5. A Conversational Dinner

The sun peeked behind the curtain in Sansa's bedroom, lighting her hair like a fiery halo. She lifted her head from the pillow, red hair tumbling down her back like a waterfall. The sun's soft rays sent a glossy, gold sheen all around the room, blending with the falling leaves outside. Stretching out her limbs, she could feel the rays of the sun warming her body.

Her ears began to pick up the voices coming from downstairs, the smell of bacon being fried wafted into her nostrils causing her stomach to rumble. Lifting herself from the soft mattress, she grabbed her dressing gown which was hung up on her door and padded into the hallway.

A familiar deep, northern accent (just like her father's) resonated into her ears. Realising who it was, a joyful grin stretched her mouth as she bounded downstairs, stopping in her tracks as she noticing him in the living room.

"Robb! You're back," she happily exclaims.

A grin widens on her eldest brother's face. He immediately stood up from the couch, his arms wide open, waiting for her to jump into his arms.

"Hey, little sister. Miss me?"

Without hesitation, Sansa runs in her brother's arms, hugging him tightly, afraid he was going to disappear again.

"So, you did miss me then," he teases her with a smile.

She gives out a scoff. "Of course, I did. You've been gone for months and I haven't seen you since the summer holidays. Why did not you not come sooner?" she demands pouting and crossing her arms.

Robb gives out a chuckle, an adoring look in his eyes as he glances at his sister. "I was busy, Sansa. I was working at the shop which meant I didn't have time to visit sooner than I wanted to. But I'm here now."

Sansa nods happily, clutching onto his forearm. "When did you get in? And where's Talisa?"

"We got in late last night seeing as we took the last train getting here. It was so stressful having to lug all our suitcases around. Oh, I think Talisa is in the kitchen helping mum with the breakfast."

"Have you met the others yet?"

"No actually. Where's Bran and Arya? I've seen Rickon early this morning."

Sansa furrows her eyebrows, "Um, I think Arya's still sleeping at this time. And Bran is having a sleepover round Jojen's house."

Robb raises an eyebrow. "You mean he's gone to see Meera more like."

"Probably. I mean there's only so much time you can spend round your best friend's house," she smirks up at him.

"Little brother is not subtle is he," Robb chuckles. "Anyways, how are you? How's school treating you?" he asked curiously.

"School's doing fine. I'm getting good grades if that's what you mean," she shrugs.

"That's good. I always knew you weren't just a pretty face; you had brains as well," he teases with a smirk. "Speaking of school, is there any boy you have a crush on?" he asks with a sudden serious countenance.

"Of course not, I'm too busy for that anyways," she rolls her eyes.

Her mind decides to traitorously remind her of Mr Snow. A part of her mind whispered that his name would be now Jon seeing as he gave her permission to call him that. She mentally frowns wondering why his name popped into her mind at this moment.

She wondered why she was blushing as she could feel the heat off of her cheeks.

Robb's blue eyes narrow at her face making her feel nervous for some reason unknown to her.

"Really? So then why are your cheeks all flushed like that?" he questioned.

Sansa groans mentally. Of all the times, she had wanted him to pay closer attention to her, he had finally decided that it was going to be right now.

She gives out an awkward laugh, hoping she came across as ordinary. "It's just hot in here. Now come on, I want to go see Talisa," she swiftly changes the subject and grabs his arm, dragging him into the kitchen.

As she reached the kitchen she let go of his arm, spotting Talisa setting the table while her mother was cooking breakfast. A smile grows on her face, happiness gripping her body.

"Hello, Talisa. It's nice to see you."

Her voices made Robb's girlfriend snap her head towards Sansa's direction. Her face turning from shock into a happy grin.

"Sansa! You're awake. Come here and give me a hug. It's so nice to see you again after so many months."

"It has been too long. Especially as you've got my brother to deal with for the rest of your life. How unfortunate," Sansa smirks at her.

"HEY!" Robb exclaims with a pout.

"Well, I probably will have to. That's only when he gets up to buy a ring," Talisa teases back with a pointed look at Robb.

Sansa was aware of her brother was the most oblivious person she had ever met (second only to her father), so she knew that he would not be able to pick up on the hint Talisa had keenly pointed out to him.

