She moved with grace and held herself with dignity wherever she went. Anna could only watch from the corner, jaw nearly to the floor, and wonder how she did it. It was as if the girl were magic. It wasn't that she was famous (though if she were in a few years no one, especially not Anna, would be surprised) and had people helping her with her look. Everything that she did was on her own.
Some would have seen Anna and call it jealousy, though she would have called that ridiculous. Anna didn't want what Elsa had - that belonged to Elsa, what made her special. If she didn't have that, what would she?
"You're in love," Kristoff whispered. He jabbed Anna with his shoulder. "Don't even try and tell me otherwise."
Anna scoffed. "You have got to be kidding me." She looked back down to her lunch packed from home. It was simple, something that she threw together before running as quickly as she could to school. She grabbed her sandwich, then quickly took a large bite from it.
"Oh come on," Kristoff responded. "You probably go home and sing about her in the shower."
"That's ridiculous!"
"Oh, you're right! You probably do it out in the open, at least before your parents get home from work."
"I should drop my geometry and English textbooks on your feet." Anna placed a hand on her books. "These can be used for more than just learning."
"Fine," Kristoff responded. "I'll let you wish for her from afar."
Anna rolled her eyes, then went back to her sandwich. She could hardly even taste what she was putting in her mouth; her eyes were on the table across the cafeteria.
She hated it when Kristoff was right.
It was after she had finished up her homework that she got the text. Anna sighed, then turned on her phone. Doing that many geometry problems should have been illegal, and she was tired when it was over. It wasn't even six.
"Charlotte," she mumbled. Tiana had warned Anna that she could be big on the romance business, but she hadn't realized just how much. The entire text sounded as if she and Elsa were going to get married (that seemed only possible in Anna's most wild dreams).
Quickly, she responded that it was just a crush.
HOW DID YOU EVEN FIND OUT? -A
A few minutes later, another text came.
I FIGURED IT OUT. YOU WERE ALWAYS STARING AT HER. YOU 2 WOULD BE SO CUTE, LIKE 2 PRINCESSES. -C
Anna groaned. Was she really that obvious?
LOOK, I REALLY LIKE HER, BUT I DON'T THINK WE COULD EVER BE TOGETHER. -A
The next response came in only a few seconds. Anna had been grabbing the remote for the TV in her room when her cell phone again vibrated.
THAT'S NOT A PROBLEM! YOU 2 JUST HAVE TO MEET. -C
HOW? -A
Anna turned on her TV, then splayed herself out on her bed. She began to flip through the channels, hoping to find something actually worth watching. Her parents wouldn't be home for a while, and even when they did arrive, they wouldn't be the most chipper.
Eventually, Anna settled on watching a rerun of some old cartoons. If anything, it was funny, completely lacking anything serious. Whenever the commercials came on, she would turn on her phone to see if she had gotten any new messages from Charlotte. Other than a text from Kristoff showing a picture of his dog Sven (which she responded with the regular "Sven looks adorable" message), she got no other texts.
All that night she waited for a response that never came. When she went to bad at ten forty-five, she still had no new messages from Charlotte.
Either her message hadn't gone through, or Charlotte didn't know how to respond.
Anna didn't know why she took half of her classes. If her future was anything like her classes, then she would be in for a world of boredom. She could already imagine it - her, ten years from now, wearing a wrinkled suit in an office, struggling to stay awake.
Looking around the room, she saw a few others in her class were also struggling to stay awake. They all must have had their reasons for joining this class, whether it be that this was all that was left to sign up for or that they thought this class would be exciting.
Anna's eyes wondered over to the front of the room, to the seat closest to the teacher's desk, where her reason for being in that class was.
Elsa was clearly wide awake, her hands busily scribbling down notes.
Anna sighed; whether Elsa was here or not, this was going to be one long class period. The fact that she sat in the back of the classroom didn't help much.
Her only friend in class (since Elsa, as cliche as it sounded, probably did not know that she even existed) was Tiana, and she was too busy writing notes herself. The girl usually took all classes seriously, but this one she worked the very hardest hard in.
Pulling a notebook out, she began to doodle. By the time class ended, she had filled three pages with tiny snowmen, snowflakes, and reindeer.
The slushie was cold, but the cherry flavor brought her no comfort. Absently, she looked over to where her friends were sitting. Tiana had the same bored expression, her dark eyes more interested on the book in front of her. Even homework seemed better than this.
Her eyes flitted back to the door of Charlotte's closet. Whatever she was doing in there, it sounded dangerous. That was a big walk in closet, and Anna honestly had gotten lost in it once.
