Chapter Text
It's about seven in the morning when Anne wakes up and stumbles her way to the coffee maker. Her head still hurts from staring at the screen of her computer for all of yesterday. Gilbert has told her on many occasions to have a break from studying every few hours, the doctor inside him waking up every now and then, ready to annoy her with his endless remarks on her unhealthy lifestyle. In his opinion. Anne scratches the bridge of her nose and realizes she doesn't know where she has put her glasses. Gilbert usually puts them in her case when he comes home and finds them in the most unusual places, aware of the fact that it would take her an eternity to look for them in the morning half blind. Sometimes, when he can't find the case he puts them on her nightstand, but he has stopped doing that as Anne has repeatedly told him that entering her room without her permission is an invasion of privacy and that she has legal ground for a lawsuit if he does it again. She finds them tangled up in her bra on the floor, completely unaware of how they got there. She finishes making her coffee now that she isn't such a useless disaster and enjoys it, leaning on the kitchen counter. She hears the door to Gilbert's bedroom open and close and sees a certain blonde try to sneak out the front door, passing Anne without noticing her.
"Good morning, Josie. There's coffee, if you want some," she says, rather amused when she catches a glimpse of horror on Josie Pye's face.
"No, thank you. Could you please not tell Billy about this?"
"About what?" Anne winks. "Your secret's safe with me. You're not the first girl sneaking out that door."
Gilbert was popular with the ladies. Everyone on campus knew that. He tried flirting with Anne on her first day, gallantly offering to show her around, as he was two years older and knew all the halls and shortcuts, but Anne wasn't having any of it. After she scolded him for not thinking her capable enough to manage on her own he made it his goal to befriend her, engaging in a playful rivalry at some of the optional courses they had both signed up for. She's still not sure why exactly she agreed to living with him, she told everyone, including herself, that it was because she couldn't get any studying done in the dormitories with all the non-stop partying going on. He was in desperate need of a roommate after his old one dropped out and moved to Oregon, the rent is cheap and it is a pretty decent apartment, very close to school. But there was more to it. She liked living with Gilbert. Sure, the one night stand awkward morning encounters she could do without, but other than that they were a perfect match. And hey, it's none of her business if he wants to properly indulge in college life...
She had fun living with Gilbert. That's what's important.
"Morning, Sleeping Beauty," she teased when he emerged from the bedroom, the most hungover she had seen him look in a long time.
"Anne, please remind me never to drink again..." He said, rubbing his eyes. Anne, amused, handed him a coffee cup, with his coffee already prepared just how he liked it, pitch black, one sugar.
"Josie Pye? Really?" She asked. "Please tell me no one saw you two together last night. You know how Billy is."
Billy was Josie's on again off again boyfriend. The word has spread last week that they broke up for like the hundredth time, so Gilbert wasn't guilty of anything, but knowing Billy Andrews that wouldn't stop him from picking a fight with Gilbert once again. She vaguely remembers the two of them getting in a fight last year, even though she doesn't really know the circumstances, still she was pretty glad someone finally kicked that awful being of a man's ass. However it's not like Gilbert came out of it without any injuries and she doesn't want him to get hurt again over someone as worthless as Billy. She had named Billy her arch nemesis after he wouldn't take a hint and tried to grope her at the freshmen welcome party, earning himself a splash of vodka in the face in return. After that he became just the meanest, most horrible person she'd ever met, so she had no sympathy for Billy Andrews in her heart. He even spread a really nasty rumor about her last year, although to be honest she's not even sure what it was anymore... They don't really interact anymore, she had been curious about his sudden change of attitude towards her in the past, especially because at first he couldn't resist getting under her skin as much as possible, but she's learnt not question blessings such as this one, so she's let it go.
"Honestly, I don't remember. Also, could you please never again remind me of this? I have enough regrets about last night as it is."
She grabbed a post-it note, wrote Remind Gilbert never to drink again and stuck it to her to do list on the fridge. "You know, I for one think you'll be much happier spending your weekends sober. You can join my poetry club, for example."
"Sorry, but that doesn't sound like something I'd be interested in..."
"But you love reading poetry!" Anne shouted from the bathroom, later returning with a toothbrush in her mouth.
