~Elsa~

I woke up to the sound of my phone chiming away, notification after notification. Groggily, I open my sleepy eyes, wiping away the small amount of sleep sand, and check to see what all the commotion was about. The brightness of my phone made me squint, but once my vision focused I noticed that all the messages were from my friends.

Happy Birthday, Elsa! They each said followed by a few kind sentences about how much they wish I have an amazing day. Jack's message was of course the longest.

Happy Birthday, Snowflake! I can't wait to see you later today. I wish you'd allow us to actually do something for you instead of working at North's shop, but you're the birthday girl. What you say goes. Just know that for Valentine's Day, I'm going all out and you can't stop me. Anyway, I love you very much. I'm glad you're finally mine. I still can't believe it. You mean so much to me. I hope you know that. There's no one else for me. Just you. Only you. Forever you. Happy birthday, babe. I'll see you soon

His message was so sweet it could have given me cavities. I screenshotted it to keep forever and reread it over and over again, along with the other from my friends. The only ones who didn't send a text were my sister and cousin, and as soon as the thought crosses my mind, my door bursts open, making me jump and shriek.

"Happy Birthday, Elsa!" Cheer Rapunzel, Anna, Arianna, and Frederick, all of them in their pajamas, smiling brightly, and the first two carrying a small cake with two burning candles.

1 and 8.

My phone said it is 12 am December 21st. My birthday and also the Winter Solstice.

I am officially 18 years old. The same age as Jack, whose birthday was exactly one month ago today. I still can't believe that only a month ago I had confessed my love for him in front of everyone we care about. His family, mine, and our friends. It feels so surreal. It feels amazing. It feels…like something bad is going to happen soon and take all my happiness away.

But of course, that's just my anxiety acting up.

"Did we scare you?" Asks Anna, laughing. "That was the plan."

"And when exactly did this plan come to be?" I ask as I get out of bed to stand next to them. My uncle had flipped on the light as I did so, while Rapunzel and Anna set the cake on my dresser.

"A couple hours ago when you told us you didn't want to do anything for your birthday," Anna answers, then scoffs. "I mean, seriously, Elsa, who doesn't want to celebrate their birthday? I know you said it's because people are too busy with Christmas planning and you don't want to bother, but our friends would totally find the time for you. We've gotta do something!"

"It's just the day of my birth, Anna," I tried reasoning with her. "It's not a big deal."

She gasps, and I'm unsure if it's genuine or merely her being dramatic. "No big deal?! It's a real big deal! Today is the day the universe gave you life! I mean, after all, Christmas is just Jesus's birthday. And we celebrate it. Why? Because it's a big deal!"

I shake my head at her silliness. "I'd rather you not compare me to Jesus. But really, Anna, I'm okay not doing anything. I haven't celebrated my birthday since the accident. I'm used to doing nothing. Mother and father tried to do something for me, but I always refused."

And just like that, I accidentally made the atmosphere awkward. There was a brief silence, everyone's smiles now turned into sad frowns, Anna looking the most sad. "Well then we definitely need to celebrate then if that's the case!" She says, trying to be positive. "We have to do something for you, Elsa! Pleeeeaaaasssseeee!" She's tugging on my arm and bouncing a little, bringing back the smiles.

"Anna," I giggle and gesture to the cake, "You guys have already done something for me. I love it." And I really did. The cake was a snowy, winter wonderland theme, colored with shades of white, blue, and purple, and sprinkled with a perfect amount of glitter.

"But…but…" she sighs in defeat and plops herself, face first, into my bed.

"Oh, Anna," says Aunt Arianna, suppressing a laugh. "Behave yourself, love."

"Since when has our dear Anna ever behaved herself?" says Uncle Frederick, amused.

Anna mumbles something inaudible, causing all of us to say: "What?"

She lifts her head up and repeats herself. "I just want to do something special for you is all. Because I love you."

Tears pricked my eyes, touched by her words and how far we've come, and I quickly blink them away. "Oh, Anna." I open my arms, gesturing her to come hug me, which she does so quickly, practically throwing herself off the bed and into my arms so hard that I stumbled back a little. "If you really want to do something then fine. We can do it. But I don't want anything big. Something small will be perfect. We can do something later tonight after we help Jack and the other's at North's toyshop. Okay?"

