I knew I wouldn't be able to drive home after the alcohol started making halos around the ceiling lights. I would never admit it to my friends (although I was positive they knew), but I was a certified lightweight. Three beers were more than enough to mess with my motor functions. And I'd had five.

"Hey Astrid! Want another beer?" Ruffnut asked. Her smile was broad and seemingly innocent, but I saw through it instantly. She'd been my friend since before I could remember and knew that I was pretty tipsy already. She also knew that I'd never back down from a challenge, especially not in public.

"Hand it over!" The words came out slightly slurred. I should stop. I'd already need a good hour or two before I could even consider driving home. Good thing Ruffnut had promised to pay for a Uber. She knew money had been tight for me the past few months.

I chugged the beer all in one go, refusing to break eye contact with her. The beer was nicely chilled from the tap but tasted terrible. To be honest, I don't even care for alcohol that much. I just hate being called a party pooper.

Ruffnut gave a whoop before turning her attention back to the piece of eye candy she'd been drooling at. I'd had enough and excused myself to go to the bathroom. You know that stereotype that guys bathrooms are always so much worse than girls' bathrooms? Well that was not the case here. It reeked. Graffiti was splattered around the walls and there were a few mystery puddles around the toilet. How could someone miss the toilet if they were literally sitting on it?

And the smell. Oh God, the smell. It reeked. I almost vomited into the trashcans by the sink. It was safe to bet that these restrooms hadn't had a single cleaning since the bar opened. The smell of urine mixed with cigarette smoke; it was not a good combination. And to top it all off, there was the distinct smell of weed that seemed to cut through it all.

I pulled out my phone after I selected the safest stall to sit in. It wasn't actually clean by any definition of the word, it was just the least offensive option. There was a missed call from my dad and a text from my mom.

Happy Thanksgiving! So sorry you couldn't make it home for the holidays. Stay safe!

I sighed. I'd wanted to come home and enjoy a nice meal with my family, but the restaurant I was waitressing for wouldn't give me enough days off to make it worth the money. So here I was, at a bar on thanksgiving night. Drunk. Mom would be so proud.

I sent a quick reply saying that I missed everyone and that I would definitely be home for Christmas. After using the restroom, I stumbled upwards and almost fell trying to put my pants back up. Stupid skinny jeans, or maybe I'd just gained a little weight. It was hard to tell.

I walked past the urinals to wash my hands off in the sink. The water from the sink was tinted brown and I don't think it was because the establishment dyed it trying to be festive. Deciding my hands would probably be cleaner without using the contaminated water, I just rubbed them on my pants.

I opened the door back to the bar and held the door open for a man. Oh. I got back to my stool at the bar completely red faced. I turned to Ruffnut to ask if we could leave (and maybe never ever come back), but she wasn't there. I looked around to see if she had gone to sit with the man from across the bar but he was gone too.

Shit.

She'd left me. She knew I didn't have a car and couldn't waste my money on an uber. Jerk.

Deciding to deal with her when I was sober so I wouldn't jumble up my words and make a fool of myself, I grabbed my coat, closed Ruffs tab, and walked out.

It was a little chilly out; the sun had set since I last saw it. I'd only brought a light jacket with me and shivered as the cold wind nipped at my nose. I would've brought something warmer if I'd known that I would be walking home. I didn't even have gloves so I stuck hands in my armpits to keep them warm.

If I remembered correctly, I needed to take a left from the front door. Then a left at the Subway, and a right at the bank. I'd been to this bar enough times to notice some landmarks and it was a pretty simple route. Still, it was a good twenty-minute walk. I sighed, at least it was too early in the year for snow.

Damn Ruffnut. This was all her fault; I barely even wanted to go out tonight. Would've been more than happy ordering McDonalds or something and watching television curled up in a soft blanket. There were plenty of new movies I'd been too busy to see.

Coming up on a Subway, I hanged a left. Was it dangerous for a girl to walk alone on these streets at this time of night? At this time of year? I mean, anyone who I would run in to isn't at home with their family on Thanksgiving.

