■■■

"Am I putting this on straight?" Hamilton asked. He took a step back from the Christmas tree and eyed the star on the tip of it.

"Hamilton, that's the most lopsided thing I have ever seen," Caroline added with a frown as she passed a wrapped present to Victoria.

It was Christmas morning and the Edwards family were woken up early by Edward who wanted to open the presents as soon as possible.

Much to everyone's surprise, and Caroline's anger, Benedict had gifted his youngest with an adorable King Charles Spaniel.

It all went well until the puppy decided that he wanted to make the Christmas tree his territory. Benedict almost pushed the tree over as he had sprinted to prevent the dog's efforts.

"What do you mean? It's perfectly symmetrical." Hamilton said with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Sweetheart, it's not. Benedict, is the star on straight?"

Benedict pulled his gaze off the dog and his son who were getting used to each other and eyed the star. "Obviously." He stated.

Caroline looked at her daughter imcredilously who shrugged in response. "At what time is the panto tonight?"

"Seven. But I should be there at least an hour and a half before. Oh, and I need a shovel! Hopefully, one that was not used in the stables." Victoria warned much of the confusion of her parents.

Victoria had made sure not to give too much about the play away as she wanted them to go into the play knowing nothing.

Her brothers were spared from that fate. Edward was unwillingly forced into participating in the choir alongside children his age.

Hamilton, on the other hand, was more than willing to help with the production. He even volunteered to go over lines with her, giving his temporary parts a too-much high dose of dramatics.

"I already asked the stable-hand for a clean one. I placed it by the backdoor." Hamilton reassured as he leaned down to pet the dog. "What are you going to name him?" Hamilton asked Edward.

"Ludovicus." He said with a smug look on his face, clearly proud of the name.

The room fell silent as they all stared at the youngest Edwards.

"Ludovicus? For a dog?" His father asked.

Hamilton had a bright grin as he leaned his head against his hand and gave Edward an analytic look.

"Fascinating! It seems he inherited the inability to name from his parents." Victoria snorted at the statement while Caroline glared at Hamilton.

"Caroline, it's Christmas. I forbid you from murdering our son." Benedict said with his palms raised to show peace. "Besides, you did name him Edward Edwards."

Edward physically winced at his name and clutched on tightly to tiny Ludovicus.

"I named him after a king! Do not make me the villain. You agreed to the name. Let's not forget what you wanted his middle name to be." Caroline looked at her husband but to her surprise, he was already laughing.

"I wanted to name you Edward Edmund Edwards," Benedict confessed. The entire family burst into hysterics while Edward was slowly turning red.

"I'm changing my name once I am old enough," Edward muttered, burying his face in Ludovicus' brown fur.

"Truly, I think that is a splendid idea. Go by your middle name instead." Victoria suggested as Edward started pouting. "Ernest Edwards. Not too bad."

"Victoria, stop tempting him," Caroline said in a warning tone.

Hamilton frantically shook his head, a ghost of a smile still on his face. "Mother is right. Who are we to encourage our dear brother to change his...unique name? Who else would we make fun of?"

"You are my least favourite sibling," Edward added. Victoria's face brightened at that statement.

"That makes me his favourite by default. That calls for a celebration. Bring out the champagne!" Victoria cheered out and was immediately shut down by her mother.

"I would suggest that you do not go to your show intoxicated. Shakespeare would roll in his grave." Benedict joked before nodding upstairs. "Speaking of which...shouldn't you go get ready?"

"My show. I would like to say that it isn't since a lot of people are involved but my narcissistic side likes the sound of that."

Hamilton rolled his eyes as he raised his hands from the sides of his head and moved them at opposite ends to indicate a large head. "Dear Lord, you are intolerable."

■■■

Victoria was fifteen minutes away from getting on stage and she could feel her nerves building up by the second. She was already in costume, in a pair of trousers that she was not used to.

However, she was in the midst of an unbeatable battle with her hair as her curls were too wild to be covered by the cap.

She took five minutes of failure before she dropped her hair down in frustration. Victoria was about to leave and find someone to help her with it when someone found her instead.

