Notes: I am so so very sorry for the long wait. There was writers block, then school, then a bunch of other stuff, but I think I'm getting back into the story so hopefully there won't be such a long wait next time.
This chapter is shorter and uses more French, because we're talking about a group of francophones here, of course there's going to be more French. Translations are at the end.
Beta'd by my lovely partner Meeni ( .com). (Yes we're dating now, which is kind of ironic because we're in a long distance relationship and we bonded over this fic)
Day Three
Paris, France
Jardins des Tuileries
Enjolras and Grantaire arrived at the park hand in hand. They walked until they found Grantaire's friends lounging in a half circle on the grass. Jehan was playing with Éponine's hair, whose head was in his lap. His hair was braided again, with small flowers entangled within. He was wearing a polka-dotted tank top with a navy cardigan and floral skinny jeans. Éponine was gesturing wildly, almost hitting Jehan's face a couple times. When a hand came too close to Jehan's nose, Feuilly grabbed it and carefully set it on her stomach, patting it twice before withdrawing his hand.
Cosette and Marius were sitting cross-legged across from each other, their knees barely touching. They were staring intently into the other's eyes. Marius sporadically said words like, "Chien," or "La mer," and Cosette would shake her head slightly, a small smile on her lips.
Feuilly was the first to spot them and shouted, "Grantaire! Ici," waving them over. Feuilly helped Éponine up and attacked Grantaire with hugs and kisses. Jehan got up and warmly greeted Enjolras with a kiss on each cheek. Enjolras, not knowing what to do with the greeting just… stood there.
Jehan laughed. "You'll have to get used to that. You'll get it a lot in Paris."
Feuilly and Éponine went to give Enjolras the same two kisses. Now he was more receptive and awkwardly tried to return them.
"Donc voici l'américain à propos duquel tu m'as appelé à deux heure du matin," Feuilly said, as they all sat down on the grass again.
"You called your friends at ungodly hours to talk about me?" Enjolras asked, turning to Grantaire with a small smile.
Grantaire took his hand and pressed his lips to it. "Maybe," he muttered against the skin there.
Enjolras moved his hand aside and kissed Grantaire softly. Éponine, meanwhile, was darting her eyes confusedly back and forth between the two. When their lips broke apart she immediately asked, "Tu parles anglais, maintenant?"
Jehan giggled in the background as Enjolras simply said, "Je lui apprendre."
Éponine's confusion simply grew. "Et il parle français? Il y a deux nuits, il lisait le dictionnaire."
Grantaire shrugged. "Je lui apprends."
Éponine fell back, resting her head on Feuilly's lap. "Je ne comprends pas," she muttered. "Deux jours. Deux jours et il parle anglais." She turned to Grantaire. "Je sais que tu es intelligent, R, mais deux jours."
Jehan broke his laughter to say, "Enfin, il avait une motivation."
Just then they heard Marius shout, "Je t'aime!" And Cosette tackled him to the ground and kissed him.
"Je t'aime," she said, their noses brushing.
Enjolras turned to Grantaire. "Qu'est-ce qu'ils font?" he asked.
"They play a game where they try to guess what the other is thinking," Grantaire said with a small smile.
"That's almost too sweet."
"That's why there are bets for when they'll get married," Grantaire said.
"Quel est le pari le plus proche?"
"Trois mois."
"Qui a fait ça?"
Éponine raised her hand, sitting up. "Moi, parce que-"
Jehan covered her mouth with his hand. "Don't let her get into her analysis or she'll go on for four hours and end with a soliloquy on her lost, unrequited love for Marius."
She glared spectacularly at Jehan who kissed her on her cheek. "Je t'aime, 'Ponine, mais j'ai entendu le même discours cinq fois. Trois fois alors que tu étais bourrée."
Éponine elbowed him in the ribs with a smirk and fell back on his lap. Cosette and Marius had rolled over to the circle then. When Marius caught sight of Enjolras he sat up straight and very formally held out his hand.
Enjolras shook it firmly as Marius said, "Hello, I'm Marius Pontmercy and you must be Enjolras, the American Grantaire told us about. I'm very pleased to meet you."
Enjolras bit back a smile at the overwhelming formality of his introduction and simply said, "The pleasure's mine," and turning to Grantaire asked, "Also am I just known as 'The American'? And how many people did you even tell about me?"
Grantaire shrugged. "I may have sent out a mass text."
Enjolras shook his head fondly and kissed Grantaire softly. "Dork," he whispered.
"Hm?"
Enjolras shook his head again, smiling, and reconnected their lips.
Jehan half squealed in delight in the background.
Éponine caught a picture on her phone as Feuilly rolled his eyes.
Cosette and Marius realized they had competition in the cute couple department.
They spent the rest of the day walking around. They occasionally stopped along the Seine when they passed it or at the numerous parks dotting the city. They ducked into a café for lunch where Enjolras got properly acquainted with Grantaire's friends.
