To see is to believe.

Anna had adapted that thought over the last few years. She wasn't a firm believer in genuine kindness, not anymore. The situation with Elsa was a solid proof of that. However, no matter how many times she denied it, she now knew that she was wrong about her earlier assumptions. But, in her defense, she had seen Elsa's actions and that was when she chose to believe in her.

If the people around her shared the same sentiment, Anna wouldn't know. Human beings were gullible. They could be easily swayed. One picture and they practically had an entire story to say on their own. It was easy to embellish things, to add crazy little ideas for the sake of entertainment when it didn't involve oneself.

Anna sighed.

The pitter-patter of the rain was getting louder the closer she reached the front doors of the school. Her hold on the messenger bag draped around her shoulders tightened as she walked with her head held high, face impassive as usual. Multiple pairs of eyes followed her every move and whispers bounced from one wall to another.

She ignored them.

Or at least she tried.

As soon as she stepped out of the threshold, her legs stopped moving. For the nth time since that incident with Vanessa, she found herself staring at a certain sophomore blonde who was currently leaning against the wall and reading something on her notebook with a subtle frown on her face.

Should I talk, or just act like I didn't see her?

Anna nearly scoffed. There was no way Elsa wouldn't be seen by anyone who went out the front doors.

She gulped in a huge amount of air and straightened her back. "No umbrella?"

Blonde head whipped to her direction, blue eyes wide until they brighten with recognition. "Anna," Elsa greeted. "No, I don't. I didn't know it was going to rain."

"It always does this time of year. Your bro- Marshall didn't tell you?"

Elsa gave a strained smile to which Anna was barely able to stop a grimace. Weeks and months of a mindset that Elsa was the same as her brother were difficult to forget, but she was slowly getting there. The fact that the blonde wasn't getting angry at her slip-ups helped too.

Lowering her notebook, Elsa said, "We haven't talked in a while. Ever since the rumor about us started."

"Oh." Anna worried her lip and chose to watch the rain instead of the girl beside her. "He believes them?"

"No. I told him what happened. He's just acting... odd."

Resisting the urge to comment, Anna kept quiet. As much as possible, she didn't want to talk about Marshall. Then again, they had no other topics to talk about. Every conversation that ever occurred between them was either brought upon by him, Ariel, or these rumors going around.

"Is he bothering you?"

Had she seen that worried expression on Elsa's face back when she didn't have any acceptable proof of her genuineness, she would probably retort unkindly like she used to. Okay, Elsa wasn't bad. However, it didn't change the way Anna felt mildly irritated whenever she would see that familiar look on her face, as though it had already become permanent. It didn't suit her.

"He's not," she admitted. "None of them are. I guess, for now, they're satisfied with the rumors going around about me."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You weren't the one who spread that picture," Anna assured. "I don't care what people say about me as long as they don't hurt Ariel."

Only silence followed her statement and Anna was starting to realize just how bad she was when conversing with people casually. The last time she tried it with Rapunzel in the locker room, it didn't end well. She was repeating the same mistake with Elsa. No matter how angry she was with Marshall, he was still this girl's brother. There was no way the awkwardness between them would die down if he would always be connected to their topic.

Elsa tucked her notebook inside her bag in favor of responding and Anna decided. "You live nearby, right? You only walked away back when you helped Ariel in the fountain."

"Oh... Yes. I live near the playground around the corner."

Fiddling with the zipper of her bag, Anna told herself to stop whatever it was she was going to do. That there wouldn't be anything good that would come out of it. How was she to know if Elsa actually wanted to wait for the rain to let up? What if she was waiting for Marshall to walk home with?

She said they weren't talking.

Was that true? Was it possible for siblings not to talk? They lived under the same roof. Didn't that seem off? If one of them was already working, it was believable and could pass off as simply being too busy. That was how it was for her, Meg, and Hans. But the Dalton siblings were both in high school. Was Elsa lying to her?

