▷ Forever young - Alphaville

«Let's dance in style, let's dance for a while»

___

[DON'T PLAY THE SONG YET!]

Sit or lie back and enjoy the final chapter. It's a long one, +6k words.

It's been a pleasure to read all of you guys 💘 I'd love it if you commented a lot in this one!

___

ANNE SHIRLEY-CUTHBERT is nervous. Diana is of course the one to choose Anne's dress to prom. Yes, it's Prom Night and Anne Shirley-Cuthbert is nervous.

The girl stares at her reflection in the vanity mirror. Indigo blue eyes stare back at her. Her auburn hair is wavier than usual and Diana Barry, who is sitting next to her with a proud smile, has done her make up in a natural way — she likes the result.

"Well, although you haven't let me wear my classic winged eyeliner or red lipstick, I have to say that I really like the results, Barry" she says as her eyes connect with Diana's as they both look into the mirror.

"I knew you would" Diana says as she stands up. Her long, dark blue ballroom gown adjusts effortlessly to her figure. "I should be leaving for school now" she adds, checking the time in her phone.

"Bold of you to agree on helping out a hysterical- I mean, very busy Josie Pye on Prom Night"

"They need me there" Diana says, raising one perfect, dark eyebrow. "My undeniable taste and decoration skills are required"

"Alright, captain, you may leave"

"Thank you, m'lady" Diana makes a bow, lifting her skirts a bit.

Anne stays in front of the vanity mirror. There's a lot of thoughts running through her mind now, as listens to the quiet footsteps of Diana against the wooden surface of the staircase. She hears how the raven-haired girl mumbles her goodbye to Marilla when they meet on the stairs. It doesn't take Marilla much to get to her room.

"Oh, Anne" the woman mentions as she walks into the room after knocking on the ajar door. "You look divine"

Anne turns around to face her. "Thank you, Marilla" she whispers with a soft smile. She can't help but feel rather nostalgic today.

Marilla sits on Anne's bed, and the redhead already now what she's thinking about. There's so many things to think about today.

I'm not a teenager anymore, Anne thinks as she stands up and walks over to her bed, sitting right next to her adoptive mother. Everything's gone by so fast and everything's changing.

"I'm very proud of you, Anne" Marilla murmura quietly, as she places a hand on Anne's lap. "And Matthew would be too"

Oh, there it is. The feeling whose name Anne couldn't quite figure out. Nostalgia.

"I know he would" Anne says, holding back her tears — Marilla probably notices because she changes the topic instantly.

"It's a lovely corsage you got there" the woman says, caressing the delicate petals of the golden flower with her fingers.

"Oh, yes" Anne chuckles under her breath. "Gilbert bought it for me"

"That boy... he really cares about you in a special way, doesn't he?"

Anne goes silent for a few seconds before replying.

"What gave that away?"

"You should see the way he looks at you, that poor boy" Marilla says, squeezing her daughter's hand. "He doesn't ever stop staring. The eyes, Anne — the eyes never lie"

Anne smiles down to her feet, that are now wearing black delicate heels.

"Well" Anne says, standing up from her bed and fixing the skirt of her ball gown. "I should head to Gilbert's now"

As she gathers all her stuff and prepares her purse, Marilla stands up as well.

"I'll drive you"

Anne looks at her with a confused furrow of her eyebrows. It's been a while since Marilla's ever driven her anywhere. It was Matthew the one who used to drive her all the time before she got her license.

"What about Jerry?" she asks.

Marilla, with a sly smirk of mischief, looks at her as she considers her words. "His date will drive him"

The redhead smiles back, thinking about Jerry and his date — Ruby. Those two, she thinks, they're adorable together.

As Anne Shirley-Cuthbert leaves her home, which has gone by the name of Green Gables for years, she mentally prepares herself for the night.

But all her nervousness and anxiety fade away as she hops into the passenger's seat of her car. Matthew's car. As Marilla drives in the dark of the night, humming to the lyrics of a way overplayed song, Anne looks out the window — summer breeze caressing her skin and waving her hair. She feels in place. This is what home feels like.

And she's going to miss it so much when all of this is over. She closes her eyes, getting lost in the music and this moment with Marilla. There's a lot of stuff to worry about, but now she needs to focus on this night. This night with the best friends she could've asked for.

___

Gilbert Blythe stares as his own reflection in the mirror, buttoning up a spotless white shirt that he ironed just half and hour ago.

