xxvii.

"Eleanor? Are you ready to go?" Alvin yelled from outside.

"Just a minute!" Eleanor yelled back as she shoved the remaining stuff from her dresser into her suitcase.

Bash was quick to take it outside to Gilbert as he was loading up the carriage, all of her and Gilbert's bags were packed neatly like a game of jenga.

Eleanor took one last look at the empty room in front of her, although all of the furniture remained, all of the decorations that made it the room she so loved, were packed neatly in a cardboard box.

"Eleanor?" Alvin's voice made the girl jump as she spun around, nearly toppling over.

"Hm?" she hummed in response as she busied herself with making sure her dress was laying flat on her corset, combing through her hair with her fingers (and them getting stuck in her curls), and pushing up her long eyelashes with her finger.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked in a serious sort of tone.

She stopped fidgeting and look at the boy before her. He had grown since she had last seen him, he had a small stubble growing on his chin and a thick head of hair that was neatly swooped back with grease.

Ever since she had gone to live with Gilbert, he was now forced to take care of the family. He would cook, clean, and took care of Harvey's on most days.

All of this forced him to mature within a few days, a lot faster than he would of hoped.

Although he was only a few years older than Eleanor, he always seemed to be less mature than her. But that was expected, since he was a "boy" and all. But she had grown to love seeing this mature side of her brother, and she had truly missed spending time with him as the seasons passed.

It had been nearly a year since the two had spoke.

Alvin had finally made his way to college, studying at a nearby college just a few towns down from Avonlea. He was studying to become a therapist, though he truly loved writing. Mother didn't seem to find that being an author was a good aspiration to have for a man.

But Eleanor always read the stories that Alvin wrote, and she loved every single one of them. She was hoping that he would have told mother to stick it where the sun don't shine, but alas...he was much too obedient for that.

Alvin stared at the girl as he waited for her answer, he was unsure of why Eleanor had decided to do what she was about to do. But all the same, he supported her the way she supported him growing up.

"I'm sure." she smiled, her smile seemed to say a thousand words that made Alvin smile.

Even if it seemed difficult, he knew that if anyone would be able to do it. Eleanor Parks would be the one to achieve it.

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The carriage creaked and groaned under the weight of the luggage and boxes that carried all of Gilbert and Eleanor's things.

Twigs and leaves crunched underneath the large wheels as the group sat in silence.

Gilbert, Eleanor, Alvin, Bash, and Delphine were all huddled together in the front seat that was truly meant for only two to three people.

Eleanor was sitting on Gilbert's lap, Delphine was sitting on Bash's, and Alvin was shoved in the middle, holding the reigns that rested upon the neck of Eleanor's horse.

They were all headed to the Parks residents, as much as Eleanor hated to admit it, she missed her family.

Alvin was telling her all about how grown up Harvey was, how he was about to start preschool, and how he was finally running and writing on his own.

Eleanor almost burst into tears when she heard this, she missed Harvey so much that she almost didn't know what to do with herself.

The ride was much longer than she remembered it to be, the carriage lugging an extra two person's body weight in luggage reminded her of her future.

"We're here." Alvin's voice made her jump slightly.

Gilbert's hands were resting on her thighs, he gave a gently squeeze that almost felt like nothing since her legs were covered in many layers of clothing.

She gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and began to gently lower herself down from the cart before it even hulled to a stop.

Gilbert laced his fingers with hers as they stepped up and onto the porch. Eleanor's heart was pounding in her throat as she heard her mother and her father's voice in the kitchen. They seemed to be talking about what they would be having for dinner that night. Harvey's little footsteps and laughs made Eleanor tear up slightly.

"Come on, we must be quick." Alvin reminded her.

She nodded, took a deep breath, and twisted the door handle.

The door squeaked as Eleanor shoved it open, the smell of pumpkins and cinnamon wafted into her nose. Oh how she missed the smell of her old home.

"Alvin? Is that you?" Laura's voice came from the kitchen.

As her mother's footsteps drew close, Eleanor's heart begun to race faster than ever before.

"Alvin? Why aren't you answering-" Laura stopped dead in her tracks when she played eyes on her daughter.

The glass that she was drying off slipped from her grasp, it hit the ground and shattered. Eleanor jumped slightly, but her mother stood still, a shocked expression plaster her face.

"Laura? Laura are you alright-"

Henry.

Her father.

He stared at her for a moment, almost as if he was trying to decipher who or what she was. Or maybe why she was in his house.

"Hi." she was able to squeak out.

Laura burst into tears and ran towards her daughter, she tackled the girl into a bone crushing hug. Her tears were enough to make Eleanor's eyes water, it wasn't until she felt her father's large frame wrap himself around Laura and Eleanor's.

The young girl immediately melted into her parents embrace, she cried happy tears as the three hugged. As they all pulled away, red faced and cheeks stained with tears, they heard a small yelp.

Harvey was standing in the doorway with his favorite train toy by his side. Eleanor smiled brightly as she ran over and picked the boy up, he giggled and screamed as he wrapped his arms around her neck.

"Elle! I missed you!" he cried out as he was almost climbing her trying to get closer to her.

"I missed you to Harvey, you've grown so much." she sniffled.

"I'm almost two!" he squealed.

