୨⎯ °‧ 𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 ·｡ ⎯୧

The car ride home from the PTMC was the same as it always was; thick with the heavy weight of exhaustion that tends to come after working a 12-hour shift at the hospital. You felt Jack shift next to you with the discomfort he had after shifts like this. This one had been particularly grueling for the both of you. Too many close calls, too many ungrateful patients, too much time spent on your feet and too little time actually thinking about yourselves. There had been a case you knew had struck a little close to home for Jack, a man whose wife had come down with something detrimental almost overnight and no matter how hard you all tried you couldn’t save her. You knew it hit too close to home for him and he was stuck in his own head from the far off look in his eye and the visible tension in his shoulders. This job really did take more than it gave sometimes. You looked out the windows of the truck at the passing houses that were illuminated by the early morning sun. You took a deep breath, savouring the fresh air after so long inside the hospital before turning to look at Jack.

“Jack?”

He hummed in acknowledgment, not taking his eyes off the road as you took that as incentive to continue. “What if we took a break?” You felt him tense up and quickly hurried to speak, “Like time off, go on a trip out the city and spend some time just the two of us?” You chanced a tentative look over to where he was sitting, watching the cogs turn in his head as he contemplated your suggestion. His hand reached across gently rubbing up and down your thigh in a mindless, soothing motion as he responded.

“That could be nice, what type of trip you thinking about?” His voice was light, allowing himself to relax finally now it was just the two of you sat in his steadily moving car.

“I didn’t really have anywhere in mind, honestly I’d probably just want to get out of the city and reconnect with nature for a bit.” You watched him nod along in your peripheral vision as you looked ahead, linking your hands over his one that was on your thigh and giving him a comforting squeeze. He squeezed back and let out a tired sigh, a brief moment of silence lingering in the air before he spoke.

“I had a patient come in a few nights ago, told me about a camping spot he frequents that's a bit of a drive out of the city.” He paused for a moment, letting the suggestion linger in the air. “If that’s something you’re down to do?” You couldn’t help but smile at his tentativeness, you’d sleep in a muddy ditch so long as he was right there with you keeping you warm - not that he needed to know that though. You didn’t think twice before responding.

“I’d love to go camping with you.”

“I’m sorry you’re doing what?”

You sigh, heading away from the nurses hub off in the direction of the exam room your patient is currently waiting in and away from Santos who instead of checking on her own patients follows behind you with an annoyingly amused glint in her eye. “I said we’re going camping, apparently Jack found out about this place just a couple hours out of the city. I don’t know why this is so hard for you to understand.” 

“Was it your idea or Abbot’s?”

You only levelled her with an exasperated look “I suggested we go away for a bit and do something and he suggested camping, again I fail to see how this is an issue.” 

“It’s not an issue.” You roll your eyes, beginning to move away and ignore the ridiculous look on her face when she calls out again, “You just don’t strike me as the camping type.”

That stops you in your tracks. Slowly turning to face her you narrow your eyes while walking back to her. Fuck rising above her teasing, you’re allowed to be immature at times.

“What do you mean I’m not the camping type? I like camping.”

Santos levelled you with the same look as before, arms crossed over her chest and smiling back at you with the smugness of someone that knew exactly how to rile you up. 

“Have you been before then?”

“Well.. no but-”

“So you don’t actually know if you’ll enjoy it.”

You took a deep breath in, willing yourself to not take the bait of your friend’s teasing. You couldn’t really understand what was so funny. Just because you hadn’t been camping before didn’t mean you were destined to hate it. Life was about trying new experiences.

“I’m sure I’ll enjoy it, Jack’s big on that sort of stuff so I’m sure he’ll show me the ropes.”

“Right and this is supposed to be relaxing?”

You rolled your eyes.

“Yeah duh, we’re reconnecting with nature and all that bullshit people preach about.”

Santos paused for just a second.

“I just can’t imagine you camping; I mean sleeping on the hard ground underneath a flimsy pile of tarp can’t actually be all that relaxing.”

“Okay well I think you’re just trying to rain on my parade.”

“Okay well I think-”

“You two, stop bickering like school children and get back to work!”

For once you were glad for the harsh call of Dana’s voice as you and Santos jumped. You took a moment breathing in and calming yourself, though that only lasted a moment and you you promptly turned and marched off in the direction of your patient’s room but not before flipping Santos the bird when she called after you,

“Have fun on your trip!

You felt your eyelids grow heavy as the lush green landscape whooshed past the window. The two of you had been driving for a couple of hours and the car had settled into a blissful quiet, the only sounds breaking it being Jack’s soft humming along to the faint sound of the radio as some old rock song crackled out of it. The grounding weight of Jack’s warm hand rested in its usual place atop your leg. The difference of the dysfunctional hospital environment to the overwhelming tranquility of the thick forest that passed you by was jarring and it felt for the first time in months that life had finally slowed down. No longer was your world made up of a million problems requiring your immediate attention and instead it was just you, Jack and the steady rumble of the car along the quiet road.

