"Fuck!" Arya looked at her spaghetti stained shirt. Immediately, she got a towel and began to dab at the stain. After a few minutes, she found that her efforts were for nothing and groaned.
"Just change your shirt." Catelyn suggested as she searched through the cabinets.
"But, that would require me going to the guesthouse." Arya leaned against the counter. "Maybe I could ask Sansa if I could borrow one of her shirts."
Catelyn looked at her daughter with an unbelieving expression. "Are you really that lazy that you can't walk to the guesthouse to change into a clean shirt?"
Her daughter shrugged shamelessly.
"Besides," the older Stark woman said without looking at Arya. "Have you forgotten that you still have clothes in your room upstairs?"
"Oh yeah." It was clear that Arya had forgotten about her room upstairs. "Thanks, mom." She gave her mother a kiss on the check, and then went upstairs to her childhood room.
Once she got into her room, Arya began to look for a dingy shirt to put on. It was useless to put on a clean dressy shirt when something could ruin it again before the barbeque even started. After a few minutes of searching, she found a shirt and grinned as she put it on. The shirt said Wholistic Core across the front of it and memories of her time there came rushing back to her. As she thought about her adventures at the camp, she looked for a stylish, but casual shirt, and then laid it on the bed once she found an acceptable replacement.
Even though Arya had no reason to be nervous, she was. Gendry was going to meet her parents tonight—he was going to meet her family! It wasn't as if he was her boyfriend, but still…she was having sex with him and her family could misconstrue what that meant. Arya had no idea how they would ever find that out because she wasn't going to say anything she definitely knew that Gendry wasn't. Hot Pie wouldn't dare bring it up, so she figured she was in the clear. But, the Stark clan could be very perceptive though.
Deep in thought, Arya walked out of her room and, not paying attention, bumped into Sansa.
"Sorry," she offered quickly before taking in Sansa's appearance: puffy red eyes, wet cheeks, and a runny nose. "What's wrong?"
Sansa bit her lip and wiped under her eyes. Arya grabbed her sister and pulled her into the bathroom. She pulled down the toilet seat and made Sansa sit on it as she grabbed a few pieces of tissue. After she handed Sansa the tissue, she sat on the edge of the tub and gave Sansa an inquiring look. Although Arya had no idea as to what to do in these situations, Sansa looked truly distraught and Arya was choosing to overcome her awkwardness in comforting people than to walk away and knowing that her sister was deeply upset.
In an attempt to control her emotions, Sansa looked at the tissue as she fiddled with it while tightly squeezing her lips together to prevent tears from coming. Arya reached a hand out and grabbed Sansa's hand and lovingly squeezed it.
"What's wrong," she whispered.
That was all it took. Sansa began to bawl and the younger Stark wrapped her arms around the upset woman. Heart wrenching sobs escaped Sansa's mouth as she held her sister close.
"It's not fair." Sansa shook her head.
"What's not fair?" Arya removed hair from in front of Sansa's face as she spoke soothingly to her.
"It's not fair," she repeated as she rubbed her stomach tenderly before mournfully gazing at it.
"Oh, Sansa…" Arya's heart broke for her sister. Sansa and Willas had been trying to have a baby for a while and it deeply bothered Sansa that she was having trouble conceiving. The doctors said there was nothing wrong with either of them, but they still struggle to have a child.
"I don't even know I was pregnant," Sansa choked out before frantically wiping the tears away.
"Do you think it was because…" Arya trailed off, but she could see that Sansa got her drift.
Vigorously, Sansa shook her head no. "I—I hadn't had a drink in months. Even at the bachelorette party," she explained. "I didn't want to risk it. Besides, the doctors says that sometimes pregnancies result in miscarriages even if you do everything right."
"When did you find out?"
"Two days ago." Sansa slowly shook her head. "I was having severe abdominal pain and was bleeding, so Willas took me to the hospital and that was when we…found out."
Arya hugged her sister, and then rested her chin on Sansa's shoulders as she rubbed her back. A quiet sobs traveled to her eats as she tried to calm her sister.
"It'll be okay," Arya whispered.
"No it won't," Sansa denied.
"No, it will," she promised as she held Sansa's face in her hands and looked at the older woman. "It will."
An indeterminate amount of time had passed and Arya eventually took Sansa to her room and asked if Sansa wanted their mother to comfort her, which she agreed to. Arya offered to finish up the miscellaneous tasks that were left, so her mother could tend to her sister. As she checked on some of the food, Arya began to think of how bad of a cook Gendry was. It surprised her that after all that time of living with Hot Pie, Gendry never learned to cook, or that Hot Pie never offered.
To be honest, she only learned how to cook because of Mycah. If it weren't for him, she would be in the same boat as Gendry.
When the doorbell rang, Arya wiped off her hands and went to go answer the door.
"Ned! Mycah!" Arya cheerfully hugged both of her friends. Mycah gave her a quick bear hug. Ned held his arms out and engulfed Arya in them before squeezing her tightly and placing a kiss on her forehead. He held her for a few seconds before letting go. Arya wrapped her arms around herself after Ned let her go. "Did you two come over together?"
"Yeah," Mycah answered. "My tired had a flat, so I called Ned up to see how close he was."
"Well, it's great seeing the both of you again." Arya clapped her hands together, and then rubbed them as if she had conjured up an evil plan. "But, I need you guys' help. Some unexpected issue has come up and now I need all of the help I can get."
The men complied and they got to work tying up the loose ends before the barbeque was to begin. Mycah helped out with the cooking and Ned carried or rearranged anything she needed to be done.
