My Hope
Author: Nightstar Fury of Nightstar Productions.
Rating: M for Mature.
Disclaimer: I own nothing from Dreamworks HTTYD or Dreamworks Dragons. I also don't own any of the songs I may use.
16; Everyone Needs Someone.
{Astrid's POV}
The image of Hunter on the verge of tears that day at school never left my thoughts. In all the time I'd known that man, I'd never seen him cry a day in his life and to see him that day after lunch yelling at us 'good day' then taking off on Strykeout honestly broke my heart. I couldn't believe my friends just threw him out of the group and made that decision while I was in the bathroom. We said we'd all agree and they just went ahead anyway, and what was worse...Hunter told them, told us that he'd leave us alone if we left him alone, also not to kick Heather because it wasn't her fault. That was something I actually got to decide with them thankfully but it didn't matter, Hunter was out of the group and even if I told my friends I had forgiven him...It had to be a vote and they wouldn't change their minds. So where did that leave me? The only man I ever really loved was gone.
As expected again, Hunter didn't come to school the next day but Heather had and the glare she shot our way. If looks could kill. Damien didn't know much about what was going on but he got enough that Hunter had a kid and obviously lied to us about it. The school day wasn't even over yet, we were in lunch now sitting around the table. Mostly quiet. "You know what bugs me..." Rylee suddenly said, we glanced her way. "Why is it that he messed up but we're the ones who feel like shit?"
"You too huh?" Eric sighed putting his arm over his girlfriend.
"Am...I the only one who doesn't know what's going on?" Damien asked curiously looking at us all.
"Hunter...The one who saved that little girl last week, well that was...his daughter and he never told us he had one." Travis stated.
"That...really doesn't seem so bad." Damien said now.
"Its a long story...Two years ago, we all parted ways for summer after freshman year. Hunter had to go away for 3 weeks with his family. He met some girl there and slept with her, she ended up pregnant. Hunter...and Heather both never returned to school for sophomore year. Their phones were disconnected, both of them moved, and we didn't hear from them until the start of this year when they just showed up for lunch on the first day of senior year...They gave us some story that Heather's mom died and she couldn't handle people so Hunter and Heather were home-schooled. But the truth came out that Hunter actually has a daughter and...I mean no its not bad. Good for him taking on such a responsibility...But he lied to us. He had the chance to tell us and lied...He kept it a secret..." I explained as easily as I could.
"So...? Still not seeing why all of you look so miserable because Hunter lied?" Damien blinked now.
"Because it hurt that we've been his best friends for years and...he didn't tell us the truth, he hid it. I get not tellin us when everything was going on, but how come not after the fact? Why come back and not mention you have a kid who is almost two?" Shaun remarked.
"But why do you look miserable, he lied and you booted him from the group for lying right?" Damien asked, they nodded. "So why do you look like he all left you behind? Seriously, its like he broke up with you all instead of the other way around."
"Heather...yelled at us. Told us we...made him cry, and to stay away from her brother." Rylee sighed.
"Hunter doesn't strike me as the type to cry...?" Damien remarked.
"Evidently he's not the type to do a lot of things but I guess maybe we really didn't know him that well after all..." I stated.
"Well...Maybe I don't know Hunter like you all do or did...But don't ya think you're bein just a bit to hard on the guy? I mean...From what you've told me, it was only one little secret about him having a kid. And that was enough to kick him from your group after you've been best friends for years?" Damien said. "If you look this miserable then I'm guessing maybe you might of...rushed your choice?"
"We don't know what to do. We're upset he lied and kept secrets but at the same time, we know he had his reasons. He won't tell us what they are and it makes us feel like he's still hiding things." Shaun looked down.
"Well like I said, I can't speak for knowing him or speak for him...However...I can say this. Everyone has secrets, and everyone hides things from people their close to for a bunch of reasons." They all looked at him now. "Maybe Hunter was ashamed of himself for sleeping with this girl when he was 15? Or maybe he didn't want people picking on him. Who knows but...No matter how you put this...Hunter has his own life outside of school and friends. You guys didn't spend all your time together did you? You all have your own lives and I'm sure at some point or another you kept things from one another, right?" Damien looked around the table.
"I hid me seeing Eric for 2 months before Shaun caught us making out in my room..." Rylee admitted.
"And we hid having sex for a while too." Eric added.
