A/N: Hi again, everyone. I must remind you once more that I never said this story would be serious, and this chapter is no exception.

Everyone here is LMM's. Without her, this story would mean nothing.


Anne felt the blush creeping up from her neck and flooding her face at Diana's question.

"He did kiss you, didn't he?" Diana demanded.

"Well," Anne said slowly, "after the recital, he walked me to my front door, and…"

"Oooohhh! He walked you to the door!" Diana's voice was high pitched. "What then?"

"Well, when we were saying goodnight, he tried to kiss me, but…" Anne broke off in confusion.

"But what?" Diana's dark eyes were round, and she scooted forward on the edge of her seat.

"It wasn't my fault," Anne huffed, looking shame-faced. "I didn't realise that he was leaning in to kiss me and I kind of got caught by surprise and so I was sort of turning away, and he ended up kissing the side of my mouth."

"What?!" Diana was squeaking again. "So, did you just grab his face then, and make sure you kissed him properly?"

"No!" Anne was horrified.

"Why not?" It was Diana's turn to look horrified. "Anne, you do realise that was Roy Gardner trying to kiss you! What is wrong with you?"

"I don't know what's wrong with me," Anne admitted. "It just all got a bit awkward, and so I just kind of turned around and rushed through the front door because I was embarrassed."

"But you're still going to the poetry reading with him next week, aren't you?"

"I guess so," mumbled Anne. "He asked me before all that stuff happened at the front door."

"Did you at least get his phone number or something?"

"He put his number in my phone," Anne nodded, glancing at where her phone was lying on the table in front of them.

"Well, thank the gods for that," Diana looked relieved. "Why don't you ask him to meet you somewhere before next week then?"

"I don't know, Di," Anne said, her face turning red again. "You know I'm not very good at this stuff. He'll call me if he wants to see me, won't he?"

"Anne!" exclaimed Diana. "You need to make sure he knows you're interested."

"But, Diana, I..." Anne started to respond, just as Diana spotted Roy walking across the campus towards the café.

"Oh my god, there he is!" Diana squeaked, interrupting Anne. "Here's your chance. Ooohh! He's seen us! Look, he's coming over here!"

When Roy noticed Anne, a delighted smile spread across his face and he immediately changed direction, waving as he walked towards them. Diana waved enthusiastically back at Roy and smiled brightly.

Anne had felt her cheeks flaming with embarrassment as soon as she saw Roy, remembering the awkward moment at her front door the night before. She was hoping that the colour had abated somewhat as he approached.

"Good afternoon, ladies," he said politely. "How are you?"

"We're great, Roy," Diana smiled. "Anne's just been telling me how much she enjoyed the poetry reading last night."

"Has she?" Roy looked delighted. "It was great fun, wasn't it, Anne?"

"Yes, I really enjoyed the poetry so much," she replied earnestly. "Thanks again for taking me."

"It was my pleasure," Roy smiled his deep velvety smile at Anne. "I'm looking forward to next week's, aren't you?"

"Yes," Anne nodded.

"Would you like to join us, Roy?" Diana smiled warmly. "We haven't eaten yet."

"Why, thank you," Roy looked pleased again as he pulled out the chair next to Anne. "I've got a class soon, but I think I have a few minutes to spare."

"Wasn't Tennyson an excellent choice for last night's discussion?" Roy asked Anne animatedly as he sat down.

"Yes, he's one of my favourite poets," said Anne.

Roy smiled, delighted with Anne's response.

"He's one of my favourites, too," Roy hadn't stopped gazing at Anne. "It's so rare to find someone who knows Tennyson as well as I do. I think we have a lot in common."

Anne wasn't sure if she agreed, but she nodded politely.

"Tennyson's motifs are still so relevant, don't you agree?" Roy apparently hadn't stopped his discourse on last night's reading.

Anne opened her mouth to reply, but Roy continued before she had a chance to speak.

"I'd love to discuss him some more with you," he said. "Actually, I was going to call you, Anne. Perhaps you might like to join me for dinner tonight?"

Out of the corner of her eye, Anne could tell that Diana was excited, but Anne shook her head.

"Oh, thanks anyway, Roy. I'm practicing with the band and I'll have to study after that."

Roy frowned slightly. He didn't seem used to receiving no for an answer.

"But I'm sure you'll still have time to eat," Roy urged.

"Yes, you still have to eat," Diana agreed, nudging Anne in the ribs. "Won't the band stop for dinner at least?"

"I'm not really sure what time we're finishing," Anne admitted. "We're meeting at four o'clock."

"They're practicing in the music auditorium," Diana added helpfully to Roy.

"Surely you'll be finished by six thirty then," Roy seemed determined. "I'll speak to Philippa about it."

"Well, I also wanted to do some study tonight..."

"I'll come by at six and see if you're finished. We could study together afterwards if you like."

