Arya

Arya was looking in the mirror studying her newly chopped hair. She didn't mind her hair getting cut shorter, not really. She wasn't going to get upset over something as silly as that. Hair grows, it will grow back if she wanted it to. Perhaps she'll always keep it short. It made her face look more round as opposed to long, which Arya liked.

Arya was puzzled about why this man that she met less than 12 hours ago, was putting his life on the line by making her a promise she was scared he wouldn't be able to keep. Gendry promised her that he would help her go back to Winterfell, back to the rest of her family. He explained to her that he had to cut her hair short and that from now on – if they are to meet any people on the road – she would be Arry, a young boy. Arya thought it was a pretty good plan. He and the two boys at the gas station already mistook her for a boy earlier. How hard could it be to fool the others?

Arya didn't know why, but she seemed to trust this guy. She then realized that she didn't have much choice but to trust him. Since her bike broke down she had no other means of transportation, and she couldn't risk being seen at an airport or a bus terminal. Perhaps she trusted him because he has now seen her at her worst. Arya couldn't believe she let herself cry like that in front of a stranger. It was something that Sansa would do. Arya was supposed to be the strong one. Whatever. This Gendry wasn't that much of a stranger to her anymore.

Gendry seemed to have a lot of faith in the plan that he seemed to make up on the spot, right as he was cutting her hair. They were to take his truck and drive it all the way up to Winterfell. He said the journey would take them about a week and a half if they were to drive for at least 14 hours per day. They could take turns driving, which was something that Gendry didn't know about yet. Arya figured she'd tell him once they would be on the road, while his foot would be cramping, and his eyelids heavy. They would stay off of the King's Road and take the smaller freeways to avoid being noticed by traffic cameras.

When Gendry first told her about his plan she approved of it at first but then realized that his plan would require for her to leave Needle behind. Arya was not ready to part with her bike, even if it was not usable at the moment. She begged and begged, and Gendry finally agreed to take the bike with them. He said it would fit on the back of his pickup truck.

Since all of Westeros now knew of her being on the run, and that she was last seen on her bike, Arya suggested they repaint the bike. That is what Gendry was doing now while Arya was getting ready for a bath. She typically wasn't one to take baths in other people's homes, but since she knew that they would be on the road for quite some time, Arya decided to seize the opportunity.

Gendry thought she was sleeping. He very strictly instructed her to sleep for at least a few hours before they were to leave at dawn. Gendry said it was best if they left without anyone knowing about it. Arya agreed.

Arya submerged herself into the soaking tub and couldn't help herself but think about the mechanic, again. She didn't expect him to react the way he did when she started crying. She remembered being pressed up against his naked chest as she let her tears fall. Arya didn't give it much thought at the time, but now that she was thinking about it, she remembered him gently stroking her hair as she cried. He also tried to pull her into another embrace after she told him of her real identity.

She was probably overanalyzing. No, she didn't deny the fact that he was a very attractive man. Tall, dark, and handsome. Isn't that every girl's dream? Arya then reminded herself that he was a lot older than her. Plus, he called her a child, more than once. Of course he wouldn't be interested in her that way. She didn't want him to be anyway. It would just serve as a distraction from what truly mattered – getting back to Winterfell. She'll be completely safe there.

As Arya tried her hardest to push her thoughts about Gendry to the back of her head she heard the door to the bathroom open. Oh no, no, no, NO! Arya stayed quiet hidden behind the shower curtain trying not to make a splash in the soaking tub. Why did he have to come into the bathroom now, of all times? She cursed under her breath for not locking the second door that lead into the bathroom.

He didn't know she was here. He thought she was sleeping, right? A couple of minutes passed and Gendry was fidgeting with something on the bathroom counter while the water was running. Perhaps he was shaving. Arya dared to peak from behind the curtain. She was right – he was shaving. Who shaves in the middle of the night? Well, she thought, who takes a bath in the middle of the night?

She didn't dare to keep watching him in fear of getting discovered. She started to reposition into her previous position hoping that Gendry would leave the bathroom soon, and that she'll be able to go back to his bedroom afterwards. As she continued to move she made a small splash. Arya froze in place. She prayed that he didn't hear her. However, judging from the sudden silence in the very small room, she concluded that he did.

She heard a door open and heard Gendry shout her name. "Arry? ARRY!" he ran into his bedroom screaming her name. Well, not her name – her pseudonym. Wait, why was he looking in the bedroom? Didn't he hear her make a splash in the bathroom?

Deciding to put a stop to this she stood up, and making sure to cover herself with the shower curtain she screamed after him. "Gendry, GENDRY! I'm here."

He came running back into the bathroom. "Oh thank Gods. Are you all right? Did you get hurt? Why are you in the bathroom?"

"Um… I was taking a bath?" she replied. "Didn't you hear me splash the water?"

"Well yes, but then I thought I heard it in my head, and then I decided to check on you – just in case – and, and you weren't there, so I kind of started freaking out thinking someone took you away while I was in the shop and – "

"OH-KAY there, mom," Arya said with a grin. "I'm fine, I just thought I'd take a bath before we left."

"Right, well, I'm glad you're fine. I'll let you get back to it."

"It's fine, I was done anyway, you should wash up as well," she said as she grabbed a towel from the nearest towel bar, wrapping it around herself (from behind the curtain. She made damn sure he wasn't going to see her naked!), before stepping out of the tub.

She didn't pay much attention to his slightly dropped jaw, as she walked past him into his bedroom.

She was pretty sure she heard him mutter, "that was my towel," under his breath before she shut the door behind her.

A/N: A bit of a filler chapter. Got more plot progression coming in the next one!