"What is everyone else doing?" Mycah asked as he stirred the pot.
"Bran and Rickon are with Robb. They are stuck on the expressway because of some huge accident," she explained. "You guys saw my dad out there grilling, so you know what he is doing. And my mom and Sansa are both tending to an important matter."
"Oh," Ned stood beside Mycah and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "That box you asked me to carry early is too heavy." He then turned his head towards Mycah. "Do you mind helping me?"
"Sure, no problem." Mycah left to go help Ned with the box as Arya put food into the pans. She filled up a few before the guys returned.
"Did you move it?" Arya put aluminum foil over a pan before moving to the next one and doing the same thing. She didn't look at either of her friends as she spoke.
"No," Mycah shook his head, despite Arya not looking his way. "It's too heavy."
"Okay," Arya replied. "I'll get someone else to carry it later on."
"No, Arya," Ned interjected. "When we say it is heavy, we mean, it is heavy."
Arya rolled her eyes. "As I said, I'll get someone to carry it later on."
An hour later, everything was in order and Arya went upstairs to check on Sansa. Her mother and Sansa were speaking in hushed tones as Sansa laid her head on Catelyn's lap. Her sister seemed to be much calmer, but she still looked noticeably upset. Arya had brought Sansa some tea and lemon cookies to soothe her nerves and make her feel better.
When she left Sansa's room, Arya went to go freshen up and change out of her dingy shirt and into the shirt she sat out earlier. She then put on some sandals before messing with her hair. Arya had a pixie cut—she found short hair easier to manage. Besides putting soft curls in her hair, she didn't do much to it. Quickly, some lip-gloss was applied and she sprayed some perfume in the air before walking through it.
As she was completing her finishing touches, the doorbell rang. Ned and Mycah were close enough to her family and known by almost everyone she knew, that they were allowed to answer the door, so Arya ignored it. They were almost like brothers, well…not Ned because that could be a little bit weird.
After she finished, Arya double checked herself in the mirror, and then exited the room. She heard some talking as she descended the stairs.
Brightly, Arya smiled as she saw Hot Pie and Gendry, but mainly Gendry.
"Hey," she waved as she walked down the last step. Arya gave Hot Pie a quick hug and squeezed his forearm. As close as they were, it felt awkward for them to touch, even if it was in a non-sexual way.
Gendry leaned down and pulled Arya close to envelope her in his arms. Arya wrapped her arms around his neck and they embraced momentarily before Arya cupped his face and kissed his cheek. In approval, Gendry grinned before letting her go.
"Thanks for inviting us," Gendry gratefully expressed.
"Gendry, stop being stupid," Arya dismissed. "You and Hot Pie are my friends, why wouldn't I invite either of you." Gendry rolled his eyes, and then shook his head. "Did you all introduce yourselves to one another?"
"Uh, no," Ned answered as he looked at Arya strangely. "We were just telling them that they were the first ones to arrive."
"Well, Ned and Mycah, this is Gendry and Hot Pie," Arya said she pointed to each male when she said their name. "And Gendry and Hot Pie, this is Ned and Mycah."
The guys shook hands.
"Why do they call you Hot Pie," Mycah asked as he shook Hot Pie's hands.
"Because I asked them to," he answered simply. "I just love hot pie is all."
Arya slapped her forehead. "I'm such an idiot," she gasped. "Mycah and Hot Pie, you two have a lot in common or a common interest at least." She approached the two as she spoke. "Both of you are cooks, chefs, or whatever the fuck you like to be labeled."
"Oh really?" Mycah looked at Hot Pie and smiled.
"Well, my specialty is desserts, but I do work as a cook," Hot Pie explained.
"At which restaurant?" Mycah inquired. Arya left the two to converse about their love of food or whatever and walked over to Gendry.
"I have something for you to do," Arya took a handful of Gendry's shirt and pulled him, so he could follow her.
"What happened to asking first?" Arya made a face of amusement and continued to pull on him. "Hey, I am a guest! You shouldn't be putting me to work."
"But, you're my friend dofus," she remarked. "You're supposed to help out of the kindness of your heart when I need a favor."
With an exaggerated sigh he said, "Fine."
"Are you trying to get him to carry that box?" Ned followed the two of them.
"What box?" Gendry removed Arya's hand from his shirt and gave a small push to which she rewarded him with a glare. He beamed at her response.
"I just need you to move a box from point A to point B."
Ned shook his head. "That box is heavy, man. I tried to lift, and then Mycah tried to help me. I don't think you'll be able to lift it either."
Arya waved off Ned's concerns as she led Gendry to the destination of the box. With ease, the dark haired man picked up the box and followed Arya to the shed to put the box away. He looked unfazed as he carried the heavy object.
"It wasn't that heavy," he remarked after he put the box in the shed. "Perhaps Ned and Mycah were lifting from the back and not their knees."
The two exchanged knowing grins, and then Arya asked Ned and Gendry to help her move some other things while they were in a helping mood. Ned looked at some of the things she was trying to get them to move, and then looked at his outfit. He took off his shirt and sat it in a safe place. Gendry gave him a questioning glance.
"So, my shirt wouldn't get dirty."
"That's a good idea." Gendry took off his shit as well. "I'm used to getting dirty, so it's not usually a big deal, but I don't think it would be proper in this setting."
"Yeah," Ned agreed as he frowned while looking at Gendry's body.
As Gendry and Ned moved items around, Arya man watched in admiration of the male specimen. She may have not had romantic feelings for Ned anymore, but he was an attractive looking man. And, well, Gendry was Gendry. A part of her had always admired his features even if she didn't want to admit it. Gendry was muscular, but not like the guys who went to the gym everyday. Occasionally, he lifted, but the definition in his muscles came from everyday work. There was this ruggedness about him that Arya found undeniably attractive.
