Meant To Be | Reader x Gilbert Blythe

The Storm

It was a rainy summer night in July. The dark sky covered Avonlea like a shadow.

You sit down at the edge of your bed, and hold a book in your hand as you focus on reading the small words on every page.

The storm makes loud noises outside your window, but you feel calm listening to it - the thunder, and the rain hitting your window. It's so comforting.

Suddenly you hear a loud knock on the door. You ignore it. It must have been the storm. Once again you hear an even louder knock. You close your book and gently put it on your desk, as you hurry down the stairs letting out a groan.

Without hesitating you curiously open the heavy wooden door that makes a screeching noise.

You see a silhouette of a boy, slightly taller than you standing before you.
The darkness makes it almost impossible to see the face of the person. Suddenly a thunder lights up the sky, and for one second. You can see his face.
You have no clue who it is.
'He must want something.' You think.

"Hello sir. May I help you?" you ask.

"I am sorry to disturb you this late." He says. 

"I live far away from here, and it would be quite risky to walk all alone for so long in this thunderstorm. May I stay here until the rain has cleared up?" He continues, and waits for a reply.

"Well, I assume that might be okay." you say, and let him inside. It felt weird opening up your home for a complete stranger, but something in his voice let you know that he meant no harm.

You can see him clear now. He is quite your age. His hair is soaking wet, but it has beautiful curls. His eyes are dark, and he has the most perfect smile. He is handsome.

"Gilbert. Gilbert Blythe". He said, and shakes his wet hand in your dry hand. He is cold and pale.

"Y/n, y/l/n" you reply. He smiles at you, and your eyes meet his. For a moment it felt surreal. Like the time had froze. You feel butterflies in your stomach. You shyly look away, but he keeps observing your eyes.

"Are you cold? Do you want tea?" you ask, hoping for him to say yes.

"Yes, thank you". He replies.

You make your way to the kitchen, and he follows you as he looks around, observing your home.

You walk over to the stove and pour up two cups of hot tea from the smoking teapot.

Gilbert sits down at one of the chairs by the table, leaving a wet puddle on your pillow.

You place one of the cups in front of him, and he nods politely.

"Thank you." He says.

You smile at him and sit down.
You can feel a quite awkward tension. You hope for him to not feel the same.

"So... Gilbert. What brought you here?" You ask.
'What a stupid question!' you think to yourself.

"Well. I was searching for a special plant to use when making a particular cure. But I couldn't make it back home before this storm." He said.
"I am quite lucky to find a cute girl like you. I mean, it could have been anyone." He says and chuckles.

You blush. He is charming.

"It's not everyday a boy my age knocks on my door and asks for help" you reply and smile.

"Hope not." He says, and smirks.

You sip your tea, as once again his eyes meet yours. It was something about the look on his face that made you blush. You feel so special.

You both drink your tea and talk for a while, and suddenly notice the rain clearing up. It was completely silent outside the window.

"Well, I assume I must leave now. Thank you y/n."
He says, and smiles.

"Wait." You said. "Why don't you sleep here until morning. It must be tiring for you to walk this late." You continue. You know that you want him to stay for only a little longer. Not because you had something in mind, you just felt calm in his presence.

He then smiles at you and put his bag on his shoulder. He waits for a few seconds. Those few seconds felt like a lifetime.

"Okay. Why not." He says. You both walk up the stairs and you open a door, leading into a small guest room near your bedroom.

"Thank you, y/n. It's perfect" he sits down at the edge of the bed. You can't resist to sit down next to him, you just wanted to continue the conversation. You realize you shouldn't have done it. It must have felt really awkward for him.
You blush, as you stand up again. He grabs you by your waist and makes you sit down again.

"Hold on. You don't have to go." He says.
You felt butterflies in your stomach. He had shown that he clearly wanted you around, which made you less hesitant and anxious.

"Are you sure you are okay with me staying here?" He asks.

"Of course, I wouldn't make you walk home in the rain at night all by yourself."

It sounded weird. It felt weird. It was weird.
But for some weird reason, he didn't feel like a stranger to you.

He smiles and looks down on the carpet. You notice him blushing.

He unbuttons his shirt and removes his tie.
You get nervous seeing his bare chest and soft skin.

"What are you doing?" You ask.

"I am getting ready to sleep. What else?"
He replies and frowns.

"Oh nothing." You say, and feel your cheeks warm up as embarrassment fills your body.

"I doubt that." He says, and smirks at you.

You look down on your knees, waiting for Gilbert to say something, but the silence is louder than ever.

Gilbert lays down in the bed, like you didn't sit there. It was like he didn't mind you watching him sleep. Eventually you stand up with a feeling that you are making him uncomfortable.

He grabs your hand just when you were about to walk away. His hand feels warm and soft. He gently pulls you closer to him, and once again you are sitting down on the edge of the bed. He observes your eyes with a smile on his lips.

You feel his hand on your shoulder as he makes you lay down next to him.
He looks into your eyes for a moment.

No boy had ever watched you with such admiration like he did. Even though you just met him, and he will leave soon, probably forever, you had a feeling of calmness when he was near. You didn't want him to leave your presence.

He strokes your hair peacefully as you stare into each other's eyes for moments. You could feel his warm breath on your face. You try to sync his breath as you notice they get more calmer and heavier.

You notice his eyes slowly closing and his smile fading as he falls asleep. Slowly you remove his heavy hand from your hair, and put it on his bare chest. You stand up carefully, praying for him to not wake up.
You walk out of the bedroom and leave the door slightly open.

You can't help but to smile. He was so perfect. But how could you adore someone you just met?

You lay down in your own bed and moments later, fall into a heavy sleep.