You let yourself bask in it, leaning against the window pain and curling up in your seat. The heavy weight on your shoulders dragging you under until sleep finally claimed you.

A gentle shake to your shoulder was the first thing you registered, blinking awake as you took in your surroundings.

“Sweetheart, we’re here.”

The clearing in front of you looked as if it was out of a fairytale. The creak babbled next to the clearing that was enshrouded by towering pine trees. The soft afternoon sun shone through the leaves, baking you both in the pleasant heat. A small firepit sat in the centre of the clearing an a washhouse built from stone stood just a few paces behind it.

You stretched out lazily and took Jack’s hand to help you down out of his truck. Once you were on the ground he went around the back of the truck to get the tent and equipment out. You watched him carefully, noticing the limp in his step that was undoubtedly due to his prosthetic tormenting him after the long drive.

“Need help hon?”

You followed him round the truck, taking the cooler out of his hand before he had the chance to tell you he was fine and setting it down next to one of the camping spots. Looking around there weren't any other tents that you could see. 

“It’s quiet.”

Jack looked up from where he was knelt on the ground, starting to assemble the tent. His T-shirt sleeves hugged snug around his thick biceps in a deliciously distracting way.

“Yeah probably cos we picked an odd time to come up here, it’s nice though, lots of privacy.”

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at his obviousness, stalking over and settling down on the ground next to him to help but not without nudging his shoulder with yours in retaliation.

The two of you worked in tandem to get the tent set up, though you spent a lot of the time trying not to be distracted by the way his muscles moved beneath his tight black shirt. When he carried the logs across to start a fire you had to physically turn away and remove him from your line of sight or it would’ve gotten dark before anything productive got done on your end. You offered to cook the pasta you’d brought on the portable stove since he’d done the brunt of the work today while he went for a shower and you had to fight your urges when you witnessed him tug his shirt off on the way to the tiny washhouse. You knew he’d done it on purpose, though you’d have plenty of time to pay him back for his teasing later.

Once it had got dark and the two of you sat huddled up round the fire eating your pasta, you’d found yourself draped across his lap as his free hand rubbed up and down your arm to keep you warm. At this moment in time you couldn’t think of anywhere else you’d rather be. After you’d eaten and set your bowl aside you felt his lips brush your temple and he mumbled into your hairline.

“Wanna go to bed?”

You hummed in agreement, nodding your head before you rose from your position, extending a hand to help him up as well to which he took, grunting as he stood. You couldn’t help but snort slightly at it.

“You’re such an old man.”

The look he fixed on you wasn't exactly impressed.

“Excuse you, who drove you all the way up here and set up the tent you’re going to be sleeping in.”

You stared back at him with mock offense.

“I think you’ll find that I helped with the tent, or did your senior citizen brain forget that.”

“I don’t sweetheart because most of the time you spent helping seemed to involve ogling me.”

He had you there you supposed. But it’s not a crime to admire the beefy gift you’d been blessed with in boyfriend form. You stepped closer to him, letting his warmth brush against your space while you met his eyes, talking low as if letting him in on a secret.

“You wish I was ogling you, really I was just scared you’d have a heart attack from exerting yourself too much.” 

He scoffed, trying his hardest to act offended despite the giant smirk plastered across his face. He stepped closer as well, so much so you were almost chest to chest and leaned in close to whisper against the skin of your ear.

“You and I both know how much I can exert myself, you have nothing to worry about.” 

Your breath caught and you could only stand there frozen as he stepped back, turning towards the truck to grab his bag like nothing had happened. He handed you your bag on the way back before settling back down in front of the fire, watching you until you managed to gain some composure and unstick yourself from your spot, heading off towards the washhouse to change into your pyjamas and get ready for bed.

By the time you got back Jack was already waiting for you inside the snug two person tent. His prosthetic was set off to the side and he looked up as you approached and opened his arms for you to flop into once you’d toe-ed off your slippers at the entrance and zipped shut the door. You eagerly curled into his hold and basked in the way his arms came up to wrap around you. He turned off the small electric lamp in the corner and you tried to settle down for some sleep. 

After a few moments of quiet you couldn’t help but toss and turn a bit. Despite Jack’s warm presence next to you you still felt the chill of the outside world sneak under the blankets and into your bones. You thought you were being discrete until his arm curled around your middle, pulling you back firmly against his chest. His tired voice murmured by your ear.

“What's wrong?”

You interlinked your hand over his, enjoying the moment for a second before you replied.

