Chapter Text
Sansa arrives in the morning.
The cabins are beautiful - with high, vaulted ceilings, dark wood and fresh white linens. Her room smells like coconut and hibiscus and as she sets her case neatly at the foot of the bed and crosses the room to open the large double doors that lead out onto a wraparound deck, a warm salt-sun ocean breeze flows in from the balcony.
As many as thirty cabins line the picturesque beach on Omboru’s northern coastline, connected to a large central hall by a network of boardwalks that crisscross through the jungle.
It had been quite the first impression, leaving the airport at White Harbour under a blanket of summer snow and arriving here.
She can’t help the little smile that sets on her lips, as she looks out onto the tree lined path that leads down to the water. It’s beautiful here - if not a little too warm, Sansa is a northern girl after all - but the endless ocean view seems freeing somehow, and isn’t that exactly what she had wanted?
Leaning out onto the railing of the balcony, Sansa watches as a group of guys her age run past, stopping at the far end of the beach with a net and volleyball. Even from this distance she can see the way their bare muscled chests and arms move golden, bronze and copper in the sunshine, and she looks her fill.
Maybe it’ll be one of them?
She certainly wouldn’t complain if it were, that’s for sure. Sansa isn’t completely shallow, to catch her interest he’ll have to be kind and gentle, brave too - but if she’s going to go on a blind date, a naked blind date, then she won’t complain if he’s got a body like one of those boys and a face to match.
She can feel her cheeks redden at the thought of what she’s about to do and the little smile returns. Dating naked - what a ridiculous idea.
-
The first time Sansa had heard of the idea she’d come home to find her sister Arya and boyfriend Gendry watching late night CRTV.
“What in the name of the Seven are you watching?” Sansa had said, thankful it was only the people on tv she had found naked - this time.
Arya and Gendry were snuggled deep into the plush sofa that took up a good deal of the living space in Sansa’s little apartment. There were two large wolf-like dogs, curled together on the rug at their feet, Nymeria and Lady, who belonged to the sisters.
Sansa had moved to the city two years ago to start college, and had taken the rental with her friend Jeyne. At the end of their second semester, Jeyne had gone back up north with a boyfriend and though Sansa had planned to look for a new roommate, her sister Arya, freshly graduated from high school, had appeared on her doorstep begging to take the empty room.
There had been a time, as girls, that the sisters had not been friends - but now that they were grown, their childish spats had turned into kindhearted teasing. They were very different people, true - Arya had always been wild and adventuresome, in contrast to Sansa’s sweet and sensible nature but so long as Arya paid her half, Sansa didn’t mind sharing and it had only brought the girls closer.
“Oh come on, Sanny - it’s just for fun.” Arya had said. “They just get a bunch of young people to take their clothes off and go on dates. And they blur everything out anyway - it’s not half as bad as what Uncle Petyr films.”
They had known their Aunt Lysa’s husband was a film producer - but until becoming adults, Sansa, Arya and the other Stark children had never known exactly what kind of movies Petyr made.
“Don’t remind me,” Sansa shuddered “He used to tell me all the time I’d be perfect for the camera, how much he’d love to make me a star.”
“Uncle Pervert is a creep and I’ll set Nymeria on him if he ever says another word to you. But this is nothing like that, it’s hilarious.” Arya had said finitely, reassuringly. “Look - they’re gonna make these two go four by fouring.”
She had pointed at the tv again and Sansa had suspected that her little sister was trying to distract her from thoughts of their uncle’s unseemly attention. Arya was often blunt, but Sansa appreciated the gesture all the same.
Sansa had looked, and seen a young attractive couple hop onto the seat of an ATV, blushing and laughing at the sudden proximity. They had hollered excitedly speeding off down a jungle path, bumping all the way.
Arya had laughed too, “oh he’s so gonna get a boner with her on his lap.”
Gendry snorted, “Yeah right, I’ll be shocked if that guy doesn’t lose one of his nuts first, look at how rough that track is.”
