In the Woods When First We Met

164. Reconciled

Gilbert left Ruby and walked to Green Gables to deliver notes to Anne. He knocked on the door, and it was a few minutes before there was an answer.

Anne was surprised to hear a knock at the door. She expected that Matthew and Marilla had their arms full of things- they'd told her they were going into town. She rushed to open the door for them. But instead of seeing the Cuthberts, Gilbert was standing in front of her.

"Oh," escaped from her, as she stopped short, startled.

"...Hi," he said breathlessly. He hadn't expected Anne to be the one to answer the door when he knocked.

"Um..." Then suddenly she was very aware of the fact that she'd never gotten out of her nightgown, and she shut the door in his face.

Gilbert sighed, turning away. He looked at the porch.

The snow was melting and the Cuthbert's porch roof was leaking. He began looking for a spot he could leave the school notes where they wouldn't get wet.

But a moment later the door opened again and Anne was standing there, now with her robe wrapped around her. "What do you want?"

"Oh, you're back," Gilbert said, surprised. "I thought..."

"What?" she asked.

"I thought you shut the door because you were mad at me"

She looked at him as if he was dumbly missing the obvious. "I'm in my nightgown," she said. "I had to get something on."

"Oh, right," Gilbert realized.

Then neither said anything.

"You can't come in," she told him, crossing her arms. "Matthew and Marilla aren't here."

She knew Marilla would not approve of a girl having a boy in while no one was home. But considering the circumstances of her relationship with Gilbert, she didn't actually think Marilla would mind if she invited Gilbert in. ...But she didn't want him there.

"That's okay," he said quickly, "I wasn't going to ask if I could come in-"

"Why are you here?" Anne interrupted, knowing she sounded a bit cold. She tried to remind herself that she did not, in fact, hate him, even though she'd said she did.

"School notes," he said, holding them out to her. "I don't know if Miss Cuthbert gave you the other ones, but I brought some before-"

"She did," Anne said.

Then finally she said, "Thank you." She reached out and took the new ones from him.

She stood there in the doorway looking at the notes.

Gilbert said, "I just...didn't want you to get behind in school, but I meant to leave them with Mr. or Miss Cuthbert...I wouldn't have come if I'd known they weren't home."

"That's all right," Anne said.

"Well," Gilbert said. "I'll go now."

He began to turn away.

"Gilbert, wait," Anne said.

Gilbert came back.

She didn't want him to leave so quickly...but she didn't know what to say to him. "Um...how are things going? At school?" She asked awkwardly.

"Oh, fine, fine," he said. "Just normal stuff."

"Is anyone..."

"What?"

"...talking about me?"

Gilbert hesitated. He couldn't lie to her, but he also didn't want to make things worse for her, either, by telling her that yes, everyone was talking about her.