Love Speaks Louder Than Words

by Amara Lightskipper

Bran's life seemed to be in order, until he met someone who changed it: Meera. But things turn upside down when they found out that their families were on two opposing sides of a conflict that happened years ago that still remains unresolved. How far will they go for love? Will their love open their families' eyes to seek forgiveness and move on?

5. First Kiss

ARYA

Arya was usually sneaky and discreet, which is why she was able to get away with things that might get her trouble. But she was not used to being caught red-handed, and that's exactly what happened. And to make matters worse, it was her sister, Sansa who did.

Growing up, Arya never got along with her only sister. Mostly, because they have different likes and dislikes. Sansa was the prim-and-proper, girly-girl type, and Arya was the rebellious, tomboyish type. That's why she was closer to her brothers, specifically, Jon and Bran than her actual sister.

And it showed in their interests as well. Sansa took ballet lessons at eight, while Arya took water-dancing, which is a type of fencing. Their mother, Catelyn never approve of it, of course, saying that martial arts are not good for little girls. Their father, Ned countered that they should be allowed to explore and pursue what they want and assured that he will personally go with her on her lessons. At first, Arya found it hilarious when Sansa actually thought she was dancing in the water.

It was also how Arya got really close to their Dad and how she earned her nickname by him, Cupcake because it was her favorite go-to after-practice food. Most kids would ask for ice cream, but she would ask for cupcakes and she'd usually ask for the ones with frostings and sweet toppings.

Going through high school and even college, Sansa was in the cheerleading squad and Arya was on the Fencing team. The same way her brothers were in the football team, well, at least Robb, Jon and Theon, and Rickon were in high school. In college, Robb stopped doing sports to focus on his degree, Jon went to military school, so only Theon joined the UWH's football team. Bran wasn't into sports, but he was on academic decathlon teams, representing their school in inter-school competitions. Rickon was purposely raised by their parents to do sports as a way to give him freedom due to his ADHD, and he seemed to be very happy about it.

As for their physical appearances, Arya seemed like the odd one out. Among Ned and Catelyn Stark's actual five children, she was the only one who had dark brown hair and grey eyes like their Dad. Her other siblings, however, took after their Mom, with their auburn hair and blue eyes. But if you put Jon in the picture, people would often mistake him as Ned's son as well because he had the same dark hair and grey eyes as she did. Their Uncle Benjen even compared them to other people: Robb is a young Edmure Tully—their Mom's younger brother; Jon is a spitting image of Ned Stark in his youth; Sansa is a young Catelyn Tully; Arya herself is reincarnation of their late sister, Lyanna Stark—which she hated if brought up; Bran is also a young Ned Stark but with red hair; and Rickon is also a reincarnation of their late eldest brother, Brandon Stark—just as wild and unpredictable.

One of her many talents was her sense of deduction—paying attention to the tiniest of details and connecting the dots to get to the bottom of things, one way or another. She couldn't explain it, but she could always tell if someone was hiding something. Intuition or a gut instinct, maybe.

She's also very good at keeping secrets, that's why her parents never found out she shifted to a different degree program until she graduated. Bran followed in her footsteps and did the same thing from Business Marketing to Structural Engineering, but unlike her, their parents found out a week after because he wasn't that discreet as she was. Thankfully, Bran never told on her but she made him a bargain that they would be business partners because they had both shifted to degree programs involved in the construction industry. And it was one of the things that made her closer to her brother. She'd literally go to great lengths to help him.

And while she was in the middle of helping Bran, Sansa had caught her red-handed, leaving her with no excuse and was forced to settle it that involved her sister's conditions.

Arya has had enough of people getting involved with whatever she was doing and even tolerated Rickon for sharing the pizza she had made the night before.

It was past eight in the morning on a Friday, when she went down from her room with Nymeria on her tail and walked into their kitchen.

Usually, on a normal weekday, everyone was at work or in school by that time. And she was surprised to see her sister, Sansa, still in her baby pink robe, eating yogurt on the breakfast nook, with her dog, Lady resting on her lap.

"What the fuck are you still doing here?" Arya asked. "Aren't you supposed to be at work?"

Sansa shrugged. "I'm not feeling well so I told Robb I'm not going to work today," She said. "And I already called Jeyne to file a sick leave for me."

Jeyne Poole, Sansa's assistant, was one of their butler, Vayon Poole's daughters. And it's the same way, some of their staff's children worked for them in Stark Industries, and others their Dad had assigned some jobs in the North Regional Capitol in Winterfell's uptown district.

Arya took Nymeria's feeder and filled it with dog food before getting herself a bowl of cereal with milk in it. She placed the feeder on the floor by the breakfast nook before Arya sat across her sister and ate her breakfast.

"So," Sansa spoke up. "What are you up to today?" She asked.

"None of your damn business." She snapped.

"I'm just asking a question, Arya."

"Well, I prefer it if you don't."

Sansa raised her hands in surrender. "Alright, jeez." Then stood up and gestured for Lady to follow her. "Come on, girl."

Truthfully, Arya didn't want Sansa interfering with what she's about to do. Right after she had her breakfast, she proceeded to their conservatory.

The conservatory is a large greenhouse several yards from Stark Manor's West Wing. Back then, it stored their home-grown fruit-bearing plants during the winter season. Now, it still had fruits-bearing plants, root crops and herbs like lemon, tomato, onions, garlic, ginger, carrots, potatoes, rosemary, thyme, parsley, etc.

But now, it also had flowers. Before their Dad married their Mom, the only flowers it stored were winter roses planted by their late Aunt Lyanna. Since their Mom, Catelyn is very-much into gardening as she had grown up in a farm herself, the conservatory had other types of flowers other than winter roses.

The conservatory is made of glass everywhere, except for its steel framing. The walls are paneled glass made to retain heat and keep the cold out. It also has frosted glass sliding doors. Its roof is also made of glass and sloped to make sure to keep the snow from piling and breaking it.

Inside, were a variety of fruits and vegetables as well as flowers in raised garden beds. The vegetables were in rows, fruit trees were distributed on the center just below the apex of the sloping gable roof. Flowers were either in garden beds or hanging in pots on the steel trusses. Vines also grew on a green wall on the back adjacent to the doors and the posts climbing up the trusses. The flooring was of terracotta tiles in a herringbone pattern.

There's some sort of lounge area just on the left side from the doors when you enter. It has a dark brown woven patio couch, two armchairs and an ottoman all with beige cushions, with a wooden coffee table and a small bonsai tree as its centerpiece.

Just across on the lounge was a utility area, with a sink with a stand, a table, and a cabinet filled with just about every garden tool needed. On the table were spare clay pots of varying sizes, a watering can, empty spray bottles and metal buckets, a pair of garden gloves and a spray nozzle for garden hoses. Below the table was a wheelbarrow half-filled with large pebbles, sacks with labels of loam, sand, and coco peat, a reel lawn mower, a neatly coiled bright green garden hose, and a pair of garden boots.

Arya entered the conservatory with Nymeria and her dog went immediately climbed up to the ottoman, the way she always did in an ottoman in Arya's room, and settle down like she owned it.

"Nymeria, what are you doing?" Arya asked. "That's not your chair. Get down from there." She ordered.

But instead of getting down, Nymeria rested her head on the cushion and whined as if to say, but it's so soft and comfy.

"Nym, come on, no one's supposed to know we're here." Arya said as she approached the table and grabbed the garden gloves.

But no, Nymeria whined even louder.

Arya sighed as she put on the garden gloves. "You are so gonna get me caught." She then went for the cabinet of garden tools.

The cabinet had the tools every gardener need. Half of it, Arya couldn't even name. There were different types of hoes, rakes, shovels, spades, loppers, weeders, garden knives, pruning saw, trowels, secateurs, and even a sickle—grim reaper's signature weapon.

Arya took out the secateurs and walked towards the raised garden bed where the bushes of winter roses were. The blue winter roses were first planted by their Dad's late sister and Jon's Mom, their Aunt Lyanna. Their dad even had the roses labeled, Lyanna's Winter Roses.

Just as Arya was about to cut into her first winter rose, Nymeria barked in warning.

"What is it now?" She asked. "You're making me more nervous than I already am."

But Nymeria barked even louder.

"Nymeria, be quiet." She urged.

Suddenly, the sliding doors opened wide and her sister Sansa walked in with a very surprised expression and her dog, Lady was with her, who then went on to join Nymeria in her luxury seat.

"Oh, shit," Arya muttered.

"I knew you were up to something," Sansa said, matter of factly, then closed the doors shut.

"Sansa, what are you doing here?" Arya demanded.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that question?" Sansa raised an eyebrow at her. "I know you've pruned bushes before, Arya. But what are you doing near Aunt Lyanna's winter roses with a pair of secateurs, huh?" She asked.

"Like what I've said earlier," She replied. "None of your damn business."

"Does Mom and Dad know what you're doing?" Sansa smiled. "Two can play at that game, sis."

"Alright," Arya sighed as she faced her. "What do you want?"

"For you to answer my question," Sansa crossed her arms. "What are you going to do with the roses? And why are you suddenly cutting roses?"

For a moment, Arya just glared at her sister, not knowing what to say.

"Nothing to say?" Sansa smirked, then giggled. "It sounds weird when I'm saying your usual line."

"Well, I—um," She started to say.

Sansa raised her hand. "Wait, if you're gonna say it's for decoration, you're a terrible liar. You don't even keep flowers in your room because you can't maintain them."

"I'm a terrible liar?" Arya shrieked. "Wow, look who's talking. If I'm terrible, you're much worse than me. Because unlike you, I know how to cover my tracks."

"What does that suppose to mean?" Sansa asked.

"It was me who figured out you were abused by your psychopathic ex-boyfriends both that presidential blond pile of shit and the Bolton bastard," Arya recalled. "I mean, hello? No make-up can fool me when it comes to bruises."

"Hmm, fair point." Her sister said. "But seriously, going back to the flowers. Why are you cutting them?" She asked again.

Arya huffed. "Please, if you're going to blackmail me for something, go right ahead." She said as she snapped her first rose. "I know you have nothing against me. But I have a lot of things against you."

"Maybe," Sansa said. "But I do now. The winter rose bush itself is the evidence. And you know how Dad feels when one of us touches any of Aunt Lyanna's or Uncle Brandon's old stuff."

"Oh, so you're gonna tell Dad, huh?" Arya guessed as she cut another rose. "Go ahead, but they won't believe you because you won't any proof. Like I said, I cover my tracks."

