Hey guys! Before we start, quick inquiry: Should I make this story M Rated and go into detail with Jack and Elsa's developing relationship? I wasn't planning to, but this story is carrying me there xD Still, I want to know what you guys think.

Thank you so much everyone for all of your reviews! There were a lot of intense guest reviews, I think it was the same person but can't tell xD I just have one word for you: Patience. This fic is long, things don't happen fast.

Anyway, won't stop you for longer. On with the story!

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...

Hiccup walked into the Global Studies classroom determined to sit behind Elsa like he always did, only to find that she'd changed her usual seat. She had chosen the far bottom corner, so there was nothing behind her besides the wall. Jack was sitting next to her, but they weren't really talking to each other. Jack was focused on a book, highlighting stuff with a marker now and then, and Elsa was scribbling something on her notebook. Both had earphones on.

Scowling, he went to the very front of that small row and slumped in the chair. Their behavior would have been normal pre-finals behavior if they weren't so studiously and obviously avoiding him.

"This is gonna be harder than I thought" he muttered to himself. As Mr. Weselton's class started, he decided he would try to get a head start, so he took out his phone and opened a new conversation with Elsa.

Elsa was just putting away her earphones when her phone vibrated. She liked at the main screen notification and then at Hiccup, who was focused on the front, where Mr. Weselton was currently taking about how he'd hated some of the essays that had been turned in.

She swiped the notification and opened the message with curiosity. She frowned.

It was a picture of herself, sitting on the floor of Hiccup's apartment, sitting in front of her laptop (which was also on the floor), a cookie hanging from her mouth while she typed something. She had a slight frown on her face and was wearing a t-shirt and sweat pants, and her hair was up in her usual, intricate bun.

Hiccup - I miss this Elsa.

Elsa's frown deepened. What the hell was he trying to say? She tugged absentmindedly on her loose braid before replying.

Elsa - thought you liked my hair down

She looked up and saw him at the front row of seats, reaching for his phone. He didn't take long to reply.

Hiccup - that is not what I meant, though

Elsa - what did you mean, then?

Hiccup - I miss the Elsa that was my friend

Elsa - we already talked about this

Hiccup - I know, but I still miss you. You're avoiding me

Elsa - how observant of you

Hiccup - why are you avoiding me?

Elsa - why did you kiss me on Saturday?

Hiccup - I'm sorry, El, I messed up. I know I haven't been fair to you

Elsa - you're not even interested in me like that anymore

Hiccup - how are you so sure about that?

Elsa - Jack saw you kissing Astrid

Hiccup clenched his free hand into a fist. He felt the anger rise in his chest, and had to take a deep breath before answering.

Hiccup - Jack? You mean your date, Jack? That Jack?

Elsa - I'm not accusing you of kissing Astrid

Hiccup - it sounded a lot like that

Elsa - I don't care if you kiss Astrid. You might as well sleep with her, for all I care! You kissed ME and it didn't mean anything to you. That's what makes me angry.

Hiccup sighed. He put his phone down for a moment and ran a hand through his hair. Elsa was right, he didn't really have a reason to be mad at her. He was kinda mad at Jack for telling her about Astrid (and freaked out that he'd been watching) but he was the only one to blame.

When he picked up his phone again, he had more new messages.

Elsa - you think I'm going to forgive you for everything just because we used to be best friends

Elsa - well I'm not an idiot

Elsa - I spoke to Astrid, by the way, on YOUR behalf, trying to help you!

And he sighed again.

Hiccup - I'm sorry, El, really! Please don't say we used to be friends. I don't want to lose you.

Hiccup - If I kissed you it was only because I still have strong feelings for you and I just couldn't deal with that right at that moment. I know it was selfish of me, and I'm sorry. I really want to be your friend again.

Hiccup - Sorry for lashing out on you about Jack, I'm ok with it, really.

Hiccup - And I do appreciate what you did for me, El, Astrid told me.

There was a pause in their written conversation that to Hiccup seemed like it lasted centuries. Mr. Weselton was rambling on about a debate on World Economy he wanted everyone to "voluntarily" attend to when Elsa finally answered.

Elsa - don't call me El.

Those four words made his heart break in two. He didn't answer, and she didn't text him again. He didn't look back to see what expression she had on her face. If he had, though, he would've seen she was hardly holding back tears, holding a fist to her mouth to give herself strenght.

Jack did see, and looked at her with worry. Elsa unblocked her phone, opened the conversation and handed it to him wordlessly.

