Undeniable Love {Shirbert Fanfic}

Chapter Six - Sugar Turned to Salt

Anne's POV
     This morning, I woke up with a strange feeling in my stomach. Something was off. I ignored it though. Now, I am eating breakfast and very caught up in my thoughts. I just can't put my finger on why things seem off or wrong today? Probably because of the fact Ruby and Gilbert went on a date last night, and I can barely stomach the fact he probably courted her. I am so terrified to face them today. Ever since I got these new and strange feelings for Gilbert, my head hasn't been in the right place.
     I am thinking to myself while eating when I notice a snapping infront of my face. I quickly shake myself out of my daze and turn to see Marilla looking at me sternly.
     "Hurry up child! You're going to be late for school if you go any slower!" she says to me with a strict tone lacing her voice. I nod back at her and quickly finish my breakfast before getting up and grabbing my things for school. Hopefully today goes better than yesterday. I couldn't bare to have my heartbroken like that again.
I am walking to Diana's house when I see her outside of her gate, looking down at some of the newly bloomed flowers.
"Diana!!!" I yell, racing my way towards her. Oh how happy I am to finally see my bosom best friend. I missed her so even though I saw her only yesterday!
"Anne!" she yells back, smiling like a maniac. We run to eachother and embrace for a few short seconds before linking arms and trudging our way to school.
Diana can tell I am gloom today, and most likely knows the reason why. I just can't help myself. My heart is taking over and I can't stop it. I must though, for the sake of Ruby and Gilbert who obviously are meant for eachother.
"Anne, are you alright?" she says to me while rubbing the side of my arm a little.
"Yes, dear Diana. I am okay. The events of yesterday just have my head in a buzz." I say sadly, trying my best to force a smile.
"Oh Anne! You'll find someone amazing for you! Don't worry about Gilbert and Ruby, we don't even know if anything happened yet!" she says to me in attempt to cheer me up, and surprisingly is does.
"You're right Diana. I am so very sorry for my sorrowfulness. I promise to be more cheerful the rest of the day!" I say happily to her, finally being able to actually smile. I am so grateful for Diana.
Once we finally get to the schoolhouse, Miss Stacey is just about to start. Diana and I rush to get our coats off and put our milk into the stream before sitting down for class. I look around and notice Ruby nor Gilbert have arrived. 'They must be walking together today. Of course, why wouldn't they?!' I think to myself.
     As Miss Stacey is about to start, the creaky door of the schoolhouse opens, catching everyone's attention. It's Gilbert. He looks very gloom, for why I do not know. 'How could he be gloom when he has now courted the love of his life?' I wonder. He quietly apologizes to Miss Stacey before taking off his coat and hat and sitting down. But where is Ruby? She must be feeling ill? It was very cold yesterday.
     I can tell Diana knows exactly what I'm thinking when we both exchange glances of concern.
     "We should bake her some muffins and bring them over after school to figure out what happened. I wonder if she fell ill? Oh I hope she is okay." Diana says to me, worry spreading across her faces as she grows pale from the thoughts of all the possibilites.
     "Oh Diana, she is most likely okay. We will go after school to check up on her and make sure. I'm positive all of the other girls will want to go too." I whisper back to her cheerfully. Everything will be fine.
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     Finally. Lunch. Now Diana and I can tell the girls of our plans to cheer Ruby up after school and see what is going on. As I am making my way to our corner, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turn around to see Gilbert standing there, his expression is sad but his eyes still sparkle. I could get lost in his beautiful, hazel eyes and I wouldn't even mind. No! Anne! Stop! I shake myself from my thoughts, scolding myself slightly before turning back to Gilbert and glaring a little.
     "Yes, Mr. Blythe." I say, my tone a little harsh. He seems taken back my tone before quickly pulling himself back together.
     "I was wondering if you knew where Ruby is today? Our little.. date.. didn't go very well last night." he says to me, slightly cringing as he says the word 'date'. I wonder why he's acting like this? Why wouldn't it go well and why did he say the word date so weird? I quickly snap out of my thoughts, realizing he's waiting for a response.
     "Oh.. um.. well? I don't exactly know. I haven't spoken with her since school yesterday." I say to him as I can see concern grow across his face.
     "Oh... okay. It's just, she's like a little sister to me? You know? I just hope she's alright. I felt horrible when I told her I don't feel the same for her." he says to me, worry and sorrow lacing his words. I can feel myself light up a little as his words sink in. He doesn't like Ruby!!! I smile at him sadly, saying a quickly sorry before turning around and going back to the corner with the girls.
