Hans Westerguard 6:24 AM

Subject: Hey

Anna's heart skipped a beat or two and then began running on overtime as she squinted at the brightness of her cell phone.

Great, this guy actually exists. Ohh-kay. Okay, Anna. You can do this. Just be friendly. Just a normal girl talking to a guy.

Anna kicked her freckled legs around in an attempt to untangle her feet from the bunched-up sheet at the bottom of her bed. She hadn't realized what a shock to the system it would be, moving from her mom's place in Minneapolis to her dad's in New Mexico for the summer. Geez, it's hot. My blood's too thick for this.

Finally free of her bed sheets, she swung her legs off the edge of the mattress and grabbed a tank top off the floor. She'd stripped it off before getting into bed last night, unable to bear the feel of it clinging to her damp skin.

Although part of her wanted to ignore the message in her inbox, she knew it would be better just to get it over with. There was no getting around it. She held her breath and tapped the screen of her phone.

Hey Anna! So, your dad's probably told you about me – name's Hans. I'm heading up a lot of the service projects at church this summer, so we'll be working together. Looking forward to meeting you tomorrow morning at youth group. Let me know if you have any questions. Hope your move went smoothly! God bless.

Anna had done some Facebook creeping on Hans as soon as her mother had told her about him. With his smooth auburn hair and rosy cheeks, Hans looked nice enough. His parents were friendly with Anna's dad – Anna's father had mentioned that he'd gotten to know them at his new church.

Anna chucked the phone onto her bed and flopped back onto the mattress. She tried to blow her bangs off her face, but they were damp and stuck to her forehead.

Can't believe Mom actually expects me to date this guy. Not happening.

Of course, her mother hadn't said exactly that – but Anna knew that she was praying that Anna would get together with him.

She thinks I can just forget about Rory. Or about girls in general.

Maybe forgetting about Rory wouldn't be such a bad thing. Anna's heart took a dive at the thought of the gorgeous, sandy-haired girl she'd left behind in Minneapolis. Well, technically Rory had left her a few weeks before the semester had ended. If Anna was being completely honest with herself, they'd never officially been together. Regular hookups at parties don't exactly count as a relationship and you know it. Anna tried to put the girl's face out of her head, but the harder she tried, the more solid Rory's beautiful features became in her mind's eye.

Anna rolled over on the bed so that her arms and head were hanging off the edge. She rummaged around on the floor, finally locating her sketchbook just underneath the bed. She pulled it out and flipped through it quickly. Stuck between two pages in the middle was a picture of her and Rory together at Rory's house on campus. One of Anna's friends had snapped it, but the two of them had been unaware—standing in the kitchen, laughing blissfully, Anna's hands gripping Rory's arms as she made to double over. The picture was a little bit grainy—Anna had downloaded it from Facebook before printing it.

Behind the photograph was a pencil sketch of Rory's laughing face. Anna had erased the eyes so many times they'd turned gray. She just couldn't get them right.

Anna took a deep breath and let it out loudly, rubbing her palms into her eye sockets. She groaned. Here goes nothing.

Saving Grace Church was enormous.

Anna eyes widened as she stepped over the threshold into the auditorium. Rows and rows of seats surrounded a raised stage on which stood a pulpit and risers. On either side of the stage, huge projection screens displayed the name and red logo of the church underneath a quote from the book of John.

"Whoa," Anna said, stopping short.

"Big, huh?" her father chuckled. "Let's go find a seat up front."

"I feel like I should be going to a concert or something… not church," Anna said, trudging behind her dad to a seat near the stage.

She settled into her seat, pulling her sketchbook and pen out of her purse. She noticed her father looking at her.

"Uh… for taking notes," she lied, tapping the end of her pen against the cover of the book.

Her father nodded. "Good," he said.

Anna flipped the book open to a blank page and wrote "Saving Grace – Day 1" at the top of the page in lopsided letters. Then she set to work sketching one of the ushers. They were all dressed in khakis and identical red polo shirts with the Saving Grace logo on the lapel. God, this place is so big they need people to walk them to their seats.

"Hey! Brian!" A voice floated down the row, greeting Anna's father.

"Oh, Hans, you're here! Wonderful! Anna"—her father nudged her—"this is Hans."