It's a teasing voice coming from the door what startles him.

"Damn, baby, looking like a snack"

Gilbert turns around, rolling his eyes at he grabs his tie from his bed. "Shut up, Fred, you asshole!" He can't help but laugh at his friend's words, though. The other boy watches him as he fixes his tie around the collar of his shirt.

"Ah" Fred sighs dramatically, leaning against Gilbert's desk. "I love it when you talk dirty to me! Any particular lady you want to charm with those dirty words and all the cursing?"

"You're not going to stop, are you?"

"Nah, not a chance" Fred laughs in the most casual way. "Alright, I'm leaving now — I'm helping Diana and the rest at school, they said they wanted me to help with the music equipment and all the DJ stuff"

"Yeah" Gilbert says. "Have fun, David Guetta"

Fred snorts a laugh. "Your sense of humor sucks"

Gilbert takes a cushion from his bed in his hands and throws it straight to Fred's face, only making the other boy giggle in response. "Nah, you suck"

"Anne should be here anytime soon, right?" Fred asks as he puts on his leather jacket, popping the collar up.

"Yup"

"Try not to faint when you see her in that dress" Fred says, teasing and annoying Gilbert as he loves to do. Gilbert can only roll his eyes at his best friend's constant teasing.

"I think I can handle myself"

Fred shakes his head lightly as he walks over to Gilbert. He wraps his arms around him, patting his back in a friendly way. "Anyway, Gilly, I'll see you there"

"See you, Freddie"

___

About twenty minutes after Fred leaves, there's a knock on the door that makes Gilbert Blythe to almost trip over his feet as he dashes down the stairs as quickly as it is humanly possible to him answer the door.

He had prepared several different ways to greet Anne that night. A casual "Hey" or a "Looking good, Shirley" that he seems to forget as soon as he opens the door.

Fred was right. Not only he's speechless but he also feels as if he's going to faint anytime soon.

Anne Shirley-Cuthbert is wearing a sparkly golden ball gown. The thin straps hold the superior part of the dress in a v-neck form that underlines her figure and the skirt falls graciously from her waist. And her hair- he thinks. Her hair looks brighter than ever.

"You- wow" he mumbles under his breath, that he's been unconsciously holding for a while. He clears his throat. "You look- you look beautiful, Shirley"

Wide eyed, she looks at him.

"Don't you think it's... to much?" She says, stepping into his house as she takes a look down at her own dress. "I look-"

"You look perfect" he whispers, although she can't hear him with all her rambling.

"I wanted to wear black, you know! But Diana insisted on this one and let me tell you, I think I look like a fucking Christmas tree with all this glitter!"

"Well, Shirley" he whispers, getting his confidence back. "I think you're the brightest and most beautiful Christmas tree I've ever seen"

Her face suddenly lights up at his words as she smiles widely at him. No, no, no, don't smile, Gilbert thinks. Don't to that to me!

"Thank you, Gilbert. You look amazing too"

Anne studies the sight of the boy. He's wearing a simple, classic black suit with a white shirt underneath and a black tie. She wonders if he chose black for his tie because that way it would match the black lace of the corsage he specifically chose for her.

Probably not.

It's a voice what shakes them out of the fact that they've been staring at each other for maybe too long — they break the eye contact instantly, and Anne's mind echoes with Marilla's words.

"The eyes never lie".

"Well, look at you two!" Sebastian Lacroix comes out of the kitchen, making Gilbert turn around. "What a lovely pair"

Gilbert gives Sebastian a wide-eyed panicked yet murdering look.

"Let me take a picture of you" the man suggests.

"No, it's alright" Gilbert grabs Anne's arm. "Come on, Shirley, let's go"

"Are you an idiot? Let's take the pic" she says.

Anne hands Sebastian her own phone so that he could take a few photos of the two of them.

The pair stand at the foot of the stairs. Gilbert puts his arms around her shoulder as he looks straight into the camera, flashing a smile.

Anne, on the other hand, is frowning.

"Oh, my god, what are you doing?"

"Smiling... to the camera...?" he mumbles cautiously.

"Put your arms around my waist, you idiot — I'm not a nun!"

Holy fuck. Gilbert can already feel sweat running down his back. He shares eye contact with Sebastian for a split second — the man seems to be enjoying the situation, because he's wearing that toothy grin, that amused, sly and teasing grin he only wears when it comes to Anne.

