The Light In The Darkest of Nights

The Break-In.

After taking Merida home, Elsa slipped her hoodie over her head and jogged at a light pace to the corner store down the block. She loved being there. The soft music that always played soothed her nerves and relaxed her mind. Just thinking about the song that the cashier would play today caused Elsa to smile goofily. "I hope Lucas has my favorite on today." She chirped excitedly. Hoping to see him and listen to the music, she began running faster. As she neared the corner, she heard the familiar jingle of the bell on the door, along with sounds of fighting. Edging closer to the corner, she peered around to see what was going on. She gasped and jumped back as a figure flew toward her with its arms and legs flailing wildly. Leaving her hiding place, Elsa jumped forward and caught the figure, full on. The weight of the figure, however, overwhelmed her and sent her stumbling backwards. Coughing and sputtering from the impact, Elsa lowered the figure onto the ground gently, and with her flashlight, shone the light on the individual's face. "Lucas!?" she cried. His face was bloody, bruised, and contorted into an expression that could only be seen as pain. "Lucas, come on! Say something! Please!" Elsa screamed. She couldn't bear to lose someone else. She just couldn't. When she heard Lucas groan, a moan mixed with relief and pain rushed past her lips. She cradled him in her arms, rocking back and forth and sobbing silently to herself. "What happened to you?" She whispered into his ear. He groaned again, this time a little louder, and opened his eyes. "El-Elsa...? He choked. "Yeah, yeah..." she sobbed. "It's me." She caressed his face gently with the back of her hand and brushed his matted, tangled hair out of his face. "What happened to you?" She asked. Lucas blinked, as if lost in a dream or caught in a daze, and sighed sadly. "I... I don't even know... I'm in the shop, and then... Next thing you know, I'm... In your arms..." Elsa kissed his forehead gently and grasped his hand firmly. "Don't you worry." Elsa growled. "I'll find out who did this to you." She propped him up against the brick wall and smiled warmly. "And, maybe later... After all of this is over, you can finally take me out to that dinner you promised me a while back." She added with a small wink. Lucas proceeded to chuckle at her comment, but ended up in a series of violent coughs and wheezes. Elsa rushed to his side and laid him down on the ground. "Please, LUCAS!" She cried. "Save your energy! We'll need it!" She wrapped her pinkie around his and bent it, squeezing lightly. "Rest, I'll handle it!" Lucas wasn't having it, however, because as soon as she stood up again, he grabbed her hand and pulled her down into a tight hug. "Please, be careful." He sobbed. It took everything in and out of Elsa to keep the tears from streaming down her face. Clearing her throat, she kissed both of his cheeks and smiled. "I'll be fine, you know me." She giggled. With that, she stood up and rushed into the store. Once inside, she looked around in disbelief and horror. There was blood (Or was that red paint or nail polish...?) splattered everywhere on the wall. Elsa looked around in shock, not taking notice of the huge shards of glass that lay scattered and broken on the ground... Until it was too late... A shard of glass pierced through her shoe and almost right through her foot. She yelped and hissed in pain as she hopped around on one foot. Cursing softly, she fell back against the counter, disregarding the current situation that she was in and focusing only on the pain. Her foot was killing her! With a strangled cry, she bit down on her sleeve as she positioned her hand over the shard of glass... And pulled.