Winter's Secrets: Jelsa Fanfic Collection

1 | I'm Not A Salamander

Some things are worth celebrating for, like the moment she treasured an animal more than a supposedly full-blown anniversary date. Modern AU.

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This one-shot is written as part of the project held in the Jelsa Haven Discord server, a safe haven for all Jelsa shippers. If you are interested in joining us in our community (which I recommend), feel free to directly message me so that I can provide the link.

Also, if you find other stories or even art and edits from other sites made under the hashtag #jhavenproject2020 (or its other variations), I encourage you to support them as well. Thankies!

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A small cafeteria and its accompanying bustling street, a tiny town filled with the noisiest lads or the kindest neighbors. Not as busy as a city, yet can't rival the serenity of a windy province. Trees sprung here and there, a few flowers budding in small bushes, houses short and stout. Stores left open both at broad daylight and even past midnight, a parade of people arriving no matter the time of day. A place he once used to know so well, his personal stop-by whenever his mind drifted away from serenity.

This was where Jack Frost met her for the first time, her hair once tied in a bun, uptight and serious. A silent girl in the midst of a busy and cramped restaurant. The only seat he found, the space no one dared to ask for.

Jack learned that life could be unexpected, that even the smallest decisions might come back and haunt his present. He learned that meeting her wasn't on purpose, that a simple statement can embed on someone else's mind. He admired how he met her in the first place, knowing how messed up it could've been with his personality back then.

A year had passed since he saw her fiddling with her book in hand-no food, no drink, just the book and her. It seemed surreal, quite the contrary of his chaotic aura. Her peaceful sense deemed to calm himself in the moment he most needed to be, and soon his mischievous attitude brought out the fun in her.

And yet today, there he stood again, this time with his hands intertwined with hers, her hair tied in a flowing braid, much less of the person he saw back then. Their relationship changed both of them in a way, but not that they complained about it. In fact, Jack could only thank her for everything that she had taught him, his rough side almost entirely washed away, much of a relief for everyone else. Today, evidence of his past seemed nowhere to be found as he dressed up formally for the occasion and could feel his nervousness kicking in.

Especially when her ecstatic expression wasn't due to their anniversary, but rather-

"Elsa, it's a salamander."

"I know."

He felt awkward, the faces of bypassers staring back at his current situation. If those people couldn't believe their eyes, he couldn't either.

Apparently, an animal had already ruined their date. An innocent salamander, just resting itself on Elsa's palm, silently enjoying time with its obliviousness to Jack's rising anger. He knew he couldn't scream at an animal without everyone noticing his insanity, and the animal itself wouldn't understand why he had caused a silly tantrum. And besides, as much as he wanted to pour his fury, the way Elsa stared at the little being definitely took his heart and soul to the world of unimaginable fantasies. What he did to deserve her, he did not know.

To be fair, the little salamander looked adorable. He found it strange enough that it didn't look like an average salamander, the bluish hue of its body setting it apart from beings like its own. Those eyes and its playful smile proved to be even more irresistible than Jack's already hypnotic ones. Nothing Jack would admit, of course, knowing that the tiny thing just ruined all of his plans. And so he asked, "since when did you like animals?"