“I’m just a bit cold, go back to sleep.” You felt his responding hum against your back as he thought.

“I can’t sleep if I know you’re going to be freezing to death while I am.”

You chuckled at the dramatics though the sound was cut off by a gasp when his hand slid down the length of your body to lightly pinch your thigh. It stayed there while he spoke, tenderly gripping the flesh exposed by your sleep shorts.

“You know…” He began cautiously, carefully deciding how to say what he needed. “There are other ways I could help warm you up.” Your pulse stuttered in the annoying way it always seemed to despite having been together for months.

“Oh really… And how exactly would you do that, Doctor Abbot?” 

Your voice came out light and breathy as you felt his lips begin to trace kisses along the column of your throat. He brought them back up, the softness of them caressing the shell of your ear.

“I can think of a few ways.”

His hand that was on your thigh dragged back up and you felt the rough pads of his fingers slip past the waistband of your sleep shorts and underwear, dragging down until they found the heat between your thighs. You gasped out when they started to trace slow circles on your clit and threw your head back against his shoulder. His other hand came up to grasp your jaw and turn your head so that his mouth could claim yours, tongues stroking against each other lazily as the kiss deepened. You moaned into his mouth when you felt his thick fingers drag down and push into you, a sound he greedily swallowed. 

He pulled back and kissed along your jaw, you could feel his smile against your skin and it only made you squirm more. The hand that held your face moved down to grope your chest through your pyjama top at first and then eventually shoved up the fabric to reach flesh when he got desperate.

“Jack.” Your voice came out as a loud whine in the quiet of the forest, seemingly echoing in the small space of the tent. Your own hands clawed at his toned forearms in desperation as you moaned out. “Jack I- I need you inside of me. Now.”

“I know sweetheart, give me a sec”

His hands retreated from you and you whined out, feeling him move behind you. You shimmied shorts and underwear down and off your legs. You settled yourself back firmly against his chest and reached your hand back until you could tangle it into the curls at the nape of his neck, angling his head to connect your lips once again. The kiss was sloppier than the one before had been, saliva no doubt smeared across both your faces. Behind you Jack lined himself up with your entrance and pushed inside of you with a groan. You moaned into his mouth as he started to move, scratching your nails through his hair while you both writhed on the sleepmat, alone in the forest and doing nothing other than basking in the pleasure of being together like this.

His hips sped up and you could tell he was getting close, his low grunts in your ear driving you closer to the edge. His hand desperately pushed between your legs and he rubbed your clit faster making you mewl out as you came, clenching tight around him as he followed after you, moaning low as you came down from your respective highs.

Both of you were panting out into the darkness and your bones were beginning to turn to jelly. You melted into his arms, letting him roll you onto your back while he kissed across your face before settling down next to you with a thick arm wrapped around your middle. His voice came out heavy with exhaustion when he spoke, 

“Warmed up now?”

“You could say that.”

The next morning you awoke to the sound of birds singing and an unnaturally cold tent. Feeling around the space next to you confirmed what you feared most - Jack was gone. Tugging on your discarded clothes you slipped out of the tent and into the world, scanning the woods and finding him already dressed and sat on one of the benches as he drank what you assumed to be coffee. You noticed he had his glasses on and was reading one of the many crime novels he usually kept on his shelves at home collecting dust. You felt the edges of your lips tug upwards at the simple domesticity of the sight and softly padded over to him. 

His shoulders tensed at first when your arms wrapped around them before relaxing once you'd whispered a quick ‘hi’ to him and kissed the side of his head. Lazily he turned his neck to seek a proper kiss which you didn’t hesitate to grant. His lips embraced yours tenderly for just a second and then he was pulling back, much to your dismay.

“I was thinking we could go for a hike today.”

Your brows furrowed.

“A hike?”

He hummed, shifting on the bench so he was facing you, you stepped between his opened thighs on instinct and his own hands came up to brace either side of your hips while you spoke.

“I did some reading about the area, apparently there's meant to be a mountain trail with the most gorgeous views like 20 minutes east from here.”

As much as you loved Jack, a day of walking wasn’t exactly what you had in mind when coming away with him. He must have sensed the reluctance in you because he continued explaining.

“I promise it'll be fun sweetheart, we’ll both feel great afterwards too, get the blood pumping and the endorphins rushing, you won't regret it.” 

And when he looked up at you like that, how could you refuse.

You in fact did regret it. A lot.

Your loving boyfriend failed to mention that the hike was over 5 hours and involved climbing up the fucking mountain.

“Hon? How much further?” You called out after him, struggling to keep up despite being the supposed youthful and able-bodied one in the relationship. Jack seemed to have barely broken a sweat up ahead of you. He’d already started carrying your water bottle as well as his so you truly had no excuse to be this far behind. It wasn't your fault your stamina was shit, working 12 hour shifts at the hospital didn’t leave much time to hit the gym, not like that affected Jack though. 

