My Best Friend's Wedding
Disclaimer: Even when this fic is over and done, I still will not own it.
AN: This is it girls, this is actually the last part of My Best Friend's Wedding. It is dedicated to the amazing Mary, my main bitch, my beta, my BIFF – because this fic would not be half as awesome without her encouragement and gentle criticism and her flailing over the good parts.
Special mentions to Sophie-Louise, Sabrina, Lily, Thea and Seredhiel – for being supportive and awesome and kind. Anyone on the forum – I love you all!
Here goes!
Epilogue!
November
It feels like only days ago that she left the Enjolras family behind to go back to work, but it has been weeks. It was long enough ago for it to now be the Thanksgiving holidays, and she has been invited to spend these holidays with her dear Gabe's family. Azelma is once again away – this time with several friends – and Gavroche is spending the holidays with his girlfriend's family a couple states over. Her little brother is terrified of hanging out with the family, while she is so excited to see these wonderful people again.
"You're more excited about this than I am," her Gabe notes as he pulls over.
"I love your family," she grins at him, her hand a comforting presence on his thigh. "Your sister is one of my favorite people in the world, and your parents are amazing. Henry is going to make some brilliant comments again, and Marie will already have gotten big."
He seems surprised at how happy she is about the whole deal; when she has never placed too much value on family relationships other than with her own siblings. But she likes his family, oddities and all, and she would love to see them all again now that she and her Gabe are actually officially together and in love.
"It has not been that long," he fondly rolls his eyes at her.
"Babies grow really fast," she reminds him as she gets out of the car. "Before you know it you'll be sitting in the front yard with a shotgun scaring the guys away from her."
That picture does not make him very happy, it seems, seeing as he is grumbling even more now that he is out of the car and picking up his suitcase. She is already lugging her own suitcase in the direction of the door, already mentally kicking herself for bringing so much stuff with her. She should not still be so desperate to impress him and his family, right? She has seen them before and they liked her. She needs to take deep breaths.
"That isn't funny," he tells her before she rings the doorbell.
"Well, no shotgun then," she starts to hear footsteps coming closer to the door. "But I'm sure you'll tell them all that you know people and that they should be careful with her."
The footsteps get closer and closer until the door finally opens to reveal Henry, and he is looking much the same as he did when she last saw him – though he is looking a bit more stressed at this very moment. He motions them inside quickly, as if he is rushing to get back to something. And when they hear the shouting coming from the kitchen, the look her Gabe sends her tells her that he knows what it is and that he can solve it.
She still has absolutely no idea what the hell is going on.
"Henry," she awkwardly hugs him, because she believes that is what you're supposed to do with your boyfriend's family, even if you do not know them very well. "It is so nice to see you again, under better circumstances this time!"
Now that her Gabe is suddenly rushing off in the direction of the shouting, Henry seems to be a bit more at ease. He takes a deep breath and sits down on the couch, barely showing any interest in the sports talk currently on the television.
"Care to tell me what's going on here?" she asks, dumping her stuff.
"This is how things always go during Thanksgiving weekend," Henry reveals to her, his worry seeming to decrease with every deep breath. "Alice is always trying to cook, since she is the best at it, but when she is in one of her states things could get really dangerous without anyone there to stop her. Gabriel used to do that – and that's probably what he's doing right now. He is going to be Kitchen Nazi. You'd better stay here."
That very second, the door slams open, revealing a frazzled Natalie holding her daughter in her arms. She is practically rushing towards her dear husband, and her quick exit from the apparent disaster area is followed by her Gabe using his scary and important lawyer voice on his mother. She cannot exactly make out any of the words, but she has heard him use that tone on uncooperative clients. She knows this part of him.
"Kitchen Nazi has taken over," Natalie hands her daughter over to her husband.
"Hey Natalie," she smiles at her new friend and the baby girl.
Dang, Marie is already bigger than she was just a few short weeks ago. The tiny little curls have grown a bit, and somehow when the little girl sees her again, she actually smiles a little and waves her arms around, smacking her father.
"You look happy," the other woman quickly notices, coming over to hug her. "I hope that means my brother has figured out that he is madly in love with you."
Oh yes, she has almost forgotten just how direct her friend is – even to her brother's girlfriend about their sex life, which makes for some delightful conversations that are to be had in front of her Gabe and the entire family. After all, Natalie is the one who gave him several condoms, because she somehow knew that they would not stop at one. At this point they have their own stash, but she is still grateful to Natalie.
"Thanks for the condoms," she replies bluntly, hoping to get a good response.
"Please don't tell me any details about their use," Natalie pleads with her. "There are some things that I can definitely live without knowing, and my brother and his private serenading is one of those things. I'm glad that you're happy, though."