Quickly, Tiana leaned in and whispered to her, her voice sharp. "Don't worry, she's done the same to me before. Just try and get past it. This will all be done soon."
Anna took another swig of her slushie, swallowing the lump in her throat. "Is she really going to try and set me up with Elsa?"
Tiana smirked. "You and I both know her."
When Charlotte had invited her to go get a snack after school with her and Tiana, she had been happy to accept. As much as Tiana had complained, Anna had reminded her that she did need a break every once in a while. It was just going to be a quick stop by a fast food joint, nothing more.
She should have remembered that things didn't always work out that easily.
"Is there any way to stop her?"
Tiana sighed, rubbing her chin. "I wish I knew a way besides you having to find someone else."
Anna groaned. "Can't I just give her a sob story?"
"Sob story?"
Anna grimaced, suddenly realizing the weight of her words. What had happened between her and Hans might have seemed like a sob story to some, but it was more than that.
"It doesn't matter."
It was a summer thing, a romance that Anna thought had opened doors, but then he only slammed them in her face.
Tiana didn't know, Charlotte thankfully didn't know either, and neither did any of Anna's other friends. Kristoff only knew the smallest of details. It was better to just let the past remain in the past.
Anna reached into their shared fast food bag, then pulled out a handful of grease covered fries. "Did Charlotte try to set you up over winter break?"
"Oh, yes." Tiana rolled her eyes. "Those two weeks that you were on vacation at the beach? I honestly wish that I had been right there with you."
"My parents would have gladly let you come! I just hope that you wouldn't have studied on the shores! It's called winter break for a reason."
Tiana looked back down to her textbook. "Fine, I get your point. You sound exactly like my mom."
"What about your mom?" Charlotte peaked out of her closet, two dresses held out in her hands. She could only see the smallest bit of one, but the other nearly made Anna's jaw drop. Even her own mother, as fancy as she could be, did not wear something like that often. It was a green dress with light blue trim, and looked as though it would hang slightly loose on her.
"Nothing," Tiana said.
"Yeah," Anna added. "We were just discussing, you know, boring, every day kind of stuff." She looked down to her feet.
"Do you want to see some of my ideas? They'll be sure to have Elsa all over you."
Anna chuckled. "Well, when you say it like that..." She stood up, stretched out her legs for a few seconds, then ran over. "I might just be interested."
Thankfully, Anna didn't have to wear either of the dresses. The school's winter dance had already come and gone, and Tiana and Anna both knew that prom was months away (despite Charlotte's protests). She would not be needing anything too fancy for quite some time.
"But what if you have to go to a party?" Charlotte had protested, holding up the green dress higher.
"Please," Tiana broke in. She had eventually joined them in the closet, and added much needed support. "As if Elsa would ever go to a party. She's so good."
"I don't see you going to any parties."
Charlotte burst out laughing. "You're right, Anna!"
"Well neither do either of you!" No one was denying Tiana there.
"Besides, who would wear that to a party? It's way too nice. To a grand opening for a restaurant or museum? Now that I could understand."
Anna nodded. "Sorry, Charlotte."
In the end, she left with a few new pairs of shoes, some nice new jeans (that were a little tighter than she normally wore, but Charlotte had made sure to reassure her that things would be just fine), a few tops, a bright pink scarf, and a newly found confidence.
"Keep them as long as you like," Charlotte had said.
It was only when she had driven home to an empty house that the confidence finally vanished. What was she thinking? Wearing new clothes wouldn't make Elsa notice her; she still had no idea that she existed.
"Friday is Valentine's Day." Charlotte continued to fill her notebook page with hearts. "Have you thought about that?"
"No," Anna admitted. "Why should I have?"
Tiana laughed.
Anna turned to her. "What do you have to do with this?"
"Well you did say that you were in love with her." She smiled. "I was going to make a card for my mother before I go to my shift at the diner tonight. Want to make one with me? I just thought that you of all people would be thinking about Valentine's Day."
"You're making cards?" Charlotte's smile spread across her entire face. "Can I please join you?"
"Sure," Tiana said. "I won't mind at all."
"This is going to be amazing!" Charlotte smirked. "That card is going to make Elsa fall in love with you; I just know it."
What was supposed to be a small affair ended up being a sort of party, and thankfully it ended up at Charlotte's house.
"I don't think that my house could fit this many people." Tiana commented, grabbing a chip from the bag she had grabbed before everyone started coming in over.
"Did you know that she was going to be inviting people?" Anna reached for a glue stick.
"Of course not." Tiana's eyes wondered over the supplies that were set out. "My mother is going to be getting a fancier card than she probably expected." She grabbed another pencil, then began to write a few words.
