Chapter 28
Sansa Stark POV
It's my 18th birthday today! My parents had to go out of town during my actual birthday, but they're going to take us kids out when they get back. I don't mind, Myrcella is coming over and we can take advantage of the tequila Dany gave me.
Myrcella shows up after Podrick drops her off, I go and answer the door. When I open it, I see Podrick drive away. "Hey girl," I say. "Is Podrick already gone? I wanted to say hi to him."
"Yeah, he had to get to work," Myrcella says. "But happy 18th!"
She gives me a hug and we come inside. "Thanks!" I say. I see she's holding a bag. "What's that?"
"It's the gift I got you," Myrcella says. "Open it."
"Arya's upstairs," I say. "We should go up there and hang out."
"Oh okay," she says. "For sure."
We walk upstairs and go into my room. "Hi Myrcella," Arya says. "How's it going?"
"Not too bad," Myrcella says. "How about you?"
"Pretty good," Arya says. "How's Pod and Gendry?"
I think it's interesting how she mentioned Podrick as well, she probably did that so it wouldn't look like sh was just asking about Gendry.
"They're good," Myrcella says. "They're just in school and working, but it hasn't been that eventful at our place."
"I guess that's good," Arya says. "Better than how it was before with you, right?"
"Yeah, definitely," Myrcella says. She hands me the bag she's holding. "Sansa, open your gift."
I take the bag and sit on my bed. I look in it, and it's a perfume that we were looking at recently. I had mentioned I liked the smell of it.
"Myrcella, that's so nice," I say. "You didn't have to get that for me."
"I wanted to since you said you liked it," she says. "As long as you let me borrow it once in a while."
"Of course," I say. "You really are the best."
Arya goes over to the dresser and takes out a little bag with something in it. "Here's your gift from me," she says. "I saved up, and mom took me to get it last weekend."
I open the bag, and it's a necklace with a white stone that glitters with multiple colors in the light. "Arya, this is gorgeous," I say. "Thank you, you both really didn't have to get me anything."
"It's your birthday," Arya says. "And I thought that would look good with your hair."
"Well thank you," I say. "You guys are amazing."
I do feel really blessed to have such great people in my life, even if it isn't a large number of people. I'm doing better now than I ever was when I had a large group of friends. Quality truly is better than quantity.
…
We order food and start eating it in my room, which is when I get the idea to bring out the tequila Dany gave me.
"So guess what?" I say.
"What?" Arya asks.
"Dany gave me some tequila the other day," I say. "Apparently she took some from Cersei and Jaime's birthday party."
"You waited this long to tell me?" Arya asks.
"I wanted to save it for my birthday," I say. "It's not even a full bottle."
"Well bring it out," Arya says. "Let's get lit."
Myrcella just laughs and I go into my closet and grab the bottle where it was buried. "Myrcella," I call out. "Will you go get some glasses and the sodas from the fridge? I got those to mix with it."
"Sure," Myrcella says. "Be right back."
Myrcella comes back a few minutes later and I pour each of us a shot. I figured we should start with that, even though I don't know what I'm doing.
"Okay, let's take the first shot at the same time," I say. "1… 2… 3…!"
We down our shots, Myrcella looks kind of grossed out. I then pour us some margarita mix and sparkling water into glasses for each of us. I thought that would go well with the tequila, it actually tastes pretty refreshing. I eventually do another shot and as I'm really starting to feel it, my phone rings.
"Shit," I say, looking at my phone. "It's Jon, do I answer it?"
"Yeah, you probably should," Arya says. She also did another shot with me, Myrcella's barely been sipping on her drink. "He probably just wants to wish you happy birthday."
"You're right, I'll act cool," I say. I answer the phone. "Hello?" I hiccup and Arya and Myrcella start laughing, but I shush them quickly.
"Sansa?" Jon says.
"Yeah, it's me," I say. Arya and Myrcella are still giggling. "You called my number."
"I just wanted to say happy birthday, and I can't believe you're officially an adult now," he says. "Is everything okay?"
"Everything is beautiful, Jonny," I say. Arya laughs at that, I don't think I've ever called him that. "I'm just with Arya and Myrcella."
