A/N: Sorry this chapter is short and late. There are two reasons to that. My main focus, lately, has been on my boyfriend, Ed. Yup. I'm not on the market anymore. I'm taken. Happily taken. I don't want to go into too much detail because I'm not one to brag. And the reason why it's so short is because I had half of it done and it was really good, Aster and Jack were supposed to fight, too! But my computer shut off and I lost all of it. I had to write this from scratch. Anyway, enjoy.
It stung. Every part of his body stung but at the same time was numb. Most of it came from the freezing October rain that soaked him right to the bone. The rest of the stinging came from inside his chest, moving out to every single one of his limbs.
Jackson had been away in another city far from this one for almost a year. About a month ago, he ran away and made his way toward this small town, the town he was born and raised in. The town that was precious to him because of one single person. His Hiccup, his best friend whom he promised he'd come back to. And he was back for good this time.
He had it all planned out; he'd stay in Hiccup's tree house and would work as a paper boy. He'd come in for meals and would protest when Hiccup's mother offered to give him a bath. During high school, he'd get a bigger job and would get a house with his best friend. Then maybe start a family. It was honestly the perfect life. But earlier that day, he tried to enter the Haddock household. He sat there and knocked for ten minutes on Hiccup's window. His father came into the room and turned on the light, allowing him to see the inside a bit better.
Crayons laid in odd ways across the room, pictures were scattered on the ground. It was clear that he would come back within an hour.
That was one of the many things he loved and hated about his brunet friend. He was neat with his things and rarely went three days without bathing. He was very clean for a boy. Often times, he would try to persuade Jack into taking a bath or at least brush his teeth. But it was no use. Jack was a lost cause when it came to cleaning up.
Since it was a while before his best friend would come home, the child decided to take shelter in his old house. Both of his parents had moved out so, he thought that it would be completely empty and ready for him. Sadly, though, this was not the case.
As soon as he stepped onto the lawn, he noticed that it was cleaner than it ever was. He saw the house give off this sort of glow. A glow he had only seen when he was much younger. The lights were on and he could see a family getting ready for Halloween which was in just a week or so. Part of him wanted to watch them laugh, gluing things onto their group costumes. The other part of him told him to walk away. Which is what he did.
He sat there on the swings in the pouring rain, slowly swinging his feet back and forth, not sure of what to do. In a way, he felt he was waiting for someone or something. He would look up every few minutes and expect someone to be standing there. Or maybe he expected Hiccup to drive up to the playground with his mother, telling him he was stupid and to get inside the car. But there was nothing for the longest time. Only himself and the silence. Until he heard it; a woman's scream.
Jack turned toward the house he thought he had heard it and watched. He wasn't sure what kind of scream it was, but he had to find out.
He listened as the woman called for her child, telling them to come down and get ready to leave for the hospital. The grass and mud smushed under his feet as he stood up, acting as a cold pack for already icy toes. He listened carefully as they walked out and made their way to their car.
"What happened to Hiccup, mom? Why is he in the hospital? Why are you crying?" The child asked his mother.
He didn't properly process what he had just heard until the pair was already gone, driving down the street. Slowly, the name of his best friend and the word 'hospital' raced through his mind and made his heart stop in place.
No. No, there was no way. Hiccup couldn't be in the hospital. He was fine, perfectly fine! But he had to see for himself. With numb legs, he began to run. He ran across streets, ignoring the horns of annoyed drivers as he focused on two words. Hiccup, hospital. The cries of the boy's mother rang through his ears once more and he began to wonder why his precious one was there to begin with. Nobody acts like that in normal situations such as breaking an arm or sticking candy up one's nose.
Every possible reason why the younger brunet was in the hospital crawled into his head. Maybe he was hit by a car. Or a truck. Maybe he fell off the roof of his house or cracked his head open while trying to climb down his tree. What if he was already dead and in the morgue, cold and alone?
Jack's body began to shake as he saw the hospital over the horizon. He could just picture Hiccup's lifeless body already; blue lips, pale skin, glazed eyes. It was horrifying and it scared him out of his wits.
The child burst through the doors and ran up to the front desk, demanding his best friend's room number. People who were visiting or just coming in stared at the boy, watching rain drip from his dirty clothes and his face become pale with the news of where Hiccup was. Like lightning, he ran from the desk and to the staircase, skipping stairs as he flew up floors. It didn't take him long to get to the Intensive Care Unit and when he did, he nearly pushed doctors and nurses to the ground as he ran. Only when he reached the room did he stop. He stared with wide eyes bigger than dinner plates.