At that particular moment, Arya just wanted to lick Gendry from his navel all of the way to his collarbone. She wanted to taste his salty sweat on her taste buds while he groaned in pleasure. Gods, at this moment she just wanted to fuck Gendry's brains out. Inwardly, the woman groaned, she really should have taken him up on his offer a week ago.
The guys finished and Ned went to the downstairs bathroom to freshen up. Arya showed Gendry to the bathroom upstairs. As he was closing the door, she slipped in behind him.
"Arya—" Arya's lips crushing against him cut off Gendry. Out of habit, he grabbed her and pulled her closed. Amused, he smiled at Arya, and then let her go. "I have to wash up."
"I have to wash up," Arya mocked, and then bit his lips before pulling him in for another kiss. A hot tongue slid into her mouth and she opened her mouth wider to accept the intrusion. Reluctantly, Gendry pulled away and breathed heavily as he rested his head in the crook of her neck.
"Let me get cleaned up first and we can make up as long as you want," he bargained. In an efficient manner, Gendry washed the dirt off of his body, and then dried off before putting his shirt back on. From experience, Gendry knew that Arya was going to make him sit on the toilet, so as he sat down, he gestured for Arya to come straddle him. In no time, Arya was on his lap and continuing where they left off.
Firm fingers dug into her back as Gendry gently sucked on her neck before kissing a sensitive spot beneath her throat. To prevent him from stopping, Arya put a hand on the back of his head and kept his head in place. He smiled against her throat while his tongue massaged her skin. With unmeasured passion, Arya turned Gendry's head so he could face her and roughly kissed him. Slowly, the grinded against one another as low pants and soft gasps were exchanged.
Gendry secured a hand around Arya's waist and back as he stood up and, automatically, she wrapped her legs around his hips. He walked forward until her back touched the wall, and then pulled her hips against his body and began to rub his crotch against hers determinedly. Arya put one hand on his shoulder and the other grabbed his forearm as she matched his intensity. Their lips crushed together as their pleasure built.
A groan of frustration was released and Gendry undid her pants and insert a hand between her legs. Within moments, Arya cries were muffled in his shirt as he triggered her climax. After she composed herself, Gendry let her down and watched as she undid his pants. For a quick second, she browsed through the cabinets, and then pulled out a bottle of lotion. A small amount was squeezed onto her hand, and then she went to get some tissue before going back over to Gendry and to stroke his cock. As she touched him, Arya nibbled on his chin. She was torn between dragging his orgasm out and getting it over with.
For the sake of time, she increased her the intensity of her strokes. In response, Gendry whimpered in her ear and came seconds later. Arya flushed the tissue down the toilet and sprayed air freshener in the bathroom. She and Gendry smiled as they freshened up in silence. After looking at her neck, Arya discovered some marks that were not in her neck before she entered the bathroom. As she applied make up to her neck, Gendry watched her while they conversed about nothing in particular.
"Arya!" Her mother said loudly as she knocked on the door.
"Yes," Arya replied as she opened the door, and then was about to continue applying make up on her neck before thinking better of it and switched to her face.
"I was wondering—" Catelyn stared at Gendry strangely as she stopped speaking. "Who is this and why is he in the bathroom with you? And why were the doors locked?" Her mother looked at her daughter as if she was crazy.
Gendry stood up straight and went over to shake Arya's mother's hand. In distrust, Catelyn shook it.
"Mom," Arya smiled. "This is my friend Gendry and we were in the bathroom with the doors locked because we were having a private conversation."
"In the bathroom? With the doors locked?" Catelyn gave her a disbelieving look.
Arya raised an eyebrow. "Would it be any better if we were in my bedroom with the door locked?"
"No," Catelyn immediately responded. "I would prefer if you weren't in rooms with the door locked."
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Stark," Gendry said shyly.
Catelyn ran a hand through her hair and looked at him then her daughter. "It is a pleasure to meet your too Gendry…"
"Waters," he supplied.
"Waters," she repeated. It looked as if the wheels were turning in her head as she processed the name. "It is a pleasure to meet you too and it would be a greater pleasure if Arya had mentioned you before."
"Mom," Arya groaned. "You don't know all of my friends."
"True," she conceded. "But, I also haven't met any of them in the bathroom that was previously locked."
"We were having a private conversation and I didn't want to be interrupted," she lied. "Besides, I'm 25 years old. I'm not a kid."
"As true as that may be, you are still in my house."
Arya rolled her eyes, and then closed her make-up case. "What was it that you wanted, mom?"
"Oh…I was just wondering what was taking you so long in the bathroom, but now I know." She gave Gendry as once over as if she was sizing him up. As she walked out, she turned and looked at him again. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Waters."
"Nice meeting you too, Mrs. Stark."
As they walked down the stairs, Arya heard her father speaking. When Gendry and Hot Pie had arrived, Ned had left to run an errand, so she hadn't gotten a chance to introduce them.
"Dad," Arya said to get his attention as she walked over to him.
"Hey, sweetheart," Ned looked at her daughter, and then Gendry. His eyes widened in surprise. "Who is your friend?"
"Dad, this is Gendry," she gestured to Gendry. "And, Gendry, this is my dad."
"Hello, sir," Gendry said nervously. He firmly shook Ned's hand and forced himself to smile.
"Hi," Ned said back. "What is your last name if you don't mind me asking?"
