AN: I'm back! As I said in my last update, I'm going to update this story whenever I can. Meaning, updates for this story may be a bit sporadic but you know, bear with me.

…..

All Eponine could feel as she groggily opened her eyes was a sharp pounding in the back of her skull. She had not even the slightest of ideas as to where she was, but she knew that something wasn't right. Still completely disoriented, Eponine tried to sit up, but was quickly paralyzed by a pain in her chest. That's odd. She thought. Although she tried to recall how she may have obtained such a painful injury, her head was still foggy. Underneath her, she felt something soft and feathery, perhaps it was a bed. Eponine didn't risk opening her eyes to check for fear of the room spinning.

Eponine fell back onto the bed as she tried to catch her bearings. Even hitting the plush surface below her made her let out a light wince. Taking slow, shallow breaths as to not irritate her chest wound, Eponine sluggishly fluttered her eyes open.

"She's awake! Everyone come quickly, she's awake!" she heard someone exclaim.

Eponine turned her head in the direction of the voice. Through her somewhat lightheaded haze, she could only distinguish a few general features at first. Brown hair… tall… As her vision cleared a bit more, she began to see more distinct characteristics. Freckles… blue eyes… Marius. It was Marius. He sat in a small wooden chair by her beside that seemed awfully uncomfortable. Immediately Eponine felt bad that he was sitting in such a rickety old chair, while she was in a bed. Holding her ribs with one hand, she propped herself up on her other and tried to move off of the bed. Just as she'd sat up, she was reprimanded.

"Don't move Eponine!" called her friend Joly from the doorway.

Stubborn as always, Eponine stayed propped up on one arm, although the action pained her. With an exasperated sigh, Joly approached Eponine's bed. "You're not going to lay back down no matter what I say are you." Joly stated. With a stubborn shake of her head, Eponine stayed in her propped position. "At least let me put pillows behind your back so you don't hurt your arm as well" Joly compromised.

Eponine begrudgingly allowed Joly to adjust her pillows so she could sit back against them. "What happened to me?" Eponine asked. The weak, gravelly sound of her voice startled her a bit.

She waited for someone to explain, but neither Marius, nor Joly said a word. Marius stood from his chair and began to pace around the small bedroom which all three of them abided in at the moment. Joly crossed his arms and stared timidly at the ground. The silence hung thick in the room, until it was broken by the sound of dainty footsteps entering the room.

"Eponine?" the melodic voice of Cosette called, "If it would be alright, I think it might be best if I explain. It may be a tad difficult for Marius and Joly to speak of it." Cosette said solemnly, as she put her hand on Marius' shoulder to cease him from pacing. Softly, Cosette sat on the edge of Eponine's bed.

"From what Marius managed to tell me, at the barricade you were shot while trying to save him. Which I'd like to thank you for. Joly managed to hide you to heal you, but as for the rest of those who fought at the barricade… I wish I could say they were so lucky." Eponine watched as a tear trickled down Cosette's face. AS much as she wanted to comfort Cosette, all she could think of was Gavroche.

"Oh my goodness. Gavroche. He must be so sad, where is he anyway?" Eponine asked.

At that, even Cosette fell silent. Eponine's eyes darted from Joly, to Marius and back to Cosette. They all refused to meet her gaze. "I said, where. Is. Gavroche?" Eponine repeated sternly. When no answer was given yet again, Eponine gathered all of the strength she could muster, "WHERE IS MY BROTHER?!" Her scream stung her throat and caused the ache in her chest to intensify.

Cautiously Marius locked eyes with her. "Eponine I'm sorry. He ran out into the gunfire. I tried to stop him, I did but… it was too late." Marius replied as he buried his head in his hands.

He's dead? He's dead? He can't be dead. Eponine thought. "No. No. He can't be dead, that's not fair!" Eponine wailed. Tears soaked her cheeks as sobs racked through her body. "This is all my fault. I should have convinced him not to fight. I just… let him go." Eponine choked out.

Marius took her hand in his and kissed it lightly. Tears blurred her vision, and she could hardly see straight. "Eponine, we are all her for you. This is hard for all us." Marius comforted. Strangely, the words that were supposed to comfort her instead made her angry.

"This is a hard time for you? How? Did you lose a family member, because I don't recall that part!" Eponine yelled. Pain flashed in Marius' eyes as he dropped her hand and lifted his head.

"My amis were my family! My only family!" Marius cried as he stormed out of the room. The chair he'd been sitting on clattered to the ground. The sound caused Cosette to jump and dash out of the room after Marius.

Once Marius and Cosette had left, all of Eponine's anger deflated like a balloon. What had she done? The one person she had left, she'd pushed away.

She directed her attention to Joly, who was the only other person left in the room. "They're really gone? All of them?" Eponine questioned timidly.

"Yes. All of them. Look don't mind Marius. We all deal with grief in different ways. I guess he just didn't have much time to grieve. Since he escaped the barricade with me, he's been by your side day and night waiting for you to wake up." Joly explained sympathetically. While he talked he gathered what looked like medical supplies from a wooden shelf on the far wall. "Would you mind lying down so I can redress your wound?" Joly requested.

Carefully, Eponine laid down on her back and unbuttoned the bottom buttons of her blouse so Joly could wrap her wound. While he worked, Eponine talked to him. "Joly, if you don't mind me asking, where is Musichetta?"

"She's still in town most likely. She just thinks I died at the barricade like the rest of them. I could never put her in danger by informing her of my existence." Joly replied with a knowing smile.

Eponine didn't know what to say, so she let him finish dressing her wound in silence. Musichetta was Joly's sun, yet he was willing to live in complete darkness, just so Musichetta could be happy. Was that what Eponine had to do for Marius to be happy? For some reason she didn't think she could ever be as strong as Joly.

…

AN2: So I don't love this chapter… tell me what you think of it! If you don't like it I may rewrite it, but some things I won't change. Did I break your heart? Review and tell me!