Note - This is my first fanfiction I have written in a very long time. I've been having this idea in my head for a while now and finally finished the first chapter. I don't have a beta, but anyone who reads it and would love to help me out, send me a message! This is Enjolras POV, the next chapter will be that of Grantaire's. Enjoy! ~insert nervous smile.
Voice for on the radio
Chapter 1
His golden hair was dancing in the wind, covering his perfect face from time to time when the wind changed direction for a single second. It was a warm summer evening where the tall skinny man walked along the Thames of London back home after a meeting with friends. He walked gracefully, head high, shoulders straight and back arched while he held tightly onto the person next to him.
"Why don't you ever drink, Enjy?" A smaller, more plump boy was putting all of his weight on the gorgeous tall man. His hair was curly and dark brown, his eyes were pitch black and it was obvious he was drunk, barely able to keep it straight and slurring his words when he spoke to the man.
Just a simple smile crossed the face of the blonde man. "Someone has to bring you home and put you to bed, Courf."
"You're a good friend." The boy, Courfeyrac, smiled up at the blonde man, staring up at him for a second with that goofy smile when the moonlight was making the blonde man look like a god.
Enjolras grabbed his friend tighter around his waist to keep him up as they walked further. It wasn't a long walk which was why he had offered to take the drunk boy home. Besides, he was the only person sober as he wasn't drinking. All of their friends have tried at least once to get the man to drink, but he refused. He didn't saw the joy in it, plus someone had to stay sober to make sure that the drunkest of them all – most of the time that was Courfeyrac – got home safely.
Ten minutes and one stop later, because Courfeyrac suddenly decided he needed to pee really badly, so they had to stop. There was no way he was going to help his friend with this, so Enjolras took a step back and turned back his to give Courfeyrac some private time. Some things you don't want to hear coming from your friend's mouth and when Courfeyrac moaned at the release, Enjolras felt himself getting a little bit sick.
Enjolras dragged his friend up the stairs to his apartment and fiddled a bit with the lock. Courfeyrac, being a flirt himself, dragged Enjolras on the bed with him after they had entered the boy's bedroom. "Cuddle with me," he slurred closely to the blonde man's face.
If it wasn't bad enough that his drunken friend was drunk, the flirting and the alcohol breath was definitely putting him off. Besides, Enjolras was already dating someone. "You're drunk, Courf. Go to sleep." He pushed himself out of the tight grip and hauled himself off the bed, watching as the boy was now curling himself up on the bed. It didn't take long for him to know his friend had fallen asleep when his breathing had become more regular before the snoring had started. It made him chuckle quietly. He made sure that there was an empty bucket beside the bed for when he woke up, a full glass of water and two painkillers on the bedside table before he left to go back to his own apartment.
It was somewhere after midnight now. Enjolras had his hands in his pocket as he walked back along the Thames. His apartment was on the other side of the pub where they usually had their gathering. It was another fifteen minutes at least until Enjolras would be back home and back in his bed. Normally it was Jehan who brought Courfeyrac home, since he was the one bunking with the boy, but he, Joly and Bahorel, another two friends in common of them, decided to go to Bahorel's place instead to look at 'something'.
But Enjolras had no intentions of going home yet. He didn't know why, but the night was gorgeous tonight. The dark blue sky was bright with stars for a change that summer. A lot of people were still up and about. All of his friends had either gone home or gone someplace else. Enjolras knew he could call up one of them – except Courfeyrac, who was passed out in his apartment now – to go someplace, even if he wasn't drinking. There wasn't really anyone among them he wanted to talk to.
The group of friends went a long way. They have known each other through University. Not everyone went to the same one, but the majority did and they all knew at least one of them. One by one, each of the friends brought a person into the group and it became larger. There were eight of them to be exact, with an honorary ninth member, but no one seemed to have much interest in him other than Courfeyrac, who met him. Almost six years ago, Juniors Enjolras, Courfeyrac and Combeferre decided to start a league of their own. Neither one of them seemed to fit in any of the clubs at their University. Just to earn some extra credits they started a debate club. Not everyone was allowed to be in it as it wasn't exactly a debate club.
Joly was the first to join. Although he did not attend the same University, they allowed him to join because Combeferre insisted he was a nice lad, and their Universities agreed to have him join for extra credits. His happy personality brought a new dynamic to the seriousness of the trio. He was serious, studying Medicine to become a doctor.
Jean Prouvaire, also called Jehan by his friends, was introduced by Courfeyrac, who found him in the flower garden. It was obvious the plump, curly haired guy had a thing for this rather funny looking guy. His hair was long and he carried it around in a braid. There always seemed to be fresh flowers in his hair as well.
Joly introduced the gang to his best friend Bahorel, who he shared an apartment with for the past year. Also Bahorel didn't attend the University the trio and Jehan attended. Actually, he didn't really attend any University as he was mostly just being seen around in the cafés in London, where he was well-known.
