This chapter is a little late - I've gotten on this eight or nine day cycle with these stories. I've got more on my plate then normal with trying to get published and find a job and all that fun adult stuff.
So…this chapter ended up having a lot more thought than I anticipated. But, whatever. The majority of it kind of turned out more like a montage, but I went with it.
X
Chapter 20: Unprepared
The first of December came with a fresh wave of flurries and chilly winds. Astrid left for class that morning with an extra scarf around her neck, one of Hiccup's, that he'd personally secured. He woke up with her, but he'd fallen back asleep and woke to the sound of her return. She dropped her extra layers in the kitchen and left them on the floor. By the time she was at the edge of the bed she was in nothing but her underwear.
"I'm so cold," Astrid mumbled as she dove into the blanket. She found him quickly and her cold limbs snuggled into his side and sent shivers across his skin.
"Did you walk again?" Hiccup asked, after having yelped at the feeling of her icy fingers on his hipbone.
"On the way back." Astrid sighed. Even her hair was cold. "I couldn't get a taxi."
"I'm sorry," Hiccup smiled.
"Why? Did you somehow busy up all the taxis in town?" Astrid mumbled into his shoulder.
"If I had a car I would've come and got you." Hiccup said.
"How is your car doing?"
"A total loss. It would cost more than it's worth to fix it." Hiccup sighed.
"Hmm," she sighed.
Hiccup had settled back into his comfort as the temperature underneath the covers returned to normal. He laid a hand against her waist and ran his thumb along the smooth skin. Her breathing was calm and her breaths were warm on his chin.
"Hey," Hiccup whispered. No answer came. He listened, she was asleep.
X
Tuesday morning came with a break of sunshine that painfully glared off the snow and ice. Astrid was dreading finals as much as Hiccup was dreading his return to work. The holiday had been wonderful, sleeping in, lounging together, eating prolonged brunches at the coffee table.
Astrid stuck it out though. She wouldn't let something like school stress her out to the point of ridiculousness. Every teacher demanded that their class be their students first priority. They acted as though their final paper was the most important thing any of them would ever accomplish, if they could even do that much.
Astrid was grateful when the day was over. Why did they have to make school so unbelievably stressful? She was well aware that finals were important. She didn't need to be constantly reminded that failing a class meant that she'd have to retake it next semester.
She chose to walk home, again, despite the several taxis she saw. The numbing aspect of the cold seemed to work its way into her problems. By the time her apartment building came into sight they no longer bothered her. Her stiff fingers fumbled with the keys. For a moment, her empty apartment worried her. Hiccup would be gone for the most of the day. It would just be her, then. Again. The prospect wasn't the least bit appealing.
She left the door unlocked for Hiccup. She needed to get him a key, maybe give it to him for Christmas. Sighing, she meandered to the stove. She set on the kettle and reached into the cabinet for some instant coffee.
"Shit," Astrid mumbled to the empty box. She threw it at the trash can, missed, and angrily stomped to it and thrust it inside. She wouldn't have missed if she could feel her fingers. She set off the kettle.
There were several things they were almost out of. She'd been putting off shopping during Thanksgiving. She'd gone, once, and never wanted to walk into a supermarket on a holiday again. She dug her phone out of her coat pocket and began to make a list. She went through the cabinets, refrigerator, and the bathroom. She checked the little pink pills in her dresser drawer. A week left. She might as well pick up her prescription while she was at it.
She plopped down on the couch and used her phone to go into her bank account. She drummed her fingers on the table as the screen loaded, and sure enough, there it was. Thirty thousand. A shiver ran down her spine. She grabbed her wallet and keys and stuffed them into her coat's pockets along with her phone.
Outside, a car honked. This would be easier if she had her own vehicle. Then she would have to find insurance, and that sounded like a pain in itself, and there was gas prices, and maintenance. She'd never owned her own car before. Why could she just go to the car store, buy it, and then own it forever? Why did it have to be so utterly complicated and integrated into so many other things? Constantly putting more money into made it sound like she'd never really own it. Being an adult sucked, a lot.
Astrid stepped out of the apartment and locked it. She'd have to make sure to be home before Hiccup. Of course, she didn't plan on being gone that long.
