He groaned falling back on his chair and pressed his fingers to his eyelids.

'You look like you've been rescued from a burning building, Tadashi," she said pulling out a chair and sitting across from him on the cafe table.

"I just came back from a meeting with Calhoun," Tadashi explained taking off his cap and brushing his fingers through his hair. "She asked for the new name."

"And?" She gestured at him with a spoon encouraging him to continue.

Tadashi sighed in defeat. "And nothing."

"What?" She frowned. "You didn't give her the name?"

He shook his head avoiding meeting her eyes. "I don't have one."

"What do you mean you don't have one?" She pointed a threatening finger in his direction. "I told you to start looking for a replacement, like, two months ago!"

"I know!" He groaned bumping his head on the table. His voice came out muffled by the wooden surface as he spoke, "And I did start looking, but I just couldn't settle for one person."

"Alright." She leaned back crossing her arms. "Elaborate."

Tadashi moved his head so his cheek was pressed against the table instead. The emotional exhaustion kept his eyes closed. "I had someone in mind... but Calhoun was not okay with my pick." He chuckled as an attempt to lighten his sullen mood. "She nearly flipped when I mentioned his name. So she appointed another person for the job, who I'm sure would do great, but…" he trailed off with uncertainty.

"So? Go with your gut, moron," she said checking her nails.. "If you feel like he's the next one, then he's the next one. Calhoun will just have to accept your choice."

"But the thing is…" Tadashi sat up and finally met her eyes. "Calhoun said he wasn't ready for the responsibility, that it would be too much for him… and she's probably right, you know?" He shrugged. "And the girl, the girl Calhoun suggested, she will nail it for sure. On paper, she's the one. But him? He's got the heart for it."

"So let me get this straight... In terms of practicality, she's the pick to get the job done. And in terms of empathy and bonding with the audience, it's him."

Tadashi groaned. "Now you get my frustration."

"Actually, I don't."

It took a moment for him to mouth his next words. "... Excuse me?"

"Just pick both of them."

He scratched the back of his neck looking out through the window as he considered that option. "... I hadn't thought about that."

"Well, clearly," she said with a contemptuous snort. "We wouldn't be in this debacle if you had."

"Can I really do that?"

"If you think it's the right answer."

He paused for a moment, then he nodded slowly. "I do. I really do."

"You've got your successors then. Congratulations." She rolled her eyes.

With his energies restored, he pulled out his notebook computer. "I better arrange another meeting with Calhoun to let her know."

She leaned back resting an arm over the chair backrest and chuckled. "You do that, pal."

"Oh, man. I don't know what I would've done without you."

"Submitted yourself to a lot more of unnecessary suffering, that's for sure."


The Underground

Where Hawthorne High's student body can let their words fly high and free in the comfort of anonymity.

Inbox is open for submission. Keep in mind that identities will be kept secret and Babydoll does not tolerate hatred, cursing or any sort of disrespect.

The Rolling Stones has a song called "You can't always get what you want". You don't need to know the song to find enjoyment in what I'm going to say next, but you might want to listen to it to understand the point I'm trying to make.

So Mick Jagger starts singing about a lady and her glass of wine. What he wants? To meet her, to talk to get, to get to know her. Add here every lovers activity you'd like to add.

But life is tough and the world is a bad place, isn't it? Oh, Mick. You just can't always get what you want. Activists won't always achieve their goals by protesting, medicine won't save you from death forever, things won't always work out with the one you like, and several doors will be slammed on your face.

You can only imagine how that concept messes up with our brains specifically. We teenagers, as holders of all reason and irrefutable truth, don't take failure very well, and we definitely don't like when things don't go our way. So when you add High School to the equation, you just complicate things even more.

Think about it: High School is the first stop in our journeys of self-discovery. It's also where we learn, amongst many other useful skills like how to algebra, and how to identify social pyramid components in modern environments, how to nurture our egos. And the world wants us to accept that a giant wall will stand in our way, and we might as well accept that we will run right into it, and will end up breaking our noses with the impact? Oh, hell no!

But Mr. Jagger had another point to make in his song. That "you get what you need". That even though you failed, even though your wishes didn't become a reality, that even though things didn't go as you wanted them to, you still got something out of it.

You find out that you were better off without the lady with the wine, that medicines gave you just enough time to live, that you learned from your mistakes, that you turned around and there were other doors waiting to be opened.