"Waters," he supplied. Ned nodded his head ever so slightly and was about to say something before someone called his name.
"It was nice meeting you…Gendry?" Gendry nodded that Ned's guess of his name was correct as Ned gave him a tight smile. "Well, I have to catch up with someone, but we'll talk later."
Gendry looked frightened at the thought, but agreed. Arya rolled her eyes at him and they made their way to the backyard. They found Hot Pie and Arya decided to give them a tour of the mansion. The guys stared in awe at the size of her parent's estate. Nymeria had joined them in the middle of Arya's tour and the men were scared of the direwolf before Arya explained they had nothing to fear if they didn't threaten her.
As Arya guided them around, she gave some background on her family and told anecdotes about her family and her most vivid memories in certain areas of the house. They laughed at her stories and encouraged Arya to tell more of her childhood stories. She then led them to the guesthouse, which was near the lake in their backyard as well as the horse stable.
The tour ended when Arya brought them to an area where she practiced her archery.
"Gods," Hot Pie said as he picked up a bow. "I haven't shot an arrow in years."
Arya handed him an arrow and encouraged him to shoot it. Hot Pie tried, but the arrow didn't reach the target. Arya and Gendry laughed and shook their heads. It wasn't like Hot Pie had been good at archery to begin with.
Gendry picked up a bow and arrow for himself and after he made sure everything was in order, shot it his arrow hit the target, but it wasn't as precise as it was at camp Wholistic Core.
"Gendry," Arya called him attention.
"What?" Gendry lined up another shot.
"Here," Arya slightly lifted his elbow and straightened his back. "Okay."
She stepped back as Gendry shot the arrow. It was closer to the center this time, but was still off.
"Stop aiming," she critiqued.
"But, how am I supposed to know what to hit," he questioned.
Arya made Gendry line himself up again. She straightened his back, lifted his elbow and whispered, "Your eyes knows where it wants the arrow to go. You are taking too much time trying to aim, it's counterproductive."
The arrow hit the dead center of the target. A low whistled came from Gendry's mouth as he turned and looked at Arya. They grinned at each other before someone cleared their throat to get their attention.
"Jon," Arya said excitedly as she ran to her half brother. Arya gave hugged her brother tightly at the unexpected surprise.
"Can you loosen you grip a bit," Jon gasped. "I can barely breathe."
"Sorry," she apologized as she gave one last squeeze before letting him go. "I just missed you is all."
Jon smiled at his sister and pulled her in for another hug. "I missed you too." After having small took with his favorite sister, her half brother looked at the two guys Arya had been with. "Who are your friends?"
"Oh, right," Arya mentally chastised herself for forgetting that her friends were here as well. Even though Jon had gotten married two weeks ago, she hadn't spoke to her brother in a while. The wedding had been hectic and they never got a chance to sit down and talk. As she said their names, she pointed to them. "Gendry and Hot Pie."
In amusement, Jon raised an eyebrow at Hot Pie's name and shook both of the men's hands.
"And, as the both of you may have guessed," Arya patted Jon on his shoulder. "This is my favorite brother, Jon."
"I can see that Arya has told you all about me, but I know nothing about either of you." Jon crossed his arms and looked at his sister.
Arya mimicked her brother and crossed her arms, and then looked at him. "As your lovely new bride has said for years, you know nothing, Jon Snow." Jon mock glared at her, which made the young woman smile. "Gendry is a mechanic and Hot Pie is a cook. Both of them are from King's Landing, but moved to Winterfell a few years ago. Anything else, dad?"
Jon ignored her, but didn't ask anymore about Hot Pie or Gendry. He knew his sister would volunteer more information when she was ready to and it isn't as if she was dating either of them. They were just friends and he could learn more about them at a later time.
For a while, the four of them played Frisbee with Ghost and Nymeria. It was really a combination between throwing it to each other and the direwolves. Arya asked Jon about work and if he was taking the desk job that had been offered. Her brother explained that he had accepted and that Ygritte wouldn't be on the battlefield anymore herself. The both of them wanted to start a family, especially Ygritte. Mrs. Snow may have been fiercely independent and didn't care for gender roles or adhering to them, she wanted to give Jon as many kids as she could.
Ygritte loved being on the battlefield, but she loved Jon more. He never asked her to switch to a desk job, but if that meant she got to see her husband more and so they could have more time to work on making babies, she was all for it. Despite this, Arya never thought of Ygritte's decisions as changing who she was and accepting gender roles. It was easy to see how much she loved Jon and wanted to create a family with him.
Eventually, Ned, and her other brothers joined them and they played a few short games of ultimate Frisbee. After every game, they would switch up the teams to rotate the players since there were an odd number of people. In a unanimous decision, the group went to go grab a plate to eat. Every single one of them stacked their plates with food and grabbed water and soda's.
"Rickon, you're such a cheater," Arya accused as she sat down at the table and Ned sat next to her.
"No, I'm not," he denied, and then laughed. "You're just a sore loser."
Arya threw a grape tomato at him, which he dodged, and then stuck out his tongue before getting hit the second time. She took a few bites of her food before stopping and looking around.
As she got up, she said, "I'm going to get some water."
On her way back to the table, Arya noticed that Gendry couldn't find a seat near her, so he sat on the other end of the table. Without a second thought, she picked up her food and joined him at the other side. She missed Ned's hurt expression when Arya switched her seat.
"Are you trying to avoid me?" Arya teased after she sat down and sipped her water.
A smile played on Gendry's lips at her words. "Yes, and then you found me, so I clearly didn't do a good enough job."
"Clearly," she retorted, and then stuffed more food in her mouth.
