Sorry it's taken me a long time to update. School has been a pain! Hopefully, I could make it up to you guys with this chapter, though it's not very long.
disclaimer: I do not own this. All rights go to Victor Hugo
Chapter Four
"A man can never dream these kinds of things,
Especially when she came and spread her wings.
Whispered in my ear the things I'd like,
Then she flew away into the night.
Gonna write a song so she can see,
Give her all the love she gives to me.
Talk of better days that have yet to come,
Never felt this love from anyone.
She's not anyone."
- Songbird by Oasis
"Holy shit, Eponine!" Montparnasse exclaimed as his bright emerald eyes examined her. "A human being is growing inside of you!"
Six months has passed since Eponine moved out of the city of New York to reside with her grandmother. In that amount of time, she finished her bachelors degree in journalism online and was mailed her diploma. She's also had to readjust to life in a small town, which is calmer and much more relaxing than city life. There was no crowd of people that walked in each-other's way or running to board the right train.
She was standing just outside the local cafe when she ran into Montparnasse. It was a small cafe she used to go to every morning when she was younger and they always provided her with the usual: chai tea and a chocolate chip cookie. She smiles at the sight of her old friend. Her hair was tied into a messy bun and she sports her favorite floral tank top and ripped shorts.
"Yeah," she laughs lightheartedly. "It's kind of weird when you say it like that. My mind is still in denial."
Shoving his hands within the pockets of his denim jeans, he casually made his way towards her. His raven was disheveled, looking as if it has been days since he last washed it, and his clothes cling to his skinny form as the wind blew a gentle breeze. "Who's the lucky bastard?"
Her signature ribbing grin appeared on her visage. "Why do you want to know?"
"Is it that Enjolras guy you told me about in your emails?"
The grin quickly disappears and instead, she's biting her bottom lip and contemplating whether or not to tell Montparnasse of her current predicament. But having known Eponine for a long time, he immediately catches this and drops any teasing he was originally going to do. "Sore subject?"
"It shouldn't be... I'm the one that ended it in the first place." Her dark brown eyes looked over at her surroundings. The people all walked calmly along the sidewalk, saying hello to whoever they passed and a genuine smile. In a playground just across the street, warm laughter echoed and Eponine unconsciously brought a hand to her swollen stomach. "Yeah, it's his," she replies with a small frown.
"Want to talk about it?"
She shakes her head. "Nah, not right now. Maybe later."
They exchanged goodbyes and then Eponine made her way down the sidewalk without any hurry, something she couldn't do in the city.
The town was small with large trees hovering above it. It was the type of town where everyone basically knew each other in some way or another. The walk from the cafe to her grandmother's store did not take long. As was said earlier, it was a small town.
The bell rung as Eponine entered the store and her nostrils were overwhelmed by essence. The store is Estelle's prize possession. The walls were painted a nice blu-green and decorated with paintings that were given to her by small children. Bookshelves surround the store and every inch of them were filled with books.
"Hello," Estelle says in a singsong tone as she emerged from the back room. She walked with a yellow and orange aura. The air around her was warm, as always, and it went well with her bright smile. "What may I do for you, Miss Eponine?"
Eponine felt her mood lighten just by the sight of her dear grandmother. "I just came to see how everything is going, Miss Estelle."
"And how is the little fetus?" Estelle coos, making her way towards Eponine. She places both her hands gently on her stomach, feeling the small bump.
"The little alien loves pizza so it keeps demanding Neil's amazing pepperoni and meat pizza."
Estelle's lighthearted laugh echoes. "Well, she has good taste."
Eponine rolls her dark eyes. "Why do you insist that it is a girl?"
"Because, my dear Eponine, I have a talent distinguishing whether a woman is having either a girl or a boy."
"Please, you also thought Gavroche was going to be a girl."
"Hey!" She points a defensive finger at Eponine. "I am human. I'm capable of making mistakes."
"Just admit that your super powers are no match against a mother's intuition." The words came out casually yet Eponine was still startled at the thought of being a mother.
