Remains To Be Seen

In That Moment...I Was Floating

Gilbert
I saw her small form standing across from me. She had kept her eyes away from my own. I hadn't moved. It's like I couldn't. I couldn't decide what to do. She finally met my eyes. Those blue oceans instantly drowning me in her trance. She stepped closer and stopped inches away. I saw my handwritten letter in her fingertips.
She saw my eye on them. She looked at the letter in her hands and put it down to her side. She nodded looking back up to me. I could not contain myself. She was as beautiful as I'd imagined. Her hair deepened like the hot coals rather than the fiery flames. Still just as vibrant and memorable as I remember. She wore a new color of blue. It made her eyes shine unlike I've ever seen. Her freckles nearly tripled, she held as many freckles as there were stars in the South African sky. Both a sight I would never in a lifetime forget.
       "Josephine Berry wanted me to invite you to her home. Get a nights rest after the long train ride."
       "How kind of her," I said.
       "Umm-the carriage is waiting for us to head that way. Shall we?" She cleared her throat breaking eye contact.
I nodded and extended my arm to have her lead the way. Bash was securing my bag on the back and Miss Stacey held Delphine. I opened the door for Miss Stacey and Anne. They stepped inside the carriage. Anne sat beside Miss Stacey causing me to side beside Bash. Right across from the fire haired girl. She looked out the window in the quietest state. Bash and Miss Stacey were hushed upon their own conversing. Delphine letting out a babble or so every once and awhile.
       "Anne, I didn't mean to silence you with my presence," I said softly.
She looked to me. I couldn't figure out the look in her eyes. It wasn't hate, but it wasn't hope. It almost looked lost. Confusion nearly. But it's not confusing. I was lost in trying to figure it out.
The next thing I know the carriage came to a stop and Bash was out the door. Anne followed cordially. She was different. Her imagination that she'd rave about was silent. Like she stuffed it in a box. I followed out after Delphine and Miss Stacey. Josephine greeted Bash and the others into her home. Anne was about to advance the steps when I grabbed her wrist.
         "Can we talk? Please?" I begged.
She looked up to Josephine Berry. Diana and Cole beside her. They all nodded ushering Bash and Miss Stacey inside. Anne nodded and I let go of her wrist. She led the way through the garden. I fell into step beside her.
        "I'm sorry Anne," I said.
        "For what?"
        "Leaving. Not sending the letters sooner. Everything."
        "You did what you thought best."
        "Why aren't you fighting me Anne?" I asked violently.
She was startled as I had pulled her arm to stop her. She yanked her arm back with harsh recoil. I saw a hint of a flame in her eyes. She took deep breaths to compose herself. She walked to the bridge.
         "What do you want me to say?" She said calmly settling her hand on the wooden rail.
         "Something, anything. What happened to you? You're cold, distant, empty. Where is the fire I fell in love with."
         "Stop throwing around that word like it means nothing," she hissed.
         "It's not nothing Anne! I love you!"
         "Then stop loving me," she yelled back. "We're not good for each other."
         "What is going on Anne?" I pled trying to get her to meet my eyes.
She seemed to suck her tears in and finally look at me. I could see her breaking. She could never hold a strong front with me. And I couldn't do it with her. Everything I ever felt always came out when I was with her.
         "You could've lived your dream," she said.
         "I am."
         "No you aren't. You are now stuck in the hell you grew up in, you could've been in Paris studying medicine but instead you went to war and dropped your one chance at your lifelong dream."
         "Paris wasn't the dream."
         "You said you didn't want to be a country doctor. You didn't want to stay in Avonlea. Winnifred was your way out."
           "This is about Winnie?"
           "No it's about you!" she finally screamed back at me. "You made me love you and then you-you left me."
          "I didn't-"
           "Stop it, stop telling me you never left. I had to put your name into the darkest abyss of my imagination. I had to throw my imagination away because of you. I couldn't look at an apple the same or a book or a pen because it all reminded me of you."
          "Anne-"
          "I tore myself apart thinking you'd go to Paris to Sourbonne and live your dream. I convinced myself I would be okay with an unrequited, tragical romance. And I don't even know what to do around you Gilbert. I can't even-"
I couldn't keep hearing this. I couldn't keep watching her break herself apart. Relive every painful memory of put her through. So I changed it. I did the dumbest yet smartest thing I could think of. I enveloped her in a kiss silencing her words. Surprising her at first, but to my own surprise, she kissed me back. I pulled away slightly. Still holding her close to me.
        "I'm sorry," I whispered.
        "So am I," her eyes still shut. "Ouch!"
She jumped lightly and I stepped back in concern. She had her skin between her fingers. She had pinched herself.
        "I uhh-I had to check. I had quite a good imagination, I had to make sure it was real, that this was real."
        "Anne? Do you truly have feelings for me?" I asked.
She looked at me with pure endearment. And again we were in that same moment. It was like we were floating. We were the only two people in the world. No one else mattered. Nothing else mattered. Whatever was going on around us silenced. With just the two of us together.

Anne
I had put my imagination away for so long I barely remembered what it was like. But when I was kissing Gilbert, it was exactly as I dreamed. It was more. I had to check to see if it was even real. Never in a lifetime did I imagine Gilbert and me. Us. I did, but it was what I thought was an untouchable reality.
We stood enwrapped in each other's arms. My hand rested against his neck and over his collarbone. He looked down at his pocket watch he had pulled out.
        "It must be mid-meal," he said softly.
        "Must we go?" I asked never wanting to leave this singular moment.
The moment I'd finally see come true. A dream of mine I never thought would be real. He dropped his clock back into his pocket. Connecting his lips with mine twice more.
        "It was a long train ride," he said.
        "A long adventure indeed," I nodded.
He grabbed my hand and we began to wander back to the Berry household. I stayed right beside him as we walked through the rose garden.

In this moment, with Gilbert finally home, with him being mine, I was floating.

A/N: FINALLY OUR SHIBERT MOMENT! Hey kindred spirits sorry for the extended delay more than usual. I just started classes again and got totally slumped with work and school. It's been a busy week! I also am breaking into book two. I think I like
it better than this book. BUT I will finish publishing this out. It carried directly to the next book. There are only 10 more chapters left in this book. I could go on for lifetimes but book two is TO DIE FOR! Get excited readers. It might be a bit until I post again :D

-L.M.

Don't worry about this extra publishing. I was just fixing a few spelling errors 😅