Everybody wants to rule the world

Elsa nodded slowly, thinking about it. Obviously, friendship was a two-way street but she just wasn't used to sharing her problems. When she spoke about her past to Finn and Paige, it didn't feel as hard because it had all happened years ago and she was in a better place now. "Maybe, bu' I'm the best listener. Fact," she joked, trying to lighten things up. "Really? Wha' did ya peg me as, then?" Elsa replied with a smile. When Jaime suggested a date, her eyes widened in surprise but the smile remained on her face. She already considered herself lucky that she'd been found by someone so caring and understanding, someone she felt she could trust straightaway, so maybe having something happy to focus on was exactly what she needed. "Yes, please," Elsa confirmed, looking up at Jaime. "Tha'd be really nice. It's been a long time since anyone spoilt me, so... If I burst into tears, don't take it as a bad thing."

Dean frowned, walking towards her with a concerned look on his face. “Ya’ sure, love? Want me ta’ take ya’ ‘ome or owt?” 

Elsa nodded quickly, and then she considered Dean's offer. "Actually... Tha' would be nice, thanks Dean. Ya don't mind, do ya?"

Paige’s interested and happy expression faded when she saw the look on her best friend’s face. She knew at that moment that something was really wrong and Paige felt so guilty for not realising sooner. She knew something had been wrong with Elsa after finding her crying, but she knew Elsa didn’t want to talk about it so she didn’t pry. Maybe she should have. Her expression blew up into a shocked one when Elsa said she had no choice. The girl wobbled her head up and down slowly trying to take in what her friend was saying and what this meant. Paige bit down on her lip and looked at the floor, trying to to hide the anger she felt blowing up inside her. It wasn’t very often Paige got angry and she’d barely even felt this before. She hated even more so that it had happened to somebody so innocent and beautiful as Elsa. “I can’t believe you had to deal with that all by yourself. It’s been nearly a week and-” she took a deep breath and pulled Elsa in sideways having wrapped her arms around the other girl’s shoulder. The thought of it was awful, but not knowing how she could help was even worse. There probably wasn’t really a way that she could. “You’re my favourite person in the whole, wide world, Els. Why didn’t you want to tell me? Everybody needs a friend when times get tough, even you. You’re everybody else’s friend, confident, help all of the time. You’re allowed to switch roles sometimes, you know?”

Saying it out loud had been harder than Elsa expected. Telling Jaime had been different, since she barely knew him beforehand so it just felt easier, even though she should've been able to tell her best friend without hesitation. She just hated to look weak and fragile in front of Paige, even though she knew the American would never judge her. Elsa just wanted to be strong. "I wasn't by myself," Elsa replied quietly, twiddling her thumbs. "Someone found me afterwards - a guy called Jaime - an' I was jus' such a mess. I told him wha' happened an' he looked after me for the rest o' the night." A small smile came to her lips as she mentioned it. "I din't wanna tell anyone else because I jus' wanted to be Elsa again. Plain old Elsa who owns the bar an' arrests people. Not Elsa the rape victim." She sighed and wiped away a solitary tear that had started to roll down her cheek. "I'm sorry, P. I jus' din't want ya to think of me differently. I love ya so much, I jus' din't want things to change." Elsa crossed the room and pulled Paige into a hug, burying her face into her best friend's shoulder. "I know. I jus' thought it'd be easier this way. If I jus' din't speak about it, it wouldn't exist for a while. Bu' now I know tha's not true."

Link wasn’t wholly convinced there weren’t things that went bump in the night. His grandmother, God rest her soul was a wonderful storyteller that made sure he knew the stories of Krampus and all the things that could scare a child senseless. It didn’t really work but he enjoyed the stories none the less. Checking out all the rooms, Link seemed satisfied with knowing no one was there. “Already?” He looked at her and shook her head. “Elsa, you’re getting old.” There was a slight smirk on his face but he nodded, giving her his coat. “Go ahead, I’ll stand watch, not really tired anyway.”

