A Promise To Keep

An Unexpected Visit

Hiccup was in his bedroom, lying on his bed while reading the next instalment of the 'Vikings and Dragons' series. The room was silent, which he appreciated, with only the sound on the March weekend breeze coming through a small open window and the purring sound of Toothless, who was lying next to him, sometimes licking himself. This was how he preferred to spend his school weekend besides doing homework.

He was so engrossed in the story, 'The King of Dragons', reading every word, taking in every description and information, eyes wide and gasping at every twist and turn of the story.

"Hiccup?!" Suddenly, the loud, booming voice of his father erupted towards his room. Because Hiccup was invested in his book, it made him jump, almost falling off his bed. Toothless screeched and jump off, landing on the window seal and lying back down.

Hiccup sighed deeply as he grabbed his chest, that was now beating fast. "Yes, dad?!" He answered.

"Come downstairs! There's a guest!" Stoick replied. Hiccup groaned with annoyance before eventually getting out of bed, but not before marking his place in his book. He gave Toothless a quick scratch on his head before leaving his bedroom.

"When will he get...?" Hiccup began thinking, but removed it as he headed downstairs, with his hands in his pockets. He was always uninterested in meeting guests. It turned out his reclusive nature expanded, not just at school, but also at home.

But when he entered the living room, where Stoick was, he froze, and his eyes grew wide with shock. The guest had her back facing him as she was talking to Stoick, but he recognised the blonde, braided hair and cheery voice anyway.

"Ah! Here you are." Stoick exclaimed. She turned around, and the familiar grin of Astrid came upon her face.

"Hey, Hiccup!" She greeted, waving at him. Hiccup slowly waved back, still in shock. 

"You never told me you made a friend?" Stoick mentioned, walking up to Hiccup.

"Well... I, umm... I... thought... you... uhh..." Hiccup was stuttering so much that he left like dashing back upstairs and staying there forever. For the first time in a long time, he felt truly nervous. But then, Stoick bellowed with laughter before slamming his hand on his son's back, which nearly made him lose his footing.

"Well, I'm just glad you did!" He exclaimed before leaning towards his ears. "Quite a nice girl, though."

"Dad, please!" Hiccup said, now feeling his face burning up with embarrassment. He hoped Astrid didn't noticed but seeing her giggling to herself debunked that thought.

"Well, I have to meet up with Gobber for some errands. You two will be OK?" Stoick asked.

"We'll be fine, Mr Haddock." Astrid said confidently.

"Yes, dad." Hiccup said quietly.

"Alright, then. I'll see you later." He said, patting Hiccup's shoulders before leaving the house, leaving Hiccup and Astrid to themselves. There was a silence between them as Astrid made her way to the sofa and slumping down.

"Your dad's nice, you know?" She mentioned. Hiccup just nodded his head, shifting side to side on his feet with his hands back in his pockets.

"How... did you know where I lived?" He finally asked.

Astrid chuckled. "This is Berk! I was bound to find out. And don't worry, I didn't stalk you or anything."

"That's... comforting?" Hiccup questioned, which made Astrid laughed before she got up from the sofa.

"But I guess you're wondering why I'm here?" She asked, to which Hiccup nodded. "Well, I felt kinda bored and all my friends were busy at the weekend. Then I thought, 'hey, I never went to Hiccup's house and I know where it is' so, here I am."