Elsa gently brushed the pup on her lap, smiling in amusement as she watched it struggle to stay awake. Fixated on the animals around her, only when the golden retriever's ears perked up did she hear the commotion out in the parking lot. She turned towards the noise and frowned.

Took him long enough, it seems like I've been sitting here forever…

"Why did you bring me out here? Where did you and Elsa run off to? Speaking of which, where is she, we were supposed to catch up and all of a sudden you show up and she's- ow!"

"That's the door, and that's why we don't walk backwards anymore, remember?"

"Oooh that actually really hurt… Ow! Don't touch it! And you still haven't answered any of my questions."

"Yeah that'll be sore in the morning. I'm gonna get you some ice, just go to the room on the left and wait for me, okay?"

Elsa's smile faded away as she heard Anna approaching.

Do I tell her the truth?

What if she hates me for hiding it from her?

What if-

The blonde heard the door open. She turned to face the redhead, careful to not disturb the creature on her lap.

"Oh, sorry I didn't know this room was occup-oh, hey Elsa, what're you doing here?"

"I told him I would rescue a dog, so he asked me to come by and meet some of them," she held up the pup towards the redhead.

"I can see that," Anna took the animal from her, sitting down next to the blonde. "So, what's the verdict?"

"He seems to be the most interested," she pointed at the pup in the redhead's hands. "Although I don't know how Gerda would feel about having another mouth too feed."

"Well from my experience with her, I don't think she'd be too upset about that. Speaking of mouths to feed," Anna went into her bag, pulling out a thermos and a plastic container. "Your coffee as requested, plus one of my specialty sandwiches, free of charge."

"Oh, right." She put the plastic container aside, opening the thermos. Steam rose from the metal contraption, the sweet aroma wafting through the air. "Thank you, Anna, really."

She watched Anna playing with the pup for a moment.

You can do this.

"Anna," she waited until the redhead's emerald eyes met hers. "I'm sorry for leaving so abruptly – it was inexcusably rude and I sincerely apologize."

"Oh, it's okay really. I was just wondering where you ran off to."

Kristoff wanted to talk to me in private; he's been worried about my safety since-

"I had made plans earlier to meet with Kristoff today; it had totally slipped my mind. My work has kept me pretty busy, but it's no excuse for making such a mistake."

Anna broke their gaze, her eyes trailing off towards the puppy in her lap.

"Oh, I see… It's okay, I mean everyone makes mistakes right?"

I think you should know why I picked you to do my photography. I picked you because-

"Yes, but it wasn't very professional of me. While our meeting was more… casual, it still doesn't mean I can just walk out without letting you know why. I'm sorry, Anna."

The silence between them was disrupted only by the occasional pattering of the puppies running about.

"Elsa… We're friends, right? I mean, we work together – I mean I'm doing a job for you, but… I don't know, I thought we were more than that."

"Anna-"

"I think of you as a friend, Elsa. If you want to talk about anything, I'm here for you… I just thought you know that." Anna tried to meet the blonde's eyes, whose were fixed on the steaming coffee in front of her.

I have cancer.

"It makes me happy you feel that way Anna, it really does. Of course I know I can talk to you, you've been nothing but caring and loyal to me. I think of you as a friend too, and I want you to know if you ever need anything, you need only ask."

"I –" Anna looked back down at the creature on her lap, struggling to get free. She let it go from her grasp, watching it go back towards the blonde. "Thank you, that's very kind of you."

They sat together, unable to look each other in the eye. Elsa watched as the puppy struggled to get comfortable on her lap. It seemed like an eternity before she heard footsteps intruding on their silence.

"One ice pack, as promised," Kristoff stopped at the door, now aware of the deafening silence. "Am I interrupting something?"

Before she could answer, Anna stood up and approached the boy.

"No, we were just… I was just helping pick out the right puppy for her!"

Anna reached for the ice pack, Kristoff holding it just out of her reach.

"Right, that…"

He grabbed the smaller girl gently, placing the ice pack on the back of her head. He ignored her yelp as he put pressure on her bump, trying to get the attention of the blonde.

"Elsa, did you find the one you wanted?"

Elsa gave him a solemn glance before standing up, golden retriever in hand.

"I think this one will do just fine, Kristoff. Will I be able to take him home today?"

He searched her face before nodding subtly.

"Good choice! Well, I can go grab the paperwork right now; we should be able to get you two out of here soon. Anna, keep the ice pack pressed until I get back, okay?"

"Got it mom, this isn't my first time y'know."

"Not something to be proud of there," he chuckled as he left the room.

Elsa placed the puppy down, taking a few steps towards the redhead.

"Anna, I – Did you want to come by and help me set up the area for him?"

"Oh, um… I'm actually going to go see my boyfriend as soon as I leave. But thank you for the invitation, I would really love to but I can't."

Look, you're rubbing off on her, she's even talking like you now.

"I understand, I'm sorry again for leaving earlier, it was really –"

"It's fine, really." Anna looked down at her phone. "Oh, I have to take this, do you mind?"

"No of course," Elsa turned to grab the meal Anna had prepared for her. "Listen Anna, if you want to come by later to –"

By the time she had turned back around, the redhead was already gone.

She's even acting like you too.

Anna walked out into the parking lot, unfazed by the now pouring rain. She pressed her phone to her ear and waited, trying to keep her whimpering as soft as she could.

"Sweetheart, I wasn't expecting – what's wrong?"

"I really need to talk to you, do you mind if I come over?"

A/N: What better way to come back from a hiatus than another cliffhanger? Trying to shake off a year's worth of rust is a bit tricky, apologies in advance. As always, comments and critiques are always welcome, and though I am not going to make any promises, there may or may not be another chapter coming in the next 2 days...

-Yodge