Elsa chuckled. "Would you rather stay up for hours jus' starin' at the rickety ceilin' or the slime-stained walls?" she responded with a shrug. "Alright. Jus' be careful, yeah? If ya see a ghost, jus' call my name an' I'll escape as quickly as possible," she joked as she walked down the hall, looking for a safe place to put down her sleeping bag where she could be sure the floorboards wouldn't collapse beneath her. Once she'd rounded a corner and was sure Link couldn't see her, she listened out for the cassette. The noises had started to play, and were increasing in volume. She slowly walked back, her best concerned expression all over her face. "Can you hear tha'?" she asked in a worried voice, looking around. "Tha's not you makin' those noises in it? I mean it, Link, don't frighten me. Ya know wha' I'm like."

Elsa held her hand up, indicating to Jaime that he didn't have to continue what he was saying. "Ya don't need to talk about it if ya don't want to," she said softly. "I understand. An' no matter when it happened, it's still important." She flashed him a sincere smile and kept walking. "Thanks, Jaime. An' the same goes to you, obviously. Anytime ya need me, I'm here." She put her hands into her pockets and looked straight ahead. "I dunno. I'm usually the shoulder to cry on, not the other way around. Who would my friends come to if I was the one in a mess?" she shrugged. Elsa knew it was silly, and knew her friends would support her completely, but it still felt wrong somehow. Keeping it to herself felt easier, even though it definitely wasn't. She then chuckled and nudged Jaime gently with her elbow. "Oi, don't judge. I'll have you know Nando's can be very classy, when all the teenagers in tracksuits have left," Elsa laughed. "Tha' sounds lovely, actually. Thank you. Don't go to any trouble, though - I'm happy with anythin'."

Paige had just arrived home from a dance class and was exhausted. Maybe she enjoyed working with children a little bit too much when you considered she teached Math by day and dancing by evening and weekend, but she liked to keep busy. That was the kind of life for her. Even so, she always rushed home to see Elsa and was always ready for those girly evenings the two would always spend together. It was kind of like going home to a partner, just without the kissing and complicated stuff. That was how close the two were. “I would kill for a coffee actually,” Paige responded throwing her bag down on the floor. “And yours are my favourite.” She moved closer to Elsa and wrapped her arms around the girl in an exhausted fashion. “Thank you babe.” Her lips kissed Elsa on the forehead and Paige grabbed some chocolate off the side.

Paige hadn't seemed to notice Elsa's odd behaviour, so she just hugged her best friend back and smiled. Moving in with Paige had definitely helped Elsa; even though she hadn't got over it, and probably never would, being alone in the aftermath had made it all the more difficult. But now that she knew her best friend was around her, it made her feel much safer and more comfortable. "One Elsa special comin' right up," she replied with a wink as she turned around to grab two mugs and put the kettle on.

All Lincoln wanted to do was relax and forget the beach. Sand got in places he’d rather it didn’t but now he was happy to be done and over with. This haunted house thing was nonsense. Really? Ghost didn’t exist and even if they did why would they want to bother with the living? Regardless he went with Elsa in hopes that it would get her mind off of what was going on currently. Not that he pressed, Link wasn’t the type to bother doing something like that.

Elsa chuckled and followed Link. "Alright," she replied, quietly unzipping her bag and taking hold of the tape recorder she'd put in there. She'd bought a tape entitled 'Halloween Sounds' and it had all sorts of noises on it, ranging from demonic laughter to ghostly moans. It may not have sounded thoroughly convincing when she first played it to herself, but since Link had no idea she'd brought it she presumed it would at least confuse him. As they looked around the deserted rooms, Elsa quickly pressed play on the recorder and hid it underneath one of the gaping floorboards. "I don't think there's anybody here, so we're safe," Elsa concluded as she clapped her hands together. She looked at her watch. "I think I'll have an early night. Tha' way it's all over quicker, isn't it?"

Dean was heading out of the pub when he spotted her, walking over to the crying girl. “Elsa? Ya’ alrigh’. love?”

As soon as Elsa heard Dean's voice, she brought her sleeves up to her eyes and aggressively wiped the tears away. For some reason, he was one of the people she was most embarrassed to be crying in front of. "I'm fine, thanks Dean," she replied with a smile as she stood up and dusted herself down. "Jus' havin' one o' those days, ya know," she added with a chuckle.

