The runaway Valedictorian(HICCSTRID)

2 The Past Returns

A week after the previous chapter:
Astrid POV:

   This last week has been hectic, but Stormfly and I have finally settled in. I got us a flat in Viking Estate, like Harper suggested and it was everything that I needed and more. It had a small living room, small kitchen(probably won’t use it since I am a terrible cook), two sleep rooms and also a small balcony.
    Unfortunately there wasn’t really a yard for Stormfly, my blue and white Siberian Husky, to play in so she had to stay in the apartment during the day, but luckily there were a few parks in the estate. So I would take her for a small walk there to stretch her legs and then go back home to unpack my things. And luckily Harper was an understanding person so he allowed me to go early home and Heather, Harper’s other personal adviser came by later to help me.
    Heather and I also both became good friends during the last week. She was kind, but she was also really intimidating and sometimes even scary. And she has helped me to connect with all her friends in the company.
    And quite honestly life here was great. I had a good job that paid well, a nice place to stay and enough friends for me to be happy. And everything was great.
    And then there was Harper. He was really a nice, hard working, caring and understanding guy. That and he was also a bit sarcastic, generous and someone that was loved by all. And then he was extremely handsome. But what surprised me was that he was single and unmarried. I asked Heather if they were an item, but she looked freaked out and explained that they will see each other like siblings and will always be there for the other person, but they weren’t really item material for each other.
    I accepted her answer, and asked her if Harper ever had someone in his life. She said that she never knew of anyone, but did tell me that he has been hurt before. I wanted to ask her if she could elaborate more on it, but stayed quiet. I knew that it wasn’t really my business, but I was still curious.
    But today was Friday afternoon and I was ready to rest for the weekend after the long weekend. At the moment Heather and I were both in the kitchen on a small brake. Heather was making for herself a cup of coffee and I was happily drinking my glass of orange juice.
    “So any plans for the weekend?” Heather asked me as she started to stir her coffee.
    I shrugged and replied, “Nothing really. Just spend my time relaxing. Maybe take Stormfly on a jog and then maybe go to town, to do some sightseeing. Nothing really.”
    She nodded and said, “Well if you are going, make sure to go to the dragon edges. It is a small coffee shop near the park and they have the best hot chocolates and pancakes.”
    I nodded and said, “I’ll go taste it for myself and be the judge of it.” We then walked out of the kitchen and into the personal assistants office. We took our seats and I asked her, “So what will you be doing this weekend?”
    She took a sip of her coffee and replied, “Mostly relax, but I have to help with my brother’s fiance with the wedding plans. They are marrying in a month.”
    I smiled and said,”That’s nice. Who is your brother, by the way?”
    “He will be coming in a few minutes. I’ll introduce you then to him,” she replied.
    I smiled and said, “You better.” We then started to talk a little bit, while working for a few minutes until the doors of Harper's office opened and he walked out of the office, with a man of twenty years old. He had our custom air plane aerobatics clothes on and I think his name was Gustav. He black hair and brown hair and was a head shorter than Harper.
    “And don’t you worry about a thing, Gustav. You will still be able to work here after you are done,” Harper assured him when they exited.
    Gustav smiled and I could see that his tears were becoming watery from the happiness. “Thank you, sir. I can’t express how I am happy now,” he replied.
    Harper smiled and said, “No need to express it, Gustav. Just call me Harper and not sir. But go to your mother. I will handle Thalia for you.”
    He smiled and nodded and then practically runned out of the office and closed the door. I looked a bit confused at the door, that was until Harper said, “Astrid, can you please call Gustav training coach, Thalia Grace and please tell her to come to my office in an hour.” I nodded in understanding and he smiled and turned to Heather and asked, “That won’t intervene with other plans, right?”
    She nodded and looked at her schedule and replied, “Nope. You just have a meeting with my brother in five minutes and then Beckendorf is coming in at five to finalise the last details for the new Greek fire Motorbike.”
    He nodded and said, “Good. Well, I will prepare myself for my ‘brother's’ bone crushing hug.” He groaned slightly and Heather snickered at his expression. He playfully glared at her, before excusing himself and walking into his office. I smiled and grabbed the phone and called Gustav coach.
    After a minute I finished the call and looked up at Heather and asked, “So what was all that about?”
    She looked up at me and explained, “Gustav’s mother recently got in accident and he was afraid that he couldn’t go to her, because he signed a contract to say that he will compete on all tournaments for the next four years for us and he was supposed to compete in the American Aerobatics tournament on monday, but he wants to go to his mother.”
    I nodded in understanding and finished, “And he was afraid that he would lose the contract if he didn't compete.”
    She nodded and answered, “Yes, he was. But he should honestly not be afraid. Harper might be the Ceo and the smartest person in the building, but he isn’t inhuman. If you have a problem and need some time off or some financial help, he will help you. He knows how much friends and family can mean to a person.”
    I nodded and joked, “So he is a family person too. Is there something he isn’t good at?”
