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Her hair was lighter from the sun and she seemed a bit thinner. She looked absolutely exhausted, too, but as she got closer to the security check point, Jon could see her smiling and her eyes dancing. Seeing her for the first time in a little over a month, Jon was grinning but his eyes felt wet, too. God, he had missed her. He had known, of course, that when she left, he would miss her like Hell but he hadn’t anticipated the dull ache in the center of his chest that had stayed there the whole time she was gone. No matter what was going on or what he was doing, the ache was there. But now, he saw her and just like that, it had completely disappeared. His wife was home.
“Mama!” Ros shouted from next to him.
Sansa was on her own. Daario had driven her to the Lima airport but he, with the grad students, were staying behind for a couple more weeks to finish their research and meet with Peruvian government officials. That was past what Sansa wanted to do and she was more than ready to get back home. She had fulfilled a lifetime dream of hers and now, she just wanted to be with her family again. Her eyes brimmed with tears the closer she got to them. Ros looked the same. Thank God. She had had this terrible fear that she would get home after a month away and her daughter would have become a completely different person. But Ros still looked exactly like Ros. Jon looked the same, too. He hadn’t trimmed his beard and it was getting a scruffy look to it but Sansa loved his scruffy beard. Her parents were there, too, to welcome her home and she admitted that she was relieved that both Ned and Catelyn looked just as they always did. (Anything could have happened while she had been completely cut off from the world in the Amazon and she wouldn’t know until later.)
“Mama!” Ros shouted again and Jon let go of her hand so she could go running.
Sansa hurried past the last checkpoint and instantly crouched down. Ros ran straight into her arms and Sansa stood again, holding her daughter tightly, the first of the tears spilling down her cheeks. “My Ros,” she whispered and hugged her as tight as she could and Ros squeezed her arms around Sansa’s neck. “I missed you so, so much.”
“I missed you, too, mama,” Ros whispered back to her and didn’t want to stop hugging her. It had been such a fun summer so far with just daddy but it had also felt weird without mama there. It was always her, daddy and mama. (And Ghost and Lady, too.) Some nights, Ros had cried because she missed mama so much and daddy had held her, promising her that mama would be home soon.
And now, here she was. Home. Well, almost home. They were thirty-five minutes away but still. She was much closer than she had been.
Jon gave them a moment – just the two of them – before he went to join them. His eyes were wet but he wasn’t crying nor was he going to. Sansa was home – safe and sound – and that was all he had wanted. The ache in his chest was gone and Sansa was standing right in front of him. He put his arms around both of them and Sansa turned her head towards him. He wanted to give her a Hell of a kiss but he couldn’t do that here, in the airport, with Ros in her arms. For now, he gave her a firm press of his lips to hers and Sansa pushed hers back to his. Longer, deeper kisses would come later, they both knew, and when their faces parted, they smiled at one another. Jon kissed her cheek and then her temple and Sansa laughed with happiness.
She gave Ros one more tight squeeze before bending down and setting the girl onto her feet. She then went to her parents, who hugged her just as tightly as she had hugged her own daughter. Ned and Catelyn both knew that they were going to sleep well that night. Whenever one of their children – no matter how old that child was – went away for a bit, neither of them truly relaxed until they were home, safe, again. A couple of years ago, when their other daughter, Arya, and son, Bran, went on a backpacking trip to Estonia for two weeks, neither parent slept much then either.
The five took the escalator down to the baggage claim area and went to the appropriate carousel. Seeing that her plane’s bags hadn’t been unloaded yet, Sansa found the nearest chair and practically collapsed into it. She let out a big yawn, her body feeling the complete exhaustion of the past day’s nonstop traveling. She smiled as Ros immediately clamored up to sit in her lap and she put her arms loosely around the girl. Jon sat down next to them and Catelyn sat on the other side. Ned remained standing, keeping close to the carousel. When it came to baggage claim in an airport, Ned liked to be right there when the bags arrived.
“This is pretty, mama.” Ros delicately touched the braided brown and green bracelet on Sansa’s wrist that hadn’t been there the month before when Ros had seen her last in this very airport.
“I’m so glad you think so because I have one for you, too,” Sansa said, still smiling. “In Peru, they call the tree this comes from “matapalo” and it means tree killer. It’s made from the leaves and bark of a strangler fig. A woman in the Murunahua tribe made it for me.”
“Matapalo,” Ros echoed like she always did when she heard a word she had never heard before. She had missed mama teaching her random things.
Sansa smiled and kissed her cheek before looking at her mom. “So, what’s the plan?” She assumed there was a plan. More than likely dinner. And Sansa was hungry but she was also exhausted and just wanted to get home. She was so happy and more than ready to get back to her life and see everyone she hadn’t seen for the past month but right now, she just wanted to go home, see her dogs, vegetate and fall asleep in her own bed.