"Are mom and dad out of town?" He asks.
"Yep," I say. "Living the dream, and I am too."
"Sansa, what are you talking about?"
"Nothing," I say. "We're playing a game."
"Okay," he says after a pause. "Well I'll let you get back to it, just wanted to wish you a happy birthday."
"You too," I say, then I realize what I said. "I mean, thank you. Byeeeeee."
"Bye, Sansa."
I hang up, Arya and Myrcella are covering their mouths from laughing so far. "Well that went well," Myrcella says. "That was uh… something."
"Shut up," I say, laughing. "It was fine."
Maybe Jon could tell I was drunk, but I don't really care. He's not going to tell our parents, and I'm having fun. He's not even home, so I don't care what he thinks.
Arya Stark POV
I'm really drunk, I've never been drunk like this before. It's fun, I just feel more happy and like I could say or do anything.
"Tell Dany thank you for the tequila," I say to Sansa. "I'm surprised she even gave it to you."
"Me too," Sansa says, hiccuping and then laughing. "Do you think Jon could tell I was drunk?"
"Probably," I say. "He at least knew something was up."
"Whatever," Sansa says. "I'm 18 now. I'm an adult, it's not his business."
"Are you worried he'll be mad at Dany for giving you the alcohol?" Myrcella asks. She's significantly less drunk than me or Sansa.
Sansa pauses, I guess she didn't think about that. "He wouldn't find out it was her," she says. "And he'd be dumb to get mad anyway, as if he and Dany weren't drinking in high school."
"I know, but you know how he is," Sansa says. "He doesn't care if he did it or is still doing it, he cares what we do."
"We'll be fine," I say. "He's just a butthead sometimes." Sansa giggles, Myrcella is still being quiet. I hope she isn't uncomfortable with us drinking.
"How is Shireen?" Sansa asks Myrcella.
"She's good, she's still with my uncle Stannis," Myrcella says. "It's a relief for me, I know she's happier there."
"I'm really glad to hear that," Sansa says. "I wish your dad had protected you guys better, but at least you're out of that toxic situation."
"Yeah, I'm glad about that too," Myrcella says. "Plus, Podrick's parents are like my second parents."
"Aw, do they like you?" Sansa asks.
"Yeah, they're really happy Pod and I found each other," Myrcella says. "And they like Gendry, both them and my dad are glad I have at least some family around me."
"Should I call Gendry?" I ask. "I want to tell him it's Sansa's birthday and that we're having fun."
"No," Sansa says, laughing. "That's a terrible idea, I thought you were over him."
"I am sometimes," I say. "But I do still miss him from time to time."
"That makes sense," Myrcella says. "I feel like you'll always feel something for your first love."
"So I'll never fully get over this?" I ask.
"I didn't say that," Myrcella says. "I just feel like he'll always mean something to you."
She's probably right about that, he was really special to me and I knew him for a long time. I wanted us to be able to stay friends, but I'm starting to see how that might not be a good idea.
"I think I'll call him," I say, pulling out my phone. "What can it hurt?" Sansa gives Myrcella a look and Myrcella grabs the phone out of my hand since she's sitting closer to me.
"Hey!" I say. It irritates me that she did that.
"You don't want to do that," Myrcella says. "You're just drunk, you can have this back when you sober up."
"I just need to find someone else," I say. "If I find a girl to at least hook up with, that will help me move on."
"A girl?" Myrcella asks. I pause, I figured she already knew I also like girls.
"Yeah, you didn't know?" I ask. Myrcella shakes her head. "Yeah, I'm pansexual. I guess I don't really see gender as a factor in being attracted to someone."
"That makes sense, I'm not judging," Myrcella says. "I know I'm straight, but women are great."
"For sure," I say. "So maybe if I try it out with a girl, it'll help me move on from Gendry."
"Maybe," Sansa says. "If you do it, you have to tell me everything."
"Of course," I say. "You know I will."
I had fun tonight. I'm glad we have Myrcella, she's really sweet. I hope Sansa doesn't forget about me when she goes off to college and makes cooler new friends, I was really worried about it when she got to high school. I know deep down she won't forget about me, we've always been close and we always will be.