“Just 20 more minutes then we reach the viewpoint.”

20 minutes now was starting to seem a lot more like 7 hours of dragging your bare feet across hot coal with the way they were beginning to ache. Your legs already felt like they were about to fall off before you’d come on the trip from working back to back 12-hour shifts, it’s not like your activities last night helped at all either. Each step felt like you had the power of a thousand suns pulling you back down the mountain and back into your tent. Maybe the mountain had a problem with you personally and this torture was it’s way of getting you to leave. The only thing keeping you going was the view of Jack from behind, especially the way his navy shirt hugged the muscles of his back perfectly as he moved, the fabric stretching deliciously and leaving nothing to the imagination. Despite that one thing was clear to you; no viewpoint was worth all this suffering.

You barely registered Jack’s extended hand waiting in front of you.

“C’mon sweetheart this is the last push.”

His calm disposition was infuriating and it was all you could do to mumble back to him.

“You wait till I push you.”

He just chuckled and carried on, his warm palm gripping your sweaty one and you’d have half thought to pull away if you didn’t think that you’d crumble into a million pieces if you let go. 

What felt like an eternity later you at last reached the viewpoint, collapsing into the bench at the top with an extremely unladylike grunt, watching Jack as he started photographing your surroundings. If you had any energy left maybe you would’ve laughed and called him old for the way he carefully cradled the phone between two hands. Instead all you could do was watch and grunt in protest when he turned the camera on you, attempting to cover your slightly red face while he smiled. Once he was done he settled back down beside you, arm resting beside you on the bench and he leaned in to kiss your sweaty head.

“That was great, right?”

“I hate you.” 

He laughed loudly in response and threw his head back, maybe he was evil, enjoying your suffering like that but at least he was happy. Looking up at the viewpoint you supposed it was quite pretty. Maybe not break your ankles trying to get here pretty, but still pretty. You leaned into Jack’s side, no longer having the willpower to care about how sweaty you both were and he brought his arm around your shoulders. The both of you sat there just savouring the moment for a while, letting the overwhelming peace and quiet engulf you as you came down from the ache of the hike up.

Jack was the first to break the silence.

“I’m really glad you suggested this by the way.”

“Hm?”

“I don’t think I’d have taken time off if you hadn’t and so far these past two days have been the most relaxed I’ve felt in a while.”

You wrapped an arm around his waist and hugged him tightly, wishing you could transfer every atom of your love over to him like that. He kissed the crown of your head so reverently and you almost imploded.

“I love you so much sweetheart.”

“I love you too Jack.” 

And in that moment it was just the two of you.

“You are carrying me back down this hill though.”

Divider Credits @uzmacchiato

A/N: Hope you enjoy, this was a pain in the neck to get done so I'm sorry if it seems clunky or rushed at points I haven't written in a WHILE.

Also please no part 2 requests or negative comments because they will be removed!

After Valarr had kissed you you’d felt as if you were on autopilot. You’d had to call Tanselle to pick you up, her gaze questioning and concerned but you didn’t have the energy to explain the situation to her at the time. You didn’t have the energy to do anything but feel. 

Feel the overwhelming, crushing weight of the guilt. You felt guilty not because you kissed him back, but because you liked it. It felt right in a way that kisses with Aerion never had, instead of a violent clashing of tongues and teeth or a harsh claiming brand it felt soft, and warm like basking in the heat of a summer’s evening or being welcomed home after a long day. If Aerion was the storm, then Valarr was the calm. Your mind was racing a mile a minute and you felt like you wouldn’t be able to breathe again, that Valarr had stolen it with his kiss and you’d never get it back. 

You’d holed yourself up in your room for the first few days after that, calling in sick to avoid seeing him in lectures or at the internship. It took two weeks before you managed to find the courage to go back to regular life. You hadn’t realised how integrated into your life he was until it came to the point you needed him out of it. There was still the project to do, and of course you couldn’t avoid him forever, but putting distance was the only logical course of action at the minute, you needed to rationalise your thoughts and space from Valarr would give you time to do that. His presence was too intoxicating for you. You had to remind yourself what you saw in Aerion in the first place, why he was the better choice, why he was your person. His cousin was just a charming distraction sent to test your relationship. You’d started going on more dates with Aerion, forcing yourself to laugh harder at his jokes and to forget the way Valarr’s soft hands held your burnt wrist. You’d begun to kiss Aerion harder, hoping the pressure of his lips could wipe away the soft brush of Valarr’s. You’d only respond dryly to Valarr’s texts, and for his part he wasn’t bringing up what had happened in the storage room though you were unsure if that was for his sake or yours. Eventually when you returned to lectures you kept your distance, sitting away from him, project work in the library would be done with headphones on in uncomfortable silence and you would often bring a friend or Aerion along as a shield (even if he complained to no end about it). For the internship it was much of the same, you avoided the file room like it carried the plague, requesting a new task when the organisers threatened to send you there. Life altogether started to feel a bit… dull. 