"You look like you need some help. May I?" Victoria instantly felt a smile form at the sight of Gilbert Blythe.

"You may, actually. Could you tie my hair up? I can't do it without a mirror." Victoria handed him a green ribbon that Gilbert took gingerly.

He eyed it hesitantly. "I don't want to ruin your hair."

Victoria chuckled and waved him off. "Trust me, it is an absolute disaster already."

Gently, Gilbert gathered her hair and slowly tied it out of her face. "I still do not think that all that hair will fit under that cap."

She turned around and looked at Gilbert, finding his presence to be very close and comforting. "That is what the pins are for." She looked into his eyes and saw his face soften as he gazed back.

"Happy Christmas. Did you have fun at the Cuthberts?" Victoria asked.

"Merry Christmas. Anne told you?" Gilbert said with eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Anne tells me everything. And about the friend joined you on the journey back. I'm quite glad that you found someone to keep you company." Victoria was blindly pushing in pins into her hair.

It probably looked like a mess but it didn't matter as it would be covered anyway. Gilbert kept his eyes trained on her, watching as her hands worked.

"You'll like Bash. He's going to help me with the rigging tonight." Gilbert grabbed the cap off the table and handed it to Victoria.

"I'd like to meet him. We can go right now." Victoria was about to leave when Gilbert lightly grabbed her wrist. "Vic, you go on in six minutes."

Victoria's mouth fell into an 'o'. "Oh, right!" Her hands immediately started to sweat and she wiped them against her trousers.

"Speaking of which...break a leg, I'm sure you will be great. Here." With a flourish, Gilbert reached out and pulled out a pair of pink peonies from his pocket.

"They're beautiful. Thank you." She leaned in closer and pecked him on the cheek causing him to grin.

"Miss Edwards! Miss Edwards!" Rachel Lynde's voice broke the atmosphere. Victoria looked at him apologetically before she reached out for the shovel.

"I have to go now. I'll see you after?" Gilbert barely nodded before Victoria sprinted away for the beginning of the pantomime.

The backstage was filled with an unspoken air of nervousness from all ends. Victoria could hear the faint sounds of conversation from beyond the curtain coming from the excited audience.

She closed her eyes and took in a few deep breaths as she tried to calm down the thumping of her heart. She heard someone rustling beside her. Victoria opened one eye and almost burst out laughing at the sight.

"Oh my. Don't you look...dashing." Victoria said as she raised her fingers to her mouth to stop herself from giggling.

Billy Andrews glared at her although she couldn't manage to find the expression threatening since he was clad in an owl costume.

"Speaking the girl dressed as a boy." He whispered back as Ms Lynde was shushing everyone.

"Don't be daft. I make quite a fit bloke. Not that you would know anything about that." Victoria replied as she stood straighter, proud of her unusual appearance.

Billy was about to say something back when the curtains started opening. Victoria quickly grabbed him by the arm and pushed at the centre of the stage where he would open up the show.

"Break a leg," Victoria said in a hushed voice to which Billy looked back in absolute horror.

Victoria waited patiently for her queue to enter the stage. She felt her heartbeat at an unusual rate, betraying her deluded thinking that what she was about to do was 'no big deal'.

There was no turning back now. She nodded to herself and sent a quick prayer to Shakespeare just in time for her moment.

The packed room gazed right at her expectantly. A brief moment of shock passed through her before she plucked up the courage and continued where the scene left off.

At first, she felt overwhelmed, but Victoria got more and more confident with each word she recited. Ms Lynde had advised her to keep her accent as inconspicuous as she could and Victoria managed for the most part.

The night went past like a blur but all things went successfully on her end.

Apart from the part where Billy got hit by the cardboard lightning bolt, but Victoria personally thought that it added more character than Billy ever had.

Whenever she felt the heat of being on stage get to her, she gazed into the audience where her family was seated and their reactions brought her comfort. They made her feel more grounded.

The play ended with Matthew Cuthbert as Billy's replacement and the crowd erupted in cheers.

Diana clasped Victoria's hand with hers as the entire cast bowed for their performance. It was quite a chaotic end to the night. Her fellow classmates were hugging her and congratulating each other.

