl of brownie sundae, she had to admit that she had been having fun.
Not enough fun to admit that she liked him, but fun in the way that two friends meet up for dinner and have a night to themselves.
Arya decided that she wouldn't be asking Edric to Robb and Jeyne's wedding as her date for two reasons: He had slipped in that he and his family had been invited during their conversation, and she still didn't feel like she had enough of a connection to him to want to ask him.
When he was finished with sliding in a couple hundred-dollar bills, despite Arya insisting that she should pay for her half of the meal, Edric got his jacket from the maître d' and led her out of the restaurant.
He once again joined their arms by the crooks of their elbows and together they walked through the streets of Manhattan. It was really beautiful at night, especially in the Upper East Side. New York in itself was a thing of beauty if you could look past the initial first impression of bad people, road rage, and crowded streets. And as they walked together, Arya could see herself being a very good friend of Edric Dayne.
It was only when she ran into Gendry that her night was ruined.
It had been a mistake, an honest shock when she saw him. But there he was, walking down the street with his hands in the pockets of his dirty jeans, and then they almost bumped into each other. He was about to say sorry when he got a look at who it was that he'd ran into.
"Arya." It was said in such a monotone kind of voice, said with such disinterest and disregard. It was hardly even considered a greeting, more of a statement of fact instead of her name. Arya felt embarrassment wash over her like sea water in waves at the beach. The fact that Edric was standing right next to her as Gendry spoke to her like that was shameful, and Arya couldn't help but feel the sudden and ridiculous urge to cross her arms over her stomach and fold up in a box right on the dirty sidewalk to hide.
Edric and Gendry were looking at each other now with great interest, sizing each other up. Edric must remember Gendry's face if he read magazines or watched E! News or was in any way connected to the gossip that surrounded their daily lives. And Gendry must know who Edric was, if he read the newspapers and magazines, which Arya knew he did since that was how he recognized her the first time they met. Arya looked back and forth between the two of them, feeling suddenly as if she was a wife caught in the arms of her lover while her husband saw the affair happening right before her eyes. But Gendry was not her husband and Edric was not her lover and it was stupid to think that way.
"Hi, Gendry."
"What are you up to?"
"Just. . .out with Edric." Arya indicated Edric with her hand. "Edric Dayne, this is Gendry Waters. Gendry, this is Edric."
No response. Not even a glance in his direction that showed he acknowledged his presence. "I didn't know you had a date tonight."
The word gives her a start. She hates that word. Date. In a desperate attempt to avoid answering, Arya considers going on a five-minute rant with supporting ideas and theories that proves why the word date is a stupid word that should never have been invented to describe a night where two people go out. But Gendry was staring at her in that weird impassive way of his and she felt pressured to give a real answer even though he hadn't even asked a question.
"Um, well, yeah. . .I did. Do," she corrected herself at the last minute, fearing to look over at Edric and see his expression. Arya simply stares at the ground, the black of the night distorting her image of the sidewalk but keeping her gaze firm and unwavering. If she looked at either of them, she'd start rambling about how this wasn't her fault. Even though she didn't even know what this was, and there wasn't anything to apologize for.
So why did she feel so guilty? Arya wondered about that as Edric asked Gendry something in a polite yet detached voice that only socialites who were skilled at conversing with people they dislike have mastered.
It took another few minutes of awkward silence filled with even more awkward statements and questions for Arya to finally disengage herself and Edric from this pathetic excuse at conversation with Gendry and went on her way, going farther down the street as Gendry passed them alone, his hands still stuffed in his pockets. Arya didn't bring it up as she and Edric continued on their walk, and only spoke when she mentioned the late hour. He led her back to the restaurant and got in the car, driving her home and leaving the night on what Arya suspected was a very sour and not at all pleasant note.
. . .
ARYA STARK MAKING HER WAY THROUGH THE BACHELORS OF NEW YORK
It's hardly been a month since the engagement part of Sansa Stark (22) and Joffrey Baratheon (22), and it's hardly been a month since we, along with everyone else, started to speculate about the relationship status of Arya Stark (19), who has remained suspiciously single throughout her life, when she arrived to the party with her family. . .and a date named Gendry Waters (24), a working-class mechanic who lives in Brooklyn. Since then, everyone's been raving about these two and the possible relationship they seem to be in. And the conflicts that seemed to arise along with said relationship, including social status difference and money issues, and a five-year age gap that worries not only us but the rest of New York. And, we're positive about this, Arya's family!
