Winterfell High

Chapter 1

Sansa Stark POV

It's early July, and my family and I are on the way to the beach. We decided to spend 4th of July there, it'll be fun to watch the fireworks. It's about a 4 hour drive, Robb and Talisa are meeting us at the Air B&B. Driving multiple hours with both my parents and 4 kids is always an adventure, Jon is driving with Robb and Talisa. He'll be staying with them for a bit after the beach trip to help them get moved into their new apartment.

"Stop!" I hear a crash as Rickon's head hits the window of the far back seat. Bran pushed him, they're always roughousing.

"Boys!" My mom yells from the passenger's seat. "If you don't cut it out will turn around and go back home, all of us! I don't care that we've driven 3/4 of the way there already." Arya turns around and glares at them. That makes them stop, Arya will murder them if we all get punished.

I honestly don't really care if we go to the beach or not. It'll be fun to take my mind off things, but I'm really self conscious about wearing a bathing suit. I got a new one this month, and I was able to go down a size. At least there's that.

…

Once we get to the house, Arya and I drop our stuff off in our room and immediately get changed to go swimming. I want to decline, but Arya is so excited and everyone else is unpacking. We get our boogie boards and head out the door.

"Already?" My mom asks as she sees us walking outside.

"Please, mom," Arya says. "It's not too hot and we really want to go swim."

"Okay, fine," my mom says after a pause. "But you better unpack when you get back." Arya just nods and rushes out the door. I follow closely behind her.

"Are you happy to be back out here?" I ask Arya as we walk out to the ocean and start swimming. It's been a couple years since we've been out to the beach.

"You know it," she responds. "I was so worried I'd get my period and not be able to swim."

"You could use tampons."

"I'm so scared of that, Sansa. What if it hurts? What if it comes out?"

"It only hurts for a bit, and they don't just come out like that." Arya wrinkles her nose and shakes her head. Tampons are easier than pads, but I was the same way as her for a while.

After swimming for a while, we go inside and start unpacking. I don't mind sharing a room with Arya, even on vacation. It's nice having someone there to talk to if I need it, even though she doesn't understand a lot of the things I go through.

"Did you lose weight?" She asks me as we're unpacking.

"Yeah," I respond, smiling. "Can you tell?"

"Yeah, you look smaller. Are you doing okay?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

"I just… want to make sure. You were already skinny."

"Well I excercise a lot with cheer," I say. "It's a good thing." I keep smiling and focusing on my task, and Arya looks at me for a bit before she finishes unpacking. I'm glad she's acknowledging my hard work, but I don't want her to be like me. I hope this doesn't inspire her to follow in my footsteps, I know she looks up to me.

Jon Snow Stark POV

Robb, Talisa and I arrive at the house where we're staying, and my family is already unloading the car. Robb and Talisa still seem happy, I'll be staying with them for a bit after our beach trip to help them get moved into their new apartment. I liked riding to the beach with them, I didn't feel like a third wheel at all. I wanted to bring Dany on this trip, but that would have been really crowded and my dad still doesn't like that we're dating.

My mom gives Robb and Talisa a hug, but of course she just nods at me. Lately she's been saying she has 5 kids, and Sansa or Arya always reminds her that it's 6. That really hurts that she doesn't see me as her son, even though I'm not. It's not like I asked to be born. In fact, most of the time I wish I wasn't.

"Hey, dad," I say walking in. "Do you need help?" He's unloading the cooler and stocking the fridge.

"Sure," he says. "Just grab the beer and put it on the bottom shelf. Maybe I'll let you have one later."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you're almost 18, and I'm going to let Robb have one even though he's only almost 20." That makes me happy, my dad rarely ever lets me drink. He's only let me have one maybe once or twice.

Robb and Talisa walk in the kitchen and my dad give them both a hug. He starts asking them about school and married life, all the standard questions. I'm not really listening, I've heard all these questions a thousand times. If I were Robb, I would want to rip my hair out repeating the same answers constantly.

"Jon," Robb says to me. I look over at him and he gestures for me to come outside. We go outside and under a nearby dock. "I brought some weed if you want some."

"Really?" I ask. He takes out a couple joints and nods. "Sure."

We light them up and look at the water, there isn't anyone out here which is good. I can see Arya and Sansa swimming in the very far distance, but I don't think they'd be able to see us. "I'm going to need this to get through this trip," Robb says.

"Why?" I ask.

"They ask the same questions over and over, and I feel like mom is still judging us for being married."

"Mom, judgemental? No way." Obviously I'm being sarcastic. Robb's right, this will help us get through the trip.

"She wasn't like this as much before," Robb says.

"Not to you," I respond, taking a hit. "You were her golden boy."

"Who do you think will take that spot now?"

"Probably Rickon. He doesn't do anything, Bran is always the instigator. And she's way harder on the girls. Once you and Talisa give her a grandchild you'll be her favorite again."

