CHAPTER 1

Elsa yawned. Her eyes fell on the small digital clock which told her that it was 10pm. Furrowing her brows, she realised that she had spent most of the weekend hunched over her computer finishing assignments. Pushing her chair back, she stood up and stretched. The sound of her stomach as it emitted a low growl startled her and drew her attention back to the fact that she had hardly had time to eat. It seemed that her body had decided enough was enough. She needed to eat.

Entering the kitchen, she was greeted by the sight of her younger sister, Anna, furiously smashing a chocolate bar into a bowl filled with chocolate ice cream and chocolate syrup. She stifled a laugh as she noticed the fresh mug of hot chocolate which was already placed on the table. Anna's love of chocolate was legendary. As a child, Elsa had soon learnt that she could get her sister to do pretty much anything she wanted simply by bribing her with the sweet treat. Knowing this had resulted in her trading off several chores to Anna in return for chocolate. However, it had also meant that she had lost a few too many Easter eggs prematurely due to Anna's cravings.

"You know, one of these days you're going to surprise us all and choose something other than chocolate," Elsa joked, reaching for a bowl.

"Never going to happen," sang Anna, poking her tongue out at Elsa.

Elsa laughed. "You never know. You're only eighteen. You have your whole life ahead of you," she reasoned, scooping some of the chocolate ice cream into her own bowl.

She watched as her sister scooped her bowl up and carried it over to the table. "I know what I love, Elsa. After eighteen years, I can say, without a doubt, that my love is chocolate," she stated honestly.

Grinning, Elsa carried her own bowl of ice cream and settled herself on the seat opposite Anna. She loved these little moments with her sister. The two of them had been close as children, but as the years had gone by, they had inevitably drifted apart. Most of it could be put down to her hectic lifestyle. Her life consisted of studying, working in the family business and accompanying her father to business events which left her with little free time. It was a tiring life, but by accepting it she had at least ensured that her beloved sister could enjoy a more relaxed life.

Sneaking a glance at her sister, she couldn't help but laugh. Her sister's love of chocolate had made its way to her clothing with a few new stains already taking up residence on her pyjama top.

She was just about to inquire about Anna's weekend and the party that she had attended, when their father, Walt Blanchard, strode in. A frown appearing on his face as his eyes zeroed in on her.

"Elsa, what are you doing eating ice cream this late at night? Haven't you got better things to do with your time?" he asked, crossing his arms as his eyes stared down at her.

Gulping, she dropped the spoon. "I err finished all my assignments. I haven't had much to eat this weekend, so I thought a break would be okay," she stammered.

Walt sighed. "What about revision? Or collecting notes for revision. It's never too early to start going over your notes, Elsa. You don't want to be behind when it comes closer to exam time," he stated. "You can't risk your grades dropping."

"I know, Daddy," she apologised.

Getting up, she scooped the last of her ice cream into Anna's bowl. She caught Anna glancing between her and their father with a frown on her face. "I'll see you later, Anna," she said, giving her a bleak smile.

"Bye…" Anna's voice trailed off.

Slowly she trudged up the stairs and into her room. She pulled her pyjamas out and quickly changed into them, leaving her track-pants and singlet top in the clothes hamper for washing. She was just about to pull back the covers of her bed and climb in when a knock at the door sounded. Frowning, she padded over to her door and opened it. She felt her spirit drop as her father brushed past her to lean against her desk.

"I just wanted to check on you," he began. "I know that you and think I'm too hard on you, but I do it for your own good, Elsa. We live in a competitive world. You, my dear, are lucky in that you get to step into a good job right out of university. However, it still requires you to make a few small sacrifices. You may think that you're missing out, but trust me, it will be worth it."

Elsa nodded. She didn't know what to say, so she busied herself with packing her bag ready for the next morning. She heard the sound of her father clearing his throat before he turned and bid her good night.

Elsa felt her shoulders slump. She knew her father meant well and that he cared about her future. Walt Blanchard had worked hard through all university to establish Kingdom Ice Creamery, an old-fashioned diner style ice cream business which offered a variety of ice cream flavours and sweet treats all served in a cozy '50's style setting. The business had flourished into an empire with stores all over the country. As the eldest, Elsa, was expected to finish her Bachelor of Business (Management) degree and work in the corporate side of the business where she would eventually take over as CEO.

She also knew that her father was under a lot of pressure at work. A new business, Guardian Ice Blast, had entered the scene in recent years. The CEO, Nicholas North, was a former acquaintance of her father and from what she'd heard, there was bad blood between the two men. The two companies, while both dealing with ice cream, couldn't be more different in their approach. Guardian's was a younger business with trendy music playing in it's stores, all mixed by their very own DJ. They offered free wi-fi, a wider variety of flavours and appealed to the younger, 'trendier' crowd. They had also been the first company to make use of the cutting edge Liquid Nitrogen ice cream which had earned them a lot of media attention.

The sound of a loud crash, followed by an even louder curse word, coming from Anna's room next door interrupted her thoughts. Perking her head up, she stifled a laugh. Knowing the mess that was her sister's room, it was entirely possible that Anna had tripped over one of the items of clothing which littered her bedroom floor.

Grabbing her iPhone, Elsa decided to do a quick check of Facebook while she lay in bed. Tapping onto the website, she let out a small snort. Her father's influence had even found its way into her online presence. Most of her 'friends' were either business associates of her father's, or family members. She hadn't even wanted to create a profile, but her father had insisted. He had claimed that in today's world, social media was crucial to staying on top of the business game. Therefore, he had decided that it was her job to run the business' Facebook page and to give it a fresh, youthful perspective. His level of control had even extended to her own personal account. The number of work related 'friends' she had, was enough for her father to decide that he had the right to oversee all of her posts. As a result, there was no rant-filled posts, no overly emotional or controversial posts and no photo's allowed unless they were poised, classy shots.

She skimmed through her news-feed until she had come across some photo's of Anna and their cousin, Rapunzel, from the party that they had attended the night before. Smiling, she flicked through the various images. Most of them seemed to focus on the two girls dancing, or crowding around chocolate fondue fountain, their plates piled high with fruit. There was also a photo of Anna gazing adoringly at a rather pretentious looking young man with thick auburn hair and the largest sideburns she had ever seen.

Yawning, she clicked to exit the site and set the alarm for the next morning. She replaced the phone back on her dock and rolled over.