The time on the deck seemed to have stopped. Two girls were laying one above the other, catching their breath, without caring of their surroundings and almost forgetting the events that had just happened .
Elsa was lying on her back against the hard and uncomfortable floor. Her attention wasn't directed on the throbbing pain in her body that implored to change position, or the bruise that was forming on her arm where the strawberry blonde girl had taken her and held her so firmly. Instead she was completely captured by the embarrassed and dreamy face of Anna, the girl who had just kissed.
Meanwhile, Anna was still believing to dream. She wasn't worried about the slightly tremble of her arms, as if they were protesting against the current position, and she was even less bothered by the bruise in her stomach caused from having clashed repeatedly against the metal railing.
She was out of breath again but the reason of it was the girl under her.
Her cheek, where she had been kissed, was throbbing, prolonging the feeling of soft lips that previously had touched it. She knew she had a ridiculous appearance with her cheeks so red, the messy hair and her incredulity wrote all over her face and apparently Elsa had thought the same thing since she was looking at her trying not to laugh.
Anna was still lost in Elsa's ice blue eyes when she felt someone tugging her away from the girl. She didn't even have time to raise her head to see her aggressors; she suddenly felt pressed against the floor, on her stomach, with her arms behind her back. The only thing she could do was scream a simple "Hey!" in a hoarse voice. If previously her body was in an uncomfortable position, she had changed idea. The way she was laying down in that moment was ten times worse. She could clearly feel every single wooden board against her body. She could even smell the damp and salty deck.
"Let me go!" She shouted.
She tried to break free but any attempt to fight seemed to be futile. Her head was turned toward the railing and she couldn't see Elsa's situation. She heard only one sentence from her:
"Leave her alone!"
But she was ignored too as the newcomers began to talk to each other.
"Should we call the captain?"
"That girl seems Southern's fiancée."
"Should we call him?"
"We'll call them both!"
"I'll get him here, you keep your eyes on them."
Anna didn't understand the meaning of these words. She was too busy trying to free herself but she gradually began to feel exhausted. Fatigue took possession of her body, forcing her to calm herself.
She heard footsteps getting away. She couldn't tell how many people were around there. Three, maybe four? And most importantly...
How was Elsa?
She couldn't understand how these bandits had managed to approach them without being heard, but probably it was their fault. They were so engrossed in each other's presence that the surroundings of the place, the sounds of the ship, the passing of time, had disappeared from their mind, and it was probably because of this that they hadn't heard none of those men approaching.
The man over her loosened his grip for a moment and, taking the opportunity, Anna managing to raise and turning her head slightly. She moved just enough to get the view of the other side of the deck but her aggressor didn't like that movement.
"Move another time and you'll never want to breathe again." He tightened his grip.
But Anna didn't care about him.
She had another priority. She immediately spotted Elsa a few meters from her.
Two men were standing beside her, admiring Elsa with lust. She seemed pretty annoyed: her arms were crossed, her brow frown and, apparently, she refused to speak and explain the situation to what Anna understand to be sailors. At least, however, Elsa was fine, and that was the most important thing.
On the other hand, Elsa had never been in favor of violence and seeing her savior thrown to the ground so badly certainly didn't help her mood. To be honest, the sudden events change had confused her: at first Anna's flower fragrance was filling her air, inebriating her sense, and then, with their arrival, all the magic was dispersed and Anna was thrown away from her.
Initially she didn't understand why they were making so much fuss, but after heard their conversation, and saw a sailor leaving in search of the captain and Hans, Elsa understood the situation.
Apparently her previously screams hadn't been ignored. They had attracted the attention of the crew on board, which had almost immediately rushed towards the source of the sounds. Once they reached their destination, the scene before them could only been mistaken.
Who wouldn't try to save an high class girl, apparently helpless, held to the ground by a young lady wearing second-hand clothes, lightly soiled, who seemed to have the upper hand?
Their uncombed hair let prefigure an attempt to fight by the blonde girl, not to mention those damn screams.