What if someone was following me? I didn't want to look behind me and check because that would mean I was onto them. What a jerk, taking advantage of a drunk blonde girl during the holiday season. What if they wanted to kidnap me? Would they sell me to the highest bidder? My family would never know what happened to their little dau-

Wham. I screamed in abject terror as I slammed into someone. I fell backwards and immediately started crawling away.

"Stay back!" I slurred, "Don't kidnap me, not on Thanksgiving!"

"Woahhh there, Kidnap you?" It was a man. Men kidnapped more women than women did. Probably. "Aren't you the one that walked into me?"

I looked up; his face was a blur because of the streetlight behind him was blindingly bright. He took a step forward and held his hand out. His face slowly came into focus and he certainly didn't look like a human trafficker. He had shaggy auburn hair with the greenest eyes I'd ever seen. They were like an ocean, but with trees. An ocean of trees – no, wait – a forest of trees. I mentally slapped myself. Idiot.

And his face seemed… warm? Maybe it was the alcohol, but his face just seemed inviting. Like he was just waiting for an excuse to smile. He wasn't very buff, which was a good thing to me. Skinny people didn't have the muscle to pick people off the streets, and boy was he skinny.

With a little flush of embarrassment, I realized his hand was still outstretched. If I die tonight, I hope Ruffnut feels guilty, I thought as I grabbed it and he pulled me to my feet. I mumbled my thanks as I tried to stop my head from spinning. He may be skinny, but he had no trouble pulling me up so fast it felt like I had vertigo. Whatever vertigo was.

"Shouldn't you be with your family? It is Thanksgiving, after all." That was almost exactly what I was going to ask him. Maybe he's scared of getting mugged, too.

"My job stopped me from going home so I let my friend drag me to a bar." It sounded so pathetic, saying that I spent the holiday that is all about family drinking. He gave a slight chuckle. It was a nice sound.

"That explains a lot, actually. To be honest, I thought you were just super clumsy."

"Hey!" He laughed again and a small smile appeared on his clean-shaven face. I decided that that was also nice. It diminished slightly as he looked around.

"Where is your friend, anyways?" My face turned as red as a tomato. I don't know why I was embarrassed with my friend's actions. I was the victim.

"She um… left me to go get laid." His eyes opened so wide it was almost comical.

"What? Really? That's ridiculous. Where do you live?"

"Just around the corner now." Well that probably wasn't something I should tell a stranger. Whatever, I couldn't take the words back. At least he didn't know what apartment I lived in.

"Well that's not too far from where I live and I was heading in that direction anyways. What do you say I walk with you so I can rest easy tonight knowing you got home safely?"

"Wha? No way, I'd hate to be a burden."

"A burden? You'd be doing me a favor. I don't know if I'd be able to sleep not knowing whether or not you got home safely. Plus people are less likely to kidnap people who aren't alone."

"Bu-but you don't even know me." What was he thinking? He couldn't be serious.

"I know you're the drunk girl that ran into me because her friend ditched her. That's enough for me. Come on, let's get you home." I didn't even know his name, and I was only 98% sure he didn't want to harvest my organs, but my heart was already melting. I couldn't think of a single person who I would consider a friend who would do something like this for a complete a stranger.

"I… I don't know what to sa-" I let out a little hiccup "Excuse me, I must have the hiccups. I should be fin-" that was as far as I got before I puked. Mystery man was instantly by my side and sitting me down.

I felt so tired – no I felt sleepy – no wait, I was asleep.

Ughhh… head… groggy.

Ask anyone what the worst part of drinking and they'll definitely say it's the hangover.

Or being the reason your significant other left you.

For me, it was the first reason. I've had worse hangovers, but this one was probably top five. Thinking of other times I was hangover made this one feel worse. Stupid brain. I rolled onto my back and was hit with a blast of bright light.

I'm almost too embarrassed to admit that I may have actually hissed at a sunrise. I quickly yanked the blanket over my head. Of course I wasn't ready for that much movement and was rewarded with a slight bout of nausea.