"Okay" he says, placing a careful hand on her waist. The two of them smile straight to the camera during their improvised home-made photo shoot.

When Anne checks the photos Bash took, there's one that catches her attention. The las one. She's looking to the camera, smiling softly.

But Gilbert is looking at her.

"It's a bit early, uhm-" Gilbert says once Bash's gone, making the girl look up and lock her phone. "Do you want to go upstairs, my room?"

She nods before following him upstairs.

___

Under a sheet of stars, Ruby Gillis is leaning against her parked car in the Cuthbert's driveway. Her pale-pink ball gown's fabric caresses her skin with the soft breeze of June.

That's the sight Jerry Baynard-Cuthbert gets once he opens the door.

"Get in, lover!" Ruby waves at him once she spots him from the car. "We're going to prom"

Jerry chuckles under his breath before starting to jog towards her. Once he gets to her, he wraps his arms around her, making her giggle.

"God, Ruby! You look amazing"

"Me?" she says, blushing after pecking his lips once or twice. "Don't be ridiculous, J! You're the one that looks amazing"

"Well... let's say that we both look great?"

"Yes, that's better" she says between giggles as they both get into her car.

"But seriously" he says after she starts the engine and starts driving. "I don't think I'll ever get tired of telling you how beautiful you look, like- you look like-"

Ruby keeps her eyes on the road and her hands on the steering wheel as she thinks how adorable he looks when he's nervous.

"Like Princess Leia?" she suggests, lips curved up into a wide smile.

"Even better than Princess Leia"

___

As soon as Gilbert opens his room's door, Anne drops her whole body in his bed,

he lies by her side.

They both keep their eyes fixed on the white ceiling. After a few minutes that seem like eternity, Gilbert speaks. He turns to lie on his side as he studies her face. Her auburn hair is splattered over the grey fabric of his duvet cover — her expression consists on a worried frown. He knows that kind of look.

"There's something bugging you" he says matter-of-factly, poking her forehead with his index finger. "What is it?"

"I guess I'm just... afraid" she whispers, still looking up to the ceiling.

"Of?"

"So many things"

"Elaborate, Shirley" he chuckles, switching his position to stare now at the ceiling too.

"This is our last day as teenagers" Anne murmurs. "Our last day of highschool, then, we'll all go different ways and..." she is almost tearing up by now. "And everyone will forget about everything"

"Oblivion" is the first word that echoes in Gilbert's mind. Not long ago, she told him that was her biggest fear. Now everything makes sense.

"Shirley, that's not going to happen" he doesn't look at her when he says these words. "I promise"

"You'll forget me as well" she whispers.

That's all it takes for him to tilt his head to the left and look at her. She's not looking at him, though. The ceiling seems more interesting.

"How could I possibly forget you?"

He whispers his words, but she hears them.

"I don't know" she shrugs. "You could"

"Not a chance" he whispers again. The door is closed, his father and Bash are downstairs and there would be impossible for them to hear them. But this conversation feels private somehow. Intimate.

"I wish I'd met you before" she blurts out in a whisper. He wasn't expecting her words, so he takes a few seconds to think about what to say next.

What he says:

"Would things be different now?"

What he means:

"Would you allow yourself to fall in love with me?"

What she says:

"Who knows"

What she means:

"Completely"

Gilbert doesn't say a single word after that. He's trying to process what she could've possibly meant. That's when he feels her sitting up in his bed before standing up — she's walking towards his desk. In awe and complete serenity, Gilbert watches her graciously move around his room with her sparkly dress.

"What is this?"

Gilbert Blythe's sense of serenity suddenly vanishes; he feels the panic running fast through his veins as he watches Anne playing with something that she's found on his desk.

Crap. No. Fuck.

The mixtape.

Fuck.

"Uh? Nothing!" He stands up abruptly, walking towards her. "Nothing. Just a mixtape"

"For whom?" she says, fidgeting with the object in her hands.

"No one" He's now standing in front of her. Gilbert wants to tear the mixtape out of his hands, but he doesn't. "I just... made it one day"

"It has my name on it"

Fuck. What a fucking genius I am, he thinks as he mentally face-palms himself

"Oh, okay, okay, you got me there!" he lets out a nervous chuckle. "Um- It was meant to be a graduation present, okay?"

"For me...?"

"Yeah, for you"

"Well, let's give it a listen!" she says with excitement, scanning the room and looking for his Walkman.