While neither party has agreed to comment on this relationship (though Arya did have some choice words for a few reporters and journalists about her relationship status a few weeks ago which we covered on our website), their actions definitely speak louder than words. Ever since this engagement party, they've either been flaunting their hanging out together or ignoring each other's presence. For the first time in almost two weeks, Arya and Gendry had been spotted together in a local coffee shop in Manhattan, probably catching a moment alone together while he was off of work and she found a space in her busy schedule of college and dance to see him again. Ever since then, though, we haven't really seen them together. We have, however, spotted Arya with another boy on her arm, someone whose name will be met with much familiarity: Edric Dayne.
The Dayne family has a long line of hotels, clubs, and restaurants under their belts. They also have good looks, charm, and natural charisma running through their genes. And apparently Edric Dayne (21) has decided to use those attributes to woo Arya Stark despite her questionable relationship status. What could be even more shocking than this, though? The fact that Arya agreed to go on a date with him, and were spotted last Friday night at one of the Dayne restaurants and continued on a walk through Manhattan after dinner until he dropped her off at her home and drove away.
The entire situation is confusing at best, scandalous and socially degrading at worst. Is Arya Stark really trying to play the field? Is she trying to send a message to her family saying that she'll remain her regular rebellious self by continuing to see Gendry, but keeping up appearances for everyone else, including the cameras, by dating Edric Dayne? That's a huge risk for her to take in our very humble opinion, especially because her life, along with her whole family's, is always under scrutiny. For a girl who's lived her whole life staring a camera lens in the face, she can't expect this plan of hers to be smooth sailing all the way. And what will happen when her brother Robb's wedding draws closer each day? Who will she bring as her date? Edric Dayne, the boy society has deemed appropriate and expects her to bring along, or Gendry Waters, the man she initially had a spark with?
We're going to be on this story 24/7, as usual, for your convenience. Don't think that a single step Arya Stark takes will be unseen. We promise that we'll be the first to tell you if she's chosen indecency or purity as her path in life.
. . .
Arya loved bachelorette parties. She really did. But when they were being thrown for your oldest brother's fiancee, Arya felt rather uncomfortable. Especially when the stripper decided to tear off his pants right in front of Jeyne's face.
Arya blushed bright red at the sight, and the only person looking even more scandalized was Jeyne herself. Arya was shocked at herself. She had always been brazen and blunt about things, but. . .this was her brother's fiancee. He would be marrying her soon, and a stripper was currently grinding against Jeyne's leg erotically. In all honesty, it was a bit funny.
And so the night continued on in a haze of alcohol Arya snuck past Sansa's watchful glare and loud music pumping through large speakers.
By the time it was time to exchange presents, it was only nearing eleven and Arya was getting tipsy.
"This is really a great bachelorette party," Jeyne commented to no one in particular.
And it was. Sansa, the maid of honor, had really planned it perfectly. She'd rented out the roof of one of the more upscale and classier nightclubs set deep into the Upper East Side and strung twinkly lights around the speakers. It was small and wonderfully simple, as Jeyne didn't want a big bachelorette party and Sansa did her best to heed her request.
Jeyne picked up her first gift, from Sansa. Inside the box was a set of white lacy lingerie, complete with a brassiere and matching underwear, lace stockings, and garter belts.
Arya had gotten her a white silk bathrobe that she had gotten personally stitched with Jeyne's name on the back, with the stark name underneath, deeming it appropriate for a wedding present.
Presents for the bride to be followed the general theme of white, claiming virginity and purity, but Arya secretly thought the exact opposite of Robb and Jeyne's relationship if she recalled secret meetings in the early stages of their relationship correctly. Her room was right in the middle of Robb and Sansa's, and she definitely heard enough of Robb's terms of endearments for Jeyne while they were in bed to last her a lifetime.
She fought the urge to say it, as she often suffered from a rather loose tongue while intoxicated.
Arya settled on one of the white lounges Sansa had hired people to carry up to the roof and ate one of the chocolate cupcakes the cooks had baked earlier that morning while she held a bottle of beer in her other hand.
Soon, Sansa collapsed next to her. "I think Jeyne's going to be very happy with Robb, don't you think?" she asked, her eyes bright with the alcohol she herself had consumed, and her red hair was looking a bit frazzled.
Arya's mind went back to overhearing Robb and Jeyne together at night, and couldn't help but agree. "Yeah, they'll be alright," she said fondly, smiling faintly.
Margaery appeared on Arya's other side next. "So," she said, obviously drunker than anybody else there that night, "what's going on with your wedding, Sansa?"