Sansa herself wondered on when Robb was going to propose to his girlfriend. They had been living together for a year, as Robb moved out when he was twenty- one years. They had both met during the last year of college and had been going strong for three years.

Poor Talisa would be waiting for at least another year, Sansa thinks with a mental sigh.

Sansa breaks out of her thoughts as she spots her father walking in, greeting her mother with a kiss.

"I would to take this opportunity to remind you all that we've got a sit-down dinner party tonight with Lyanna and her son. So no after school clubs or surprise trips with Margaery, Sansa. And I want you to also remind Arya that she'll be here for it as well. So, no Gendry," Catelyn explains.

"Can't we just have a barbecue instead?" complains her father with furrowed eyebrows.

Catelyn stares firmly at her husband, with a glower. "It is going to be a sit- down dinner, Ned. No complaints, I want you in a clean suit after you get back from work. No excuses," she says with a no argument tone.

Ned gives out a groan, running his hand over his face and mumbles his acceptance.

"Don't you have school in an hour, Sansa?" Robb questions, changing the subject.

"Yes, I do which means I have to go get ready. So, if you'll excuse."

Somehow, through a strange serious of events, Ros had become her partner for English today.

Jeyne had texted Sansa this morning claiming she was ill so she was unable to come into school. Though personally, Sansa believed that she was faking an illness in order to get out of a particularly nasty test they had in science that day. Margaery had a doctor's appointment with her grandmother in the morning which meant she wasn't there as well.

This meant that Sansa was standing in the corridor outside Mr Snow's classroom alone, waiting for him to arrive so they can go in. It felt strange standing there without her friends, it was a change in her routine and Sansa did not like it.

After a few minutes she saw Sam approaching, and with a wave she beckoned him towards her.

"Hey, Sam. How are you?"

"Great! Gilly's decided to finally go out with me," he grins with a shy smile.

Not expecting this news, her eyes widened in disbelief, letting out a loud sequel of excitement. Sam turns red but still manages to maintain the proud look on his face.

"Oh my god, Sam!" she exclaims. "How did this happen?"

"Well… I sort of blurted it out at her. She was just standing there so I approached her. I've never felt so sick in my entire life. I thought she was going to yell at me."

"But she didn't, did she?" Sansa says excitedly, her eyes wide with happiness for her friend.

"No... she didn't. She smiled at me and said yes," he smiles with a dazed grin.

A worried expression overcomes him. "Sansa is this another one of my dreams? Is this real life?"

A joyful laugh bursts out of her. "Yes Sam. This is real. You've got a date with Gilly," she grins widely at him.

Sam was silent for a few seconds before turning to look at her. "I'm scared, Sansa. What if I mess this up and she never wants to speak to me again?"

"Don't worry Sam. Just be yourself. That's why she said yes to you instead of someone else. Because she likes you," she reassures him comfortingly.

He gives a thank nod in her direction, smiling softly.

Glancing over her shoulder he says, "Excuse me, Sansa. I've got to go and tell Pyp and Gren. They'll never believe me."

She beams encouragingly. "Sure. I'll be rooting for the two of you Sam."

With a nod, he walks off.

Her happiness does not last long however, as a voice behind her makes her stiffen on the spot, her fists clench in the palm of her hands. Her expression changes into disgust and anger while she grits her teeth together.

"So, Miss Piggy finally has a date then? How surprising that a fat tub of lard like him is able to even find a girl," drawls an arrogant voice behind her.

Turning around she groans quietly, quickly rearranging her expression into a coldness that would warn off even the boldest of boys, as she comes to look the smug face of Harry Hardyng.

She loathed this boy who was stood in front of her with a passion. After the disaster that was her relationship with Joffrey Baratheon during her first year, all the boys were warned by her brother that she was not going to date for the rest of her school life. Most boys took his warning seriously while others, especially the blonde, ignored the warning when her brother left for a different city, and persisted in harassing her to go out with him.

But it was his character that made her hate the blonde even more than she did before. His arrogance and overconfidence annoyed her. But it was his tyrannical and bullying nature that angered her the most out of all his traits. Especially as he picked on Sam the most.

"I'd appreciate it if you did not call my friend that, thank you very much," she retorts coolly.

"Oh, come on, Sansa. Even you have to be surprised that the fat boy is finally acknowledged by a girl. But only the school outcast is good enough for him," he cackles loudly.

