Let Me In ( Anne with an E fanfic)

Chapter 31

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5ntTeOUh9MMTeNRNdGoa0L?si=lCyOyTNyTyCuCm9g_WGLVw

Anne went into the house and felt an eerie silence. No music, which was usually the first thing Gilbert setup when he arrived home. She frowned slightly as she kicked her sandals off.

"Gilbert?" she called, but received no answer. "Gil?" she tried again, walking to the kitchen and then going around to the dining room and living room, an increasing sense of dread in her. She went quickly to the bedroom, after seeing the bathroom door open.

He wasn't anywhere.

She bit her lips. She had really really really fucked up for him to go. He never ever left. He was always there. A constant. So firm. So steady. Gilbert Blythe didn't storm out. He wasn't like that. She was reckless and impulsive and horrible and of course she ran away whenever she couldn't take the tension anymore, but it was the first time in her life that she found Gilbert gone.

And she didn't know quite well what to do with that. Was this how he felt every time she went out the door in a fit of anger? God, she wasn't doing it again. Ever. This was... lonely and sad and so so quiet, such a false calm.

Anne sat on the edge of the bed, thinking of what to do, noticing the box of condoms on the nightstand, like a promise. Should she call him? Text him? Would he even answer? It was so out of character for him she couldn't even imagine how he would answer. Maybe give him some space? When she stormed out the only thing she wanted was to be left alone to sort whatever she needed. So maybe that's what he was doing. She got up and went for her carry-on, that she had left next to the closet after she carelessly abandoned it on the entryway, and started unpacking.

Then she did some laundry. Watered the plants that needed it, mentally thanking Fred and Ella for taking care of them. Looked around for anything she could prepare for dinner, but it was still too early. Looked at her phone every five minutes, always hoping more time had passed, but mainly that he had written anything to her. She bit her lip again and went to the couch to try to read but couldn't really concentrate. She needed to sort this. She needed him home so they could talk.

**Carrots (17:44): Come home? Please?

Gilbert watched at the notification, frowning slightly.

"What?"

"Anne," he said, passing the phone to Fred. "She's... she's always referred to the apartment as... my place. Or simply the apartment . Never... as home."

"Then go, Blythe! What are you even waiting for?" Fred said, placing the phone back in Gilbert's hand and almost pushing it in the direction of the parking lot.

"I... Yes. I should go. Do you think she...?"

"It's Anne, Blythe. Obviously she figured something out. Now go home and please talk to her? Before doing anything else? Don't cover difficult conversations with sex? It doesn't make them go away..."

"Wright! Honestly!" Gilbert answered, annoyed.

"Just saying. Go!"

And so Gilbert walked to his car at a brisk pace. As he drove the twelve minutes back to the building, he kept going over and over the message Anne had sent him. Come home? Home? Anne had never been one to take words lightly, so he knew it wasn't a slip of the tongue. If that were the case, she would have said it any other day, and even then, if she didn't feel at home, she wouldn't have let it out. She took months before referring to the Cuthbert's as home. He knew in her vocabulary it wasn't a light word. It was not a mistake, not after the fight they'd had on this matter. Especiallynot after it. She could see now her home could be with him. How she had come to that conclusion, he died to know... But he wasn't going to complain. She had seen it. She had asked him to come back. He felt a pang of guilt about having left the apartment in such a moment. But... he had been frustrated, alone, Fred had already offered, he had no clue if she was going to be gone for an hour or more... He wouldn't duel on it.