"Do you think that she'll like it?"
"Of course my mom will like it." She sighed. "Just this morning she was asking me if I was going to be spending the night with anyone."
"I'm sorry." Her parents never asked her those kinds of things since they hardly were ever around, but she was sure that they would get annoying if they did.
"I'm actually free Friday night." Tiana smirked. "Should I tell her that she's the one I'll be spending the night with? I might watch one romantic comedy with her just to make her happy."
"I hope that they aren't too corny. I mostly watch those to laugh at the terrible acting."
"I hope it isn't corny either. Have any suggestions?"
Anna was about to reply, but was interrupted by a chattering girl with short brown hair.
"Oh, Merida, would you look at these? They're amazing!" The girl stared down at them with bright green eyes. "Your cards look wonderful."
"Thank you," Tiana replied.
"We aren't finished yet." Anna looked back down to her card. It seemed bland, the stereotypical red heart. Would it really speak to Elsa, let alone do what Charlotte hoped would happen?
"That's okay." It took a moment for Anna to recognize the girl, but then she knew; she was Rapunzel, a senior who was painting props for the school's spring musical. "I know that whoever gets these cards will love them."
Anna couldn't help but smile; the girl's words sounded utterly sincere.
The girl Rapunzel had called earlier, Merida, walked over. She was carrying what looked like a real bow, though the arrows were most certainly fake. The ends were tipped with red hearts. There were white cardboard wings attached to the girl's back, her red curls contrasting heavily from them.
"Want me to send those cards to anyone?" The girl held up an arrow. "I am Cupid!"
Tiana rolled her eyes. "Be careful where you're pointing that thing."
"You sound just like my mum." She rolled her eyes. "So what did I think that I heard you saying earlier?"
"Huh?" Tiana wrinkled her nose, raising a dark eyebrow.
"Something about your mom asking if you had a date for Friday, if I was correct."
"Not interested."
Anna laughed.
"I wasn't asking about that!"
Anna laughed harder at the red head trying to defend herself, and had to put her pale hands to her mouth to stop.
"The thing is, my mom has been saying the same thing. It's driving me up a wall!" Merida sighed. "I really wish that she would just stop. It's like she thinks that it's my destiny or someone to find my true love in high school."
"Oh, can I relate."
The two began to chat, and Anna returned to making her valentine card. Rapunzel had started one of her own; Anna nearly asked her for some advice, but then stopped. Whatever she was working on she seemed busy with, and Anna couldn't be sure if breaking her from her zone was a good idea or not.
Absently, her eyes wondered around the room. There truly were a lot of girls here, all of them that she recognized from the school hallways. She wanted to call out hi to a few of them, but stopped herself. They couldn't really be called friends, and she wasn't sure how many of them would recognize her.
She looked back to her card, then down to her phone. There was a text from Kristoff asking what she was doing, and she quickly responded that she was busy. All the while, her eyes flicked back up to the time. If she wanted to get a good start on her homework then she would have to get home soon; she didn't have all the time in the world.
"Anna, can I ask you something?" Charlotte was staring down at her lunch, not really seeming to notice it.
"Yeah, what?" Anna responded, reaching a hand into her lunch bag.
Tiana had gotten up about thirty seconds earlier to go to the bathroom.
"You know how Tiana is off of work on Friday?"
Anna nodded.
"Well, I was wondering if she would do something with me." She frowned; Charlotte looked wrong when she frowned, like she wasn't supposed to. What was almost as bad was that Anna couldn't think of a way to cheer her up. "For all the advice that I give you, I can't even ask someone out myself."
"You can do it." Anna couldn't quite tell what she was saying, the words coming out on their own. "Just do it."
"Anna, you don't understand-"
"No, you don't." Grabbing her chocolate milk, she quickly swallowed some down for encouragement. "You're going to do it for Tiana and I'm going to do it for Elsa."
Charlotte smiled again. "Really?"
Anna nodded. "Really."
It was the happiness on both Tiana and Charlotte's faces when Tiana said yes that made Anna go through with this. She clutched the card in her hand, waiting by Elsa's locker. There were so many times that she had seen the girl by this and yet never said a word to her.
Now, she was going to change that, no matter how this turned out. Even if she was rejected (which Anna was quite sure that she would be), at least she would have done more than just gaze and fantasize about Elsa.
Besides, she had to keep her word to Charlotte.
When Elsa came to her locker, she seemed a bit surprised by her. Still, she smiled, waving goodbye to a friend of hers. Anna couldn't be quite sure of what his name was exactly, though she thought that it was Jack.