Anna nods. "That works for me! Now let's eat!"

"She has to blow out the candles first, silly," says Rapunzel. "And please hurry, because it looks so good."

"I'm not so sure you two should even be eating sugar at midnight," says Uncle Frederick, "You're already hyped up. A sugar rush from the both of you would doom us all."

Anna and Rapunzel both playfully glare at him and say: "Hey!"

Laughing, my aunt says: "We've somehow managed them before. We can do it again." Then to me she says: "Make a wish, Elsa."

I pause, thinking of the perfect wish as I stared at the candles' flames. When it comes to me, I close my eyes and blow.

I wish that my newfound happiness will never be taken from me.

.

.

.

~Anna~

*Hours Later*

I burst through Elsa's door, not even bothering with knocking. I'm done doing that. When I enter, I see my sister nearly jump out of her skin. She was sitting down doing her makeup, already dressed, and looking absolutely beautiful! Her hair was down too, which enhanced her beauty, and I hoped she kept it down. Jack will be drooling all over the place and it's quite adorable seeing how much he adores my sister. Oh how I wish I could have someone love me like he does her.

One day. I just need to be patient.

"Anna!" Elsa exclaims. "You're lucky I'm dressed. What has you bursting through the door?"

I threw the clothes in my arms on her bed. "I need help picking out an outfit. For once, I don't know what to wear. I wanna wear something that's both birthday attire, but also cold weather attire, but also festive."

My sister giggles and get ups from where she sat. "Okay. We can't have a bad outfit now, can we?"

I shook my head. "Absolutely not. And before you ask, which I know you're about to, Rapunzel is too busy talking to Flynn on the phone to help."

Elsa raises an eyebrow in question. "Oh? So they're on phone-talking terms now? No more texting?"

I nod excitingly. "Yes! Isn't that great! If he doesn't ask her out on a date tonight I'm going to be so mad. Like all he needs to do is whisk her away from the group and they can do their own thing. Like a date! Ugh I hope he asks her to be his girlfriend. I mean, come on. They've already kissed twice, that we know of. Gosh, they're so cute. And you and Jack are cute, and Astrid and Hiccup are cute—"

"They're not dating."

"Which is a shame honestly," I sigh and plop down on her bed, arms spread. "After her obvious confession last week at the Snuggly Duckling, you'd think they'd be together now."

Elsa shrugs as she goes through the clothes beside me. "Maybe Hiccup is oblivious. Boys usually are." I notice her sneak a glance at me. "Girls too sometimes."

"Why did you look at me when you said that?"

My sister smirks and she continues her task. "Oh no reason. It's just that I've noticed you and Kristoff are a lot closer now than when you were in the beginning. You two didn't have such a good start. I remember it clearly because I didn't like the way he would argue with you. Though, granted, you did sometimes give him reason to."

My jaw drops at everything she said. "I did not! He could have easily just not pushed my buttons—"

"And you could have easily not pushed his—"

"And what does he have anything to do with what we were just talking about?" It then dawned on me and I gasped. "Oh my god, you think that I have a crush on Kristoff?!"

Elsa bursts into laughter. "Don't look so appalled. There's nothing wrong with Kristoff. He's perfect. Tall, strong, handsome. And now that I know him better, he's actually really nice and considerate. A real softie. I think he'd be a perfect boyfriend for you. You're extreme and he's rational. You need that balance."

Heat rushes to my face. She's right. Not about him being my boyfriend (that's ridiculous), but I mean about the other things. Kristoff is pretty tall, and I do like tall guys. And he's definitely strong, and very, very well built. His biceps and broad shoulders are enough evidence to tell me he works out. I wonder what he looks like shirtless—NOPE! Not going there. And yeah, I guess he is pretty cute. For a blonde with brown eyes instead of blue or green, he's not too bad to look at.

He does a big nose though, but that's not really an issue for me—THAT IS IF I WAS EVEN INTERESTED! Which I'm not.

