One Night To Our Future

Rating; M for Mature

Pairing; HunterXVerena

Disclaimer; I do not own anything HTTYD related. Everything belongs to Dreamworks, and or Cressida Cowell.

Not Alright

-Hunter's POV-

(Sunday, February 28, 2016-4:05 pm)

[Haddock House]

I couldn't believe it, and yet; I should have seen it coming. My father sent me to the office with Verena to do work on a Sunday? Gods, I should have figured out that he or my friends were planning something for my birthday. I guess I didn't worry about it when I got told to pick up Verena and get some files sorted out and organized. I couldn't explain that one; that I enjoyed spending time with her. I'm beginning to feel like I'm developing a crush on my assistant, but maybe I'm just latching onto the girl I slept with at random because I'm trying to get over my ex-fiancee who cheated on me with a good friend of mine. I suppose only time will tell. Either way; it was kind of nice to be with Verena all day from 11 am to now with just us sitting in my office to go over things. I felt like Verena was probably in on this whole party, but it didn't matter. I appreciated the gesture that they threw me a surprise celebration. Well, tonight should be fun then.

"Awe, you guys…And girls," I smiled.

"Man, we got you good!" Seth laughed with the others. From what I could tell, a lot of the main people I interacted with on a daily basis were here. My dad, Gregory, Alyssa, Heather, Devon, Thaxter, Caitlyn, Ford, Raelyn, Travis, Virgil, Ricky, Seth, Thomas, and Myra.

"Yeah, you did," I nodded in agreement.

"Well, I better get home," Verena mentioned, preparing to step back outside.

"Why?" I wondered.

"I, uh, wasn't invited…My job was to keep you busy," Verena smiled, then she prepared to leave again. I grabbed her hand lightly as she stopped and looked at me surprised.

"Stay," I said.

"No, no. I couldn't impose. I'm tired anyway," Verena informed.

"You're not imposing, Verena. I'm insisting. Okay? You might be my assistant, but you're a friend too," I smiled. "And hey, I had invited you for dinner anyway since you spent your whole day making sure I didn't come here to find out about the party. Come on, stay? Please? For me, because it's my birthday?" I enticed by playing the birthday card.

"Alright, I'll stay. Of course, now I feel bad because I didn't get you anything," Verena muttered, looking down.

"I'm sure we can reach some kind of arrangement to make up for it," I chuckled. Verena gasped.

"You're fucking terrible!" Verena screeched.

"I meant maybe you could sing for me or something. If you thought otherwise then you're the pervert, Milady," I laughed a bit. Verena glared, trying to make sure she didn't blush. Thank the Gods that there was music going and the others had heard it. I always forget that they don't know Rosanna and I are over; they just think we're on a break because I don't want to deal with all the questions about why we're broken up. I know I could tell them that it's due to Rosanna cheating on me with Eric, but then they'd want to know why, and I don't have those answers. When I found Rosanna with Eric; I just walked out and haven't spoken to them since the week before I slept with Verena, which was January 2nd. Yep; the day after New Years. Not even nine days after I proposed to her since I had on Christmas 2015.

"I don't sing…" Verena mumbled.

"You do, you're just afraid when you know people are watching or listening. I heard you a couple weeks ago. I was right; you sing great," I winked while closing the door and released Verena's hand. "Well, let's get this party started!" I announced. And sure enough; everything began.

. . .

-Normal POV-

(6:30 pm)

[Haddock Household]

Everyone was having a great time. Dinner was pizza, chicken, burgers, and hot dogs. Of course, there were chips and dip with a few other small side items. The cake was vanilla and chocolate swirl with buttercream frosting. However; it was a joke cake that said; Happy 6th Birthday, Hunter! That had been something Gregory, and Salvatore did because Hunter's actual birthday, the 29th of February only came once every four years. Verena thought it was cute, and Hunter got a laugh out of it, so that's all that mattered. Verena had never been to Hunter's house before, but she found it to be beautiful. It closely resembled a mansion, but not quite in the size department. Two floors; ground and second. First held all main rooms of a house such as a kitchen, formal dining room, living room, study, library, semi-ballroom that looked out to the backyard where there was a hot tub, pool, back patio, and the stables. The second floor had bedrooms and office space. From what Verena had seen; Salvatore had maids, butlers, and cooks employed right at home. Verena watched them move around and keep things cleaned up.

