𝐷𝐸𝐿𝐼𝐶𝐴𝑇𝐸 | 𝙜𝙞𝙡𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙩 𝙗𝙡𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙚

| ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴛᴇɴ

{ ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴏʀsᴛ }

| Gilbert |

It's the knock on the door shortly after three o'clock that brightens my rather somber day. The knock I've been waiting for all day. Because I knew exactly who would be on the other side of that door. I knew that someone, waiting for me on the other side of the door, would somehow make me happier. Somehow, she always does.

But I can't help but worry about her, how unimaginably broken she is inside. For reasons I can understand but can't help. And I can't help myself from wondering why she acted so strangely yesterday. It was something in the way she was frozen, and it puzzled me so. I open my door swiftly, to see her face, except she is looking down, hiding behind the curtain of her raven hair.

"And as promised she returns," I say playfully with a smile, which she returns, avoiding my eyes. I look at her with confusion before I see it, the wind blowing ever so slightly to reveal her face.

"Oh my god!" I gasp, my hands instantly holding her face, examining the bruise that sits upon her cheekbone, "Who did this to you?! Was is Billy?! I'll kill him!" There are prominent tears in her eyes, my heart sinks at the sight of them. She brushes my hands away, giving me the books, she brought.

"It was my mother," she speaks, her voice barely a whisper, "it's nothing, it—it was just an accident." I look down at her, not believing her words.

"Look at me," I tell her softly. She meets my eyes finally, tears staining her pale cheeks that were once so rosy. I pull her body to mine, embracing her in a hug as she cried silently. The burning pain in my heart didn't go away. And neither did the extrusive loathing I had for her mother at that moment.

"It's okay," I tried to reassure her, "it's gonna be alright." My mind can't help but think of how much I cared for her, even if she wasn't ready. But I also can't stop hating myself for letting this happen. I knew something was wrong with that house.

ꕥ

| Lily |

It's been a month since the day I showed up at Gilbert's house bearing that awful bruise and a tear-stricken face. The bruise healed, but my relationship with my parents didn't. I still can't help myself from being worried about Gilbert, whose father hasn't been getting better. Nonetheless, we still continued with our usual banter and flirting, as if nothing was wrong at all. It baffled me how he can be so happy while being broken on the inside, but then I realized I do the same.

"I would live with you both if I could," sighed Anne as we talked about Diana's Aunt Josephine while walking to school, "it would be perfect, we'd be like sisters." I giggled, squeezing her arm which was interlocked with mine.

"But alas you'll both leave me for your own handsome gentlemen," she sighs dramatically, "if Gilbert doesn't scoop Lily up before, we even get a chance." She smirks, nudging me in the ribs.

"Anne!" I scold her playfully, nudging her right back.

"On the topic of Gilbert," Diana speaks up, "is his father well?" I go quiet the second she finishes the question, my mouth has seemingly gone dry as I try to form the words.

"Lily?" Anne asks concerned.

"I fear the worst," I whisper silently, my head hanging low, "I fear when Gilbert returns, his whole world will have changed." Silence follows my morbid words as we make our way up the steps of the schoolhouse, and I wonder. I wonder if Gilbert is okay, and I wonder if anything will ever be the same when he returns.

ꕥ

"Lily!" My mother calls upon hearing me open the front door, "can we talk to you for a minute? It's important." Dread fills me for I want nothing to do with my parents at the moment, I would have simply ignored her but the sincerity in her words drew me to the conversation. I walk into the dining hall to find both my parents sitting down, facing me, eager to fill my ears with whatever it is they needed to say.

"Is everything alright?" I ask from the somber look that dawns their faces. My father beckons me to sit down with them but shares no words with me. We've barely spoken since that night.

"John Blythe passed away this morning," she said bluntly, trying to meet my eyes. Shock immediately takes over my body as I feel my fingers start to shake. My throat seems to close as tears come to my eyes, threatening to fall.

"We'll be attending his funeral service tomorrow," my father finally spoke. I look at the both of them, I see in their eyes that they didn't care, they don't try to comfort me, tell me it was going to be alright. I stand up, not bothering to push in my chair as I head for the door, grabbing my coat on the way. My legs are stiff as I start to walk out of the house, paying no mind to my parent's calls for me to come back.

And then I start to run.

ꕥ

He's sitting on his porch steps when I reach his house. Snow dots his hair as he fiddles with the hat in his hands. I can tell he's been crying just by the way his back is hunched and his head hanging low. He doesn't want anyone to see.

I walk over to him, not minding that he doesn't say hello, or acknowledges my presence. I just sit next to him, letting silence fill the space around us. At that moment I began to regret everything.

"Friends don't act like this towards each other."

I should've never pushed him away.

"Would it really kill you if we kissed?"

I shouldn't have backed away.

"No matter what."

I should've never cared about what everyone else thought.

My gloved hand reaches over, encasing his with mine. We don't look at each other. We don't even move. We just let the silence blanket us, as the night comes upon us.

"No matter what," I promise him, my voice barely a whisper, but I mean the words more than ever. I feel him take a deep breath next to me. I'm here.

"No matter what," he promises back.

ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ's ɴᴏᴛᴇ

you know when people say i love you to one another but they don't say those exact words.

um chapter eleven is next.

it gets bad

needless to say things are gonna get messy. comment your thoughts!

-ʟɪᴢ