Hello! You've reached Anna Strand. Sorry I can't come to the phone right now. But if you leave your name, number, and a message after the beep and I'll call you back just as soon as I can! BEEP! Ha! Making robot noises is fun! Beep! Boop! Beep! Oh, right! The message! BEEP.

Kristoff cleared his throat, his nerves making it hard for him to speak, or even to summon up the courage to speak. His hands trembled slightly as he held his phone to his ear. Anna's voicemail is the closest he's come to hearing from her over the past week.

"Ahem, uh, um, h-hi. Hey, Anna. It's me…Kristoff. But you already knew that. Caller I.D. is great, isn't it?" Kristoff laughed nervously even as he reminded himself that that's probably exactly why she didn't pick up.

Kristoff had tried calling her from the minute he made it back to the rink, but Anna didn't answer. So he called again. And again. And again. And again. Until finally, he received a text.

From Elsa.

(Message): Anna doesn't feel like talking right now. Give her some space.

(Message): …asshole.

Kristoff stopped calling.

He had gone through all of Thanksgiving break in a sort of agonizing haze. In his rare moments of clarity he noticed the dirty dishes overflowing from his dishwasher and into the sink, his clean clothes dwindling, and his face going from stubble to unkempt scruff.

Kristoff hadn't heard from either Anna or Elsa in the time they'd been gone. All he saw of the two of them were the pictures that Elsa had posted to Facebook. He'd looked through them countless times on his phone and his laptop whenever he missed her.

Which was all the time.

And he'd saved a couple of his favorites to his phone.

Despite the days without Anna seeming endless, every day that passed filled Kristoff with anxiety and dread. Today was the Sunday that she and Elsa were supposed to be driving back. Neither of them would be working on Monday, to catch up on rest. Anna had originally promised to come see him at work as soon as she could.

Kristoff was certain that that promise no longer stood.

"So…um…anyway…I was just calling to say hi…which I already said before and I hope you had a great time on your trip. I think I might have seen a few of the photos you and Elsa posted on Facebook and you looked like you were having a great time in them. I think you were, anyway. It's hard to tell with pictures sometimes."

Kristoff's attempts to make himself sound less pathetic and desperate were not working. He was miserable and he missed Anna. He was going to wait until he saw her at work again to talk to her, give her all the space she needed, but he couldn't take it anymore and had to call her.

"I guess that Olaf or maybe Elsa told you that we caught the guy," Kristoff continued. "Looks like Hans was the mystery thief all along."

The security feed was very telling. On the very first video he caught Hans distracting Anna, knocking something over, dropping something, waiting for her attention to be called elsewhere before he easily snatched some money out of her till. But he had accomplices. His name would have shown up just as much as Anna's if he had been the only one taking money and Kristoff would have (and should have) suspected him sooner. Hans had recruited the help of two goons who also worked at the rink (and Kristoff never liked the look of them anyway) to swipe money as well. But Hans, the bastard that he was, was smart, and Anna's wasn't the only till he and his goons took money from. And as an extra measure, they had only taken money whenever Anna was on shift. Maybe he had planned on Anna being blamed for it all and taking the fall for him. Kristoff didn't like to think how that exact situation almost happened.

"Apparently his dad didn't like his spending habits and cut him off and kicked him out. Trust fund went to charity and everything and he got desperate." No idea why he went after Anna of all people, though.

"But, um…that isn't why I called…" Kristoff sighed shakily. "I…I wanted to call you sooner but I figured that you might not want to talk to me. I'm sorry about what I said. I should never have accused you of anything and I should have just believed you and trusted you without question when you told me it wasn't you." And he shouldn't have stupidly chosen that moment to tell her that he loved her. In all honesty, it had just slipped out. He had been telling himself that he loved her for so long that finally saying it out loud wasn't the big, romantic confession he had been hoping for. Or that Anna had been hoping for, probably.

"Anyway…have a safe trip back and tell Elsa I said hi and…I'll talk to you later. Hopefully."

