A/N: Chapter 2! I was honestly surprised at the amount of support I got from just one small chapter. I'd like to say updates would come roughly every 6-12 days but they'll probably just come sporadically.
After the next chapter or so we won't see too much of Aleks for awhile. She still has her role to play in all this, but she'll fade into the background for a bit.
We meet Anna next chapter, I believe! Enjoy!
The parking lot was nearly empty by the time they had arrived. Elsa looked out of the window and felt a bubbling warmth build inside of her as she saw the sun had finally came out and couldn't see a single cloud in the sky. She smiled when witnessing the large grin on her twin's face after the car had been shut off. Stepping outside of the car and closing the door, she turned back and waited for her sister to join her. Her prior guess proved to be true when the humidity seemed to slapped her in the face. It was sticky and she instantly began to feel disgusting under her clothes. Her eyes dropped to the car which wasn't anything spectacular, just a simple dark blue Nissan something. Elsa didn't really know what it was aside from the Nissan logo on it but it had decent gas mileage, got them from point 'a' to point 'b', and was free from it being a high school graduation present from their grandmother.
"Ready to go in, Elsa? Doesn't seem to be many people here." Aleks stated, knowing that last bit would stifle any kind of worries Elsa may have had a little. She looked at the large neon sign above the simple brick building, it seemed to be a local burger joint. But the outside seemed clean enough so it was a pretty safe assumption that the inside would be fairly nice on the inside as well. "After wards we'll hit the road again with full stomachs." She checked the watch on her wrist which read 12:47. "We should be at the college around 2:30 maybe, which will give us plenty of time to unwind and unpack before hitting some dinner." There was an obvious skip to her step when she grabbed Elsa's wrist and pulled her towards the door.
The inside was how Elsa expected, fairly clean with booths lining the walls with stools lining the bar in front of them. There was a red and yellow color scheme going on that Elsa didn't really care for. A bell on the door alerted the staff to the entrance of the two new patrons. "Go ahead and sit yourselves down where y'all wish, I'll be there in a jiffy!" came a scratchy, gruff voice from the kitchen behind the counter.
Aleks shrugged at her sister as they sat themselves in a booth near the corner of the restaurant. "Check out the menu, this stuff is great!"
Elsa picked up the laminated menu and opened it to reveal only two pages. One side read 'burgers' in large letters, and the other side said 'toppings'. She shifted uncomfortably. "Not a lot of choices..." She muttered under her breath.
Aleks grinned. "Simple! Just the way I like it!"
Peeking over the menu, the blonde shook her head at her sister. She'd probably make a great chef the way she-
Her thoughts were cut off by the large, greasy man who stumbled up to their table. The white apron he had on covered in grease stains. The man scratched the scruff on his large chin and pulled out a small notebook. "Names Pete, and I welcome you fine ladies to 'Pete's Place', home of the best damn burger in town! What'll you have?" He was probably loud enough to shake the foundation of the building.
Aleks grimaced. "Jesus man, did you spill the grease on you or bathe in it?"
The deep laugh from the man was annoyingly obnoxious. He doubled over as he braced himself on the table, causing Elsa to jump back.
"Oh man, I like your sense of humor missy! Remind me of my son P.J only you're prettier." Pete managed to get out while wiping a tear from his eye. "Now what can I get for you two?"
Aleks rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Yeah, I'll have a double cheeseburger. Add bacon and take off the salad."
A look of confusion grew formed on Pete's large face. "Salad? Missy I don't know if you caught on, but this is a burger place! We serve burgers."
She dropped her menu and looked at the man with utter disgust."So I see you're as dense as you are fat." Her words were laced with a cocky humor. "I mean no lettuce or tomato."
Pete shrugged, obviously not catching the insult. "Alright, sounds good. What about you, blondie?"
Elsa sunk and looked at her sister, face falling as her breathing increased slightly. She mouthed something at her twin before folding her hands in her lap. Aleks understood immediately and gave a nod with a somber smile.
"She'll have a cheeseburger with swiss instead of american with extra pickle." Trying to sound as neutral as possible and not insult the man again.
Scratching his head Pete raised an eyebrow. "The lady can't speak for herself?" The question came out a little more abrasive than he meant.
Elsa sunk as Aleks' stare bore into the man, a rising anger in her eyes. "I'll only tell you once. Don't-" her grip tightened. "Make any snide comments about my sister."
Pete backed up and raised his hands in defense. "Listen lady, I wasn't trying to-"
His words were cut off as Aleks jumped from the table and grabbed the man by the apron. She pulled him closer until their faces were hardly an inch apart. She scowled and brought her voice to an aggressive whisper. "So help me God you weren't trying to be snide." Her tone was brought to an exaggerated impression of the large man. "The lady can't speak for herself?" Blue eyes bore into the man's shaking gaze. "Don't comment about my sister. Don't talk to my sister. Don't think about my sister. You get your fat ass into that kitchen. Cook our food. And for every imperfection I find in the burgers-" She gave a cocky grin. "I won't spoil the surprise." The threat was given in a soft whisper.
