I'm so sorry for going so long without updating! I'm horrible, I know! But college is hard!

I float in a boat

In a raging black ocean

Low in the water

And nowhere to go

The tiniest lifeboat

With people I know

~Lifeboat, Heathers the Musical

Chapter Six: Lifeboat

"Elinor, are you sure that you're done with all of the unpacking? It's only been a few days," Elsa said from the floor where she was stretching, looking up at her coach. "It won't kill me to have a few days off of practicing if you're still busy."

"Nonsense," Elinor said, fixing Elsa with a firm glare. "Perfection requires discipline and practice. We cannot afford to slack off anywhere."

Elsa sighed. "Will you at least let me help you out after practice? Rearranging? Painting? Making beds?"

"Elsa, we are fine. You don't need to worry about us."

"You said that you'd take a week to get settled in, and instead you took four days. I don't want you to overextend yourself."

"I'm doing nothing of the sort. Fergus is taking care of everything, and Merida and the boys can handle the heavy lifting. Now, come on. Take a few laps around the rink before we begin warm-ups."

Elsa sighed again as she got to her feet and stepped onto the ice. Her hair was still somewhat damp from her shower, the cold ends tickling the back of her neck from the end of her ponytail. She rolled her shoulders back as she began to glide across the frozen surface, putting her legs on autopilot as she thought about her past few days back in Burgess.

After going to the skating rink a few days ago, things with Anna had been… weird. For one, Anna had met some guy that she called Hans. Elsa hadn't seen him, having returned to the skating area with the drinks a few minutes after Anna and the guy had left, so she had no clue about the guy: what he looked like, what he was like. Anna declared him to be dreamy and a gentleman when she had returned home later that night, having "saved her from a concussion." The thought of him, however, set Elsa's teeth on edge. Perhaps it was because she was protective of her sister; perhaps it was because she hadn't met him yet; or, perhaps it was because of her lackluster history with men. Nevertheless, Elsa was determined to be her best self around Anna's new boyfriend.

But Anna's new relationship status wasn't the only thing that was throwing Elsa off. Anna seemed to be distancing herself from her older sister, as if she was afraid that the moment she touched Elsa, she would disappear. Elsa fought to keep the thought from stinging, knowing that it was completely reasonable. The two sisters hadn't seen each other since they were children after all. Anna was an adult, with a life and friends separate from Elsa. And Elsa had her own life as well, she knew.

She needed to stop taking everything so personally, Elsa decided. Anna had a new relationship to navigate through with this Hans, and Elsa needed to give her the space that she so obviously desired. She shoved down the hurt that rose up; she was the big sister; she needed to be better.

"Okay, Elsa," Elinor called from across the ice, breaking Elsa out of her reverie. "Let's get started on your routine. Counting first, then we'll put it to music."

The next hour and a half flew by. Elsa had always had a knack for turning her brain off when she skated, dispelling the stress and the pain from everyday life and relishing in the freedom that skating brought. It didn't matter how many times Elinor yelled at her to straighten her leg or to smile more; she did it without a second thought. It was why she was the best.

In fact, if it weren't for the group of young men standing off to the side of the rink, Elsa knew that Elinor would have had her practice another two hours and that she would have done it gladly. Unfortunately for her, the rink was a communal space, and there was a community hockey team that needed to practice. Elinor, however, was not pleased.

"Mr. North, I specifically told you that I need more than an hour and a half for my coaching," she said, stomping over to the large man. Elsa laughed under her breath as she skated to the bleachers and hobbled over to her bag. She listened to the small argument—Elinor indignant and offended, North good-natured and amused—as she smoothly undid the laces on her skates before taking them off and placing them in her bag.

"Elinor," Elsa said as she began to slip on her tennis shoes. "It's alright. We've practiced enough today, and you still have unpacking to do."

"Elsa Winters, I decide when we are done for the day!" Elinor gave her student a withering glare which said student simply laughed at.

"Why don't you go work something out with Mr. North about the rink, and we can make it up some other time this week?" Elsa suggested as she stood up, workout bag placed on her shoulder and skating bag dangling from her other hand. Elinor pursed her lips in irritation but gave a nod, ordering Elsa to be prepared for a phone call as she left the rink with Mr. North.