In any case, trying to be reasonable with these men was like trying to teach Hans the names of the most illustrious painters of the era: an impossible mission. She clearly understood it from their stupid faces. Only a bunch of idiots could be excited from having presumably saved the future fiancée of a Southern. A reward, that's what they expected. It was disgusting.
She looked in Anna direction and their eyes met. She felt a twinge of pain for the strawberry blonde girl, pressed against the floor and made a mental note to apologize to her later. Elsa turned to the two sailors who stood next to her, preparing to use the most authoritarian and coldest voice she could perform.
"Could you tell your friend over there to let the girl breathe? She won't run away, I promise."
The two looked at each other. The man on her right spoke.
"But ma'am, that girl is dang-"
"I won't repeat it again." She interrupted him.
The humiliated man then went toward the third sailor and reluctantly released Anna. The strawberry blonde girl sat down and stretched, giving a nod of thanks to Elsa. Then she stood, letting her hand slip down into the pockets of her pants, under the stare of the sailor.
They stayed silent for the remaining time. Anna and Elsa exchanged from time to time some glances, but no words came out of their mouths.
Luckily for them they didn't have to wait long for the arrival of Hans and the Captain, followed by the fourth sailor, a butler and the first officer.
Anna immediately understood she had important people before her. The captain was recognizable by the white uniform, which was different by the dark blue of the sailors around her, and the number of medals that were pinned on the chest. The officer was instead distinguished by his white uniform that was very similar with the police ones. There were a badge that all security guards had to have below and a nameplate under it, that Anna couldn't read, instead of the medals of the captain uniform.
The three were joined by an high class man with auburn hair and a pair of sideburns, followed by his butler. Both were dressed in clothes that were worth at least a hundred times the price of her clothing.
The man with sideburns, that she understood to be the famous Southern the sailors had mentioned, seemed pretty angry, and the first words she heard him say were not heartening.
"Arrest her and let her die in some cell!"
He was not angry. He was furious.
Anna couldn't think nothing but that she was in trouble.
The girl was spun and a pair of handcuffs were placed on her wrists. She didn't even try to fight. She decided to have faith in Elsa, who still had an impassive face, although Anna could see a mixture of horror and contempt under that mask.
To the blonde was reserved a total different attitude. The sailor, followed by the captain, approached her, placing a blanket over her shoulders, and walked over to a bench to make her sit down. Elsa let herself be dragged there, and, once seated, she turned to the captain.
"C-Captain Smith-" She said, trembling.
"It's Kai for you, Milady." He smiled.
"Kai then. There was a misunderstanding. That girl didn't tried to harm me. She..."
She paused, reliving the memory of the events that had just happened.
"... She saved my life"
Kai looked a bit shocked, and for a while there was only silent on the deck, allowing the screams of Hans to echo everywhere.
"This is unacceptable!"
"How dare you put your hands on my fiancée?"
"I'll kill you for assaulting her! I don't care if you're a woman!"
Elsa gave a pleading stare to the captain, who placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled.
"Don't worry. We will solve everything."
And he turned to join the others. Elsa got up and followed him, ignoring the comments of the sailor who was telling her to stand aside. Her eyes were once again headed to the strawberry blonde girl, whose face was impassive before the provocations of her future boyfriend.
Anna saw Elsa approaching and she turned her head in her direction to meet her gaze, but that made Hans more livid. He grabbed her collar, forcing Anna to look him straight in his eyes. He shouted in her face.
"Look at me, you filth!"
"Hans!"
Elsa's protest was heard, but the auburn-haired boy ignored it.
Hans should have been grateful that Anna had a pair of handcuffs to hold her, otherwise she would have already punched the arrogant man right in the face.
Hans's outburst was interrupted by Kai, who tried to regain peace.
"I think that's enough, Mr. Southern. Apparently there was a misunderstanding. She saved your girlfriend's life. "
Hans' eyes widened and, for a moment, he stared incredulously at Anna.
"It's impossible." He whispered, releasing his grip.
Finally, his gaze turned on Elsa. She nodded.
"Hans, it was an accident."
