Surprise! Early chapter! I hope you like it!

Enjolras didn't even stop by his flat after he ran into Eponine. He went straight to Marius' new home to find out exactly what Marius had done to the only girl Enjolras had ever loved. He mounted the steps, knocked on the door, and waited. Nobody came. He knocked again. Nobody came. Resolved to get to the bottom of the situation, he plopped down on the top step and waited. After a while, Marius came walking up to the house. "Oh, hello, Enjolras!" he said a bit too cheerfully.

"What did you do?" Enjolras cut to the chase.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean what did you do to Eponine to make her so upset?"

"I didn't do anything," said Marius all too innocently.

"That's a lie. Eponine's tough. No one could make her cry but you," spat Enjolras. He felt himself getting angrier by the minute.

"It's nothing. She got mad because I tried to kiss her. She's just emotional is all." Marius tried to shrug off the blame.

"If that's the case, why hasn't she been emotional before? Why has she only just become emotional when she got involved with you?" Enjolras' voice rose to a yell.

Marius yelled back. "It's not my fault! All I wanted was to be with her casually. I never wanted it to be serious. I'm married; she knew that before she got into this relationship!"

"It's not a relationship! All you want is to have her around when you want to have a bit of fun. You want her to be your mistress; don't you? Well, that can't happen because she loves you! She thinks you love her, so you have to choose, Marius."

"I'll thank you to see to your own affairs!" said Marius pompously.

"I'm not the one having an affair."

"Now see here!" sputtered Marius.

"No!" shouted Enjolras. "YOU need to see that you are leading on an innocent girl who knows nothing but her affection for you, AND you are being unfaithful to your wife. What if Cosette caught you with her, Marius? What then? Would you leave Eponine to clean up the mess that you made? She's not responsible for your actions, but she will be persecuted if anyone finds out! And someone will find out eventually. You have to choose, Marius, or else someone will end up choosing for you." With that, Enjolras walked away, leaving Marius with his thoughts. There was nothing more that he could do. All he cared was that Marius did not continue to hurt Eponine as he previously had.

Marius was furious with Enjolras. What right had he to dictate how Marius should live his life? He knew exactly what he was doing and what the consequences would be if someone other than his best friend discovered. But he couldn't just abandon Cosette, and he had no desire to marry Eponine for fear that it would turn out as Cosette's and his marriage had. There was nothing he could do. He went inside and sat down in his large, overstuffed chair and read the newspaper.

"Good morning, Marius, dear!" twittered Cosette cheerfully. "Was your time at the office productive?"

"Yes, dear," sighed Marius.

After a while, he grew tired of the news and Cosette's idle chatter, so he packed up his briefcase and pretended to be going back to work.

"I'm off to work," he called to his wife.

Cosette pranced into the room. "So soon, my love?" she pouted.

"Yes, I must be off. I have a very important case to attend to," said Marius, wanting to get away as soon as possible. He backed towards the door. "Au revoir."

"Aren't you going to kiss me goodbye?" pouted Cosette. Marius gave her a small peck on the cheek. "That is no kiss!" she giggled accusingly.

Marius was confused. Cosette had never seemed interested in his affection before. Seizing the moment, he grabbed Cosette's tiny, fragile hips and pressed his body against hers, kissing her lips passionately.

At first, Cosette was shocked, but after a bit, she began to enjoy the kiss and to kiss her husband back. After several minutes, the two broke away, gasping for air. Cosette was flushed, and Marius had a self satisfied smirk on his face. Cosette looked at her husband lovingly.

"Must you still leave, darling?" She did her best to look coy and flirtatious.

Marius thought of Eponine. This was the first time Cosette had kissed him with any sort of passion, and who knew when she would turn back to her little friends? But with Eponine, there was constant heat and electricity. She always kissed him that way, no matter what. He couldn't just let that disappear. He had to make things right with her.

"So sorry, darling, but I must be off now!" said Marius as he hurried out the door.