X
Hiccup was less than happy about returning to work that Tuesday. It was cold outside and it was boiling inside. Sweat gathered on his brow and dripped down his scalp, soaking into his shirt, and shining on the back of his hands. Groaning, he wiped his brow with the back of his sleeve, again. He was going to smell great tonight.
I kind of like it.
He sighed into the fumes. Astrid's been so stressed over finals. Is that what school was about? Stress over tests and quizzes and whatever nonsensical crap they do in class? He remembered days in high school when it would have been more productive to stay at home.
At last the day ended. His sweat had soaked his shirt through, dried, and been soaked again, only to half-dry and half-freeze as he stepped outside. He caught a cab and was thankful for the temporary heat. The cab smelt like cabbage and piss but it was a price he paid. He paid the chatty driver and was on the walk to Astrid's building when he noticed the tiny blue car parked in her space. He noticed, mostly because her space was typically empty, but the color of the car was striking. It was blue with a yellow running board and matching tailfin.
Hiccup shook his head as he headed inside. He'd tell Astrid in the morning. He stomped the snow off his boots by the entrance and rode the elevator to her floor. Every time he came home without her, he had a small fear that the door would be locked and she wouldn't hear him knocking. Then what? Right now he could go back to his apartment. But in less than a month his lease was up. He hadn't resigned it. What then?
Hiccup reached for the knob and to his relief it was unlocked. He crept inside and slowly closed the door behind him. It was dark and he nearly fumbled over Astrid's discarded boots. He pushed them out of the middle of the floor. Sighing, he headed for the bathroom.
"Hiccup?"
He frozen where he stood. He glanced over to where a lump was moving on the couch. In the dim city light from the window he saw her yellow hair.
"What are you doing on the couch?" he asked.
"I was waiting for you," Astrid mumbled.
"Why? You know I was at work." Hiccup said. He closed the space between them, not giving as much heed to his steps as before. He knelt down beside the couch.
"I know," Astrid was still half asleep.
Hiccup brushed hair out of her face. She hummed to his touch.
"You smell nice,"
Hiccup smiled as blush flooded his cheeks. He was suddenly very thankful for the shadows. Astrid's hand reached out and gentle brushed the collar of his shirt with her fingertips.
"I was going to take a shower," Hiccup smiled.
"Why?"
"Because I feel gross."
"Can I join you?"
"In the shower?"
"Yeah,"
Hiccup's tongue was stuck to the top of his mouth. He pried it off, but by then Astrid had unbound herself from her blanket mess and was standing up. She grabbed him by the wrist.
"Are you sure?" Hiccup swallowed.
"Yeah, come on, it'll be fun." Astrid was pulling him toward the bathroom.
It didn't take him long to realize that she wasn't wearing her pajama pants. Her pale legs were bare. She flipped on the bathroom light and they both winced. She padded across the floor to the shower and turned the water on. She waited for it to get warm and held a hand under the faucet, bent at the hip, her patterned underwear stretching across her backend. Hiccup stared as he fumbled with his belt buckle, how could he not?
Astrid flipped the shower on and the streaming water sprayed downward. She stood up and pulled the loosened tie from her hair and shook the waves free of each other. He was still working on his pants and had just started on the zipper when Astrid reached for it. His erection was already halfway there. It had started when she'd first asked to join him.
She helped him free of his jeans and was pushing them down his legs when he felt a resurgence of panic. She knew about his leg, she'd already taken his pants off around it, but she'd never actually seen it.
"Astrid, wait," Hiccup panicked and reached for her hands.
"What is it?" Astrid asked, more awake than she had been.
"Let me," Hiccup swallowed and sat down on the edge of the tub and pulled his right leg free and them worked the material around his prosthetic.
Her hands were on his knee at once and her delicate fingers traced the five year old scars that ended abruptly in the flesh colored plastic and metal. A fire erupted in his stomach as she leaned forward and kissed the skin above the stump of his leg.
"Can you shower with it on?" Astrid asked as she stood up.
"I guess so. I have been." Hiccup shrugged. "As long as I dry it off I'll be fine."
"Are you sure? You can lean on me." Astrid said with a wicked smile.
