"JOLY!" Enjolras yelled as he entered the cafe 3 days later. The medical student looked up from his textbook and sighed in slight agitation "Yes?" he asked with a slight rolling of his eyes. Enjolras took a few breaths before asking in a low voice "Do you have any pain medications?".
Lesgles looked up from his book that he was reading at a nearby table "Why? Abby giving you a headache or something?" he asked, amused. Enjolras crossed his arms "For your information it's not for me, it's for Abby" he replied, looking very annoyed. "Why so angry about it then? I'd think you'd be more worried than annoyed" Joly told him, glancing back down at his textbook.
Enjolras huffed "Well I'm both. She's in so much pain at night that she cries quite loudly! I've hardly slept at all and my exams are coming up!" he admitted. Grantaire hopped down from his barstool and joined the group "Maybe you should, I don't know, comfort her? She's only a child after all" he told him.
"Gavroche didn't need to be held when his arm was injured!" Enjolras pointed out, but Lesgles shook his head "He's a boy, that's different. And even he was quite shaken after that fight" he replied. Combeferre nodded from the table where he sat nearby "Lesgles and Grantaire both have points. Remember that she's seen quite a lot, especially in that time she was alone on the streets, and even the time with her mother. She's probably afraid".
Joly closed his textbook and sighed "Pain and Fear, makes just about everyone cry until their hoarse once in a while" he said "Especially for a child such as Abby. However, the fact that you say she's in horrible amounts of pain does worry me slightly, might I come home with you to check on her?" he asked.
Enjolras nodded "Of course", Joly stood up and began following him out, but stopped at the door "Grantaire" he called, the drunk looked up "You might need to live up to your nickname soon" he told him. Grantaire smiled and took a large swig of his wine "I'll be the best Nanny in all of Paris!" he called after them.
Once they were out of sight Combeferre laughed and shook his head as he got back to his book "Grantaire the drunk nanny, once I see flying elephants and moving pictures, I'll have seen everything!" he said out loud. Just then Prouvaire called from the back room "DO NOT DOUBT ME! THERE WILL BE MOVING PICTURES AND FLYING ELEPHANTS IN THE FUTURE!". Lesgles shouted back "SHUT UP JEHAN! JUST WRITE YOUR STUPID SPEECH ALREADY!".
Meanwhile Joly and Enjolras walked down the street and up to Enjolras's apartment. Enjolras opened the door quietly and stepped inside, Joly following silently behind him. "Abby?" Enjolras called softly, there was no answer and he sighed in relief "I think she's asleep" he told Joly, the student nodded "Probably for the best" he replied.
Joly and Enjolras entered her room and began to examine her "Damn" Joly hissed after taking off the bandages "She pulled a couple of the stitches". Suddenly Abby began to stir and she blinked up at Joly, her eyes clouded in a bit of confusion "Joly? What are you doin here?" she asked quietly. He continued examining and suddenly she yelped out in pain "OW! Hey that hurt!" she whimpered.
The medical student sighed "Just as I thought, she pulled the stitches and they got infected" he told Enjolras. The other student looked up "Well, what are you going to do?" he asked. Joly stood and thought deeply "Well, I really don't know. I think I'll just leave the stitches out since she's not bleeding anymore. I'll pull the rest out and then clean it, try to get rid of the infection. Good thing we caught it early" he explained.
Abby looked around nervously as Joly pulled out a pair of scissors "Is this gonna hurt?" she asked him timidly. He gave her an apologetic look before nodding slowly "I'm afraid it probably will" he admitted. Enjolras offered her his hand, which Abby eagerly accepted as Joly began cutting. She squeezed her eyes shut and took sharp breaths every cut Joly made.
"Hurry up!" she gasped, tears beginning to stream down her face as she fought back the urge to cry out. Joly put the scissors down "We're almost done, I've gotten out all your stitches, just let me just clean it and rebandage your wounds and you'll be fine alright?" he asked her. Abby nodded and Enjolras squeezed her hand gently for reassurance.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity to Abby, he finished. "You're doing pretty well Abby, just rest a while longer though" Joly told her gently as she tried to sit herself up. She winced "When will I be able to come back to the cafe?" she questioned "I miss Nanny and everyone else" she told him. Enjolras shook his head "You won't be going for quite a while. But I'm sure they'll come visit you" he told her.
Her eyes brightened to this "I really hope so" she answered. Joly said goodbye and promised he would tell everyone at the cafe she said hello before he left Enjolras's flat. Enjolras sat down next to Abby and sighed "Abby, what am I going to do with you girl?" he questioned. She giggled "Nothing, haven't I proven I don't need anyone? I'm ok by myself, really" she told him.
He glanced at her "Tell me about when you lived on the streets, with your mother" he asked her gently. She looked up at the ceiling, as if her life story was written there "I remember, I remember the things I saw, and the things my mother told me" she began "Days were long, nights were longer. We didn't get to eat very much. Sometimes, if I was very very good, someone would give me a little piece of bread" she told him.
