"Elsa? Do you wanna build a snowman?"
"Go away, Anna," the young girl called back, hugging her knees to her chest as she stared out her window and watched ships sail across the fjord.
"Okay, bye," came Anna's quiet reply.
Elsa let out a soft sigh and waited for her sister's footsteps to fade before jumping away from her window and scurrying toward the door, opening it just a crack to have a quick glimpse outside her room. While she refused to play with Anna and risk hurting her again, she couldn't deal with not being able to see her sister until she got her powers under control. Until then, she'd just watch her little sister walk away, wishing she could run after her and shout, "YES! Let's go build a snowman!"
A few seconds later, she shut the door and made her way toward her bed. She felt underneath her pillow until she found what she was looking for: a small ice sculpture of Arendelle's crocus flower. In the years she had it, it remained cold to the touch and showed no signs of melting.
Elsa closed her eyes and hugged the flower close, inhaling deeply before breathing out and whispering the name: "Jack Frost."
Nothing happened at first. Elsa looked around to see if he was hiding and jumped back when a plume of smoke appeared in front of her, growing in size before fading slowly and revealing the man in question behind it.
"Jack!"
"Hey there, little princess," he bowed deeply and looked up at her with a cheeky grin, "Long time no see."
"I did a terrible thing!" Elsa blurted.
That got his attention. Jack sat on the carpeted floor in front of her, his legs crossed and staff resting on his lap, "Is everything all right?"
She shook her head and looked down, "I did something terrible."
Jack tilted his head to the side, waiting for her to continue.
"Anna and I were playing and I hurt her. Now papa thinks I should learn to control my powers." She held her hands up as tears brimmed her eyes. Small globes began to form over her palms. "See?! I'm not doing it on purpose!"
"Hey, there. It's okay," Jack said softly, taking her hand in his. Immediately, the globes faded and she sniffled before giving him a small smile. "You're controlling it just fine."
"I can't help it when I get sad or scared, though."
"Then we shouldn't give you a reason to be sad or scared, right?" Jack stood up and gave his staff a wave. A few white sparks shot upward and exploded into snowflakes – no different than what Elsa had done the night before.
"Come on, little princess. Let's have a little fun. What do you wanna do?"
Elsa thought for a moment as she watched the snowflakes hit the soft carpet before her eyes lit up and she asked, "Can we build a snowman?"
"Where do you think you're going dressed like that?"
Ellie had managed to tug her sweater halfway on when she heard Chris's voice behind her. She pushed her arms in through the sleeves and tugged the thin cotton material down so it rested just above her waistline. She shrugged as she examined herself in the mirror: same jeans, tank top and sweater combo she usually wore.
"How did you get in my apartment?"
"I still have the keys from that time you wanted me to watch Marshmallow."
Elsa grumbled as the cat in question hissed at Chris. "Getting ready for work. I've gotta count inventory and-"
"Oh, no you don't!" Chris shouted, pushing Ellie's bedroom door open and heading straight toward her closet and began shifting outfits here and there, "You can't just turn down a coffee date with this guy – I mean, when's the last time you've been on a date? He's a teacher, right? You've probably got about an hour before school starts. I'll take care of inventory."
Ellie blinked at Chris's words, realization hitting her. "Oh…"
The blond stopped rifling through Ellie's closet long enough to spin around and stare at her wide-eyed, "Don't tell me you forgot."
"I forgot."
He mumbled a few incoherent words and tossed a baby blue cotton dress at Ellie. It was a simple thing with a band wrapped around the waist to let it flare out at the bottom and thin spaghetti straps. Ellie held it up and glanced back at Chris.
"It's getting a little cold for thi—hey!" She shouted as a white cardigan hit her face. "Fine. I'll change if you get out, but I'll make it back to the store for inventory. When on earth did you become a fashionista?"
"I didn't. I'm taking a shot in the dark and assuming this is a decent choice."
Chris kicked a pair of white flats her way as he made his way out of the room and waved a hand dismissively, "You're welcome. If I see you anywhere near the store before eight thirty, I'm locking up. Just think of the children, Ellie. They'll be heartbroken if they can't get their ice cream."
"Well, look who it is. I never thought I'd see you again, Elizabeth."
Ellie smiled weakly at Mrs. Lucas's greeting as she stepped into her diner. A few people turned to look at her before preoccupying themselves with their breakfasts. She gave the place a quick once-over but saw no Jake, which made her wonder whether she should just turn around and head to Snowy despite Chris's threat; but it would be embarrassing to just turn back now, she acknowledged, so she made her way toward a bar stool.
"Anything I can get you, dear? A coffee?"
"Oh, no, thanks. A hot chocolate would be great, though."