When Jack scrolled through it, he sighed with a heavy heart. He really wasn't happy that Elsa and Hiccup's relationship had crashed and burned like that, even if he thought Hiccup deserved it a little. He knew it was too hard on Elsa, so he couldn't bring himself to be happy about Hiccup's karma.

When class was over, Hiccup dashed out of the room, not looking back.

...

"You don't need to over think your situation" Jack commented that Friday afternoon.

He and Elsa were sitting under the shade of a tree, still in campus. She had been pretending to read something out of her textbook, but she hadn't turned the page in a while and Jack had noticed she was drifting away.

They'd agreed to study together, even though their subjects were completely different, but Elsa enjoyed Jack's company, and he'd admitted the same thing before.

"What?"

"You're thinking about your conversation with Hiccup again"

Elsa was amazed at how quickly Jack seemed to be learning how to read her moods and gestures. She wanted to think she was getting just as attuned to him, but she truthfully wasn't that good at casual observation.

"I don't like fighting with him, but I don't feel like letting all of this go" she explained, and Jack nodded knowingly.

"I know, what I meant is... Well, if you can't fix it right away, then try not to think about it. Hiccup is coping with this his own way, he's a big guy. I'm sure he can take care of himself while your heart heals" he grinned at her, all the time trying to sound as soothing as he could. Elsa smiled at him.

"I guess you're right"

"When do you start exams or final project presentations?"

"Uh... Next Monday" she cringed at the thought. That was going to be one hectic week.

"Great, then you'll be busy. I start on Wednesday and still have a lot to do before then. We're probably not going to see a lot of each other, and you're certainly not going to see Hiccup, so just take this time to focus"

"We're not going to see each other?" she asked, a bit of fear being her words. Jack smiled at her apologetically.

"Sorry, you know I love being with you but I need to get some work done and I'll have a very tight schedule for the following two weeks" he explained.

Elsa sighed and leaned back against the tree.

"You're right. Actually starting Monday I'll have to be at the serigraphy lab during the afternoons" she recalled having written her name down, since spaces to work there were limited.

They stayed in silence for a while. It was a very nice day, not a cloud in the sky and sunny with a very nice weather.

Jack looked at Elsa, who had closed her eyes and seemed to be deep in her own meditation. He was amazed by how beautiful she was. Was it something only he could see? Why didn't she have guys all over her all the time? Well, she didn't spend every waking moment with him, so maybe she did have people interested that he didn't know of. But then why was she sitting next to him?

She looked particularly good that day. She was wearing an off-the-shoulders long sleeved blouse with stripes in navy blue and white that went all the way down to her hips, black leggings with star patterns near the ends and navy blue flats. Her hair was again up in her intricate braided bun. He'd pouted a bit over the return of that particular hairstyle, but he had to admit one thing: watching her pull at her bun and release her long braid after long hours of studying was mind-blowing. She looked way too sexy doing that, and she seemed completely oblivious to it.

Elsa, on the other hand, was thinking about how comfortable she'd grown to be around Jack in a matter of days. It seemed implausible that they hadn't been talking to each other on Monday after what had happened during the weekend. The rest of the week, though, they'd devoted themselves to studying for their finals in each other's company, in peaceful silence. And how she had enjoyed that silence.

Sometimes she would be just listening to music on her iPod, and sometimes she would be listening to Jack's breathing and the environmental noise of wherever they were. They had stayed in campus until late at night, when he would walk her back to her apartment and they would chat about everything and nothing.

When she opened her eyes, she met face to face with Jack's phone. He'd taken a picture of her.

"JACK!" she exclaimed, quickly reaching for his phone. Jack snatched it away in time.

"What?! You snooze, you lose!"

"Why did you take my picture?! I was on another planet right now! Was I drooling? I bet I was drooling! GIVE ME THAT!" she exclaimed, half pretend-angry and half laughing, reaching out repeatedly to get a hold of Jack's phone. Jack was avoiding her and laughing along.

"You were NOT drooling! Stop being so paranoid! You look good!"

"THEN LET ME SEE!"

"No! You'll erase it!"

"WHY would you want that picture there! Erase it now!"

"NO!"

"Why do you want that?!"

"Because you look beautiful, ok?"

Elsa froze. Jack had a hand firmly gripping her right shoulder, holding his phone far back with his free hand. She was gripping his shirt with one hand and reaching for the phone with the other, and was practically straddling him, his lips currently very close to her right ear. He'd lowly whispered that last phrase, and she had heard it clearly.

She pulled away from him and stared into his eyes, her lips slightly parted in surprise.

