AN: If you are not familiar with college softball/baseball and how the NCAA World Series works, my apologies. I played in college (in America) so this all is common knowledge to me. I'm trying to simplify it but I'm sure it can be confusing if you don't come from that background.

Chapter 13

Kristoff made Anna happy. And because of that she blocked out any negative thoughts about their future after Draft Day. Finding a therapist helped. It took a few sessions for Anna to fully open up but once she did, Dr. Yelena really helped right her mind. Every morning was like a new weight was lifted off Anna's shoulders. She slept better, she laughed more and she was really starting to feel like her old self.

Spring quickly approached and before Anna knew it, it was May, Arendelle Softball was ranked 10th by the NCAA and was hosting a Regional tournament at The Stables.

Between classes, softball practice and games, supporting the baseball team and trying to spend quality time with Kristoff, Anna was surprised she was still able to get enough sleep every night. It was no wonder she blinked and finals were over. They had finished the week before and now Arendelle's campus was dead with summer officially started. But this was Anna's favorite time of year-no school, just softball. It made playing feel way more relaxed...and left a couple hours each lay to lazy around in bed with one of MLB's top prospects.

Friday was the start of the 'Arendelle Regionals' as the casters on ESPN were calling it. A four team, double elimination tournament, with the winner moving onto Super Regionals. Arendelle University was joined by Fordham University, Mississippi State and Seattle University. With Arendelle being the only team nationally ranked out of the four, they were the clear favorite to advance.

Friday afternoon they faced off against the Fordham Rams from New York State. This was Anna's first time being a part of a big NCAA event. ESPN camera crews were set up and World Series banners covered virtually everything. They even got special patches sewed onto their uniform sleeves. It was a big deal. She wasn't nervous. And she would deny it if anyone saw her hands shaking while she laced up her cleats. When the announcer called the starting line up, Anna calmed herself and focused on the task at hand. It was just like any other game she had played.

Kristoff, Flynn and Naveen shirtless, with their chests painted, helped.

Arendelle won 2-0.

Saturday, Arendelle played Mississippi State who had beat Seattle University the day before. The scouting report said they were the more difficult opponent, compared to Fordham, but Anna's team had no issues and walked away with a 6-1 victory. Kristoff lost his voice from cheering so loud.

Sunday. Championship Sunday. Arendelle just had to win one more game and they were moving on to the next step in their hunt for the World Series trophy. Mississippi State had to go through the 'losers' bracket' and eliminate the other two teams before they had another shot at the Arendelle Aggies. The nerves were long gone now and Anna was just itching to get on the field. Kristoff and the boys had become a spectacle in the stands and were even featured on Sportscenter the night before. (Kristoff being a highly sought after draft pick contributed to the story.)

Sunday's game against Mississippi State was even easier than the previous one and with an 8-0 victory, Arendelle was moving onto Super Regionals.

Those were scheduled for the next weekend. The team had to fly to Minneapolis to play the #7 ranked University of Minnesota. Because they were ranked higher than Arendelle, U of M got home field advantage. But Anna was confident in her team's talent. This series was best of three, the winner moving onto the World Series in Oklahoma City.

"I will buy your plane ticket. And Flynn's and Naveen's! Please, the girls would be so excited."

"You know I would be there in a heartbeat but Coach is refusing to let us go. With our own Regional tournament coming up he's not giving up any extra practice days."

The Arendelle girls would have to win this one without their biggest cheerleaders.

Friday the girls lost 5-3. Anna had played well, she even went 2 for 3 but Minnesota hit a big homerun in the bottom of the 6th inning and that put them ahead to win.

Saturday, Arendelle answered back and Merida threw a complete game shutout. They won 1-0 in a nail biter.

There they were, another Championship Sunday. They were one game away from a plane ticket to OKC and the Softball World Series. The picture of Kristoff, sitting in his living room, chest painted navy and white was the only thing calming the bone shaking nerves Anna was feeling.

The game had started well. Anna had gotten on first base, stolen second and then scored on a ball hit in the gap. It was a close play at home plate but Anna had gotten in before the catcher tagged her. Aredelle was up 1-0. Two innings later, Minnesota scored putting them ahead 2-1. When the 7th inning started the game was tied at 3-3. They had to go to extra innings until there was a winner. That's when being the home team had the biggest advantage. Minnesota won on a walk-off single up the middle. Anna had dove for it but not even Kristoff could have gotten to that ball. The girls from Minnesota's dugout stormed the field and tackled the player who had hit the game winning run in. That left Arendelle to walk off the field, their season coming to an abrupt end.

Silent tears rolled down Anna's cheeks as she packed up her equipment. The senior girls were bawling loudly and Anna's heart broke for them. They were done done. That was their last game ever. At least Anna, Rapunzel and Tiana had next year. If there was solace in anything, it was that.

