Day 55: In Which Hiccup Rubs Salt Into the Wound
Jack was in the middle of tending to his feline children when his phone rang.
"Hey, Third," he greeted with his phone held between his ear and shoulder. "What's up?"
"Why's Bunny texting me about your girl?" Hiccup's nerdy voice screeched from the other side of the line. No 'hello, Jack', nor 'Good morning, Jack. How's it going?'. Just a damn deafening harpy cry that made his brain wobble inside his skull.
"Because Tooth is a fucking snitch, that's why," Jack grumbled as he poured fresh food into the cats' bowl.
"Wait, you told Tooth about Elsa?"
"Kinda. She helped me pick some flowers."
"Aw, you got her flowers? Look at you courting your lady like a true gentleman."
Jack got on his feet and, for the lack of other one-legged nerds available, glared at a grease stain on the counter. "You know, if it wasn't for the lockdown, I'd come over to kick you with your own leg, Hiccup."
"Love you too, Frosty."
Making a loud gagging sound, he poured himself a generous bowl of cereal. "Something's wrong with her," he mumbled between spoonfuls of sugar and cornflour ringlets.
"With Tooth?"
"There's always something wrong with Tooth, that ain't nothing new."
Hiccup snorted. "True. What's the problem, then?"
Jack hummed as he stirred his soggy dinner. "She looked at me like I just cut one of my fingers and sent it to her in a box."
Hiccup hummed but said nothing more, and the silence annoyed Jack more than his friend's usual unending blabber ever would.
"What?" He snarled, bumping his fist on the corner.
"Nothing, just…"
"What?" Jack repeated, the impatience rising in his voice.
"Can I ask you something you probably won't like me asking?"
He rolled his eyes. "Like you don't do that all the time already, asshole."
"... Would you have sent her flowers if it wasn't for this quarantine?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I know I make fun of you being in love and all that, but… how serious are you about this girl, Jack?"
Jack frowned. What kind of question was that? He was being serious about Elsa, wasn't he? His mood was uplifted just by hearing her voice, but what did that mean exactly? Was Hiccup any right in doubting his resolve? Would their relationship have developed differently had the settings of their encounter been different? Would they have come this far?
"You're right. I don't like your question."
He heard Hiccup chuckling.
"That's probably something you should think about though. What does she mean to you? And how will she fit in your life from now on, and not just inside that bubble of yours?"
Jack groaned, dropping his head on the counter. "How d'you do it? Show Astrid that you were serious about her?"
"Put a ring on it?"
"Forget I asked," Jack huffed, tiredly rubbing his eyes.
"Baby steps, Frosty. How about asking her to come to the wedding with you?"
There was a momentary pause as his eyes slowly narrowed. Warily, he called, "Third…"
"Yes, Jack?"
"You just want an excuse to meet her, you son of a bitch."
Waddup, fam. I think I finally got back to that place of writing for me and not worrying so much about what readers want. So here it is: the last batch. Let's do this.
