A/N: Hey guys! Time for the first date chapter! :D A couple of people noticed that I kind of forgot about Prohibition in the last chapter (thanks, Deep Forest Green and ConcreteAngelRoxHerHero for calling me out on that!) so I went back and reposted the first chapter. Hope you enjoy this one, and please let me know if you catch anything else! I enjoy your feedback and constructive criticism. R&R!

Éponine put the finishing touches on her makeup as she stood in front of her bathroom mirror. It was Friday night, 5:00 in the evening, and she was about to go out to dinner with Richard Enjolras. She was thankful that she had the day off; she wouldn't smell like a bar on their date.

Oh my God…this is a date. I'm going on a date. With a lawyer.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing nerves, and smoothed the front of her long red dress. Everything was going to be fine. All she had to do was breathe…right? Éponine paused and put a trembling hand to her forehead. She was an absolute fool to do this; she was hardly the sort of girl that someone like Richard Enjolras should be spending time with, let alone having dinner with. She was just grateful that he would never find out the truth…

He can't find out. I won't let him.

The last half hour raced by, and before she knew it – before she was ready for it – she heard a knock on the front door of her apartment. "Coming!" she called, crossing herself quickly before opening the door. There he was, in the same suit and tie as the last time she'd seen him on Wednesday. "Hello, Enjolras," she smiled.

"Hello, Éponine," he smiled back. "You look beautiful."

She looked down at her shoes, trying to hide her blush as she grinned. "Thank you," she said when she regained the courage to meet his eyes. She was thankful that his smile never faltered.

"Ready to go?" he asked kindly. Éponine nodded and stepped out the door, locking it behind her. As soon as she turned around, he offered her an arm, and together, they walked down the steps to the sidewalk to his car. "So…where are we going?" she asked with a small smile.

Enjolras grinned. "The Stork Club, over on West 58th," he said, clearly excited. "It's only a couple of years old, and it's already one of the nicest places in the city. My father and I were taking clients to dinner there when I was still in law school, as soon as it opened," he laughed. "I really think you'll like it." She was immediately alarmed, but did her best to maintain her composure.

"It sounds fantastic," she said, barely managing to smile. Her heart was racing, and she did her best to keep her breathing steady, willing her palms to keep from clamming up.

"Éponine? Are you well?" he asked, clearly concerned.

She swallowed hard. "I'm fine," she said, hoping her smile would be enough to convince him. "Just a little jittery," she chuckled. I hope we're almost to the car…

Enjolras frowned for a moment, but relaxed when they got to the car. "Alright…well, it's not a long drive from here, so you'll be able to eat something soon. That'll do you some good," he said, opening her door. She smiled at him again as she got in the car – it was a Model A, and she could tell from the smell of the leather that it was a new one. This is just even more proof that he's out of my league…God, why am I doing this…?

She folded her hands in her lap, looking down as Enjolras got in and started the car. He frowned again to himself as he looked at her – she was clearly nervous, which was completely understandable, but he could tell that wasn't all…he racked his brains as he turned the corner towards West 58th. She looked…almost like she'd rather be somewhere else…like she didn't want to be with him. The thought gave him an antsy feeling, and he didn't like it. He was quietly thankful that it wasn't a long drive to West 58th from her apartment.

"Are you sure you're alright?" he asked again, reaching out to put a hand on her arm as he drove. "You look ill."

Éponine nodded again. Stubborn as ever, this one, he thought to himself. "I'm fine, Enjolras," she answered. "I think you're right, though…I should eat something," she said, half to herself. "I haven't eaten a lot today, come to think of it."

"Well, you're in luck…we're here," Enjolras answered with a smile, stopping the car in front of the door. "Ready?" She took a deep breath, before smiling and nodding. "In that case, stay right there," he laughed as he got out of the car, coming around to open her door, offering her his arm again as he closed and locked the door. Éponine noticed she was trying hard to keep herself from squeezing the life out of his arm as he walked up and opened the door, ushering her in first.

