#dadvos

There was a noise behind her, a hand on her shoulder, and she whirled around, pupils blown wide and breath catching before she registered that it wasn’t a threat- it wasn’t Ramsey Bolton- it was just Jon Snow, looking at her with dark, searching eyes- like she was a puzzle to be solved.

“Sorry.” She managed to get out in a rush, stumbling slightly as she tried to right her feet from where they had twisted around with her. Jon’s hands caught her, one enfolding her waist, the other resting on her shoulder, and he was searching her face for something she didn’t want to explain.

“Are you alright?” he asked her, his rough voice drawing her out of herself.

“I’m fine.” Sansa whispered, extricating herself from his hold as she stepped around him. His grip was gentle enough that she barely had to move to break it, and she nervously tucked her hair behind her ears where it had fallen out of the messy knot she’d pinned it up into earlier that day. “I’m sorry to be in your way.”

“You’re not in my way.” Jon murmured, something vaguely irritated quirking at his mouth. Sansa failed to completely hide the way she winced at the expression, and his face smoothed instantly as he studied her. “You just seem upset.” He continued, raising a brow, the ends of his lips tilting upwards. “I would hate to see my favorite waitress burn herself out. Is Seaworth working you too hard?”

Sansa let herself relax a fraction and felt the corners of her mouth quirk upwards.

“Leave Davos alone.” she gently chastised him. “I volunteered to take the extra shifts.”

It was better, after all, than spending what little free time she had alone in her tiny apartment, jumping at the shadows in her own mind.

Jon raised his hands in surrender, taking a step back.

“Seaworth is safe from my wrath for now, then.” He joked, and Sansa let her guard drop a little more- her shoulders slump- as she gave him a small, tired smile.

“That’s a relief to hear.” she told him, injecting as much of a teasing edge into her voice as she could. “I’ll be over to check in with you and your associates in just a minute- one of my other regulars is here with her hungry six-year old-“ she inclined her head towards one of her other tables that housed a tired-looking woman with a younger boy whose mop of blonde hair was clearly visible under the fluorescent lighting, “-and she looks tired enough that I think I’ll need to bring Aemon some extra crayons just so his poor mother can eat in peace.”

Gilly was one of her favorite customers, and Sansa knew that Davos always applied a discount to the single-mother’s orders- she was a sweet girl trying to get back on her feet, and Sansa recognized some of the shadows in her eyes.

“Far be it from me to stop you.” Jon chuckled. “Take your time, Sansa. There’s no rush for us. I wanted to ask Seaworth about something anyways- think you could send him my way?”