HICCSTRID: Going On Tour ❌DISCONTINUED❌

Chapter 4 - The Dressing Room

After a while, Hiccup catches my eye and gestures back towards the car, before grabbing my hand and walking me to the car.

"Are you feeling OK?" Hiccup says, his face frowning in concern.

"That was . . . amazing!" I say, and I wrap my arms round him. We laugh as my camera bumps against his chest, and we're forced to separate.

"Wait, I want to remember this moment," I say to Hiccup. I pull him close and turn the camera on my phone round to snap a selfie of the two of us together. Looking at the faces on the screen, all I see are two ridiculously happy, shining people, and my heart fills with so much warmth I feel like I'm about to explode. The best thing is, this feeling is going to last all summer long.

When we finally get out of the car, Hiccup's manager, Dean, is outside, tapping his foot and staring pointedly at his watch. His hair is slick with gel and although he's wearing a suit he's left the top buttons of his shirt undone to make him look more casual. Hiccup calls this his effort to be "down with the kids." I'm instantly reminded of my old drama teacher, who we nicknamed "Call-Me-Jeff" because he wanted all his students to think he was cool; at least Dean has an awesome job.

"Hi, Dean!" I say. It's nice to see a familiar face. I met Dean over the Easter holidays, when Hiccup first brought up the possibility of me joining him on tour.

"Astrid! Lovely to see you." He kisses me on both cheeks and I'm hit with a strong waft of aftershave. "Come on, you two lovebirds. I can't believe you've been hanging around out front! Don't you know the security nightmare you've caused?"

Hiccup doesn't apologize, and shrugs. "Have you noticed it's pouring with rain outside? I wanted to say hi to all those people out there who are being forced to wait."

I feel like I'm walking on air after meeting everyone, and I'm sure Hiccup does too. I don't even care that I probably look a bedraggled mess. Hiccup, of course, just looks even better.

Dean rolls his eyes, but he doesn't look mad—he knows it's all part of Hiccup's charm. Dean was the one who first discovered Hiccup on YouTube and signed him to Sony. Since then, he's almost been like a surrogate dad, helping Hiccup to handle all the challenges that come with being an overnight Internet sensation. It was Dean who got him on the tour with The Sketch, convincing people that Hiccup was ready—even if he wasn't so sure himself.

Dean had also been part of Hiccup's plan to convince my parents it would be all right to let me go away with him. Dean had spent a whole afternoon at our house, reassuring Mum and Dad that a rock tour with Hiccup and The Sketch was not going to be the crazy alcohol-and-drug-fuelled environment that gets depicted in Hollywood movies and TV shows.

"What with smartphones, social media, and paparazzi nowadays, we can't take any risks with our talent," Dean had said. It felt strange to hear Hiccup being described as "talent." "The moment they step out of line, someone will capture it on film and it will go viral, so it's my job to make sure it never comes to that."

That afternoon feels so long ago, and now everything is actually happening. I can hardly believe it.

Dean snaps me back to reality. "Hiccup, you're onstage in an hour—we have no time to mess around!"

"I spent all afternoon here rehearsing. I think I'm allowed to take a break."

"Well, it probably would have been good for you to tell me where you were going rather than leaving me running around like a headless chicken!"

Hiccup winks at me. It's typical for him to run off without telling his management team where he's going. I stifle a giggle.

It's far less glamorous backstage than I thought it would be. In my head, I had imagined a lot of leather furniture and big mirrors with naked bulbs surrounding them, or maybe somewhere really industrial, with exposed metal pipes and lots of speakers everywhere. Instead, we are ushered through a series of narrow hallways towards a door with a piece of paper tacked on the front that reads: HICCUP HADDOCK. Inside is a small, beige-painted room with a couple of grey sofas round a coffee table. Just that on its own would look really boring, but it's made much livelier by the sheer mess that's dotted all around. There are lots of instruments stacked in the corner, suitcases open and spilling their contents onto the floor, and several leather jackets laid across the back of the sofa.

"Are The Sketch in a room like this too?" I ask.

Hiccup shakes his head. "No, they get the fancier dressing rooms."

"Well, that makes sense. Will I get to meet them?"

Now he laughs. "Heck, I haven't even met them yet! I'm just the support act, remember? Their management keeps them on an even tighter leash than Dean does me. I'd be surprised if we see them at all this tour, unless you're really lucky. Wait, you're not hoping to upgrade your rock-star boyfriend, are you?"

I punch him lightly on the shoulder and stick out my tongue. I quickly get over any disappointment at not meeting The Sketch as soon as I spot the array of treats laid out on the coffee table. There's a HUGE bowl full of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Jolly Ranchers, several bottles of neon-yellow Lucozade . . . and Cadbury Mini Eggs.

"Wait, Hiccup, how did you get these?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's the summer—these mini eggs are only around at Easter! I guess that's your big diva request," I say with a grin.

"I'll have to trust your chocolate expertise on that fact," says Hiccup. He reaches down, grabs a mini egg, and pops it in his mouth. 

---------

yo guys! I'm back from my short camp and i've missed so much at school. We have yearly exams in 3 weeks and i'm stressing out to the MAX right now. so i don't know if i can get more than 1 more update before then. I'll try though!