xxvi.

Hi everyone! I'm back! Sorry for the late chapter but this one will be long to make up for the missed time! Missed you all!

I do want to inform all my readers the I have left out some larger parts of the story simply because Eleanor wouldn't be able to fit naturally anywhere in the story line. There will probably only be around two more chapters left in this series and I plan to make the most of them. I've loved writing this story and I cherish all my readers, I just want you all to get the best experience out of this story. Anyways...

On with the story!

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The live band was blaring their country music as people spun and danced to the wild tunes.

Eleanor was sitting at a small table with Gilbert as she watched Anne and Diana spin and laugh. They were pulled apart by two other women and swung around before they were passed to another set of people.

"Why don't you go up there and join them?" Gilbert asked as Eleanor looked about ready to jump up from her seat.

"I dunno, I'm not very good at dancing." Eleanor shrugged and tapped her foot to the sounds of the music.

"How about if I dance with you?" Gilbert asked as he sprang from his seat and grabbed her hand, pulling her to the dance floor with all of their friends.

"G-Gilbert! I can't dance! I have two left feet."  Eleanor whined as Gilbert slung her in a circle.

He simply chuckled at her whines as he pulled her in and kissed her cheeks. She giggled as she tried to shimmy away from his extensive kisses and spinning. Another person grabbed her hand and spun her into them, she looked up and gasped as the face of Leo stared back at her.

Leo Osborne.

That snarky black haired boy that helped bandage her hand as Josephine's flower party.

He smirked as his hand intertwined with hers, his green eyes staring daggers into her blue eyes.

"Hello again." his voice was smooth like silk with a deep rasp in it.

"Hello." Eleanor said plainly as her eyes were scanning the room for Gilbert.

"Looking for that curly haired fellow from earlier? I'm afraid he's run off with some blonde haired fellow, he was simply whisked away in this silly little waltz." Leo shrugged and spun her in a circle.

Eleanor grumbled but gave in as the boy spun and dipped her to the ending of the song. He smirked as she rolled her eyes and tried to leave his grasps, only for him to hold on tighter.

"Leo-" before she could react her pulled her in and ran his hands along her lower back.

She gasped as she felt his hot breath getting closer to her neck, he left a small kiss on her cold skin and she shuttered.

"G-Get off of me." she quickly snapped out her trance and pushed his back, his hands loosened slightly but still sat pretty on her hips.

"Aw why darling? I thought we were having fun...scared of that bloke from earlier eh? I'm sure he won't mind if I borrow you for an evening." Leo smirked and placed a kiss on her bare shoulder.

She gasped and pushed his off of her, she was close to tears.

Tears of anger.

"Leave her alone." Gilbert's angry tone made Eleanor jump slightly as she spun around to see him staring daggers at Leo.

The rich boy only cocked an eyebrow as he stared at Gilbert, Gilbert's fist were balled as he began to approach the rich boy looking as if he were about to advance in a fight with him.

Eleanor grabbed his hand and gently pulled him towards her, before he could take another step he almost immediately melted into her grasp. His anger seemed to dwindle as she laced her fingers with his.

"Aw would you look at that, she's got you on a leash." Leo chuckled and made a whipping sound.

"Go fetch little doggy! Maybe after she'll give you a good ear rub." Leo snorted.

"You wish she would give you an ear rub." Gilbert muttered, making Eleanor giggle with his childish comebacks.

"Oh I could easily have her if I wanted her, but I see she's gone to the dogs again. Sigh...you really should get your priorities straight Eleanor." Leo rolled his eyes.

She sneered at him as she began pulling Gilbert away from the dance floor, that was now almost completely empty with people.

The music had come to a stop to listen to the teenagers conversation, and now it seemed liked the entirety of the hall was talking about Eleanor and Gilbert.

"I heard she was the one who had that black mans baby."

"Did you know she's actually a blonde? Dyed her hair she did, if I were her mum I would be furious."

"No wonder her parents kicked her out, she acts like that and dresses of a harlot."

Eleanor ignored all the whispers and rumors as she led Gilbert out of the back of the large barn. Her boots thunked all the way across the hard dirt and grass before she collapsed onto an old stump. Gilbert carefully sat down on the cold ground beside of her.

Her head rested in her hands as she tried not to cry.

As much as she hates to admit it, the whispers and rumors really had an impact on her. And with Leo treating her like she was some piece of meat, the days events all came flooding back to her in the form of salty tears.