Anna shook the thought away, reminding herself not to jump to conclusions. She looked back at Elsa who was now watching the rain with an inscrutable look on her face. The lack of sun made her look paler and her eyes lacked the shine that Anna had seen back when she gave that necklace in the mall.

"I can take you home."

"I'm sorry, what?"

The bashful smile and pinkish hue of Elsa's cheeks told Anna that she wasn't heard over the sudden outburst of the rain. Nonetheless, she debated whether or not to repeat. This was not a good idea. There were a thousand reasons why this was a terrible suggestion.

"I said I can take you home," Anna spoke beside Elsa's ear, her voice higher in volume as it battled with the harsh forces of nature.

"What?" Elsa asked, whipping her head to the side.

Turquoise eyes widened the same time icy blue ones did. Their faces were only an inch apart and the scent of mint and vanilla wafted to Anna's button nose. In a split second, the pouring rain faded on the background and all she could hear was the ringing in her ears. She quickly pulled back and hoped that the lack of a bright light hid the redness of her cheeks.

Elsa cleared her throat. "I-It's fine. You don't have to."

"I have a car," she blurted, her trembling hands finding solace in the flower pendant embedded in her bag. "I can lend you my umbrella, but it's useless in this kind of rain."

"It's okay, Anna. I can wait for it to be over."

That was her cue. Anna should go and save whatever dignity she had left. She had to go before Elsa found anything unusual about her actions. There was no way her blush would go unnoticed and she should leave while there was still a chance.

"It's going to take long." Anna rummaged through her bag, looking for the umbrella she knew was somewhere in there. "Here."

"What about you?"

Shoving the umbrella towards the blonde's chest and eliciting a soft 'oof', Anna stepped back and brought her bag to her front, hugging it. "Hold it and wait for me."

The first droplets of water that landed on her small body were heavy and cold, and so were the ones after that. Her shoes were splashing water all over the place as she stepped on puddles and her clothes were starting to cling to her body. Most of her was asking what she was doing, yet she was not against taking Elsa home if only to spend more time with her.

It was stupid.

Dropping Elsa off the Dalton residence would increase the chances of seeing Marshall. She didn't even know if the guy was still in school. But a positive side of her—the side she desperately hid on the deepest recesses of her mind—was telling her that just because she'd drive Elsa home didn't mean she'd see the guy. People didn't wait outside their homes while waiting for someone nowadays.

"Come on, Anna," she muttered to herself, resting her forehead on the steering wheel. "She's still out there with your umbrella. Just this once. Then, you can go and..." she trailed off with a groan. "Damn it," she whimpered, closing her eyes and trying to calm down.

Once she had her bearings together, Anna drove back to the front doors. The rain made it hard to see ahead and she made sure she wasn't going fast. It was a good thing too because, in just a few seconds, she saw a lone figure on the road. Squinting to have a better look, she came to notice the familiar design of her umbrella.

Anna hit the horn of her car and suppressed a smile when the body jumped and turn around to face her. She lowered the window on the passenger seat and peered outside, heart doing a particular leap when she was met by a frowning Elsa.

"I told you to wait for me," Anna said, raising an eyebrow when Elsa merely narrowed her eyes. "What?"

"You're soaked." Her voice was stern and slightly unfamiliar.

That was new, Anna thought. Was Elsa angry? No, it couldn't be that. Anna had seen her angry before and that was when Vanessa kissed her. Anna bit back a growl at the memory. It wasn't time for that. Right now, she had to add this attitude to her collection of Elsa's personalities.

Anna sighed—what was she doing?—and opened the door to the passenger seat. "Get in."

Elsa didn't move, her frown deepening. Anna wanted to glare and tell her to hurry up because the cover seat was already gathering droplets of water, but then she remembered that she was practically drenched and sitting in the driver seat.

Anna opened her side of the car, barely able to contain a laugh when there was a strangled squeak and fumbling with the umbrella before Elsa jumped on the passenger seat. She waited for the girl to calm down befo—

"You should've used this!"

Or not.

