(A/N) I'm back yay! These chapters are not being updating fast enough, and I'm sorry for that! Anyways, here's chapter 4.

After agonizing hours of work and classes were over with, Hiccup imediatly took off to his car once the last bell rang. Within a minute he was in the drivers seat with his seat belt over him and the engine started. On the radio played a song him and Astrid always listened to known as 'Return' by a singer named Alexander Rybak. The volume was low, for the teen never liked to much noise, but he could still hear those soft lyrics reminding him of the times he spent with his love.

And I...will cry you a thousand tears...the day you will return. And I...swear I'll stay right here...until you will return. A while back Hiccup had been sitting in Astrid's room on her bed while her parents were out. They were listening to that song, and when the lyrics played, he'd wrapped his arm gently around her. Astrid had sighed as her boyfriend lay a light, tender kiss on her neck, just below her earlobe. Such a simple gesture, but it sent feelings of warmth to all of her limbs.

Before long Hiccup had become so caught up in Astrid he didn't want to let her go. Snow slowly falling outside their window, he'd asked her to come hang out with him that night. It was the night they'd both been so tired they'd fallen asleep in each other's hold. The next morning, what was originally an innocent embrace kick started something in both teen's minds. That had been the only time they'd went the hole way as far as sexual encounters went.

That night...it had been five months ago. How Astrid showed no signs of being pregnant until now was a mystery. Her belly had hardly grown, she still played sports, and managed a mostly normal diet. How had Hiccup not noticed the details? He was usually very observant...and yet, he had no idea he was going to have a son or daughter.

Hiccup was lost in thought as rain started poring again. His windshield was fogged up, it's wipers moving at a furious pace. The car came to a stop at a traffic light, and suddenly the boy's phone went off. Making sure the traffic light was still red, Hiccup lifted his phone to his ear after hitting the answer button.

"Hello?" He asked into the phone, hitting the gas as the light turned green. "Hiccup?" Hiccup's eyes widened, and he nearly drifted off the road. Regaining his focus, he tried to think of what to say to the Hofferson on the other end of the line.

"Astrid? Hey...I-I- H-How are you doing?" His words were so mashed together they were hard to understand. Astrid knew her boyfriend though, and had learned to deal with his occasional stutter. She sighed into the phone, her voice tender.

"I'm okay. Got home a few hours ago. Dad's at the store, and mom's cooking dinner. She didn't want me too at first, but after I explained how important it would be for you to be a part of all...this, I convinced them and..." Hiccup tensed as Astrid trailed off. And what?

As if reading his mind, Astrid continued. "And I was wondering...any chance you'd want to meet at the Berk center park tonight around sunset? I really want to talk to you, and my parents are cooled off so you don't have to be worried like you were earlier." Hiccup's eyebrows knitted together as he thought about it, before he turned the opposite way his street was, instead heading south. "Sure...give me around twenty minutes." With that, Hiccup and Astrid said their goodbyes before the phone hung and up and Hiccup drove in the direction of the Hofferson's house.


The rain once again lightened up, and it was around five in the evening before Hiccup parked his car in the Hofferson's driveway. He turned off the engine, the sound of the car's vibrations slowly slowing down mimicking his own fears when Astrid stepped outside to meet him.

Without a second thought, Hiccup left his car and ran up to meet Astrid. The first thing he did was a common instinct. Wrapping his arm around his girlfriend, Hiccup looked her over with worry filled eyes, his hand resting on her belly. "Are you okay?" He asked, and Astrid couldn't help but smile at his normal protective nature.

"I'm fine Hiccup. Just..." Astrid looked behind her to see her mother watching the teen's boyfriend being protective. As Hiccup had a way of making other's feel warm inside do to his selflessness, Mrs. Hofferson smiled at the two.

Astrid turned back to Hiccup, continuing her previous sentence. "Why don't you come in for dinner?" She asked her boyfriend. The teen in question took a step back, nervously smiling at Mrs. Hofferson. "I-I don't uh...want to be a burden." He tried with his hands behind his back, eyes refusing to look at anyone in the driveway. Astrid's mother, like usual when it came to Hiccup, didn't take it.

"You're no burden Hiccup." Mrs. Hofferson said, stepping down her concrete steps and closer to the two. A perplexed expression took over Hiccup's facial details, goosebumps forming on his thin neck. "But I...I mean I uh...aren't you?..." The stammering went on and on until Astrid shut him up with a light jab to the ribs, knocking the air out of her boyfriend. Hiccup quickly recovered though, having become used to his lover's violent methods of communication over the years.