Arya said all that in confidence, but in reality, she was just hoping Sansa didn't have a camera or she'll be in serious trouble.

Sansa sighed in annoyance. "And you still haven't answered my question."

"Oh, the roses?" Arya said. "It's a favor I'm doing for Bran."

"What in seven hells does Bran want with winter roses?"

"Well, Bran found out Meera loves winter roses." She explained. "He wants to buy her some, but they're not exactly available on the market because we're heading into the summer. And then he remembered that we have some here. So, that's that."

Right then, Arya expected her sister to scold her. But what Sansa did next, surprised her.

"Aww," Sansa said giddily. "That's so sweet. But how will you take the roses to Bran?" She asked.

"I'm going to White Harbor later."

Sansa raised an eyebrow. "Alright, how about we just make a deal about this? I won't tell Mom and Dad about the roses. But I get to help and go to White Harbor with you. How's that?"

Arya chuckled and shook her head. "Seven hells, no!" She countered. "It's bad enough that you caught me here. I'd feel better if you just keep your mouth shut and pretend you never saw me here."

"That could work," Sansa said as she took out her phone and scrolled through the screen. "But this will also work out big time."

And that's when Arya heard several camera flash sounds. It made her turn to her sister.

"What the fuck?" She complained.

"I'll send this to Dad right now." Sansa dared and showed Arya her phone. "All I need to do is press send and then you'll be in trouble." She tapped her foot impatiently. "So, what's it gonna be?"

"I can't take you to White Harbor," She argued. "You're on a fucking sick leave. And I can't carry you when you faint."

"First of all, I'm not gonna faint," Sansa assured. "I have taken my medicine and my vitamins, so I'm good. Second, you'll need help arranging the bouquet. And I know you're pretty good at the whole arts and crafts thing, but you do not mess up a bouquet. Ever."

No matter how much Arya wanted to shrug away her sister's help, Sansa was right. She had no idea how to arrange a bouquet. They had to set their differences aside, at least for a few hours, for Bran.

It took her a long time to answer. But since there's no other way around it, she didn't have much choice.

Arya sighed. "Fine." She blurted out. "It's a deal. But Nymeria gets shotgun. And if Mom and Dad ask you why you went to White Harbor with me, that's on you."

Sansa smiled. "Perfect!" She squealed. "Also, you don't have to worry about Mom and Dad…and Robb. I've got that covered."

"I can't believe this is happening." She mumbled.

"Just accept the fact that I win this time, Arya." Sansa said as she walked towards the table, picked out a bucket, half-filled it with water, and placed it before her.

"What is this bucket for?" She asked.

"For the roses, duh!" Her sister said as she held an open palm, wiggling her fingers. "Now hand me those secateurs."

She glared at her. "What do you even know about flowers?"

"More than you, obviously." Sansa insisted. "In case you forgot, I became very good friends with Margaery Tyrell, and she's only the daughter of the owner of the largest supplier of flowers in the entirety of Westeros. So, of course, she taught me a few stuff."

That was true. After Sansa had graduated from the University of White Harbor, she was in an internship program in Oldtown, in the Reach. Their parents agreed as it was as far away as either Joffrey or Ramsay. Whilst being there, Sansa had befriended Margaery Tyrell.

Arya reluctantly handed Sansa the secateurs, took off the garden gloves she was holding and handed it to her as well.

Sansa put on the garden gloves. She took the three roses Arya had managed to cut, snipped the cut-end a little and placed it on the bucket.

"The ones you got are not bad," Sansa assessed as she tugged one stem of the winter rose bush with the secateurs. "You know the prime rule of the Tyrells about picking flowers? The fresher, the better. So it's better to pick the roses that had just barely bloomed." She then snapped a stem of one rose. "Also, you have to cut it at an angle," She then placed it on the bucket with water. "And put it in the water right away because moisture will fade as soon as we cut them."

Sansa had snapped away about two roses when she turned back to Arya again. "How many roses do we need, anyway?" She asked.

"Maximum of five," Arya replied. "So that's about it. We're good."

Sansa blinked at her like she was kidding. "Only five?" She asked. "If Bran's gonna ask this girl to be his girlfriend, we're gonna need about a dozen."

"What in seven hells do you mean only five?" Arya shrieked. "Right now, I'm still contemplating on maybe Aunt Lyanna's gonna rise up from her grave because we touched her winter roses; and how I'm gonna get this roses from here to my room, wrap it into a bouquet and on my car to White Harbor without being seen—and you want to cut a dozen roses? How fucking extra can you get?"

Sansa held an open palm up. "Calm down, okay? And why are you so worried about being seen with these roses? I already told you, I won't tell Mom and Dad. You have my word." She promised.

"If one of our staff sees us with Aunt Lyanna's roses and they tell Dad, we'll both be in trouble." Arya pointed out.

After Sansa finished cutting a dozen roses, they head out and face the challenge of not being seen by their house staff. But before stepping out of the conservatory, Arya took one of the spray bottles for later use of misting the roses.

It was challenging. Sansa had carried the bucket of roses, while Arya had to be the lookout with their two dogs following after them. It took them two attempts to pass through the kitchen because their cooks were already preparing to cook for lunch. The first time, Arya had to push her sister out to hide behind a column so that she'll be out of the cooks' line of sight.

"Ms. Arya, are you alright?" Gage, the head cook asked.

"Um, yeah," She managed to say. "I—I just took a stroll with the dogs on the grounds."

When the cooks turned their backs on them, Arya urged Sansa to go ahead. Thankfully, they got through and slowly went up the grand staircase—yes, Stark Manor has a grand staircase.

But they encountered another problem. On the hallway to their bedrooms, they saw their head housekeeper and babysitter, Nan, or as Bran and Rickon called her, Old Nan. They called her old because she was literally in her seventies and she had been around since before their Dad was even born.

At the moment, Old Nan was dusting down family portraits.

"Oh, shit." Sansa cussed. "What do we do?"

"We need to distract her."

"And how are we going to do that?" Sansa asked.

Arya scanned the area trying to find something they can use as a distraction. Then she remembered the spherical railing post cap on the right side of the staircase. It was Rickon who discovered that they were detachable and used it on a fetch game with his dog, Shaggy.

Arya smiled as an idea popped into her head. "Leave that to me." She said. "When Old Nan turns her back, you need to run to your room. I'll head there after I take a shower and then I'll tell Hullen to get my car ready." She had then proceeded to unscrew one of the spherical railing post caps on the right side of the staircase.

"What in seven hells are you doing?" Sansa demanded.

"This is the fucking distraction I'm talking about." Arya hissed, then turned to the dogs. "Girls," She said in a small voice, then held up the post cap for them to see. "Wanna play fetch?"

"Oh my gods, are you serious?" Sansa sighed.

"Will you shut the fuck up and trust me for once?" Arya argued. "Our dogs are always willing to play fetch, especially with a ball."

Of course, as she held up the post cap, Nymeria and Lady wagged their tails excitedly. Ooh, a ball! They seemed to say.

"Go get the ball." Arya said, then rolled the ball as if she's rolling down a bowling ball in an alley, across the hallway.

The dogs raced after the ball and fought each other on who gets it first. Sure enough, Old Nan turned her attention from dusting the portraits to the dogs fighting over the post cap and started to walk towards them.

"If Lady eats a post cap, I swear—" Sansa started to say.

"Go, now!" Arya urged her sister ahead and Sansa obliged, carrying the bucket of roses with her to her bedroom and shut the door behind her.

Arya ran towards the ruckus and split the two dogs apart. "Hey, cut it out." She said as she took the post cap.

"My goodness, Lya," Old Nan said, clutching the feather duster. "Those dogs better not break anything in here."

Since Old Nan was their Dad's and his siblings' babysitter back in the day, and Arya had been told far too many times that she looks like her Aunt Lyanna even though she hated being compared to her constantly. Arya allowed Old Nan to call her Lya as her Dad mentioned it's the same way she affectionately called her Aunt Lyanna then. And also, because her middle name is Lyanna.

"Sorry, Nan." Arya apologized. "It won't happen again."

"Oh, don't promise me anything." Old Nan replied. "I use to tell your father that when he was your age."

"Really?" She wondered curiously.

Old Nan chuckled. "It gets worse every time."

Arya frowned. "Dad gets in trouble back then?"

"Not Ned," Old Nan assured as she went back to dusting portraits. "He was the quiet one, growing up. It was mostly your Uncle Brandon or your Aunt Lyanna who always got scolded by your grandfather."

It was odd hearing about their Uncle Brandon and Aunt Lyanna from other people. Even their Dad never talked about them. Arya wanted to know more, but apparently, time is of the essence and they need to get to leave for White Harbor before their parents got home for lunch.

Arya took the railing post cap and returned it to its place and head to her bedroom with the dogs. She texted their chauffer, Hullen to get her car ready before she stepped into her bathroom and took a quick shower.

She had just got dressed when Hullen came by for her car keys so he can park her car out in front of Stark Manor's porticos.

Afterwards, she had strapped Nymeria in her harness leash, the way they do when they take their dogs out of the Stark Estate. She had then knocked on her sister's door.

"It's open." Sansa called from inside.

Arya opened the door and stepped inside. Sansa was sitting by her dresser, blow-drying her hair.

"Oh, you have got to be fucking kidding me." She said. "Will you hurry up? We need to leave before Mom and Dad come home for lunch."

Sansa glanced at a digital desk clock she had on her dresser. 10:09, it read. "It's only ten," She assured. "They won't be home until noon."

"Um, hello? White Harbor is a two-hour drive from here!" She reminded her sister.

"An hour and forty-five minutes." Sansa corrected.

"Whatever!" Arya argued. "It's rounded-up to two hours. Just hurry up."

"Oh, by the way, can you please strap Lady in her harness leash?" Sansa pleaded. "Since you're not doing anything at the moment."

Arya reluctantly put on Lady's harness leash while Sansa finished up drying her hair. "Anyways, do you have some old newspapers or something we use to cover up the roses?" She asked.

Sansa went through her magazine holders and took out a few old newspapers. "Will these do?"

They worked together to cover the roses with old newspapers carefully to not destroy the flowers and held it together with some sticky tape.

Arya let her sister finish covering it while she went to find Hullen for her car keys. She found him in the kitchens and he handed her the car keys.