"Coming right up," Mrs. Lucas smiled, setting down a breakfast plate and ringing the small bell for Ruby to come pick it up. She then grabbed a white mug and began fixing up Ellie's drink, "So, what brings you here? I never thought you'd leave that ice cream shop. Really, dear, you're going to work yourself to death."
Ellie smiled weakly and folded her hands on the counter, twiddling her thumbs idly as she glanced at the clock, "You sound like my brother."
"Then I'm sure I'm not the only one who sees it."
She shrugged and straightened her spine, "I'm fine. My parents wouldn't want to see all their hard work go to waist."
"No," Mrs. Lucas agreed, "But I'm sure your parents wouldn't want to see their only daughter work herself to death, either."
Ellie blinked, unsure of what to say until a deep voice behind her interrupted the brief silence.
"Sorry I'm late! Hey, you look really nice."
She turned her head and smiled awkwardly at Jake as he took a seat beside her and greeted Mrs. Lucas. The old woman set a mug of what looked like black coffee down in front of Jake, "I was just about to toss this out."
She then handed Ellie her hot chocolate and gave her a knowing look before glancing back at Jake briefly and turning away to take a phone call. Ellie felt herself blush a little. Was it that obvious?
She cleared her throat and addressed his earlier compliment, "Thank you. You look really nice as well," she added, noting the slacks and blazer he donned over a white button-up shirt.
"Thanks. Gotta look the part, you know?" He laughed, adjusting his tie; "I was never a suit guy."
"Yeah, well, I'm not much of a dress girl," Ellie countered, taking a sip of her hot chocolate, and setting it down quickly to add on, "I mean, I guess today was good…dress-in-a-dress kind of day…"
Crappy save. She didn't want him to think she wore the damn thing just because of him.
Although technically, she did.
She gestured around the diner to change the subject, "So, you come here a lot."
"Yes, usually mornings. Then I head over to your place once school lets out. I'll admit, I was hoping you'd notice me a lot sooner than just yesterday."
Ellie's brows shot up at that statement and she spun her mug in its saucer nervously, "Oh, well, I just get a little…distracted. I see tons of people everyday."
"Is it nice to get a break for once?"
"Yeah, I guess," She pursed her lips, "You're very…observant, aren't you?"
He chuckled, shrugging as he brought the mug of black coffee to his lips, "I'm a teacher. It's what I do. Observe and report."
"Hey, Mr. Winters!"
They both turned in their seats at the sound of a young boy's voice. Henry Mills, Ellie recognized. She didn't know the name of most of her young customers, but there was no mistaking the Mayor's son. He was standing beside a pretty blonde woman whom Ellie didn't recognize. Storybrooke was fairly small, and she was sure she'd met just about everyone.
Except Jake, she reminded herself.
"Oh, hey, Ellie! Finally taking a break from that ice cream shop?" She'd always known Henry as the shy type – sitting away from the other children while he claimed his own booth and ate his ice cream in peace. Today, though, he seemed rather audacious and outspoken. Ellie wondered whether it had to do with the woman beside him.
Ellie's face fell at his statement and she let out an exasperated sigh, "Even the kids notice?"
"Well, it's true," Henry defended, looking up at the blonde, "Seems like a lot's changed in a couple of days. The town clock's working again and Ellie's out of her ice cream shop."
"Okay, kid, let's get you to school," the blonde replied sternly before turning back toward Ellie and Jake, "Sorry to be rude. My name's Emma."
"Elizabeth Snow, but you can call me Ellie," she replied with a warm smile as Jake introduced himself beside her.
"She's my real mom," Henry added.
"Oh…wow," Jake said, his smile never faltering, "Well, isn't that something?"
Emma gave them an apologetic smile and placed her hand on Henry's shoulder, ushering him toward the front door, "It was nice meeting you. Come on, kid."
They watched the two go before Jake glanced at the clock overhead and sighed, "Is that the time? If it isn't too much trouble, would you mind if we met again?"
Ellie stayed silent for a moment before shaking her head, "No, not at all, actually."
"Great!" Jake grabbed his briefcase and thanked Mrs. Lucas for the coffee; "I can walk you to your shop if you'd like."
"No, it's all right. Chris threatened to keep the shop closed if I got back too early."
"It's a sign. You should start taking it easy, Miss Snow," he said, backing away toward the front door and never taking her eyes off her, "Have a little fun once in a while."
Ellie stayed quiet and waved as he made his way out before dropping it onto her lap and realizing he was right.
When she thought about it, it felt like several years had gone by since she took over the shop instead of just three. Since her parents' death, she worked open to close everyday without a second thought.
Henry's comment replayed in her mind over and over again, and she realized he was right. A lot had changed in just two days.
