Spending Christmas with the whole family wasn't as bad as I had initially thought. Christmas Eve dinner was pleasant and not nearly as tense as expected, mostly thanks to my grandmother, who laughed and even cracked jokes, which was new for all of us. She even gave me a smiling wink after I announced that Hiccup and I were now a couple. Apparently, her confession had truly lifted a burden from her shoulders that she'd been carrying far too long. For once, my cousins managed to behave themselves, even if they still whispered behind my back. But I didn't let that bother me anymore, let them gossip, I had better things to do with my time.

The good mood, helped along by a little alcohol, went so far that my grandmothers pressured me into calling Hiccup to invite him to brunch the next day. At first, I thought he was at a party because of the loud music in the background, but it turned out that it was just his family.

"They've been singing Christmas songs all evening, in Russian and English," he said, which made me grin. "It's like this every year. Oh no, they're starting Last Christmas again. Save me, please."

I laughed. "Once my grandma's had enough eggnog, it won't be much different here."

"At least you-" He stopped because someone called him, speaking in Russian. "Babushka, ya govoryu po telefonu."

He continued speaking Russian, and my grin only grew wider. Somehow, I found that incredibly attractive and sexy, also the fact that he spoke Spanish so well. In general, his knowledge and how he always had an interesting fact ready. I'd say I was into intelligence, but that wouldn't explain why I had dated Brandon. He had none of that.

Would Hiccup ever give me a Russian nickname? I kind of liked the idea, after all, it was his native language, I'd have to suggest it to him. But then he might want one in return, what would I call him? Honey? Darling? Babe? It all sounded weird, though maybe just because I wasn't used to it. Brandon and I had always just called each other by our names.

"Da," I heard Hiccup say in an annoyed tone, then he switched back to English. "Sorry, my grandmother really wants me to sing along. I just explained to her that I'm on the phone with my girlfriend, who needs to discuss something with me. She's going to restart the song then." He sighed, while my heart did little happy jumps at the word girlfriend. "So, why did you call?"

I asked him about brunch, and he agreed. On Christmas Day, he showed up at our door at exactly half past eleven, just like we'd arranged. I opened it for him. "You're really never late, are you?"

He smiled at me. "Never."

He kissed me as he came in, which made my grandma call out a dramatic "Ooh la la" from the kitchen, where she was watching us. I just rolled my eyes at her, and she winked at me.

After he took off his jacket, she greeted him with a firm hug and pressed a cookie into his hand. "Something small to start you off," she said with a grin.

The rest of my family appeared and greeted him too, while I observed him from the side. He was wearing another button-up shirt like he had at Mitchell's party, this time in a shade of green that matched his eyes. It suited him just as well as the other one, and I decided I really liked him in shirts. His black jeans fit perfectly, along with his black Chucks. I didn't even need to start with his hair, it always looked great. I almost sighed but managed to hold it in.

Once the last bowl was placed on the extended dining table, brunch officially began. We had the same seating arrangement as at Thanksgiving, except now my grandparents sat between my dad and me, and my aunt was sitting across from Hiccup instead of next to him. The seat at the head of the table was still empty, only the pink placemat lay there. My dad chatted with my grandmother, my cousins whispered about some competition in January, and my grandma began asking Hiccup her leftover questions after a few minutes.

"Hiccup, what nice things did you get for Christmas?" she asked as she spread butter on her roll and smiled at him.

"Nothing yet," he answered after taking a sip of his orange juice. "In Russia, we get presents on December thirty-first, so New Year's Eve."

"Oh really?" my aunt said, raising her eyebrows. "Then what do you do on the twenty-fourth?"

"I think not much, but my family has adapted to the American way. We get together, eat, sing Christmas songs."

"In English and in Russian," I added quietly. He grinned at me from the side.

"So you celebrate Christmas and New Year together?" my grandmother asked, and now everyone's attention turned to Hiccup.

He nodded. "We have dinner, then sing traditional Russian Christmas songs, someone reads a short fairy tale, then we exchange gifts, and at midnight there's fireworks."

"Wow," Luna said, sounding dreamily impressed.

"So many differences," Sol said. "What else? You don't have Santa Claus?" She and her two sisters laughed.

Hiccup, however, lifted one corner of his mouth. "Technically, no." Their laughter faded and they looked at him in confusion. "We have Ded Moroz, which translates to Father Frost. In many depictions, he wears blue instead of red, but he still has the long white beard."