Private serenading? That is probably one of the most interesting euphemisms for sex that she has ever heard – and she works with high school students, so she hears somewhat interesting things all of the damn time. This is probably some stupid joke related to her Gabe's short career as a high school performer. It is just one more example of the random hilarity that is the Enjolras family.
Speaking of the random hilarity – the exaggerated scream coming from the kitchen would usually have her freaking out and running to see if Enj is safe, but since neither Natalie nor Henry is even flinching or moving an inch, she stays still and waits for some kind of explanation. Is this just another thing that used to happen every year?
"Mom and Gabe have different views on cooking and recipes," Natalie finally realizes that this deserves some kind of explanation from her side. "Mom tends to just throw stuff in and hope it comes out okay, and your dear Gabe always wants to follow the recipe to the letter, like the kitchen Nazi he is. This is almost normal here."
Yes, that sounds like typical Gabe. But if those recipes give her stuff that is equally amazing as his lasagna or the tiramisu, she will follow his every order.
"Why do you call him my Gabe?" she has to ask.
"Because it is pretty obvious that he is all yours," Natalie happily answers. "You might as well start calling me sis, because that is obviously where this is heading."
That is not a thing that Natalie should tell people, because even though she feels sure that her Gabe loves her, and that she loves him – she also knows that any mention of a more permanent future together will really freak him out. They have only been together for a few weeks – it has only been official between the two of them for a few weeks, anyway. She does not want to spook him, because he was celibate only two months ago, and he thought that he would never be in any kind of relationship. Bringing up marriage and a permanent future might spook him into taking a step back.
"You might as well not freak him out," she is trying to shut Natalie up.
"I'm careful," the other woman grins at her. "I am not saying it in front of him."
The mischievous spirit that she loves about Natalie can occasionally get a bit too much, especially when they are talking about a big thing like the future and marriage. She loves her Gabriel, she really does – but this is still too much too fast.
"Though we're still going to tease him," she gets the point then.
"Dinner's ready," her Gabe is walking towards her, looking haggard and tired.
She knows that spending time with his mother always takes a lot out of him, so she takes the final steps towards him and wraps him in her arms. His muscles are extremely tense against her body at first, but they slowly start to relax once she refuses to let go until he is a lot more relaxed. She does not care how long that will take; she just wants him to remember that she will always be here when he needs her.
There are no objections to playing footsie underneath the table if he remains so tense.
"You okay?" she asks when he steps back.
"As good as it gets," he replies, so she takes his hand and clasps it in hers.
Natalie is catcalling mockingly, because this is about the extent that their public displays of affection will go. They are not going to be that cutesy kind of couple that is constantly touching each other for reassurance, and they are not going to be making out in alcoves constantly – he wishes, he really does. She will touch him when she wants to and he will do so when he wants to, but they will never get too carried away.
Well, maybe once or twice.
"Nobody told me dear Éponine was here," Senior walks into the room.
The old man looks much healthier than he did the last time she saw him, and she happily rushes over to him to give the man a big hug. She has worried about him, but the occasional update from Gabe was enough to lessen her fears at least a little.
"Hey Senior," she smiles as they hug.
"Has Gabriel been treating you right?" the man has the nerve to ask.
Her Gabe immediately tenses, and she has to walk a tight line between telling Senior just how well she has been treated by her lover – and embarrassing everyone in the process – or saying something funny and possibly hurting her Gabe's feelings. She does not want to do that, so she ponders about what to say, leaving an awkward silence.
"He makes me very happy," she smiles widely, stepping back towards her Gabe.
"I am really trying not to say something dirty," Natalie is grinning.
Is that not always the case with Natalie? She wonders how things will be when Marie gets old enough to understand just what her mother is saying – the girl might become a terror, and she is already feeling a bit sorry for Henry. Still, she has a gut feeling that Henry will be able to handle just about everything.
"Let's just eat dinner," Henry plays mediator.
She will always remember this dinner as the time when she really became a part of the family – even though Alice's trick with the bread knife turned out to be even more dangerous than the description implied and her Gabe was too confused to be too close to her. She blames Natalie for calling her sis a few times.
These people might be odd, but she thinks of them as her family now.
e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e- e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e
Christmas
This might be the first Christmas she has ever spent in an actual relationship, and she is just as surprised about it as he is – never having been in a relationship before. They are both so clueless about this spending the holidays together thing that they are only exchanging a few small gifts on his epic couch of awesomeness before they're ready for a nice, long, maybe even slightly acrobatic bout of Christmas sex.
"Why do we always start on the couch?" Gabe has long learned to tease her.