"You need it to walk the distance to my car. You were waiting for the rain to stop and I'm guessing you didn't want to get wet." Anna opened the glove compartment and offered the girl a box of tissue to dry herself. "Just tell me the directions."

"You'll get sick!"

"Directions, Elsa."

They had an intense stare-off before Elsa conceded, mumbling something Anna couldn't hear while trying to dry her arms with a tissue. A small smile curled on Anna's lips and she drove towards the playground, oddly contented to simply listen to Elsa's grumbling and directions.

Elsa was barely able to catch her jaw from dropping the moment she saw the familiar car of her father parked by the curb, headlights on. Her throat instantly went dry as she inwardly panicked because why did they have to arrive at the same time?

On one hand, she was relieved that she arrived with them because that would mean she wasn't late. On the other, she was mentally berating herself for not arriving sooner. The only choice left was for her to step out of Anna's car, run as fast as she could, and hope her parents would not ask why she was drenched. That might lead to her going to a hospital for check-up 'just in case', but anything other than this would be better.

"T-Thank you for taking me home." Elsa unbuckled herself and was about to smile when she remembered something that made her frown instead. "But you were reckless."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Anna shrugged and pointed to the umbrella. "Use that to get inside. It's still raining."

"But—"

A honk cut Elsa off from her reasoning, filling her stomach with poisonous butterflies. The door of her father's car opened and a man stepped out with an umbrella. That was it. Maybe she should insist Anna drive away and send her back home later? But that would lead to her parents dubbing her as missing or in danger...

"Your dad?"

"Y-Yes," Elsa choked, her heart pounding in her ears with every step her father took closer to Anna's car. Anna gave her a quizzical look but otherwise didn't say anything. Holding her breath, Elsa waited for the inevitable knock on the redhead's side that came far earlier than she had hoped.

Anna lowered the window and was about to talk when Elsa's father blanched. "Elsa?"

Breathe.

"D-Dad!" Elsa beamed, mustering the biggest smile she could and hoping Anna wouldn't say anything that could make her father more suspicious than he already was. "Hi! I'm so—"

"Where's Marshall?"

The strictness of his voice raised the tiny hairs on her arm and the glare of his eyes made her want to push on Anna's knee so the girl would step on the gas. That was a look she dreaded. She wanted to lie, to form any kind of excuse to save Anna from the impending interrogation her father would undoubtedly force on her, but any unusual action could make either her father or Anna suspicious.

It was her parents' or Anna's trust.

"Marshall asked me to bring Elsa home," Anna calmly explained. Elsa's eyes widened in both good and bad surprise, having conflicting feelings about hearing the girl blatantly lie to her father.

"Oh," King said. "Why don't you two come in?"

"Sir?"

King ignored the redhead's inquisitiveness and focused on Elsa. "Your friend is drenched, Elsa. Have her park in the garage, take a shower, and sit down for dinner. I want to know this woman Mars entrusted you with."

He left his daughter squirming in her seat and feeling a terrible sense of doom. The gate of the garage opened up and King quickly parked on one side, leaving the other free for Anna.

Oh god.

"Is it really okay for me to park in there?" Anna asked after a few minutes of silence.

"I," Elsa stuttered, eyes not leaving the ominous garage. "T-There's still space." Anna nodded and drove towards the gate. "I'm sorry about this."

"It's fine. I don't have anything to do."

"But Marshall is... C-Can we not talk about what's going on in school? Even if just for tonight? I-I don't think my parents would..." Elsa nearly caved in on herself when Anna gave her a sidelong glance. It made her feel as guilty as Marshall was. She knew her request was selfish and unfair, but if their parents found out about it, it would be a disaster.

"Fine," Anna answered after parking. "I don't want to talk about it anyway. I just... This means I'll be eating here with... with him, doesn't it?"

Elsa nodded. "My family doesn't eat unless we're all home. I'm sorry."

Anna unbuckled herself. "Why are you apologizing?"

"Because... you're getting forced to eat with the guy who caused you so much trouble all these years, and because this will probably be a long night," in more ways than one.

