"Someone's hungry," Elsa noted, the huge grin on her face couldn't be wiped off even if she tried. Anna might not be saying anything but her stomach began growling nonstop the moment she started cooking.

"Am not," Anna grumbled.

"Riiiight." Elsa turned the stove off. "I'm just glad you're not bolting away. You're not going to skip breakfast again, Anna. I won't let you."

"I wanted to try cooking!"

"Some other time. You already wasted a tray of eggs for your first try," Elsa said, looking sadly at the burned eggs on the side. "I hope you woke me up to ask for help. We could've saved those eggs."

Anna groaned and frowned at the eggs in question. Waking up early in the morning could be the reason for those, but Anna's mind was wandering somewhere else when she was trying. Thinking hard wasn't the best thing to do while cooking, and she had to learn it the hard way.

Her mind kept replaying those stupid and idiotic words she uttered back in the theme park. If her words weren't painfully obvious words of attraction, then she had no idea what was. Saying something like loving how Elsa would call her name looked too obvious, and Anna's hands kept shaking at the very fact that she just dropped a massive hint of her blooming affections for her best friend. Thanks to her internal panic, the poor eggs paid the price.

"Fine," Anna relented. "At least let me prepare those for us. You already did the cooking, and you're probably tired."

"I'm used to cooking, Anna. I'm not tired." The smile that curl on Elsa's lips betrayed her refusal.

It came as a surprise when Elsa woke up with the smell of burning eggs, but what shocked her the most was that Anna was actually trying to cook. It was the first time the girl offered help with kitchen duties.

"Let me," Anna insisted. "I... I think it's about time I learn how to do this, right?"

"Oh?" Elsa tilted her head to the side, suddenly worrying. "Are you alright? You're not sick, are you?"

"I'm not, Elsa, I just want to help," Anna huffed.

"If you say so."

Elsa let Anna take the plates from her and watched every movement, trying to come up with a reason for the sudden change of pace. It was endearing to see Anna do something she wasn't used to, but almost unsettling for Elsa because this wasn't something she was used to.

"So..." Elsa began to fill in the silence. "Anna, are you okay?"

"Hmm?" Anna's hand hang in midair. "Me? Yeah, I'm good." She bit on the slice of omelet before asking, "Why?"

"You're not saying anything," Elsa said. "If it's about the eggs, I can teach you how to do them someday. Maybe tomorrow."

"No, no. It's just... You're always exhausted. I thought, maybe I should try learning housework so you can... I don't know, relax even for a bit?"

To say that Elsa was shocked would be an understatement, but then her heart suddenly felt too big for her chest. They'd been living together for a long time now and this was the first time Anna mentioned something about helping out. Elsa didn't mind doing everything, but she couldn't deny that if there was a helping hand, it would make things easier around the place.

"Are you sure you're not sick?" Elsa tried to reach out to Anna's forehead, but before she could, the redhead swatted her hands away with a pout. "Okay, okay. But what's with the sudden urge? You never really liked kitchen duties."

"I was just thinking. I mean it's not like I'm good at it anyway." Anna raised a hand to stop Elsa from saying anything more. "I was just feeling guilty. I feel like I wasn't doing anything to help you. Like I'm only being a burden."

"You're not," Elsa promised. "You're never a burden to me, Anna. I do those things because I want to, and you're already helping me more than you know."

"How?"

Something about Anna's tone made Elsa stop chewing on her meal. Did Anna seriously think that she was being a burden? Did Elsa do something that could make her think that way? Well, aside from the issue with drinking too much after her breakup with Hans and that time in the bar. The last thing Elsa would want was to make Anna think that she was worthless.

Especially when that was very far from the truth.

"By just being you," Elsa answered carefully. "Maybe you are careless and reckless, but you're the only one who can actually make me rest, you know? Whenever I feel like I can still do something, you always notice when I'm pushing myself. It's true, you force your way with me... but it's effective and it does help a lot."

"T-That's..." Anna sputtered, a blush pooling on her cheeks. "Was that supposed to be a compliment?"

"It is. You're fine just the way you are, Anna," Elsa shrugged and took another bite of her meal.

Was she really? Anna decided to drink water and swallow the question along with it. She wanted to force her ideas again because she wasn't convinced. Even if Elsa said that she was fine, Anna couldn't help worrying. If she could do more inside their apartment, Elsa's workload would lessen, giving her more time to rest.

I want to help you out as much as I can until you can find someone who can care for you better, Anna thought. Maybe she really did have insecurity issues, but she was also aware that she wasn't the best girlfriend material either. None of her previous relationships worked out, after all.

She could be sweet and be caring if she wanted to, but she couldn't do anything for herself. That was why she knew that there were other people out there who would fit Elsa more than her. Someone who was smarter, not impulsive, and more responsible than someone who would forcefully drag Elsa into a fake dating relationship, someone who jumped from one relationship to another, as if the word 'loyal' wasn't a part of her dictionary.

She knew, but it still hurt.

