"Cut!" Tooth shouted, her heels clicking as she made her way to the edge of the stage.
Astrid's script crumpled in her hands as she threw her head back and closed her eyes shut. She heard giggling coming from the side of the stage, where her so-called friends sat on the floor, enjoying her misery.
"Astrid, dear," Tooth's always gentle and motherly voice called, and Astrid turned on her heels to look at the teacher. "Perhaps you haven't fully grasped Helena's feelings yet."
"Perhaps I haven't," the girl said through gritted teeth.
Tooth leaned forward and pointed at her own script. "See, Astrid, in this scene, you are trying to convince Demetrius"—she pointed at Hiccup with her pen, making the guy puff his chest at being called out—"of your love for him."
She heard wolf whistles and roars, and she one hundred percent knew who they were coming from, so she tried to shut them all out.
"You don't want him to go after Hermia," the teacher continued, holding her hands up to stop the other students' excitement. "Because you can't imagine your life without him. And as much as you adore your best friend, you know you are a better match for him. And you have to make him understand that, no matter what it takes."
"Go get him, girl!" Violet shouted before breaking down in laughter, and Elsa had to put a hand over the brunette's mouth to shut the latter up.
Tooth sighed before her attention returned to Astrid. "Make us believe that you would die for him."
Astrid's eyes narrowed, and she only nodded in response.
"Let's try it again, shall we?" Tooth returned to her seat as the actors took their places.
Astrid turned to face her stage partner, and her fist clenched at the sight of him grinning at her. "Why does it look like you're enjoying this?"
Hiccup shrugged. "Why would I not?"
She clicked her tongue. "It's all fake."
"Yeah, but I still get to hang out with you." His grin spread wider.
Her eyes narrowed. "Wipe that smile off your dumb face, or I'm doing it for you."
"I'd like to see you trying." He chuckled, flipping through the pages on his script. "I believe this is the part where you profess your undying love for me."
Astrid's teeth clenched, and her aggressive streak kicked in. "That's it. YOU ARE SO DONE!" She dashed in his direction, tackling him to the floor, and his cries of pain mixed with her guttural growls.
"ARE YOU TRYING TO RIP MY LIPS OFF FOR REAL, YOU CRAZY PERSON?"
Jack let out a long whistle as he got on his feet. "That's what I call passion."
"Wrong type of passion," Andy mumbled, rushing to the duo rolling on the floor. "Guys! Break it up!" He tried to pull Astrid off Hiccup just to receive a sharp elbow to the ribs from the girl.
Astrid slipped from his grasp and jumped at the guy still on the floor, her hands going to his neck.
"Hofferson!" Jack and Andy tried to hold Astrid again. "Not in front of the kids, alright?"
"You wanna be next, Frost?" the blonde snarled, struggling against her restraints.
"Astrid!" Elsa called, putting her hands on the other girl's shoulders and giving them a harsh shake. "Calm down!"
"Get out of the way, Elsa," Astrid hissed.
"No." Elsa crossed her arms, standing her ground. "You wanna vent your anger at someone? Start with me."
That made Astrid freeze. Her fists were still shaking, but she stopped fighting, and she took a moment to simply let air in and out through her nose. From the corner of her eyes, she watched Violet helping Hiccup up. His face was all red with scratches.
"Guys!" Tooth had rushed to the stage, her pupils dilated with fright. "What was that?"
"Ah, just a bit of pre-performance jitters, Ms. T." Hiccup laughed, then flinched in pain, and his hand rushed to touch the corner of his lips. He was bleeding.
Astrid's eyes narrowed as she stared at him, but he was avoiding looking at her.
"Are you okay, Hiccup?" Tooth asked concerned.
"What, these?" Hiccup pointed at the lines drawn across his face. "My cat's scratches hurt more than these."
Tooth hummed. She didn't seem too convinced. "How about we take a little break? Fifteen minutes?"
Hiccup nodded. "Sounds good."
Tooth informed the rest of the cast that they would be returning after a quick bathroom break, and Astrid and her friends tried to leave the stage as inconspicuous as they could. Andy and Elsa remained on each side of her, and she could feel them watching her, waiting for her next outburst.
