A Hiccstrid Story

Chapter 8

Upon arriving at Astrid's parents' house, the group parked the rental cars in front of the house and disembarked. The Hofferson's house was a modest 4-bedroom house with a two-car garage and a medium sized garden. The stone patio contained a hot tub with a wicker table and chairs set as well as small fire pit that could be used for a BBQ. The detached house was sat in a close knit community where everyone on the street knew and got along with each other.

Astrid took in a look of the house before starting up the path to the familiar red door. She only had to knock once before the door was flung open and Astrid found herself being pulled into a hug by her mother. "Astrid!" she shouted in excitement, "my little girl is home, all grown up." Wrapping her arms around her mother, she embraced the hug, "hey mum, it's good to see you." Her friends watch on from the cars before they were waved into the residences. The group made their way up the path and into the house, pulling their luggage along with them.

Finding themselves in the living room, the group was directed to sit on the sofa and chairs as Astrid's mother ran off to get her father. "You know Astrid, you never told us how nice your house was" Mable said teasingly. Astrid laughed while taking a glance around the room, "I never really thought about it. It just seemed like a normal house to me" she explained. Heather giggled, "the house is bigger than what I remember of mine. Our house was small, it got larger once it was just my brother and I." They laughed again but Heather suddenly looked sombrely at the ground.

The friend's laughs faded, they all remember when Heather told them about the argument she had with her only living family. It had been something that had shocked the group when told about it. It had taken lots of explaining for them to understand the argument. Heather's brother, Derick was a soldier, who had called his sister furious. What was said hadn't fully been explained but it seemed that Derick was angry about something Heather did. The argument had ended their relationship, and they hadn't spoken since. It was a sour topic that wasn't brought up often.

"Astrid!" came a shout as the woman's father walked into the room and engaged her in a hug. "Hey dad, it's good to see you" he said happily, "it's been so long since you came to visit." Astrid smiled, "it's good to be back dad." He broke the hug before greeting his daughter's friends with either a hug or a handshake. "Dinner will be served in about an hour, then I can imagine you will all want an early night." With confirming nods from the group, he left saying, "I'll go prepare the rooms for you."

The group continued to chat for a while taking in the decoration around the room. Astrid talked about the town and told them everything she could remember. She told them about her favourite spots in the town as well as her favourite memories. The group listened intently as Astrid talked about some moments from High school. They were surprised to know that she went to school with some of the best athletes of their time. Simon Jorgensen was the best rugby player in the US and a massive playboy. His lackeys were all either sports players or movie stars, all living their best lives.

After an hour, the group was called to dinner and so they got up and Astrid led them into the dining room where the main table was. They sat down with Astrid's mother sat opposite her father at either end, Astrid sat next to her father with Heather next to her, Theo sat opposite Heather and Mable sat opposite her and Natalie sat next to Theo. Astrid's mother, Mary had cooked a fabulous roast dinner with everything you could ask for, Roast potatoes, a luscious joint of beef, firm Yorkshire puddings and well-cooked vegetables.

"This looks lovely dear" Astrid's father, Adam said. The group hummed in agreement as they tasted the exceptional meal. Astrid's friends couldn't believe how good the dinner was, they had of course had roast dinners before, but they hadn't had anything so fresh. Everything was fresh in Berk, they rarely brought in outside food if they could help it. The town was a tightknit Town with everyone known where to source local fresh produce. It was a rarity to see a town like that these days as most places sourced things cheaper from outside sources.