Chapter Summary: They're his best friends; she's their little sister. Jon and Robb are gonna kill him.
Rating: PG-13/T
Pairing/characters: Arya/Gendry
Chapters: 6/?
Word Count: 1846
Warnings: Some sensuality
Spoilers: None.
Notes: Expanded from an ASoIaF kinkmeme prompt response.
Disclaimer: Not mine.

Chapter Notes: SORRY! So sorry for the delay in posting this! Rushing around in an airport is not conducive to posting the latest updates and since getting to Missouri I've been so busy and without internet until now. Thank you so much for your patience. This newest installment takes place before "Riding in Cars with Boys." Please enjoy!

"Splash"

The door opened and Gendry thickly swallowed, a groan stuck in his throat. He supposed it made a twisted bit of sense. After all, if she could run around on the coldest winter nights in only a pair of cropped shorts and a baggy t-shirt, then why wouldn't Arya Stark be standing in front of him in a black bikini on a rather brisk, early spring day? She had obviously just been swimming, if the puddle gathering on the tile floor was anything to go by. The smell of chlorine and sunscreen tickled his nose and he was painfully aware of the path of a single drop took down the length of her body after falling from a wet tendril of her short hair. He coughed and found his voice as quickly as possible. "Are Robb and Jon here? They asked me to come over."

Arya frowned in thought as she moved aside to let him come in. Gendry tried to give as wide a berth as possible as he walked by, afraid of what might happen if he accidently brushed against her dewy skin. He was starting to have trouble breathing normally and wondered if coming over had been a terrible idea.

"Umm, Dad and Mom won't be back from Palm Springs 'til tomorrow. Robb left with Dacey a while ago, Sansa's off with her boyfriend, and I think Jon took Bran and Rickon hiking." Arya tucked lock of hair behind her ear, and Gendry stared at the way the damp curl clung to her neck. "It's just me right now, but they'll probably be home soon. You can wait around if you like," she continued carelessly, already heading back out to the pool.

Gendry made an annoyed face at her retreating back and weighed his options. He was tempted to follow her, particularly as he watched her walk away; that tiniest lilt of invitation that had been in her voice, the trail of small, wet footprints her annoyingly distracting bare feet were leaving, and the way her hips swung just so – he took two unbidden steps before he halted himself. He knew it would be safer to stay inside, twiddling his thumbs, than following Arya and her bikini outside.

It wasn't even that the bikini was a particularly scandalous piece. He'd seen far worse; even the proper Sansa seemed to favor bathing suits intended to catch the eye. Arya's two-piece was sporty and functional, not titillating. There were no girly ruffles or flirty strings. But the way it highlighted the lines of her lithe body, the way it revealed the subtle curves he had only recently become aware of, and how it offset her porcelain skin, all of it made his hands itch for some reason.

Yep, staying inside would be safer.

"Ok, well…I'll just wait here…inside, I mean. I've got a book I need to read…for class…so…" Gendry winced as he caught himself rambling.

Arya turned around a looked at him for a moment before shrugging, seemingly unconcerned. "Suit yourself," she said. She walked out through the sliding glass door without a backwards glance.

20 minutes had passed and Gendry was still stuck on the same page. The words seemed almost another language as he gazed blankly at the page. Once or twice he had gotten through a few paragraphs only to realize he had no idea what he'd just read. His mind was distracted; his ears straining to hear every splash. He stared at the words, but pictured instead water cleaving neatly as Arya sliced through, powerful limbs propelling her forward.

Gendry knew swimming was her newest passion. Her fencing coach had suggested she take it up as a way to strengthen her muscles and lengthen her limbs, and she dove in headlong, so to speak.

He remembered one time he had tagged along on a Stark/Tully beach day. Bran and Rickon made sand castles, and Sansa laid out to tan. Mr. and Mrs. Stark read their books beneath an umbrella, and Robb tried to teach Gendry and Jon how to surf. All the while, Arya swam furiously, back and forth, closer to the horizon, unaware that her father, both her older brothers, and Gendry all kept one eye trained on her the whole time, lest something happen.

A few hours later, when he was walking back to the beach with milkshakes for everyone, he stopped short when he came upon her. Arya was standing beneath one of a quartet of showers, washing the sand and the salt out of her hair. Gendry hadn't been able to look away. Water rained over her upturned face and sluiced down the taut planes of her body. As she stretched out a leg and ran her hands over the toned length of it, Gendry felt his face heat up.

He knew a corner had just been turned. This wasn't the little girl who hid her tears when she scraped an elbow, but always relented and let him bandage it anyways. This wasn't the preteen who ran in the middle of a fight, not to break it up, but to get in a good shot of her own. This was a young woman, beautiful and attractive in a way so uniquely familiar and entirely strange to him at the same time. What this all meant, he wasn't sure, but for the first time he was aware the Arya Stark had laid a claim to his mind.