Catelyn smiled in return. “Your father and I are going to walk you three to your car and help with your luggage. And then, we’ll see you this weekend for your welcome-home party.”
“Oh.” That was unexpected. She released a breath of air she had been holding without even her knowledge. “That sounds great,” she then admitted which made Catelyn laugh.
…
Jon popped open the glove compartment and pulled out a two-pound bag of M&Ms that he had bought special at the candy store. “For you.” He handed it to his wife with a grin and Sansa laughed, almost crying at the beautiful sight.
Sansa reached an arm out and curling her hand around the back of his neck, she leaned over the middle console and kissed him. “Thank you.” She sat back in her seat and carefully pulled the bag open so the candies didn’t explode everywhere. She moaned happily after putting a few in her mouth.
“Mama, can I tell you about my summer so far?” Ros asked from the backseat.
Sansa turned back to look at her and she smiled. Ros held out her hand and Sansa dropped a few pieces into her open palm. “Start talking. I want to hear everything.” She popped a few more M&Ms herself and watched as Jon paid at the airport parking garage’s tollbooth.
Ros giggled and did just that. She talked about her horseback riding lessons and her children’s bible study classes at the Presbyterian church – “Little Lambs” – and the sleepovers at Hannah Ford’s house and Sansa didn’t miss a single detail of anything her daughter said. She told her all about her “go bag” and the system she and daddy practiced and then did whenever he got a call for work.
“We need to do something for everyone who helped us,” Sansa said to Jon.
“They all refused money but I sent everyone an Edible Arrangement. No one can refuse an Edible Arrangement. Not even your parents,” Jon threw her a smile at that and Sansa smiled, too. She reached a hand over and squeezed his shoulder. Jon took one hand off the steering wheel so he could take her hand and hold onto it. He didn’t want to let go of her hand anytime soon.
Sansa looked back at Ros. “More. Tell me more.”
She had missed Jon so much, there had been a constant ache in the center of her chest. But being away from Ros for a month, Sansa had felt as if a piece of her was psychically missing. This past month had been an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and experience but she knew that she didn’t want to be away from her daughter and husband like that again.
Ros giggled and absolutely beamed. She was so happy that mama was home again. “Last week, daddy set up the tent in the backyard and we had a sleepout with Ghost and Lady, too, and we made s’mores and watched for aliens.”
“That sounds like so much fun,” Sansa said with a smile. “We definitely need to do that again now that I’m home and can join you.”
“Yes! And there was music in the park and daddy and me went to listen to a band tribute band,” she said. “We got tacos from the food truck there and daddy didn’t feel so great afterwards.”
Sansa looked at her husband with raised eyebrows and Jon glanced over before moving his eyes back to the road. Traffic was a little on the heavy side of things on the expressway at the moment. He smirked a little and shrugged.
“Lesson learned. Just nachos next time,” he said. “Right, Rosie?”
“I liked the tacos,” Ros replied with her own shrug.
Sansa laughed. “What band did they have a tribute for?” Every summer, the park in their town held a collection of various cover bands across genres. Last year, there had been a Notorious B.I.G. cover rapper who had been very impressive. (Jon and Sansa had covered Ros’s ears during various lyrics.)
“The Band, mama,” Ros let her know. “Your turn now! Tell us everything about Peru!”
Sansa folded the M&M bag and returned it to the glovebox before she ate the entire two pounds. She took a deep breath with a smile and began to speak. She told them everything about her adventure because what else could it be called if not an adventure? Once they got out of the city, traffic lightened considerably and Sansa still spoke all the way to their town’s exit. When Jon merged off the ramp, Sansa was sure to look at everything. Nothing in the town had changed in the time she had been gone. Same stores and little shops. Same houses. Everything was exactly as she left it and there was another sense of relief that Sansa felt at seeing it. And she swore that when Jon pulled into their long driveway and she saw their house, she almost began crying again.
Jon noticed. “Alright?” He made sure.
Sansa nodded quickly and smiled at him. “I am so happy to be home.”
Inside the garage, Sansa opened the back door so Ros could hop down and Jon got Sansa’s massive hiking pack from the trunk. Jon went to open the door that led into the garage from the house and Ghost came rushing out immediately. Both dogs had been able to smell Sansa and hear her voice and were more than ready to greet her. Sansa dropped to her knees and began laughing as Ghost knocked into her in his excitement, almost knocking her over. It was difficult to pet him as he was so hyper and happy but Sansa did her best.
“Alright, Ghost, you animal.” Jon took Ghost by the collar and gently pulled him back.
Lady had hung back, still in the laundry room, so Ghost could go insane on Sansa first. But when Jon pulled Ghost back, Sansa was still on her knees on the garage floor and when she saw her beloved Lady, she did begin to cry. Lady’s tail started sweeping back and forth and she finally trotted down the stairs to give Sansa her own – much calmer – greeting. She licked Sansa’s face over and over and Sansa hugged her tightly.
