A/N: Sorry for the delay but here is chapter 4. I have finals so I've been busy. Anyway, keep the reviews coming and I edited previous chapters to clarify some facts about our characters. Here is what I clarified in previous chapters.
1) Astrid is still a virgin
2) Astrid was not always mean and aggressive towards Hiccup.
Anyway, as requested, you will get more glimpses of the past in this chapter. Please review and leave suggestions and improvements to my writing. Now onto the chapter.
Chapter 4: Then and Now
Astrid woke up Tuesday with a startle. Her alarm clock went off like usual and she quickly got a towel in hopped into a shower. She was still replaying the events from yesterday as the hot water hit her skin. She still found it hard to believe that Hiccup had changed so much. She remembered especially how he had the ability to talk back to her. She began to recall how Hiccup was in the past.
*Flashback to Four Years Ago
"Hi, my name is Astrid! I just transferred to Berk Middle School West, I was originally from Berk Middle School East. What is your name?" A young blonde girl said.
"Hunter but everyone calls me…...Hiccup….." A young auburn hair boy said
"Why Hiccup? You don't look like you have hiccups to me."
"Its cause I'm small. Everyone who picks on me gave me the nickname cause of it."
The young girl looked at the boy and slowly smiled
"They may pick on you, but I find your nickname to be cute. Do you wanna be my friend? I don't know anyone since I just got here."
The boy looked at the girl with hope in her eyes and an eager smile was now on his face
"I would love to. Although I don't know why you would want to. Are you sure?"
The girl looked at him with seriousness in her eyes and a smile appeared on her face
"Everyone needs a friend, regardless of who they are…."
Astird snapped out of her memory and quickly finished her shower and got dressed for the day. She got dressed in a t-shirt and soccer sweatshirt, with a pair of jeans and sneakers and ran out the door. However, when she got outside she was not welcomed by a Camaro but instead by a Mazda Miata. It was silver and she knew who the driver was, Heather.
She walked up to the passenger side and got in. She then turned to Heather with a look that said 'I'm grateful, but why are you here?' and waited for a response.
Heather said "Snotlout woke up late texted me asking to grab you. Didn't give me a reason but I love talking to my best friend so I decided to do it anyway."
"He better have an explanation when we get to school because I'm so sick of his attitude lately. I'm very close to stuffing his head into a locker and bashing it to a thin paste."
Heather just rolled her eyes and drove away from the curb. Unlike Snotlout, Heather was a very safe driver. She didn't carelessly speed down the street like him and was not likely to run red lights. The duo finally made it to the school and in one piece. Astrid like the day before, got out of the car, got her supplies from her locker, and made it to her History class. However, unlike the day before, Hiccup was not in class. In fact, he wasn't in either of the two classes he shared with him. Her curiosity peaked during lunch where her friends sat at their usual table. She of course had to ask if they knew anything.
"Has anyone seen Hiccup today? I haven't seen him in the two classes I have with him. What about you Ruff?"
Ruff looked up from her turkey sandwich and swallowed. She suddenly had a carefree expression.
"Nope haven't seen him, but yet again I did come in late. On top of that, I really don't care Astrid and why should you? You are dating star football player Snotlout and I think he is better looking than his cousin…" She said with a smirk crossing her lips
Astrid looked at Ruffnut with a confused look. "Star player? He doesn't care half the time where the ball is on the field because he is always checking out girls in the stands and the cheerleaders, oh and when he does notice its coming for him, he catches but then is immediately tackled. So I wouldn't call him a star player…"
Heather then looked up from her cafeteria food and gave a look at Ruffnut similar to Astrid's before adding her own comment.
"Yeah Ruff. And may I remind you that just yesterday, you were dying to crawl all over him and wanted to have him under you this Friday night. Why the sudden change of heart? Did that car ride with Snot and his propoganda really change your perspective?"
Before Ruffnut could respond to either comment, a loud roar of an engine broke up their conversation. Others began to turn their heads as well. Astrid seemed the most intrigued by the sound as a realization came to her mind.
'That is the same sound I heard last night before I went to sleep! What the hell is making that sound?'
She turned her head to the parking lot where a car had just been parked. Everyone now noticed where her line of sight landed on and as soon as they saw what she did, their jaws dropped in awe.