"Now? No!" He says way too loudly as he grabs the hand that's holding the mixtape with both of his hands. "I mean- no, not now — we should be leaving already anyway"

He leaves the mixtape on his desk.

That was close.

"Oh" she says, checking the time on her phone, that lies on Gilbert's desk. "You're right. Maybe another time?"

"Yeah, yeah" he says, more relaxed now. "Let's head to Prom, Miss Shirley"

She laughs at her new nickname. "My pleasure, Mr. Blythe"

___

Diana Barry is carrying a box of those classic red cups around the gym. Once she places it on the closest table. She puts both of her hands on her hips, taking a look around and admiring the work she's done.

She hears footsteps approaching and she doesn't have to turn around to know who it is.

"Wooooah, man, who is that? She looks absolutely gorgeous"

But she does turn around, anyway — Diana wraps her arms around him.

"You look very handsome too, Fred"

He places his hands on her waist as he kisses her softly. "I need to talk to you about something" Diana says, between kisses. "It's important"

"Okay?" Fred says with a confused look. Diana takes his hand in hers and walks him to the bleachers, where no one can hear them.

She takes a deep breath before starting to speak.

"I've... made an important decision" she announces. "I'm not going to college. But I'm not staying here in Avonlea either"

"Uh... Di, you're scaring me" Fred chuckles nervously.

"There's nothing to be scared of — I'm leaving my parents's house" she says. By the time of her voice, Fred suspects she's given this a lot of thought. She seems so serious and determined about what she's saying. "My aunt Josephine, in Charlottetown... she supports my decision — she says I can even continue with my piano lessons. I'm moving in with her"

"Di, are you sure?" Fred puts his hand on her knee over the blue dress. "It's your family we're talking about here"

He can't help but feel guilty. This is all his fault.

"I'm sure. Fred, this is not about you, okay? This is about me. I won't be free if I stay home" she sighs. "My parents want to control and direct my path in life and I will not allow that. It's settled, I'm moving out"

Something clicks on Fred's brain, and that's when he looks at her. It's not even the way he looks at her but his words what make Diana realize she's completely in love with him.

"You're so brave" he says, planting a soft, warm kiss on her cheek. "I'm so proud of you"

"You are?" she whispers, placing her hand on top of his, which is still resting on her knee.

"Of course I am"

"I just- no one's ever said to be proud of me"

"Well, I am. Very proud"

She smiles weakly. "Charlottetown is just half an hour away. You'll still be able to visit and even stay over sometimes... or you could come with me"

Fred considers her proposal. "I think I'll stay with John Blythe. Gil's leaving for college in fall and I don't know, both him and Bash told me they wanted me to stay. They're cool"

Diana wraps her arm around him, resting her head on his shoulder. The boy kisses the top of her head.

"I'm glad you found your place, Fred" she whispers. "We'll be okay"

"Of course, Di. We'll work this out" he assures her. "I promise"

"I love you"

"I love you too"

They stay like that for minutes, enjoying a comfortable silence until groups of people and couples start to walk into the gym.

Prom Night has officially started.

___

Avonlea High's gym is covered with a colorful mess of balloons splattered all over the wooden floor. The scene is artistically painted with dim lights hanging from the walls.

Side by side, Anne and Gilbert walk in, scanning the sight of the room in search for their friends.

"Look!" Anne says, grabbing Gilbert's arm and pointing to somewhere in the crowd with her free hand. "There's Fred and Diana over there!"

Anne interlocks her fingers with Gilbert, guiding him throw the crowd until they get to Fred and Diana, who are swinging casually to the beat of a famous pop song.

"Gilly!" Fred says with excitement as soon as he spots his best friend.

"Hey, man" Gilbert says, casually shoving his hands into his pockets — a habit that will never die. "Hi, Di. You look lovely"

"Thanks, Gil" Diana means in to give Gilbert a quick hug.

"Oh God, I can't believe you wore a leather jacket for prom" Anne says when Fred hugs her, rolling her eyes.

Fred spins around, proudly showing off his outfit. "Well, it wouldn't be me! Just imagine me wearing a suit!" he says, exaggerating a gesture of disgust and making Gilbert Blythe laugh with a roll of his eyes (a habit that he'd learnt from Anne).

"Let me take a pic of the two of you" Anne tells Fred and Gilbert, getting her phone out of her purse and making them pose together.

___

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___

"Look who just arrived"

The four of had been dancing for almost half and hour when Gilbert points to the gym's entrance with a motion of his head.