    She smiled and said, “I said that he knows how much Family means. I didn’t say that he was a family person.” I looked at her confused and she sighed and explained, “Let’s just say that he had an unhappy history with his family and doesn’t really like to talk about it.”
    I nodded, but was still curious about what happened. But from what I could tell that he had a difficult life before he became a billionaire. Family and love wise.
    Before I could even continue to work, the doors of the personal assistants swung open and in it stood a man with orange hair. My eyes widened when I saw him. He has pale green eyes and a three stripe tattoo over his right eye. He wore clothes that made him look like a businessman, but he had a shocking blue vest instead of a blazer.
    “Dagur,” I breathed out.
    “Where is my brother?” Dagur whined in a childish and a very unlike Dagur way.
    Heather sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose and replied, sarcastically, “Hello there, Brother. And he is in his office.”
    I couldn’t really think of anything, before Dagur dashed into Harper’s office. And I could hear he shouted, ‘Brother’ and Harper barely getting out, ‘He-hello Bro-brother. Ca-Can’t bre-breath.’ And then Dagur laughed nervously and I could hear Harper breathing deeply to get in some air. And while this happened, Heather looked so calm, while I was panicking inside.
    Dagur ‘de ranged’ Oswald was the son of a crime boss. And I knew his name, because he was with me in Raven Point High. And he got his nickname, de ranged, because he was crazy. He liked to torture student for fun and on the football field he would always run like a manic while running down anyone and screaming like a madman. He disappeared about 6 years, but we all just thought he died in a gang fight or just went to terrorize another town. And we were all happy that he was gone.
    But now I was sort of panicking, because he would surely recognise me. At least he doesn’t really know what happened last month, but that didn’t make me any more comfortable. But what confused me was that he looked normal, like he didn’t use any drugs in ages and at school he would use something like every day.
    Dagur walked out of the office and then walked to behind Heather and hugged her from behind. She smiled and he said, “Hello, Heather.”
    She shook her head and asked, “How is Mala doing?”
    He smiled and said, “Excited to spend the weekend with you.” He then looked up at me and his eyes widened immediately. “Astrid Hofferson?” He asked.
    I kept a neutral face and replied, “Hello Dagur.”
    And before I could wink, he was behind my chair and pulled me out of it and gave me a bone-crushing hug. I tensed and found myself gasping for air. “Air,” I managed to get out and Dagur laughed and let me go sheepishly. I put my hand on my chest and took a few deep breaths, while Harper walked out of his office after he recovered.
    “Astrid, you look good,” Dagur said, in all honesty. I managed a small smile and he then turned to Harper and said, “Brother, why didn’t you tell me that-” but stopped when Harper shook his head frantically. “That...That you got a new personal assistant,” Dagur managed.
    I frowned at his words and Harper reactions. It was clear that something was going on and Harper was trying to hide it. And it had something to do with me and something else. And I wanted to know what it was.
    Harper smiled and replied, “I did, but you forget, Dagur.” Dagur laughed sheepishly and Harper asked, “Coffee?” Dagur grinned and nodded. Harper turned to us and asked, “And you girls?”
    “We are fine, thank you,” Heather replied and went back to work. I smiled and nodded and sat back in my seat.
    He nodded and he and Dagur walked into the kitchen to make them some coffee. Time passed and I tried to work at the best of my possability, but my mind always raced back to Dagur and Harper. After a few minutes they came out and spent a half an hour in his office talking about something, while me and Heather worked and occasionally talking a bit, but I still wondered what they were hiding.
    And also what has happened to Dagur. How can a psychopath like him be friends with a company like Viking industries? Were they also a criminal Empire? No. People were too nice here. But still, I had my doubts. Maybe they didn’t even know about his history.
    After they finished talking, Dagur said goodbye to us and said that we should catch up. And then the next two hours passed in a blink. Harper had a meeting with Thalia Grace, Gustav coach and he was currently in a meeting with Beckendorf. I was finishing the last bit of work, while Heather was packing her things, because she had to get ready for a date. “Goodnight, Astrid,” she greeted as she walked out of the office.
    I smiled and said, “Goodnight, Heather. Enjoy your date.” She gave me a glance before closing the door. I sighed and continued to finish my work.
    That was until Beckendorf, a big African American Engineer, opened Harper’s door and walked out with a smile. He walked up to me and said, “Harper wants to see you.”
    I looked up and nodded and replied, “Thanks, Beckendorf.”
    He smiled and then practically skipped out of the personal assistants office. I smiled at his happiness and then stood up and walked into Harpers office. He was looking at some designs that looked like the new greek fire model, Beckendorf brought. “You wanted to see me?” I asked.
    He looked at me and nodded. “Yes, I did,” He said and then gestured to one of the couches and said, “Sit, please.” I nodded and then walked over to the one couch and he sat on the other couch on the other side of the coffee table. “So do you know what I want to talk about?” he asked.
    I shook my head and replied, “There might be a lot of things, but I am guessing that it has something to do with Dagur.”
    He nodded and asked, “So what do you think about him.”