Sansa had to stop herself from punching him in the face. He carries on not noticing her hostile posture towards him.

"So anyways. I've had an idea. How about you and me go out for dinner tonight. I think we'll be good for each other. What do you say?"

"I have family plans tonight," she states emotionlessly.

"So? Change them for another day. You don't want to miss out on date with me," he brags.

A voice, sharp as a knife breaks through the conversation before Sansa can answer back, causing Harry to flinch on the spot.

"What are you doing here, Hardyng? This isn't your lesson," Mr Snow grits out with a hardened expression.

Sansa has never been so happy to see him in all of her life.

"I was just having a chat with Sansa," Harry says slowly.

"Well, I'm sure Sansa is not 'chatting' with you seeing as you are disrupting her education. Now run along to your lesson like a good little boy. Unless you want to be cleaning out every single bathroom for the rest of the school year. I'm sure the caretaker would gladly accept some extra help," he taunts with a hint of malice in his voice.

Sansa could not help but feel pleased. But she had no idea whether it was due to Harry's pinched expression or due to Mr Snow telling him off. Probably the former, she concludes firmly.

Harry flushes red in anger but did not argue. He walked off with a glare directed at Mr Snow.

"Are you okay? Was he bothering you?" he questions in a soft tone.

She did not trust herself to say anything in that moment, so she nodded towards him. His eyes softened when he took at glance at her.

She could feel her cheeks heating up in a blush when his dark stare pierced her figure. She could feel a burning in her stomach as something inside her it flapped around furiously. She swallows nervously, realising what it was.

He turns and unlocks the classroom door and says in a tense voice, "Come on guys, in you go."

As she walks in, she could feel his eyes burning into the back of her head as she makes her way to her table. She shifts nervously in her chair as he moved past her, hearing his breath hitch.

The main task of the lesson required a sheet of paper which Mr Snow asked Sansa to hand out to the rest of the class. Picking up the pile of papers she does as instructed but by the time she reached her own table there was not enough sheets left.

Seeing as there was only four of them on the table, Mr Snow decided to partner them together. Instead of being partnered with those sitting closest together, he decided to be traditional.

"The two boys can work together as well as the two girls. And I don't want to hear no complaints from any of you," he claims loudly, without discussion.

This meant that Sansa was paired with Ros while Sam was with Robin. Sansa gives him a scowl, feeling her old annoyance building up again.

She reluctantly moves to sit next to Ros on the other side of the table, the smell of smoke immediately hitting her nostrils. Picking up her pen she scribbles down a few notes on the sheet of paper.

Sansa feels something tapping her on the arm and looking up from her work she notices Ros looking at her with an annoyed expression. She looks down at Ros' own paper, finding out she has not written anything down. Confused Sansa looks at her and she points at her empty hand.

"I haven't got a pen. Have you got a spare one?" she asks.

Sansa shakes her head, "No I haven't, sorry."

She truthfully did not have a spare pen because her own one had run out during the test in science and so she had to resort to using her own spare pen.

Ros reaches down into her bag, rummaging for something and when she found the object, she thrusts it into Sansa's hand.

"Look, I'll lend you that if you give me a pen."

Sansa's eyes widen in mortification as she finds a condom placed in her palm. Even though it was still in the wrapper, she turned scarlet at the sight of it.

"I was going to use it this weekend, but Theon decided to bail out on me to go visit his father," she rolls her eyes.

Sansa feared that Ros was a sex addict.

"Sansa, what's that in your hand?" Mr Snow questions curiously, approaching the table.

Sansa froze in her seat. This is not happening, she thinks disbelievingly.

Mr Snow reached the table and was currently staring at the condom that Sansa was still clutching in her right hand. He had an unreadable expression on his face. Feeling the rest of the class turn silent, Sansa could hear the sound of rushing blood pounding in her ears.

Ros decides to speak up.

"It was mine sir. I gave it to her in exchange for a pen. I thought maybe she could use it later," she explains casually.

The whole class break into peals of laughter as they realise what was in Sansa's hand. She turns even redder, if that was even possible.

Mr Snow picks up the condom and stares at it for a few minutes. Then his face turns a shade of red in anger.

"I'm confiscating this, Ros. This is inappropriate for a school environment. Now get out of my room, right this instance!"

