Anna opens her eyes; her sight falling on the digital clock on the bedside cabinet next to her. 9:30 am it reads. Yawning, she turns to her right to see that Elsa was gone but there's a note on her pillow. Picking up the note, blinking her eyes few times to shake away the sleepiness, she read the note;
Good morning snowflake
Sorry for not waking you up before I went to work, you're just too cute when you sleep; especially with the drool and snoring. LOL. So I decided to not disturb you, my sleeping beauty. I already prepared your breakfast; put it in the microwave for 3 minutes. I'll be back for dinner.
Love you, baby snowflake.
Your big sister, Elsa.
Anna read the letter with a huge smile. "I love you too." She muttered to herself, wishing that her words would carry on air and go to her sister at her work.
Anna starts her day with a shower, then she makes her bed and steps out from the room and heads down to the kitchen. Elsa had prepared an omelette and pancake with a cup of orange juice next to the plate. She puts the plate in microwave just like Elsa said, setting it for three minutes, and waits for it, the hum of the machine filling the air like a drone.
As Anna waited, however, she began to think back those four years to the day she had dreaded the most. The day when her sister had left home.
XXXXXXXXXX
"Please don't go. Please." Thirteen year old Anna begs to her sister to get her to stay.
Elsa keeps walking to the front door without looking at her. Anna, with tears in her eyes, rushes over and hugs her sister from behind.
"Elsa. Please don't do this. I need you." Anna cried, tears streaming down her face as if her eyes had become waterfalls.
Elsa stops and turns around to face Anna, a sad look on her face. "Snowflake listen, I need to go for now. Only for a while; I promise. I'll be back for you." She says to her.
Anna shakes her head. "No! Take me with you, Elsa. Please." She begs her sister being unable to imagine her life without her protector, her best friend and most of all her sister.
Elsa unclips her snowflake necklace and puts it around Anna's neck. "Take this, Anna. It'll remind you of me, and I promise one day, I'll come back for you."
"No, Elsa..." Anna cried again.
Elsa, now tears forming in her own eyes, gives her sister one last kiss on her forehead and hugs her tightly, not wanting to let her go. She wanted to take her with her now, away from her parents, but it was impossible. Elsa had no place of her own and looking after her sister was not going to be easy. Even if she took her away from her parents, there was no doubt social services would get involved take her away. No, Elsa did not want to risk it. Despite there being no way out, leaving her here was the best, and quite frankly, only option to her.
After a moment or two, Elsa released her sister and, holding back her tears, walks out from the apartment; Anna's begging and crying hammering away in her ears.
"Good morning, red head!"
Anna snapped back into reality to see see Olaf sitting across from her, her hand having lowered to play with the snowflake necklace around her neck. The microwave had stopped and she was standing there with Olaf standing in the kitchen doorway looking at her with a concerned expression.
"You okay?" Olaf asks.
Anna nods her head and smiles at Olaf, trying to brush aside the sadness. "Yes, yes, I'm okay. I just got lost in my thoughts." She told him.
"Just like your sister; always lost in thought." Olaf said with a small chuckle. "Collin's sisters."
Anna chuckles along and then she realises something. "Hey, you're not working today?" She asks him.
"Night shift, sweetheart," he tells her. "I go to work when your sister comes home." He opened a cupboard and took out a bowl and some cereal. "Now, let's eat breakfast!" he said cheerfully.
Anna spent the whole morning talking with Olaf and, after they had had breakfast and gotten washed and dressed, they enjoyed a tennis game on Kristoff's Wii. Anna is losing to Olaf when the man's phone buzzes. He pauses the game and reaches for his phone.
"Oh, it's your sister." Olaf said and hits the answer button. "Hello."
Anna can't hear Elsa's voice but Olaf nods after a few seconds.
"Yes, your baby snowflake is fine. She's here, playing Wii with me. No, not yet. Okay, wait." Olaf hands the phone to Anna.
Anna takes the phone from Olaf happily. "Hello." She says into it.
"Hey, snowflake. I miss you." Came Elsa's voice.
"I miss you too. Why you didn't you wake me up before you went to work?" Anna said, pouting even though Elsa cannot see it.
"Aww, sorry snowflake, you look so adorable when you sleep and I know you're tired after yesterday so I let you sleep. You get my note?"
"Yes, I've read it and thank you for the breakfast."
"You welcome, sweetheart. Well, I have to go now. I'll be back at 7 and we will have dinner together. I love you, Anna."
"I love you too."
Anna hits the end call button and hands the phone back to Olaf.
"Elsa really loves you. You know that, red head?" Olaf asks Anna.
Anna nods her head. "I know. I love her too." She replies, sighing.
"Know what? Why don't you tell me more about Elsa while we walk to the restaurant down on the corner for lunch?" Olaf suggests
"Sure."
"She always took the hit for me. Every time dad came home drunk, Elsa would say to me to get into our room and stay there. Then I would hear dad calling for me but Elsa went instead of me." Anna was explaining to Olaf as they sat at their table. "Dad started yelling and everything and the next thing I know, Elsa came back to our room with a red cheek or something else. She never cried about it though. Not once did I see her tears over dad's beatings. I felt sorry for her and I cried for her; then she would wrap her arms around me, kiss my face, forehead and sing my favourite song and stay with me until I sleep."
Olaf listened to Anna's story with so much hatred toward her dad. How could he do that to his own daughters? Surely something would have had to have been done about it!