Robb chuckles at that, but it's true. He's always been her favorite child, and she is harder on my sisters. If she had to pick a favorite daughter, I think it would be Arya. She doesn't talk back as much, and Sansa's turning into a teenage terror. I'm obviously the one she hates. I hate that I know how my mom would rank us. She shouldn't have a hierarchy for her kids, including me.

Arya Stark POV

Dad is grilling dinner for us at the beach house, he's great at grilling. He makes the best ribs. Once the plates are made, I can see Sansa picking at her food. She always loved dad's ribs, I don't know why she won't eat them now. Bran and Rickon eat three times more than she does at this point.

"Okay," my dad says as he sits down. "Who's most excited to start school?" He looks at all of us, and we just stare back at him.

"Come on," he continues. "There's got to be something you guys are looking forward to."

There's another long pause. "It's my last year of elementary school," Rickon says. "I'm excited to join baseball in 6th grade."

"See, there's something," my dad says. "Bran, aren't you excited for middle school?"

Bran just shrugs. "It's whatever," he says. "I'm excited to be away from all the kindergarteners." I swear he gets grumpier and grumpier the older he gets.

"I finally get to go to a fencing competition this summer," I chime in. I know everyone's heard about it a million times, but I don't care. "It feels like it's been 20 years."

"I wish I could be there," Jon says, smiling at me. He'll be helping Robb and Talisa move in to their new apartment, but my younger brothers, Sansa and my parents will be there. "Stick them with the pointy end." He always says that to me as a joke, so I just smile at him.

"Jon, it's your last year of high school," my dad says. "Have you given any more thought to what you want to study in college?"

"Not really," Jon says. "I have this year to decide." I can tell my parents aren't happy with that answer. Bran and Rickon start fighting again, so the conversation is cut short. I noticed that my parents didn't ask Sansa any questions. She seems to have it all figured out, she cheers and goes to parties. That's her thing. I hope when I'm in high school I can be half as pretty and loved as her.

Jon Snow Stark POV

Talisa walks over to where Arya and Sansa are sitting after dinner. They're on a bench watching the sunset. I think Talisa wants to bond with her knew sisters-in-law, which I admire. Robb sits next to me on the deck.

"Hey man," he says to me. "You doing okay?"

I just nod. "Yeah, how are things with your marriage?" It's still weird to me that Robb is married.

"Honestly good," he responds. "I'm a little worried about how we'll do financially once we move into our apartment."

"Why?"

"We both still only work part time," he says. "And we can afford the rent but I'm worried things will get stressful with classes, especially if she has to stop working because of nursing school."

"You're thinking way too far ahead about this," I say. "Just take it one day at a time."

"I need to think about these things, Jon. I'm married and eventually I'll have a family."

"I know, but I feel like if you take it one day at a time it'll make things easier. I learned to be less uptight last year, it did me a lot of good."

Robb just rolls his eyes. "I'm your older brother," he says. "I'm supposed to give you advice."

I playfully shove him. "Fine, I won't try to help anymore," I say, laughing. He just playfully shoves me back.

Sansa Stark POV

I'm watching the sunset with Arya on a bench swing when Talisa walks over and sits next to us. "Can I sit here?" She asks.

"Of course," Arya says, and I just nod. I haven't talked with Talisa much, I'd love to get to know her more. She seems really sweet.

"Are you guys excited to start school?" Talisa asks. Why do we always have to go back to that? Can't we just focus on summer?

"I guess," I say. "I do love cheering. I know Arya wants to kiss a boy this year." She blushes hard, and I'm sort of messing with her but also hoping she'll confirm it.

"Sansa!" Arya yells. "Shut up, I do not! I'm going to wait until high school." Talisa just laughs, and Arya is beet red.

"What do you like about cheering, Sansa?" Talisa asks me.

"I like the exercise," I respond. "And we look really cute in the outfits. And I have a lot of friends in cheer." I said that last part so I wouldn't sound so shallow, even though looking pretty is one of my favorite parts of cheer.

"I was a cheerleader for a little bit in high school," Talisa says. "I liked it, but I stopped when I realized I liked art more."

There's another pause. "Arya," she continues. "I heard your first fencing competition is shortly after we get back from the beach. I wish we could make it, are you nervous?"

"I am a little," Arya says. "But I'm so ready. I've been wanting to do this since I was 10, but there's a stupid age requirement."

"I know you'll do great," Talisa says. "I'll be rooting for you."

…

Arya and I are laying in the bunk beds of the Air B&B trying to fall asleep, she insisted on getting the top bunk. "Why did you say that to Talisa about me wanting to kiss a boy this year?" Arya asks me.

"I was just messing with you," I respond. "I'm sorry if it upset you."

"It did a little bit, and it's not even true."

"I didn't think it was, but if it was I wanted you to tell me."

There's a pause. "I'm waiting until high school", Arya finally says.

"Why?"

"There's just… no one I want to kiss right now. Middle school boys are stupid." I agree, and I'm not judging her. My first kiss wasn't until high school either, and it was good even though he turned out to be gay. I just don't know why Arya is so set on waiting until high school, I didn't think she'd have thought about it that much.