Kristoff ended the call, feeling worse than he did before he had decided to call Anna. He had screwed up monumentally with her and he didn't know how to fix it. He tried his best to ignore the voice in the back of his head, nagging at him that it couldn't be fixed. It was over. The end.

His head jerked up as he finally recognized the music coming out of the ice rink's speakers.

"Very funny, Olaf," Kristoff growled. He stalked off toward the press box, the lyrics mocking him with every step.

All by myself! Don't wanna be,

All by myself!

"I'd prefer Iz," Kristoff said as soon as he wrenched open the door to the press box. Olaf preferred to decorate for Christmas in an…unusual fashion. Olaf referred to it as his "tropical oasis in this frigid landscape." A little palm decorated with lights, pool noodles, leis, and a little dancing hula girl for the desk were just some of the decorations Olaf incorporated into his Hawaiian Christmas theme.

Marshmallow turned and glared at him, still managing to look menacing even while sporting a grass skirt. Olaf laughed and quickly switched the music back to Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

"Sorry," Olaf said, not sounding very apologetic at all. "Sometimes listening to sad love songs can help."

"Yeah, well, it didn't." Kristoff crossed his arms impatiently. "Are you guys almost done here, or what? I'd like to get home."

"Actually…" Olaf shared a very pointed look with Marshmallow, then nodded conspiratorially. "Marshmallow and I were talking and we thought that we should take you out for a drink."

"I'm sorry, what?" Kristoff stuck a finger in his ear, digging around to free it of wax. He must not have heard correctly. He almost thought that Olaf and Marshmallow-

"It'll be fun! We'll go to a pub, get a few beers, and you'll feel better!"

Kristoff raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Really?"

"Well, no, but you've been so mopey since Anna left and you've just been ignoring your emotions and being Mr. Grumpy Face-"

"Thanks, but no thanks," Kristoff interrupted. "I'm not interested in spending a bunch of money in a bar."

"But we're paying!" Olaf said quickly. Despite his mood, Kristoff stopped. He was listening. "Besides, it will help take your mind off things and you won't be checking your phone every five seconds to see if Anna called-"

Kristoff's hand jerked away from his pocket. "Fine," he consented. "One drink and then I'm out of there."

Kristoff tipped his head back, making sure he gulped down every last drop of the beer in his glass. He swallowed and put the glass back down on the bar, where it clinked against the ones he had already emptied. He blinked heavily and scrubbed at his face with one hand, trying to concentrate on what Olaf was saying.

"Feeling better buddy?" Olaf asked. Kristoff was distracted for a moment by the mesmerizing way Olaf was twirling his little paper umbrella around his fingers.

"I'm feeling a lot better…buddy!" Kristoff went to clap a hand on Olaf's shoulder, missed, and tried again. "I'm feeling great! This was….nice of you and Marshmallow to do. Thanks, Olaf. And thanks Marshmallow!" Marshmallow said nothing as he sipped away at his water.

Kristoff chuckled to himself. "Marshmallow…you look so scary but your name is so fluffy! Like…like…"

"A marshmallow?" Olaf deadpanned.

Kristoff shook his head. "No…that'snot it. I'll let you know when I think of the…thing…word…" Somewhere deep inside him, there was a sober Kristoff that was going to be pissed at drunk Kristoff for the hangover that was sure to come in the morning. He could hold a lot, but even he had limits and he knew them well. But tonight he had thrown any self-control out the window and had several drinks. He couldn't remember how many.

Kristoff looked around the bar lazily and watched a round of drinks being carried around on a tray. He gasped in surprise.

"Guys…guys…guys! Guys…you see those…those drinks on that tray over there?" Kristoff asked Olaf and Marshmallow. "They're…pink!"

"Very good, Kristoff! You know your colors!" Olaf sounded very proud of him even though Drunk Kristoff was sure there was some sarcasm somewhere in there. Somewhere. Drunk Kristoff didn't notice Olaf sliding the empty glasses away from him.

