Elsa stared at her reflection in the mirror in dismay. For the past half an hour she had been hiding in her room, the past events playing over and over.
Rapunzel stood behind her in silence guiding the soft brush through her cousin's soft platinum blonde hair, something Elsa usually found soothing.
But not today.
Elsa turned away from the mirror and paced the room, Rapunzel following devotedly with the brush.
When pacing didn't work, Elsa threw herself on her bed, feeling Rapunzel flop down beside her.
Elsa stared at the blue roof, but the colours were just like his eyes, the hurt...the pain.
Elsa squeezed her eyes shut, but the events of the afternoon kept playing again and again, like some nightmare that refused to end.
Rapunzel jerked away as Elsa sat bolt upright, her hands held up as she released a stream of ice at her wall. Then the girl flopped back motionless on the bed, a single pale hand covering her face.
"I have to say..." Rapunzel dared speak, "You're overreacting just a bit."
Elsa was so surprised that she aat up again, staring at her cousin in confusion.
"I-what?"
"You rejected him...so what?' Rapunzel asked.
"Rich coming from you." Elsa regretted her harsh words the moment they left her mouth, but she didn't say anything, instead taking the moment to survey the damage she had inflicted on her room.
"You're right." Rapunzel said. "I do rush blindly into love, fall to fast and then get burned...but Elsa this is you!"
"This is the first time this has happened to me!" Elsa whined, fixing her bloodshot blue eyes on her younger cousin.
"But it's Jack." Rapunzel reminded her, and her frown deepened when Elsa let out a whimper at the sound of his name, burying her face in a tearstained pillow.
"Elsa." Rapunzel began cautiously, unsure on how she'd pose the question to the storm of emotions.
"You-well you...i mean you don't... Don't.."
"don't what, Punzie?" Elsa asked sharply, causing Rapunzel to jump.
"You don't like Jack... surely not... right?"
To her surprise, instead of biting her head off, Elsa dropped her gaze, staring at the ground.
"I...I really don't know, Punzie. i don't."
Rapunzel's eyes widened, and she opened her mouth, before shutting it again, searching for the right words.
"If Jack ever were to...to say something...like confess...would you answer differently."
"I didn't answer." Elsa reminded her darkly. "I fled."
"But what would you say?" Rapunzel pressed for an answer, green eyes watchful.
Elsa glanced at her hands, forming little snowflakes as she thought.
"Maybe..." The growing blush on Elsa's cheeks confirmed Rapunzel's suspicions, and she squealed, grabbing her older cousin and squeezed her, all while repeating,
"Elsa's got a crush, Elsa's got a crush!"
"Shush!" Elsa couldn't stop herself from smiling, but it quickly faded as she thought of something else.
"But Punzie." She said, "What if Jack doesn't like me anymore?"
Rapunzel rolled her big green eyes, "please, Elsa it's been an hour! if anything he's trashing his own room with grief, not standing in a cafe getting the bartender's number!"
"Bartenders in cafes..." Elsa shook her head, smiling as her cousin continued. "Speaking of which, you should get this mess cleaned up, pronto."
Elsa grimace, nodding. "Mama and Papa will freak if they find it in such a state!"
While Elsa, now comforted by Rapunzel's words of advice, and her final defeat to the fact that she couldn't ignore her feelings for the snowy-white haired boy, cleaned her room, Rapunzel began fiddling with the long strands of her own hair.
"So, where's Anna?"
Elsa paused in her thawing, brow furrowing.
"Date night with Hans."
"Oh...so they're serious." Rapunzel enquired leaning forward eagerly.
Elsa sighed and nodded. "They are, and Mama and Papa approve...but i can't help feeling like something's off about that guy."
"Hey, he's a sophomore, there's always something weird going on." Rapunzel was relieved to see a smile once more on Elsa's face as she continued her thawing, effortlessly sweeping a hand around the room and removing the ice she had created in her earlier state.