"Guilty over here, hiding that I was smoking for a while." Shaun looked down.
"See, now I bet with Hunter gone the last two years...He doesn't know about any of that does he? And your over here harping on him for keeping secrets? Not really fair." Damien sat back with his arms folded.
"Yeah but those were little things...Hunter...had a kid. That's huge. He slept with someone, got her pregnant, and is now raising that child..." Travis interjected.
"Doesn't matter. If it was something you kept to yourself and didn't tell anyone for whatever reasons you had at the time...Then its a secret. Does Hunter know you smoked, Shaun? Or that Rylee and Eric dated two months before being caught? Does he know that you, Astrid are beyond jealous that he can calm down a robotic doll better than you? If he doesn't know then its a secret that you're keeping from him. It doesn't matter how big or little it is. You all kept secrets from him and each other until they came out but you guys forgave one another..." Damien stopped when the doors to the lunch room opened and Hunter walked in quietly. His bag was on his shoulder as he made his way towards the table where Heather sat, then he sat down too.
"I didn't think he'd show up today..." Shaun said. They saw Hunter hand something to Heather then leave again although she high protested him leaving again. Walking by us, he only closed his eyes and kept going. Damien got up now making us look at him.
"All I'm saying is, you guys forgave one another so why not him? Doesn't he deserve a second chance too?" Damien said. "I'm gonna go talk him...You guys might not like him cuz he lied to you but he never lied to me so I got nothing against the guy." My eyes widened a bit. Damien didn't know Hunter was Shadow, but Hunter knew Damien was Deranged Spark. This could go really bad.
"Hunter isn't going to want to be bothered..." I said quickly.
" Well he can tell me that himself. But he looks upset, and he really looks like he could use a friend right now." Damien stated and then left the lunch room. What could we do? If we stopped him he'd want to know why and we promised Hunter we'd keep his secret.
"Do you guys...realize what just happened?" Travis said.
"What? That Hunter is gonna lose his shit when Damien approaches him having no idea he's really Shadow?" I whispered harshly.
"No...Damien...is our friend and we're...keeping a huge secret from him now. We know the truth about Hunter being Shadow...and we are keeping his secret from a friend of our own so we don't make more trouble for him..." Rylee finished for her brother. Our eyes looked around at one another now. They were right. Here we were mad at Hunter for keeping a secret from us, and we were keeping secrets ourselves. We were such hypocrites.
{Hunter's POV}
When I woke up that next morning knowing I no long had friends, school was the last place I wanted to be but I got ready and went anyway. The first place I went upon arriving was my father's office and I had him take me out of every class I was in with the old group. Algebra, Health/Gym, Language Arts, Science, and History. And I was placed in other classes so I wouldn't be with them. The only class he couldn't remove me from was Home Ec because of the project I was partnered with Astrid for and obviously lunch too. I know the others probably assumed that I wasn't in school at all that wasn't a concern of mine anymore. I knew I lost them because of my own decisions to lie and keep secrets, I didn't blame them and I wasn't mad at them but why should losing a few people be a factor in my schooling? I'd finish off the year and that was it.
When I arrived at lunch, I went straight for Heather and handed her an envelope. I told her to give it to the group then I left again. Didn't leave school, just decided to eat outside by the stables with Strykeout. While walking outside, I heard someone walking behind me. "Hey!...Hunter, wait up!" Is what was was called to me. I stopped and looked back to see Damien running up towards me. Great, because I needed my rival who didn't know I was actually his rival talking to me.
"I'm not really in the mood to talk right now..." I replied and kept walking.
"Just...listen for a sec would ya..." Damien asked.
"Look, I just wanna get to the stable, eat my lunch, get through training and go home." I answered.
"Damn it, Shadow. Would ya just stop for two seconds, I want to talk to you." Damien grumbled, I froze. Did he just...call me Shadow? My racing name that only my old friends and Heather knew about? No, he couldn't possibly.
"I think you might of fallen off your dragon a few to many times if you think I'm Shadow the famous dragon racer." I remarked.
"I know its you. I've known since I first started here a few weeks ago. You ride your dragon the same way Shadow rides Toothless. The moves, the posture, everything. And that move you pulled saving your kid, that is only something Shadow was crazy enough to try. I know its you and don't worry, those guys didn't tell me. I figured it out on my own." Damien said. I sighed now, so he knew the truth too. Fantastic. "That and you froze when I said Shadow's name."