She took in her surroundings as she timidly stepped in the door, Enjolras shutting it behind them. Smoke filled the air, and a grainy record somewhere was playing an upbeat jazz tune. All around, she heard silverware and plates clinking, a low murmur of constant chatter, punctuated by the occasional laugh from one table or another.

"Good evening, and welcome to the Stork Club," a gentleman at the door said. "How may I help you?"

"Good evening," Enjolras answered, letting Éponine take his arm again; she felt much more secure when he did. "I have a reservation for two under Richard Enjolras."

The young man checked his list and smiled. "Right this way, sir, miss," he said, unhooking a golden chain and ushering them into a back room, filled with more tables and people. Éponine was shocked at the sheer size of the room – she had never been in such a big place, outside of the bars where she'd worked.

"Good evening, please follow me to your seats," a waiter said as he appeared from nowhere to guide them through the smoky room to a small table that rested against the wall. Enjolras pulled out Éponine's chair, allowing her to take a seat first. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Just water for me," Éponine said, managing a shy smile.

"Same for me," Enjolras said.

"Very good. I'll have those as soon as possible," the waiter smiled, walking away from them as Enjolras grinned at Éponine.

"So what do you think?" he murmured. "Like it so far?"

Éponine hardly knew what to say. "It's…wow," she laughed. "This is really spectacular."

Enjolras' grin grew wider. "I knew you'd like it. Oh, also…don't look for too long, but Charlie Chaplin's over my left shoulder; he's having dinner with Clark Gable," he added coolly, scanning the menu. "I noticed them when we came in."

Her jaw dropped, and Enjolras could hardly keep himself from laughing. She looked back and forth from him to the two men at another smoky table on the other side of the room, her face still a picture of shock. "Wha…that's Charlie Chaplin?" she hissed in disbelief. "We're eating dinner in the same room as Charlie Chaplin?"

The lawyer across the table was now grinning ear-to-ear, clearly quite proud of his spotting. "Pretty cool, huh? My father and I have seen quite a few high-profile people here before. For a while, we had a competition going to see which of us could spot more celebrities here. I got pretty good at it," he winked.

"Is that a challenge, Mr. Enjolras?" she grinned.

"Perhaps," he grinned back as the waiter returned, setting their drinks on the table. "The question is, would you accept a challenge of the sort, were it issued to you?"

She contemplated her answer. "Hmm…perhaps," she winked back.

The rest of the date flew by, and neither of them could stop smiling and laughing all through dinner or dessert. Éponine managed to spot Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi before they left; she and Enjolras were about to start putting money on who would be able to spot more people! He was glad to see her transformation throughout the course of the evening. Enjolras much preferred to be around the Éponine that he'd met at the bar – always smiling, laughing, ready with a good joke at just the right time.

He'd told himself before he picked her up that he wouldn't ask her out on another date, but when he was walking her back up the stairs to her apartment, his mouth betrayed him again.

"Hey, Éponine…" he started again, the same as last time.

"Hmm?"

"I don't know if you've heard, but the New York Philharmonic is pairing up with the New York City Ballet to perform Stravinsky's Firebird Suite," he said. "It's a really incredible piece. One of my favorites, actually. My father and I are going to see it next Thursday night…and I was wondering if you wanted to come with us."

Éponine paused for a moment to consider. This evening had gone really well, much better than she expected…and his proposition now sounded like nothing more than sitting in a concert hall and enjoying an hour or so of good music and ballet. Can't go too badly… "Sure, sounds great," she smiled. "I'll ask Mac for the night off."

Enjolras' grin only grew. "Perfect. I'll see you around, Éponine," he said. She smiled, and to her surprise, he leaned in to kiss her cheek. "Goodnight," he smiled.

She was too taken aback to respond for a moment. "Goodnight, Enjolras," she managed to say coherently, even managing a smile, before walking into her apartment and closing the door, squealing with delight when she thought he couldn't hear. He chuckled to himself as he jogged down the steps back to his car, already anticipating the next Thursday night.

What is it about her…or is it me?

A/N: Yay for a good first date! Let me know what you think, guys :)