Two more joined in the months after. Lesgle, a senior and the oldest of the bunch, was very reserved and usually didn't say much, and Feuilly, who was working in his free hours at the University when he wasn't studying to keep up with all the work. It was also Feuilly who got them there after hours when nobody was around anymore, sneaking them into the library. The group of friends, Les Amis as they called themselves, grew very fond of each other. Everyone seemed to have their own role with Enjolras being their leader, the founder of the group. Even when it was Combeferre who came up with it, it was Enjolras who made the work in progress to gather people and manage to get credits. Never had any of them been given credits so easily, all they had to do was have a project. It was Courfeyrac who came up with the idea of starting their underground radio station. Everything was easily set up, they had the debate club as a cover and no one expected a thing.
Their show – which aired from 8pm till 4am at the time – had become an instant success. It started with only about two handfuls of listeners on the first night, where the boys struggled to get through the night. Most of them had an early morning again. With the first night over and only receiving a couple comments over the website that Lesgle was managing with the help of Feuilly, they didn't think it would be a huge success. When the second night came three days later – they all needed a couple days to catch on sleep – they suddenly had a few hundred listeners. Every passing minute the listeners became more and started to add more comments to the website. Soon their inbox became full and they had to extent. None of the boys had ever thought that things would go so fast.
When Enjolras and Combeferre entered their Political Science class that next day, their teacher surprised them by talking about Les Amis as the topic of conversation. Everyone was talking about it on University. Within a couple of weeks, with going from two nights a week to four nights, the success travelled all the way to every University in the neighbourhood. They were anonymous, no one was aware of the new debate club being the cause of the sudden hype that was taking over London, as well as those who were able to receive the channel they were on.
Of course, this wouldn't have been a success if it wasn't for the good companionship among the eight new found friends. They worked together to get news and gossip, as well as other things like music and even now and then they managed to get a guest speaker. They had to be careful with this in order not to get caught. The radio station wasn't what you would call very friendly. They made fun of people and they spoke stories that would cause riots at Universities. It didn't take long before a warrant was sent out by the police. Since their station was set at the library after hours, they were more cautious because of this.
Marius Pontmercy, the honorary ninth member, a skinny and shy boy of only seventeen soon joined them. Nobody really liked him, but it was Courfeyrac who convinced everyone to accept him as their own. The reason why was soon discovered: Marius lived with his grandfather at a mansion just outside the city. That meant he had money and space enough to have their radio station well covered. They agreed quickly. With a new place for their radio station, new equipment and a ninth member in the team, their success became even bigger.
After two years on the air, the trio – Enjolras, Combeferre and Courfeyrac – graduated. Both Enjolras and Combeferre with honours, Enjolras even became the valedictorian. Courfeyrac only barely graduated, but he had been lazy throughout the years they went. There were many times that they almost got caught. The warrant went on for years, even after graduation and the friends decided that it was time to put an end to it. That didn't go without riots or protests either. It was Jehan who had informed them the day after that there were people protesting naked at their University. The affect Les Amis seemed to have on these people and their lives, how much it meant to them, had surprised them all. Enjolras had the urge to speak up, as his inner leader spoke out, but it was Combeferre who had stopped him.
Enjolras stared at the large crowd in front of the University. Naked bodies, men and women, were everywhere. Some had some paint on their body, words were written on it and they held banners which said things like 'Don't stop, Les Amis!' and 'We love Les Amis!' It was strange to see such affection and love towards years and years of hardworking and trying to please every listener. They've received so many messages about how people found comfort and themselves while listening late at night to their radio show. Sometimes the kind words were really humble, sometimes they took a moment to let it all sink in. They were doing a lot for their listeners. After all, it was them who made it possible for them to continue.
He took a step forward to the crowd. Enjolras felt the need to speak up. It was only five days since they decided to end. That meant they had missed two shows and this was what happened since. Being the leader of Les Amis, he felt like he needed to speak up. He needed to tell them that it was okay, that they were still here…
A comforting hand wrapped himself around Enjolras' wrist and jerked him back around to face the person who caught him. Combeferre looked at him with his blue eyes. They were a much lighter colour blue, a blue you saw when the sky was bright. Unlike Enjolras' blue eyes, who had a darker shade to them. His best friend spoke softly.
"Don't, Enjolras. I know what you're trying to do."
Enjolras shook his head, trying to tell him that it wasn't what he was thinking, but Combeferre could read his mind. It was almost scary, as they were like the same person. Only Enjolras acted on impulse, while Combeferre thought things through before he did things.
"You will risk all of our lives. What about Courfeyrac?"
Courfeyrac had struggled with finding a job since they graduated two years ago. As soon as they left University and went into the 'big world', both Enjolras and Combeferre found a job quickly within the first week. It took Courfeyrac nearly two years and with a lot of shitty and underpaid jobs in between before he finally got given the opportunity to do what he loved, what he studied for.
"I'm just going to – "
"Speak up?"
"They have a right to know it's us."
"And then?" Combeferre didn't sound disapproving, he was just trying to talk Enjolras out of it. Just like he had many times before during their years of being best friends. "We'll get caught."
