TW - Medical, blood, teenage fighting/violence

The video footage outside of the diner was reviewed by law enforcement. It had been determined that Brock had instigated the fight. Sage and Hiccup were acting in terms of self-defense, and their actions on camera revealed that they had been trying to protect each other verses instigate the fight. Even though Hiccup had jumped into the conflict, after reviewing, they knew in the end he was just trying to protect Heather along-side Sage.

Mr. Vast had not spoken to Hiccup much at all. Because Hiccup was now eighteen, he didn't need to be there to represent his son for medical emergencies. Hiccup could act on his own behalf. However, Hiccup was in that middle-ground still; an adult by law, but still a child due to still being in high school. The paramedics had taken him to the hospital before his father could make it to the scene. Instead, his father went to speak to the police while Katherine came to Hiccup's side at the hospital. Hiccup hadn't been able to fully look either she nor his father in the eye. Guilt had ebbed through him.

The night had been long, and little to no sleep had come to Hiccup. Still early in the morning, he watched his father make his rounds in the kitchen from where he sat at the table. He was currently relying on the old wheelchair to get around, something he hadn't had to do since probably a month after his accident. At the hospital, it was determined Hiccup had two broken ribs. He was instructed to stay off of his crutches. This would have been fine, for the most part. However, when the police had rushed into the parking lot, his abandoned prosthetic had been run over and completely mangled underneath the under-carriage of the car. It was far from repairable. If he couldn't walk, or us crutches, he would be destined to a wheelchair at school. This was something that Hiccup was very uncomfortable with, considering he had no one in his classes to help him to and from where he needed to go.

He was currently without a cell phone as well, and had not had contact with Sage, nor Astrid. His cell phone had been confiscated at the scene, along with his wallet. However, when he came to the kitchen table that morning, his wallet sat where the plate setting would have been. But, no phone.

He really needed to know that Astrid was okay, and Sage. He honestly was not too worried about Sage. He'd taken a few punches in front of Hiccup, but that was the extent. Astrid has physically been pushed down, and even though she'd gotten right back up that didn't mean she was okay. Hiccup had proved that when he'd sliced his arm on the broken window of Astrid's car just over a year ago. Adrenaline had spiked through him, and once he came down from it's height, he'd collapsed.

Hiccup assumed that Mr. Hofferman had come to collect Astrid either from the scene or the police station. She was the only one out of their group, and even of Brock and Rudy, that was still underage.

Suddenly, Hiccup heard the front door open, startling him out of his stupor. In return, his hand landed on his right side where the rib pain was. The spasms were already getting old, which was the main cause of his sleepless night. To his right entered Katherine, and then Heather, who placed a gentle hand on his arm as she sat down beside him quickly.

"Happy birthday," they heard his father say to Katherine, and he leaned in and kissed her cheek. She exchanged a tired smile with him, and then leaned in for a small embrace, finding comfort in his touch. Guilt ebbed again through Hiccup when he noticed her tired expressions. It appeared as though she'd been upset most of the night by the puffiness along her cheeks and eyes. This was some birthday present from the kids, he thought.

"How are you feeling?" Heather whispered to him as she sat down her keys and cell phone out of the way in front of them. So, she had her cell phone. He wondered quickly if she'd talked to Astrid.

Suddenly, plates of eggs, pancakes, bacon and sausage were sat in front of them all. A glass of orange juice was placed into Hiccup's hand directly by Katherine, and both of their parents sat down across from each one of them. It was clear they were there to discuss the previous night judging by the seriousness upon their faces.

"So," Mr. Vast began, swallowing a full egg in two bites. "We have seen the video footage. Clearly, something happened. Something was triggered. And, we want to know what." His words burned through Hiccup in an icy manor. "So, Hiccup, lets start with you."

Hiccup hadn't even tried to take a bite of his food. He'd resorted to dicing the small balls of egg up with his fork, making them so small they were appearing to turn into mush.

