Chapter 4

The bell rang exactly eight minutes later. The sound flooded her ears as if it were far away from her and at the same time very close. The voices of the class mingling in an incomprehensible murmur next to the heavy drums of her pulse in her ears.

No

No way

Oh Odin ghost

The high-pitched bell at last made them look away from each other. She couldn't identify the look in the auburn's eyes, she was more focused on controlling herself to not throwing herself at the teacher or the green green-eyed yerk.

Like a robot, she started packing her things in her backpack. Damn science. Damn pair works. Damn native and non-native plants.

When the class was practically empty already, she got up with an automatic movement, grabbed her things and tried not to see anything but her feet.

She left the classroom like she was fleeing a herd of wild boars and crossed the hall in record time. Right now she just wanted to punch a wall.

Hiccup watched her leave without even looking in his direction. He couldn't help a graceless smile from escaping him as she was running away, probably from him. Life really took care of fucking him over and over again. Now he had to work with miss perfect? He was so screwed.

Oh Thor. It only comforted him that the idea pissed off Hofferson far more than it did him. That was partially worth it.

She must been fuming at the moment or kicking something. What he would give to see her, her eyes shining like storms in an electrified sky on fire and-

Why the fuck was he thinking about that rich girl's eyes now?

He shook his head in annoyance and walked out of class, knowing that this wouldn't be the last time he would see Astrid Hofferson that day.

"No"

"It can't be, no fucking way!" laughed Camicazi.

"Oh Gods! This is too good!"

Hiccup saw his "friends" laugh openly. At him. He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

Camicazi leaned on his shoulder swinging, Hiccup didn't know if she was laughing or crying when she buried her red face with laughter in his arm. She separated her head and pretended to wipe away a tear as she tried to control her laughter.

"Oh man, that's the best fucking thing I've ever heard," laughed "You, and Astrid fucking perfect Hofferson!" she exclaimed to burst out laughing again, louder and louder.

Snotlout's laughter waned, his cousin thought he saw a flash of, jealousy?, behind his eyes and tight smile, he couldn't help but give an inward laugh full of acid. Someone was jealous of working with miss perfect.

Things only got weirder by the minute.

"Are you going to work with her?" Thuggory asked him suddenly in a calm voice after taking a drag of his cigarette.

Hiccup wrinkled his nose at him. What was that serious tone all of a sudden coming to?

The auburn shrugged gently. "I don't know"

Camicazi finally stopped laughing and with her face still flushed sat next to Hiccup on the wall they used to gather on after school.

"Oh come on, Hicc won't work with that brilliant bitch" she commented "Besides, H will do that work at the end of the year to avoid catching, like always"

Hiccup'd had Miss Patinski for three years, he was used to her silly projects and the way her exams worked. He had no problem not doing the projects.

As always, he only had to pass the recoveries with an A, as he did in all the subjects, and not worry about it the rest of the course.

He let out a weary sigh, Hofferson wouldn't think the same about his master tactic. Nor that he cared anyway.

"She has all the earmarks of being a bossy bitch " Snotlout said with an acid tone after laugh "Have fun working with her cousin"

"Who said I was going to work with her?" he raised an inquisitive eyebrow just to annoy him.

Snotlout raised his eyes "Knowing Hot-fferson, she will give a damn doing the work alone, more being you H"

Camicazi put on a wicked smile and narrowed his eyes.

" 'Knowing Hot-fferson'?" she scoffed "Hofferson is just as disgusted of you as the rest of the female population in Berk, Snot-face" she finished with a laugh.

Hiccup chuckled without holding back as Thugg tried not to choke on the smoke as he laughed and coughed.

He saw the blonde and his cousin arguing between insults and laughter, and he directed her gaze towards the entrance of the institute, which could only be seen from the high place of the wall that separated the institute from the forest that surrounded the town.