Chapter 2

Jon Snow Stark POV

I'm on my way back with Robb and Talisa. We're going straight to their new apartment, which is a 7 hour drive from the beach. I don't mind, I'll drive for a couple hours at the halfway point. It'll give me good practice, as I applied to Robb's school in the spring. I'll find out if I got in by December.

We had a good time at the beach, but most of it was uneventful. We just swam, talked, watched fireworks and played games as a family. Robb and I smoked a little here and there with Talisa, but only when we knew the family wouldn't see. My parents try to do something like this every summer so we can have family time.

We pull into an apartment complex finally, Robb took over driving in the last hour. "Is this the place?" I ask him.

"Yep," he responds. "We're on the second floor." We start to unload boxes and walk up to the apartment. It's a cute little place, it's one bedroom but it has a decent amount of space.

"You don't mind if I sleep on the couch?" I ask.

"Not at all," Talisa says, setting boxes down. "We'll go grocery shopping tonight and you can get whatever you want, we could really use the help moving in." That really means a lot to me. I think Talisa is really good for Robb, I think she'll be a great mother.

…

Robb ordered a pizza for dinner after we unloaded the boxes and unpacked most of them. They don't have any internet connection set up, so we just played Monopoly. I miss having time with my brother like this, it's still hard for me that he isn't home anymore. We're sitting out on his front porch drinking beer after Talisa went to bed. Robb took some beer home after the beach trip.

"Have you talked to Daenerys lately?" Robb asks me. He knows I'm dating her, I texted him about it immediately.

"Yeah, I text her every day," I say. "She's helping Jaime and Cersei Lannister move into their new apartment."

"They're moving into an apartment?"

"Yeah, it's close to where they're going to school."

"Are they still fucking?" He asks me.

"I have no idea if that's true," I say. The thought of that makes me nauseous. "But probably. I don't ask Daenerys about all that."

"I hope you did okay this year, while I was at school," Robb says after a pause. I think he feels guilty for leaving me with our siblings. "I know me leaving couldn't have been easy."

"It wasn't," I respond. "Sansa dated Ramsay Bolton, and I beat him up when I found out he was pressuring her into sex."

Robb just sighs and puts his head in his hands. "God, Jon. I'm so sorry. You know I would have murdered him if I had been there."

"I know," I say. "I'm still worried about her. She barely eats and she lashes out at me if I try to ask her about it."

"I noticed on the beach trip that she was barely eating. Have you told mom?"

"She would fucking kill me if I did. I don't want her to see me as another parent, I want her to trust me." Robb just nods, but I don't think he agrees with me.

"You know you could have told me what was going on," Robb says. "I would have been more than happy to help."

"I didn't want to disrupt your newlywed life. You guys seemed really happy."

"We are, but my family comes first. Call me if anything bad like that happens again. I feel bad that you had to deal with it on your own."

"Thank you, Robb." I'm glad he's willing to help, and we definitely leaned on each other when he was still at home. I just miss him a lot, more than I'll ever admit to anyone.

Daenerys Targaryen POV

I'm helping Cersei and Jaime move into their apartment while Jon is helping his brother and sister-in-law move into theirs. We're on our way, it's about a two hour drive. That makes me happy that it isn't too far, so it won't be too hard to visit. Cersei's hair is growing out a little, she still regrets cutting it all off. I feel like she and Jaime's relationship has gotten a little tense. It makes sense, they went through a lot this past year.

"That's campus," Cersei says, pointing out the school she and Jaime will be going to. "Our place is just a couple blocks away."

"Awesome," I say. "How big is the place?"

"Two bedrooms, one bathroom," Jaime says. "Not too big, but great for a starter apartment."

I'm helping them unload their boxes, but they've already started carrying them up the stairs. As I walk up the stairs with a box, I can hear them talking by the doorway of the apartment.

"Are you feeling okay?" I hear Jaime ask Cersei. She just nods. "This will be a great fresh start for us. We can put everything from last year behind us and start our lives together." He kisses her forehead and hugs her. I don't think they know I could see and hear them. I want to comfort Cersei, but Jaime is way better at that than me.

We're playing drinking games in the evening after unpacking a lot of stuff. Cersei and I went and picked up Chinese, and Jaime is making breakfast tomorrow.

"How excited are you guys to start school?" I ask.

"So excited," Cersei says. "We have orientation in a few days and then we'll be seeing what parties are happening before school." She's drinking so much. I think about saying something, but I know she'll just yell at me if I make a comment.

"I'm going to try out for the football team," Jaime says. "I probably won't get in, but it's worth a shot."

"Yeah, high school and college sports are comepletely different," I say. "I know I definitely won't be able to do college cheer."