Currently, Verena was leaning against the wall where the windows were, getting a look into the backyard where all the dragons were being kept for this party. In her hand was an empty cup, which initially had wine in it. It was a party, and all of them were older than twenty-one, so of course, there was alcohol present. It didn't matter if anyone got messed up and too drunk to drive or fly home because there were spare rooms that they could sleep in for the night. There were still snacks out, and music going. Salvatore was speaking with Gregory, and the rest were just talking among one another. Verena wasn't much of a party person since she lost her virginity at Senior Prom, which was a party, to a guy she thought loved her as they'd been together for a while, but then the guy ditched her after they slept together once. It's been a few years, but that still bothers her to no end.

"Hey," Hunter's voice pulled Verena from her thoughts.

Verena smiled. "Hi," Verena replied.

"Need a refill? Or maybe something else?" Hunter offered. "You don't have to worry about getting drunk. Dad has plenty of spare rooms here," he added with a chuckle.

"I suppose. A Sex on the Beach sounds nice," Verena informed. Hunter stopped on of the servers walking by with a tray.

"Yes, sir? Can I get you anything?" the male inquired formally.

"Sex on the Beach and a Jack and Coke, please?" Hunter asked; the man nodded and hurried off to the table where the drink items were. Verena went back to looking outside. "Come on, lighten up a little; it's a party. You're allowed to have fun too,"

Verena smiled a little. "Parties just aren't my thing,"

"But bars are?" Hunter chuckled a little.

"I was only out that night because Caitlyn insisted we go celebrate my new job at the academy, even though I hadn't even been hired yet," Verena explained gently. The server returned with the drinks as Hunter handed Verena the Sex on the Beach as he held his own cup, sipping it slowly.

"Ah, makes sense then. Still, this is a birthday; mine, so have fun," Hunter told her. "Unless there's a reason you don't like parties?"

Verena shrugged some. "I guess you could say the only one I went to was a bad experience,"

"Feel like talking about it?" Hunter asked.

"Well, my first party happened when I was eighteen; it was the night of Senior Prom. A lot of us bailed at 10 pm and went to something a little more…Wild, shall we say. You know; blaring music, people making out, having sex, huge mess, alcohol…So on and so forth," Verena began.

"Yeah. Been there, done that. So what happened?" Hunter urged for her to continue.

"I was with a guy, like actually dating him. We'd been together since the start of Senior Year in mid-September 2013; I was still seventeen at the time. For the prom, I was eighteen since my birthday is at the end of December," Verena went on as Hunter nodding, listening carefully and taking a few sips of his drink. "Started okay, having a beer and standing next to my boyfriend of almost a year; he practically ignored me until 12:30 am. Party was still going, and I wasn't having much fun. However, finally, he started paying attention to me. As expected; we had sex, and that was the night I lost my virginity too. About three days later; he broke up with me saying it wasn't working out anymore."

Hunter watched as Verena looked down at her drink a little sadly. "It wasn't the reason, though. I heard the rumors; he only did all he did to get in my pants. I was just another notch in the bedpost for him because apparently, he had some list of all the girls he wanted to bang before he graduated. I ended up being last since I was a virgin, and he knew it would take time to get me to agree, which is why he dated me first, and used Senior Prom, a night everyone ends up fucking somehow or someway," Verena finished, then took a drink from her plastic cup.

"Well, he's one; an asshole for leading you on like that. And two, a fool for letting you go. You seem like a great person to be with in a relationship," Hunter stated.

Verena smiled a little. "Thanks,"

"Is he the only guy you've ever been in a relationship with sexually?" Hunter inquired.

Verena shook her head. "No. I've had five boyfriends since I was sixteen-years-old. Two them were ones I had sex with. How about you?" she wondered now. Hunter laughed a bit.

"First time having sex; I was seventeen. And don't say anything because nobody knows about it, like not even my friends. It was a Senior Party since I was still seventeen when I started my final year in September 2009. Drank a little too much, slept with a girl named Sydney. We woke up the next morning and swore to act like nothing ever happened. We never dated, though. It was strictly a one-time ordeal," Hunter informed.

"Oh, so like you and me?" Verena inquired quietly as Hunter nodded. "Alright, how many girlfriends have you had since we're on this topic now?"

"Three, and had sex with them all too. Uh, first one was…Alyssa, believe it or not," Hunter smiled.

"No way. You and Alyssa dated, and have fucked?" Verena asked.

