CHAPTER 8

I really want to thank you guys for reading this, gashh thanks to my beta as well :)

Anna made her way to the kitchen with her eyes half-closed, nose turned up and sniffing to follow the aroma of bacon. Her eyes snapped open when she heard the sizzle of grease and her mother's amused chuckles. She was in the middle of swallowing a strip of bacon when Elsa entered the kitchen and Anna tensed up, nearly choking on her food.

"Good morning, Els," Anna said, trying to smile. She didn't notice Elsa flinching at her voice and not meeting her eyes as she returned the greeting.

Anna was startled when a crumpled piece of paper suddenly landed on her table in the middle of class. She looked around and caught Kristoff's eyes who gestured at her to read the paper.

I heard you and Sven kissed. Is that true? When?

Anna was shocked. How did Kristoff learn about the kiss? She tore the paper in irritation. She was still mad about that kiss and now she felt even angrier because she had no clue how Kristoff found out about it.

As soon as the bell rang Kristoff approached Anna's desk. "Hey, why didn't you answer me? Why do you look mad?"

Anna glared at him before leaving for the cafeteria, Kristoff immediately following her. And Kristoff just followed her. A few seconds passed and then she started firing questions at him. "You said you heard it? Where did you hear it from? Who was talking about it?"

"I just heard it from Sven's friends, you know, the jocks." Kristoff smirked. "So it's true, huh? Congrats!"

"What the hell, I don't even like him. He's an asshole!" Anna muttered, her face darkening. She knew Kristoff was burning in curiosity about her statement but she also knew that with her expression right now, her best friend wouldn't say anything until she at least steamed off. And she was right, because as soon as school ended, Kristoff didn't let her leave her seat and instead waited for the room to be clear of students before beginning his questions.

"Now tell me what really happened. Did he do something to you? Tell me so I can decide which part of his body to cut off."

Anna laughed at his serious expression. "Well aren't you the sweetest friend." Then her laughter faded. "Sven suddenly kissed me when he dropped me off after our date. I was really shocked, you know, so I slapped him and ran inside the house."

Kristoff looked at her for a moment, still processing the words in his mind. "So if that's what happened , then why did he tell it to his friends? I mean, if it were me, I wouldn't tell a soul," he said, looking at Anna. "Anyway, I thought everything was going smooth , I thought you were starting to like him—"

"That's what I thought as well, but..." And then Anna started crying. Kristoff panicked for a moment, wondering why Anna started crying. Did he say something to set her off? He couldn't think of anything to say since it was his first time to see Anna crying over a guy for reasons unknown. He noticed Anna take a few deep calming breaths, as if she was steadying herself to say something.

"Kristoff, I-I want to tell you something. I d-don't know if this is a good idea, but I trust you—" She struggled for a moment, trying to find the right words to say. Kristoff gently rubbed his hands on her back in what he hoped was a comforting manner. Then he looked her in the eyes and smiled softly at her, indicating that was going to listen to what she wanted to say.

"I love Elsa." Her eyes watered again and this time she cried freely, both from fear and relief at being able to talk about her feelings with someone. "The reason I slapped Sven was because I realized how much I didn't want anyone else but my sister. I-I want her so bad, Kristoff, and I was so scared, I still am because I know what I'm feeling is wrong. When Sven confessed, I felt sorry for him at first. T-then I thought that if I dated him, my feelings for Elsa would go away, but it didn't! The more I tried to forget, the more I fell for her." Anna took a shuddering breath and then slumped on her table, quietly sobbing. She felt so drained. She just wanted to sleep and forget everything that happened and just get away from her feelings. She was just so, so tired.

"Shhh, Anna, shh," Kristoff murmured comforting words as he rubbed Anna's back, doing his best to help her calm down and just staying with her.

Unknown to both of them, Elsa was standing just outside the door the whole time.

The family was gathered in the kitchen for dinner when Adgar cleared his throat and said, "I've got good news ladies. This weekend, we're going on a trip!"

Idunn squealed in excitement. It had been so long since their last family trip. However, their two daughters didn't seem to share the same level of enthusiasm.

"A family trip. There's a chance that we'll go swimming. If we go swimming, there's bathing suits. That means Anna—" Elsa tried to clear her thoughts, feeling a little flustered.

Anna was thinking along the same lines, too. "There's a chance Elsa and I might share the same room and I—" Anna glanced at her sister, her heart skipping a beat when she caught icy blue eyes staring back at her. It was a good five seconds before they realized they were staring at each other and then quickly casted their eyes away, decidedly looking at anything but each other.

Anna escaped to her room after the awkward dinner, something that seemed to be a regular occurrence lately. She noticed led of her phone blinking, indicating a text message. She tensed up when she saw Kristoff's name. She wasn't still sure how the other would react despite him comforting her during her breakdown earlier.

From: Kristoff

hey, anns, how r u? i thought u werent gonna stop crying. ur snot was all over ur face :p anyway im sorry i didnt say much but i want u 2 know that ill be here 4 u ALWAYS. seeing u cry like that made me see how much u love elsa. what r u planning 2 do? r u gonna confess?

Anna wanted to laugh and cry at the same time, her relief making her feel lightheaded. She was very lucky to have a best friend as supportive and understanding as Kristoff. couldn't believe how supportive her bestfriend was.

To: Kristoff

THANK YOU

Elsa couldn't focus and kept pacing in her room. "Keep calm Elsa. Yeah, sure, Anna loves you, you love her—" She stopped at that when her phone rang. She glanced at the screen then felt her stomach twist. Hans.

"Hey babe, have you eaten yet?" Hans' voice was so sweet. If only Elsa didn't realize she was in love with Anna, she knew she would have stayed with Hans for a long time.

"Yeah, I'm done. Um, Hans, I don't feel well, so if you don't mind I really want to rest now." Elsa couldn't lie to herself anymore. She didn't feel like talking to Hans anymore. Hans agreed hesitantly and gave her a soft "I love you" that Elsa didn't return. She couldn't bring herelf to say it now. Not anymore. She glanced at her phone when she received a text message.

From: Hans

Babe, i miss u. u've been so cold to me lately. i know this is not the right time for this, but I just want you to know i love you. if there's anything wrong, just tell me ok?

Elsa shut her eyes tightly. How could she hurt a man as sweet as Hans?