Our Perfect Story

Chapter 16: Hookfang and Windshear

Since Astrid started her lunch, the two discussed about their project until the clock chimed at 4pm. The entire time, Stormfly and Toothless played and napped together in the living room, while their owners joined them after Astrid finished eating. She even had a brownie Valka had made earlier, still super fresh and fudgy. It was probably the best dessert she had ever eaten.

Unfortunately for them, they needed Heather and Fishlegs to fixate their part of the project, or they wouldn't be able to pinpoint particular aspects to present. Instead of finalising, they made a list of the possible areas of focus where they could prepare for, so the other pair could have an idea of what was available for them too.

Throughout the working process, Astrid couldn't help but be lost in her gaze on Hiccup as he focused, his nose scrunching a little and the tip of his tongue poking out occasionally. She tried her best to give some input, but she found him rather distracting, appearing so adorable to her.

Beside her, Hiccup worked hard for his grades. However, he would be lying if he denied wanting to impress Astrid in the moment. After all, the best way he believed he could ever win the heart of the girl of his dreams was with his brains. He had always felt that his only hope was to 'remove' its existence as much as possible if he ever wanted to impress the ladies.

As he worked, he couldn't get rid of the thought of asking Astrid out one day eventually. Hiccup just didn't know how to deal with his feelings, and he was extremely worried about being rejected by Astrid. To him, it's easy to be friends with an amputee, but how many would ever consider being in a relationship with one? He needed someone to talk to, and at that moment, Heather popped into his mind. Little did he know she was already acting as a wingman for Astrid to make a move on him...

"Alright, why don't we start heading to the park? I can't wait to meet the other puppies!" Astrid squealed in excitement, breaking Hiccup's chain of thought. His heart fluttered as she gave him her loving smile and soft gaze. His own eyes felt like they were forming hearts. He just shook his head of his thoughts and gave her a sheepish grin with thumbs up back before packing away his papers into his backpack. He folded a particular piece of paper for Fishlegs, which was a list of his and Astrid's top choices of topics.

Astrid whistled for the dogs to get up and going, who both bounded up excitedly as their owners pulled out leashes. Hiccup helped her bring Stormfly out the front door with Toothless as she shut off the lights and locked the front door, not before putting her hair up in a light brown headband. She zipped up her sling bag of necessities and doggie treats before jogging over to Hiccup, getting hold of Stormfly's leash as the four of them began their journey.

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The barking of playful dogs made Stormfly and Toothless excited. They began pulling on their humans' grip as they chatted and laughed. As soon as they entered the off-leash area, the pair unhooked them. Stormfly ran after Toothless as he dashed through the small crowd of dogs, most of them placing distance between them. Astrid and Hiccup sat a table as their dogs enjoyed themselves.

Hiccup chuckled to himself before speaking to Astrid. "Toothless is pretty much like the alpha of the park, most dogs respect him for some reason. Weirdly, he never got into a fight with anyone for that position before."

"Maybe he was a born leader and everyone respected it, just like his best friend," Astrid answered with a grin, supporting her head with her arm as she gazed at the young man beside her. He just snorted in reply, getting slightly flustered by her compliment.