"Because I love this couch more than you," she is never going to let that joke rest.
He, of course, is determined to prove her wrong on that – which is never a bad thing in her opinion. His stubbornness will not allow him to let it go, and she knows she will be begging for more, please more, within minutes. He leans in and kisses her passionately, not even holding back anymore like he used to – he is taking the initiative and he is dominating this kiss. It is a real turn-on, so she does not mind it at all.
"Still love the couch more?" he teases as she pants and throws off her sweater.
She is left with just a thin tank top covering her upper half, but she is not shivering because he is moving on top of her and keeping her nice and warm. Even when her tank top ends up thrown over the coffee table, she is still comfortable and safe.
"Surprise," the door is thrown open, and she lets out a yelp.
There are not two, not three, not four, but about half a dozen people coming into her Gabe's apartment without him letting them in. R comes in first, together with Jehan and Courfeyrac – and the three men are followed by Marius and his Cosette. They now have five guests at their private Christmas celebration, and they are all carrying bags and they are looking at the two of them in surprise – because she still is not wearing a shirt.
"Enjolras I am really sorry for this," Combeferre follows his friends inside, talking up a storm to escape her Gabe's wrath. "I told them that they should knock, but they ran ahead and they would not listen to me. I swear we're almost thirty and mature adults."
They are still on the couch, and she is still not wearing a shirt – so Gabe is carefully on top of her, trying to cover her up and make sure the other men do not get an eyeful of her pretty new bra. It is red – Gabe's favorite color – and it does not afford a whole lot of coverage. It is meant for days with Gabe, as her special Christmas present to him, and it is not mean to be seen by everyone but her lover.
"Turn around, all of you," her 'Jolras orders his friends, and they actually listen.
She quickly grabs her tank top off the coffee table, and while she does not miss Gabe's final appreciative glance at her pretty red bra, she is forced to keep getting dressed because she cannot act on her lust for him in front of their friends. Her sweater is still dangling somewhere, but she is sufficiently covered to move from her current position.
Only, she really does not want to move from her current position.
"Red is his favorite color, you know," Courfeyrac has to be an idiot again.
From her vantage point, she can see Jehan smacking his friend on the back of the head, and she can hear Courf yelping in pain. She has to stifle a giggle as her Gabe climbs off her and helps her sit up after planting a quick kiss on her lips.
"I am so sorry for interrupting," Cosette smiles knowingly at them.
Her 'Jolras is turning slightly red, so she has to make it even worse by sitting on his lap on the couch of awesome and cuddling up to him before snagging her sweater which was hidden behind him. She grins teasingly and he cannot help but smile back at her, because it is Christmas and they are happy and even though their friends have the worst timing in the world, she also knows that things are going to be fun.
"Nice hickey, Enjolras," R smirks and gets handed money from Jehan, Courfeyrac, and even from Combeferre. "Guess that means that I win."
Of course those idiots would bet on her relationship with Gabe, and of course R would be the one to actually win the bet. He is the sneaky bastard in the group – Jehan is way too romantic and Courfeyrac does not understand enough of her Gabe's issues with love, sex, and relationships. She had expected Combeferre to do better, though.
"You're all assholes," she announces, not wanting to move away from Gabe.
"Merry Christmas, Eppie," Marius smiles at her with those words, and she remembers the many Christmases that they spent together – and it does not hurt.
Most of the people she loves are actually in the same room, and the man she loves and sees a future with is holding her gently as they make fun of their friends together. Gabe is pulling a face as Jehan pulls out flowers for her, even though it is Gabe's apartment and they are not hosting a thing for their friends. When the others start handing them various ingredients, they share a look and realize that they have just been finagled into making Christmas dinner for the whole group – the shits.
"I am not letting Gabe do the cooking for every holiday," she announces, because his friends are obviously aware of his skills. "He had to cook at his parents' place for Thanksgiving, and knowing you idiots, he'll have to do it again now."
The response she gets makes it obvious that Gabe will once again be expected to do everything while she has to play hostess for these dorks – all she wanted was a nice Christmas with him, and she does not want to spend the rest of the afternoon playing babysitter while her Gabe is stuck in the kitchen with someone else.
"You went to meet the family for Thanksgiving?" Combeferre is surprised.
"I met them before that," she speaks, happy to rub this in their faces. "They're all very lovely people. Alice showed me some great pictures of Gabriel and Ralph."
That flusters R beyond all recognition, and her 'Jolras does not appear to be too happy to be referred to by his first name in front of his friends. She calls him Gabe or Gabriel almost all of the time now, so it was bound to come up eventually – at least this time people are going to be more interested in her dear R Grant to worry about Gabe.