"Eleanor..." Gilbert sighed as she let the tears run down her arms and onto her dress.

"I'm sorry." she sniffled and wiped her nose, her eyes were red from crying so she refused to look at Gilbert.

The two sat in silence for a minute as Eleanor's soft cries and gasps filled the cool summer evening.

"I feel like I'm always going to be looked at as a piece of meat. A corset and a pair of boobs." Eleanor whispered as she sobbed loudly.

Gilbert rubbed her thigh lovingly as he sat there, he truly didn't know what to say to make her feel better. He knew she always felt this way, but she usually was quick to not show that it bothered her to anyone.

"I'm sorry Elle...I want to help but I don't know how. Is it something that I've done?" Gilbert asked.

"N-No of course not...it's just how women are treated now-a-days. I can't stand to be treated like an object Gilbert." Eleanor sniffled and rubbed her eyes, her mascara slightly making her eyes darker.

Gilbert nodded and laced his fingers with hers, he placed a soft kiss to the back of her hand as she smiled slightly.

"No matter what happens, no matter what you're feeling, no matter how alone you feel, I'll always be here for you my love. I love you and I love everything you do to make our little town feel bigger than it truly is. You brighten so many peoples day just by existing, and I know that Mary would be proud to see how much you've grown over the past year." Gilbert said softly.

Eleanor smiled and brought him in for a kiss, the two shared a long and sweet kiss in the summers moonlight.

"I can't wait to spend the rest of eternity with you Gilbert Blythe." Eleanor smiled.

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Eleanor was cleaning up Delphine's face as Bash was busy out in the fields, he was harvesting the first crops of the season.

Gilbert had busied himself in packing up the bedroom, he was packing up his and Eleanor's stuff for college.

"Eleanor? Do you want to bring all of your ribbons with you?" Gilbert yelled.

"What kind of question is that?" she muttered and rolled her eyes with a laugh.

"Yes please darling, make sure to get every single one of them into my suitcase!" she yelled back.

Delphine yawned as she stretched her arms out for Eleanor to pick her up, the girl was quick to pick her up and sit her in her basket. It swing slightly as the babies eyes gently closed and she fell into a dreamy sleeping state.

Eleanor hurried into the bedroom to see Gilbert throwing all of her ribbons into a cloth bag that once belonged to her mother.

"Gilbert! You're going to wrinkle them!" Eleanor gasped as she gently nudged him away and started folding and rolling them neatly into tight rolls.

"Sorry your majesty." Gilbert chuckled and flopped back onto the bed.

She rolled her eyes and smiled at him as she glanced to the three bags he had already packed, one of which had been hers and the other two were all of his own clothes.

"Do I even have to look." she grumbled and pulled her bag up onto the bed, opening it to see one of the worst messes she's ever seen.

Gilbert smiled innocently at her as she began to pull out her dresses and skirts, all of her nice blouses were shoved into the small pockets of the suitcase.

"I just worked so hard on packing your bag!" Gilbert whined as he grabbed her hands to stop her.

She looked down to his hands gripped on her wrist, he instantly let go and apologized profusely but she merely smiled and sat down beside of him.

"Thank you for helping me pack, but I would rather my clothes be folded neatly than thrown into the suitcase like a raging blind man did it." Eleanor giggled.

Gilbert shrugged, agreeing with her, before falling back onto the bed and nearly knocking his head on two large boxes on the side of the bed.

Eleanor sighed and flopped down beside him, her hair was covering Gilbert's face as he spat and brushed it away from his face. She giggled and turned to look at the boy sitting beside of her, her small hand reached up and brushed a piece of hair out of his face.

"Gilbert." she said softly.

"Eleanor." he responded, in an even softer voice.

"What will we do when we go off to college?" she asked, her worries filling her head.

"I dunno, we will visit each other. And we will write letters to each other once a week, we can work it out." Gilbert shrugged.

"What if it...doesn't?" she sighed.

"Don't say that." Gilbert said harshly.

She nodded and shut her mouth, he placed a soft kiss on each of her cheeks and ran his hands through her long red hair. She almost seemed to melt into his touch as his warmth radiated through her.

"We'll always be together my love, no matter how far apart our bodies are...our hearts will always be with each other." Gilbert's voice seemed to soothe Eleanor's nerves as she smiled and nodded.

"I love you." she smiled.

"I love you more." he responded.

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Hi everyone! I'm going to be writing maybe 1-2 more chapters then this story will be finally completed! I appreciate all of the reads and love I've gotten from writing this story.

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