Eponine walked along the Seine, humming to herself as she cried. She had done a big thing in trusting Marius, and he had violated her trust just like all of the other men she had made the mistake of trusting. She vaguely heard her name being called, but she didn't bother to look for who was calling. It was probably Marius with some cheap apology he wanted to fling at her.

"Eponine!" Marius called, seeing her shadowy form on the banks of the river. "Eponine!" She didn't turn around. He ran up to her and took her small hands in his. She jerked hers away. "Eponine, you must listen to me. I know that there is nothing I can say to change what I have done, but I cannot live another day without you."

Eponine raised her eyebrows. It had only been a few hours. Did he really miss her that much? She rearranged her face into a frown and decided to test the waters.

"Go away. I hate you. I will never love you again." It was a little harsh, but it ought to do the trick. Her heart fluttered as Marius' face fell. He really did love her! He was sorry about what he had done!

"I know that I cannot change your feelings, but if you ever change your mind, I will always be waiting." Marius said.

Eponine grinned and hugged him, saying, "Oh, Marius, I was only teasing. I wanted to see if you were really sorry, and you are! You are!" She tilted her face up, hoping he would kiss her. She waited, but he didn't kiss her, and he didn't hug her back.

Marius was dumbfounded. Had it really been that easy? He snapped out of his daydream when he heard Eponine say, "Why don't you kiss me?" with an adorable little pout. "Are you sure you won't get mad?" he asked cautiously. Eponine giggled, "Of course not, silly! Now, kiss me." Marius didn't need to be told twice. He pressed his lips against hers, first cautiously then more and more passionate as seconds seemed as long as minutes and minutes seemed as long as hours. He felt the familiar electricity between them and smiled to himself.

Eponine kissed Marius more passionately than ever, but something still felt off. She pushed the feeling away, telling herself that it was nothing. She felt herself grow weak at the knees, and Marius picked her up. She wrapped her legs around his waist, and they continued to kiss for several more minutes, only stopping to breathe.

"I love you," whispered Marius between kisses.

Eponine smiled, causing their teeth to clack together. "I love you, too." She let herself down, and Marius took her hand.

"Come. How about we get you some new frocks?" Eponine was about Cosette's size, so he assumed that he could find something to fit her.

"That would be lovely," said Eponine, still in a daze.

Cosette sat on a park bench by the Seine, gulping in deep breaths of fresh air. What had she just seen? Marius was at the office. It couldn't have been him. And Eponine would never do such a thing. She was far too sweet. Wasn't she? What was Cosette to do? Should she stay silent or confront her husband? And what about HER secret? Should she tell him now? Could she?

Enjolras sat at his usual spot in the Cafe, mulling over his school work. He tried to focus, but his efforts were fruitless. He pulled out a few sheets of paper that he had scribbled mindless verses onto. He had become very sentimental of late, writing poetry about his dead friends and Eponine. Mostly Eponine. A sheet fell to the floor, and he picked it up, reading the contents of the page.
Red; the blood of friends who died
Black; the dark has taken hold
Red; the bullet and I collide
Black; all I feel is cold

Red; the light of the dawning sun
Black; the dark is all I see
Red; the river of young blood
Black; it's all because of me
He sighed and hung his head. If only...if only he had waited, been patient. If only he had contained his anger. His friends would have still been there. Looking down, he noticed a paper that bore Eponine's name. He smiled sadly and read the poem he had composed about the only girl he had ever loved.
Raven locks frame her face
The definition of beauty and grace
A face that contains grief and sorrow
Her mind wanders places I cannot follow
Eyes that watch every move he makes
Feet that follow every step he takes
If only he knew he had what I wanted
Every time I see her I am left haunted
I know she doesn't feel the same
And I only have myself to blame
Enjolras sighed and tried to move on to happier things. But there were no happy things. Eponine loved Marius, Marius was using her, and neither of them noticed how he felt. He chided himself for brooding over his feelings and forced himself to study.

Now, real talk: Post a comment containing your guess about what Cosette's secret is. Whoever gets it right first gets a preview of the next chapter AND a surprise! SO...everybody comment!