Keep that in mind the next time you fail, Undergrounders. Don't go sulking around like it's the end of the world. Actually, scratch that. Sulk all you want. Drown yourself in ice cream. Cry. Hide in bed for days. Whine about it. Be mad. Scream. Break something. Go berserk.

Just remember to get back on your feet again.

No matter how much of a cliche it is, whoever said that life has its ups and downs was damn right. Even a queen like myself has had her low points in life. And trust me, it was not pretty.

So believe me when I say this: you're not alone.

Welp, now that the motivational speech is out of the way, shall we lighten the mood and head to the mail?

WakeMeUpAndIWillCutYou: Dear Babydoll, I'm interested in this guy. Where do you think we should go so we can get to know each other better?

Babydoll: There's no 'one size fits all' answer here. Pick somewhere that makes you feel comfortable. The location could also work as a conversation starter. As for me, invite me to Flo's Cafe for a hazelnut macchiato with chocolate sprinkles, and put one blueberry muffin on the side while you're at it. On Fridays, there's a 'two drinks for one' deal after six.

Hatesand: I'm in a dump. Give me sad songs to heal broken hearts.

Babydoll: Here's a playlist of the saddest songs of all times carefully chosen by yours truly. Enjoy.

sugarcube: Dear Babydoll, are you an early bird, or a night owl?

Babydoll: Depends on the moment, really. Babydoll is a versatile girl. But I'd say I'm more of a night owl right now.

Blow_up_the_candles: Dear Babydoll, my mom forgot about my birthday. Now I don't know if I'm sad or angry at her.

Babydoll: Oh, that is just awful! If I were you, I'd remind her about the day she got a whole human being out of her vagina. Although, keep in mind that she must've had enough worries haunting her mind to forget such an important date. Mothers are human too, they're allowed to make mistakes. It doesn't make up for it, but Babydoll wishes you a happy late birthday, by the way.

manoverboard: Dear Babydoll, why do I feel so lost?

Babydoll: Because you're alive. And as long as you keep doing so, you'll continue to walk unwalked paths and sail unsailed seas. Ever heard about the 'entropy of the universe' thing? It says that the universe is formed by a bunch of hot and cold bodies and that they'll keep sharing heat until they're all the same temperature. Hot and cold, up and down, in and out, moving and stopping and then… death. So don't be upset that you're standing at a low point right now, it just means that you're moving upwards next.

Coolcoolcoolnodoubt: Dear Babydoll, how do you deal when one of your friends wants to break it off with another friend? Who's side are you supposed to be on? Help!

Babydoll: Easy: who do you like the most? Being serious now, it's a really tough spot to be in. It's hard saying who's at fault in a discussion. The world is not black and white, and let's be real, no one is completely right in a fight. I would try to remain neutral if I were you. Oh, but watch out for anyone who tries to hold your friendship hostage of the fight. "Stop talking to X or we're not friends anymore" is not the way to go. Your relationships are yours to nurture or cut off, and no fight between friends should jeopardize that.

Have a great day, Undergrounders.

Love,

Babydoll.


She tapped her finger on her forearm impatiently. They had less than ten minutes before the first bell, and he was late.

If it wasn't enough that he had sent her a 'we need to talk' message and refused to explain anything else after that, he was also late. So there she stood, at the rarely used third-floor staircase, waiting for her secret partner to show up, praying that no one spotted them together, but also imagining terrible scenarios for calling his emergency meeting in her mind.

She heard footsteps at the bottom of the stairs, and her heart went cold. She held her breath waiting for the other person to come to her sight.

Elsa breathed out relieved as that familiar guy with the silver hair and cocky attitude approached her. "You're late," she hissed.

"Sorry," he said, and his voice sounded anything but apologetic.

She sighed leaning back against the wall. "So what was the oh-so-important talk about?" she asked going straight to the point.

He huffed messing his hair with a hand. "I may have fucked things up last night."

She narrowed her eyes waiting for him to look at her, but he kept his eyes glued to the floor. "What the hell did you do?"

He took a deep breath before opening his mouth to explain.

And so he explained. He explained everything. About how they had been spotted together, how he—very innocently, mind you—had gone to The Edge for milkshakes, how nosy Astrid Hofferson had demanded to know what was the relationship between him and Elsa, how he may have admitted being interested in her… and that he may have been trying to score a date with her on Valentine's day for free goods.

Elsa let the air out through her noses slowly, her lips were pressed together in a thin line, and her eyes hadn't left him once while he talked.

He scratched the back of his neck, uncomfortable with the glaring and the cold silence. "Uh… Please, say something, Queenie."