"We both played a part in this Hiccup. I already talked to my parents. If it was any other guy, things might be different. They know you though, my father being best friends with yours. Mom and Dad know you would never hurt me, and if anything, would protect both me and your child." Hiccup's worried expression softened a little at this. Astrid nuzzled closer to him, pushing Hiccup's arm over her shoulder. The teen imediatly responded with his left arm around her, his right resting on her belly as if his lover wasn't the only one he was protective over. Hiccup tried to cover Astrid with his small frame, trying to shield her from the light rain.

Mrs. Hofferson watched the scene playing out in front of her with interest. Every word her daughter had spoken was true. Hiccup had been part of the family for years now, further than they could remember in a way. He had spent many nights when he was eleven at the Hofferson's house when his father was at war and mother volunteering at the local pet store. The guest bedroom had become Hiccup's second room in those days, and Mrs. Hofferson had imediatly taken a liking to him when she saw how creative her daughter's friend was after stumbling upon a cardboard box filled with papers and journals. It was only then she'd learned Hiccup was not your typical teenager in many more noticeable ways than one, but that was never a bad thing when it came to his protectiveness, selflessness, and intelligence.

Eventually the rain started falling to hard, and with hesitance in every step, Hiccup walked with Astrid and unborn child into the Hofferson home. The grey walls had pictures in frames on the walls, many having Hiccup and his father in them. Some dated back to when his mother was alive, having pictures of her with Mrs. Hofferson on vacation. Another reason Hiccup loved this home, it was his home away from home. The house reminded the boy of his mother, his father, his past, his friendships, and his sense of belonging. One thing Hiccup was more grateful for than anything, was the idea that Mr. and Mrs. Hofferson still enjoyed his company despite his actions with their daughter. That was true loyalty he supposed.

Astrid sat down by the coffee table to do her homework, holding her belly with her palm. Hiccup noticed the smallest signs of discomfort in her form, and lay a hand on his lover's shoulder. Are you sure your okay? His eyes asked with a gentle spark. Astrid smiled warmly, leaning up to kiss Hiccup on the cheek, nearly pulling him down onto the velvet colored couch by accident. "I'm fine." She said with playful stubbornness, making the teen chuckle before walking away.

The smell of fried chicken and corn casserole filled the room, making Hiccup's stomach twist with hunger. He hadn't eaten much that day, the stress of everything going on diminishing his hunger. Walking into the kitchen, Hiccup used his quick reflexes to catch the hot pan in Mrs. Hofferson's hands when she nearly dropped it onto the floor. Unlike the prepared woman, Hiccup had no oven mitts on and the hot tin burned his palms. The teen, with his usual stubbornness and masked emotions, showed no signs of pain other than slightly wincing. "Let me get that." He offered, carrying the pan to the marble counter near the fridge.

"How do you carry that without burning yourself lad?" Mrs. Hofferson asked in curiosity, setting the chicken down. Hiccup pulled out three paper plates, dishing out the corn. After that, he filled three glasses with iced tea and washed his hands to ease the burning in his palms. Usually the boy would never be confident enough to do such things without asking, but he was used to this. In the Hofferson's home, he did everything like he was part of the family. From cooking lunch, to helping clean out the storm cellar with Mr. Hofferson. Hiccup might as well have been in every family photo there was (Which he almost was) with his reputation in the Hofferson home.

"Eh...I'm just heat tollerant I guess." Hiccup shrugged off Mrs. Hofferson's question, carrying Astrid and himself plates of food on his forearms, the two classes of iced tea in his hands. Mrs. Hofferson carried her own plate, along with a stack of napkins. She sat beside Astrid on the small two-cushion couch, Hiccup leaning against the wall with pressure taken off his left leg. The rain had made his amputation sight wet before school, and walking all day was now causing some blistering mixed with the heat in the Hofferson home. He said nothing, deciding now of all times was a time he needed to focus on Astrid's family over his own wellbeing.

The three of them talked for a while, and when Mr. Hofferson got home he was about to say something about Hiccup. That was before he saw the boy's limp and pained expression. When asked about what had caused it in private, Hiccup simply responded that Astrid and the Hofferson's were much more important than a sore amputation sight at the moment. The respect in the boy's voice and offers to help with chores like he normally did when he was over despite his pain eased Mr. Hofferson's tension a bit. Before long, they were all eating dinner together and watching a movie called 'How to train you dragon' on VHS.