     "Anne! You're glowing. What did you and Gilbert talk about?" Diana whispers to me as I sit down next to her.
     "He doesn't like Ruby!" I say happily. I instantly scold myself when I realize my actions. How could I be happy? No wonder Ruby didn't come. She must be heartbroken! How could I be so selfish?
     Diana sees my expression go from ecstatic to ashamed in seconds. She lightly rubs my shoulder as she gives me a smile.
     "Anne, it's okay to be happy. Ruby will get over Gilbert and maybe you can finally confess your true feelings." she says to me, trying her best to make me happy again. I smile back, trying to hide the guilt and sadness I feel. I guess she's right? Even if she is though, I may never tell anyone, let alone Gilbert himself, how I feel. I don't even know what I feel! I've been trying so hard to deny my feelings!
     I'm snapped out of my daze when Diana tells me it's time to tell the group of our plans. I smile at her before speaking up to the group of girls chatting away and eating.
     "Girls, I had an idea!" I say, instantly gaining their attention. They all look at me in anticipation for my plan, all but Josie who looks less than amazed.
     "I thought we could all bake Ruby some muffins and bring them over this afternoon to see if she is okay!" I say to them gleefully. They all nod their heads and smile, even Josie perking up a little. Ruby is her best friend after all.
     I am about to continue when Miss Stacey rings the bell, signaling it's time to go back to class.
"We will continue talking of the plans after school! Everyone meet by the door if you plan on coming" I quickly say to them before rushing back to me seat.
Once I sit down, I can feel a familiar pair of eyes on me. Usually, I would choose to ignore this and the butterflies in my stomach that come with, but today is different. I look over at Gilbert, making eye contact and giving him a sincere smile before looking back to the front of the class. I can tell he is a little shocked at my reaction, since I would usually get angry and glare. I guess today, I just don't have any hatred in me. Only pure happiness.
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Finally, schools over. It's not that I don't love school or anything! I've just been so anxious to go over to Ruby's and find out what happened. All of the girls gather by the door as we get ready to talk about our plan. It is absolutely stunning outside right now, the snow is on the verge of being fully melted and the blooming flowers are positively scrumptious.
As I am getting my coat on, Gilbert calls my name. I turn to see him standing in the classroom by his desk. I look over to see Diana smirking at me as I give her a questioning look.
"Go! I'll wait outside with the girls and distract them while you talk with Gilbert." she says to me, smiling smugly.
"Fine, but I won't be long." I say as I walk away from her over to Gilbert.
"Hello Gilbert," I say to him in a somewhat formal tone," did you need something?" I ask, a little worried for his response.
"Um, y-yes," he stutters out, a light pink bouncing across his cheeks and he looks at the floor,"I was wondering if I could maybe walk you home today? I really need to speak with you." he says, his expression nervous.
"Oh, I'm so sorry Gilbert but I'm walking with the girls. We're making some muffins for Ruby since she wasn't here today." I say sorrowfully, wishing I could walk with him. I really need to get over these idiotic emotions. Gilbert would never like someone as homely and ugly as I am. I could never, ever make a good wife.
"It's okay Anne. But I need to talk to you soon, it's kind of urgent." he says to me, snapping my out of my thoughts. I look up to see him looking down at the floor and rubbing the back of his neck, something he does when he's nervous. He looks back up and meets me eye, a small blush creeping to both our cheeks. Why is he blushing? Surely it can't be for the same reason I am.
I could stand here and admire him forever, but I have serious business I need to attend to.
"Okay, well I promise to speak to you soon. I must go now, goodbye Gilbert." I say to him, smiling before I skip away to go meet with the girls. Out of the corner of my eye, I can see him smiling at me cheekily as I walk out the door. There's those butterflies again.
I run outside to see all the girls in a circle, standing and discussing the school day as I run up. Diana smirks at me while the other girls look at me with their full attention, waiting for me to spill the plan.
"Okay, so, I think we should go to Diana's home to make the muffins. She does have the biggest kitchen, so there'd be more room. Of course though, we first should all go home and let our parents know what we are doing. We wouldn't want to worry them. After that we can all meet at Diana's and head to Ruby's when the muffins are done!" I say to them smiling. They all nod their heads in agreement after the words sink in and they think about the plan. With that, we head our separate ways home before meeting back at Diana's.