"Uh - well - "

"Actually, Heather -" Katherine interrupted them. She glanced towards her daughter. "I think you need to explain to the boys exactly why Brock seemed to have targeted you in the parking lot."

Heather sighed, dropping her fork on her plate. Hiccup noticed she actually looked fairly angry.

"Well, Brock and I - we dated for a little bit while I was still at the high school."

"A little bit?" Mr. Vast asked.

"Dad - " Hiccup didn't like the tone he was using with Heather. It was over the top fatherly, and he didn't feel as though it was his father's place to sound like this to Heather. But, Heather didn't seem to get upset. Before he could continue, though, Katherine interjected.

"No, no," she said gently. "Honey, I wouldn't say 'a little bit.'"

Heather scowled at her mother. "Okay, fine." She rolled her head, and chopped at her piece of sausage angrily with the side of her fork. "We were working at the parks department together over the summer - and we started dating then."

"And, how long - "

"Up until after basketball season was over," she breathed.

"I told you he was bad news," Katherine said, pointedly.

"Mom - " Heather drawled with a hint of a whine. "I get it! Okay! How was I supposed to know two years later he'd start stalking me all over again?"

"Wait, stalking you?" Mr. Vast asked.

Another sigh escaped Heather's body, and she leaned back in her seat for a moment as to think of what to say next. "Brock - he's a jerk. He did things to people, said things to people, and had no ounce of empathy for any of it."

"Like what?" Mr. Vast said.

Hiccup sighed, and put his head down even farther. He could feel their eyes on him. Heather probably knew some of the things Brock and his friends had done to people in the past.

"In junior high they were throwing gum at people in the bleachers at football games. That evolved into used chew balls. They'd push people into their lockers if they were in the way of their own. Words being exchanged, yelling matches. Most of the time, they were just faces in the crowd and couldn't be pin-pointed. Brock was suspended from school a few times while we were together for smoking in the boy's bathroom during classes or study hall. He was caught with weed at one point."

This was when a light sparked in Mr. Vast's eyes, and he turned to Katherine.

"He was involved in that small drug bust at the high school, wasn't he?"

Katherine eyed Mr. Vast but didn't respond. Clearly, their parents knew some legal matters involving Brock as well. Katherine was a paralegal, so she saw most of the cases that came and went in the office. Hiccup knew this. His father was primarily involved in the higher, up-scaled crimes verses juvenile cases.

"Anyways, Mom saw him with another girl at the grocery store. Even though I didn't bring him around her, she knew he was. She saw him with Courtney there."

"This was during homecoming," Katherine said. "Courtney is the daughter to my hair dresser, and she went to one of the county schools. Come to find out he was seeing her and Heather at the same time."

"Long story short, Brock's a cheating ass-hat - "

"I kept telling you he was bad news - "

"Okay, okay, Mom!" Heather said.

"Okay, chill," Mr. Vast said, dropping his fork and placing his hands up between both girls over the table.

"I made a mistake with him. I get that. I dated him, we broke up, and in the end he was just supposed to be one of those high school boys you dated and regretted. How was I supposed to know he would decide to come back and haunt me two years later - ?"

"Enough!" Mr. Vast over-cut both Katherine and Heather before they started battling it out back and forth again. Silence centered the table, and Mr. Vast took a drink of his apple juice before continuing, in a much calmer voice. "So, Hiccup, based on the Varsity jackets, and linking your incident at school on Thursday, and now this - I am going to assume that one of the two boys from last night is who picked a fight with you in the bathroom."

A small gasp escaped Heather. "Wait, what?"

Hiccup's insides squirmed a little more than they had been.

"Ah, so that is another question that has been answered," Mr. Vast said. "So, you weren't aware of this either." He finished off the apple juice and turned to Hiccup. "See, Hiccup told Katherine and I on Thursday that he fell in the bathroom when the school called and asked that someone come to collect him. Your mother arrived and he had a nice shiner on his face. With all the paint I saw on his face last night at the hospital, it was covered up from you and Sage, then, I assume."