I'm glad Myrcella looks out for me too, even if it irritated me in the moment. I know it probably wasn't a good idea to call Gendry. Maybe we'll talk again someday, but we have to both be sober and have space and time between us. I really do want to find a girl to be with at least in some capacity, it's something I definitely want to experience at some point.
Jon Snow Stark POV
I don't know what happened there, Sansa sounded so weird on the phone. She was probably just being goofy with Arya and Myrcella, but it gave me a weird vibe.
Dany walks in a little while after I get off the phone with Sansa, she had a shift tonight at work. "Hey," I say when she come in. "How was work?"
"Fine I guess," she says, starting to get changed. I know we've been together a long time, but I still never get tired of seeing her body. "Luckily I didn't have to work with Cersei tonight."
"Is she still being reckless at work?"
"Yeah, but in a different way," she says, putting one of my shirts on and sitting next to me on the couch. "She takes long breaks and sometimes she disappears in the bathroom."
"That's weird, I'm sorry," I say. "I hope you being her friend doesn't get you in trouble if she gets in trouble."
"I doubt it will, but it better not," Dany says. "How was your night?"
"Pretty uneventful," I say. "I called Sansa to wish her a happy birthday, don't forget to tell her."
"I texted her earlier," she says. "Was she having fun with Arya and Myrcella."
"Yeah, I think so," I say. "But she sounded weird."
Dany sits up and looks at me. "How so?" She asks.
"She was just more giggly than usual," I say. "She was acting really loopy, and I could hear Arya and Myrcella laughing in the background."
"Oh, yeah that makes sense."
I pause. "What do you mean?"
"I bet they got a little tipsy," Dany says. "I figured that would happen."
"Why would they be drinking?"
A look of realization dawns on her. "Oh," she says. "I guess I forgot to mention it. Sansa asked if I had any alcohol last time I saw her, and I gave her some tequila from Cersei and Jaime's birthday party."
"You did what?" I'm shocked, and my first reaction is to be pissed at her.
"Yeah, I felt weird about it and I'm sorry I didn't tell you," she says. "I just felt like she'd get it from someone else if I didn't give it to her."
"That doesn't mean you should have," I say. "You know I wouldn't."
"I know, but I would have if we were friends and I wasn't dating you," she says. "I would have in high school."
"I know, but it still makes me feel weird," I say. "But you're right, she would have found a way to get it anyway."
There's a pause of silence, I can tell she's concerned and doesn't really know what to say. "Are you made at me?" She finally asks.
"I guess not," I say. "Gendry has a fake ID, I know she would've had Myrcella ask him if you didn't get it for her."
"I know it probably wasn't the best move on my part," Dany says. "But she brought up that we were drinking in high school, and I felt like I didn't have the right to act like a parent to her."
"I would've still."
"Yeah, but that's different," Dany says. "You're her big brother, she and I were friends before we started dating."
"I see what you mean," I say. "Just don't do it all the time."
"I won't, trust me," she says. "And it's not like they're going to be crazy or drive or something, they're smarter than that."
"That's true, you're right," I say. "And yeah, she's way better than we were in high school."
"Than I was," she says. "You were kind of a goody-goody."
"Maybe compared to everyone else," I say. "But I had my moments, I just had a ton of responsibilities on my plate."
"I know," Dany says. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay," I say. "It is what it is, I can't change it now. Plus, I love my siblings to death."
She smiles at me and we kiss. Before I know it, our clothes are off and we're fooling around. We end up having sex, it's definitely nice. We fall asleep naked, we tend to do that after being intimate now that we live together.
I'm not mad a her for giving Sansa the alcohol. I wanted to be at first, but that's sort of what older friends are for. And Dany's right, she would've found a way to get it somewhere else. I'm just glad she has Dany as a positive person in her life.
It's so weird to think about Sansa being an official adult now, it seems like yesterday that she was just starting high school. I'm glad she's got a better head on her shoulders these days. She seems to be doing better than she was a couple of years ago, I just hope it continues.
