AN: Race To The Edge season 6 is finally up on Netflix! What better way to celebrate than to post another chapter? (What? Did I need inspiration to finish this? Psssssssh. Of course not.)

"No kidding, you're actually a baker?"

Jack couldn't help but snort. What did Hiccup expect, when Jack requested free range of his entire kitchen? Hiccup was definitely a single college guy given the contents of his cabinets, but it was enough for Jack to toss together a decent breakfast. "I'm not a pro or anything, but I do work in a bakery."

"If you do it for a living, I think that counts as being a pro."

"Alas," Jack began with a bit of a dramatic lilt. He waved his hand lazily to emphasize his teasing tone. "To the educated elite, it only counts if you have a degree in the culinary arts."

"I also think I count as educated elite."

Oh man, that goofy smile Hiccup flashed him, with his big, crooked teeth... Jack couldn't help but giggle at their banter. "Oh, of course. Dr. Hiccup Haddock: Ace Archaeologist, huh? And just when do you get that title? Two years? Three?"

Green eyes rolled across the table from him as the freckled angel picked at his pancakes. "Archaeology is gonna be a second major, smartass." Jack beamed at him, and Hiccup snorted and continued. "I'm studying to be a Draconologist first. And it's one year, but that's until I get my bachelor's. Doctorate's a long way off."

Last night had been amazing - more so than a night like that should have been. Jack had felt so light and airy before, and after, and he drifted off to sleep so easily with Hiccup's hands brushing over him so gently. And now that they were sitting at Hiccup's dinky little table eating improvised pancakes and eggs, Jack was still finding Hiccup fun to talk to. It didn't even feel awkward being here.

Don't get him wrong - Hiccup seemed awkward, but Jack didn't think it was because of what they'd done last night. He suspected Hiccup was naturally awkward the moment they met.

"Oooh, started college early, huh? That's so unfair. You're like, twenty."

"Don't people usually start right after they graduate?"

"...Not really? I planned to take a year off after high school and landed the bakery job. But there isn't a culinary program worth anything in central Pennsylvania, so...here I am?"

Hiccup grinned, and Jack blushed. He could read the teasing, albeit good natured, look on Hiccup's face. Hiccup, who had apparently moved here by himself like the big, brave boy he was from Norway for Penn State's 'superior' archaeology, paleontology, and draconology programs. (There were other, much better schools out there, and probably closer to his home. Jack just suspected he got a free ride through the exchange program or something.)

"You don't wanna be away from your parents, do you?"

Jack pouted.

"It's just me, my mom, and my sister," Jack explained, waving his hand again. "She's in high school. I can't subject my mom to raising a second me. I made her life a nightmare. She needs all the help she can get."

"Gods forbid your mom have to raise someone else prone to crashing a skateboard. Too many trips to the ER stress her out?"

Jack snorted, and reached across the table to smack the back of Hiccup's hand lightly. "Oh god, no, I was so much worse as a teenager. It's a wonder I don't have a criminal record. Same goes for Emma. Last week she threw a rock at a cop car."

"Geez."

"...Well, she missed. I'm...she's a work in progress. I'll work her out of it soon."

Hiccup should have, in all honesty, been turned off by this conversation. Jack's personal life and family history was wild, and weird, and he could feel himself oversharing with this cute brunet for some ungodly reason. To Jack, this was going downhill fast. A total disaster. He fully expected to hear a polite, but cool tone take over that nasally voice and to be asked to leave after breakfast. But Hiccup's eyes were as warm as Jack's cheeks they gazed at each other across the table.

Jack pursed his lips to the silence, and Hiccup chuckled.

"So, Woolly Howl?"

This dragon-obsessed dork.

Jack flopped back onto his bed, phone in hand. He had been texting Hiccup back and forth for the better part of an hour - ever since he'd left Jamie and Monty in the light of Jamie's TV, bickering incessantly over something Jack just found kind of boring.

Now, don't get him wrong: he was totally having a blast with his two best friends. But like... They were all kind of adults. Did they really have to argue over Mario Kart?

"Says the guy who argued with me for an hour over whether Star Wars or Star Trek was better."

"Yeah, yeah, I know they were kidding. But I got so bored, and calling you just seemed so much better than that~. Even if you were wrong about Star Trek."

"You sure it wasn't something to do with the fact that you can walk and talk at the same time, but when you text you run into things? Like trees, stop signs, walls, windows, doors-"

"Thank you, Hiccup. You are really making me feel better about myself."

"I'm just saying. Say what you will about me being clumsy, but if I recall it was you who ran me over with a skateboard."

"I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

"Why would I ever let you forget it?"

Jack laughed, tipping his head back into the pillow, and over the phone he heard Hiccup laugh too. His heart fluttered to hear the nasally chuckles of his nerdy boyfriend.

Er, friend? With benefits maybe? Hiccup and Jack had been playing this game for about a week now. They had only truly fooled around the once, but since then they had dinner together for the second night in a row, texted pretty much every day, and this was the third night they had called to talk on the phone before bed.

Jack was smitten. He couldn't escape now.

"What are you doing this weekend?" Hiccup asked, once their laughter had passed.

Jack smiled and rolled onto his side, tucking the phone between his face and the pillow. "I hope I'm spending time with you," he answered. To be honest, that probably would have been smooth, if he hadn't rolled first. He could hear the faint echo of himself because of the close proximity of his mouth to the phone, and he sounded so garbled. Hiccup snorted on his end, and Jack's face turned red.

"Did you just lay on the phone?" Hiccup asked. "Because that's really cute."

Damn it. If anyone was cute, it was Hiccup, with his little awkward face and his nasally voice and his nerdy tendencies and obsession with dragons. The brunet had absolutely no right to be this cute.

"Hey... You haven't told me your Night Fury story yet," Jack said, the thought of Hiccup being a nerd bringing that question to mind again. "I told you about the Woolly Howl, it's only fair."

Jack sat back in his chair, fork abandoned on his plate. He crossed his arms and stared at Hiccup for a long moment before smirking a little.

Hiccup was adorable. Jack really was lucky to have run into him.

"Okay, fine. So..." Jack trailed off, thinking for a moment. After hearing all about how Hiccup's mother was the world's leading draconologist, and how he was following in her footsteps after inheriting her absolute obsession with dragons... How Hiccup did extensive research on any dragon he could think of until he understood everything there was to know without seeing one of the beasts themselves.

Compared to Hiccup's passion, Jack felt like his story was a little...lacking. Finally, he shifted, almost self conscious.

"Hey," Hiccup said softly, jarring Jack out of his thoughts. The brunet reached across the table and put a hand on his shoulder, smiling gently. "C'mon, don't look like that. No need to be nervous. I mean, chances are I'll just geek out at you once you're done."

God damn it all. Hiccup was so cute.

Jack glanced down at his hand, and a little mischievous smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. He took the freckled hand from his shoulder and lifted it to his mouth, kissing the back of it lightly.

"Do you know what it feels like to fly?"