By ten-thirty, Arya and Sansa get to the car and sped off to White Harbor. Arya drove, of course, since it's her car and as promised, Nymeria was on the shotgun with her doggie seatbelt on. Sansa was on the backseat with Lady and she had the bucket of roses on the car's floor carpet.

"If you spill water in my car, I'll fucking kill you." Arya warned.

"That depends on how you drive the car, sis." Sansa countered.

Arriving in White harbor, they first stopped at a local flower shop to buy some supplies for arranging a bouquet, namely: kraft papers, chicken wires, and ribbons.

Afterwards, they head to The Burger Lab branch near the Aquamarine and ordered their lunch in the drive-thru window. Arya ordered her usual, the Chemical Explosion Burger with extra onions and bacon. Sansa ordered the Concentrated Experiment Burger, the burger for the health-conscious people because it was supposedly low-fat and they added some chicken nuggets for the dogs. They also used the VIP card, of course.

Bran wasn't in the penthouse at the moment, as he was attending his classes in UWH. It was Summer who welcomed them, barking excitedly and running up to them.

"Hey, buddy," Arya greeted as she scratched his neck. "Did you miss us and your sisters?"

Summer licked her face in return and went ahead and rolled in the carpet with Lady and Nymeria.

They head to the kitchen and Sansa placed the bucket of roses on the island counter. "The place is surprisingly clean, despite the fact that guys live here." She gasped.

"Bran's a neat-freak," Arya reminded her. "Like you. So, it's not much of a surprise, really."

"And this is new," Sansa said as she pointed to the pots by the kitchen windowsill. "An herb garden with labels and everything."

Bran had labeled each pot of herb plant: chives, parsley, basil, sage, rosemary, thyme, mint, dill, coriander, and oregano. Yep, and Arya knew Bran got the herbs and the labeling thing from the conservatory.

"It's genius." Sansa beamed. "Why in seven hells didn't I think of this?"

"Well, you don't live here anymore." Arya reminded her sister. "It doesn't matter."

They ate the burgers they bought. Afterwards, Arya drank her iced tea and then fed the dogs the chicken nuggets and dog food from the stock Bran had. Sansa, however, always settled for water because she was health-conscious.

Sansa took a glass from the cupboard and opened the fridge. "Let's see what we have here." She said. "Oh, hey." She turned to Arya. "You can cook meals with this supply of food here. Bran made a great job of stocking supplies."

"Please tell me there's still milk," Arya said. "Because if there isn't, I'm gonna fucking kill Beren if he drank it all again."

Sansa frowned. "Why would Beren drink milk?"

"He uses milk to cure his hangover." She explained. "The last time I was here, there wasn't even enough milk to make waffles."

All of a sudden, they heard a scream from the living room. "Holy shit!"

Both of them went to see who it was, and it was Beren Tallhart. And he had his backpack slung on his shoulder so Arya assumed he was heading to the UWH.

"Hello, Beren," Sansa greeted.

"Oh," Beren sighed in relief. "Starks A. and S., what's up?"

"Tallhart Number Four," Arya acknowledged. "Aren't you supposed to be in class?"

"I'm heading there now," He explained. "I was just surprised to see three dogs in the living room. It's not a common sight, you know."

"Don't worry, they won't harm you." Sansa assured.

Beren nodded. "Unless I piss them off." He recalled. "Yep, message received."

"Do you know what time Bran gets home?" Sansa asked.

"I don't know, sorry." He replied. "But all I know is, today's the deadline for the final drafts. So, I'm assuming he's just going to do that."

Suddenly, the front door opened and Bran entered. Summer, of course, ran to greet him. But he froze at his tracks and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw them in the room.

"Oh, speaking of the devil," Beren gestured to Bran. "He's here. Now, if you'll excuse me, Starks, I have to go. See ya around." He said as he closed the door behind him.

BRAN

Friday was a big day. Well, at least for Bran. The things that happened will go down in history, in his life. There were minor setbacks because some egoistic blond guy decided to butt in, but by the end of the day, it still worked out and he got his first kiss.

It was also the submission date of all the final requirements for graduation. But it didn't matter. He didn't have to cram because he did everything weeks ago, and all he had to do was submit what he had made, which meant he had the whole afternoon.

As Bran walked back to the Aquamarine, he saw his sister, Arya's car in the guest parking slots. He smiled as it meant that Arya had brought the winter roses with her.

But as he went back into the penthouse, he saw a scene he didn't expect to see. Three dogs were playing on the carpet in the living room, and Summer was one of them, along with his littermates, Lady and Nymeria. And of course, Bran's two sisters, Arya and Sansa, talking to Beren.

Beren looked like he was going to UWH because he had his backpack with him, and he left just as soon as Bran walked through the doors.

After Beren left, Sansa, being the clingy and most affectionate one in the family, rushed towards Bran.

"Little brother," Sansa smiled as she pulled him into a hug. "We missed you so much." She then kissed his cheek. "How have you been?"

Bran was incredibly surprised to see Sansa as she rarely left Winterfell or even Stark Manor without any bodyguards at all. But here she was, in White Harbor with Arya, the sibling she rarely got along with.

He was still giving Sansa a puzzled look. "I'm good." He said, then took a deep breath before speaking again. "Sansa, what are you doing here? I knew Arya would be here, but I didn't know you're coming as well."

"Well, duh!" Sansa said. "You'll need my help in arranging a flower bouquet."

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?" He asked.

"Yes, but I'm on sick leave."

He didn't buy it, so he turned to Arya for answers.

"She, sort of, caught me in the act," Arya explained. "Like in the middle of snipping roses. Her only condition is to come here with me."

Bran nodded. "Okay, so you both drove each other's cars getting here."

"Nope," Sansa said. "I hitched the ride with Arya."

He raised an eyebrow at them. "Really?" He exclaimed like he could not believe it. "It's a miracle that you're both still in one piece."

"Well, the dogs were there." Arya reminded him. "And also, I think the winter roses are the ones keeping us from killing each other."

"Speaking of roses," Bran said, scanning the area. "Where are they?" He asked.

"In the kitchen," Sansa informed. "But it's still wrapped. But be careful in tearing off the newspapers."

Bran headed to the kitchen followed by his sisters and saw the bucket covered in old newspapers taped together. He carefully tore down the newspaper and was stunned his when he saw the roses.

"Holy shit!" He exclaimed. "I said you can get a maximum of five! This is…" He counted the roses in multiples of two. "Two, four, six, eight, ten, twelve—a dozen?" He turned to them. "You cut a dozen roses from the conservatory?"

Arya simply shrugged. "That's what I said."

"Oh, come on," Sansa said. "There's like, significance to the number of roses you give a person." She explained. "Five is like, letting someone know that they're special which I think you already have. I mean, Meera spent a night here, right? You cooked her breakfast, and…" She turned to Arya.

"And he drove her home." Arya finished.

"See?" Sansa said. "So we either go big or go home."

"Except Bran isn't fucking extra like you." Arya countered. "And what in seven hells does it mean if you give someone a dozen roses?" She asked.

"It's subtly asking that special someone to be yours." Sansa explained.

"Whoa!" Bran held his hands up in surrender. "I don't wanna rush things with her. I only met Meera last week."

"Mm-hmm," Arya smirked. "And since Jorelle's birthday party, I'm pretty sure you've met with her everyday since then, correct?"

Bran was silent and at a loss for words. He hated when Arya figures out something that he had initially kept a secret. For him, at least. But when she does that to other people, it was glorious to see their reactions.

"Ha!" She snapped. "Silence means yes. Don't fucking deny it. And if you're gonna say, you have no proof. I have two, actually."

Even Sansa was curious. "Really?" She asked.

"Oh, yeah," Arya nodded. "Number one: when you left for school last Tuesday, I turned on the flatscreen to see that you're still logged in to your Webiflex account and you have every Star Wars movie on your watchlist. And you have mentioned that you were having a movie marathon with her. Proof Number Two: I could just go down the lobby and ask Wex Pyke if Meera had been here in the last three days."

Bran huffed. "Godsdammit. Alright, yes, she had been here." He admitted.

"See?" Arya smirked. "It's not hard to admit it."

"Wait, have you been sleeping with her?" Sansa asked.

"No!" He snapped. "I wasn't sleeping with her!" He threw his hands in exasperation. "Why does everybody think that?"

"You know what, forget I ever said that," Sansa said and then changed the topic. "Have you eaten lunch?"

"Not yet."

"Well, you should've told me," Arya spoke up. "I could've bought you something from The Burger Lab."

"I didn't even know what time you'll arrive." He said. "And I didn't even know Sansa was coming."

Sansa scanned the fridge. "Would you like chicken?" She asked.

"No, and do not touch the chicken." Bran insisted. "Maybe the steak."

"Okay," Sansa said, then picked out the packaged porterhouse cut from the chiller. "You bought a porterhouse cut. Why?"

Bran sat on one of the barstools by the island counter. "Because it's two cuts for the price of one in PearlMart." He explained.

Both his sisters turned to him in confusion.

"If you cut the upper portion of the porterhouse, it's the Valyrian Strip steak cut," Bran continued. "If you cut the lower portion, it's the tenderloin or the filet mignon steak cut. And if I buy the Valyrian Strip and the Filet mignon in the PearlMart separately, the cost is enough to buy two porterhouse steak cuts."

Sansa nodded. "Smart." She said as she took an apron from the rack in the kitchen and put it on. "I can't believe I never thought of that when we used to live here."

"Because you don't do the grocery shopping, Sansa," Arya reminded them. "Robb did that, and when he graduated, the responsibility fell to me. And I never gave two fucks about how much it costs because I only buy whatever you listed."

"Wait," Bran interrupted, turning to Sansa. "Are you gonna cook all of that?" He asked. "I just want the Valyrian Strip."

Sansa made a face at him. "Why didn't you say so?" She then took a knife and cut out the Valyrian Strip from the T-bone.

"Hey, I'll have the filet mignon then." Arya declared.

"Arya, you just ate." Sansa reminded their sister.

Arya shrugged. "Well, I'm hungry again."

Sansa rolled her eyes and cut out the tenderloin as well. "I can't believe you're treating me like your personal chef."

"You offered to cook." Arya brought up.

"For Bran, not you." Sansa pointed out as she seasoned the steaks in salt and pepper. "But since I'm already wearing the apron, might as well do it."

"Good," Arya smiled, then turned to Bran. "Now, where the fuck is the coffee maker?"

"You know where it is, Arya."

