AN: Hey, it's me again. I'd just like to thank all those who reviewed in the past chapters. I just love the thrill that I get when I see a new review pop up. So yeah. Thanks
Anyway, for anyone who's wondering or would want something visual to go by, I based the appearance of the characters mostly from the 2012 film. Well, except for Grantaire, I suppose. He's probably more of a Hadley Fraser to me. And the other Barricade Boys are probably a mix of the movie actors and my own imagination of them. But I'm not an artist so I can't really see how I can make you all see that. But, it's really up to you how you see them. This is basically how I see them but you might want a different image as you read. That's cool.
So...how're you liking the story so far? Drop a review so I can find out. Till we meet again.
Disclaimer: Les Miserables owned by a teenage girl? Gasp! I didn't know that I was born in the 1800's. (end of sarcasm) No people, it's not mine.
"I thought you didn't want to go." Combeferre said as he passed Enjolras who was sitting on the sofa.
"I didn't." He said as he continued to read his book, not even tearing his eyes away to look at the other gentleman.
"Then why are you the only one who's ready? Aside from me that is. Where is this sudden eagerness to leave coming from?"
"Do not be mistaken. As you know quite well, I am a man of schedule. Of course I would be the first to finish with my business."
"Darn. For a moment there I actually thought that you were happy to spend some time with your buddies."
"Please, we see each other on a daily basis. And as you can see, we even share the same living arrangements. Why must there be a need to act all excited?"
Combeferre merely shrugged and took a sip from his juice. He didn't despise the celebration but he wasn't that enthusiastic about it as Courfeyrac was. Simply put, he was indifferent. He knew exactly how the night would go on. Firstly, they would wait for their other comrades to get there, making them late for their reservation. That was already checked off the list seeing as they were still waiting for Grantaire and Courfeyrac to exit their rooms. Secondly, the whole notion of having a "boy's night out" would be shattered assuming that Marius and Joly bring along their lady loves. Scratch that. He was sure that they would. Thirdly, they would argue over the menu and make a ruckus which would leave the more sensible members of their group to do the damage control. He just hoped that they wouldn't be kicked out of yet another fine restaurant in France. Fourthly, alcohol. That in itself is explanation enough. How the night progresses would simply depend on who gets drunk and how drunk they'd be. But basically, the night would end this way. Enjolras would be wearing his signature scowl whilst helping a very inebriated Grantaire into his room while Combeferre would be assisting Courfeyrac into his. And he would admit that he'd be doing it all while a bit tipsy himself. Yes, this is how he thought the night would progress and end. Oh, but how very wrong Combeferre would be.
Saying that the kitchen was busy that night would be a complete understatement. Orders were yelled over the noise of various people doing various things. Dishes slid from the counter one after the other. And food was served right off the pan and onto a plate in a matter of seconds. Piles of dishes started to turn into mini-mountains as they were placed haphazardly in the sink while the dishwashers scrubbed furiously at the Chinaware. It was indeed a contrast to the calm environment displayed in the dining area of the restaurant.
It certainly made Eponine thank her lucky stars that she would not be serving as a waitress that night. She hung her coat on a rack and dumped her bag in the employee's locker room. She proceeded to walk toward the bar where she knew her employer would be.
"Ah, Eponine. It's good that you've arrived. I've just been discussing the playlist for tonight with Monsieur Claude over here." The elder lady handed her the folder where the songs were placed. She scanned through them and was relieved that she was quite familiar with the songs. She handed them back to the older gentleman beside the Madame. Monsieur Claude worked for Patria's as the resident pianist when they had their acoustic weekends. He was a kind old gentleman who was around the age of sixty. She was rather fond of the man and admired his love for music. It was such a breath of fresh air to be working with him at times.
"I do hope we could start the music in ten minutes time if that's okay with you dear."
"Oui. That would be just fine, Madame Girdeau." She said. Madame Girdeau was the niece of the founder of Patria's, which was, as you might have guessed, named after the founder herself, Madame Patria Francois. Madame Girdeau had inherited the restaurant after Madame Francois's only son entered priesthood. She was a rather slim and tall lady who was over forty years of age. She treated her employee's well but kept a rather distant relationship with them. She was strict and was quite a perfectionist but Eponine regarded her with much respect for singlehandedly managing the now thriving restaurant.
"Maybe you would wish to go over the song list for a little while before we start." The old man suggested. She smiled at him and slowly followed him to the stage. He softly played a few notes from the songs and gave her a run-through of how the show would go on. She was so focused with her current task that she did not notice the entrance of a group of young men who had a few ladies at their sides, one of which was waving frantically at her.
"Cosette, you're doing it again." Musichetta said to her dear friend.
"What is so wrong with acknowledging the presence of our roommate?" she inquired, still miffed with her earlier discussion with Eponine.