Heather glanced at Hiccup, really studying his face. Although, after the fight last night, there wasn't much of a way to tell that Hiccup had actually had a black eye prior. He had more bruises on his face now, more than just the shiner.

"The school informed me that he had told them, as well, that he'd slipped on his crutches and fallen against the sink. However, they did some investigating of their own and saw on camera a person wearing a Varsity team jacket entering after Hiccup and exiting before. All in the mean-while, Hiccup's demeanor had changed in the eight minutes and twenty seconds that he was inside that bathroom."

"Dad, please," Hiccup began but his father over-talked him.

"We figured out on Thursday that someone was picking on Hiccup. For how long, I don't know, and still do not know. Even though we figured it out, he would not name who, and wouldn't tell us why. Right now, the way I am looking at this whole picture, by Hiccup not telling us who it was, he now has potentially put both himself, you, Sage and Astrid at risk."

Hiccup felt his insides imploding.

"Hiccup, was Brock terrorizing you?" Heather asked quietly.

He didn't want to respond. He could hear the sadness in Heather's voice. A nod came to his head, and he heard Heather wince, and what sounded like a choking sound from holding in a sob came to his ears.

"How long?" she asked.

"A - a week," he said quietly.

"Wait - are you serious?" she asked.

Her tone and words caused a wince to go through him, and it wasn't because of his ribs. He nodded. "Brock approached me last Friday. He wanted me to give you this letter-card-thing. You and Sage were coming over, and it just didn't seem like the appropriate thing to do. I shoved it away, confused as to why he wanted me to give it to you, and I figured he would just forget about it for whatever reason over the weekend. He was upset when I told him I hadn't given it to you. He then insisted on you coming to see him play in that game. Began asking me to separate you and Sage so he could talk to you privately…" Hiccup trailed off.

The thought of Brock alone with Heather suddenly made him sick. If she had told him no, like Hiccup had, what would he have done to her?

"Heather, can I ask you something?"

"Yeah."

"Did - Brock ever become - violent with you?"

Silence hung between them, and Hiccup heard her sigh. He sensed how uncomfortable she was now becoming. She squeezed her right hand into a fist, and let out a breath.

"Once," she whispered, and they heard Katherine gasp.

"Wait, are you serious?" Katherine asked.

Heather didn't look at her mother. "When I broke it off with him completely, it was the Monday after the basketball game. I broke it off in the school parking lot. He got mad, went into denial, and - yeah. He pushed me once. Snotlout saw it, and intervened. He told him to back off, and let me go. Convinced him I wasn't worth the fight….Snotlout reached out to me that night, and told me that convincing Brock to let me go and making him think he was too good for me was to protect me."

"Snotlout?" Hiccup asked.

Heather nodded.

At this point their parents were leaning in listening to them both exchange details. They'd all had completely abandoned their food at this point.

"How was Rudy involved?" Heather asked.

Hiccup shrugged. "Maybe the thrill of it all? I didn't realize either of them could be potentially this dangerous."

"Even after Brock beat you up in the bathroom?" Katherine asked.

"I thought it was just me," Hiccup said.

Heather leaned back into her chair, and sighed. "Hiccup, do you remember that time that there was as scuffle involving Brock and Trent Higherman? It was my senior year, literally just after basketball season."

Hiccup shrugged. "Honestly, Heather, I really tried to keep my head low - even before…you know." Hiccup tapped his leg gently.

"Brock went after Trent because of me. Mom saw Brock with Courtney in October. Then, Trent saw him with Courtney on a date at the movies the Saturday after season was over. Trent told me, and that was the icing on the cake for me - I was done. He figured out that Trent was the one that had told me. It wasn't ten minutes later he went after Trent for snitching him out, and Trent ended up leaving the school on a stretcher…" She trailed off.

The look on Mr. Vast's face showed horror. It was as though the realization of what really could have happened to Hiccup and his friends was hitting him light a freight train. Brock had the capability in the past of sending someone to the hospital. And, this was the second time he'd done it, and this time it was with Hiccup.