Sansa looked up as she switched on the induction stove and placed two cast-iron skillet pans on it. "You're pairing the filet mignon with coffee?"

Arya glared at her. "You can't fucking tell me what I can and can't do."

Sansa narrowed her eyes at Arya. "Do you want me to send Dad the pics?" She asked.

Arya paled, then snapped. "Don't you even fucking dare!"

"If you cross me, I will." Sansa threatened.

"Hey!" Bran interjected. "Will you both stop it?!" He scolded. "I'm hungry. And I don't wanna hear any of your squabbles."

Sansa shrugged. "Sorry about that." She apologized then poured oil in the cast iron skillet pans. "By the way, how do guys like these cooked?" She asked before placing the meats in.

"Well done." Arya blurted out. "I don't wanna see some pink, raw area when I cut into my steak."

"Med-well, at least," Bran replied. "Or to well done. Because if it's pinkish, it feels like I'm eating raw meat."

"You got it," Sansa said as she tossed cloves of garlic and some rosemary and thyme from the herb pots on the pans. "But you know, this is gonna take a while."

As they waited, Arya went back to making coffee as she waited for the coffee maker to go off. She then grabbed a mug from the cupboard and milk from the fridge.

"So, Bran," Sansa spoke up. "I wanna know more about Meera. What's so special about this girl that made you, a law-abiding, by-the-book person, break the mold?"

"What do you mean?" He frowned. "I didn't—"

"Dude," Arya interrupted. "You made us pluck out off-limit flowers from the conservatory for this girl. Obviously, something's up." She said as she poured milk into her coffee. "And it's not just because she loves winter roses."

Bran shrugged. "I—I don't know." He shook his head as he could feel himself turning red. "I can't explain it. I just…when I'm around, it's…" He faltered and scratched his head, trying to figure out what to say next.

"Butterflies in your stomach?" Sansa finished as she flipped the steaks. "And a feeling of being extremely happy you can scream?"

Bran nodded slowly. "Yeah, exactly like that."

"Aww," Sansa said giddily. "And I thought you were grim like Arya."

"Ex-fucking-cuse me?" Arya glared at her. "At least, I didn't have a long list of ex-boyfriends, in which two of them are psychopaths." She said, then drank her coffee.

Sansa took the steaks and transferred it to plates. "Why do you keep bringing that up?" She demanded. "It's all in the past." She cleared her throat. "Anyways, going back to Meera. You really like this girl. What's she like? How's she around people?"

"She's great," Bran said. "A people person, very hard-working, caring, I mean, I could go on, honestly. But…" He faltered.

"But what?" Sansa and Arya said unison.

"Is there a problem?" Arya asked.

"Well, I won't call him a problem," Bran corrected. "More like a nuisance. A pain in the backside kinda thing."

"Him?" Arya leaned on the island counter. "Go on."

"It's her boss." He revealed. "And it's either he's just really nosy about the people under him or he likes her and sees me as a threat."

"Wait," Arya interjected, finishing off her coffee. "Is this Mr. Pride and Ego, because Gwyn and Lyra mentioned something about him during Jorelle's party."

"Yeah, but can I please eat now?" He asked.

"Oh, right. Sorry." Sansa placed the plates on the counter for them. "Here's your Valyrian Strip," She turned to Arya. "And your filet mignon. Bon appétit."

Bran and Arya chugged down their steaks but resumed talking.

"Anyways, where were we?" He wondered.

"Mr. Pride and Ego." Sansa reminded him.

"Right, that's what they call him behind his back," Bran explained as he ate his lunch. "Because his pride and ego surpass probably Brandon's Peak—the tallest mountain in Westeros. Also, the second time I went to pick up Meera from work, he was clearly irritated that I was there again."

"Hmm, I don't like him already." Sansa declared.

"Well, you won't like him even more, when you hear his name," Bran guessed. "Tyrek Lannister."

"Oh, seven hells, no," Arya raised her fork with a sliced piece of meat sticking through. "His last name itself is a red flag. Stay away from them. But you know my main question about him: What's a Lannister doing up here?" She asked. "I thought they were too proud to travel further North."

"To show dominance," Bran answered. "That they're better than anyone, maybe?"

"Of course," Sansa said. "I should know that. I dated one of their blood. And his last name isn't even Lannister. But whatever the case," She changed the topic. "I still wanna meet Meera."

Arya made a face at her. "You can't just meet her when they're on a date." She countered. "Just barging in saying, I'm Sansa, Bran's sister. That'll be so stupid. You'll be interrupting and it destroys the atmosphere and the ambiance."

Sansa looked confused. "Arya, what in seven hells are you talking about?"

Bran cleared his throat. "Can I just please enjoy my Valyrian Strip?"

Arya finished her steak first, and she placed the plate in the dishwasher. "Right, let's do the flowers."

Sansa obliged and cut the strings that held the flowers in the bucket together. "So what time will you meet Meera?" She asked.

"When she gets off from work." He answered. "Probably five. But I'll start walking by four-thirty."

Sansa raised an eyebrow at him. "Walking?" She asked like she'd misheard him. "You're not driving your car?"

Bran shook his head. "Nope," He said. "That way, I can save gas money and reduce the carbon footprint. And Meera likes it better because we can walk Summer together."

Sansa's eyebrows went higher. "You're taking Summer with you?"

At that point, Arya snapped at their sister. "Will you lay off his business?" She argued. "It's their date. They'll decide what they want to do and you don't get to do the decisions."

"Won't Summer cause any distraction?" Sansa asked.

"Don't worry about that, sis," Bran assured. "Meera loves Summer, and I think he listens to her than to me. So, we're good."

After Arya and Sansa did the winter roses into a bouquet. What they did was beautiful, by the way. They used blue, black and white kraft paper and had it tidied up with a blue ribbon. It looked like it was bought in a flower shop when they just picked it in their property grounds. Also, it was nice to see his sisters working together for once rather than bicker and argue.

Once they finished, they spent the next three hours catching up in the living room with their dogs.

"I don't wanna do freelance designing," Arya brought up. "I'll just tire myself doing that while waiting for Bran to graduate and pass the boards."

"You're a licensed architect," Sansa reminded her as she scratched Lady's hide. "I've got friends who wanted to buy flats in uptown Winterfell and have them renovated to their liking. And you're like, so what? That's in your field as well."

"No, you didn't tell me that." Arya argued. "All you ever told me was that Margaery bought a half-hectare parcel of land by the Mander River just outside Highgarden and doesn't know what to do with it. And I told her to turn it into a holiday home or a small hotel or something."

"Arya, potential clients are coming to you," Sansa pointed out. "But you're refusing them. If you want to keep your professional license without having projects of your own yet, you need to at least, attend seminars and conventions."

"I agree," Bran said. "You can attend seminars and conventions while waiting for me." He suggested. "You know, for CPD credits. According to what I've heard from Professor Bartimus, there's one in Harrenhal this summer."

"I know," Arya said. "It's a seminar for Sustainable Architecture and Engineering Project Management. And Jorelle had already registered me with her for it."

"Jorelle Mormont?" Bran asked. "I thought she works in Stormbreaker Telecom, in the Northern office right here in White Harbor."

"Yeah, but besides that," Arya informed. "She actually finished Electrical Engineering. And she's talked me into joining her and some other girl from Torrhen's Square. I don't remember her name, but I think she's Beren's cousin or something."

"Hmm," Bran thought about it. "I didn't know Jorelle's an electrical engineer by profession." He turned to Sansa. "Do you do that as well? To keep your license as an accountant?" He asked.

Sansa nodded. "Of course, I do." She said. "Robb does that too. It's encouraged in Stark Industries. You should do it too."

Arya sighed in frustration. "Since when did this become about me?"

"Because you're being stubborn," Sansa answered. "And you're wasting your talents. It'll take Bran a whole summer to review for the boards. That's another three months of you being unemployed."

"Not for long," Arya said. "When Bran passes the boards, we're gonna be business partners and we'll create a subsidiary from Stark Industries on construction. Plan-design-build. Interiors, landscapes, case-studies, etc."

"Robb had already mentioned that to Mom and Dad," Sansa recalled. "They agreed to loan you for your business capital. But what will be your brand name?"

"Not Brandon-the-Builder," Arya suggested. "Or any other Brandons in the Stark family tree, including you." She jabbed a finger at Bran. "But we're still paying homage to him. I mean, he founded Winterfell, built the Wall and the Hightower, and also helped build Storm's End. But, come on. And it's not gonna be named Arya something either."

"That's good news, I guess." Bran considered it. "But if we're contracting projects, we'll need suppliers."

"Of course, we do." Arya agreed. "I have canvassed some potential suppliers, namely: Glover Steel from Deepwood Motte, Forrester Lumber from Ironrath, Fine and Coarse Aggregates from High Point, Tallhart Cement Co. from Torrhen's Square, 79 Sentinels Glass from the Rills."

Sansa frowned. "Have you ever considered getting suppliers in the south?" She asked. "From the Riverlands or the Vale, at least?"

Arya shrugged. "Who the fuck needs southrons when you have everything you need among fellow Northerners?"

Bran snorted. "It's like a Westerosi Northern Alliance."

Both Arya and Sansa turned to Bran, like he had just given them an idea.

"What?" He asked.

Sansa smirked. "I like the Alliance bit," She said. "Let's keep that."

"You don't get to decide, Sansa," Arya argued, then sighed in frustration. "And why the fuck are we talking about businesses right now?" She said like she resented the idea of it. "We came to White Harbor because of the flowers, not to discuss future suppliers, for fuck's sake!"

"Arya, calm down," Sansa assured. "We have delivered the flowers. All that needs to happen is for Bran to give it to Meera." She pulled out a small card from her small purse and handed it to Bran. "Here, write her a short note to make it extra special."

Bran took the empty card from Sansa and wrote short message, Winter roses in the break of summer. I found some for you. How about that?.:) — Bran.

Afterwards, he had hid it beneath the bouquet, between the stems of the roses, before his sisters could read it as he was sure they would tease him about it.

By four, Bran got ready. And he refused any wardrobe advice from his sisters because he didn't want his outfit to be over the top and getting attention. The flower bouquet of winter roses in summer itself is an eye-catcher. That's why he wanted to keep it simple.

He left the penthouse before his sisters did. Bran carried the bouquet of winter roses in one hand while holding the other end of Summer's harness leash in the other hand.

Wex was in the lobby when Bran got out of the elevator. Of course, he saw him and Bran mentally cursed.