Hiccup smiled and felt her fingers at the hem of his shirt. He let her pulled it up and over and she tossed it by the door. In a surge of confidence, probably having everything to do with the heat protruding from between his legs, he slid his hands underneath her t-shirt. He fingered her hipbones and pulled her to him, landing a kiss long the gentle curve, and working his hands up her sides. She'd given a soft yelp at the tug, but did not pull away.
The steam was clouding the mirror and soaking into his skin. A light sweat had reappeared on his shoulders and chest. He stood up and brought her shirt up with his hands. He kissed along her stomach and up the side of her left breast, ushering out a series of soft moans, and finally pulled the shirt over her head and kissed her mouth.
He wanted to have sex with her. He wanted the crazy, wild, indescribable passionate sex that wasn't supposed to exist outside of love stories. He wanted to push her against the tile, take her, listen to her gasp in ecstasy. He kissed her harder and her hands trailed his jaw line and tangled in his hair. She moaned into his mouth as his hardened manhood pressed into her thigh.
Her fingers slipped under the waistband of his boxers and he reached for hers. Naked, they collided on the other side of the shower curtain, a tangle of limbs and wet hair. Her hand fastened around his erection and she began to pump. She fingered the tip as she kissed him.
Hiccup kissed her back in earnest. This was the first time that he'd seen all of her, completely, in the light. God, she was beautiful. She was leaning against the tile, his arm supported his weight, his hand grazed her thigh. His chance was open, to have her, to live out his fantasies, right here, but he hesitated.
"Hiccup?" Astrid asked over the water.
"Huh?" Hiccup hummed to her ear.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm good,"
"You don't have to, if you don't want to," Astrid said, drawing a hand along his jaw and lifted his face to hers.
"It's not that I don't want to, I do, it's just…I'm just …nervous." Hiccup sighed. There. He said it. She made him nervous. A smile stretched over her lips.
"It's okay," Astrid nodded.
He thought back to Astrid that night, how abrupt she'd been, almost forceful, and part of him wanted her to take control, to push him against the tile. But the other part didn't. He wanted to be the one in control, charged with the leadership, on top.
"Hiccup," Astrid said, her hand sliding down his wet torso.
"It's alright," Hiccup nodded. He kissed her cheek. "It's just…you know what you're doing. You're really good at this stuff. I'm not, and I'm worried about looking stupid."
"It's okay," Astrid said. Had it been the water or had her voice quavered? He saw her swallow. "The only way to get better is with practice."
Hiccup self-consciously laughed. Her hands wrapped around his shoulders and she drew him into a hug.
"I'm sorry," Hiccup said into her wet hair.
"Don't be," Astrid squeezed him. "I don't want to push you into doing something you aren't sure about. Again."
Hiccup smiled as she let go on him and reached for the shampoo. She dumped some into her hand and reached up for his hair. He let her wash his hair. Her nails grazed his scalp and it felt amazing, relaxing. When his eyes were closed she kissed him.
"I went shopping today," Astrid said casually.
"Oh?"
"We were out of coffee and I bought a percolator."
"Really?"
"Mm-hm." Astrid hummed. "And a few other things."
"Oh, there's someone parked in your spot, too." Hiccup mentioned as she pushed him back a step to wash the suds from his head.
"Oh, no there's not," Astrid squeezed shampoo in her own hair and worked it through her locks. "I went car shopping."
Hiccup stepped out of the water. "What?"
"It's mine." Astrid said, a drop of white suds running down the left side of her face, forcing her eye closed. "Blue with yellow detail?"
"Yeah…"
"Yeah, she's mine."
"She?"
"Yeah, I named her Stormfly."
"Stormfly? Where did you come up with that?" Hiccup laughed.
"Hey, just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I can't name my cars." Astrid said proudly. Her fingers caught on a tangle.
"You just bought a car?" Hiccup asked. The entire idea was preposterous. "Just like that?"
Astrid blushed, "Yeah, I've been saving up for a while. She wasn't that expensive. She's one of those fuel-efficient things. Apparently, her previous owner was a street racer. He died or something and his parents sold his car."
"That's a horrible story."
"Yeah, but that's the tale of the car." Astrid sighed. "And we have a car now!"
"We have a car?" Hiccup repeated. Since when were they a 'we'?
"Oh, you know what I mean,"
"You've got the car and the house. Way to wear the pants in the relationship." Hiccup grinned, poking her side.
