After a few days on sick-leave, Hans' health had improved. Despite being able to walk around on his own again, he was on bed rest because his pain medication made him drowsy. Hans sat up in his bed, looking around his unlit room. Night had fallen, and he longed for sleep. He hadn't left his bed since the night Albert found him. In fact, he hadn't seen Albert since. Hans interrupted his own slumber because Dr. Weselton called to ask if he would drop off documents he had taken home days ago. Rubbing his eyes, he felt elated to finally get outside of his room again. Hans slid out of bed sloppily and dragged his feet in front of his long, embroidered mirror that hung on the wall. The mirror's wooden designs around the frame gave it an enchanting, expensive appearance. It reminded him of the magic mirrors he used to read about in old fairy tales. Beholding his reflection, he felt relieved to see his swelling had gone away. The cut on the side of his bottom lip caught his attention. Eyes darting from bruise to bruise, he lifted his shirt to see his fresh scars. He realized his wounds didn't look nearly as horrifying, since the blood washed off. Since he didn't have to be at the office for long tonight, Hans decided to ditch the business suits. He wrestled with sliding on an ivory, turtle-neck sweater over his dark jeans. He broke his attention from the enchanting mirror to rest his eyes on the diamond ring placed on a table near him. The date of the company dinner approached. Hans realized he never told Elsa about the secret proposal and wondered if Dr. Weselton had told her while he left. The off chance that maybe the entire proposal could be called off calmed him. Dr. Weselton wanted him to tell Elsa in some romantic gesture in hopes that she'd agree. His car still was damaged after his last encounter with his brothers, so he took a different car that his family owned to drive to work. Arriving at the office, he sighed quietly. His workplace felt more like a home to him than his actual mansion. Dr. Weselton instructed him to make it a quick visit since he was injured, and it was way pasted office hours. When Hans walked inside the unlocked doors of the empty office, he took the file he held in his hand and plopped it onto his own desk to give himself time to scan the room. The entire room looked neat, yet with a few misplaced items as evidence that people worked today. The empty chairs neatly rested near their desks, a few scattered paper clips decorating tables with stacks of paper slightly askew. Interrupting his quiet thoughts, he felt someone grab his hands from behind him, tracing his broad palm with their thin thumbs gently. It shocked him since he thought he was the only one in the room. The only person supposed to be there was Dr. Weselton and that was just to let him in. Dr. Weselton informed him in his past phone call that she currently wasn't at the office, but she'd be back in thirty minutes.

"Elsa?" Hans guessed. A sarcastic, feminine cackle responded. The shrill chortle filled the room, as he heard the door behind him lock. The person caressing his hands leisurely strolled in front of him. His face automatically formed a worried expression. His blackmailer, facing in front of him, crossed her arms. She grinned at his injury. The blackmailer invested a lot of time in her appearance for this visit: she seemed proud of her purple, form-fitting dress, which contrasted against her beach-waved hair. Even her beauty pageant makeup must have taken hours for her to apply.

"Hello, Westerguaard. Did you like the surprise I sent you?"

"You almost had me killed!"

"My dear, sweet Westerguaard. That's what I do. Did you think they were kidding when they called me, well, a witch?" Hans shuttered. She sneered, "Honestly, I wouldn't be sad, if you died. Tell me, how many bruises are you hiding under that suit?" She ogled his clothed chest. She could tell his ribs were broken from his shallow breaths. His blackmailer placed her hands around his neck and dragged them towards the ends of his tensed, flexed shoulders. "I want to see them, darling. I want to see the good work your brothers did." She looked up at the tall, injured man before her. Her red lipstick drawing attention to her sinister smile. You're almost my type, her past voice echoed in his mind.

Hans repelled, "What are you doing?"

"I'm just thinking about how handsome you'd look in a coffin." She lightly pricked his shoulders with her pointed nails. He finally figured out that the look in her eyes wasn't just hatred. He then knew what she really thought. Lustfully licking her lips, she dug her nails a little deeper into his broad shoulders.

"You're so twisted," he breathed. Every word that he said fueled her. It hurt him to move his arms, so he couldn't swat her hands off of him.

