A/N: Fluffy times ahead, for at least the next few chapters. Enjoy! And Merry Christmas everyone! Let me know what you think. Also, a great big thank you to everyone who followed/favorited/reviewed so far! 100 Reviews exactly and over 200 followers! I never imagined my silly idea would end up being so popular! thanks again!
"Hiccup!" A loud voice with that familiar Scottish burr shook the house. "There is a package for ye! …And a big one at that!"
Hiccup's pulse quickened a beat. It must be his comics. He had wondered how long it would take for them to arrive. "Coming, dad!"
Hiccup ran down the stairs, skipping on a step or two on the way down but steadying himself easily on the handrail as he came.
Stoick shook his head at his son. "Hiccup, ye need to be more careful on the steps! I know yer excited but ye don't want to get hurt, aye?"
Hiccup shook his head as he walked towards his dad in the entry way, holding open the front door. Stoick had been given the nickname of Stoick the Vast as a boy, and he only fit the description more perfectly now. His large shoulders and tall stature meant he took up nearly the entire door frame.
Hiccup pushed past his father to retrieve the box. It wasn't quite as big as he thought it would be, but the label on the side said, "How to Train Your Dragon, 500 copies". He bent to pick up the box excitedly, and was surprised when it was heavier than he expected. He hoisted it up in front of him, resting it against his chest as he brought it into the house.
Stoick followed him into the kitchen as Hiccup set the heavy box down on the table. He quickly grabbed a pair of kitchen shears and carefully cut a slit along the tape holding the cardboard box closed. He lifted open the flaps and breathed in the smell of newly printed paper. He gingerly picked up the first copy. The glossy pages looked professional. His heart skipped a beat at seeing his art and his story coming alive on the cover.
He ran his hand over the smooth surface of the cover, cold and crisp to his touch. His design lined up perfectly with the specs that the publishing company gave him. He turned the first page of the cover, pausing to test the thickness of the page between his thumb and forefinger. Satisfied with its thickness and quality, he continued to turn page after page, looking for any imperfection. He glanced through the words to make sure none of the ink had smudged, checked the pictures for digital errors. He checked the binding and the edge to make sure they'd gotten the bleed right, which could be tricky.
There was an odd digital blur here or there, but not anywhere that made a huge difference. Mostly just little places that no one else would probably notice. He finally let himself smile, satisfied with the overall quality.
"Well, let's see it, then!" Stoick's voice bellowed behind him. "I take it by the smile on yer face that it passed inspection?"
Hiccup merely nodded before handing Stoick the comic. "You are watching history in the making, dad. What you are holding there is a first addition Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III original comic book."
Stoick's large hands held the comic book clumsily, turning the pages in jerks instead of the smooth and careful page turns like Hiccup. "Well, for $1000 dollars I certainly would have thought ye could have gotten more."
"I got a deal as it was! $2.00 per comic." Hiccup took the comic out of Stoick's hands and attempted to smooth the edges he'd just creased with his ungraceful hands.
"I see…. And how much can ye sell these for at yer comic-y thing."
"Most comics go from $3.99-$4.99. Most people will pay $4.99 to an independent publisher, like myself, if they like the comic." Hiccup knew where his dad was going with this, always the salesman.
"So, you've worked nearly every Saturday morning all year at the dealership, cleaning cars to make that $1000," Stoick paused, "…And if you sell 'em for $5.00, supposing you sell 'em all, then ye will make a profit of… $1500." He did the math in his head, but it was obviously laborious for him.
"Yep." Hiccup had already stopped paying attention to his dad. He didn't care that his son's art was coming alive in front of his eyes, he only cared about the profitability. "Not to mention the comic-con booth fees, but we are splitting that between 4 guys, so it only ended up being $225 per person."
"…and you are going to be there all weekend?" Stoick asked, eyeing Hiccup as he tried to piece together the math in his head.
"Yep. Thursday through Sunday. Not counting school of course."
Stoick shook his head. "Alright, I'll trust ye on this. Ye still think you can get picked up by a publisher?"
"I'm hoping." Hiccup's answers were getting shorter and more quipped as the conversation continued. He was still checking the top few comics for errors, and it was obvious his dad didn't really care.
