In the following weeks, you and Gilbert had become quite good friends. The two of you spent lunch together every day, and walked home together every afternoon. You really enjoyed being around him- he was very smart and well-read, but also very kind and non-judgmental. You felt comfortable around him.

On Friday morning, as you crossed the clearing that led up to the schoolhouse, you were ambushed by Ruby Gillis and two other girls, who you remembered as being Josie Pye and Diana Barry. "H-hi Oliver." Ruby stammered, looking at her shoes.

"Hi, what's up?" You looked at her with a questioning expression, not sure where this was all coming from. None of the girls had ever talked to you before except Diana, and that was only because she was being nice.

"Um, well," She looked to Diana for moral support, and Diana nudged her arm, encouraging her to continue. "You're friends with Gilbert, right?"

You nodded.

"Well... does he ever talk about me?" She looked at you eagerly.

"Oh, we don't really talk about that sort of thi-" You stopped yourself mid-sentence, seeing her hopeful expression fixated on you. You couldn't break her heart. "Um, he thinks you're sweet."

The poor girl looked as if she was about to faint. "Okay, thank you." She managed, sounding short of breath. Josie wrapped her arm around Ruby and began ushering her up to the school building so as not to be late. Diana still stood there, looking at you.

"Thank you for that." She spoke, a knowing look in her eye. "Ruby's very sensitive. I think you just made her whole week."

"Oh, it's no problem," You chuckled nervously, walking next to Diana as you talked.

"Could I ask a big favor of you?" Her voice was hushed, and and a bit more urgent this time as she turned her head to look at you.

"Sure, anything."

"Would you talk to Gilbert? About Ruby, I mean. She's been hopelessly in love with him for ages, it would really mean the world to her, and me."

Your stomach knotted for some reason, but you nodded. "Uh, yeah. For sure."

The two of you were at the front steps of the schoolhouse now, and she turned around to face you, smiling brightly. "Thank you, Oliver. You're sweet." She leaned over, kissing you on the cheek before hurrying up the steps and rushing over to her friends to share the news.

You blushed bright red with embarrassment, quickly taking your seat in the classroom. Billy waltzed over, having saw what just transpired, and took a seat on the corner of your desk with a cocky grin plastered across his face.

"Say, Oliver, I had no idea runts could talk to girls." He mused sarcastically, clearly pleased with himself.

You tilted your head to look up at him in annoyance. "Wow Billy! and I didn't know baboons could speak English. Yet here we are." you retorted, taking out your school books. Billy stared at you with a smug expression for a second, likely trying to think of something to say, but then gave up with a scoff and returned to his desk. Gilbert came in moments later, pulling out the chair next to you and taking a seat.

"What was that about?" he asked, gesturing to Billy.

"Just the usual," you laughed dryly, heading your paper. "How are you?" You inquired, turning your head to look at him.

"I'm good. How are you?" He smiled gingerly. He didn't look good- his eyes were a bit puffy, like he hadn't slept well or had been crying. This bothered you deeply.

"I'm good, thank you." you replied, as softly as possible.

Class that day seemed to fly by. It wasn't long before the bell rang and you and Gilbert were out the door, starting the walk home. He had been very quiet during lunch. In fact, it mostly consisted of the two of you just sitting next to each other reading in silence. Which would have been fine, if you didn't have a gut feeling that something was the matter. You walked next to him quietly for a while, the only sounds being the distant chirping of birds and twigs snapping under your feet. He would speak every now and then, making idle small talk. He could probably feel that something was off.

"Gilbert, is everything okay? With you, I mean." You asked quietly, looking up at him.

There was a heavy silence before he responded. "Yeah, everything is fine." He answered nonchalantly. His was tone light and friendly, but his face remained stoic. You could tell that he was lying, and it hurt you. You knew in your mind that he had no obligation to tell you his personal business, but a part of you was worried about him. You looked at the ground as the two of you approached the fork in the road where you each went your separate ways. He looked over at you in concern, understanding that he probably upset you.

"Hey," Gilbert reached over and touched your shoulder, turning to face you. "If something was wrong, I wouldn't keep you in the dark."

You nodded, looking up to make eye contact with him now. "No, I'm sorry. It's wrong of me to pry. I just wor-" Cutting you off, he pulled you into a hug. This caught you completely off guard, but you hugged him back tightly. It felt like he needed this as much as you did.

He broke the embrace after a few moments, placing his hands squarely on your shoulders and looking you in the eyes. "You're my best friend, Oliver. I don't want you to think otherwise."

You nodded, looking down and trying to fight off a small smile. "Thank you. You're mine, too." He said goodbye to you, and you went your separate ways.

That night, you could hardly sleep. The day's events just kept playing over and over in your mind as you lay in bed. You remembered what Diana had asked you to do, and you grew anxious even recalling it. Were you worried that it would somehow affect your friendship with Gilbert, or was it something else? Turning over onto your side you remembered how he had hugged you today. The feeling of his arms around you, his warmth, his smell. The closeness of his face to yours when he told you that you were his best friend. It made you dizzy. You thought of Ruby Gillis, and that dreamy look in her eye when she talked about Gilbert. Why did that bother you so much? It shouldn't matter to you what other girls thought of him. After all, you were his friend, not his girlfriend. Wasn't that enough?

You sat straight up in bed. No, you realized, that wasn't enough. You loved everything about him. The way his eyes crinkled when he smiled. That spark you felt when your hand accidentally brushed his. How he always made you feel safe, and comfortable. The way he read poetry aloud in class. You loved the sound of his voice. All of it, you were in love with all of it.

You were in love with Gilbert Blythe.