Chapter 2:
Lucie was pacing back and forth in her room the next morning trying to decide what to wear. What's wrong with me? She'd never been this nervous about anything in her life. Whatever she wore couldn't be too extravagant because she knew what Enjolras thought of the wealthy in Paris, but she didn't want to seem like she wasn't trying to look nice. It took her almost an hour to decide on a blue dress that matched the blue in the French flag.
"Lucie," Marius yelled from the bottom of the stairs, "We're going to be late!"
"I'm coming!" she yelled back.
She ran down the stairs and almost fell (those 10 years of ballet lessons really didn't help her clumsiness as much as she'd hoped they would).
They arrived at the park about 20 minutes later, and Enjolras was waiting for them. When he saw Lucie, he started to get nervous. His palms started sweating. He pushed his curls back once and then five more times unnecessarily.
"Bonjour, Lucie," he said as she and Marius approached him, "Marius."
"Bonjour, Enjolras," she replied.
The two started walking side by side with Marius following behind them. This went on for a few minutes until he spotted Éponine up ahead.
"'Ponine!" he called, "Wait up!" He pushed between Lucie and Enjolras and started jogging towards Éponine.
As Éponine turned and saw Marius her face lit up. She stopped and waited for him. "Bonjour, Monsieur Marius," she said.
Lucie and Enjolras watched them for a few minutes in silence. Finally Enjolras said, "Does he know?"
"Does he know what?" Lucie asked.
"Does he know that Éponine is madly in love with him?"
"He is completely and totally oblivious."
"That's a shame," Enjolras said, "I mean…I'd hate to be hopelessly in love with someone only for her to be unaware." He trailed off a little at the end.
"It's terrible really. I think she would do anything for him and he has no idea. They've been friends for years now and he just doesn't understand. She loves him so much."
After a moment, they moved to a different topic. They started talking about the normal first date things: their childhood, family, favorite school subjects, etc.
"I love history!" Lucie exclaimed after Enjolras told her it was his favorite subject, "We can learn so much from our past, and so few people realize it."
"I agree," he said. He paused for a second then told her, "You look lovely, by the way." Lucie was noticeably shocked. Enjolras continued, "I didn't want to say anything before in front of Marius. I'm sorry if that was awkward."
"It's OK…it wasn't awkward…it's just that..."
"What?"
"No one has ever said anything like that to me before."
They were back where they started at the beginning of the path.
"When can I see you again, Lucie?" Enjolras asked.
"Tomorrow?" she responded.
"Same time, same place?"
"It's a date."
This went on every day for two weeks. On the last day of the two weeks, Marius and Éponine had found each other again, leaving Enjolras and Lucie to themselves. In the middle of their walk, Enjolras's hand found Lucie's as it had for the past couple of days.
"When's the next meeting at ABC?" Lucie asked.
"Today at four. You're still interested?"
"Of course I am," she replied, "I told you, Enj, this is my cause, too, now."
All of a sudden, Enjolras stopped causing Lucie to stop with him.
"What's wro—," she said before he interrupted her with a kiss.
"I love you, Lucie," he said.
"I love you, too, Enj."
After their walk and the meeting at ABC Café, Lucie and Marius returned home.
"Lucie," her grandfather called, "a word please?" he didn't sound happy.
"What's wrong, Grand-père?" she asked.
"A friend of mine told me today that he saw you and that boy, Enjolras, together in the park. Is this true?"
"Marius was with us, Grand-père."
"I don't care who was with you! Did Enjolras ask my permission to court you? No, he didn't, and he doesn't have it."
"He didn't have to ask your permission; you aren't my father!"
"That is it! You are confined to this house, Lucie. You will not leave here without a chaperone and that chaperone must be me. Understand?"
She didn't answer. Instead she ran up to her room in tears. Marius followed her to see what was wrong. When she told him, he went back downstairs to confront his grandfather.
"She's in love with him. You can't just keep them apart," he yelled.
"I can so, and it's none of your business if I do or not, Marius."
"It is my business; Lucie is my sister, and I will not stand to see her crying because you won't approve of the man she loves."
While the argument ensued downstairs, Lucie wrote a letter to Enjolras.
"My dearest Enjolras,
My grandfather has forbid me from seeing you any longer. He has confined me to the house and told me I may leave with no one but him. I fear this could be the end of us, but have no doubt in your heart that what I said today was true. I do love you, Enj, and I always will.
Forever yours,
Lucie"
Marius walked back upstairs, defeated. He could not persuade their grandfather to let Lucie out of the house to see Enjolras.
"Marius," Lucie whispered as he walked past her room.
"What is it Lu?" he asked.
"I need you to do something for me."
"What?"
"Go meet Enjolras tomorrow, and give him this," she said handing him the letter.
"I don't know, Lu, Grand-père is already mad that I kept your secret."
"Please, Marius, he has to know I didn't just decide to stop showing up."
"OK, Lucie…I'll do it," he gave in to his sister, as he usually did.
The next day, Marius delivered the letter. After reading it, Enjolras checked both of his pants pockets and his jacket pocket for a pen and paper. He had neither.
"Marius!" he said, "I don't have anything to write on…or with, but tell Lucie not to worry. I'm going to fix everything."