Pete was practically shaking in his shoes as the grip on him was released. "Yes ma'am, sorry ma'am, I'll get right on that!" His voice was shaky, unsure, and panicked as he ran off behind the counter.
Elsa felt pressure in her eyes as she felt her eyelids fill with tears, nearly threatening to fall. Pete really wasn't trying to be offensive in any way. Elsa at least figured that much. But leave it to her sister to always come to her aid whenever she felt threatened. She loved her sister. She really did. She was there for her when nobody else was, defending her when she was defenseless. The rock when the world was shaking. The shield when swords were being flailed at her. The candle in the smothering dark.
Aleks slammed her fists on the table, causing Elsa to jerk her head up to see her sister gritting her teeth. Her eyes widened when she noticed frost skittering across the table, the epicenter her twin's tight grip.
"Aleks...the ice!" The words were unsure, but urgent.
Her twin looked up towards her fists and immediately loosened her grip. She cursed as she lifted her hands and willed the skittering frost away, leaving the table slightly damp.
"I'm sorry, it was my fault that-"
"No. Elsa. It wasn't your fault, you know just as much as I that it's hard to control at times." The words were spat out in frustration.
Elsa looked down at her hands and rubbed a thumb against her palm, silently agreeing with her twin. "Yes. But, you got angry because I couldn't-"
She cut her sister off again. "Don't you blame yourself. That guy, that... pig was overstepping boundaries."
The blonde let out a sigh and shrugged. "I don't think he meant it in the way it came out. I don't think we was going to push the question."
"But what if, Elsa? What if he did? What if it got worse? What if he got angry? He already looked pretty sketchy." Aleks' grip tightened, the loosened as she let out a groan and swept her hands through her hair. It was a tick she had whenever she got angry. Gripping the air and running her hands through her hair. I guess it's better than setting off an eternal winter everywhere and freezing the population. The dark joke to herself caused Elsa to shake her head. Her thoughts were cut off again as a different man made his way to the table carrying two plates.
"I don't know what you guys did to my dad-" The shorter, portly boy chuckled to himself. "-but it was awesome and I wish I could push him around like that!"
Aleks shot her gaze to the boy and relaxed a bit, relieved it wasn't Pete who was bringing their food to them.
"My name is P.J. I hope you guys enjoy your food, I've never seen dad pay so much attention and try to perfect his burgers before." P.J placed the plates on the table and offered a wave to the sisters. "Alright, I'll catch you guys later! And thanks for scaring my dad!"
Aleks gave a boy a small smile before looking at the burgers in front of them and drooling. "Elsa, you don't even understand how good these things look right now." She picked up the burger in the sesame seed bun and gazed upon it like it was a fine diamond ring. "It's marvelous!" She remarked while she licked her lips.
Elsa couldn't help but smile at the way her sister revered her burger. You'd think it was her child. She picked up her own burger and took a bite. Her eyes shot open as she chewed, it really was marvelous. How could a simple burger be this good? The patty was perfectly seasoned, the cheese was smooth and the pickles gave a nice contrast. Grease dripped from her food and hit the plate as her own reaction was reflected on her twin.
"The guy may be a total asshole." Aleks said muffled with a mouth full of food, she swallowed and licked her lips again. "But these burgers are the single greatest thing I've ever stuck in my mouth. We'll definitely be coming here again!"
She says the same thing about all the food she likes... Elsa chuckled to herself and took another bite of the burger, savoring it as the flavors danced across her palette. But she isn't lying. This burger really is amazing.
The sisters finished their food in relative silent and Aleks patted her stomach before giving a content smile. She stood up and noticed P.J completely preoccupied in some hand-held gaming system from behind the counter. "Yo, P.J!" She waved the the boy over as he looked up and made his away around the counter in a bit of a hustle.
"Yeah, what's up?" He said with a smile, looking up at the woman who was almost a full foot taller than him.
"We're ready for the check." She said curtly as she crossed her arms.
"Oh, don't worry about it. I got you guys covered." The boy scratched the back of his head and gave a smile. "It's the least I can do for doing that to my pops."
Aleks felt a genuine smile tug at her lips. If there was anything better than food, it was free food. "You know what?" She started, uncrossing her arms and placing them on her hips. "You're alright, P.J. We'll see you around alright?"
P.J smiled again and started to collect the plates which held nothing more than grease droplets. He stopped when he noticed the girls make their way to the door. He saw Elsa turn around and he gave a small wave to the blonde. Elsa looked around warily before offering her own unsure wave and small smile.
"Come on, slowpoke!" Aleks' voice came from the other side of the door and Elsa made her way out of the door to catch up with her sister.