Devoted To You || Gilbert Blythe

LII

"I thought we were gonna learn about the real birds and bees." Jane asks, annoyed.

"I assure you, the lesson will be illuminating all the same." Miss Stacy declares making Jane roll her eyes.

I'm the only young lady that is educated in this area. I lived with two boys and Father believed that everyone should be educated in case there are ever any—incidents.

"And then we have the birds. Take the red-breasted nuthatch." This makes the boys laugh. "Its main source of food is the spruce budworm, which is a conifer pest. So while the Red-breast— The bird gets its food, the tree gets some much-needed pest relief. Which leads me to the purpose of this outing—"

"Mating season?" One of the Paul's pipe in.

"Disgusting!" The girls grimace.

I hear a thud and then a loud scream. We snap our attention towards the sound and find Moody crying out in pain.

"Oh, my goodness." I breathe out when Gilbert pulls down his sock to find a deep bloody wound. The girls scream and then we hear another scream from the bushes. I look over to find two Indian children with fearful looks.

"Indians!" Tillie screams

"We are surrounded by savages!" Josie yells making the two children run off.

"Everyone, calm down!" Miss Stacy claps. "Can we focus on Moody?"

I hear another thud and find Ruby has passed out.

(All I can hear is that one tiktok sound "This rabbit has fainted."🤣🤣🤣)

"Ruby, you alright?" Diana exclaims as she runs to her aid.

I turn my attention back to Moody. I sit down beside of him and try to help him stay calm. "We're going to get you help, okay. Don't worry." I look to Gilbert. "How is he? Should he be worried?"

"It's deep." He grabs a cloth and applies pressure to the wound to stop the bleeding. "There's nothing I can do here. He needs stitches."

"The Mi'kmaq village. It's nearby, they can bring help." Anne suggests before running off. "I know the way. I'll be right back."

"It hurts." Moody seethes as his breaths become more rapid. I can't imagine how much that leg hurts.

"Take deep breaths, Moody. Help is on the way." As Moody grimaces in pain, I continue to reassure him, my fingers gently brushing through his hair in an attempt to distract him from the throbbing agony.

Gilbert, still tending to the wound, glances up at me, a subtle tension in his expression. Moody's distress consumes my attention, but a flicker of awareness tells me something else is at play. "Let's get him sat up." Gilbert urges.

We help him sit up. Moody's labored breaths fill the air, emphasizing the gravity of the situation.

"Is she going to be alright?" Diana asks Gilbert. I glance down at Ruby who is still laying on the ground

"She's in shock." He reaches into his bag and hands her the honey he gathered this morning. "Give her some honey. It'll bring her energy up."