    “Honestly confused,” I admitted, “Do you know who he is?”
    He nodded and said, “I knew who he was.”
    “Well, do you really?” I asked him, “I went with him to the same high school.”
    Harper nodded and said, “Raven point High, I know. I know he was nicknamed ‘de ranged’ for being, well, de ranged. He took pleasure in torturing kids that were smaller. And even some teachers like Mr Bucket and Mulch. On the football field he would run like a maniac, screaming and shouting things in norse while taking down half of the opponents team. And then he was a drug addict, that would use drugs every second of the day he could. He got caught multiple times, but only got warnings due to his father, being the mayor of Berserk and also a crime lord. So to avoid conflict he only got a warning. 87 times.”
    I stared at him. He pretty much knew who Dagur was. Maybe even better than I knew him. “And you are friends with him? Why?” He asked.
    He smiled and chuckled softly. “My stubbornness,” he replied in honesty, “When I set my mind to do something. I won’t give up until I finish, most of the time.” He muttered the last part, but I could hear it. “And I wanted to change him, so I did it.”
    I looked at him skeptically and asked, “How can you change someone that is so bad?”
    He smiled, in amusement and replied, “It wasn’t easy, I will admit that. I first helped him, to show that there is more to the world than drugs, money, blood, whores and all the things he lived with. I then helped him to find his lost sister, Heather and his mother, who everyone thought was dead, but actually ran away when she found out that she was pregnant with Heather. I then helped him to connect with them and build their relationship and then I helped him to get in a Rehab center. There he met his fiance, Mala, who also was in there, but had trauma, because of a sex obsessed father. And then two years ago, I encouraged him to come clean and confessed what his father’s business should be accused of. That and all the other crime lords they are in business with. Like Johann ‘the trader’, Grimmel ‘the grizzly’, Drago Bludvist-”
    My eyes widened when I heard the last name. “Drago Bludvist?” I asked in disbelief.
    He nodded and said, “Yes. He is the man that Valka Haddock was after, when she was working as an anti-poacher in Africa.” How did he know that? I know he is smart and all, but how could he know something like that? “But that is besides the point. He helped to put a lot of people behind the bars, including his father. So what I am trying to say is that he changed and so can other people.”
    He then leaned forward and looked at me seriously, but still calm and spoke, gently, “So please don’t judge a person, because of who he or she was. And give them a chance to prove themself. Viking industries might be the best engineering company in the USA and maybe in the world, but it is also a place where people can start new. Just like you.”
    I looked down into my hands and thought about his words. It definitely changed my opinion about Dagur and also a few other people. And I was willing to give him a shot to earn my trust. But there was still something I wanted to know. How did he know about all of this? But I then glanced up into Harper forest green eyes.
    They looked a
like those fairy tales that I used to play in with. Those filled with life and constant movement. And yet, there was something familiar about them. Like I have seen them before. I blinked and then looked at Harper and not his eyes specifically. I nodded slightly and said, “Ok, I will give him a chance.” Harper smiled and I then asked, “But I have a question. I know you are really smart and everything, but how did you know all of those things. From Dagur’s history to Valka trying to capture Drago Bludvist. You had to find that out somehow.”
    He almost cracked a smile, but sighed and looked at the picture of him and his dog. “Let’s just say, that you and Dagur weren’t the only ones that went to Raven Point High,” he replied after a moment.
    My eyes widened at the information. “You went to Raven Point High?” I asked him. He smiled and nodded. That was why he and Dagur were acting so strange and also why he tensed when he first saw me. He recognized me.
But, why didn’t I recognise him? And I couldn’t even remember a Harper Harrison in our grade. Maybe he wasn’t in my grade. But I had to ask, “Why didn’t I recognise you?”
    He smiled and replied, honestly, “I was a quiet nerd when I was at Raven Point. You probably saw me a few times, but never took really much notice. And that was also ten years ago, so I have become quite uglier during the time, while you turned into the most beautiful valkyrie to ever walk on this planet.”
    My cheeks immediately burned red at his complement. He looked at me confused until his eyes widened and he said, “I said that last part out loud, didn’t I?” I bit my lip and nodded. He blushed in embarrassment and apologised sheepishly, “Sorry, that was a bit corny.”
    I smiled and shook my head and said, “It’s ok. And thank you. That was probably the best and most honest compliment I ever got, so thank you.” He smiled, and his blush faded away a small bit. “And if you are uglier now than you were back at Raven Point, then I was a blind not to notice such a handsome guy,” I admitted.
    He smiled, but blush a fire engine colour red, but replied, “Thanks, Astrid.”
    I smiled and said, “Your welcome, Harper. If you don’t mind, I would like to finish my work so that I can go home and get some rest.”
    He nodded and said, “Yeah, I don’t mind. And make sure you rest well, because you earned it and will need it for next week. It is going to be a busy week.”
    I smiled and said, “I sure will.” I then stood up and walked out of his office and went to finish my work. And after sometime, I went home with a smile on my face.