"What?" she asked breathlessly. Jack snorted, recovering his posture and putting his cell phone back into his pocket.

"Come on, I've told you that before" he said dismissively, trying his best to ignore the blush he could very clearly feel rising on his cheeks.

Elsa pushed some strands of hair behind her ear and looked away, her face red as a tomato. Jack cleared his throat, covering his mouth with his closed fist, as if that could make his skin color return to normal.

"I wanted a picture of you" he admitted.

Then he heard a click

"Ok then I get one as well" she said candidly, later laughing at the horrified expression on his face.

"Hey, you could've just told me! GIVE ME THAT!"

…

During the following weeks, Elsa and Jack didn't see each other at all. In fact, Elsa barely saw anyone. She had so much work to do and so little time... but they were the finals. Just that final push and everything would be over for the semester.

She didn't even see Jack on the final Global Studies presentation, since it was an individual presentation and Mr. Weselton has given each student a time in which they had to go deliver their final project. On the bright side, she hasn't seen Hiccup either.

She felt relieved when she walked out of her last exam on Friday. First thing she did was text Jack. She took a selfie of herself making the 'V' sign with her left hand and attached it to the message.

Elsa - Finally free! And this last one was easy

To her delight, Jack answered almost immediately.

Jack - I'm free since yesterday, was waiting for you to show signs of life.

Jack - you look beautiful as always, BTW

Elsa couldn't help but blush as she read the last part.

Elsa - shut up! I'm tired, my hair's a mess and I got bags under my eyes

Elsa - I look awful!

Jack - beautiful

She shook her head with a smile. She hadn't seen much of Jack lately, but she'd certainly read a lot. They'd been texting each other silly things with each opportunity.

She also had a lot of pictures of him now, lots of selfies originated that last afternoon they'd been together, fighting over the camera. Elsa smiled at the memory. It had been fun.

Jack - so what do you want to do?

Jack - I'm assuming you texted me because you can't go another second without my glorious presence.

Elsa laughed reading that. Jack had a habit of making that type of egocentric jokes.

Elsa - get over yourself

Elsa - I'm hungry. I want you to feed me

Jack - ok, your highness, what does my queen want to have for lunch?

Elsa - I wouldn't mind some sushi

Jack - I wouldn't mind that either. Where are you?

Jack - oh, nevermind, I see you

Confused, Elsa turned around to see Jack making his way towards her through the crowd of students that had gathered in the hallways. She smiled at him sweetly.

"Hey Jack, I thought you'd be home since you didn't have finals today" she said as soon as he was within reach. Jack got close to her and kissed her on the cheek, as casually as if he was doing something he did everyday. Elsa was momentarily stunned by this, even though Jack appeared unfazed by both his action and her resultant expression.

"I was, but then I remembered you did have finals today and came. I just got here, it was perfect timing that you just finished your exam" he explained, his stunning, confident grin making Elsa's blush grow exponentially.

"Oh, that's... nice of you" she said, finding herself at a loss of words.

Jack, however, seemed giddy with anticipation of their afternoon together. He was really excited, to say the least, having craved Elsa's presence for days and now finally finding himself in front of her.

"Well, let's go then! Food is on me"

...

Anna was walking back from the library and almost bumped into Hiccup, who currently was headed there.

"Oh hey there, Anna! Watch where you're going" he said with a half grin. Anna smiled.

"Hey Hiccup! How's everything going? Haven't seen you in a while"

"Fine, I just have one more final tomorrow and I'm free to go back to my mom's for the summer. How about you? Big plans for the summer?"

"Yeah, me, Merida and Rapunzel are going to Merida's over at Scotland, it's going to be great!" she exclaimed excitedly. Hiccup looked confused.

"Wait, just the three of you? Elsa's not going?" he asked. Anna looked sideways, suddenly feeling she was going to say more than she should. Hiccup noticed this "it's fine, Anna, you can tell me. I'm not going to feel bad about myself or anything, your sister and I sorted out the fact that we no longer feel that way for each other"

"Y-yeah, she told me. But she also said she's not speaking to you right now"

"Oh, that... yeah, she's not. I'm giving it time, though... I want to be her friend again, someday" he said hopefully. Anna smiled.

"I hope you guys go back to that as well" she replied, truthfully, relaxing a little "Elsa's actually gonna stay here during the summer. She's going to work for Hiro's aunt at the café"

"Really? Why did she get a job?"

"She said she wanted to be busy to sort herself out and make some money at the same time. Said the last thing she needed was to be idle, even though I made the argument that me and the girls won't exactly be idle. She still chose to stay. I think she needs time to herself" she said, shrugging even though Hiccup could see the situation bothered her.