"I've heard of him before," my grandpa said. "Just like the Christkind, another gift-bringer at Christmas."

"Isn't it kind of annoying to have to wait so long for your presents? Especially when all your friends already got theirs a week earlier?" Stella asked.

Hiccup shook his head. "No, I'm used to it. It's just a cultural difference. For example, in most parts of Europe, people get their presents on the twenty-fourth."

"Really?" Luna asked with a skeptical look.

"Yes."

"That just doesn't sound right. Are you sure? I mean-"

"Oh my God," I said loudly, cutting her off. She went quiet, and everyone looked at me. "First of all, Luna, the world doesn't revolve around the U.S., so in other countries, holidays are celebrated differently. Second, I get that it's interesting to learn about Hiccup's culture and that you want to get to know him better, but could you please let him eat? He's been staring longingly at his scrambled eggs this whole time. I'm starting to feel bad for him."

I could see Hiccup trying to hold back a grin, but it had to be said. He really wasn't getting a bite in if they kept questioning him and he kept politely answering.

My grandmother cleared her throat. "You're right, we should let the poor boy eat. There's still time for questions later, if he's okay with it."

"I enjoy talking about our traditions," he replied with a smile, finally getting a forkful of scrambled eggs into his mouth.

When Last Christmas started playing on the radio, we both burst out laughing after exchanging a look, which confused everyone else at the table since they didn't get our inside joke. Luckily, we didn't have food in our mouths or that would've ended badly. At least they left him alone for the rest of the meal.

❁

They loved him, I could tell that much on that day. How could they not? He was charming, kind, intelligent, and didn't shy away from showing his feelings for me. As my grandma whispered to me in the kitchen while we were clearing the table, he was "a real upgrade from Brandon," and I could only agree. Even while we were sitting on the couch, he kept holding my hand and gently tracing circles on it with his thumb.

At first, I had been afraid that my dad would be strict and keep us at a distance, or that he would glare at Hiccup if he got too close to me, but it was the complete opposite. He smiled at me now and then and even joked around with Hiccup, as if he had already been part of the family for a while. In a way, he kind of had, though previously only as my tutor. But even then, my dad had already started to like him.

At five o'clock, he had to leave because his mother had texted him saying she was starting dinner. I didn't want to let him go, I would have loved to keep him with me, so I held onto him at the door.

"I really have to go, or she'll be mad," he said with a laugh.

I kept pouting. "You could just eat with us."

He shook his head with a wide smile. "She's already started cooking. If I cancel now, I'm really screwed."

"Hmm, fine," I said, still clinging to him. "One more kiss. And you have to come over again soon, somehow we haven't had any time alone since everything finally got sorted out."

"That's just how the holidays are." He gave me a quick kiss and tried to leave, but I pressed my lips to his again, and again, and again. "Astrid," he murmured against my lips, laughing. "The last one." At least that one lasted longer, but once he pulled his face away, he practically ran down the stairs.

"Hey, not fair!" I called after him, which made him laugh again, his beautiful laugh. Once he turned the corner, I went back inside and heard my dad ordering pizza.

❁

He came over again the next day and we had a Santa Clause movie marathon after I told him it was my favorite Christmas movie series. Lying in bed with him and cuddling was such a wonderful feeling, I had never felt anything like it. It made me grin like crazy, and his kisses now and then made my heart flutter. At one point, when I wasn't paying attention because I was so focused on the movie, he gave me a hickey on my neck. When I stared at him in disbelief, he just laughed. He got his revenge when he dozed off during the third movie, now we both had one.

Two days later, we went on a double date with Jack and Elsa. We met at the hot drinks stand at the Christmas market, set up next to the ice rink, which made it a popular spot. While drinking our warm cocoa with whipped cream, we shared stories about our Christmas experiences. Jack had spent Christmas Eve watching TV with his mom and sister. Elsa had gone to her grandparents' house with her mom, where they had dinner together and played board games afterward. A quiet celebration for everyone, except Hiccup, whose family had thrown a half-drunken party.

When we went ice skating, I found out Elsa had never done it before. She clung to Jack like her life depended on him.

"This is way harder than it looks," she said, trying to find her balance, while I helped her with tips my mom had given me years ago. It took a little while, but in the end, she managed to skate a few laps. Hiccup was better at it than I expected, though not quite as good as me, even if we teased each other a bit.

After our time on the ice was up, we strolled around the Christmas market and decided to end the day at an all-you-can-eat restaurant.

