Got One-Shots Book 2

Let Me Help You (Podrick Payne x reader)

Podrick was stressed. You could see it in his shoulders. Actually, you could see it in his entire body. He needed some relief and you were willing to help. If he let you. One thing people didn't really know about Podrick was that he was stubborn when it came to dealing with his own issues. He didn't like asking for help, no matter how the stress got to him.

"Pod?" you asked again and he huffed. "I said I'm fine, Y/N," he snapped, earning and eye roll from you. "No you aren't. If you were, you wouldn't have snapped at me. And you wouldn't be walking around like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders." Podrick sighed heavily. He knew you were right. "Please, Pod. Let me help you."

Podrick looked at you. He knew that he really did need to relax. All the stress of being Brienne's squire was weighing on him. She was different than Lord Tyrion and it pushed Podrick to his limits both physically and mentally. As the days went on, it was only getting worse. Not that Podrick was really complaining. He was growing stronger every day, but his stress level had increased much more than he realized.

"What did you have in mind?" he asked and you smiled. "First, you need a drink." Podrick frowned slightly. He didn't usually drink. You saw his frown and laughed. "One drink won't hurt you, Pod, but I won't force you." Podrick looked at the second tankard that sat in front of you, contemplating his choice. "I'd rather not. Just in case my lady needs me." You smiled. "Fair enough. Come on then."

You grabbed his hand and lead him to his room in the inn. "Uh, Y/N? What are we doing here?" Podrick asked, suddenly nervous. You laughed lightly. "Nothing like that, I promise. Just come in and sit on the bed, please." Podrick warily did what you said. He trusted you, but this was a very intimate position the two of you were in. He sat down and closed his eyes. You were just helping him to relax a little. That was it. Nothing more, nothing less. Podrick took a deep breath.

That breath caught in his throat when he felt your hands working on the ties at the top of his doublet. He tensed. "I promise I'm not going to take advantage of you, Pod." He relaxed a little. His doublet was removed and he was left in his tunic. That was when your hands began kneading his shoulders. For a second, Podrick tensed up again, but then he let himself melt into the touches.

You worked at the knots in his shoulders, increasing and decreasing pressure as necessary. Podrick felt like he was in heaven. No one had ever done that for him before. Your heel dug into a particularly hard knot and Podrick couldn't help the sound that came out of his mouth. You still for just a second before going back to what you were doing. Podrick felt his face turn red at the noise he'd made. Not exactly the best impression, but you really didn't seem to care.

It went on like that for a while. You were content to sit on your knees behind Podrick, just working on his back and shoulders while Podrick tried to contain his noises of content. It was apparent he was failing when the door opened. He opened his eyes to see Brienne standing there with a look of amusement on her face. "Have I interrupted something?" she asked. Podrick sprang up immediately.

"N-No! It was nothing like that! Y/N was just helping me." You stifled a chuckle, but Brienne didn't bother. The blonde warrior laughed loudly. "I gathered that. As did most of the inn a few moments ago." At that Podrick's face did turn red. As red as a tomato. "I, uh..." he didn't know how to respond to that. "Podrick, relax. I'm glad Y/N is helping you. You're no good to me as a squire if you're too tense. I only came in to tell you both that we leave at dawn."

She left the room and Podrick turned to you. "I'm sorry, Y/N. I didn't realize I was being so loud. I wouldn't want anyone to think that I-that we were, uh, doing that." You let out the laughter you'd been holding in. After a moment, Podrick started to laugh as well. It felt nice to do so. And he really did feel more relaxed.

"It's alright, Pod. I don't mind what others think. Besides, that is a good way to let out some tension." Podrick gaped at you. You rolled your eyes playfully. "It is. And I certainly wouldn't mind releasing some tension with you," you told him with a wink. He started to stutter out a protest, but your chuckle stopped him.

"Podrick, I'm only teasing." He breathed a sigh of relief. "However, if you change your mind, you know where to find me." You stood up and, with another wink, left his room to go to your own. Podrick stared at the empty space you had been in, suddenly more tense than he had been a moment before.