Hand by hand, Ruby Gillis and Jerry Baynard walk into the gym, getting all pair of eyes's on them. Anne can see how tense Jerry is at the sudden attention of almost everyone in the gym, but it instantly fades away as soon as Ruby squeezes his hand and whispers something in his ear.

"Come on, Han Solo, you can do this"

___

Anne, Diana and Ruby are dancing carelessly to the beat of some ridiculous yet catchy pop song when the rest of the gang shows up, joining them in their dancing.

Surrounded by the best of friends, eyes closed, lost in the moment and jumping and singing to the lyrics of a lame song, Anne feels truly ecstatic.

She feels somebody's gaze on her and that's when she opens her eyes.

Gilbert Blythe is staring straight at her. His lips are curved up into a soft, devout smile that makes her cheeks go crimson red. Anne's heart flutters in a perplexing, strange way under his gaze.

It's the kind of look he has reserved for her and only her — and she kind of knows that, but she's still not used to the intensity of his eyes on her.

She smiles back to him as she keeps dancing and twirling around. That's when, with a motion of his index finger, he silently invites her to approach him.

Anne flips him off, making him roll his eyes and approach her instead.

"Shirley!" he says once he gets to her, taking a hold of her arm and dragging her away from their friends. "Come with me! I need to tell you something"

They make their way out of the dancing crowd — now they're close to the drinks and nibbles.

"What is it?" she asks, eyes filled with curiosity.

The boy doesn't say a word — instead, he takes a hip flask out of the inside pocket of his suit.

"Gilbert Blythe!" she gasps. "What the hell is that?!"

He takes a step closer to her. He's biting his bottom lip and his eyes are sparkling as if he was a little kid in the look for some mischief.

"This, my friend, is whiskey" he taps the metal flask with his fingers whilst he uses the other hand to get something else out of his pockets. "And this... is hot sauce"

Her mind immediately and inevitably flashbacks to that night they went to the karaoke bar. It was the night they met Fred Wright.

"Aaah, Shirley, I have to say that your taste in shots is a clear contrast to your amazing taste in music. What the hell did I drink again?"

"Whiskey and hot sauce — it's called Prairie Fire"

"DISGUSTING. My tongue is literally burning!"

It was also the night she admitted she kind of felt something for Gilbert.

"Prairie fire?" she says. "You hate that"

"But you love it, you eccentric weirdo" he smiled down to her, making her smile as well.

After a few round of improvised shots, they lean against the gym's walls, away from the crowd.

"I'm sad that this is coming to an end" Gilbert says after a while, looking at this group of friends from the distance. He spots Jane Andrews. Wearing a long, green dress as she chats with that girl from their English class. Nicole, was it?

"I'm not" she says, which is a lie of course.

"You're not?"

"No, because I met you, Gilbert"

"I'm glad I met you too, Anne"

She snorts a laugh at the fact of him calling her by her name for a change. They stare at each other fondly. It's been a wild ride, and they both know that.

"I-" they both say at the same time, making each other chuckle.

"You go first" he says.

"I chose a Creative Writing program for college — it's the toughest program for English Majors" she says, taking her eyes away from him and looking over at the crowded gym.

"I wasn't expecting any less from the most brilliant person I know"

She rolls her eyes. "What did you want to say?"

"I... un-" he mumbles, fidgeting with his fingers and the sleeve of his suit. "Let's go somewhere else"

She fears what he's going to tell her, not knowing what to expect. Her mind comes up with a hundred different possibilities as they leave the gym.

They're standing in the middle of the hallway now — safe and private, there's no one else there but then. He looks at her before starting to speak.

"I... I'm not spending the summer here" he says quietly. "My dad wants to visit family in Maine, and then I'll move in straight to college"

Anne stands there, motionless. This is a possibility that she didn't considered.

"What?" she says, out of breath. "And you're tell me now?"

"You're the first to know" he says, looking down at his shoes. Truth is he'd delayed this for way too long, and he knows that. But he didn't know how to tell her. "I was hoping you could tell the rest for me, I, um, I'm the worst at goodbyes" he chuckles faintly.

She turns around, taking a couple of steps away from him — she doesn't want to face him right now.

He walks over to her, making her turn around as he grabs her hand. They look at each other now — she's crying.

"Anne, I'm sorry" he whispers. Gilbert wasn't expecting this reaction from her. He knew that she wouldn't like the idea of him not being in Avonlea on summer, but this? It breaks him to see her like this. And the worst part is that he's caused it.

