Cosette, Will You Marry Me?
"You are impossibly beautiful Cosette" Marius said, pressing his forehead gently against Cosettes. He had only known her for a month and had been seeing her every night since then in her garden, yet despite that short amount of time he knew he loved her so very deeply, and he knew she was the most beautiful thing in the world. He has only been there that night for mere moments yet he was so taken with her presence that he had pressed her gently against a wall and kissed her lips with a passion he didn't even know he had.
Cosette however wasn't used to this much intimacy so soon, she had liked the kiss, but there were parts of her "relationship" with Marius that made her feel slightly ashamed of herself.
She closed her eyes for a moment, enjoying the feeling of him so close to her, but something inside of her told her that this was wrong.
"You mustn't say things like that Marius" she said quietly
"Why?" he asked, giving her another gentle kiss as he did so. He hadn't really heard what she said, and was unaware that he was making her feel uncomfortable.
"Please Marius…" she said sadly, breaking away from him.
"What's the matter?" he asked, realising something was wrong, he tried to reach out to touch her face but she stopped him.
"Don't, please". She said, walking towards the stone bench nearby and sitting down on it. She held her head in one of her hands, feeling like she could cry. Marius meanwhile was dumbstruck, what had he done to upset her so? She was usually so open to his affections, had he pressured her too much tonight? He must have, he couldn't help it though, she was just so beautiful in the moonlight that he needed to touch her and kiss her.
"I've offended you" He said, walking to the bench also. He sat down next to her and wanted to reach out and comfort her but he decided maybe it was best not to put his hands on her. "I'm sorry" he said instead.
"No, I'm sorry" Cosette said, turning to him.
"Please tell me what the matter is" Marius said
"I…" Cosette began, unsure of how to say what she was thinking. "What we're doing, is it right?"
"What do you mean?" Marius asked
"This" she said, meaning her garden and the way the two of them were sat together. "Meeting every night, sneaking around, lying to people. It feels wrong".
"I haven't lied to anyone" Marius said, feeling a little hurt that she felt what they were doing was wrong.
"Well I have, I lie to my father every day" she said, burying her face into her hand again
"Oh…..Cosette I'm sorry" he said, placing a hand gently on the back of her neck. "I didn't realise".
Cosette sighed, although she liked the feeling of his hands on her there was a part of her that wished he wouldn't touch her sometimes. It just made her feel loose somehow, that she let a boy she barely knew do things to her that made her feel so excited. It was so confusing sometimes knowing what was right and what was wrong, and she had no one to confide in about it.
"I love my father Marius" Cosette said, looking at him again, "And he loves me. He's done more for me than you'll ever know. Maybe even more than I'll ever know. He's a good man and I don't want him to ever be ashamed of me."
"Sssh, Cosette" Marius said quietly, "No one could be ashamed of someone as wonderful as you"
"I just don't like keeping things from him" she continued "But I also know that I love you Marius, believe me I do, but sometimes I just feel so confused. Are we wrong to see each other like this?"
"It's not wrong if we love each other Cosette" Marius told her, taking one of her hands into his.
"Maybe" Cosette said, unsure of his confidence
"No, it's true". He said, "Please believe me my love".
"I'm trying, truly I am" she said, and she rested her head gently against Marius's shoulder as she did so.
They sat like that for a moment in silence, with Cosette resting against Marius and him stroking her arm gently. He enjoyed this closeness between them; he didn't need to be more physical than that, it was enough sometimes just to be next to her.
"What can I do to make you feel better?" Marius then said quietly
"Just tell me it won't always be like this" she said, still with her head against his shoulder. "Tell me we won't always have to hide, that we'll be able to see each other in the daylight again".
"Of course we will" Marius said, being brave and kissing her gently on the forehead. "Things will be different one day, you'll see. Once we're married I promise you that you won't feel ashamed of anything".
Cosette sat upright again suddenly, "Marriage?" She thought. This was the first time he'd mentioned it since they'd met. And although she had spent many a night awake imagining a future with Marius, this was the first time either of them had mentioned it.
"Say that again" she said with a smile
"What?" Marius said, not realising what he'd just said.
"The part about us being married" Cosette said, still smiling at him.
"Oh, God, that just slipped out. I'm sorry". He said
"You don't want us to be married?" Cosette said, her face falling into sadness.
"No, no. That's not what I meant" Marius said quickly. "Of course I do, I love you. I'm doing everything all wrong aren't I? I mean I hadn't planned on just saying it like that. I wanted to ask you properly, the way you deserve to be asked. I don't even have a ring yet".
"I don't need a ring Marius" Cosette told him. "I just need you".
Marius looked at her beautiful face for a moment, and he knew right then that this was it, this was the time to finally be brave and do something right. He'd been so selfish in meeting her every night like this and she deserved better, so this was the one thing he could do for her the right way.
"Cosette…." He began. "Oh wait..." he then said before getting down on one knee in front of her. "I want to do this properly" he said with a smile taking her hands into his.
"Cosette, before I met you I was so sure of everything, I was sure of what I wanted, I wanted to be a revolutionary; I wanted to change the world. But now when I think of the future all I see is you. I don't deserve you Cosette; you're so wonderful and I'm just a fool.
He gently stroked her fingers with his hand, paying special attention to where an engagement ring should go.
"I don't have a ring to give you" He continued "I have nothing to offer you except for my heart, but I swear to you I'll do my best to prove to you how much I love you each and every day. That's my promise to you Cosette, I promise to give you the life you deserve and I promise you'll never feel ashamed of anything anymore. I love you and I want my life to be with you".
He took a deep breath before he finished his speech and he made sure to look her deep in the eyes for the most important thing he'd ever say. "Cosette, will you marry me?"
Cosette smiled at him, knowing that she hadn't loved him more than in this moment. "Yes Marius, I will" she said with the most conviction she'd ever had.
Marius smiled and breathed out in relief, and then he gently kissed her fingers on the place where a ring should go. He kept hold of her hands and stood up, taking her with him. "Thank God" he said quietly before kissing her lightly on the lips.
"I'll make you so happy Cosette, I swear to you. I love you" he said, between kisses.
"I know you will, I love you Marius". Cosette said sweetly, feeling that now she was officially his fiancée she could feel less guilt and more joy about their relationship.
The End