He grabbed the box against his chest. "I'll take it upstairs for now. Thanks, dad, for letting me know it was here."
Stoick nodded and went back to the living room to continue watching tv.
When Hiccup got the comics to his room, he carefully pulled out the first one again and hugged it tight to his chest. This moment was several years in the making, and soon he would be presenting his hard work to a group of people that may actually be able to appreciate him. He read through the pages again, carefully reading over every word, trying to imprint this moment to his memory. Now if he can just sell some at Comic-Con.
Saturday night came quickly. Hiccup was putting the finishing touches on his tux; tugging at the tie, fixing the vest. His dad had insisted he have a black tux with black vest. Hiccup wore this with a black tux shirt underneath. Stoick thought it looked better with the white tux shirt, but he liked how he looked in all black. He was a bundle of nerves thinking about picking up Astrid. He checked his watch, it was 6:00. He had exactly 15 minutes before he needed to leave to pick her up.
He checked himself in the mirror, sweeping his hair to the side as Astrid had shown him. Maybe he was ready for a haircut, but it would have to wait for another day. He smoothed his jacket and buttoned the cuffs. He wondered how Astrid would look. He hadn't thought to ask her the color of her dress, he could have gotten her a corsage or something. Oh well, the dozen roses he had bought earlier would have to do.
Was he overdoing it? Maybe the roses were a stupid idea. He didn't know if she was taking this date seriously or not. He guessed girls liked roses no matter what, right?
He was still contemplating whether the roses were too much when there was a knock on his door. "Son, are ye about ready?"
Hiccup opened the door. His father stood before him in one of his best suits, his wild red hair pulled back and plaited, beard neatly groomed. Hiccup guessed he should be happy he didn't try to wear a kilt. You can take the man out of Scotland…. Hiccup thought to himself playfully while shaking his head.
"Well son, this is a big night, aye?" Stoick tried to smile at Hiccup, doing his best to try to relate to his son and his interests.
"Yes, I suppose it kind of is." Hiccup murmured, not sure if Stoick was referring to his senior gallery, or his date with Astrid. As excited as he was about his date, he actually hoped his dad was referring to his art. He'd worked hard over the past year on the pieces that would be at the exhibit.
"Ah, so you did get the flowers for yer date." Stoick smiled as he saw the bundle of red roses sitting on the bed. Hiccup felt his heart sink a little, realizing that Stoick was in fact referring to his date and not his art.
Hiccup shuffled his feet awkwardly, glancing back at the flowers with a wince. "Yeah, I just hope it's not too much…."
"Yer first date, Hiccup!" Stoick laughed as he shoved Hiccup's shoulder. "Aye, that's my boy!"
Hiccup fell back a little from his father's shove, holding his shoulder and rotating it back into place. "Well, I guess I'll see you there? Doors open at 7, but you don't have to be there right away. You have until it closes down at 9." Hiccup tried desperately to bring the subject back to the gallery itself.
"Alright Hiccup!" Stoick laughed. "I do have an errand to run, but I'll be there!" He winked at his son before turning to head down the stairs. "Good luck, son!"
Hiccup watched as his father rounded the corner and stomped down the stairs. He had been downplaying the importance of the gallery to everyone, but the truth was, he'd been waiting a long time for this. As a freshman, he remembered watching the seniors get ready for the gallery, perfecting their art, talking about dressing up. It was a great way to wrap up his senior year on a positive note. He hated recognition and spotlight, but this felt different. It was a smaller group of people with similar interests and a chance to let his art be seen.
Fishlegs was going to come by as well. Hiccup wanted to show him the comics, so he grabbed his messenger bag and put a few inside. He was sure Fish would be just as excited about the comics as he was.
Hiccup secured the messenger bag over his shoulder. It clashed painfully against the tux. He would probably have to leave it in his car during the gallery. He took a deep breath in the mirror. It was time to leave to get Astrid. He grabbed the flowers from his bed and was on his way.
Within minutes he had arrived at Astrid's house. He was only a few minutes early, he hoped she wouldn't mind. He knocked at the door and took a step back, looking down at his shoes, feeling a mixture of emotions bubbling inside of him.