At least you had good friends.

“I just don’t know what to do!”

You were sitting with Tanselle, Rohanne and Rowan in the flat, head in hands while they tried to comfort you. It must have been the third time this week you were having this conversation with them and you knew they were getting exasperated. You couldn’t help it though, your mind was spinning like a washing machine on a self destructive cycle, constantly going back to that dreadful day in the file room. Tanselle placed a comforting hand on your shoulder, squeezing tightly to ground you in the mess of your emotions. Rohanne’s approach was a bit more blunt.

“Sounds like you need to decide which of them you like more and let the other one go.”

Rowan nodded along beside her, looking far too eager to get this conversation over with for the third time.

“You can’t let this get to you, it’s either Aerion or Valarr, which makes you feel happier?”

“No but it’s not either Aerion or Valarr, it’s Aerion okay, I just-” You took a breath, steeling yourself. “Aerion asked me out first, Aerion is my actual boyfriend, Aerion makes me feel happier.” The words were spoken so weakly even you could tell they were a lie.

“Sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself more than us love.”

“Rohanne!” Rowan firmly whacked her on the arm before looking at you. “She’s right though, you don't sound convinced.” 

You sighed and put your head in your hands, flopping back onto the sofa and hoping it would just swallow you whole.

“If I gave up on Aerion and just hopped over to his cousin, how would that look? No matter how I feel about Valarr, the shame of it would eat me up inside.” Another agonising truth settled into your chest. “Plus I don’t even know if he feels that way about me, he kissed me but hasn’t said anything about it since so it could’ve just been a spur of the moment thing, y’know?”

You peeked through your fingers to find them all staring down at you and promptly recovered your face. You’re not sure which one of them spoke next.

“Oh girl."

Valarr felt like a fool. 

He misread everything, he was a selfish, entitled fool. Of course you didn’t want him, if you wanted him you wouldn’t be with Aerion, you wouldn’t have pulled away when he kissed you and you certainly wouldn’t have begun to act so distant. He wanted to apologise and decided that he’d try to when he next saw you, but then you started not showing up for lectures which wasn’t like you at all, ignoring his messages and when you called out sick from the internship for the third time that week it was pretty much the final nail in the coffin that contained his heart. When he reached out over text asking if you were alright he felt how distant you were and wanted to kick himself for causing the gap. It seemed like you didn’t want to talk about it and neither did he because talking about it would mean having to face the cold sting of rejection. He wished he could turn back time, because he knew having you as just a friend was better than not having you in his life at all.

He knew you’d be there at the next family dinner, his father had told him and he’d tried desperately to get out of it. The idea of having to grit through an evening of watching Aerion be all over you, of watching you choose Aerion and give him all your love when he was the person that deserved it the least made Valarr feel sick to his stomach. His father didn’t understand the issue when they’d spoken over the phone, he couldn’t admit what he’d done and disappointing Baelor Targaryen was a fate worse than death. He’d just tried to explain that he wasn’t feeling great but of course his father had seen straight through the flimsy excuse, simply telling him, “We’ll talk about this before the dinner.” and leaving him with no choice. 

So there he was, in his kitchen quietly cutting vegetables while pretending he was oblivious to the concerned looks his parents kept shooting each other. He chose to ignore them, if they wanted to have this conversation it would have to be them that started it. They must have realised this too because with a subtle nod from his father, his mother started talking.

“Valarr.. we’ve noticed you haven't exactly been yourself over the past couple of weeks and we just wanted to check if everything's alright? There isn’t anything bad going on you’d want to talk to us about?” She’d walked over to him whilst speaking, gently touching his arm to encourage him to stop what he was doing and to look at her. Valarr had to take a moment to close his eyes and breathe, he knew that he couldn’t look into his mothers eyes and lie to her, if he did she’d see right through him, especially if it was a matter of the heart. Once he turned to his mother his thin resolve immediately crumbled and he felt the  words spew out before he could think to stop them.

“I kissed Aerion’s girlfriend.” 

“What?”

“I beg your pardon?”

His mother and father’s responses made him wince and he quickly rushed to amend the statement before they could go off on him.