"Hello, Bran—ooh, flowers!" Wex greeted. "I'll bet my job these are for your lady friend, right?" Then he frowned. "Where did you get winter roses?" He asked.

Bran sighed. "It's a long story."

"Well, have a great date." Wex grinned, then winked. "If you know what I mean."

"It's not like that." He argued. "And it's not what I'm after."

Wex shrugged. "Right, but still, if you get laid, good on ya!"

Oh, gods, Bran thought. He tried not to think about it as he got out of the doors and started walking.

Bran got several stares from people as he walked towards The Northern Herald. And he knew it was because of his dog, Summer and the bouquet of winter roses in his hand. A few even asked him either what type of dog breed is Summer or where did he get winter roses in summer.

Once Bran entered the lobby, he spotted Tyrek Lannister immediately. Partly because he was walking towards him and he looked pissed that Bran was there again.

Tyrek was in a suit, with his chin up like he owned the place. Typical, Bran thought.

"Hello, Brandon," Tyrek greeted with a forced smile. "You're here for Meera?"

Summer barked at him, but Tyrek ignored him and kept his distance.

"Um, yeah," He replied, not knowing what else to say.

"I'm sorry to interrupt your date," Tyrek said. "But unfortunately, she'll be working overtime today."

"Really?" Bran pulled out his phone and scanned for text messages, but there were none. "She didn't leave any messages."

"Well, she's busy." Tyrek insisted. "That's why."

"But—" Bran started to say, but Summer was restraining from his harness leash trying to get to Tyrek so he had to pull him back. "Summer, stop it."

"Dogs are allowed inside," Tyrek informed. "But barking dogs are not tolerated."

"I'm sorry." He apologized. "He's not usually like this."

"You should keep that dog under control," Tyrek said as he gestured for some security people towards them. "These guys will escort you out."

"My apologies, Mr. Lannister," Bran apologized again. "But—"

Tyrek snatched the bouquet from Bran.

"Hey!" He started to say.

"These are for Meera, right?" Tyrek guessed. "They're lovely! Don't worry, I'll give it to her and tell her they're from you." He assured. "Would you like me to deliver a message?"

Bran stayed quiet, not knowing what to say.

"And one more thing," Tyrek said, as he stepped forward. "You're hoping to go steady with Meera, aren't you?" He snorted. "Well, I'm going to give you a wake-up call, Stark. You and Meera? It's not gonna happen. She's already up there with a wonderful job and you're…still in school." He looked at him with disgust. "You already aren't on the same level, so don't get your hopes up."

It took all Bran's willpower not to punch him in his face and instead, he just kept restraining Summer from attacking Tyrek.

"She's not going to be with someone like you." He insisted.

Tyrek chuckled. "Excuse me? Unlike you, I can actually take care of her." He said. "What do you got to offer? The fact that you're the governor's son? Please, you got nothing but your last name."

"But unlike you, I don't use it to gain power and intimidate anyone." Bran corrected. "You're nothing but an egoistic and selfish person. One day, it will bite you in the arse."

Tyrek glared at him, then gestured for the guards. "Get him out!" He yelled.

Bran got out of there with Summer. He didn't know what else to do, so he decided to walk to the Starkgrand Coffee.

Drinking coffee always calmed him down. He picked a table outside the café. Not the ones by the street, but the ones by the back entrance with a garden and a water fountain.

At the moment, there aren't that many people. It was only him and Summer. He had ordered two of his usual coffee, the caramel macchiato.

He tried to compensate for everything that happened. As mad as Bran was at Tyrek for taking the flowers his sisters had picked for him, he was also hurt by the words he had said. And he couldn't help but shed a few tears in between sips of coffee.

MEERA

Friday was usually Meera's busiest day throughout the week, as she does all she can to not be able to bring her work home and just relax in the weekend, and maybe visit her parents in Greywater Watch.

And also because Meera forgot to charge her phone the night before, it was on a low battery by morning so she just left it at home. She figured she would just clock out by five and ride down the elevator to meet Bran in the lobby.

But no, that did not happen at all.

At about five minutes to five in the afternoon, she heard a knock on her cubicle. Meera turned from her computer screen and saw Tyrek with a bouquet of winter roses in his hands.

"Um, you need anything, sir?" She asked.

"Meera, that's enough working." He said. "It's almost five. Also," He gestured to the flowers in his hands. "These are for you."

"Wow," Meera couldn't help but smile, not because it was Tyrek who gave her flowers, but because it's winter roses—her favorite flowers. "They're beautiful."

"Aww, Meera," Meera could hear Gwyn swooning over in her cubicle. "And they're your faves as well. That's so sweet."

Meera took the winter roses from Tyrek. She searched the bouquet for a card, but there wasn't one. "Who's it from?" She asked.

"From me, of course." Tyrek said.

Her smile disappeared and turned to him. "Why'd you buy me flowers?"

"Because you deserve flowers." He replied.

Meera was starting to be suspicious of him. In the four years that she'd worked in the Northern Herald, Tyrek had never given anyone flowers. And winter roses in the summer? She thought. Where did he get some?

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Where did you get winter roses?"

Tyrek shrugged. "From the local flower shop." He replied. "Several blocks from here."

Meera shook her head. "I know these aren't from that flower shop. I was there yesterday, and they don't have winter roses." She explained. "In fact, there aren't any winter roses on the market right now because we're heading into summer." She frowned at him. "So where did you get them?"

It took a long time for Tyrek to speak up. "Is that really important?"

"No, but I want to know." She demanded, then squeezed the stems above the blue ribbon and felt something different.

Meera dug through the kraft papers and found a small card with a hand-written note. It read: Winter roses in the break of summer. I found some for you. How about that?.:) — Bran.

It made her smile knowing it was actually from Bran, but it also made her mad at Tyrek for taking credit for Bran's flowers.

She glared at him. "These aren't from you," She said. "They're from Bran. Why are you saying it's from you?"

"Well, I—" Tyrek started to say.

"Where's Bran?" She demanded.

"He left." Tyrek said.

"He left or you had him kicked out?"

"His dog was barking continuously in the lobby so he had to leave."

"Oh, gods," Meera cussed, then fixed her stuff.

"Meera, listen to me," Tyrek spoke up.

"Would you please, for once, leave me alone?" She snapped back.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to have dinner with me tonight."

Meera rolled her eyes at him as she shouldered her bag and held the bouquet winter roses. "Do you think I'd go out with you after what you just did? I'm not that stupid. I have to go find him." She said as she walked out of her cubicle towards the biometric fingerprint time clock recorder.

Tyrek followed after her, of course. "Meera, wait." He said. "You're not really going after him, right? Just calm down and—"

She scanned her fingerprint to clock-out. "You can't stop me. And this is your fault." She said as she headed towards the elevators.

Tyrek snorted. "My fault?" He repeated. "It's not my fault he can't control his own dog." He grabbed her wrist. "You'd really prefer that…geeky college boy over a real man like me?"

Meera shook her hand from his grip. "Bran is a real man, in every way you are not." She said before entering the elevator.

Thankfully, Tyrek didn't follow her. Meera took a cab and told the cabbie to take her to the Aquamarine. She was still overwhelmed by everything that happened. Tyrek had crossed the line. She knew he was arrogant and egoistic, but she didn't know he would go that far, to claim that the winter roses were from him when really it was from Bran.

Bran, oh gods, Meera thought. She was worried about him. He must be upset and was probably drinking coffee by now. During Jorelle's birthday party, Bran had mentioned that he usually drinks coffee when he's upset because he didn't like drinking liquor. And even though they have a coffee maker, he was always too lazy to make coffee, except in the mornings, so he'd just go out and buy coffee in the nearest Starkgrand.

Then something in her snapped. Bran won't be in the Aquamarine, he'd be in Starkgrand Coffee. Sure it was safe to check him with Wex, the doorman first, but Meera just had a strong feeling Bran would be in a coffee shop.

She told the cabbie to take her to the Starkgrand Coffee near the Aquamarine instead and he obliged.

Meera entered the café and scanned the growing crowd, but Bran wasn't there. She looked at the tables outside by the street. Nothing.

She was starting to worry, so she went for the tables outside by the garden and Lo and behold! There he was, on the farthest and most hidden table, alone with his dog, Summer. And he had two cups of coffee with him.

Summer kept whining and tried putting his paws on Bran's lap like he was trying to make his master feel better.

Meera approached him, but Summer saw her first and he barked excitedly.

Bran didn't seem to notice her at first as he had his attention at Summer. "What now?"

"Bran," She called then smiled at him.

His eyes widened when he saw her, then straightened and took a deep breath. "Um, uh…" He faltered as he hastily stood up from his seat.

"I figured you were here." She guessed. "After how Tyrek treated you and kicked you out of the building—I'm sorry about that."

"None of it is your fault," He assured, gently patting his dog on his head. "Summer was barking too much, mostly at him. So don't blame yourself."

Meera sighed. "Anyways, thanks for the flowers." She said. "They're lovely."

"I'm glad you like them."

"Like them?" She repeated. "I love them! But where did you get them?"

"They're freshly picked from our grounds." He explained. "But I didn't really pick them, my sisters did. And they did that too," He gestured to the bouquet in her hands. "With the ribbons and all."

She raised an eyebrow at him, thinking he was kidding. "Really?"

"Yeah, they're that meticulous." He added, but he still looked worried, like something else was bothering him.

"Hey," Meera placed the bouquet on the table. "Is everything okay?" She asked.

"Uh, yeah," He said, scratching the back of his head. "I—I'm good."

She snorted. "Has anyone ever told you that you're a terrible liar?"

But he still stayed quiet and he seemed so deep in thought.

Meera nudged him. "Bran, what's wrong?" She asked. "Did Tyrek say anything? Did he threaten you?"

"No, I mean, not really," He admitted. "But—"

"So he did." She huffed in frustration. "That bastard just won't take the hint. I'll probably resign—"

"No!" He interjected. "No, I won't allow you to do that. You love your job. I don't want you to stop doing what you love for me. You just have a big-headed boss, that's it."

"What did Tyrek say to you?" She demanded.

He gave her a sad expression before looking away.

"Bran," She called. "What did he say?"

"He's got a point, you know." He whimpered. "You're definitely way up in the hierarchy and I'm…in the bottom."

"No, you're not." She insisted. "And do you really think I care about some hierarchy bullcrap?"