The flight back home was somber. Most of the team kept to themselves, it didn't feel right to enjoy themselves until the mourning period was over. When Anna got back to campus, Kristoff was there to pick her up. He held up her luggage and she cried into his chest. He took her back to his apartment and she stayed in his bed for almost a full 24 hours. He knew her well enough now to know that she just needed time. She didn't need him fawning over her and trying to make her feel happy again. She could get there on her own. This was just how she did it. And after a day passed, Anna felt better. She went back to The Palace and reminisced with her roommates.

Moana and Merida were heading home for the summer the next day but Rapunzel, Tiana and Anna were sticking around to watch the boys play. Now that the softball season was over, they could put all their energy into supporting the men's team and their road to the Baseball World Series.

Anna was not painting her chest though.

For the first time in school history, both the softball and baseball programs hosted Regional tournaments at Arendelle. It was nice that the guys tournament didn't start until the week after the girls returned from Minnesota so Anna had plenty of time to decompress from the season.

May 29th was a big day. Not only was it the start of the men's Regional tournament but it was also the day they were announcing the Golden Spikes Award finalists. Anna had never even heard of the award until Flynn brought it up.

"It's like winning an Oscar...but for baseball. USA Baseball picks the best player in the country. It's a huge deal! And a pretty good indicator of who's going to be the number one overall draft pick in June."

Anna woke up that morning and the first thing she did was check to see who the four finalists were. When she opened the award's website, there was Kristoff's face grinning back at her. She squealed and kicked her covers off her. She then fired off a text message to Kristoff that was just a bunch of different emojis. He understood the sentiment. He reminded her that the winner wouldn't be announced for another two weeks, right before the draft.

Right before the draft.

The joy slowly deflated out of Anna's chest as she sat back down on her bed. She had done such a good job of compartmentalizing Kristoff not being at Arendelle University next year that she didn't even realize it was only two weeks away. The discussions about scouts and contracts and signing bonuses had steadily increased as the baseball season went on, and Anna listened to all of it with great interest. She wanted Kristoff to get the best deal possible and his agent, Mattias, was making sure of that.

Anna never thought she would see her boyfriend's face all over Sportscenter and Baseball Tonight. It was all so surreal. Maybe that's why it hadn't really hit her yet. Or maybe it was the fact that her and Kristoff had yet to actually discuss their plans for after the draft. At this point it was inevitable that he was going to be playing professional baseball once Arendelle's season was over. But what did that mean for them?

Before she could stew on the possible answers to that question, Rapunzel was bursting into her room, "HE'S A FINALIST!"

The Stables were already lively by the time Tiana, Rapunzel and Anna got there. The two other teams in the tournament had finished their game earlier that day but Anna hadn't looked into who those teams actually were. What she did know was that the boys were playing UC Santa Barbara that afternoon. The stadium was packed. Even though it was summer vacation, many students stuck around to watch the men's team try and make history. UC Santa Barbara wasn't too far away from Colorado so there were quite a few of their fans in the seats as well. Mostly parents, but some from the younger generation as well.

Thankfully, Tiana had done a work study with the Arendelle Athletic Department and was able to secure great seats right above the home dugout. The girls found their seats and started to set up their 'areas'. The girls pulled out sunflower seeds, gatorade bottles, water, sunblock and their posters. They had clearly come prepared.

"Ok ok, show me what yours say." Tiana said and she held her rolled up poster board to her chest. Rapunzel grinned and unrolled her neon poster to reveal the words '#33 Will you marry me?' Both Tiana and Anna burst into a fit of giggles, "Ok yours might be the winner Blondie."

"No! Show me yours!" Rapunzel exclaimed.

Tiana finally revealed her blue poster that had a realistic outline of a catcher in a squat and the words 'Thou shalt not steal'. Both Anna and Rapunzel complimented her on the drawing. "Anna your turn!"

Anna grimaced and flipped her bright pink poster around. 'No glove no love'. "You didn't!" Tiana yelled and all three girls laughed loudly, gathering attention from the crowd around them.

"Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen and welcome to Chris Buck Stadium, home of Arendelle Baseball. In today's Regional match up the Aggies take on the visiting UC Santa Barbara Gauchos. And now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time to meet the starting lineups for today's game. First, for the visiting Santa Barbara Gauchos..." Anna tuned out the unfamiliar names as she and her roommates settled into their seats.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen it's time to meet the starting line up for the 2020 Arendelle Aggies!" The animated man in the sound booth paused as the majority of the crowd cheered for their team. An energetic beat played in the background as the announcer started again, "Leading off, in center field, number 14 Aladdin Ababwa. Batting second, the second baseman, number 20, Eric Sailor. Batting third, at first base, number 12, John Smith. Batting fourth, at shortstop, number 27 Kristoff Bjorgman."

Anna screamed at the top of her lungs.

"Batting fifth, and doing the catching, number 2, Naveen Maldonia." This time it was Tiana's turn to scream.

"Batting sixth, the third baseman, number 6, Shang Li. Batting seventh, the left fielder, number 3, Adam Evermore. Batting eighth, the right fielder, number 17, Phillip Hubert. And batting ninth, the pitcher, number 33 Flynn Rider." All three girls whooped and hollered as Flynn was the last player to exit the dugout. Just as all the previous guys had done before him, he jogged over to the umpires to fist bump them, and then proceeded down the first base line. Most of Flynn's handshakes with his teammates were simple but when he got to Kristoff and Naveen the girls laughed at the elaborate moves the three did.