At this turn of events, the hockey players decided that it was safe to get on the ice and begin their warm-ups. Elsa watched as they skated towards the middle of the rink, decked out in their gear and sticks in their hands. She had never really watched a hockey game before, figuring that the sport was much too aggressive for the beauty that the ice held for her. She almost likened it to sacrilege but held herself back. As her father liked to say, different strokes for different folks. She snorted quietly at the thought and turned to leave the rink and the boys to their practicing. She was stopped, however, by the tall form of one Jack Frost.

"Um, hi," she said slowly, surprised at his presence. She could have sworn that all of the team members had already gone out on the ice, but it was hard to keep track of who was who when they were all moving around so quickly.

"Hey," Jack replied. Elsa waited for him to say something, staring at a spot over his shoulder so she wouldn't have to make eye contact. Even if his eyes were very blue and nice to look at.

Finally, it got to be too much for her: "What's up?"

"Oh, uh, I just wanted to tell you that… you skate really nice?" Jack said.

"You mean 'well,'" Elsa corrected automatically, then cringed. "Sorry."

Jack laughed. "No, it's cool, it's fine." He rubbed the back of his neck, looking away from her. Elsa felt her chest tighten the longer she stood there, waiting for him to either say something or move out of her way.

Jack coughed. "So, uh, how have you been?"

Elsa blinked. "Fine…?"

"You know, with the whole bodyguard thing, I thought maybe something was happening with you. Anna tried to explain it, but then she met that Hans guy. Have you met Hans yet?" Jack said.

"Uh, no…" Elsa said, trying to get her thoughts in order. "How… why do you care about my bodyguard?"

"It just seems pretty serious, is all. And Anna seemed kind of upset about it, so I wondered…" Jack trailed off, his gaze going to the ice where his teammates were messing around.

"Anna was upset?" Elsa felt her heart drop into her stomach. Was that why Anna had been so distant lately? Not that she had any room to talk.

"I mean, not upset, just kind of weirded out… So, anyway, there was something I wanted to ask you," Jack said, finally turning back to Elsa and locking eyes. She froze. He wasn't going to…?

"U-uh," Elsa stammered.

"Anna's birthday is coming up, and I wanted to throw her a surprise party. I thought you might like to be in on it," Jack continued. Elsa let out a sigh of relief, the tension she hadn't realized she carried draining away.

"Oh," she said, "yes, yes I would."

"Cool." Jack smiled. Elsa gripped her elbows roughly as her stomach fluttered. There was a shout from the ice, a call of Jack's name, and he held up a hand to whoever it was.

"You should probably get out there," Elsa said.

"I should probably get your number," he replied. "For party planning."

Elsa felt her cheeks redden. "Oh, uh, yeah, but… you don't have your phone on you, do you?" Taking your phone out onto the ice while skating was an accident waiting to happen.

"Give me yours," Jack said, holding his hand out. Elsa grabbed her phone where she'd stashed it in her bag and handed it to Jack after unlocking it. He made a few swipes, then typed before handing it back to her.

"I texted myself," he said, grinning. Elsa looked down at the screen: Hey, handsome. She looked back up at Jack and quirked an eyebrow.

"Someone's cocky."

Jack laughed loudly, throwing his head back. He looked at her, blue eyes twinkling, and winked. "I'll catch you later, Snow Queen." He skated away from her, leaving Elsa standing on the sidelines with her phone in hand. She looked down at the screen once more, shaking her head at the hockey emoji he'd put next to his name. Jack Frost was certainly something.

Elsa was sitting on the couch in the family room, reading when the doorbell rang. She looked up at the noise in surprise and checked the time. It was seven o'clock on a Tuesday night. Who could it be?

Elsa listened for any of her family members to go to the door; perhaps they were expecting someone? But she heard nothing aside from her mother talking to someone from the kitchen. Her father was in his study, her mother was on the phone, and Anna was upstairs probably texting with her boyfriend. Elsa carefully slid her bookmark into her page as she got up from the couch. The doorbell rang again.

She knew that she should probably call Marshall, that she shouldn't be answering the door, but she shoved those thoughts aside. She was overreacting. It was probably somebody selling something. She could be a normal person: open the door, smile, say yes or no thank you.

The person on the other side of that door did not want to kill her.

Probably.

Elsa took a deep breath as she neared the door, her phone held tightly in her hand. She opened the door and looked out to the porch. A man stood on the door mat, cast in shadows so that Elsa couldn't quite make out his features.

