wondrous • gilbert blythe

young love

The pair ended up walking back to the Blythe home after everything went down with Billy. The smile never left Adelaide's face, which showed the fresh blood in her teeth. When they got there, the only words that were spoken were Gilbert telling Adelaide to sit on the counter while he got the medical supplies. She rolled her eyes at him, but complied. She swung her feet back and forth while he cleaned her knuckles with a wet washcloth, and stared at him awkwardly when he put bandages on her face. After that was done, they sat at the kitchen table.

"It turns out Billy is not very good at punching. I'm a little bit disappointed with him." Adelaide started a conversation. Gilbert shook his head and laughed.

"You are absolutely crazy." He said to her with a smile. She shrugged and grinned back. Although she now had several cuts on her face, and she looked quite tired, Gilbert couldn't deny how beautiful Adelaide looked. Her hair was messy, but the short blonde waves still looked pretty.

"Oh! I got a job today!" Adelaide told him with excitement laced throughout her voice. He gave her a confused look, that asked her to continue without any words.

"Well, I went into the bakery, Mr. Kallen's, y'know? He and his wife said something about me being the perfect fit for the work, and I accepted out of sheer panic." She explained, shrugging every once in a while. Gilbert watched her lips move and her eyes light up. The way the morning sun made her skin glisten mesmerized the young boy. "Yeah? Hmm, that's great. I've been looking around for work, but nothing has really suited me." Gilbert frowned. He knew that he would soon have to tell Adelaide his plans of leaving. He could already picture how the sadness on her face would snap his heart in two.

The adrenaline rush from the fight had finally started to wear off, and Adelaide was returning to her 'normal' self. The peppiness had died down, and she noticed something off about the curly haired boy in front of her. His eyes held an immense amount of painful secrets in them; as if he held the weight of the world on his shoulders. Letting out a long sigh, Adelaide rested her chin on her palm and stared at the table.

"Adelaide, I have something I need to tell you." Gilbert spoke suddenly. He had decided that it was now or never, and he might not get another chance to tell her that he was leaving. Even though he knew it would tear the both of them apart, Adelaide was an intelligent girl; she would understand. Although they were quite young, Gilbert deeply cared for her. There were so many unspoken emotional ties that held the two together without either of them knowing.

Adelaide nodded for him to continue. She kept a straight face, but inside she was panicking. What could he be keeping?

"I don't plan to stay here. It is too much to be in this house alone, with all of the memories of my dad still fresh. I'm going to try to work on the docks." Gilbert spoke as tears sprang to his eyes.

Adelaide opened her mouth to say something, but closed it when she realized she didn't know what to say. She had expected something like this would soon happen. Loss was inevitable, and usually caused a chain reaction. Once somebody was gone, other people tended to leave, also.

"Well, I am happy for you, if you can find something you enjoy doing." Adelaide couldn't think of anything better to say.

The rest of their visit was a blur, and she soon found it time to be heading home. The sun was starting to set, displaying an array of orange and pink in the blue sky.

As she got ready to leave, Adelaide made sure to hug Gilbert tightly. "Don't leave until I've said a proper goodbye." She told him with knowing eyes, and all he could do was nod. He watched her go, seeing the dirt stains on her pretty yellow dress. Her figure eventually blended in with the beautiful sky as its color got deeper and darker. Gilbert finally shut the door and sighed. How could he let something like this slip through his fingers? Only time could tell what Gilbert should do.

The right choice would soon be written in the stars, right next to the pureness of young love that had been etched in brightly.