[EDIT] I noticed A LOT of mistakes when I reviewed it later... so now it should be better!

A/N: Hello peeps! Sorry for the delayed update: I thought things would quiet down for summer but apparently I was mistaken. I'm taking an online math course, where I have assignments due daily (ugh) and on top of that my work decided they wanted to schedule me to work 5-6 days a week! Then I have church activities to help with and attend... so my summer is basically non-existent. *sigh* Tis the life of a broke college student.

Disclaimer: If I owned Les Miserables, I would have a giant pool and the guys who played Les Amis in the film would be my cabana boys.

CHAPTER SIX: No Longer Alone

June 1st 1832

Her vision was dark and cloudy yet she could hear the words of others around her, catching fragments of sentences…

" – she was attacked – "

" – will be all right – "

" – go to the hospital? – "

" – Éponine – "

Upon hearing her name, Éponine's eyes snapped open… however, she regretted it almost immediately.

A sharp, searing pain throbbed from the back of Éponine's head; she let out an involuntary moan in response. The voices ceased and suddenly Éponine was surrounded by a half-dozen young men, all looking at her with worried expressions: it was only Marius and his friends much to her relief. Éponine recognized the room as the second floor of Café Musain and felt more at ease. "How are you feeling, 'Ponine?" asked Marius as he placed his hand on her shoulder, a gesture that most likely would have made her swoon only a few hours ago.

"I feel as if I got run over by a carriage," Éponine groaned, earning some chuckles from the students standing around her. She rubbed her cheek, which was slightly swollen from her father's blow. "What's going on?"

"We were hoping you could tell us…"

Éponine turned toward her right to see Enjolras leaning up against the wall farthest away from the table, his arms folded across his chest looking incredibly uncomfortable. Éponine lifted her hand to touch the aching spot, noticing that wrapped around the circumference of her head was thick gauze. "Who did this?" asked Éponine, gesturing to the gauze.

One of the boys nudged the pleasant-looking Joly forward. He smiled warmly and said, "That would be me, mademoiselle. I do not know if you remember me, but I am currently studying medicine at the university and did everything I could to help you. You have some slight bruising in the torso – that will go away in a few days, it is nothing serious! – but you did receive quite a blow on your head and you may have a concussion. I would recommend refraining from strenuous activities for about a week or so…"

Marius squeezed Éponine's shoulder – Why didn't he touch me like this before I fell out of love with him! Éponine thought – and added, "I heard you scream and found you being attacked. I was unsure what to do – you were bleeding badly – and I enlisted the help of my friends. Enjolras and Joly brought you here to patch you up, with the help of Combeferre and Courfeyrac."

Éponine stared at the bourgeoisies. The Thénardier part of her instinctively wanted to tell the students off, claiming that she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself… that she did not need to rely on the charity of others. Yes, she did not obtain money legally but she was prideful of the fact she had made it this far without aid…

… Yet Éponine found it difficult to be angry at them. They did not know her very well or why she had been assaulted and still they went out of the way to help her. She had only met these men twice (save Marius and Enjolras) and they cared about her wellbeing far more than her own family did.

"I… thank you, monsieurs," Éponine said, giving them a genuine smile. "I am grateful to you all… and thank you for patching me up, Joly. You will make a fine doctor, someday."

All of the students broke into wide grins, except for Enjolras; his posture relaxed slightly but his expression remained neutral. "Is it all right for me to move about?" asked Éponine.

Joly nodded enthusiastically and replied, "Certainly, mademoiselle! Just take great care when you walk about. If you ever feel the slightest bit dizzy, sit down immediately and wait for it to pass. If it persists I recommend you find me and I shall do my best to help!"

Cautiously, Éponine sat up and slid off the table. The boys all took a step closer, bracing themselves in case she fell. She took a few steps forward to test her balance.

"Are you feeling all right, 'Ponine?" asked Marius.

Éponine gave a little laugh. "Of course I am! I am tougher than I appear, monsieur."

"Good," said Marius with a grin. "I just wanted to make sure you were conscious and well before I head out: when I heard you scream, I left Cosette abruptly and I wanted to explain what happened. Stay safe, mon ami."

After receiving brotherly hug, Éponine watched as Marius darted down the stairs, noticing the gleam in his eye when he had spoken Cosette's name.

"Well this night has been anything but dull," commented Courfeyrac with a grin. "After all this excitement, I think I'm ready to turn in. Would you like someone to accompany you to your home, mademoiselle?"

Éponine shook her head. "No, but thank you for asking. I wish to have a word with Monsieur Enjolras in private."

Enjolras was surprised when Éponine spoke his name but perhaps not as much as Les Amis were. They all exchanged meaningful glances. "Very well," replied Enjolras. To his companions, he said, "I shall see you at tomorrow's meeting."

They all nodded silently, dumbstruck by the strange turn of events. What on Earth could they possibly want to talk about? One by one the descended down the wooden staircase. Éponine waited until she heard the café door close before she began to speak.

"Monsieur, I… I do not know you very well… yet you and your companions went out of your way to help me."

Enjolras merely nodded, unsure if that was a statement or a question.

Éponine continued. "I cannot express just how grateful I am to all of you. Very few people would do something like that for someone like me."

"That should not be the case," Enjolras remarked bitterly. "Everyone should be treated equally; whether a person is rich or poor, male or female, it should not define who they are. That is precisely the kind of injustice I want to put an end to."

