I Don't Love You Too

Chapter 13 - Moonlight

The song is basically what this whole story was based on. You don't have to listen to it, but if you want to, by all means do!

A blinding white light was staring down at me. I tried to move my arms but they wouldn't move; I felt weak and useless without them. My eyes focused slowly and I realised I was inside a hospital. There was a faint, regular beep, beep, beep of a heart monitor somewhere in the background. I then heard crying and I was confused. Who'd be crying? Why would anyone want to be here, to see me of all people? Feeling started to come back to most of my body and I turned my head slightly to see the source of the crying.

It was Merida. She had her head in her hands and she was sobbing hard. I suddenly remembered what had happened to put her in this state and I whispered her name with the small amount of strength I'd acquired. She looked up immediately, eyes wide as they could go. They were blotchy and red with crying, but it didn't stop a huge smile from spreading across her face the moment she saw me.

"Hiccup?" she whispered. "You're awake!"

She jumped up from her seat, ran to me, literally ran, flung her arms around me and pulled me as close as she could get me. She suddenly tensed as she realised what she'd done and drew away awkwardly, looking at the ground. I looked at her with forgiving eyes and she smiled weakly. But something was wrong. I knew it. She wasn't speaking at all and when she looked away she looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"Merida," I whispered, "what's wrong?"

She still didn't look at me. I repeated the question. She suddenly broke down into tears and looked directly into my eyes.

"I'm so sorry," she mumbled, "About, about everything. You were always there for me. I took it all for granted. I didn't mean to say the things I said. It was just, I know you like Astrid now so," she turned away so I couldn't see her crying, "I didn't want us to part on bad feelings. You don't have to feel guilty when you're with her anymore."

"Merida," I interrupted, "Do you even know the full story about that night?"

"Yes," she replied. "Hans got run over, Astrid called you, you two sorted him out and you kissed Astrid."

"Perfect, apart from one very small detail," I looked directly into her turquoise eyes, "I didn't kiss Astrid."

"What? Yes you did, I saw you!"

"No Merida," I looked at her eyes, brimming with confusion and a fresh set of tears. "She grabbed me and kissed me. I can tell you now, I've never hated kissing so much in my life. It was terrible, disgusting, I can't even tell you. She didn't let me go and when I saw you my heart honestly stopped. I've been such an idiot for letting Astrid believe that, and if I could I'd turn back the clock a week and change it all. Honest to Thor."

"You didn't?" Merida looked at me with final understanding setting in her head, "You didn't kiss her?"

"How many times?" I almost laughed. "How can you think I'd pick her when there's you?"

"What?" Merida whispered. I blushed a deep crimson.

"What I meant to say was, uh, I mean, I really really like you, I mean, I told you this before when, you know, we, yeah, we went to the river and, um, what I mean is, I still really like you and -"

"You're serious?" Merida asked, the beginnings of a smile beginning to form on her face, and I nodded, smiling goofily at her. I tried to stand up to give her a proper hug, but when I tore off the bad covers I gasped. My left leg had gone.

"I didn't want to tell you," Merida whispered as she saw the pain on my face. "After the crash, the, the wounds were bad; they didn't think, they didn't think you'd ever wake up. They," she looked away, a tear running down her cheek, "they didn't think you'd make it. I've been here ever since, ever since it happened."