Before them now was a 1967 Shelby Mustang GT500. The car looked like the one from "Gone in Sixty Seconds" remake, except this car had some unique touches. The color of the car was not silver, but instead was a gunmetal gray. The racing stripes down the hood and side of the car were black with dark red on the sides. The grill was similar to the one in the film, but was now black chrome instead of normal chrome. The wheels were the standard wheels from 1967 GT500 but had a black powder coat applied to them. The ride of the car was low, but not low where it would be hitting everything or be stuck on a speed bump. No the ride was just lower than the standard ride height. The brake calipers were dark red. The windows were slightly tinted but not too dark where you couldn't see a shape of the driver behind the wheel.
The twins and Heather, along with almost everyone else in the courtyard, were staring in awe at the car. This one looked like the kind you would have on a poster in your college dorm room. Astrid also stared with curiosity as she always thought she would only see this car in her dreams and at car shows, never in real life. Based on her observation, someone obviously had built the car by hand and not bought it. The car's unique touches were obviously done by hand and not by someone in a normal auto shop. No, the person who built this car was careful, knowing it would be their master craft.
She then kept her eyes on the car while people all around her were beginning to whisper. They were all wondering who the driver of the car was. A new teacher perhaps? A guest speaker? Some were even speculating that a movie star had shown up. The whispers stopped when the rumbling engine was turned off. The driver side door opened and once again their jaws once again dropped.
The young man hopped out of the car wearing slate jeans and black boots. His torso was covered by a white t-shirt and black leather jacket. His eyes covered by black mirror aviators. But was most noticeable to everyone was the shaggy auburn hair that covered the person's head.
Tuffnut was the first to speak with awe dripping from his voice. "The person is Hiccup? THAT'S WHO DRIVES THE SMOKIN RIDE?!"
The courtyard was now a sea of conversation. Hiccup Haddock was now the driver of the sleek car that had appeared before them. One voice rose above the rest however, and it was directed to the driver of the car. As Hiccup locked the car, he also heard the voice.
"Hey Hiccup what took you so long? I see you finally got Tyr going!"
The voice belonged to none other than Finn "Fishlegs" Ingerman, Hiccup's best friend since freshman year. He was about 6'2 and was a husky build. He had blond hair atop his head and had a wide smile. For those who did not know about his soft spoken personality, they would have thought he was a linebacker for the football team. He was dressed in a Halo t-shirt and deep blue jeans with black sneakers.
Hiccup happily walked over to his friend and sat down. "Hey Fish, sorry I didn't tell you earlier, but I was at the DMV getting Tyr registered. I finished him last night after dinner. I also took a test drive before I came here to make sure everything was in working order!"
Fishlegs smirked at his friend. "You certainly did test it I bet. Tell me what was the top speed today? You are still using the 428 V8 that you rebuilt?"
"Of course I am! Wouldn't be the same if I didn't use it, you should know that. And just so you know, the top speed I reached was about 169 MPH before my dad told me to slow down as he didn't want me to wreck the car after the hard work I put into it."
The two continued to talk about Hiccup's car, all the modifications and repairs that had to be done on it, including mending the body of the car. Luckily, frame was clean and had no signs of rust. Fishlegs was astounded by how much work was done on it. Smiles were exchanged as the conversation went on, from the failures of tuning the engine to simply making sure the leather was the best and most accurate to Hiccup's specifications. Eventually, a familiar blonde came over and announced her presence by clearing her throat.
"AHEM!"
Hiccup looked up and saw Astrid with an "I need to talk to you" look. He gave a glance to Fish who understood and got up and walked away. Hiccup then turned to Astrid.
"So what is it that you wanted to talk about?"
"First off, where in Midgard did you get that car?! It's amazing and I've never seen anything like it before. And from what I heard, is it really true you built that car? I never thought someone with the nickname Useless could actually-"
"You say it like you've said it all your damn life. Yet again after what you did to me, I'm not surprised you forgot all of the stuff that occurred in the past."
Astrid then noticed the pain in his eyes. She knew that she picked on him, but she never physically hurt him like Snotlout and his goons did. So what did he refer to? While she thought of this, Hiccup saw her look and understood what was going on, but decided not to comment on it at this moment.
"Don't bother with that now, what is it you have to tell me? Something about the project?"
Astrid broke her train of thought and finally remember why she had walked over.