"My mother worked day and night, leaving me on my own most of the time. During the day she worked in a factory, sewing very pretty dresses, and at nights men would pay her some money, then take her in their houses. I don't know what they did in there, my mother always made me stand outside and wait for her. Her hair would always be messy after she came out of there and sometimes her dress was torn, or she bled"
Abby paused and glanced at Enjolras, who gazed back at her with steady eyes "Go on" he prodded her. She looked back up "Mother tried her best, making sure I didn't have to work since I was hardly 5 years old at the time. At night, after she'd worked, or in times when she couldn't work at night, she'd stay with me in an alleyway or where ever we could find a place to sleep. Sometimes she sang, she had a really pretty voice. I still remember it".
Enjolras looked down "What happened the night you met me?" he asked. She smiled "Oh 'Jolras, I was thinking about this while I was on my own that month, I'd actually seen you before you took me in. One day I was sitting on the street hoping someone would give me some food. Then I saw you, walking down the street carrying a few books" Abby blushed "I was thinking how handsome you were and daydreaming about how nice it would be when I got older to have a lover as handsome as you".
He smiled and chuckled "Oh really? Am I still handsome?" he asked her. She laughed "Of course you are 'Jolras" she replied, once she laughed she grew quiet and continued "But before you took me in, I remember this man went to my mother and asked her something. Whatever it was, she really didn't want to do it, but the man made her go into the alleyway and do it. The next night the man returned with more people and..." she choked on a sob "They pulled a knife and started attacking her! She told me to run and never look back" she cried.
"You've said enough now, thank you" Enjolras told her gently, she cried "I'm sorry, I don't mean to cry, I know it's been bothering you". He hushed her and sat on her bed, pulling Abby into his lap gently and holding her like the others had advised, she quieted down almost immediately "Abby?" he asked her "Yes 'Jolras?" she replied.
Taking a deep breath, he asked her "Are you afraid to die?" he asked her. She shook her head and nuzzled into his chest "No" she replied softly "I'm not afraid of that. I'm afraid that one day you'll leave, and never return. But I've always been afraid of that, children on the street told me all the time that my mother would eventually leave me. She didn't mean to of course, but she did leave me. And, you might not mean to, but I fear you and the others might leave me one day too" she admitted.
Enjolras turned her head so she was looking him straight in the eyes "Abby, I'm not going anywhere, and the rest of the amis aren't going anywhere either" he told her. "You have to have faith that the people will rise with us when the time comes and help us return to you" he paused "Would you like to hear a secret of mine?" he asked, Abby's eyes lit up slightly and she nodded eagerly.
He smiled slightly "I'm afraid of dying alone" he said quietly. Abby smiled "Really?" she asked, he nodded and she looked down, thinking about it. After a few moment she wrapped her arms around him "Well it's ok, you won't be alone. You have all our friends, and me, and I'm sure the people will stand up, I know it" she said, her voice growing passionate as she spoke.
Chuckling he ran his fingers through her hair "Now that we've settled that, might I please go study for my exams, it's quite important" he told her. She laughed and nodded and he picked her up, grabbing one of her dolls and carrying her into the main room and setting her on the floor near the fireplace "Don't tell Joly I let you out of bed. As long as you're quiet and careful, you can play alright?" he asked her, handing her her doll.
Abby smiled bright "I won't tell nobody!" she told him. He stood up and went over to the desk, opening his textbook to one of the pages he'd marked and began reading. Somehow he knew that Abby wouldn't be keeping him up with her tears anymore.
AH! THE FLUFF! IT BURNS! God, I need somethings nonfluffy to happen. But anything that involves Abby IS fluffy! She's just a fluffy person! Oh whatever.
It's OFFICIALLY SUMMER! ALMOST! I have to go to a band rehearsal on Friday and play a graduation Saturday, but after that it's SUMMERTIME! Which means more writing! YAY! Hope to finish this story, but I actually have something to ask of my wonderful readers. This story, has two potential endpoints, when Abby grows up (It would be one of those 10 years later type things), or right after the barricade.
Now before you go freaking out, let me say that Enjolras WILL live in both versions so don't worry about that. It's mostly a 'If you wanna know what happens to Abby when she grows up, or do you want to just leave it up to your imaginations' so, whichever you want, leave a review and say so! And while we're on the subject, the rest of the Amis do die, so, don't get your hopes up.
My list of 'Miracles' is to save Enjolras, Grantaire, and Joly. If there are any other members of the Amis you think I should save (Or shouldn't), also put it in the review. HOWEVER, it can't be just because you like/dislike them, I want a good reason for saving them. Do you just think that a particular member's relationship with Abby is too good to be ruined, or do you think it would make more drama and action if someone died? And P.S. Saving Gavroche does NOT count, he cannot, and will not be saved. Sorry
As Enjolras would say, this is a story for the people, therefore the people (That would be you) should have some say in what happens. Please Review and THANK YOU for reading! I am really starting to love this story, probably one of my favorites!