Hunter nodded, laughing a little. "Yeah, we did. Alyssa and I started dating after I turned eighteen. We'd had crushes on one another since we were fifteen. I don't actually remember what happened for us to admit our feelings, but we started dating in March 2010 and stayed together for a year and two months. We had sex for the first time after seven months of being together, and then, I don't know. I guess feelings just started to change. We got distant from one another and sat down; deciding it would be best to end things before we got too deep in and could have hurt one another. The way we went about it was so we could take a little time and keep our friendship,"

"That's good, though," Verena nodded.

"My second relationship was when I was twenty; it was a short dating experience. I'd say maybe nine months? We had sex pretty early on in it, and that's kind of all we did besides a few dates once a month. We were having sex every two-three days after being together four months," Hunter laughed a bit. "I have no idea what happened to her. I got sick of it only being about sex, so I ended things,"

"And the last one?" Verena wondered. Hunter's eyes glanced down, and he sighed. Verena felt like this last relationship didn't end well and probably hurt Hunter bad.

"It was two and a half years long. Also, she was-," Hunter stopped fast.

"Hey, Rosanna, Eric; you made it!" Raelyn said. Hunter's eyes widened, then he snapped his head to the left to see his ex-fiancee and the man she had cheated on him with entering the house. Verena suddenly had an awful feeling about where things were going. Hunter had begun talking about his last relationship, and suddenly this girl walks in, and Hunter is reacting this way? No; it had a lousy time written all over it.

"Hey, baby; it's been a while. Happy birthday," the girl, Rosanna, said with a smile. Verena could see that she had bright strawberry-blonde hair and ice-blue eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Hunter asked.

"Eric and I were invited. Sorry, that we're a bit late," Rosanna informed lightly.

"It's cool. We're just hanging out and talking," Heather smiled broadly.

"No, it's not cool," Hunter remarked. Rosanna walked closer now, linking her arm to Hunter's and smiling. It was at this time that Verena could see a gold band, two diamonds on top engagement wrong sitting on Rosanna's left-hand ring finger.

"Awe, you two are so cute. I'm glad that you worked things out and off the break! Now, wedding plans can resume!" Addison giggled. Verena's eyes widened a little. Hunter was…or is engaged to this woman? Oh, Gods and Verena slept with Hunter a little over a month ago! Hunter saw Verena's face, that she looked terrified because of what happened between them back in January. Hunter tried to mouth to Verena not to worry, but Rosanna held Hunter tighter, shooting a triumphant look on her face that said; he's mine. Hunter caught it and got angry. No; he was not dealing with this.

Hunter pulled himself free of Rosanna and backed up. "Get off me,"

"But babe," Rosanna began. This time, Hunter's eyes narrowed.

"Don't fucking but babe me, Rosanna. You know what you did, and you should have known better than to show your face around here again. Especially with him," Hunter remarked coldly. Everyone's eyes widened a little, not understanding. "And how dare you continue to wear that ring when you know it's over between us,"

"Woah! Hunter, chill man. You said it was just a break between you two," Thaxter said.

"No. Rosanna and I are done, as in broken up for good," Hunter informed.

"When did this happen? What is even going on?" Alyssa asked.

Hunter sighed, still angry, though. "We were on a break because Hunter got drunk and slept with another woman in January," Rosanna said quickly. "I came tonight because I decided I can forgive him,"

"Hunter! You cheated on her!?" the friends scolded him.

"You conniving, deceitful, little bitch. Don't you fucking stand there and lie to them about what really happened! I didn't cheat on her; it's the other way around. Rosanna cheated on me, with Eric, back in January," Hunter glared. Their eyes widened more, confused and not sure who to believe. "Rosanna cheated on me nine goddamn days after I proposed to her. January 2, 2016, at 5:15 pm when I went to see her after work; she was fucking Eric in the bedroom of her apartment. I didn't say anything; I just walked out, and we haven't spoken since,"

"If…This is true, then why did you tell us you two were on a break?" Travis inquired.

"Because I knew you'd all want answers; ones I didn't have because I refused to see or speak to either of them. So, I said we were on a break to diffuse any questions. Eventually; I was going to find out why she did it, or just say she had second thoughts about marrying me, wasn't ready, and we ended it that way," Hunter muttered. Verena understood why Hunter looked so upset before Rosanna showed up; this girl hurt him bad.

"Yeah, well, you still got drunk and slept with someone in January a week after you caught me. Guess you moved on pretty fast with your assistant," Rosanna smirked. Verena's eyes widened, so did Hunter's.

"WHAT?!" everyone shouted.

"Oh, you guys didn't know that Hunter and Verena got wasted at the bar the Friday before she was hired and had sex?" Rosanna grinned.

