7.
Step one, two, three
The class had been in an intense flurry of mixed emotions about the impending dance lesson ever since it was announced. Many of the boys viewed dancing as something for girls, whereas the girls were ever cautious about reputations and scandal. Due to the intimacy of the physical contact which was usually deemed inappropriate being a requirement for dancing it was naturally a heavily debated topic in the lead up to and right into the beginning of the rehearsal.
For Gilbert the idea of dancing was as enigmatic as it was to the next young man, having never taken part before. But he was not a stranger to the touch of young woman the way many of the other boys clearly were. His visits into Charlottetown where he had invited Winifred to tea had afforded him several opportunities to hold her hand, such as when she staged tripping out of her chair in order to knowingly defy the expectations of propriety. Of course that was not the only contact with a young lady he had shared. When he and Anne had embraced outside him home, he had never before, or since been so physically close to a woman who was not apart of his family. And for good reason as such a display would have been scandalous to anyone who might have witnessed it therefore to repeat it now in the presence of their peers and teacher was unthinkable. Gilbert cherished that moment of innocent comfort even more so as it never should have happened, but he would have been so lost and alone without it.
In the wake of such an occurrence Gilbert unconsciously stood close to Anne to feel a whisper of her presence so near, just as he had when she had been reading the obituaries in the newspaper whilst standing behind him in the doorway. He had turned as she spoke, biting on his lips while rising from his chair in order to look at the paper she read from. Once again finding himself in awe of her kind idea to print an article about Mary for her daughter, the pair briefly holding each other's gaze until Diana pulled her attention away with news from the take notice board. It didn't bother Gilbert at all that Charlie had posted about Anne. Her reaction to the news was proof enough she was more uncomfortable about it than he could ever be. He could never put his finger on what was between Anne and himself, but they were long past the point of discomfort because of each others company, or so he thought.
Everybody was feeling quite awkward as they took their positions for the dance, Gilbert and Anne were surprised to look across and see they had been partnered by chance. The first attempt unravelled due to confusion and reluctance, and so they tried again. As they made there way through the first part of the dance pattern they found their eyes constantly drawn to each other, regardless of who the dances paired them with at any given time. As they reformed their original lines Gilbert smiled as he moved towards her. There was something so tantalizing about her coming towards him only to move away as they nearly reached each other. As they began to retreat in their lines Gilbert spied her hand and an idea sparked. He wanted her closer to him than across the way, so when the time came for their lines to cross and switch sides he took matters into his own hands and playfully spun her around, laughing with her as he rearranged the whole line up when he didn't cross as he was supposed to. Now she was there at his side with her hand in his as they moved through the dance, watching each other, playful smiles on Gilbert's lips when he looked at her, satisfied with his actions. Every step and every turn, she was there. And gradually she became all that he could see. The way she moved through the dance, the light flush on her skin at the exertion of the dance, the feel of their hands joining, their shared playfulness at having defied the pattern of the dance, and of course that bittersweet moment when he knew he had to restore the dance, and so when the lines switched back he stayed where he ought to, reluctantly releasing her hand. As the dance had come to an end they approached each other face to face once more and then took a bow.
In a trance like state they held each other's eyes, wrapped in the feelings their dance together had produced, until Anne realised that all the others had moved away and broke the spell, walking instantly to her belongings in the coat room. Gilbert followed suit, rushing to gather his things and get out of the building. They turned and met in the middle, suddenly having to face again the surge of feelings, Anne ducked and practically ran from the building, while Gilbert hesitated reeling from their shared experience and how she fled from it.
He thought on it the entire walk home. Through the dance Gilbert had held the hands of other girls but none of them sparked the same fire in him that Anne had. Over all of the time they had known each other Anne had been captivating to him and as a result they had unwittingly found themselves in positions that were more intimate any other he has experienced. And all of them had led to this.
In his desperation to get to know her he had pulled on her hair, he could still remember the feel of the soft braid in his fingers. Right before he joined the steamer crew they had seen each other in Charlottetown and he was sure he would have remained lost in her eyes until dusk had Jerry not intervened, and upon his return to Avonlea Gilbert had taken every opportunity to reconnect their gazes. Over the Christmas tree he had felt her breath on his face, and then outside his home where she had been wrapped in his arms. She alone blew air onto the embers of his interest, each time making them spark a little brighter. So when the dance presented another opportunity to be nearer to her, to feel her touch, he simply couldn't pass it up and not make the most of it.
Could it be that she had felt the same way? If she had been unaffected by their dance why did she rush out so fast? If she had felt nothing at all she would simply have joined their classmates. But she did not. She lingered with him, and then proceeded to all but run from him. If she did she feel it as well it clearly startled her. A feeling he can understand.
If she indeed felt the same, Gilbert's mind jumped forward, the words "thinking ahead... to a future together" ran through his head. Could the way he felt about Anne be what is meant to be between a man and his wife? Only Anne had ever sparked these feelings. Is she the one he should marry? This was all way over his head, therefore Gilbert decided to talk it over with someone who knows love. And so he approached Bash about it in the middle of a carrot... how ironic.
After speaking with Bash he had a new perspective to consider. The feelings he had during the dance were a physical attraction in nature, and Bash eluded to marriage being based on the deeper emotion of love. Although it was quite clear after their dance that he was in fact attracted to Anne quite intensely, he was not ready to breach the subject of love for Anne with himself. He couldn't open himself up like that when he was always so unsure about what he meant to Anne.