"Since when do you have a cat?" Jack asked Hiccup in a whisper.
The auburn-haired guy sighed. "I don't."
"Look at you getting better at lying," Violet cooed.
"You could at least call it 'acting', Vi," Hiccup mumbled, his shoulders sinking.
Andy chuckled, crossing his arms. "Hurry up guys, our sacred fifteen minutes break should be spent wisely."
"I actually have somewhere to go," Elsa said, putting a hand on Astrid's shoulder. "Come with me?"
Astrid furrowed her eyebrows. "Sure..."
"Are you coming back?" Violet asked.
"Yeah, it'll be just a little while," Elsa explained.
"Meet us at the usual spot," Andy said.
Elsa nodded. "Alright."
The group parted, and when the two girls were alone, Astrid asked, "Are you trying to keep a close eye on me? Because I promise, I won't go ballistic again."
The platinum-blonde sighed. "I'm not. But your earlier behavior does worry me."
"It was a momentary lapse of judgment."
"Do you think you will have other momentary lapses of judgment in the future?" Elsa asked calmly.
"No. Maybe... I don't know." One of Astrid's hands went to her hair, and she tugged on a fistful of it.
"Normally, I would tell you not to, but I feel like that would be putting unnecessary pressure on your shoulders."
"So I'm pardoned?"
Elsa looked at the other girl with an arched eyebrow. "I don't commend you attacking Hiccup if that's what you're asking."
Astrid groaned.
"You should increase your gym sessions. It'll probably help with your pent-up stress."
"Yeah, I guess I'll do that," Astrid agreed begrudgingly.
"You know what else helps relieve stress?"
"What?"
"Sugar."
"You think Elsa is chewing Astrid out right now?" Violet asked as she shared a bench with the boys.
"Maybe." Andy shrugged, leaning back. "You okay, Hics?" he asked, looking at the auburn-haired guy with concern.
"I'm fine," the other guy mumbled. "It just stings a little."
"Oh, you'll live, you big baby," Jack said, rolling his eyes. "Hofferson used your face to sharpen her claws. How come you still covered up for her?"
Hiccup turned to glare at the silverhead with narrowed eyes. "You seriously think I would rat her out?"
Jack clicked his tongue. "Right. I forgot you're a legitimately good guy."
"Why do you make it sound like an insult?" Hiccup mumbled.
"I think you did a good thing," Andy intervened before Jack could counter-argue.
"And you may have scored some points with Astrid," Violet added, wiggling her eyebrows knowingly.
"It's not like that was my plan!" Hiccup protested with a frown.
Violet shrugged. "Doesn't change the outcome."
"Oh, God." Hiccup ran a hand down his face as he shook his head. "Where are those two anyway?"
"Who knows?" Andy wondered. "Elsa only said she had something prepared for us."
"If it were anyone else, I would be suspicious," Hiccup said, making sure to give the silverhead a pointed look as he spoke.
Jack glowered at Hiccup before turning to Andy and asking, "So you don't know either?"
"I'm as much in the dark as the rest of you." Andy looked at Violet. "You?"
"All I know is that she was out of bed late last night, and when Astrid and I asked her about it, she said she was studying. Past midnight." The girl shrugged nonchalantly. "I bet she was meeting someone."
Jack unconsciously sucked in, making him choke on his own saliva and sending him into a fit of uncontrollable coughs.
"You okay, Jack?" Andy asked, patting the silverhead's back.
"Yeah." Jack nodded. "Spit went down the wrong tube."
Violet scowled. "Ew."
Hiccup pressed his fingers against his temple. "So rewind. Elsa has a secret boyfriend none of us know about, and she's sneaking out at night to meet him? Are we talking about the same person here?"
Jack cleared his throat loudly, making the others stare at him in disgust. "Knowing how nerdy she is, Arendelle was probably studying for real, and you two are freaking out over nothing."
"My theory was more fun," the girl said with a pout.