"Ralph?" Marius is the first to crack, almost giggling with the discovery.
"Can he wreck it?" Courfeyrac takes up the joke with glee. "Yes he can!"
She loves that Courf can reference an animated movie without pretending that doing so is not cool, and the frustrated look on R's face is making it a whole lot better. Cosette is once again wondering how she got here with these people – she has seen that look on people's faces before and she knows it well. She loves these boys and all of their silliness and their antics. But right now, these idiots need to be put to work already.
"Here is how this is going to work," she slips into the role of leader quite easily. "All you idiots with your ingredients are going to go into the kitchen and help prepare the food – but remember that Gabe is in charge of the cooking. I've had his food, and your mediocre imitations cannot compare. Cosette, would you like a glass of wine?"
The only other woman present is stunned at not being ordered into the kitchen, but she gives a quick smile in her direction. This is her way of making a peace offering for anything stupid she did when she was still trying to steal Marius from Cosette.
"I'll whip the boys into shape," Cosette tells her after R shakes his head at her.
"And I'll have a glass of wine," R obviously needs to talk to her about something.
Cosette basically marches the boys into the kitchen, earning her a grateful look from Gabe – who sends a flirtatious look in her direction before helping Cosette get the idiots into the kitchen. She has to hide a smile because of his slowly growing confidence – he is getting more and more comfortable being in a relationship with her, showing her off as his partner in front of other people more and more. He usually calls her his Éponine rather than using the immature word girlfriend.
"Don't sit on the couch," Courf throws out a parting shot. "You don't know what they've been doing on that one. We only got a hint of something before."
That earns him an eye roll and a glare from her, and her 'Jolras responds by basically shoving his friend in the direction of the kitchen – but not before he shoots a wink at her because he remembers what happened when they were supposed to go to a Halloween party, and again with his office party last week. The couch is the go to spot when they simply cannot make it to the bedroom. And they often do not make it there.
At least, not on the first try.
"How long has this been going on?" R gets right to the point.
"Officially it has only been about two months or so," she shrugs, sitting back down on the couch. "Though this thing started when I asked him to go to the wedding with me. We just – I – he… Somehow this relationship just works. We love each other."
The flinch of pain from R means that while he can talk a great game about not having these feelings for her 'Jolras anymore – it still will not be true. He had apparently held out a bit of hope that Gabe would finally realize that he needed someone there – and he did, only the person that Gabe wanted and needed was not Ralph Grant, it was she. She likes R, and she hopes he will not hate her forever.
"I'm sorry," she tells him, knowing she is ruining things for him.
"Don't be," R shakes his head vehemently. "I'm an idiot and I know it. But this is good, because he's happy. I don't think I've ever seen him so happy."
She wraps her arms around R without so much as a thought, because she is so grateful that her lover's oldest friend can see how much she means to her Gabe. She is in love and she has never felt this way before and it is Christmas and she is turning into a sap!
"You're my idiot," she tells R. "You are my friend now, and… R, you might be my hero!"
The sound of a pointed cough makes them break apart, but there is no guilt or any real awkwardness about it. She has decided that R will be her close friend, and she is not going back on that decision – they are both sarcastic shits with dark dispositions, and she knows that they will be able to provide hilarious running commentary on the goings on at this Amis Christmas dinner. This should be good.
"When's my turn for a hug?" Marius is standing behind the couch, grinning that adorable grin that made her weak in the knees once upon a time.
"Draw a number first," she tells him, rolling her eyes at him. "What's up?"
There has to be a reason for his appearance back in the living room when he only left for the kitchen a few minutes ago. She knows he has the tendency to piss off her Gabe with comments about Napoleon, but she really doubts that he works that fast.
"I just thought that there was something different about you and Enjolras," he tells her, and she is trying not to freak out about this. "I can't quite put my finger on it, though, but maybe it is that you're both more comfortable in the relationship."
She bloody well hopes so – because last time Marius saw them they were still drawing the line at kissing and minor petting. Also, she barely had any idea about who Gabe is as a person and where he came from. She has learned a lot of things over the course of the last few months – about herself as well as about her Gabe.
"Was that all you came here to say?" R is not done with the private conversation that they were having before the dork interrupted. "Because we were talking here."
It comes out much more hostile than it was intended, but Marius just takes it at face value, smiles at the both of them and then heads back in the direction of the chopping sounds – she can even hear some frustrated groans that sound suspiciously like her Gabe when things are not going his way. He gets adorably huffy sometimes when the world appears to be toying with his feelings, and she just distracts him from his troubles or makes him feel better – whatever he wants to call it that day.
"Don't forget the hugging," she adds, grinning.
"How did it happen?" R continues to ask questions.
