This Love is Difficult, but it's Real

Chapter 3

Hey, guys! Nothing except the plot belongs to me. Happy reading!

Time seemed to have frozen still as Elsa watched the young prince make his way through the crowd. He wasn't like any prince she had seen that night. No, he was very different. His snow white hair shone even whiter in the ballroom light, his pale skin reminded her of a beautiful moonlight, and his frosty blue eyes competed with the color of a bright winter sky. And those magnificent, wintry blue eyes were on her.

It wasn't long before he was standing just a few feet away from her. Elsa reminded herself to stay calm and to not let her true emotions show in front of this young man. She excused herself from the dignitaries and went up to stand by the young prince and watched the party with him.

"Are you having fun on this night?" she asked as casually as she could.

"Yes, of course." the prince smiled sideways at her. Elsa could feel her heart beat faster.

Why am I acting like this? Elsa thought.

"I'm Jack," the young prince extended a hand to her, snapping her out of her reverie.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Prince Jack." Elsa smiled and shook his hand. This prince was definitely not like other princes. Instead of bowing in greeting and maybe even kissing her hand, he offered a handshake! This Prince Jack was certainly different.

"Please, call me Jack. That's why I didn't include my title in my introduction," Jack smiled mischievously. "And who might this unmatched beauty standing in front of me be?"

Elsa blushed so hard, she worried that she might look as if she had come down with something. "E-Elsa. Princess Elsa." was all she could muster out.

"A beautiful name for a beautiful princess." Jack grinned quite boyishly. Elsa's cheeks felt like it was on fire.

Is he mocking me? she thought angrily. Or just plain cocky?

Her thoughts must have shown on her face because the next thing Jack said was, "My apologies, Princess Elsa. I did not mean to make you uncomfortable in any way."

"It's fine, it's fine." Elsa replied hurriedly. What was up with her right now? She'd never had these kinds of reactions to anyone before.

"Now that we've got all in the formal stuff covered," Jack said, smiling at her while extending a hand gracefully. "Would you like to dance?"

Elsa smiled shyly at him and took his hand. They went to the center of the ballroom and started dancing to one of the many beautiful, lyrical songs that were being played.

"May I ask the princess as to why she's here on this wonderful night?" Jack asked, while twirling Elsa. Elsa chuckled a bit at this question. Surely he already knew the answer and was just joking, right? But when she looked up at his handsome face, she could tell that he was not.

"If you must know, Jack. This party is actually hosted by my family the royal family of Arendelle." She looked back up at his face and saw a flash of surprise on his face. It was quickly removed by one of his usual playful smiles.

"Ah, so you're the princess of Arendelle," he looked down at her, blue eyes twinkling.

"Yes, Jack, I am the princess of Arendelle. And if you have an issue with that, I recommend taking it back to wherever you came from," Elsa said teasingly.

Jack's face registered surprise and amusement. "My, my. The princess of Arendelle has a fiery attitude."

"Quite the opposite of what I like, actually." Elsa smiled up at him. When he looked confused, she explained. "This may sound very strange, but I've always been fascinated and taken an interest in the cold weather. Quite ironic since my family always hosts parties and balls during the summer time."

Jack looked at her in disbelief. "You like the cold too?" Elsa nodded. "Well, that's a coincidence because I'm a huge fan of winter and all things cold!"

Elsa raised a brow at him. "Are you telling the truth, Prince Jack, because I don't like it when people lie to just earn the liking of others." She suddenly noticed that they weren't dancing anymore and had strayed near a wall.

"No, really! I'm telling the truth!" Jack exclaimed. "Every year during winter, I'm up at the break of dawn and outside.

"My parents sometimes tease me that that's how my hair became like this." he put a hand up to his hair and touched it.

"That makes the two of us," Elsa smiled at him sympathetically. "Both my parents and sister do that too, but I know it's all in good fun." she reflexively tucked a stray strand behind her ear.

"We just might have more in common than I originally thought." Jack smirked. "We both love the cold, our family poke fun at our appearances sometimes, and," he grinned boyishly yet again. "We both are good-looking."

Elsa swatted him playfully to cover up her embarrassment. Never had a prince so bluntly called her beautiful and alluring. This Prince Jack was something else entirely. He seemed more daring and not afraid to voice his opinions than other princes. He was charming and a bit cocky. He shook her hand instead of kissing it. He told jokes and teased when other princes would ask her about her kingdom and talked about trade. Never had she met such a prince like Prince Jack.  

And she was glad she did.

AN: This chapter was kind of hard to write because I had trouble on how Elsa and Jack should talk to each other. I wanted it a little bit formal, yet casual at the same time. I hope I pulled it off. Anyways, thanks for reading and see you in the next chapter!