Arya and Gendry became lost in their own little world as they conversed about various topics. Seamlessly, they could transition between topics even the ones that weren't remotely related. It was one of the things she enjoyed about Gendry: they always had something to talk about. And, even when they didn't talk, they enjoyed their silences together.
"Do you mind?" Arya gestured towards his cake to indicate that she wanted some.
"No." Gendry shook his head and picked up his plate and tried to give it to her. Arya looked for a clean fork, but couldn't find one. "You can use mine," he offered as she took the plate and the fork from him. They took turns eating the big slice of cake. Gendry left to go use the restroom.
"Eddard fucking Stark," a familiar voice boomed.
"Yoren!" Catelyn said in chastisement and shock at seeing an old face.
"Sorry, Cat," he threw over his shoulder before he and Ned hugged one another.
"Gods, its been years, Yoren; I didn't think you were going to come."
Yoren chuckled and took the beer his friend handed him. "I wasn't." He said seriously before a bellow erupted from him and Ned laughed with him. "It's been too long. I know a lot of people, but you are one of the few people I consider a friend, so I figured that I should visit and catch up with you and the rest of your family."
The two men spoke for a bit, and then Ned looked at his family. "It's been decades since you've seen the kids; you probably don't remember who they are or which is which."
"No, I remember," he said proudly. He pointed to each of the Stark children and correctly named them. Yoren went in order of age. "Robb, Jon, Sansa, Arya, Bran, and Rickon."
"No way," Catelyn said in amusement. "How did you remember? And Rickon, he was in my stomach the last time I saw you."
"Yeah, but I remember that you were naming him Rickon," Yoren replied, and then looked at Ned. "I haven't seen most of your kids in decades, but I have seen Arya. I am a dean at Wholistic Core."
"Really?" Ned rubbed his beard. "And you never said anything until now. You could have called me."
"You were a very busy man around that time," he explained. "But, if the name wasn't a dead give away, her Northern features sure as hell were."
Ned beamed brightly at the last remark. As they spoke more about the kids, Gendry walked outside.
"Gendry?" The man in question looked at his former dean.
"Yoren," Gendry was surprised to see Yoren, but happy at the same time. "Hello, sir." The younger man shook the older man's hand enthusiastically. "It's good to see you."
"It's good to see you too." Yoren looked at Gendry, and then Arya.
"How do you know Gendry?" Ned inquired.
"He was at the camp at the same time as Arya—Hot Pie too." Yoren nodded over to his other former camper. The dean had noticed him earlier, but didn't say anything because he noticed Hot Pie was trying to hide. "The three of them were inseparable—more so Arya and Gendry."
In that moment, Arya's stomach dropped. This didn't feel right. Everything was all wrong and she was on the verge of panicking. She wished Yoren would shut the fuck up or that he would leave. It wasn't that Arya didn't like Yoren, but she had a bad feeling. Gendry looked at his friend in confusion as a thousand thoughts ran through her head.
"It was Gendry, wasn't it?" Ned asked across the table. Fury raged in his eyes and the wheels turned in his head. "Gendry was the one you almost had sex with when you were at Wholistic Core."
Arya froze as if she was a deer in highlights.
Sansa choked on her chicken as she looked at Gendry, and then Arya.
"What is he talking about?" Yoren demanded.
"Yeah, what is he talking about" Ned asked once he processed the information. Arya said nothing. "What is this about you almost having sex with Gendry when you while you were at camp?" Anger colored his voice as he scowled at the dark haired man.
"But, we didn't, dad," she answered weakly. "Nothing happened."
"I don't call almost having sex nothing happening," Catelyn supplied with incredulity dripping in her voice. "Just because it wasn't sex doesn't mean that nothing happened."
Before Arya could explain the situation or attempt to, Jon ran over to Gendry and sucker punched him in the face. Instantly, Gendry fell to the ground and Jon landed a few more blows and a kick in the groin before Yoren restrained him. In pain, Gendry writhed on the ground before curling into the fetal position while harshly gasping.
"Let go of me!" Jon frantically tried to pull his arms out of Robb and Yoren's grip. Robb looked torn between letting his half brother go so he could continue to kick Gendry's ass and keeping a hold of Jon to prevent further injury to the guy.
Arya ran over to Gendry, and then crouched over him to check on him and see how serious his injuries were.
"What the fuck is wrong with you, Jon!" Arya inspected Gendry's face after she turned away from her brother.
"What is wrong with me?" Jon tried to free himself once again. "This sack of shit took advantage of you—he almost got into your pants! Why are you mad at me for protecting you whens he should be mad at that piece of scum!" Jon's face was red and spit flew from his mouth as he spoke.
"He didn't take advantage of me, Jon," she yelled back. "We almost had sex because I wanted to have sex. I was the one who allowed it to go that far—hell, I wanted it to go further than it did. Gendry was the one who put a stop to it."
"Oh please," her brother scoffed. "He was playing games with you, Arya! He wanted you to believe that he was respecting you by stopping, but it was all a game just to make you want him more. It's obvious that you don't understand how guys think."
Arya abruptly stood up and walked over to Jon. Anger shined brightly in her eyes while she glared at her favorite brother as she was about to speak, her mother said:
"How could you allow something like that? Arya was only a kid!" Catelyn accused as she looked at Yoren. Her demeanor reeked of outrage and it looked like she wanted to hit the dean. "You were supposed to protect her."
Betrayal echoed in Yoren's eyes as he held Jon back. As if she was guilty, Arya cowered at his anger.
"Yoren," she pleaded. "I—"
"Save it, Arya," his tone was clipped. "You promised me you wouldn't go near Gendry."
