Elsa groaned. She had come to the library to escape the crowds. It was her safe haven where she could get some work done surrounded by others who wished to study. Or at least it had been until Jack Frost had decided to grace her sacred space with his presence. It seemed he had woken that morning and decided today was her not-so-lucky day.
She had tried to ignore him when he walked in and dumped his belongings on a table way too close to her on. She had buried her head in her book and told herself not to give him the attention he was seeking. It was only when she had heard a laugh that she had looked up. That had been when she had caught the gaze of Jack's friend as he reacted to something Jack had said and shook her head. She had no doubt that Jack was replaying the oh-so-witty remark he'd made to her earlier in the morning. Sighing, she had stood up and made her way to the fiction section where she could escape the unnerving stares from Jack and his friend.
Her peace had been short lived, however, when Jack had appeared behind her. Once again, he had taunted her while flashing his infuriatingly his cocky smirk. She had tried to ignore him and had settled on brushing past him, leaving him to stand and gape at her. No doubt he'd been confused that a female could ignore him. After all, he'd been so modest when he had reminded her, less than three hours earlier, that he had a fanclub of hapless girls with nothing better to do than aspire to catch his eye.
She just didn't get it. Every time she looked at him he would either be staring, smirking or would have a lopsided grin on his face. Either way, he unsettled her. She had tried to figure out why he stirred such a reaction in her and had come at a loss. Instead, she had reasoned that it was because he was the stereotypical rich boy. As the nephew of Nicholas North, her father's biggest rival, he coasted through life on his so-called good looks and his uncle's money.
Having returned to her table, she had just managed to get her head back around the notes she had taken, when he'd decided to return for yet another attempt at annoying her. He had plonked himself down in the chair next to her own and had flashed her his stupid grin. Furrowing her brow, she had asked him if he was lost. For a split second she could have sworn he had lost his trademark cockiness and had almost appeared to be nervous. He'd stumbled for a bit before he had asked her to join him for lunch.
She had been caught off-guard by his odd request for her. However, what had been even more surprising was the way his face had fallen and he'd looked almost upset when she had declined him. She had watched him as he'd scurried back to his friend to pack up his belongings. She had been worried that she had hurt his feelings, but then she'd remembered that he was a magnet for all the vain, self-obsessed bimbo's who populated the city. Why he seemed intent on annoying her, was a mystery.
She had tried for twenty minutes to return to her work after Jack had left. However, the morning interactions with Jack had left her rattled. Instead, she had decided that a bite to eat could help her keep her energy up.
Making her way into the packed cafeteria, she frowned. Normally, she would sit with Anna for lunch, but not today. Anna had sent her a text to inform her that she was staying behind with Rapunzel to help paint scenery for the drama department.
Looking around, she could see Jack sitting at a table in the far corner with his friends. She kept her head low as she slunk past, hoping that he wouldn't notice her. Her eyes glanced over the items on offer before selecting a turkey salad roll, chocolate bar and a bottle of water.
"He's not going to give up that easily you know?" the sound of a male voice startled her. Turning around, she found herself face to face with the boy who had been with Jack earlier.
"I...uh," she stammered, handing over the money for her lunch to the sales assistant.
The boys brown eyes bore into her as he continued his plea. " Just come have lunch with us. That's all he's asking. He's even saved you a seat."
Elsa wasn't sure how to respond. She didn't even know the boy's name. "Look, I'm sorry, err…"
"Jamie," he said, extending his hand. "my name is Jamie."
Gingerly she shook his hand. "Elsa," she responded, shyly.
Jamie grinned. "Well, now that we're friends, why don't you come join us?" he said, pointing towards the table where Jack was seated.
" I'm sorry, Jamie, I can't. I just can't," Elsa whispered, biting her lip as she turned to walk away.
"Shit," Jamie muttered as he watched the slight blonde walk away. "Jack is not going to be happy about this."
Finding a small table in the corner, Elsa sat down. She'd been fortunate to find a lone table with only one chair which she had turned so that she was facing the wall. The last thing she wanted was to risk making eye contact with Jack. Sitting down, she pulled out her novel and opened it up to the last page that she had read.