"Hello," she spoke. "Is there something that you need?"
Oh great, Anna thought. She thinks that you're a freshman that needs her to tutor you.
Anna quickly shoved the card towards her. "I hope that you have a wonderful Valentine's Day." She had put her name and number on the back of the card in case Elsa was interested in calling her. "I hope that you're free tonight."
Without waiting for a response, she turned around, her books clutched to her chest, and made her way to her next class. There was no point in this causing her to be tardy.
Anna sighed, wishing that there was just one station that didn't have a Valentine's Day special on. She would even settle for watching wrestling at that point, but she couldn't seem to find the channel. Even the cartoon stations had something Valentine's Day related on.
"I could always watch a movie," she said aloud to herself. It wasn't like she didn't have any DVDs.
Standing up, she walked over to where she kept her DVD collection. That would be as good of a way to spend the night as any. It would certainly be doing something. Besides, she could always go buy on sale chocolate over the next few days.
Her cell phone began to rapidly vibrate in her pocket.
What did her mom want this time? She had already gotten her earlier text that she and her father were going out for dinner that night, and probably wouldn't be home until even later than usual.
"Hello," she said, clicking the power button on the remote. There was no point in adding any extra background noise.
"Hello, Anna," the voice replied.
It took her a moment to recognize who the other person was. "Elsa?"
"Who were you expecting, the snow queen?" She chuckled. "I wanted to ask where you wanted to get ice cream and at what time. There are a lot of places around town, and I don't want to waste gas. You never did specify earlier."
For a moment Anna didn't reply, her mind blank. She couldn't think about ice cream, couldn't think about anything.
"You know that little place downtown by that one library?" Anna had only been in there once, having gone in one time after she had a study session at the library.
"I love that place!" Elsa paused. "What time should I meet you there?"
"In thirty minutes," Anna responded, "if that's good for you."
"It definitely is! I'll see you there."
They said their goodbyes, then hung up. For a moment, Anna only stood in shock.
Then, she went for her closet. She needed something to wear, and it definitely would not need to be too fancy. They were just going out for ice cream.
Still, she wanted to look nice.
Elsa stood by the ice cream counter, and waved to Anna when she got in.
"I'm so sorry for being late!" Anna had wondered what to wear, then ultimately decided on a T-shirt that she had gotten at a concert for The Killers. It wasn't as though she had anything specifically related to Valentine's Day; heart covered shirts just seemed a little too weird.
"Nice shirt," Elsa said. "What's your favorite album by them? I haven't listened to them in a while, but they're good."
"They're great," Anna said, "but to be honest..." She bit her lip. "I don't really have a favorite." She probably sounded ridiculous, but she couldn't think at the moment. Her mind was spinning; she was actually having ice cream with Elsa! Any moment now she was sure that she would wake up in study hall to find her face leaning against a drool covered notebook.
"Do you already know what you want to order?" Elsa looked up to the brightly colored menu. "I'm not sure yet. Also, you're right on time. I just decided to come early."
"I already know." The chocolate there was delicious, like no other chocolate ice cream in the world.
The two eventually ordered, then found themselves a seat. The worker had smiled at them and raised a knowing eyebrow. Anna had turned bright red. The worker had shot Elsa a thumbs up before she looked over to the next customers.
Other couples were scattered around the room, looking perfectly content.
"Thank you for inviting me." Elsa smiled, then licked her ice cream cone. "This was a wonderful suggestion."
Anna expected her to question her, but she just continued to lick her ice cream cone. Surely she would want to know why Anna had invited her. Really, Anna couldn't be sure if she had stepped into some sort of weird alternate reality or not. It made more sense then what was going on in front of them.
The two ate in silence, though every once in a while Elsa made a small comment. Anna remained quiet, unsure of how to respond. Elsa held herself with grace, never once spilling her ice cream onto her gloves or shirt.
The two left soon after, going nowhere else. Other than a quick, completely unreal kiss, they did nothing too romantic.
Still, Anna was happy all the way home.
She woke the next morning to texts from both Charlotte and Tiana. She texted them the good news, then congratulated them for having a fun night on their own. They seemed as if they would be having many more.
Then, she got another text from an unknown number. It took her a moment to comprehend that Elsa (as the person had signed) was texting her. Once she had recovered, she responded. There was business from the night before that needed to be settled, questions that finally needed to be answered.
Her heart almost leaped out of her chest when Elsa asked her if they could meet up at the ice cream shop again sometime soon; Elsa wanted to try the chocolate for herself. Her text, as it read, was that she absolutely loved chocolate, and was all too eager to see what the place had to offer.