𝐆𝐈𝐕𝐄 𝐌𝐄 𝐅𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐃𝐎𝐌 | gilbert blythe

05. apples of avonlea

Lunch time was a precocious situation.

Penny had approached Anne as the teacher dismissed them, noting the girl's saddened expression.

"Are you alright, Anne?"

"I just don't know what to do," In the short few days that Penny had known Anne, she had never seen her this down heartened and the expression pulled on Penny's heart.

"I know it won't help much but if you'd like there's a beautiful bush of flowers just outside that I'd love to show you," Penny urged, and felt her lips quirk as Anne began to perk up.

"I think flowers would help quite a bit," Anne confirmed and the two girls made their way out of the school and walked around the side to a large white bush that grew up the side of the building.

Anne moved to pull her milk from the pond as Penny appraised the white camellias in front of her.

"Everything will be okay, you know?" Penny tried to be supportive as she leaned over the nearby bush, plucking one of the flowers and turning to show it to Anne.

Just as she opened her mouth to tell Anne the meaning in an attempt to cheer the girl up, Gilbert Blythe approached them for the second time that day. A bright, red apple in his hand.

"Hey, um, I, uh thought you two might want to try it," Penny was surprised to see Gilbert offering the apple to her, unlike their usual arrangement where Gilbert would discreetly place the apple on her desk, this time he stood in front of her with a hand extended. A slight knock on the window drew her attention and she almost jumped in shock as she saw Ruby and the others peering out the window, staring judgmentally.

Gilbert had turned towards Anne to explain the offering, "They're from our orchard, they're real sweet. I promise to bring another tomorrow if you don't want to share,"

Anne, also having noticed the other girls, grit her teeth as she spoke, "Please go away."

"I beg your pardon?" Gilbert glanced back to Penny in hopes of a translation.

"You need to walk away right now." Anne spoke without moving her lips.

"I'm- I'm sorry. I, uh--" Gilbert was still confused by her muffled talking.

"I'm not supposed to talk to you!" Anne shouted out suddenly, standing quickly and collecting her food before storming away.

"Why not?" Gilbert wrinkled his brows, watching the red-haired girl stomp away.

"Girls can be dreadfully rude sometimes," Penny stated simply as she leaned against the school, moving to put her body out of sight from the window, wrapping her arms around herself habitually.

"Hm," Gilbert hummed as he eyed the group in front of the window, who all immediately ducked away as he turned towards them. He then thrust the apple forwards again towards Penny, "Doesn't mean I can't still give you an apple. I've already missed yesterday,"

Penny let her eyes widen as the boy before her continued to surprise. He had also never once admitted out loud that he was the one giving her the apples.

"Come on, we both know you knew it was me the whole time. Come on, we can trade," Gilbert swept the white camellia from Penny's hands and pressed the apple further forward.

Penny sighed, knowing there was no way out of the situation, and reached forwards to grab it only to stop at Gilbert's small intake of breath.

"What is that?" Before Penny could react, Gilbert had grabbed her arm and was pushing up her sleeve, revealing the deep, blue bruising on her wrist and fraying bandages on her palms from the night before, "Did someone hurt you? Was it Billy?"