Chapter 13 - Le Petit
"Le petit prince is still asleep…and breathing." Courfeyrac announced.
"Bonne!" Jehan yawned, patting the space beside him. "Although I told you Gav doesn't need to be checked on every quarter hour."
Courfeyrac eyed him warily before flopping on to the bed.
"My dear, Gavroche isn't a pet." He started, encouraging his boyfriend to snuggle against his side. "This will not be another Monsieur Le Chat."
At the deceased's name, the student burst in to tears.
"H-he was the best mouse, a-and I killed him."
"Shhh. It's alright love." Jehan soothed. He patiently waited until Courfeyrac's sobs turned in to hiccups.
Coyly, Jehan peppered him with kisses before moving off the bed.
"Hey! Not fair." Courfeyrac pouted, moaning dramatically as he stood to follow his boyfriend.
As he rounded the corner, he gasped. Jehan stood with a tub of Ben & Jerry's, a spoon, and Season 4 of the Office (US version) that his boyfriend's schoolmate had lent him.
"Honestly, how did I manage to find you?" Courfeyrac asked, pressing Jehan and his handfuls of distractions against the fridge.
"The stars…" Jehan started, a sonnet on the tip of his tongue.
Courfeyrac swallowed his lover's words and continued the poem with a few lines of his own.
Repeated vibrations stirred Courfeyrac from a sugar-induced slumber. Carefully extracting his arm from around Jehan's waist, he answered his phone.
"Hello?" He yawned.
"Courf? Is Gav alright?" Words tumbled out of her mouth and assaulted Courfeyrac's sleep addled ears.
"Ep?"
"Who else would it be?!" She shouted.
He grimaced and held his cell away from his ear. "Oy. Give me a sec would ya?" After a beat he continued. "You alright? How's Grantaire? Joly and Enjolras are still with you?"
Eponine paused and there were muffled shuffling sounds on the other line. "Hold on a sec Courf."
He impatiently tapped his foot and heard Joly murmuring comforting words to a distraught Grantaire.
"Another flashback. Sorry." She drew a breath and adjusted the phone. "Anyway, could you and Jehan keep Gavroche for the night? Things…are a little…intense. I-I don't want Gav to be around."
"Of course 'Ponine. What else can we do?"
"Merci Courfeyrac. The guys are walking us back. I don't know who's staying over, but I'll call you in the morning yeah?"
"Yeah. Take care Ep." His chest ached, and before he could think his mouth opened. "Love you." He blurted.
Eponine inhaled sharply before abruptly ending the call. Guilt warmed her face, but she shook the feelings away.
"Is Gav okay?" Joly asked, helping Grantaire to stand.
"Yeah. They are fine with him staying the night." She smiled, and cupped Grantaire's cheek. "Let's go home yeah?"
He nodded shakily and leaned on Enjolras.
None of the Amis noticed a bulky shadow trailing behind them as they journeyed towards the tenement.
Eponine brushed a mass of curls off of Grantaire's forehead and stood. His eyes stared blankly in to the darkness. She left the door partly open and joined the boys in the kitchen alcove.
"He's laying down, I don't think he's here though."
Enjolras gave her a confused look, while Joly nodded and handed her a mug of tea.
Grasping it, she thanked him and leaned against the counter.
"So, it's quarter to 2. Do you both want to stay the night?"
The students looked at each other. Joly spoke first "Musichetta and Bossuet will miss me, but I'm worried about leaving you and R."
Eponine's heart lurched at her roommate's old nickname. "We'll be fine." She choked out.
Carefully he watched her expression shift. "Call me. I'll be up early. If I don't hear from you, I'll stop over…without coffee."
Smiling, she nodded and pulled him in to an embrace. "Love you." She whispered in to his neck. "No lie."
"No lies." He replied, kissing the top of her head.
Clearing his throat, Enjolras grasped the door. "I'll walk you out Joly."
"I'll get changed, and leave the door unlocked for ya." Eponine narrated to Enjolras, setting her cup in the sink. "Good night sweetheart."
"Night Eponine."
Enjolras closed the door gently behind them and Eponine sighed. Grantaire muttered and thumped around the mattress in fevered dreams. Squaring her shoulders, Eponine detached herself and summoned strength to ground her better half.
"Are you going to grab a cab?" Enjolras asked, turning up the collar of his coat.
With a shake of his head, Joly took a step backwards. "Nah. I fancy a walk after a night like this."
He nodded and dropped his head in acknowledgement.
"Are you staying?" The medical student's question held multiple levels.
After a moment, Enjolras let his eyes meet his friend's gaze. "Yeah."
Joly opened his mouth to respond, but bit his lip instead. He lifted his arms and drew the leader in to a hug.
"See you tomorrow morning at Musain. 7?"
"I'll be at the usual table." He confirmed.
Enjolras shifted his weight and watched Joly disappear around a corner. His body vibrated with the adrenaline of the night's events. His nerves jumped like he'd consumed a few triple shot lattes. He'd never seen Grantaire so undone. In the beginning when he and Eponine had begun attending the meetings, he'd attributed the cynic's attitude to alcohol. From the way Eponine had snarled at him the night before, he'd gleaned that his drinking habit was only the tip of the ice-burg so to speak. There had been a feral protectiveness about Eponine and to a lesser extent Joly, when they'd found him in the alley holding Grantaire.
It wasn't that Enjolras didn't understand secrets or pain. He certainly shouldered his own scars. Grantaire's history was his to tell. Enjolras decided at the moment to never push him. God, they spent so many nights at each other's throats playing on arguments and political beliefs.
Work mattered, of course. His passion lay in law and providing a voice for the people. Love and relationships, as Jehan had often preached held everything together.
Enjolras turned and began the short trek back to Grantaire's flat. His senses were blind to reality as his mind churned.
A sharp pain struck his skull and reality surged around Enjolras for a moment before blackness clouded his vision and the world went dark.