Daenerys

Her brothers tried to talk her out of her decision to move after college, but she had been determined to go out on her own. Far enough away that they couldn't just pop up any time they wanted, but still close enough that a visit home wouldn't be too much hassle. One would assume living somewhere as long as she had would have made them accustomed to the weather, but despite living in the northwest basically her whole life, she still had a strong dislike for the weather at times.

"Ugh, I might as well head out. Clearly this isn't stopping any time soon." Daenerys mumbled to herself as she stood in the lobby of her building. She stepped under the awning and lifted her umbrella before heading out into the rain.

She loved living in Seattle and the sound of the rain when she was settled in the coziness of her own apartment but having to brave the world around her in this weather always made her a little sad. If anyone else had invited her out she probably would have declined, but he was her best friend and she missed him dearly.

Daenerys walked into the restaurant and immediately spotted him at the bar lost in his phone. "So, who is she?" She whispered in his ear. He raised his head with a huge smile, got up from his seat and wrapped her in a bear hug.

"You know you're the only woman in my life." Jon said with a smirk poking her in the side.

Daenerys took off her jacket and placed it on the back of the chair next to him before taking a seat. "So, what's going on? You never explained this little impromptu visit." She started as she flagged down the bartender to get some water. "It's been like a year since I've seen you and here you go texting me out the blue saying you're coming for a visit. You on the run?" She let out a giggle.

"Glad to know your tendency to over exaggerate is still intact" He chuckled as he looked playfully offended. "For one, you know you just saw me around the holidays. Which according to every calendar in the world, is only six months.

He was interrupted by an annoyed voice. "What can I get for you two?"

Daenerys watched as Jon popped his mouth while studying the menu for a moment. She knew he understood her simplistic eating habits and whatever he got would be good for the both of them "Can we just get some chicken tenders and an order of onion rings?" He questioned before turning his gaze back to her. "This visit isn't exactly a visit."

She eyed him curiously for a moment as she took a sip of her water, but she let him continue uninterrupted. "I got offered a promotion and I get to choose where I operate from. I miss being close to home, so I chose Seattle." Jon said casually as rubbed his hand over the scruff on his face.

Daenerys nearly choked she was so excited. "Are you serious?!" She asked as she scooted to the edge of her seat. They'd been friends for years, but after college the friendship was primarily preserved electronically due to the distance, which for most people was nearly impossible to maintain, but for them it was still a seamless friendship. Although nothing was a good as physically hanging out with him. From the moment they met freshman year, something just clicked, and they had been more or less inseparable ever since.

She was ecstatic to have him close again. "Congratulations! We have to do something to celebrate. Does your family know? I know Arya will love having you back."

"I figured I'd give the news in person, so I'm riding down tomorrow to surprise them. You want to come with?"

"And watch Catelyn shit bricks? You bet your ass I'm coming." She snickered.

Daenerys knew that Jon was close with everyone in his family except his stepmother. While she was never abusive to him, she gave off the vibe that she always resented his presence in her house, despite the fact that he came to live with them when he was quite young and has spent majority of his life with them. He didn't talk about it much, but about a year into their friendship her curiosity got the better of her and he explained that his mother died when he was three and was legally adopted by his uncle who raised him as his own son. To his five "siblings" he was their brother, but to Catelyn he was a constant reminder of one of the worse times in her life.

Jon let out a laugh. "See? That's why we're best friends, you get me. Sam would have tried to talk me out of making a surprise of it. I decided I'd make it an ordeal and pop up around dinner. That way I can see everyone, and she knows I'm not staying long. I won't let her ruin this for me."

The bartender came back with their food, asked if they needed anything else and left them to their conversation when they both shook their heads to indicate they were fine. It was way too easy to fall back in the habit of having him around, laughing and joking like they always did. Everything with Jon was serene and she felt grounded when he was there. They ate and talked half the afternoon away about nothing in particular.

She hadn't realized the time until a text came in breaking her concentration.

What time should I head over?

The text read. She mentally berated herself because she was so happy Jon was back that she forgot about the plans she had later on.

How about around 7? I'm not far from home so I should be back by then.

She typed quickly and looked back to Jon's questioning stare.

"What's with the face? You got a date you're dreading or something? I can come up with an emergency. Just say the word" he teased.

"Oh, nothing like that." She said quickly. "I just forgot I had someone coming over and my place is a disaster area. I was deciding if throwing everything into the closet would work." Daenerys laughed as she motioned to the bartender for the check.

"Mhmm. So, it's definitely a guy cause you never care about that. Granted a disaster to you is a sock sticking out of the drawer a smidge." He responded as he reached for his wallet. She placed her hand on his to stop him.

"My treat since you surprised me by coming down." She paid for their food, ignoring his previous comments. "You found a place yet? Or have an idea of what you're looking for?" She asked as she put on her jacket and they headed towards the door.

"Not in the slightest" he shrugged. "I was just going to get a hotel for the time being. It's just me so it's not like I need a lot of space."

Daenerys eyed him intently. "Hotel?! You will not! You can stay with me. I have a spare bedroom" She said sternly. "As a matter of fact, I believe there's availability in my building if you wanted to look there. I know you've never seen the new place, but it's nice. It's not far from here"

"Lead the way." He motioned with his arm a small grin on his face.