A sigh came from Enjolras.
"They will recognise your voice, you've been there for them for four years, Enjolras. It is time to let go."
His blue eyes were piercing into him for a long period of time. It seemed forever, neither of them spoke in that time. Then Combeferre let go of his wrist. It was then that Enjolras could go on and do what he wanted to do in the first place, but he knew his friend was right. It was time to put that behind them.
The two returned to the others before they decided to go to the pub and get drunk. All of them but Enjolras, who didn't drink.
Enjolras was almost back at the bar where they had met up and drank just an hour before. It was dark outside, really dark, and even with the street lanterns shaping the pavement and creating more shadows than necessary, it seemed almost black. He had never been afraid of the dark, not when he was younger either. There was something beautiful about the darkness that everybody feared. There was a certain beauty to it as well. The way the moon shined in the sky, lightly shining the earth but not enough to see the reality of the day. Enjolras was found often outside on the patio at his place, sitting in the hammock he had bought as soon as he bought the place. He sat there for hours staring at the sky while drinking a glass of wine. More than often he woke up the next morning with the sun brightening his day and Enjolras realised he had once again fallen asleep in the hammock.
His hands were still in his pockets when he suddenly realised there was something missing. His phone! It wasn't there in the usual spot of his left jeans pocket. Maybe it had fallen out when he carried Courfeyrac up the stairs to his apartment. Enjolras had stopped walking as he turned around, contemplating whether or not he should go back to Courfeyrac's place. It would probably have no effect with the guy being out of this world in his bed and Jehan definitely wouldn't have returned yet either.
A sigh fell of his lips. He would have to see in the morning then.
Enjolras quickened his pace as he passed the bar, seeing some light still on. It wouldn't close for another hour but he was starting to get a little cold so he quickly walked further. A warm bed was waiting for him back home, to cuddle into and not wake up the next morning before noon. Since it was a Saturday night, Enjolras luckily didn't have to go anywhere tomorrow. He could stay in bed as long as he wanted.
But his legs had different ideas, so had his heart and his impulse. Enjolras didn't want to go home, as much as his bed was calling his name to sleep into.
He took a left turn after ten minutes and then saw the familiar street sign. A large green building popped within eye sight after a couple of feet and he took out the key chain. Enjolras had been to this place so many times that he was given a key of himself a long time ago, so he could let himself in. He was well aware what time it was, but Enjolras also knew he wasn't asleep yet. He was waiting for him to show up.
Taking two steps at once up the stairs, he soon arrived on the second floor and found apartment 2C. A different key than the one before opened the front door to the apartment. Enjolras kicked off his shoes by the door, taking off his jacket and left it there as well before he made his way to the bedroom in the dark. A smile already crept up on his face, his heart pounding and his knees started to feel weak. Enjolras still wasn't used to feeling like this after the months of being together.
Enjolras quietly opened the door to the bedroom. Seeing the person lying on his side under the covers. He moved a little while Enjolras started to undress. He wasn't awake like he knew he wouldn't. He was waiting for Enjolras.
"There you are."
"Here I am," Enjolras giggled while unbuttoning his jeans and easily stepped out of it, getting a little impatient by the layers of clothing he had decided to put on before he left his own apartment to go to the pub hours before. He had wanted to look good for him.
Enjolras looked at his beautiful boyfriend. His best friend. His Combeferre.
Combeferre smiled up at him, his blue eyes still piercing brightly in the dark. He unfolded the covers so he could join behind him. Enjolras was naked apart from his boxer briefs and right before he jumped into bed, that Combeferre had kept warm while he was bringing Courfeyrac home, he pulled them off. Even in the dark Enjolras could tell Combeferre was gaping at him, at his beauty. You look like a god, he said so many times to Enjolras and he never understood it. It was Combeferre who looked like a god to him, his body so perfect and soft.
Immediately his hands wrapped around Combeferre's stomach while the man leaned back into Enjolras' embrace. His head turned to face Enjolras and immediately as those blue eyes stared at him before leaning in to finally kiss him, he felt flutters in his stomach.
Was this how love felt?
"How's Courfeyrac?" Combeferre sounded a bit groggy. He must have fallen asleep while Enjolras wasn't there, but woke up when Enjolras closed the door a little too loudly earlier.
Enjolras buried his head into his boyfriend's neck. "He'll have a headache in the morning, but I left him a bucket by the bed and some water with painkillers for in the morning."
An approving sound came from Combeferre but there were no words.
"He wanted to cuddle."
Combeferre's laughter filled the silent room and Enjolras chimed in. He turned around in Enjolras' arms so they were faced. Enjolras still kept his arms around him and now Combeferre was doing the same, bringing him even closer.
"Only I get to cuddle with you."
Enjolras hummed happily before he leaned in for a soft kiss. Then he pulled away again, brushing Combeferre's thigh with his thumb before listening to the steady breathing, matching his with Combeferre's until they both fell asleep in each other's arms.