"Meera—"

Meera cut him off by doing the most stupid thing she's ever done in her life so far. She cupped his face and kissed him full on his lips.

When she let go, Bran stayed absolutely still. And he had a terrified expression written all over his face.

"Um," She pursed her lips and could feel herself turning red from embarrassment. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I—didn't mean to—"

"Hey, it's fine," Bran assured as he slowly approached her. "It's just…I—I've never kissed a girl before."

It made Meera even more embarrassed. "I'm sorry."

"What for?" He asked.

"For stealing your first kiss."

Bran reached out his hand and pushed part of her curly hair behind her ear. "It's okay," He reassured.

They locked eyes for a moment. Then he leaned down until their faces were only inches apart.

The strange part was Meera never restrained him, she allowed him to come closer until he finally closed the small space between them as his lips brushed softly against hers.

Meera flinched in surprise, but melted into it and kissed him back. She forgot what it felt to kiss someone again. She had made out with a few guys when she was in college, but none of those felt as good as it did now.

Suddenly, Summer barked and scampered around them. And because Bran was holding the other end of his dog's harness leash, it was literally entangling them by their legs.

Before they could both react, Bran stumbled backward. And since he was holding her, he unintentionally pulled her down with him. He fell to his back on the patio and Meera landed on top of him.

They stared at each other for a moment, then burst out laughing.

Bran turned to Summer, who had just sat before them, wagging his tail.

"Summer, you're embarrassing me." Bran said.

"So, are we still on later?" She asked.

He chuckled. "Definitely."

Meera smiled. "Okay, let me just—" She slipped her feet through Summer's entangled leash. "—get out of this thing." She then stood and helped him up.

"Thanks," He said, he cleared his throat. "So, dinner at the CARNEval?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Why the CARNEval?" She asked.

"Because we get to cook all kinds of meat ourselves," He explained. "Before we see Episode V. And we get a discount with the VIP card."

"Alright," She agreed. "But we shouldn't always eat out, you know. I can cook for us, the same way you cooked for me days ago."

Bran nodded. "Sure, you can do that next week."

"What about tomorrow?"

"I'm gonna cook for you tomorrow."

"Fine, Monday then." She offered. "My place. You just have to ignore my brother and his plants."

Bran chuckled. "Deal," He said, then held out his free hand. "But for now, let's have dinner."
Meera smiled as she took his hand. "Good, because I'm starving."

They held hands as they walked to the nearest CARNEval branch. Bran had interlocked his fingers with hers and gently squeezed it for reassurance.

She caught him staring at her with a smile on his face.

"What?"

He blushed and looked away. "Nothing."

Meera elbowed him and gave him a playful smirk.

"No, really, I'm just…on cloud nine right now." He admitted.

Once they entered the CARNEval, they were greeted by a hostess.

"Welcome to the CARNEval," The hostess said. "Where everyday is a festival of proteins. Table for two?"

"Yes, please," Bran said. "And also, the largest dog seat you have."

The hostess stepped away from the podium and nearly jumped backwards when she saw Summer. "Oh, that's the third one today."

"The third one?" Meera wondered.

"Yes, ma'am." The hostess replied, then gestured for them to follow her. "Right this way please."

They were given a table by a glass window and in a quieter spot (Thank the gods!). One of the staff replaced one of the four chairs with a dog seat for Summer.

Bran, being the gentleman that he is, pulled a chair and guided her to her seat.

Meera giggled. "You didn't have to," She said. "I can manage."

"Nah, I want to." He insisted before sitting across her and helped Summer onto the dog seat.

They were each handed the menu once they settled.

Suddenly, Summer started howling. And other dogs in the restaurant howled as well.

"Uh, Summer," Bran said, gently stroking his hide as he hushed him up. "You're not supposed to howl inside, buddy."

Other dog owners in the restaurant reprimanded their dogs as well.

"Oh, fuck." Bran cursed.

"What is it?" She asked.

"My sisters are literally four tables from us." He explained. "And it explains the howling. Summer recognized his sisters were close as well."

Meera turned her back and saw what Bran meant. Four tables away, she could see two girls with two dogs. One of the girls had dark brown hair and grey eyes, for which she recognized as Arya. The other girl had auburn hair and blue eyes like Bran's. She had no doubt that it was Bran's other sister, Sansa Stark.

She remembered Sansa when she was still attending UWH in college. She was the sort of, it girl back then. People were in awe of her when she passed the halls. But unlike the popular girls you see in movies, Sansa is actually very nice and friendly.

Arya and Sansa smiled and waved at her. Meera didn't know what else to do so she waved back at them.

Meera faced Bran again and he had an annoyed expression on his face.

"Your sisters seem nice." She said. "And does everyone in your family really have dogs?"

"No, just me and my siblings." He replied. "And our one cousin."

"Now, I understood what the hostess said about Summer being the third one today." She recalled. "Your sisters brought the first two."

"Okay, let's just order our cuts," Bran suggested. "And our sides and drinks."

Bran ordered a beef skirt steak cut and two venison flank steak cuts for Summer (because he had a large appetite than Bran), while Meera had the pork porterhouse. As for their sides, Bran went for garlic bread and Meera went for garlic butter potatoes. And they ordered cucumber lemonade for their drinks.

Once they were served their steak cuts, they turned on the grill on the table.

Meera marinated their steak cuts before putting it on the grill.

"So," She said as she placed down the tongs. "You grow winter roses in your backyard?"

"In our conservatory," He explained. "This greenhouse that our grandfathers used to store fruit-bearing plants in the winter. My Dad's sister, my Aunt Lyanna loves winter roses. She planted some in the conservatory and maintained it until she died."

"She died?" Meera repeated.

"Yeah, a car accident in a blizzard." He recalled. 'That's the only thing our dad ever told us of how she died. No details. And then my Mom maintained her winter roses. Now, it's mostly off-limits."

"Off-limits?" She raised an eyebrow. "Then how did you manage to pick some?"

"Uh, right," He scratched his head. "About that, I sort of asked a favor from my sisters. And they did the picking."

Her eyes widened. "You what?" She said in disbelief. "You were stealing from your aunt's roses?"

Bran opened his mouth, but no words came out. He then sighed. "I just wanted to impress you with something. I'm not like the typical guys. I can't impress you with muscle, so I have to do something else."

"Still, you didn't have to steal your aunt's flowers to impress me," Meera smiled. "You already have. With the one distinct muscle that you have," She reached out her hand across the table and touched her index finger on his right temple. "Right here. And honestly, who else would have discovered we can use water as fuel?"

Bran started to smile. "Well, actually, the brain isn't a muscle," He corrected. "It's a—sorry."

Meera must've been giving him a glare because he stopped mid-sentence and apologized. It's so cute, she thought.

Just as she flipped the steaks on the grill with the tongs, Bran's sisters came by their table with their dogs, who are just as large as Summer.

"Hey, guys." Sansa greeted. "It's such a surprise to see you here."

Summer had then leaped from his dog seat, across Bran's lap and on to the floor and began playing with his sisters' dogs.

"Meera," Bran said gestured to Sansa. "This is my sister, Sansa," Then he pointed to the dog whose leash she was holding. "That's her dog, Lady."

"Hello, Sansa," Meera greeted, not knowing what else to say.

Sansa smiled. "It's great to finally meet you, Meera." She said holding out her hand for a shake.

Meera shook Sansa's hand. "Likewise," She said. "I remembered you being one of the Mermaids in college."

The Mermaids were what they call the people in the UWH cheerleading team and because most of the members were girls. There were some guys too, but almost every guy in the squad played for the other team.

"Yes, she was." Bran continued. "And you remember Arya, right?"

"Of course," She replied.

"Hi, Meera," Arya acknowledged.

"And that's Nymeria." Bran pointed at Arya's dog.

"Nymeria?" Meera repeated. "Like the Rhoynar princess?"

"Yeah," Arya beamed. "I would've named her Visenya, but Nymeria has a nice ring to it."

Sansa frowned at Meera. "You look really familiar though," She noticed. "I think I've seen you somewhere."

"Meera went to UWH in college," Bran explained. "She was in Robb's year."

"Wait, were you in The Mermen Chronicle?" Sansa asked. "They interviewed us for the Mermaids' back-to-back wins in the cheerleading competition. It's either that or the UWH Archery Team."

The Mermen Chronicle is the University of White Harbor's school paper produced by the student press of the campus. It was one of the university's media outlets run by students, along with The Conch Horn, the university's radio.

"Both, actually." Meera blurted out. "I'm one of the few girls who got in."

"Oh, I knew it," Sansa said. "No wonder Bran likes you very much—"

"Wait," Arya interrupted, and it was like she shoved her sister aside. "You were in the Archery Team?" Her eyes lit up. "No way! That is so cool. I was on the fencing team."

"Yes, I know," She said. "I went with a friend and watched your championship match for an article in the Sports section of The Northern Herald. That match with Dickon Tarly was a landslide and you won a gold medal."

"It wasn't just my victory, it's for us Northerners as well." Arya insisted.

Bran then cleared his throat.

"Oh, right," Sansa said. "We didn't mean to interrupt you guys. But as much as we like to chat, we need to go."

"We're already interrupting." Arya said. "It's too late for that. And yeah, we need to go because you got some explaining to do." She then gave her sister a smug smile.

Sansa ignored her sister. "Anyways, it was really nice meeting you, Meera." She turned to her brother. "You take care of her, alright?"

"I will," He promised.

Sansa gave Bran a quick hug. "See you tomorrow, little brother."

Arya took a piece of garlic bread from Bran's plate.

"Hey!" He complained. "Don't take my garlic bread."

Arya ignored him and took a bite from the piece she stole, then playfully punched Bran's arm. "See you tomorrow, Lil' bro."

They waved at her one more time before heading out of the restaurant and Summer went back to his dog seat.

Meera turned back to Bran. "Your sisters seem nice."

"They are," Bran agreed. "But they're usually not like that. Normally, they'd be butting heads."

"Fights are normal among siblings." She pointed out as she poured sauces on the steaks.

"Not Arya and Sansa," He insisted. "It's like the Dance of Dragons."

"What?" She blinked. "The Dance of Dragons is a civil war caused by two siblings who bickered on who should rule Westeros after the death of their father. And it was back in the days when our form of government was still absolute monarchy rather than a democratic republic. But I don't see how that applies to your sisters."

"Well, it's not exactly a whole country, just with the entire Stark Manor, household and staff." He explained. "We don't take sides, it's more like, we're restraining them from killing each other."