For some reason, unknown to even himself, he acted on his impulse driven by jealousy.

"And what about Overland? Is he staying as well? Did she choose to stay because of that, or are you not allowed to tell me?"

Anna looked at him for a moment, her gaze judging him for what he'd just said. Hiccup squirmed a bit, only now regretting his words.

"You know, Hiccup? While you continue acting like a neglected boyfriend, you have no chance of being Elsa's friend ever. You think about that" she said, pointing a finger at him to emphasize her last sentence "See you around"

Hiccup stared at Anna as she walked away from him, feeling defeated. She was right, and he didn't quite know how to fix it. Fix himself. He had to understand what was going through his head before he could allow himself to get closer to Astrid.

He didn't want to hurt her too.

...

"Why do you find this so surprising?" Elsa asked as she picked another sushi slice with her chopsticks. Jack chuckled.

"I guess I never pictured you as a waitress. But it makes sense that it'll be at Hiro's. When did that happen?"

"I went by on Saturday and he wasn't home. I ended up chatting with his aunt and she offered it. I thought it was perfect, I'm not really in the mood for a girly trip with my sister and friends. I want to be on my own for a while"

Jack would've lied if he told anyone he wasn't a little hurt that she'd taken the time to go see Hiro and yet hadn't even called him, but he knew he was being irrational. Elsa had developed a sisterly love for Hiro, even if the boy's feelings weren't quite like that.

"I guess I understand" he stated simply, omitting his incoherent jealousy.

"What about you? You're going back to visit your father?"

"Nah, I hate going back to my father. I always stay here during the summer. I even have a recurrent job as an intern at a local magazine doing some basic editorial work" he dismissed, hoping Elsa wouldn't pursue the subject any further. He was wrong.

"What? Why do you hate seeing your father?" she asked in concern. Jack sighed.

"I don't hate seeing my father, I just don't feel comfortable going back to his house because of... well, that other woman"

"Oh... your father is seeing someone?" Elsa inquired with caution, making Jack snort in amusement.

"He remarried a couple of years ago. Dana even has a son, a twelve year old boy from a previous marriage. They have a family, a new family, and I... well, I've never felt that I belong there" he admitted, taking a sip from his soda can. Elsa stared at him

"Jack... you've never mentioned this before..."

"Why would I? I don't want to burden you with my problems. Besides, look on the bright side: you'll have someone to hang out with after your shift at the café" he said, smiling sincerely at her. His smile was contagious to Elsa.

"That will be great" she replied excitedly. She realized just then that she hadn't really been looking forward to spending the summer on her own.

Now she was.

Lunch was pretty much uneventful after that brief moment of intense conversation between them. They'd continue to chat about every topic they could think of, and Jack was glad to know more about Elsa. He was overwhelmed by how much easier it was to talk to her now, and how much he'd grown to care for her much more deeply than before. He liked that she was interested in winter sports, and read books that had strong female characters in them. He enjoyed listening to her talk about movies and the actors she biasedly watched them for, about music and how she really disliked rap but loved jazz. About her taste in contemporary music as well as what she called the classics.

He was surprised to learn that she used to take singing lessons and be part of the school choir.

"Really? You should sing for me one day, I want to hear you"

"Oh, I don't know, it's been a long time since I last sang for an audience. I bet I don't sound very good..." she replied, blushing slightly. Jack chuckled.

"Come on, just once. Sometime when we're alone. I won't judge" he pleaded, which made Elsa giggle at his genuine interest in something about herself she now considered so trivial.

"Ok, but just for you. I really don't want a big audience"

"That's all I'm asking" he said, winking at her. Elsa rolled her eyes at him, but she was smiling.

…

Hiccup was about to knock on the door of Astrid's house when she opened the door and startled him.

"Sorry, I saw you coming from my bedroom window" she admitted with a shrug, smiling at him. Hiccup smiled back.

"Hey Astrid. I came to see you because we haven't been able to hang out during the exams and… well, I'm leaving tomorrow afternoon, I'm going back to my dad's"

"Oh, right, you told me" she replied, sounding a bit sad

"Come on, don't be like that, we still have today. And that's why I came here. You wanna go grab some dinner? Maybe watch a movie afterwards, my place?" he suggested. Astrid's face immediately lit up.

"Hiccup Haddock, are you asking me out?" she inquired. Hiccup chuckled.