"No...Olaf…Marshmallow….y'don't unnerstand," Kristoff implored. He pointed a shaky finger at the both of them. "Anna…loves pink. Like…her whole room is nothing but pink! It's…everywhere! But I'll tell you something secret…I don't mind it being pink. Because now pink makes me think of…Anna. She's got a pink room, and a pink jacket…" Kristoff counted these things off on his fingers as he went.

"…pink binder, pink heels, pink nail polish, and she has pink lipstick so after we kiss, I'm pink." Kristoff looked down at his hands. "That's a lot of pink. But…I like pink because pink makes me think of Anna and I love her."

Olaf clapped a hand on his shoulder, chuckling. "I know you do, buddy. Now, we're gonna pay the tab and take you home soon, okay?"

Kristoff pouted. "But I'm having…fun."

"I know you are, but you have to work tomorrow," Olaf reminded him gently.

"Work's stupid," Kristoff grumbled, standing unsteadily on his feet. He gave himself a moment to regain his balance. "I need fresh air." Olaf might have protested this some, but Kristoff was already headed toward the door of the bar.

The frigid night air that blasted his face was almost enough to send him back into the bar. But Kristoff lived for the cold and he didn't care. They'd be leaving soon anyway.

Pulling his phone out of his pocket, Kristoff went straight to Anna's name in his contacts and hit call. It went to voicemail after three rings again. Her voicemail was so funny!

"Anna!" Kristoff said as soon as he heard the beep. "Anna! Me and Olaf and fluffy Marshmallow went out for drinks! They're my friends, Anna! I have friends!"

Kristoff laughed some. Man, talking to Anna always made him feel better. Even if he wasn't technically talking to Anna.

"I just wanted to call you and talk to you, because like you're really pretty…and I haven't told you that in…forever. I'm gonna tell you how pretty and beautiful you are more often if you ever talk to me again. And…and I would like to tell you that I love you again one day…but I'm not gonna do it over the phone because it should be…romantic…damn it. But if I was gonna tell you again…I'd tell you why."

Kristoff struggled through his thoughts, fuzzy as they were, for the right words. "You're funny…you make me laugh all the time and…I may be a grump a lot of the time, but I don't feel like a grump when I'm with you. I feel happy…Anna…Anna this is the part where you're supposed to start clapping-oh, wait. I wasn't singing. But I could sing for you if you wanted. I got a guitar. All I need to do is throw some rocks at your window and I'll serenade you like you've never been s'naded b'fore."

He went to kick at some of the snow, but just ended up slipping, barely able to catch himself from falling completely in his drunken state.

"I may have had a lil' too much," Kristoff admitted into the phone. "'S totally Olaf's and Marshmallow's fault 'cause they said I had to drink away the pain and I've been in a lot of pain so I drank and drank and drank and…I forgot what I wanted to say to you…oh! I remember! I was gonna serenade you." He leaned heavily against Olaf's bright white Prius. "Now…I'm in a parking lot for a bar…so I don't have my guitar with me. I'll just have to serenade you alpaca style, if that's alright with you. This is a little number I've rehearsed with Sven a couple times. He's not here either, so I'll sing both of our parts, okay? Here it goes."

Kristoff cleared his throat and started to drunkenly sing into the phone. "'Annas are better than people. Sven don't you think that's true? La la la la la la la la la la la! I forget the words that I wrote just for you!'"

"Kristoff!" Huh, that sounded like Olaf. And that little guy coming from the bar kind of looked like Olaf, too.

"Olaf's here, so I'm gonna go. Bye Anna. I'm not gonna say I love you over the phone. But I do. Bye!" Kristoff hung up and pocketed his phone just as Olaf reached him. He grinned drunkenly at the smaller man.

"Please tell me you weren't talking to Anna," Olaf pleaded. He rubbed at his temples, feeling the headache coming on.