This is not how she wanted to have this conversation, especially not on the couch where she was making out with Gabe just minutes ago. She cannot give him details, but he is also the only friend who would understand the things that she now knows about Gabe and his family. She still wonders why Gabe did not call R when Senior got sick.
"It started at the wedding," she shrugs, trying to understand just how this happened with her and Gabe. "Things just developed so gradually that I cannot pinpoint the one situation where everything changed. He cooked me dinner on my birthday and it was lovely – but then Natalie called because Senior had a heart attack."
Gabe did not tell his friend about this – and she worries about causing a crack in this friendship, but she also knows that R deserves to know, and he deserves to hear it from someone he can trust. He has to understand about the relationship, and he can't not know about the heart attack if he gets in touch with the other members of the Enjolras family – because she knows he will not let these people go ignored.
"Is he okay?" R is shocked at this part.
"He was a lot better by the time we left," she tells him, trying to reassure him. "He just has to watch himself a bit better. Natalie had her baby, and Marie is an absolute darling – but seeing as you're grinning you knew about that one already."
Every single time she thinks of that baby girl she gets a smile on his face. That smile is now mirrored on R's face, and while he probably has not seen the little girl in real life, he has obviously seen pictures of her. She might have to show him the pictures she has of Gabe holding her over the Thanksgiving holidays – because her heart just about melted when she saw him gently cradling his niece and singing her lullabies in his deep voice.
"Nat and I have always kept in touch," R shrugs, a sly grin on his face.
"You sly dog," she has to grin as well. "Well, I went with back home with Gabe because he was in no state to drive – and things just progressed from there. He's my Gabe."
No stupid word like boyfriend can capture how much Gabe has come to mean to her. R is distracted from answering by the appearance of Jehan, who enters the room, briefly looks at R in a way that she cannot quite decipher, and then turns around when he notices that she is staring at him and that he has interrupted the conversation.
"What was that about?" she asks R after Jehan has left the room again.
"I don't know," R shrugs carelessly.
These two have never interacted all that much apart from the group, and to see them share a look that is rife with meaning is just odd to her. Maybe they talk more now that she and Gabe are on the other side of the country, but it still feels off, and R's refusal to discuss it makes her even more suspicious about it.
"Something's up," she mutters, not satisfied with that answer.
"I'm glad you make him so happy, Éponine," R interrupts. "I'm sure he's told you about Alice at this point. At times it wasn't easy, living in that house."
She is just glad that Gabe had a friend like R back then.
A few hours later, when the dinner has turned into an impromptu slumber party, she has finally cleaned up most of the mess left in the kitchen when her Gabe takes her to the bedroom, carrying her bridal style for the eager eyes of their audience. Marius and Cosette are sharing the guest room, but the other guys are camping out in the living room and staring at the two of them being romantic.
"We are not a documentary on the Discovery channel," she rolls her eyes at the boys to get in one final parting shot. "And there will be no observing the mating process."
It makes them smile a little, but it certainly does not make them back off even the slightest bit – they continue to stare at the two of them even though they are almost out of sight and they are getting ready to enter Gabe's bedroom, where they can no longer be seen by the peanut gallery occupying the living room.
"Do it like they do on the discovery channel," Courfeyrac starts singing.
"So, these idiots are going to be listening to us all night," she tells her Gabe as soon as they close the door to his room behind them. "Put me down and we'll show them."
There is probably a very evil gleam in her eye, but Gabe is in no way disturbed by that – because he is still very much interested in being her partner in crime. He smiles at her with all the love he feels for her showing in his eyes, and she is once again reminded of how well her evil plans turned out for her. But she is not done scheming yet – the idiots in the living room will never stop messing with them if they do not show them just who's boss. And they might as well do that right now.
"I think we can do better than the discovery channel," he speaks up loudly.
"Good," she grins, also acting for the benefit of their friends. "Because I am going to need you to do that thing with your tongue again. I promise to return the favor."
Her dear Gabe still cannot talk about this without blushing at least a little bit, and she finds that so lovely and endearing that she does not ever want him to get over that little quirk. He is acting quite well though, even having her backed into the door just in case the idiots are going to try to look through the keyhole.
"Take your clothes off before I rip them off," he says in that deep husky voice that always serves to drive her crazy – and he knows that a little too well.
She quickly takes off her sweater and hangs it over the door handle so that the boys will not actually be able to peek at them through the keyhole. She saw that trick in a movie – only that girl did it with her panties, and if she takes those off in front of Gabe they will no longer be faking anything. They'll be too busy losing their minds to even remember that their friends are basically in the next room.
"Your turn," she speaks as she hears footsteps coming closer.
