In the Woods When First We Met

27. School

27. School

After a quick breakfast, Anne wrapped her thick shawl around herself, grabbed her bookstrap and her lunch, and headed outside.

Where was Gilbert? She didn't see him. What if he had forgotten? What if he had changed his mind? What if he'd never really cared at all and decided he'd rather sleep in than come get her?

She walked across the fields, getting more nervous with every step that took her closer to the woods.

Once she was close to the woods, Gilbert stepped out, startling her.

"Oh!" She gasped.

"I'm sorry," Gilbert said in a rush.

"You...you surprised me. I thought you hadn't come and so I didn't expect..."

Gilbert said, "Well I couldn't wait around your house, could I? If the Cuthbert's saw me, wouldn't they disapprove of you walking to school with a boy?"

Anne nodded, breathing in deeply. "Well, I'm glad you came."

"I told you I would," Gilbert said, "You can count on me."

---

Once they arrived at school, Gilbert opened the door for her and they walked in together. Gilbert's arm was still holding the door for Anne when the girls all looked over and saw them. Diana, Josie, Ruby, Jane, and Tillie all stared at Anne and Gilbert.

Ruby's face crumpled. Diana and Tillie quickly put their arms around her.

"Gilbert!" They boys all shouted.

"You're back from Alberta!" They exclaimed, crowding around him.

"What was the District of Alberta like? Did you see the mountains? Were they big?" The boys began bombarding Gilbert with questions about his trip.

"They're kind of hard to miss. They're mountains," Gilbert said, pulling off his scarf.

"How's your father?"

Gilbert didn't answer immediately. "We're both glad to be back," he said finally, not really answering the question.

"Why did you walk in with that orphan?"

Gilbert looked surprised. He answered, "I don't care where she came from. A cute girl is a cute girl, right?"

The boys nodded. Gilbert was the leader of the pack.

Anne wasn't sure what she had done wrong, but all of her new "friends" were looking at her angrily. Ruby looked the most upset. Anne didn't know why. She tried to catch Ruby's eye, but Ruby wouldn't look at her. Anne could see Ruby's lower lip quivering as if she was trying not to cry.

Anne looked at Diana, confused, and mouthed What's wrong with Ruby? Diana shook her head quickly, as if to say she couldn't talk about it.

Not knowing what was going on with the girls, Anne felt unsettled. Had she done something? She began arranging her school supplies on her desk.

She was glad to have walked in with Gilbert. Billy sat in the last row, so coming in with Gilbert meant she had him by her side as she walked past Billy's desk. She had to remember all day not to turn around, so she wouldn't have to look at him.

Mr. Phillips began the school day, and Anne was glad because it gave her something to focus on.

Once it was lunchtime, Anne took her basket and expected to eat with the girls, but the minute lunch time started, Josie let into her.

"What do you think you're doing?" Josie hissed.

"What?" Anne asked innocently.

"Walking in with Gilbert Blythe! You can't be seen with him," Josie snapped.

"...why?" Anne asked, confused.

"Ruby has dibs! She's liked him for two years! You can't just swoop in and steal him right from under her nose!"

Anne shook her head, "No, no...it's not like that. I wasn't looking at him like that. I swear. He just happened to walk in with me, that's all. We just got here at the same time."

Josie glared at her, and then stalked back to the group of girls huddled together comforting Ruby.

Anne looked at Diana, who had her arm around Ruby. Diana shook her head, looking like things had reached the point where she didn't know how to fix them.

Anne slowly walked away from the girls and sat down on a rock, alone.

She had barely had time to make friends with these girls and now everything was ruined.

She didn't know where Billy was but she figured he couldn't hurt her more than she was already hurting.

Keeping her head down, she lifted the cheesecloth off her lunch basket and took out her sandwich. It smelled delicious to her. It was a biscuit with leftover sausage from breakfast. Of course the sausage was cold, but that didn't make it taste any less wonderful to her. She nibbled at it slowly to make it last longer. She didn't care how long it took her to eat- it wasn't as if she had anyone to play with or talk to after lunch.

Gilbert had gotten his lunch basket, watched to see where Billy was going, and then went to find Anne.

He saw her sitting on a rock outside the school building and came up to her. "Hey," he said. He held up an apple. "Want another one of my apples? You liked them yesterday. You said they were really sweet. Remember?" He smiled at her.

Anne knew the girls were eating their lunches inside by the window. They were probably watching Gilbert approach her.

"Go away," Anne said lowly, not moving her lips.

"...what?" Gilbert asked, confused.

"You need to walk away, right now." Anne said forcefully, still not moving her lips or looking at him.

"I'm sorry...I don't understand..." Gilbert said, his face looking like a question mark.

Anne stood up suddenly, screaming at him. "I'm not supposed to talk to you!"

Gilbert stared at her as if he couldn't believe what she was saying. "Why not?"

Anne just stomped away and hid on the other side of the building to eat by herself.

She finished her sandwich, but it didn't taste good to her anymore.