“I know it was bad it’s just-” He huffed out a breath, fiddling with his fingers and refusing to lift his eyes from where they were glued to the floor. “She’s one of the best people I’ve met and makes me feel seen in a way I’ve never felt before. I tried to keep things friendly and keep my distance. It's just that Aerion treats her so badly and she’s already had a horrible past so it doesn’t feel fair that she’s with him when I know I could treat her how she deserves. She hates me now anyways, she's been avoiding me since it happened.” His chest was heaving when he finished his tirade and he chanced a look up to his parent’s faces, preparing himself for the disappointment that was inevitably waiting for him. Instead he found a mix of shock and sympathy, for the first time in his life Valarr could see the great Baelor Targaryen was without words.

“Are you guys mad at me?” He couldn’t help but ask, suddenly feeling much smaller in the kitchen space than he previously did. His mother broke first, pulling him forward into a crushing hug as she reassured him.

“Oh gods, we’re not mad sweetheart, just shocked is all, you never usually have problems with girls like this.”

He felt a warm hand join his mother’s at his back, his father, and the feeling of being encompassed in his parents' love soothed the nausea in his gut a little bit. His mother pulled back first, cradling his cheeks in her soft hands.

“I promise you the way you’re feeling won’t last forever, okay?” He nodded, willing himself not to cry in front of his parents at his big age. “I need to go and sort a few things out before dinner but I promise you it’s all going to be okay.” She watched him nod to his father, whose hand was still resting against his upper back as she left, a silent message in her eyes and from the corner of his eyes he could see his father nod back. Once she was gone he began to turn back to the vegetables, wanting to resume the task so he wouldn’t have to talk about his outburst with his father.

“Valarr.” 

He froze in place, foolishly thinking that perhaps if he stayed still long enough he could disappear. Alas it did not work and he slowly turned to face his father, those dual coloured eyes that matched his own burning a hole into him with the steadiness that made men quake. Valarr willed himself to remain composed no matter what. If his father wanted to berate him for being selfish he’d take it as what he deserved.

“Thank you for telling your mother and I what’s been troubling you, we’ve been quite worried about you.” Valarr nodded, he knew his father was testing the waters and all he could do was wait for him to get to the point.

“Valarr this whole situation is a very difficult one, and the way I see it you have two options.”

He nodded, listening carefully for his father’s well grounded advice.

“The smart one would be the logical choice, to try and let this girl go even though it hurts. She’s your cousin’s girlfriend and trying to involve yourself in someone else’s relationship will never end well. You could try to remain friends or cut ties completely, whatever is best for you.”

He leaned in more, waiting for the second option, and when his father didn’t speak he opened his mouth to prompt him.

“Or?”

Baelor sighed, gaze heavy as he debated whether or not to continue speaking.

“When I met your mother she was with someone else.” Valarr’s eyebrows shot up, his parents had never spoken about how they met before. Before he could ask more his father continued, “She was dating someone from back home, despite this I started to gain feelings for her much like you are now. She’d frequently complain about this man to me and I would often feel jealous, jealous that someone took for granted the person I cared for.” 

Valarr wasn’t sitting but he was certain that if he was sitting he’d be on the edge of his seat by now. 

“What did you do, to get mum to like you?”

“I told her how I felt, I said that if it’s what she wanted I’d leave her alone or I’d stay her friend and my feelings would fade.” He paused for a moment, but Valarr couldn’t wait. 

“How’d she respond, when you told her?”

His father chuckled at his eagerness and Valarr had at least enough sense to look sheepish.

“She thanked me, told me it was a big revelation and for the time being wanted to remain friends and I respected that.” His mind seemed far away, reminiscing on the memories of the past. “A few months later she ended things with her boyfriend. I wanted to give her time before I made a move so she could properly heal. I was serious about her and didn't want to just be a rebound but eventually she came to me herself and demanded to know what was taking so long.” He chuckled to himself at that, finishing up the story as he looked back to his son, his expression gaining the seriousness it usually did right before he delivered some wisdom. “The only person that can end that relationship is her, your mother said afterwards that me being honest with my feelings helped her realise that there were better options for her so she had more confidence to end her relationship. If you had an honest conversation with this girl I think it could help a lot.” 

Valarr nodded, the information a lot to take in, his father’s hand came up once again to rest on his shoulder in a grounding measure. 

“Do you think I should try and talk to her tonight?” 

“No.” His father said resolutely, “Tonight just try and enjoy family dinner, talk to her in a more private comfortable setting at another time, okay?”

“Right- er, thank you for the advice dad.” He felt somewhat awkward now though his heart felt a bit lighter. There was hope for him in the future and he could fix things with you properly. He just had to get through tonight.