She felt a thump as a weight was placed on her table. Looking up, she found herself facing Jack Frost once again. Hastily, she slammed the bookmark between the pages of her book and slammed it shut. She watched as he placed a bottle of soft drink and a half eaten packet of chips on the table before reaching to steal an empty chair.
"So," he drawled as he settled down on the chair that he'd placed opposite her. "You blew me off."
Crossing her arms, she glared at him. "No, I didn't," she replied.
He smirked at her before leaning back in his chair and popping a chip into his mouth. "Yes, you did," he argued.
Furrowing her brows, she continued to stare at him. She could feel her frustration mounting once again."How exactly could I blow you off when I never agreed to sit with you in the first place?" she demanded, running a hand through her hair.
"Why did you run from me this morning then?" Jack asked a little bit louder than she would have liked.
Nervously, she looked around and noticed that people were staring at them. "Why do you care?" she asked.
Jack shrugged and leaned in closer to look at her. "Why are you so defensive? Am I not allowed to care?" he countered.
She felt her heartbeat starting to pick up. Looking over her shoulder, she saw that they had attracted a few more curious states. No doubt wondering how or why the 'Ice Queen' and the hockey heartthrob came to be sharing a table together. She bit her lip and glanced back at Jack to see if he had noticed the stares, but he hadn't. Hastily, she wrapped the remainder of her roll in its wrap and slipped it in her bag.
Jumping to her feet, she leaned in to glare at Jack. "Listen, I don't know what your deal is. I have no idea if this is some kind of joke, something that is 'fun' to you, but I want no part of it," she snapped.
She turned on her heels and fled. From behind her, she could hear Jack calling for her, but she ignored him.
She didn't stop running until she reached the seat outside her next lecture room. Sitting down, she could feel her heart pounding from the confrontation. Self-doubt began to plague her thoughts and she found herself wondering if Jack could have been genuine. Groaning, she pushed the idea aside. After all, it was Jack Frost, the nephew of her father's biggest business rival. For all she knew, it could have been part of some sick plan where Jack was encouraged to befriend her in order to gain inside information on Kingdom Ice Creamery.
She heard a muffled sound and looked up to find herself face to face with a brawny, blonde male staring at her.
"Excuse me?" she asked, cocking her head at the imposing male.
"I asked you if you could move your bag please? I'd like to sit down," the male repeated.
Blushing, she looked at him. "Oh, I'm sorry, uh sure," she stammered, moving her bag so he could sit down.
"Thanks," he muttered, sitting down.
They sat in silence for a while until the stranger spoke again. "You're Anna Blanchard's sister aren't you?" he asked, looking at her.
"Yes, I am. Are you a friend of Anna's?" she asked.
"No, not really. I mean, I like her, but we're not friends. She's cool though," he mumbled. "I'm Kristoff, by the way."
"No, not really. I mean I like her, she's a cool girl, a bit feisty, but sweet," he said, a shy smile evident on his face. "I'm Kristoff by the way," he adds.
"Elsa," she offered, flashing Kristoff a warm smile.
The rest of the afternoon had passed in a blur. Elsa somehow managed to get through her last lecture without having to deal with Jack Frost. As soon as 3pm arrived she had fled.
She had been lucky to avoid most of the traffic and had arrived at Kingdom headquarters with twenty minutes to spare which gave her enough time to run a brush through her hair and to freshen up her makeup.
As she had expected, the meeting had been boring. She had sat alongside her father and had done her best to give off the poised, perfect and polished daughter that she was expected to be. She had continued to carry on the pretence while her father's colleagues had approached her and paid her compliments for her good grades. She'd smiled, nodded and said all the replies that had been drilled into her.
To her relief, her behaviour at the meeting had earned her the approval of her father. He had proudly announced over the dinner table how she had once again proven to be an asset to him and the company. She had plastered the fake smile upon her face once again when her father had pressed a kiss to her forehead. Her eyes had flicked to Anna and she had thought how ironic it was that her sister was the one who studied drama, while she was the actress. Her entire life was nothing but an act, suppressing her own likes, her own interests in order to play the role she had been born to play.