"Well, it doesn't matter if you think he's perfect for me," I say stubbornly crossing my arms. "Because I've sworn off dating cuz of Hans. It's like I told you before; I want to focus on myself and not rush into anything. I want to be smarter the next time I choose a boyfriend."

"Which I'm very proud of, by the way," Elsa says, but then sighs, looking a little sad. "It's just…I feel bad. You're the one who wanted a boyfriend. Not me. And now here we are, me in a relationship, and you're not. I just don't think it's right."

"Well I mean," I smile through the pain of the memories, "I did have a boyfriend. You just hated him—"

"He proposed to you after a few hours of talking to you! And you said yes. I had every right to hate him—"

"Pish posh," I waved her off, laughing lightly.

"But Kristoff," Elsa continues, smiling. "Well, I don't hate him at all. Now if he breaks your heart that'll change in a millisecond—"

"Well it won't because nothing is gonna happen between us. Ever." And yet, my heart did a flutter at the idea.

But that's the thing I've learned about myself. I love the idea of love. That's not the right mindset to have. Because in the end, you'll be fantasizing a love that just isn't true. It's not all rainbows and sunshine. And the love I want is a true love. With the rain and clouds. The relationship I had with Hans was fake. I was too blind to see it.

I will not go blind away.

I will not fall in love.

I'm gonna walk into it, slowly, no tripping whatsoever.

"That's what I said too about Jack," Elsa smiles, her eyes kind of glazing over, most definitely thinking about the boy I've been shipping her with for a long while. "So I guess we'll just see what the universe has in store for you, my little romantic. But Anna?" Her blue eyes turn so serious.

"Yeah?"

"Don't let Hans ruin your view on romance. Don't let him ruin your chance at having a happy relationship."

And for some reason, that made me want to cry. Choked up, I say: "Of course. Can't let him win, right?"

But sometimes the nightmares I have of him hurting Elsa makes me feel as though he's already won. Wherever he is, he's not suffering from trauma and trust issues and heartache and betrayal. I am. Elsa is. My aunt, uncle, cousin, friends. We're all scared and on edge and even though we don't talk about him anymore, we're still on high alert. Just waiting for the day the police say: " We've found him."

And that day couldn't come soon enough.

"Don't forget to get the last few items we need for the Christmas Eve party," Aunt Adrianna says as Rapunzel, Elsa, and I get out of the car. It's nice having her or our uncle drive us around when they can. There's nothing wrong with one of the butlers doing it, but I like the extra time we can get with Arianna and Frederick. That parental figure bond, ya know?

Oh, why hasn't mama and papa called back? It's been months. I hope they're okay…

"We'll get everything we need," Elsa assured her.

We said our goodbyes and then headed toward the best toy shop to ever exist! North's toy shop! From the outside, it looked exactly like what the outside of Santa's workshop would look like. Festive and Christmasy and magical. God, the inside must be insane!

When we walk through the doors, my jaw drops in awe. The toy shop is two stories tall, filled with shelves of toys of all kinds. Christmas decorations hung from every corner and surface. Color filled the room, giving it a bright and cheery vibe. Workers dressed as elves and reindeer were either cashiering, making the toys in person for all to see, reading to children while parents shopped, or going around tidying up the store.

And there was even a cafe!

But what stood out the most was the giant Christmas tree that stood along the far wall and the throne that sat below it. And sitting on the throne was North, dressed as Santa, and looking like the real deal!

A child was sitting in his lap, their parents standing to the side, and some elves taking a few pictures. Other children and parents were standing in line, waiting for their turn, and my goodness was the line long.

"Does this place seem bigger on the inside?" Elsa asks. "It didn't look that big from outside."

"That's what I like to call magic," says Rapunzel. "It trips up everyone."

"So where do we go now?" I ask. My question was answered by the sound of Tooth's voice calling out to us from behind.

"Oh my gosh! Guys, over here!" I turned in time to see her flying towards us, hugging me first since I was closest. I hugged her back immediately. "I'm so glad you made it. What do you think?" She lets me go and goes to hug Elsa and Rapunzel.