She takes a deep breath, trying to stop the tears from falling down her face.

"Why- How? How long have you known this for?"

"About a month and a half or so" he murmurs.

"But- But I don't want you to leave" she says, taking a hold of his sleeve and pulling in desperately. "Please, Gil"

"I don't want to leave either, but my father needs this"

Anne knows what he means. His father was at the verge of death and now he's got the chance to live again.

"What about Fred?" she asks, as if Fred Wright could make him stay.

"He'll stay here with Bash" he simply says. "He just doesn't know yet"

Anne wipes a tear away. "What about our summer? This was meant to be the best summer of our lives"

Gilbert takes a step closer to her.

"It will still be the summer of your life" he whispers over the muffled sound of the music blasting through the speakers inside the gym.

"Not without you!"

Not without you. Not without you. Not without you.

Gilbert Blythe doesn't think he'll ever forget those words, or the way she spoke them, so desperately and miserably.

"You'll survive" he assures her, placing both of his hands on her shoulders.

"I won't" she says, pouting and crossing her arms over her chest. The fact that she looks like a little kid now makes him smile faintly.

"Anne, you will"

She takes a long, deep breath, closing her eyes as if she was thinking very hard. On times like these he wishes he was some sort of mind-reader. Some times she's ridiculously easy to read, but some others she's just like an enigma waiting to be figured out.

"When... are you leaving?" she asks, looking up so that indigo blue eyes can meet hazel.

"Next week"

Just a week. Just a week.

"Then I guess..." she says after wiping her last year away, forcing now a smile. "We'll have to plan a lot of fun things for this week, huh?"

"That's my girl" he says, bringing her closer to him for a hug, wrapping his arms around her. "And don't cry, you look ugly as fuck when you cry"

"Asshole" she mumbles against the fabric of his suit.

"I'm obviously lying" he chuckles. "You're the most beautiful girl, or should I say Christmas tree? here, crying or not"

That's all it takes for her to laugh.

"Still an asshole"

"We should go back inside, don't you think?" he says, once they separate from their hug.

"Yeah, lets go"

"But hey, let me take a photo of you first, little Christmas tree"

___

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___

"Hey"

After is conversation with Anne, Gilbert is on his own, pouring himself some Punch, being careful enough not to ruin his shirt as he does so.

He turns his face to his left to find Ruby Gillis standing right next to him.

"Hey, Rubs" he says, offering the girl a filled cup. Ruby mouths a silent "thank you" and studies Gilbert's face quietly before speaking.

"You know, Gil, I think you're handling the Anne situation very well"

Gilbert blinks twice as he drinks.

"I thought you were the only one that hadn't notice" he says quietly.

"Of course I noticed. I'd have to be blind or deaf not to notice. I just didn't say anything" Ruby tells him, leaning her back against the table. The boy does the same.

"Why?"

She shrugs.

"Thanks for not teasing me about it" he chuckles as he drinks. "It feels good for a change"

"I just didn't want you to feel... pressured, you know?" she says, looking at him. "Things are better when they flow naturally — what you and Anne have is  beautiful. You are more than friends and everyone can tell. You're partners in crime, you work perfectly!" Ruby talks about him and Anne with so much passion that it makes Gilbert smile faintly. "Don't ruin that, Gil"

"I won't"

"Anne's complicated. I believe she's holding on to Charlie because he's of the last things that remains from her past — she's terrified of changing that and losing him just like she lost Matthew" she whispers, and for Gilbert, her words make sense. So much sense.

"I know"

"I know you do, Gil" she says. "That's why I admire you so much"

"You admire me?"

"Of course I do! You're putting her above your own feelings. That must be hard"

"It is – it is really hard" he admits with a nod.

"If care about my opinion... you two will find your way back to each other. I don't know, maybe I'm a hopeless romantic but I think that your story is not over. When two people are meant for each other... they'll end up being together. You'll see"

Ruby pats his back softly, leaning her head against his arm.

"I hope you're right" he murmurs.

"I hope so too"

"Thank you, Rubs" he says, ruffling her hair carefully so that he doesn't ruin her hair. "You're a good friend"

"You are a good one too, Gil"

Silence. They watch watch as their friends dance. Diana and Jerry are dancing together, jumping wildly whilst Fred and Anne are pretending to be a dramatic Victorian couple as he clumsily spins her around, making Anne laugh historically as she tries not to fall.

