Modern AU- Genderswapped Grantaire.
I do not own Les Miserables or any of Victor Hugo's characters
"Grantaire?" a voice asked.
Grantaire stood up as gracefully as she could with how sore she was.
"That's me," she said, turning. A dark, curly haired, young man stuck out his hand.
"Courfeyrac. I'm the guy interested in another housemate."
"Ah, finally," Grantaire with a smile.
"Yeah, sorry I'm late, my other housemate was going on and on about this girl he met and... well Marius is really nice but he just doesn't know when to shut up sometimes. Any way, so you're interested in sharing a house with two other bachelors?"
Grantaire smiled.
"Well I'd rather be a millionaire but that will never happen, so yeah."
"You said you're an artist? Are you going to Uni?"
"Yeah, well sort of. I've got one class, that I assist with, and I go to one other class but, yeah. I do art."
"Any good?" Courfeyrac asked. Grantaire gave a sharp laugh.
"Rule one of dealing with artists, don't ask if their any good. Most the time the best you'll get is, 'well I'm not horrible but...' In my case, I typically try to avoid those questions."
"Oh, sorry. So here are the expenses you'll have to cover, it'll be easier having it split up among three people than it was when I paid for everything. But basically it's not much. Groceries, cable, help with the wifi, stuff like that. "
"Well, that's a lot cheaper than living by myself," Grantaire commented.
"Yeah, so what do you say?"
"I think I'm fine with it. You should know that I drink quite a bit, putting it mildly."
"That's fine. I drink myself so-"
"No, but, I drink a lot. Like I drink more wine than water."
"Really, that's fine as long as you're not destructive and constantly bringing guys home."
"Okay... so um, when do you want me to move in?"
"We could do it today for all I care. I'm not very busy."
"That would actually be good, I get kicked out of my apartment tomorrow so, yeah."
"Couldn't meet the payments?"
"Too much money for the space I needed. Oh you don't mind if I get some paint on somethings right?" Grantaire asked, a bit concerned.
"Oh that's fine. The house is mine, I just needed some people to share it with."
"Great."
"Do you need help moving your stuff?"
"Eh, it's mostly in boxes from the last time I moved anyway, so it shouldn't take long. But I have gotten a few extra things since I first moved..." Grantaire mumbled to herself, "That would be great, I don't think I can fit everything in my car."
"Okay, we can go now if you want. By the way, you aren't bothered by gay people are you?"
"No I'm not, and yeah, that's great. It shouldn't take long."
It didn't.
Nor did it take long to unload at Courfeyrac's house, which was considerably bigger than Grantaire expected. Like, small mansion size.
"Are you sure I should be paying more?" she asked.
"Yeah, its fine, I might be getting a few more mates to come live here too, so yeah."
"Okay..."
As soon as they were through the door, they heard a clatter/crash like noise.
"Oops, sorry," a kind, young voice mumbled from another room.
"Marius Pontmercy, you didn't just break my mum's vase did you?"
"Courf! You're home!" A young man appeared in the main hall, he had light auburn hair and freckles all over his nose, and he was lanky.
"The vase?"
"Oh, no the vase is fine. I just bumped a bowl and it and it's contents kind of hit the floor. Ooh is this the lady you were talking about? The artist? Nice to meet you, I'm Marius," The young man energetically walked over and shook Grantaire's hand, despite that she was holding a box.
"Grantaire," she replied quietly.
"Would you like some help bringing in your things mademoiselle?" Marius asked.
"No, merci, but I think that you should probably clean up your mess?"
"Oh yes, of course," Marius said practically floating away.
Grantaire looked at Courfeyrac who gave her a smile and a shrug.
"He's not always like this, but you learn to appreciate this mood over his depressed one."
"Is he bipolar?"
"No no, that's not it. It's just that most of the time he's happy go lucky, sometimes he's like this, and other times he's the most cynical person I've met."
"You haven't spent much time with me yet," Grantaire said with a smile. Courfeyrac just smiled and went back outside to get some more of her stuff.
After they had gotten her stuff inside, Courfeyrac showed her where her room would be on the third floor. It was a spacious forest green bedroom with a queen sized bed, a couch, a desk, a TV, and it's own bathroom, complete with shower.
"I feel like the amount I payed for my old apartment each month would be enough to pay for this room for a few days," Grantaire commented.
"It's not that bad, I really don't have to pay that much for the house because it was mostly paid off by my parents. I just pay for the electricity and stuff," Courfeyrac explained dropping a few boxes on her bed.
"If you're really paranoid about your painting and stuff, there's a stairwell at the end of the hall which leads up to the attic, which is there for your use."
"This is way too much," Grantaire said turning to look at Courfeyrac, "You don't even know me."
"Please don't insult me mademoiselle. After seeing some of your paintings, I am honored to have such an artist in my home."
Grantaire opened her mouth to argue, but closed it out of respect for her the man who was giving her more than her money's worth.
"You might also be called upon to cook and clean. We don't have a cook, but the maid gets every Thursday and Friday off."
"You have a maid?" Grantaire asked, disbelief showing on her face. Courfeyrac was half way out the door but he smiled and rolled his eyes.
"Puh-leeze, I may be a gay bachelor, but I'm a rich bachelor. There's no way in hell I'm gonna clean this whole house myself."
With that, Courfeyrac left Grantaire in the huge and beautiful room, with her stuff and her thoughts. She took a deep breath and started putting clothes in drawers.