"What do we think?!" I repeat, loudly and bewildered at such a ridiculous question. "Tooth, this place is beyond words! It's beautiful! Amazing! Magical! It's like—" I did a twirl "—a whole other world!"

She laughs. "Exactly! Come on, there's so much I want to show you guys." She takes my hand and runs off, making me stumble.

I didn't even bother to see if my sister and cousin were following, too entranced at my surroundings.

Christmases in the past weren't all that great because Elsa wouldn't always be present (ha see what I did there?). Sometimes she would be, but only for a short moment; other times not at all. Mama and Papa tried to make me as happy as possible, and they really did, but they could never give me the gift I've always wanted.

Having my sister back. Genuinely. All I've ever wanted was to have a true relationship with her, and now…

Now my wish came true.

Which means this Christmas is going to be the best one ever! Except…Mama and papa won't be there. For years I've had them and not Elsa, and now I have Elsa and not them. It's very bittersweet. I guess my new wish is to have all of us together. Maybe they're going to surprise us on Christmas? Maybe they'll walk through the doors on Christmas morning, arms ready for warm hugs and tears and kisses.

I sure hope so.

Time flies while we're at North's toy shop. I don't know how long we were there for until finally the rest of our friends (those who were able to come, that is) showed up.

Jack and Bunny (which still cracks me up; I wonder if anyone will ever call him Edmund ever again) we're already there; they ended up finding us while we were in the middle of talking with North while he was taking his break (because, yes, even Santa Claus needs a break). Next was Flynn, who was there in a minivan because apparently North had a lot of toys that Flynn is supposed to take to the orphanage he lives at later. Olaf showed up after Flynn, and I swear he and North hit it off as if they've been friends forever, when in fact it was their first time meeting each other. Olaf acted like he was meeting his biggest celebrity crush. He went on and on about how much the kids at the hospital he works at absolutely love it when "Santa" stops by.

And lastly, was Kristoff.

He had walked in, covered in snow, and was talking about preparations and the weather forecast and the kids and toys and blah blah blah. I wasn't really focused on what he was saying because I had kept thinking about mine and Elsa's conversation from before. It made me blush and kinda squirm. I did everything in my power to not look at him and his muscles and his shoulders and his hair and his eyes and his butt…oh my god, did I really just think that?!

What eventually made me speak out was when he mentioned North's reindeer ranch. The one he's told me all about. The one he spends most of his time at because he's weirdly (and kinda cutely) obsessed with reindeer.

"They're all inside the stables, warm and fed," he said to North. "I did bring Sven and the sleigh with me though. I figured we could all go for a joy ride later, if anyone is up for it." His whole face always lit up whenever he would talk about Sven and the other deer in the herd. Compared to how he was in the beginning, all moody and grumpy, one would never guess that a type of herbivore with antlers would get him to smile and for his eyes to light up like the way they are now.

I wonder if I could ever–NOPE! Not even going to finish that thought absolutely not. So instead, I grab his arm, smiling in true excitement. "Oh my god, you have got to introduce me to Sven," I say, my excitement boiling. "I've been dying to meet him ever since you first talked about him. Come on, come on, come oooonnnnnn!"

I was tugging at his…deliciously wide bicep–wow were they always this thick–and my stomach does flips at his laugh. "Okay, okay. Relax." He then looks to everyone else. "The sleigh is big enough for all of us. Does anyone else want to come?"

"Absolutely not," says Bunny, looking terrified. "You and North may think otherwise, but those reindeer are dangerous. I am not about to be caught up in a runaway sleigh because some deer decided to go rogue."

Some more mouths opened, but Elsa was quick to speak first. "Actually," I could tell by the gleam in her eyes that she was up to something. It was too mischievous looking. Too…Jack-like. Goodness, he's really rubbing off on her a little bit. "I think it would be better if you two go alone. Rapunzel, Olaf, and Flynn still have toys to separate for certain kids at the orphanage, and Jack promised to show Tooth and I what he'd look like in an elf costume."

Jack's head whips to her so fast, eyes wide, in shock. "I what?"

"Yes," Elsa looks him dead in the eye, stone-cold serious, "you did."