The door opened and Astrid's father stood in the opening, with only a slight scowl on his face. Hiccup swallowed hard. Astrid's father wasn't nearly as big as his own, but he was still a tall and broad shouldered man who dwarfed himself in comparison.
"Hiccup, I presume?" He spoke with an eyebrow cocked.
"Yes sir." Hiccup replied, wondering what the protocol is for greeting the father of your kind-of date. He looked down at his shoes, running his free hand through his hair.
"Oh, let him in, Bo!" came a female voice from inside. Mr. Hofferson slowly moved away from the door, gesturing into the house.
Hiccup nodded at him and walked in timidly, shoulders hunched. Mrs. Hofferson walked towards him while shouting up the stairs to let Astrid know he was there. He heard her voice shout back down, "be down in a minute!"
Hiccup swallowed hard. This certainly felt like a real date. Her father was eyeing him like he was a real threat, and Mrs. Hofferson was beaming at him.
"Well, Hiccup, it's been a long time since we've seen you! Hasn't it dear?" She looked to Mr. Hofferson with a friendly smile.
"Yes, Hiccup. It has been awhile. How have you been?" Mr. Hofferson was obviously trying hard to appease Mrs. Hofferson.
"Fine." Hiccup replied, not sure what the proper response to that question should be.
"Don't you look handsome, Hiccup." Mrs. Hofferson smiled. "Why don't you come sit down in the living room while we wait for Astrid?"
Hiccup nodded and awkwardly followed them into the living room. He pulled his cell out of his pant pocket to check the time. They were still ok, but he wished she would hurry up and save him this uncomfortable situation.
Mrs. Hofferson sat on the couch across from Hiccup. "Oh, Hiccup, I'm so glad you and Astrid are friends again. I always told her you were such a nice boy. Don't you agree, Bo?"
Bo nodded begrudgingly in agreement. "Well, anything beats that Eret kid, god I hated that arrogant bastard."
Mrs. Hofferson swatted him in the side. "Bo!"
"Well, I did!" He responded.
Hiccup chuckled just a little but covered it with a cough, nervously fiddling with his tie.
Then Hiccup heard the padded footsteps of Astrid coming down the stairs. The three of them turned to see her, and got up and made their way to meet her at the bottom.
The first thing Hiccup saw as she made her way down was her red high heeled shoes. The next thing he noticed was the crimson dress she wore, which hugged all her curves just right. It was form fitting to just below the curve of her hip, then began to flare out at around mid-thigh. It had a sweetheart neckline and he could see the curve of her breast peeking out the top of the dress. He would have looked away, but he couldn't take his eyes off of her. He could feel the butterflies in his stomach go into overtime taking in how beautiful she looked.
She had her hair in a loose bun at the nape of her neck with a few tendrils of hair curled and framing her face. She wore a deep red lipstick to match her dress. When she made it to the bottom of the stairs she did a slight twirl to show off her dress, which upon closer inspection had a lace overlay. The back of the dress dipped down to her waist, showing off the strong muscles of her back which were long, lean, and still very feminine. Her skin looked smooth and soft. Noticing this made Hiccup gulp again and run his fingers through his hair nervously.
"A-Astrid, you look…. Beautiful." He managed to say somehow even though his heart was beating so hard in his chest he thought everyone could hear it.
"Thank you." Astrid smiled. "You look very handsome as well. That tux looks great on you."
Hiccup presented the roses in his hand to her, looking timidly at the ground while she took them.
"Aww, Hiccup, they are beautiful." Astrid smiled. "No one has ever brought me flowers before!"
Astrid's mom reached for the roses. "Here, I'll go put them in a vase." She smiled cheerfully.
"Wait!" Astrid plucked a single rose from the bouquet and nodded at her mom. Mrs. Hofferson smiled before ducking into the kitchen to retrieve a vase and water.
Astrid pulled out her clutch and snapped it open, pulling out a few bobby pins. She shortened the stem to about 6 inches below the bud and then tucked it behind her ear, securing the stem with her bobby pins. The rose perfectly complimented her dress.
It was perfect. She was perfect.
Hiccup took a deep breath and held out his arm. Astrid giggled and slipped her arm through his.
"Are you ready, milady?"
She giggled slightly and nodded her head. "See you guys later!" she called back to her parents.