You seemed quieter, That was the first thing Valarr noticed once you’d arrived at dinner, it was like you were lost in Aerion’s shadow and it made something ache deep in his chest. You weren’t as talkative as last time and you avoided looking at him like he was medusa herself. It made guilt twist in his gut like a jagged knife slowly cutting him apart. His father had to nudge him under the table with his foot to get him to stop staring at you and eat his meal but even then he couldn’t drag his mind away from you. It was only natural he noticed that after you got up to go to the bathroom you hadn’t returned for a suspiciously long amount of time. He wasn't sure if he should speak up about it or not, surely Aerion would notice you were gone? The minutes ticked by and still no one said anything until it seemed his father had caught onto his nervous energy and realised too, broaching the topic for him.

“Aerion, your girlfriend has been gone for quite a while, perhaps you should check up on her?”

Aerion who for his part had appeared to be busy tormenting his little brothers looked unimpressed by the interruption and answered dismissively. 

“She’s probably just on her period or something. It's fine if you’re really that worried uncle send Valarr since they’re so close.” 

His father looked unimpressed and turned towards him.

“Valarr would you go and check on her please.” 

“Yeah dad.”

He overheard Aerion make some comment about him being a dog on the way out but ignored it in favour of checking on you, making his way down the polished tile floors to the bathroom. Once he reached the door he listed his hand to knock and call your name but a sound from within stopped him. It was faint, the soft sound of crying and he felt worry bubble up in his stomach. He called your name first waiting for a response that didn’t come.

“Are you okay?”

He listened closely, hearing you move around, still sniffling though you tried to hide it as you spoke to him.

“I’m fine Valarr, I just need a minute.”

He sighed despite himself and tried bridging the canyon between you again. 

“You don’t seem or sound fine at all, let me in so I can help, as your friend.” He waited a moment longer, and nothing happened, “please?’

Soon after that he heard the lock click, the door slowly creaking open to reveal you inside. You looked rough, tear tracks across your cheeks and your face swollen red and puffy. He didn’t hesitate to pull you into his arms, rubbing your back while you clutched at his shirt like a lifeline. 

“What happened?” He asked, after you’d pulled away and calmed down a bit. He still kept you in his grasp in case you broke again. Your mouth flapped open like you were going to respond but no words came out, instead your eyes drifted to your phone that was lying discarded on the bathroom floor. Valarr kept one hand on you as he bent to pick it up, eyes focusing on the screen and the sight waiting for him made rage stir inside of him. There was a photo sent to you by some girl he didn’t know, it was dimly lit and hard to make out at first, clearly at a house party, in it however was Aerion making out with someone who was definitely not you.

Valarr was bewildered, he felt frozen in place and unable to move. Just as he’d found his footing in this whole situation only for the floor beneath him to be torn away. He was going to throttle Aerion the next time he saw him. He had to stay calm though, for your sake most of all. He turned back to you, carefully placing the phone on the sink before turning back to you, bringing his free hand up to cradle the side of your face, gently holding you. 

“Listen you need to breathe and calm down for a minute, is there anyone I can call to come pick you up?”

You took a deep breath before answering.

“My friend Tanselle, but I think she’s busy-” 

“If she’s your friend I promise she’ll drop whatever she’s doing for this, can I use your phone to ring her?”

You nodded slightly and he moved you to sit down on the closed lid of the toilet. His conversation with Tanselle was quick, though her tone had changed considerably once he’d told her who he was and explained the situation and she’d promised to be there as quickly as possible. He was about to help grab your things and lead you out when the last person both of you wanted to see appeared at the door. 

“People keep bugging me about where you guys are so can we hurry up please- Woah, what’s going on here?”

Valarr felt violent just looking at him and snapped defensively. 

“None of your business Aerion.” Aerion’s gaze hardened and he stepped closer to Valarr. 

“She’s my girlfriend so I think technically it is my business.” Valarr refused to back down, he met Aerion head on with the same clipped tone from earlier.

“If she’s your girlfriend then maybe you shouldn’t treat her the way you do.” Valarr felt a surge of violence as a lazy grin spread across Aerion’s face and he stepped back, raising his hands in mock surrender.

“If you wanted to fuck her you just had to say so.”

 His words broke the dam of composure Valarr had carefully built and he lunged forward, fist swinging towards Aerion’s face with as much strength as he could muster. The punch landed with a satisfying smack, sending Aerion reeling back. Valarr saw you shoot up from where you sat, hands covering your mouth as you gasped. He wanted to turn and help you, he regretted letting Aerion get the better of him in the first place but before he could think Aerion was on him, kicking him hard in the ankles so he went down with a thud and hitting him hard. He heard you run off, shouting for help from his family while he tried his best to block Aerion’s attacks. This was his fault, he couldn’t stay calm like he was supposed to and now he made a fool of himself. He was supposed to be helping you, not the other way around. The rest of it was a blur, he knew his father and uncle managed to tear himself and Aerion apart but by that point you’d already gone. Getting out of there as soon as you knew the situation was handled and he couldn’t help but feel like he’d made everything even worse.

