Anne with an E fanfiction:

Alone today

Chapter 1

It was a delightful day to go out into town. At least that's what Marilla and Matthew thought. And when they told Anne, she was delighted to spend a day at the marketplace. Until she heard she wasn't going, that is.

"But Marilla! It's such a beautiful day! Far too beautiful to be cooped up inside the house. I haven't been anywhere in ages, let alone into town."

"Yes Anne, but you need to Finish your chores that seemed to escape you yesterday." Marilla chastised.

"I didn't finish only because I was emotionally invested in this extraordinary book," Anne explained, "How can you expect me to clean when such pressing matters were at hand?"

"I expected you to because that's your job," Marilla said, "You are staying here and there that's final."

Anne couldn't help but let a sign fall out of her mouth. It had been weeks since she went anywhere but Green Gables or school. Not that she didn't love those places, but a girl needed some variety. And this was her chance to leave for the day! If she had known about this trip she would have finished her chores yesterday.

"So," Marilla began, "We'll be off then. I made you a list if what you need to finish from yesterday along with your chores for today. Now, Matthew and I will be gone for a long while, it's a long way into town, so we will be back very late tonight or possibly early tomorrow morning," Marilla started to walk about her home, Anne following behind, "It is still early so finish your chores and then you can do what you please. Since I don't trust you with the stove, i'll have Rachel bring you some dinner." Marilla stepped to the door and shouted for Matthew.

Matthew stepped up to the door, putting his hat on his head and his coat on.

Marilla continued with her instructions, but Anne was only half listening. It was so difficult to miss out on a trip to town. All she wanted to do was go with them.

"Okay, Anne. We are leaving now. Do be careful and please finish your chores." Marilla stepped out the door.

Anne sighed again, this time to be met with a hug from Matthew. " I'll bring you something." He said in his awkward way.

Anne gave him a half smile and watched him step out the door. She bounded over to the window, watching Marilla and Matthew get into the cart and rode away. The picture was nice. Two people being pulled by horse as the sun rises behind them. But reality had to set in some time. With all the work she had to do, it would be beneficial to just get it over with. So Anne attended to her chores, collecting eggs, getting water. This was going to be a long day.

By the time Anne had finished her chores, it was close to noon. The sun was high in the sky.

"Well," Anne said to herself, "Might as well get something to eat." But just as she entered the kitchen, there was a knock at the door.

Anne walked to the door and swung it open. To her surprise Gilbert Blythe was standing there.

Anne and Gilbert had been spending a lot of time together lately. It had been a month since the Miss Stacey incident and ever since they'd talked more and more about trivial things. Deepening their friendship. Although, Anne had felt odd things toward Gilbert. Shed convinced Marilla (And Herself) that there was nothing romantic going on at all between them. Even so, Marilla was skeptical. She'd seen the way Gilbert looked at Anne. Even if Anne felt nothing romantically towards Gilbert, he definitely felt something towards Anne.

"Oh, Gilbert. Hello!" Anne greeted.

"Hi," Gilbert tossed a curl away from his eyes, "I came to bring you something."

"Why don't you come in?" Anne stepped aside, letting Gilbert walk through the door.

They walked to the kitchen, sitting down at the table. Anne watched in surprise as Gilbert pulled out a chair for her. The gesture caused her heart to leap into her throat.

Thankfully, Anne regained an air of composure for once. "Thank you." She said as she sat on the chair. Now she admitted to herself now this seems romantical.

Gilbert reached into the satchel he was carrying and pulled out a small bottle with what looked like herbs floating inside. "Bash always buys too much at the market." He handed the small capsule to Anne.

"Thank you." Anne replied, although she had no idea what this herb was.

"It's Thyme." Gilbert said, seeing the look of confusion Anne had on her face.

"Oh." Anne said.

The interaction seemed like it should have ended by now, but neither Anne nor Gilbert stood or said anything (Which was odd considering both of them always had something to say.) The pair just looked into each others eyes, not daring to look away.

"Ok," Gilbert began, "I'd be lying if I said that I came here just to give you the Thyme."

"Oh?" That's all Anne could say apparently. There was a look in Gilbert's eyes. A small smirk on his lips. Anne had noticed before that Gilbert was handsome, but she had never been so aware of it until now. She couldn't help but think about how she looked. Although, she learned her lesson when she dyed her hair.