"Yeah, keep your theories to yourself when Astrid and Elsa come back, will you?" Andy warned her. "The last thing we need right now is two pissed off girls in our group."
Jack sat up, crossing and uncrossing his legs. "Speaking of, Arendelle standing up to Hofferson? Talk about a badass move."
"Elsa is basically the one person Astrid would follow all the way down to Hell and back," Andy said.
Jack laughed, throwing his head back. "Ah, blind faith. It stopped Hiccup from having his eyeballs ripped off his face, so I applaud the perks."
"Not blind faith, jerkface. Respect."
Jack jumped at the sound of Astrid's snarl, and when he turned, both blondes were looking at him with matching unamused expressions.
"Hello, ladies." He got on his feet and spread his arms to greet the girls. "What's all that?" Jack asked, pointing at the items they carried.
"Some refreshments to push us through the rest of the rehearsal," Elsa said, uncovering the tray in her hands and offering him a piece of cake.
Jack's eyes widened. That was the same cake they had baked together the night before.
"Uh… What's this?" he asked, accepting the napkin the platinum-blonde offered.
Elsa narrowed her eyes and stared at him as if he was mentally impaired. "Cake. What does it look like to you?"
He smirked. "You want an honest answer, or should I sugar-coat it for you?"
"Okay, stop hogging all the food, jackass!" Violet shouted, shoving the silverhead to the side. She looked Elsa straight in the eyes as she asked, "Is this what you were doing last night?"
"Cat's out of the bag, I suppose," Elsa replied as she went to offer the others some cake.
"Bet you're feeling pretty dumb now, huh?" Jack mumbled, elbowing Violet in the side of the body.
She glowered at him, but Jack continued munching on his food as if there was no wrong in the world.
"What are you two talking about?" Astrid asked, popping a can of soda open and pointing between Jack and Violet.
"You don't wanna know," Violet grumbled, dragging her feet and wiggling to fit between Andy and Hiccup on the bench.
"Not that I'm complaining, but what brought this act of kindness?" Andy asked, offering his seat to Elsa.
Elsa hummed, sitting down. "Let's just say it was something I had been meaning to do for a while."
"In good time too," Jack commented, throwing a glance at Astrid.
Astrid's eyes narrowed. "Something you wanna share with the rest of the class, Frost?"
He shook his head innocently. "I'm good."
"Astrid, we talked about this," Elsa said with a sigh.
Astrid snorted. "I literally did nothing."
"Yet."
Elsa glared at the brunette girl. "Violet. I don't like to say this often, but shut up. Please."
Jack crossed his arms and stared at the platinum-blonde in awe. His mouth was open, and his eyes weren't able to leave her. "How can you be that intimidating and pleasant at the same time?"
"You have your talents, I have mine."
Suddenly, a phone rang, and they all looked at each other trying to figure out the source of the noise.
'"It's mine," Andy said, fishing his phone out of his pocket. He stopped the timer he had set and added, "Time to go back."
Jack groaned, snatching another piece of cake from the tray as the group prepared to go back. With his mouth full, he mumbled, "Here we were enjoying a pleasant afternoon of cake and comradery, and you had to ruin it, didn't you?"
"Stop acting like it's the worst thing in the world," Elsa said, rolling her eyes.
He waited for her with a hand on his hip. As she stopped beside him, he took the food tray from her hands before she could complain. "You're right. I could probably think of worse ways to spend my time." Leaning closer to her, he whispered so only she could hear him, "Like secret midnight rendezvous to do... homework, was it?"
She bit her lip, and he watched her breathing in and out before replying, "Charming."
"Thank you."
"It wasn't a compliment."
"Move, Romeo and Juliet, we gotta get back to rehearsal," Violet called, looking back at the pair at the back of the group.
"Wrong play," Elsa said.
"Also, wrong people," Jack added, staring at Astrid.
The blonde, noticing his eyes, crossed her arms. "What are you looking at?"
"What do you think?"
"Keep talking and you will experience a momentary lapse of judgment first hand," Astrid snarled.
"Is that Smart for 'I'll kill you'?" Jack wondered out loud.
