Title: Roadtrip
Fandom:Les Miserables
Author: apolloenjolras
Rating: Probably PG-13 at the most
Characters/Pairing: Enjolras/Grantaire, appearances by the other Amis
Chapter: 1/1
Word Count: ~1850
Summary: done for a tumblr prompt that wanted 'fluffy Enjolras/Grantaire on a roadtrip', so this is what my brain came up with.
Roadtrip
"Remind me again why I agreed to this?"
"Because it's summer and we're young and it's the time to be impulsive and go on an impromptu road trip."
"What part of that sounds like something I'd normally do?" Enjolras doesn't look pleased, but then, when does he ever look pleased, really? It's already hot out, the air warm even in the early morning and Grantaire knows it's only going to get worse during the day which is why he wants to hit the road as soon as they can.
Also he's promised they'll share the driving which means he can't drink until they get to where they're going, so…all the more reason to get moving as soon as possible.
"Come on, the others'll get there way ahead of us if we don't hurry," he opens the door and hops into the driver's side, settling a pair of sunglasses over his eyes as Enjolras heaves a sigh and throws the last duffel bag into the trunk.
"Driving in a convertible down the highway with cases of beer in the back seat. When did I become such a stereotype," he mutters before he gets into the other side of the car, tapping his fingers on the armrest while they back out of the parking lot.
"Be thankful you're not in the bus. I know that would drive you crazy," Grantaire looks beside him quickly before turning his eyes back on the road, because there's a part of him that's still kind of afraid to say much of anything around Enjolras even though, well, the days when the other man seemingly hated his very existence are long behind them.
At least, they'd better be, because dating somebody that hates you never works out all that well.
"Is anybody ever going to explain how we ended up with some sort of converted miniature school bus anyway?" Enjolras is half-smiling now, his golden hair ruffled by the wind, and Grantaire has to remind himself to keep his eyes forward.
"You can ask Feuilly and Bahorel if you really want to, but I don't think they stole it," he laughs, feeling happier than he has in a long time because, maybe for the first time, he's got a lot of good things going for him.
"Still, you're right, being in a bus with the rest of them for an entire day would drive me mad," Enjolras braces his elbow on the side of the door, looking completely at ease and completely gorgeous, and the open road stretches before them as Grantaire turns out onto the highway.
000
"Where exactly are we going?" Enjolras asks once they've all stopped for lunch at some generic fast food place, the early thrill of the drive obviously wearing off and he's scowling at nothing in particular as he picks a piece of rusty lettuce off of his sandwich.
"You'll like it. Trust me," is all Bahorel replies, and the look Enjolras gives him then implies that he doesn't in the least but also doesn't really have a choice in the matter. "I'm not leading you anywhere dangerous, relax."
"I don't trust you, but I know that Combeferre and Feuilly at least wouldn't let you do anything that would put the rest of us at risk," he says in an undertone, continuing to glower at his sandwich like it's offensive somehow, and Bahorel barks a laugh and claps his shoulder.
"Then you've got nothing to worry about. Just relax and enjoy the drive," he gets up, half-eaten sandwich still in his hand, and heads toward the old bus as Enjolras frowns at the tabletop.
"Do you know where we're going?" Enjolras turns to him and Grantaire pauses, because he's got an idea but it's not as if Bahorel ever gave any more detailed instructions than 'follow us and you won't get lost', so…
"Not exactly," he admits, and Enjolras sighs heavily and goes back to dissecting his sandwich.
Grantaire knows he's not getting any more conversation out of him after that.
000
The afternoon slowly slips away as they keep driving down the highway, Enjolras demanding his turn after lunch but when they stop for coffee he gets back into the passenger's side and Grantaire figures that's a hint that he should take over again, so he does (that beer in the back has been taunting him but he's never going to put anybody else in danger, so he's been trying not to stare at the cooler because of it).
It's a short while later and the car's silent enough that Grantaire turns his head, smiling to himself because even though Enjolras is wearing sunglasses it's easy to tell from how relaxed his body is that he's asleep.
And he'll tell himself later that it's because he doesn't want the other man to wake up with a sore neck and for no other reason, but he knows it's a lie as he gently reaches to take the blond's arm and pulls him over so his head is resting comfortably on Grantaire's shoulder.
He'll make a fuss when he wakes up, but for now, it's worth it.
000
"You shouldn't have let me sleep so long."