"Brock has a major, major anger problem. After what happened with Trent, I blocked him from any social media, and I made sure to be with someone while I went from class to class from that point forward as much as I could. I blocked him from my phone so he wouldn't text or call me. He's made fake profiles, and sent me friend requests, and after realizing this was what he was doing I completely blocked anyone on Facebook from adding me unless we had a mutual friend…This was the only way he'd leave me alone…for a while. I think he figured it out. Eventually, I just would block any sketchy requests I would get. I limited my Instagram, deleted Twitter…I went beyond measure to make sure he didn't know where I was or what I was doing. He scared me that badly after what happened with Trent."

Hiccup was floored. He leaned his head into his hand and sighed, taking it all in.

"Why didn't you tell me all of this before?" Katherine asked Heather. "I had no idea all the things Brock did - "

"Because I didn't want you worrying - or tell me you were right and I was wrong about him." Heather glanced down. "So, honestly, I can understand why Hiccup didn't say anything about it."

"I didn't want to cause alarm," Hiccup said. "I've dealt with bullies - "

"Brock is more than just a bully, Hiccup," Heather said. "He is just straight intense and obsessive."

"Did you know he was that bad before you started seeing him?" Hiccup asked.

Heather stole a glance at her mother, and then his father. "Y-yeah - in some sense. Mom knew things….you know? I, didn't think it was as bad as it was. Thought maybe - the right person could change him. But, I learned with him that isn't the case. He has to want to change. Brock - he doesn't want to change and be a better person. I didn't get major red flags about him for a while. He hid it pretty much from me when we were together. Eventually, he threw off the cloak and he showed himself. If there is one person in this world that scares me, it's him."

Hiccup looked at Heather. "Can I ask - did you know he was on the team when we went last night?"

She nodded. "Up until we were jumped, I didn't know he was set again."

Hiccup lowered his head. "And, that is my fault."

He felt a hand rest on his forearm.

"No, Hiccup. In the end, I honestly think you were doing the best you could with what you had. I get it." Heather gave him a small squeeze. He could feel her studying his face briefly, and he turned away from her. He knew he had visible injuries along his face, more cuts than the small gash along his cheek bone.

"Where's this letter?" Katherine asked Hiccup.

"In my room."

…..

Mr. Vast helped Hiccup to his room so that he give her the envelope. Heather held it in her hands, sighing as she opened it. Out dropped some dried rose petals, and she rolled her eyes in annoyance. She then, opened the folded up piece of paper, and began to read what was on it.

Her face contorted as she read it silently, then she gagged and closed it, tearing it into fours and holding them in a ball in her hands. Hiccup watched her wrap her arms around herself, nervously.

"I'm sorry I didn't give it to you sooner," Hiccup said to her. "Or tell you about what was going on."

"Don't be," Heather said to him, taking a seat beside him, another sigh escaping her breath. "All it was was a very short apology for the past, and then him giving me his cell phone number wanting to 'wine and dine' me - I am assuming the weekend he gave you the envelope, but who knows. He's just a complete nightmare of a human being."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, and then Hiccup asked, "You weren't hurt last night, were you?"

Heather shook her head. "Startled more than anything, honestly."

"Is Sage okay?" Hiccup asked.

She nodded, but bit her lip in thought. "Brock laid a nice one in on him. He has a pretty bruise to prove it." She smiled, and a chuckle escaped her throat. "However, he did lay a nice one in on Brock's face again. I could hear his nose re-break. Typically, I wouldn't take joy at the thought of someone in pain like that - but he deserved it."

"I looked over once the officer asked for my ID, and the three of your were gone," Hiccup said. "I still haven't talked to Astrid."

Heather sighed. "I haven't either. The officers separated all of us. You were placed into the squad. Rudy and Brock were both placed in handcuffs and separated as well. When they took you, Astrid was a mess."

He winced.

"The officer that was with you, he told her you were coherent. She calmed a little then. Then, her father came and picked her up, my Mom came for me. Your dad arrived but left with an officer once they informed him you were on your way to the ER. It all was a blur after that…"

Hiccup hung his head. "Mrs. Hofferson scores again."