Anna looked up from her sketchbook to see the young man standing in the row in front of her, smiling down at her with very white teeth.

Wow, first name basis with Dad.

"You must be Anna," Hans said, holding out his hand.

"Um, yeah," Anna said, giving him a tentative smile. "Hi." She closed her notebook around her pen and stuck her hand in his. He shook it vigorously.

"Great to meet you. How do you like the church?"

"Um, it's huge. And nice. I mean, I haven't seen the service yet, obviously, but it's nice so far. Everyone seems really friendly?" Anna said.

Hans laughed. "I'm sure you'll fit right in here," he said, looking directly into Anna's eyes. "We're glad you're here."

"Uh, th-thanks," Anna stammered.

At that moment, a group of people in red choir robes filed onto the stage, followed by several people with instruments. One woman, who was holding a microphone, walked to the front of the stage and began the service by inviting everyone to pray with her. Hans sat down in the seat in front of Anna.

After a few moments of prayer, the choir began to sing, accompanied by guitars, drums and keyboard. The song lyrics were displayed on the projection screens, and the entire church sang along. Anna tried to listen—she didn't mind church, really—but soon she was concentrating on the back of Hans's head, carefully drawing in his swooping hair and arms raised in praise.

"And in here is where we meet for youth group," Hans said, opening a door for Anna. They were standing in a large, carpeted room full of tables and chairs. The walls were covered with dry erase boards and inspirational posters. There were about twenty young people milling about, talking loudly.

Hans had given Anna a tour of the entire church, which included a café, a bookstore, a gymnasium and several other meeting rooms. Anna felt overwhelmed.

"Wow. So, is this when we plan service projects, or … ?" Anna asked.

"Youth group is more for socializing, actually. We usually do some Bible study and then just hang out for a while," Hans said. "Sometimes we go out on the weekends."

Okay, maybe that's not so bad. "I like socializing," Anna shrugged. Maybe I'll actually make some friends in this place.

"Do you know many people in the city yet?" Hans asked her.

"Nope. Not a single one. Well, now I know you – so I guess I do know a single one," Anna corrected herself. "But that's it. Allll alone here."

"Hey, what's up, man?" A tall, blond boy approached Hans and clapped him on the back, and then his eyes fell on Anna. "Hey, I'm Kristoff." He held out a large hand, which Anna shook.

"Anna," Anna said, smiling up at him.

"New to the church?" Kristoff asked.

"Yeah. I'm in Albuquerque for the summer. With my dad," Anna explained. "We live a little ways outside of town."

"Nice! I think you'll like it here. How are you taking the heat?" Kristoff grinned.

"It's crazy," Anna said, shaking her head and fanning her face with a hand for emphasis. "I can't believe how hot it is. I'm from Minneapolis. Pretty sure we've still got residual snowflakes up there."

"Bit of a difference, huh?"

"You could say that," Anna giggled.

"Excuse me for a moment," Hans interrupted, touching Anna's shoulder. Anna nodded, and he walked off to greet others. Social butterfly.

Anna and Kristoff sat together at an empty table in a corner of the room.

"So you know Hans?" Kristoff said, lounging comfortably in his plastic chair, ankle propped on knee.

"Yeah, well, sort of," Anna said. "My dad knows him and his parents, and I'm going to be working at the church this summer, so, you know. We were introduced."

"Working on the service projects?"

"Yup." Anna bobbed her head.

"Sweet! Me, too," Kristoff said. "I do a lot of the construction-type jobs. They can use my muscle, you know." He flexed an arm, grimacing.

Anna laughed. "I'm sure. But yeah, I mean, I miss my friends back home, but I guess if I'm being forced to be here, there could be worse ways to spend a summer."

"Is this like, a divorce agreement or something? Summers with your dad?" Kristoff sounded sympathetic.

Anna hesitated. "Not exactly." She decided to change the subject. "So, what do you do? Are you in school?"

"Yep. I take classes at the community college here."

"What do you study?"

"Ag," Kristoff said. "But this summer I'm taking an art class. My mom wants me to branch out, do something creative. She thinks I have untapped potential. I think she's in denial about my lack of drawing skills."

