Ablaze with possibility

Chapter 16: Pulchritudinous sights

In a tiny old bedroom, a desk was covered with coal, ink and dried clay.

Papers and sketch books were spread all across it, works only a true mind of an artist could have created.

Sitting down beside this beautiful mess a sunny Friday afternoon, was no other than Cole Mackenzie.

Art had always been a true passion for him, ever since the first time he'd held that one pencil, dipped in black ink-he'd known it would always be a great part of his emotional heart.

Holding onto the similar pencil, his hand swept over the white paper, each move as gentle as the other.

It was a quiet and peaceful moment, between him and his art-until suddenly, a soft but audible sound could be heard from his window.

Thinking it was one of the branches from the maple tree outside, he let it go and continued the swiping motion.

But when a more defined knock sounded, he was sure it had nothing to do with the maple tree.

Forcing his body away from the chair, his eyes turned to look out the window. There was Anne, with an apologetic smile on her fair face, pointing her finger to the handle.

The surprised Cole opened it immediately and let her in. After have climbed into his room she sat down in his bed next to him and burst out:

"Oh Cole I don't know what to do!"

She let her face rest in her palms as she groaned out in frustration while Cole only watched her with a blank look.

"Um...Can I just ask, what in the world are you doing here Anne?" he said, "I thought you were under a house arrest?".

Anne groaned once again. She was frankly under a, tedious but fair, house arrest-just as he'd assumed. Since the incident down by the pond, Marilla had been very furious with the redhead. She thought it was ever so impulsive and reckless of Anne and had refused to let her go to school for the remaining days this week. Now something was bothering the girl, something she couldn't hold to herself much longer.

"Why yes I am but I had to sneak out of the house to see you Cole!" said Anne, "I have the most unbearable of quandary and I need your help!".

"Does it have to do with what happened on Wednesday?" he asked, Anne sighed heavily.

"Not really...Or well I suppose it does, but oh it's so complicated!"

"Then tell me Anne!" he said, "you can't assume I am a mind reader?".

"Well..." she began, "Tomorrow, I am forced to go to the dance lesson! Even though I am under a house arrest!" Cole's eyes widened. "Apparently Marilla thinks I didn't thank Gilbert enough for his "rescue" so to say, and wants me to apologize to him-for he will be there, at the dance hall. Of course I do need to learn the choreographies but you wouldn't understand how awfully, terribly and dreadfully humiliating it will be! Oh Cole I just couldn't, I could never--"

"Anne calm down!" said Cole, making her bite her lip in thought, "you are obviously overthinking the situation! Although it may be a bit...embarrassing to meet him after well...you know what I mean, it would do you some good to talk to him!".

"No it certainly wouldn't Cole!" Anne said huffily, "and now that I think about it, to dance in front of him would be even more humiliating! At least we would no longer be rivals in this area, that's for sure...Oh I can just picture it, me falling flat on the ground and him laughing at me...Just like Josie! He would definitely find that just as amusing as me clinging on to that pile by the pond!".