They both get on the bed, kicking their footwear off but staying clothed, both rolling their eyes at how obvious their friends are being. The footsteps in the hallway get closer and closer until they can basically hear the heavy breathing outside of the door.
"So good," she fakes a moan.
"Ponine," his voice is hoarse and she knows she might actually be affecting him.
That is a bonus in this whole enterprise, but she cannot afford to get distracted by her continued attraction to him. She is never going to stop wanting him, but right now they are going to mess with their friends – so she sits up and tries to figure out how they can make the bed hit the wall rhythmically, so that everyone thinks they're fucking.
"Yes," she lets her voice go a bit shrill, and she pushes the bed against the wall.
Gabe is trying to stifle his laughter as he joins her in letting out fake moans that sound remarkably real. They let the bed hit the wall faster and faster and faster, and the fake moans reach a crescendo that must have the guys at the door lost for words.
"I'm so close," she shouts, climbing off the bed silently.
Her moves are slow and deliberate until she reaches the door, looking back to nod at Gabe so that he lets out one final growl. It is then that she yanks open the door, revealing R, Jehan, and Courfeyrac listening at the door – they practically tumble into the bedroom with the opening of the door, landing in a pile at her bare feet.
"You're not naked," Courf, ever the astute one, finally notices.
"You're a bunch of perverts," she tells the three of them in return as they try to pick themselves up off the bedroom floor. "Get a life of your own and stop worrying about our sex life. It is amazing and none of you are going to see even the slightest bit of it!"
She lords it over them triumphantly, because while she loves these dorks, they really need to just stay out of her business already. Gabe loves her, and she loves him back, and they really do not need to see the proof of just how much they love each other – they will just have to be content with seeing the obvious hickeys on Christmas morning. There are hickeys in places that they are never going to see.
When she kicks the guys out and Gabe makes good on his silent promise to do the thing with his tongue, she is reminded that it is indeed the most wonderful time of the year.
e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e- e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e-e
About four years later
The day she finally marries her best friend is here – it has been years in the making, starting with their first meeting all those years ago. They never thought that they would be here – not back then with that first meeting and that awful first impression when they both basically hated each other. Well, it was not exactly hate, but there was no way that they were actually going to get along – only he secretly saved her life on a dark and scary night and she kept telling him to perform impossible actions and get lost.
Ten years after their first meeting they were faced with each other again and everything was changing. She needed his help and he gave it – because he never turned down an offer for help. She has never been so glad that she asked for help.
"Are you ready?" her dear 'Zelma grins at her.
"I was born ready," she has to pull a cheesy line – her last one as an unmarried woman.
Her sister rolls her eyes at her, but Cosette is smiling happily as she fixes the veil one last time – at least, that is what she said the last five times. Emily is texting with her boyfriend and rolling her eyes at the screen on her mobile phone. Her bridesmaids are being so typically themselves that she just has to grin.
"Stop texting, Emily," she tells her young friend.
"Bastian is being an idiot, as usual," the young woman tosses her phone away. "But you look amazing, Éponine. Gabriel might weep with joy when he sees you."
The dress is not nearly as elaborate as the one Cosette wore at her wedding four years ago, but it is much more her. There are no beads and sparkles on it – it is nothing too crazy, but she knows that her Gabe will love the dress and the woman in it. He loves her when she wears nothing and he loves her when she gets home tired and sweaty and feeling gross and cursing up a storm at the kids in her school and how they just do not listen to her. Nothing about this so much as fazes her Gabe.
Soon he will actually be her Gabe forever and ever – and she will actually be Mrs. Gabriel Enjolras. She will be Éponine Enjolras – and she will be rid of the last part of Thénardier that she still has left. Actually, she kind of likes the silly alliteration in her new name, and how it is their names combined for the rest of their days. Éponine and Enjolras.
"We've lost her to thoughts of her almost husband again," Emily announces, waving her hand in front of her face to get her to snap out of it. "Five minutes until go time."
The moment should just get there already, because she is tired of waiting for it to finally come around. The date was set months ago, because that was the only way that they could make sure all of their friends would be able to be there. There was not a lot too organize – because Azelma was on that, since she is good with planning things and she knows a lot of people. All there was for her to do is to find a dress and to wait.
She succeeded in doing both with very little tolerance for all of the frills that are supposed to be involved in the engagement and wedding process.
"Can we go out early?" she asks, because she is impatient at ever.
"Look at Eppie having no cold feet whatsoever," her dear brother is finally there, getting ready to give her away. "Then again, Gabriel is just as impatient."