"I can't believe he did that to you, Anna!" he gasped. "I'm sorry but if I had known you before I would have given his a piece of my mind and..."
"No, it's fine Olaf. Sometimes I wanted to kill him too." Anna said with a heavy sigh. "But he's my dad." She paused and corrected herself. "Or was my dad,"
"A dad supposed to love and protect his daughters, not treat them like they're things to be abused!" Olaf said in a serious tone.
"I know and I'm lucky coz I have Elsa. She protects me despite everything I've been through; just like a guardian angel. I love her so much and the day she left our house was and still is the darkest day in my life. Dad made me his punching bag all day long for four years. Belle came when I was fourteen, about a year after Elsa left, and helped me but she would never be Elsa. Elsa will take a bullet for me. I know she had her own reason for leaving and I know whatever her reason is, she did it for my best. I've never stopped loving and praying that one day I'll get my sister back." Anna said with a tears in her eyes.
Olaf takes Anna's hand and squeezes it. "You guys are together now. Through all the years I know Elsa, she loves you more than anything or anyone; heck even her own life. You have nothing to worry about red head. Elsa won't let you out of her sight again. I can promise you that."
Anna looks at Olaf and returns his smile. "Thank you, Olaf." She said, wiping her eyes dry.
That was their afternoon; the two of them spending the whole afternoon talking about Anna's and Elsa's lives.
Olaf looked at his watch. "Anna, I have to go to work in 30 minutes. You want me to walk you back or you want to come with and then get home with Elsa?" He asked her.
Without a second thought Anna said. "I want to go with you."
Olaf smiled. "Okay then. Let's go."
They made their way to Starbucks, which was about twenty minutes walking distance from where they lived. When they arrived, Elsa was busy doing her work, taking an order from her customer. Anna playfully lines up and waits for her turn. Eagerly she looks in front of her every few moments to see the line thin every few moments.
Finally its Anna's turn and Anna skipped up to the counter.
"Hello, welcome to Star... Anna?" Elsa said pausing when she looked up to see her sister.
Anna chuckled. "Can I have a cup hot chocolate, please?" She asked, giggling at Elsa.
Elsa smiled. "Of course, Miss Anna, give me a minute." Elsa plays along and starts making the order. When it is done, she hands it to Anna. "Here you go. Enjoy it."
"Thank you, Elsa. Love you." Anna said and sends a flying kiss to Elsa.
Elsa pretends to catch it and put it to her heart. "I love you too, snowflake. Now go take a seat, I'll be done in five minutes."
"Okay."Anna nods and skipped happily to one of the stool by the window, a few of the customers giggling at what they had just seen.
A few minutes pass before Elsa come to her just as Anna finishes her hot chocolate.
"Okay I'm done. Let's go." She says to her.
Anna gets up, intertwining their fingers and places a kiss on Elsa's cheek.
"Wow! Someone is happy today. What you did with Olaf?" Elsa said teasingly as they walked out of Starbucks.
"Nothing; we just talk about life and I realised how much I love you." Anna replied, smiling warmly at Elsa.
Elsa looks at Anna for few minutes with a loving expression. Then, she smiles and kisses her forehead. "Oh snowflake, you have no idea how much I love you. Now, let's find something to eat. I'm hungry."
The sisters walk hand in hand to Elsa's car. When they reached it, however, Anna stopped. There was something she wanted to tell Elsa, something that would surely surprise her.
"Hey, Elsa." Anna said timidly.
"Hmm?" Elsa replied, looking at her sister.
Anna took a deep breath and said "I want to find a job."
As Anna expected, Elsa sighed. "Anna, we've talked about this." She said looking away from Anna to her bag to find her car keys.
Anna walks up to Elsa and lifts her face so it is looking at her, which surprised her sister.
"No! We've not talked about it yet. I want to work. I want to find money and help you. I cannot just depend on you for the rest of my life." She says firmly to Elsa.
Elsa looks deeply into Anna's eyes. She had Anna's face on her hand as her younger sister placed it on her cheek and placed her own hand on Elsa's cheek.
"Anna, listen, I'm your big sister; you're my baby sister. It's always my responsibility to take care of you, provide everything you need and make sure you're safe." She tells her, but Anna shook her head.
"No, Elsa. That was our parent's job!"
"No! Forget about them. They do not exist anymore!" Elsa pauses and sighs, her forefinger and thumb pinching the bridge of her nose. "It's just you and me now. So it's my job! I'm gonna take care and protect you through everything. Let me worry about money."
Elsa said with a wink and continued. "You'll go to college next fall and get a good result; because you're a smart kid. Then, you'll get a good job, get a great husband and have a very happy family. I'll be there for you all the way."
Anna felt tears on her cheek but Elsa swept it away using her thumb.
"And snowflake, I don't care if you need to depend on me for the rest of your life. Heck I don't even mind if you keep depending on me after you get married and have a family or even when I'm dying." She adds
Before Elsa could react, Anna crushes herself on Elsa in a tight hug. "No! Don't say it. I don't want you to die or even to get married. I don't want you to leave my side ever! I want to be with you forever. I just want my sister!" she cries.
Elsa returns the hug. "I'm not going anywhere again, baby snowflake. I've got you. You'll be just fine. I promise you."
And that was it for them. The sisters had a good night. They had dinner together at Pizza Hut; talking about Nate, Olaf, Kristoff, Belle and Rapunzel. They laughed and had fun, forgetting about the past. They returned home at midnight and fall asleep in each other's arms on their bed.
They were perfect sisters and nothing could tear them apart.