Suddenly, Gilbert's small smile faded into a look of seriousness. It wasn't drab or boring, but intense. His eyes were implanted on Anne's and, even though it was somewhat awkward, Anne couldn't look away. Gilbert sat up straight and slightly leaned in towards Anne.

"Anne, I think I'm in love with you."

Anne gasped. The words replaying over and over in her mind. In love. In love. With me. This couldn't be right. She'd heard him wrong. In love. No. He said those words.

Gilbert continued, "I didn't realize until i had left last summer. I was on that ship, my mind wandering. I had told Bash about you. How i called you carrots," he chuckled, "Then i got your letter...but i wasn't thinking about the gold. No, I was thinking about how you thought to send me the letter. You."

Anne was utterly speechless. She had never fathomed that anyone could love her. Everyone said that she talked too much and that her hair was red and that her freckles were too prominent. She was too dramatic and her imagination too wild.

But maybe that's why he loved her.

"Gilbert, I…"

He chuckled again, "Have I rendered you speechless for once in your life?" Even though he was smiling, Gilberts eyes never faltered. His intense stare burned into Anne, but she refused to look away. It took all of Anne's strength to keep her eyes locked on his. That's why she didn't notice when Gilbert started to lean closer to her. And she didn't notice until his lips were centimeters away from hers. Their eyes stayed glued to each others until finally, their lips touched. Anne gave up on keeping eye contact, she hesitated for a second, before kissing Gilbert back. They stayed like that, kissing for a minute. Eventually, Gilbert's hands reached for her hips.

Anne gasped at the contact and Gilbert immediately separated from her. He finally looked sincere as he realized what he did.

"Anne. I'm sorry, did I…" Gilbert looked at Anne. No doubt her face was flushed pink. But a smile was hinting at her eyes. Her lips quirked up and she quickly leaned back into Gilbert's touch.

This time it was Gilbert's turn to be surprised. Never did he think that Anne would accept him. Gilbert very delicately moved his hands again, this time, cupping Anne's face with one hand, and putting the other on her waist. She leaned into his hands, this gesture more intimate that the first, and they stay there, in the kitchen, embracing and kissing each other.

Gilbert loved this. Anne, kissing her, just being next to her. He always found her presence calming, despite her high energy. This was not how he thought his confession would go. He though quite the opposite actually. But this was perfection. Anne. Anne Shirley Cuthbert. A thought flashed through his mind and he reluctantly stopped the kiss.

"Anne, I hate to stop this, but… where are the Cuthberts?"

Anne chuckled, her voice slightly husky. "They're out to town until tomorrow morning."

"Oh." oh! Gilbert realized what this meant. They had Green Gables to themselves. For hours.

Gilbert quickly scooped Anne up into his arms. She gasped a bit, obviously not expecting this turn of events. Holding her bridal style, Gilbert carried Anne up the stairs and to her room. He didn't expect that anything would happen between them, but it was nice being in a more private and comfortable area.

After setting Anne down on the bed, Gilbert quickly closed the door.

"I just thought you'd want to be in a more comfortable place." he explained.

"Yes, but considering the circumstances, I didn't really care." Anne replied.

Gilbert instantly sat on the bed and started to kiss Anne. She kissed him back immediately. Oh it was exhilarating having somebody to love. Having somebody to hold. Anne wanted to feel him. To see him. To be close to him.

Sitting up, Anne moved her legs around Gilberts waist, straddling him. Gilbert wasn't complaining. Their lips locked closer together and Gilbert prodded a tongue at Anne's lips. She parted them, allowing Gilbert to slip in. God the sensation! Anne was filled with arousal. Little did she know that Gilbert was extremely aroused as well. Just as their kiss was becoming more and more passionate, there was a sharp knock at the door.

The pair parted, and sat up, completely in shock. They were both frozen for a minute. The knock sounded again. This time Anne lept into action.

"Stay here!" She commanded, "I'll be back in a minute." As she left the room, Gilbert couldn't help but think of the situation he put himself in.

Back downstairs, Anne quickly opened the door to find Mrs. Lynde waiting impatiently. Anne was filled with dread because she instantly knew this would take longer than she wanted. Rachel invited herself in and started to walk to the kitchen.

"Hello Anne, I thought I might drop off dinner a bit early because i didn't know when you'd be hungry." she set a basket of food down on the table and sat herself down at a chair.

"Thank you." Anne replied, hoping this interaction was at an end.