"I'm going to keep destroying you until you tell me all of Elsa's secrets. You screwed me over by ditching our deal. You think you can get away with this? I've never hated someone so much before. Here's your last chance. Take her down, or I'll take you down." He flashed back to the memory of his near death experience. She'd definitely be willing to bribe his brothers against him again, if he didn't give in. They say what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, but Hans had never felt more worn out.

Trying to buy time to not submit, he changed the subject, "You want me to make a deal with you, yet you haven't even told me your name?" She twirled the gold seashell necklace between her fingers.

"You can call me Vanessa."

"Is that your real name?"

"I don't have all day! Do we have a deal? I'm not asking much," she hissed. He wanted to reject her offer, yet it put his life on the line. Before he could answer, they heard someone with fumbling keys trying to unlock the door from the outside. Who could be coming at this hour? The only other person he could think of was Dr. Weselton, and she told him she wouldn't be back this soon. The truth was that Dr. Weselton never should leave an employee alone in the office, but she disobeyed a lot of rules. He figured it might be a "friend" of his blackmailer, but she looked just a startled as him. Neither of them wanted anyone from Hans' work to know she sneaked in. Hans couldn't risk giving his blackmailer the opportunity to expose his and Elsa's lie. He almost died for over it, and he couldn't let it go in vain. The blackmailer unexpectedly darted behind his wooden desk and hid under the hollowed space intended for leg room. It proved to be a perfect hiding spot, since the desk was covered completely from the front and sides. Nobody would find her, so long as nobody walked behind his desk and looked underneath.

"If you tell anyone I'm here, I'll kill you," Vanessa growled. The door knob twisted open with a creak. In a panic, he leaned against his desk in an attempt to look like he was casually alone all along. He strained too hard to look natural. The leaning position caused his ribs to sting, which made him wish Albert annoyed him with ice packs again. Elsa, standing on the other side of the now opened door, immediately rushed to hug him. The blackness of Elsa's sweater and tights was only broken apart by her winter green, A-line skirt. Her arms slipped under his to wrap around. She buried her face into the soft fabric of his sweater.

He winced nervously, "Ow. Hey Elsa." The pain in his voice caused her to take a step back, releasing him from her grip. Feeling embarrassed by her excitement to see him, she held her hands together in front of her to regain her composer.

"Sorry, I should have known better than to squeeze you like that after what happened to you. I heard you were hurt, and Dr. Weselton told me you'd be here tonight. I figured I'd see how you were. You should sit! You're obviously in pain." The fact Elsa begged Dr. Weselton for any information on him was a detail she purposefully left out. She lightly shoved his back forward towards his desk chair. Afraid Elsa would follow him to see his blackmailer underneath, he obeyed and quickly sat himself down without any objections. The chair squeaked underneath them. Elsa awkwardly hovered in front of his desk without a purpose. The crickets from outside chirped loudly, which only made it harder for Elsa to think of something to say. The whole situation made her frustrated. Elsa felt upset that Hans was able to comfortably avoid her for so long and offended by how distant they had been acting towards each other. A bitterness took over her as she watched him keep his privacy to himself. Hans' mind raced over excuses to get Elsa to leave, so his blackmailer would be able to finally escape with both their dignities and jobs intact. The longer his blackmailer stayed, only the more trouble she could cause. There was barley much room for his blackmailer to fit under his desk with his legs inhabiting her hiding spot. Vanessa curled into a ball with her shoulders hunched, holding his calves. With no place for her to sit comfortably, Vanessa pressed her forehead onto his knee. Hans sleepily rested his large hands on his desk. Elsa's eyes darted across the room uneasily, and eventually landed on his arms. She gasped when she noticed his stitches on his left hand.

In a commanding tone, Elsa glared Hans, "Who did this to you?" Her tone made Vanessa flinch. He watched Elsa, as she clasped her hands together in front of her the way she always did whenever something upset her enough. For a brief second, she looked tempted to scoop his injured hand in hers to cradle it. She shifted her weight on her legs anxiously.

"It's not important," Hans dismissed.

"Not important!? I was told you almost died!" Elsa shouted. Hans instinctively stood up in response to her anger, standing in place to face his raging fake girlfriend. Vanessa held onto the edge of his pants to keep him from walking away from the desk. She didn't want to be stranded alone with Elsa. Hans already felt aggressive from dealing with his blackmailer, so Elsa shouting at him only awakened it in him more.