"I didn't!" Yoren stared at her unbelievingly. "Well, I did, but that was before our talk—weeks before. I kept the promise the I made to you."
"What promise?" Ned, Catelyn, Robb, Jon, and Gendry all asked at the same time.
Arya turned to Gendry as he gasped in pain on the ground and he asked again, "What promise?"
"I made Arya promise to keep her hands to herself because she was going to get you in trouble," Yoren stressed trouble as he stared at the girl in question. "Apparently, I got to her a little too late." A beat, then sarcastically, "Is there any other incident I should know about?"
A slight blushed covered Arya's cheeks. Yoren stared at her incredulously. "It was two times total and both times was before we spoke." As if to help her case, she added, "And the second time didn't go nearly as far as the first."
It was important to Arya that Yoren knew she had kept her word, despite the fact that they hadn't seen each other in years. She knew that Yoren had been trying to look out for her and Gendry—mainly Gendry—, which she appreciated. As the years passed, Arya gained a better understanding of how her actions could have led to very serious consequences for Gendry. People wouldn't care how mature she seemed, they would just look at her age and color Gendry as a predator and send him off to jail. Yoren had knew better and saw what was going on and talked some sense into her before it was too late.
Arya wasn't one to let her emotions or desires do the talking, but back then, they had definitely spoken for her. Gendry did share some blame in letting things get as far as they did, but Arya most certainly forced matters. What amazed her most was how much resistance and self-control Gendry possessed. She has heard of guys who crumbled under less pressure, but not Gendry. He had a ready and willing girl in his arms, literally, and he turned down both opportunities. Some guys would try to justify giving in, but he refused to.
"But, not because of a lack of trying, right?" Yoren yanked Jon back as the young man tried to rip his arm away. "You see what I was trying to tell you then? Gendry is the villain in all of this while you are branded as a victim."
"Because she was a fucking victim, you idiot!" Jon turned his head and glared at Yoren as if to size him up.
Yoren shook his head. "You don't want any of this, kid." He looked at Arya, then Gendry before glancing at the people at Ned. "When I had realized that Arya and Gendry's relationship had changed…that the lines were becoming blurry, I should have separated them immediately. But, one of the philosophies of the camp was to treat the kids like young adults and I believed that whatever what was going on between them would work itself out."
"But, Arya was a kid, not a young adult," Catelyn stated. "This is what happen when you give children the privileges of adults."
"And you know what happens when you treat a young adult like a child," Yoren slowly looked at Catelyn. "They act out. Arya didn't have a behavioral problem when you sent her to me; she had a temperament issue, which is a difference. She may have been quick to anger, but she rarely ever fought. Before she was sent to Wholistic Core, her latest two incidences were with Joffrey Baratheon. And from what we know about him, that kid is so evil Satan himself asks for advice as to how to torment others." There wasn't any disagreement with his last statement. "It's quite clear, you sent Arya away because of politics not because she was necessarily troublesome." Yoren let the statement soak in for a moment. "As to why we treat 'kids' like young adults: when you respect young adults beliefs AND make them accountable for themselves, they are more likely to respond positively. Arya was already a good 'kid' when she got to the camp, but became an even better one when she left. We couldn't put her with kids her age because her maturity and intellect was that of one who exceeded 14 year olds. It would've been counterproductive, so we put her around individuals who complimented her as a person."
Catelyn softened at his explanation. Anger still radiated throughout her body, but she did see his logic regarding Arya. His actions were well thought out and illustrated that he had wanted the best for Arya. It was one of the reasons that Ned and she had sent Arya to that specific place—not only did they say they cared about the well being of your child, the words really reflective that as well.
"Remember when she got her citizenship award," Catelyn's eyes widened in recognition. She remembered being very proud of Arya that day. "If you recall, it was mentioned that she taught two people how to read. That was Hot Pie and Gendry. Neither one of them could read past a seventh grade level. Arya took time out of her day to help them. Guess where they grew up: Flea Bottom. We are all familiar with the way of life there." Ned, who had been observing and taking everything in, had looked at Gendry, "Even then, Gendry was a smart guy and very well mannered. You could tell after their first activity together that they just clicked. He always had her back and was always looking out for her. Always. So, if you want to know why I had him around her and didn't separate them immediately, it's because they had a positive impact on one another both socially and emotionally. I didn't want to ruin that."
Ned rubbed his beard in thought. Yoren had very good reason to do what he did, but Arya had still been young. The idea of his little girl almost having sex at such an age—at any age really—unsettled him. There was an age difference and fifteen year olds shouldn't be allowed that much autonomy. The little bit that Arya had been given almost led to her losing her virginity to a guy who could legally drink. At that age, the age gap had been too wide and Yoren should have kept a better eye on them.
"Yoren, as mature as Arya may have acted, she was not ready for that type of…intimacy." Ned finally voiced. "As much as I can understand why you were reluctant to act, Arya was still young."
"She was sure as hell ready!" Yoren quipped. Before Ned could say anything else, he continued, "You weren't there, Ned; you didn't see what I saw. I agree Arya was not ready for the emotional part of sex, which was another reason I made sure that it didn't happen. But, as soon as she experienced her sexual awakening, Gendry had a bull's eye on his back—he was a walking, talking target. Arya was determined to get him into bed even if she didn't realize it at the time. Every time I turned around, Arya was touching him in an increasingly intimate way and isolating him from other people. You could see on Gendry's face that he was about to break at any moment, so we started giving him shit to do to decrease the amount of time they spent together, but that didn't deter Arya. The day I had had enough, Arya had her hand on the inside of Gendry's thigh very close to his cock." Yoren could see Ned processing daughter's actions. "Gendry may have been older, but he followed Arya's lead. She was the one who called the shots. Hell, you all even heard Arya say that she initiated it Gendry was the one to stop it—both times."