"Just...Punzie..?"
"Yeah?"
"What do i say to Jack?"
"... Don't worry about it, I have a plan."
.i.
Rapunzel was telling the truth when she said she had a plan...only it was a good thing she didn't tell Elsa, least she might disapprove.
After spending the night with the Winters, Rapunzel had left for her own home early, but not before dropping over at the Overland house.
"Jack's still sleeping i think." His mother said when Rapunzel enquired.
"Emma, go tell Jack someone's here to see him!"
Emma waved at Rapunzel, and trotted obediently up the stairs, only to return a minute or two later saying.
"Jack says he doesn't want to see you." She told them solemnly. "He says he doesn't want to see another stinky girl ever again apart from me or.."
"Emma!" Jackson Overland himself now stood at the top of the stairs, white hair spiky and clothes ruffled as if he'd only just pulled them on.
His piercing blue gaze searched the room, and settled on Rapunzel.
Rapunzel couldn't miss the flutter of disappointment on Jack's face, before his expression became unreadable.
His mother frowned at both her children on the stairs. "Jack, say hello, and Emma apologize to Rapunzel." Jack muttered a greeting, while Emma dropped her gaze, hiding her big brown eyes behind her thick brown hair, muttering sulkily, "He told me to say that."
"There's been a misunderstanding." Rapunzel explained. "I just wanted to resolve the issue before anything bad happens."
Mrs. Overland shrugged. "Well, resolve away, I'll be in the kitchen."
She left, calling Emma to come along, while muttering under her breath, "teenagers."
-i-
Minutes later, Rapunzel and Jack sat in the seclusion of his bedroom, door open slightly by Rapunzel's request.
He was busy munching on a chocolate chip cookie, waiting for Rapunzel to begin.
Rapunzel took a shaky breath and breathed, "If anyone finds out i told you this, I'm in big trouble, okay?"
Frowning, Jack nodded slowly.
Rapunzel searched for the words to explain, fingering her masses of blonde hair.
"Elsa called me yesterday, and...well she told me what happened. And, let's be honest Jack, if Elsa told me that this happened at say, the end of summer break, i would have expected her to say no."
Rapunzel took Jack's silence as a good thing, as she continued. "But, I've seen you and Elsa change a lot since that explosion. I believe that...well, if you had to ask her again she would react differently."
Rapunzel paused in her speech to take a breath, and see what Jack thought.
His expression was unreadable as he slowly said.
"So, Elsa said no...but meant she wasn't sure..?"
"She is sure!" Rapunzel squealed. "She wanted to say yes...but she didn't because i guess she wasn't sure what to do. she's never had a boyfriend."
"Clearly." Jack managed a small smile, which Rapunzel took as a good thing,
"You'd have to ask her why she said no exactly, but seriously Jack! You two are great for each other!"
Jack looked at her, doubt darkening his gaze. "Are you sure?"
"I promise you, in fact! You should ask her to the Winter Formal!"
"I should?"
"Yes." Rapunzel sighed dreamily, staring into space as if she could see it already. "It'll be so romantic, and fits you both, seeing as you have winter powers!"
Jack sat in silence for a moment longer, then smiled. "Yeah, i think i will, Punzie."
As Rapunzel left the house, she was so exhilarated, she didn't notice a black car with tinted windows nearby. It's windows rolled down slightly to reveal a pair of dark sunglasses that covered dark calculating eyes. But unfortunately Rapunzel saw none of it.
-i-
Hello hello all!
I am back, indeed after an unplanned and unwanted hiatus (PLEASE FORGIVE ME!)
I apologize to everyone who has waited so patiently for this next chapter, you guys are great!
And of course, thank you for the reviews! It makes my day to read inspiring, uplifting and positive comments :)
Now, again sorry for such a short chapter, but the next one (which will come soon) is going to have more Jelsa, and the following one some action for our superheroes.
Hope you enjoy!
-Foreverafangirl101