Sansa blushed, as if the topic of her wedding embarrassed her or made her nervous. Arya couldn't believe the image Sansa put forward, and instead did her best to tune out the oncoming conversation. Even at somebody else's bachelorette party, Sansa's own wedding was the main topic of conversation.
"It's going to happen, obviously. And I want a June wedding, since that's the month rain happens the least in New York."
"What about a location?"
"No idea as of yet." Sansa's voice hitched a bit at the end in a way that made Arya, unable to ignore the voices of the girls on either side of her, wonder if Joffrey had shut down any, or more likely, all, of her ideas for locations.
After the party had dragged on for a few hours and Meera, Bran's girlfriend of five months who had inserted herself into the welcoming arms of the group, had declared herself too tired to continue and was the first to leave the party, it was already half past one in the morning. At eighteen, she wasn't legal to drink. But unlike Arya, who was a year older than her but still not legal yet, she actually lived by this law for the night and hadn't touched any kind of alcohol.
Arya asked Meera to drive her home, and she agreed. Of all the Stark siblings, Meera had worked for Arya's approval the hardest when Bran had introduced her to the family a month after he said he had a girlfriend. Now, though, she seemed to have warmed up to her.
In the car, Meera rolled down the windows and rested her elbow on the empty gap, running her fingers through her hair. "How'd you like the party?"
Arya shrugged. "I liked it. It was a lot of fun."
Meera smiled. "I did, too. Jeyne seemed to like my gift."
Meera's gift to Jeyne had been the most reserved. As the youngest in the group, she hadn't thrown all caution and propriety out the window like Margaery had with her package of three different vibrators, and she hadn't walked the line of classy and sexy like Arya and Sansa had with their sets of wedding night bridal wear. Instead, she had gotten her an assortment of perfumes and lotions, all light and sweet scents that managed to be catching and subtle all at once. It was a nice gift, and Jeyne had smiled in relief when she opened it, glad that she hadn't opened up a package to reveal some kind of weird sex toy that would make her feel as awkward as Margaery had. Arya, too, felt grateful to see that Bran's girlfriend was classy and reserved, untouched by the scandals that life in Manhattan came with.
As they continued to drive down the roads, Arya felt herself slipping into unconsciousness. Her eyelids felt heavy and she had the distinct feeling of her mind trying to press into itself. She leaned her head against the passenger side's window, which she had pulled up when the wind started blowing her hair in her face, and looked out at the buildings passing her by.
A lone figure caught her attention, walking into a small bar by himself with his head down and his hands in his pockets.
"Stop over here," Arya instructed Meera, her head snapping up as she squinted her eyes at the person walking. He was on the opposite side of the street as they were, but Arya would run over.
Meera stopped the car and pulled over, glancing over at Arya and where her gaze was now fixed. She bit her lip, fearing for her friend's intoxicated state, but Arya simply waved her concern away when Meera voiced it.
"If Sansa asks, I met up with a friend on the way." It wasn't totally untrue, Arya resolved as she kissed Meera on the cheek and slid out of the car.
Stepping inside the bar, Arya felt instantly warmer. The night air was chilly that night, and the cozy atmosphere of the bar was greatly welcomed by Arya.
"Hey, Gendry," Arya said casually as she sat down in the booth across from him, dropping her bag next to her and crossing her legs. Her flashy outfit wasn't lost on the eyes of the few patrons in the bar, and more than one pair of eyes lingered on her legs that were exposed from the pair of sheer black tights she'd worn underneath her short and sparkly low-waisted black skirt that she had paired with a black short-sleeved crop top that left her entire midsection bare. Her tall heels clicked on the floor beneath her as she made her way to Gendry.
"Arya?" Gendry asked, confusion mingling in his tone.
Arya gave him a sly smirk with a quirk of her eyebrows. He already had a beer in front of him, and from the looks of it, he had already had a quarter of its contents. Arya signaled for the bartender to bring her a beer of her own despite her own tipsiness that was bordering on drunkenness and turned back to her friend. "Surprised to see me?"
"I thought you had a bachelorette party tonight?"
Arya shrugged. "I did. It's over now. I saw you while my friend drove me home."
"Why didn't you just go home?"
"Is it a crime to want to see my friend?" she asked, feigning hurt.
Gendry rolled his eyes, not really in the mood for her games and wordplay tonight. "What do you really want, Arya?" he asked. "You had a bachelorette party tonight. You had a date last week. You ran into me on both nights, but you couldn't be bothered to visit me in the days in between."
Now real hurt shone through her eyes.
"I'm sorry," she whispered as the bartender set a beer in front of her.