Kristoff shook his head. "I was not talking to Anna. I was singing to her."

"Oh, no."

Kristoff didn't care that he had been wearing sunglasses indoors all day. He didn't care that he hadn't showered. He didn't care that he hadn't shaved in nearly a week or that the dishes in his sink were growing to ridiculous proportions or that he was running low on clean underwear. Truth be told, Kristoff just didn't care anymore. He felt horrible. Emotionally and physically. He barely managed to drag himself into the closing shift after spending most of his morning emptying his stomach contents into the toilet and begging to anybody who would listen to make the room stop spinning already.

Kristoff had his job, he had his own place, and he had his family, but he wasn't sure if he still had-

A cashier let the door to the office close a little too heavily behind them. Kristoff clutched at his aching head.

"Stop being so damn loud!" he growled. He glared at the cashier from behind the lenses of his sunglasses (only realizing much later how futile that was, not to mention he looked like a complete moron. Everyone knew why he was wearing sunglasses indoors. There was only one reason anybody ever wore sunglasses indoors.)

Everyone at the ice rink steered clear of Kristoff his entire shift. They could all sense his bad mood radiating in waves off of him. Or they could all smell him because even he was starting to admit that his lack of hygiene for the day was not helping this hangover whatsoever.

It was a relief to everyone when the rink finally closed for the night.

Kristoff drove back to his apartment that night in a haze, idly wondering if anything edible was left in his fridge. Some of Sven's carrots, maybe? Anna's chocolate? He sighed, sinking into his seat, resigning himself to go grocery shopping in the morning.

He hated grocery shopping. There were too many people that tried talking to you. And the cashiers were too friendly.

Kristoff finally shuffled through the front door of his apartment, locking it swiftly behind him. Sven came bounding over to him and the blond gave his pooch a little scratch behind the ears before he started searching idly through the fridge. There was some Chinese takeout, but he couldn't remember how old it was. Frowning, Kristoff grabbed a bottle of water to sip on and searched his cabinets for some Tylenol.

Sven barked impatiently at him.

"What's the matter Sven?" Kristoff asked. He swallowed the pills before looking down at the dog. "You hungry?" Sven touched Kristoff's leg with his paw. Kristoff caught a glimpse of something bright green.

"What's this?" Kristoff muttered to himself. He knelt down on the floor and grabbed one of Sven's paws and looked at it closely. He blinked in surprise.

Sven's nails were painted bright green.

What are you doing?

Painting Sven's nails.

Why?

Sven was jealous of how pretty my nails look so I'm giving him a little doggy pedicure.

…he's a boy.

'Gender roles are stupid, Kristoff-'

What are you doing?

The Sven Voice! Now, sh! Don't interrupt! 'Gender roles are stupid, Kristoff. If a girl can enjoy making her nails look pretty, I can, too.'

Okay, fine. You can paint Sven's nails.

Ha! I win!

You always win.

Kristoff remembered the conversation from months ago and exhaled a shaky breath. Standing up slowly, he crept out of the kitchen and into the living room, his eyes fixed on the figure on the couch he hadn't noticed before.

Anna was sitting cross-legged on his couch, humming to herself. Her wet hair was out of its usual braids and was slowly drying in waves. She was wearing one of his t-shirts that was so big on her, one of the sleeves drooped off her shoulder, exposing each and every one of her freckles (he loved seeing her in his t-shirts) and a pair of sweat pants. She was busy folding clothes, putting them in surprisingly neat piles into the laundry basket next to her.

Kristoff was too stunned to speak.

Anna wasn't.

"I had some laundry to do so I threw your stuff in there, too," Anna said conversationally. "I also ran your dishwasher and ordered some Chinese takeout since your fridge had like…nothing." She pauses in the middle of folding one of his t-shirts and she looks like she has something important to say. Kristoff waits with bated breath.