"An accident?"
He repeated, looking for explanations.
"It was!" Elsa said. "Stupid, really. I was leaning over and I slipped."
The blonde girl looked at Anna, who was clearly confused, as if she was seeking inspiration for the excuse that she was formulating.
"I was leaning far over to see the..." She continued, clearly distressed.
Then Anna gave a quick look around and, noticing that no one was watching her, she took the opportunity to spell the word "Propellers" in a voiceless whisper.
"... The propellers."
"The propellers?" Hans said, more shocked.
Elsa looked back at the man.
"The propellers, yeah." She confirmed . "And I slipped. I would have fallen into the sea but Mrs. Dawson grabbed me and saved me. Once back with my feet on the ground, however, I slipped again and we ended up on the ground on the deck."
She laughed, a bit forcedly, to give a little of emphasis.
Anna thought the apology was a little weak, but apparently the others had a different opinion.
The captain laughed.
"What a story! I always say this: Women and machinery do not mix! The propellers… HA!"
The strawberry blonde girl then were turning around again - she had lost the count of how many times that had happened - and the first officer faced her.
"Is it the truth?"
Anna gave a positive nod with her head, noticing with the corner of her eye the hopeful look on Elsa's face. Apparently it was time to put into practice her ability to play poker.
"Yes, sir. That's what happened, more or less ." She confirmed.
"See, Mr. Southern? The girl is a hero!" The captain said. "For heaven's sake, remove the handcuffs, poor girl. Well done, well done!"
These words were followed by a strong pat on the back, so strong in fact that her legs almost gave away. A slight click announced that her hands were finally free from the handcuffs and she unconsciously started rubbing her sore wrists.
Hans was about to turn around and leave when the captain's voice rang out again.
"So what will be the reward of the girl?"
Hans stopped while Elsa barely managed to hide the smile at seeing the disappointed faces of the four sailors. But Anna felt herself blushing slightly. She was about to protest when a look of the blonde girl, one of those Try-to-say-a-word-and-I-will-cut-your-tongue look, frozen her. Anna shivered, staying silent.
Hans turned and summoned his butler.
"Mr. Marsh, can you give the little girl some banknotes? I think 20 or 30 dollars should do it."
Anna remained vaguely offended by the term used to describe her, but one thing was certain: she wasn't interested to the money of that vile man. Just the thought was enough to disgust her. However she remained pleasantly surprised when Elsa tried to protest.
"So the price of my life, for you, is worth 20 dollars? Is this the value for saving the woman you love?"
Anna saw that Hans didn't seem angry about Elsa observation; he seemed quiet amused and his response confirmed the suspicions of the strawberry blonde.
"Oh, our ice queen is unhappy. What a news." Said Hans.
"Ice Queen? "Thought Anna "What does it mean?"
But the auburn continued.
"What can we do to please our queen? Oh, I have an idea."
Hans went again toward Anna, who was slightly suspicious about what to do.
"Perhaps you could join us for dinner tomorrow evening, Miss...?"
"Anna." She said firmly "And yes, sure."
"Then we'll wait for you. Excuse me."
Kai seemed satisfied by the offer and followed Hans while he walked away, taking Elsa with him.
Anna would have liked to say goodbye to the girl who was now becoming smaller as they walked away, until they turned the corner and she went out of sight. She sighed. Even the sailors had vanished, so she turned to leave in turn, when suddenly she found herself in front of the butler of Hans. She almost let out a scream.
"What a fright!" She uttered, still trying to suppress the cry that went up in her throat.
She took a few deep breaths, trying to calm down.
"Miss Anna, I allowed myself to collect your jacket." He handed it to her.
"Oh, uh, thanks?"
She wasn't convinced of the fact that she was there just for that, so she waited for him to speak again, and it happened shortly after.
"Don't you think it's strange that the young lady had slipped so suddenly and you still had time to take off your jacket and run to rescue her? It's interesting."
Anna looked at him with repressed hatred. She couldn't help it. She didn't dare to respond and she stood still in the same position even after the butler had left, refusing to move even a few steps.