"I think love's fascinating" Ruby murmurs quietly, get head still leaning on Gilbert's arm.

"You're heads over heels for Jerry, aren't you?"

"I don't even know it happened — one day I woke up and I suddenly knew"

It takes Gilbert a few seconds to speak again.

I woke up one day and I suddenly knew too, he thinks. One day feelings weren't there and the next morning I woke up and, surprise! You're in love.

"I suppose love can storm in" he whispers as he watches Anne twirling and laughing from the distance.

"Come on, romantic boy" Ruby says, grabbing Gilbert's arm and dragging him to the dance floor. "You owe me a dance"

___

Anne looks at Gilbert whilst he talks to Fred about something that she can't hear now. I can't believe he's not going to be here during the summer. I can't believe I only have a week left with Gilbert Blythe.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Of course, he had to notice. It doesn't take him long to stand right next to her, looking at her and analyzing her face with that tilted-head worried look.

"Nothing"

"Don't you know already that you can't lie to me, Shirley?"

"I said I'm fine, you idiot"

"If you insist" he says as he grabs her hand and spins her around. Smooth.

[PLAY THE SONG!]

"What are you doing?" she asks.

"Dancing"

"Fuck" she curses under her breath once she realizes which song it's playing.

"You love this song, don't you?"

"I do" she admits.

Let's dance in style, let's dance for a while
Heaven can wait we're only watching the skies
Hoping for the best but expecting the worst
Are you gonna drop the bomb or not?

"Then let's fucking dance"

"We shouldn't" she says. It's a slow song, Anne thinks. I won't fall for that again.

"I promise this time that nothing, nothing will happen"

She doesn't know if what impulsed her to initiate a dance was his insistence or the fact that she actually wanted to. But Anne and Gilbert start to dance to the slow flow of music.

Her hand on his shoulder, their feet in almost perfect sync. She wondered how every dance move make her breathless — does he feel that too?

Bodies nearly touching, they move slowly in their spot, surrounded by other couples who they seem to have forgotten by now.

Can you imagine when this race is won
Turn our golden faces into the sun

Anne felt more and more relaxed as the song progressed. He towers over her, but looks down to meet her eyes every time he spins her around.

"See? Nothing weird, just you and me, dancing to Forever Young" he leans in to whisper in her ear with a cheeky grin.

"Ah, a dream come true" she says, rolling her eyes.

He spins her around softly, again. Just in time to when the chorus comes. They sway, warmth growing between them. She places her head on his chest.

Forever young, I want to be forever young
Do you really want to live forever?
Forever, or never

"You know, Shirley, you don't ever stop to amaze me" he says. "Apart from being a music nerd and a fucking intellectual, you're also a brilliant dancer"

"Am I getting a compliment from the one and only Gilbert Blythe?" she says, lookin up to him.

"I compliment you all the time — nothing's changed"

"Yeah, nothing's really changed" she whispers, not very convinced about her own words.

"You're so tense, Shirley" he shout-whispers in her ear over the music. "I can literally feel your muscles under your shoulders"

She looks down at her feet. No answer.

"Hey, hey" he whispers, lifting her chin with a single finger. "What's wrong?"

"I feel that... dancing with you now, I'll have fun and the night will go by faster... and then everything will be over" she tells him. "And I don't want it to be over"

He blinks twice.

"It doesn't have to be over. I mean — it's not over"

What are we talking about? Prom? Feelings? I don't know anymore.

"You can't make this night last forever" she says, matter-of-factly.

It's so hard to get old without a cause
I don't want to perish like a fading rose
Youth like diamonds in the sun
And diamonds are forever

"If I could, I would" he spins her around before bringing her closer to him, chest against chest. "Trust me"

"You know, when I told you I'd save a dance for you, I wasn't expecting this slow-dancing shit" she says, trying to make the situation more casual and relaxed than it already is.

"They don't play The Smiths at school parties, Shirley" he chuckles.

"Much to my disgrace!" she says, punching her chest softly, making him laugh under his breath.

They keep dancing like that until the music fades away, and without wording their thoughts — which are exactly the same, they both know. It felt right, to be dancing with each other. It felt like looking into a mirror. It felt like he was made for her and she was made for him, by the complicity of their bodies moving around the room. It felt like all those past months of getting to know each other, joking, laughing, studying, pining and staring — suddenly make sense.

___

END OF PART II.

Comments about the ending?