"…the ski resort was fun," Anna comments rather anti-climactically. "We got back late last night. I had a lot of fun and I almost got all the way down-well, okay, almost half…I got about a third of the way down before I fell off my skis. The ski instructor said I was his most determined student but I still think he kind of wanted me to just stop because I'm pretty sure everyone on the mountain thought I was going to kill myself. The spa was really nice, though. I got my nails done there and learned a few tricks to try on Sven. I think this was his best pedicure yet."

Anna sighed, finally looked up at him. Smiled. "Elsa confiscated my phone for pretty much the whole week. She didn't want me saying something stupid when I was angry or when I started to get really whiny because I missed you."

"I missed you, too," Kristoff finally blurted out.

"I figured you did." Anna put the last stack of clothes in the laundry basket and grinned mischievously. "I mean, you had to have missed me to serenade me alpaca style over the phone."

Kristoff groaned, buried his face in his hands. "I was hoping that was a dream."

"Nope."

"I meant acapella."

"Look at you and your musical terms," Anna teased. She gave him a serious look. "The way you went about things with the money was…"

"Rushed?" Kristoff supplied.

"I was going to say stupid-"

"That works, too."

"But I can understand why things didn't appear to be in my favor on paper. And by the two voicemails you left me, the state this apartment was in, the reports from Olaf, and your smell-"

Kristoff was regretting not taking that shower.

"I think it's safe to say that you've made yourself miserable enough and…I forgive you."

Relief flooded through Kristoff and a very tiny bit of the guilt that was weighing him down lifted away. Most of it was still there and he would be working very hard to get back into Anna's good graces for a very long while, but he'd climb mountains for her any day if that was what it took.

Anna stretched her arms over her head, yawning widely. "I'm going to bed," she declared. "You go on and take your shower. You need it."

It took Kristoff following Anna into his bedroom and watching her settle underneath the covers for him to fully understand that-not only was Anna here, and they weren't fighting, and they were still together-she intended to stay over for the night.

Kristoff didn't mind this at all, he decided, as he grabbed his own t-shirt and pair of pajama pants out his drawers. In fact, this would be his first step toward feeling less guilty. Anna could take his bed and he would sleep on his couch for the night. He deserved it, after all.

After scrubbing down his body with twice as much soap as he normally used and vigorously shampooing his hair, Kristoff stepped out of his shower much cleaner than he had been in the past week. For good measure, he applied a little deodorant, too. He wasn't going to let his body odor get absorbed into the couch. Even if it did already smell like dog.

Anna was dozing peacefully when he finally emerged from the bathroom, the lamp next to the bed still switched on. Careful not to wake her, Kristoff tip-toed over to the bed and grabbed a pillow before turning out the light.

"Where are you going?" Anna mumbled sleepily when he was nearly to the door. The light turned back on. Anna was blinking at him, confused and disoriented, but she was most definitely still awake.

"I was…I was going to sleep on the couch," Kristoff explained. Anna said nothing to that. She just kept staring. "We just had a fight and normally the boyfriend goes to sleep on the couch when that happens."

Anna rolled her eyes. "The fight was a week ago, I forgave you, and why would you think I'd want to come over here to sleep in your bed alone? I missed you, okay? And I didn't want to go any longer without seeing you so just…" She lifted up the covers on his side of the bed as an invitation.

Slowly, still feeling like an intruder in his own home Kristoff crept back over to the bed and slid underneath the covers, replacing the pillow back behind his head. He settled into the mattress. The lamp went out again.

Anna immediately curled into his side, sighing contentedly. For the first time in forever-well, a week, but it had felt like forever to him-Kristoff finally let himself relax and he succumbed to a peaceful, restful slumber.

OKAY! So...explanation time. I've been feeling rather down and depressed for a while now and events in my personal life, especially over the past few months, have not helped. At all. I had about half of this chapter written for the longest time but I couldn't motivate myself to finish it. I'm getting better and I've been having some good days so I was finally able to finish the chapter. Thank you to those of you who were supportive and understanding.