Gilbert Blythe had always known a few things. He knew he wanted to be a doctor. He knew he wanted to go to Redmond University. He knew he really, really disliked garlic. And he knew he was head-over-heels in love with Anne Shirley. And life always had an obnoxious knack for complicating that last one.

In the beginning, no matter how desperately he tried to be friends with Anne Shirley, she would have none of it.

"I even saved her from the drowning, and she still hated me!" Gil thought exasperatedly.

And now, no matter how desperately he tried to be friends with Anne Shirley, he was having trouble.

"I really thought that this could be enough: just being friends. Best friends. But it's not. I don't know why I can't just wait until she comes around, but I can't," Gil lamented. "I have to tell her how much I love her. I really just can't be her friend anymore. Not when I feel like this about her."

So Gil wrestled within himself for the right time to reveal everything to Anne. And to his credit, he managed to control himself for a year or so.

However, by the time sophomore year came around for the pair, Gil was fit to burst. He began to drop hints. He would let his sentences wander into a meaningful glance. He became a master of subtext. He was her date for nearly every Redmond social event.

And with any other girl, these gestures might have warmed the water a bit. But Gil did not love Anne because she was just like any other girl. On some level, Gil knew Anne understood how he truly felt. But more importantly, he knew Anne would ignore that comprehension until the day he died.

And that was why he had to tell her.

So one week he made up his mind to tell Anne Shirley. There was a party coming up, and he knew Anne wouldn't want to stay very long.

"She told me that she was going to be busy that week: a literature analysis due, a ton of readings, and she had picked up a few extra shifts at the library for a friend! She won't want to stay very long, and I could offer to walk her home," Gil planned. "And then on the way home, I'll take a detour through the park that she loves so much, the one with the ancient fountain and the swing set. And I'll tell her."

Unfortunately, Phil threw a wrench in his plan and asked Anne to accompany her to the party before he could.

"I was too swamped with Anatomy to see her," Gil grumbled. "Stupid Phil."

But he did manage to arrange lunch with Anne the day of the party. They had talked of everything and nothing, but at the end of the lunch, Gil had felt that progress had definitely been made. Anne had seemed to pick up on his hints, hints which had been growing increasingly less subtle as he endured the wait. When they parted, Anne had spaced out a little, giving him the opportunity to guide her in the direction of her next class. He always wanted to help the independent Anne so it was nice to be able to every once in a while, even a small thing like that. And, he admitted to himself smilingly, placing his hand on the small of her back wasn't entirely necessary but very nice.

Later, he had run into Phil. Now if Anne sensed his hints and refused to acknowledge them, Phil picked up his hints and overanalyzed every single one. Fortunately for Gil, though Phil knew about his feeling for Anne, she had never revealed them or confronted Anne about them. Gil remembered a day when a group of their mutual friends had gathered after a game at a friend's house. He had been trying to make Anne laugh in the kitchen when she had excused herself to the restroom. Suddenly, a voice broke through the murmur of the crowd, despite being barely more than a whisper.

"You're in love with her, Gil," Phil had said. "And she knows but doesn't want to admit it, does she? And you're a little too scared to lose her…."

Gil felt his eyes connect with Phil's and a mutual understanding passed between them. He didn't know Phil very well back then, but he sensed they both knew the more painful and confusing aspects of love.

"You won't tell Anne—" Gil began.

"Phil! What are you teasing Gil about? His newest crush?" Anne had returned from the restroom.

"Wellllll," Phil countered, her eyes sparkling mischievously. "Not his newest."

Anne had laughed, and the subject was dropped in favor of cookie dough and spoons.

Phil knew everything about the situation, from both angles. So when Gil ran into her that day, he felt safe to drop of few more hints about his intention for the party that night. And Phil understood. Even a few minutes before Anne and Phil arrived at the party, Gil had been receiving encouraging and funny texts from Phil. Apparently, Anne was being melodramatic.

But nevertheless, Phil knew his intentions, and he knew he needed to tell Anne before he exploded.

And as her bright head weaved throughout the dimly-lit party, Gil felt the winds change and a storm brewed on the horizon.

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