She tsked. "You truly are an idiot."

"Okay, that was harsh," he mumbled with a frown.

"What—what is that supposed to mean exactly?" she asked gesturing between them with her index finger.

Jack shrugged. "That I'm courting you at least until V-day."

"Courting me?" She laughed despite the absurdity of the situation. "So what? You're gonna write me poetry and recite it under my balcony?"

He smirked. "I'm more of a boombox kind of guy."

She rolled her eyes. "Why on Earth would you tell such nonsense?" Elsa asked with a glare.

"I panicked, okay?" He grunted. "You should be glad I didn't give away our big secret and I threw them off our scent."

Elsa snorted. "Oh, I am so glad, Frost. Thank you for making me your newest conquest. Thank you for turning me into another one of your brainless groupies. Thank you so much for insinuating that I have romantic feelings for you when in reality, I wouldn't dare be found in the same room as you if it wasn't for this stupid partnership!" her voice escalated with every word, her face turning red and her breath growing uneven as she spoke.

Jack looked at her, hurt clear in his eyes, but also anger and impatience. "Wow, Queenie. You sure know how to make a guy feel good about himself. What was I thinking, right? I so should've remembered what a living nightmare it would be for you to be involved with me." He laughed a humorless laugh. "My apologies."

The blonde let her anger fade slowly. Shaking her head, she sighed. "Couldn't you say that we were studying together? That's what I tell my sister."

Jack snorted. "Yeah, I copy all of my homework from Hiccup. There's no way he would buy that one."

Elsa arched an eyebrow at him. "You sound rather proud of being an idiot."

He shrugged. "Look," he said with a sigh. "It's not that bad—"

"Easy for you to say," she mumbled interrupting him. "You're not the one who's gonna look like a silly girl falling for an egocentric idiot!"

Jack ran his hands through his hair exasperated. "It's only for a few weeks, Elsa. And if it makes you feel better, you can break up with me when the time comes."

The cogs on her brain were working as she considered his proposition. "... I'm listening."

Holding on to the opportunity, he continued, "I'll act heartbroken, and you can tell everyone how you dumped me and what a sobbing mess I was after."

Elsa looked away, eyes focusing on a spot on the floor. Without realizing, she started playing with the end of her braid in thinking.

"Look," Jack said. "Hiccup and Astrid aren't the gossipy types and they're not gonna go out telling people about… us." He flinched at the sound of her hissing. "So if we don't make a big fuss about it, people will leave us alone and it'll be like nothing changed at—"

"Alright."

Jack looked at her to make sure he hadn't misheard her. "What was that?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'll help with your cover," she said raising her hands to his neck.

Jack froze, sucking in a breath as her fingers touched the fabric of his hoodie and traced its collar.

"In exchange," she said neatly smoothing the wrinkles on his jacket and looking up at him, her eyes were very serious and demanding. "you will pay for my coffees until we break up."

Jack quickly recovered from his stupor and winked at her smoothly. "Kiss to seal the deal?" he asked placing a hand on her waist.

She laughed. "Easy, Romeo." She took a step back letting his fingers slide off her. With her eyes half-lidded and a husky whisper, she added, "You still gotta court me first."

With a wink too much like his, Elsa turned on her heels and waved him goodbye.

Had she stood there a little longer, she would have noticed the catatonic state she had left Jack in. His eyes were wide, and his jaw was dropped. He was frozen in place. His brain seemed to have melted, and a clapping monkey toy went wild in the vacant space, making his ears ring.

Before he could make sense of their conversation though, the bell rang.

Somehow, he managed to snap back to a reality that made sense—one in which Elsa hadn't agreed to (fake) date him, much less didn't blatantly flirt with him.

A reality in which he was late for class.

"Shit," he cursed storming down the stairs and running for dear life.

He had a feeling that if he stopped and gave his brain the tiniest opportunity to process recent events, he wouldn't be able to get out of the vegetative state for at least a week...


As it turned out, he was a better runner than he thought. He reached the classroom before the teacher and pushed himself all the way to his seat with wobbly legs.

"Living on the edge, aren't we?" Hiccup mocked.

Jack ignored him and collapsed on his seat resting his forehead against the cool surface of the lab desk.

"You okay?" Hiccup asked, and there was a hint of concern on his voice.

"Yeah," Jack said between heavy breaths.

"So… where were you this morning?" Hiccup asked placing his elbows on the table and resting his chin on both hands?

Jack shrugged. His breathing was slowing down. "Slept in."

