Ahead By A Century

Beautiful

"Something's different about you," Matthew states as I walk downstairs to grab coffee before school.

"What do you mean?" I ask casually.

"You seem... brighter. Relaxed. School going well?" He smiles.

"I guess you could say that," I giggle. As I pour the coffee into my thermos, Marilla walks into the kitchen.

"Anne Shirley Cuthbert, what on earth is that Gilbert Blythe doing at our front door?"

My face goes red and I slowly look over at Matthew. His knowing gaze stares me down and I blush even further.

"Uh-uh, we're friends, I guess?"

"Well, he's knocked about a dozen times, so I suggest you go talk to him."

"Okay," I say, thankful she doesn't seem to connect any dots. I've told her some things about Gilbert, but not the full extent of the story. Matthew, on the other hand, knows pretty much all of it. I'm afraid of his reaction. Is he disappointed? Elated?

I grab my backpack and walk to the door, opening it.

His chestnut curls are tucked neatly under a dark grey beanie. The chilly air blows by, dusting his cheeks a light pink. A navy blue flannel covers a simple gray sweatshirt. He looks amazing.

"Good morning," he smiles.

"Good morning, Gil. What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to give you a ride to school. If that's alright, of course," he says sheepishly.

"Of course," I smile.

We get to his car and it's running, thankfully; the heat warms up my freezing hands.

Silence fills the car as we drive the winding road to school. I lean my head against the window, admiring the orangey-red atmosphere fall has brung.

Suddenly, he takes his right hand off the steering wheel and lightly grabs my thigh. My cheeks turn bright red and I glance over at him. He's smirking.

Quickly glancing at me and then back at the road, he says "Problem?"

"N-no," I stammer. His grip tightens slightly and butterflies hammer inside of my stomach. He is going to be the death of me, isn't he?

Too soon we pull up to Avonlea. Right when we exit the car, Billy and his crew walk in our direction.

"Blythe, what's up?" Billy high fives him.

"Not much, Andrews, just gave Anne a ride."

Their attention focuses on me and I shuffle slightly. "Good morning."

"Morning, Cuthbert," Billy says. I feel tense and unwelcome around him.

"I better go... I'll see you later, Gilbert." I say quickly.

"Bye, Anne. Oh and by the way, you look beautiful with your hair like that." He smiles genuinely.

I wave with a small grin, but right when I turn around it turns into a huge smile. As I walk away, I hear Billy and his crew mock Gilbert, but I don't care what they think anymore.

Beautiful.

•

"Anne how could you not tell me!" Diana yells at me the minute we meet each other for lunch.

"I'm assuming Ruby told you," I say.

"Yes she told me! Now why did I hear about it from her instead of you?" She asks, and she actually sounds upset. I feel bad.

"To be fair, I didn't tell anyone, D. I've been trying to go with the flow and see where this goes. I'm really sorry."

She sighs. "It's fine, I guess. I just wish I knew earlier. That's so exciting, Anne."

I pull her in for a hug and she slowly accepts it.

"Now, tell me everything!"

•

I spent the rest of the day catching up with Ruby and Diana, telling them all the details. Gilbert wasn't in last period, which upset me; I had been waiting for that class all day.

The final bells rings and I slowly make my way out of the school to my car.

Gilbert: sorry I had a dentist appt. Missed ur beautiful face. <3

Blushing, I send a quick response.

Anne: I missed you

Gilbert: want to come over?

Anne: be there in 10

•

When I walk into his room, he's sitting on his bed; sat up against the backboard with a notebook in his lap.

"Anne, hey," he says softly, setting the notebook aside.

"Hey Gil," I smile. I make my way towards him, sitting down next to him on the bed.

"How was your day?" He asks, turning towards me.

"It was okay. Felt different with you gone," I say honestly.

He cheekily grins. "I know."

"Shut up," I laugh, playfully reaching my hand out to hit his shoulder.

He catches it before I do, though; and holds my hand gently, green eyes pierce through mine, before he leans in.

The butterflies arrive again, banging around my chest. The feeling of his lips on mine drowns out the entire world.

We pull away for air, not wasting a second before kissing again. This time, he runs his hand through my hair; deepening the kiss.

"Take it off," I mumble.

His dark gaze pierce through me as he slowly pulls the gray sweatshirt over his head, exposing his chest.

I shakily run my hand up his torso, feeling the smooth muscles under my fingertips.

"You have no idea what you do to me," he says huskily. I trace my hand up his neck, to his jawline; pulling him in for another kiss.

He gently pushes me flat on the bed, propping himself up over me.

Before he leans in again, I quickly discard my shirt— I want to feel him more.

The way he looks at me makes me feel special. He smiles softly and presses his lips against mine. Minutes pass as we make out, my hand tracing every inch of his torso; his exploring mine.

"We need to stop— before I go too far," he says shakily.

He sets himself up on the bed, sitting against the backboard again.

I slowly regain my breath as I copy him, reaching for my shirt.

"You're beautiful, you know that?" He says, seriously.

"I love it when you call me that," I reply, not believing it but still feeling my confidence boost slightly.

"I'll call you that forever, as long as I live. Anne, you're fucking beautiful."

•

A/n

Oooo lah lah