"I love reading your poetry, Anne. And a few classics, but trust me, we spend so much time together, you don't want me invading this."
Anne furrowed her brows, thinking about it. As much as she joked about him being an burden to her, she never actually found his presence annoying or unwanted. Truth is, they really do spend a lot of time together. Gilbert usually works on weekends and then goes out, but other that that, it's the two of them almost every day of the week, either studying or reading, fighting about medieval TV shows, grocery shopping, cooking or simply just doing nothing, together.
"Huh," she mumbled through the toothpaste still in her mouth.
"Wanna ditch class and go on an adventure with me?"
She spat out the toothpaste and rinsed her mouth. "Uh-uh. Last time you said that was in for a day of endless errands. I cannot take another minute of watching you trying to get a permit, trust me. Plus I know you're only asking me because you're too hungover to drive."
"Oh, come on... I promised Bash I would take Delphine to her pediatrician for a check up and I totally forgot. We could go to the ZOO or the movies with her after. Please?"
Anne sighed loudly.
"Fine. You're lucky I've only got two classes today. And that I like Delly so much. But you're cooking this week... And no frozen foods. I want the full on Gilbert Blythe chef experience."
"I love you so much, did you know that?" He laughed and Anne mockingly placed her hands on her heart, pouting her lips in response.
The drive to Delphine's kindergarten was about two hours, so they had to get ready quickly and be on their way. God knows that Anne is a wonderful driver, very responsible, but she tends to tense up in traffic, her temper making it easy for her to become aggressive. Gilbert knows this and is always making sure to calm her down, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. When she finally pulled up she insisted on staying in the car, but Gilbert called it nonsense and said that Delly would be very excited to see her.
Her teacher is nice, Anne decided, but maybe a little too nice. It was a girl, about their age, a year younger at most, with long golden locks and a very pretty smile. By the way she talked to Delly Anne could sense she was very good with kids, practically made for the job.
"I haven't seen you in a long time, Gilbert," she smiled.
"Well, I've been busy. You know how it is... But I'm very excited to see this little angel again," he said, picked Delphine up and seated her up on his shoulders. When Anne last saw her during Easter she was two then, she wanted to come for her birthday party, but didn't have the time. Anne couldn't believe how much she's grown since then. Gilbert was acting all goofy, tickling his niece while tying her shoelaces and Anne got hypnotised watching him. She liked this side of him, he was like a magician with kids, they couldn't resist his jokes and silly faces. He once said to Anne that he wanted to have as many children as possible, ideally seven, which made her laugh, but she could see him making it work.
"And you are?" The teacher cleared her throat, clearly very curious.
"That's aunt Anne," Delly said.
"Oh," she responded. "So you two are together then?"
"What? Us?" Anne panicked, earning herself a strange look from the girl.
"Yes. For about a year now," Gilbert lied, for a reason unknown to Anne. Her breath got stuck in her throat and she decided to keep her mouth shut, not knowing how to approach the situation. The girl looked hurt.
"I see. I'm Ruby," she extended her hand. "Nice to meet you aunt Anne. Is that spelled with an e?"
"I like this girl," she said to Gilbert as they were leaving. Gilbert chuckled, knowing full well just how sensitive Anne was about people spelling her name incorrectly.
"Yeah, she's an old friend from school."
For a moment, Gilbert looked lost in his thoughts. She wondered if there had been any history between the two of them, as the girl spoke very highly of him.
"She fancies you."
"Yeah," Gilbert chuckled.
"Is that why you made me lie?"
"I didn't make you lie," Gilbert said defensively. "I lied. You just didn't say anything."
"Not saying anything is the same as lying, Gilbert. And lying is bad," she addressed the last part to Delly as she tried to figure out how to fasten a seatbelt through her car seat.
The rest of the day went by pretty uneventfully. They came home at about three o'clock, both burying their faces in their textbooks. Gilbert cooked, as promised. It was nothing fancy, just chicken and rice, but Anne still thought it was delicious.
"Would you, though?" Gilbert asked as he emerged from his thoughts.
"Would I what?"
Anne had been barely paying attention, going over her essay on Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe in her head.
"Lie for me, I mean. There's something I haven't yet told you about."
"Listening..." Anne leaned in, eager to her what he was about to say.