"Oh, I try," Astrid shrugged as she ducked her head under the water. She came back up to add, "Someone's got to."
"Hey," Hiccup laughed. She ducked her head back into the water and he let his stare wander down to her chest. She turned so that he backside was facing him and on a wild whim he grabbed her by the hips. He pulled her back into him and slid one arm around her hips and the other between her legs. She gasped with the sudden touch and for a moment he worried that he'd gone too far. She wiggled her backside into his groin, purposefully, and widened her stance to give him the better angle.
He watched her lungs pump air with every gaps, the muscles in her back flexed underneath her perfect and shiny wet skin. Her hands clutched at the tiles as his fingers worked.
"How am I doing?"
"Uh…great…" Astrid moaned. "Faster,"
His hands were tiring, but he refused to give up. The hot water beat down on her back and bounced into his face. Her hips pressed into groin and stimulated his arousal. She came with a cry, grasping at the tile, her back arching, her muscles flexing around his hand. He withdrew his hand with a kiss on the back of her neck.
"Hiccup," Astrid said, breathlessly, as she turned around. Her hand grasped him and resumed to pump.
His back met the tile as her thumb ran over the tip. He moaned into her touch as her free hand pressed into his torso. Her nails tickled his stomach. Her hand pumped and stilled as her mouth closed around him.
"Astrid," Hiccup gasped as he felt it coming closer. He came and she moved her mouth at just the right time and let the water wash him off.
She reached for the soap.
X
The middle of December rolled around and finals were taking their toll on Astrid. She didn't complain much, expect when Hiccup forced her to go with him to the library to work on her paper. She sat with her computer on her lap, typing, deleting, and typing some more, while Hiccup doodled in his sketchbook.
"Have you decided on a major, then?" Astrid asked after a prolonged moment of silence on the keyboard.
"Computers." Hiccup said. He had narrowed it down to computers. Engineering, maybe.
"Cool," Astrid sighed.
"How's the paper coming?" Hiccup glanced over at her. She grimaced. Smiling, he continued his sketch. It was of her, sitting as she was then with her brow knitted together and her gentle lips twisted into a frown. Even then she managed to be beautiful.
After her last final on Thursday she returned to the apartment in a state of pure joy that was hushed by her utter exhaustion. She collapsed onto the couch with an exaggerated groan.
"I'm done!" She shouted.
"Congratulations," Hiccup said. The semester was over, which meant that she had almost a month of no school, which meant that they had a month together before the spring semester started up for the both of them.
"Your lease is almost up, isn't it?" Astrid asked from the couch.
"…yes?" Hiccup asked with hesitation.
She popped up onto her elbows, "Have you gotten all of your stuff out?"
"No." Hiccup shook his head.
"Then let's go, we can take my car." Astrid was back on her feet.
"But aren't you tired? You want to nap?" Hiccup asked, twisted his hands in together.
"Nah, I'm good. I need something to do." Astrid shrugged. "Come on,"
Hiccup swallowed as she half-drug him out of the apartment. The clouds were gathering in dark gray clumps and thunder was rolling in the distance. Astrid's new car was small but adequate. It fit her: fierce, beautiful, peppy. He directed her across traffic to his dumpy apartments. He'd been slowly bringing things over, but hadn't been back in a while. As Astrid parked in front of his building he felt a knot in his gut.
The past couple of weeks had been nerve-wracking. Several evenings, and sometimes mornings, had been spent tangled in each other's arms, in the bed, on the couch, in the shower. Each time they'd been so close, but Hiccup had choked. Astrid hadn't pushed him. She'd let him take his time. Each time she'd said the same thing. That he didn't have to do anything he didn't want to. He wanted to, defiantly, but when the time came to do it, he couldn't.
They started up the walk and as Hiccup unlocked the door his apprehension grew. Astrid had never actually been in his apartment before.
He swallowed, "Maybe I should…go in first, just to make sure it's safe."
"Safe?" Astrid laughed. "What do you have in there that you don't want me to see? Hm? Porn? Odd fetishes? Dead bodies?"
"No, it's just…it's probably messy."
"It's messy? That's it?" Astrid raised a brow behind her sunglasses. "Hiccup, we already lived together. I know you're messy."