"Verena…Is this true?" Caitlyn asked quickly. Verena couldn't find her words and Hunter could tell she was horrified that it came out.

"How the fuck do you know about that?" Hunter asked, which only confirmed to everyone that Rosanna wasn't wrong.

"So this is why you two looked so surprised to see one another that day!" Seth laughed. "You did know one another because you had drunken sex together!"

"Hunter. Is it true? Is that how you and Verena know one another?" Salvatore inquired.

"Ugh! Fine! Yes, it is. Verena and I met at the bar, drunk off our asses and had sex in the motel down the street. That's why I was surprised to see her the following Monday at work. And don't get it twisted; we weren't looking to hook up either. Verena was getting hit on by a bunch of guys, trying to pull her towards them. I stepped in and said I was her boyfriend to make them stop. They said prove it; I kissed her, and it went from there," Hunter informed everyone in the room.

"Well, it's not all that bad. Rosanna's statement isn't entirely true. Verena hadn't been hired as Hunter's assistant yet. No harm, no foul really," Alyssa shrugged.

"Thank you!" Hunter motioned.

"Yeah? No harm or foul…Except for the fact that Hunter told Verena if they weren't boss and employee he would spend another night with her because it was the best sex he's ever had," Rosanna smirked.

"And we also said that it wouldn't happen again because of what we are. We maintain nothing more than a professional relationship," Verena countered this time, surprising Hunter that she spoke up at all about the matter. "Yes, it was a drunken one night stand between Hunter and I when we were complete strangers, okay? We never expected to see one another again, but it happened. We discussed the matter, and took care of it,"

"B-But, sis!" Caitlyn started.

"But nothing, Caitlyn. I'm twenty-one-years-old. Hunter is now, twenty-four. We're adults, and what we do on personal time is no concern of anybody but us. It's nobody's friggin business what happened between Hunter and I before I became his assistant. Was it fun? Yes. Hell, it's the best sex I've ever had. Do we still joke about it? Absolutely. But who the fuck cares? The only reason this bitch knows it probably because she snuck into the academy and overheard Hunter and I talk about things the day I got hired, and she's using it now to keep the attention off the fact she fucking cheated on Hunter nine days after they got engaged. And she's in here taunting him by wearing that ring and showing up with the guy she fucked behind his back,"

"You know what; she's right," Hunter said. "We don't need permission to do the things we did, and we don't care what you think about it. We were drunk, it happened. We put it behind us and work just fine regardless. I'm single. She's single. Who cares? Yes, out of all the other sexual encounters I've had…Having drunken sex with Verena was the fucking best, and I don't regret a single second of that night with her,"

"Same goes for me," Verena nodded. "I'm not ashamed at all of what we did,"

"As for you, Rosanna. We're done. Keep the ring, I don't care anymore. But take Eric, and get the fuck out of this house. Rosanna, you cheated on me after I proposed to you. Nine days after…And I could tell by how comfortable you two were that it certainly wasn't the first time you two hooked up while we've been together," Hunter remarked.

"Nope. Started just before your mom died," Rosanna mumbled, although Hunter heard it, and that only pissed him off more.

"Figures. I had my mind on something other than you, for once, so you cheat on me and then continue to pretend like I'm the only one for you. And you Eric; you were one of my best friends, and betrayed me. Neither of you is welcome here or the academy," Hunter stated.

"What?" the two remarked in surprise.

"Eric, you were terminated for three no call/no shows because you were too chicken to work your job as Tidal Class Trainer after you got caught with her, you have no reason to be at the academy. Nor you, Rosanna, since you graduated already. You come near BDTA, and I will have security remove you," Hunter informed.

"You can't do th-," Eric started.

"I'm the CEO; yes I can. Now, get out," Hunter ordered. Rosanna huffed as she stomped out, Eric following behind her. After the door shut, it was quiet. Hunter still looked pretty mad; his fists clenched at his sides. Finally, he closed his eyes, sighing, and releasing his hands from their tightened position.

"Lad? Are you alright?" Gregory inquired gently, reaching for his unofficial nephew. Hunter didn't say anything; he just walked away and went outside. Verena felt awful, and while everyone else was watching Hunter vanish into the darkness to likely find Toothless; she snuck out through another door before they turned attention to her. One thing was for sure; Hunter wasn't alright, which sucked because it was his birthday and it was supposed to be a happy day. For the time being; everything just had to wait and see if Hunter would come back and want to keep celebrating.