Oh even better, I just gave myself away. "Fine, you caught me. Now what do you want?"
"I told you, I just want to talk. I know what happened, those guys kicking you from the group over lies or whatever...I told them it was a bad choice because everyone has secrets. I know you told them about you being Shadow too, but they didn't tell me that. I said everyone had their reasons for doing things but its that persons own business. I'm not looking to make them take you back just understand things from a different view instead of their own where they are hurt over what happened." Damien said.
"What's done is done. It doesn't matter..." I stated and began walking.
"Look if you're worried about me telling about you..." Damien started.
"I don't care who knows, Damien. I honestly just don't anymore...You hate me, I don't know why you're even talking to me right now. But all I want to do is go eat lunch, get through training and the rest of this year, and leave..." I said.
"I don't hate you, Hunter. You're a better rider, and racer than me, I can admit to that." Damien said walking beside me now. I glanced over now, "When we are at the track, I only act like I hate you because well...Every good sporting needs to have some kind of rivalry between players. For racing, its you and Toothless against me and Shocker. But you own a Night Fury, the fastest dragon known to man. I know when I'm beat."
"Shocker could beat Toothless if you learned not to waste his energy in the beginning..." I rolled his eyes.
"See! That's what I'm talking about. I don't hate you man, I envy you. You're...17, almost 18 years old and you know more about dragons than a lot of professionals I know." Damien said.
"Are we talking or are you flirting with me right now because I'm getting the vibe you're hitting on me and just so ya know, I'm straight..." I now sat down in the stable with Strykeout.
"Your friends told me about that sarcastic humor or yours. Nice to finally see it..." Damien chuckled.
"Ex friends..." I reminded dryly.
"Tomato, Tamoto...I'm not hitting on you, I'm straight too. Just saying that you know...You're a pretty cool guy, Hunter and I don't care what those guys say. I still want to be your friend." Damien said.
"I'm sure that would do wonders for our racing careers. Two rivals becoming friends? It would start an uproar..." I sighed stating.
"You think I care? I race for fun. Its a job for me, race and make money. I don't race to be the best, I race to entertain others." Damien shrugged sitting with Shocker now.
"I guess I do the same. I started racing to make money to support my daughter and its fun too." I agreed a little as I handed Strykeout a small bucket of fish to eat, Damien did the same. "Still, why be my friend. You heard what they said...I'm a liar, I hid things from them two years...I had every chance to tell them the truth and I just didn't..."
"You had your reasons I'm sure. Everyone has secrets and they keep them to themselves for their own reasons, that's what your...ex friends don't understand. As for me, well I don't really care that you're Shadow or a father. You're still an almost 18 year old guy living his life, doesn't matter how or who with. I told your friends that I was coming out here to talk to you, they told me it wasn't a good idea with a bogus reason about you not wanting to be bothered but I told them that you could tell me that yourself. You looked upset and like you needed a friend so I want to be your friend." Damien smiled.
"And why be friends with me? I don't...need friends. I have Heather, my parents...and Hope." I asked.
"That's family but everyone needs at least one friend on their side too." Damien said. "So come on. Screw what people will say at the races, screw what anyone thinks period. You have your own life, Hunter. Think for yourself. The others might have abandoned you but I haven't and won't. I want to be your friend." I looked over at him then smiled putting out my hand to him.
"And I want to be yours too, Damien. Thanks...Ya know...for sticking around and talking to me." I replied.
"Hey, I told ya...Everyone needs someone." Damien answered shaking my hand. I pulled out my grinder and gave him half of it. "Thanks, Hunt." He smiled beginning to eat. I nodded and did the same. It felt good to have a friend again, weird that it was Damien but he was right. Who cared about the racing rivalry, it was just for show after all. Damien and I had a lot in common so why not be friends. For the first time since the others found out the truth and I was miserable...For the first time in about a week, I actually felt happy. Sure, I made a mistake lying to them, keeping secrets but Damien reminded me that everyone makes mistakes sometimes, and everyone has secrets. So why should I feel bad for having some? My reasons were my own but soon just to put it to rest. Astrid, Travis, Fredrick, Rylee, Shaun, and Eric wanted to know why I didn't tell them then they would find out if they took the offer I told Heather to give them.
