The unpleasant sound of an unknown voice reached our ears at dawn, startling us and making us fear the worst. We hurriedly dressed and left the tent to confirm our suspicions. A ship of an unknown flag to me remained anchored a few hundred meters from the coast while a couple of boats full of men of all ages and led by Elsa approached the shore.

"Should we run away?" Anna asked grabbing my hand desperately probably willing to hide in any hole for life.
"There are signs of human activity everywhere. They would search for us until they found us."
"What, then?"

She looked at me terrified. Fuck, what else could I do but return her to safety? We couldn't escape anyway. If we went out to meet them, at least, an investigation wouldn't be opened to find out what kind of relationship there was between us when we returned. With all the pain in my soul, all that I could give back with my own gaze was sadness and resignation.

"It seems your sister loves you more than you thought… Sure she will take good care of you."
"Kristoff? What are you saying?"

I looked straight ahead again, I couldn't go on if I looked at her one more time. I wiped away the tears that flowed from my eyes, and dedicated her the only words that I was able to conjugate.

"Anna, I love you."

I could hear how her tears accompanied mine as I felt that the world was ending. Elsa and her team finally made it to shore and ran in disbelief and excitement toward us.

"Kristoff… are we gonna live?"

There was no answer; I couldn't give it to her. I just squeezed her hand tightly in mine and continued to watch helplessly as destiny came looking for us.

And, that way, motionless in the middle of our meadow, next to our garden, and in front of our home, holding hands, we renounce life together.

It turned out that our supposed savior was the governor of Portugal to whose territory our little island belonged. Apparently, Elsa mobilized all the countries in the wreck area determined to find her sister at any cost. They offered us exceptional treatment, fed us, gave us a medical check-up, provided us with clean clothes, and assigned us separate cabins to rest until we got back to Arendelle, where the governor also stayed for a few days as a guest of honor. I couldn't get close to her again; Elsa was like an insurmountable shield.

When we arrived in Arendelle a few days later, our eyes met during the disembarkation as she was escorted to the castle and I was kindly guided to my own home. I turned once more to watch her go and it broke my soul to see how her legs still trembled with each step. I bowed my head in an attempt not to let the men who had cared for me see my tears and walked awkwardly away from who, by now, would be my wife.

Once settled, I went to see my family and Sven and explained what happened. I received words of affection and many hugs, but nothing that gave me real comfort. Back in Arendelle, I cut my hair slightly, shaved my beard, and then went back to what was still my job. I received a warm welcome from the staff and a warm greeting from the queen, but there were no more walks. The royalty was busy tending to their guest, and the queen didn't seem willing to allow Anna to stray more than a couple of yards from her. She must have suffered the unspeakable losing her sister like that. So, for a few days, I had to settle for seeing Anna in the distance, always pretending to smile and wearing dark circles under her beautiful eyes.

But finally, out of the blue, the day came when Anna managed to take advantage of one of the queen's meetings to go out for a ride in her carriage.

"Good morning, princess Anna," I said feeling like the most pathetic man in history. "The usual ride?"
"Yes, please," she answered more pleadingly than elegant.

We started our ride as usual until, already in the outskirts, her voice broke the painful silence that enveloped us.

"How are you?"
"Let's talk about something else."
"Hans gave up on me, you know?"
"I'm not surprised. One could see that he was a wretch."
"Apparently, he tried to take advantage of Elsa's pain to seduce her."
"What?! Son of a…"

"It seems like it wasn't exactly me that attracted him of me."
"Better this way. At least I won't have to see him by your side again."
"No, Elsa rejected him outright and was not on very good terms with the Southern Isles. If she usually has her temper, you could imagine her during these months."
"They will soon find you another suitor."
"Maybe."
"When that time comes, I will quit my job."
"I know."

Silence swallowed us again until her brittle voice shattered it once more.

"I miss you."

'Don't turn around. Don't look at her now or you will commit a crime punishable by death.'

"I miss you too."

Those were the last words we spoke that morning. When we got back to the palace, I helped Anna get out of the carriage as required by my position and she placed her hand tenderly on my waist. After that, I revered her slightly and she left turning her back on me and leaving me with my heart shattered.

That night, while I was shaking my clothes to hang them until the next day, a small piece of paper fell from one of the pockets.

"If this is hurting you as much as it is hurting me, come to my room tonight. I'll leave the window open. If you climb from the side wall, you won't be seen, I've done it a thousand times as a child. But if you don't come, I will assume that you are over with us forever and will not leave it open again. Wait, what if you can't find the note? Well, I'll think about it.
We may not be able to live our dream again as we believed, but it is possible that we can create a different one together. What if we try?
Yours even if I can't."

"Anna…"

I was going to lose her, wasn't I? I was about to lose her at sea and now I was going to do it for real. How was I going to sneak into her bedroom? What would become of her if they found me there?
Without a doubt, they would hang me, but the emptiness that had remained in my life had turned it into nonsense that made that not matter so much to me. However, she would suffer my loss. Although… wasn't she already suffering from it?

But, if I got emboldened and went… even without being discovered… how long could we make it last? What would happen the day she was handed over to another man?

Nothing made sense anymore. My hands squeezed my temples while my tears came running, but I was still breathing; I was still in this world and I knew it was for her, that she was my only reason to fight.

If the only option we had was to suffer, at least we would enjoy together until the end came.

I sprinted in the direction of the castle, slipped over the side of the wall as she had said, and climbed with ease to her window.

'The queen should do something about this poor security system.'

But I was in no condition to complain about that. I jumped into the room and found myself face to face with Anna, tucked into her nightgown, waiting for me in the gloom as a soft shaft of moonlight brushed her face.

"I thought you wouldn't come."
"I won't lose you again."