Chapter Text
“Blythe, I need to talk to you.”
Gilbert looked up from the book he had been studying meticulously for the past few hours. His eyes traveled across the candlelit kitchen table and up to meet the earnest eyes of his dear friend Sebastian who had been knitting in the seat across from him. Gilbert’s mind grew wary as he noticed just how serious and somewhat anxious Sebastian’s expression was.
“What is it, Bash? Is something bothering you?”
“Blythe, I don’t know if I am the person who should be talking to you about this. Honestly, I’ve been debating it in my mind since the fair last weekend, but I realized, if I don’t, I don’t know who would.” Bash paused, taking a deep breath as Gilbert remained straight-faced across from him. “You’ve become a brother to me, Blythe. You know I want the best for you, right?”
“Of course, Bash. I trust you completely. I must admit you have me incredibly worried at this moment though,” Gilbert said, stifling a nervous laugh.
Bash’s face softened with a warm smile at Gilbert’s response, and the tension in the room was alleviated, if only slightly. With a light laugh that mixed oddly with the sadness in his eyes, he responded, “How I wish Mary was here! Or better yet, your father. I feel like this might be more of a father-son conversation. But here we are, Blythe.”
“Here we are,” Gilbert responded in kind. After a pause, Gilbert continued thoughtfully, “Is this about Anne and Winifred?”
The laughter returned to Sebastian’s eyes. “Whoa! You’re brighter than I realized, Blythe.”
Gilbert kicked him playfully under the table, his face flushing at the realization of the topic they were going to dive into.
“Will you hear me out and do your best to forgive me for the conversation we are about to have?” Bash asked, a tone of seriousness returning to his voice.
Gilbert nodded solemnly.
“I’m beyond confused, Blythe. You have always seemed like a pretty straight-forward guy to me, but I haven’t been able to figure you out the past few months. Ever since we met, whether or not it was known to you, the way you talked about Anne and the way you reacted whenever Anne was around.... I just always figured you felt for her the same way I felt for my Mary. I thought you were dead gone on her,” Bash paused, looking straight into Gilbert’s eyes. “And then you came home that one day, the day Elijah was here, and you were a giddy mook over a tea date with a girl I thought you barely knew. I figured you changed your mind about Anne and were moving on, but then, just a fortnight ago you came home from school asking about if certain feelings you were having for a girl meant she was the one you should marry. And I know, you weren’t talking about Winifred. But then a week ago, Blythe, you’re here pacing in front of me talking about impressing Winifred and her parents, but, at the same time, saying you’re not thinking about marriage with her. And then you ignored Anne completely at the fair except for when you brushed Winifred off your arm to chase after her….” Bash stopped to catch his breath. “Can you see why I’m confused, Blythe? And more than confused, I’m worried about what you are doing to these poor women’s hearts. I know I’m only a brother to you, I’m not your father, but I hope you can take my advice regardless. You need to figure out your heart, Blythe. And you need to do it before you hurt either of them any more.”
The two men sat in the silence that followed Bash’s impassioned words. Sebastian’s eyes were still locked on Gilbert, but Gilbert’s gaze had shifted to the fire, the only thing in the room that burned as hot as his soul seemed to burn as he took in his brother’s words. They sat there in silence for minutes.
Gilbert saw the truth in what Sebastian had said. He had begun to realize it himself ever since he danced with Anne in the schoolhouse, but always chose to push it to the back of his mind as something to sit with at a later time. But Sebastian bringing it all to light now forced all of his conflicting thoughts to rush to the forefront of his mind.
Winifred is easy to be around.
Being around Anne pushes me to the limits of my emotions.
We are both interested in the study of medicine.
We are both impassioned by the pursuit of knowledge.
She is kind.
The way she fights for the good of others with all of her heart makes me want to do the same.
Her family seems to like me.
Her family stands among my closest allies.
She is accepting of my family too.
Bash, Dellie, and I would be lost without her help.
Winifred is a good friend.
Anne is a kindred spirit, but now she’s barely even speaking to me.
I enjoy the time I spend with her.
My body seems to quake every time I get near her.
She seems to enjoy spending time with me too.
If only she felt the same way about me too.
I love Anne.
I love Anne.
“Blythe?”
Bash’s voice snapped Gilbert out of the tornado that was his mind. He felt a tear drip onto his arm and only then realized that he had been crying.
“I think I love Anne. Bash…. I love Anne.”
As Gilbert spoke these last words, a wide grin spread across his tear-stained face.
“There’s the Gilbert I know,” said Bash with a laugh.
The reality of the state of his heart and the situation he created hit Gilbert hard, and his momentary grin faded away.
“I really messed up, Bash.”
“Yep.”
“I need to write to Winnie and tell her I need to talk.”
“Yep.”
“And Anne....” Gilbert groaned, “What will I do about Anne? I thought there was a chance she might be starting to feel for me, even just a fraction of what I feel for her. I could see something different in her eyes.” Gilbert paused as he remembered the depth with which Anne had looked at him when they danced and after they had hugged when Mary was dying. “But she’s been avoiding me since the fair. Unless....” Gilbert let out an exasperated sigh before continuing. “Bash, am I really that much of an idiot?”
“Yep.”
“She actually might feel for me?”
“And you say you are top of your class?”
Gilbert sprung from his chair, sending it flying backwards into the wall behind him.
“I need to see her.”
Standing slowly from his chair, Sebastian replied. “Slow down, Blythe. Given this fact that you have just come to these realizations in the past hour, maybe you should sit with them a bit before you make any rash moves. And to do this right, you should probably talk to Winifred first.”
“But Anne.... I must have hurt her terribly.”
“You may need to put work into it, Blythe, but broken hearts can be mended. Tomorrow is Saturday. How about you go to Dr. Ward’s office in the morning and see if you can speak with Winifred? And Anne was supposed to come help with Dellie in the afternoon, but I can figure something else out so you can take her for a walk if she agrees to it.”
“Thanks, Bash. And thanks for calling me out on this.”
“You’ll repay me each time I make fun of you for it in the years to come,” Bash said with an impish grin. “But I’ll give you a few months reprieve.”
Gilbert walked around the table to give Sebastian a hug before grabbing his book and returning to his room. He prayed fervently that Anne and Winifred would forgive him as he drifted off to sleep.