"Really?" Hiccup frowned suspiciously. "I thought I saw your car in the parking lot."

Jack cursed his friends' detective skills. He felt the back of his neck heating up, but ignored it. Thinking fast, he said, "Okay, you got me. I had some... issues to take care of. In the bathroom. My digestive system didn't take last night's milkshakes that well…"

"Gross." Hiccup groaned with a scowl.

"You asked."

"I didn't expect you to share your morning case of diarrhea—people like to keep those private." Hiccup sighed. "I thought you would have something juicier to share."

For a millisecond, Jack panicked. His brain was starting to drift off to that weird place. He pinched his thigh, and the pain worked as an anchor. "Like what?" he asked with such poker face that he felt like patting himself on the back.

A knowing smirk formed on the corner of Hiccup's lips. "Like that you were, in reality, spending some sweet time with your girl."

Jack kept pinching himself, which helped to keep his mind clear. He frowned at the guy beside him. Had Hiccup seen them together? No, Hiccup would have called him out on the diarrhea lie if he had. That was just Hiccup being a romantic dork.

"It's not like that, Third."

Hiccup chuckled. "And yet you knew very well what, or rather who I was talking about."

Jack kicked himself for the slip-up.

Hiccup, with his amused grin still splattered across his face, said, "Come on, now that Astrid is not around, you can be real with me. I know for a fact that you used to have a crush on Elsa. So what's the deal, Frost?"

Pinch, pinch, pinch again.

Discreetly, Jack breathed slowly through his nose. "That was in third grade," he reminded his friend. "People move on, you know." As he remembered who he was talking to, he quickly added, "Well, not you, Mr. 'I only liked one girl my entire life', but like, normal people."

"So... you don't like her anymore?"

"I don't."

"You don't feel anything for her?" Hiccup pressed some more.

Something about Hiccup being Hiccup, a nerd with a nasal voice, only one and a half leg, and a well of unending childlike innocence was making it easier and easier to talk about Elsa. Or rather lie about Elsa. Hiccup's easily deceivable wonder reminded him of many other dumber conversations they had at one point or another in their friendship, and the more Hiccup pressed, the more relaxed Jack felt to blurt out nonsenses with nonchalance. Which was very appreciated by his poor thigh.

The silverhead shrugged. "Not really. I mean, I'm not retarded: she's an amazing girl. Beautiful, smart, talented, funny when she's not being a stuck up bitch, sexy…" Okay, maybe one more pinch.

"What was that about you not liking her again?" Hiccup asked, unsuccessfully attempting to conceal his smirk.

"She's too high maintenance for me."

"What's life without a challenge or two?"

"Alright, get your phony wisdom out of here." Jack rolled his eyes.

"Look," Hiccup said raising his hands in an appeasing gesture. "I know how you like to fool around and play games when you're bored, Frost. But, you know, you should go for if you really like her."

"Even if I felt that way—and I'm not saying that I do, you hear me good, Hiccup? I don't—, what makes you think she would be happy about my supposed feelings?"

Hiccup shrugged. "You won't know if you keep sitting on your ass, that's for sure. And if there's anyone that can make her fall in love with them, that person is you, Casanova."

Jack laughed. "You flatter me too much, Third."

"I'm confident enough now to say that Astrid and I wouldn't be together if it weren't for your unwanted help," Hiccup reasoned with sincerity. "I wanna see you in love for once."

"What's this I'm hearing?" Tuffnut Thorston sitting at the table in front of theirs turned around, leaning over the counter in the other two guys' direction. He narrowed his eyes as he stared at the silverhead. "Our Frost is in love?"

His twin sister, Ruffnut crossed her arms looking at them as well, a smug expression on her face. "Ooooohh…"

Jack glared at Hiccup, then directed his glare at the twins. "I'm not."

"Who's the lucky lady?" Snotlout Jorgenson asked from a nearby desk.

"No lady," Jack grumbled pressing a hand to his face.

"Lucky guy?" Fishlegs chimed in.

Jack gritted his teeth. "There is no one."

"Come on, J," Tuff said with a pleading moan. "Who's your S.O.?"

"I don't have an S.O."

"Hiccup?" the female Thorston called.

"Yes, Ruff?" Hiccup asked amused.

"Spill the tea."

Hiccup smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I can't say."

"So there is someone," Fishlegs concluded.

"I never said that." Hiccup shook his head and with a mischievous smirk, he added, "I also never said that Jack was strolling around the line between friendship and something more with Elsa Arendelle, the president of the Drama club."

