Lives Intertwined

How's Life

"I can't believe you're here. I'm here. And for the semester? How long has it been?" Dany and Jon strolled down the pathway, which was dimly lit by street lights.

"I just can't believe we haven't run into each other at all," Jon said, his camera swinging behind him.

"Well, we are on the other side of campus and I'm only there a few times a week. Plus, I'm not even living in the dorms," Dany explained, pulling out her braids and letting her hair wrap around her shoulders.

A moment passed. Their footsteps echoed in the night.

"I'm sorry we didn't keep in touch," Jon said, pausing briefly.

Dany stopped too, putting her hand gently on his arm. "It's not your fault. Sometimes it happens, but we're here now."

"That, we are."

When they parted that evening, they promised to meet up on Tuesday, since they would be on campus around the same time. "I'll pencil you in," Dany had said, clicking away on her phone. Her fingers moved at a remarkable speed.

"Still that busy?" Jon asked, watching her.

"Did you expect anything less?" Jon just laughed.

. . . . .

When she arrived back at her flat, she collapsed onto her bed. She tried to close her eyes, but sleep didn't come. With a huff, Dany grabbed her phone from her night table and opened Instagram. She was curious.

Dany quickly typed Jon's username. She hardly had a chance to check the app because of her crazy schedule. She only really used Instagram now to update her friends back at home. They would always comment something along the lines of, "Why is your life so perfect?" And Dany would smile.

Under the surface, she didn't think her life was anywhere close to perfect. Money, yes, she had it. Friends, yes, she had those as well. Education, well her mom and dad definitely paid enough for it, but it was hers nonetheless. Career aspirations, there was no doubt she was getting a job after graduation. Where - hopefully New York. Position - she had to still weigh her options.

While Dany had adoration, it didn't always fuel her. She wanted more. She always wanted more. Sometimes she would wonder if she had everything she could possibly want, why couldn't she just learn to live in the moment? Why couldn't she just learn to be content with her life?

Was it her problem? She didn't know, so she went through the motions. Alarm at 5. Gym at 6. Class at 8. It was all planned. Her entire life was about following the procedure. Sometimes she forgot that it was her life and life didn't always adhere to a strategy.

She covered up her feelings of doubt by her work. It made her feel less. It made her think less. Little did she know, she was fading. Dany scrolled through Jon's Instagram page, happy to see pictures of his siblings. They had all grown up so much. Most of his pictures were black and white. Artsy.

He was even drinking coffee now. She knew it.

Dany thought back to the beginning of high school when they would spend hours together, just shooting the breeze. Back in Winterfell, she didn't feel this sense of isolation, maybe from Aerys, Viserys and even Rhaella, but never from her friends. In New York, she learned to cover up. Maybe it was part of living in the big city, she didn't know. Her friends and her were close, but she didn't talk to them about everything. No one knew what life was like before she moved to the city. They threw money around, getting the best of everything and those experiences bonded them, but they were missing something deeper.

Dany posted a picture of herself and Jon that she had asked a stranger to take in the park. "That composition is all wrong," Jon had said when they looked at the result. "You're a pain, you know that?" Jon just laughed.