Anna laughed. "I love drawing. I like all kinds of art, actually. I'm a photography/zoology double major at U of M."

"Photography and zoology . . . now there's a combo you don't hear about every day," Kristoff said, smiling at her. "Well, listen, you and I are gonna get along great, because I'm a total animal lover. I have a dog, Sven – you'll have to meet him. He's insane."

"I'd love to," Anna grinned.

"I know some really cool art students at school," Kristoff said. "I mean, like, two of them, but I have other friends, too. I'm sure they'd love to meet you. You guys could like, draw each other or something? Is that a thing? Anyway, we're actually having a little party Friday night. Wanna go? Kick the summer off right?"

Uh oh, like on a date?

"With—with you?" Anna asked.

Kristoff shrugged and gave her a half-smile. "Sure. Why not? We'll kick it Southwest-style."

Adorkable. Well, you can either stay at home like a giant loser or go meet some cool people. But shit. What if he thinks you're into him?

"Umm… just—just as friends, right?" Anna asked. "Sorry if that's awkward, I just—"

Kristoff's smile fell a tiny bit, but he shrugged it off and acted cool. "Yeah, no, of course. Just as friends. No pressure. I mean, I just met you. I'd have to be crazy to ask out a girl I just met, right? Pfft."

Anna grinned and swatted his arm. "Okay. I'd love to," she said. Yes yes yesss. My people!

"Awesome. Ten o'clock on Friday."

After youth group ended, Hans politely walked Anna back to her car.

"It was great to meet you, Anna," he said, opening her car door for her.

"Wow, thanks," Anna said awkwardly. "Um, it was nice to meet you, too."

"So listen," Hans said, leaning against Anna's car. "A few of us are gonna grab dinner this Friday. Would you like to come along? Around seven?"

"Oh," Anna said, surprised. "Seven? Umm, yeah, maybe."

"I was thinking maybe we could go to a movie afterward . . . maybe just me and you?"

God, is this what it's like to be straight? Why can't girls throw themselves at me like this?

"Oh, wow, um . . . Look, I would, but I already made plans with Kristoff for later that night."

A shadow passed over Hans's eyes. "With Kristoff? What are you doing with him?"

"Oh, just hanging out, you know," Anna said, not really wanting to go into detail. Next thing I know Hans'll show up at the party. Or he'll tell my dad that I'm partying.

"Well, all right," Hans said, seeming put out. "Just be careful, Anna."

What are you, my big brother?

"Um, yeah, I will," Anna said, cocking an eyebrow. "No worries."

Hans took a breath and looked into Anna's eyes as though steeling himself. "Anna, I-I know you're new to Saving Grace," he said with a slightly condescending air. "But your dad told me that you're here to get back in touch with God."

"He did?" Anna squinted against the sun, feeling hot and extremely uncomfortable. What else did he say?

Hans nodded and continued. "So, I just want you to know that we're here to, you know, guide you in the right direction. I'm here to help in any way I can."

Anna stared at Hans, trying to discern how much he knew. Did he know about her past? Was he going to spill it to everyone in the church? He continued to look at her sincerely. Finally she decided that there was no deeper implication behind his words – he didn't know about her.

"Um, okay, thanks. Good to know," she said, ducking into the front seat. The inside of her car was sweltering.

"So, will I at least see you at dinner?" Hans leaned down to look at Anna, his hand on the car door.

Can't he take a hint?

"I don't know. Probably," Anna said, not wanting to commit either way. If her father knew she'd turned down a chance to hang out with Hans, he'd relay the information back to her mother. Then she'd be in trouble. "Can I let you know later in the week?"

"Okay. Talk to you—"

Hans's voice was cut short as Anna slammed her car door.

A/N: Hi everyone! Irish here. Just want to remind everyone that this is an Elsanna fic. Yay, Elsanna!

I also want to say that I hope I didn't offend anyone with any of the religion stuff. I am a spiritual/Christian person myself, and I understand very well how complex the relationship between sexuality and religious beliefs can be—for everyone involved. So in no way do I ever mean to come across as condemning any religion or spiritual practice as a whole. But the fic won't focus too heavily on the religion stuff, anyway. :)

So, with that said, hope you enjoyed the first chapter. Thanks for reading!