Let Me In ( Anne with an E fanfic)

Chapter 55

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Gilbert was staring at the ring, sitting on his desk, thinking about how to go about the proposal. He had been thinking about it for a few weeks. He really wanted to take Anne to that trail they had gone to a couple of times, because she had mentioned by then that it was their spot. And he felt there was a connection with the woods from their youth. And while they had grown so much... Their story had begun back then. When they were just teens and his father had somehow managed to get her talking to him.

So having woods seemed to offer some continuity to that, especially if they were some special ones and not just any park. And it was actually good that they weren't exactly the same as Avonlea's- they weren't the same teens they were back then either. Both had grown so much, and in so many different ways... It only made sense their places did, as well. All in all, it made sense.

What's more, he had always been so sure about not doing it in any kind of public place, and the woods weren't really busy. Not on that particular trail, anyway. He understood it was a popular idea, and why it was, going to a restaurant, having it done over dessert... But it just wasn't them . That didn't really speak to them. They were more versed towards nature, in feeling the connection with the world and seeing the leaves turn. Or, if he was being honest, seeing Anne watch the leaves turn. It still worked, either way.They were supposed to be outdoors.

But even if the woods made sense... There was also the new house. The new house that was under renovations, yes, but that was their first home and already so special. And it had one of those cherry trees Anne had always been obsessed with, and then it had a whole orchard that almost begged to be used as the place for the proposal- bushy as it was and all. He just couldn't get the idea out of his mind either. And didn't know how to pick. As if that wasn't enough, there was the fort...

He heard a knock on the door and lifted his sight, not having time to return the ring to its pouch before Fred and dr. Kumar, a fellow oncologist, greeted him. Of course, if his assistant told Fred he wasn't with any patient, Fred never waited for him to answer, as if Gilbert's office was his own. Which it kind of was- he did the same at his. They mostly did the same at both their houses, come to think of it.

"Blythe, do you have time for a consult?" Kumar asked, as if he was slightly embarrassed by Fred's boldness. Gilbert blinked, going back to his doctor mode, and nodded, motioning to the chairs in front of his desk. He left the ring to the side and noticed as Fred's eyes followed his hand, but Kumar was already explaining the case they had and he was more focused on that than on anything else. Fred soon entered the conversation as well and soon they were deep into the reports and scans they had brought and the possible outcomes depending on the treatment.

It took a while, but eventually they reached some consensus about what the best course of treatment could be, considering the delicate mental health of the patient as well, which was why Fred had been called in to begin with. It was a difficult case, and Gilbert was actually slightly relieved not having to deal with that after the rare cancer from the previous month. He liked challenges, but he liked it better to be able to cure people and see them getting healthier. And if possible, he liked to have time to process a difficult case. Probably he should have looked for a different branch, but he was too determined to find a way for cancer patients to recover, or at the very least to have them live their best lives with the time they had left. Dr. Kumar stood up and excused himself, as he needed to take the next steps. Gilbert and Fred stayed in a heavy silence for a moment.

"I really don't envy Kumar right now," Fred commented. Gilbert shook his head sadly in agreement. It was a hard enough diagnosis even without everything else that was going on with the patient. Gilbert stood up and went to the window, thinking about him. "So, what's up? You're playing with that ring or you're actually using it to propose one day?" his friend suddenly asked him. Gilbert frowned slightly, confused, and then remembered what he had been thinking about before. "Even mum asked what's going on."