Mr Snow looked absolutely furious. She had never seen him look like this. Sure, it was inappropriate but his eyes had darkened in so much anger that nobody was brave enough to say anything. Ros leaves his room without a word, and Mr Snow returns to his desk.

He places the condom in his desk drawer, locking it with a key from his blazer pocket. He turns his attention towards Sansa.

"Sansa, I want you to stay behind for a word after the lesson."

She nods without argument. The same familiar burning in her abdomen had returned, only this time she could also feel a throbbing between her legs. Her chest had also tightened considerably.

During the rest of the lesson, the classroom was eerily quiet. No one said a word unless it was about the work itself. At the end, Sansa stayed behind to hear what he was going to say.

"So…" she begins feeling rather awkward.

She sees that he still looks rather angry, so she swallows nervously before continuing.

"What did you want to talk about?"

He breaths out a tired sigh, running his hands over his face. "It doesn't matter now anyways, Sansa."

Confused, she looks at him, tilting her head slightly. "Are you sure, sir?"

He gives a half smile; the anger and fury having being replaced by sadness.

"Aye. You better go to get ready for this dinner thing our families have planned for tonight. My mother will have my head if I'm late for it," he rolls his eyes.

"Well we can't have that, now can we, sir?" she teases back with a laugh.

The tie Jon was wearing, irritated him.

After several minutes (thirty to be exact) on deciding what to wear for the dinner party, his stomach was a had knotted into bundle of nerves. He knew he wanted to look good for tonight, but every shirt or suit he had worn, looked bad or not good enough.

He wanted to impress the Starks for some reason. But in particular he most definitely wanted to impress Sansa.

He knew this because he had spent the last hour in the shower preparing himself: from washing his hair until it smelt pleasant enough to make an impression, to trimming his beard neatly, something he did not care much for until he met Sansa.

In the end, he decided for a dark black suit with a red tie. He just hoped it was enough.

"Jon, honey. It's time to go!" his mother called from downstairs.

The butterflies grew stronger, as he took a deep breath and exhaled loudly. Grabbing his long coat, he wore it open and went downstairs.

His mother wore a red dress, complete with heels and was putting on her earrings in the hallway mirror.

"Woah, mum. You look nice," he said admiringly with a smile.

She glanced back at him with a grin.

"Thanks, dear. Now remember to grab the cakes from the counter and when you're ready, let's head out."

"Sure, mum."

"Jon, you don't think I've overdone my look have you," she asks worriedly.

"No. It's fine. I'm sure the Starks are all dressed up anyways."

Well, he hoped one particular Stark was dressed up for this event.

She was dressed up that was for sure.

As both Jon and Lyanna walked into the doorway, he immediately shifted his head from side to side, trying to spot where Sansa was.

When he caught a glimpse of red hair out of the corner of his eye, the sight that greeted him made all the air in his lungs disappear completely. He felt his mouth part open, as a bolt of desire ran through his body.

He instantly felt guilty, knowing he was staring intently at Sansa while her family was just near her.

She wore a black dress that reached a few inches above her knees while her hair was curled to perfection. It was almost as bad as her school skirt.

A part of Jon selfish whispered that they matched in clothing. He quickly dismissed that thought, and chose to greet the rest of the Starks.

"Hello, Mrs Stark. It's nice to meet you."

Waving her hands, the older red-haired women who bore a striking resemblance to Sansa states, "Oh, call me Catelyn, Jon. I'm sure you're old enough to."

This statement made him feel even worse as this woman had no idea on the thoughts he had about his daughter. She motioned to the man stood next to her.

"This is my husband, Ned and these are my children."

The grey eyed man looked as if he'd rather be anywhere else but the moment he was in, but he gave Jon a half smile to which he nodded back in acknowledgment. Turning towards the kids, he greeted each of them individually.

Robb gave him a firm shake of the hand, and nodded in approval to him while introducing his girlfriend. He also met the smaller children: a smaller girl called Arya, who looked more like Ned than the rest of them did, gave him an intense stare at first before greeting him (He would hate to be on the bad side of her, he thought with a shudder).

Bran and Rickon both gave him a shy wave and in return he gave them a smile. Turning to Sansa he paused briefly for a moment before lifting his head up to meet her eyes. As soon as the blue eyes met his, a shiver ran down his spine, every nerve in his body tingling.