"Oh, that sounds wonderful." It was Diana who answered him, even though she knew Anne usually preferred to study alone.

"Good." Roy stood up to leave as he took his phone out of his pocket. "I must go to my next class."

As he strolled away, Diana squeezed Anne's arm.

"Ooohh," Diana squealed. "I think he reeeeally likes you! I'm so excited for you!"

"But I don't really know if I am," Anne confessed. "I don't think we have that much in common, to be honest."

"Anne Shirley, that is ridiculous!" Diana was shocked. "You have heaps in common."

"Di, I…"

Diana interrupted her and started ticking items off on her fingers.

"He likes poetry, he's smart, he seemed to be enjoying listening to the band with you the other night, and, do I have to remind you? It's Roy Gardner! He brought you flowers."

"I know," Anne said. "But I didn't really find him all that easy to talk to, and he didn't seem to like one of my favourite poems of the evening."

"Who else do you know that likes Tennyson as much as Roy apparently does?"

"Yeah, no one I guess," said Anne doubtfully, looking away from Diana.

Anne was remembering the thrill she'd felt listening to Gil the night before as he recited 'Crossing the Bar' with his deep, clear voice ringing out across the pavilion.

Later that afternoon, when Anne arrived at the music room to meet the band, Gil was sitting on the side of the stage, his long legs dangling in front of him, with the battered book of poetry in his hand again. He was reading intently, with a small frown of concentration creasing his brow, and his brown curls tumbling forward so they were obscuring his vision of the doorway. He didn't notice her entrance until Anne spoke.

"What are you reading today?" her voice held a hint of amusement. "Another ballad of death?"

"I'm afraid so," Gil admitted as he looked up, abruptly closing his book. "Is it just me, or is it weird that some old dude was in love with Evelyn Hope? If I forget that line, I would love that poem, but knowing that she's sixteen and he's nearly fifty is completely creepy, and ruins it for me."

"I know what you mean," Anne agreed, leaning her hip against the stage next to Gil. "It's beautiful, but him being thrice her age is a bit disconcerting."

"Disconcerting? I'm kinda glad she's dead, so she doesn't have to deal with him talking about her 'fire and dew', even though that's one of my favourite lines." He shook his head. "It's difficult to reconcile."

Putting the closed book down on the stage beside him, Gil slipped his hands palms down under his thighs and leaned forward, tossing his head slightly to flick his brown curls out of his eyes.

"By the way," he grinned, "thanks for leaving me with Josie and Gertie last night. I had to listen to them for another twenty minutes after you and Roy left."

"Sorry," Anne grinned at him, not looking the least bit apologetic. "I thought you could handle it."

"They went on for a bit about you being in the band," said Gil.

"Oh," Anne shifted, lowering her eyes nervously. "If it's going to be a problem for them, then maybe you should look for someone else instead. I'll understand if you change your mind."

"I told them you were the best guitarist I'd heard besides Fred."

"You didn't have to exaggerate like that," Anne flushed in embarrassment, looking up again.

"I wasn't lying," said Gil seriously. "I told you I'm looking forward to hearing you play more."

Suddenly, Gil's face seemed very close to hers and he was looking directly into her starry grey green eyes. She could see each of his dark eyelashes and how perfectly they framed the sparkling hazel of his eyes.

"Oh, um…" Anne's voice trailed off as she stared at him, her eyes suddenly drawn to his full, pink lips. "Thanks," her voice was little more than a whisper.

"Speaking of which," Gil turned away abruptly, clearing his throat a little as he rummaged in his backpack. "I've brought you a playlist of songs to practice and I thought if you spend some time with Fred today, he'll give you some pointers on what you'll need to know about them."

"Sure," Anne nodded, tucking a stray wisp of her hair back into her braid as Gil handed her the printed sheet of songs.

"Fred's bringing his guitar so you can practice on it and…"

"Did I hear my name?" Fred said as he entered, carrying his guitar case in his left hand.

Phil was just behind him. She was wearing a sailor's hat tilted at a jaunty angle on top of her shiny brown hair.

"Roy texted me this afternoon," Phil announced without preamble. "He said he's coming to collect Anne at six fifteen, so we'll need to be finished by then."

"Oh, that's okay," Anne stuttered. "I don't really have to leave by then."

"I'm sure that'll be plenty of time, honey," Phil smiled at Anne cheerfully. "Won't it, Gil?"

"Sure," said Gil, leaping agilely from the stage and striding over to Phil.

"Besides, Jo's got the night off work," Phil continued. "So I've got a hot date."

"Well, I definitely don't want to interfere with that," said Gil, smiling at Phil.

"Hi, Anne!" Charlie's excited voice came from the doorway as he headed straight towards Anne. "I brought you the playlist, so that we can practice together. It's very important for the bass player and lead guitar to …communicate with each other, you know."