Elsa was sitting on a chair, in front of the mirror, brushing her hair. A carillon was playing its music, a soft and nostalgic melody, one of her favorite. She was wearing a nightgown and was almost ready to go to bed, but she was lost in thought.
Only a few hours ago she was sure that she would have never seen that luxurious room again...
Only a few hours ago she believed that she would have put an end to all of it...
Only a few hours ago she was hanging on the railing, ready to jump.
A thousand of questions were forming in her mind. Would she have jumped? What would have happened then? Was the water as cold as it had been described? Was she so desperate to want to put an end to it?
After all, it would have been a foolish choice.
What if Anna hadn't got her?
Anna.
A smile formed on her lips. She should have thanked her, but how? She had the impression, nay she was sure that Hans had invited her to dinner just to make fun of her. A material present also didn't seem to suit her. What could she do? She would have to ask Mellow but the waitress was asleep.
A knock on the door pulled her back from her thoughts and made her jump. It was a strong and determined knock, characteristic of a person...
Hans.
The door opened, even if the blonde girl had said nothing, revealing the auburn-haired man.
Elsa looked at him from the mirror and put down the brush, waiting for him to speak, without turning but maintaining the eye contact through the glass and silvery surface.
"I know you've been sad. I may not know why but I have a surprise for you."
Elsa raised an eyebrow. She had to admit that these words were surprising in itself.
"I intended to save this until the engagement gala, but after what happened, I thought I could give it to you tonight."
It took a while to Elsa to notice the box he was carrying. Hans walked over and stood next to her, leaning on the desk. He got close to Elsa, closing the carillon and moving it away.
Another thing she hated of Hans was that: Hans had no respect for anything except money.
She had no time to criticize him further because Hans opened the box, cutting off her breath in her throat.
Inside the box was a necklace shaped like a heart. The heart was of a dark, shiny blue and it absolutely looked like...
"... A diamond?"
"56 carats to be exact. It was worn by Louis XVI. It was called 'the blue diamond of the crown'. Later the diamond was cut, taking the shape of a heart, and it was named 'Heart of the Ocean'"
Hans took the diamond and laid it around the neck of the blonde.
She gasped.
She didn't expect such a gift and although she hated the man, she couldn't take her eyes off from the necklace. It was really wonderful and she told him.
"It's overwhelming."
"It's for royalty." He replied. "It fits with your eyes."
It was true. She couldn't deny it.
Everyone would have been pleasantly surprised by the diamond. He tied it around her neck and she reached out to touch it. The surface was smooth and cold against her skin. But the cold never bothered her. It was rather nice.
Hans then bent down and started to talk softly. Elsa continued to stare at him through the mirror.
"You know, Elsa. I can give you everything you want. There is nothing that I would deny you as long as you stay on my side."
The girl then turned and looked into his eyes.
"This is the summation of the feelings I have for you. Do you still think that the value of your life for me is worth only a couple of bucks? Oh no."
Elsa looked back at the mirror. The hand had already left the necklace.
Hans got up, took her face and with his finger raised her chin.
"You'll be mine, Elsa. Don't forget this."
He lowered his head and their lips collided with force. Elsa let him kiss her without doing anything, without resistance, until the lips ached. At that point, Hans walked away without a word and he left the room.
Elsa knew what that kiss meant to him and she couldn't stand it. She couldn't bear to be the object of anyone. She took off the necklace without grace and put it back in the box where it belonged.
She didn't want to become like the men of that ship: greedy, arrogant and hungry for treasures.
She wanted to enjoy what life had in mind for her, but life gave her nothing but pain.
And once again, heading toward the bed, she resented the familiar feeling of being trapped. She let the tears fall and thought back to Anna.
Anna who smiled for a kiss, Anna who had saved her from the torpid waters, Anna who had made a disgusted face when she heard that they wanted to reward with a few bucks, Anna... who had given value to her life that didn't contain any sum, any amount of money... just pure and genuine feelings.
Just affection.
That affection that Elsa had never known.