"Well I didn't. I'm fine," Hans tried to calm Elsa down, but his own tone was heated.

Elsa raved on, "You can't just almost die and expect me not to want to know what happened!" He knew he couldn't tell the truth by mentioning the blackmailer to her. How does one admit to agreeing to sell you out, then backing out of it later only to cause a feud and extortion? He knew Elsa wouldn't handle it right. If he ever were to tell her, he definitely wouldn't do it when the blackmailer actually hid in the room.

"Fine. I just fell down some stairs," he brushed off. Elsa furrowed her brows like a displeased queen. She waited for him to correct his lie. "...Long stairs," He added.

"I heard it was your brothers."

He boomed, "It doesn't matter!" He felt anxious that he got caught in his lie. Hans didn't know how Elsa figured that out. He wondered if this meant that Elsa had been asking around about him. The tall, young man leaned forward as he placed his hands on his desk. He got closer to eye level with the furious, young lady.

"Yes, it does," Elsa blew up. She sensed he either played mind games with her, kept secrets, or maybe both. He acted differently, and she sensed it. Every time she found him suspicious, her intuition proved true. Worst of all, it agitated her that she thought of him at all. He became all she had thought about for days. It made her upset to think that he must never think of her, yet she couldn't even escape from Hans in her sleep. All her nights filled with dreams of him. She tried to take a step closer to confront him more, but the desk blocked her. They stood face-to-face. She examined a red scar under his eye on top of his cheek. She realized how up close and personal his brothers must have been to be able to give it to him.

Elsa confessed, "I was scared when I found out what happened to you. It's just as bad as I thought. I don't like to see you hurt like this. I'm really mad at you!"

Hans scoffed, "I can't believe you're actually mad at me over this!" He felt shocked that Elsa got upset with him for getting injured, as if it fell into his control, as if he wanted it to happen.

She confided, "Because I care about you! You didn't even tell me! And now, when I asked, you lied to me! Why am I the last person who hears about this?"

"You really should stop caring about things that aren't important," he dismissed.

"You are important," she raised her voice louder than she intended. There came a silence where Hans didn't answer, but he still lingered before her. Elsa released the breath she held. A few seconds passed by. Neither of them spoke. He never had someone care about him before. It moved him. He finally understood why it bothered her that he didn't tell her anything, although he still found it a silly reason to argue over. Perhaps, he let himself fall into trick situations, like the fake relationship, the proposal, or the blackmailing because he never viewed himself as... important.

She cleared throat nervously, "You can stop blushing now."

"I'm not! I'm not blushing," he tried to say coolly. He felt shocked and embarrassed by her accusation. Hans spoke softly, calming down after their fight, "I just didn't think I was important to you. I didn't know... 'important' was the word." Elsa pacified with his tone.

"I guess it is," she mumbled. It became so quiet, Vanessa's breathing became audible under the desk, but neither had been paying attention to hear it. Elsa allowed herself to peak at his captivating green eyes. She couldn't help but notice the blush never left his face, and she hoped that she didn't have an obvious blush herself. Taken by his handsomeness, it took her a moment to realize that their hands accidentally touched on his desk.

Elsa gasped, "Sorry! Uh, I-"

He slid his hand away, apologizing, "Oh, um. I didn't-"

"No, no. It-it was my fault." Jerking her hand back, Elsa tucked a lock hair that slipped out of her bun behind her ear. He opened his mouth as if he wanted to tell her something, but instead of saying what burdened his mind, he winced. He leaned back away from her.

Elsa worried, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing! It was just... It was nothing." Vanessa had dug her nails into his muscular calf in order to break up their moment. Vanessa thought it was the most obnoxious conversation she ever had to sit through.

"Maybe you should sit down," Elsa insisted. Unhappily, Hans sat back down with Vanessa clutching his long leg tighter. Vanessa's claws rested on his knees and slid up his muscled thighs dominatingly. He became Vanessa's puppet, sitting and walking anywhere she allowed it.