“She missed you so much, mama,” Ros let her know.
“I actually called Dr. Lamb to see if there were anti-depressants for dogs,” Jon said.
Sansa laughed at that but she was also oddly touched that Lady had missed her so much. “I’m home now,” she promised her dog and kissed her head as she stood up and Lady’s tail swept faster.
Finally inside, Sansa admitted that she was surprised to see that the house wasn’t a disaster. She hadn’t expected them to do a deep clean in the month she was gone and she hadn’t really expected them to be complete slobs either. The house looked as orderly as it always did. Her expression must have showed her surprise because Jon snickered. Her eyes flew to him.
“Your mom came out here a couple of times and helped me stay on top of things,” he admitted.
Sansa laughed and went to him. With her arms around his shoulders, she kissed him like she had been dreaming about kissing him for the past month. And Jon immediately reacted. His arms bound around her and pressed their bodies together as his mouth moved fiercely against hers.
“Ew,” Ros scrunched her nose in disgust while giggling, looking up at them.
Jon and Sansa’s mouths parted and both were equally panting. They shared a breathless smile.
“I am going to go and take a ridiculously long hot shower. I took one in the hotel in Lima before my flight back but I definitely feel like I need another one,” Sansa let them both know.
“Take as long as you want. I’m going to order dinner whenever you’re ready,” Jon said. He picked up her heavy pack and carried it down the hallway to their bedroom. Sansa followed and Ros skipped behind her. And of course, Ghost and Lady came, too.
Sansa sat down on the bed with a sigh. She couldn’t believe how good it felt to be home. “What’s for dinner?” She asked as she took off her shoes. She smiled as Ros climbed onto the bed to sit next to her, Ros grinning back. Sansa put an arm around her and kissed her on the head.
“Whatever you want. I was thinking pizza if you have a taste for it,” Jon said.
“Pizza!” Sansa’s eyes widened at that. Suddenly, she could taste pepperoni on her tongue. She turned towards the pack and dug around in one of the front pockets for a moment. “Let me see your wrist, Panini.” Ros immediately thrust out her left arm. She fasted the braided bracelet from the strangler fig tree around her little wrist and Ros immediately felt it under her fingertips.
“I love it,” Ros breathed.
“I’m so glad. You can’t wear it in the shower. It’s okay to get it a little wet but don’t get it soaked.”
“Got it,” the girl nodded while still touching and studying her new bracelet. “Thank you, mama.”
Sansa smiled and kissed her head again.
“Rosie, can you let Ghost and Lady out into the backyard?” Jon asked. He had gone into the bathroom to wash his hands and had now come out again. “It’s been a while for them.”
“Yep!” Ros hopped down from the bed. “Come on!” She beckoned for both dogs to follow her but in actuality, they nearly knocked her over to get out of the bedroom and down the hallway first, which just made Ros laugh as she followed them.
Sansa yawned again as she stood from the bed and smiled as Jon came to her. Within seconds, their arms were around one another and their lips met.
“I am so happy that you did this but I never want to be apart like that again,” Jon admitted.
Sansa’s eyes remained closed from their kiss and she nodded her head. She smiled faintly as his lips brushed along her forehead. “I am so happy I went but I never want to be away from you and Ros like that again,” she confessed.
…
They didn’t make love that night – not that Jon was expecting that at all. Sansa had been in the Amazon rainforest for the past few weeks. She was exhausted and so happy to be home again. After she took a long shower, Jon got a large pepperoni pizza delivered to their house and the Snow family – back to being a unit of three again – ate in the family room as Ros told Sansa all about Gravity Falls, a cartoon she and Hannah had started watching. Sansa listened with rapt attention because this was a new interest of Ros’s and she had so many things she liked, loved and was interested in. Her parents liked to be aware of them all.
“It’s streaming on Hulu. Do you want to watch the first episode, mama?” Ros asked.
“Of course I want to watch it,” Sansa smiled before practically shoving another slice of pizza into her mouth. My goodness, she had really missed pizza. Almost as much as her family and dogs and home.
Outside, a soft rain began to fall, tapping against the roof and the windows. Between that, the warm pizza in her belly and the hot shower she had taken – not to mention all the insane traveling she had done over the past few days – Sansa began to fall asleep before she could get through one episode. She leaned her head on Jon’s shoulder, closed her eyes and that was that.
She didn’t know what time it was but she was aware of being moved. She vaguely heard murmured voices of Jon and Ros and then she felt herself being lifted up and carried. And then, the familiar softness of hers and Jon’s bed beneath her. She immediately rolled onto her side and found the slight dip in the mattress that her body had worked on making over the past few years. The comforter went over her body and she was still more asleep than awake but she felt Jon next to the bed. He bent down and brushed his lips across her head.
“Welcome home,” he whispered.
Sansa didn’t hear. She was fast asleep.
…