23 months
To be precise: 1 year, 11 months, 16 days
That was how long it had been since he last saw her.
He hadn't expected to see her again; not after how he'd stormed out of her life and shattered her heart.
Yet there she was, sitting right across him on the boardroom table.
Her platinum blond hair was neatly tied into a braid draped over her left shoulder, and her lips were the same shade of toasted cherry as he remembered. She was just as beautiful as when he last saw her, if not more.
From the moment she first stepped inside the room, she had been carefully avoiding his eyes. She was currently focused on North who was in the middle of enumerating the objectives of the Wonder Workshop, the toy division of Guardian Enterprises.
They were meeting today to discuss the proposed collaboration between their multinational conglomerate and the much-lauded Arendelle Corporation. It was a project that Tsar Lunar XII, otherwise known as The Man in the Moon, had long been planning for. To say that it was a big deal would be an understatement.
His mind wasn't as invested in the discussion as he would have liked, however. He was rather distracted by the fact that his former lover had come to meet them in person.
Manny had sent trusted representatives in the form of North, Toothiana, Aster, Sandy, and himself in his stead. They had all expected the CEO of Arendelle Corp to do the same but they had been highly mistaken.
The Snow Queen herself had come, and she even did the presentation for her company. From the look of things, she was going to be very hands-on with the project, and he wasn't sure if he liked the idea or not.
Well, she wasn't the type of person who brought personal feelings into work though so it was unlikely that their past relationship would affect this business transaction.
North finally took a seat, which was an indirect signal to everyone that they were to proceed with the next stage of their conference-the open forum. Both sides were to share their thoughts and opinions on how the work should be done and who would be in-charge with what.
He tried to focus on what everyone was talking about but his thoughts kept on wandering. It had been a while since he'd last attended a meeting in person, after all. Being that he was the head of Funtasia, he had often been traveling to different locations to oversee events and activities.
Though he'd heard about the proposal, he hadn't expected the talks to push through as quickly as they did. Manny called for him to fly back to their Dreamville headquarters for the initial planning stages, so there he was.
"Mr. Frost, do you have any suggestions as to where would be the best venues for our product launch?"
A portly man with a balding head, who was from the Arendelle marketing department, was directing the question towards him. It would be rude if he didn't answer, so he reined in his distraction and contributed to the discussion from thereon.
It was a good two hours and a half later when the meeting finally adjourned. They'd managed to cover the basics and were scheduled for a video conference the week after next. Everyone went around shaking hands as a gesture of goodwill for their collaboration.
Kai, Gerda, Sigrid, Jostein-he associated the names to the faces so he wouldn't forget the next time they would meet. Maintaining good relations with the people he would be working with was vital to the success of the project.
He was putting away his planner when a hand came into his view: feminine, slender, and pale. Keeping his head bowed as he reached out for the handshake, he had a closer look of an item that caught his interest earlier-a silver band on her ring finger.
It didn't seem too fancy with a flower cradling a single sapphire that glinted in the light. In fact, it looked plain compared to the emeralds that Toothiana wore on a regular basis. That didn't stop him from feeling a sting in his chest though. He felt betrayed.
He'd never heard of her getting married, but then he'd been out of touch for quite some time. His sister Mary would have at least told him, if that was the case, considering that she remained in contact with Anna.
All the same, he looked up at her face with a charming smile on his mouth.
"I look forward to working with you."
xxx
Over the next few months, he stayed as far away from her as he possibly could. That wasn't to say that he wasn't doing his job because he was. He just made sure that there would never be a chance when he had to talk to her alone.
Video conference calls had him near the edge of the screen or behind Sandy and the others as they discussed progress or changes within the project. On-site visits, on the other hand, had him lagging behind the group as they inspected production lines or met with the crew.
Aster noted his strange behavior but he brushed it off saying that he was no longer used to staying in one place for a long amount of time. He preferred to actively travel, he explained. Bunnymund seemed to accept this as he never brought up the subject again.
As he liked to tell himself, all was well. And he was right.
They had just finished the prototype for their product and they were set to give a sneak preview of what they had in store during the annual industry convention.
The venue was the Dreamville Grand Convention Hall, the largest entertainment venue in all of Anitopia. All of the biggest companies that marketed to children were coming so it wasn't a surprise when tickets to the event were sold out three months before the day.
Guardian Enterprises had their own booth as did Arendelle Corporation. Both he and Aster had been assigned to oversee things since he was head of events and Bunnymund was head of public relations.
It was long agreed that he, along with Jostein from Arendelle Corp, would be making the big announcement. The video presentation had already been sent to the event media team and the prototype was lying innocently in wait to be revealed. They were more than ready for this.
