Shirbert in the Modern Era

Chapter Nine: A Volleyball

The Avonlea girls' varsity volleyball team was a force to be reckoned with. They were in the middle of a winning season, led by team captain Prissy Andrews.

They were about to play their rivals, the Redmond Roadrunners, and the whole school was abuzz. It was a home game, and the gym was starting to get packed, even though the game wasn't set to start for a while.

Diana and Josie where on the floor warming up. More specifically, Josie was practicing her killer spike and Diana was catching it.

Tall and lean, Josie was the strongest player on the team, rivaling even the captain. She was on track to lead the team after Prissy graduated, and was wasting no time honing her skill.

Anne sat in awe as her friends practiced. She thought about and often praised them for their prowess. She couldn't comprehend the possibility of one's body moving so powerfully.

She was so enthralled by the Olympic displays of athleticism she was observing that she didn't notice Gilbert, Fred, and Jane approaching until Gilbert stopped right in front of her.

"Can we sit?" He asked, his eyes smiling.

Anne tried what she thought resembled a carefree smile.

"Of course! I was just admiring our dear friends' volleyball capabilities. It's rather astonishing, don't you think?"

Gilbert settles into his spot beside Anne and looked out to the girls practicing on the floor.

"Yeah," he replied, "They're all pretty great."

He looked at Anne out of the corner of his eye. He was amused by how intently she was watching her friends warm up.

"What about you?" He asked casually, "Why didn't you try out?"

Anne fixed her eyes on the shiny floor, embarrassed.

"I wanted to but I'm dreadfully uncoordinated. I also never really had the chance to play volleyball, um, growing up."

Gilbert winced inwardly. He physically felt his foot deep in his mouth. He almost forgot that Anne didn't always live in Avonlea, that for most of her life she was passed around the foster system. He realized that she probably never had enough time in one place to be on a volleyball team.

"But I'm perfectly content to watch!" Anne said brightly.

"I heard the Roadrunners haven't lost a game this season," Fred said, leaning over towards Gilbert and Anne.

"I'm not worried," Anne said confidently, "I'm sure our friends will-"

Her thought was abruptly cut short by a volleyball smacking her hard in the face.

—————————————————————
A/N
- god, I don't know where to start. I AM SO SORRY, it was never my intention to just leave this story for such a long time. I have been having an incredibly stressful couple weeks, but that is not excuse. I know as a reader it is so annoying when a story disappears off the face of the earth and you don't even know why. I'm Sorry again! :(
- THANK YOU SUCH MY FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT WE HIT 1K READS OMGOMGM LOVE YALL💖❤️💖❤️❤️
- comment ideas/reviews or anything else