And there's the fuss, Grantaire thinks as he turns down a side road after the bus that's still happily chugging along in front of them, but despite the protests Enjolras is doing a pretty horrible job of making it convincing given the fact that he's not moving away.
"You obviously needed it. I don't mind driving," Grantaire says easily, because he really doesn't when he can have Enjolras this close, and the other man sighs and straightens up, ruffling his hair up while trying to flatten it down and eventually giving up and leaning back in his own seat.
"Are we almost there? The sun's going down."
"We should be. I think," he turns down another road, this one gravel-packed and rough, and eventually into a small parking lot with only a handful of other cars dotting it here-and-there.
"We spent all day driving to go to the beach?" Enjolras looks unimpressed but there's something in his posture, something gentle and serene that tells Grantaire that he's happy to be here, and they both get out of the car and Enjolras stretches his arms above him, head tilted back as he inhales the tangy sea air.
"Come on," Grantaire grabs the cooler from the backseat, tugging it along as they head over the sand to where the others are setting up around what looks like a fire-pit, already surrounded with enough logs and large rocks that they'll all have a place to sit.
"See? Not dangerous," Bahorel looks up as he fishes a lighter out of his pocket and bends down to start the fire, lighting a cigarette for himself at the same time and looking at Enjolras as if he's daring the other man to contradict him.
"You were right," Enjolras concedes with a shrug of his shoulders, seating himself on a flat rock near the fire. "How did you know about this place, anyway? It's kind of…out of the way."
"That's my doing. I might not have much, but I get around okay," Feuilly replies, perched on a log with his arms wrapped around his knees. "It's a good place to come if you just want to…clear your head and forget about the real world for a while. And I think we all need that sometimes."
"We also all need booze sometimes but somebody's hoarding the cooler," Bossuet's looking over at them longingly and Grantaire sets it down. "Is there any left? I mean, it's been in the car with you all day…"
"You really think he'd let me drink?" Grantaire jerks his head toward Enjolras, who must be feeling the relaxing effect of being by the water because the look he gets in return is hardly even a proper glare, and he grabs a bottle for himself and opens it before leaving the others to take what they wanted. "Hey."
"It's nice," Enjolras says softly. "It is. Thank you for convincing me to come."
"We both know you never do anything you don't really want to, so convincing probably didn't have a lot to do with it," Grantaire sits down, but not too close, and takes a sip of his beer. "You know they won't say anything…"
"Of course they will. You think Courfeyrac will pass up a chance to make fun of me somehow?" Enjolras is still smiling, though, and he's all the more beautiful in the setting sun. Grantaire manages to tear his eyes away long enough to look back at the others, still bickering over drinks for the most part although Joly's turned to complaining about the sand and the wind and Combeferre's got a book out and is seemingly ignoring everybody else and Jehan's already jotting things down in a notepad, eyes darting between the paper and the ocean.
He wants to say something else but he's afraid to push his luck any farther and settles for just sitting there, watching the sun sink into the ocean.
000
It's dark quickly after that, twilight creeping into nightfall and between the drinks and the fire and the easy-going atmosphere Bahorel admits that he's booked them rooms at a hotel just down the road so they don't need to sleep in the bus (a fact that they're probably all more than a little grateful for, even if not all of them will say it).
The firelight is soon the only thing allowing them to see, the dark water calm where it stretches out toward the horizon, and he's not sure if it's the beer or the fact that it's been a long day but he knows nobody is watching them now and it might just be the time to be bold.
He sets his bottle aside and slides his arm around Enjolras' waist, pulling them closer together and getting a tiny murmur of protest before the blond stills, letting himself be moved.
"Nobody's watching," Grantaire whispers, like he needs to reassure them both, and Enjolras nods slowly and turns to look at him. "I just…"
"It's fine. It is," Enjolras says firmly, his eyes darting toward the rest of their group for a brief moment before he raises his hand, fingers lightly pressing under Grantaire's chin to get him to tilt his head before he presses their lips together in a soft kiss. "You taste like beer."
"You should be used to that," Grantaire huffs a quiet laugh before kissing the other man again. "I'm glad you came."
"I'm glad I did, too," Enjolras replies, settling himself so he's pressed against the other man and it's as close to cuddling as Grantaire's ever seen from him, which makes him smile.
He realizes a moment later that he can't reach his bottle from where he is, not without disturbing Enjolras to do so, but the real surprise comes a few seconds after that when he decides that he doesn't even need it.
Although, all things considered, that's probably for the best.