Sansa had been a little shocked at this - she wasn’t entirely sheltered, but this was hardly her idea of entertainment, what happened to the dating shows she remembered watching as a kid? Had long walks on the beach become just a bumpy ride with someone’s man-thing poking your bottom?
“So that’s it,” she had asked, “you just watch these two make naked fools of themselves?”
“Pretty much,” Gendry said.
“Well yeah - but it’s still a dating show, some people actually seem to hit it off.”
“Really?” Sansa was hardly the sort of person to find herself uninhibited very often, but she had to admit, there was something strangely thrilling about the idea. “Would you ever… you know?”
“Get naked on tv?” Arya had laughed. “Sure, don’t you think you could really get to know someone when you’ve let go of all your inhibitions? I mean you’re naked - what’s there to hide behind? And plus,” she said, grinning at her boyfriend, “I do have a smokin’ bod.”
As Sansa had left the room, she had tried to close her ears to the sounds of Gendry appreciating Arya’s smokin bod.
But the idea had stuck with her.
It was the end of her second year of college, and she had completed her exams without a hitch, she was responsible, she was organised - school, work, family and friends, everything was falling into place, fitting exactly where she wanted it to.
And while she was happy - there was still something missing. Truthfully, Sansa would have liked to find love, and after a string of unsuccessful dates, it felt like time to do something radical. Summer had come to Westeros, and she too was ready to break free.
-
A small gust of wind pulls a strand of long copper hair loose from behind her ear, and Sansa tucks it back into place, breathing in deeply. The air is warm and sweet and while she hasn’t actually got to the main event, she’s already feeling like this is exactly what she needs.
From somewhere in the room behind her, Sansa can hear the soft tinkle of her mobile text alert, and she goes to retrieve it, toeing off her sandals and flopping gracefully onto the bed to read the message.
Naked yet?
It’s Arya, blunt as ever.
Another message appears before Sansa can reply.
I know you landed an hour ago.
And another.
And if you don’t call me pronto I’ll be forced to assume your plane crashed and have no choice but to tell Mum and Dad where you went.
Sansa dials her sister’s number and the line barely has a chance to ring before Arya answers, repeating her question.
“Soooo,” she says, “naked yet?”
“No.”
“Seen any naked boys yet?”
“Arya, no. The director’s assistant just gave me a filming schedule and a map. My first date won’t be until this afternoon.”
Just the thought of it makes her blush a little, remembering the boys out on the beach.
“Hey you know what Mum said when I told her you were going out to the Summer Isles for a few days? She said look out for Uncle Pervert - apparently he’s filming out there this weekend and I looked it up Sanny, ever heard of Isles Gone Wild?”
“Eew! That party show where the girls get drunk and lift their shirts -“
Arya clears her throat and Sansa can only imagine the pointed look her little sister is directing through the phone.
“And you’ll be doing what exactly…”
“This is different, it’s not like I’ll be drunk.”
“Oh right, of course, it’s much more ladylike,” Arya laughs. “Oh and Mum said to have a good time, call her when you get home and not to forget the sunblock.”
“Arya! You didn’t tell her did you?”
“No I didn’t tell her, Sansa. Gods, they’re gonna know about it eventually - are you sure you’re really up for this?”
Sansa lays back, and stares up at the high ceiling, watching the fan above her bed spin dizzying circles. She takes a breath.
“Arya, please, don’t spoil this for me. I know it’s not my usual taste -“
Her sister snorts, and Sansa sighs into the phone.
“No kidding, Sanny - anyone of us is more likely, even Jon. I know for a fact he went skinnydipping with Ygritte last summer and he’s more uptight than Dad.”
“I know, okay, I know - but this was just something I needed to do, and who knows maybe I’ll find Mr Right.”
It’s Arya’s turn to sigh now.
“Only you could turn sweaty buttcheeks on an ATV into a fairytale, Sansa. I gotta go okay, I’m gonna take the dogs out before work - be safe big sis.”
“Thanks - give Lady a kiss from me, talk soon.”