"I'm excited to write and do reporting," Cersei says. That makes sense, her major is journalism. "But I'm still mad at you for staying behind." She says that in a joking way, but I know she's not joking. I feel guilty for staying behind, but I had to. It was either turn my back on Cersei or turn my back on my dad, and I couldn't do that. Cersei has Jaime, my dad really only has me and a couple distant family members.

I wake up in the middle of the night on their couch, and I realize I really have to go to the bathroom. I walk down the hall to their guest bathroom, which is in between both bedrooms. When I get out of the bathroom, I can hear giggling coming from what is supposed to be Jaime's room. It's clearly Cersei, and I hear Jaime moaning. I rush back over to the couch and try to fall back alseep, hoping they didn't hear me going to the bathroom.

Did they really have to do this with me here? Obviously I knew this about them, but Cersei's never told me up front. She could have tried to be a little more discreet, they don't need to christen the apartment tonight.

Sansa Stark POV

Arya's fencing competition went well, even though she didn't win. I had to pretend I understood what was going on, but it was still fun to watch her. She was upset that she placed 4th, but I thought that was really good. There will be more competitions, I just wish she wasn't so hard on herself. Being hard on myself didn't turn out well for me.

I'm going shopping for back-to-school outfits at the mall with Margaery today, school is in about a month. I'm terrified for this year, I don't even think I was this scared for my freshman year. Cheer camp is next week where we welcome the new members, learn the new routines and polish up the old ones. We didn't make it far enough for summer competitions this year.

"Are there any guys on the horizon this year?" Margaery asks me.

"No," I respond. "Ramsay ruined my life, I still need to get over that."

"He didn't ruin your life, Sansa," Margaery says. "You're being dramatic."

I really feel like he did ruin my life. I feel even more disgusted with my body than I did before we started dating, I can't believe I did some of the things I did with him. We keep looking at clothes, but I don't feel like anything will look good on me.

I'm trying on a yellow dress in the fitting room, and all I can think about is how fat I look. I start to tear up. "Did you try it on?" I hear Margaery call out to me.

"Yeah," I say, wiping my eyes. "I'll be right out." I walk out and Margaery is standing in a matching top and skirt that she tried on.

"You look so cute," she says. "You should totally get that."

"You think?"

"Totally. I think you look adorable." The dress is cute, but I look fat in it. That's no surprise, I look fat in everything. I guess I won't be able to eat much before school starts.

I end up leaving the mall with the dress and a couple pairs of jeans. I got the straight cut, the skinny jeans show off my legs too much. I'm afraid if I look too good, Ramsay will try to get back together with me. I'm so scared to see him, I'm not even looking forward to cheer or anything else about the school year. My anxiety about seeing him outweighs all of that.

Chapter 3

Jon Snow Stark POV

The first day of school is today. I feel like so much has changed since last year. I'm still worried about Sansa, but I'm more worried about what will happen after I'm gone. I applied to Robb's school, but I'm considering delaying by a semester if I get in. I'm not sure how my parents will handle the 4 younger kids by themselves. I hate that I have to worry about this stuff, my parents shouldn't have had so much sex if they couldn't handle having this many kids.

I'm waiting for Sansa in the car, and eventually I honk because she's taking so long. I understand it's the first day of school, but she doesn't need to impress this much now that she isn't a freshman anymore. She walks out of the house in a yellow dress with her hair half up, half down. She looks pretty, but I know she doesn't need my reassurance about that.

Sansa immediately splits off from me when we get to school. I know she wants to find her friends, but I'm giving her rides so she could at least act grateful. I'm getting more and more fed up with her the older she gets. I'm loading stuff in my locker when Gendry and Tormund walk up to me.

"Hey man," Tormund says. "We should swap schedules and see if we have any classes together." I didn't talk to them much over the summer, I figured Tormund didn't want to talk to me after what happened with Ygritte and Gendry got really busy.

"Are we cool?" I ask Tormund.

"Yeah, it's all good," he responds. "You and I have always been fine."

"Where's Sam?" I ask.

"He went to help Gilly with her schedule," Gendry says. "He drove her here, too." I'm not even upset about that, I know Gilly needs the extra help. I'll catch up with Sam later.

"Are you still doing tech?" I ask Gendry.

"Yeah," he says after a pause. He looks nervous. "We started this summer to get ready for fall shows." He's avoiding eye contact with me. It seems like he doesn't want to talk about tech, which is weird since he loves it so much.

I'm excited for what this year will bring. I'm a senior, and it'll be nice to be able to have a good time this year before I graduate. I should probably figure out what I want to do after high school, but I feel like there's so many other pressing things I need to worry about before that. This year will be really busy, but I hope I can figure out more about myself.

Sansa Stark POV

After lunch, Margaery and I head out of the cafeteria. Lunch wasn't very eventful, it was just me, Margaery and Missandei. The guys went our for lunch. I'm hoping they'll let a couple more people potentially hang out with us this year, it feels weird without Cersei and Dany.

"What class are you going to?" Margaery asks me, peering over my shoulder to see my schedule. I doubt we have any classes together since she's a senior.