I decided the best course of action would be to just lay in bed for a few more minutes. Or maybe forever, this bed was nice and comfy.

My eyes shot open. My bed was as comfy as a bale of hay. This was not my bed. And to further prove my point, the window in my room faced west so it got the sunset not the sunrise.

Okay, what happened last night?

I… went drinking with Ruffnut. Am I at her house? No, she abandoned me. She'd gone after that stranger.

Stranger.

I'd met a stranger on the way home. He had been nice, was it a ruse? Did he drug me? I shook my head slightly; that was probably the alcohol. Was I at his house? That seemed equally as unlikely. It was one thing to walk a stranger home. It was a completely different thing to let them into your home. There was no way he was that nice. Maybe he'd left me on someone's doorstep.

Only one way to find out. I sat up in bed and was surprised to see I wasn't wearing what I was expecting. I'd left wearing a scarlet red tight-fitting shirt, but now I was wearing a baggy gray shirt. It was admittedly comfortable and soft, but the thought of how it got on me was very concerning. I realized with relief that it looked like I was still wearing the same pair of skinny jeans I'd left the house with.

With my face flushed, I decided to get to the bottom of this. No one, and I mean no one, takes advantage of me like this.

"HEY!" I slammed open my door and nearly threw up. I was on my hands and knees as fast as I'd got up.

"Hey." A voice replied from somewhere in the apartment. It was the man from last night, or at least I'm pretty sure it was him. Last night was still a little foggy. "Wow, you look terrible. Want some breakfast?"

I blinked. What?

I didn't realize I'd said that last word out loud until he came over with a plate with eggs, bacon, and toast.

"Hope you like your eggs over easy."

"But… my shirt?" I'd been so angry just a few moments ago, what happened? How could a simple meal defuse me so fast?

"Oh. That." His face flushed. At least he had the decency to feel embarrassed about violating my personal space. "I didn't want you to have to sleep with a shirt covered in vomit. I- I didn't um… look or anything. I made sure to avoid your um… womanly parts."

"Well, um… thank you, I guess." He set the plate on the little table off to the corner. I got up more slowly this time and took a seat.

I was so hungry. All it took was one hesitant bite of the crispy bacon before I was shoveling it down.

"Here is some jam for the toast and some grape juice. The natural sugars can help with your hangover." I took a grateful sip from the juice and sighed. Why drink beer when grape juice is so crisp?

"So, I have a few questions about last night." He said. "But I want to start with your name. I've been calling you strange woman in my head and it's getting a little old to tell the truth."

"My name is Astrid, what's yours?" Stephen. No wait, he looked more like a Richard. No, that wasn't quite right either. He looked like a Henry.

"Hiccup."

"I know, I know. I'll probably get hiccups from eating too fast, but what's your name?"

"My name is Hiccup."

"Oh." You know how every name has a stereotype? Like how every Karen wants to speak to your mom or how every Stacy is doomed to have a hot mom? Well I'd never imagined anyone named Hiccup. I had no stereotype for him. He couldn't be as bad as a Kyle, though. There was a kid named Kyle in high school and I don't think I ever saw him drink water. It was always energy drinks.

"hey, um, not to be rude" I said, trying not to make it anymore awkward, "but how did you know when I was going to wake up? I mean, you had breakfast already ready."

"So, fun story, that was meant to be my breakfast. You just happened to wake up right when it was done."

"What?!" I'd stolen his meal. Well, he'd voluntarily given it to me, but the end result was the same. "That is not okay. I run into you drunk on the streets, vomit on you and pass out only to find out that you carried me to your apartment so I would have somewhere safe to sleep and now I'm eating your breakfast? You even got me into clean clothes! This is unacceptable."

I got up and headed towards the fridge. There wasn't too much in there but I was able to find eggs, spinach, mushrooms, and cheese.

"What're you doing, Astrid?"