Jack kicked his friend on the sheen making the other guy flinch in pain.

Tuff sat back down in shock. The rest of them stared at the silverhead with mouths agape.

"Wow."

"This—"

"—Changes—"

"—Everything."

Jack threw a punch at Hiccup's shoulder. With a cold glare, he hissed, "I hope you're really proud of what you've done, you son of a bitch."

Hiccup shrugged rubbing the sore spot where he had been hit. "All's fair in love and war."


She could not believe it.

She could not believe it.

How was it possible that that guy was even more incompetent than she ever considered possible. As soon as the bell for the lunch break rung, she collected her belongings and rushed out of the classroom, to her friends' confusion. She stomped down the hallway, moving past random students, ignoring the snickering and staring, looking for that stupid mop of silver hair.

Elsa spotted him laughing carefree with his group of friends, and she marched in their direction. They stared at her as she stopped in front of him, but she unceremoniously ignored them altogether.

"Hi," she said smiling a terribly fake sweet smile at Jack. "Can I talk to you?"

She didn't even wait for him to answer before turning on her heels and heading down the hallway, looking for somewhere more secluded they could talk. She glanced through a cracked door and gestured for them to go inside.

"What the hell, Frost?"

He flinched with his back turned to her as he closed the door slowly. "Trust me, I'm as unhappy as you are with this development."

"You said your friends weren't going to say anything!"

Jack groaned. "Okay, it got out of control."

"Your whole life is a sequence of events getting out of control!" Elsa exploded. Her face was red, and her chest went up and down with her heavy breaths.

Jack bit his lip and lowered his eyes to the floor. He had no argument to counter her statement, especially not in face of the latest happenings.

"It's been less than five hours, Frost, and I lost count of how many weird looks and questions I got from people wondering whether you and I were a couple or not."

"I know, I know," he mumbled running his hands through his hair. "In my defense, Hiccup really ships us together."

She glared at him, incredulity written all over her face. "How does that make anything better?"

He shrugged. "At least you won't think that all my friends are blabblers who thrive amidst chaos. Hiccup was trying to have a heartfelt conversation with me, and we were overheard. Not his fault."

Elsa took a step back. She felt her anger slowly dissipating. Her hands were still shaking, and her jaw was clenched, but she also felt a new burning sensation on her throat. A sign of guilt and regret. "I don't—I don't blame them." She sighed pinching the bridge of her nose. "I have nothing against your friends, Jack. In fact, I know Hiccup, and if anything, it makes me wonder why he's friends with someone so… you."

Jack snorted throwing his head back. "Because I'm amazing and Hiccup would be lost without me."

She rolled her eyes. "I'm sure he would be."

"So…" Jack scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "Are we good?"

"Yes," Elsa said with a dramatic sigh. "We're good."

He nodded. "Plan remains the same, right? We don't make a big deal out of it, and people will soon get tired and leave us alone."

It was her turn to nod. "Right."

Jack turned around to open the door and held it for her to leave the classroom first. "Great job out there, by the way," he said as they walked together to the cafeteria.

Elsa gave him a questioning look.

"Pulling me for a private conversation in front of everyone," he explained. "You keep that up, and people won't have much to question about our relationship in no time."

She scoffed. "There is no relationship to be questioned."

"Watch it, Queenie," he whispered with a smirk on his lips. "People can hear you."

Elsa rolled her eyes, shoving him by the shoulder with just enough strength to make a point.

Jack laughed, jogging in front of her. "See you around, beautiful."

"Don't call me that," she hissed.

His only reply was a wink thrown at her from over his shoulder. And then she lost him in the sea of students ahead.


"And he though Tuff was a girl and started flirting with him," Hiccup said waving his arms eagerly.

Jack laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. "I bet Ruff wasn't very happy with that."

"Not in the beginning," Hiccup agreed. "But then she just accepted that he was more connected to his feminine side than her and just rolled with it."

"Man, I can't believe I missed that," Jack said as they entered the changing rooms for basketball practice.

And as soon as they entered, conversation ceased, and they found the rest of the team staring at the duo.

"Hello, gentlemen," Jack said looking back at Hiccup with confusion. Did he have something on his face again? "What are we looking at?"

"You!"

"What?" Jack stumbled back as a bunch of limbs went flying in his direction, and he felt arms wrapping around his shoulders and hands messing his hair.

"You dog!" Guy yelled in his ear.

"You and fucking Elsa Arendelle?" Shrek, nearly strangling the silverhead with the tight lock around his neck, demanded to know.