"Um…" I say, looking at my paper. "I have English now, with Mr. Baelish."

"Oh," Margaery says, making a face. "Interesting."

"What's wrong with him?"

"Nothing, I guess. He's just a little creepy and dramatic, but you'll be fine. Don't worry too much about it." That was weird, but I trust her word.

English isn't that uneventful, but I did feel like Mr. Baelish was looking at me like he was trying to remember me from somewhere. After school, I'm passing by his classroom on the way to cheer practice when I hear him call my name.

"Sansa?" He calls out to me. I walk back to the classroom doorway and look at him. "Can you come in here?" I walk in and stand in front of his desk.

"Am I in trouble?" I ask him.

"Not at all," he responds. "I just wanted to say how nice it is to finally meet you, and how honored I am to have you in my class."

"Thanks," I say. I'm so confused.

"I grew up with and was very close to your mother."

Oh okay, that makes sense. "Oh, awesome," I say. "I'll let her know I'm in your class."

"Actually, maybe you shouldn't do that."

"Why?"

"I don't want her to think I'm giving you any special treatment," he says. "I'm sure you'll do amazingly in my class, and I want her to know that you've earned it."

"Okay, if you really think that'll help." I'm not sure what he even means, but it's nice to know that he knew my mother. Maybe he'll go a little easier on me this year.

"I don't want to keep you," he says. "I know you probably have cheer practice. It was nice talking to you."

"You too, Mr. Baelish." I wave goodbye and walk out. I know he said I shouldn't tell my mom, but she's going to find out anyway that I'm in his class. If they were so close, she should be happy about it.

Jon Snow Stark POV

We're back at rock climbing practice, it's Sam, Tormund and I's last year doing this. It's bittersweet, I'm going to miss it but it will be good to move on from high school. Sam and I are sitting on a bench next to the locker rooms after practice, Tormund went into the teacher's lounge. He's determined to land Coach Tarth before the year is over. I know she's only like 5 or 6 years older than us, but that's still really weird to me.

I see Ygritte packing up her stuff alone, and I have the urge to go up and talk to her. I want to break the tension and clear the air, I want us to be friends. "Do you mind if I go talk to Ygritte, or do you need help packing up your stuff?" I ask Sam.

"No, go ahead," he responds. "I have to take Gilly to work anyway." Oh right, Gilly got a job over the summer. It sucks that she has to help her family out financially so much, but she's really selfless for being willing to do it. We wave goodbye and he walks out the side exit.

"Hi Ygritte," I say, walking up to her. "How did your first day go?"

"It went okay," she says, looking surprised that I'm talking to her. "You?"

"Pretty okay," I say. There's a long pause of awkward silence, and I debate walking away.

"Why are you talking to me?" She asks. "Don't you have a girlfriend?"

"I can still talk to girls," I say, a little too defensively. I take a deep breath. "I just didn't want there to be any bad blood or tension between us. I was hoping we could be friends again."

She just looks at me, I feel like enough time has passed that it's okay for me to ask this. I still really like Ygritte as a person, we had a lot of fun together.

"I'll see you around," she says, starting to walk away.

"Wait," I say. "Do you need a ride home?"

She peeks her head into the teacher's lounge. "Sure, why not?" She says, shrugging. "I don't think Tormund wants to be bothered right now."

"Are you getting your license?" I ask her as we're driving to her and Tormund's house.

"I got it over the summer," she responds. "Tormund and I just still ride together."

"Oh, awesome. Congratulations."

"Yeah, sometimes he'll let me practice driving in this car. I haven't gotten to drive much by myself, though."

"If you ever want to practice, I'd be okay with you practicing on this car."

"Are you sure?" She asks me.

"Yeah," I respond. "It's pretty old, I wouldn't mind."

"I might take you up on that," she says as we're pulling up to her place. "Bye. Thanks for the ride."

"Bye." I'm glad we're finally starting to be friends again. That was one thing I was scared of when it came to dating. I didn't want to lose friendships if a relationship didn't work out. It looks like the tension between us is starting to subside, I'm very grateful for that.

Chapter 4

Cersei Lannister POV

The week before school was basically nonstop partying after orientation. I don't remember being this happy since the beginning of senior year. Jaime didn't go as hard as I did, but I think he just needs to warm up to college life. We're going to an event on campus for people to get to know each other tonight. It sounds like it'll be really lame, but Jaime really wanted to go.

We arrive at one of the event rooms in a building on campus, and Jaime looks really excited to be here. I honestly couldn't care less. "Aren't you excited?" He asks me.

"For what?" I respond.

"Making college friends," he says. "We need to branch out and not rely on each other so much." That comment scares me, I don't know what I'd do if Jaime abandoned me.

We get separated playing some icebreaker games. I walk up to Jaime after a while, he's talking to a couple guys. "Hey," Jaime says to me. "Guys, this is my sister Cersei. Cersei, this is Jorah and Bronn. They live in the dorm on the north side of campus."