"Kinda," Elsa answered, speeding up her pace. "We should hurry. Tooth will start to wonder where we are."
"Right behind you, Your Majesty."
Spring break had come, and the students were excused to return to their homes. Andy and his friends, being the dedicated students that they were, had decided to meet up so they could brush up on their Midsummer Night's Dream characters even when away from school. He had offered his house as the meeting place, seeing as both his mother and sister were more than happy to have the extra company. So the group had gathered in the middle of the week in his residence.
The Davis family had greeted the teens with plenty of warmth, but more importantly, plenty of food. His friends quickly got comfortable, spreading through the living room with buckets of popcorn, and candy and iced tea sorted between them. Actually, they felt so much at home that Andy had a hard time convincing them to read through the script at least once before everybody had to get back to their own families.
Checking the clock, Andy calculated that they had two or three hours to rehearse, and he planned to make the most of it. His mother had left on a work emergency, his sister had been exiled to her own room, and there was no better moment to get things done than the present.
With Elsa's help, he managed to drag the rest of his friends to his room, just to have the lot of them collapsing on his bed, or his chair, or the floor.
"Quite an impressive collection you have here, Andrew," Elsa said as she looked through the shelves of toys Andy had displayed in his room.
He crossed his arms, walking towards the blonde. "You are looking at my pride and joy, El."
"Davis loves his toys more than he loves his friends," Jack stated, looking at them with his head hanging off the edge of the bed.
Andy scrunched his nose and pointed a finger in the silverhead's direction. "Listen, they were my closest friends before I went to the Academy."
"Loser," Jack scoffed.
"Thank you, that's very kind of you, Jack," Andy mumbled with a roll of eyes.
Elsa shook her head, sitting on the edge of the bed. "And you wonder why Andy treasures his toys more than he treasures your friendship."
"Up to comforting a hurt soul, Your Majesty?" Jack asked, holding his head up with both hands on his chin and pouting at her.
She rolled her eyes at the same time as Astrid groaned.
"If putting up with your sorry attempts at flirting wasn't bad enough at school, now I have to put up with it during my break too?" Astrid snarled.
Jack shrugged. "Well, your charm isn't that high up there either, sunshine."
Andy picked his script from the desk and waved it at his friends. "Come on, guys. We got a lot of work to do."
"Why the rush, Andy?" Hiccup asked.
Violet's eyes narrowed. "Yeah, why are you being such a worrywart about it?"
"Because, unlike you, I'd rather not have to wing the stupid play!" Andy shouted, throwing his hands up.
"Learn to live a little," Jack said, rolling his eyes.
Andy shook his head. "It's not up for debate. My house, my rules."
"I knew I should've offered my place," Jack mumbled, lazily rolling off the bed and kicking Hiccup out of the way as he got on his feet.
"You heard our host, ladies," Elsa said, holding out her hands to help the other girls up.
"This sucks," Astrid mumbled, getting on her feet.
"I thought we were supposed to be having fun," Violet grumbled, crossing her arms and glaring at Andy.
"Not with General Davis around," Jack scoffed.
Andy's stern eyes didn't waver as he waited for the group to gather around him. "There's a giant ice-cream shop a few blocks from here," he stated casually.
"How is that relevant—" Elsa shut her mouth as Andy held up a finger at her.
Andy continued to eye them, his gaze moving slowly from friend to friend.
Jack crossed his arms. "Go on."
"We go through the whole play, front to back without interruptions, and I'll take you guys there."
"Oh, for Heaven's sake," Elsa mumbled, turning around and pinching the bridge of her nose. "Who would ever fall for—"
"Are you willing to treat us to some ice cream?" Hiccup asked.
"One scoop for each of you sorry bums."
A moment of silence followed, and Andy watched the others weighing his proposal.
"I could use some chocolate," Hiccup admitted with a shrug.
"Doesn't sound that bad," Astrid agreed.
Violet nodded. "Whatever it takes to make this work, right?"
"Alright." Jack rolled his shoulders back and smirked at the other guy.
"Congratulations, Davis. You just got yourself a deal."