Sansa hangs up and leaves her mobile on the nightstand, if she’s staying five nights, then she might as well get organised. She lifts her case onto bed and begins to unpack her things into the bamboo wardrobe on the other side of the room. She drops her favourite pair of whiter-than-white plimsolls near the door, and slides her case under the bed - and lastly, the novel she’d been reading on the short flight over goes onto the nightstand next to her mobile.
With her hands on her hips, Sansa looks about the room suddenly unsure of herself. Arya is good at rattling her - she always has been, that had been a source of much of their discord as children, but strangely her sister’s words have left her with nothing but a sense of anticipation. If only she knew what to do now…
“Hey there!”
Sansa turns to find a young, sandy-haired woman smiling at her warmly from the open door. Sansa’s room is one of three in the cabin and as she understands it, she’s sharing with some of the other girls who are filming for the same show she is.
“Hi! I’m Sansa,” she offers her hand and the woman takes it looking Sansa from the tips of her pink-painted toes to the top of her copper haired head.
“Margie. Hmm, so you’re my competition then.” she says, giving Sansa an appraising look.
Sansa is taken aback - she knows it’s a dating show, she knows two women other than herself will be set up with her date - just as Sansa herself will be offered the choice of three bachelors, but she had no idea they would take it this seriously. Something of her alarm must have shown on her face, because suddenly Margie is laughing.
“Oh I’m just kidding!” She says, reaching to take Sansa’s hand again, “but you should’ve seen your face, doll!”
“Oh, right…” Sansa says, absently playing with the end of her hair - an old nervous habit.
“You are very pretty though - I’m sure he’ll like you, I’m sure all your dates will like you.” Margie gives her hand a little tug. “Have you been down to the main house yet? That’s where we’ll have our meals, and where we party. Oh you’ve got to see the pool!”
Sansa shakes her head, “who is he?” she asks, slipping on her sandals and allowing herself to be led away from the cabin and down onto the pathway to the other buildings. It’s obvious Margie has an in Sansa doesn’t.
When she had arrived at the retreat Sansa was greeted by the director’s assistant, a sweet young guy called Pod who had given her a map and list of times and locations for filming, but he hadn’t said much more than stressing how she needed to be in those places at those times.
“Haven’t you heard?” Margie says, looking at Sansa seriously, a little of that same appraising note present in her glittering honey brown eyes. “Oh you haven’t have you - well, I have it on good authority that this is a special episode. It’s meant to be a surprise, of course, but bachelor number one is none other than Joffrey ‘KJ’ Baretheon.”
Sansa stops in her tracks and gapes at this news. How could that be possible? KJ was the hottest pop star in Westeros - his song I Am The King was everywhere right now, she had even heard Arya, who had called his music shallow and over produced, singing the catchy chorus in the shower. KJ was one of the biggest names in the Seven Kingdoms and in a matter of hours, she, Sansa would be his date, his naked date.
“But Margie, he’s… How did you even find out?”
“Does the name Tyrell mean anything to you?”
“Tyrell…” Sansa thought a brief moment, she had definitely heard that name before. “You’re Margaery Tyrell - as in the High Garden Sound Tyrells?”
It was the second surprise for Sansa in as many minutes. High Garden Sound was about the most prominent record label in the country, founded almost fifty years ago by tough as nails ex-pop star matriarch Olenna Tyrell.
“The one and only - my grandmother knows just about everyone there is to know in Westeros. She mentioned they were auditioning girls and when I said I was interested, she sent over my video.”
“I thought this was just for fun,” Sansa says as they begin to climb the steps to the main hall, suddenly feeling a little overwhelmed.
When Sansa had made up her mind, she had found the casting link on the CRTV site, filled out a few questions and sent her picture. Someone from the network had called three days later and offered her the role of ‘bachelorette number one’.
“It is just for fun, doll - don’t you worry, KJ maybe the man of the moment, but we’re still a couple of pretty girls looking for a bit of adventure. So what if our families gave us a little boost to get here.”
As Margie says this, Sansa can feel the stroke of her fingers against her wrist and it gives her tingles.