On New Year's Eve, there was a party at a youth center that Elsa had invited me to. Since Hiccup was still with his family celebrating Christmas, the three of us went without him. Even though they weren't serving alcohol, a few people were already tipsy by the time we arrived. Elsa and I had decided to stay sober this time. The last experience had been enough for a while.

As the evening went on, the two of them disappeared, leaving me alone at the snack bar. I didn't even want to know what they were doing, so I stayed right there with the mini pretzels, breadsticks, and chips. I spotted a few familiar faces from school in the crowd, mostly the sports teams, but thankfully, no sign of Stacy. Hopefully, she'd stay quiet after the holidays.

"Aren't you full yet from all the Christmas cookies?" a now far-too-familiar voice whispered in my ear, making me grin. When I turned around, two green eyes sparkled at me with amusement.

"Snacks are always welcome," I said loudly to be heard over the music. He grinned and kissed me quickly. "What are you doing here? I thought you were spending the night with your family?"

He leaned back in toward my ear. "My grandma said I should go to you. It's our first New Year's together, after all, so I should spent it with you. I was with them the whole evening, so they don't mind."

"Ah," I said, drawing out the word. "And what's with the backpack?" I'd noticed it when he leaned toward me.

He studied me for a moment before replying. "I thought maybe I could stay the night at your place? We'll be here for a while after midnight, and no one could pick me up, they've all been drinking. But I can walk home if you'd prefer."

I looked at him with wide eyes. "You seriously think I'd let you walk home alone in the middle of the night? Never! Of course you're sleeping at my place."

He smiled. "Okay."

Five minutes before midnight, the music was turned down. The crowd moved outside to watch the long-anticipated fireworks. From the one-minute mark, everyone started counting down, and we joined in. And, as tradition goes, we kissed at midnight while the crowd around us shouted, "Happy New Year!"

Elsa and Jack reappeared about an hour later to say they were heading out. Since Jack had brought me, Hiccup and I got ready to leave with them. After Jack said goodbye to the football team, we headed to the car.

"Thanks for the ride," I told him when we arrived at my house half an hour later. "See you soon."

"See ya," they replied, and I got out with Hiccup.

"So, do we need to inflate an air mattress or drag one down from the attic?" Hiccup asked as we took off our shoes and coats.

I stared at him. "First the whole walking home thing, now an air mattress? Hiccup, I'm your girlfriend, you're allowed to sleep in my bed."

He shrugged sheepishly. "I don't know what your dad would think about that."

I made a dismissive gesture. "He doesn't care, as long as I don't get pregnant." My cheeks flushed as I realized what I had just implied. "Uh, not that I mean I think you came over intending to have sex or anything, just that ... uh, yeah, he wants me to be careful."

He grinned at me, his own cheeks pink. "Got it."

He followed me upstairs to the bathroom, where we brushed our teeth and took turns using the toilet. He also changed in there while I did in my room. My hands were starting to sweat. I hadn't shared a bed with a boy I actually called my boyfriend in a long time. At least I knew Hiccup well enough to be sure he was simple when it came to these things. Hopefully, it wouldn't get weird.

A moment later, he knocked on my door and asked if he could come in. How had I managed to land such a gentleman? I let him in and was relieved to see him wearing a T-shirt. If he had planned to sleep shirtless, I wouldn't have known what to do. Probably jump him. After all, we had already taken things pretty far at Mitchell's party. We both knew we wanted it.

The thoughts wouldn't leave me even when we were lying in bed and the only light in the room came from the moon. We looked at each other as if it were the first time.

"Are you thinking the same thing I am?" he whispered.

My heart started to beat faster. "What are you thinking?"

"Something I'd like to do, but I don't know if you want it too."

Jesus Christ and Mary in heaven, look away now.

"If we're thinking the same thing, then yes."

Not even a second later, his lips were on mine, one hand on my face, the other on my waist, pulling me closer. A soft moan escaped me as he moved from my mouth to kiss down my neck. His hand slid from my waist up under my shirt.

Thankfully, my grandma had jokingly given me a pack of condoms, otherwise, the moment wouldn't have gone so well.

———

That's a good way to start the year, don't you think? 😌
Hiccup said "Grandma, I'm talking on the telephone", which you could probably guess from the context, but I always write the translations at the end for you to know for sure :)
How do you think it will continue? Will Stacy interfere again? Will Astrid find out more about Hiccup? Is he hiding something? I would love to hear your thoughts about it, so feel free to comment ☺️