"Let's go then." Anna turned the engine off and gave Elsa a pointed look. "The sooner we start this, the sooner it will be over."

Trying to find comfort in those words, Elsa reluctantly stepped out of the car and noted how her father's was already devoid of anyone. She opened the redhead's umbrella and settled it on the ground to dry itself before leading the girl inside the house.

"Have your friend take a shower," her father urged and went to the master's bedroom.

Elsa felt cold. She itched to run towards her room, lock herself in, and wallow in the conflicting emotions inside of her. Maybe open up her laptop and try editing a photo or a video, or force herself to come up with lyrics, or open up her Skype to talk to Olaf—

She couldn't.

There was nothing to edit because Olaf didn't give her anything to work on, she couldn't write lyrics because Anna was there, and she couldn't call Olaf because Anna knew who he was. The only thing she could do was hope that this night would pass by without a problem.

"Follow me." Elsa led Anna, whose eyes lingered longer than necessary on the few pictures lined up on the walls, up the stairs. "I-I'll look for clothes."

Standing stiffly by the door, Anna noted, "Nice room."

"Thank you," Elsa responded meekly as she rummaged through her drawer. It was a relief that she was taller than Anna and that their physiques weren't that different. Her clothes would surely fit her. "Here."

Anna's eyes widened when she saw what was on top of the neatly folded clothes. "Y-You... That's an underwear. Your underwear."

"Unless you want to keep wearing what you're wearing, I suggest you take it. I haven't worn it yet. I always have a new stock."

Ice cold hands brushed against hers when they took the clothes. "Thank you."

There was a look of something in those turquoise irises. Whatever it was, Elsa didn't want to pry. Anna simply talking to her normally was enough and she wouldn't want to break what they had by being nosy. It was already unfair of her to ask the girl to keep quiet about school.

"You can shower here." Elsa opened her personal bathroom door and gestured for Anna to get in. "Put your clothes in the hamper. I'll wash them later. If you need something, just shout. I'll be at my desk."

"Okay...?"

The door to the bathroom closed and Elsa changed to a much comfortable set of clothes. It wasn't until she heard the shower run that she was able to relax. She had no idea how long Anna took showers, but she would take however long to have a breather.

Cindy...

Elsa sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose and constantly reminding herself that a dinner would not kill her. She only had to make sure Anna wouldn't say something that could reveal whatever Marshall was doing in school and to make sure her parents wouldn't mention anything about her in general.

[People are hypocrites]

Those words haunted her ever since Anna had spoken them, and they filled her with a huge sense of anxiety now more than ever. The sounds slowly faded into the background and the walls started closing in faster than when she saw Marshall bullying someone. Elsa opened her drawer and popped a pill inside her mouth, swallowing with difficulty with the lack of water, before settling her elbows on the desk and rubbing her temples to ease a rising headache.

A ringtone convinced her to look at her laptop. She debated whether or not she should answer when Olaf's name flashed on the screen. The running water in the bathroom and the need for the company made her click 'accept' and wait until his face appeared.

"Hey," she greeted, straining a smile.

Olaf's unusually serious face deepened into a frown. "What's wrong?" Elsa opened her mouth to say something. "Don't lie to me, Elsa."

"What is it?" Elsa raised an eyebrow. "You look grumpy."

"I want to know how you're doing. Rapz told me some stuff. Dad also mentioned things."

His words sent chills down her spine and negative thoughts spun around her head instantly. She knew that her uncle wouldn't let the mall incident slide and that Rapunzel felt the same way, but an ungrateful side of her couldn't help getting angry and feeling equally guilty for both of them talking behind her back.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Olaf's voice came out softer and gentler than before. "You know you can talk to me, right?"

"Olaf, I'm okay. It's bearable. Mars is here and doing his best to keep me sane and... I don't know."

"You admit it's taking a toll on you."

"Of course it is. But I have to do this. I don't want to disappoint them again. They need her."

