Gabriel Brown: Collection of Short Alaskan Bush People Fan Fics

Talk to the Wind. Part 2

You tried your best to sleep. Tossing left and right in your small bed, Gabe's hurt and confused face kept swimming past your vision even with your eyes closed. How could you have been so cruel to him? He had no idea what you were thinking or how you were feeling. How could he have known that his kiss would start your mind down a path that ended with the two of you wrapped in each other's arms?

Groaning loudly, you flipped over in the bed one more time, trying to get comfortable. The bed was cold and you felt so lonely. Flat on your back now, you stared at the celling and tried not to think about anything at all. The wind howled loudly outside making your little house creak and moan.

"CRASH!" The loud noise from your front room jerked your head up and you stared blindly through the doorway into the darkened living room.

"BANG!" The sound came again and you flew up out of the bed and grabbed for your rifle leaning against the wall.

Not sure if the intruder was animal or human, you tossed your head to fling your messy hair out of your face and stood back in the shadows of the bedroom, waiting.

"CLANG!" The noise of something dropping was louder this time. But then you heard more softly; "Dang-it!"

"Gabey!" You shouted and stomped into the living room with the barrel of the rifle pointed straight at him.
"Don't shoot! It's me!" Gabe's hands flew up in a sign of surrender.
"I should shoot you." You growled. "What are you doing here?"

"I used the key you gave me and I let myself in. I was trying to be quiet but your furniture started attacking me." He smiled his charming smile and lowered his hands.
"Don't try to be all cute with me, Gabe. It won't work on me."

But you were lying about that part and you both knew it. He always knew how to charm you and make you smile even when you were screaming mad. There was a calmness and peace about him that always settled you down and left you smiling. Sometimes it left you holding your sides with laughter. With all the commotion in your life, you appreciated him so much for that.

Overwhelmed by so many different feelings, all you wanted to do in that moment was run to him and throw your arms around him. You were still angry at him for his kiss that didn't mean what you thought it did, but even angrier at yourself for letting that one kiss get your hopes up so fast. Jumping into bed with Gabe on the rebound from Curtis wasn't fair to him at all. He was your friend and you cared for him and the last thing you wanted to do was hurt him. Distracted by your rolling thoughts, you barely registered when Gabe reached out and caught hold of the barrel of the gun.

"I'm sure you don't have a license to hunt 'Gabe', so let's put this away." His grin was growing and his good humor was starting to get to you.
"No, I don't have a 'Gabe' license, but if you sneak in here in the middle of the night like that again, I'll shoot first and pay the fine later."

Satisfied you weren't going to kill him, Gabe laid the rifle aside and moved to stand right in front of you. His eyes looked dark blue in the dim light and you watched him as he watched you.

"Can we please talk?" He begged.
"Yes."

You took his hand and began to lead him toward the couch. When Gabe sat down on the couch, he surprised you by drawing you down to sit on his lap. Your first instinct was to resist; you were just friends after all. But you didn't want to resist. Instinctively, your arms twined around his neck and his arms wrapped around your waist. For several long minutes the two of you held each other and no words were needed.

You were so comfortable in his embrace and it seemed so natural to be there. It wasn't until Gabe began to rock you gently back and forth that all the hurt and pain and anger about Curtis finally caught up with you. Your sobs were quiet but your chest heaved with the force of your tears. Gabe didn't say a word. He held you tighter and pressed his nose into the softness of your neck.

"I really did love him." You blubbered and sniffed.
"I know you did." Gabe replied.
"He was a jerk, but I really did love him."
"Yes, he was a jerk." Gabe rolled you away slightly so you were looking up into his face. "He really was."
"Yeah, I know." You admitted and hid your face in Gabe's neck gain. "So what does that make me?"
"A jerk-lover, I guess." He smiled.

After smacking him on the chest and getting another hug in return, you decided to bring up the earlier kiss and get things out in the open.

"Why did you kiss me?" You asked pointedly.
"Because I love you." His cheeks turned pink but he held your gaze.
"Gabey..."
"Yeah, but you're still in love with Curtis and I don't want to step into that." He said softly.
"But you know it's over with him, right?"
"So you say. But all those tears just now? That tells me it's not over for you yet. That's why I think for now, we should just stay friends."

Gabe was one hundred percent right and you had to admit it. He was actually a better friend to you than you had been to him. All the times you had blown him off to be with Curtis, he had never complained. And whenever you needed him, he was there for you. He had been the one constant thing in your life when all Curtis ever handed you was ups and downs. You decided being Gabe's friend might be a pretty good deal. The two of you could have all of the closeness and understanding but with none of the boyfriend/girlfriend relationship drama.

"I'm really glad we talked." Gabe stood up, still with you in his arms. He grinned, turned and then dumped you unceremoniously onto the couch and reached for his jacket. "Gotta go."

Laughing, you crawled off the couch to walk with him to the door. "Do you want to come by tomorrow? We could go shopping at that new hunting supply store." You looked up at him and smiled.

"No, we're heading back to the land tomorrow." A sudden idea occurred to him and you saw his bright blue eyes begin to shine. "Come to Browntown with me tomorrow. You can meet the rest of my family and see where I live."

You didn't hesitate at all. "That sounds like fun. Swing by and get me on your way to the dock in the morning."

Opening the door for him, you handed him back his key to your place. The wind was high outside and the gale almost tore the door from your hands. Gabe stopped the swinging door with one large hand.

"Thanks, Gabe. You are a good friend."
"You're a good friend, too." He smiled.

Gabe stepped forward and slid a hand behind your neck, pulling your face to his. He smiled his shy smile and in an instant, his mouth was on yours and his lips were sweet and soft. When he pressed in further and you felt his lips part, you didn't pull away. You weren't sure what this kiss would mean, but you knew you wanted it. Finally pulling away, Gabe leaned his forehead on yours.

"That kiss, I meant."

And then he was down the steps, walking in the wind.