"I'm making you an omelet, assuming you like them. I can put in whatever ingredients you want. I could tell he was going to protest. "It's the least I can do."

He sighed in defeat. He went got some ham out of the fridge and I got to work. I started to chop everything that wasn't eggs into little cubes while I let the pan preheat with a little bit of oil in it. When it was hot enough, I scrambled the eggs and poured them in. after a few seconds I added the rest of the ingredients.

Hiccup wasn't exactly sure what he should be doing. He was just kind of watching me.

"So um, you have a nice apartment."

"It's not actually my apartment. I'm in-between places and my friend is on vacation and said I could crash here while he was gone."

"It was strange enough when I thought I was in the apartment of a stranger I met last night, but it's the apartment of someone I've never met before. Hopefully they don't mind." I wasn't too worried about it; I'd be long gone by the time they got back. Although, Hiccup would. I was only thinking of myself. "They won't mind, will they Hiccup? I can leave now if you need me to."

"Don't worry about it, I called them last night after you passed out to make sure they were okay with it. Even if they weren't, I still would've brought you here; there was no way I'd just leave someone on the street like that."

Damn him, he was so… nice. He was willing to upset the person whose roof he was currently under just to make sure I was comfortable. I turned back to the omelet to hide the slight blush on my cheeks. It was just about ready.

I slid it onto a plate and topped it off with a little bit of cheese.

"It's a good thing you like omelets; it's one of the very few things I can cook without burning the house down." Hiccup cut a small piece and put it in his mouth.

"Wow, this is really good." Hiccup smiled and I could see a piece of spinach was stuck in his teeth. "Thank you, Astrid." I decided to just to let it stay in his teeth. It didn't bother me and the lull in conversation as Hiccup ate breakfast wasn't an uncomfortable one.

After he finished, Hiccup took both of our plates to the sink and started to wash them off.

"The one downside of this place is that it doesn't have a dishwasher." I got up to help him but he waved his hand at me. "It's only a few dishes, I can handle it."

"I helped make these dishes dirty, it's only fair I help clean them too." He looked like he was about to protest, but one look at my face and he realized that I would be helping.

"Here's a towel. You can dry." I took the towel and the plate he'd just washed in the sink and got to work. We worked well as a team and soon enough we were sitting at the table again sipping on cups of coffee.

"I still don't get it, though." I said, taking another sip. I'd put a sugar cube and a splash of milk into my cup. Black coffee was just too strong for me. Hiccup, on the other hand, seemed to like the bitterness of it. "Why would you go through all this trouble for me? I could've been tricking you or just been a terrible person.

"Don't think I'm not super grateful," I hurried, not wanting to give him the wrong impression, "Because I am. Really."

"In my experience, a lot of people are only mean if you do something that upsets them. Now, to be fair, what upsets someone probably won't upset someone else but I'm pretty sure that anyone would be thankful to sleep in a bed and not outside." I shivered involuntarily; it had been windy last night. I may not have died, but I sure would've been very uncomfortable at the least.

"Well, thank you." I glanced at my phone and nearly spat out my coffee. It was 10:45!

"Oh man!" I scrambled up and started getting my things together. "I had no idea it was so late! I have work at eleven and I Cannot lose this job." I absolutely hated waitressing, but student loans weren't going to pay themselves off.

"Your shirt is still in the washer. Hopefully you don't mind it being wet and soapy." Hiccup disappeared into one of the side rooms and came back out with a grocery bag tied in a knot. "Don't let it stay in there for too long, it needs to dry out so mold doesn't form or anything."

"Thank you, Hiccup, for everything." I pulled him into a quick hug and ran out the door.

AN: And that's chapter 1! I usually try and update once a week, but this story isn't my main focus (that would be editing my other Fanfic, you should definitely go check that out if you haven't already) so no promises. If you guys like the story, please let me know! It will definitely encourage me to write more of it.

As for the title of this story, I hate it. When I first started writing this, it was a completely different story. I want to change it but I can't for the life of me think of a good title so it's staying until you guys come up with a better one.