After the national anthem, the Aggies took the field. "Hey guys, watch my stuff? I'm just gonna run to the bathroom real quick." Anna jogged up the stadium stairs to the bathroom she knew of behind the announcer's booth. Hopefully the line wasn't too long, she didn't want to miss anything. As she walked around the corner, she was glad to see no one around. But before she could pull open the heavy door to the women's restroom, a voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Well aren't you a sight for sore eyes."

Anna's hand was frozen on the long metal handle of the door. She wanted to open it. She wanted to go in there, use the bathroom, wash her hands and go back to her seat. She wanted to watch Kristoff play. But her body wouldn't move. Her brain was screaming to move, that this wasn't real, just open the door. After what felt like an eternity, Anna's bicep flexed and she pulled the restroom door towards her, intent to go inside. But the door only made it about five inches before a hand above her head was slamming it closed again, jerking the handle from her grip.

Instinctively, Anna whirled around. And there he stood.

"Wha- what are you doing here?" Her brain was still not convinced that Hans Westergaard was actually standing in front of her-hand above her, holding the door shut, effectively boxing her in. Her eyes raced across his face, trying to determine if it really was him. Dark red hair, cold green eyes, slender face and a mean smirk on his thin lips.

"Gotta scout the team we're playing tomorrow." His voice was smooth as his eyes ran down her figure. Anna curled in on herself as his eyes lingered on her snug tank top. That's when she noticed his University of the Southern Isles Baseball shirt he wore. No.

"I heard you ended up here. Was hoping I would run into you." Hans's free hand traced up her bare arm before it found a loose piece of her auburn hair. He twirled it around his index finger gently. Anna visibly flinched and tried to side step away from him and the bathroom door. Anticipating her move, Hans's hand above her shot down to her bicep, squeezing it. Fear sent an icy chill down Anna's spine as he held her in place.

"How about you and I get out of here? Ya know, just like old times?" Hans leaned in, his wicked smirk only widening. Before he could get any closer, Anna struck his wrist with the heel of her opposite hand and forcefully yanked her arm out of his grip (thank you self-defense tutorials on youtube). Without looking back she sprinted for the nearest exit. The last thing she heard before her brain shut down was Hans's loud laughter.

When Anna's eyes refocused, she easily recognized her surroundings. She was about half of a mile from the stadium and still running. She had left her bag in her seat with her phone, car and house keys in it. But she knew where Kristoff kept his spare.

She didn't stop running until she was standing at the entrance of his apartment complex.

Hidden under the left garden gnome, Anna took the key and unlocked the front door. The apartment was silent, the afternoon light casting the place in an eerie glow. But Anna didn't care. Her body went straight to Kristoff's room down the hall. She didn't take any time appreciating the tidiness of his room or even his nicely made bed. She just kicked off her shoes and crawled under his covers. They smelled just like him and Anna let his scent surround her as she stared up at the ceiling.

She didn't know how long she laid there. The shadows were the only thing that moved around her. It had to have been hours because now Kristoff was barging into his apartment screaming her name.

"Anna?! Anna! Let me check my room. Oh fucking hell, thank god. Yeah she's here Rider. Tell the girls I've got her. Yeah. I'll text you later. Bye." Kristoff shoved his phone in his back pocket and squatted by his bed. "Anna, what the hell? The girls said you disappeared and left all your stuff at the field. We've all been worried sick." Kristoff's voice was quiet but the worry was obvious.

"Hans was at the game." Anna spoke slowly, finding comfort in Kristoff's warm amber eyes. She had never explicitly told Kristoff his name.

"Hans? Who's- ...your ex?" Kristoff's eyes widened.

"I didn't know Southern Isles was in your Regionals. I went to the bathroom and he-"

"Did he hurt you? I swear to god I will fucking-" Rage overtook all aspects of Kristoff's demenour before Anna interrupted him.

"He- he grabbed me, but I got away. I just ran. I didn't have my keys but I knew I would be safe here." Annd, still lying in his bed, rolled over to fully face him. Kristoff still wore his dirt stained uniform. She had missed his game. But despite his attire, Kristoff laid next to Anna, pulling her to her chest. She signed at the contact and her body easily relaxed into him. The smell from his game reminded her she missed one of the few games he had left. And her chest stabbed at that revelation, "How did you guys do?" She mumbled into his chest.

"11-2, they sucked."

"And you?"

"4 for 5 with two home runs."

"And the scouts?"

"Met with the Yankees and Astros. And San Francisco was there again, they're really pushing hard."

"The Bay Area is nice."

"Anna," Kristoff paused until she looked at him, "Tell me how I can help you."

"You're doing it. I'll be ok soon."

AN: This quarantine is really getting to me. I don't know how we're going to make it another month... Hope you're staying sane and healthy!