Let Me In ( Anne with an E fanfic)

Chapter 34

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/00zXprmEmS1Bwf7lbzf7R4?si=EFfgIekqSOiTEc43lKOshw

Anne had too much on her mind between the encounter with that doctor... Jones? And then the appointment, discussing the options of contraceptives and their implications. Most importantly, what it really meant for her not wanting to commit with how permanent an IUD felt at the moment. And then apparently being Gilbert's wife to all hospital personnel? What on earth? She felt mildly annoyed at the whole afternoon. She looked at Gilbert and how clenched were his knuckles on the steering wheel, his brow together. Much on his mind as well, apparently.

The silence wasn't tense as they got out of the car and walked in the path, staying to the side so that the cyclists and skaters could go by. Anne enjoyed the view of the lake, Toronto's skyline tiny on the other shore. They commented on general things about the park until they had their ice creams. Gilbert was deep in thought, trying to reconcile the image he had of Anne as a self-asserting, independent and strong woman with how she had been corralled by Jones not an hour before. The asshole.

"Anne, about what happened before..." he started. He just couldn't brush over the topic. Anne looked at him, what was he referring to? Her being called his wife, that thing with that doctor and him reacting completely out of proportion, her riding the bus alone...? "With Jones... that git that was harassing you?"

"Gilbert, let it go. Nothing happened. He's not nice, but that's it, no harm done," she dismissed it. "You clearly overreacted, there was no need for you to get into that state." Gilbert looked at her, astounded.

"No need? Anne, you looked uncomfortable and weren't even speaking to the git," he said, trying to remain calm.

"There was no need to speak! He would have gone away in a moment, or you could have greeted me normally and that's it! No need to cause a scene," she insisted, having some more of her raspberry sorbet.

"Were you even listening to what he said? Or aware of his body language?" Gilbert asked, stunned and increasingly annoyed by her denial. Seventeen-year-old Anne would have had that guy's head! He even had no trouble if she said she had been scared or stunned by the doctor's behaviour, but to completely rule it out as if it was nothing?

"Well, yes! That's why I was on my phone! But look, Gil, there was nothing to be worried about, that's just how most guys are, no need to fret over it,"

"How most guys... For fucks sake, how can you ignore the fact that that idiot was harassing you?!" he exclaimed, losing whatever patience he had left. "Had this happened ten years ago you would have spelled him how to treat women correctly! In every single flowery word of the English language! Or you would have just hit him! Why in the world would you just stay there without saying anything, without defending yourself?" Anne looked at him, frowning. Yes, she remembered how she had been just when she had graduated high school. But that had been stupid, Lincoln had said as much many times. It didn't make any sense then, why would she do that now? "Anne?" Gilbert insisted, confused even more by her expression.

"Well..." she started, trying to think of how to phrase it. "I used to do that... But then I met Lincoln and he helped me see how I was overreacting about all this," she finally said and turned to look at Gilbert, whose eyebrows were shot up, his face stunned, his jaw clenched. He just didn't know if he was more stunned or angry anymore. How much could this Lincoln have messed with Anne's mind?!

"And you never stopped to think how fucked up all this looks like?" he asked, doing his best to maintain his voice controlled and steady when all he wanted to do was shake some sense into her.

"Well that's how real life is, Gilbert!" she exclaimed, annoyed. He looked at her, repeating her words in his mind over and over again, not finding any sense whatsoever in what she was saying.