Jack understood immediately. "Oh, yeah," he says, pretending to remember something that I know didn't happen. I'm not that dense. However, I go along with it. Because just in case he did forget and it's true, I sooooooo want to see pictures.

"Ooohh. You better take some pictures of that then. I so need to see that." Because I'm definitely going to need proof. Because it looks to me like Elsa is trying to set us up on a date.

"Don't worry," Jack assures me, "I'll make sure they get my good side."

Flynn snorts. "Which is nowhere, right?"

"No, bud, that's you you're talking about."

The boys playfully flip each other off.

"Well," I say, forcing a smile because now I'm super nervous at the idea of being alone with Kristoff. "I…uh…guess it's just me then." I've never been nervous about being around him alone before. But now? And why? Ugh! Gosh darn it Elsa! This is her fault. All because of that conversation from earlier.

Geez, I'm probably getting worked up over nothing. Relationships happen when two (or more) people have interest in each other. I don't like Kristoff (right?) and he doesn't like me. Not in that way.

However…his face turns pink, a blush, and my heart rate quickens. That wasn't because of me, was it? No, that's ridiculous. It's just the cold making the blood rush to his face to keep the skin warm. That's all it is. Science! Cause and effect. Not…a crush or love or anything of the sort.

He clears his throat and then awkwardly says: "Cool. Um…let's go then. You're going to love Sven." He leans his arm out and for a second I stare at it because wow. His arms really are incredible. Before I could start drooling, I link my arm through his and he begins to lead us out of the toy shop. I look behind me at my sister and the others. All of them wore the same exact smug smiles.

And Elsa's was the biggest.

I knew it! She set us up at the last second! She saw an opportunity and she took it. That little cheat. And yet, while nervous doesn't even begin to cover what I'm feeling, I couldn't help but smile too.

This isn't a date, I refuse to call it that since Kristoff technically hasn't asked me, but…I guess it wouldn't hurt to pretend it is. Just for fun.

.

.

.

Kristoff is weird.

But in a good way. I just really wasn't expecting him to…well, I guess you can say he gives Sven a voice. He talks to Sven and Kristoff (as Sven) talks back. Sven, however, has a personality really similar to Rapunzel's horse and chameleon Maximus and Pascal. He's so…human like. So lively. It's like he really does understand Kristoff and even though he's a freaking reindeer I swear his expressions are human too.

He's cute, and the way Kristoff interacts with him is even cuter. But it's because of that realization that has me madder than the mad hatter. But not mad as in crazy; mad as in angry. Well, not angry, that's too strong, just…upset.

Because Elsa was right. Kristoff is sooooo perfect, and…maybe I do kind of…like him. A little bit. But I can't! I shouldn't! I want to play it smart. I…I want…

"Kristoff! Over here!" A woman calls out to us from the street.

We were strolling along the snowy streets of Burgess when we heard the woman. At first, neither of us knew who it was until finally Kristoff spotted her, his smile widening. "Bulda!" He pulls the reins back, causing Sven to come to a stop, and the simple act made my face beat up again.

Why did he make that so attractive? How did he make that so attractive? What is wrong with me?!

When the sleigh was completely parked to the side, Kristoff jumps out of the sleigh and hugs the woman, while I stayed seated and watched. She's short, plump, and brown-skinned, with a beautiful thick head of afro-styled hair. She also looked to be middle aged, so the worry of her being a potential love-interest faded away quickly when I realized.

Unless he's into older women.

Oh no. These thoughts…I know I'm boy crazy, but I don't think I've ever had a crush this bad before. Not even when I was with Hans was I so hung up on him to this level. How long have I been crushing on Kristoff and why is it only after Elsa says something that I finally realize?

God, I wish she didn't say anything.

"It's good to see you, Bulda." Kristoff says, pulling away from the woman. "You're here a little early. Does grandpa know you're home from your mountain trip?"

Bulda laughs. "Yes, and the first thing the old fart makes me do is some last minute shopping. But, seeing as he's pretty busy at the hospital, it's understandable that he doesn't have the time." She notices me then and gasps . "Kristoff! Who is this lovely lady?"

