Between the words: Anne with an E

Letter 1

BLYTHE

Why was it that finally when Gilbert Blyth had gotten what he had wanted for the first time in his life, did he feel like he was missing something. All he had ever wanted was to be a doctor and go to medical school, but while sitting there on the small wooden framed bed in the small shared room of Toronto University dorm, was his wind wondering all the way back from where he had come.

To Anne.

"Damn it" Gilbert swore, swiping his cap of his head and slapping it on the bed beside him.

"I can come another time if you need?" A deep voice mentioned breaking Gilbert out of his trance of staring down at the worn floorboards.

Standing at the sight of what turned out to be his roommate. "I apologise, I am Gilbert Blyth by the way. Pleased to meet you". He held his hand up and the boy put his case down and returned with a very strong shake.

"Earnest Hilmer, nice to meet you, Blyth. Looks like we will be bunking together then. That one free?" He asked bedding towards the opposite bed. Gilbert nodded his head quickly and moved to the side to let him through. "What are you in for?" Earnest asked dumping his short body onto the opposite bed. Earnest was pale but well dressed with thick-rimmed glasses and neat blond hair.

"Medicine, and yourself?" Gilbert asked without questioning the strange mannerisms of Earnest.

"Same actually. But I attended last year already, you look like fresh meat" Earnest laughed at his own joke. Gilbert looked down at himself and back at his roommate questioningly. He certainly was a strange sort of fellow.

"A bit obvious then ey?" He inquired again in waiting. To which Gilbert coughed out a weak sounding - no.

"No, I got a good eye for it, that's all" And like that, Gilbert's new roommate jumped up from his slumber and gave him, what he called the royal tour; around the campus, where to collect his mail and the mess hall. On the way, they bumped into some people that Earnest seemed to be friendly with, but were not quite Gilbert's cup of tea. However in saying that, thus far everyone seemed nice enough, but it was hard to determine the nature of people from the first glance. The campus seemed to be quite grand, and even housed a full two-story library, overflowing with books. On entering the room his mind went back to Anne.

She would have loved this, he thought walking past the filled shelves. "Good to find yourself a corner in here and get work done, the dorms are too noisy for anything practical" Earnest added as they walked past some people studying. The sight of everyone studying and busy made Gilbert feel as if he was already behind. But it was the first practical thing Earnest had shared yet.

Before long they had made it back to the mess hall where dinner was being served. Thankfully Gilbert was not a picky eater - especially after having to try cook by himself and the slop they served on the steamship - because the meatloaf and potatoes were tasteless and felt as if he was chewing rubber. "I don't miss this" Earnest scoffed. "I swear the cook must do it on purpose, the food cannot be this bad by mistake" it looked like Earnest was just swallowing the food instead of chewing it, Gilbert followed suit and did the same.

Dinner ended and it was late when they returned from going out. It was apparently a tradition to go out to the local drinking house, so Gilbert thought he had better receive the full Toronto experience. He had only ever had a few sips of ale in his life and yet here he was downing whole glasses. He barely remembered the walk home but at least after drowning water the rest of the evening, he was the one shaking Earnest awake for breakfast the next morning.

"Still half-drunk and the food is still awful" Earnest gruffed. The boiled eggs and toast was a normal breakfast for him, so he paid his roommate little attention and finished his food quickly. It was relatively easy to find his way around with some classmates he had met the night before. Unlike his grumpy roommate; Colin, Greg and Albert were as excited to begin as he was.