Gendry shrugged, showing false indifference as he looked away from her and instead payed more attention to his beer, taking a longer sip than necessary and fighting the urge to cough when he finally let go.
"The papers stopped making articles about us."
Arya recalled the last article she'd seen, after her date with Edric Dayne, and nodded. "It's good that it's finally dying down."
Gendry nodded in agreement, and an awkward silence followed. Arya had never understood when books described 'A loud silence', but for the first, time she thought she had it down.
She felt the pressure nagging at her to say something, to fill the silence that had separated them. She wanted to speak but words clogged in her throat and she couldn't hear anything over the sounds of words desperately trying to get out of her own mind, swimming around and around in head as they tried to form coherent sentences but only managed to get even more jumbled and inconsistent.
They continued to drink in silence, the thick air and awkward quietness surrounding them only punctured by the sounds of their bottles hitting the table as they finished them off one by one.
Arya began to descend into dangerously drunk territory. She had been sober at the beginning of the night but got giddy around the middle of the bachelorette party and now, sitting here with Gendry as she set down her third beer bottle, she was well and truly hammered.
Arya glanced at Gendry from under her lashes, cocking her head to the side. Under the guise of alcohol, she could study him without shame or question. She had nothing to hide when she was drunk. So she studied the planes of his face, the sharp edges of his jawline and the startlingly bright shade of blue of his eyes. She felt her fingers twitch, longing to lose themselves in his thick black hair.
"Do you wanna get out of here?" she asked suddenly.
Gendry just looked at her over the rim of his beer bottle and shrugged again. "Sure, why not?"
They hailed a cab easily, the sight of Arya in her short fitted skirt and crop top and heels attracting the attention of the driver. Gendry's appearance next to her seemed to give him the impression that they were in a hurry to go somewhere more private, so he pulled over to the curb and let them stumble in, Arya giggling a little as she fell into the seat.
She gave the address of her building and sat back in the seat, turning back to Gendry and smiling softly as she looked him over.
He didn't look at her for the entirety of the ride, but he could feel her watching him, feel the intensity of her eyes on his face, wild and passionate even while hazy and disoriented.
When they pulled up to Arya's building, she got out and passed him a few twenties. She grabbed Gendry's wrist in her hand and dragged him out after her, ignoring his protests and claims that he needed to get home.
"Shut up," she said. "I've known you for a few months and you haven't ever been to my house. So come on." She led him into the lobby, giving a nod to her doorman and walking past the desk to their elevator.
"You have a private elevator?" Gendry asked incredulously.
Arya nodded as if it was no big deal, feeling her throat close up suddenly.
When they got into the elevator, Gendry turned to look at her instead.
She was wild tonight, a force of nature. Her long hair was messy and disheveled, her outfit both rebellious and beautiful all at once, just like her. Her thick eyeliner and bright red lipstick stood out on her face and her hair was tangling in her hoops.
Gendry had always thought Arya was beautiful. The first time he'd seen her was on TV. She had been at some charity ball and she had been wearing a pretty white dress and she had been beautiful. The impression she gave off in interviews and on camera was so startlingly different from that first image he had of her, it was almost laughable. And when he'd first came face to face with her. . .it hadn't even compared. She was gorgeous up close and in real life.
Gendry was disturbed to realize he had been leaning towards her unsuspecting figure.
He was even more disturbed to find that he had been trying to kiss her.
When they got off the elevator, Arya led him down the small hallway that led to their front door and opened it, fumbling slightly with her keys. "I don't know if anyone's home," she said in an offhand kind of voice, trying to settle her nerves. It wasn't like she was a teenager sneaking her boyfriend into her room on a school night. For God's sake, she was nineteen and in college! She could damn well bring whoever she wanted into her room.
But she didn't bring him into her room, not at first. Her own nerves wouldn't allow it.
Her suspicions were correct as she went through the house and realized no one was home. Her parents had mentioned some kind of event they had to be present for, and spending the night with Robert and Cersei afterward. Sansa was probably either still with Jeyne or already sleeping at Margaery, which she'd planned to do that night. Robb was at his own bachelor party. Bran was currently trying to sneak over to Meera's house, as Bran had warned Arya the night before and asked her to cover for him, and Rickon was sleeping over a friend's house. Jon himself was suspiciously out of the house, and she had no idea where he might be.
So while Arya showed Gendry the three floors of her home, she felt hypersensitive and all too aware of everything around her. This house was empty and she had Gendry in it with her.
"So what's going on with you and Edric?" Gendry asked with faux lightheartedness as he glanced around her spacious library. He fingered the spine of one of the books on the shelves, avoiding her gaze.