The idea that Elsa would one day be smiling some kind of lovestruck grin while looking deep into another girl's eyes made Anna's stomach twist. If she ever tried to imagine Elsa saying those three words to someone else, she had to fight the prick on the side of her eyes. When she thought of the possibility of Elsa's lips kissing lovingly to someone else's, it made her want to run away.

She wanted to be that woman, but it was impossible. There was always the choice of confessing, but she was afraid of the result. She was afraid to lose what she and Elsa already have.

Anna didn't want to call the fake dating off because to her, it was no longer a pretend. That even if it started out as a way to shape Elsa into the perfect girlfriend, Anna knew that once the deal was cut off, she would end up crying. Probably even more than when she broke up with Hans. But then, staying in the relationship also hurt. It hurts for the same reason. She wasn't pretending anymore... but she knew that Elsa still was.

Anna suppressed a wince as she cleaned her cut because of her recent attempt at making dinner. I guess people don't become chefs instantly just because they fell in love. If things worked that way, it wouldn't be this hard. Maybe she should've listened to her mother back when she was a child. Choosing to drag Elsa away to take in the sight of cute little ducklings over her mother's cooking lessons was... worth it.

Now that she thought about it, she would always run to Elsa whenever her mother would try to drill some feminine 'responsibilities' inside her head. She didn't regret it so much because a time spent with Elsa was always worth it, but it was also because of that that she ended up being completely worthle—

"Anna?"

Anna stopped reminiscing the moment she heard the familiar voice, and she turned around to see Elsa looking around the kitchen in confusion. The action made her blush because, admittedly, she had no idea what she was doing.

"You're cooking again?" Elsa asked as she scanned the counter.

"Trying to." Anna rinsed off some residue left from the soap. Thank goodness she was used to having cuts and bruises as a child. At least she wasn't shocked when she sliced herself with a knife.

Elsa couldn't decide if she wanted to swoon or to stay awake to continuously gawk at Anna who was currently wearing an apron. It was the first time she ever saw the redhead wear it, and it was one of her guilty imaginations. She had always fantasized the girl wearing an apron, cooking for her, and she would have only stared if the way Anna washed her hands didn't snap her back to reality.

Feeling protective, Elsa ran to Anna's side. "You cut yourself?"

"Don't remind me," Anna groaned. "I'm really not cut out for this, am I?"

"Not if you give up easily," Elsa chided. "Anna, if you're only doing this to help out, I'm telling you it wasn't a burden to me. I like doing it for both of us."

"I know. But I also want to do it... for you. A-And besides, it could help if I get hungry, right? I can't always depend on you!"

I don't mind if you depend on me. Elsa bit her lip to stop herself from saying it out loud, knowing it was impractical. Anna was right; she couldn't depend on Elsa forever. Even if Elsa wouldn't mind, being independent was good. It would help her feel more at ease whenever she'd go home late and knew that Anna could whip up a meal that was homemade. It was much healthier than eating outside food.

"You could've waited for me," Elsa pointed out.

"I know, I know. But you might say something about me not needing to do it. You know, like what you just did?" Anna poked her fingers to see if there was still blood. "I was... I was actually hoping to come up with something before you come home."

"Oh? Do you want me to go out again? I can pretend that I didn't see anything." She giggled when Anna shot her a glare.

"Very funny."

"For the record," Elsa began, "when I first tried cooking, I cut myself five times in the first minute."

Anna stared dumbly for a second. "You're pulling my leg."

"Am I? Remember that time my hand was covered in bandages?" Elsa tilted her head to the side and grinned when Anna's eyebrows shot up to her hairline. "That was the end result of trying to cook for the first time. You can ask mama if you want."

Anna only gazed at her in mild disbelief, while Elsa didn't bother averting her gaze. If this happened weeks ago, she would've already snapped her eyes elsewhere. But there was this feeling in her chest right now that was telling her not to. Almost as if she was... allowed to stare.

"You can laugh," Elsa promised with a smile when she noticed Anna's lips quivering a little. Not a moment later, the redhead did end up laughing.

The sound and sight made Elsa feel embarrassed, but she couldn't bring herself to shy away. Anna had been way too tensed lately and she wanted her to lighten up. If sharing a stupid experience from the past would make her feel completely comfortable again, Elsa wouldn't mind looking like an idiot.

"What were you planning to make? I'll help you." Elsa grabbed another chopping board and knife from the drawer and placed it on top of the kitchen counter. Before Anna could retort, she raised the knife to stop her. "Just this once, for you to learn the basics. I still expect you to cook for me someday, though."

"T-That's... Fine. J-Just don't laugh or say anything mean. I might not be the best student when it comes to cooking."

"Do you honestly think I don't have the patience for you? Besides, everyone was born an amateur. I wasn't good at cooking too, okay? That's why we learn."

Anna's heart threatened to break her ribs the more she looked at Elsa grinning. It wasn't even the first time she ever saw that bright smile and was helped out. Heck, Elsa was the one who helped her learn a lot of things. It was just embarrassing because Anna was truly planning to cook for her. Knowing that Elsa was now expecting it too...

"F-Fine."