"Have fun sweetheart!" Mrs. Hofferson called from the kitchen.
"But not too much." Mr. Hofferson added.
They were out the door and Astrid giggled as soon as the door shut. "Sorry about my parents, they can be a little much sometimes."
"Nah, its fine." Hiccup laughed nervously.
He led Astrid to his car, opening the passenger side door for her. She grinned at him, a grin that seemed to brighten her whole face as she carefully sat down in the car. Hiccup closed the door and walked around to the driver side, getting in himself and starting the car.
He sat for a moment before putting the car in gear, glancing in her direction. She was looking at him curiously, but her smile was still as bright as a moment ago.
"What?" Hiccup asked, reaching for the clutch and putting the car in gear.
"No one has ever given me flowers or opened the door for me. Ever." Astrid shook her head.
"Really? But you've had tons of dates before, right?"
"Yep." She responded.
"And none of them ever treated you right?"
Astrid laughed. "I mean, I guess they just weren't into all this… chivalry stuff."
"This 'chivalry stuff' is just how you deserve to be treated, Astrid." Hiccup replied simply before backing out of the driveway and heading towards the gallery.
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Her stomach wouldn't calm down, and she was beginning to wonder if it ever would. As she rode in Hiccup's car to the gallery, which was being held in the Plaza downtown, she kept stealing glances in Hiccup's direction and feeling the butterflies begin their flutter all over again each time.
Hiccup was handsome. No, scratch that, Hiccup was hot. Had he always been this hot and just hiding it under hoodies and baggy jeans? Or was he becoming hot to her because she was getting to know the person inside him?
Things that had seemed juvenile just a few weeks ago, like the splattering of freckles across the bridge of his nose and creeping along his cheekbones, or his thin but tall frame, they seemed so endearing now. He might be thin, but she had been held in those arms on a few occasions and knew they were solid, strong. Hiccup had been through so much in his young life which made him seem even stronger on the inside. The more she got to know him, the more she could admire that strength as it manifested itself physically for her.
She saw his strength now in the piercing gaze of his eyes when he was determined or angry. She saw it in the way he fixed his jaw when he was upset. She saw his strength in the way he continued to walk through the halls of the school every day, having known nothing but torment and pain from his peers. He had persevered. The edges of his faults were starting to blur as she began to understand him. The freckles looked like war paint, marking him as a warrior.
Then within that strength, she was beginning to see his tenderness. The way he had opened up to her only a few nights ago, the way he was able to forgive her when she let herself break down in front of him, which she never did with anyone else. She also saw it as the words he spoke from just a few moments ago ran through her mind. You deserve to be treated right. To Astrid, this also translated to: you are worthy of love just as you are. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do.
She smoothed her dress on her thighs and pulled down the visor mirror, inspecting her makeup again and admiring the way the rose complimented her coloring. She actually felt kind of glamorous. Her mom had insisted that this dress just wasn't quite right for prom, but she had bought it anyway. She was glad she did, because it felt perfect for this. She could get something more formal for prom like her mother wanted, but tonight she felt glamorous.
When they arrived at the plaza, Hiccup parked the car and motioned for her to stay in her seat. He walked around and opened the door for her, extending his hand to help her up. She smiled at him and took his hand. He closed the door behind her and they began to walk towards the entrance.
Hiccup seemed unsure. His grip on her hand was somewhat loose. She slid her fingers through his to establish a tighter lock, giving his hand a slight squeeze as she admired the way her hands fit inside his. She looked up at Hiccup as they walked, and he turned and gave her a half smile. She giggled just a little to herself, letting the nervous energy she felt escape.
They made it to the doors and a doorman opened the door for the couple. The two walked in and were greeted with ushers in tuxes. "Artist or guest?" One of them asked, moving forward to direct the two.
"Artist." Hiccup replied, standing up a little straighter and puffing his chest. Adorable. He gave her a sideways glance and added with a half-grin, "…and date."
The usher held up a clipboard, pen poised on the paper. "Name, sir?"
"Hiccup, uh- Hiccup Haddock."
The usher made a mark on the clip board. "Very good, sir. Let me lead you to your exhibit."
Hiccup turned his face towards Astrid, giving her a tight smile. Astrid smiled back at him and brought her free hand over to pat his arm. "How exciting!" She whispered as they followed the usher.
