Hello! This chapter was such a pain to write. I think I wrote it like five times before I decided this was good enough. School started so updates are going to be slow. Just a warning!
Now to the reviews!
Thank you to:
DPfruitloop ~ Thank you! Your reviews are very kind!
Fangirl4ver ~ Thank you! I am so glad you like my writing! It's not the best but oh well... .-.
Guest reviewer Agnes ~ No I understand. It's the same when people tell me I can't be asexual. . If you would like I can take it off and I won't put it again? :)
Guest reviewer Honey beeez ~ You are too kind! Much thanks!
Also, I got a LOT of alerts/faves in my email so thank you so much everyone! I am so happy you guys are enjoying this story!
It was cold. Wait, no.
It was insanely freezing.
Jack pulled the blanket tighter around him and snuggled into the fetal position. He shivered and squeezed his eyes. He slowly blinked around his dimly lit room and groaned. He rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. Why the hell couldn't he feel his fingers? He lifted his hand in front of his face and wiggles his fingers. They moved but he had no feeling of it. Groaning once more he sat up letting the blanket pile into his lap and discovered that it was a bad idea. The cold air hit him and he brought his arms up to wrap around himself. He looked at his heater which sat comfortably in the corner of his room. It was silent and definitely not running like it should be.
So this is why I'm freezing my ass off. Jack forced himself out of bed going to investigate what was going on. He saw that the knob was turned to the correct temperature and the switch said on. He flicked it off and then back on. Still nothing changed and it remained useless. He grumbled and went over to the lightswitch to at least find a sweater to put on.
Click.
Click.
Click.
What the hell? No matter how many times he flipped the switch the lights would not come one. He banged his head against his wall. Maybe the power went out overnight or something. He decided he better see if his dad knew what was going on. As soon as he opened his door, a rush of warm air graced him and he let himself enjoy it before it dawned on him. If the hall was heated, then shouldn't his room be? He trudged down the stairs and curiously looked around. The rest of the house was lit, warm, and working just fine. He heard his fathers insistent typing on a keyboard down the hall. He cautiously made his way to the room, knocking gently against the door that was already open. Without looking up, his dad grunted in response.
"Dad, why isn't the power working in my room?" Jack glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that it was just getting a little past seven in the morning. His dad opened a drawer and tossed a piece of paper to the ground in front of the desk and muttered 'here'. Jack approached the paper and knelt down. His brows furrowed in confusion. "Is this a bill? What does this have to do with anything?"
"The electricity is way too much so this month I am cutting back." He finally looked down at Jack who was still knelt down and his eyes were nothing but cruel. "To save money I turned off the power to your room."
Furious, Jack stood and slammed his hands on his desk. His usually pale face was flushed with anger and his fingers twitched against the wood. "You can't do this."
Greg stood up from his chair and loomed over Jack, his face just as red. Just add a pulsing vein on his temple. "I pay these bills every month with the money I work for, Jackson." He seethed. "Now unless you have a wad of cash sitting somewhere you are willing to put towards the bills, I can turn whatever the hell I want off."
"But I need my heater so I don't freeze to death at night! I'm surprised I didn't wake up with hypothermia this morning!" Argued Jack, who raised his voice a notch. His father took notice right away. It was now Greg's turn to slam his hand on the desk, sending Jack stumbling back in shock.
"DO YOU HAVE A JOB? DO YOU DO ANYTHING AROUND THE HOUSE TO HELP? DO YOU RUN ERRANDS?" He shouted, not waiting for a response. " ALL YOU DO IS LEAVE THEN COME BACK WITH NOTHING." Greg sagged his shoulders and pinched the bridge of his nose. Taking deep breaths he used his other hand to point to the door. "Just...get out."
Jack had managed to gain back his composure and stared at his father. He had so much he wanted to yell at him but it just didn't feel worth it so he turned and left the office, heatedly stomping up the stairs. He felt childish but he was pissed so he didn't care. Inside his room, he gave another involuntary shudder. Grumbling, he went to his closet and pulled out his favorite blue hoodie and pulled that over his head. He might as well change his pants while he was at it. So he went with his worn-down brown pants. He wasn't quite sure what he was going to do now without any power in his room. He debated whether he should just strip down, dump some water on him and go out in the snow. He would for sure die within the day. Before he could think any farther, he heard his dad calling to him. What the hell does he want now?
Inside his fathers office once more, he saw papers strewn across the floor and his cup of pens tumbled over. He guessed his father must've lashed out from his frustration. Speaking of his father, Greg was currently staring down Jack with a look that could be considered lethal. Jack internally faltered from the intensity but on the outside remained passive. "What do you want?" His voice cracked and he cursed himself for sounding weak.
"I thought I told you to get out." Greg inquired, his voice was low and his tone almost threatening. Jack swallowed hard. He didn't ever feel safe when his father would get this way.
"What do you mean? I left your office only five minutes ago and you called me back down here." The confusion in his voice was evident because Jack was so lost as to what his dad was trying to tell him. Was he drunk? Greg glared at him as if he read his thought.