Distractedly, he thought he saw three blond heads coming out of the building, he could see them laughing and the two twins that he always confused saying goodbye to their friend. He didn't know why he stared at the slim body of her new co-worker. She was wearing a dark brown skirt along with a simple blue shirt, her braid swaying behind her like a river of gold and he could see her bright and intelligent smile as he walked away from the twins. Shit.

Hiccup shook his head, forcing himself to take his eyes and mind away from Miss Perfect.

He jumped of the wall without knowing the sudden anger and falling with perfect grace to the ground. He saw Snotlout out of the corner of his eye looking at him in confusion.

"I'm leaving, I have work in the workshop"

Camicazi made an exaggerated face seeing him pick up his backpack from the ground "Oww, so soon Hicc?" she cried with a pout "You're always in that boring workshop. We were going to smash mailboxes this afternoon!" she complained in a defeated tone.

Hiccup ignored her as he started toward the driveway where his motorcycle was parked under a tree "Yup, see you guys later"

Hiccup glanced at the blonde girl as she started down the street, right where his bike was. He smiled wickedly and continued walking carefree.

He went into the street and knew without even looking that Hofferson saw him and stopped in her tracks, he could feel the fire in her eyes from there.

He walked over to his Night Fury as if he hadn't seen her, removed the keys by unlocking the latch, and climbed in, just as Astrid Hofferson walked alongside him, her posture tense and an angry aura around her.

He smiled following her with his gaze knowing the effect it had on the always upright and indifferent girl, the amusement of that was enough to muffle her effect on him as well.

He started the bike, but before he could even move, someone stood in front of him.

Hiccup grinned crookedly when he saw who it was, putting one foot on the ground to balance the bike, he met his eyes with Astrid's.

"Do you want me to run you over?" he commented nonchalantly ignoring her defensive posture and her crossed arms.

Astrid raised an eyebrow and pursed her lips.

"We need to talk"

The aurburn made a surprised and pained grimace.

"Oh no, are you going to break up with me?" Hiccup putted a hand exaggerating in his chest. He finished with an amused smile as he watched the girl's frown go down.

"Hilarious. Listen" she saw the boy smile pleased "You don't want to work with me" she put her hand pointing to herself "I don't want to work with you"

Hiccup raised an eyebrow without erasing the goofy grin.

"It's simple. So, just get out of my way, I'll do the work myself"

She saw the boy change his attitude suddenly, his slight smile faded and his face darkened.

"Really?" he said slowly passing the word over his tongue "How great do you think you are?"

Astrid uncrossed her arms somewhat out of place. What was wrong with him now?

"What-?"

"You think you are the perfect queen of the damn world, you think the rest of us are worth shit" the boy said with a graceless smile, Astrid saw a flash of anger in his eyes "Well bad news Hofferson, the world doesn't work like that"

Hiccup saw the storms threatening to burn him in her eyes and widened his smile. He managed to broke her.

"You think I don't know? At least I'm not an asshole who goes through life not doing a shit for anything or for anyone but him fucking self"

Astrid trailed off with a breath as if she had just realized what she just said.

They fell silent as time had stood still and no one else existed besides them. The air became so heavy that they felt like they were drowning.

Hiccup's gaze hardened and his knuckles turned white from clenching the motorcycle's handles. Neither took their eyes from the other, the boy saw Astrid take a breath and lower her eyes at last.

"Look" she started quietly "I'll start with the project this afternoon in the library. Appears or not, I don't care"

And just as she camed, Hiccup saw her turn around and back out onto the street to walk steadily down the street.

He watched her walk away, petrified in the place until she was nothing more than a golden point on the horizon. He took a deep breath as he just remembered to breathe. He didn't know what to think. How to feel. His mind suddenly blocked and blank.

With a grunt, he started the bike and sped off the road faster than he intended.

AnonymousNoobthe2nd: Honestly, no idea. It's not ruled out for future chapters, but if I write it at the end, I'll put an M rating, so you will know :)