Hiccup pulled his coat tighter as he made his way down the block. Weary and worn-down by a long day of classes, he was glad to be finally going back to his dorm room. While he loved his major (engineering), it was undoubtedly difficult; he found himself compromising his sleep for studying lately. This made him all the more ecstatic he was heading toward his room. It was his first year of college, and his first year out of the small town he called home.

Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. His shivering fingers pulled it out, bringing it up to his face. He peered down at the notification. It was a message from his father: Call me, Hiccup.

Hiccup sighed, watching the breath mix with the air. He had been avoiding talking to his father lately. Their relationship had improved slightly over the years, but it was still by all means awkward. He knew he eventually had to call him, though. After all, he knew his dad just wanted to see how he was doing. He was in a different state and thus his dad had no other way of knowing whether he was alive or not. Unwilling to at the current moment, however, Hiccup began to type his response: I'm in class, I'll call later.

He was about to hit send when he simultaneously felt the grip of someone's hand on his shoulder and the wind of a car that got too close whizzing by. His heart rapidly beat in his chest, the reality of the situation transporting him back from his distraction. "Look where you're going," a woman muttered next to him, "idiot."

Hiccup looked over to the woman who stopped him from taking another step. She was glaring at him, adjusting the strap of the bag on her shoulder. "You could've been hit," She hissed. He was about to mumble a thank you when her glare melted into confusion. "Wait... Do I know you?" She asked, squinting at him.

He examined her face, also feeling a weird remembrance of her features. She had blonde hair, thick and long, that rested on her shoulders. She had blue eyes that illuminated the soft features of her face and- it all came flooding back. Was this... could it be...

"Hiccup?" The woman asked, widening her eyes. At this moment, the pedestrian light turned white, prompting the large crowd to begin crossing the street. The typically large throng of people pushed them along across the street.

Seemingly not learning from his mistakes, Hiccup walked on without looking both ways, rather, keeping his eyes locked on her face. "Astrid," He said. "Is that you?"

"Yeah." She smiled. "You still haven't learned your lesson, have you?" She glanced down, eyeing his left leg, which, though not obvious to the regular onlooker, was a prosthetic. "Guess not," He laughed nervously.

"Won't always be there to save you, Hiccup," She replied as they reached the curb. Astrid turned towards him, gazing at his face. And he felt 15 all over again, his stomach flipping upside down at her glance.

"Astrid," He swallowed, turning to face her. "What happened? One day you were there, and the next," He averted his eyes, sticking his hands in his pockets, "you were gone."

It had affected him more than he liked to admit. Astrid had been one of his few friends in high school, and when she had disappeared one day without a text or a goodbye, he had felt heartbroken. He knew from rumors that she moved to California, but he never knew why.

Astrid softened, a different emotion filling her eyes. "Yeah, I'm not proud of that," She sighed. She was about to speak when a person slammed into her shoulder, causing her to stumble. Time seemed to stop for them, but that didn't mean it did for the rest of the busy city.

"Why don't we talk somewhere else?" Hiccup suggested. She nodded. "Let's go to my dorm. It's down this block."

He nodded, following her in its direction. They weaved in and out of the crowd until they finally made it there. He noted that she was attending Busleky University, which was pretty reputable. She unlocked the door, causing the keychains to jingle. The door pushed open, and Hiccup followed her inside. It was a neat room- well, at least it was on her side. Her bed was made and drawers shut, which contrasted sharply with her roommate's side. Dripping posters adorned the wall as clothing did to the lamps. "Sorry about all this," Astrid muttered, throwing a sweater that was on the floor on the other bed. "My roommate is a mess."

"It's all right," He smiled. He wouldn't admit it, but his dorm was probably closer to her roommate's side than Astrid's. She removed her coat and took his, hanging them on the coat rack by the door. Astrid then sat down on the bed, and he followed suit, letting his backpack fall to the floor.

"So, I guess the story is... My mom made us move in with my grandma, who lives in California." She sighed, frustration illuminating her face. "It was really sudden, and I just..." She trailed off and looked away. "I didn't want to tell you because it really hurt. We were pretty close." Astrid glanced back at him, a wistful smile on her face.

"I felt embarrassed about... about how I felt, and I guess I wanted a clean cut without having to face you." She blew a piece of hair away from her face. "It seems stupid now, in hindsight, I know, but that was my reasoning then." Hiccup nodded. In an odd way, he understood.

"It's on me, too. I never texted," He leaned against the wall. "My subconscious convinced me you hated me and didn't want to hear from you."

Astrid laughed. "Of course you did." She pulled her feet on the bed, sitting in a pretzel position. "We were both pretty stupid, huh?"

"Yes, definitely," He grinned. She was staring at him, and he was staring back. It was all flooding back: the stomach flip-flopping, the sweaty palms, the rush of blood to his head, and the pounding of his heart. How could he admit that nobody had held a candle to her in the four years they spent apart? It was almost embarrassing, but the way Astrid was looking at him made him feel less ashamed.

"I really missed this," Astrid mumbled, "You. I really missed you."

"I missed you, too," He echoed, honestly. She was moving closer to him, and his heart was beating so fast he couldn't hear himself breathing.

Like little kids, they were. They poked at their feelings and then hid away and twiddled their fingers. But they were older now. Those small glances and short flashes of 'I think I like you' were in the past.

And she was too close.

They were too close to each other.

He could hear her breathing, he could see deep into her eyes. They could've kissed right there and then, but their lips were not touching.

Hiccup was frozen on the spot- his limbs had forgotten how to function.

They stayed like that, staring at each other but left to their own thoughts- thoughts that were running all over the place. Her breath was short and heavy tickling his neck. Her fingertips were like ice against his shoulder. And he couldn't move.

Her lips brushed so lightly against his cheek- almost but not quite there- sending shivers across his body. Her touch was ice snow against his burning skin. And then they collided, slow but with gentle passion. His senses were sharp, feeling every moment... they just fit. Their bodies molded together, the final puzzle pieces that had been placed together, completing the picture. Her hands worked their way up his chest and around his neck, slowly pulling deeper into the kiss. His hands found a place on her sides, resting above her hips. There was no sense of time, no sense of the world around them, only of the moment. And when it ended, the moment did not as she stared into his eyes. Their lips touching, breathing in each other's presence. There were so many things he wanted to say, to tell her, things he wanted her to know. But as he looked into her eyes, he realized there were no words to say... she knew everything already.

END

Author's Note

I began this story in 2014 when I was 13 years old. I'm now 17 years old and about to graduate high school, which is crazy. This is the first story I've ever begun and completed, which an accomplishment even though it seemed like I had to pull my own teeth to finish this lol. I re-watched the first movie yesterday, and when I realized I could still quote 85% of the movie by heart, I knew I had to finish this.

Anyways, thank you for sticking with this and following this story to the end. I hope you enjoyed it :')