He approached her cautiously, hardly daring to breath and reached out to grab her hand. The tingling sensation become even worse as they made contact, and he could have sworn she'd felt it too as her mouth parted and her eyes widened.

They quickly reclaimed their hands back. Jon could still feel the burning after effects of touching her hand with his.

"The dining room is just through here, guys," Catelyn informs them, ushering them all in that direction.

Jon knew they should have had a barbecue instead, the moment he sat down and looked up to see Sansa sitting opposite him on the table. Mentally groaning he knew it was going to be the longest dinner of his entire life. He just prayed that he got through this without anything happening.

As everyone began to fill their plates, the discussion started. Mrs Stark broke the silence between them.

"So, Lyanna. How are you and Jon?"

His mother smiles. "We're great. And we'd like to thank your family for inviting us round. Jon and I are both honoured to be with all of you."

"You're welcome, Catelyn. I hope we can do this again and become great friends."

"I'd like that too. So, how's the new neighbourhood treating you both then?"

"Great! We've both settled in really well," his mother beams widely.

"I'm glad to hear it. And if you don't mind me saying, you've done a great job raising a young man all by yourself," Catelyn says while Ned nods in the background.

Arya decides to perk up at that moment. "Wait! You've got no dad?" she exclaims loudly towards Jon.

Catelyn looked horrified just as Sansa did. Jon could see Robb trying to hide his laughter behind his wine glass.

"ARYA! Don't be rude!" Sansa shouts at her sister, who sits next to her.

She gives Jon an apologetic expression which he waves away with a soft smile. He thought he saw her blush for a moment.

"It's okay. But to answer the question, yes. My mother has raised me all on her own seeing as my father left when I was young. But I'm grateful for the life I have and I couldn't ask for a better mother," he states with a soft expression towards his mother, who gives him a smile.

"So, Jon. What do you work as?" Ned questioned.

Before thinking he blurts out "I'm a teacher. I teach English."

Most of the heads on the table turn to look at him. He closes his mouth shut, instantly regretting his words, knowing he'll get a few questions asked.

"You're a teacher? Does that mean you work at the local high school?" Catelyn asked curiously.

Jon's eyes locked on Sansa's in front of him, and they were just as cautious and panicked as his were. He broke the gaze and turned towards the rest of the occupants with an awkward smile.

"Yes, I do. In fact, Sansa here, is one of my best students."

Arya laughed at her sister's expense. "He's your English teacher. How embarrassing. You probably have to call him sir all the time."

Sansa's face turns red, just as he could feel his own heating up.

"That's enough, Arya. Leave them alone," Ned firmly says.

The subject then moves along to Robb and Talisa.

As the conversation continued, Jon crossed his legs from under the table. By accident his foot touches Sansa's. He expected her to move it away but she didn't, allowing him to adjust his foot so it was more comfortable for him. However, this ended up making his foot touch her foot even more.

She still does not move it, so he just leaves his foot there and tries to ignore it.

The time passes along and he could feel his foot stat to become numb from having it crossed for so long. Uncertainly, he uncrosses it but unfortunately, this causes his knee to bump into the table which makes an obvious thud.

Everyone turns to look at him and he smiles sheepishly and rubs the back of his neck while apologising. Glancing at Sansa from the corner of his eyes, he could see a smirk threatening to break at the edge of her mouth.

Huffing he turns back to his food.

With a glance up, he locks eyes with Bran, who was staring intensely between him and Sansa with a peculiar expression written across his face. This causes Jon to feel nervous, so he avoids Bran's gaze for the rest of the dinner.

Catelyn breaks him out of his thoughts by addressing Sansa.

"Sansa, dear. We've run out of wine. Would you run down into the basement and grab the special red wine from the crate," she asks.

With a turn of his head, he narrows his eyes on Sansa's face, noticing the fear in her eyes. He knew from a look at her face that she was afraid of going down there.

She gulps nervously but gives a short nod, refusing to disobey her mother's request.

Jon made his decision at that moment.

"Hang on a minute, Sansa. Let me come with you," he says firmly in his teacher's voice, not expecting any resistance from her.

She looks inquisitively at him, and then gives a nod. He could see a glimpse of relief all over her face for a just a second. And then it was gone.

So what did you all think then? Did I do this chapter justice?