He led them through the hall to a section towards the middle. "Here you are, sir. There are drinks and hors d'oeuvres coming around, feel free to indulge in the refreshments. If you or your date need anything at all, please don't hesitate to find us." He nodded and walked back to the entrance to greet the new guests.
"Wow, this is impressive!" Astrid exclaimed as she glanced around the hall. It had been decorated with strings of lights that cast impressive shadows on the walls, which served as a beige backdrop to the art around her. "They really do go all out for this!"
Hiccup smiled at her. "I have to stay with my exhibit, to answer questions when the guests come around, but you can feel free to have a look around."
Astrid turned around to look at Hiccup's art. There were many different mediums and styles, as she was sure were projects throughout the school year. There were paintings, charcoal, pencil, and probably more variants than she could discern for herself. Some were in vibrant colors, some muted, and some were black and white. There were portraits and abstracts, landscapes and digital art. She slowly walked down the line, admiring each one.
They were beautiful of course, but one caught her eye more than the rest. As she glanced at the painting, it was a bit abstract, but there was a contrast of light and dark surrounding a boy in the middle, who was drawn far away, looking away from the picture so she could only see the back of his head. He was turned towards the light, but holding his head in his hands. The overall feel of the painting was raw and breathtaking.
Astrid looked back at Hiccup, who was watching her, and then back at the painting. "Hiccup, this is, just amazing." She cocked her head to the side before turning back to Hiccup. "Does it mean anything?"
Hiccup cleared his throat nervously and closed the small gap between them, standing directly behind her to look at the painting over her shoulder. "Yeah. I was having a particularly hard few days when I painted that." He swallowed hard before continuing. "It's supposed to represent my loneliness."
Astrid stared at the painting a little harder, feeling like she could see that with how far away the boy looked. "What about the light and dark swirling around you?"
"That is me, searching for the truth in a sea of right and wrong."
"It's beautiful, Hiccup." She reached back and squeezed Hiccup's hand.
"The one thing they try to teach us is to paint with emotions. I didn't know if I wanted to include it because it felt really personal, but Mrs. Larson insisted that it was my best work."
"I agree. I love it." Astrid pulled her eyes away from the painting to turn and look at Hiccup.
She hadn't realized how closely behind her he'd been standing, and now that she had turned to face them, they were heart stoppingly close. Astrid swallowed hard before lifting her chin up to look at him. He was looking down at her with a half surprised look on his face. Their closeness must have taken him aback a bit too. For a moment the two stood frozen in time as the sounds of the surrounding gallery melted away.
She noticed Hiccup looking at her lips again and she instructively licked them self-consciously. She saw Hiccup's jaw tense as he gazed at her and it made her heart skip a beat. She felt very self-aware, like she could feel every cell on the surface of her skin react to the slight hitch in his breathing.
It was only a split second in time, the tiniest fraction of her life, but the world slowed down as Hiccup and Astrid stared into each other's eyes, everything they had shared in the past few weeks making her feel closer to him than anyone else.
As they stared, she began to instinctively lean towards Hiccup, and noticed that he seemed to be leaning down towards her, the space between their lips was closing. Astrid's heart fluttered in her chest as the inevitable kiss drew near. They were mere inches away when a loud voice interrupted them.
"Hiccup, son! I made it!"
Stoick's voice boomed loudly through the gallery, causing many people to pause their conversations, but only for a moment. Stoick was waving wildly at Hiccup as he made his way towards Hiccup's booth. Astrid and Hiccup took a panicked step away from each other.
Astrid's heart was pounding and her lips seemed to physically ache at the missed kiss. She took a deep breath and tried to recover quickly, forcing a tight smile on her face as Hiccup's dad drew near. She swallowed hard, trying to swallow the guilt of almost getting caught mid kiss.
Stoick arrived in front of them and he extended his hand to Hiccup. Hiccup took it and the two shook hands. "I told ye I'd be here at 7!" He laughed, then took a glance around. "This is a pretty nice set up."
He glanced in Astrid's direction and smiled. "Hiccup, are ye going to introduce me?"
Hiccup looked at Astrid and smiled, running his hands through his hair. "Uh, d-dad? This is Astrid. Astrid Hofferson."