She pulls away from him and speeds towards me in the blink of an eye. "Hi there! I'm Bulda, Kristoff's adopted auntie-mom. When we took him, he was 8 years old, and we didn't know exactly what roles to assign ourselves, especially since there are so many of us in the family, so that's why he calls me by my first name. But yes, in a way, I'm his mother. Are you his girlfriend?"

This is one of those moments where if I was drinking something, I would have spit it out in shock. For a few reasons. Reason 1) I'm talking to, what I assume, is one of Kristoff's motherly figures, an important family member of his! Reason 2) she thinks I'm his girlfriend! What do I say to that? Do I correct her and say I'm not? Do I go with it?

Luckily, Kristoff comes to my rescue. "No, Bulda, she's not my girlfriend. She's just a friend who happens to be a girl."

Bulda bursts into laughter. "Oh honey, that's how it always starts. And if I didn't know any better, I'd say that you two are on a date." She gasps again. "Oh my goodness! And I'm interrupting it! Oh, I'm sorry. I'll get going now. You two stay safe and have fun!"

"Wait, but—"

But she's waving him off and walking the opposite way.

"Bulda!"

"Nope! This is your very first date and I am not going to be interrupting any more. Bye bye!"

Kristoff sighs and shakes his head. "Stubborn woman."

"This is your first date?" I question without meaning to. Because how the heck has he never been on a date before?

Kristoff's eyes go wide. "This is a date?"

The air gets caught on my throat and my face flares. "Wait, what?! No, that's not what I meant. I mean, like, you've never been on a date before?"

Kristoff shakes his head. "Nope."

"So that also means you've never been kissed?" I don't know why I asked such a personal question, but…okay fine, I do know why. I have been staring at his lips randomly all throughout my time with him, and considering that he's never been on a date before must also mean his lips have never been touched by another.

Unless he's just the type to kiss and has no commitment to date.

Kristoff looks confused. "Uh…why does that matter?"

I hold my hands up in defense. "I'm just curious is all. They usually go hand in hand, kissing and dating. I…um…I've never been kissed either."

Kristoff, much like Bulga had done, burst into laughter. "Yeah, okay," he says sarcastically.

I glare at him, annoyed. "Um…what the heck does that mean? I'm not exactly liking your tone, mister."

"You were all about Han. So handsy with him," Kristoff answers, making me grimace. "There's no way you guys didn't kiss."

I shake my head again, trying to fight back the memories of Hans and I. "He would let me kiss his cheeks, but never his lips. He always said that he was waiting for the right moment—"

"Funny how he should have thought of that about the proposal," Kristoff interrupts, not cruelly, but more so speaking his thoughts, "You didn't think that was odd? That he would propose to you with no problem, but kissing was something…I don't know, sacred or whatever?"

I shrug, tired of people reminding me of how stupid I was. "I know. Trust me, I've heard it all already. Stupid, naive, blind Anna. At my age I should have known better. I should have this, I should have that. Yeah, yeah."

I sit back in my seat, head up, staring deeply into the night sky. All the stars I saw reminded me of all the things I could have done differently. They also gave me hope that there are still so many different experiences I have yet to encounter, many good ones. And bad ones too, but I'm trying to stay optimistic here. I can't let one mistake steer me away from having such an amazing and fun time with my other experiences. I can't let it define me.

I can't let it haunt me for years like it had done Elsa. She made a mistake that night, then another by shutting me out. I love her, but I will not do the same. No offense to her, but I will be better. That's why the whole dating thing now is…complicated.

Especially when I can feel Kristoff's eyes on me, tempting me to look at him. Somehow I didn't. Until he spoke.

"May I kiss you?"

My head almost fell off my body at how fast I looked at him, eyes wide, practically blushing out. He stood directly against the passenger door of the sleigh, and since I was still sitting inside of it, I was towering over him, looking down into his shy brown eyes. His face was fuming red, but he did not break eye contact.

"Um…what?" I laugh awkwardly. "I'm sorry, did I hear you right?" Because maybe I had just imagined it.

"That depends on what you heard." Kristoff says, slowly, looking even more nervous. "Look, just uh, forget I said anything. It was stupid—"

"You think kissing me is stupid?"