Éponine nodded again, this time solemnly. "I believe you fight for a noble cause, monsieur… I am unsure whether or not others will support it, though."

"You do not think the people will rise against the tyranny of the king?"

Shaking her head, the gamine replied, "I know the people of the streets… they dream of a world where everyone lives in equality, but they believe it is only just that: a dream."

Enjolras looked confused. "But they have the chance to help make their dream a reality. Why would they not take the chance to stand up for what is right?"

Éponine gingerly lowered herself into the nearest chair and sighed. "I do not know. Perhaps they are scared of what will happen if the revolution does not succeed? Perhaps they have grown too accustomed to their way of life and do not want to give it up? I would gladly fight for a better life if I was in their place."

"Why don't you, then?" asked Enjolras seriously.

"What do you mean?"

Enjolras sat down in the chair across from Éponine's, his gaze never leaving her. "Why don't you join our cause, mademoiselle? You could be beneficial to our cause."

"I… I don't know," stammered Éponine, taken aback by Enjolras's question. Did she really want to get involved in a revolution? "There is so little I know about politics and government… I would be more of a burden than a help."

"That is no issue to me: I know plenty about politics. It is life on the streets that I know nothing of… and you are far from being a burden, mademoiselle. Will you at least consider it?"

Éponine was just about to decline from his offer when a thought crossed her mind: This is what you have been waiting for. Only a few hours ago you fell out of love with Marius and promised to find something else to live for. You have always wanted to have a better life than that of a gamine, so why not fight for a cause that wants to put an end to inequality? Your mind may be telling you it is a foolish idea but your heart is willing to go to the ends of the earth to help others like yourself. Make your life worth living.

"I… will consider it," answered Éponine.

Fighting the urge to smile, Enjolras gave a nod and said, "Thank you, mademoiselle."

The café was silent once more. Enjolras and Éponine stared off into space, each trying to think of something else to discuss.

"Is it all right if I spend the rest of the night here?" asked Éponine. "I do not feel like walking home so late." What Éponine didn't say was that she did not want to leave the café because she had little desire to run into her father again.

"Of course. My friends and I are on good terms with the madame that owns the café; she does not mind as long as you do not cause trouble."

Éponine laughed softly. "But she lets you plan an uprising against the king here?"

Enjolras pondered that for a moment and then surprised Éponine by chuckling. "That is a very good point," he said.

He rose from his seat and slowly began making his way to the staircase. "There are blankets in that cupboard over there. In the past few months, I spent many restless nights here and decided to bring some of my own belongings to make it more comfortable. Feel free to use them."

Enjolras was just about to head down the stairs when he heard Éponine quietly call his name. He turned around to find her staring at him with a strange expression. She looked as if she was hesitating to tell him something. "Yes, mademoiselle?"

Taking a deep breath, Éponine replied, "I just wanted to apologize for the way I acted toward you earlier… when you made that comment about me and Marius, I acted badly and I'm sorry."

Enjolras shook his head. "There is no need to apologize, mademoiselle. It was wrong of me to get involved in your personal life… I am sorry for putting you in that position." Did I just admit that I was wrong? Enjolras asked himself. I have never apologized for my behavior before. There's something about this gamine…

"You were right, you know," Éponine said quietly.

Enjolras blinked, unsure if he heard her correctly. "I… I was?"

With a nod, the gamine said, "I took Marius to see the girl, Cosette. While they were talking, I realized that I did not love Marius… at least, not in the sense I thought. I was in love with the idea of Marius, of the kind of happiness he could bring me if we spent the rest of our lives together. You had been right all along, monsieur."

Enjolras was speechless. Being the perceptive man that he was, he could tell that Éponine was not used to admitting she was wrong, just like himself. Even now she kept avoiding his gaze, seeming to be embarrassed by her confession. So instead of pressing the subject further, knowing Éponine would not enjoy that, he said, "Please take care when you leave. I hope you have a pleasant rest, mademoiselle."

Éponine laughed. "Monsieur, there is no need to continue calling me 'mademoiselle'. I am far from being a lady."

"If that is truly what you want then I insist you refrain from calling me 'monsieur' as well."

"Good night then, Enjolras," said Éponine with a small grin.

"Good night, Éponine."

Enjolras was about to descend down the staircase when – again – he was interrupted; this time it was Marius. He had raced up the stairs and nearly collided into Enjolras.

"Pontmercy? What's going on?" asked Enjolras, noticing the somber expression on his comrade's face.

"She's gone…" murmured Marius, eyes glistening with unshed tears. "My beloved Cosette is gone!"

A/N: I know there's not much going on in this chapter, but the next few chapters will be interesting! I will be introducing Gavroche, Marius and Eponine will be having a serious heart-to-heart, and the time for the revolution is getting closer!

I would also like to apologize for some of my terms. See, I spent last summer in Scotland and a lot of the lingo stuck with me. That is why some of my terms are American while others are British or Scottish. Sorry about that! Some habits die hard...

Thanks to all who read/review/follow/favorite! Anytime someone reviews or follows my story, I read your stories too and try to review as often as I can :)

**IMPORTANT**

Be on the lookout for my E/É one-shot that will be posted soon! It's a humorous re-telling of the "Heart Full of Love" scene. When I post it I will let you know in the Author Note for my next chapter or if you send me a private message I can message you personally when the story has been posted. Keep an eye out for it!