Yoren looked at the two and they blushed.
"I just—" Ned rubbed his face roughly. "I don't know what to think right now." In deep thought, he pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled. Arya may have had agency in all of this, but she was just a kid. "Gendry, I need you to leave. A part of me understands the dilemma you were in, but another part of me views you as this creep who tried to take advantage of my daughter."
Gendry got up without saying anything and started to walk towards the fence that led to the front of the house.
"Where are you going?" Arya looked livid as she jumped up after Gendry. She turned her back to her family and walked towards Gendry before stopping in front of him.
Confused at Arya's response, Gendry stared at her wordlessly for a moment before speaking. "Your dad just told me to leave."
"And you're just going to walk away!" Arya violently hit the air as she spoke before running her fingers through her hair. "You aren't going to defend yourself and explain your side of the story?" Angrily, Arya pushed Gendry.
Calmly, Gendry held his hands up and said, "Calm down, Arya."
"Calm down? Calm down!" There were so many things that Arya wanted to say, but a million thoughts were running through her head all at once. She was torn between telling him to fuck himself and giving Gendry the worst verbal beat down of his life.
Meanwhile, Gendry stared helplessly at his lover and best friend. He had no idea what she wanted him to say or do. Arya could be unpredictable like that: the right answer could be wrong and the wrong answer could be right, but you never knew which route to go when she was upset. As well as Gendry liked to believe he knew Arya, she could be an enigma. Something was better than nothing in her eyes. And inactivity was the worst sin you could commit against her. But, what could he do? Her dad just dismissed him from the property.
Arya was one of the most intelligent people he knew, but she had an irrationality streak in her from time to time. Even if the choice is wrong and didn't make any sense, any other option would be seen as a betrayal in her eyes. Whether she was in the right or wrong, Arya knew how to hold a grudge and only time dictated if she would get over it. More times than not, she did get over grudges that were irrational, but Gendry couldn't discern the true reason for why she was upset now. He knew that Arya wanted him to stay, but at the same time, she heard her father uninvited him from the barbeque. Logically, Arya would know that her desire for him to stay was trumped by Ned's wish for Gendry to leave, which mean that her anger stemmed from another reason.
Before this conversation, nothing seemed amiss with Arya. Gendry was pretty good at detecting when she was upset about something, so he wondered what set her off during the conversation and even more so when he tried to leave. She seemed to be more angry with him and not her parents, brothers, or even Yoren. Why was she solely angry with him? What about Ned? He started the whole mess to begin with?
"What else could I've said? Yoren said all there was to say." Wrong answer. Rage exploded from Arya as she pushed Gendry again and again and again.
"Yoren said all there was to say," she mocked. "Get the fuck out of my face! Leave—I don't want you here anymore!"
"Arya," Gendry pleaded. He didn't understand what he did wrong.
"No! There is no point in you being here, right? Yoren said everything and, not only has my father told you to leave, I just told you to leave. Now go!" Harsh pants came from Arya's mouth as she tried to get her breathing under control. Solemnly, she shook her head, and then bit her lip. A bitter laugh came from her mouth as tears rebelliously left her eyes. Profusely, she wiped her face, but they kept coming.
"Ar—" The woman held her hands up to stop him.
Again, she laughed humorlessly. "I—I can't believe you're going to abandon me again." As she spoke her voice cracked, "I mean…I'm old enough now, right? I'm not some 15-year-old little girl who you can't touch because you'll go to jail. And, still, you choose to leave." Gendry picked up the subtext. She was accusing him of not caring for her.
"Abandoning you?" Gendry looked offended at her accusation. "What the hell is going on here, Arya? For the past few months, I've worn my heart on my sleeve for you—I told you that I loved…that I wanted to be with you and you turned ME down!" Anger tinged Gendry's voice as he pointed to himself. Gradually, tears fill his eyes, but didn't spill. "And just because I won't argue with your father suddenly I'm abandoning you and—and you mean nothing to me? That is such bullshit and you know it. You got some fucking nerve. You're family knew nothing about me until today. I've never been over your place until today, but I'm the one in the wrong for not fighting your dad! I don't think you care for me at all; I seem to be more of a dirty little secret than anything else. You fuck me and leave; you lie to your family about where you are—can't let your family know that your fucking some poor guy from the wrong side of the tracks. Hell, I'm just a warm body until you decide to go back to Ned or Aegon."
Arya was overwhelmed and wounded, but irate. How could he…how could he think that? She didn't want to admit that he had a point. Arya hadn't even introduced Gendry to any of her other friends as well. He was right; he was a secret, but not a dirty secret. Yet, she was still pissed off. That was not the point. He was turning this around on her when he was the one who was leaving—again.
"OR am I some charity case?" He yelled passionately. "Did you draw your lines so that I knew not to ask for more? Or did you figure that I wasn't going to ask since this was the best I was going to get? I get to fuck you, right? What more could I possibly ask for? I sure as hell wasn't supposed to ask you to be my girlfriend and to meet your family. How dare I, right? I should know my place by now."
"Get out of my face!" Arya screamed in an abrupt manner as she pointed in the direction that Gendry had to take in order to leave. "Get the fuck off of my property!"
Gendry's jaw tightened and he gave her a tight-lipped smile. "Gladly," he responded in a clipped tone. As he walked away, he threw over his shoulder, "I wouldn't want to get in the way of your reunion with Ned."
