Jack
"Uh...anyway, thanks." My voice came out in an unfamiliar tone, as if I had wrenched it painfully out of my throat to rub it against the walls of a brick building. I didn't like this, and I knew Rapunzel didn't enjoy it, either.
"No problem," she replied, snapping the silver locks on her paint-splattered toolbox. Her hand slipped around the curved handle, and she stood up, facing me with a smile. Her spring green eyes sparkled as she headed towards the front door. "Wish me luck, by the way."
"For what?" I asked her, relieved for the change of topic.
"My date." Rapunzel swept an arm over her body, gesturing to her lavish, skin-tight dress. Jeez... It was similar to the color that touched one of Merida's bubblegum bubbles, a light and bouncy hue that reminded me of the pale flowers that bloomed at winter's end. It was perfect on her, as everything was on the residential trend-setter of our town. But, it also made me uncomfortable, because since when did she start wearing dresses that tight?
I didn't want to set her off, though. It wasn't my place to be her critic anymore. "Good luck, Punzie."
"Thanks, Jack," Rapunzel said, and laughed. "I was about to say something."
"What was it?"
"Nevermind."
The corners of my lips lifted slightly, sensing her usual light-spirited happiness returning. "No, really. What was it?"
"This is Merida's house, right?"
"Yeah..."
"She'd probably kick you out when she gets back."
My mind suddenly flitted back to the crack I had caused, now covered and tucked safely beneath several layers of paint. "Yeah, probably."
"So." She pulled the door open towards her, stepping aside to let me out. "I'll do the pleasures for her."
"Thank you, m'lady," I called out to her, shoving my hands deep into my pockets. The sun was scorching Merida's front lawn, the tall grass yearning for a drop of Arctic water. Hang in there, guys, I thought, deciding right then and there to give them what they deserved.
Only if Rapunzel wasn't standing behind me.
"What'cha thinking?" she asked me, the soft, muffled thuds of her flats halting beside my soundless sneakers.
"Merida's lawn is dying," I replied.
"No, I think you are," she retorted good-naturedly. She placed her hand on my shoulder, the pale glimmer of her nails, all of them perfectly round seashells, catching the corner of my eye. "Summer's almost over, Jack. You can pull through a few more weeks, right?"
"I hope so," I mumbled.
She shook her head, releasing her grip. "I'm serious, Jack. How convenient is it that you're last name is Frost, and you can't think of anything but snow?"
I glanced at her, hoping she couldn't see the nervous twitch in my eye. "Yeah, I know right?"
Silence. Prickles danced across my arms and at the nape of my neck, surprisingly new and foreign to my heat-ridden body. I turned my head, facing Rapunzel, who was giving me the strangest, misty-eyed stare I had ever seen her give me. "Um...Earth-to-Rap? You there?" I lifted my palm, waving it frantically until it became a blur in front of her eyes.
She jerked, stumbling back a few steps. "Oh, sorry."
I smirked at her, tilting my head. "You were having a nostalgia-attack, weren't you?"
YOU ARE READING
Branches of Our Tree
Fanfiction"Elsa, don't ever think you're alone. After all, we're all branches of a tree. And that tree belongs to everyone. That tree is our tree." For Elsa's entire life, she had lived safely within the thick, brick walls of her home, Arendelle Manor. Lesson...
