ºᴼ°∙∘☆

felt the prying eyes of her mother as she stomped down the stairs the next morning. Her brown curls tangled in a mess on the top of her head, a robe tied loosely around her body.

"Sweety, please talk to me." Her mother tried to reason, but she was cut off by a gasp from her angry daughter. She looked a bit flustered as Anastasia turned towards her with a crease between her eyes brows.

"No, there's nothing to explain." Anastasia huffed, grabbing a piece of toast and retreating to her bedroom. She grumbled as she slammed her door shut, a frown displayed on her face as she sat down at the chair of her vanity. She stared at her pale freckled face for what seemed like an eternity before a knock sounded at her door.

"Anastasia, dear, Gilberts here." Anastasia sat up from her seat so fast, her knees bumping against the wood of the vanity. She gasped a bit, gripping her knee and responding with an okay.

She attempted to run her finger through her knotted hair, her nails scratching against her scalp and making her quite uncomfortable. She pulled the blue nightdress she was wearing off over her head, putting on a green one, and pulling her hair back into a braid.

She sighed, stepping down the stairs before rubbing her eyes and reaching the end. She glanced up and smiled at Gilbert, who was staring at her disheveled figure with a smile on his face. She rolled her eyes, bumping his shoulder as she walked over the door, placing her boots on her feet and tightening the laces. She grabbed her coat, wrapping it around her body and motioning for him to follow her. He followed suit, staring at the brown hair of his best friend

"You look like a complete mess." He commented, she spun around, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, That happens." She hissed, her boot hitting a rock causing it to skid through the snow. Gilbert seemed rather surprised by her outburst, pausing slightly.

"What's wrong?" He questioned, jogging up to walk next to her. Anastasia let out a shaky breath, rubbing her arm.

"My life is so messed up," she mumbled, staring down at the snow, "it was going so well. I'm doing good in school, I have friends, I can bake, I finally had an okay relationship with my mother, and then my father decided to come along. He just barged into our lives like he was always there. But that's the problem, he was never there. And I guess I was just so happy, that when I saw him sitting at the table, I-I just lost it. Every happy feeling just came crashing down, I don't know what to do."

She didn't notice the tears trickling down her cheek, or how hard she was shaking. She has been holding in all of these emotions for the longest time, and today was meant to be the day for her the breakdown. She raised a hand to her mouth, a strangled sob sounding from her throat. She gulped, her legs feeling rather weak.

"Hey, hey, it's okay Ana, everything's okay." Gilbert wrapped his arms around her. She moves her hands from her sides to grip the back of his coat, letting the tears drip down her cheeks. This is what she needed most, someone who wouldn't make fun of her when she cried.

"Let's go to my house," Gilbert spoke, placing a hand on her shoulder. Anastasia nodded, wiping away her tears with her gloved hands.

ºᴼ°∙∘☆

sat at Gilbert's kitchen table, him sitting across from her, kettle of tea between them. Anastasia sighed, not really enjoying the silence.

" I'm sorry about earlier, I was overreacting," Anastasia commented, taking a drink of her tea. Gilbert's eyebrows furrowed, and he shook his head.

"No, it's okay. You were not overreacting." He reached his hand over to grip hers, a sigh escaping her mouth.

"I was, wondering if I could stay here tonight. I really don't want to go back home and face my mother." Gilbert nodded, standing up and grabbing the kettle from the table. She smiled gratefully, her fingers pulling at the hem of her skirt.

ºᴼ°∙∘☆

It's been a hot minute since I last updated hahaha. Sorry about that, I didn't really have inspiration for writing. And I'm very sorry that this is so short, I'll try to make the best chapter longer :)

-Reba