"Nice to meet you," I say to them. They look nice, and I can already tell they'll get along with Jaime well.

"Do you live in a dorm?" Jorah asks.

"No," Jaime responds. "We live in a nearby apartment, it helps us save money and all."

"Where did you guys move from?" Bronn asks us.

"Winterfell," Jaime says. "You may have heard of it."

"Oh, I have," Bronn says. "Never been, but I heard the girls there are freaks." Jaime just laughs at that, but I don't find it funny. Honestly, it kind of grosses me out.

"Our brother is still there," Jaime says. "He's graduating this year."

"Do we have to talk about our brother here?" I ask. "I would love to forget he exists when we don't have to see him."

"What's wrong with him?" Jorah asks.

"He's a parasite on our family," I respond. "He's the worst." I would love to pretend it's just me and Jaime here at college, but of course Jaime loves Tyrion too much to do that. It's one of the few things I don't like about him.

…

When we get back to the apartment, I think Jaime can tell I'm a little anxious. "What's wrong?" He asks me.

"I'm just not feeling great about all these changes," I respond, sitting on the couch. "When you said we shouldn't rely on each other so much, it made me worry you were getting tired of me."

"Cersei," he says, sitting down next to me. He puts his arm around me. "I'll never get tired of you, that isn't what I meant at all. I just want us to make friends here, and for us to enjoy life outside Winterfell. I thought that was the whole point of going to school here."

"It was. I just worry you'll make a bunch of new friends and I'll be left behind."

"You won't be. Any friend I make will be your friend too. Plus, you wouldn't let me abandon you even if I wanted to." I chuckle, and he kisses me. We move to the bedroom, taking advantage of the freedom of living together.

Daenerys Targaryen POV

I've been spending a lot of my time volunteering this summer. I'm going to a second hand clothing store today to help them tag and price items. It's not a volunteer gig that I do a lot, but the women there are nice and it's easier than some of my other volunteer work.

I'm hanging up clothes on the sales floor when I see the door to the store open. Missandei is here with Margaery, they sometimes come by. "Dany!" Missandei calls out to me. I just wave and she walks over.

"Hey guys," I say. "Thanks for stopping by, I'm bored to death and I'm not even making any money. I'm debating getting a job when the school year starts."

"You should," Margaery says. "You would drive everyone to wherever you were working." I just chuckle at that. I don't know why everyone treats me like some other worldly beauty, I've never seen myself that way.

"Did you need help finding anything?" I ask them.

"We just wanted to say hi," Missandei says. "I feel like we haven't hung out enough this summer."

"How's Grey Worm?" I ask her. They've gotten pretty serious over the last few months.

"He's great," Missandei says, her face lighting up. "He's playing some basketball with the guys right now, and I already miss him."

"Ugh," Margaery says. "She's so sappy." I'm really happy for Missandei, she deserves a happy relationship. And she's been into Grey Worm since middle school.

"Well, let me know if you need help," I say. "Or if you want to distract me again."

Margaery and Missandei leave after a bit, and I still have a couple hours of volunteering left. I normally would go eat or something with Cersei after volunteering. It makes me sad that she went to school and I had to stay back. I know she isn't happy with my decision to stay either, but it's something I had to do.

…

I finally get to see Jon tonight. I haven't seen him except for one time briefly when we got back from our travels. The whole point was to spend the summer together knowing that I didn't have to leave for school, but I feel like I barely saw him. Now that the first week of classes is over, I've invited him to have dinner with me and my dad so they can get to know each other better.

"Are you excited to get to know Jon more?" I ask my dad as I'm preparing a salad for dinner. My dad is making lemon chicken, he used to make that all the time when I was younger. Seeing him make it again makes me think things are somewhat back to normal.

"I am excited," my dad responds. "But you know if he hurts you I'll have to make him pay for it." He's laughing, but I don't like when he jokes like that.

"Dad, stop," I say. "That isn't funny to me."

"I'm just protective over my only child." I'm the only child he has left, so I understand that. I'm just really hoping this dinner goes well, I know my dad is still warming up to social interactions. It still makes me uncomfortable when he makes jokes about hurting himself or other people, I don't want him to get back to the bad place that he used to be in.

Jon Snow Stark POV

I drive up to Daenerys' house and I sit parked in front for a bit. I'm nervous to go in, I've only briefly met her dad and I don't want to say anything that will trigger or upset him. I'm hoping that won't be an issue, Daenerys gave me the basic rundown of what and what not to say.

I knock on the door while holding the brownies I brought with me. I hope they like them, I bought them kind of last minute. Daenerys opens the door and immediately smiles when she sees me.

"Hi, Jon," she says, hugging me. "I'm so glad you made it." I walk in and see her dad come out of the kitchen.

"Nice to see you again, Mr. Targaryen," I say, sticking my hand out.

"You can call me Aerys," he says, shaking my hand. "And I can take what it is you brought." I hand him the brownies and he takes them into the kitchen.