"Well, does the memory of Eponine telling you countless times to never repeat those kinds of actions come into mind?"
"It does but I still don't see why she would downright reject my act of friendship, 'Chetta."
"Now, who would do such a thing, my lovely Cosette?" Marius had just returned at Cosette's side after leaving to hang her coat on the hanger.
"Apparently, Eponine. You see, after a previous, um, occasion, Eponine had told Cosette several times that she must simply not, uh, showcase her affections toward her friend once she would be performing on stage." Musichetta explained.
"Why ever not? Eponine deserves to be acknowledged greatly. She has a fantastic voice. I could not blame Cosette for feeling such a thrill to see her friend doing quite well. Oh look, there she is now." At seeing Eponine on stage, Marius began to wave as frantically as Cosette had.
"Oh goodness. You two definitely belong to each other." Musichetta muttered.
"Pardon?" They both said at the exact time, only proving Musichetta's previous musings. Fortunately, Joly came in at that time to usher the group to their table. The others were already seated and had begun to scan their eyes on the menu.
"Um, not to be rude to these fine ladies but I thought this was going to be men's night." Grantaire said, not at all sounding that he meant what he said about not wanting to be rude. At this comment, the two ladies suddenly became a lot more conscious and had started to blush.
"Nonsense, R. Nobody said that we couldn't bring along a date. And I do believe that this would be a great opportunity for me to introduce my dearest to you." Marius said as he took his seat between Cosette and Joly.
"Ah, yes. Please do forgive my friend, dear Mademoiselles. I am certain that he does not see your presence as a disturbing matter. I am Combeferre, by the way." He said as he stood up to lightly kiss the hands of the two ladies, giving them a pleasant smile. Check number two. He was so sure that Marius would be bringing along his mystery girl whom he'd been talking nonstop about but not having the opportunity to introduce them to. He was only mildly surprised that Joly had also brought the famous Musichetta whom he has mentioned a couple of times.
"Cosette." The blonde girl said as she gave him a smile in return.
"Musichetta." The other lady said.
The gentlemen had started to introduce themselves one by one, each in a different manner. The waiter then came along to take their orders. And this is where Combeferre's prediction started to come true, yet again.
The events that began to conspire as they ordered began to proceed in a domino effect. There was a small ruckus made when Grantaire and Bahorel had argued over which wine they should be ordering. Bossuet had started to stand up and stop the quarreling between the two boys but then he tripped on a chair and crashed into a waiter. Luckily, the waiter was not able to drop the tray that he held however, some wine was able to spill onto Prouvaire's pants. In his efforts to wipe it away with his table napkin, he had accidentally pulled on the table cloth instead which made the utensils on it shift, leaving some to fall to the ground. Marius, who was going to get some new utensils, tripped on Joly who was trying to pick the fallen cutlery up to avoid more tragedy. The two ladies had decided to help their respective beloveds up but in their efforts, had managed to fall down themselves, pulling down the rest of the table cloth with them. As the cloth fell, the vase that was placed in the middle toppled over and spewed the contents all over Courfeyrac and Combeferre. As the two dashed toward the restroom to fix their states, they bumped into Feuilly who had come from the loo. The three men fell on their bums and crashed into Enjolras's seat which began to tip over in the crash. Now the four men were sprawled on the floor with a chair in the midst of it all. To sum it all up, it was one greatly entertaining disaster. So much for having a good night.
As Eponine prepared herself on stage, she could not help noticing the commotion that stirred up in one of the tables at the back. She scanned through the faces and noticed the figures of two young ladies whom she knew quite well.
"Everything's all right, ladies and gentlemen. Just go on with your lovely evening. Come now, why don't we give a round of applause to the young lady on stage who is about to serenade us for the evening." Cosette had said to her fellow diners as the group had caught the attention of everyone else.
All eyes began to shift their way onto the stage and onto Eponine who was not at all pleased by Cosette using her as a scapegoat.
"Oh, Cosette. What have I told you about not embarrassing me tonight?" she silently cursed under her breath. She looked on to the group who were trying to fix things. It truly was a mess. Her line of sight finally landed on a figure of a man who seemed to look familiar to her. She was not quite sure, though. The lighting was dim and the spotlight that had zoned in on her made her eyesight a bit hazy. She wouldn't have any time to check, anyway.
She turned her attention to her back where Monsieur Claude was sitting with the piano. He nodded his head at her and began to play the first few notes of the opening song of the night.
"Well, there's no use on letting your mind think about such things, 'Ponine. You've got a job to do. Just pretend that they're not there. Cosette and company couldn't possibly make the night a lot worse." She thought to herself as she listened to the intro. But as the saying should go, the night was still young. And oh, how that particular night was still so very young indeed.