"I didn't mean just my office." The visible widening of Jack's eyes gave Greg some sort of sick satisfaction inside of him and he smirked. "I've been thinking,Jackson. I've been allowing you to take residence within my home without wanting you to do much but follow rules. And now you're how old? Fifteen?" Jack had to stop himself from rolling his eyes.
"I'm sixteen and I'll be seventeen in a month." Jack corrected, stuffing his hands in his pocket and looking away. Greg shrugged.
"Whatever. All that matters is you can now get a job and start forking over money to help pay for the bills. I don't want you coming home until you have found a job." He nodded at the teen and pointed to his door. "That is what I meant by get out." Jack didn't move. "Now!"
"Finding a job could take me days even weeks! You can't do this!" Jack pleaded. His stomach twisted and he felt sick. This was seriously happening, his dad was kicking him out and unless he started bringing home cash he would have no place to stay. Greg stood still, obviously not affected by the possibility that anything could happen to his only son. Jack decided he wouldn't let his father win this, so he stood proudly and looked his father in the eyes and told him with the most loathing tone, "I hate you."
"I can live with that." Greg lowered himself to his chair, not sparing Jack another glance. The conflicted teen violently stalked to the front door, not bothering to put on shoes, and stepped outside. He turned to face the inside of his house, narrowing his eyes at the end of the hallway then slammed the front door shut. His looked to his feet and took deep breaths to try and calm his anger. His fists tightened into balls and he resisted punching the front door if only for the concern of breaking his knuckles. Sensing someone watching his he peered over to left at the porch and found two sets of eyes on him. It was the old man and a young man he wasn't familiar with.
The old man waved as usual and to his surprise the one sitting next to him followed. It was unusual to be acknowledged by someone else and it made a strange feeling start to bloom within him. He caught himself staring and shook his head, regaining his composure. He lifted his head in response. After a moment he turned off the porch and onto the sidewalk. He ignored the already beginning cold ache in his feet and began his trek to town. He figured that there had to be job openings somewhere available to him. A gust of cold air rushed him causing him to dig his hands into his hoodie pocket. He frowned to himself. Already his day was looking grim and for a moment he thought of his bottle of pills back home. An uncomfortable wave of nausea caused him to cringe and shake his head. Now wasn't the time to think about that, so instead he chose to think about the auburn haired stranger from the porch.
Once he made it to the central part of town, he began looking for 'help wanted' or 'now hiring' signs. He noticed a few people giving him some strange looks. Probably because it was lower than zero out and he wasn't wearing shoes. He just ignored them for the sake of not making a scene. When one old woman shook her head at him in disapproval he grit his teeth to keep from expressing his thoughts. He was sick of those looks. The ones of pity, disgust, and disappointment. It all just made him feel worse than he already was.
"Son, you okay? I can give you a ride somewhere." A man had stopped Jack in his tracks by grabbing his shoulder. Jack rolled his hand off and glared at him.
"I'm fine." He snarled. He didn't like the sympathy in the voice this guy was giving him one bit. Like he could possibly know what he was going through. So before the man could say anything more he took off down the street, ignoring the yells from behind. Finally, he saw a store that had a sign out front and crossed his fingers for the best.
After being rejected three times by different stores, Jack was about ready to give up. There were hardly any placing looking for new employees which only made things much more difficult for him. He was pretty sure the last guy just hated him. He had recognized him from school as one the athletes that had engraved 'cock sucker' in his locker. At this rate, he was pretty sure that he was going to have to sleep in a box tonight.
He had managed to walk all the way to the central park so he decided to just sit down for a while. Finding a bench he curled himself up on the corner, bringing his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. He let out a sigh watching his breath become visible in the frigid air. He usually was one to love the cold, but never had he ever had to survive in it knowing that he didn't have a home to go to. No place to warm himself up or find a decent meal. It wasn't the best idea to think of food because right after a pile pancakes popped up in his thoughts, his stomach rumbled. He pulled his legs closer to try and hide the noise. It didn't do much for him, it still sounded as if bomb was going off. He muttered to himself.
I don't have any money on me. Maybe I can sneak home and grab my pop-tarts... Before he knew it he was standing up and following the trail home. He was pretty good at climbing and his bedroom window was in the front of the house. All he would have to do is climb up the side of the house and make it to the overhang above the porch. Luckily, the lock on his window had been broken for the past year and his father just didn't bother with getting it fixed. He decided he could grab a few things while he was there like a blanket, jackets, and some shoes. He couldn't feel his toes anymore. He should grab some socks too.
He was at the edge of town and halfway to his neighborhood when he recalled that his neighbor and that strange guy was sitting outside. He assumed it had only been about an hour since he left so there was probably a good chance that they were still there and to be frank, he didn't need them to see him breaking into his own house for food and clothes. They would probably call the cops and the next thing he would know he would be thrown into foster care. He hated his dad, but he definitely hated the idea of moving houses a lot more. If he was lucky, they will ignore him. Just like everyone else. He thought bitterly.