The program had them as the last presenters of the day, which was only fitting since their project was the one everybody had been highly anticipating. It wasn't every year that two big names would collaborate for a new product line. They just hoped that they would be able to meet the high expectations.
It wasn't long before the organizers finally called their attention. They needed to be backstage within the next 15 minutes to be briefed on where they should enter and where they should go. Pretty standard stuff to what he dealt with on a regular basis.
The crew was assisting him in putting on his lapel microphone when Jostein whispered in his ear about some changes to the plan.
"What kind of changes?"
"Ah, well. It seems that I won't be doing the presentation with you."
"Then who-"
Rushing in like a sandstorm in the Middle East, the Snow Queen quickly made her way towards them. He hadn't seen her around the Arendelle booth earlier so he thought she'd skipped the event but, oh, how wrong he was.
"I'm sorry. If you don't mind, I'd like to make the announcement myself."
"Well, that-"
"I've checked and rehearsed the material so it shouldn't be a problem."
"I-"
A member of the crew cleared their throat behind her.
"We have about 10 minutes before your presentation. If you could put on your Mic, please?"
"Oh! Right. Please."
Before he could even say anything, she was ushered away, so he turned his eyes to Jostein instead. The guy gave him a sheepish smile which was meant to appease him.
"I'm really sorry about this. Our CEO likes to take matters into her own hands. She's a bit of a perfectionist."
For him, that was old news. That part of her hadn't changed.
There were butterflies in his stomach. That part of him hadn't changed either.
Loud applause came from the audience outside as the previous presenter made their way backstage. It was Sully from Monsters Incorporated. He was returning from unveiling the latest addition to his company's eco-friendly product range. They weren't close friends but he sent congratulations his way because he was polite like that.
A minute before he was due to enter the stage, she finally reappeared beside him along with Jostein. They were reviewing what she was supposed to say so he just let them be until the crew prompted them to make their appearance.
"Hey, everybody! Hope you're having a great time!"
With a huge grin, he waved at the crowd as he made his way to the front and center of the platform.
"Yes, this is the moment you've all been waiting for."
She followed, or perhaps the right word might be 'glided', after him like royalty. He still found it amazing how she managed to make something as common as walking so elegant and graceful.
"I'm Jack Frost here in behalf of Guardian Enterprises."
"And I am Elsa Queen of Arendelle Corporation."
The crowd cheered loudly at them as their video presentation started to play in the large screen. While the lights were turned low, the crew wheeled in a trolley between the two of them. None of the audience members could tell what was on it since its contents were covered with a square of blue silk, but that was the point.
Finally, the video ended and the spotlight was directed towards them. Looks of anticipation were everywhere in the audience but that didn't put a damper on their excitement as the presenters.
With as much flair as he could possibly inject into the situation, he whisked off the fabric covering their prototype as Elsa introduced it to the crowd.
"We are proud to reveal to you our masterpiece, The Frozen Dream!"
It was a miniature crystal palace standing two feet tall with intricate detailing. There was more to it than what met the eye though, and Jack was more than happy to unveil its features as Elsa enumerated them.
He pulled open the front door and the palace changed in color. He closed the door and the palace changed in color again. He twisted the top of the middle tower in a clockwise motion and the notes to Still Dream by Alexander Desplat played. He pressed a window in the left tower and the palace started swiveling like a carousel.
Just when you thought that was the end of it, he flipped a switch in the back of the toy and the palace opened like a flower. This revealed a hexagonal prism of screens with displays that changed at every angle. It was a moving storybook that left everyone in awe.
"We are planning to release the first 100 of these toys this Christmas season so please watch out for it."
"Also, we will be simultaneously launching an app where you can contribute to the story or make a story of your own."
"We hope our new toy will bring happiness to children all over the world."
"That's all for now! Please visit to learn more."
Journalists and reporters clambered closer to the stage throwing question after question about the Frozen Dream project. Meanwhile, the audience chattered loudly and excitedly at the amazing new toy.
Both Jack and Elsa requested the media to speak to their PR and marketing departments for press releases as they tried to make their way backstage. They were glad that their announcement was receiving such positive feedback and they couldn't wait to speak with the rest of the project team.
It was a success. It was a happy day. Or, it was supposed to be.
They had barely turned away when panicked screams came from the crowd. Everyone started running as far away from the stage as possible. It was absolute chaos as crowd control tried to do their jobs. There was no use; nobody was listening.
In the midst of it all, a man full of hatred and anger stood calmly. He was wearing a baseball cap pulled low over his eyes. A smirk graced his face as he held his gun higher. He didn't want to miss his target.
Two loud bangs
Jack and Elsa falling to the floor
The attacker escaping
Brown hair
That face
Where was Elsa?
Was she okay?
Was she hurt?
Elsa?
Elsa!
Elsa . . .
Just taking a quick break from Still Dream