Many parents and people from the audience came up to her at some point and patted her proudly on the back despite her not knowing most of them.

And finally, her parents and brothers had appeared with bright, gleaming smiles and looks of pride.

Hamilton had a bouquet of bright yellow roses that made Victoria wonder where they came from but decided not to question it. She cradled them into her arms and looked at them adoringly.

Her parents, like usual, found some other adults to speak to, providing Victoria with some space by herself. She walked backstage where fewer people were present and took off the cap and slipped on her coat.

Victoria smiled as she grabbed the pair of pink peonies that Gilbert had given her and placed it in her arms with the other.

"Victoria! I finally found you! You were simply brilliant, everyone's been saying it!" Victoria grinned at the sight of Anne who wore a similar expression on her face.

She was wearing simple clothing and her hair was adorned with leaves from her role as a tree. "Aw, Anne you're so sweet. It's a shame that Mrs Lynde stuck you as a tree."

Anne, however, didn't look upset at all. She waved Victoria's comment off and nodded towards the pink and yellow flowers. "Oh! Are they from Gilbert?!" Anne asked excitedly. Victoria felt her cheeks heat up and avoided eye contact.

"Um...the peonies yes. Wait a moment, here." Victoria shifted the flowers slightly before pulling a rose free from the bouquet, luckily, all the thorns were cut off.

Victoria handed it to Anne and almost melted at the look of touched adoration that made Anne's features look more beautiful than they already were. "For you, my lady," Victoria said cheerfully with a slight bow.

Anne accepted the flower with a graceful curtesy. "Why, thank you for your token of affection, kind sir." Anne hugged Victoria gently as she made sure not to squash or damage the flowers.

"Today has been quite an exciting experience, I can only imagine how you felt as the lead," Anne said.

The pair were walking towards the back entrance where it was less crowded. "Honestly, it was exhilarating. It give me the collywobbles at first but I never felt anything quite like it at all. I loved every second of it."

Anne waw about to say something but for some reason, she stopped herself before she let anything out.

Victoria looked at her in confusion before trying to find what had caught her attention but by then it was too late.

"GILBERT!" Anne shouted grabbing a lot of people's attention and scaring Victoria in the process. Gilbert stared dumbfoundedly at the pair, his eyebrows raising slightly.

Anne didn't explain and instead left Victoria to her own devices.

Too late to turn back, Victoria made her way towards Gilbert. As she neared closer she noticed that he wasn't alone but rather with a man that Victoria had never seen before.

Victoria assumed that it was Bash, the friend that Gilbert had mentioned before.

She felt intimidated at meeting someone so important in Gilbert's life but then she reminded herself that she was the lead in the pantomime and that she could pretty much do anything at that current moment.

"I see you're adding to the collection. Should I be worried?" Gilbert asked half-playfully and half-serious as he regarded the flowers.

"You know that I only have eyes on you, Blythe," Victoria responded. She noted the satisfied look on Gilbert's face.

Victoria turned her attention towards Bash. "You must be Bash. I'm Victoria, it's a pleasure to meet you. I would shake your hand, but my hands are full at the moment. Quite literally."

Bash didn't seem to mind and he mimicked the same smile that Victoria had. In the meantime, Gilbert swung into action and took the bouquet of roses out of her hands as it was the bigger of the two.

Finally free of most of the weight, Victoria shook Bash's outstretched hand.

"The pleasure is all mine. I heard quite a lot from Gilbert here. It's nice to put a face to the name." Bash joked causing Victoria to chuckle. Gilbert was less amused though and sent Bash a warning look indicating that he should talk less.

"Don't be timid, Gilbert. I would feel rather offended if you refrained from speaking about me." Victoria teased.

"Well, I'd rather speak to you than about you. Which reminds me, can I speak with you outside?" Gilbert looked at Bash who responded with a knowing look. Bash was quite understanding and Victoria suspected that Gilbert had spoken about it beforehand.

"Sure. It seems that our meeting is being cut short, Bash. Hopefully, I'd have another opportunity to properly speak with you." Victoria said sheepishly.