“Kind of. First holiday I’ve ever had…” Bennie exhaled with a small laugh. She sensed Elsa wasn’t telling the exact truth but it’d be hypocritical of her to push someone into speaking about their feelings. “You don’t have to tell me anything, but if you want to scream, ask me to beat someone up or anything… I won’t judge.” Rare sincerity in her voice, she offered Elsa a smile before she dug into her coat pocket and produced a brown paper bag. “You want some cake? The lady at the bakery gave it to me for fixing her van.” 

Elsa leaned back and rested her head against the wall. Her body felt even more tired than before now she'd cried, but she could still manage a smile at Bennie's offer. "There'll be no need for tha', bu' thanks," she chuckled in reply. At the sound of rustling, Elsa turned her head and looked at the bag. "No thanks, I'm fine," she replied automatically, but then she cast her mind back to the last time she'd eaten. She couldn't remember. "Actually, I wouldn't mind a little bit, if tha's alright. Thanks, Bennie."

Bennie stilled at the motion of another person. She blinked sharply, thinking. She was far from helpful when it came to emotions, especially the teary kind. She swallowed, leaving still felt wrong to her. She sat down at Elsa’s side and pulled her knees up to her chin. “Come on, September isn’t that bad, right?” Silence, the redhead frowned at herself. “Elsa?” She added gently. 

Elsa looked up when she felt Bennie's presence, and she tried to compose herself as best she could. She knew Bennie was not a judgmental person, but she still felt slightly embarrassed that she'd seen her that way. "Sorry, jus' ignore me," she said, trying to laugh it off. "Maybe I've got the post-holiday blues. Back to the daily grind, ya know?" Elsa shrugged. "I'll be alright in a few days, I s'pose, when I get used to it all again. It jus' sometimes feels like I'm goin' around in circles."

“What, this?” Murphy pulled the coat away from his side, glancing down at it. “Got it at a thrift store. Someone else paid the hefty price, I didn’t buy a Brooks Brothers’ on my salary, that’s for sure.” He let the coat drop. “I won’t force you to let me walk you home, but I’ll offer you my umbrella to take with you. I’m waiting for the bus, anyways.” 

Elsa smiled. "At least ya've got expensive taste," she replied, folding her arms. "Only if ya sure," she said. "Bu' how will I know who to return it to?"

After the night making sure everything ran smoothly and the books were pretty much back on track, Aly walked out to enjoy a smoke. The sound of sobbing got her attention and she quietly walked down towards it, heels gently clicking on the ground as she looked down, squinting in the dark. “Elsa? Love?” She frowned and almost immediately without so much as a second thought about how that white dress of hers was going to stain from the dirt, sunk down next to Elsa and put her hand on her arm. “What happened? Who do I have to kill?”

Elsa instantly felt stupid as soon as she heard Alyson's voice, and she quickly tried to compose herself even though it was no use. She couldn't make anything up about work since she'd been with the blonde the whole time. "Sorry, Aly," she said, letting out a deep breath. "Oh, nobody, nobody. Nothin's happened, it's probably jus' PMS. I'll be alright in a second," she smiled. "Quickly, stand up before ya ruin tha' gorgeous dress. I promise I'll be fine, sweet'eart."

“I don’t- I’m not used to caring for people or…or looking after them,” he dipped his head down, eyes on the floor. “So I’m really shit at knowing what to say,” Jaime continued, ending his sentence with a sigh. He’d only really cared for his parents and look how that went. It wasn’t so much that he didn’t want to, only that he was never close enough to anybody to. The closest he usually got was when one of the chefs burnt their hand, or something silly like that. “Then you can have a free meal at mine in return for a drink at yours. If you enjoy fancy food…I know some people don’t,” he laughed, nervously.

Elsa let out a light chuckle, thinking about how she was the complete opposite. She always did her best to care for her friends and give them the best advice possible, and whenever she needed it, she'd just run away. She never did like being the one people worried about. "Hey, don't worry. Everythin' ya've said so far has been really helpful, I promise. Really, don't be hard on yaself. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have known wha' to do tha' night. I'd jus' have stayed there for hours," she said with a sigh. "Thank you. I can't help thinkin' your offer is a lot nicer than mine. The fanciest I've been is probably Nando's, bu' I'm always up for somethin' new."