"I've already given Anne the playlist, Charles," said Gil, leading Charlie back towards the stage. "I thought Anne could spend some time learning the ropes with Fred to start. Since it's her first practice and all."

"Good idea," Charlie winked at Gil. "We don't want to overwhelm her with my talent, do we?"

"Exactly," Gil nodded solemnly at Charlie. "Besides, she's already seen you play at Patty's Place last week, so she knows how good you are. I thought you, me and the girls could spend some quality time together instead."

Diana rushed in with Stella and Priss.

Phil waved Stella and Priss over to her and Diana and hurried straight to Anne.

"Sorry I'm late," she whispered to Anne. "Is everything okay?"

"Oh, yes," Anne murmured, looking meaningfully at Di. "Gil said I should spend time with Fred today, so you'd better stay close."

"Oh, okay then," Diana agreed happily, glancing over at Fred, who was hovering nearby. "Hi, Fred."

"Hi, Diana," Fred smiled. "How are you?"

"Good," breathed Diana. "How are you?"

"Oh, great, thanks," Fred mumbled. "Glad you could make it, er, to help Anne out of course."

"Yes, of course," Diana said. "It's nice to see you."

Anne rolled her eyes and wondered when Fred and Diana were going to get past banal pleasantries. She noticed Gil was also observing this exchange from where he was standing near the stage. He raised one eyebrow before he smiled broadly and winked at Anne over Fred's shoulder.

"Should we get started, Anne?" Fred asked.

"Oh, I'll just sit over here," Diana waved vaguely to a chair in the corner, her eyes never leaving Fred.

About an hour later they took a break, and Gil strolled over to see how Anne was getting on.

"Anne's doing great, Gil," Fred said approvingly. "She's really picking up the songs quickly."

"I thought the electric guitar would be trickier," Anne admitted. "But it's not too different, really."

"I knew you'd be fine," Gil smiled warmly.

Fred moved a few steps away from them to talk to Diana, so Gil leaned down to whisper in Anne's ear. "How are the lovebirds doing?"

"What?" Anne didn't know whether she was startled by his question, or the sudden shiver that ran through her at the sound of his low voice in her ear.

Gil inclined his head slightly towards Fred and Diana, raising his eyebrows.

"Do you think they need some help?" he smiled.

"I don't know," Anne grinned, watching her friend talking animatedly with Fred. Diana's hand was resting on his left bicep as he spoke. "They seem to be warming up a little now."

"Excellent," Gil nodded in approval. "Let me know if you think Fred needs a nudge."

"Okay," Anne said.

"I've been practicing my bass solo, Anne," Charlie interrupted from behind Gil. "Do you want to hear it?"

"Oh, um, yes?" Anne looked uncertainly between Charlie and Gil.

"Trust me, you want to hear this," said Charlie. "It's epic."

"Let's hear what you've got, Charlie," Gil smiled, turning around so he was facing Charlie.

Charlie launched into his bass solo, thrusting his hips at Anne as he played. He was winking at Anne and smiling broadly.

Anne's eyebrows flew up in surprise and her eyes grew wide as she watched Charlie's performance. His winking goggle eyes were too much for her to keep a straight face, so she moved her eyes to watch his bass guitar instead. Then she realised that he was thrusting his pelvis even more violently towards her. She glanced towards Gil, her eyes huge in mute appeal.

Gil's hazel eyes were twinkling merrily as they slid to Anne and back to Charlie again.

"What time's Gardner coming for you?" Gil asked Anne.

"Just after six, I think."

"Well, we'd better get back to it, then," Gil winked at Anne. "Let's go show the other girls, Charlie."

"Did you like it, Anne?" asked Charlie eagerly.

"Oh, um, yes," Anne gasped, her voice was unsteady. "Very good."

"I told you it was epic," Charlie smiled in satisfaction.

"Yes, epic," Gil agreed, as he placed his hand on Charlie's shoulder and turned him away from Anne. "That's going to be one unbelievable solo at the party, Charlie. A showstopper, I'd say."

"I know, right," agreed Charlie.

As Gil led Charlie away, Anne realised that Phil, Stella and Priss seemed to be laughing uproariously at something in the corner. Anne looked over at them and they all waved and grinned back at her, giving her thumbs up as they laughed. Anne rolled her eyes at them, and turned back to where Fred and Diana had been standing a few minutes earlier.

To Anne's surprise, Diana and Fred had moved, and they were now sitting close together in a corner of the room, their faces inches apart as they stared intently into one another's eyes. Diana was caressing Fred's bicep gently with her fingers as she leaned forward and whispered in his ear. Fred's face turned even redder as he nodded and smiled at Di.

Well, it looked like they'd got past the pleasantries at least, Anne reflected, smiling to herself.