Hiccup stood outside his dad's study room, wringing his hands nervously. Usually he could come to his dad for anything, but…this was different. He knew he would be asking a lot, and he knew there was a good—an almost certain—chance his dad would say no before he could even finish his sentence. But he had to try. The alternative was too embarrassing.

Clearing his throat, Hiccup stepped out from behind the doorframe and into the office. His dad glanced up, his eyes scanning over his son's appearance. "What are you all dressed up for?"

Hiccup let out a sigh. Of course his dad forgot. "I'm going out with Merida tonight, remember? I told you on Monday."

Stoick's eyes lit up with recognition. "Oh, right. Well, good luck." He gave a nod before turning his attention back to the laptop sitting on his desk.

"Uh, dad…I was…uh, well," Hiccup glanced down at the floor and reached up to rub the back of his neck—a nervous habit of his.

"I'm not loaning you any money, Hiccup."

"It's not that, I have some saved up. I just…" Hiccup trailed off, peeking up at his dad.

"Oh, you need some advice?" His dad closed the screen and brought a hand up to his chin, running his fingers through his beard. "Okay, well first—"

"No, I need…I don't need advice. I was wondering…" Hiccup bit down on his lip and took a deep breath. "I was wondering if I could borrow the Cadillac."

His dad's expression suddenly changed. His green eyes widened to the size of golf balls and his eyebrows shot up to his forehead. "Absolutely not—she's a classic! Besides, you have your own car."

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Oh come on, dad, I can't pick her up in that! It's a soccer-mom car!" he complained, using the term his classmates had dubbed it—mostly to make fun of him. It was a nice van—and it had been his mom's car, which meant it would always be special to him—but that didn't mean he wanted to pick up his date in it.

"It's not that bad."

"Yes, it is. I promise I'll be careful, just please let me borrow the Cadillac. I'll do whatever chores you want me to do tomorrow—and next week too!" Seeing the determined expression on his dad's face, Hiccup was sure he would have to get down on his knees and beg. "Don't you remember being a teenager?"

For some reason, that softened Stoick's expression, and Hiccup felt his spirits rise. His dad looked away, his gaze settled on the picture of Hiccup's mom that hung on the wall. "Aye, I do. I picked Valka up for our first date in that car." Leaning forward, Stoick rested his face in his hands. Finally, he let out a sigh and looked up, fixing Hiccup with an intense stare as he reached into his desk. "Do not make me regret this."

Hiccup practically leapt forward, eager to get the keys. Before he could touch them, Stoick pulled away, holding up a finger. "Be careful with her, Hiccup. If I see any scratches or dents—"

"You won't, I promise," Hiccup assured him, holding his hands out, but Stoick wasn't done.

"And remember—the top is stuck down. I'll have to bring it into the shop on Monday."

"Yeah, got it!" Hiccup exclaimed—silently cheering his victory in his mind.

"And she doesn't have much gas left, so you might need to fill up," he said as he finally handed over the keys.

"Ok, sure. Thanks so much, dad!" Hiccup said, barley hearing his dad's words as his fingers closed around the keys.

He ran out to the garage and stared at the car in admiration—unable to believe he'd actually convinced his dad to loan it to him. It was a real beauty—a classic. He knew it had been given to his dad by his grandfather when he turned sixteen—a 1968 blue Cadillac DeVille—and he had kept it in near perfect condition. With the exception of the white leather interior and the automatic gear shift, the car looked exactly like it had when he first got it. Not that it had been new when his dad got it—but still.

Hiccup got in and opened the garage door before slowly pulling out. His hands shook with nervousness as he drove down the deserted two lane road to Merida's house—and he wasn't sure whether it was because of the car, or because he was actually going out with Merida. Maybe it was a combination of both. Why wouldn't they stop shaking? He gripped the steering wheel even tighter—turning his knuckles white.

When he finally pulled up to her house he didn't even get the chance to put the car in park before she came strolling out. She wore a simple blue dress that ended a couple inches above her knees, but it still made Hiccup's heart skip a beat. The light blue material made her eyes seem even more blue than usual, and the dress seemed to hug every curve of her body. Her orange hair hung in a mess of curls around her shoulders, but it looked a bit tamer tonight—like she had taken the time to impress him.

"Nice car," she said as she opened her door and slid into the passenger's seat. He could only nod numbly before pulling out of her driveway and heading towards the restaurant. Peeking a glance over at Merida, he hoped she didn't notice how nervous he was. After crushing on her for over a year, he finally mustered up enough courage to ask her out on a date. He couldn't actually believe she said yes—to him. As she turned to meet his gaze, he quickly looked away and turned his eyes back to the road.

He had been lucky enough to get a date with Merida, and he wasn't about to ruin it. When she first said yes, he was stunned silent for a few moments before finally stuttering out that he would need some time to come up with the perfect date. Honestly, he hadn't been expecting her to say yes at all.