"Oh my gods." She gasped. "Is it really that bad?"

"The following day, you'd hear the staff gossip about it." Bran continued. "And I'm quoting them, the girls are fighting again. One will say, what happened this time? And then someone will answer, the younger one threw a ceramic vase aimed at the older one's head, but luckily she was able to duck and it hit the wall behind her instead."

"Holy shit!" Meera exclaimed. "I didn't know your sisters can be that violent."

"Yeah, but ironically, if one of them gets in trouble, the other one steps in to defend them." He pointed out. "I mean, Arya threatened Joffrey with her sabre—it's what you call the fencing sword—when she found out he was physically abusing her. It's just so…weird."

"It's a sibling thing," Meera assured as she removed the steaks from the grill. "Jojen and I are like that. But we don't get violent. I normally just hit him with a pillow."

"But whatever the case," He said. "It's fun having siblings around. Until they embarrass you or sell you out to your parents, or played a prank on you."

Meera placed Bran's beef skirt steak on his plate. "Here you go," She said, then picked up the venison flank steaks with the tongs. "Um, does Summer eat his steaks whole or—?"

"No, I'll slice it to bite sizes," He said, holding out an extra plate. "Eating it whole might cause bloating."

She placed the venisons on the plate, to which Summer lowered his head on it and sniffed.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Bran said, gently pushed Summer's snout away from the plate. "I'll slice it first before you eat it." He said as he took the plate close to him.

Summer complained by whining. I'm hungry, I want food! He seemed to say.

"Calm down," He assured as he sliced the grilled venisons into bite-sized cubes. "You'll get your food."

"Don't worry, Summer," Meera reached out her hand across the table and scratched Summer's neck. "You'll eat soon."

"Here you go, bud." Bran said as he placed the bite-sized venison into the dog seat's built-in feeder.

Summer immediately munched on the food.

They started eating their steaks.

"So," Meera started. "Going back to the siblings and pranks. There are seven of you, right? I'm guessing the prank wars are wild."

"Oh, yeah," He confirmed before chewing. "Definitely. April Fools are the worst. You'll have to be alert when that day comes. There could be booby traps set anywhere so you have to be careful where you step."

"That sounds dangerous."

He nodded. "To a degree, yes, it is."

"But it's a friendly prank, and no one got hurt?" She asked.

"Well, mostly, the pranks pulled were, putting powder on a hairdryer or cracking an egg on someone's hair or a pie to the face or sprayed by water-guns or doused with slime or glitter bombs and jumpscares, that kinda thing. But Arya went too far this year that my brothers forfeited in the usual April Fools prank war."

"They forfeited?" Meera repeated. "What made them back-out?"

"Early morning, we all woke up to Sansa's deafening scream," He recalled. "She got out of her bathroom in a towel with green hair. Turns out, Arya put green dye in her shampoo bottle. After Mom and Dad went to work, Arya offered to cook breakfast for us. And I think everyone forgot it was April Fool's day because we were like, okay, cool. Sansa never came down because she was busy trying to wash off the dye, so it was just us boys who ate. She cooked omelettes. The first few bites we were like, hmm, this is good, and then the next seconds later, we heard our stomach grumbling at the same time. Then we all raced to our bathrooms, cursing. Turns out, she put laxative powder in the omelette."

"What?!" Meera exclaimed. She didn't know Arya was a prankster, and the ones she pulled were pretty impressive. But, of course, it went over the line. "Your sister's not one to mess with, I'll give her that. But did she ever got in trouble with your parents?"

"Of course," He said. "They were furious. They grounded her, which didn't really make sense because Arya was and still is unemployed—she's waiting for me to graduate. All she had to do to make up for giving us diarrhea was to help our gardeners prune shrubs on the grounds for a few days. Pruning shrubs to her is just like sculpting and I think you know that she's artsy and likes doing all that stuff. So her punishment isn't really a punishment, at least for her."

"Pruning shrubs," She snorted. "Jojen will like that punishment."

Meera was very sure about it. Ever since Jojen started college, he was all about plants. He rarely went out and socialized because he was busy pruning and grafting the plants that he had.

Bran nodded. "I think so too." He said. "Anyways, thank the gods our Mom is a doctor, so she was able to help us. But we were mostly in bed and the bathroom all day."

Then all of a sudden, Summer barked, making them turn to him. His dog feeder was already empty.

"Oh, you're done," Bran said, then gently patted his head. "Good boy."

As Bran went back to his plate, Summer reached out his paw to Bran's sleeve and whined and gave him the puppy-dog eyes effect. But I want more food, he seemed to say.

Bran sighed. "You're lucky I ordered two cuts for you." He said as he refilled his dog feeder with the second venison flank steak he had sliced in bite-sizes, to which Summer gnawed immediately.

"Take it easy, bud."

After eating, Bran insisted on paying.

"You don't have to do this." She tried arguing.

"Oh, come on," He said as he placed inside the credit card in the bill holder. "Yesterday was your treat. Today is my turn. And besides, I have this." He then took the VIP card that had a family discount.

Meera reluctantly had him pay for both their meals, before walking to the Aquamarine.

As they walked, Bran took her free hand again and held it. She smiled when he did and it felt like what they were doing was a scene in a romantic movie.

As they entered the lobby, of course, the doorman, Wex Pyke was there.

"Good evening, Ms. Reed, Mr. Stark," Wex greeted. "Ooh, flowers. I knew you were gonna give it to her."

Bran made a face at him. "Wex, please."

Wex raised his hands in surrender. "Oh, sorry." He apologized, then rummaged through the small fridge under his desk at the reception. "And by the way, your sisters told me to give you something." He pulled out a brown paper bag with the logo of The Burger Lab on it and gave it to Bran.

"What is this for?" Bran asked.

Wex crouched again and pulled out a cardboard drink holder with two caramel fudge milkshakes on them, and it had the logo of Starkgrand Coffee, which he also handed to Bran.

"I don't know," Wex answered. "I didn't open it. Their only instructions were to give it to you and Ms. Reed when you return."

Meera took the milkshakes as Bran's hands were already full.

"Uh, thanks, I guess," Bran said. "Are they still here? Or did they say anything about where they were going?"

"Oh, no, they already left." Wex answered. "They said they were going back to Winterfell."

As they rode the elevator up towards the penthouse, Meera asked the question. "So, what do you think your sisters are up to this time?"

He shook his head. "I don't know." He declared. "And I don't think I want to know. But it's a miracle that they're not on each other's throats at the moment."

Bran removed Summer's harness leash and the dog sprinted to the kitchen.

Judging from the lights that weren't turned on when they entered, it meant Bran's roommate, Beren Tallhart still hadn't been home.

There was a scratching sound and Summer's whining coming from the kitchen. It made them exchanged suspicious looks.

"That does not sound good," Meera said. "Better check it out."

Bran led the way and Meera followed behind him, only to find Summer tapping and scratching the automatic feeder.

When Summer saw them, he barked and continued tapping.

"You have got to be kidding me," Bran sighed. "You're hungry again? Summer, you just ate."

"All that walking probably made him hungry." She guessed.

According to Bran, the control to the automatic feeder his sister Arya had bought was connected to an app on his phone, complete with a reminder on when to turn it on and how many ounces of dog food should be released from the automatic dispenser. It also had two dispensers and two feeders, one for the dog food and the other for water. And Meera thought it was probably very expensive, to begin with.

Bran placed the brown paper bag on the kitchen counter and reluctantly pulled out his phone. Sure enough, the dispenser released a small amount of dog food, to which Summer excitedly munched on.

She placed the milkshakes on the counter as well. "How much did you feed him?" She asked.

"Eight ounces," He replied. "That's equivalent to one cup."

Meera opened her mouth to say something, but Bran raised his hand and stopped her.

"I know what you're gonna say," He interrupted. "It's just a small amount, but he's already eaten enough for the day."

She shook her head. "That's not what I was going to say." She pointed out. "I just think…that you're spoiling him too much. Please don't be mad." She quickly added.

Bran sighed. "I think I am spoiling him." He confirmed. "Godsdammit! Dogs and their puppy-dog eyes and whining. It gets me everytime."

"Relax, okay?" She assured. "Just give him something to drink. He needs liquid to push down all the food he ate."

"Of course," He said and browsed through his phone again. The other dispenser released water onto the other feeder. "There you go, bud."

Summer occasionally drank from the water feeder before going back to the food.

"Alright," Bran spoke up. "Now that that's taken care of, what in seven hells is in this paper bag?" He wondered as he tore open the brown paper bag.

It turned out to be a large-sized Bucket o' Fries from The Burger Lab. And by large-sized, it meant it was the 1000 grams fry bucket with five flavors and a dipping sauce. It also had a unique style of packaging because the bucket was divided into five equal sections with the five the flavored fries and the dipping sauce being placed in the middle. It also had tiny flags on each section of the fries with the label of its flavor. The flavors on the Bucket o' Fries they had were: sour cream & onion, spicy barbeque, pizza, ranch, and chili cheese.

The Bucket o' Fries also had this scented hot pink colored sticky note on the lid. Meera knew it was a scented sticky note paper because Gwyn Whitehill had a similar pad on her desk in The Northern Herald.

The note had cursive penmanship of one of those glittery purple inks. It read: Enjoy the fries and milkshakes! Have fun on your movie date night! XOXO Sansa & Arya.

"Aww, it's so sweet of them." Meera remarked.

"Well," Bran said. "Al least, I don't have to microwave popcorn anymore. But it's just that—they're sort of…interfering."

"Cut your sisters some slack," She said. "They're just being the older sisters that they are. Trust me, I'd do the same for Jojen."

"I guess, but sometimes they can be extra and go over the top." He pointed out. "Take the winter roses for example. I asked them to pick five and they picked a dozen."

Meera chuckled and picked the scented sticky note and got a closer look at it. "Wow, this hand-writing looks like it was printed. Whose penmanship is this?" She asked.

"Sansa wrote that." He answered. "Because she's fond of writing in cursive. And also because there's no way Arya would have owned a scented pink sticky note and a pen with glittery purple ink."

"Let's just watch Episode V," She reminded him. "Before it gets late."

Bran nodded. "Right, of course," He grabbed one of the milkshakes and handed it to her. "That's for you." Then he took the Bucket o' Fries and headed to the living room.

Meera followed after him and sat on the couch next to him.

