camp | awae au

seven

gilbert woke up to the sun streaming in through his window. he sighed, usually he would've turned over and fallen back asleep because it was barely five in the morning, but his phone buzzed, and he sat up. he winced slightly at the bright screen before clicking on the notification.

imessage

carrots
you up?

gilbert's face lit up. he typed a response quickly.

gil
yeah, you need anything?

carrots
meet me outside?

his heart raced as he climbed down from his bed. he looked around at cole, jerry, and bash who were all still sleeping. he went to the bathroom, brushing his teeth and washing his face. he pulled a hoodie on over his head as it was quite cold outside.

while walking past his bed he grabbed his phone and slid it in his back pocket, being sure to open the door quietly so that he wouldn't wake anyone up. as he stepped outside he saw anne, sitting on the steps in front of her cabin, playing with a flower.

he smiled, thinking about how pretty she looked in the morning light. he walked towards her but she didn't notice, she seemed to be in her own world. he sat next to her and spoke practically in a whisper, "you know," she jumped slightly and he rested a hand on her knee to calm her, "i wouldn't get out of bed at five am for many people, i hope you have a good reason for this." she giggled lazily, and leaned on his shoulder.

he looked at her, confused, he spoke quietly again, "did you get any sleep?" anne looked up at him, "none. is it that obvious?" he chuckled at the question, "well i mean your head is on my shoulder right now so i think you can answer that for yourself-" he smacked him lightly, "oh shush." he laughed airily and looked at her happily.

"well do you want to go inside and try to get some sleep? you seem exhausted." she shook her head and stood up, reaching her hand out. he took it without hesitation and stood up. she then let go and they started walking. they didn't talk much, in fact, gilbert didn't even ask where they were going. he didn't care much about that. he just cared about the girl beside him.

so they walked like that for awhile, sneaking glances at each other every once in awhile. as they passed the fire pit gilbert realized they were going to the cherry tree. he smiled at the thought.

once they reached the bottom of the tree anne began climbing up and sat on a branch, leaving room for gilbert to sit next to her (which he did once he climbed up after her.) he looked at her for awhile before talking, "anne? why are we here?" she looked up at him, "promise you won't laugh or use this against me?"

he nodded while whispering an 'i promise.' anne bit her lip before continuing, "well, i get nightmares sometimes, and usually i climb out my window into the cherry tree that sits outside, or if matthew is awake or already out on the farm i'll go spend time with him. i need to sit somewhere with scope and i need someone who makes me feel safe. this is that for me here." gilbert saw her wince at her own choice of words but his heart swelled.

he hesitated slightly before putting his arm around her, letting her rest her head on his shoulder. with his other hand he traced the veins on her arm with his finger. anne visibly shivered under his touch but he assumed she was cold and held her closer. then he whispered almost inaudibly, "you're safe here, go to sleep, you need to rest."