Heather narrowed his eyes at him. "What do you mean?"

Hiccup sighed. "Astrid's mom - any excuse for Astrid to not be with me and she rises to the occasion. This - this is going to be the one. When we were attacked at the Y, it almost happened, then. But, this. This is wayyyy more escalated than that." His palm hit his forehead. "Her father literally told me that he was at ease with her with me - he always knew she was safe with me around."

Heather left a pause before she said, "Hiccup, last night, outside of a couple of possible bruises, she was all right."

"When Rudy tackled us - "

"Trust me," Heather insisted, placing her hand into his and giving it a squeeze. "She was more startled than anything else last night."

Katherine and Heather left shortly before noon, and this was after they realized Hiccup was becoming uncomfortable. Pain was present, and after taking some medication, he requested to stay in the living room. This puzzled his father, but honestly the pressure on his ribs wasn't as bad if he was sitting up. Instead of his usual spot, on the couch, Hiccup leaned back in his father's recliner and did his best to rest and sleep. He was able to get a little bit in the matter of a few hours, and when he woke up he felt a little better.

After drinking some Gatorade, and using the restroom, he settled back into the recliner, and decided he needed something to occupy his time. He was growing antsy doing nothing. He needed something to take his mind off of things, even just a little bit.

Television never really occupied him, so he found an audio book on "Great Expectations" on his iPad, and decided to try sketching a bit. Instead of sketching, he found himself playing with some shading techniques, and instead of listening directly to the audiobook, he became lost in some random thoughts about school, how everyone would react to seeing him in a wheelchair, how he would get around school in a wheelchair….the school did have an elevator, but he would need to have special permission to use it. And, on top of that, someone would need to escort him to class more than likely.

One of the worst feelings for Hiccup was having to rely on someone else for assistance. His father was one thing. It had taken time to allow Katherine to help, and actually be there. Astrid…well, she just kind of kept intruding a little bit more each day pulling him out of his comfort zone.

He had to hold in a small chuckle at this thought. Remembering how she just kept coming over to his house and the most inopportune times early on, and just showing up without an invitation those first few weeks after the car accident, and she just kept pushing her way deeper and deeper in without listening to his arguments or retorts. How she'd managed to break down his wall of insecurities over such a short period of time now seemed shocking, and a slight blur.

Suddenly, he felt something tickle his ear, and he opened his eyes to see his father standing close to him. His earbud had been tugged out gently, and he reached down and paused his audiobook.

"Yeah?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Were you asleep?"

"Eh, a bit, maybe?" Hiccup replied.

"How about some juice, or a glass of tea?" his father asked him.

Hiccup nodded groggily, trying to force himself to wake up a little bit. "Yeah."

"Which would you like?"

It took him a moment to comprehend. "Uh, apple juice if we have it."

His father gave a guilty look. "Orange all right?" He had apparently finished it at breakfast.

Hiccup nodded in reply. "A-actually, wait - "

His father had started to talk off but instead he stopped, and after a moment he reached up towards Hiccup's forehead. "You okay, lad?"

"Just - just really tired. More than I thought, maybe."

"Hmmmm." He heard his father sigh. "What kind of pain are you in?"

"I'm okay - "

"Hiccup - "

"No, Dad. I promise you, I am okay. I'm actually resting easier here than I was in bed last night."

"That makes a little bit of sense," Mr. Vast said. Hiccup could sense that his father was lost in some thought. "So, no juice, then?"

Hiccup shook his head. "Nah, I think I'm just gonna listen to this audio book until I fall asleep again."

"Okay, well, before you nod off, I got a call from Mr. Hofferson."

This peaked Hiccup's interest a bit. "Yeah?"