There Hiccup was on the bed. The number of machines hooked up to the now seven year old was astounding. Bandages wrapped themselves around his head, a large gauze sticking out at the side with red specks. He was pale, very pale. And when Jack reached out to hold the brunet's hand, he was afraid that he would break under his touch. There had never been anything as fragile as this boy. And he started to shake as he cried, sitting down next to the hospital bed.
A hand on his shoulder made him jump and completely sob out loud. He didn't know what else to do. He felt utterly hopeless.
"Um, excuse me?" The nurse that held his shoulder asked, now rubbing his back. "You need to wear this. He's unstable and you could make him sick."
She handed Jack a simple hospital mask and watched as he slipped it on, fixing it so it fit his face. He nodded, looking up at her as he wiped away his tears. "T-thank you…"
The nurse smiled and nodded, whispered a 'you're welcome', and left the room. It was hard to breath with the mask on but he didn't mind. It was to keep Hiccup safe. And right now, this is all he could do to help his best friend.
He just sat there and stared at the brunet in front of him. Every once in a while, he'd hold his hand, rubbing his thumb across it softly. He felt so fragile. Had he always been like this? Or did Jack just notice now how small he actually was? Before, it seemed much different. Hiccup had fallen many times into the snow or had run into a tree. He would simply rub the spot that hurt and get back up as if nothing hurt him.
"Please get back up…" Jack whispered.
Hiccup didn't reply.
"Please, Hic. Get up and smile…" Jack silently sobbed.
Hiccup didn't reply.
There was a moment of quiet weeping before the older of the two spoke again. "I promise, Hic. I promise you'll be okay. And I promise I'll be here for you."
His head never felt worse. Even that one time Aster gave him alcohol wasn't as bad as this. If anything, he felt like he had been shot in the head.
Jack sat up on a rather clean smelling and looking couch. He looked around and took notice of little things; the black and white photographs, the chandler made of colored glass bottles, the white furniture that made the rest of the room look like something straight from a store or a catalogue.
"Bunny?" The teen grumbled as he stretched and stood up. "You there?"
"No, he's not home yet." He heard Tooth say from the kitchen. "Are you hungry, Jack? Do you want a sandwich or something?"
Jack shook his head. "No, but thanks." He took another moment to look around, trying his hardest to piece together why he was here in the first place. "Hey Tooth?"
"Yeah?"
"What am I doing at Bunny's?"
"We found you passed out on the swings. We couldn't just leave you there." She came out into the living room and handed him a glass of lemonade, sitting down across from him. "Why were you in the park anyway?"
The white haired boy shrugged, taking a sip of his drink. "I needed some fresh air. Get my mind off things."
Tooth nodded and stared Jack for a moment, holding her own glass of lemonade in her hands firmly. She was silent for a while, thinking how he would react if she said anything. "Did something happen with that Hiccup boy?"
He was tempted to say yes. He was tempted to curl up into a ball and cry, telling her everything that happened. How he would never remember him, how he would never return his love, and how he would go on living and loving life with another. Jack would do anything to make sure Hiccup was happy, but, it still hurt knowing that he wasn't the one making him happy.
Instead of showing and telling her all this, he just stared into his glass and watched the lemon swirl around with the ice in his drink. He stayed silent for a while and when he finally opened his mouth to answer, the front door opened and Aster stepped in, carrying a shopping bag.
"Got ya some things." The Australian mumbled as he kicked off his shoes. "It's gettin' cold. Need ta wear these, Frostbite."
Jack shook his head and leaned back into the couch, sipping his drink lightly. "I'm fine, thanks."
"To bad, yer wearin' them." Aster threw the bag onto the couch and walked into the kitchen, almost completely ignoring Tooth.
The teen peeked inside the bag seeing a proper jacket, new pants, shoes, and socks. He raised an eyebrow as he took out a few of the things, looking them over. Why in the world would the man go get these things for him? Didn't he know he was perfectly fine the way he was? But, seeing these things, it made him a bit happy. It still made him wonder, though, and he walked into the kitchen.
Jack watched from the doorway as his oldest friend looked through his cupboards, grabbing a bottle of wine and sitting down. He had seen him drink a few times and heard many stories about him getting so drunk, he ended up making out with everything at the tavern. Jack slightly prepared himself as he watched Aster take a few sips of wine, not even noticing the young one watching.
"Why are you doing this all of a sudden?" He asked, sitting at the kitchen table across from him. "New clothes, bringing me to your place instead of over with Pitch…what are you up to, Bunny?"
With a hiccup, Aster looked over at him, his face more serious than ever before. "You remind me of myself when I was yer age. I jus' want ya to have a good life. Startin' today."
"But why?"
He sighed. "Jackson…there are some things you should know 'bout me. Things I wanna tell ya so you don't end up like this."
A/N: Next chapter will be a Bunnymund chapter. But it will be important in a sense. - ADAM
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