Part 2 of "In The Woods When First We Met"

231. The Way Back

She did not think about her safety until she was nearly there.

She did not even realize she'd been running until her lungs began to give out.

She stopped, letting herself fall against a tree. For someone who'd barely walked at all in the past few weeks, running now made her feel nauseas. She slumped down at the base of the tree and tried to breathe. She let her head fall back against the bark behind her. Don't throw up, don't throw up, she told herself. Ugh.

She wished she had not run. She wished she had not come at all, but had stayed in the house. She looked at the world around her, and found herself frightened.

I'm moving too fast, she thought, panic rising in her chest. I can't do this.

She thought about walking home, but she was a lot closer to Gilbert's house than she was to her own.

After a while she stood up slowly, feeling her legs tremble. She held on to the tree for support and thought about what to do.

Finally she decided to go to Gilbert's house just to ask if he would drive her home.

She walked slowly there, keeping watch all around her as she walked.

Billy's a million miles away, she told herself.

But that did not matter, because her concern over her safety was not with Billy, but with anyone. She did not know who she could trust.

Before this happened, she could trust people until they gave her reason not to.

Now, she could not trust anyone until they had proven themselves to her. And maybe not even then.

Her heart was beating loudly in her ears and she was silently chanting Stop. Stop. Stop. with every thump.

When she arrived, she knocked shakily on the door. It was only a moment before the door was opened by Gilbert's father.

"Mr. Blythe!" She cried out, not expecting him to be the one to answer the door.

He was in his chair. He pulled the door open for her and then wheeled himself backward into the room to allow her space to enter.

She hugged him heartily, and he hugged her back with a strength he hadn't felt much of lately- Anne had given it back to him.

She pulled back and studied his face. Mr. Blythe had more color than he'd had weeks ago, but she also noticed he was significantly thinner.

But her worried expression changed quickly into a smile, for his sake.

"Anne, I'm so happy to see you- are you all right? You look-"

But whatever he was going to say she looked like, Anne did not hear it. She stumbled, hitting the wall behind her and falling.

"Gilbert!" his father called, alarmed. He tried to lean down and lift her, but in his wheelchair he could do little for her.

Gilbert rushed into the room, worried his father had had an emergency. But as he came closer, he saw that his father was leaning out of his wheelchair over Anne's body.

Anne groaned and slowly rolled over onto her side. She sat up, touching her head as if she couldn't believe what had happened. "I'm sorry-" she began.

Gilbert crouched down in front of her. He put his hand to her head as though he thought he could somehow protect her from bruises. "Anne, are you- are you all right?"