“You know - you’re right,” Sansa says, and means it. “That’s why I’m doing this. It was finally time to break out of my shell a little bit, do something wild for once - but no, no way, my family had nothing to do with this.”
Sansa laughs imagining what her stern, serious father would say if he found out - will say, she reminds herself. Her mother is more free spirited perhaps but there was no way they would have had any part in assisting her to take her clothes off on tv.
Margie meets her eyes, brows raised as she pulls back the screen door, allowing Sansa to enter the hall first and Sansa stares back. She wants to like her, she really does - they’ve known each other a matter of minutes, and Margie seems pretty, fun and clever, exactly the sort of girl she would befriend at home, but theres something about her that Sansa doesn’t quite trust.
Margie grins.
“Sure,” she says. “You’re a sweet one, doll, I’ve decided I like you - in fact, I think we’re going to be great friends. C’mon - let’s get something cold to drink, do you think it’s too early for sangria?”
-
As it turns out, it hadn’t been too early for a drink and after a few sips Sansa had begun to relax a little more, though she had kept referring to both the paper Pod had given her, and the nearest clock to ensure she wouldn’t be late for filming her first date.
Though she had still felt there was something devious about Margaery Tyrell, Sansa couldn’t help but enjoy her company. Soon they were joined by another girl, Dany, who they quickly learned was to be KJ’s third date and another pair, Myranda and Mya who were busy filming something else altogether.
It hadn’t taken long in the conversation for Sansa to realise she was something of an anomaly. While the girls had begun to share bawdy kiss-and-tell tales of boys they had once known, Sansa had found her stories were falling short. When asked pointedly what her ‘favourite lay had been like’ Sansa had sipped her drink and shrugged.
“Hold on -“ Dany had said, swinging the curtain of ice blonde hair away from her face so that she could look fully on Sansa’s reddening cheeks. “You’re not telling me you’re still a maid?”
Dany’s favourite story had been about an old boyfriend Drogo, leader of a Dothraki biker gang, who had once taken her astride one of his motorcycles. Sansa had listened breathlessly with the other girls as Dany had described the pressure of his large, strong hands on her back as he had effortlessly moved her up and down on his lap, and she had felt the sting of loss clutch at her heart when Dany had told them how their passionate affair had been brought short. He had been killed, Dany said, after a terrible crash that had left him in a coma, and the shock of it had caused her to miscarry their child.
There had been a few minutes of silence following Dany’s heart-wrenching story until she had given a little smile and reassured the girls that she would rather keep on talking about the good memories. That was when she had turned to Sansa, inviting her to take her turn.
“Well…” Sansa had begun.
“Oh come on - you either are or you’re not, there is no in between,” Mya had laughed.
“Then, uh… yes, I am,” she had said - proud of herself for sounding unashamed even under the interested gaze of four pairs of more experienced eyes.
This had been almost as sensational a reveal as Myranda’s tale of having two members of her brother’s rugby team on a flight between Old Town and White Harbour.
For all that Arya teased Sansa about being prim and prudish, the fact of the matter was - there had been no one who Sansa had wanted to share herself with. She hadn’t dated much, just a couple boys here and there in her first few years of college, but they had all been similar. Beautiful, of course, clean cut and well-to-do boys she’d met on and around campus or during classes and their dates had been fun, truly, but it had never felt right to take it further.
Giving her maidenhead was supposed to be something special, and while she wasn’t dead set on waiting for marriage, at the very least Sansa had wanted it to be more than a rough and tumble with someone she’d rather forget.
Like Arya, the girls had been inclined to tease her a little - but they had done so lightheartedly, suggesting that perhaps after this week, Sansa might be a maid no longer.
Once again remembering those guys on the beach and Joffrey KJ Bareatheon’s beautiful, golden face - Sansa couldn’t help but wonder.
It was then she had noticed the time, and she had stood, taking the last sip of her drink before a go-fer from the set had appeared to ensure she would make it to the correct location - it was time to get naked.
- - -