Stoick extended his hand toward Astrid's and she took it. He shook it enthusiastically. "Aye, Astrid! I haven't seen ye in years, not since you were a wee thing!" Stoick laughed. "So good to see ye and Hiccup as friends again."
Stoick winked obviously at Hiccup, which made his face turn red. Astrid giggled to herself a little, but instinctively took his hand and squeezed it to reassure him it was ok.
"Well, let me take a look at yer work here, son." Stoick bellowed, walking towards the pictures in front of him. He made his way slowly down the line, taking a sweeping glance at each painting. Hiccup was stiff next to her, and she could swear that he was holding his breath a little.
Stoick went down the entire line, but she noticed he never stopped once to look at any of the art any longer than a few seconds, and he especially didn't look any closer at Hiccup's best picture. He turned back after looking at them all and smiled at Hiccup. "Very good, son." He smiled, but Astrid felt like the praise felt a bit like the praise given to a dog when they fetched the morning paper.
She saw Hiccup's shoulders slump a little, so he must have realized it, too. "Thanks, dad." He responded, trying not to sound flat. Stoick smiled and rubbed his hands together. "I'm going to see about getting my hands on some of those hors d'oeuvres."
Stoick headed off in the direction of a waiter holding a tray of finger foods.
Hiccup slumped a little once Stoick was gone. Astrid squeezed his hand again, bringing his hand up to her chest to give it a hug. "I'm sorry."
Hiccup shrugged. "He's never been interested in art. I mean, he tries. I should probably be happy he at least showed up."
Astrid felt her heart sinking for Hiccup. She turned to look at his painting again, realizing just how lonely it must be that his only parent didn't understand him.
The night was beginning to pick up as the room filled with parents, friends, and interested art enthusiast from the community. Soon, Hiccup was preoccupied with greeting people as they came by his booth, answering questions about his work and thanking them for their interest. Astrid stood back a little and watched Hiccup do his thing. Most of the questions revolved around what type of paint was used for this painting, what the inspiration was for the other, and questions about color palates, lots of technical terms she didn't know. It was still great to watch Hiccup as his green eyes shone while talking shop with people who seemed to care.
Astrid was beginning to feel a bit bored, checking the time on her watch, when Fishlegs caught her eye.
"Oh, hi Fishlegs!" Astrid greeted as he awkwardly made his way over. He was wearing a suit and tie, blond hair slicked back, a little long down the nape of his neck, cleanly shaven.
"Hey Astrid. How is the gallery going?" He stuck his hands in his pockets as he approached, Hiccup busily talking to someone else.
"Great! He's gotten a lot of interest in his paintings." Astrid smiled at Hiccup and he winked at her with a sideways glance.
Fishlegs stood for a minute, looking from Hiccup to Astrid, and a small grin played at his lips. He lowered his voice so only she could hear. "Something is going on here….isn't it?"
Astrid felt herself blush slightly. "I- I don't know… how to answer that, exactly." Her chest tightened and she began to fiddle with her clutch to busy her hands.
Fishlegs turned away from Hiccup, who was still deep in conversation with someone who was asking a lot of questions about a particular painting.
"What do you mean, you don't know how to answer that?" He asked.
Astrid shrugged. "I mean, I don't know how Hiccup feels about me. I know I'd done some awful things in the past…" She shook her head, remembering Thursday night's confessions.
Fishlegs snorted. "Are you kidding me, Astrid? You've always been his dream girl."
Astrid wished she could believe him, she glanced in Hiccup's direction in time to see the patron leaving the table. She and Fishlegs straightened up and quickly ended their conversation.
"Hey Fishlegs!" Hiccup greeted. "Thanks for coming, man."
"Wouldn't miss it, you are my best friend after all." Fishlegs responded, trying to hide his nervousness that he may have heard their conversation.
"Hey, I have something to show you, but it's in my car." Hiccup nodded his head to motion towards his car.
"Go ahead." Astrid said. "I'll man the fort for a little while. I can let people know you'll be back."
"Oh, ok… thanks Astrid." Hiccup smiled and the two made their way out, disappearing from her sight.
She really hoped Fishlegs was right, because Hiccup was quickly becoming her dream boy as well.