Green Eyed Beauty

Chapter 17

"Mary? Bash?" He called out, chest heaving. He heard the click of a woman's boots and saw Mary pop her head out of the kitchen.

"Bash is out in the fiel- boy, are you alright?" The woman rushed over and quickly grabbed Gilbert's face. "You're burning up and your face is red." She looked over him, assessing for injuries.

He smiled, patting her hand. "Not sick or hurt, I promise." Mary's face visibly relaxed.

"You just about gave me a heart attack." She scolded. "What's with this yelling and panic then?"

Gilbert felt embarrassment creep up. "I've got a problem regarding the dance Saturday."

Mary blinked, processing his response before smacking his shoulder. "Are you telling me all of this huffing and puffing is because of a dance?"

"You don't understand, Mary!" Gilbert whined, following the older woman back into the kitchen. "Everyone has asked someone to the dance and I haven't! And Charlie and Moody kept bugging me about it and I accidentally said I was taking Jade!"

Mary put down the potato she was peeling and raised an eyebrow. "You accidentally said that? Or you were thinking of it, to begin with?"

Gilbert opened his mouth and then closed it. She was right. He wouldn't have said anyone else's name. Only Jade's.

"You've probably heard this a hundred times by now, by why don't you just ask her? You're kind of expected to now." She laughed, resuming to cut up the potatoes for dinner.

"What if she's already going with someone else?" He paced. "Or doesn't want to be seen with me in front of half of Avonlea?"

He began to run his hands through his hair, making Mary pause from cutting up the vegetables and rolling her eyes. "Gilbert."

He stopped and looked at the woman he saw as a mother figure now. "Do you like her?"

Gilbert sighed, running his hand through his hair. "Well-"

"It's a simple question. One I know you know the answer to. Yes or no?" She cut in.

Hesitation. Moment's pause.

"Yes." He breathed. He felt a small weight lift. That's the first time I've said it out loud.

"Then don't waste any more time, Gilbert. You graduate in a few months and you don't know if you'll see her again after this." Mary threw the carrots and potatoes into a pot and walked over to the sink. "You're an intelligent young man and if I know anything about girls, Jade definitely feels the same way."

Gilbert swallowed. "Do you really think so?"

She nodded. "Oh, I know so, doctor boy. I'm getting sick and tired of watching you pretend like you won't drop to one knee right now." Mary smirked, throwing Gilbert a wink over her shoulder.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." He laughed, despite the warm feeling that spread through his chest at the thought of asking Jade to spend the rest of her life with him. Yeah, take it down a notch, Gilbert.

Mary nodded her head towards the door that Gilbert barged through not even 10 minutes ago. "I've still got lots of stuff to get done before supper is ready so clean yourself up, drink some water, and go ask that poor girl to the dance."

He nodded slowly. "Ok, yeah, you're right. Thank you, Mary."

She smiled at him, shooing him back outside. Gilbert shut the front door and took a deep breath before starting the walk to the Peyton's residence.

His head was swimming. There were so many ways this could go wrong or backfire. She could reject him. She could laugh in his face. She could tell him he was repulsive.