Bran turned on the flatscreen and browsed Webiflex for the movie. Then suddenly, it crashed. The flatscreen went black and the words Maintenance Mode were displayed. Below it were symbols of wrenches and gears. And directly below it was a short message and it read: We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience. Webiflix is currently undergoing scheduled maintenance and upgrade but will return shortly. Thank you for your patience.

"You have got to be kidding me." Bran huffed. "Webiflex picked now to upgrade? Really? This is BS." He turned to Meera. "You know what, we'll just watch it on DVD." He stood and went for the stairs. "I'll be right back."

As Bran was upstairs, Summer came to the couch. But he seemed to be hesitating to climb up since Bran wasn't there so she reached out her hand and called out to him.

"Come here, buddy." Meera said, patting on the space next to her.

That's when Summer climbed up the couch and rested his head on her lap.

Meera stroke his hide, which he seemed to like because he wagged his tail. "You must be full now, huh?" She guessed. "You ate a lot today."

"I got it!" Bran spoke up as he came back downstairs, holding out a DVD. "It had been a long time since I last played this." He frowned when he saw Summer by Meera's side. "He's not there because of the fries, right?"

"He'd probably be sniffing the bucket, but nope." She replied. "And I think he's full."

Bran played the DVD and it started displaying the trailers, promotions and all those crap you can never skip before reaching the main menu.

"I'm so sorry about this." Bran apologized as he sat down next to her.

"Why are you apologizing?" She frowned. "It's not your fault Webiflix is under maintenance."

"I know, but still."

Meera narrowed her eyes at him. "Look, I'm having the best day so far, and I'm not gonna let your negative energy ruin it."

Bran smiled. "You're having the best day?"

"Of course," She shrugged. "I received winter roses—my favorite flowers—in the break of summer. And I get to kiss the guy I really like."

"Would you like that to happen again?" He asked with a smirk.

Meera raised an eyebrow at him, then crooked a finger, motioning for him to come closer.

Bran faced her direction, with a hint of a smile. He then reached out his hand and touched her cheek before leaning closer, closing the space between them as his lips brushed softly over hers.

She kissed him back, of course. The feel of his lips against hers made her heart beat faster against her chest.

By then, Summer seemed to understand what was going on and jumped down from the couch he was on before transferring to the armchair adjacent to the couch.

Suddenly, his lips didn't feel as gentle anymore. It was pressing hot on hers so she took advantage of the situation and parted her lips and tasted him with her tongue desirously. Bran flinched in surprise, but eventually did the same and soon enough they were exploring each other's tongues. And he tasted like the steak they had just eaten from the CARNEval.

Meera remembered something all of a sudden, and gently pushed back. "Wait, wait," She said, catching her breath. "We have to promise not to make out when the movie plays, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," Bran answered, before pulling her face closer to him and caught her mouth back into a kiss.

Meera giggled as she kissed him back.

One of Bran's hands went to the back of her neck and the other on her back. Meera's hands settled on his shoulders. He pulled her closer making her wrap her arms around his neck. She seemed to get the idea and climbed onto his lap, straddling him.

They continued kissing and exploring tongues as both Bran's hands went down to her waists, to her hips and then gripped her thighs, making her moan into the kiss.

Things started heating up until they heard the main doors opening. It made them broke free from each other and Meera sat back beside him.

Beren came into view and stopped at his tracks when he saw them.

"Hello, Beren." Meera greeted.

"Oh, hi Meera, Bran." Beren held up his hands. "Don't worry, I won't be long, okay?" He assured as he went up the staircase. "I'm just gonna change and then you can carry on with whatever you're doing."

"Where are you going?" Bran asked.

"The Old Mint," Beren yelled back. "I thought the whole free and unlimited tequila shots was a one-time thing. Who knew they do that every Friday?" He went back downstairs in a different shirt and had a leather jacket slung on his shoulder. "I would've gone there since freshman year if I had known!"

"If you break anything again, I swear—" Bran started to say.

"I won't," Beren promised as he opened the main door. "You guys have fun! And no sex on the couch, it's where I'll sleep later." He said before shutting the door behind him.

As Beren left, Meera turned to Bran.

"Beren sleeps on the couch?" She asked. "I thought he has his own room."

"He does," Bran said. "But he'll be too drunk to go upstairs. Worst case scenario, he'd fall trying to get to his room and break a bone or something. So he settles for the couch." He cleared his throat and placed his arm on the backrest behind Meera. "Now, where were we?" He asked, then moved closer to kiss her again.

Meera swatted his face away from her. "Let's just watch the movie already." She said, pointing to the flatscreen. "It's already on the main menu."

"Come on," He pleaded. "Just a peck?"

She smiled, then cupped his chin and gave him a kiss on his lips. "There. Now, the movie."

Bran nodded. "Yes, ma'am." He then took the flatscreen's remote control from the coffee table and pressed play.

As they watched the movie, they ate the fries from the bucket Bran's sisters had bought for them. Meera had asked her questions and occasional spoilers as usual, and Bran diligently answered her but refused to give any spoilers at all.

"Oh my god!" She shrieked. "Is that Obi-Wan? Is he like a ghost now?"

"It's called a force spirit," He explained. "They gain immortality through the preservation of their consciousness after death. But, of course, not every force-sensitive people can appear as a force spirit after they die. They have to undergo special training to achieve that. It's kind of, explained in the animated TV series."

"It's just so interesting," Meera pointed out. "I think I need to watch the TV series after I'm done with the movies."

"I have a copy of all the seasons of The Clone Wars." He offered. "I can hand you a flash drive with all of it tomorrow."

"Awesome!" She said excitedly.

"Well, that's great to hear." Bran smiled at her. "You're officially a Star Wars fan."

"Yes, and my brother will probably thank you for this."

Once the movie was over, Bran insisted that he'd drive her home. Usually, his dog Summer went with him wherever he went, but that night he stayed behind and slept on the armchair.

When they reached the Greenwood Flats, bran hurriedly got out of his car and opened the shotgun door for her.

Meera made a face at him. "You didn't have to do that as well." She said as she got down onto the sidewalk, carrying her bag and the bouquet. "I know how to open the door on my own."

"I'm only trying to help." He said as he closed the car door.

"I had fun today." She declared. "Sure, it was sort of, an emotional rollercoaster, but it's totally worth it."

"Me too." He agreed.

"I'll see you tomorrow, then." She said. "For Episode VI."

"Great," Bran beamed. "We'll have dinner before watching the movie first," He then held his hands in a stop-everything gesture. "But don't worry about that, we're not eating out because I'll be cooking our dinner."

"Okay, and I'll not be surprised if it'll be good." She raised an eyebrow at him. "I mean, the bibimbap that I've had was fucking restaurant quality."

"I'll be picking you up," He offered.

She wanted to protest, but he stopped her.

"Don't worry, Summer and I will be walking to get you." He assured.

"That's good to hear," Meera nodded. "But, I have conditions. First, no flowers—"

"Wait, wait!" Bran interrupted, then opened the car's shotgun door. He opened the compartment, pulled out a notepad and a pen, then scribbled on the notepad. "No flowers, okay." He muttered.

"Hold on, are you really writing this down?" She asked.

"Yeah," He said, showing her the notepad, then waited. "Go on, next condition."

Meera narrowed her eyes at him. "As I was saying, no flowers because you already gave me a dozen." She gestured to the bouquet in her hands. "And second, no big surprises."

He frowned. "Ooh, I can't promise that."

"Seriously?" She shrieked. "I just don't like anything, you know, extra."

"Nothing extra," He wrote it down on the notepad. "Got it."

"That's it." She said. "Nothing else."

"Okay," Bran placed the notepad and the pen on the car's dashboard, the mockingly bowed. "Your requests will be granted, my lady."

Meera chuckled and playfully nudged him.

Bran smirked. "Also, I will be driving you, like after."

"I thought we agreed that you have to save gas money."

"No, no, I'll be going home to Winterfell tomorrow night." He explained. "It's my younger brother, Rickon's high school graduation on Sunday and my Mom insisted that we all should be there."

"Oh," She beamed. "Send him my regards."

"Will do."

Meera made a face at him. "Now, get going, Stark." She smiled. "And thanks, again."

Bran stepped forward before her, cupped her face with both his hands and kissed her right there. Not caring if passersby or if anyone was watching. She kissed him back, not minding the fact that they were in public.

Afterwards, Bran hopped into his car, started the engines and pulled down the car's shotgun window. "See you tomorrow." He winked at her.

Meera snorted. "Take care." She said then waved at him as he drove away.

After Bran left, she went up the elevators to her flat. The people she walked passed by seemed to think she was crazy because she couldn't stop smiling as her head was still in the clouds.

She entered the flat to her brother Jojen on the couch eating vegan quesadillas with his feet on the coffee table, and he was watching a documentary on Nat Geo—his favorite TV channel, on the flatscreen.

"You're out later than usual." Jojen spoke up, not keeping his eyes off the flatscreen.

"It's Friday." She replied.

"Of course," Her brother said. "I bought quesadillas from the Cornucopia if you want."

"Nah, I'm good." She declined. "I ate at the CARNEval, and the Stark girls left us a large Bucket o' Fries from The Burger Lab."

Jojen frowned like he'd misheard her and turned to her direction. "Ooh, you were on a date?" Then his eyes widened when he saw the bouquet of flowers in her hands. And whatever question he was about to ask earlier had already been forgotten. "Wait, are those winter roses?"

"Um, yes." She said like it was obvious.

He was staring at the winter roses like it was newly-found buried treasure, and it was kind of funny.

"Where did you get winter roses in the summer?" He asked. "Hey, can I—"

Meera raised her hand. "Ah," She interrupted. "I know what you're gonna say. Can I get cuttings so I can replant them?" She did her best to imitate his voice. "The answer yes, but do it tomorrow. And don't take it all, leave some for arrangements."

Jojen smiled. "Nice. Thanks, sis" He said as he tried taking the bouquet from her hands. "Now, I think you're tired from your date. You should go and rest."

Meera pulled the bouquet away from him. "As I said, do it tomorrow." She forced out a smile. "Good night."

Her brother looked disappointed. "Fine," He huffed. "Good night. And put those on the water so they don't dry out."

That night, it took a while for Meera to sleep. She couldn't stop thinking about Bran, the way he always made her smile, the way he puts effort into the things he does, and the way he kissed her. All those things made her feel like she's on top of Brandon's Peak—the highest mountain in Westeros. And coincidentally, it was Bran's name as well.