Marie comes in, fiddling with her basket of flowers – and obviously just as impatient as she is about just getting the show on the road already. She is four years old and looking more like her mother and uncle every single day. Marie still has the adorable blonde curls and the bright blue eyes that make her look like a complete angel, rather than the mischievous little devil she can be. She is her mother's daughter.
"Mommy says you need to come out," Marie tells her with a happy grin.
"You can go out first, Marie," she whispers and the little girl smiles. "Remember the flowers, honey! You can throw them anyway you want."
She has just given the girl permission to go nuts with the flowers, and she probably should regret that given the girl's behavior even without permission, but she does not care about the wedding being perfectly managed. She only cares about it being perfect for her and her Gabe; her 'Jolras, her future husband, and the love of her life.
Emily follows Marie out of the tiny side room with a smile on her face, and Cosette fixes the veil one last time before she too heads out. Azelma blows her a kiss on the way out, and then it is just she and her not so little brother, waiting for their cue.
"I am glad the Chief makes you happy," Gavroche tells her, holding out his arm.
"I'm glad you and 'Zelma like him," she responds, smiling at the happiest day of her life and being surrounded by the people she loves.
Her brother's arm is still out, and she hooks her arm in it to make the most traditional picture, even though their weird little family is anything but traditional. It is just the three of them, because their parents are never going to be a part of their lives ever again – they are not even invited to this wedding, and they will never know her Gabe.
"Thanks for doing this," she whispers to Gavroche as they reach the start of the aisle.
She looks up at the people present for the first time and she notices that all of her friends are present, and that her boss and friend Javert is tipping his metaphorical hat at her with a smile. But nothing is as good and as amazing as the look on her Gabe's face when he sees her in her dress – the smile on his face is in danger of reaching his ears any second now, and his eyes show so much love that she is more sure of this wedding than she has ever been. God, she loves this man!
The song that is playing is not the traditional wedding march, but rather an old Beatles song that they both fell in love with when Feuilly made them listen to it – the man is somewhat of an expert on everything, and he has been a godsend for some of the final details of this wedding. The man is now nodding happily at her.
"Take care of her," Gavroche hands her over to Gabe.
"Cross my heart," her Gabriel is completely serious about this. "Thank you Gavroche."
Their hands are clasped and their fingers intertwine as they face the official who is going to marry them. They are both smiling and happy.
"This is my favorite dress on you," her Gabe tells her.
It is not what she was expecting him to say at this point, but she is definitely willing to go with this, and to tease him about it – she will never let an opportunity to tease him slip through her fingers, unless it actually hurts his feelings. She remembers the few dresses she has worn for him over the years, and one sticks out above all others – and it is not the Sexy Dress™. It is the first dress that she wore for him and not for Marius.
"What about the red dress?" she teases him, because she will never stop doing that.
"I love the red dress," he lets out a laugh. "This one is better."
She doubts that she will ever get rid of that red dress – even if she gets too old to wear it herself, she will keep it around because that dress played such a part in their courtship that she will associate that dress with her first falling in love with her soon to be husband. The Sexy Dress™ will always be associated with bad decisions.
"That is high praise coming from you," she grins at him.
"Well, you look stunning," he takes her in one more time. "You always do, of course, but today is the best of all. And you're wearing my mom's necklace."
The necklace is delicate and beautiful, and she was actually crying when Alice gave it to her to wear for her wedding. Her mother would never give her anything – she never had – and here was this woman she'd only known for a few years handing her a family heirloom and telling her to wear it. It was lovely and wonderful and sad all at the same time. It reminded her of the bad, but it was also a nice reminder of the future.
"Something old," she tells him, playing with the necklace with her free hand.
It is silly to want to follow tradition in this, but when Alice gave her that necklace as her something old, she did not want to disappoint her future mother so she started thinking of ways to sit stuff into her ensemble. The necklace is her something old, and her bracelet is borrowed from Cosette. The dress has to be her something new.
"I don't see anything blue," he is trying to see if she adheres to all the traditions.
"That's for later," she sticks her tongue out at him. "When we're alone."
He is definitely happy with that, as she can see his eyes darken a bit at the idea, trying to figure out where exactly she might have hidden the something blue where only he will be able to see it. He will never know until she shows him.
"Oy," Courfeyrac interrupts the possibility for more banter. "Is your wedding interrupting your pleasant conversation and flirting?"
It is funny that they'd even be too busy bantering to participate in their own wedding, but it is just so typical of them that she can only find it hilarious. Here they are, an almost married couple that can barely stop talking to each other long enough to actually let the officiator marry the two of them.
The officiator coughs pointedly and she is reminded that they are supposed to be getting married rather than discussing what may or may not be underneath her wedding dress – it is not exactly an appropriate conversation to be having during the man's speech.
"Please proceed," she tries to smile charmingly at the man.