Elsa climbed into bed and let out a loud sigh. She could feel the long day getting to her. Closing her eyes she tried to wrap her mind around the day, but there was so much. First there was the attention from Jack and his friend. Then there was meeting Kristoff, who hadn't said much, but she had got the impression that he fancied her sister and finally the staff meeting and her father's praise.
She heard the sound of three short taps to her door and waited. She would know that tap anywhere, it was the same series of taps that her and Anna had used as kids when they wanted to extend their play time a bit longer. She rolled over to her side and waited, knowing that Anna will let herself in regardless of whether or not she'd been invited.
Sure enough, seconds later and she heard the door being pushed open. "Elsa, are you awake?" Anna asked in a hushed voice.
"No," she whispered, barely managing to suppress a giggle.
"Oh, okay," Anna mumbled.
Grinning, she waited for Anna to connect the dots.
"Hey!" she shrieked. "Elsa, I'm not five-years-old anymore. You can't fool me with that trick."
Giggling, Elsa sat up and turned to face her sister. "And yet I did," she teased, pulling the younger girl into a hug. "How was your day?"
"Oh you know, same old, same old. Wake up, get bossed around by sister because I'm running a bit late, go to uni, come home. Basically boring," Anna remarked. "Except for the fact that Mum and Dad agreed to let me go on a date with Hans tomorrow night!"
Taking a deep breath, she resisted the urge to groan. Instead, she plastered the same fake smile she had used earlier. "Oh, I see," she said.
Fortunately, her smile seemed to fool Anna, who opened her mouth to gush about how perfect and charming Hans apparently is.
"So," Anna piped up. "Enough about me. What is this I hear about you and Jack 'Full-of-himself' Frost in the cafeteria?"
She sighed. "He was late to class, again. He also shot his mouth off at Weselton and managed to piss him off. So, Weselton decided that I had earned the 'pleasure' of sitting next to Jack. He said something about wanting my habits to 'rub off on Jack.' Naturally, Jack made a crude joke," she began.
Anna nodded, urging her to go on.
"So, anyway, after class I went to study in the library. All was going well until Jack and his friend Jamie decided that they wanted to tag along. That was when Jack decided to annoy me once again. He asked me to sit with at lunch as well, bu - "
"Elsa," Anna whispered. "You didn't say yes did you? People said they saw you sitting together in the cafeteria. Well, they said you were sitting with him, but then you ran out in all upset."
"Anna, let me finish!" Elsa grumbled, feeling frustrated. "I politely declined. I thought that would be the last of it. So, I go to the cafeteria to grab lunch and it doesn't stop. This time he sent his friend to plead his case. Again, I said no and went to find a table as far away from him as I could. I sat down, kept my back to him and next thing you know, he's at my table. He just sat down at my table and started questioning me. I ah… I saw people staring at us and well, I kind of freaked so I ran."
She watched as Anna frowned. "He is such a douche. I swear, I don't know what all those girls see in him," she stated. "People were saying that he tried to hit on you and you shot him down," she chuckled.
Grinning, she turned to glance at her sister. "I guess I did kind of shoot him down. Although, it wasn't flirting. It was more like him being his usual annoying, cocky self."
She watched as Anna jumped off the bed. "I've got to go to bed. I just want to know if I could borrow your black jacket with the silver trim for my date?" she asked, rifling through the wardrobe.
"And if I say no?" Elsa teased, watching as Anna froze with her hand on the jacket.
"I'd remind you that I am your favourite sister in the whole wide world," she teased. "I'd also point out that you may need my assistance later."
Elsa laughed. "Sure, go ahead. Just don't spill anything on it," she warned and shook her head.
"Thanks, Elsie, I swear you're like the the world's best sister," Anna sang, skipping over with the jacket held triumphantly between her fingers. "Night."
Shaking her head, Elsa watched as Anna skipped out the room, pulling the door shut behind her. Reaching over, she grabbed her phone to set the alarm before putting it back on her bedside table. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to settle back against the pillow. A small smile crossed her face as she realised that tomorrow, was a Tuesday and that meant no uni and no Jack Frost.