twenty-two

1K 52 9
                                    

oh pretty baby, now that i've found you, stay.

diana made her way over to anne, sitting down beside her so that anne was sat between cole & diana. anne looked to her best friend, a sad smile on her face.

"he called me carrots." said anne, pouting. she liked gilbert so much, and in the back of her mind she knew it was only a joke, but she couldn't shake the thought of gilbert laughing at her because of the way she looked.

"he didn't mean it, anne. i promise. have you seen him? he's smitten with you. he might not have noticed, or he might have but he's just too afraid to say anything. we all see the way he looks at you, like you're the only person in the world. trust me. he didn't mean to upset you." diana said. anne smiled a genuine smile to her best friend. maybe gilbert does like me too? thought anne.

"you think he likes me too?" asked anne. she had never noticed the way he looked at her. apart from that day in the field when he tucked the hair behind her ear. maybe everyone was just reading too much into it.

"oh anne, we know so." said cole, letting out a small laugh.

gilbert sat away from anne, playing with the sand in front of him as he stayed silent. he wondered why on earth he would pick the word carrots to describe anne. he knew about her insecurities. how could he have been so stupid? he's probably upset her, and she will probably never speak to him again.

"hey, is it alright if i sit beside you?" asked jerry. gilbert looked up, nodding his head. jerry sat down beside gilbert, staying silent for a few moments. "anne will get over it. she's stubborn, and she's headstrong, but she'll get over it."

gilbert only nodded his head in response. he had upset the girl he was completely, utterly in love with. he had upset her to the point where she didn't even want to talk to him.

"you like her, don't you?" jerry asked after a moment. he knew the answer already. gilbert considered lying for a moment, but he was tired of lying. of hiding his feelings.

"how did you know?" asked gilbert, turning his head to look at jerry.

"gilbert, we all know. everyone except anne knows. we all see how you look at her. the way you talk to her. whenever you're around her, you're always smiling. you always talk about her. you always compliment her. you go out of your way to make sure she's okay. you're so painfully obvious, but anne is so painfully oblivious." explained jerry with a small laugh. gilbert had never realised how obvious he was, and if he was that obvious that everyone knew, how come anne had never noticed?

"i don't know what to do. she's never going to like me back, and now she's probably never going to speak to me again. i'm so stupid, why do i have to ruin things?" gilbert rambled for a few moments, his head facing the sea.

"listen, i know anne likes you. she never shuts up about you. even when she 'hated' you, she always talked about you. god, matthew and marilla have no idea who you are but they can tell just how much she likes you. don't ever tell her i said this though, she will actually murder me." jerry explained. he hadn't planned on telling gilbert that, but jerry loved anne like a sister, and he didn't want to give up on what she could have with gilbert. a happiness she's always deserved.

"she likes me? are you....are you serious? i don't know if i can believe that." gilbert was in shock. did the anne shirley actually like him back?

"i'm serious, dude. now go make up with her." jerry laughed, shoving gilbert's shoulder.

gilbert jumped up, making his way over to anne who was still sitting with cole and diana by the bonfire. he stood in front of her, not really sure what he was going to say.

she looked up at him, raising her eyebrows.

"what do you want?" asked anne. her tone was harsh, she was definitely still angry.

"can we talk, please?" he asked her in the softest voice possible. she looked at her two friends, who both nodded their heads.

"fine." she agreed, standing up and following him so that they were away from their friends.

they sat down on the sand, a safe distance away from their friends as they listened to the waves calmly crashing against the shore for a few moments.

"i'm sorry, anne. i didn't mean to upset you, i swear i didn't. it was only a joke, and now i realise it wasn't funny and i shouldn't have said it. i never want to hurt your feelings, ever. please forgive me?" gilbert apologised as best he could. anne turned her head to look at him. oh, those eyes. she thought. everything about him looked so much more mesmerising under the moonlight.

"it's just...you know about my insecurities, gil. i've told you countless times how much i hate my hair. i just...it hurt when you made that joke. it hurts more when you upset me compared to anybody else." said anne, biting her lip. he wanted nothing more than to kiss her soft looking lips in that moment. he wanted to shout from the roof tops that he loved anne shirley with his whole heart, but he didn't.

"i'm sorry, shirley. you know i love your hair. you wouldn't be you without it. i think it's beautiful, who cares what anybody else thinks?" said gilbert. anne smiled at this. he always knew how to make her smile.

"i suppose i can forgive you. it's just, my looks have always been the bane of my existence. i've always been bullied for my looks. i just didn't want you to join the bullies. i'm not quite sure what i'd do without you, gilbert blythe." anne confessed. she really wasn't sure what she would do without him. she had gotten so attached to the boy.

"i don't know what i'd do without you either, anne shirley." said gilbert with a wide smile on his face, holding his hand out to her. she took it gratefully, smiling as he interlocked their fingers. it was the softest movement, but it felt like the most intimate.

the two sat beside one another, watching the sea while their hands remained clasped together. nobody could take that feeling away from them.

———
A/N: it was a short lived argument ..... but at least they made up :)))
i think you guys are gonna love the next few chapters !!
don't forget to comment & vote :)

sunflowerWhere stories live. Discover now