Later that day he called the number she had written down and told her he had a surprise planned. Surprisingly, she had agreed to the mysterious date. He kind of expected her to turn him down after she had a chance to think about it. But now here they were—on their way to the best restaurant in town—The Celtic Cove. He knew Merida was Scottish, so he figured she would probably like it there.

As soon as he pulled into a parking space he jumped out of the car in a rush to open her door—and face-planted onto the cement when he tripped over a rock. He could feel his cheeks turning red with embarrassment as he picked himself up and brushed off the dirt—mentally cursing his prosthetic leg. When he opened her door he noticed she had drawn her lips into a tight line—holding back the laugh he knew she wanted to let out. He could see it in the way her blue eyes crinkled around the edges. They had been on their date a total of ten minutes and already he had made a fool out of himself.

Wonderful.

He walked up to the hostess standing at the entrance and gave her his last name. She clicked a few buttons on her screen and then scanned the list from over the top of her glasses. After a moment or two she squinted and leaned in closer. Hiccup could feel uneasiness bubbling up inside the pit of his stomach. What was wrong?

"I'm sorry, there's no reservation for tonight under the name Haddock. Are you sure it wasn't made under a different name?"

"No, I'm sure it was made under my last name."

The hostess pressed her red lips into a line. "Well then I'm sorry, sir, but your name is not here."

"But that…it has to be there. I called and made a reservation."

"Sir, if your name is not here, there's nothing I can do."

Hiccup drew in a deep breath. Calm down, there has to be a logical explanation for this.

"Can you call your manager or something? I know I made a reservation."

He could see that the woman was not happy by the deep breath she drew in, and then let out in an annoyed huff. "Sure. One moment." She walked a few feet away and spoke into a mouthpiece attached to her collar. "Yes, sir. A customer wants to speak with you…"

Turning to face Merida he bit down on his lip. "I'm so sorry about this."

She smiled and gave a shrug. "It's fine. It probably happens all the time."

After a few moments a man walked up to them, extending a hand and introducing himself as the manager. "Let's see what happened here." He walked over to the computer and typed in a few things. It only took a moment or two before he gave a nod. "Ah, I see what happened. Your reservation is for the following Saturday, not this Saturday."

Hiccup furrowed his eyebrows. "No, I called on Monday and said I wanted to make a reservation for next Saturday."

"Ah, yes. I remember speaking with you. I booked you for next Saturday—which is what you said on the phone."

Something suddenly clicked in Hiccup's mind, making him cringe. "No, I think you misunderstood the word next. It means coming immediately after the present time—the next free Saturday—the next one coming up," Hiccup explained. "I should know, I'm in AP English."

The manager shook his head. "No, that would be this Saturday. We classify next as the Saturday following the nearest one."

Hiccup let out a sigh. "Okay, well I did make a reservation, and maybe there was a bit of a misunderstanding on your part, but surely there's one available table."

"I'm sorry, sir, but we're all booked for tonight."

"Well, how long is the wait time?"

"There is no wait time, we're overbooked as it is." Hiccup closed his eyes and raised a hand to his temple. "The good news is, your reservation for this Saturday is all set—meaning this coming Saturday."

Irritation sprung up inside his chest. This was supposed to be a perfect date—and he wasn't about to let anybody ruin it. "Look, I know it was a misunderstanding, but it's not really my fault that you don't understand the word next, so can you just please get us a table?" His voice rose an octave or two higher as he went on.

"That's not possible, sir, and I'm going to have to ask you to leave since you are causing a disruption to the other customers."

Hiccup glared at the man. "Disruption? I'm speaking normally!"

A hand landed on his shoulder from behind. "Hey, it's fine. Let's just go eat somewhere else, okay?" He turned to look at Merida, feeling his anxiety melt away when he saw a smile on her face.

He let out a sigh and nodded, turning to give the man a dirty look before walking out. The click-click of Merida's heels against the tile calmed his nerves, but he was faced with a new dilemma.

Now what do I do?

He had planned on taking her out to dinner and then going to see the newest Nicholas Sparks movie—but that didn't start for another two hours. Pausing in the parking lot, he turned to look at his date. Blue eyes shone bright under the streetlamps, and seemed to glow against the light blue pattern of her dress. She was right, he could still make this work. He walked her back to his car and opened the door for her. As he started the car and pulled out, he went over a mental list of the nearest restaurants. It had to be somewhere nice, but not so nice that he would need a reservation. Okay…that didn't leave a lot of options.

As the car cruised down the street it gave a sudden lurch. What was happening? He stepped on the gas when the car started to slow, but it didn't respond. Slamming down on the gas, the car gave a small lurch forward, but after a few moments began to slow again. Turning the wheel, he managed to pull over before the car gave out completely. His eyes flickered up to the dashboard, and he immediately saw what was wrong. The gas meter was resting on the white E.