"When did that happen?" someone else asked.

"I thought she didn't do jocks..."

"Weren't you with Tooth?"

"No, idiot. She's with Bunny now..."

The cacophony of voices jumbled up together, making it hard for him to understand everything that was being asked, or which one of his friends was asking the questions.

"Well, you know…" Jack said casually, and the rest of the team stopped to listen carefully, as if their lives depended on it. "Summer lovin'...happened so fast…"

There was a moment of silence when the guys only started at the silverhead making sense of his last sentence. Some of them even mouthed the words silently as if the action would help assimilate their meaning.

Shrek loosened the grip he had around Jack's neck and stared at the silverhead like he was an alien.. "... What?"

From the corner of his eye, Jack could see Hiccup facepalming. "I cannot believe you're quoting Grease," the auburn-haired guy mumbled.

Jack winked at him with amusement. "Oh, Third. I knew we were soulmates."

"Grease? Who's Grease? And what's he got to do with anything, you nerd?" Shrek huffed impatiently.

At once, the commotion once again started, and the mess of several voices speaking together flooded the room.

"What the hell is a summer loving anyways?"

"Yeah, who says that?"

"Is it like a fling?"

"That means you two hooked up during summer break?"

"And you kept your trap shut until now?!"

Hiccup clapped catching everyone's attention. "Come on, guys," he said with a tired sigh. "Coach gonna make us run laps until sunset if we're late."

As the bunch of bumbling jocks cleared out the changing room, Jack and Hiccup walked to their lockers.

"Thanks for the rescue," Jack said in a low voice.

"I may still feel a little bad about what happened this morning."

Jack glared at him. "As you should, you asshole."

Hiccup chuckled, patting the silverhead's back comfortingly. "I'll treat you to some food, how about that?"

"You know, I'll take you up on that offer. And I actually have the perfect location in mind. Think you can clear your schedule for the afternoon?"

"For you my dear, anything."

"Careful, Hics," Jack said with a laugh. "Or I'll end up falling for you instead."


Elsa was collecting her things after they had wrapped up rehearsal that afternoon. She was just putting her belongings back inside her backpack when her cousin poked her in the shoulder.

"Look who's getting acquainted with the Drama Club members," Rapunzel said.

Elsa looked in the direction the other girl was pointing to find her little sister up in the stage struggling with her arms filled with rolled up papers and cans of paint. Now, what surprised her—and she figured, what had made Rapunzel call her in the first place, was the tall, bulky guy carrying a similar assortment of art supplies alongside Anna.

Although the girls couldn't hear what the other two were talking about, they were both smiling and seemed to be having a quite pleasant conversation. The duo disappeared through the side curtains, and Elsa took that moment to give her cousin a curious look.

"What's that about?" she asked throwing her bag over her shoulder.

Rapunzel shrugged nonchalantly. "They were kinda getting along during rehearsal."

Elsa's eyebrows shot upwards. "Is that so? Anna didn't tell me a thing."

"She didn't tell me anything either," Rapunzel replied, and the two girls headed to the auditorium doors together.

"And here I thought they were working on the garden standees…"

Rapunzel snorted. She opened the door and held it for Elsa as she said, "Isn't it good though? Weren't you worried 'cause he was still strung up on the punishment thing?" She glanced back at the stage one last time. "He should be a little less sulky if helping means hanging out with the girl he has a crush on…"

Elsa crossed her arms as the two girls waited with their backs against the auditorium's wall. "A crush, you say?"

Rapunzel gave her a knowing smirk. "On someone that maybe reciprocates said feelings, I dare add."

Elsa's eyes narrowed as the sight of her sister smiling at the boy came back to her mind. She pressed two fingers to her temple breathing slowly. "Remind me why I haven't seen this so obvious development until now?"

Rapunzel shrugged. "I guess sitting on the director's chair means you miss the minor things going on backstage… You're so busy making sure that the play goes well that your brain is ignoring the less important things."

"Anna is my sister, and anything related to her should be important enough to my brain."

"Yeah, but it's not like they are hooking up behind the curtains, or anything like that. Far as we know, they're just talking. surprisingly amicably out of a sudden, sure, but still just talking."

Elsa hummed in agreement.

"What about you?" Rapunzel asked turning to face the other girl. "What's this rumor I hear about you and that Jack Frost guy?"

"You know about that, huh?" Elsa mumbled tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, pretty sure the whole school knows." Rapunzel looked at her expectantly.