A/N: Embarrassing aura loss for both Valarr and Aerion…

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❖ I know he'd need this BAD, his stress levels are probably through the roof just from dealing with his kids alone, so imagine what they're like with his princely duties and having to run Summerhall.

❖ I imagine he'd come back to your shared chambers late at night, his duties or children having kept him away, he'd most likely expect you to be asleep and would be slightly shocked at the sight of you still awake, reading a book in bed wearing just your thin silk shift that you know he loves as you wait for him.

❖ You'd greet him warmly, clambering from bed and his eyes would follow the enticing way the silk falls over your bare thighs. He would fight the urge to jump on you then and there and allow you to settle your hands on his chest with an ungodly amount of restraint.

❖ In times like these, when his exhaustion hits him full force, you'd most likely need to take the lead. You'd undress him slowly, asking him questions about his day and letting him vent his frustrations out with the immense loyalty and care he loves you for. You'd only interrupt him to steal kisses every now and again, trying to coax him into a more peaceful state.

❖ If you ever suggested sharing a bath before bed he'd most likely be so grateful he'd drop straight to his knees right there and then. You'd sit on his lap in the hot waters, dragging your hands through the damp strands of his hair while you tell him about your day, his hands rubbing your skin with an alarming gentleness he only reserves for the quiet moments between the two of you.

❖ You'd both wash each other carefully, honestly by that point he'd probably be too tired to do anythig sexual unless you initiated and in that case it would most likely be him lying back while you rode him to oblivion or letting him lazily eat you out until you're squirming.

❖ Once the two of you are in bed and in your proper nightclothes He'd run his fingers over your head, feeling the texture of your hair while you rested on his chest, drawing soft shapes into and placing gentle kisses on his skin until he falls asleep.

Maekar

❖ At first Maekar will most likely be frustrated, unused to uncomfortably emotional situations. Not at you, never at you, but at the situation, at how helpless he feels, at how torn he feels. He wants to spend time with the baby, to savour the firsts of the child's life but at the same time he needs to protect you, to be the ever-present unmovable protector of your peace.

❖ He's more of an actions instead of words person, when you're holing yourself up in your room he'll stay outside, intercepting any servants that try bring things in or messages that people try to deliver just so you don't have to feel the weight of being seen while you're struggling

❖ He'll be a rock by your side, taking you in his arms when you can't sleep and helping you to look after yourself when you forget. If you have a day where you have more energy he'll take you for walks through the garden's, his arm's wrapped around you and attention fixed for any sign of discomfort or distress.

❖ He'd make sure you have plenty of time to do the things you enjoy, whether it be spending time with others, reading a book in a quiet corner of the library or going out horse riding. So long as he could see you smile again he'd move the sky and the earth.

❖ If you ever experience frightening thoughts he'd reassure you that its okay and that he would never love you any less because of it (he has thoughts of murder on a regular basis anyway and you still put up with him).

❖ Eventually when you start to feel better your walks would take you to the nursery and the three of you would spend time with your babe, Maekar would remain watchful for if you got overwhelmed or tired but most of all he'd be thankful for having his beloved wife back.

Daeron

❖ Daeron would probably pull away at first. All his life he's only made things worse and he feared doing that with you after the birth had been so hard. It would only be if one of the maesters or his father or uncle told him that you were only getting worse that he'd started doing something about it.

❖ He'd put down the wine, before the birth you'd always talk about your distaste for his drinking so he thought that even though it was like pulling teeth he'd try, even if it was just till you got better, for he needed to be strong enough for the both of you.

❖ Mostly he'd sit and talk to you, even if you were unresponsive, sitting and staring blankly and ignoring him he'd talk to you. He would bring a book and read aloud to you, or tell you about something funny or annoying that happened in court earlier, or talk to you about the progress of the babe.

❖ He'd spend a lot of time in the library, seeking answers for what he could do to help you get better. He knew deep down that the maester's answer of 'it will just pass with time' was wrong and that there was something he could do.

❖ Constant words of affirmation, for every negative word you say about yourself he's taking you into his arms and speaking a thousand words about why he loves you.

❖ If you start to feel a bit more energised he'll try and convince his father that the two of you and your babe should take a trip away from Summerhall, so you can properly heal outside the eyes of the court, for he knows how much extra stress their whispers can add.

❖ Like his father he'd take you for walks and silently rub his thumb across your hand whenever you falter. He'd listen to you rant and cry and never judge you once, looking at you with an achingly soft tenderness.

❖ If you have trouble sleeping he'd always be there, his dreams keep him awake anyway so if you had a restless night he'd simply talk to you, running his hand through your hair until you're lulled back to tranquility.