As if sensing her emotions, Estelle squeezed her shoulder in a reassuring manner. "You'll do fine."
xxx
"Philip!" Annabel greeted Enjolras with much enthusiasm. Her bright blonde hair, almost the color of sand, was held in a neat bun with no single strand out of place. Her pink dress was modest, ending just at her knees, with short sleeves and making her appear like the perfect aristocratic wife, just like his mother.
Everyone in the art gallery appeared to be of money and although Enjolras would be counted as one of them, he felt like an outsider. One of the side effects from his time in New York City was that he saw things differently. They all talked so eloquently with glasses of champagne in their hands and their eyes would occasionally glance at the works of art displayed on the plain white walls.
'This is not an art gallery. These idiots wouldn't know art when they see it. They're just here to look cultured,' he could already hear Eponine's mocking voice accompanied with the image of her rolling her eyes.
"Annabel," Enjolras greeted her with a coy smile that did not reach his eyes. She linked their arms together and led him to a painting of splattered green paint on a white canvas. Eponine's snort echoed in his ears.
"I think it looks nice despite its simplicity," Annabel says out loud after a moment of examining the painting.
"I've seen better." The words come out nonchalantly and matter-of-fact. Indeed, he has seen better paintings. He's seen a watercolor of Central Park in Grantaire's portfolio. He's also seen a sketch of Eponine curled on the couch, reading her beloved, beat up copy of The Fountainhead. That one was his absolute favorite.
"Well this one cost about twenty thousand."
Enjolras suppresses the urge to yell out, 'bullshit.' Years of being with Eponine and he had grown accustomed to her bad habits. It was also contagious.
"The ones I've seen were also cheaper."
"Were they well known artists?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.
He shakes his head. "No but they were very talented."
If he listens closely, he could almost hear their laughter.
xxx
"Shit!" Eponine harshly whispers, gripping her grandmother's hand tightly. She's surrounded by doctors, all offering words of encouragement. She dismisses those words with phrases such as, "shut the fuck up! You're not the one in labour!"
And before she even knows it, the sound of a baby crying fills the entire room. She becomes anxious, her eyes frantically attempting to look over the doctor's shoulder to get a glimpse of her miracle.
"It's a girl," the doctor happily announced as he handed the love child to Eponine.
"She's so tiny," Eponine observed with wide eyes that had tears forming at the corners.
Estelle came closer to look at the little girl that reminded her so much of Eponine, both possessing dimples and olive skin. Though the child held no physical trace to Enjolras, Eponine could see him in the way the baby cried loudly.
"What are you going to name her."
"Alaska," Eponine replies in a heartbeat. "Her name is Alaska Beatrice Jondrette."
Estelle furrowed her eyebrows. "Alaska?"
Eponine let out a laugh. "It means 'great land.'"
Once the doctors all leave and her grandmother decides to give her a moment alone, Eponine allows a few tears to fall down her cheek. After a few moments of rocking the baby back and forth, the cries calmed down. Her dark brown eyes, like Eponine's, stared up at her with wonder and Eponine laughed at the sight of the child's gaping mouth.
"How's it going, my dear Alaska?" She coos and her face lightens at how the corners of Alaska's mouth curves upward. She brings the bundle of jump closer and presses her lips to her forehead.
"My little ray of hope," she sighed.
I know you guys were hoping for a girl but I'm only good at writing mother/daughter relationships. Plus I had the whole image of Gilmore Girls in my head.
Yes, the name is from John Green's book, Looking for Alaska, which is my favorite. Yeah, The Fault in Our Stars is also a good book but, to me, it'll never beat Looking for Alaska. I was originally going the name her Beatrice, but then her initials would have been 'B.J.' (which, where I'm from at least, is short for blowjob). But hey, Alaska could be a substitute for the infamous Patria!
Also, I know you guys wanted Enjolras to find out about his offspring before Eponine gave birth but this was how I planned it from the beginning.
Read and review guys!