"We ran into each other a couple of times and got to talk a little." Elsa shrugged nonchalantly. "It's not a big deal."

"Are you two going out?"

"Not really."

It was Rapunzel's turn to hum at that statement. "Are you planning on it?" she asked.

Elsa repeated the same reply as she checked her watch. Not interested in giving continuity to that conversation, she groaned glaring at the auditorium's entrance. "What's taking her so long?"

As if on cue, the double doors opened, and out came Anna, laughing at something the guy accompanying her said. If they were surprised at finding Elsa and Rapunzel there, the couple didn't show—which was something when taking Anna's lack of subtlety into consideration.

"Nice timing," Rapunzel mocked pushing herself off the wall.

Kristoff bid them farewell, and Elsa and Rapunzel had to watch themselves not to slip any embarrassing comment.

"Ready to go?" Elsa asked her sister after Kristoff left.

"Yeah." Anna awkwardly adjusted the strap of her backpack as they headed to the parking lot. "Can we stop for something to drink on the way home?"

"I thought you had an unending pile of homework to do…" Elsa reminded her.

"It will be quick, I promise."

Elsa sighed. "That okay with you, Punz?"

"Sure," Rapunzel said with a shrug.

As they got to the car, Elsa's phone vibrated signaling a new message. She checked it before plugging the key into the ignition.

She frowned at the sender of the video she had just received. She hit play, and the first three seconds were enough to make her hiss. "Anna, the place you want to stop by wouldn't be this place, by any chance, would it?" Elsa asked turning her cell phone's screen in Anna's direction.

The video was an amateur film shot from a cellphone that started with Flo's cafe sign and moved to a window to show inside the establishment. The image trembled in the rhythm of muffled giggling, but despite the shakiness, it was easy to identify the explosion of teenagers inside the coffee shop. The mass of people was so dense that once inside, they were trapped, unable to move.

Anna watched for a moment, her eyes widening and mouth opening, then composed herself and replied nonchalantly, "As a matter of fact, it would."

"That's insane!" Rapunzel exclaimed when Elsa showed her the video. "How did you get that?"

"A very vocal supporter of Babydoll is there right now," Elsa explained turning the car on. "The video is probably circling around."

"So all those people read today's post on The Underground, huh?" Rapunzel mused.

"Think she's there too?" Anna asked with excitement.

Elsa took a deep, exhausted breath. Her day was just getting better and better. "Being the drama queen that she is, I'd be more surprised if she wasn't…"


If it were any other day, he would have long given up and fled the place. Hell, any other day, he wouldn't even step inside the place. But there was something very appealing about the situation. The notion that he had the power to influence such a crowd was mind-blowing. And a little flattering. Some people would say that he didn't need the ego boost, but he still liked to feel so important.

And it was with great pleasure that he sent a video of the scene to his lady partner in crime.

What he didn't expect was that, during a pause on the game of 'who do you think Babydoll is' he was playing with Hiccup, the recipient of his video would walk inside the coffee shop accompanied by her sister and her cousin.

After assessing the situation, the three girls went to wait in line. Luckily, the sea of people had already purchased their beverages, and the line was fairly small.

He had a good view of her and vice versa, but he guessed he was well camouflaged standing in the corner with Hiccup, because she hadn't given any sign of seeing him.

With a grin, he started typing a new message.

Came to watch the show? he sent her.

He watched as she pulled out her phone, read his text, rolled her eyes, and put her phone back inside her jeans back pocket.

He sent her another message, but she completely ignored him this time.

Accepting the challenge, he sent another message and waited. Then, he sent another one. And another one, and another one.

The gap between one text and the other became shorter. At first, he wrote her name, or sent messages like 'don't ignore me', 'pick up your phone', and 'I know you're curious', but as she continued to ignore him, he started typing randomly and hitting send without even looking at the screen.

It was during that part of the battle that he spotted a very familiar face between the customers.

Sure, there were plenty of people from school that would fit in that category, but what raised a flag in his brain was that that person felt out of place in the middle of all the anxious energy. He was giving off some very different vibes.

He immediately snapped a picture of the unsub and sent it to Elsa. Again, she ignored it.

He groaned with annoyance, and the sound caught Hiccup's attention. His friend arched an eyebrow at him, and he waved the silent question off casually.

He stared at his phone and the flood of messages he had sent in the past ten minutes. It made him think of that story about the boy that cried wolf and ended up eaten in the end. Well, he would keep crying wolf until she gave him an ounce of her attention, because that was important.