"No! I think I'm stupid—"

"For what?"

My heart is pounding so fast. He's made my heart pound before, but this is different. It's not rapidly beating in annoyance and anger at him, but more…hopeful and fearful of the unknown of what he's going to say.

Kristoff laughs, but it lacks humor. "For someone so obsessed about love, you're so oblivious when it's staring you right in the face."

"L-love?"

Kristoff…loves me?

WAIT, WHAT?!

"Yes!" He exclaims, frustrated, then runs a hand through his hair. He looks like he's sweating, and honestly I think I am too. My armpits are moist and my whole body is hot.

"Anna," he grabs my hand, the fabric of his glove touching the fabric of mine and I wished it was our skin instead, "I know you're not ready for another relationship, you've expressed that before, and I'm really proud of you for thinking of yourself first, for not rushing it, but..you need to know. I can't hold it in anymore. I need to…let it go, and then hopefully I'll find peace or closure. I love you. I know we got off on a rocky start, I mean no offense but you were really annoying, but…you've grown on me a lot and…next thing I know I'm thinking about you in the same ways Jack thinks of Elsa, Flynn thinks of Rapunzel, Hiccup thinks of Astrid…the boys helped me confirmed what I've suspected for a while. I have a crush on you. Hell, it's more than that. I love you. Remember that time in the library when we asked each other what we knew about love? Well, my answer is you. You are what love is to me. And—"

Like a magnet, I pulled into him, shutting up his rambling. I didn't want him to stop talking, but his confession made me want to kiss him so bad. So I did. I had leaned over the door of the sleigh and crashed my lips to his, thankful for his tallness so I didn't have to lean too far down.

I shouldn't have done it. I mean, I made a vow to not get romantically involved for a while, but…his confession made it so easy for me to forget about that. It made it so easy for me to realize the feelings that had been growing for a while; the feelings I had ignored because of everything else going on, because of the vow I made for myself. But of course, leave it to me to fail miserably when it comes to love and romance.

But maybe Kristoff won't be a massive fail this time. Maybe he's a success. He's already better than Hans. He's been better, even when he was a complete jerk to me in the beginning. And look how far we've come. We went from glaring at each other to kissing each other. Argumentative passion to romantic passion.

Kristoff was taken off guard when I kissed him, but faster than a millisecond, he's kissing me back, gentle and eager, like he's been wanting to do this for a long time. And oh my god, kissing is so awesome! I've never been kissed before, and to be honest, I'm now glad Hans never kissed me. If he was my first kiss, that would freaking suck.

Kristoff and I pulled apart and for a moment we stared at each other, shocked and happy. Kristoff was grinning and I've never seen him so innocent-like before, and I…well I couldn't help but laugh.

"Kristoff, you big strong beautiful man," I continued laughing, "You took my first kiss."

"You're the one who kissed me!"

"Oh, don't act like you didn't like it."

"Oh trust me," his eyes glanced down at my lips, which were freezing without his on top of them, and the way he looked at me made my stomach flip. "I liked it a lot." He then turns shy again. "Can…Can I do it again? I mean, may I? Well technically may you, since you started it. Can you do it again? May we? Wait, what?" He looks away with a face that said Did-I-Really-Just-Say-That and I couldn't help but giggle at his silliness.

I place a kiss on his cheek. "We may." I whispered in his ear before pulling back to see his face, which was redder than Rudolph's nose. And next thing I know he's pulling me into him. I happily moan against his lips.

When we pull away for air, we're both panting. He literally took my breath away. "Wow, are your sleigh rides always this exciting?"

Kristoff burst into laughter. "No, not really. I don't usually kiss the passengers. But I would love for us to do this more often."

"Yeah," I say, leaning in again. "So would I." And just as I was about to kiss him for a third time, I suddenly remember that it's Elsa's birthday. I pull back, startled that I forgot. "Wait! Today's Elsa's birthday. She said we can do something small for her. Nothing big. She wants to do it after we help North at his shop. We gotta go back! I would love to keep doing this, but the quicker we help out, the faster we can do something for her."