He suddenly remembered his dad's warning that the car needed more gas. Hiccup felt like banging his head against the steering wheel in that moment. Why didn't he pay more attention? He was such an idiot!

"What's wrong?" Merida asked, casting him a suspicious look. She probably thought he had pulled over for another reason. Well, this was going just great.

"The car is out of gas," he stated. Her eyes softened, but she didn't look very pleased by the information.

"Oh…" There was a tense silence.

"I think I saw a gas station a mile or two back. I'll go get some gas and be back as soon as I can."

Her eyes widened. "No, I am not sitting alone in a car by the side of a deserted road for any creeper to come across. I'm coming with you." She unbuckled her seatbelt and stepped out of the car before he could get another word in.

They walked down the road in silence, with Hiccup occasionally stealing a glance at Merida. She didn't look too angry, but he knew she must be hiding it. This was probably the worst date she'd ever been on. After all, it wasn't just any guy that could make a reservation for the wrong day and forget to fill up the gas tank before a big date. No, he was a special kind of mess-up—the kind girls like Merida tended to stay far away from.

They finally made it to the gas station, and as Hiccup looked around the small shop for a gas can, he noticed there was a McDonald's connected to the station. He let out a sigh. On any other day, he might eat there, but he couldn't take Merida out on a date to a fast-food joint like McDonald's.

He grabbed the can and paid for it, then went outside and filled it up with enough gas to get them back to the station to fill up. As soon as it was full, he went back inside to get Merida. He looked around, checking down the aisles full of junk food before he felt someone tap his shoulder. Spinning around, he found Merida standing there, holding a bag of McDonald's and wearing a big grin on her face.

"Hey, I got you a cheeseburger and some fries. Now come on, they're showing old Digimon episodes on the TV in there." She raised a finger and pointed to the entrance to the fast-food part of the building. Hiccup immediately perked up.

"Really?"

"Yeah, now come on."

"I would have paid for that, you know," he said, nodding at the bag of food as he followed along after her.

"Well, with your luck it would have exploded," she joked, as she sat down and pulled out her meal. The restaurant was mostly empty except for a few truckers grabbing a late-night snack, and a group of three teenage boys crowded around a table near the TV. "Besides, but I didn't feel like waiting, so I just went ahead and ordered."

Feeling defeated, he set the gas can down on the chair next to him and went to go wash his hands. He stood in front of the sink and splashed some water onto his face. Merida seemed to be having a nice time, so maybe he could still turn the night around. There was still the movie to look forward too—well, for her to look forward to anyway. He didn't really like romance movies, but he was sure Merida would. She was a girl, and what girl didn't like romance movies—especially Nicholas Sparks ones? None that he knew.

With new determination, he dried his face and hands, then walked back out. As soon as he entered the room he noticed a man standing next to the table—talking to Merida. A burning heat rose up in his chest—the beginnings of jealousy. The guy had both hands placed on the table, and was leaning forward so that he was only a few inches away from Merida. He watched for a moment and saw her give a curt nod to something he said, but her eyes remained glued to the screen. As he walked closer he caught part of what the man was saying.

"—what do you say? Do you want to hit the movies sometime?" he asked, and Hiccup felt himself freeze where he was. Merida's blue eyes snapped over to meet the stranger's and he knew what was going to happen. He should have expected this.

"No. Actually, I'm here on a date, so please leave me alone." He nearly let out a laugh when she made a shooing motion with her hand. The guy looked shocked, but quickly recovered and frowned, straightening up.

"And your date took you to McDonald's? Wow, are you serious? What's the matter—he couldn't afford Wendy's?"

Merida's blue eyes filled with a fire that seemed to match the intense color of her hair as she narrowed them at him. "Look, I already said no, so leave me alone."

He let out a huff and stalked back over to his friends. A sense of accomplishment filled Hiccup. After everything, Merida still wanted to finish her date with him. That was something, right? As he walked over and sat down, he briefly wondered if Merida would bring up the guy, but instead she looked up with a smile and said, "You know, I haven't seen this show in ages!"

Hiccup felt his lips curve into a grin. "Yeah, brings back memories, huh?"

They watched a couple episodes on the TV before a different show came on. It was one neither of them recognized, and they were already done with their meal, so they threw away the trash and left. Hiccup carried the heavy gas can back to the car while Merida followed along. When they finally made it back he poured the gas into the car and drove it back to the station. As he filled it up he glanced at the clock on the dash. He had about half an hour before the show started, and the cinema was about ten minutes away, so they should probably leave soon. Once the tank was full they set off for the movies.

Hiccup was feeling a bit better about their situation when he heard a sudden rumbling. Oh please don't let that be what I think it is, he thought. But when had luck ever favored him? A few minutes later rain came pouring down.

This was just a fun little story I wanted to write down. Hope you enjoyed it so far! :)

Any ideas on what will happen next?