He and Jehan talked about the importance of media in modern culture, which somehow dissolved into talking about their shared adoration of Star Trek. He and Marius talked for a while and Enjolras' awe at him teaching himself two languages muted the political disagreement they eventually found themselves in. They discovered Enjolras, Cosette, and Éponine together are like three powder kegs in a furnace. It became a rule to never let them move to anything more than favorite Disney movies. When Enjolras and Feuilly started talking about Feuilly's life, his time in orphanages and foster homes, how he put himself through culinary school to end up working as a waiter until he finally saved enough money to open a bakery, Grantaire ended up in a fit of giggles because "There are literal stars in your eyes."
When Enjolras was caught up in another conversation, Éponine turned to Grantaire. "Tu l'aimes?" she asked quietly, eyebrows raised.
Grantaire nodded slowly. "Je l'aime. Je pense."
"Tu penses? Pourquoi juste ça?"
"Je l'aime autant que je le peux. C'est complètement dingue, mais c'est comme ça."
"Tu l'aimes plus que tu ne le réalises."
Grantaire sighed and rested his head on Éponine's shoulders. "Tu mets plus de fois en moi que tu ne devrais."
Éponine just shook her head.
They all eventually found themselves back at Jehan and Éponine's apartment; it was the biggest of their homes, but in Paris "biggest" still means there's difficulty in fitting seven people in a living room. This difficulty only increased when they decided to break out the beer and wine which caused Jehan to turn on music and spin around with Cosette. Feuilly and Éponine laughed jovially and Enjolras noticed Grantaire continually refilling his glass.
Grantaire led him outside and onto the balcony where he kissed him roughly. Enjolras reciprocated with equal passion, tasting the sour-sweet tang of wine on his tongue. Enjolras pulled away, leaning his forehead against Grantaire's.
"How often do you drink a bottle and a half of wine?" Enjolras asked.
"Tu a compté?"
"Answer the question. Please?"
"De temps en temps."
Enjolras huffed. "Please be serious."
Jehan peeked out onto the balcony then. "Lovebirds, come in. We're watching The Aristocats because it's the best movie to watch while drunk."
Enjolras sighed and Grantaire smiled, kissing Enjolras on the cheek. They walked inside and Grantaire plopped down in front of the couch. Enjolras rested his head in his lap, his eyebrows knitted together. His forehead smoothed out by the end of the movie, though, with Grantaire's fingers combing through his hair, as they laughed when their friends started reenacting the movie using empty bottles as props.
They calmed down eventually. They were sprawled out in various positions of relaxation and Jehan was smoking a cigarette, causing the smoke to fill the small room.
He exhaled a large puff of smoke when he asked, "How long are you here for again?"
"Un mois," Enjolras answered simply.
Éponine took the cigarette from Jehan and pulled the smoke into her lungs before playfully blowing it into Feuilly's face. "Un mois?" She repeated. "Profite de ton séjour."
She offered the cigarette to Enjolras, who accepted it before handing it off to Grantaire. No one asked the question they were all thinking: "Et après le mois?"
"And after the month?"
Notes: Chien; la mer: dog; the sea
Grantaire! Ici: Grantaire! Here.
Donc voici l'américain à propos duquel tu m'as appelé à deux heure du matin: so this is the American you called me at two AM to talk about.
Tu parles anglais, maintenant?: You speak English now?
Je lui apprendre/apprends: I taught him
Et il parle français? Il y a deux nuits, il lisait le dictionnaire: And he speaks French? Two nights ago he was reading from the dictionary.
Je ne comprends pas. Deux jours. Deux jours et il parle anglais. Je sais que tu es intelligent, R, mais deux jours: I don't understand. Two days. two days and he speaks English. I know you're smart, R, but two days.
Enfin, il avait une motivation: Well, he had motivation.
Qu'est-ce qu'ils font?: What are they doing?
Quel est le pari le plus proche: What's the closest bet?
Trois mois: Three months
Qui a fait ça?: Who made that?
Moi, parce que-: Me, because-
Je t'aime, 'Ponine, mais j'ai entendu le même discours cinq fois. Trois fois alors que tu étais bourrée: I love you, Ponine, but I've heard this speech five times. Three times while you were drunk.
Tu l'aimes?: Do you love him?
Je l'aimes. Je pense: I love him. I think.
Tu penses? Pourquoi juste ça?: You think? Why just that?
Je l'aime autant que je le peux. C'est complètement dingue, mais c'est comme ça: I love him as much as I can. I know it's crazy, but it's true.
Tu l'aimes plus que tu ne le réalises: You love him more than you realize.
Tu mets plus de fois en moi que tu ne devrais: You put more faith in me than you should.
Tu a compté?: You kept count?
De temps en temps: From time to time.
Un mois: One month.
Profite de ton séjour: Enjoy your stay.