"He's, um. . .a friend. My mom wanted me to go out with him, so I agreed for a night."
"Oh." Gendry nodded slowly, processing this information. "And are you. . .still seeing him?"
Arya took a step closer to him, arms folded over her chest as she basically pushed herself against his front. "No."
Gendry nodded once again, feeling repetitive and thought to himself that he really shouldn't be thinking of that when Arya was leaning up towards him. "That's—"
She kissed him. And it wasn't gentle or rough, slow or rushed. It just was. It was awkward at first due to the suddenness and spontaneity of the action, but Gendry quickly recovered of shock.
His hands went to her waist, feeling bare skin against his fingers. His entire body immediately softened, feeling himself literally fall into the kiss as Arya reached up and wound her arms around his neck, dragging him down so they could make up for the tragic height difference between the two of them. Gendry pulled her against his chest suddenly, causing her to gasp into his mouth and he took full advantage, intertwining his tongue with hers as she forced her mouth open with his lips.
Gendry thought back to the limo ride going to the engagement party and how Jon and Robb had tried their best to include him for their younger sister's sake. If they heard the thoughts running through his head as his lips continued to dance with Arya's in a fast and sensual pace, they'd definitely regret their kindness and come after him with baseball bats.
He felt even more troubled as Arya clasped her arms tighter around his neck and jumped up, wrapping her legs around his waist and kissing him harder than before, her lips meeting his once again and setting a furious pace that had Gendry going weak in the knees. He rushed to grab her under her thighs to support her but refusing to let her lips go.
"Your brothers—"
"Shut up."
"They'll kill me."
"So don't say anything."
"Arya," Gendry pushed forward urgently even as he ran his hands down her exposed back, barely even stumbling as he hit the rough material of her skirt and his hand skidded over the curve of her backside.
"No," Arya hushed him, going after his mouth once again and really, who was he to complain? If this was his last night on earth, Gendry thought, this was likely the best way to go.
His fingers fought the urge to rip the zipper of her skirt down and chuck the rest of her clothes in the corner of the library and take her right there. But he couldn't, because this was the library of her house and it was two in the morning and he just couldn't. Excuses piled on top of each other in his brain but they each seemed to pop into thin air, disappearing as Arya slid down his body, landing on the floor and tangling his fingers with hers as she led him to her room.
Something that personal should have unnerved her, disturbed her, even. Her room was her personal haven, a place where no one was allowed to enter without her permission. Only Jon and Ned had been allowed to walk in whenever they wanted, and even they felt it proper to knock and wait for her approval before coming in. She barely let Gendry get a look at her room, though. She was on him within seconds of entering her room, kissing him again with more familiarity than before, tracing the edges of his lips with her tongue and sighing his name against his mouth quietly, a brush of air against him.
Gendry stumbled backwards, his knees hitting the edge of her bed. He picked her up again, his hands finding purchase on her hips, and set her down on the bed. His hands ran over her covered legs, nails itching to dig themselves into the stockings and rip the thin material so he could see her. Underneath the heat of his hands, Arya tensed under him, her leg muscles locking up noticeably. Feeling it under his hands, he looked up at her and saw her eyes were hazy and unfocused.
"Arya," he sighed, exhaling her name heavily.
Arya nodded slowly, crossing her legs. Gendry averted his eyes from the amount of skin she bared to him by that simple action.
"I'll get a cab."
Arya stood up, feeling a headache start to force itself in her mind, pulsing repetitively. "Maybe another time, when I'm not too drunk and you're not too chivalrous."
The words left Gendry feeling insatiable, heat crawling over his neck. He couldn't help it, he shoved her against the wall of her bedroom and kissed her again rakishly, his lips leaving her own feeling bruised and wanting for more.
She didn't follow him out of her room. She didn't say goodbye. She just crawled into bed with her clothes still on and closed her eyes effortlessly, feeling as if she took them off, she'd take off the feeling of Gendry's hands that were still lingering on her covered legs, her backside, the bare skin of her back and abdomen.
Gendry walked out of her room and walked down the stairs, shutting the front door behind him carefully and taking the elevator down to the lobby. The doorman was still there, and he stared as Gendry walked out of the building without so much as a glance in his direction. He hailed a cab for himself and got in, eyes closing without his permission.
"Hey," the driver said suddenly, causing Gendry to open his eyes. "You know the Stark family lives here?"
Gendry snorted quietly, looking up at the top floor where he knew Arya was probably sleeping by now, still feeling traces of her lips against his skin. "Yeah," he sad dazedly, "I know."