"At the expense of what? You?" Elsa flinched, his words stinging. "If I knew it was going to get this bad, I wouldn't agree to let you live with them again. As much as I respect Aunt and Uncle, I don't think this is good for you."

"I don't even know what's good for me anymore," she muttered, but the deepening of Olaf's frown told her he heard it loud and clear. He was wearing an earphone.

"Els—"

"Mom's calling," Elsa interjected when she heard a door opening, signaling Anna's return. "I'll talk to you some other time. I have to go."

"Fine. But we're going to talk about this again."

With an appreciative smile, she ended the call and breathed in and out before turning her chair around. Anna was drying her hair with a towel, wearing Elsa's plain white t-shirt and grey Bermuda shorts. Elsa was speechless as she watched the red hair of the girl flowing smoothly down her slender back and shoulders, resembling a bloody waterfall.

"Is something wrong?"

"Huh?" Elsa spluttered. "N-No. No, I, uhm... Are those clothes alright? Are they not too tight? Too loose?"

"They're fine." After drying her hair, she asked, "Where can I put this?"

"Oh! Let me." Elsa took the towel from Anna's hands and went back to her bathroom to hang it on a hook. "Do you want to borrow my blow dryer?"

"No thanks. Maybe a comb?" Elsa gestured to the vanity and Anna muttered her thanks. "Were you talking to someone?"

"My cousin," she answered before thinking. "We haven't talked in a while."

"Oh." A pause. "I thought I heard a familiar voice."

At that moment, Elsa was glad she took her medicine earlier lest she started hyperventilating now. She didn't know how good Anna's memory was, but she was hoping that the redhead wouldn't think about Olaf. Why did she have to mention that she was talking to her cousin?

"His voice is generic." Really, Elsa? "Sometimes, I thought I heard him even when he wasn't there."

"I see." Anna placed the brush back on the vanity and turned around, her eyes drifting to the desk. "Cool laptop."

"T-Thank you." Panicking upon remembering the folders on her desktop, she fiddled with her mouse and froze when a presence hovered behind her. It was weird, she mused, smelling herself on Anna. "It's a gift from the same cousin."

"It looks heavy duty." Anna placed her arms on the back of Elsa's chair. "Oh, you have Reaper. You write music?"

Of all the things Anna could see, it was that. Though Elsa was able to deflect the topic of 'familiar voice', she wasn't safe from the curiosity on the software on her laptop. "I try," she answered in half-truth. "You do?"

"My brother does. He used that software before. What kind of genre do you prefer?"

At the mention of Anna's brother, Elsa closed her laptop to stop any further inquiries. "I'm not sure. I mostly fiddle around with it. W-We should probably get down."

"Right," Anna agreed. Elsa went back to the bathroom and picked up the hamper. "Oh, let me carry tha—"

"No!" Elsa flinched away instinctively, making both girls stiffen. "Y-You're our guest, Anna. We don't let guests do the work." Elsa purposely ignored the fact that they never had any guests ever since she moved in. "Just relax."

Standing about an arms-length away from each other, they walked in silence down the stairs. The muffled conversation down the living room made Elsa's arms tighten around the hamper, hoping it could shield her from the possibilities that could happen this night.

"Oh, there they are!" Her father's booming voice halted her in her tracks, her eyes meeting the blue wide ones of her brother.

Don't say anything. Please, don't say anything.

"Oh," Marshall choked, his voice strangled as though the words were physically hurting him. Their father's eyes danced around the three high schoolers before Marshall found the need to speak. "R-Right! Of course! Anna, thanks for bringing Elsa home." He forced a smile that was obvious to his younger sister.

Elsa's attention drew back to Anna who had been speechless the entire way down. Her mouth was slightly parted and her eyes were swimming with confusion. It made Elsa feel bad, but a part of her hoped Anna would keep her word for the night.

"I'm... glad to help."

A relative of mine can fit three cars in their garage even if her family only had 2. Don't judge. I know nothing about composing music and only been asking one of my music producer friends about some things. My own knowledge about music is limited to singing. In the shower.