Elsa watched his eyebrows raise as Vanessa gripped his elongated leg firmly. He felt unsure, if Vanessa tried to inappropriately feel his muscles, or if she merely tried to eliminated his chance of escape by holding him down. Either way, it bothered him.

Elsa fretted from his expression, "Are you okay, Hans?"

"Sorry, my leg's just... hurting. I really would give anything to have it left alone." His blackmailer ignored his hint.

"What do you mean?" The blonde sincerely listened to his concerns.

"It's probably from sitting here too long," he anxiously cleared his throat.

Elsa beseeched, "How about we go for a walk?" As he tried to stand, his blackmailer grasped her nails tighter into his thighs. A thud came from under his desk where Vanessa painfully bumped her head.

"I actually think it's from standing," He averted, worried that Vanessa would rise with him, if he stood. He plopped immediately back down, wishing for an escape for himself. Vanessa locked her sharp nails into his leg.

The blonde inquired, "Are you okay? You're acting a little strange. I really think a short walk would help. We could visit that new vending machine you wanted to try?" Desperate to leave the risky situation of being stuck between Vanessa and Elsa, he decided to take her up on her offer for a walk. Hans stood up, feeling the fingers lose their grip on his legs. Hans feared it could be only a matter of seconds before Elsa could figure out someone hid under his desk. Fleeing the room quickly, Elsa and Hans left his blackmailer alone. Vanessa groaned at the closing door's creak. Finally, she crawled out and stretched. After spending time snooping around the empty office, she departed from their work-place for good.

Slowly strolling towards the vending machine down the hall, Elsa dropped her quick pace to keep up with Hans.

Elsa began, "So, are you going to tell me the exact story behind those broken ribs of yours?"

"Who told you about that in the first place?" Hans cocked an eyebrow.

She admitted, "Dr. Weselton."

"Mhmm."

"What?"

"So you have been talking about me when I'm not around," Hans taunted. He put his hand on his throbbing ribs. He felt like he must have shifted something inside of him.

Elsa challenged, "Why are you saying it like that? It doesn't mean anything. I was just worried, okay?" Embarrassed, Elsa turned towards him, noticing his physical discomfort.

Still in pain, Hans jested, "Because I'm so important?"

"Ugh, are you ever going to let it go?" Elsa couldn't hide her enjoyment of him teasing her. As much as he enjoyed provoking her, he figured he shouldn't since they were both fresh from an argument. He didn't want them to relapse into a fight.

Hans averted, "Actually, I probably owe it to you to get you something since I was a jerk to you back there." He was a ladies-man, and he knew that women liked it when you take the blame. It certainly did matter to him what Elsa thought of him. Impressed by his gesture, Elsa accepted by elegantly pointing to can of ginger ale through the glass. He turned away to buy her the drink, which gave her a chance to steal a glance at him. Even when exhausted, he still looked stunning. It was no wonder why most girls treated him like a celebrity. He handed her the dispensed, cold drink, which caused their fingers to brush. Elsa pretended she didn't noticed the contact.

She professed, "And I shouldn't have yelled at you. I'm an older sister, so I'll admit I can get a bit bossy. I was just upset tonight."

"Why?"

She asked, "You really don't know?" Hans shook his head, wanting to know the full extent of her behavior. Elsa plopped her untouched beverage neatly in her purse to free her hands.

Elsa exhaled non accusingly, "Because of you. I thought you were ignoring me because you cut all contact with me. I texted you, I called you, I... noticed you stopped coming to work. I get that you were hurt, but it only takes a second to answer a text. I'm not an 'attention-seeking' person. If someone doesn't want me in their life, I won't fight it. It just made me mad that you made me figure it out the hard way instead of just telling me from the start. Well, your unsent message was received loud and clear." He didn't even notice that Elsa had tried to contact him at all. He figured he must have been asleep when his phone rang.

Hans remedied, "I'm not trying to ignore you or lie to you." He took both of her cold hands in his without hesitation. Her heart rate sped up again. She tried to make progress in erasing her feelings for him, and he built her up all over again with gentle touch. She knew he probably did this with every girl. He probably told them sweet nothings until they forgave him, and Elsa didn't want to be another fool that fell for everything he said. He mistreated her trust by shutting her out and devalued their partnership.