"Fuck you!" A tightening sensation developed in Arya's chest as she watched Gendry walk away.
He turned around and walked backwards as he addressed her. "Been there, done that."
A lump form in her throat as Gendry disappeared from her line of vision. Her and Gendry had never argued before. Never. They had small disagreements that they usually got over seconds later. They could never stay mad at each other for too long. But, this felt too real…too permanent. Did Gendry really just walk away from her? Did she really just ask him to? Why did Ned have to say anything? Why was it so important to him to name Gendry as the guy she almost had sex with? Now her family knows about it and hates him and Gendry is upset with her.
In all the time that they had known one another, Gendry has never been mad or angry with her. Not truly. But, this was different. All of his anger and insecurity had been brewing and brought to the surface and Arya hated to admit that she was the cause of that. Without meaning to, she had hurt him with her rejection in response to a committed relationship and not returning his love. For months, he kept quiet and played by her rules, but he couldn't keep his mouth shut at her accusations.
He didn't understand.
Arya wasn't ashamed of him and he wasn't some charity case—she wanted to protect him, to protect them. For years, she carried a torch for him despite being in relationships with other men. She had loved Ned and that went away. She had loved Aegon, but it wasn't enough to keep them together. Arya was afraid that her love for Gendry might disappear if they were in a real relationship.
A sharp pain shot through Arya's lip as she tried to prevent tears from falling, but it was useless: they fell anyways. Silent choked sobs wrecked her body while she brought her hands to her face to wipe her tears away. After she was done, she covered her eyes and continued to cry.
He left.
Gendry left.
Someone had placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and squeezed comfortingly. When Arya turned to look at the person, she found Sansa staring at her sympathetically. Roughly, she wiped her face again as she tried to figure out what to do next.
This wasn't supposed to happen. Gendry was supposed to come over and meet her family and that was all. Her family wasn't supposed to find out about that night and she and Gendry weren't supposed to be mad at each other. Fucking Ned. Fuck! Why did he have to say anything?
Abruptly, Arya turned around and faced the table. Catelyn audibly gasped at her daughter's bloodshot eyes and tear stained cheeks. It was a rarity to see Arya cry and, even then, she would only shed a few tears. Her youngest daughter was truly upset and that devastated her. Ned went to comfort his daughter, but she shrugged him off and went her ex-boyfriend.
"Leave." Arya demanded with venom in her voice. "Leave now!"
"But, Arya, I—"
"I don't care!" She shouted. "I don't want you here. I don't want to see you and I don't want you near me or—or in the same place that I'm at." For a moment, she looked at her hands, and then gaze shifted back to him. Her tears started to fall down her face again. "This is your fault."
With that, she left the table and went to her childhood bedroom. It was closer and she just wanted to lie down.
He left.
This wasn't her. Arya didn't cry over boys. She didn't cry when she broke up with Ned, but she was upset at the fact that she had hurt him. Despite no longer wanting to be with Ned, Arya did still care for him and considered him a friend. That honeymoon period of having a boyfriend wore off and Ned wasn't able to meet her emotional needs. He didn't challenge or stimulate her. If they had stayed together it would have only been for his benefit and not hers.
With Aegon, everything felt right, but she'd been slowly drowning in their relationship. Their time together had been right for that moment and to go on any longer would've been foolish. Love didn't have an expiration date, but relationships did. Arya didn't want their relationship to deteriorate to a point of no return and eventually come to resent one another. She supposed that her beliefs were hypotheticals and could have been wrong, but she hadn't regretted calling off the wedding and not continuing her relationship with him.
Yet, her heart ached for Gendry in ways it never had before. That was new. Perhaps, her heart always ached for him and only recently it had been acknowledged. He was here and very real. Arya got to touch and do all of the things she had fantasized about when she was younger. But, she had been scared to give him anything more. Terrified even. And now her worst nightmare has come true. He left. He had walked away, but this was her fault. She only gave so much before pulling away. She had encouraged him to spill the contents of his heart, but gave him measured hope. Gendry bared it all while she kept her cards close to her chest.
Why did people enjoy falling in love again?
Sansa peaked in Arya's room as she knocked on the door.
"Can I come in?" Sansa's gave Arya a warm stare and small smile.
"I don't care," Arya mumbled.
Sansa gestured for Arya to sit up. "Come on, Arya."
"Sansa," Arya warned.
"Get up," her older sister said sternly. Arya didn't felt like arguing, so she sat up. Sansa grabbed Arya by her shoulders, and then pulled her sister's head into her lap. "You love him." Soothing fingers brushed her scalp as she spoke. "You have for years."
"Is there a point you're trying to make?" A stray tear fell on Sansa's skirt.
"Yeah," she remarked. "That you're stupid."
"Excuse me?" Arya turned her head to face her sister.
"You heard me." She grabbed Arya's chin and slightly shook it. "I don't know anything about your relationship with Gendry, but it's clear that you care about him a great deal and that you're in love with him. Whatever he has done in the past or whatever slight he committed against you is not too big to be overcome. But, you are so scared of realized and unrealized fears that, you're acting stupid. I may not know Gendry, but it was pretty apparent that he returns your feelings just as much, if not more." Sansa's thumb rubbed Arya's cheek. "You need to deal with whatever fears you have. It's the only way your relationship will have a real shot at working because whatever you're doing now isn't working… That is, if you want to be with him."
"I do want to be with him."
"Then, why aren't you acting like it?"
Arya knew what she wanted; she just had to show Gendry that he was who she wanted.