"You're very welcome," Rachel hesitated, she was going to say something. "Well anyway before walking here I thought I saw Gilbert Blythe pay you a visit. Is he still here?"

Anne lost her breath. Mrs. Lynde knew?! "Ummm, yes. Gilbert is right upstairs."

Mrs, Lynde raised her eyebrows, no doubt thinking about the inappropriate things that could happen with two teenagers in a empty house. Ironically these things had just been happening. "Well I never! Having a boy and a girl alone in an unsupervised house. You should know better Anne!"

" Oh Mrs. Lynde, you are mistaken. Gilbert just came over to return a book he borrowed. I was planning on giving him another one, but you know me. I lost it and was looking for it." Anne's lie wasn't perfect, not even that good, but it should fool Rachel easily.

"Oh," Rachel began, "That explains it. Well. Well, well, well. I've made a fool of myself haven't I?"

"It's no trouble Mrs. Lynde. I thank you for the concern."

"Oh it's no trouble," Rachel stood up and walked to the door.

Anne walked along beside her. Wait! What if Gilbert leaves late and Mrs Lynde sees him?! "Thank you for dinner. I might have Gilbert join me, there's so much food."

Rachel stepped out the door. "It's no trouble. But please, be responsible Anne. I'll be checking in on you later." Anne tried to hide her wince as she waved goodbye to Rachel. Once she had walked a fair amount away from the house, Anne ran upstairs and too her room

Gilbert was standing at the window, looking out at the road. He waved to someone, probably Mrs. Lynde, maybe Jerry. He was so handsome. Tall and lean, but muscular from work, long black hair. Anne was confounded that someone as perfect as him could end up with her.

Gilbert turned to face her, "Hi." He said.

"Hi." She said.

They took a step towards each other and kissed. Slowly, passionately. Pure bliss.

"What took you so long?" Gilbert teased.

Anne sighed, "Dropping off some dinner for me. Well, us."

Gilbert's eyes widened, "She saw us…"

Anne laughed, "No, she didn't see us kissing, she did see you walk here though. I had to make up some lie about you borrowing a book so she wouldn't assume anything."

Gilbert let out a worried breath, "Thank God. Who knows what would have happened if she saw us." Gilbert gave Anne a quick kiss on the lips before laying her back onto the bed.

Anne lay under him and hooked her arms around his neck, pulling them closer together. Gilbert gave her a strong kiss on the lips before moving his lips to lay a line of kisses on her jaw, and then on her neck. Anne moaned at the feeling of his lips on her sensitive skin. She looped her fingers through his hair. This was heaven, pure heaven.

The clock chimed. What? 4 o'clock already? They'd been kissing and talking for hours.

Gilbert stopped abruptly. "What time is it?"

"4 o'clock." Anne answered.

"Damn it," Gilbert said, lifting himself off Anne.

"What is it?" Anne asked.

"Bash and Mary want me back for supper at 5." Gilbert explained, "Sorry."

"No, it's fine. I wasn't expecting that to happen either."

They stared at each other for a moment. Gilbert looked amazing. His hair was in slight disarray and the top two buttons of his short had come loose somehow. Seeing him without his clean cut style made Anne somewhat proud. She had done that to him.

"Gilbert, come here. Your hair's all messed up."

Gilbert walked over to Anne. She reached up and combed through his curls with her fingers. It wasn't anywhere close to how neat it was before, but it was an improvement. If he had just walked out, it would be obvious what happened. Anne didn't want to think about how her hair looked right now. Anne stepped closer to Gilbert and buttoned up his shirt. Giober found this gesture incredibly appealing. It was intimate and he could see all of her.

Gilbert didn't want to leave. He didn't want to stop kissing her. He didn't want to stop touching her. He didn't want her to stop touching him. But he had to leave…

Gilbert tipped his head down and kissed Anne. This kiss was different now. It felt more sincere, more sweet, like the were lovers.

Were they lovers?

"Ok, i should leave," Gilbert kissed Anne on the forehead and started to exit the room, but he couldn't leave without knowing. "Can i come back tomorrow?" He asked.

Anne seemed blind sighted, "Matthew and Marilla will be back then."

Gilbert stepped closer, "I don't care, i just have to know that i'll see you again soon. We can go for a walk."

Anne smiled and pecked hike on the lips, "Okay. See you tomorrow then."

Gilbert started to leave again, "Oh and Anne…"

"Yes?"

"I love you."

Anne smiled, "I love you too."

And she meant it.