"I'm nervous," I whisper to Daenerys.

"Don't be," she says. "He's really excited for this."

We sit down after I help Daenerys set the table and serve plates. I want Aerys to know I care and want to be helpful to them.

"So Jon," Aerys says as we're eating. "You're a senior now?"

"Yes, sir," I respond. "I applied to the college my brother Robb goes to."

"Have you heard back yet?"

"No, I think I'll hear back in December."

"Do you know what you want to do after high school?"

"I'm really not sure," I say. "I may want to take a gap semester and help my parents out. I know they'll need help with my younger siblings."

"Your father is Ned Stark, right?" Aerys asks me. Shit, what does he think of my dad?

"Yes," I say.

"He's one of the most honorable men I've ever met," Aerys says, to my relief. "I haven't spoken to him in a long time. Tell him to get in touch with me if you could."

"Of course," I say. "I'm sure he'd like that." Daenerys is smiling, I think she likes the idea of our fathers bonding together.

The meal is pretty uneventful after that, but when I get home I can't stop thinking about Aerys wanting to get in touch with my father. I'll ask my dad about it eventually. I mean, I hope that would make my dad more accepting of Daenerys and I's relationship. But that shows me that Aerys and my dad don't have any kind of bad blood, so I'm still incredibly confused as to why my dad doesn't want me dating Daenerys. He'll have to get over that soon, I'm not letting go of her anytime soon.

Chapter 5

Sansa Stark POV

Margaery and I are walking out of the gym after cheer one day, the first football game is tomorrow so we've been preparing for that. As we're walking out, I can see Myranda glaring at me. She's always hated me, but it seems worse now.

"Why is Myranda glaring at me?" I ask.

"Oh, you didn't hear?" Margaery says. "She and Ramsay got back together."

"Really?"

"Yep, over the summer."

"So what, she just hates me even more now? Doesn't she know I have no interest in ever talking to him again, much less getting back with him."

"You know she's crazy," Margaery says. "She doesn't need a rational reason to hate someone."

We go back to Margaery's house to do some schoolwork, luckily my mom said it's okay. "Are you excited to graduate?" I ask her.

"You have no idea," she responds. "I'm so done wirh high school. And I'm so excited for this year. Cersei is finally out of my hair, and I can be queen of Winterfell now that Dany is gone."

"I hope one day I can be queen of Winterfell," I say. The idea that I could be the most popular girl in school has always been appealing to me. Everyone would love me, and I wouldn't have to worry about how I look so much.

"Keep up what you're doing, and you will," Margaery says.

"So how's Loras?" I ask Margaery. We haven't talked about him much since everything happened last year, but I don't want him or her to think I hate him.

"He's fine," Margaery says. "I think he's dating Renly again, but he won't tell me. They spend a lot of time together."

"What does your grandmother think of that?"

"She really doesn't care. That woman's a badass, she's seen some shit. Her grandson being gay wouldn't scare her." I laugh at that. Margaery's grandmother seems really cool.

…

When I get home, Arya is doing her reading in our room. "How's 8th grade?" I ask when I walk in.

"It's fine," she responds. "There's more homework, I wish I could just focus on fencing."

"How's Bran adjusting to middle school?"

"He seems to like it okay. I think he thinks he's so cool now." I chuckle at that because it sounds like Bran. "How's school for you?" She asks me.

"It's great," I say, and I really mean that. "Apparently my English teacher grew up with mom."

"Really?"

"Yeah, apparently they were really close."

"Oh cool," Arya says. "How did he know you were mom's daughter?"

"The last name probably," I say. "It's weird that mom never brought up that he's a teacher at the high school."

Arya just shrugs. "Maybe they weren't actually that close." It's still weird to me, I feel like we know all of mom's friends. Mr. Baelish seems like such a good man, I would have thought she would have brought him up.

Jon Snow Stark POV

Sam and I are driving to get some food after rock climbing practice, we haven't gotten as much time to hang out since the school year started. It's our last year where we'll be able to hang out this often, and I want to take advantage of it.

"So how are things with Gilly?" I ask him. "Have you gotten her to open up any more?"

"Barely," Sam responds. "She's explained to me that she lives in a not-so-good situation. She lives with her dad, sisters and nieces."

"Have you met any of them?"

"I've met a couple of them briefly, and I've only met her dad a few times. We had dinner together once over the summer."

"And you've been dating for the better part of a year?"

"Yeah," Sam says. "I'm sure she has her reasons, and I really love her. It just makes me feel like I'm the problem and she's ashamed of me."

We get to the burger place and take our seat after ordering. "So like," I say to Sam as we sit down. "You guys still haven't slept together yet."

"Nope," he responds. "We've made out and she's taken off her shirt. I understand, and I'm okay with it, even if she wants to wait until marriage. I still wish she would open up to me more and explain it to me."

"I'm sure she will, just be patient."

"I will," he says. "I love her way too much to let her go." I think that's really sweet, but it does make me wonder why she won't open up to him. Sam is the sweetest person ever, he's the easiest guy in the world to talk to.