Elsa gasped in a reserved tone, "I can't believe you have the nerve to say that to my face. You just did! You lied to me back there, and the truth is you lie to me a lot." Frowning, she unsuccessfully tried to jerk her hands out of his. She bitterly turned her attention to the side, not wanting to hear anymore fabrications.

"What? You couldn't be more wrong!" Hans defensively voiced.

"You think I'm gullible enough to believe you again? This isn't the first time this has happened to me. I'd know what being shut out and lied to looks like when I see it." She kept her eyes on the ground, unable too shy to fully stand up to him. His clasp around her hands tightened, trying to gain her eye attention back. He sensed another argument in the midst.

Elsa vented, "I don't know what you're up to, but I can tell you've been hiding secrets from me from the way you've been acting. I want to be alone. Please, let me go." He knew that, besides the ring box, Elsa had no real evidence of how elaborate his lies had gotten. He let go of her resisting hands. Her arms fleeted back to her sides, but she regretted her request. His touch comforted her, and made her feel protected and wanted. He unknowingly held her fragile heart, and blocking him out of her life seemed to be the only way to protect herself from getting hurt.

Hans slipped out, flustered with her trust issues, "God, you're so insecure. You think that being alone is the answer to your problems, and it's not. As if nobody can hurt you when you're alone. You can still be hurt no matter how alone you are, trust me. You have to let go of your insecurities. You were never in control anyway. I'm not trying to ignore you. I can't believe you actually think that. Why would I do that? It never crossed your mind that I might like you?" Her frown left her face. It took him a moment to realize that he had admitted his crush for her in the spur of the moment. "...As a friend. We're close friends," he corrected. His words hit her like a train, forcing her to face the facts even though she didn't want to. "That came out harsher than I meant it, Elsa. I'm sorry-"

"There's no need to apologize," she softly sighed. Elsa lacked awareness that she could be so easily read. His analysis of her was so spot on, she almost felt like he'd must have read her diary to know all of those things. Their conversation had turned very real, which felt uncomfortable in a world that was so fake. There was something about night time conversations that promoted honesty.

Ignoring the uncomfortable truths, she changed the subject, "No offense, but what do you know about being alone? You've had the attention of every girl since you started working here." Hans craddled injured chest from the sudden sharp pain. Elsa's remorse hit her when she looked back at the injured man before her. She knew his brothers had beaten him. How could she have been so blind to his obvious situation with his family, especially after he had personally told her how bad it was? She internally condemned herself for the comment.

She cleared her throat before asking, "Was this the worst thing they've ever done to you?"

"Not even close." Hans shook his head with a bitter smile. He sighed, "That's a hard question. I've known them for a long time."

Elsa feared, "Oh, no. Is it that bad? Is it worse?"

"They ignored me. I guess I'd pick that." He licked his lips. He bitterly laughed, "I know that sounds crazy. You'd think I'd prefer that over this." He gestured to his bruised body. "Maybe I do," he added. Although she felt curious as to why they beat him in the first place, she decided against questioning it. Elsa already regretted asking. Guilt crept upon her as she thought of how she tried to ignore him the way his brothers had already done so to him. She realized how lonely he must have felt.

Elsa broke in, "To answer your question, yes."

"Yes?"

"I did ask about you. I asked about you a lot," Elsa admitted. She nervously twiddled her thumbs together. Hans flashed her a movie star smile that she simply couldn't ignore.

"Els, you're just saying that." He knew figured she felt sorry for him after that sad story about his brother. Elsa was taken back by the pet name. In all her years, she had never had a nickname.

"No, no. I mean it. I do care about you... And thank you for being honest with me." A twinge of guilt grew across his heart at the word "honest."

Hans proceeded, "Don't thank me just yet, but I prefer this to you bottling everything up all the time." It wasn't the easiest conversation, but they finally felt like themselves again. The tension between them lifted away. Elsa felt ashamed that she wasn't this close with Anna. As Elsa contemplated her weak relationship with her baby sister, Hans swept in and kissed her soft cheek. Her hand floated to the spot, and she docilely grinned. She was a damaged girl, but she was his damaged girl. She thought of his words: "as a friend."