Hiccup laughed nervously as he door swung open. He held his breath as Astrid walked in. It wasn't as bad as it had been in the past, however because of his sporadic moving-out, there were things spread out all over.
"It's not bad," Astrid shrugged.
Hiccup opened his mouth to speak, but he suddenly took the silence into consideration. He looked up at the ceiling.
"Hiccup?" Astrid asked. She was looking at him curiously.
"It's quiet,"
"Yes? It is?"
"No, I've had these crazy upstairs neighbors that were always blaring death metal or something." Hiccup smiled.
"Ah," Astrid smiled as she walked into the bedroom. "Whoa,"
His hearth thumped as he ran after her, "What?"
"Is that what you've been sleeping on?" Astrid asked pointing to the deflated air mattress.
Hiccup shrugged, "Yeah,"
"Well, I guess that can go in the dumpster." Astrid said as s he stared down at it. "How do you feel about the blankets? Keep? Toss?"
"Keep," Hiccup said quickly. "That triangle blanket was my mom's and the other one was my grandpa's. He brought it back from Norway."
"This one is pretty," Astrid said as she fingered the blanket with the triangle pattern.
Hiccup swallowed. Astrid was on her knees beside the deflated mattress, fingering the blankets, her backside poised at a very promiscuous angle. His eyes lingered on it as she mumbled something, stretched her hand out, arching her back and turning her hips up. Hiccup inhaled, swallowed, and felt the heat moving south.
"Astrid," Hiccup said quickly, before his emerging erection could say it for him.
"Hm?" she hummed.
"Do you want to have sex?"
"Huh?" Astrid started, sitting down and turning to face him.
"Do you want to have sex?"
"Yes?" Astrid raised a brow. "Right now? Here?"
"Sure," Hiccup nodded.
"Are you sure?" Astrid asked slower.
"Yes," Hiccup nodded again. He could understand her hesitation. Every time that they'd gotten close, he'd back out. "If I just do it I'll get better. Practice, right?"
"Yeah," she nodded as she padded the flat mattress beside her.
Hiccup nodded and half-collapsed onto the blankets. Astrid pulled him to her lips. Hands searched bodies and tangled in hair and it didn't take long for their clothes to be discarded and tossed to the floor. Astrid wrapped herself around him and moaned into touch, arching her back into his chest, searching his back and fingering his shoulder blades. When the time came, Hiccup pushed her down into the blankets and wrinkled sheets, letting his enjoyment poke her in the thigh.
"Ready?" Astrid asked, biting her lip. Her hands gently fell to his waist. She adjusted her legs on either side of hips so that his erection naturally fell against her center.
"Yeah," Hiccup nodded. He wasn't, but he was. It was a terrible complex. He knew that once he just pushed himself over the edge it would be easier. But the trick was to push himself off that first time.
"You can do this," Astrid whispered.
Hiccup positioned himself between her legs. The tip brushed against her and it set his blood on fire. He adjusted his arms so that her lips were within easy kissing distance. He bent down and placed a soft kiss that she eagerly returned.
He could do this. He inhaled, and gently pushed himself into her. Her nails pinched his waist and a soft moan eased out of her mouth. He pushed himself all the way, and paused.
"See?" Astrid said, breathlessly. She leaned up and kissed him.
Hiccup began the withdrawal, the nerves untangling in his chest, when - BANG.
They both jumped at the sudden and forceful knock on Hiccup's front door. He pulled out and collapsed onto the bed beside her.
"Did you lock the-" Astrid began to ask but her question was sooner answered.
The door was swung up and a thunderous voice bellowed into the apartment, "Hiccup? Son, the door was open. I'm coming inside."
"Shit," Hiccup spat underneath this breath. He scrambled for the blankets and had just thrown them over himself and Astrid as the massive figure of his father appeared in the open doorway of the bedroom.
"Son?" Stoick asked, but his words were immediately lost. His face burned and he stumbled back a step. "Oh, hello,"
Astrid was speechless and held the blanket against her chest. Hiccup could feel his face burning as red as his father's.
X
Don't forget to leave a review so that I know you're enjoying the story! I appreciate every review I get, and try to answer ask, but if you want to ask make sure you're logged in or I can't.