They walked back to her place chatting about their time apart, but she could see something else brewing behind what they were discussing. She wondered what it was, but she knew better than to press the issue when he got like that. Jon sometimes looked as if he carried the weight of the world's problems on his shoulders. He'd talk about whatever it was when he's ready she thought to herself.

"Ooh, you're living it up, aren't you?" Jon started as she led him into her building towards the elevator. "You weren't lying when you said this was nice"

"Shut up" Daenerys said laughing and punching him in the arm. "Do you want to see the place or not? Cause I'll let you waste money on a hotel if that's what you really wanna do." She kept walking not bothering to wait for his response. She knew he'd never actually turn around to leave.

"For someone so tiny, you hit hard" He joked once the elevator started moving to her floor. They stood silently for a second and she heard the faint ding and headed out into the hallway for a short walk before she reached her door. Daenerys wasn't a neat freak, but she wasn't overly messy either; however, this morning she had been in such a rush to meet Jon that she had things thrown all over the place.

"Please don't judge. I was in the middle of washing when I got your text and I didn't have time to put my clothes away." She warned as she opened up the door to reveal piles of clothes lining the entrance of her apartment. Her laundry room was just a few steps to the left behind her front door. She felt her cheeks warm a bit as she watched him glance to the separated piles of clothes sitting in front of her washing machine.

She took off her jacket and the combat boots she was wearing and placed them into her hall closet. "How about I give you a quick tour? And then I'll get to work on these." She gestured to the laundry.

Daenerys opened the door next to her laundry room. "Here is a half bath that the guest usually use if they aren't staying over. There's a bathroom in the guest room, but that hardly gets used because no one ever stays over." She said as she led him over to her spare bedroom. "I think my brother was the last person to stay."

"Dany, this is really nice. If the rest of the building is half as nice as this, you might just be stuck with me." Jon replied, eyeing the setup of the room. "You still work on your apps?" He asked as his attention turned to the computer sitting in the corner of the room.

"Of course, but I'm a little stuck on what I want to do next. I know I should start on something before school starts back because I know once that happens, I'll be pressed for time to work on it." She responded and started heading out of the room. "As you can see, its pretty open. Here's the kitchen, help yourself to whatever you want, the dining room and the living room. My room is just through there." She pointed towards the closed door to the left of the refrigerator before heading back towards the laundry room to start her washing again.

Jon sat down on the sofa as she started her task. "You weren't here when I came to visit. How long you have you lived here?" He inquired.

She pondered for a moment. "I moved in about two or three months ago. I was looking for a place closer to the school to minimize my commute. You know me" She called from the front of the apartment. "I'm all for efficiency."

Dany put her clothes in the washer and threw the rest back in their baskets. She'd resigned herself to just finish the next day before they made the trip to Tacoma for dinner.

"So, what's been going on with you sir? Tell me about this fancy new job you got going for you." She said as she plopped down on the couch next to Jon putting her legs over his, quickly falling into their normal routine. Most people that saw them together, automatically assumed they were a couple and frequently commented on it, but it had never been that way with Jon. She liked to joke that he was her other half regardless of what happened with anyone else because she knew his friendship was something, she counted on more than anything in the world.

He ran his hand through his curls. "It's a senior software engineer position, so nothing too "fancy"." He said, gesturing air quotes. "I now have the ability to work remotely if I choose to, so I wasn't forced to stay in New York if I didn't want to. I mean it's nice there and all, but there's something about the west coast that was pulling me back. I'll probably head into the building most days, but I like having the option of staying home in sweats too."

Jon had turned on her TV and began absentmindedly flipping through the apps on her firestick. "I know what you mean." She responded. "That's partly why I LOVE summer break so much. I get free time, but I get to do something I enjoy from the comfort of my own home."

They fell into a lull and simply sat there enjoying each other's company. That was one of the things Daenerys loved most about her friendship with Jon. They didn't have to do or say much, just being around one another was enough.

"Hey!" Dany said abruptly breaking the comfortable silence. "You didn't bring anything with you? Where's your stuff?"

"Of course, I brought stuff with me silly. I was basically kidnapped from the restaurant by a mad woman and everything was left in the car." He replied tickling her feet. "I'm going to go get it, I didn't want to move cause your couch was so comfy and this show was surprising pretty funny." He had settled on some reality show on USA a while back.

"Do you want me to go with you?" She managed to get out through fits of laughter while also trying to get away from his grip. Dany wanted to spend as much time as she could with him before they both got sucked back into their crazy work schedules. She was a teacher at the elementary school nearby and was out for the summer, but she knew Jon would be starting his new position soon.

She finally stood up and walked to the closet to put on her boots back on, throwing insults back and forth with Jon while he made his way to the bathroom. She was lining up to say something back to him when she was interrupted mid-sentence by a knock at her door. Daenerys looked at the clock on the wall that read five thirty. She still had an hour and a half before Missy would be over and she had no idea who this could be because it was uncommon for anyone, let alone Missandei to show up to her house without at least sending a text. She pulled her phone out of her back pocket to make sure she hadn't missed any messages before she took a step to look out her peephole. Whoever was at her door was too tall to be seen fully, but she had a guess at who it was, and her heart dropped.

Another knock came breaking her from her thoughts. She took a deep breath, opened the door to find her ex Drogo standing in her doorway.