A/N: It's my first Les Mis fanfic, so bear with me here!
Although Joly was a medical student, and a good one at that, he was still a hypochondriac in every sense of the word. Even the smallest cough often sent him into a state of panic, trying to stop it before it got worse. He didn't always think he was going to die, of course, but there were occasions where he certainly came close to becoming completely paranoid.
He spent three days a week working at a local clinic. Though most of the time he just treated people with colds, he always took extreme precautions so that he had no chance of getting sick. But not all plans work all of the time. This was one of those situations. He spent all day at the clinic, treating patients. He went back to his apartment after work. He took a shower, put on his pajamas and went to bed, just like any other day. But it wasn't any other day.
Joly woke up that night with a horrible cough. A cough which, to him, seemed worse than anything he himself had experienced. As he coughed, he sat up and tried to get out of bed. As he did so, however, he doubled over from a case of dizziness. After he took a moment to recover from his coughing attack, he looked at the clock. One o'clock in the morning. No way anyone would still be awake… But he didn't want to be alone. He probably couldn't call anyone. If they were asleep, they probably wouldn't answer the phone. So he'd have to take a risk and go to them. And he knew exactly which of his friends to go to. And with that in mind, he grabbed his jacket and rushed out the door.
"Marius! Open the door!" He yelled this upon reaching his friend's apartment. Marius was the only one Joly thought of going to this time of night. After several moments, a bleary-eyed Marius opened the door. The poor guy was half asleep and so confused. What was Joly doing at his apartment? And why was he still in his pajamas? If Joly hadn't taken the time to fully get dressed, then he figured it must be serious.
"What is it, mon ami?" Marius asked, yawning.
"May I come in, my friend?" Joly asked. Marius nodded and stepped aside, then showed Joly over to the couch and let him sit down.
"What troubles you, Joly? You look tired and much too serious."
There was a moment where Joly had to cough for a few seconds, then replied to his friend's question. "Marius, I fear I may have finally gotten a terrible illness." He said this in such a serious tone that Marius couldn't quite tell if he was being overly paranoid or not. But, since there was always the chance that Joly could be correct, he decided he needed to help him.
"You've been wrong before, Joly…" he said carefully. Joly shook his head.
"I know I have, but I'm more sure this time." He said firmly.
"Then tell me what you makes you believe you have such a serious illness." Marius said, hoping that he could possibly calm his friend's nerves and help him see things realistically. Joly took a moment, then recalled for his friend what had occurred only twenty minutes before. At the end of the story, Marius almost sighed with relief. His friend wasn't dying at all!
"I am no medical expert, mon ami, and I certainly do not know as much about it as you do. However, I do not think you are dying. You just have a bad cold, the flu at worst. But not a serious disease." He said gently. Joly sat there for a moment, pondering this.
"Yes, maybe so. The dizziness was probably just a side effect from coughing so much. Still, colds and the flu can turn into more serious problems if not treated efficiently and correctly." He said after he had thought it through. Marius only smiled at this.
"Then we shall make sure you get better quickly, yes?" He said. "Stay the night, okay? You can sleep in my bed, I'll be fine on the couch."
"Mon ami! I'll sleep on the couch. I wouldn't want to deprive you of your comfortable bed, simply because I have a cold." Joly protested quickly.
"No, Joly. You're sick, even if it is just a cold. I may not know much about medicine and treating people, but I know that you need a good night's sleep." Marius was right and Joly didn't argue. It was too late at night to argue. Marius took a pillow and blanket from his bed and set them on the couch for himself. Then he brought Joly over to his bed.
"Make sure to actually sleep instead of staying up all night worrying." Marius chuckled as he headed out of the room.
"I'll try, mon ami, I'll try." Joly replied, already half asleep.
Marius sighed as he climbed back onto the couch to fall back asleep. He was glad he could help Joly. He would have done the same for any of his friends, really. He liked being able to help them, especially in cases like this where he knew everything would be okay. He hoped he'd never see the day when something happened that he, or anyone else, couldn't fix. But there was no use in worrying about that now. Because, for now at least, everything was going to be just fine and he knew it.