Bash bided both of them goodbye and Victoria found herself being ushered outside by Gilbert whose fingertips were faintly brushing against her elbow.

Immediately as they left through the back entrance, a wave of cold air tickled Victoria's cheeks.

Gilbert seemingly noticed the involuntary shiver that came from Victoria and reached out to singlehandedly close the top button of her coat.

While his hand was there, Gilbert lightly wiped a loose curl from in front of her face. Victoria shyly avoided his gaze as all the courage that she once had was used entirely for the pantomime.

"Please do not tell me that you brought me out here to kill me. As much as the idea of dying young and remaining as such is compelling in books, I find it inconvenient in real life." Victoria said as her words tumbled out one by one.

Gilbert laughed at her comment which caused Victoria to look back up and find the sight to be very captivating.

"I really like to hear you talk. Just like tonight on the stage. You mesmerised everyone with your voice." Gilbert complimented. Victoria felt her heart squeeze in her chest as he looked at her with alluring green eyes.

Gilbert shifted the roses, the crinkling of the paper filling the comfortable silence between them. At first, she was confused but then she saw Gilbert grabbing something from the inside of his coat.

It was a package neatly wrapped with brown paper and a simple knotted string.

Victoria's eyes widened and her mouth fell open slightly. "You...brought me a...present? But the peonies were more than enough. I don't even have your-"

Gilbert shushed her and nudged the package into her hands which she humbly accepted.

"Please, Victoria, just take it. I would be more upset if you didn't." Gilbert didn't seem to take no for answer and not only that, Victoria knew that he expected her to open it in front of him.

Nonetheless, she thanked him and began to tear off the wrapping paper. It was a book, something that Victoria gathered from the size and feel of it before she opened it.

However, it still caught her by surprise. In her hands lay a pristine and elegantly designed book titled 'Romeo and Juliet'.

"I know that it's been quite some time, but I never knew if you managed to replace the burnt one," Gilbert admitted. Victoria was speechless. When she went to thank him again, Gilbert simply motioned at the book.

Victoria took the hint and flipped over the front pages until she came across a blank one that was tainted by black ink.

For love as epic as Romeo's and Juliet's. Without the whole dying at the end part.

Yours devotedly and lovingly,

Gilbert Blythe

Victoria couldn't begin to explain the joy and absolute bliss that filled her at that moment.

She was mere moments away from bursting with happiness at the perfectly phrased words that were forever etched in both the book's page and the side of her heart that was reserved wholly for Gilbert Blythe.

Victoria didn't know how to respond and instead opted for a hug that startled Gilbert. Astonished, the roses fell out of Gilbert's hand and fell into the soft snow.

Victoria too had dropped the pair of peonies, but neither of them seemed bothered to care. "I take it that you like it," Gilbert said as he let out an exasperated breath of air.

She leaned back slightly and angled her face in a manner that she was directly staring into his eyes.

"I love it. It's a thoughtful present and I love the fact that it's from you even more." Victoria replied adoringly.

With a bit of effort, she placed her hand on Gilbert's face, her fingers touching his jawline, barely applying any pleasure.

Life between them seemed to stop as if nothing else existed. Victoria felt the heat increase in the apples of her cheeks but she ignored it.

She instead closed her eyes shut as she felt the pressure of Gilbert's nose against hers as he bent slightly. Their breaths were heavy and mingled together in anticipation.

Then she kissed him.

The two were so close that she felt her pounding heartbeat abnormally against his. His lips were soft and delicate as they pressed tenderly on Victoria's.

Victoria never kissed anyone before and had only heard about kissing from the romance books she read.

But none of them compared to what she was feeling at the moment.

Because this was real.

So beautifully real that she wondered whether or not what she was experiencing was a dream. Gilbert certainly felt like one.

Experience or no experience, it was the best feeling in the world. She kissed him harder and her hand went from caressing his jaw to the back of his neck where she played with the short strands of hair.

They stayed like that for a couple of moments before reluctantly pulling away. Their foreheads were pressed lightly together, and they were panting quite heavily.