Here's.. something. The first thing you should know before reading is that I'm French. English isn't my native language and this thing isn't beta'd (except for the few mistakes my dear friend Helvin corrected). Although I have a lot of classes in English, I feel kind of insecure posting this because.. again, it's not my native language. And even if I did have fun writing this, maybe you won't like it, right? If you totally hate it, just let me know and I won't write anymore. Like, never ever. But don't be too harsh, okay? Don't send me "no one cares about your lonely soul" or things like that, okay?
Just to be clear, this chapter is the first part of a multichapter I had in mind for a while but.. well, I don't know. I've been inspired by songs (not for this chapter but for some others, some situations and stuff) and by the fight about same sex marriage we conducted in France last night. So this story is a modern AU, which takes place in France and starts in winter 2011. (I hope you understand what I say).
ANYWAY, the beautiful cover of this story is manip made by the wonderful unicornsanddolphins from tumblr. I love her work! Pay her a visit, she does great things!
Disclaimer all of the characters belong to the great Victor Hugo (may he rest in peace). Like I said before, the cover is unicornsanddolphins' and the ideas are mine. At least, I think.
Rating T because of the langugage.. I suppose.
The first time he saw her, she was laughing with Grantaire. She almost didn't acknowledge him. To say he wasn't used not to be the center of attention was the understatement of the century. This day, he had spoken for two complete hours about France and its government point of view about same sex marriage. Some would have said that he didn't choose his topic wisely but Enjolras, as many others in the room that night, felt concerned by it because it was a matter of freedom and equality. Because everyone deserved to be able to marry the one they loved. And here she was, that strange girl with the belly laugh. She even cut him off twice without trying, just by laughing at some dirty jokes Grantaire whispered in her ears. Enjolras wasn't entirely unhappy by her presence. At least, R didn't interrupt him because of something alcohol urged him to say. It was less ridiculous than the other meetings and the drunk only drank beers that night. But still, the girl didn't seem to realize he was there which sort of hurt his pride. Enjolras was the kind of man that catches the eyes, for a reason or another. He didn't like being ignored. By anyone. Even by a girl he never saw and never would see again.
He was wrong. Not about her ignoring him — since she probably was and apparently didn't even know his name — but about not seeing her ever again. She was present to the next meeting and the one after and pretty much to all of them after the first one she had attended. Why she came, he didn't ask Grantaire and didn't want to know. She ignored him, didn't listen to him and he never talked to women or girls anyway.
At first, she was only speaking to R. They seemed to get along very well, which was almost a miracle because the only person R got along with was a bottle of Jack Daniels. However, when the girl was around, he was never too drunk. He always remembered his name and hers.
Éponine. That was her name. Courfeyrac told him one night, even if he hadn't ask. She was apparently the sister of the blond boy he was tutoring, Gavroche. Before Enjolras could realize it, all of his friends were friends with her. But she still didn't look at him, as if he was just a shadow, only a background noise.
And he started to feel annoyed by her attitude towards him. She laughed with Bossuet and Feuilly, drank with Grantaire, flirted with Courfeyrac, read Jehan's poetry, won every arm-wrestling contest against Bahorel, comforted Joly when he thought he had cholera and even helped Pontmercy to pick a silver bracelet for his fiancée birthday. But she wouldn't talk to him. The law student was dying to know why. Did she hate him? But how could she hate him, they never talked to one other! Did he repulse her? Did he say something during a meeting or did he look at her in a way she didn't like? Why in earth did she not talk to him when she was having so much fun with his friends?
Maybe because you're no fun, a little stupid voice said in his head one night at Le Musain when he was thinking about it again. He truly didn't understand but that could be an explanation. Oh, he wouldn't change who he was for a girl, that one or any other. He wouldn't change for anyone, period. But Enjolras was curious and he never got curious, never about a girl at least.
"Plotting to convince France that gays and lesbians should be able to get married with a singing mayor and pink dresses and suits, pretty boy?" she suddenly asked. He was startled. One second, she was arguing with Jehan over Rimbaud and the other, she was in front of him, mocking him and his cause. It was the first words she ever said to him and she mocked his cause!
Enjolras gave a murderous look and stood up, ready to go home, not wanting to waste time on this weird stupid girl. Why did he spend so many nights wondering why she befriended with all of his friends but him? Why did he ever think she could be different, that maybe they could be friends too? Truth and reality weren't always nice, he already knew that but never in a million years he would have imagine that someone that came to the meetings could talk about his fight in such a bad way.
"What the- where are you going?" she shouted, following outside the café. He turned over, not ready to explain but eager to make her disappear. Women weren't usually so bold with him. They would try to call him by his name, smiling coyly at him but they would never say anything that hurtful, they would never try to get on his nerves. This one was weird but he didn't want to know why any longer. "Go away" he simply said.
She grabbed his arm.
She touched him.
She touched him.
She touched him.
He stared at her, utterly surprised. The girl — no, Éponine — Éponine failed to hide a mocking smile. Again. He frowned. "They told me you didn't like physical contact" she explained with a shrug "but I would never have thought you dislike it that much. You look at me as if I burned you" She was making absolutely no sense but she would probably laugh straight to his face if he told her this now. "Did my question hurt you somehow?"
The last thing he was waiting for was that kind of question. Did she speak without thinking at all or was she mocking again? Although he wasn't sure she didn't knew what she was doing when she interrupted the stream of his thoughts the minute before, he nodded in an affirmative response. Immediately, her eyes — her brown, very brown, chocolate colored eyes, he noted and it was only because he was physically closer to her that he had ever be — widened with surprise but soon enough, her smirk was back. "You know pretty boy, if you can't stand that kind of jokes from your own friends, you won't stand the same what people that are against you will say. And they will be hateful. It won't be jokes at all but really, really hateful declarations…"
"We're not friends" he snapped, more strictly than he intended to, and freeing his arm, a bit more violently than he thought.
"Well, the way you look at me makes me think you would like us to, pretty boy" she replied without any sign of annoyance. "Don't you agree?"
"Well… I'll have you know that I have a name and I'd rather get married in red" he said after a little moment of reflexion.
She looked at him in shock before bursting into laughs. Not longer after that, she was sitting next to him in the Musain, talking animatedly about the LGBT cause and France legislation.
If he knew his words would have convince her he were gay, Enjolras would haven't say anything at all that night.
Let me know what you think please!