"Do you have any advice?" Sam asks me.

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"Well, you've been in a relationship twice. I thought maybe you would have some advice to give me."

"I mean," I start. I can tell he wants my advice, but I really don't know what to say. It's not like I'm a relationship expert. "The best thing I can say is to just make her feel safe and be patient. I'm sure you are, but she'll open up to you when she's ready. I can tell that girl really loves you, just be a good support system for her."

"I am, and I feel like it isn't going anywhere."

"It takes longer for some girls," I say. "I can tell you she looks at you with the most love I've ever seen. She'll get there." I love Sam and Gilly as a couple, but I wish I also knew what was going on with Gilly. I want them to stay together, I don't want any of her personal issues or anything else to mess that up.

Arya Stark POV

I'm actually going to the first football game of the season this year. I didn't come last year because I had fencing lessons. Rickon, Jon and Daenerys are coming with me, my mom and my dad. Bran didn't want to come for some reason, and my mom let him stay home alone for the first time that I can remember. I'm not sure why he didn't want to come this year, he usually loves stuff like this. I know he got a concussion last year, but I figured he'd be over that by now.

I'm sitting outside, and I'm incredibly bored. Rickon ran off and my dad is supervising him. My mom is reading in the car, I didn't want to stay cooped up in the car with her. Jon and Daenerys are meeting us here. Sometimes I feel like Sansa and I are the forgotten kids, along with Jon of course. I think my mom wanted all boys. It's weird, she just isn't close with us, even when she tries to be.

I'm sitting outside when I see Gendry walk out. He's just in a white tank top and jeans, I can tell he's been working on something. He looks really good, and I can't stop myself from staring at him. He looks at me and I wave. He walks over and my heart starts beating hard.

"Hey, Arya," he says to me. "What are you doing here?"

"Just watching Sansa cheer at the football game," I respond. "My brother went off exploring. What about you?"

"Just working on tech stuff. I had to install a lever for one of the upcoming shows."

"Oh that's really cool," I respond. I like imagining him doing that.

"I'll see you around," he says. "Have fun at the game."

"Bye." I wish I could have found a way to talk to him longer, but I'm just glad I got to run into him at all.

Rickon and my dad come back after a while, and my mom gets out of the car. We head to the nearby field to watch the game.

"Was that Jon's friend?" My mom asks me.

"Yeah," I respond. "I guess he recognized me."

"He's cute," my mom says, smirking. Ugh, why does she have to be so awkard because I was talking to a male?

Daenerys Targaryen POV

Jon and I arrive at the football game, and we're able to find parking in the school lot before walking to the nearby football field. I thought I should stay home with my dad, but he encouraged me to come. I invited him to tag along, but he didn't think he was in the right headspace for it.

"I'm really excited for the game," I say to Jon. "It'll feel so weird to be watching a football game instead of cheering in it."

"I'm excited too," he says. "Bran got a concussion last year after falling. I'm hoping this year's game will be less stressful."

"Oh right. Yeah, me too." We sit in the stands next to his family, and it's awkward to be around his father. At least I'm on one end and he's on the other so there are a lot of people between us. Jon's sister Arya is here, it'll be nice to hopefully talk to her more.

People are looking at me and whispering, some are waving and I'm waving back. I thought more people would want to talk to me, but maybe it's weird to them now that I'm not in high school anymore. When the game starts, I can see the cheerleaders coming out and cheering. I feel so proud of Margaery, Sansa and Missandei. Missandei and Cersei have always been my best friends, but I feel like an older sister to Sansa.

"Hi Daenerys," Arya says as we're watching the game. She's sitting on the other side of Jon. "I'm glad you came."

"Me too," I say to her. "Is this your first football game?"

"Yep," she says. "I'm excited."

"Do you want to be a cheerleader in high school?"

"Probably not," she says. "It's not really my thing." That makes sense to me, she doesn't seem like the cheerleader type. She's cute and has the right body type for it, but it makes sense that she wouldn't be interested in it.

Around halftime, Jon and I go down to concessions to get a snack. "You having fun?" He asks me.

"Yeah," I say. "How about you?"

"I am, more fun than I thought. Sorry Arya wanted to talk to you so much, she's pretty social."

"Don't be sorry, I love Arya. She's so cute. I want to get closer to your family. I was hoping tonight would be a good time to talk to your dad more."

"He just has to warm up to you," Jon says. "I'm sorry he isn't stoked about us dating. I keep expecting him to come around, but I'm not lettinf go of you either way."

"As long as I have you by my side, I can handle it."

"You definitely do," he says, kissing me. We get our snack and head back to the stands where his family is sitting.

I feel safe and settled in my life for the first time in a long time. My dad is getting back to normal life, I'm dating Jon Snow, and I'm getting ready to go to college next year. I feel like things are finally calming down for me, and I don't feel as much pressure to be perfect. It feels great.