When Hans and Elsa came back, he felt relieved to discover Vanessa had left. He didn't notice that before him stood an unpleased Dr. Weselton.

"I think we should talk. I got your letter," Weselton sternly grunted. She gestured with her hands towards her office. "Now, Hans."

"I didn't leave you a letter?" He pinched his the spot between his eyebrows with his stitched hand. Elsa's eyes darted between them in confusion.

"My office. Now." Despite Dr. Weselton's attempt to sound intimidating, she came across as nervous.

"I didn't leave you a letter," he repeated, but this time to himself. His phone vibrated with a text message from a private number, and he followed Dr. Weselton to her private office. With a confused look on his face, he read the text. He felt still uneasy from his blackmailer's visit. His hand ran through his red hair as he silently skimmed the text, "have fun that company dinner :)"

Hans painfully sat down in front of her desk, facing Dr. Weselton after she locked the door behind her to ensure privacy. Dr. Weselton hummed under her breath, pacing the room thinking of how to start the conversation. She picked up one of her pens to toy with in her anxious hands.

Her aged voice began, "Hans, you've been keeping secrets."

"What do you mean?"

"I know everything. I can't believe you think you can trick me after that letter you wrote."

He swallowed, "Everything?" Dr. Weselton made a motion to sit in her chair, but decided against it. She was a short woman and wanted to appear taller when confronting him.

"You come in my office, leave a despicable letter threatening to blow off the engagement, announcing that you're cheating on Elsa, going expose me for illegally spending company money, and... and expose my affair? You're blackmailing me!? Why, of all times, would you do this now!? I have half the mind to-"

"I didn't write that letter!" He was slightly relieved that she didn't know the actual truth.

"It has your signature," she spat accusingly. With frustration, she unfolded the ivory letter and displayed it before him. "You can't lie your way out of this. Who else would know about all of this?" Hans shifted in his seat. He now realized that this was worse than the actual truth. The signature looked exactly like his own. His reputation for being manipulative wasn't in his favor now.

"I know it's going to be a lot to take in, but I'll tell you the truth. It's more complicated than you think." Hans exhaled, "I've been blackmailed for a while because I refused to give some girl our company information. I don't know why, but she was most interested in information about Elsa. She's really bent on revenge now because I refused. She said her name was Vanessa. I didn't want to lose my job, so I just kept her a secret from everyone. She found out that information on her own. Actually, she was in here maybe an hour before you were. She must have wrote the letter. Elsa doesn't know about this. You have to believe me!" After bouncing back and forth between the details, Dr. Weselton hummed to herself.

"You promise me that this is the whole truth? No more secrets?" Hans tilted his head away from her. He could feel his heart beating quickly. He couldn't honestly promise her that. Dr. Weselton repeated herself, "Is this the whole truth? No more secrets? I need to know if I can trust you."

Hesitantly, he gave in. "You have my word."

"Tell me what she was blackmailing you about."

"No! That defeats the whole point of the hell I've been through!" He put his hand over his aching sides to stop the pain. He wasn't sure if it was normal for broken ribs to hurt this often. Dr. Weselton's eyes widened as she studied him. Her body relaxed in realization the longer she stared between his broken ribs, fresh scars, and the exposed bruise on his jawline.

"My God, this Vanessa girl did this to you. Didn't she?" She adjusted her thin glasses to balance on the tip of her long nose, knowing the answer without Hans having to say. After discussing the blackmailing more, Dr. Weselton seemed more and more hopeful about their plan.

"I hope you know that this proposal isn't off. We just have a slightly different strategy. I know you surly love to be the one in charge, Mr. Westerguaard, but you have to follow my every word from now on." She cupped his strong jaw in both her hands as if she held a trophy. Hans' eyebrows met in a worried expression, unsure of why she was looking at him like he was the answer to her problems. Dr. Weselton snickered, "Elsa is now your biggest problem, but she's also your solution."

AN: Sorry it took me so long to release this. I was busy, and I felt you deserved my actual effort instead of me rushing to get it done. I think you will all like the next chapter. Anyhow, please leave a review! Your opinions are important to me. Love you all! Also, Vanessa is a reference to The Little Mermaid's Ursula in human form. There was also a little The Hunch of Notre Dame scene reference. See if you can catch it!