"Hello?" she asked. The man stepped forward, and she could see him. He had auburn hair and sideburns, a rectangular face, and a kind smile. In his hands, he held a bouquet of roses.

"Hi," the man said, "I'm here to pick up Anna. Is she ready?"

Elsa breathed a sigh of relief. Of course. He was here to pick up her sister, not to tie her up, throw her in the back of a car, and shoot her in a forest somewhere. He was Anna's new boyfriend.

"Oh, you must be Hans," Elsa said.

"Yes, that's me," he agreed, chuckling slightly.

"I'm sorry, come in," Elsa stepped aside to let him into the foyer, closing the door behind him. "I'm sorry. Anna didn't tell us that you two had plans. I can go check on her if you'd like?" There was a loud bang before Elsa finished her sentence, and Anna appeared at the top of the stairs in a bathrobe.

"Hans, hi! I'm so sorry! I'm running a little late. Give me five minutes, and I'll be down!" Anna said, then bolted away without waiting for an answer. Hans looked towards Elsa with a light chuckle.

"Your sister is something," he said. Elsa laughed along, wondering if he meant something good or something bad. She hoped the former.

"Yes, she's a little scatter-brained. But she's wonderful," Elsa said. Hans nodded, agreeing with her. There was a small pause, and Elsa looked around the foyer, trying to ignore the awkwardness.

"So, tell me about yourself," she said finally, breaking the silence. "Anna has been surprisingly tight-lipped about you."

"Well, to be fair, this will only be our third date. But there's really not much to tell. I'm the youngest of thirteen brothers," Hans began. Elsa's eyes widened.

"Wow," she said.

"That's everyone's reaction." Hans laughed. "And no, it was not particularly good to have that many siblings. They were horrible. Played pranks and all sorts of stuff on me."

"That's terrible. I'm so sorry," Elsa said. She couldn't imagine torturing Anna like that.

"Oh, I got used to it. And it's something Anna and I bonded over, you know," Hans said, "having siblings and still feeling lonely."

Elsa's small smile fell. "What?"

"Just that we both had siblings who essentially pretended that we didn't exist. Three of my brothers pretended I was invisible for two whole years. Can you imagine?" Hans said all of this with a joking attitude, but his smile had turned cruel. Elsa's stomach turned over itself.

"I- I never—"

"But we have each other now. All of that's in the past," Hans continued as if Elsa wasn't talking.

"I talked with Anna as much as I could. I couldn't help what happened to me!" Elsa snapped. Hans stopped.

"What happened to you?" he repeated. She felt the blood drain out of her face, taking an involuntary step back.

"I- I was sent to Norway. I had no control over it," Elsa said, fighting to keep her voice steady. Hans gave her a measured look. He didn't believe her; he thought she was lying. He wasn't wrong.

"Okay!" Anna announced her presence as she flew down the stairs. "I'm ready!" She flung herself into Hans's arms and by the time she had removed herself, the calculating look on his face was replaced with a warm smile.

"Hey, you," he said. Anna giggled and glanced over her shoulder at Elsa. The delight in her features faded slightly, and Elsa felt her stomach drop with it. Did Anna think that she had abandoned her? Was that the problem?

"I hope I didn't keep you too long," Anna said, turning back to Hans.

"No, I was just talking with your sister," Hans said. "Though I have to say that I much prefer your company to hers."

"Hans!" Anna squealed, swatting at Hans's shoulder and shaking her head at Elsa as if to say, He didn't mean it like that. Elsa didn't care either way.

"Do Mama and Papa know that you're going out?" Elsa asked. Her question stopped the happy couple in the doorway. Anna looked back at Elsa and shrugged.

"I'll be back before midnight. But to be honest, it's none of their business. And it's none of yours either." The door shut firmly behind Anna. Elsa looked through the window as Anna and Hans walked hand in hand to his car, as he held the door open for her. Elsa could picture the giggle that Anna would give him as he closed it and turned to go to the driver's side. But as he got to his side and opened his own door, Hans lifted his head. Elsa couldn't see his face from this distance, but somehow, she knew he was looking right at her.

Elsa slid the deadbolt into place as the car drove away.

Soooo...

We got some Elinor, some fledgling Jelsa, and a suspicious Hans... am I forgiven?

I hope that everyone is enjoying the story. It's something unlike anything I've ever written, and I just want to make sure that I write it well!

Thank you so much for reading! Hopefully see you soon :)

~Isabelle