"Right so as for our project, I found some sources, two to be exact and I have copies to give you."
She then pulled out two stapled documents and handed them over. As Hiccup glanced over, a small smile grew on his lips.
'She still finds the smallest ways to amaze me…'
"These are great Astrid, but it's funny you bring this up as I have five documents for you to read over. I was gonna wait till we actually were together tomorrow but I guess now is good as ever. I used some data bases and some contacts I have with museums around the archipelago and were able to gather transcripts of ancient texts."
He pulled out five stapled documents for Astrid and she took them with curiosity. As she began to read them, her eyes widened in amazement.
'Incredible, he found this much information in the time we were apart and he finished the car. Reminds me of the boy I met seven years ago… although he has gotten significantly hotter….'
Astrid blushed as the second thought came into her mind. She quickly snapped out of it.
"This is awesome Hiccup! Didn't know you had access like this. This should make our project incredibly accurate!"
"Umm thanks. I still have to translate some one that have not been transcribed yet. Anyway I know you have practice tonight and all so don't push yourself too hard."
Hiccup then looked at her and his face suddenly changed from one of happiness to one of pain. Astrid noticed this.
"Hiccup are you alright? You look like you've-"
"I need to go Astrid, I have to go to the office and get a pass."
Astrid watched as Hiccup quickly got up and speedily walked to the office. However, as he reached the door, he suddenly fell to one knee. Astrid gasped and quickly ran to him.
"Hiccup are you ok? Here let me take you to-"
'I'm fine. Please don't worry about it."
"Hiccup you look like you're in pain. Please just let me-"
"ASTRID, PLEASE LET ME GO! I CAN'T LET YOU.."
He paused on his last work and looked at Astrid. She gasped as she saw his eyes fill with pain. Both physical and mental pain. She was distracted long enough for Hiccup to escape her grasp and continue his walk. She was left with something tugging at her heart. But she pushed it down and walked back to her friends….
Astrid finished her day with the same weight on her heart that she felt at lunch. Something was bothering her about Hiccup and she just didn't know what. Normally she would brush it off and lock it away, but this time the pain she felt was too strong and she could not suppress it. She talked to her coach and was able to be excused for the day. Unfortunately, she was not able to secure a ride, so she was forced to make the walk home. She began to think about what her life was like with Hiccup in middle school.
'Man class today was so boring, I thought I was gonna die in my seat!' said Hiccup
'Pffft I know right, that teacher sure is a pain. Wish she would stop going on about how her students don't respect her enough!' said Astrid
'Yeah, so hey Astrid, I gotta ask you something..'
'Sure Hic, what is it?'
'Well you've been at Berk West for a month now, so I gotta ask how do you feel here then compared to Berk East?'
Astrid pondered this question and then looked at Hiccup. He had a nervous look on his face but she was still able to see his adorable green eyes stare at her. She felt a warm feeling then smiled.
'It's better than I hoped it would be! I was so worried I wouldn't be accepted here but luckily I was. I was talking to this guy and I think I heard someone call him Snotlout. Anyway, he seems like a nice person and….'
She trailed off and noticed that Hiccup had stopped walking and had a fearful face. He looked like he lost a piece of his soul. He then spoked with a soft and nervous voice, like he had been hurt.
'He-he's my cousin Astrid…'
'Oh! Well he seems like he is a nice person, how is he with-'
'He beats me up Astrid, he gave me my nickname…'
Astrid looked at him with a puzzled look.
'That doesn't sound like the boy I met today.'
'You'll learn soon enough' said Hiccup.
They both walked home in silence, unaware of the events that would unfold in the future….
Astrid finished her flashback when a flash of light struck the cloudy skies. A roar of thunder followed with a rainstorm. Astrid was not prepared for rain as the forecast had no mention of rain. She held her backpack above her head and began to run. Her clothing was now pelted with raindrops as she ran through puddles. The winds picked up immensely and she was able to make it home after 10 minutes of running. By the time she reached her house, her clothing was soaked and she was shivering. She reached into her back pocket and felt nothing. A look of panic came across her face as she desperately looked for her house key. After five minutes she finally found the key and walked in. She set her stuff down and went in for a hot shower.
She walked out, got dressed in her pajamas and fell asleep. Her heart was still weighed down as she closed her eyes that night, looking to suppress painful sadness for another with her dreams.