She smiled and placed a kiss to his cheek, he giggled and placed one right back on hers.

As she looked around, she felt her body grow warm with love.

Bash, Gilbert, Delphine, Alvin, her parents, and Harvey wrapped up in her arms.

These were her people,

Her family.

And she wasn't going to lose them ever again, she promised it.

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"I'm so proud of Eleanor." Henry smiled as he brought his daughter in for one last hug.

She gleamed as she buried her face into his neck, although she never got along with him. He was her father after all, even if it did take him 18 years to get her name right.

As she pulled away from her father, her mother was quick to scoop her into another hug.

The 23rd hug, to be exact. Gilbert had been keeping count.

He watched as Eleanor wiped the tears that had leaked from her eyes, she looked so happy to see her family again. No matter how much shit her parents put her through, he always knew that she would come back to them in a matter of time.

And now that she was off to college, she wouldn't see them for a long time. So she had to catch up from the last year, and the many years to come.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Laura asked as she tucked a curl behind Eleanor's ear.

Eleanor simply smiled and pulled away from her mother, almost signifying that she was finally able to leave the nest.

As Eleanor said her final goodbye's to her family, Gilbert was being pulled away by Henry.

"Listen son...I know we don't know each other very well. And I know that it seemed that I hated Eleanor, but she's my daughter. And as much as she hates to admit it sometimes, I'm her father. So I only want what's best for her, do you understand?" Henry asked as he and Gilbert stood in the kitchen.

"I do sir, I promise to keep Eleanor safe and happy." Gilbert nodded.

Henry gave him a tired smile and reached into his back pocket, he pulled out a small wooden box and placed it into the boy's hands.

Gilbert glanced up, Henry nodded, knowing what the boy was thinking.

Gilbert carefully opened the box and was shocked to see a beautiful golden ring sitting on a small stack of papers. It had beautiful and delicate white diamonds etched into the looping gold, it shone brightly in the candle that was resting on the kitchen table.

"That was my mother's ring, I used it to propose to Laura. And now I want you to use it to propose to Eleanor." Henry smiled as Gilbert lit up.

"T-Thank you! It's beautiful!" Gilbert grinned as he gently picked up the ring and examined it.

If a ring was made specially for Eleanor, the ring that was sitting in his palm was exactly that.

"And those papers? They're check, we've been trying to send Eleanor money but we didn't know where she was living. Laura and I thought it would be a good idea for you two to use the money to get a home or help pay for Eleanor's "Big Idea"." Henry chuckled.

Gilbert laughed as he opened the checks, his mouth dropped open as he noticed the amount of '0's' that littered each paper.

"Don't worry about the amount, just make sure that she gets whatever she needs for her plan. Just...make sure my little girl is happy...okay? I'm putting my trust into you Gilbert Blythe." Henry sighed.

"I promise." Gilbert nodded before placing everything back into the small box and placing it into his pocket.

Gilbert jumped slightly as he felt Henry's strong frame pull him into a tight hug.

"I've never seen that girl so in love, and I'm happy that it's with you." Henry whispered before pulling away from the boy and walking into the living room.

Gilbert smiled as he placed a hand into his pocket, the box was sitting at the very bottom.

"Propose." he whispered to himself before hurrying out the door where the rest of the family was all hugging and saying their goodbyes.

He jumped onto the carriage and was able to finally allow Eleanor to sit pretty beside him.

"What did my father want? I seen you two went into the kitchen together." Eleanor asked as she waved once more to her family that was slowly drifting off into the sunset behind her.

"Oh nothing important, just college stuff." Gilbert smiled innocently.

Eleanor shrugged and wrapped her arm around Gilbert's, resting her head on his shoulder. Delphine and Bash were sitting in the back with the luggage, Bash wanted to give the two "lovebirds" as he called them, some privacy before they got to the train station.

Eleanor peeped and noticed that Bash had made up a bed of luggage and some of Eleanor's puffier dresses, him and Delphine were fast asleep as the carriage seemed to rock them back and forth.

She chuckled and turned back to face the front of the carriage, the sun was setting behind them as her horse's hooves clicked against the rocks and such on the ground.

Fall had finally arrived, the leaves were changing color and falling all around them. The air smelled sweet, and almost like an old book that you could read over and over again.

Eleanor smiled to herself as she listened to Gilbert hum the song that always played when they were dancing together in the kitchen.

School had finished, and was ready to start again. Only this time, she and her friends would be off to college. Although the thought of being somewhere different from her friends and lover scared her, she thinks she has found a way to get the best of both worlds all while being happy.

She would open a book store, right near Gilbert's school, she would take the midnight train to see her friends on the weekend. All while studying at a local college in Queens, so she could become a teacher.

Her life was finally falling into place, the puzzle pieces had finally been put where they needed to be.

All that was left was a family.

And little did she know, Gilbert was already one step ahead of her.

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"Are you sure you want to do this?" Bash asked as he handed the final box to one of the train attendants.

Eleanor smiled as she felt Gilbert grab ahold of her hand, pulling her into the train that had jutted to a start.

"I'm sure." she stated.

And this time, she truly meant it.

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Hi everyone! I will be posting the final chapter to this story either today or tomorrow, so please keep reading to find out what happens! Love you all!

-em

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