Kristoff chuckles. "Jack is already a step ahead of you. He asked our coach if we could have the ice rink to ourselves this evening to surprise her. Which, I don't know why he asked. He made his own spare key and has been sneaking in for years."

My eyes grew big. "Wait, he already planned something? And he didn't tell me?!"

"It's supposed to be a surprise, and well," he chuckles, "you're not exactly the best at keeping secrets."

I gasp, appalled. "I'll have you know I am a fantastic secret keeper. Come on, tell me a secret right now! I'll prove you wrong."

Laughing, Kristoff shakes his head. "I'll let you know as soon as I have a secret. But yeah, he's taking her ice skating."

Delight fills my body. "Oh how fun that'll be. I haven't done that in years. You know, Elsa used to skate a lot when we were little, but then she stopped because…well you know. I'd love to see her back on the ice again. Hopefully, it doesn't bring back any bad memories considering…well you know."

"According to Jack, he's been giving her secret lessons whenever they both have time."

"Really?!"

"Yep."

Well, at least now I know what she and Jack have been doing when they would have their date nights. My mind would come up with rather…scandalous things that make me lowkey sick. I so do not want to envision my sister and Jack being…intimate in bed. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait to have nieces and nephews one day, but I do not want the mental image of how they got there stuck in my brain. But because of how often Jack and Elsa go on their dates (which is literally almost every single night), I can't help but wonder. They're inseparable. It's so cute, but can sometimes get annoying when he interrupts our game nights. It's not a Family Game night if not all the family is there.

My parents don't count since they're on their business trip.

"That's great!" I say, meaning it. Because before everything went down, before Jack's father died trying to save me, and before I forgot some hours of my life because of the mild amnesia, I always remembered, always knew just how much Elsa loved to skate. "I wonder if it's all come back to her. You should have seen her when we were kids. She was a natural on the ice."

"And what about you?" Kristoff asks, tilting his head to the side like a cute curious puppy. "Do you like to skate?"

I laugh. "Um, do you not know me? I can't even walk properly because of how much of a clutz I am. I never stood a chance on the ice. Pun intended."

His eyes lit up. "That's great! I can teach you. It's um…" he rubs the back of his neck, looking away, continuing being shy. "It's something that's been on my bucket list for when I…uh…get a girlfriend."

"Girlfriend?" I'm surprised my eyes haven't completely pooped out of their sockets because of how wide they keep getting. "Whoa…um…"

Kristoff must have taken my surprise as a bad thing because he steps away to give me some space. "Th-that is if you want to be. Bulda would be delighted, I mean I would be too of course, my whole family would. I'm sorry. I'm going too fast, which is hypocritical of me because my morals with love is to go slow and steady, but you…ugh you drive me insane and make me feel and do things I wouldn't normally do and great now I'm blabbering again. Jesus. I'll stop talking now."

He turns and runs a hand through his thick hair. Something I wish I could do. "Kristoff," he looks over at me, "come here." He steps forward, his chest pressed against the door to the sleigh. I run my fingers through his hair, noticing his body shiver (definitely not from the cold), and a small content smile was on his face. "I would love to be your girlfriend, but I still want to do it the right way. We'll go slow. We'll go on dates, get to know each other better, all that sweet jazz. And when the moment is right, I'll let you know when I'm ready to put a label on us."

"So do you want us to be a secret too, like Jack and your sister were?"

I deadpanned for a moment. "Uh…well no. I don't like keeping secrets—"

"See! I told you you can't keep one."

" My secrets are different from others. I can't keep my secrets in for too long. Anyway, don't interrupt." I gently flick his nose before continuing. "I guess we can tell people that we're dating, but that we aren't defined yet. Does that sound good?"

"Works for me."

"Good," I tug at his sleeve. "Now come ooonnnn we got to go back. We've been gone long enough."

Kristoff rushes around the front of the sleigh to the driver's side, and a minute later, we're heading back to North's shop.

The space I had kept between us in the seat no longer existed because I had quickly slid over to wrap my arm around his and lay my head on his shoulder. He rested his head on top of mine and I have never felt such euphoria before.

But I just want to make it clear that he is not my boyfriend…

Yet.