Eventually she turned off the water and shook out her hair. When he returned with the milkshakes a few minutes after Arya, everyone wondered why they were all melted.

"Gendry!" Arya called from outside.

Gendry started, abruptly jarred from his memories.

"I'm thirsty. My water bottle's on the kitchen table," she yelled.

He shook his head almost ruefully as he rose from the sofa to obey the implicit directions. Typical Arya, she never asked or even demanded anything of him. Rather, she simply expected; she expected that whatever she needed or wanted, Gendry would oblige. And he always did. He ruefully wondered if she thought less of him for it.

In the kitchen he spied a blue aluminum water bottle. Grabbing it, he made his way outside to the backyard. He climbed the steps to the above-ground pool, the wood paneling creaking beneath his feet.

Gendry found Arya waiting for him, arms braced along the edge, her head resting on her hands. He could see the little waves from the kicking of her feet beneath her as she stayed afloat.

"Here," he said, acting more put out than he was. "Don't know why you couldn't get it yourself."

She accepted the proffered water bottle. Arya set it down on the ledge of the pool and looked up at him, her grey eyes shining silver in the bright afternoon sun.

"Yeah, but then I woulda dripped water all over the house and Mom would get at me. Easier to just have you fetch it for me, Gendry," she said, smiling cheekily.

Was Arya flirting with him? When had she started flirting with him? He hoped his smile was charming; it felt a bit awkward, though. "As m'lady commands, I guess." A thought occurred to him. "You didn't seem to mind tracking water everywhere when you answered the door," he pointed out.

Her smile got wider, and Gendry felt his stomach make a small flip.

"I thought it might have been someone important. Turned out just to be you."

"Haha," he said wryly. Despite all her changes, Arya could still be a huge pain in his ass.

"Wanna join me?" she asked, pushing away from the edge.

Gendry shivered at the idea of swimming in this early spring weather, but didn't dare say he thought it was too cold. Arya would only tease him. He opted to reply, "I don't have any swim trunks."

"Oh, that's not a problem. Just borrow something of Robb or Jon's," she said unconcernedly.

Arya made her way to the center of the pool with a few lazy backstrokes, more floating than swimming, and her eyes closed as her face turned up to the sun. He tried his hardest to keep from noticing the play of light on her glistening skin or the fact that certain parts of her body weren't entirely unaffected by the cold.

"Are you coming in or not?" she asked, not bothering to open her eyes.

Suddenly inspired, Gendry calmly unclasped his watch and dropped it on a lounge chair. He took a step off the ledge and found himself chest deep in water – shoes, clothes and all. Arya, startled by the loud splash, opened her eyes and found Gendry next to her.

His clothes weighed him down and slowed his movements, but an unthinking determination carried him across the span of the pool. While she had to tread to keep her head above water, he was still head and shoulders above when he came up to her.

He reached out and took her into his arms, and she spluttered in surprise.

"What are you doing, you crazy bullheaded boy? Why did you jump into the pool? Gendry, what –"

As Gendry leaned in, Arya's eyes widened. She realized what his intention was and her words ceased. Eagerly, her hands flew up to both sides of his face, and she closed the gap between their lips enthusiastically. His hands gripped her hips tightly and she wrapped her legs around his waist and twined her fingers through his hair. Gendry bit his cheek, trying to restrain a low moan. One of his hands moved up the length of her back and planted itself firmly in the center, fingers splayed beneath the strap of her bikini top.

Soon, her tongue peeked out and traced the seam of his lips. He opened his mouth, his tongue meeting hers. Gendry smiled a little when he felt her impatience as she tried to kiss him deeper and hold him tighter. He gladly obliged, and for a few heart pounding, head spinning moments, their lips slid against each other, their tongues tangling and caressing. Eventually he pulled back, out of breath. Unwilling to part too far, he rested his forehead against hers, and heard her equally rapid breaths.

"I've been wanting to do that for so long. At least since a couple months ago," he said unsteadily.

"Why didn't you?" she asked, her voice also a touch breathless.

"Are you kidding? Jon and Robb are my best friends. You're their little sister. They would have killed me." Gendry paused, thinking. "They are gonna kill me. But I guess it's worth it."

He angled his head for another kiss, tilting her back a bit and almost toppling them both over in the water before righting himself. He pulled back and smiled sheepishly.

Arya laughed in his embrace. "I wasn't actually thirsty earlier. I didn't need you to bring my water bottle. Just wanted a way to make you come out here," she confessed, almost embarrassedly.

Gendry grinned and unabashedly confessed, "Robb and Jon didn't actually invite me over today."

A.N.: Thank you so much for reading! It's been a little bit since we've had some A/G goodness in the series so I thought this chapter would be fun. Please REVIEW. Feedback is lovely.

I realized that I've been focusing on the Stark half of the Stark/Tully clan, so expect some Tully chapters in the future.

Ages:
Arya Stark – 17
Gendry Baratheon – 19