He sent text after text until the buzzing became a continuous vibration. It probably pissed her off, but worked, as soon enough, Elsa was throwing glares around her in search of him. As their eyes met, Jack copied her annoyed expression and pointed at his phone.

Elsa rolled her eyes before reaching out for her phone.

He watched as she scrolled down all the messages, and a triumphant smirk rose to his lips as her face changed from 'I will murder you, you annoying prick' to 'what the hell is going on?'

His phone buzzed. He had a new message.

What's Hiro doing here? she wrote.

Getting two for one coffees? he replied.

His aunt owns a coffee shop.

Maybe he's a BD fan too.

Elsa was typing again when they heard something so unexpected that they both turned in the direction of the sound, completely dumbfounded.

"Babydoll!" the barista called.

The silence that followed that single word was unnerving. Everything was so still and so quiet that he wondered if time had stopped.

When no one went to claim the drink, the barista called her again. "Hazelnut macchiato for Babydoll?"

This time, he heard a snickering sound and turned just in time to see a hooded figure leaving the shop. The sound of the doorbell seemed to put the universe back in motion. The world started spinning again, and people chatted loudly speculating with each other about Babydoll's identity.

Or maybe to do that, he sent to Elsa.

Stop texting me.

She says as she continues to text me.

He looked at her, and she had that authoritarian look on. She mouthed 'stop texting me', and he winked in response, but she had already diverted her attention back to her companions.

… It was then that he noticed Hiccup watching him with a giddy grin on his face.

"What?" Jack asked aggressively.

"I didn't say anything." Hiccup shrugged innocently.

Jack was still glaring at Hiccup as he put down his phone and chugged the rest of his coffee. He scowled at the cup in his hands.

It was cold.


Elsa was sitting on the steps to her backyard, staring at her phone, pondering whether she should call him or not.

She took a moment to assess her surroundings: Anna was locked up in her room doing homework, and her parents had better things to do than eavesdrop on their teenage daughter's phone call. She was as safe as she could be.

Making up her mind, she pressed the dial button and waited. It rang three times before he picked up.

"Who died?" Jack Frost asked from the other side of the line.

Although he couldn't see her, she rolled her eyes. "Don't be dramatic," she said.

He chuckled and there was a sound of shuffling around as if he was lying down. "This is the first time you called me. Like, ever. Figured something terrible would have to happen to get a call from you."

"Something terrible happened alright," she stated angrily.

"I'm all ears."

"Your poorly planned story for our extracurricular activities together has ruined my alibi."

A pause, then a confused, "What?"

Elsa huffed before explaining, "Anna heard about the rumor about us and put together that I wasn't being one hundred percent honest about my weekly study group meetings."

"... I'm sorry?" His intonation was questioning.

She wrinkled her nose. "You could at least try to sound sorry."

"I'm sorry," he said again, and though he had dropped the doubt, she could hear the smirk on his voice, and she couldn't figure out which one was worse. "It's just that I don't really know what I can do to help."

She let out a contemptuous snort. "Oh, I don't expect your help, Frost. I'm just venting out my frustrations at you."

Jack hummed. "Is that making you feel better?" he asked.

"Yes." She was surprised to realize that she really felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

"Good to know," he said.

A moment of silence followed when she didn't know what else to say to keep the conversation going.

Before she could end the call, though, she heard his voice. "So, does this mean we can add phone calls to the list of limited means of communication between the two of us now?" he asked.

"Only at the face of relevant matters," she said.

"Talking about the weather becomes relevant when it's with you, beautiful."

She bit her lower lip to hold her laugh. "Don't call me that," she chastised.

The back door suddenly opened and Elsa lowered the phone from her ear.

"Dinner's ready," her mom said with a knowing smile.

"Okay, I'll be there in a second," Elsa said calmly and watched as her mother retreated back inside the house and closed the door. "I gotta go," she said on the phone.

"Don't let me hold you from your family, Queenie."

She scoffed.

"If you miss me, I'll be just one phone call away."

"Good night, Frost," she said unimpressed.

"Sweet dreams, Elsa."

For some reason, it took her a moment to hang up.

She figured it was part of the freshness of a phone call between them. As Jack had said, it was the first time they had spoken on the phone, and now that she thought about it, the first time she had spoken to someone outside family on the phone in… who knows how long?

Shaking off the odd assortment of feelings making her heart beat faster, she got on her feet and headed back inside.

She would deny if questioned, but in reality, it was with some effort that she erased the smile that had formed on her face at the end of their conversation...


Hands up if you thought I was dead.