He was standing at the end of his street, hesitating. Jack was leaning against a street lamp, peering around it to see if he could spot his neighbor and that boy. He inwardly groaned when he saw them still sitting there a few houses down. Now he was conflicted as to what he should do. He was about to turn back around when out the corner of his eye he saw the old man point in his direction.
Shit. I guess I can't turn back now without looking suspicious. Jack moved down the street towards his house then stopped when he noticed that the young man was approaching him. His first instinct told him to run, but again he wanted to avoid drawing attention so he opted on waiting to find out what the guy was doing. Jack looked nervously around before looking to the ground where he saw the shadow of the auburn haired boy nearing.
"Hi, I'm Hiccup." A somewhat nervous voice sputtered out. Jack kept his gazed down at his feet. He didn't say anything back in response, hoping maybe he would walk away. Apparently he wasn't getting the hint. "Uh, your neighbor over there wanted to know if you would like to join us for some hot cocoa."
Jack finally looked up, his blue eyes clashing with deep green. He studied the teen before him and decided his eyes were the best of his features. He thought that the freckles that covered his face suited him well and his gap teeth just added to him. Over all in his opinion the guy was good looking. "I'm Jack and thanks, but I rather not." He replied rather harshly. Hiccup bit his bottom lip.
"You sure? I just met him but he's a really nice man and I think he would like it if you would join us." Jack sighed. He didn't even know these people so why would they want his company?
"I appreciate the offer, but I'm going somewhere." Aggravation lacing his words. His feet were freezing and he just wanted some socks, but oh no. This guy just had to block his path.
"Oh, uh, okay." Hiccup shrugged. It was then that he noticed Jack wasn't wearing any sort of covering on his feet. "Wait, where are going without shoes? You'll get sick."
"I'll be fine, don't worry." Jack ran a hand through his snowy hair, shrugging. "It's nothing I can't handle." He glanced over at his house, which wasn't far from where he was standing, and he felt sad suddenly. It wasn't really his home. That man wasn't a father. Everything about that house screamed lonely and to him, he didn't want to go back. He didn't have a choice though. There was no one else in town that would be willing enough to take him in. Hiccup caught his gaze.
"Are you going home?" His observant gaze picked up the slight hesitation Jack had before answering his question.
"Something like that."
"Alright then. If you change your mind though, we'll be sitting out on the porch." Hiccup then turned and began to walk away. His shoulders hunched from the sudden chill that passed by with the wind. He snuck a glance back at Jack and saw him watching, quickly turning away when he was caught. Hiccup brushed it off and shivered his way over back to Old Man North. Once he was seated he grabbed his mug and took two large swigs of his his hot cocoa. It warmed him inside with a pleasant feeling. After being satisfied with his drink he set it down and told North what Jack had explained. The bearded man nodded, leaning back and releasing a sigh.
"Too bad, I have plenty of hot cocoa to go 'round." He tapped his fingers against his thigh. "Ah, but here he comes. Look, Hiccup!" He lifted his large hand and pointed to just a few feet down the street where Jack was approaching.
Jack saw the old man pointing at him and he grimaced. He didn't know why he was coming over. He should be more concerned about getting some socks but something inside him told him that going over there wouldn't be so bad. So he let his feelings guide him towards the two strangers and as he got closer he smelt the sweetness of hot cocoa.
He reached the front of the steps and paused. He looked up to see both of them watching him, one with a jolly smile and the other with a curious curious one was first to speak.
"I thought you were going home?" Hiccup didn't want to sound rude but when he talked to the guy he had a pretty bad attitude. Jack gave him an apologetic smile.
"I changed my mind. Is it okay if I join?" He felt stupid. This was stupid. He was angry less that five minutes ago but watching Hiccup walk away made him feel alone once again. He didn't want to have to go through that at the moment so he had decided it would do him good to sit and talk to people for a while.
"Vell of course! Come and sit! I have plenty of snacks and cocoa for you and if you are good, I vill share some of my old tales with you." Old Man North smiled warmly. Jack said a 'thanks' and moved to sit on chair placed next to Hiccup's. North then stood and left to get a mug, some cookies, and a pair of socks and slippers for Jack. He sat straight in his chair with the feeling 'outsider' settling in his stomach.
"I'm glad you joined us." Hiccup commented. "As much as I like Old Man North, I want to also talk to people my age." Jack just nodded. "Plus, I think you need the company just as much as I do."
Jack turned and stared at Hiccup who only smiled in return, taking a sip from his drink. Jack's stomach twisted with a strange feeling. Perhaps this oddly named teen was someone that Jack could get to know. Perhaps, but he wasn't about to just let him slide in and become his friend. No. Jack had more walls than that. Just maybe though Hiccup was different from the others.
Holy shit that was the worst ending I have ever written. I am so sorry if you read this. I really had no idea where to go with this and I just winged it but I promise this will get better. I hope. Anyway, thank you so much if you made it this far! *throws hijack love to you all* I will try to get the next chapter out quicker (if tumblr would stop distracting me U_U ).
~Review please!