     Once I am home, I walk in to see Marilla cleaning up a little and doing some small chores.
     "Hello Marilla! Today was a delightful day! Also, I was wondering if I could go over to Diana's and make muffins with her. All of the girls from the schoolhouse are going too. We're planning on bringing them to Ruby since she was not here today and most likely fell ill." I say to her, a hopeful expression on my face as I pray she'll say yes. She looks back at me, contemplating for a few seconds.
     "Oh alright. But be back before dinner!! I need your help preparing." she says to me, smiling lightly. I run over to her and give her a hug, slightly startling her from the physical affection.
     "Oh thank you Marilla! I promise to be back by dinner!" I say smiling at her, before running out the door to Diana's house. This is going to be so exciting!
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     We all finished the muffins, along with a few flour fights that got us into some trouble with Mrs. Barry. I never realized how fun it would be to bake with the girls! We all had so much to talk about.
     We're now on our way to the Gillis residence. We baked a dozen muffins, I sure hope that's enough. Luckily, while baking, all the girls were able to have a small job.
     While we're walking, I spot a beautiful patch of beautiful, pink roses from the corner of my eye. Ruby would adore these!
     "Diana, I'll be right back. You all continue onto Ruby's house while I pick a few flowers!" I say to her before running over to the small patch.
Diana's POV
     Anne runs to the flowers and I smile gently. I wish I could be as adventurous and appreicative of nature as she is. She has such a beautiful soul. The girls and I continue walking the way to Ruby's house, making small chatter and giggling about the flour fights we had. Once we finally reach the doorstep, I go up to knock before Jane stops me.
     "Wait, where did Anne go?" she asks, her face growing a bit pale and worried expressions are plastered against all of the girls faces, except for Josie Pye of course who could care less, only caring for herself.
     "Oh don't worry girls, she went to pick some flowers for Ruby! She'll be here soon, no need to fret." I say to them, calming them all down before I knock on the door. We're greeted by Ruby's mother, Mrs. Gillis.
     "Hello Mrs. Gillis. We are some of Ruby's friends from the schoolhouse and noticed she was absent today, so we brought over some baked goods. If it's alright with you, may we go see her?" I ask, smiling at Mrs. Gillis. She automatically recognizes most of the girls and I, as she knows our families.
     "Why, yes of course girls. That is so sweet of you. Josie, I trust you can lead the way to Ruby's room." Mrs. Gillis says, taking the muffin basket and stepping out of the way. Josie walks to the front, flipping her hair and putting a fake, innocent face on.
     "Why, of course I can Mrs. Gillis. Thank you for letting us into your lovely home, enjoy the goods!" she says in a sweet tone. I want to scoff, but that would be impolite and rude to Mrs. Gillis. Josie walks up the stairs as we make our way down to Ruby's room. Josie stops at a door and knocks lightly before calling Ruby's name.
     "Come in." says a muffled voice from behind the door. It is obviously Ruby, for her voice is so light and sweet. Josie opens the door and we walk in to see Ruby lying in her bed, looking through all of the girls with a worried face before smiling. Who was she looking for?
     All of the girls run over to her, screaming her name and hugging her.
     "Ruby, why were you absent today? We all missed you so dearly!" I say, frowning slightly as I wait for a response.
     "Oh girls. Something terrible happened and I couldn't bare to go to school and face everyone." she says, tears welling up in her eyes.
     "Oh dear Ruby, what ever happened?!" Josie says from beside her, hugging and comforting her.
     "Yesterday afternoon, on my date with Gilbert, he told me he.. h-he doesn't like me!" she says, crying out. All of the girls gasp a little, not expecting what she said.
     "He likes.. he l-likes someone else.." she says, sniffing as she fiddles with her hands.
     "Who!!" all the girls say in unison, clinging to Ruby's words as they wait for her response in anticipation.
     "He.. h-he likes.." she says, being cut off by her bedroom door opening.
Anne's POV
     I open the door to Ruby's room, catching the attention of a few of the girls.
     "Her." Ruby says, glaring at me as a vicious and vile tone laces her words. She looks ready to rip me apart! But how could Ruby ever, ever be so vexed!?! What did I do now?
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Hey guyssss bahahha I am so so so so so so so sorry it took so long to update. I've been working on this chapter for the past few days so I hope you guys like it!
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8/18/18
2878 words