"Apparently, since Astrid hasn't heard from you, she's been worried." He then saw his father pull his cell phone from the pocket of his hoodie and set it down on the end table beside Hiccup. "Sorry - I felt the need to look through your messages…"

Hiccup narrowed his eyes at him. He didn't know whether or not to be upset or angry at his father for browsing through his private conversations. He held back the urge to get upset, and replied, "I honestly wondered if you had it or if the police took it."

"Oh, they had it, and I assured them if I found something regarding those two delinquents I would turn it in."

"Did you think they were bullying me on my phone?" Hiccup asked.

"I honestly wondered. But - "

"There was nothing, huh?"

His father gave him a sharp look.

"Dad - all of this related to me happened at school and in that parking lot. Honestly. There wasn't any conversations between the guys on my phone or on social media. It was strictly face to face."

"I realized that when I went through your contacts."

Hiccup reached a hand up to his forehead and gave it a small rub, trying to think of what to say next to his father. He then reached over and picked up his cell phone, and realized under Astrid's name was at least fifteen unread text messages. And, at least five from Fish. Hiccup sighed. Word had gotten around if Fish was texting him.

"You didn't read the messages from Astrid or Fish - "

"No. I didn't. Is there a reason I should have?"

Hiccup glanced up at his father, and shook his head. "No."

"I didn't see the need to assume you'd faked the identity of people in your contact list - " His father would think of this. His investigative brain often thought of the minor details no one else would think of. Although, Hiccup could tell his father was fishing for more information out of him.

"Dad, I swear to you. Anything pertaining to Brock or Rudy had nothing to do with my cell phone."

"Good," his father said. "You can keep it."

"Thank you," Hiccup said with a sigh, and he placed the phone down in his lap. He started transferring his head phones over to his cell phone instead of his Ipad.

"I did get an email from your principal…"

This perked up Hiccup's ears. "What?"

His father nodded and let out a sigh. "I have an appointment with him on Monday. But, right now you are suspended…"

Panic went through Hiccup's veins. "What - wait, how - "

"I will get this worked out, trust me," his father said, placing his hand up to try to calm Hiccup. "Don't - work yourself up - Hiccup, take it easy - "

His mind was already in the rabbit hole. Outside of missing school his sophomore year for injuries related to both his fall, Astrid's accident and the events that had followed that, Hiccup hadn't been in trouble with the school - and of course his most recent detention. This year, his final year of high school, he'd only missed two full days total, one for when he was having to go see a specialist regarding the prosthetic fitting that year, and another day when he'd been up all night from a particularly rough phantom pain. Up until this bully situation, his senior year had been remarkably quiet.

'"Dad - if I get suspended, my grades, college - " He was suddenly very sick to his stomach.

"Hiccup, I want you to calm yourself," his father said, leaning forward and placing both hands on his son's shoulders. "Listen to me - you have already been cleared innocent regarding the fight at the diner, okay? I have emailed your principal explaining the situation, and unless he removed the suspension before Monday I will be taking myself to his office. I want you to continue to do your studies like nothing happened. Come Monday, I will see to it that you are at the school and doing your classwork, okay?"

Hiccup couldn't take his eyes off of his father. "Okay."

"Okay," his father said in return, relief in his voice. "Thank you."

Hiccup was swallowing the panic as best as he could. He didn't want his father worrying more. The furrow in his brow told Hiccup he was concerned. But then:

"Wait, Dad, what about Astrid? She was involved - "

"Her father never said anything to me about that, so don't worry yourself, okay?"

Hiccup nodded, trying to shake off the anxiety. He'd become rigid with worry, and his ribs and back were now hurting him. He needed to relax, and he wanted sleep. But now…

"Hiccup," his father said to him.

"Yeah?"

"Do you want to stay out here, or should I help you to bed?"

Hiccup didn't have a response for him right away. "Uh - here. I'll stay here."

He vaguely comprehended his father rubbing the top of his forehead again, smoothing back his hair, and leaving him be. He was numb. He went into auto-pilot then, placing his earbud back into his ear, and although he did this, he didn't turn his book back on. Instead, he leaned his head back, and closed his eyes, and tried to force himself to keep calm and not panic.