"I was trying to be smooth about it, but I guess I failed"

"Nah, it was ok. I'd give you 7 out of 10 for that"

"Ha ha, very funny, Astrid"

"Funnier than you, always" she replied cockily, placing her hands on her hips. Hiccup smirked.

"Oh yeah? Let's hear you laughing about this" he challenged, pulling her by her waist towards him and planting a kiss on her lips.

The kiss was brief, and she gaze looked foggy when he pulled back, which made him chuckle.

"So, dinner?" he asked, arching an eyebrow at her. She smiled.

"Dinner"

...

Jack had walked Elsa back to her apartment, and they were now standing out the door, chatting.

"What are you doing this weekend?" Jack asked curiously. He'd noticed Elsa's mood had greatly improved, and was confident he could risk asking her out now.

"I'm gonna spend the weekend with Anna and Rapunzel, since they're leaving on Monday"

"Oh, right, of course" he did his best to hide her disappointment, but Elsa noticed it and giggled.

"We'll have two months afterwards, though, so just be patient" she assured with a smile. Jack very visibly improved his mood.

"You're right, we have time" he said giddily "for now, you must be tired, so I'll let you rest"

"Thank you for a lovely evening, Jack" she said earnestly, placing a gentle hand on his bicep. She couldn't help but notice how strong he was.

"It was only lovely because you were with me" Jack replied, his voice dropping to a husky tone that Elsa hadn't heard him use before. It made butterflies explode in her stomach, and suddenly she understood.

She was very attracted to Jack, like she hadn't felt attracted to anyone before.

This knowledge made her blush and look away, suddenly very self-conscious.

"I had nothing to do with it" she whispered. She felt Jack's hand claiming her chin gently, slowly making her look at him again. He seemed concern.

"I'm sorry, did I make you feel uncomfortable? You know that's not my intention"

"I know what your intention is" her tone wasn't accusing. It was so plain that Jack didn't know what to make of the statement. His mouth opened and closed but he said nothing, worried he could put his foot in his mouth.

Elsa was nervous. She had opened a door, so to speak, and all of her feelings suddenly washed over her whole body, her undeniable attraction for Jack getting the best of her. His hand moved to her cheek and it burned. It burned almost like touching ice.

And she just loved the cold.

She noticed he was starting to lean in. Slowly, oh so slowly, he was giving her time to notice and complain, or pull back. He felt it as strongly as ever, the need to get closer to her, but he didn't want to mess things up. He didn't want to do anything, not a thing, that she did not want him to.

But she leaned in as well, and her eyelids fluttered and dropped closed when she could feel his breath on her face. He closed his own.

The first contact was soft, a slight and careful caress of his lips against hers. She responded just as carefully, almost as if they thought they could hurt each other if they put in too much pressure. The only additional contact was Jack's hand on Elsa's cheek, and the innocent sliding of their lips seemed to last an eternity.

He eventually pulled away, just a couple of inches, and looked into her eyes. She looked back at him, her big blue eyes mesmerizing him like they never had before. Their noses were almost touching while they stared at each other intensely, Jack's hand still on her cheek. Elsa clenched her fists a couple of times and then something in her mind just… snapped.

With a loud moan, she threw her arms around his neck and attacked his lips with her own, her head tilted to the right, pressing her whole body against his. Jack's eyes flew wide open before they closed again and he raised his arms to hold her close, responding to her hungry kiss with the same eagerness, all of his pent up emotions of the past months finally pouring out.

He had one hand on the nape of her neck, holding her there, and another on her back to keep their bodies together. Their tongues danced together and their lips bruised each other, his mind completely disconnecting. How had this happened? He was definitely not expecting this, but he also wasn't going to complain.

When they finally broke the kiss, they were breathing heavily and Elsa's cheeks were tinted pink. Jack looked at her bruised, red lips and his desire for her exploded in his chest. The fact that her breasts were pressed against him and her arms were still around his neck wasn't helping at all.

Slowly, very evidently not wanting to, they broke their embrace and separated from each other, their only contact being Jack's hands holding Elsa's, after they'd slid down her back and arms. She sighed and smiled at him.

"Good night, Jack" she said, and without another word, turned around and disappeared into her apartment.

Jack just stood there for a couple of minutes, too stunned to move. He brought a hand to his lips and touched them thoughtfully.

Did that really just happen? he asked himself, staring at the door. Then he smiled. He knew he was smiling like a complete fool, but he didn't care.

He turned around and started walking back home, feeling like he could fly.

...

...

I feel like I can fly as well, after writing all that xD Time has not been my friend, lately!

Anyways, thanks for reading! Please review if you got the time :D