Nobody moved for at least five seconds; and I only say seconds because that was probably how long we were actually standing there for. Let me tell you, when my father stares you down with that death glare, it feels like minutes passed by. Thankfully my mother was the one who broke the silence because I doubt I would have been able to.

"Elsa, darling." She greeted as she came up to me and hugged me. I came up to her but instantly knew she was also feeling awkward, she never calls me 'darling'.

"Hi mom!" I hugged her tight.

"Hi dad!" I tried to smile at him but he didn't budge from staring at Jack.

"What are you two doing here?" I asked.

"Well we were in town and we wanted to visit." He explained… still staring at Jack. "Anna let us in, but she's getting ready at the moment. The question is young lady, where were you this early in the morning?" I cleared my throat before I could answer.

"I was with a my-"

"Boyfriend." Jack cut off. I felt my heart jump, that was the first time he's actually said that.

"Boyfriend?" My father questioned, and my mother's face grew with worry.

"Yes, my boyfriend." The words almost sounded foreign on my tongue. "Mom, dad, this is Jack." Jack held out his hand. Thankfully my mother came up to accept the greeting, however my father did not.

"It's wonderful to meet you." My mom smiled. I knew I could always count on her.

"It's nice to meet you too." Jack tried to smile. I could practically hear him mumble 'Although I with it was under different circumstances.' As usual, my father did not say anything only making the air in the room even more awkward.

"I was just dropping Elsa home. She stayed with her cousin and asked me to pick her up." Jack lied on the spot.

"Which cousin?" my father challenged.

"Rapunzel." Jack answered. "We've all gotten close this semester."

"That's difficult to imagine." Father mumbled loud enough for everyone to hear. I felt Jack sigh and squeeze my hand.

"I guess I'll see you later then." He said to me.

"Yeah, thank you for driving me." I responded. When Jack turned to leave, I had to resist the urge to hug or kiss him goodbye. He just nodded to me and walked out of the door. When the door shut behind him, that's where it all happened.

"Aren't you a little young to be staying overnight with a boy?" My father boomed.

"Dad, I'm 21. And I was with Rapunzel last night." I countered. "And even if I was with Jack last night we didn't do anything. I promise you."

"So you didn't get drunk at a party last night?" he threw in my face. "And don't bother lying, I have the drunk message from both you and Anna."

So that's how he knew.

"Where is she by the way? Also with Rapunzel?" he mocked.

"Sweetheart-" my mother tried to stop him.

"So she didn't let you into our dorm?" I concluded.

"We paid for the dorm Elsa, of course we had a spare key for emergencies." He smirked. "But that doesn't answer my question, where were you two last night?"

"Where do you think we were dad?!" I exclaimed. "We were at a party to celebrate our friend's 21st birthday! Yes the both of us got drunk, yes we didn't come home, but we were in good hands dad!" I looked to my mother who I could clearly tell was on my side, but she had no power over my dad's rage.

"Don't you dare raise your voice at me young lady!" he fired back.

"'Young Lady?!' I'm 21! I'm an adult! I can make my own decisions about what I do with my life!"

"Throwing away your education is one of them?!"

"For your information dad, I am ahead in all my classes! I'm passing with flying colours! The only reason I went out last night was because I deserved a break. I deserved to relieve myself of any stress because I've been working so hard! And I went out last night so I could have a fun time with my friends! Not be locked away in this dorm for the rest of the semester!"

"I'm not asking you to lock yourself in this dorm Elsa. I'm just saying that you can't throw away the fine education you worked for by drinking and partying and having sex!"

That part caught me way off guard.

"I'm not doing any of those things! And so what if I did?! It's my life dad! You can't control me like you have been for 21 years! I'm not going to be that girl anymore! I won't be your puppet! And I won't follow your footsteps!" I didn't mean to pour out all the anger I've held in for years, but it seemed like the right time to do so.

"Then how else are you going to be successful in life?!"

"By living it! By falling in love, doing things, getting married to a man I choose and have as many kids as I want to!" I boomed without really realizing what I was saying. My father looked at me as if I had grown two heads.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He lied.

"So you weren't trying to arrange a marriage with me and Hiccup, or me and Julian?" I countered. My mother looked at me in shock and came to try and calm me down. My father looked like he was caught doing a crime, but he composed himself.

"First of all, that was me thinking about your future. Second of all, who told you-?"

"THINKING OF MY FUTURE?! You can't be serious!" I snarled.

"Elsa-"

"Thinking of my future would be to let me live it myself!" I countered. My father was about to say something when the front door swung open. Anna had stumbled inside, not realizing our guests until she looked up.