"Do you have the rings?" the man asks, and best man Combeferre hands them over.
It was one of the few things she took no part in, because she just wanted some simple ring that would not stand out too much – which is exactly what Azelma arranged. Gabe smiles at her as they get ready to speak their vows and exchange rings.
"I, Gabriel Alain Enjolras," he is happy, "take you, Éponine Marie Thénardier, to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."
The ring is slipped onto her ring finger and she eyes it with a smile, because while this is only a physical symbol of her bond to him, it will still be the thing that shows the world that she and Gabe are going to be together for the rest of their lives. This is what will tell people that they love each other and they always will.
"I, Eponine Marie Thénardier," her voice feels feeble, "take you, Gabriel Alain Enjolras, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part."
She is totally not getting a bit choked up over this – okay maybe a little. The officiator can say whatever he wants at this point, but all she is waiting for is the bit where they can kiss already because they are officially man and wife. She is this close to tapping her foot impatiently, which would probably not be thought of as appropriate, but she is still willing the officiator to stop talking so slowly. Most of her focus is on her Gabe's lips, and the rest of the church has basically disappeared – all she can see is him.
"I now pronounce you husband and wife," the officiator finally speaks, and the most important part of the wedding is finally here. "You may kiss the bride."
At the loud whooping of most of their guests, her Gabe dips her and plants a kiss on her that is both for dramatic effect and as a show of how sensual and sweet he can be. It is full of love, but still innocent enough to be seen by the guests.
"That's enough of that," R jokes like the idiot he is.
They break apart with proud and happy grins, ready to rush off without taking the time to listen for too long to whatever song Azelma picked out for this moment. Until she recognizes the slow song they danced to the night of Marius' bachelor party and she is lost for words – because somehow her sister knows that this song will never stop meaning the world to her. Everything changed when he stopped her from climbing into a cake in a stupid dress – and then he danced with her and the world just shifted.
"Stop staring at each other," Courfeyrac is once again interrupting a moment.
Gabe seems to know exactly what the song signifies, so he squeezes her hand as they face their guests as a married couple. The cheering intensifies until their friends rush off to do something stupid – she really hopes they won't throw rice or something equally stupid at them, because she is not spending her wedding night picking rice out of the most uncomfortable places. She is not disappointed.
When they head back up the aisle and they see the wedding party taking their places outside of the church, her Gabe lifts her up bridal style and she rolls her eyes at the silly tradition. Only she loves it as well, ducking her head into his chest to hide from any and all projectiles that the idiot boys might have thought of.
The first bubble hits her arm and she has to giggle at the startled look on her Gabe's face as he sees all of his friends blowing bubbles and acting like they are all little kids again – which is not even that much different from what they are usually up to. Still, she has to like this plan, because there is little to no mess left on people's clothes and even little Marie is helping with the bubbles – her little brother is still too young, but he is gurgling happily in his mother's arms while Henry blows bubbles in his direction.
"Mr. and Mrs. Gabriel Enjolras," Combeferre shouts, and there is more cheering.
Gabe just stands there for a little while, just taking it all in with her, before he rushes off in the direction of the car – where their driver is already waiting for them.
"See you at the reception, suckers," she shouts at their friends.
"You would say that," Gabe is shaking his head and smiling.
They reach the car and the driver opens the door for them. Gabe puts her down gently, and she immediately scoots over to make room for him next to her – he will always have a place right next to her. For as long as he wants it: which is forever.
"You know," she starts talking again. "It's funny how I totally managed to achieve my goal. All of this started because I needed to find a way to get my best friend to marry me, and now look, it has worked, because I married my best friend."
It sounds so adorable to the driver to have the newlywed couple talking about marrying their best friend, but Gabe obviously is not all that happy about what she is saying – that is, if he even really understands what she is trying to say.
"Did the wedding madness get to you?" her Gabe does not understand what she means.
"Come on Gabe," she rolls her eyes at him. "You're my best friend; because we share everything. We will even share the rest of our lives."
Gabe now seems to get it, because he leans in to give her a quick kiss. She really has to hold herself back from making it into something more exciting that the driver of this car should not be seeing– so they let go of each other rather quickly.
"Bring it on, future," she grins.
She is already imagining where they'll be in ten years, or fifteen. This is not what she thought would happen, it is not where she thought she would be at this age – it is better.
THE END
AN: Those last words – I can't even deal with the fact that this is over, but it is. This is actually it. As always, leave me your favorite parts of this chapter or of the entire fic in the comments/reviews.
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This has been so wonderful. I love every single one of you who has read this far. Whenever you read this, remember that I love you and I am so grateful.
Inge out, bitches!