"Mom, dad." She smiled with a blush blooming on her face. When she saw me her smile faded. My face must have been red with all of the yelling.

"Elsa? What's happening here?" she asked as she walked closer to us.

"We'll continue this discussion another time." My father spat as he was about to walk past me and greet my sister. I gripped his arm unexpectedly to stop him.

"No." I demanded. "We're having this discussion now."

"Elsa, you don't want to make that decision." He smirked. "If you think you can actually win this, then you really aren't the daughter I've raised all these years." He shoved out of my grip, leaving me in the shock of truth. My mother was comforting me as my father greeted Anna.

"Honey, it's going to be okay." She said as she rubbed my back. I looked at her in disbelief. I nearly snapped at her right then and there, but I forced my anger down. I wanted to save as much of it for my father as I could.

"No, and it won't be okay until he knows to let me live my life." I held back my tears.

"I know." She agreed. I scoffed in response.

"Then why don't you say anything? You're just sitting there letting him take control of my life."

"I know. I want you to be able to live a life of your own where you can find your own love, maybe start a family of your own, and have the job you've always wanted… but I also know that your father is doing what he does because he loves you." She said. I snickered.

"He has a funny way to show it."

"Elsa, he's thinking about you in everything he does. He wanted to choose someone he knew would be able to support you financially, and they would be able to help you in your place as CEO when the time comes." she revealed.

"Yet he never asked me if I even wanted to be CEO in the first place. He's been training me to do so since I was eleven."

"No Elsa, you wanted to be in the business."

I looked at her with disbelief refusing to believe that information, but deep down there was a part of me that could believe it. My father managed to cut our conversation short by speaking.

"Well, we're only here for a day, why don't we all go out for dinner? My treat." He offered. Anna gladly agreed as well as my mother, but I forced myself to nod knowing that I would have to endure sitting with the man who had wrecked me when he tried to build me.

I wasn't able to enjoy the dinner that was sitting in front of me. The tension was thick between me and my father, but I avoided it by not speaking and only letting Anna speak with them… just like how it usually is. Every time I would let my eyes wander, Anna would catch my gaze and give me a sympathetic look.

"Is it me? Or has the portion sizes of these dishes getting smaller?" My mother spoke.

"No, I can barely see my steak on this plate." my father cracked a joke.

"And this burger doesn't taste like it used to; the meat isn't as juicy and tender." Anna agreed and she chomped on.

"Well, it's not surprising I suppose. We aren't the same Jack Astor's we were in years ago. It doesn't look the same on the interior either." Mother recalled.

"Well, some of us at this table would know a thing or two about things not being how they used to; right Elsa?" father challenged me. As if the tension at the table wasn't thick enough, it just tripled in size. My sister nearly choked on her food while my mother gave my father a look that could kill. However he ignored the both of them and challenged me with his stare.

"Some," I began accepting his challenge. "But maybe we were just too busy with our own lives to notice a change was needed." My mother looked down to hide a slight smile coming on her face, and my sister squeezed me knee from under the table. If anything my father became angrier then he was before for my come back.

"Elsa, come with me to the restroom. I think I just rubbed mascara in my eye." Anna cut in before the tension between the two of us could get any worse. I agreed and the two of us walked away from the table to leave my mother to try and calm him down. When my sister and I reached the restroom, she locked the door.

"Okay, that was brilliant, but are you crazy?!" she nearly shrieked.

"I don't know. Things will never be the same between the two of us again." I groaned as I ran my fingers through my hair.

"You know this had to be done at some point, you fighting back for your life. I just never thought that it would be this soon."

"Anna, it's been at least ten years since I haven't had a life of my own. If anything it should have happened much sooner." My sister didn't say anything, rather she hugged me tightly.

"I'm so proud of you." She nearly cried. "You have him cornered."

"I didn't think so."

"Oh you so do! Why do you think he offered to take us out just when your fight was about to go your way. That's dad's tactic, to make sure things go his way, or distracts you from the situation if they don't." she pointed out. That made me relax a little, but it still doesn't change the fact that he may never accept what I've said to him.

"Let's just get through this night. I don't know how much longer I can be near him."

"Good thing you have me." Anna winked. "Otherwise you two would be yelling at each other until tomorrow."

"I know." I sighed. Just then my phone buzzed in my pocket. I took it out to see a text from Jack on the screen.

'Are you okay?'

'I'm fine… I think.' I responded.

"When mom and dad leave, tell him to come over." Anna practically demanded.

"Why?"

"Just… invite him. I'll be over at Punzie's anyway." She smiled as she opened the door.

"It's okay, I don't need to see him."

"Elsa, I think we can both agree on one thing; you need him. He's your rock." She said in my ear before we walked back to the table.